Diebold hires top Dem for PR blitz (former DNC chair)

[yellowjacket7]

With a phone call and a retainer, Diebold CEO Walden O'Dell has launched former Democratic National Committee chairman Joe Andrew on a 50-state ambassadorship for electronic voting.

O'Dell said he ``wanted to reframe some of the issues,'' Andrew said.

snip----

In three years in California, Diebold voting devices have awarded thousands of votes to the wrong candidates and broken down in two large counties during a presidential primary. Two successive state election chiefs, a Democrat and a Republican, both have rejected the TSx.

snip----

full story

http://www.insidebayarea.com/localnews/ci_2958901

[Eric J in MN]

1. I never heard of Joe Andrew before, and yet the terms

Sell-Out and Corporate-Whore quickly come to mind.

[loudsue]

2. Bound to have ushered in the DLC crowd.

Anybody that's whoring for the blackboxes is NOT an American... instead, they're just another arm of the republican mafia.

:kick:

[yellowjacket7]

5. And who said Democrats can't be bought

Enough said.

[Imagevision]

58. Now I understand why there isn't much in Dems backing Conyers!

[ooglymoogly]

86. the pugs need dino's

if they didn't have them they would be exposed for what they are, a dictatorship. so if the present fraudulent voting machines continue to fake elections, there will always be room and indeed a need for dinos and dinos will continue to win elections. we all saw what happened to real dems who bucked the pugs. the corporate propaganda machines love to say bipartisan, passed by a bipartisan vote. they dote and gloat on the word. so its pretty easy to see how we lost cafta, bankruptcy, medicare, tax giveaways to the rich and most whatever else the conglomerate nazis are pushing for and we owe it all to electronic voting with vapor ballots.

[blm]

27. He was at the DNC when Gore ran in 2000. He's a Clinton guy.

This is just fucked, imo.

I hope Dean runs straight at him on this issue.

OTOH....maybe Diebold knows they can no longer carry on with their vote-rigging without getting caught because there are too many suspicious of their machines, and the press is having difficulty defending them.

[Zhade]

94. "This is just fucked..."

That's one way to say it!

[Eric J in MN]

3. Apparenly he was DNC Chair from 1999-2001.

Are other people here familiar with him?

That was recently, but I'm not familiar with him.

Here is a photo of former Democratic National Committee chairman Joe Andrew:

[tritsofme]

25. Party chairmen aren't as prominent when your party is in the WH.

I don't remember much about him either.

[City Lights]

26. The name was familiar, as is the face.

I can't remember anything he's said though. If he's working for Diebold, he's just another corporate whore. :puke:

[Imagevision]

84. Is Howard Dean or Conyers aware of this? Zen Miller to be his advisor??

[MelissaB]

4. Fuck!

"But Andrew isn't traveling the nation to talk about that or even to talk much about Diebold. So why is a ranking Democratic operative who was convinced Republicans ``stole'' the 2000 election working for Diebold and O'Dell, a battlestate fund-raiser for Bush-Cheney 2004?

It is Andrew's message that paperless electronic voting is good for Democrats - and his connections in Democratic circles. "

Right

[FreedomAngel82]

9. What in the world???

AH! Now our own so-called allies are turning against us. :mad: It's all probably for Hillary!

[rocktivity]

17. Either he's an moran or a mole

He can't possibly be serious. And by the way, why is Diebold the ONLY fish in the sea?

:headbang:
rocknation

[Eric J in MN]

42. He's not a mole.

Diebold won't tell him secrets.

They're going to give him a check, and send him around to talk to people who decide which machines to buy, and hint at all the great job opportunities in store for them if they choose Diebold.

[TankLV]

80. OK - Vichy Dem, then - SELLOUT, TRAITOR, whatever.

He's not a real Democrat, that's for sure.

MOLE - and his name is next to the word in the dictionary.

[Eric J in MN]

91. mole=spy

My point is that he's helping Republicans, not Democrats.

[Al-CIAda]

6. Thank you for the post, and welcome. nt

:thumbsup:

[Burried News]

7. Joe Andrew doesn't speak for me. He speaks for

[oasis]

8. PR blitz? Diebold picks a Dem (Andrews)to put lipstick on their pig. Why

not ask Dean (DNC) for a recommendation?

[FreedomAngel82]

11. Interesting indeed

Why go to a past chairman? I guess his DLC ties perhaps?

[KittyWampus]

66. DLC Ties? Excuse? Why Bring Up DLC? Because Dean Was DLC?

I am not fond of the more visible DLC members and their affinity for kissing corporate ass, but the way DU'ers just throw the term around in lieu of the word "boogieman" is pathetic.

[Ouabache]

71. because Joe Andrew is from Indiana and close to Evan Bayh?

Maybe Joe doesn't know how computers really can be made to 'work' hard?

[Zhade]

95. Maybe because he was a founder of the Indiana chapter of the DLC?

http://www.dlc.org/ndol_ci.cfm?contentid=955&kaid=127&subid=171

Until recently, the party's general chairman was former Colorado Gov. Roy Romer, who is also vice-chairman of the DLC, and the party's national chairman, Joe Andrew, was a founder of the Indiana chapter of the DLC.

[steve2470]

10. Traitor to the Dem. party. All I have to say nt

[MelissaB]

12. Check this out:

Joe, referred to as "the humble man with the golden rolodex" because of his friendships with CEOs and labor leaders across America, is a life-long Democrat who served as the Chair of the Indiana Democratic Party from 1995-1999. In both 1996 and 1998, Andrew led the Party to unprecedented state victories. Under his leadership, the Indiana Democratic Party raised more money per capita than any Democratic state party in the nation. As a member of the team led by Senator Evan Bayh and Governor Frank O'Bannon, Andrew helped Indiana elect more Democratic officeholders with fewer self-identified Democratic voters than any other state in America.

Link: http://www.leadingauthorities.com/13411/Joe_Andrew.htm

[B Calm]

16. Why is Indiana still a red state then?

[MisterP]

24. the neolibs of the DLC aren't here to help the Dems, ya'know

[leesa]

40. Because people like him WORK for the GOP. Just because you have a D by

your name doesn't mean you don't work for the opposition.

[FreedomAngel82]

44. Interesting

They benefit more from the republicans cause the republicans give the tax cuts to the top 1% which includes the corporations.

[burythehatchet]

67. this is quite true

I am close to being convinced that true power is vested with the corporate/financial interests that control a set of legislators that compose a majority on a particular issue. This is why one often sees a vote like CAFTA where there is a critical mass sufficient to defeat the bill, but there are always just enough sell-outs to defeat our position.

[rucky]

75. Yep, you can change your party affiliation in less than 1 hour. n/t

[John Q. Citizen]

19. and this.....

http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/newsitem.asp?id=11763
snip

Andrew has practiced corporate law for almost 20 years, focusing on mergers and acquisitions of technology and regulated companies. He has represented many Fortune 1000 companies in acquisitions, spin-offs, financings, and structuring capital market products to meet their needs. In addition, because of his political and governmental background, he advises companies on the larger policy and regulatory issues involved in each transaction.

"Joe's unparalleled experience counseling companies around the globe on their corporate and governmental affairs strategies will be invaluable to our clients," said Elliott Portnoy, chair of Sonnenschein's Public Law & Policy Strategy Group. "Heads of corporations and public and private institutions, as well as the media, look to him as an authoritative voice on issues across the spectrum."
F. Kirk Lininger, CEO of Auctus Group, a business growth and M&A consulting firm, has used Andrew in numerous transactions and in difficult corporate circumstances. "Joe Andrew is the perfect mentor to a CEO or senior executive," Lininger said. "In the nearly three decades I have assisted companies grow, I've learned it is a unique lawyer who understands the nexus of business, law, government and politics. Joe is at that nexus right now."

In 1999, Andrew was elected the national chairman of the Democratic National Committee and served until February 2001. Previously, he was chairman of the Indiana Democratic Party from 1995 to 1999. He currently serves as the chairman of the New Democrat Network, an organization of centrist Democrats.

snip

[MelissaB]

22. We posted this info at the same time. :) Check post 18.

:hi:

[John Q. Citizen]

28. i guess great minds think alike :)

[MelissaB]

29. Exactly what I was thinking...or we "google" alike.

:)

[loudsue]

74. There you have it: New Democratic Network = DLC.

Bingo!

:kick:

[me b zola]

13. Unbelievable!

I'm at a loss for words.



PAPER BALLOTS NOT VAPOR BALLOTS!!!!!!!

[Cha]

14. So they know they're in TROUBLE

if they have to hire a rino in dino's clothing.

[Eric J in MN]

15. Joe Andrew isn't just a traitor to the Democratic Party.

Advocates of voting systems which can't be audited are tratiors to democracy.

[steve2470]

20. Agreed !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! nt

[MelissaB]

18. DLC: Here ya go:

On one level, Watkins is right. Since 1992, the Democratic Party has ratified two quintessentially New Democratic platforms at its quadrennial national convention. Until recently, the party's general chairman was former Colorado Gov. Roy Romer, who is also vice-chairman of the DLC, and the party's national chairman, Joe Andrew, was a founder of the Indiana chapter of the DLC.

http://www.dlc.org/ndol_ci.cfm?kaid=127&subid=171&contentid=955


Corporate whore is right! :nuke:

[FreedomAngel82]

45. Of course!

And they're going to do it so Hillary can "win"! Not who we want as a country!

[Individualist]

49. Surprise, surprise!

:sarcasm:

[cosmicdot]

61. the DLC in its own words (from the link) ...

re: the Party which brought a New Deal, a Square Deal, a New Frontier, and a Great Society, etc., to America; and, which has expanded the promise this country has had to offer its people .....


" ... the DLC and the New Democrats have offered the most durable and sustained effort to oppose the dominant liberal faction of their party.

~snip~

"Ultimately, it is success in winning such offices, plus a continuing hold on the presidency, that will institutionalize the New Democrat philosophy further. And with each victory, it will be harder and harder to return to the liberalism that preceded it."


Getting in bed with Diebold is a big ticket to that ultimate goal.

With "Democrats" like these, who needs coup d'etats to impose PNAC and right-wing agendas on America?

[MelissaB]

62. This needs to be posted in it's own thread. I haven't seen this before.

Many may have seen it, but many of us haven't.

[Eric J in MN]

21. Email the Democratic Party.

Use the form at:
http://www.dnc.org/page/s/contact


Here is my letter to them:

Open Letter

I am very disappointed that former Democratic National Committee chairman Joe Andrew is advocating electronic voting.

Electronic voting lets Republican corporations program any election outcome they choose.

We need a voting system which can be audited. Paper ballots, not vapor ballots.

I was disgusted with Joe Andrew as I read this article:

http://www.insidebayarea.com/localnews/ci_2958901#

With a phone call and a retainer, Diebold CEO Walden O'Dell has launched former Democratic National Committee chairman Joe Andrew on a 50-state ambassadorship for electronic voting.

O'Dell said he ``wanted to reframe some of the issues,'' Andrew said.

His first stop: California, the nation's largest market for voting machines and the place where Diebold's fortunes as the largest supplier of electronic-voting machines in the nation could be made or broken.

[tommcintyre]

48. AND EMAIL Joseph J. Andrew DIRECTLY HERE:

"Educate" him about Diebold, and DRE's in general.

[e-mail]

I confirmed this is him here:
http://www.sonnenschein.com/attorneys/index.aspx?aid=0004475
snip
" In 1999, Mr. Andrew was elected the National Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, serving in this role through February 2001."

EDIT:
And, you can call him here:
202/408-5210

[yurbud]

98. AAAAAARGHH!!! You made my heart race--my email to DNC:

I was disappointed to see that former DNC chair Joseph J. Andrew has gone to work as a PR flak for Diebold, the electronic voting machine company that has been crucial in the Bush effort to rig the last couple of elections.

The democratic party should condemn Mr. Andrew and demand he step down in no uncertain terms, and demand that paper ballots hand counted be the standard for our elections until well after the current occupants are out of the White House and Congress.

It would be no victory for democracy to replace a sham election that installs Republicans with a sham election that installs DLC candidates.

Hillbilly Hitler art:



Blog:

[MelissaB]

23. This needs one more vote for the "greatest". People need to know this.

[Burried News]

30. It's got 8 now.

Indiana Bag Man
CON fusion
He's at the nexus alright - nexus the area between anus and scrotum.
Synonym - Santorum

[Eric J in MN]

32. nominated (nt)

nt

[wli]

31. typical AEI/PNAC corporatist shill mole from the DLC n/t

[davidinalameda]

33. I saw this story in the Oakland paper

I just hope that people don't assume that the DNC is in the pocket of Diebold now

We need to get rid of the voting machines all together and go back to good old fashioned paper ballots

the machines are too much trouble

[Eric J in MN]

39. I agree.

We'd be much better off with no voting machines.

Paper ballots, put into a transparent box, publicly hand-counted at the precint on Election Night.

Without even moving the transparent ballot box.

[freshharbor]

34. This is great news.....

Maybe he can hack the elections for us for once! This would been seen as a coup in certain areas.

[sunnystarr]

35. another corporate whore selling us out to the highest bidder ...

personally I think he should just switch parties so that everyone knows exactly what he is. I hope Dean blasts him out of the water. But then again my hopes haven't been too high with the lack of quality in our leadership. Maybe he won't disappoint me. This is so outrageous and again calls for separating ourselves more publicly from the DLC.

[havocmom]

36. From your keyboard to Dr. Dean's eyes...

This man needs to have his nose seriously rubbed in it!

Take him down, Dr. Dean.

[FreedomAngel82]

46. I agree

Hopefully Dean can know about this!

[Imagevision]

85. I agree also! Gives one a shitty feeling about their own party

Where are the likes of Hillary or Obama etc. when these things occur??

[leesa]

37. Well, this says alot about who some Dems want to stay in power....

Shame on this traitor.

[Eric J in MN]

38. Please write the "New Democrat Network" against this.

Joe Andrew is an advisor to NDN.
http://www.ndn.org/about/#Who_we_are

A list of NDN email addresses is at:
http://www.ndn.org/about/contact.html

Here is my letter to NDN:

Open Letter

I was disappointed to learn that NDN advisor Joe Andrew is advocating electronic voting as a paid lobbyist for Diebold.

Diebold CEO Wally O'Dell was co-chair of Bush's re-election committee in Ohio.

I live in Minnesota, where we use optical-scan ballots throughout the state. These ballots can be hand-counted if any problems are suspected.

With electronic voting, which Joe Andrew advocates, the corporation which makes the machines can determine the outcome of the election. Even if there is a printout, most voters don't check the printout. With optical-scan ballots, a ballot the voter actually filled out can be re-counted.

If Joe Andrew were advoting for electronic voting because he found arguments for it were persuasive, that would be bad enough.

But someone working for a Republican CEO for the money to remove accountablity from elections, is worse.

Related article at:
http://www.insidebayarea.com/localnews/ci_2958901

[MelissaB]

41. Great letter and great idea.

Will do!

[eridani]

47. I think this will make a great DU activist project n/t

[Bill Bored]

43. I wouldn't care if John Conyers himself worked for them!

They sell JUNK voting equipment, it's riggable with little or no computer expertise, it's too much of a temptation for anyone who knows how to to resist, and no one has held them accountable.

Is that the kind of election system we want to have in America, or Outer Mongolia for that matter? I don't think so.

The DNC, through the Donna Brazile report, has come out against DREs and although they recommend precinct count optical scanners instead, the Diebold ones are programmed the same way as their DREs. They are almost as riggable. Voter verified paper ballots, auditing and recounts can mitigate the risk however, and this is easy to do with Op Scans.

Read the report and marginalize this guy Andrew and any other Democrat who won't tow the line for verifiable free and fair elections NOW!

http://www.democrats.org/a/2005/06/democracy_at_ri.php

[annabanana]

50. kickin back up for visibility n/t

[tommcintyre]

51. He has political ambitions - ran for Gov. of Indiana - email him...

Let him know how his association woth his new client will potentially impact his future political ambitions:
[e-mail]


http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Joseph_J._Andrew
"Joseph J. Andrew (Joe), a member of the Advisory Board of the New Democrat Network, is <was> a candidate for Governor of Indiana.

Andrew has been a business lawyer and small business owner for years. He's directed several nonprofit organizations, and at an unusually young age, became the Indiana State Democratic Chairman.

Andrew "spearheaded successful campaigns" for Evan Bayh and Frank O'Bannon and was elected as National Chairman of the Democratic National Committee."

http://www.idsnews.com/story.php?id=18564
"Published Wednesday, October 1, 2003 Joe Andrew, Democratic candidate for governor of Indiana, spoke at the Indiana Memorial Union, Tuesday."

[Nothing Without Hope]

52. Put this with the blatantly bogus official DNC "report" on the Ohio

Election, which managed to claim that there was no evidence for widespread fraud (!), and you see the very, very cozy relationship. At the expense of democracy.

This is outrageous in every way.

[KittyWampus]

68. There Was Nothing "Bogus" About The DNC Report On Ohio.

the only thing "bogus" is your mischaracterization of what that report actually said.

[Ouabache]

72. Morrow County Ohio - they forgot to rig it

2000- 67% Bush
2004- 60% Bush


A glance at the demographic and total votes of this county proves it for me. If he dropped THIS much in a very small farming county, there is NO WAY he did not drop MORE than that all over that fucking miserable corrupt state.

They didn't bother to rig it because it was so small, or for some reason they could not rig it up.

[Raksha]

76. They probably didn't bother rigging it because it's so small...

...and also heavily pro-Bush. Why take the chance rigging it if they didn't have to?

[Peace Patriot]

79. The DNC report on the 2004 election WAS bogus! Any Democratic

Party report about that election that FAILS TO MENTION *WHO* OWNS THE ELECTION SYSTEM--major Bush donors and campaign chairs and billionaire rightwingers--and that these EXTREME PARTISANS tabulated all the votes with SECRET, PROPRIETARY PROGRAMMING CODE--*IS* BOGUS.

And that isn't all the Donna Brazile report left out--it is as riddled with black holes as the New York Times coverage of Iraq WMDs--but it is ENOUGH. This critically important omission reflects the CATASTROPHIC FAILURE of the Democratic Party leadership to protect the integrity of our votes LEADING UP TO to 2004. That's where the failure occurred, not on election night. Our party leaders should have been screaming bloody murder about Bushites owning the election system and counting the votes in secret. They should have burned down the capitol to get this changed. Instead, they kow-towed to the people IN OUR OWN PARTY--people like Los Angeles elections head Connie McCormack, and election officials all over the country--who had succumbed to Diebold's, ES&S's and Sequoia's lavish lobbying, future job offers and the heady power of brokering the BIG BUSINESS DEALS that our election systems have become.

And WHAT did the Democratic Party DO when one of the last honest election officials in the country--Kevin Shelley, Sec of State in Calif, who had stood up to Diebold and sued their asses--got hit with a Bush Cartel black op/secret dossier campaign? They all hid under their desks--in the most disgusting display of corruption and cowardice I have ever seen!

Connie McCormack LED the group of corrupt Calif election officials who helped drive Shelley from office. McCormack--whose closest friend Deborah Siler was Diebold's chief salesperson in Calif.--told a CA legislative committee she wanted to "drive a bulldozer" into Shelley's office to FORCE him to spend taxpayers' money on Diebold's and others' crappy, hackable voting systems. He had put a hold on the funds. Diebold was LYING to him about the security of their machines. That's why he sued them, and in the course of the suit, demanded to see their secret, programming code (which the prior Sec of State, Repub Bill Jones had tied up in a "trade secret" contract--and then went to work for Sequoia!!!!).

This HONESTY of Shelley's--his refusal to play games with Diebold--was touted as CORRUPTION. The phrase used in the black op was "misuse of HAVA funds." MISUSE! He refused to spend the taxpayers' money on CRAP--on ELECTION THEFT MACHINES!

Lavish lobbying. Future job offers. The heady power of big business deals. And the heady perfume of careerism--of lording and ladying it, as "experts" and "professionals" in the gobble-de-gook of electronic voting, over the dumb voters who haven't a clue any more how their votes are counted.

This is what McCormack said about voter advocate Kim Alexander--who heads a non-profit on government use of electronics: She's "not an expert." Do you see how insidious this is? Voter advocates now have to be "experts" in order to challenge how our votes are counted. We have to show creds. We're not "professionals," not insiders, not the high priests and priestesses of voting. This is SHIT.

Check out this post by Amaryllis, about the hogfest at the Beverly Hilton just a few weeks ago--a week of fun, sun and high-end shopping for election officials from around the country, sponsored by Diebold, ES&S and Sequoia! It'll burn your eyeballs! They gave "graduation awards" to our election officials! And Connie McCormack was a featured speaker!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x380340

The Donna Brazile/DNC report stank to high heaven of this kind of corruption--of the venal corruption of our election system by DEMOCRATS.

We need a BIG BROOM, my friends. And the Republicans are not the only ones who need their house cleaned.

[Zan_of_Texas]

88. Have we forgotten Cathy Cox of Georgia?

Cox is the Secretary of State of Georgia, a democrat.

She ushered in Diebold DREs statewide, the FIRST STATE to do so.

She has stonewalled, footdragged, lied, cancelled citizen meetings, and done everything possible to keep citizens and their questions and concerns out of the process.

I repeat, she is a democrat. With aspirations for higher office.

Does anybody remember the stunning scene in Fahrenheit 911 where the Congressional Black Caucus pleads with the Senators, for one Senator to help challenge the 2000 presidential results?

Does anybody remember how many phone calls (tens of thousands) it took to get ONE LOUSY SENATOR to sign on to challenge the Ohio electors on January 6th, 2005?

Does anybody remember how many lawyers and how many millions in his warchest Kerry claimed to have in advance of November 2004, in case there needed to be a challenge? Does anybody remember how many technologists were on the team? Does anybody remember WHAT PARTIES DID CHALLENGE THE OHIO ELECTION FOR PRESIDENT?

John Conyers, Maxine Waters, Barbara Lee, and Kucinich are right on the issues, and reflect the views of the American people. But, the Democratic Party apparatus does not, and does not support those few real representatives of the people, nor us the people.

[Zhade]

101. Thank you for this post.

Unlike the one to which it replies, this post is actually informed.

Some don't get it. You, clearly, do, and in a big way.

[Nothing Without Hope]

53. A relevant thread from June - election officials being wined and dined

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x380340
Thread title: ACTION! Election officials for sale to the highest bidder. Speak out!

Here's an excerpt from the opening post of that thread. It will turn your stomach - but not surprise you. No surprise that the Dems and the election officials are so reluctant to even MENTION electronic voting fraud, let alone DO anything about it.

This is a very important action item. The incestuous nature of the relationship between vendors and election officials is outrageous.

http://www.votersunite.org/takeaction/alert061905.htm
From Voters Unite:

Ask your county election director a question -- will they be attending the Election Center's Annual National Conference?

This summer county, state, and national elections officials will be heading to Hollywood and Beverly Hills to enjoy four days of fun and sun sponsored, in part, by their friends at Diebold, Sequoia and ES&S. Yes, that's right. Diebold is co-sponsoring the "Welcome Reception"; ES&S is co-sponsoring the "Graduation Luncheon and Awards Ceremony" and Sequoia is co-sponsoring a Thursday evening dinner and dance.

This gathering is NOT a weekend or even a long weekend. This gathering is done during the work week while those officials are being paid by their counties or states, that is, the tax payer. So while they are on the clock, being paid by us, they will be enjoying the hospitality of the voting machine vendors who will be plying them with misinformation and free meals, snacks, and drink.

The list of speakers at this event is stunning in its absurdity. There is no one to speak the truth about voter verified paper ballots. Instead our elections officials who attend will get to hear from ousted Palm Beach Director of Elections Theresa LePore. Attendees will get to hear about "Challenged Elections and Recounts" from the King County, Washington Auditor whose county's elections were woefully mismanaged in November.

Many states have made it illegal for any elected official or employee to receive ANY gifts from vendors. Are any employees of your county elections office, or your county elections director, going to attend this corporate sponsored gathering? Send them an email asking. Let them know you think it's a conflict of interest. Include their bosses, county commissioners, and/or state elections directors, in the email so everyone knows what will be going on. Let the media know that this event is a potential ethics problem.

The schedule of events is below.

The schedule of events is included. The electronic voting machine vendors combine their sales pitch with posh treatment. And who knows what goes on BEHIND THE SCENES?

The stench of corruption reeks.

[Dynasty_At_Passes]

55. If it wasn't clear before, its clear now......

The DLC is in bed with the corrupt voting vendors. This is why they don't give a rats about stolen elections, lost votes, or democracy.

They are corporate whores. Andrew won't listen, he'll just take his check and smirk.

[Nothing Without Hope]

63. I believe you are right in this assessment. We can't trust them when they

spout excuses and talk only about "civil rights offenses," i.e., NOT the electronic fraud component of the election thefts. Giving more voting machines and shortening the waiting lines and stopping tactics like voter misdirection and intimidation WON'T MATTER A RAT'S ASS if voter can be secretly purged and votes can be manipulated electronically.

Hell, the Rethugs will go along with the big public relations opportunities available in presenting more voting machines in front of the cameras and reporting shorter voting lines in Dem-heavy neighborhoods. Won't stand in the way of the REAL game of hacking and purging.

This is why I am DEEPLY SUSPICIOUS of Kerry's reported plans to withdraw from all but two election-relatied cases in Ohio - guess what, he's keeping the "civil rights violations" one.

I also believe that the DNC's travesty of a "report" on the Ohio Election was intended from the start as a coverup/whitewash of electronic voting fraud and purges - it can be used by both Rethugs and Dems to excuse their lack of interest in electronic voting reform.

Voter-verified paper ballots and clear, fair and well-publicized voter purging - it's the only way back to democracy. And most of the Dems are NOT interested. Just ask good Diebold-buddy Andrew or the election officials being entertained by the electronic voting industry.

[Zhade]

102. I think I'm going to be sick.

I'd say I'm stunned that I missed this (I *live* in Los Angeles), but since that scumbag liar Bev Harris turned out to be a fucking freeper, I've kind of distanced myself from the movement (and THAT says a lot about the damage that crazy narcissist has done).

This is reprehensible.

[dunn]

104. As long as it is legal for them to be bribed, It will continue.

[Nothing Without Hope]

105. Welcome to DU, dunn! Yes, as long as it's legal (and some places it

isn't - that should be ALL places) it will continue. The nice Poodle Press that never ruffles the the corrupt powers that rule this country make it even easier. Corruption and the actual overthrow of the elected government in this country have been very easy and almost kept secret. Without the internet, it would be even worse.

[mom cat]

54. We need to put him on the list of persons to be picketed

[novak goes postal]

56. I never heard of Joe Andrews either.... Get Diebold out

of our voting systems... Joe Andrews is either a Republican of a DLC sell out.... LALALALALALALALALALALA Get Diebold out......

[Hubert Flottz]

57. Democrats sell us out too sometimes...

How much money is the guy getting for doing this, or is he just setting everyone straight, cause he's a nice patriotic guy? Why is he not with the DNC any longer, was he a mole all along?

[Eric J in MN]

60. The article says he's getting paid. Doesn't say how much, but

I'm guessing big bucks.

[Hubert Flottz]

64. Zell Miller is a democrat too

he says

[Peace Patriot]

81. "Democrats sell us out too sometimes..." TOO OFTEN!

Every Democratic election official in this country who signed contracts with Bushite corporations containing "trade secret" vote tabulation software should be driven from office! And any elected Dem representative with any connection whatsoever to this swindle also needs to be exposed and driven from office.

The betrayal of the voters--and particularly of the grass roots of the Dem party, as well as all those, including all the new voters, independent voters, former Nader voters, and Republicans, who voted to oust the Bush Cartel--has been CATASTROPHIC!

And WE WERE AND ARE THE MAJORITY!

-------

As for Republican election officials and representatives, they of course should be driven from office on general principle. Guilty until proven innocent.

[Hubert Flottz]

97. I agree 100%!

Down with the people who are Zelling out the constitution and the country!

[Imagevision]

59. Diebold MUST provide receipt for voting machines otherwise...

They're crooked -- they have no problem producing receipts at the ATM's we should jump on our Dem senators to get off the schtick and start earning their salaries!!

[Junkdrawer]

65. Diebold loves the current "non-regulating regulations"...

So do the Republicans. OK, we all see why that would be.

But why the fuck do so-called Democratic Leaders support this?

Howard Dean needs to address this and address it NOW!

[Eric J in MN]

69. Email the Democratic Party if you want Howard Dean to address this.

Use the form at:
http://www.dnc.org/page/s/contact


Here is my letter to them:

Open Letter

I am very disappointed that former Democratic National Committee chairman Joe Andrew is advocating electronic voting.

Electronic voting lets Republican corporations program any election outcome they choose.

We need a voting system which can be audited. Paper ballots, not vapor ballots.

I was disgusted with Joe Andrew as I read this article:

http://www.insidebayarea.com/localnews/ci_2958901#

With a phone call and a retainer, Diebold CEO Walden O'Dell has launched former Democratic National Committee chairman Joe Andrew on a 50-state ambassadorship for electronic voting.

O'Dell said he ``wanted to reframe some of the issues,'' Andrew said.

His first stop: California, the nation's largest market for voting machines and the place where Diebold's fortunes as the largest supplier of electronic-voting machines in the nation could be made or broken.

[Junkdrawer]

70. Thanks...

Think I'll remind him of Kerry's pledge for transparent elections and of the current environment where election laws, as poor as they are, are routinely ignored.

[paineinthearse]

73. yellowjacket7

Welcome to DU :hi:

[Warren DeMontague]

77. Why don't they spend some of that money on printable reciepts?

And put some transparency in what they're doing and how those machines are run...

then they might not need an "ambassador".

[Junkdrawer]

78. "Receipts" that are counted only if elections are within 0.5% is Plan B...

Plan A is continue with what they are doing with better PR.

[Peace Patriot]

83. You got it, Junkdrawer! And nothing is going to make any difference--

we are never going to see anything but the Corporate War Party in charge of our public affairs--as long as Bushites are 'counting' our votes with SECRET, PROPRIETARY programming code. Not even a real paper ballot can correct this rule by the rightwing, fascist minority--because it's so difficult and expensive to get a recount. We need...

--paper ballots, hand-counted at the precinct level, or

--electronic voting with a paper ballot (not "paper trail") backup, automatic recounts of 10% or more of the vote, very strict security, and NO SECRET, PROPRIETARY PROGRAMMING CODE.

The first one is EASIER. (They do it in Canada in one day--but speed should not even be a consideration--only ACCURACY and VERIFIABILITY.)

[Warren DeMontague]

93. Well, opening up the "secret, proprietary code" was what I had in mind

when I was talking about transparency.

But, (and believe me- no one is more serious on the issue of iron-clad reliable voting than me) realistically, in a country of 300 million people, you are going to have some kinds of machines, somewhere, at least ancillarily involved in the counting of votes. Hell, you already do; machines read the optical scan ballots many of us use, machines count the punch cards.. the key is transparency to what the machines are doing, oversight, and unchallengeable means for ALL sides and interested parties to watch, double and triple-check the process, and make sure there's no funny business going on.

Of course, funny business has been the name of the game for Diebold and co. from the beginning...

But you can't convince me that there is NO WAY to have a technologically advanced, transparent and open means of recording people's votes accurately in this country. Shit, you think banks would accept the kinds of "margins of error" (the ones we know about, that is) that Diebold has had with their ATMs? Fuck no. Because when you're talking about MONEY, and they want to be able to make sure the system is tight, sure as shit they can be exactly positive that every penny is recorded properly.

They can do the same thing with voting, and do it in a way that we would be able to double or triple check the results; but the fact that they're not interested in doing so speaks volumes.

[donsu]

82. who in the DNC knew Andrews was a traitor?

what other traitors are still in the DNC?

Andrew's pockets must be overflowing with money, the creep.

[freedomfries]

87. KICK

[Al-CIAda]

89. .

[hnsez]

90. Now I know why Gore lost. He was sabotaged from within the DNC.

[radio4progressives]

92. This is the ONE issue that can and should mobilize a mass movement

quickly and with the support of traditional Republican segment of the population, just as the anti-war movement, many in the Republican party were just as opposed to the war as the left was, their voices were not allowed to be heard however, just like our voices were not allowed to be heard.

The Neo Liberals and the Neo Conservatives are yes different some domestic policies, but are exactly the same on foreign policies - policies that need to be vehemently opposed on all fronts by all Americans. And that makes it an unofficial Neo Fascists Party, in my view.

If we don't start calling it out for what it is now, real democracy in our own country will be dead and buried for ever.

[Generic Other]

96. Is this because O'Dell personally guaranteed he'd deliver a Bush victory?

Got so much bad press, he had to hire a token Democrat so he doesn't seem so partisan?

If it says Diebold, I don't trust it.

[yurbud]

99. FAX & snail mail ADDRESSES of f&@king PR firm

I would strongly recommend contacting ALL their offices if you have unlimited long distance, and could therefore fax all for the same price.


Chicago
8000 Sears Tower
Chicago, IL 60606
Ph.: 312.876.8000
Fax: [phone]

Kansas City
4520 Main Street
Suite 1100
Kansas City, MO 64111
Ph.: 816.460.2434
Fax: [phone]

Los Angeles
601 S. Figueroa Street
Suite 1500
Los Angeles, CA 90017
Ph.: 213.623.9300
Fax: [phone]

New York
1221 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020
Ph.: 212.768.6700
Fax: [phone]

St. Louis
One Metropolitan Square
Suite 3000
St. Louis, MO 63102
Ph.: 314.241.1800
Fax: [phone]

San Francisco
685 Market Street
6th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105
Ph.: 415.882.5000
Fax: [phone]

New Jersey
Short Hills, NJ
101 JFK Parkway
Short Hills, NJ 07078
Ph.: 973.912.7100
Fax: [phone]

Washington DC
1301 K Street, N.W.
Suite 600, East Tower
Washington, DC 20005
Ph.: 202.408.6400
Fax: [phone]

West Palm Beach
Phillips Point, East Tower, Suite 600E
777 South Flagler Drive
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Ph.: 561.833.2410
Fax: [phone]

[yurbud]

100. my email to the firm:

Why is your firm representing the anti-democratic, vote rigging company Diebold?

Do some research before you decide to represent a company that has been caught lying to the state of California, illegally patching software during an election, designing a backdoor in their software to rig the vote count, which has been seen in action in precincts where vote counts exceeded voter turnout.

At present, the more than 50% of this country that disagrees with the current administration has no voice in Washington, thanks in part to companies like Diebold.

I realize that PR firms like lawyers must profess to provide their services amorally, but if you help a company hide their bad deeds and escape the just legal consequences, the public will eventually change the law and hold you accountable for the damages your client causes.

[Al-CIAda]

103. .

[Dogmudgeon]

106. I have a suggestion

Why doesn't someone write to him and ask him what he's doing? You could even express your qualms about auditless electronic voting and Diebold's connections with the Radical Right.

He might just tell you what's going on. Plus, it's easier to lobby someone with whom you disagree when you have established contact. (You don't have to kiss up to the guy, but calling him a "whore" and a "traitor" won't work.)

I don't understand how or why so many activists avoid the simplest, most direct of methods -- asking the person WTF is going on. They are not our masters, they are our peers, our neighbors, and sometimes our friends. The more straight talk they hear, and the less isolatedly "royal" they are, the less likely they are to become quislings.

Somebody, especially you fellow Hoosiers, find his phone number and give him a call.

--p!

[Al-CIAda]

107. .

[Al-CIAda]

108. .

[Al-CIAda]

109. .

[Al-CIAda]

110. .

[Al-CIAda]

111. .

[Al-CIAda]

112. .