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Blogs and 'Journalists' Alike Fall Over Themselves to Cover Phony GOP 'Voting Rights' Group Propaganda
(6 or 7 of you may need to help correct the historical record!) --- [UPDATED SEVERAL TIMES]
By Brad Friedman on 8/3/2005 12:26pm PT  

It's likely you'll be able to find more Rightwing nut jobs out there who couldn't wait to run the phony propaganda issued yesterday by the sham "American Center for Voting Rights" than we have. But as expected, the same knuckleheads who called for Dan Rather's head for shoddy reporting and who choke themselves every day claiming "Liberal Media Bias!" have been all to pleased to run with the garbage that the ACVR released yesterday.

The good Jesse Taylor at Pandagon points out just a few of the wingnut suckers who are apparently unable to type a single word into Google or find within themselves an ounce of critical thought before they must run to their keyboards and re-type horseshit simply because they found it on the Internets and it fits squarely with their uneducated hopes and dreams:

Such illustrious non-partisan, non-profit bloggers as Betsy Newmark, WizBang, The Anchoress and Mr. Remainder stand behind this report uncritically!

Captain Ed of the Wingnut Ship/Blog calling itself "Captain's Quarters" fell for it as well, though even after being told what a chump he's been played for, he still seems to have trouble admitting when he's wrong. Like "President" like Blogger, we guess.

The jackass Steve Bowers, "Senior Editor" at "Pardon My English," trips over himself to write a long item entitled "REPORT DOCUMENTS MASSIVE DEMOCRATIC VOTER FRAUD" in which he uncritically creams in his pants at everything he's read in ACVR's scam "368-page report". The masterful conclusion of what he describes as "Part one of a two part series":

Sounds fair and balanced to me. And it's certainly doesn't appear that the ACVR is a front group for some conservative organization with an agenda.

We can't wait for "part two." Will it be titled "BLOG ITEM EXPOSES STEVE BOWERS AS A COMPLETE AND TOTAL HORSE'S ASS"?

The "Editor", Jason Saine, of "NCRumors" also fell happily for it. But at least that site has the decency to call itself for what it is, a site full of rumors. We'd expect nothing less from its "Editor".

Now citizen bloggers likely have an excuse for being non-journalistic dopes. Just because they call themselves "Senior Editor" doesn't mean they actually have a clue what journalism means. But what of the actual journalistic dopes that fell for it as well?

Arizona Republic was one of them, though to their credit they seem to have now removed the report they ran uncritically on their website yesterday. (Don't know if it ran in their carbon-based edition or not). Thanks to Steve M. of "No More Mister Nice Blog" for noticing and bothering to inform his readers rather than simply pass on unconfirmed garbage as is the wont on the Right.

News Channel 5 of Cleveland, OH, however, ran the story and it's still running! Apparently, they simply cut and pasted the ACVR nonsense about Cleveland being the "#5 Election Fraud 'Hot Spot'" onto their website and called it "reporting."

So what's their excuse?

Daniel Rubin of Philadelphia Inquirer's "Blinq" blog, fell similarly brain-dead in giving "ink" and free publicity to the ACVR this morning. Rubin, who describes himself as a "reporter at the Philadelphia Inquirer since 1988, except from 2000 to 2003, when I was Knight Ridder's European correspondent, based in Berlin," ought to know better, but apparently not. Rubin advises his readers to "Forget Ohio" as he takes the bait...or as he calls it "Election Cheese"

No, Dan. We won't. Neither will we forget you.

(UPDATE: Rubin writes to suggest that we're "nuts" because we failed to mention his link to our ACVR Special Coverage page which received a cursory mention in his blog item. He is correct in that we read his item too fast to notice the quick link, and we apologize for that. Nonetheless, we'll stand behind our criticism of his uncritical coverage/repetition of ACVR's charges and the tremendous publicity he has afforded to the snake-oiled sheisters who cynically created the hoax organization. We hope he'll soon give a similar amount of "ink" to the real evil operatives who need to be called out in this matter for the good of our democracy.)

Then there is the Cybercast News Service which, as expected, ran the ACVR crap virtually as is. CNS, of course, is a phony Rightwing extremist "News" organization who actually covered the ACVR scam after we broke the story here originally. But after the reporter who was assigned to write it filed a report which backed up the original BRAD BLOG reporting, her story was re-written so that she didn't even recognize it when it was posted online to CNS (and subsequently carried at phony GOP "News" sites like GOPUSA, Townhall.com, etc.)

All of which is little surprise, of course, since as we noted in our original article on CNS:

As it turns out, Hogenson --- the Founding and Executive Editor of CNS and also (no conflict at all here) the Radio Services Manager at the RNC Press Office! --- is the longtime compadre to one of the two known lead scheisters at ACVR, Jim Dyke.

Dyke, who has worked hand-in-hand for years in his position at the RNC with Hogenson, was the 2004 RNC Communications Director. (For example, here's a press release where Hogenson and Dyke are listed together just last year.)

We recommend you click on all of the articles and blogs linked in this item, and leave comments (at least on the sites that allow it) letting the bloggers know how you feel about their credibility. Feel free to point them to any of our ACVR reports, or our master index of Special Coverage on ACVR at https://BradBlog.com/ACVR. Yes, it's important to correct the record before their noise allows "conventional wisdom" to set incorrectly into place.

As to "News" Channel 5 of Cleveland, OH, their contact info is here:

Mailing Address: 3001 Euclid Avenue; Cleveland, Ohio 44115
Phone: (216) 431-5555

News Managers:newsmanagers@wews.com
Web News Staff:nn5news@newsnet5.com
Station Comments:feedback5@newsnet5.com

NewsNet5.com Staff
Colleen Seitz, Executive Producer: colleen@newsnet5.com
Darlene Dunn, Senior News Editor: darlene@newsnet5.com
Becky Sabo, News Editor: rsabo@newsnet5.com

Or, nn5news@newsnet5.com; feedback5@newsnet5.com; colleen@newsnet5.com; darlene@newsnet5.com; Email">rsabo@newsnet5.com?BCC=T...dBlog@cville.com\">Email them all at once here...

Go make noise.

UPDATE: Kudos to John Cole of the the right-leaning blog, "Balloon Juice" for calling the ACVR Report for what it is. In his words, it's "Bullshit". Thanks for being an intellectually honest conservative, Mr. Cole. There are far too few of you left in your once grand old party.

Also, kudos to Mark of "Relentlessly Optimistic" for pointing out that at least 26 "Conservative" blogs now have egg on their unabashed faces, and broken links to show for it after breathlessly linking to the now removed Arizona Republic coverage of the ACVR sham report:

BlogsNow lists the "most linked to in 7,682,537 weblogs." At number 21 and climbing as of 1:00 PM (Central) is a story (broken link) that was apparently in the Arizona Republic for some time today before being pulled.

FURTHER UPDATE: Another American democracy-hater who deserves particular notice is "Lee" of "Right Thinking from the Left Coast". He couldn't wait to make an utter asshole of himself after he read ACVR's garbage and ran to his keyboard to breathlessly advise his readers in an item titled "The Truth Comes Out":

Everyone bookmark this link and send it to every one of your whining maggot Democrat friends.
[quotes from ACVR report...and then]
But? but? Bush = Hitler! We all know that the fascists in the GOP were trying to prevent minorities from voting. Michael Moore told us it was so!

Of course, his link was to the now disowned/removed "story" from Arizona Republic. You think "Lee" will feel like admitting what a pathetic, embarrased "maggot Republican" he is? Somehow, we doubt it. The "Truth" is very subjective and not to the taste of all readers in Wingnut Land apparently.

FURTHER UPDATE STILL: Steve M. points out that Washington Times (not a surprise) is also running the story. Not that we ever expected actual journalism from that particular White House Organ.

FURTHER FURTHER UPDATES STILL STILL: We neglected to mention Joe Gandelman's coverage of all of this at "The Moderate Voice" in my initial piece. Gandelman covered the initial ACVR report nonsense, but then quickly did some footwork upon realizing that he'd been had. He made a tremendous effort to cover for his initial lapse in judgement in running with the report, and apologized profusely and correctly for the error (even though you can tell he really wanted that report to be true! But we'll not quibble with a gentleman who has enough honor to cop to a mistake and understand what credible reporting actually means.) To that end, our apology for not mentioning Joe's work earlier in this matter. We should have. But as the shit was flying, his piece was mistakenly overlooked. And it should not have been.

On the other end of the spectrum, unfortunately, we still have the desperate Captain Ed of "Captain's Quarters" who just can't stand that he's been played for a sucker. The Cap'n is still doing everything he can to try and cover his ass. He's failing. We're sure that Iraq is going great too! The Captain, it seems, has finally noticed the ACVR's inclusion of "Democrat" Brian Lunde in yesterday's ACVR Press Releases.

NOTE TO THE CAPTAIN: Ahoy Matey! Perhaps you didn't notice, but the Press Releases for that ACVR report was the first time Lunde has ever showed his face as having anything to do with ACVR during their short, discredited history. The inclusion of a phony quote from Lunde in a Press Release (the same quote re-written for each of six different press releases), hardly makes this group "non-partisan". For details on his phony quote --- which we guess you couldn't find in all your hours of research --- can be found here, in our original report from yesterday. There, that wasn't so hard was it? You'll also find that Lunde has been working hard with both Karl Rove and as well the business interests Lunde represents which support Bush Administration policies. That said, I haven't gotten comment from Lunde yet on if he even realizes he's attached to this report, or if he's even aware of what the ACVR's short but sordid history is. Have you? OVER AND OUT, CAPTAIN!

For more information on the "non-partisan" tax-exempt ACVR scam and the snakeoil salesmen who invented it, Bush/Cheney '04 National General Counsel Mark F. "Thor" Hearne and RNC Communications Director Jim Dyke, please see BRAD BLOG's full Special Coverage of the "American Center for Voting Rights" at https://BradBlog.com/ACVR.
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Republican Schmidt Takes 4% Lead Over Democrat Hackett in Final 22 Minutes of Vote Tally!
By Brad Friedman on 8/2/2005 8:51pm PT  


All graphics taken from screenshots of WCPO.com's Special Election Results page throughout the night:

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GOP Grateful, DNC Still Keeps Head in the Sand
By Brad Friedman on 8/2/2005 8:17pm PT  

In regard to my last report on the flurry of disinformation spewed forth today from the phony "Voting Rights" group calling themselves the "American Center for Voting Rights", John Gideon of the excellent --- and truly non-partisan --- VotersUnite.org group wrote to me wondering if this AP report from Virginia on Mark Dougerghty, the Republican Mayor who was tossed from office and recently indicted on 37 counts of election fraud during his recent re-election bid was included in ACVR's latest report propaganda paper.

The answer, likely to nobody's surprise, is no. There was no mention of the incident in the ACVR's comprehensive report cynical, transparent and subjective cherry-picking of "vote fraud" related incidents and rumors from 2004. The entire Virginia page of the report mentions only one matter: A Nader campaign worker who apparently plead guilty to "signing candidate petitions before a notary that he did not personally circulate, a violation of state law." No other voter fraud or election apparently occured in the state.

Don't even get me started on their pathetic Ohio page, which lists a sum total of four organizations who, the ACVR reports, engaged in some sort of voter registration malfeasance. All of the organizations named, natch, are Dem-leaning groups. Not a single mention of any GOP malfeasance in the Buckeye state, nor a single case of actual vote fraud by anybody. Not one. Perhaps that's because "Of 9,078,728 votes cast in Ohio in 2002 and 2004, only four were fraudulent," according to a June '05 report from Cleveland Plain Dealer. Election fraud, on the other hand, and massive voter disenfranchisment didn't exist according to ACVR's scam report.

For example, while ACVR Exec Director and GOP Operative "Thor" Hearne discussed Kerry campaign workers as attempting to mislead voters as to when Election Day was in the testimony he presented under false pretenses to the U.S. House Administrative Committee last March (proudly displayed in video on ACVR's own website), they seem to have forgotten to include actual evidence like this (courtesy of FreePress.org's book, Did George W. Bush Steal America's 2004 Election: Essential Documents) show just one of the myriad of dirty tricks perpetrated by GOP operatives in Ohio last year:

Nonetheless, as per the plan, Rush Limbaugh reportedly was making good use of ACVR's disinformation campaign on his radio show today, and his current homepage points to the ACVR press release claiming Philadelphia as the nation's "#1 Election Fraud 'Hot Spot'.

Mission Accomplished, ACVR!

But make no mistake. As incidious as these evil ACVR democracy haters are, they have a very clear and transparent purpose above and beyond deflecting from the real malfeasance that occured during Election 2004 which allowed George W. Bush to appear to be victorious. Their real work is to continue the massive disenfranchisement of American Voters by pounding the phony "Voter Fraud" drum in order to give credence to their call for Photo ID requirements at the polls.

Photo ID, of course, would disenfranchise still millions more American voters since the elderly, minority groups and urban dwellers --- overwhelmingly Democratic voters, in other words --- also disproportionately do not have Photo ID's and would thus be disallowed from voting in upcoming elections.

Hearne, from his "non-partisan" post at the ACVR, still sits on the Baker/Carter National Election Reform Commission's "Advisory Panel" where he continues to manipulate the sham committee to ensure their final recommendations will include Photo ID and National Computerized Voter Databases which can be easily gamed to achieve the desired results anywhere in the country.

"Thor" Hearne and Jim Dyke may be unabashedly evil and transparent in their loathing of fair and transparent democracy in America. But they are clever charlatans who know how to get the black-bag job done for their GOP paymasters. And until Democrats wake up and realize the depths to which their opponents will sink to manipulate and/or steal elections, they will continue to lose one after another to these guys. Wake up DNC!

Don't believe me? Take a look at OH-2's Special Election for the U.S. House of Representatives, the results of which were posted just moments ago.

For more information on the "non-partisan" tax-exempt ACVR scam and the snakeoil salesmen who invented it, Bush/Cheney '04 National General Counsel Mark F. "Thor" Hearne and RNC Communications Director Jim Dyke, please see BRAD BLOG's full Special Coverage of the "American Center for Voting Rights" at https://BradBlog.com/ACVR.
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'Non-Partisan' Republican Front Group, American Center for Voting Rights Releases Report, Six Press Releases Focusing on Democratic 'Election Fraud'
Massive Republican Voter Disenfranchisement Virtually Unmentioned, Phony Quotes by 'Democrat' Used in Releases
By Brad Friedman on 8/2/2005 11:47am PT  

In a massive new attempt today to disinform the American Voting Public and sidetrack the true bi-partisan Election Reform movement in this country, the phony "voting rights" group --- calling themselves deceptively "American Center for Voting Rights" (ACVR) --- issued a new report today charging that Democrats were "Far More Involved In Voter Intimidation And Suppression In 2004."

{UPDATE 5/15/07: Since the ACVR has now disappeared from view in the wake of the U.S. Attorney purge, and their website has been taken off line, the report referenced above is now available here via the Internet archives instead. For the historical record.}

Five different heavily Democratic-leaning cities were cited in each of six different Press Releases issued at once via US Newswire within the last hour as being amongst the "top Election Fraud Hotspots" in the country. The sixth Press Release was focused on pushing the ACVR propaganda claim: "Democrat Operatives Far More Involved In Voter Intimidation, Suppression In 2004".

The deceptively-self-described "non-partisan" ACVR, as previously exposed in a series of exclusive articles on The BRAD BLOG, is a Republican front group created by high-level GOP operatives expressly for the purpose of spreading disinformation to sidetrack the Election Reform movement in this country.

Both of ACVR's main players continue to be tied to the upper echelons of the GOP and are longtime Republican partisan operatives. Executive Director Mark F. "Thor" Hearne, has been a backroom player for years in the Missouri and national GOP parties and was most recently the National General Counsel for Bush/Cheney '04 Inc. Their Press Spokesman Jim Dyke was the RNC Communications Director during the 2004 election responsible for arranging to have operatives dress up in "Flipper" costumes at John Kerry election events.

Though they claim to be "non-partisan" and enjoy tax-exempt status as a 501(c)3 organization, they have never shared their 501(c)3 paperwork with The BRAD BLOG as requested (and as they had promised many months ago) despite what we understand is a legal requirement to do so.

Hearne was called to testify as an "expert witness" at a House Administrative Committee Hearing on the Ohio election just days after the creation of the phony group. The ACVR was the only such "Voting Rights" group called to participate in the hearings. Hearne misrepresented himself at those hearings only as a "longtime voting rights advocate," saying nothing about his ties to Bush/Cheney and the Republican Party. The hearings were chaired by Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH), who is himself now under investigation for various alleged ethics violations.

We're on the move today, so haven't yet gotten to plow through the ACVR's full report, but in an onslaught of Press Releases today, the ACVR is clearly attempting to get the message out that it's Democrats, not Republicans, who primarily engage in "Election Fraud".

Ironically, they identify "non-partisan" (yes, they use the quotes!) groups such as ACORN as inappropriately registering Democratic voters. And though the ACVR report is identified in each of the Press Releases as "the most comprehensive and authoritative review of the facts surrounding allegations of vote fraud, intimidation and suppression made during the 2004 presidential election" there are no references to the thousands of well-known allegations of Republican intimidation and vote-suppression around the country or the Voter Registration forms collected and destroyed by groups tied to Republican Operative Nathan Sproul and Associates. Those registration forms --- from Democratic voters only --- were alleged to have been shredded in key swing states including Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Florida, Oregon and Nevada.

This article from Boston University's Daily Free Press, amongst many others, details the many charges against Sproul and Associates and the phony "non-partisan" Voter Registration groups he set up around the country. Sproul was paid millions by Team Bush and attempted to hide it according to the Baltimore Chronicle and several other reports, and is the subject of a criminal investigation related to these matters in the state of Oregon. Much more on Sproul & Associates is available here.

No reference to Sproul or the many dirty tricks said to have been conducted by groups he organized are mentioned in any of the ACVR Press Releases today.

One new tactic of the ACVR's revealed in the flurry of Press Releases, is the addition of quotes from "ACVR Legislative Fund board member" Brian Lunde who was a DNC Executive Director at one point apparently. Press Reports, however, reveal Lunde as having worked closely with Bush Political Operative, Karl Rove and having represented several big business organizations which are supportive of Bush Administration initiatives.

The Press Releases, one each for the five so-called "Election Fraud 'Hot Spot'" cities, each quote Lunde as saying the same thing, but change the city referred to by Lunde in the quote.

For example, in the Release on St. Louis, claimed the "No. 3 Election Fraud 'Hot Spot'", Lunde is quoted as saying:

"Election after election, political parties, election officials and the news media act surprised when fraud, intimidation and suppression activities occur. Now everyone is on notice that there's a problem in the St. Louis area and those who don't participate in a solution will be held accountable," said Brian Lunde, ACVR Legislative Fund board member.

The city is then replaced in the Press Release on Seattle, claiming the city to be the "No. 3 Election Fraud 'Hot Spot' in America":

"Election after election, political parties, election officials and the news media act surprised when fraud, intimidation and suppression activities occur. Now everyone is on notice that there's a problem in Seattle and those who don't participate in a solution will be held accountable," said Brian Lunde, ACVR Legislative Fund board member.

The other three Press Releases referring to the top "Election Fraud 'Hot Spots'" have the same quote from Lunde, changed only to refer to the city in question: Philadelphia, Milwaukee and Cleveland.

A Washington Post article from 2003 identified Lunde as working closely with Bush political director/operative Rove:

For many on the list, the Rove connection is a mutually beneficial two-way street. Brian Lunde, former executive director of the Democratic National Committee and one of the few Democrats on the list, helped the Bush 2000 campaign round up Democratic supporters.

After Bush took office, Lunde has recommended Democrats for White House appointments, especially in cases requiring selections from both parties. During consideration of trade proposals and protective measures for the steel industry, Lunde could suggest to Rove potential Democratic supporters, which, in turn, advanced the interests of such Lunde clients as the Business Roundtable and Nucor Steel, which backed the administration initiatives.

As mentioned, because we are traveling this afternoon, we've not yet had time to try and reach Lunde for comment. However, Dyke's phone number is given on each press release as 843-532-1192 for those who may have any questions.

The ACVR's homepage where their report, and several other pages of appalling disinformation is available is at www.AC4VR.com.

This Saturday is the 40th anniversary of the landmark Voting Rights Act. No doubt, today's reports and press releases were meant to coincide and continue the gross insult that the American Center for Voting Rights represents to the true Voting Rights activists in this country, many of whom have given their lives in support of such rights over the past century.

For more information on the "non-partisan" tax-exempt ACVR scam and the snakeoil salesmen who invented it, Bush/Cheney '04 National General Counsel Mark F. "Thor" Hearne and RNC Communications Director Jim Dyke, please see BRAD BLOG's full Special Coverage of the "American Center for Voting Rights" at https://BradBlog.com/ACVR.
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Bush Contempt of Americans and Constitutional Process Continues...
By Brad Friedman on 8/1/2005 1:00pm PT  

As George W. Bush continues his dangerous and unprecedented expansion of Executive Branch power over all others, we thought you might appreciate a reminder of who he has just recess-appointed as Ambassador to the United Nations.

See our previous report --- including a stunning short video --- of Crazy Man John Bolton.

(Video linked above courtesy of the fine folks at OldAmericanCentury.org!)

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Wife of Embattled GOP/Bush-Cheney Operative Embroiled in Gaming Ohio Balloting/Recount
'CoinGate' Scandal Grows, Special Prosecutor Now Requested
By Brad Friedman on 8/1/2005 12:32pm PT  

We've been (mostly) quietly watching the situation in Ohio blow up in slow motion over the last several weeks/months.

The "CoinGate" scandal there has been the touchstone of Campaign Finance/Money Laundering scandals which is spreading like a cancer across the entire state; from "Mr. Republican" Thomas Noe, who angled his way into mis-managing a $50 million piece of the State Workers Pension Plan via his own personal exceedingly risky investments in rare coins --- millions of dollars from which have now disappeared --- through the Republican Governor Taft's own office and even the Ohio Supreme Court itself, both of which are all now being implicated through the spidering tentacles of this extraordinary state-wide scandal.

But what is known so far appears to be just the tip of an incredibly rotten iceberg.

Mixed metaphors aside, the scandal in Ohio is far from isolated to the state only. Noe's influence as a Bush-Cheney "Pioneer" contributor and his reach into and out of the pockets of GOP Officials (elected and otherwise) all around the country is still bubbling towards the top, and promises to be at least as stunning as the current Karl Rove "TreasonGate" investigations.

After several months as we've been keeping the corner of our eye on the scandal, the story of Noe's wife Bernadette and her complicity in helping to game the November '04 elections is finally making its way to the top of the filthy brewing pot.

RAW STORY's Larisa Alexandrovna today has some stunning revelations --- based on a newly obtained memo from a Blackwell investigation --- in what is likely just the first salvo exposing Ms. Noe's personal role in this growing GOP cancer.

In her dual role as chairman of the Lucas County, OH Republican Party and the Lucas County Board of Elections, it now appears that Ms. Noe was one of the key players in the Ohio Republican Party's proven gaming/likely theft of the 2004 Presidential Election in the state via her BoE's "gross failures" to secure ballots, voting machines and the manipulation of the Green/Liberatarian-requested recount which followed the election.

And yes, at least one Diebold employee was present on the scene throughout all of the shenanigans.

The RAW STORY Exclusive is a must read, filled with remarkable details. As well, it's accompanied this morning by a request to the Dept. of Justice from John Conyers (D-MI) and Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) to appoint a Special Prosecutor in the matter to replace the current DoJ-appointed Prosecutor Gregory White.

White, as it turns out --- himself a partisan operative and friend of Gov. Taft and Karl Rove's --- is in no way "independent" in the matter. The letter from Conyers and Kapture explains in detail, the several personal conflicts of interest that White has across the entire case.

There will be more on this matter to come from several different angles. Though it all begins in Ohio, it will be little surprise to regular BRAD BLOG readers to find that it will soon reach out far and wide, in several different directions, across the country.

Stay tuned...

P.S. For a hint at just some of the further dots to be connected, see Bob Fritakis and Harvey Wasserman's recent article from Columbus Free Press. They add many details to the complex case, though it can be tough to follow since there are so many corrollaries. The second half of the article, however, speaks directly to the Ohio/Noe/Lucas County connections to Bush/Cheney and the November '04 Election.

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An Open Thread...
By Brad Friedman on 7/31/2005 3:50pm PT  

Save the world while I'm otherwise occupied. Thanks!

(Hope to have the archives to last night's BRAD SHOW up within the next 24-48 hours! Lots of great stuff if you missed --- even if I say so myself :-)

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We're Being The Media --- because somebody's got to!
Blog Along With Us if you please
By Winter Patriot on 7/30/2005 3:30pm PT  

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

This week's Brad Show is almost ready to hit the airwaves.
Once again we have a fine lineup and the prospect of a really fine show.

Listen LIVE via the Web! Saturday from 7p-11p ET (4p-8p PT)!
Repeating Sunday 12noon-4p ET (9a-1p PT)

It's free speech at its best, but it's not free!
Brad pays for the studio rental --- out of his own pocket --- at $500 per week!
So please donate here to help defray costs!
Every little bit helps, friends.

Tonight Brad's guests will include:

Join us Saturday Night 7p-11p ET (4p-8p PT)! Listen up via www.BradShow.com, call in with your questions and comments for our guests at 323-650-1286, and blog along with us right here at The BRAD BLOG in our LIVE Open Thread during the show!

URGENT REMINDER: The BRAD SHOW is still supported primarily by listener donations ... and we still need more listeners and more contributors! So please pick up the phone, or send some e-mail, and tell a few friends about The BRAD SHOW. You (and they) will be glad you did.

LIVE OPEN THREAD BLOGGING below: click on the "comments" link at the bottom-right corner of this item to join in!

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Being The Media Saturday Nights! (7p-11p ET, 4p-8p PT)
Listen Up at www.BradShow.com
By Brad Friedman on 7/29/2005 3:11pm PT  

Another rockin' BRAD SHOW set to roll this Saturday Night LIVE! Spread the word! And don't miss it! Or else!

GUESTS SCHEDULED FOR THIS WEEK...

  • COLEEN ROWLEY, The FBI's original 9/11 whistleblower now running for U.S. Congress in Minnesota
  • JIM MARCH of Black Box Voting on his felony arrest during San Diego Mayoral vote tallying and California's rejection of Diebold!!
  • "MARSHA WALKER", Mother with two kids fighting in Iraq, told to "Fuck Off" by "Blue Star" parents group for objecting to war. As reported by RAW STORY. Rescheduled for another time, a surprise for BRAD BLOG readers instead!
  • PATRICIA BIRNIE of the "Tuscon Raging Grannies" on being arrested for trying to enlist!
  • CARL CONETTA of Project on Defense Alternatives' "400 Days and Out of Iraq" initiative.
  • Join the Open Thread during the show here at BRAD BLOG, listen up at www.BradShow.com and call in with your Questions at 323-650-1286 on Saturday Night 7p-11p ET (4p-8p PT)!

    We still must rely on your support to help keep us on the air! As well as donating, kewl gear (like the shirt I'm wearing at left) is available from The BRAD STORE! Every bit helps, so buy a book, a shirt, a mug, a bumper sticker and help us all continue to Be The Media!

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    10% of Screens Freeze, Printers Jam in 'Massive Mock Election Test'
    Ohio Unconcerned, Sticking with Diebold
    By Brad Friedman on 7/29/2005 1:00pm PT  

    Great news from today's Oakland Tribune! California, the country's largest voting "market" rejects Diebold. Again...And hopefully for the last time...

    After possibly the most extensive testing ever on a voting system, California has rejected Diebold's flagship electronic voting machine because of printer jams and screen freezes, sending local elections officials scrambling for other means of voting.

    "There was a failure rate of about 10 percent, and that's not good enough for the voters of California and not good enough for me," Secretary of State Bruce McPherson said.
    ...
    "We certainly can't take any kind of risk like that with this kind of device on California voters," McPherson said.

    Rejection of the TSx by California, the nation's largest voting-system market, could influence local elections officials from Utah, Mississippi and Ohio, home of Diebold corporate headquarters, where dozens of counties are poised to purchase the latest Diebold touch screens.

    State elections officials in Ohio say they still have confidence in the machines.

    "Absolutely," said Carlo LoParo, spokesman for the Ohio Secretary of State's Office.
    ...
    McPherson denied approval of the TSx after a series of failed tests, culminating in a massive, mock election conducted on 96 of the machines in a San Joaquin County warehouse. San Joaquin is one of three California counties that purchased a total of 13,000 TSx machines in 2003 for more than $40 million and have paid to warehouse them ever since.
    ...
    Elections officials and voting activists said they had never heard of more extensive testing for a single voting system, outside of an actual election.
    ...
    Ordinarily, states and the National Association of State Elections Directors approve voting systems after labs hired by the manufacturers perform tests on a handful of machines. The Diebold TSx managed to get through those tests ? twice. But none of the testing standards addresses printers on electronic voting machines, even though more than 20 states either require a so-called paper trail or are debating such a requirement.

    For years, voters have reported frozen screens and other glitches in the polling place.

    "It's always been the voters' word against election officials' and the vendors'," Alexander said. "Now we have real proof right before the eyes of state elections officials."

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    From the "Starving the Beast" Files...
    By Brad Friedman on 7/28/2005 2:25pm PT  

    The already under-funded and under-manned EPA gets drafted to go to work in Iraq. In fact, according to the the full email sent yesterday to "all EPA Employees", it looks as if all Government agencies are now being encouraged to send their employees to do Iraq's work. Good thing everything is already taken care of here in "the homeland."

    Via David Corn...

    MEMORANDUM
    SUBJECT: Support for the Reconstruction of Iraq
    FROM: Luis A. Luna, Assistant Administrator
    for Administration and Resources Management
    TO: All EPA Employees

    The United States is currently supporting the Iraqi people as they build new essential services, their economy, and other government and political institutions. The President has called upon all Federal departments and agencies to support the rebuilding of Iraq through details of Federal employees to the Department of State's Iraq reconstruction Management Office (IRMO).
    ...
    The Environmental Protection Agency supports the President's request for detailees and looks forward to doing our part to help in the reconstruction of Iraq.

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    Bush Sr. on 'The Most Insidious of Traitors'
    By Brad Friedman on 7/28/2005 1:11pm PT  

    Was wondering if a video existed of this. Apparently, it does...

    The video clip is small, but for those of you with trouble downloading video, here's an audio version I made. Seems important enough that everyone should be able to hear it.

    And for those of you who can't even download that, here, once again, is what George W. Bush's own father said in his April 1999 speech to a CIA gathering at the CIA's own George H.W. Bush Building, where he was once the Director of Central Intelligence:

    "I have nothing but contempt and anger for those who betray the trust by exposing the name of our sources. They are, in my view, the most insidious of traitors."
    -- George H.W. Bush, April 26, 1999

    Not down the memory hole. God love the Internets.

    UPDATE: By the way, according to The New York Times, there now seems to be confirmation of a third traitor inside the White House whom George the Son also doesn't seem to care much about. We'd venture, however, to say the number invovled in this White House criminal conspiracy and cover-up will go far beyond just three.

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    For Andy...
    And for The Truth...
    By Brad Friedman on 7/28/2005 12:07pm PT  

    In re: the above, memorializing our lost friend Andy, the great Freeway Blogger reports in to us this morning that, this one has been up "four days now on I-5 in the heart of San Diego downtown, so a couple hundred thousand commuters have seen it."

    As well, the Freeway Blogger's "Summer of Truth" continues...

    If you haven't already joined him, please free to keep spreading the word! And the truth! His site shows you how easy it it. Your country --- and your grandchildren --- thank you.

    (To listen to the The BRAD SHOW's rare, exclusive interview with the mysterious and legendary Freeway Blogger, click here and scroll to the 6/11/05 show, HOUR 4.)

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    Bush Flips Out Again
    [UPDATED] White House Says it Was a 'Thumb'
    By Brad Friedman on 7/28/2005 11:11am PT  

    Has Bush ever said anything that didn't turn out to be a lie?

    His latest effort at "restoring honor and dignity to the White House" was revealed yesterday. Here's the video.

    We're happy to see how he's matured since his earlier days as Governor, when he was making the Christians proud down in Texas. I'm sure you remember it. But if not, here's that video for ya.

    President Frat Boy. America couldn't be prouder.

    (Hat tip to BRAD BLOG commenter, KestrelBrighteyes for bringing it to our attention.)

    UPDATE: From today's White House briefing:

    Q Scott, last night on the Tonight Show, Jay Leno, who apparently is subbing for Johnnie, displayed a video of the President at the Capitol yesterday. In that video, the President walking away from the press lifts his hand and raises a finger. Mr. Leno interpreted it as, shall we say, a finger of hostility. Each of our fingers has a special purpose and meaning in life. (Laughter.) Can you tell us what finger it was he held up?

    MR. McCLELLAN: Ken, I'm not even going to dignify that with much of a response. But if someone is misportraying something, that's unfortunate.

    Q Well, it was not a finger of hostility?

    MR. McCLELLAN: Ken, I was there with him, and I'm just not going to --- I'm not going to dignify that with a response. I mean, I haven't seen the video that you're talking about, but I know the way the President acts. And if someone is misportraying it, that's unfortunate.

    UPDATE 4:00p PT: Aravosis at AMERICAblog received a call from the White House with a fresh explanation:

    David Almacy just called me from the White House communications office to clarify the reports that Bush flipped off reporters yesterday while visiting the Hill. David says that Bush was definitely giving the thumbs up sign with regards to the upcoming CAFTA vote (Central American Free Trade Agreement). I asked David if I could write about our conversation, and he said please do.

    ...Which forces me to ask again: Is there nothing these guys won't lie about??

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    Deploy Nuance and Talking Points to Ferret Out Evil!
    Must be 'With the Enemy' After All
    By Brad Friedman on 7/28/2005 10:59am PT  

    In today's LA Times, Juliette Kayyem --- a former member of the National Commission on Terrorism --- speaks about the Administration's "rebranding" of Bush's failed "Global War on Terror".

    In case you haven't heard, it's no longer a "war", it's now the "Global Struggle Against Violent Extremism" according to the latest nuance from the Bushies who are --- as they always have been --- more concerned with poll numbers and good P.R. than about National Security and keeping this country safe.

    As we previously saw the color-coded "Terror Alert" system cynically manipulated to keep American's frightened prior to the election (and then go virtually unchanged ever since), Kayyem also points out the change in pre/post-Election usage of the word "war" by the dangerous and unrepentant opportunistic Chickenhawks in the White House:

    Ivo Daalder of the Brookings Institution recently found that Bush used the term "war" three times as often in the six months leading up to the 2004 election as in the six months after. In the month before the election, he invoked it 71 times. But since the polls have closed, it's only been important enough to raise an average of 11 times in any 30-day period.

    Even in his last publicized news conference, there was no GWOT, and the term "war" was mentioned only once. In contrast, Bush used the d-word (diplomatic or diplomatically) nearly a dozen times.

    Looks like the Administration has gone downright "French" on us. What a bunch of girlie-men! It's almost as if John Kerry and those advocating "nuance" and "diplomacy" prior to the Election were right or something! As if they didn't actually "hate America" after all! What next for this White House? "Preparing indictments" like those "soft on terror" Liberals?

    Kayyem closes with the obvious. Though clearly, it still requires repeating to get through the noise...

    War, struggle, fight, effort, whatever — we still don't seem to be describing the smooth intelligence operation; the tough law enforcement; the suave, cooperative diplomacy; the delicate nation-building and vigilant homeland security that is needed to complement our military prowess. If administration officials put as much effort into getting these jobs done as they apparently put into rethinking their talking points, perhaps we'd have some real success in this global, uh, endeavor. And what we call it would matter a lot less.
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