Hey Mom,
Wanna be a congress person? I gotta try my new acubasic script on the machines in the garage!!
Please, Please Please, its so easy Mom

Un-F#*@ing Believable...

hey, get Mike Malloy on Air America some info about what has happened out there with Busby/Bilray 'election'.....and for God's sake get Busby to ask for a HAND RECOUNT!

Recount! Recount! Recount! Recount! Recount!

As SeattleDem said: Un-F#*@ing Believable!

This is ridiculous - If Busby doesn't protest this, what hope do we have?

can someone please say what the length of time is to ask for recounts there in CA?.....in NH, it's only 3 days after election. Busby/Bilbray debacle can be highlighted by a direct hand recount, but needs to be done now....and please say if absentee ballots have been counted yet?

some folks in election integrity have emailed Jim Dean of DFA to ask him to get to Busby to ask for recount..........who out there is on to this avenue of communication? Please folks, start using your inside knowledge of folks in this arena to get to the DFA crowd who backed Busby against all the $ from GOP.

Get this info to Jason Leopold and Will Pitt before its to late! I think you only have 24 business hours to do it!

Nanc, Busby has already conceded the election. And no, the absentee ballotts have not all been counted. As of 1700 hrs PST there were still 65,000 and the Registrar has said in radio interviews they will be counted by tomorrow morning. Someone better get hot

Tony, haven't you been disbarred yet?

Nanc, Busby has already conceded the election. And no, the absentee ballotts have not all been counted. As of 1700 hrs PST there were still 65,000 and the Registrar has said in radio interviews they will be counted by tomorrow morning. Someone better get hot

What kind of rules are these that the voting equipment is not secured by some method better than a poll worker's say so? This is the most ridiculous process!

I had enough. I signed up to be an election judge in my state and am studying state & federal election law. It is high time that we create our own leaders when the gutless GOP & Dems (yes Dems!) cannot/willnot promote democracy in our own country by ensuring that free & fair elections have taken place by proper validation/authentication done at every level.

And by the way-- just what do you think is gonna happen to the military vote now that so many millions of IDs have gone missing/were stole, hmmm? My intuition tells me that this is yet another voting block that is about to be mightily co-opted for the GOP (Gutless Old Phucks).

C'mon America! Lace your boots and meet me on the street for revolution! Remember, power once delegated to Congress by the People cannot be redelegated! If our elected officials won't get the job done properly, then we throw 'em out and start over!

I once heard about a book that sounded interesting. I went to several libraries, but could never find it.

It was a story about a dictator who rose to power in a small country in Asia. It seems he had a large family. His father had been potentate the same country, and his brother was in charge of a southern province. He was elected potentate even though his opponent had hundreds of thousands more votes, because in his country each province conducts its own election, and his brother's province voted for him by a tiny margin. Well...it really didn't, but a lot of people were prevented from voting who should have voted. The younger brother said he was proud his older brother won.

He had supporters in a northern province who said they were committed to re-electing the young man potentate four years later. These supporters manufactured many of the election machines that were used by voters, and also the central tabulators that counted the votes. On Election Day, the potentate was reelected because the northern province where the big voting machine company whose leader had pledged himself to getting the potentate reelected swung the election to him. Tens of thousands of people in that state claimed fraud immediately, but the potentate's opponent conceded the election and for months afterward, no newspaper or television network reported on the allegations of fraud.

The hackable machines remained in use two years later. In a western province a special congressional election was held to replace a candidate of the potentate's party who had pleaded guilty to bribery and other crimes. The candidate of the same party won with 51% of the vote. It then came out that the voting machines used had been taken home by election workers before the election, where anyone of their own choosing could have fooled with them.

The story sounded fascinating, but I could never find the book anywhere. Eventually I did...in the science fiction section of my hometown library.

These machines remind me of what a football player said about his coach Bear Bryant. "He is very fair", the older player said, "he treats each of us like garbage".

A poster on another thread, where one issue was Pottawattamie County where an incumbent republican was losing to a rookie college student (link here), said "Why would the ES&S machines be set up to work AGAINST the long-time Republican ... It doesn't make sense ...".

These machines treat everyone like garbage, because they are defective.

Voters should not have to worry about the count, and any bona fide election official should want these machines to work and work well. They probably do, however, for some reason the election machine companies do not have a consumer orientation. Election officials are there to make sure that the election machine companies remember that they must have a proper respect for the public. The public is paying for machines to be used in sensitive elections, and strong standards must apply.

Consumer protection laws should apply to election machines ... like Bev Harris and Jim March had it applied in their California lawsuit against Diebold ... which they won.

There seems to be a wrong headed misunderstanding at the bottom of all of this, to wit:

"Of the first class of error, Shamos seems to misconceive the proper role of citizens in a democratic republic. That role is not to accept the proclamations of government officials (or of the vendors they choose) on faith, but instead to treat them with a healthy, sustained skepticism. This role is particularly important on issues concerning the maintenance of the republic itself" (link here, bold added).

The writer goes on to correctly point out:

"And no issue is more central to that maintenance than the honest and accurate administration of elections, since they are citizens’ chief means of control over the republic’s course. Yet Shamos would make citizens prove that such systems are inaccurate and/or dishonest, rather than requiring their proponents to prove their accuracy and honesty by opening them to total public review and constant verification" (ibid, bold added).

In one case we are talking about, a republican incumbent had the lead but the machines missed it. That cannot be allowed in a true republic. We are failing and that means something other than democracy is winning.

Dredd 15

I agree completely that Consumer Protection Laws should be used. The frustrating thing is that voters and taxpayers have no standing to sue the vendors, since we are not the "customer" who bought the equipment. The only people who can sue are the state or other bodies which made the sales agreements with the vendors.

It seems that they don't want to sue--maybe because they'll lose face. We should make sure they lose more face when they don't take action. Taxpayers' money should not be used to buy defective equipment that is not suited for the purpose for which it was purchased.

Surely Busby's concession has no legal meaning. Can't she still demand a recount within the statutory time period? And would the votes have to be counted before any results can be authorized, regardless of whether or not someone has conceded?

Doesn't a concession just give the supposed winner the chance to start their victory celebration?

It could be taken as an indication that Busby doesn't plan to question the results--but surely she could change her mind if she does so within the legal time frame, regardless of anything she has said.

I hope she takes whatever action can be taken to ensure the ballots are hand-counted. The Iowa primary showed how easily machines can mis-count without anyone asking questions.

I have no idea whether or not pollworkers taking voting machines home resulted in fraudulent election results or not, but with the chain of custody being broken there is nothing short of hand-counting the paper ballots and audit trails that will identify who is the winner.

RLM, #14

What a Prophetic dream you had
That sounds like what is to be written into the history books of the future

The point is, as long as we do nothing to verify that the votes cast are legal, no election is verifiable regardless of what paper trail is established. Thus, our democracy is at risk and legal votes will be cancelled out by illegal ones.

This is a HUGE problem. Not addressing it will show a lack of caring about verifiable legal results .

No.

There should be no recount - the election results should be completely thrown out. There is no excuse for running an election on unsecured voting machines - and sending them home with poll workers is about as unsecured as you can get.

This was an invalid vote.

How about, we're supposedly fighting for democracy in Iraq??? How about democracy right here in the United States???????

Parallel Vote In San Diego Mayoral Race Shows 4% Shift To GOP On DIEBOLD

Another 51%-49% GOP victory..........

It's good to see that Ricky recognizes that the problem of election fraud isn't a matter of partisanship. Or, as Brad says, "not right vs. left," but "right vs. wrong."

Now, if only the losing candidates in these rigged elections (Gore, Kerry, Hackett, Busby) would get the same message, and pass it along to the troglodytes in government in both parties who talk about everything except election fraud while asking for money from people who ask them to without avail.

Yes, that means you, Bill and Hillary, and you, Barack Obama. And you, Chris Dodd, and Chuck Schumer, and Steny Hoyer, and Nancy Pelosi. And every Republican in Washington, no exceptions.

Yes Robert. Thats why I expect you and others to speak about illegal voting. These issue are directly linked, addressing one and not the other solves nothing. I look forward to your lenghty comments on this issue.

Ricky #25

You should keep your current ghost writer ... a definite improvement over some of the past ones ... which I don't blame you for firing .

Currently voters registering/voting in California must have a verifiable SS#, drivers license number, signature, verifiable Address and if foreign born they must show proof of citizenship when registering for the first time.

http://www.ss.ca.gov/elections/elections_vr.htm

Hacking a Diebold machine is easier than first year high school students hacking into school computers and changing their grades (link here).

Those student hackers have a future at Diebold, ES&S, and Sequoia. Any other offers?

{Comment deleted. Link to deliberate disinformation. Ricky, I've just about had it with you. Have been patient for months. Let me know if you'd like me to simply ban you now, or if you can try to offer legit comments instead of patently misleading disinformation. At this rate, you'll be gone before the end of today if you keep it up. I've got no more time for you. Let me know}

Thanks for all the research and outrage, Brad! This SD election should definitely be voided, since the "results" have been shown to be anything but reliable.

And Ricky: don't you know about html links? They're far more tempting than copy/paste web addresses and take up less space.

You have a point, Mr. new improved Ricky. There was this incident in the 1990's (1997?) When Rep. Robert K. Dornan's challenge to election results forced him to give up his California seat to Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez. It was contested for about a year and a couple of hundred illegal votes were found. In the end she still won the seat and the GOP lost a lot of hispanic voters for generations to come. The GOP is currently wooing Hispanic voters because they REALLY want that growing voter block. I think there should be a more accurate way to check the legality of voters but I would not want a card that people have to pay for. A free card, with voter registration offices in all neighborhoods, open late some days for hard working people to come in and get their card. That would be ok with me. No one should be kept from getting the card because they are poor, work long hours, lack transportation, are disabled, can't speak english and so forth. It would be expensive but worth it to make sure no one votes who is not a US citizen. We DO want every American citizen to vote no matter who they are or where their abuelita hails from.Convenido, si?

"The GOP is currently wooing Hispanic voters because they REALLY want that growing voter block"

Funny you should say that.

http://www.breitbart.com...006/06/08/D8I41B480.html

RRhodes on Air America said she wouldn't address this race because the polls were so close prior to the election. Anybody know how to get through to her? A friend of mine, who was in the military in the eighties just got a letter saying her info was stolen. We don't know how widespread the corruption of the military vote is. But on a positive note, they are going down. If the military vote and minorities has to be supressed, it is a matter of time. The polls on Cong. House approval was in the 20's even before Bush's.

You are correct. Both Dems and Repubs are wooing the Hispanic vote. It is a HUGE voter block and getting bigger every day. The disadvantage the Repubs have is that they have racists and bigots as significant part of their base and they do not want Hispanics to "join". (Was it John Gibson who said "we need to make more babies" because so many hispanics are having kids he is worried about them taking over)Hispanics are "conservative" and moderate by culture. Hard working, family type folk. You really need not worry. They are good people in general and have great family values.

I would love to continue to chat on this subject, but have to work. I am one of those "low class" shift workers who is home in the morning and working a the VA hospital this afternoon. Have great day everyone!

They took away our votes with electronic machines. They're taking away freedom on the internet, the Republicans just voted to let huge companies run the internet. So, pretty soon they'll start handcuffing people out of their houses, for things they find out about you on the internet (see NSA spying). I don't know how people like Ricky can be for the Republicans. First they'll come for us, then the Ricky's in the 2nd wave. The Ricky's should be on OUR side, not the politicians' side. Maybe Ricky's a politician.

I am a DFA activist from the start of the Dean campaign. I an a director of Democracy for Oregon and the Oregon Voter Rights Coalition. I just sent this email to Jim Dean, Chairman, Tom Hughes, Executive Director, and Chris Warshaw, Political Director of the DFA. I have called Busby's office and written a call to action on the DFA leaders list. I do not know what else to do. I did not think this would happen, but I am now officially equally enraged at Democrats as I am at Repugnants for flushing our democracy and our country away to these deplorable, sickening, nightmarish machines.

I do not intend to give another penny or another minute of time to any candidate who will not FIGHT BACK!!!!!!!!!
=============================
Gentlemen,

ANY DFA LIST CANDIDATE MUST NOT CONCEDE!!!!

If you are willing to implement no other election reform projects, PLEASE at a bare minimum establish an ironclad requirement that DFA List candidates shall not concede in the face of RAMPANT insecurity of voting machines that totally comprimise our basis for confidence!!!

We must encourage Francine to fight ---- for the sake of our democracy!!! Everything is at stake here as California is sliding RAPIDLY into the next Florida or Ohio. Can we win in '08 without California??? If I could beg through email --- I would do it now. Please, please contact Busby and reverse the media spin that Billbray won. We HAVE to fight back now --- there will be VERY little paper to recount in CA in November and McPherson will convert the entire state to Diebold in an Ohio-like election theft spree.

There needs to be an understanding ---- NO DFA SUPPORT OR FUNDING without fighting for a fair vote count and NO concessions!

Besides what Nancy sent, I'd like to add these very important mailings that I hope you will read:
=========================
From Dan Ashby:
The following plea from an election activist in the fray, is in response to a post widely circulated on election integrity lists concerning the narrow (4.5%) margin between Republican Bilbray and Democrat Busby in the 50th District (vacated by Cunningham) in San Diego County.

This is a story about the depressingly familiar failure of a Democratic candidate and party to contest suspicious electoral outcomes. Especially this one, in San Diego, conducted on Diebold equipment, including the notorious TSx, where the DNC spent $ 2 million to show how Democrats will take back America, and the GOP spent $4.5 million to show why they won't. If the Democrats won't stand up and fight in San Diego, where and when will they?

In San Diego, where they have had 5 elections in 12 months, due to all the corrupt politicians they have to keep replacing. In San Diego, where they refused to seat the insurgent mayoral candidate who clearly had the most votes. In San Diego, home of the Brent Wilkes fake military contracts sloshing millions through GOP laundromats . In San Diego, where the Registrar lets the poll workers take home the unsecured TSx and OS voting machines with memory cards

And do you still think electronic vote fraud is . . . merely theoretical?
===============================
I HAVE BEEN RANTING AND RAVING TO ANYONE WHO WOULD LISTEN SINCE LAST APRIL 11TH WHEN JUDY ALTER AND I OF THE PARALLEL ELECTIONS GROUP COLLECTED AN EXIT POLL IN THE 50TH. THIS EXIT POLL SHOWED STRONG SUPPORT FOR THE 2% TO 3% THEORIZED SHIFT THAT OCCURS IN SAN DIEGO DIEBOLD OPTI-SCAN SOFTWARE FROM DEMOCRATS IN A RACE TO REPUBLICANS IN THE SAME RACE. THE SPREAD BETWEEN BUSBY AND BILBRAY IS MUCH LESS THAN THIS 4%-6% SPREAD AND I PREDICT THAT SHE WON THIS RACE OUT RIGHT!!! THE ONLY ONLY WAY TO PROVE THIS IS TO VERIFY THE VOTES BY REQUESTING AND DEMANDING A MANUAL HAND RECOUNT.

I TRIED TO MUSTER UP SOME ENTHUSIASM THEN TO RECOUNT THE ABSENTEE BALLOTS. I WROTE TO ALL OF THE CANDIDATES, I WROTE TO ALL OF MY CONTACTS, THE SAN DIEGO REGISTRAR OF VOTERS (SDRoV) QUOTED AN OUTRAGEOUS AMOUNT OF $60k TO RECOUNT JUST THE ABSENTEE BALLOTS FROM THE APRIL 11TH ELECTION. I TOLD THEM THAT THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTRAR CHARGED APPROX. $12K TO RECOUNT THE 34TH SPECIAL STATE SENATORIAL RACE WHICH HAD ABOUT THE SAME NUMBER OF BALLOTS.

PLEASE THIS IS UNDER A TIME CONSTRAINT!! ONCE THE SAN DIEGO REGISTRAR OF VOTERS CERTIFIES THE ELECTION RESULTS, WE HAVE JUST FIVE DAYS TO SUBMIT A FORMAL REQUEST FOR RECOUNT. THE SDRoV IS COUNTING THE ~68OOO ABSENTEE BALLOTS AS WE SPEAK. IT WOULD BE GOOD TO HAVE THE BALLOTS IMPOUNDED AT THE SAME TIME SINCE THE HISTORY OF THE SAN DIEGO AREA IS ONE OF CORRUPTION AND AFTER THE DONNA FRYE ELECTION THEFT, I DON'T PUT IT PAST THEM TO MONKEY WITH THE BALLOTS TOO.

I have written to the info@busbyforcongress.org several time but to no avail. I have written to the DFA and the DCCC and the JohnKerry.com and anyone else I could think of. I will contact the Busby campaign by phone and Lou Dobbs. You are so right. This must not stand. Let me know what I can do to assist. I will be there. I am even willing to contribute $ for the recount.

"Only when we participate Can we hold our government responsible."
Darlene Little
===========================
And here's a letter from Jonathan Simon about what we can do about it!

Good Friends of Election Integrity:

THIS IS IT, FRIENDS!! If the Busby race goes unchallenged, it will be replayed in 50 more races in November, scattered all over the country like runaway horses, another "shocking Republican trend."

Right now we have in front of us ONE bucking bronco, a race that may or may not have been stolen but whose vulnerability and lack of procedural integrity are manifest. The machines used in District 50 (a blend of OpScans and HAVA-engendered DREs) were taken home and stored by a variety of poll workers, entirely without chain-of-custody protections. This lack of security of course permits switching of memory cards and any other elementary tampering schemes to go undetected.

The GOOD news is that most of the ballots were in fact OpScan counted and therefore can be RECOUNTED. The purpose of such a recount would be to establish the actual margin of verifiable votes (absentee and OpScan), leaving only the far smaller batch of unverifiable DRE ballots out of the count. Depending on the margin of that recount, it may well bring to light gross disparities in the two sets of votes (verifiable and unverifiable)

, even a flat-out Busby victory (if the DRE ballots can not make up the victory margin). We have seen such disparities before and we expect to see them again, though by November many districts such as this one may well have gone to all-DRE, all-unverifiable systems. We won't have many chances like this one.

Here's what we should all STOP EVERYTHING ELSE to do:

1) Find out the latest on this race and what's being done about it at Bradblog (Brad's taken the lead in sounding the alarm on this race and fully understands its enormous implications not just for the politics of November but for the Electoral Integrity of November):
URL: https://bradblog.com/archives/00002924.htm and updates.

2) Call Busby's office(s) (phone strongly preferred, follow-up with email) and let them know why further action must be taken by them, including demand for such a recount of the verifiable ballots:

Francine Busby for Congress

Cardiff Office - Main Headquarters
2121 Newcastle Ave.
Cardiff by the Sea, CA. 92007
(760)479-0114

Encinitas Office
144-C W. D St.
Encinitas, CA. 92024
(760)753-6300
(866)632-3066 (Toll-Free)
(760)753-5211 (Fax)

Email:
Info@BusbyforCongress.org
Volunteer@BusbyforCongress.org

3) Contact Lou Dobbs, who surprisingly has sounded the alarm, and let him know how the Busby race fits into the grave concerns he has expressed. Ask him to call for such a recount and talk about the appalling lack of even basic security of the voting apparatus. If you can find a phone contact, please share it. By all means, contact other members of the media, but Dobbs should be a primary focus given the recent attention he has paid to this.
http://www.cnn.com/feedback/forms/form5.html?9

4) Spread the word on this to all you know who might be moved to act. If you have contacts to major groups such as DFA or DNC, use them for this. We see the same pattern over and over. Here, in Busby-Bilbray, we see it in glorious isolation. But it is the model for the electoral fog we are sure to see in November. We need to act on this NOW, all other priorities notwithstanding. We need to act in force.

With great appreciation--Jonathan Simon

Jo-Joy,

Well, Im sorry to disaagree with you but Racists are not a big part of our base. That was an attack and wrong of you.

However, since you are so concerned over this issue. Here you go. Ill wait for you to agree and condem member of the democrat party for doing this. Ill check back oftern to see your condemnation.

http://wizbangblog.com/2...l-immigrant-protests.php

RICKY - I'm sure you know (even though, like so many things I haven't been able to report it here), that the GOP is under investigation by the California AG (at the request of Republican Sec. of State, Bruce McPherson) for fraudulent registrations in Orange County and the destruction of democratic registration forms there, right?

I've allowed you to disinform and lie here (on MY private property) for months on end, and I'm getting real close to simply removing you. The choice is yours.

Debate all you want. Disagree with me all you want. But lying and misleading and deceptively posting phony arguments, as you've done, is now *really* trying my patience. Consider this your final warning.

Your post above is propaganda, and offers no evidence that the material was either illegal, or more to the point, anything distributed by the Democratic party, or even anyone supporting progressives at all.

Just one of the the tell-tale signs: "Vote Democrat" a phrase used by the GOP dirty tricksters.

Either way, I've had just about enough of your bullshit. So consider your long enjoyed time here at an end unless you change your tactics VERY soon, from bullshit, to actual, honest debate. My guess is, you don't have it in ya and will be gone shortly because of it. Too bad. Dissent is good. But phony arguments and lies are not.

Ginny:

I called Busby's main office to remind them that even though I was 1000 miles away, I did give $25 to try and start the tide and she wasn't going to get any more money if she didn't demand a hand recount of the verifiable ballots.

Meanwhile, I am proposing the DFA request all candidates to sign a pledge similar to this one...

Here it is...

THE HONEST ELECTION CANDIDATE'S PLEDGE

1. I pledge to work hard to make sure that every citizen who has the right to vote is allowed to vote; and that every citizen who votes has their vote counted.

2. I will not concede any contest I am involved in until I know that every absentee and provisional ballot has been counted and that any citizen who was unfairly prevented from voting be allowed to cast a vote and that vote be counted.

3. I shall make sure that non-partisan exit polling is conducted.

4. If the final results of counted votes is different from the exit polling by more than the margin of error, I will demand and force a recount.

5. I shall exhaust every possible legal recourse to assure that every vote cast by a legal citizen is counted and that every legal citizen who wanted to vote was allowed to vote.

6. If asked to "concede" I shall respond: "Only when every vote cast for me has been counted --- to do anything less would be a violation of the Constitution."

7. If I am called a "sore loser" or a "waster of taxpayer money" I will reply that: "Democracy is never a waste and wanting to see Democratic Government working is never a bad cause."

We should withhold our money and volunteer time from any candidate that refused to sign this pledge or who has ever violated any part of it.

Busby claims she may run again. NOT WITH MY HELP IF SHE DOESN'T FIGHT FOR EVERY VOTE!

There are no halfway measures with crooks, thieves, liars and cheats.

Charlie L
Portland, OR
(where 100% of our mailed-in paper ballots are counted by ES&S and Sequoia and only our stand-up and honest Sos has kept us from Republican domination)

P.S. Posters, please note, there is a difference between the "absentee" ballots and the "provisional" ballots. We need to know the number on the latter, because they are always (ALWAYS!) disproportionately given to minorities, first-time-voters, and lower-income people who vote Democratic more often than Republican.

This came up when I Googled "Randi Rhodes email":
rrhodes@airamericaradio.com.

I haven't tried it, but I wouldn't think she'd be hard to reach.

btw, for those who've commented that Randi doesn't talk about stolen/fraudulent elections...she talked about it yesterday. She had Mark Crispin Miller on. And I've heard her talk about it many times.

Charlie L,

Good work --- there is also a declaration of principles in the works for all Americans to uphold concerning our right to fair, transparent, secure and impartial vote counting that I hope will be coming out soon.

I like your candidates' pledge idea & draft though! I've been thinking along those lines but hadn't written something down yet. I lifted the text and will be mulling over this! I think it's something the DFA grassroots will be very receptive to.

Thanks & keep the idears coming....

I was going to write a comment but Ginny beat me to it, So nothing I can add to that excellent post but just say that I agree with GINNY 100%.

Im getting sick and damn tired of Democrats rolling over and pissing on themselves like scared puppies.

It needs to be literally beaten into their heads that odds are very good that any given election result is rigged.
This was a bellwether race all right, it just showed the Neofascist that they can just keep on cheating with blatant voter fraud and that Democrats will trip all over themselves running to the podium to concede as fast as possible without any fight of anykind.

Total primary votes cast (per LA Times)

105,063

Total special election votes cast (per LA Times)

122,273

Variance = 17,210

Attempting to reconcile this variance, I accidently developed the following theory (which I will call Theory T.F.#50):

(a) 45,868 democratic primary voters attempted to vote for Busby in the special election.
(b) 61 Peace & Freedom primary voters attempted to vote for Busby in the special election.
(c) 11,329 republican primary voters (aka "republican defectors) attempted to vote for Busby in the special election.
(d) 1,671 of the Busby "attempted" voters cast invalid (or uncounted) ballots in the special election.
(e) 1,389 republican defectors attempted to vote for the libertarian candidate in the special election.
(f) 4,492 republican defectors attempted to vote for the independent candidate in the special election.
(g) 11,329 republican defectors attempted to vote for Busby in the special election.
(h) There were a total of 17,210 attempted republican defectors in the special election.
(i) All of the republican primary voters who voted for Bilbray successfully voted for Bilbray in the special election.
(j) 9,868 republican primary voters who did not vote for Bilbray successfully voted for Bilbray in the special election.
(k) For every republican primary voter who attempted to defect in the special election, a fraudulent vote was created and added to the Bilbray vote count in the special election.

Vote recap:

Bilbray:

32,117 primary voters who voted for Bilbray
9,868 primary voters who voted for another rep.
17,210 fradulent votes (created electronically)

60,319 total votes (credited) in the special election

Busby:

45,868 democratic primary voters
61 peace & freedom primary voters
11,329 republican primary voters
less 1,671 spoiled/invalid/not counted votes

55,587 total votes (credited) in the special election

Theory T.F.#50 can be proved or disproven by reviewing the district votes for the other races.

If the total number of votes in the other races (assembly, proposition, other local races) is close to the primary election vote total of 105.063 then the theory is worth considering as a reasonable explanation of the vote variance.

If the total number of votes in the other races (assembly, proposition(s), and other local races) is close to the special election vote total of 122,273 then the theory is totally false.

Total primary votes cast (per LA Times)

105,063

Total special election votes cast (per LA Times)

122,273

Variance = 17,210

Attempting to reconcile this variance, I accidently developed the following theory (which I will call Theory T.F.#50):

(a) 45,868 democratic primary voters attempted to vote for Busby in the special election.
(b) 61 Peace & Freedom primary voters attempted to vote for Busby in the special election.
(c) 11,329 republican primary voters (aka "republican defectors) attempted to vote for Busby in the special election.
(d) 1,671 of the Busby "attempted" voters cast invalid (or uncounted) ballots in the special election.
(e) 1,389 republican defectors attempted to vote for the libertarian candidate in the special election.
(f) 4,492 republican defectors attempted to vote for the independent candidate in the special election.
(g) 11,329 republican defectors attempted to vote for Busby in the special election.
(h) There were a total of 17,210 attempted republican defectors in the special election.
(i) All of the republican primary voters who voted for Bilbray successfully voted for Bilbray in the special election.
(j) 9,868 republican primary voters who did not vote for Bilbray successfully voted for Bilbray in the special election.
(k) For every republican primary voter who attempted to defect in the special election, a fraudulent vote was created and added to the Bilbray vote count in the special election.

Vote recap:

Bilbray:

32,117 primary voters who voted for Bilbray
9,868 primary voters who voted for another rep.
17,210 fradulent votes (created electronically)

60,319 total votes (credited) in the special election

Busby:

45,868 democratic primary voters
61 peace & freedom primary voters
11,329 republican primary voters
less 1,671 spoiled/invalid/not counted votes

55,587 total votes (credited) in the special election

Theory T.F.#50 can be proved or disproven by reviewing the district votes for the other races.

If the total number of votes in the other races (assembly, proposition, other local races) is close to the primary election vote total of 105.063 then the theory is worth considering as a reasonable explanation of the vote variance.

If the total number of votes in the other races (assembly, proposition(s), and other local races) is close to the special election vote total of 122,273 then the theory is totally false.

Brad,

You do remember this story right? This is proof fraud is present. How much is the question.

http://www.worldnetdaily...cle.asp?ARTICLE_ID=15082

I am sure we all share the outrage at this.

If an illegal goes and voted republican this fall, one democrat vote doesnt count. If Ann coulter votes illegally in Florida, one legal democrat vote is cancelled.

Legal voting must be enforced.

Ricky's Comment #33

Is far and above his best yet!

20 Amazing Facts About
Voting in the USA

by Angry Girl
Nightweed.com

1. 80% of all votes in America are counted by only two companies: Diebold and ES&S.

http://www.onlinejournal...Landes/042804landes.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diebold

2. There is no federal agency with regulatory authority or oversight of the U.S. voting machine industry.

http://www.commondreams.org/views02/0916-04.htm
http://www.onlinejournal...Landes/042804landes.html

3. The vice-president of Diebold and the president of ES&S are brothers.

http://www.americanfreep...tml/private_company.html
http://www.onlinejournal...Landes/042804landes.html

4. The chairman and CEO of Diebold is a major Bush campaign organizer and donor who wrote in 2003 that he was "committed to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the president next year."

http://www.cbsnews.com/s.../sunday/main632436.shtml
http://www.wishtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1647886

5. Republican Senator Chuck Hagel used to be chairman of ES&S. He became Senator based on votes counted by ES&S machines.

http://www.motherjones.c...umns/2004/03/03_200.html
http://www.onlinejournal...akis/031004fitrakis.html

6. Republican Senator Chuck Hagel, long-connected with the Bush family, was recently caught lying about his ownership of ES&S by the Senate Ethics Committee.

http://www.blackboxvotin...;file=article&sid=26
http://www.hillnews.com/news/012903/hagel.aspx
http://www.onlisareinsra....com/archives/000896.php

7. Senator Chuck Hagel was on a short list of George W. Bush's vice-presidential candidates.

http://www.businessweek..../2000/00_28/b3689130.htm
http://theindependent.co.../052700/new_hagel27.html

8. ES&S is the largest voting machine manufacturer in the U.S. and counts almost 60% of all U.S. votes.

http://www.essvote.com/HTML/about/about.html
http://www.onlinejournal...Landes/042804landes.html

9. Diebold's new touch screen voting machines have no paper trail of any votes. In other words, there is no way to verify that the data coming out of the machine is the same as what was legitimately put in by voters.

http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0225-05.htm
http://www.itworld.com/T...evotestates/pfindex.html

10. Diebold also makes ATMs, checkout scanners, and ticket machines, all of which log each transaction and can generate a paper trail.

http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0225-05.htm
http://www.diebold.com/solutions/default.htm

11. Diebold is based in Ohio.

http://www.diebold.com/a...us/ataglance/default.htm

12. Diebold employed 5 convicted felons as consultants and developers to help write the central compiler computer code that counted 50% of the votes in 30 states.

http://www.wired.com/new...ote/0,2645,61640,00.html
http://portland.indymedi.../en/2004/10/301469.shtml

13. Jeff Dean was Senior Vice-President of Global Election Systems when it was bought by Diebold. Even though he had been convicted of 23 counts of felony theft in the first degree, Jeff Dean was retained as a consultant by Diebold and was largely responsible for programming the optical scanning software now used in most of the United States.

http://www.scoop.co.nz/m...tories/HL0312/S00191.htm
http://www.chuckherrin.c...m/HackthevoteFAQ.htm#how
http://www.blackboxvoting.org/bbv_chapter-8.pdf

14. Diebold consultant Jeff Dean was convicted of planting back doors in his software and using a "high degree of sophistication" to evade detection over a period of 2 years.

http://www.chuckherrin.c...m/HackthevoteFAQ.htm#how
http://www.blackboxvoting.org/bbv_chapter-8.pdf

15. None of the international election observers were allowed in the polls in Ohio.

http://www.globalexchang...g/update/press/2638.html
http://www.enquirer.com/...04/10/26/loc_elexoh.html

16. California banned the use of Diebold machines because the security was so bad. Despite Diebold's claims that the audit logs could not be hacked, a chimpanzee was able to do it! (See the movie here: http://blackboxvoting.org/baxter/baxterVPR.mov.)

http://wired.com/news/evote/0,2645,63298,00.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4874190

17. 30% of all U.S. votes are carried out on unverifiable touch screen voting machines with no paper trail.

http://www.cbsnews.com/s.../sunday/main632436.shtml

18. All --- not some --- but all the voting machine errors detected and reported in Florida went in favor of Bush or Republican candidates.

http://www.wired.com/new...ote/0,2645,65757,00.html
http://www.yuricareport....archStudiesBushIsOut.htm
http://www.rise4news.net/extravotes.html
http://www.ilcaonline.or...file=article&sid=950
http://www.scoop.co.nz/m...tories/HL0411/S00227.htm

19. The governor of the state of Florida, Jeb Bush, is the President's brother.

http://www.tallahassee.c...e/news/local/7628725.htm
http://www.washingtonpos...es/A10544-2004Oct29.html

20. Serious voting anomalies in Florida --- again always favoring Bush --- have been mathematically demonstrated and experts are recommending further investigation.

http://www.yuricareport....archStudiesBushIsOut.htm
http://www.computerworld...ry/0,10801,97614,00.html
http://www.americanfreep...l/tens_of_thousands.html
http://www.commondreams..../headlines04/1106-30.htm
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2004/110904.html
http://uscountvotes.org/

Ricky really is becoming a huge distraction. He's getting scarey-crazy lately.

OK. Let's make sure people understand this...

VOTER FRAUD is ONE issue.

VOTE COUNT FRAUD is a DIFFERENT issue, as is VOTE SUPPRESSION.

VOTER fraud is NOT a big deal. Sure, just ONE illegal vote is a horrible thing, and everybody involved should be shot (can we start with Ann Coulter, PLEASE!) or at least punished.

VOTE COUNT fraud and ILLEGAL or IMMORAL VOTE SUPPRESSION is a MASSIVE issue that is totally a REPUBLICAN-created problem.

There is nobody (not even the totally whacko worldnetdaily folks or even the freepers) who would ever DARE to imagine that VOTER FRAUD has reached the scale of 3 to 5 MILLION illegal votes, which is what the statistical evidence is suggesting happened in the 2004 election with VOTE COUNT fraud and VOTE SUPPRESSION.

So, yeah, let's work on cleaning up the MINISCULE problem of VOTER FRAUD, but let's not pretend that it is the same as the MASSIVE problem of VOTE COUNT FRAUD and VOTE SUPPRESSION.

It is no more reasonable argument that suggesting that cows farting or motor scooters is equally responsible for global warming as are cars or factories. It is simply not a logical argument! There are SCALES and MEASURES of these things, and some things really ARE bigger problems than others.

Charlie L
Portland, OR

Please focus on the issue here Big Dan, not your hatred for me.

In 1996, when the illegal population was less, there was an investigation into illegal voting.

"There is evidence that noncitizens are being registered and casting votes, but due to the laxity in checking the eligibility of registrants and voters the full extent of the problem is not known. One of the most extensively documented cases of illegal voting was in California in 1996. Loretta Sanchez, a Democrat, defeated Republican incumbent Robert Dornan by 984 votes. Dornan called for an investigation of alleged illegal voting by noncitizens. According to Congressional Quarterly, a Washington, DC newspaper that focuses on developments in Congress, "Task force Chairman [U.S. Representative] Vernon J. Ehlers, R-Mich., said investigators had found concrete evidence of 748 illegal votes by noncitizens, not enough to throw Sanchez's victory into doubt." "

Source: http://www.fairus.org/si...igrationissuecentersd70b

In an election where the sway of congressional power is in the balance and we know for a FACT that illegal voting has taking place, illegal voting must be a major issue.

If I do nothing else before Brad bans me for "disinformation" , I hope you take this issue as being the essential to ever being able to truely verify an election.

There were 748 counts of illegal votes proven. How many votes put G.Bush in the white house in Florida? Major issue. Needs to be addressed and pushed into the fold.

Personally, I've had it with Ricky. Brad, how many times can you warn him about spewing the same bullshit, lies and propaganda before you finally pull the plug? I don't understand why this fucking troll hangs out here if he's completely unwilling (more likely unable) to comprehend the seriousness of the situation we're facing. He serves no purpose but to fan the flames and spread disinformation --- I vote you ban the motherfucker once and for all and get on with your business.

Ricky, your lack of intelligence and inability to form a rational argument without resorting to lies and rumors will lead to your downfall --- not just here at BradBlog, but throughout every aspect of your life. To borrow a line from one of your heroes, go fuck yourself.

#47: So this guy has a friend who has a housekeeper who has a daughter who got a registration card in the mail? That's pretty compelling evidence you have there.

Oh my GOD! There were 748 illegal votes?

OH HEAVENS TO MERGATROID!

But gee, weren't there also 80,000 votes that were "spoiled" as overcounts in Florida in 2000 because they have a vote noted and also a write-in for the same person (i.e. Gore punched/checked and then written in as well or Bush punched/checked and then written in as well)?

Oh yeah, remind me, what exactly was the breakdown on those 80,000 votes? Were they 40,000 for Bush thrown out and 40,000 for Gore thrown out? That would make sense statistically, in a fair election, for the spoiled votes to match the final results.

Oh, there were 55,000 Gore "spoiled" overvotes to only 15,000 Bush "spoiled" overvotes? Why that can't be so.

If that were true, then Gore would have WON FLORIDA AND THE PRESIDENCY.

Gore would have won by more than 40,000 votes, rather than losing it by a few hundred once the State Recount (ordered by the Florida Supreme Court) was concluded.

Oh, wait, never mind. The Supreme Court decided that the Florida State Supreme Court didn't actually have the right to decide how Florida should run their election and they put a halt to the recount before "irreparable harm" (i.e. losing the election) could be done to Bush.

Election theft is nothing new, but the corporate Republicans have definitely taken it to new levels of sophistication and blatancy.

Don’t forget folks --- the big lie was the meme of the "hanging chads." Like any good magician doing a "trick" (not that I equate the theft of the Presidency of the United States and the destruction of the trust in our electoral system to be a mere "trick") is MIS-DIRECTION. While they had us looking at the chads and the Brooks Brothers Riot, the real theft was the spoiled ballots and the over-votes.

Charlie L
Portland, OR

P.S. Brad, it's time to send Ricky packing.

Thanks.

I think most sane people have the same reaction when they hear poll workers have had voting machines sitting in their garages for a week.

Are you out of your f***ing mind!

Security, we don't need no stinking security.

SO i decided to look into the poll numbers since I know how your bradbloggers rely on them. Your relying on exit polls in 2004 is proof of that.

Heres a poll that has her losing by 2 points PRE- election.

http://www.surveyusa.com...FPNF-3R3W-VDDM-AQWF-CNG2

She lost the election by 2 points. Interestingly enough she had run before and lost by 22%.
She made up a lot of ground, but not enough.

The Registered Reps to Democrats is 3-2 in that district according to CBS news.

http://www.cbsnews.com/s...tics/mainD8I28SU80.shtml

Due to the evidence I have presented, I think its fair to say all indications say Busby lost this race.

#57:

EXIT polls are reliable, not pre-election polls with a nearly 5% margin of error.

Let's have a recount of all the verifiable votes in the CA 50th.

If Bilbray wins, it will RESTORE CONFIDENCE in the electoral system and put everybody at ease.

Republicans DO want people to be confident in their voting and eager to vote, don't they? They wouldn't want to leave any "lingering doubts" that might cause people to not want to vote, would they? Republicans aren't trying to SUPRESS voting, are they? (For those of you who haven't done your reading homework, that was a RHETORICAL question --- there is massive proof that this is a major part of the Republican Electoral Strategy and has been for some 7-10 years.)

Let's just do the recount, and see what happens, shall we?

Oh, and if there was fraud, then anybody in the CA 50th has my permission to drag each and every Republican Election official and/or poll worker involved into the streets and to do a serious "corrective reprogramming" on them with a hard object.

Charlie L
Portland, OR

LET'S NOT BE SCARED OF OPEN AND HONEST ELECTIONS!

Ricky, this should be thrown out due to non-security; people taking machines home. That's insane!!! Throw it out, just on that fact. No one can believe beyond a doubt, any outcome, either way.

Ricky, if, as the GOP claims, there are so many votes from invalid citizens, etc...etc... then who are they voting for? It's safe to assume that YOU think they're voting Democrat. Then why aren't the Democrats winning all the elections with these supposed illegal votes from illegal aliens, people without ID, non-registered voters...etc...??? And where's your proof of it anyway? I'm against it if it's happening.

"Due to the evidence I have presented, I think its fair to say all indications say Busby lost this race."

Yes, Ricky, you're 100% right. Your pre-election poll of 447 people (showing a 2% margin of victory with a 4.7% margin of error) certainly settles this debate once and for all. I don't know what we've all been so worked up about.

Fucking nimrod.

"Yes, Ricky, you're 100% right. Your pre-election poll of 447 people (showing a 2% margin of victory with a 4.7% margin of error) certainly settles this debate once and for all. I don't know what we've all been so worked up about.

Fucking nimrod.""
==============================

:laugh:

Francine Busby does not have the authority to concede our democracy. I hope you're all telling her your own versions of that. Jonathan Simon wrote a great letter suggesting simple actions we can all take. You can read it here:
http://www.democraticund...;address=203×432435

What has Busby or Debra Bowen had to say about this election? I would be very interested in knowing. I hope Busby is not just some sell-out, paid to throw a fight.

...and I don't hate you, don't put words in my mouth...

For Ricky: Re illegal voting, I agree it should be confronted and dealt with harshly wherever it's found. I'm not a lawyer, but I know there are laws in effect in every state that proscribe "voter fraud."

Here's where we disagree. Any one voter who registers illegally counts for one vote illegally cast. It's a crime for sure, and should be punished the same whether or not it made a difference in the outcome, but there aren't enough such votes to swing a national election (a local election, maybe).

But disenfranchising WHOLE GROUPS OF VOTERS can make such a difference, and clearly it did in 2000 when tens of thousands of legal voters were stricken from the rolls in Florida. Without this massive and corrupt act by Katherine Harris, Al Gore would have been inaugurated.

This also happened in Ohio in 2004, and while it can't be said with equal certainty as in the Florida/2000 case, it might have made the difference in Ohio.

Then we come to vote-flipping. The anecdotal evidence from 2004 (in Ohio, but not only there) is that this occurred on a large scale. I witnessed it myself as a pollwatcher in Florida, and voters in Youngstown, Ohio asseverated that it went on all day there without being rectified. What's most striking about the vote flipping, Ricky, is that VIRTUALLY EVERY CLAIM OF A FLIPPED VOTE favored George W. Bush. If this phenomenon had occurred by accident (for example, if the machines had simply malfunctioned), then I hope you'd agree that the flipped votes would have DIVIDED ABOUT EQUALLY BETWEEN BUSH AND KERRY.

The point of all this is that voter fraud and election fraud are equally venal, and in legal terms deserve equal sanction. But in practical political terms, only election fraud can swing an election...and I hope you'll eventually admit what the rest of us here know, that the 2000 and 2004 elections were rigged and that the wrong man was inaugurated.

Ricky #52

"How many votes put G.Bush in the white house in Florida? Major issue. Needs to be addressed and pushed into the fold."

The answer is: 5

This really stinks...And this is America. Has winning the race become so much more important than anything eles? First Bush and his gang, then 2004 in Ohio, now here in San Diego...the whole thing stinks to high heaven. The rich among us regular majority are robbing, stealing, and lieing to our faces. What are we going to do about it?...The Truth cant be hidden for long.

Add me to the list of people who are sick and tired of Ricky's misinformation and disinformation tactics. Whether he chooses to be willfully ignorant, or is one of the paid GOP propagandists makes no difference.

He obviously has no interest in a dialogue. From what I can see, his purpose is to try to cloud the issue by falsely implying that because there are known cases of cheating on both sides, the relative severity should be ignored, and that anyone who screams about the methods of fraud the GOP is being accused of but ignores the other methods, is simply being partisan.

Unfortunately, what Ricky fails to recognize is that the participants of this blog are correctly MOST concerned with the methods that can be used most easily by the fewest people on the widest scale. One voter casting a fraudulent vote is a crime that must be prevented. But that is a one vote crime which pales in comparison to one person hacking into a central tabulator and switching THOUSANDS of votes in less time than it took that one fraudulent voter to cast his illegal ballot.

Now, if Ricky has some kind of proof that 3 million fraudulent ballots were cast for John Kerry in 2004, and exit polling to back that up, I'm sure everyone here would be as concerned as he claims to be about that issue. Of course, that's not the case.

If Ricky truly cared about the health of this democracy, he would be every bit as concerned as we are about insecure, hackable machines being sent home with poll workers regardless of whose candidate wins that election. He's not. And that, to me, says everything you need to know about him. In my opinion, he has nothing constructive to add to this blog and should have been booted long ago.

I did just call them on my cell phone and confirmed what is all over this blog already. The guy volunteered in a non-stop defensive string of gobbledy-guck that "people had been calling about this" but that there was no way anybody could have tampered with them since the "seals were not broken." Why is everybody just sitting on their hands?

I gave up on Ricky over 6 months ago - just a bunch of hot air - soley for the sake of blowing!

"Even while the tiger sleeps, both pig and piglets grow."

Tom #69: Who are the "them" that you called?

I made some phone calls and sent some emails today. I expect about as much from my efforts as every other attempt at activism that I have made: ZERO ZILCH NADA NOTHING!

Sigh. It is a sad and lonely place to experience enlightenment and spend eternity with the cave dwellers.

But I do know one thing. Not one cent, not one minute, not one footstep will I put forth for the democratic candidates when they refuse to insure our votes. And I have told the dems many times what a complete waste it is to invest in them. With one exception:

In the past, I have supported the dems. The only one this year that I have donated to is John Conyers. I'm thinking of moving to his state just to live in the shadow of greatness.

If we have a vote, then I vote to rid us of Ricky also.

I'm back.
That photo was really funny. I guess Brad already took you to task on it but hey, my opinion was asked for so.....
The flyer is set out neatly so that all words are clearly visible...in ENGLISH. It is obviously a prop. No one courting illegal immigrants from Mexico to vote for them is going to write a flyer up in english and lay it down flat on the sidewalk to be photograhed for Whizbang. It is a set up photo dear. Someone who wanted to frame Democrats as supporting illegal immigration set it up and took the photo. Kind of like bat boy in the tabloids. We can't even verify where or when the photo was taken.
So don't fret the Latinos mi amigo Ricardo, They are good citizens and just as likely to vote conservative as liberal. Don't sweat, they are not closing in on your trasero. They have to give the same personal information when they register to vote that every one else does and are no more likely to vote illegally than anyone else.

As far as racism, well here are some Comments from the Whizbang site:

“There are actually very few illegal or legal Mexican immigrants who don't understand spoken English...People think cops are joking when they say it's like pool... The harder you whack em, the more English you get out of em.”

. “Just TRY to get a "Katrina victim" to get off their fat butt and take a job if they even suspect there is another government check to be had somehow! And be thankful they don't - they couldn't even keep their own free hotel rooms habitable, how are they going to clean anyone else's?”

I rest my case.
I am now going to go off and bask in one of the great bitter-sweet rewards of nursing. My favorite patient went home today. Good night Bradbloggers.

Here is some interesting info about Latino voters.

http://www.ppic.org/cont.../JTF_LatinoVotersJTF.pdf

[California’s Latino population is growing rapidly.
About one in three Californians is Latino—a total of about 12 million residents. In 2000, the
U.S. Census Bureau designated California as the first large “majority-minority” state, with
non-Hispanic whites representing just under half of the state’s population. By the 2020
Census, Latinos are expected to outnumber non-Hispanic whites in the state.
Latinos make up about 28 percent of California’s adult population but only 14 percent of
California voters most likely to turn out in elections. Overall, nearly three-quarters of the
state’s likely voters are white.
The majority of Latino voters in California are Democrats...
Nearly six in 10 Latino likely voters (56%) are Democrats, 23 percent are Republicans, and
21 percent are registered as independents (“decline-to-state”) or with a third party.
Latino likely voters are about as likely to say they are politically conservative (35%) as
liberal (35%), and 30 percent say they are moderate. Overall, previous surveys indicate that
Latino likely voters are conservative on many social issues and liberal on fiscal and
environmental issues. Latino voters express greater trust in government, higher levels of
satisfaction with their communities, and more optimism about the future than white voters. ]

In San Dieo County I have worked as voluteer poll worker for the better part of all of the elections for the past twenty-five years, and continously for the last twelve years as a precinct inspector in the 50th Congressional district.

It is my belief that Diebold and other machines are inherectly flawed by design. However, the motivation for me to volunteer as a precinct inspector is to guarantee the part of the election that I am charged with controlling is above reproach.

Your insinuation that there are people out volunteering in order to tamper with the results, or the machines, or the ballots is far reaching at best. I suppose that if Karl Rove or some other strategist were to have enough time, money, and initiative they could take advantage of a logistical flaw which makes the machines seem available for tampering. At least in my case the integrity of the process was paramount and always has been.

Each election my personal goal is to guarantee each and every eligible voter the opportunity to cast a ballot on election day, during the hours of polling, and further guarantee each of them that for my little part the process integrity was never in doubt.

I do not know who these other people are who say that you could easily screw with the machines. They are no doubt lying or exagerating for the sake of their own ego. The process has always been a balance between the right to a secret ballot, (which actually is an aid to those who would rig an election), and the voters right to personal privacy. The whole process has more checks and balances at the individual precinct level than most voters realize. Although there are areas where one can take advantage at that level the only sure way to rig an election is at the tabulation, or by using the Richard Daly method of vote early and vote often.

If you are going to tamper with machines that have easy access and you want to alter the numbers, why would anyone waste their time screwing with the precinct polling machines when it is the tabulators where you can really hide your manipulations. These machines are made by the same people with the same questionable principles and there is far less accountability at that point in the process.

By the way the process of training volunteers, (mostly elderly, because people like you choose not to participate) has always been done as close to the election as possible, with the precinct inspectors taking home the sealed boxes of ballots, all of the booths, and all of the election supplies. This process has always worked without question for the San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Now that the government has forced upon all of the nation a mandate to use highly questionable electronic balloting devices you and your blog warriors are questioning a process that saves the voteing public from having to pay for a logistical army of certified and bonded county employees from having to distribute all of these machine on election morning, to every poll, and on time to open each poll on time. Imagine the cost and you get no more of a guarantee of security.

So tell me now how this is a corrupt system. There used to be a time in America when trust and integrity were honorable qulities for one to possess . Now with all of the blog warriors posting there little fantasies people of integrity are questioned about their motives. The trust is gone in this nation and when it comes to the balloting at election time it is going to become cost prohibitive to run an honest open election.

In closing, let me say that Congressman Cunningham did more to corrupt the process than did any precinct worker. Here is a man that by all accounts won his seat time and again fairly, and he chose to sell his vote. It doesn't surprise me that politicians can be bought, but it is surprising how cheaply they go for.

The procedure for setting up the voting machine the day of the election calls for the election judge to assure there are no votes on the machines. (In some state, the election judge can make some test votes to be sure the machines are working properly.)

As long as the number of votes at the end of the day equals the number of people who signed-in and voted, then the machines probably functioned just fine.

Despite claims to the contrary, it is not mere child's play to reprogram voting machines. And, such tampering would be evident to technicians who check the machines and certainly in the event of a recount.

There IS a concern that some illegal aliens might have voted for Busby in that election. I understand that is quietly being investigated.

"...the machines probably functioned just fine"

How very reassuring. Thanks.

Save it, John --- you have no clue what you're talking about. It has been repeatedly proven that it **IS** mere child's play to reprogram these machines if one has intent and access. Nobody's claiming that every machine that went home with poll workers was compromised, but the fact is that any of them could have been. That's completely unacceptable and calls into question the validity of every election that uses these machines.

And I'm sure your "illegal alien" theory is rock-solid. Evidence? Stop blindly defending the Repugs and do some research on your own. You sound like a moron when you come to a forum filled with people who have been following these issues for years and start spewing ridiculous theories and complete bullshit. Go away if you have nothing useful to contribute to the conversation (and no, I don't consider "useful" to mean that you agree with everything being said here --- just open your eyes a little).

"Stop blindly defending the Repugs and do some research on your own. You sound like a moron when you come to a forum filled with people who have been following these issues for years and start spewing ridiculous theories and complete bullshit."

-----------------------------------

Elliott, in thanking you for the warm reply, I'm not exactly new to this issue. I started working on elections when there were still paper ballots and poll taxes, and have worked virtually every election since in one way or another --- including several stints as an election judge, ballot security, election inspector, and witness in recount suits.

While I have some concerns about some voting systems that seem more prone to "mischief" and the lack of verifiable paper trails than others, there is a greater worry about elections being stolen in the old-fashioned ways --- including simple voter fraud. (I'm surprised you didn't know this, what with your expertise.)

I've seen cases where people took days to rejigger mechanical voting machines to gain an advantage, so I don't put anything beyond the reach of those willing, stupid, and ambitious enough to cheat. That's life for ya. But, as another poster managed to say without drawing childish reactions, the central vote tabulating machines are --- for many --- an even greater source of angst over election accuracy.

I'm not defending the "Repugs" as you call them, although the facts are that Democrats have stolen far more elections in our history than Republicans. But, party labels don't interest me.

Fair and accurate elections DO interest me.

Michael Daniels #45

Please look again at my recent posts at the end of the other longer thread on this. We have to be careful not to draw false conclusions about the numbers of total primary votes for the 50th not matching what was in the special election. As I noted in those other posts, 21% of the district is "decline to state" or of another party that didn't have a candidate in this race, meaning they can't vote in any of the primaries. They did have the option to vote in the runoff, which is why there are extra votes there. That's around close to 10,000 voters that fit that category in the district. If you look at my post where I compared the primary numbers to the registered voter numbers (and percentages) from another article, it looked like the Dems had the best turnout of over 40% and the Republicans less at around 37% or so, and the independents and other parties around 18-19%. So it might be that they actually have *less* votes counted than there should be here. The polls all showed that Busby was doing quite well with independent voters. If she had equivalent turnout from the independents more comparable to the Dem and Republican turnouts, she likely would have won.

Then again, I still feel like everyone else here, that we should find ways of being confident in these reported numbers too, which I'm not, without a recount!

Also, on the topic of this thread, the machine sleepovers were happening in April too. Brad and I both received this letter from a fellow Dem in the district who complained about this issue then too right before that election:

Hello:

I'll be a poll worker in the 50th District Congressional Elections and have already received a manual and such. What struck me as particularly tone-deaf of the registrar's office is that I'm going to be taking the voting equipment and ballots home with me on Friday 4/7 for the election of Tuesday, 4/11. All of this will be sitting in either my home office or my garage until I deliver them my precinct and set them up. Does this sound familiar to you? Remember Black Box Voting's movie where San Diego Country was ridiculed for doing this? We do have to have the polls open by 0700 and I guess the logistics of delivering the equipment direct to the polling place seem a little overwhelming to the Registrar but, I'd be willing to put it down to just being cheap and not truly valuing voting.

Thanks,

Joan#42. Thanks for the address. I'll email her today. I've heard her say she doesn't read her emails....I've noticed she has started talking about voter fraud too. If I wrote she avoids it, forgive. If this is history(heard Al Franken do the same) We are all better off. Randi has a big audience.

This is the tip of the iceberg. It's like convicting Capone on Tax evasion. Start looking into 2000 and 2004. Presidential elections are far more important than this. Maybe this is to keep us looking away from the real issues (Presidential elections stolen). Either way, this gov't is still tapping phones (NSA), still forcing book outlets to ban the novel "America Deceived" by E.A. Blayre III, still caging protestors and still in illegal wars.
Last link (before Google breaks):
http://www.iuniverse.com...?&isbn=0-595-38523-0

Busby won't ask for a recount for the same reason, Gore didn't push harder in the aftermath of 2000 and why Kerry and the Dem establishment went easy on Georgie in 2004...democrats are pussies. Its the same reason why the the Dems will probably blow it this year.

Unless this practice is ended, this will be the future of all important elections. We'd better get used to narrow GOP victories in every key House and Senate race this November, and again in 2008.

Between hackable sleepover voting machines, inadequate numbers of machines in black precincts, throwing out Dem. registration cards and other types of vote suppression tactics, we are looking at endless one-party rule.

Any Dem. (hello, Ms.Pelosi) who thinks the GOP will cede control of Congress or the White House is dreaming.

I voted at my precinct in Leucadia, in the 50th district. The scanner machines were not working when I arrived (8:00am). I filled out a paper ballot. The big cardboard box for holding the marked ballots was placed so that I could not put the ballot in the box myself, so I had to hand the ballot to a poll worker. As I did so, a neighbor walked in who said hello to me. After I responded to his greeting, I noticed that the poll worker had moved away from the ballot box, still holding my ballot in her hand. I asked her if she was planning to scan my ballot herself. She said "No, the scanners aren't working." Then I said, "What are you going to do with my ballot?" She then moved back towards the box and said "I'm going to put it in this box," and slipped it through the slot. I will forever wonder if she planned to lift the ballot's paper cover to see how I voted and then make a determination as to whether it would go in a round file or the ballot box.

I don't know whether anyone has reported this to your website, but here's my contribution: Yes, the extremely hackable Diebold Machines are taken home by the polling place supervisor one or more nights before the election.

My previous submission may have been incomplete. I said that in my area the extremely hackable Diebold machines are at home with the polling place supervisors one or more days before the election. This is the procedure in King County (which includes Seattle) Washington.