We just received an email from Stabenow...

[Pam-Moby]

we emailed her 3 times from Dec 15 2004 to Jan 4th 2005 and just got this reply today.


January 18, 2005


Mr.
MI


Thank you . . .

. . for contacting me regarding the certification of the 2004
presidential election. I understand your strong views.

On January 6, 2005, Senator Barbara Boxer and Representative
Stephanie Tubbs Jones raised an objection to the certification
of
the Ohio electoral votes. The objection was debated by the
House
and the Senate, and at the end of this debate, both chambers
voted
in favor of certifying the Ohio electoral votes. Attached is
the
speech I gave on the Senate floor during the debate.

Thank you, again for contacting me. I understand how strongly
you feel about this issue and appreciate you sharing your views.


-Debbie Stabenow
United States Senator


Remarks of Senator Debbie Stabenow
Floor of the U.S. Senate
Electoral Vote Count
Thursday, January 6, 2005

Mr. President, I rise today to talk about the most fundamental
right
in our democracy - the right to vote.

Every election day, millions of people in America from different
social, economic and ethnic backgrounds converge on polling
stations to cast their votes.

And as they leave the polling booths, they emerge one by one, as
equals.

They are equals because the power of our Constitution resides
with
the people, who delegate power to the government. Our
Constitution guarantees the right of every American to be heard
-
equally - about whom they want to lead their government.

And we, as their elected leaders, have a responsibility to
ensure
that those Constitutional freedoms are honored and protected.

We have heard from some voters in Ohio and across the country
about the election in November. They feel that their voices were
not heard:

Thousands of voters waited in line for up to 10 hours to cast
their
ballots. Some waited until four o'clock in the morning. Some
waited for hours in the rain. Many, many voters with job and
family and other responsibilities simply couldn't wait any
longer -
and they left without voting. It is unreasonable to expect
voters to
wait 10 hours to exercise their Constitutional right to vote.

Some soldiers and other Americans living overseas believe that
their ballots were not counted. Without question, every legal
ballot
should count - whether it is cast overseas or here in the United
States.

Many precincts across the country continue to use outdated
punch-
card ballots and decades-old voting machines that are more prone
to error or simply do not work properly.

That is disturbing enough - machines from the 1950s being used
in
2004. But even more disturbing is that urban areas are
disproportionately affected. More urban areas do not have the
modern voting machines and equipment that is available in other
areas of the country. This disparity affects voting for a large
number of minorities - and that is unacceptable.

Even those precincts with electronic voting machines had
problems. Some machines malfunctioned, causing votes to be
counted more than once - or not at all.

Anyone who has used a computer at home or at work knows that
even saved data can be lost. Yet most electronic voting machines
do not have a paper record to back up the system. It could be as
simple as a paper receipt like the one that you get when you
withdraw money from an ATM machine.

In Nevada, electronic voting machines have a paper trail - and
we
need it for all electronic voting. We must ensure the integrity
of
our voting process.

Many voters felt intimidated at the polls. When they went to
vote,
so-called election "observers" demanded that they provide more
than the required form of identification. Others read flyers
that
directed them to the wrong polling places.

These are real people with real concerns, Mr. President, and we
need to listen to them. Our Constitution requires that we listen
to
them. As elected leaders of these people - and all of those in
our
states who have delegated to us the power to represent them - we
have an obligation to listen.

After voters experienced similar problems in the last election,
we
addressed many of these issues. We - Congress - passed and I
supported the "Help America Vote Act," which required the use of
provisional ballots for voters who went to the wrong locations
so
ballots would be sealed and counted later, in the proper
precinct.
And each state received funding to update their voting systems.

But in Ohio, the provisional ballot was rendered virtually
worthless
in the November 2004 election. The Ohio Secretary of State ruled
that provisional ballots were valid only if they were cast in
the
proper precinct.

So today we talk about the problem - but I think we also need to
talk about the solutions. Voting is fundamental to our
democracy.
The process should be fair, honest and easy.

I do not support holding up the results of our November election
to
address the concerns many voters have raised about the process,
because I believe we need to move on with the business of the
country.

But I do support the GAO investigation into these concerns. And
when we find out what GAO has to say, we have an obligation to
address the problems they uncover.

And I do support true election reform that will create a 21st
century
voting system of which we can all be proud.

If we do not listen to these voters, we are doing a disservice
to
them, to ourselves and to every American.

Mr. President, I urge my fellow colleagues on both sides of the
aisle to listen carefully to the issues these voters have
raised.

It is our responsibility to ensure the rights that the
Constitution
demands - that the vote of every American citizen counts.

Thank you, Mr. President.



Sincerely,
Debbie Stabenow
United States Senator