Ex-Gov (AL) Siegelman's story grows local legs.

[trof]

Wow!
My little bi-weekly newspaper, The Foley Onlooker, has 2 front page stories about Siegelman. One about the 2002 'election' when he 'lost' to Riley as a result of a few thousand votes that 'swapped sides' late on election night in my county.

The other is about Siegelman's recent conviction and sentencing and the suspicious way that was brought about.
(Karl Rove?)

Front page news for the Onlooker is usually about the school board meeting and the latest chamber of commerce ribbon cutting.
Wish I could link to it, but it's not online.

You can read a bit about what's happening here:
http://www.locustfork.net/blog/healthsouths_richard_scrushy_on_trial/justice_off_the_tracks_in_alab.html

[BOSSHOG]

1. Wow Trof

you guys can "swap" votes late at night during an election? That's cool. I hope the Siegelman train picks up lots of steam.

[trof]

5. The 2 reporters did a lot of digging.

And all the probate judge and sheriff's department (both repug) could come up with was "computer glitch, but we fixed it".

Yeah, I BET they 'fixed' it.
BTW, in the initial 'count', the Libertarian candidate got over 12,000 votes. Absolutely unheard of in this county.
He got 700 in the 'corrected' totals.

[Frances]

2. The Clarke County Democrat in Grove Hill, Alabama

reprinted the New York Times editorial on its editorial page.

(The Democrat got its name when white Alabamians hated Republicans because Republicans freed the slaves.)

[trof]

3. Thanks. Got a BUNCH of cousins in Clarke County.

Gainestown, Grove Hill, Barlow Bend.

[Frances]

4. Here's another link at yahoo to the Siegleman story

It's interesting to me that so many state attorney generals want this investigated.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070716/ap_on_go_ot/fired_prosecutors_governor;_ylt=Ams_1v2xs4w4t5tRPuO6.lmyFz4D

[trof]

7. OK, I sent that to Jack Vafferty at CNN.

Thanks.
I asked him if anybody at CNN was EVER gonna cover this.
I think it's reached the 'juicy enough for CNN' stage.

[road2000]

8. Hi, trof

Fairhope native and longtime resident here, still following Alabama politics. I recall that incident with the ballots was so stinkin', people called it "Little Florida." If memory serves, Siegelman went to bed 17,000 votes ahead with most of the votes counted, and woke up to find Riley had won. Some murky business took place in the dead of night at the courthouse in Bay Minette, didn't it?

[trof]

6. More on the 2002 'election'.

Naturally, Siegelman wanted a hand recount of the paper ballots the machine reads. He had 'lost' by only about 3000 votes, statewide.

repug state attorney general Bill Pryor said the court must authorize the paper ballot packages to be unsealed.
The all-repug state supreme court obfuscated and dithered.
Siegelman saw it was a battle he could not win and conceded a week later.