Oh HELL NO !!! - Democratic Underground

WillyT

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Thu Sep-23-10 01:52 PM
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Oh HELL NO !!!

As Billboards Pop Up In Wisconsin, Tea Party And GOP Accused Of Voter Suppression
Ryan J. Reilly | TPMMuckraker
September 23, 2010, 1:10PM

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The Wisconsin Republican Party claims to have shelved an elaborate plan to coordinate with other conservative groups to root out purported voter fraud in the state's upcoming election.

The original plan, which was revealed in a document obtained and made public by a progressive group in the state, would have designated Tea Party groups as investigators in the field looking for fraudulent registrations -- looking through the white pages to authenticate voter addresses, pulling up homes on Google Maps and even driving by houses and apartments to conduct visual checks.

Under an earlier draft of the plan, Tea Party volunteers would then send complete reports to a Wisconsin GOP official, and were instructed to delete all copies of the data and required to sign a confidentiality notice.

The Wisconsin GOP confirmed to Talking Points Memo that documents released by One Wisconsin Now this week outlining a coordinated campaign between the party, a Tea Party group and the state chapter of Americans for Prosperity to address the organizations' fear of voter fraud originated from his office. But a spokesman said the initiative has since been scrapped and the groups have no plans to work together.

The head of the state chapter of AFP maintained his group was never associated with any coordinated voter fraud effort, despite documents to the contrary indicating they were planning mail out postcards intended to clean up voter registration lists, promote a tool to check on a voter's status and to purchase billboards featuring anti-voter fraud messages.

Now a number of billboards which say they are funded by "A Private Family Foundation" have popped up around the state that feature the slogan "VOTER FRAUD is a FELONY!" and feature images of two women of indeterminate race and an African-American man behind bars. The billboards warns Wisconsin residents they could be subjected to up to three years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines.

One such billboard, pictured in photographs provided to Talking Points Memo, is located along Interstate 1-94 near Ixonia, which sits between Milwaukee and Madison. There are reports of the same billboard popping up all over Milwaukee, said a One Wisconsin Now representative.

Officials coordinating what they say is an anti-voter fraud effort -- which would have a disparate impact on minorities and students unlikely to vote Republican --say they don't know anything about the billboards. Documents indicated organizers considered featuring messages like "Did your deceased uncle vote in 2008?" on the billboards, according to the documents posted on One Wisconsin Now's website.

As TPM has reported, the issue of voter fraud has been ginned up by Tea Party activists this year despite evidence the problem is much smaller than conservatives contend and that anti-voter fraud efforts can clamp down on legitimate voting. AFP's Dick Armey has raised the issue of voter fraud, as have Tea Party groups around the country. A self-described ACORN whistleblower has appeared at conservative conventions from D.C. to the suburbs of Chicago. Meanwhile, elections watchdogs have said they want to make sure poll watchers trained by Tea Party groups are clear on election laws.

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More: http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/09/as_billboards_pop_up_in_wisconsin_tea_party_and_gop_accused_of_voter_suppression.php

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