Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News, Saturday, August 26

[livvy]

Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News

May Lady Justice Prevail in CA-50
All members welcome and encouraged to participate.



Please post Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News on this thread.

If you can:
1. Post stories and announcements you find on the web.

2. Post stories using the new Spring 2006 Edition of "Election Fraud and Reform News Directory" listed here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x407240

3. Re-post stories and announcements you find on DU, providing a link to the original thread with thanks to the Original Poster, too.

4. Start a discussion thread by re-posting a story you see on this thread.



Please "Recommend" for the Greatest Page (it's the link just below) because the daily election news is the .

[livvy]

1. Brad Blog: Busby/Bilbray Contest Defendants Claim Election Decided in DC..

EXCLUSIVE: Busby/Bilbray Contest Defendants Claim Election Decided in DC, Not California!
Plaintiff in Response: 'Defendant's Argument Means Election Is Uncertified, Never Happened'
UPDATED! NOW WITH A LIVE REPORT FROM THE COURTHOUSE! where Attorney Paul Lehto Claims 'Election Nullification Argument' is Absurd, Power Grab by Speaker of the U.S. House…

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

We haven't been covering the CA50 Election Mess as often as in the recent past — while Brad's been on the road and otherwise occupied — but we have been keeping our ears to the ground, so to speak. (Yes, they get dirty, but so what? We can hear things coming before they happen. It's cool; you should try it.)

My friends, we have been hearing distant rumblings of great power. To get you up to speed quickly…

The CA50 U.S. House special election between Francine Busby and Brian Bilbray was held on June 6, on illegal Diebold voting machines as has been reported here many times. (Click here for a good recent summary of the situation.) On June 13, Bilbray was quickly sworn in to the House of Representatives while thousands of votes were still being counted back in San Diego. (This surprised and angered many voters, especially since a poll taken three weeks before the election showed Busby ahead by 7%.) On June 29, the election was finally certified — in favor of Bilbray — by the Registrar of Voters Mikel Haas.

The election was contested on July 29 after Haas refused to allow for a hand count of the ballots, as allowed by California state law. And on August 22, defendants filed a brief in the case to dismiss, stating that because Bilbray has already been sworn in (by the Republican House of Representatives,) the California Court has no jurisdiction whatsoever and the House has exclusive jurisdiction to judge who its members are and the qualifications of those members.

According to an email sent to The BRAD BLOG this evening from attorney Paul Lehto…
The defendants' position is that the court is powerless (i.e. without jurisdiction) to do anything about this election contest, because Bilbray was sworn in only 7 days after the June 6, and long before the election was legally final on or about June 29.

This premature termination of the election in the 50th Congressional District by the swearing in took place while votes were literally still being counted and provisional votes were still being counted, and also this premature swearing-in took place well before the 1% ballot audit required as part of the certification process, and also occurred fully 16 days prior to the official certification of the results.

More at link

http://www.bradblog.com/

various discussion threads:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=203&topic_id=446445&mesg_id=446445
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x447060
Yesterday's ERD - "Court Day Special"
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=203&topic_id=446984&mesg_id=446984
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1982660

[livvy]

2. Cancelling Democracy (Busby/Bilbray)

August 25, 2006 at 17:08:46
Cancelling Democracy
by Ginny Ross

From Ginny Ross of the Election Defense Alliance:


I hope this bald-faced GOP power grab and revocation of Democracy in San Diego is as disgusting and frightening to you as it is to me.

This nullification of a Congressional election by "swearing in" by a ruling party in Congress means our Constitution and State laws now have virtually no power to stop the extremist right wing coup of America. We are moments away from one-party rule. This fall, even without martial law or another false-flag terror attack such as 9/11, the GOP will simply cancel elections and lock in their contrived majority once and for all by "swearing in" illegally elected candidates before their elections have even been certified.

I just wanted to alert you to the magnitude of our election crisis and just how dangerous things have become in the dire hope that you will decide to do something about it and fight back this year. Since there is virtually NO coverage of this appalling violence to democracy in the corporate controlled media, I thought I'd try to get the word out myself. Can you help pass the word around?

We now have "show" elections, counted on trade secret software by companies with partisan connections with announced results rammed into place by staged, pre-certification swearing-in ceremonies, by corrupt election officials who fail to enforce the laws, and by a docile, insipid corporate media. And all this is happening in plain view of the opposition party that is only now starting to wake up to the crisis despite the disastrous majority disenfranchisements of 2000, 2002 and 2004.
Are you going to stand for this in America?

More at link

http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_ginny_ro_060825_cancelling_democracy.htm

[livvy]

3. Women’s Equality in Political Life Still Unrealized After 86 Years

Board of Directors National League of Women Voters Chicago Convention, February 1920 Top row: left to right: Miss Katherine Ludington, Hartford, Conn. Director 1st region; Mrs. Richard Edwards, Peru, Indiana,treasurer; Miss Della Dorth, Nashville, Tenn., director 3rd region; Mrs. George Gellhorn, St. Louis, MO. Vice chairman and director 6th region; Mrs. James Paige, Minneapolis, Minn., director 5th region; Mrs. Solon Jacobs, Birmingham, Ala., secretary.Lower row: left to right: Mrs. Maud Wood Park, Boston, President 1920-24; Mrs. Grace Wilbur Trout, Chicago,chairman hostess committee; Mrs. Carrie Chapman Catt, New York, honorary chairman.
http://www.lwv.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=The_LeaguE_Voice_Newsletter&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&CONTENTID=1535



Women’s Equality in Political Life Still Unrealized After 86 Years

League of Women Voters Marks Anniversary of the 19th Amendment with Pride and Concern

Washington, DC – August 26 th marks the 86th anniversary of the day that the U.S. Constitution was amended to grant women the right to vote. Today, American women now comprise more than half of our nation’s voting age population, but according to the League of Women Voters, the struggle to become full participants in the political life of the country has yet to be fully realized.

“The anniversary of the 19th amendment, Women’s Equality Day, provides us with an opportunity to reflect with pride on the progress made on voting rights in the past 86 years, including our very recent success in renewing the Voting Rights Act,” said Mary G. Wilson, national League president.

“But, it is also a time to acknowledge the work that still needs to be done,” said Wilson. “Our democracy is at risk. Partisan gerrymandering, special interest money, and government corruption have shaken Americans’ faith in government. Citizen participation in government has faltered when it is more critical to safeguarding our democracy than ever before.”

Re-energizing civic engagement was the charge given to newly elected national League President Mary G. Wilson by the League’s grassroots membership at the LWVUS Convention in June. “The League is a unique organization because every day, we do the hands-on work that democracy requires. Our members educate new citizens and first- time voters about their rights and responsibilities, we monitor our system of checks and balances, and we help protect our natural resources. Our network of energetic and engaged members in communities across the nation is dedicated to making an impact - from their own communities to Washington, D.C. We need more of this kind of participation,” said Wilson.

One more paragraph at link

http://www.lwv.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Press_Releases&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&CONTENTID=6072

[livvy]

4. Opinion: Protecting the 2006 Vote

This is an older opinion piece, but I thought, a good one.



Protecting The 2006 Vote
Art Levine
July 19, 2006

Art Levine is a contributing editor for The Washington Monthly and has written for The New Republic, The Atlantic Monthly, and many other publications.

How many electronic voting machines can dance on the head of a pin?

That’s nearly how arcane today’s raging, almost theological, arguments among progressives have become over the lost 2004 election. The debates continue over such admittedly worthy issues as whether the GOP’s evil minions literally stole the election in Ohio from John Kerry in 2004, and if the blame for Kerry’s loss was due mostly to his bungled campaign, rigged voting machines or voting suppression efforts that targeted black and low-income voters.

But these internal debates don’t do anything to fight flaws in our nation’s patchwork election system that threaten to rob millions of Americans of the right to vote in the upcoming November election—and weren’t remedied by last week’s House passage of the Voting Rights Act. Fortunately, we don’t have to limit ourselves to wringing our hands, filing lawsuits against voting-machine companies, hoping for sweeping federal reforms or, as author Mark Crispin Miller says, “Going Ukraine” if the Republicans hold on to Congress.

Instead, there are a host of concrete steps you can take up through Election Day to keep votes from being robbed—and admirable national and local groups (see resources here) you can join to help prevent the sort of meltdowns that happened in Ohio in 2004.

Why is election reform—a key element of initiatives by MoveOn.org, Common Cause and People for the American Way, among others—so important? It’s not just that it promotes fair voting and democracy. It’s also essential for Democrats’ hopes of winning back either house of Congress this year, especially in any close elections. Sen. Hillary Clinton, who knows a thing or two about gaining power, put the issue at the top of her speech at the Take Back America progressive conference last month: “The Republicans have absolutely no interest in changing the way we vote, in holding the machine makers responsible, in having a verified paper trail, in eliminating conflicts of interest …” She noted that voting reform isn’t going to pass Congress this year and urged, “So until we get back a Democratic Congress, we have to hold local and state officials accountable…Make sure you do everything you can in the next several months so we don’t have a repeat of what happened in Ohio, what happened in Florida.”

More at link


http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/07/19/protecting_the_2006_vote.php

[livvy]

5. Diebold Poster Break

[livvy]

6. CA: Angelides Rallies Local Union Members

Angelides rallies local union members

Nominee says he'll fight for pensions
By John Marelius
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

August 26, 2006

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Phil Angelides warned union members in San Diego last night that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger would resume his unsuccessful quest to overhaul public pensions if he wins a second term in November.

“Unlike this governor, who went after your pensions and will do it again if he is re-elected, I will stand up for decent, secure pensions for the people who serve our state,” Angelides told university workers.

Angelides, the state treasurer, addressed a convention of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299 at the Handlery Hotel in Mission Valley. The union represents workers at University of California campuses and medical centers.

Schwarzenegger backed an ill-fated ballot initiative last year that would have shifted public pensions over to private 401(k)-style plans as one of the early cornerstones of his “year of reform” agenda. The plan was scrubbed after objections were raised that it would eliminate death benefits for the survivors of police and firefighters.

More at link

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/politics/20060826-9999-7m26phil.html

[livvy]

7. Quebec To Talk Senate Reform With Harper Government

Quebec to talk Senate reform with Harper government

Jack Aubry
CanWest News Service

Saturday, August 26, 2006

GATINEAU, Que. -- Quebec is entering discussions with the Harper government on Senate reform and whether proposed changes, such as limiting senatorial terms in the upper chamber, can be done without a constitutional amendment.

In an interview with CanWest News, Benoit Pelletier, the province's intergovernmental affairs minister, refused to elaborate on Quebec's position in regards to Senate reform but did not dismiss the possibility of appearing before upcoming Senate hearings to make a presentation.

During the January election, Prime Minister Stephen Harper promised Senate elections and, as the first step, he has introduced a bill that would limit terms to eight years. At present, the mandatory retirement age is 75 and some Liberal senators have already said that the proposed law on term lengths requires a constitutional amendment.

"There are possibly things about the Senate that the federal government could do alone, and there are possibly things that it can't do alone. The question is what is in the first category, what is in the second category," said Pelletier.

More at link

http://www.canada.com/topics/news/politics/story.html?id=5ec7e86a-66b4-43c8-ab34-54873ff02396&k=88964

[livvy]

8. Opinion: A Battle Over Old History

Opinion Saturday, August 26, 2006

A battle over old history

By E.J. DIONNE JR.

August 26, 2006

MELBOURNE, Australia — A battle over the future of the past broke out here last week. The fight explains a great deal about how Australia’s conservative prime minister, John Howard, has hung on to power for a decade.

Pay attention to Howard. His approach could be a model for how parties of the right — including Republicans in the United States — manage to build majorities in turbulent times.

Last week, Howard organized a “history summit’’ to call attention to the decline of Australian history as a subject in high schools. In most states here, history has been subsumed within (and thus displaced by) a broader social studies curriculum focused on “studies of society and the environment.’’

“I think we have taught history as some kind of fragmented stew of moods and events,’’ Howard declared, “rather than some kind of proper narrative.’’

This is the sort of cultural and educational fight familiar to Americans. My gut is with those who see history as a distinct subject. Wherever we live, we should know our country’s national story.

More at link

http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060826/OPINION/60825026/1049

[livvy]

9. AL: Top Party Booster Rethinks Support

Article published Aug 26, 2006
Top party booster rethinks support

By Suevon Lee
Washington Correspondent
WASHINGTON | Tuscaloosa resident John D. Hickman would like to see Congress do two things: ease citizenship requirements for immigrants and relax U.S. trade policy with Cuba.

But Congress doesn’t appear likely to oblige.

>snip

Over the course of a two-year period beginning Jan. 1, 2005, through June 30 this year, Hickman gave a total of $32,500 to the National Republican Congressional Committee. He also has given $7,000 to the Republican National Committee and about $4,000 to the National Republican Senatorial Committee, according to Dwight L. Morris and Associates, a private research firm.

>snip

But John Hickman said he does not plan to donate any more money to the Republican Party. He believes the party is becoming alienated from the general public and is “out of touch with reality."

Hickman questions the Bush administration’s policy in Iraq and the preference of some Republicans for a strict enforcement-oriented immigration law.

More at link

http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060826/NEWS/608260323/1007

[livvy]

10. Diebold Poster Break

[Kurovski]

25. My favorite.

I'm a sucker for good "bathroom" humor.:D

[livvy]

11. OH: Counties Rejecting Signatures For Minimum Wage Ballot Issue

Counties rejecting signatures for minimum wage ballot issue
Saturday, August 26, 2006

CLEVELAND (AP) — A second Ohio ballot proposal — this one to raise the minimum wage — might be in jeopardy because large percentage of signatures gathered are being rejected at election boards.

The high number of invalid signatures on minimum wage petitions have been found in some of Ohio’s most populous counties. Elections boards are expected to report the petition numbers to the office of Secretary of State Ken Blackwell by the end of business Monday, said James Lee, spokesman for Blackwell’s office.

A large number of signatures on petitions to expand gambling in Ohio have also been rejected in some counties, leading backers of that issue to worry whether that proposal will qualify for the ballot.

Lee said Friday a large percentage of invalidated petition signatures does not necessarily mean a potential issue is doomed, because organizers of issue petitions generally seek to gather up to twice the number of signatures needed.

More at link

http://www.cantonrep.com/index.php?ID=304298&Category=13

[Joanne98]

23. I checked to see if I'm registered. I wasn't!

I should have been I haven't moved in 10 years. I think they're taking Dems off the rolls. I need that link to check regs with if anybody has it.

[livvy]

12. AZ: Tried and True Issue-Tax Cuts-Trotted Out Once More By GOP

Tried and true issue - tax cuts - trotted out once more by GOP

Matthew Benson and Chip Scutari
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 26, 2006 12:00 AM

Tax cuts have long been a reliable winner for Republican candidates in Arizona.

This year's group of GOP gubernatorial front-runners is going back to the well, pitching plans to eliminate or ease the state income tax and ratchet back taxes on homeowners and businesses.

Revving up the economy and keeping more money in the pockets of voters is the goal. And the political stakes are obvious: Gov. Janet Napolitano, whose campaign declined comment for this story, leads the GOP challengers by at least 20 points in head-to-head polls. Republicans hope targeting taxes helps narrow the gap.

But some critics worry that good sense is getting lost in the fray as candidates appeal to election-year anti-tax sentiments. And the three Republicans pursuing major changes in the tax code -Len Munsil, Don Goldwater and Mike Harris - say they haven't run the numbers to see whether their plans add up over time. The fourth challenger, Gary Tupper, favors a soup-to-nuts review of every government agency before taking an axe to income taxes.

More (and some really bad ideas) at link

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0826gop-taxplans0826.html

This idea is great, until you go to sell your house and the prospective buyers get shell-shocked by the taxes they will have to pay.
"So Goldwater and Harris are targeting the tax: Goldwater wants to freeze a home's value for as long as it is not sold. Harris would roll back assessment rates to 2004 levels. Munsil wants to eliminate the state portion of property taxes."

[livvy]

13. AZ: Democrats See Ethics Questions As Campaign Ammunition

Democrats see ethics questions as campaign ammunition
The Business Journal of Phoenix - 11:19 AM MST Friday
by Mike Sunnucks
The Business Journal

Democrats hope to make special interests, ethics and scandals an advantage for them in several key Arizona races this November.

The latest salvos come in the wake of a state audit that criticizes the business and operational practices of the State Mine Inspector.

That report, which was done by the state comptroller's office, chides Republican Mine Inspector Douglas Martin for poor fiscal management of oversight of travel expenses and the leasing of vehicles and equipment. The report also said Mine Inspector staff used state vehicles for personal use and used staff involvement with business and industry organizations regulated by the state office.

Only two Republicans have filed to run for the obscure Mine Inspector job and replace the retiring Martin, but Democrats hope the new report helps them in other races by highlighting what they see as GOP ethical lapses.

More at link

http://washington.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2006/08/21/daily50.html

[livvy]

14. Mexico: The Other Campaign

THE OTHER CAMPAIGN
LA OTRA CAMPAÑA
by Roger Stoll

August 25, 2006

Introduction

On the morning of January 1st, 1994, with the seizure of governmental offices in San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico, the Zapatistas announced thier existence to the world. They had emerged from the remote highlands of Chiapas, the southernmost and poorest state of Mexico. The Zapatista National Liberation Army ("EZLN" in its Spanish acronym), was made up of indigenous Mayan peasants, in their words "the poorest of the poor." They wore black ski-masks "so as to be seen," they explained. Their top military leaders included women, such as the late Comandante Ramona, who stood, in bright-colored traditional embroidery, about four-feet tall -- not so extraordinary for a Mayan, but small enough to earn her the affectionate title "the smallest of the small." Their mestizo Mexican spokesperson, the incongruously tall and pale Subcomandante Marcos, effortlessly dispensed poetic prose, politics and wit in three languages: that morning of the takeover of San Cristóbal de las Casas , tourists in the street asked Marcos if they would miss their transportation connections; with exquisite politeness Marcos replied, "Forgive us, but this is a revolution."

Their style, poetic language and unquestioned heroism in battle made the Zapatistas immediately irresistible even to many who barely understood their politics, origins or purpose. But for those who looked closely, there was so much there. The Zapatistas addressed themselves to that persistent enemy of the peoples of the world, the capitalist global empire. They denounced the capitalist juggernaut precisely in its neoliberal form that had greatly increased the rate at which Mexico's corn-growing peasants were driven off their land into paupery and desperation. And to a divided global left, deeply wounded by the disappointment and disastrous collapse of eastern European socialism and the capitalist-roaders of China, the unclassifiable and magically inclusive Zapatista ideology seemed like water in the desert. Thus the Zapatista rebellion was from the moment of its appearance a political, indigenous, peasant movement activists in the industrial north could look to, not just for inspiration or in solidarity, but for direction and example.

Now, after years of victories and defeats, political engagement and autonomy, comes the latest initiative by the Zapatistas. Dubbed "The Other Campaign" (La Otra Campaña, or simply La Otra), its characteristically sly appellation manages to be self-deprecating while at the same time mocking the presumed political centrality of this year's Mexican presidential campaign. La Otra is the Zapatista's attempt to reach beyond its geographic and political borders to forge a national left from all manner of resistance, organized and not, throughout Mexico -- a true left, that makes no concession to the reigning macroeconomics of neoliberalism (an economics which has been embraced by the center-left presidential candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador of the Partido de la Revolución Democrática, or PRD).

La Otra consists chiefly of a Zapatista tour of indefinite duration to each of Mexico's 31 states and the federal district to meet with people in struggle from peasant farmers in the most remote regions of the country to maquiladora workers in Tijuana. The Zapatistas listen to people recount their struggles, and they take notes. The tour is not yet a plan to reshape Mexico and the world, but perhaps a search party to look for one.

More of this long, but interessting piece at link

http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=59&ItemID=10833

[livvy]

15. Diebold Poster Break

[livvy]

16. MI: County Board Candidates Bicker Over Recount

County board candidates bicker over recount
Schultz wants primary rechecked; Simasko, Boggia file rare objections

By SHANNON MURPHY
Times Herald

For the first time in St. Clair County election history, candidates are challenging a recount request.

Republican Randy Schultz, who lost in the August primary election for the 1st District seat on the St. Clair County Board of Commissioners, has requested a recount. Schultz lost by 34 votes to Steve Simasko who will continue onto the November election.

>snip

Simasko and Ron Boggia, who also lost the primary bid, both filed objections to the recount with the county clerk's office.

>snip

Simasko said he objected to the recount because of the unnecessary costs and time it would take to do one. He also said there is no reason to believe there was fraud or mistakes in the election.

More at link

http://www.thetimesherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060826/NEWS01/608260301/1002

[livvy]

17. MI: Protesters Draw Little Interest (And a pic of livvy-well sort of)

See those black sandals underneath the white capri pants. Those are my feet, baby. And you can just see the tip of my head.


And here's the story behind it, which is quite serious IMHO

Publication:Oakland Press; Date:Aug 25, 2006;
Clerk asked to step down

Web-posted Aug 24, 2006

By CHARLES CRUMM
Of The Oakland Press

PONTIAC - Oakland County Clerk Ruth Johnson should step aside as the county's chief elections officer while she's running for lieutenant governor, a local protest group says.

Citizens for Fair Elections planned a protest outside the county courthouse today calling for Johnson's resignation.

"This is a question of ethics," said Bruce Fealk of Rochester Hills. "Oakland County's vote is so critical in the state of Michigan, it can swing elections, as we've seen in the past. Johnson's serving as an objective elections official when her own name is on the ballot casts a huge shadow on the election process."

Calling for Johnson's resignation brought a sharp retort from John Truscott, who is managing Dick DeVos' campaign for governor against incumbent Democrat Jennifer Granholm.

More at links below and the picture of my feet!

http://theoaklandpress.com/stories/082406/loc_2006082445.shtml
http://de.theoaklandpress.com/Repository/ml.asp?Ref=T0xQLzIwMDYvMDgvMjUjQXIwMDMwMg==&Mode=Gif&Locale=english-skin-custom

[Kurovski]

26. Thank you for today's ERD...

and you've given an extra treat for the foot fetishists everywhere!:D

Now THAT'S the way to market the ERD!

[livvy]

27. Next week ...toe shots only. n/t

[livvy]

18. MD: Early Voting Canceled

Maryland votes 2006

Early voting canceled
High court also removes Perez's name from ballot

By Melissa Harris and Andrea F. Siegel
Sun reporters

August 26, 2006

The state's highest court threw primary election preparations into turmoil yesterday, canceling five days of early voting and removing one of three Democratic candidates for attorney general, Thomas E. Perez, from the ballot.

The Maryland Court of Appeals issued brief orders a few hours after hearing oral arguments. The rationale for the rulings - one of which handed Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. a significant victory in his feud with a Democratic-controlled General Assembly that he argues has overstepped its bounds - will be released at a later date.

The court disqualified Perez, saying he had not met the constitutional requirement of practicing law in the state for 10 years. That reshapes the contest to replace retiring Attorney General J. Joseph Curran Jr. and could mean that every Democratic ballot in the state of Maryland has to be reprogrammed.

"Although I disagree with the decision, the Court of Appeals makes the rules, and I play by the rules," Perez said.

More at link


http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-te.md.court26aug26,0,2444460.story?track=mostviewedlink

[livvy]

19. FL: Herald-Tribune Sues To See Secret Buchanan Suit

Herald-Tribune sues to see secret Buchanan suit
By TODD RUGER

[e-mail]
SARASOTA -- The Herald-Tribune filed a motion Friday challenging a judge's order that seals every part of a lawsuit involving congressional candidate Vern Buchanan.

The court file, sealed after a settlement in 2001, includes a fraud allegation against Buchanan. The Republican auto dealer has touted his reputation as a self-made businessman as he seeks to replace U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris in District 13.

Attorneys for the newspaper argued that Judge Nancy Donnellan is inappropriately hiding the case from public view, violating public records rules and unconstitutionally infringing on the right of the public and the press to access court proceedings.

Donnellan has declined to explain her legal justification for sealing the case or provide a copy of the order that made it secret. Correspondence from Donnellan says that the suit was sealed by agreement of all attorneys involved.

More at link

http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060826/NEWS/608260308/1006/SPORTS

[livvy]

20. NY: Seeking a Voice On Voting Machines

Seeking a voice on voting machines
19 county legislators sign letter asking that their views on new devices be heard by elections commissioners

By CAROL DeMARE, Staff writer
Click byline for more stories by writer.
First published: Friday, August 25, 2006

ALBANY -- Nineteen county legislators have signed a letter to elections commissioners asking to be included in discussions on new voting machines to be purchased for next year's elections.

"We are simply asking, in a bipartisan way, for an opportunity to offer our opinion as representatives of the people of Albany County, as to which type of voting machine we prefer for Albany County," legislator Tim Nichols, a Latham Democrat, said in the letter hand-delivered earlier this month. "The Legislature should be fully engaged in this process that is at the root of our democracy. Any decision must include us."


County Democratic Elections Commissioner James Clancy said legislators would be included.

"There will definitely not be any decisions made in a vacuum," Clancy said.

More at link

http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=511409&category=ALBANY&BCCode=&newsdate=8/26/2006

[livvy]

21. OH: Medina Court Clerk Race Could Be For Naught

Medina court clerk race could be for naught
Saturday, August 26, 2006
John Caniglia
Plain Dealer Reporter

Medina- They're raising money, spending it and stumping for votes.

But the two candidates for clerk of Medina Municipal Court might not be on the ballot come Election Day, even though the county Board of Elections ordered ballots Friday that included their names.

For now, Republican Nancy Abbott and Democrat Lori Henry are in a political donnybrook that is tied up in court.

"All that money they're raising could go right out the window," said Thomas Wolfe, chairman of the Medina County Board of Elections.

A judge this week ruled that the way the state legislature decided to change the clerk's job from appointed to elected was unconstitutional. Visiting Judge Ted Schneiderman of Akron said lawmakers made the move in an amendment to an unrelated bill.


More at link

http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/1156581106303530.xml&coll=2

[livvy]

22. CA: T. Elias: Reform Attempts Failed; It's Time To Try Prop.89

Thomas Elias: Reform attempts failed; It's time to try Prop. 89

San Gabriel Valley Tribune

IT'S high time for Californians to admit that past attempts at campaign finance reform have not worked and that something new is needed.

Of course, the existing version of reform was never intended to work. It was planned as a smokescreen giving the appearance of reform while leaving special interests from labor unions and developers to casino Indian tribes and large corporations plenty of room to continue their corrupting activities.

Maybe that's why all those interests now oppose Proposition 89, an initiative on this fall's ballot that aims to provide public funding for candidates who display a significant level of grass-roots support.

Lest anyone doubt the spending of big-money interests has corrupted the political process, national, state and local, just try to remember the last time a California governor bucked the wishes of one of his big donors, or the last time a big city mayor in this state did anything like that.

More at link

http://www.whittierdailynews.com/opinions/ci_4239393

[livvy]

24. Diebold Poster Break: A Twofer!

That's all I have time for today. I'm off for the Michigan Democratic State Convention.
Please add more stories if you're so inclined!