The Suspicious, Disturbing Death of Election Rigger Michael Connell (Fitrakis and Wasserman)

[Octafish]

The story on the GOP's computer expert from two directly involved in exposing the Ohio 2004 election theft:



AP Photo

The Suspicious, Disturbing Death of Election Rigger Michael Connell

by By Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
December 20, 2008

EXCERPT...

Ohio Republican Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell hired Connell in 2004 to create a real-time computer data compilation for counting Ohio’s votes. Under Connell's supervision, Ohio’s presidential vote count was transmitted to private, partisan computer servers owned by SmartTech housed in the basement of the Old Pioneer Bank building in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Connell’s company, New Media Communications worked closely with SmartTech in building Republican and right-wing websites that were hosted on SmartTech servers. Among Connell’s clients were the Republican National Committee, Swift Boat Veterans for Truth and gwb43.com, that housed at one point Karl Rove's missing emails. Rove's email files have since mysteriously disappeared despite repeated court-sanctioned attempts to review them.

In 2001, Michael Connell’s GovTech Solutions, LLC was selected to reorganize the Capitol Hill IT network, the only private-sector company to gain permission from HIR to place its server behind the firewall, he bragged.

At 12:20 am on the night of the 2004 election exit polls and initial vote counts showed John Kerry the clear winner of Ohio's presidential campaign. The Buckeye State's 20 electoral votes would have given Kerry the presidency.

But from then until around 2am, the flow of information mysteriously ceased. After that, the vote count shifted dramatically to George W. Bush, ultimately giving him a second term. In the end there was a 6.7 percent diversion---in Bush's favor---between highly professional, nationally funded exit polls and the final official vote count as tabulated by Blackwell and Connell.

Until his death Connell remained the IT supervisor for six Congressional committees. But on the day before the 2008 election, Connell was deposed by attorneys Cliff Arnebeck and Bob Fitrakis about his actions during the 2004 vote count, and his continued involvement in IT operations for the GOP, including his access to Rove's e-mail files and the circumstances behind their disappearance.

CONTINUED...

http://www.freepress.org/departments/display/19/2008/3320

The GOP sent a couple of big league lawyers to "help" Mr. Connell in his testimony. Even though he tried to reveal as little as possible, it may be enough of what he knew has gotten out to help advance the case against the traitors, anyway.

[bleever]

1. First rec.

I'm Spartacus, you bastards.

[Botany]

4. I was with Bob F this morning & on the Radio w/ him

It was the last round up for our local Air America / Progressive Station some
Right wing Catholic Group spent between 1.5 and 2 million to buy the license ....

I had e-mailed in the story to the Station and was driving in as Bob got the
news .... he was stunned but not shocked ... Connell and his wife had just
come to the conclusion it might be time to talk ... and were scared out of their
minds.

Strange story that in 2004 Connell sent the chief I.T. guy home from Sec. of
State Ken Blackwell's office @ 9:00 PM on election night and freaking took over
the computers @ the State level and sent the data to his company in Richfield,
OH (So it had a local address) and then on to Chattanooga, TN and the "friendly
computers" there.

[Octafish]

12. They ''were scared out of their minds.''

Now Mrs. Connell has to face whatever is scaring her alone.

Well, almost alone. Along with Fitrakis and Wasserman, Spartacus bleever, Spartacus Botany and Spartacus Octafish, at least, will stand with her.

A bit on the deposition below...

Election Protection In Ohio (and America) Isn't Over

By Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman , The Free Press
November 17, 2008

EXCERPT...

On Election Night 2004, Blackwell e-mailed Ohio's electronic vote count to a basement in Chattanooga, Tennessee that also housed the servers for the Republican National Committee. The tally "miraculously" shifted from Kerry to Bush between 12:30 and 2 am, ultimately giving Bush a second term.

The data was handled under a state contract funneled by Blackwell to Michael Connell, a shadowy Bush family IT specialist who programmed the official Bush-Cheney website in 2000 and 2004.

On the day before the 2008 election, Connell was forced to testify under oath under cross-examination by King-Lincoln-Bronzeville attorneys Cliff Arnebeck and Bob Fitrakis. Among the questions at issue was whether Connell left any "Trojan Horse" programs in place in the Ohio electronic vote count structure through which he could have hacked the 2008 outcome.

There has yet to be a definitive answer to that question, or to what he actually may have done to the 2004 vote count. But, for what it's worth, Karl Rove did shift his predictions from a McCain victory to one for Obama shortly after the federal court agreed to force Connell to testify.

CONTINUED...

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0811/S00266.htm

PS: A friend of mine went to Wayne State University with Fitrakis -- two great Tartars. I hope he finds that it's not too late to chronicle what Mr. Connell had to say. His last thoughts may have included a wish to have forgone the advice of the GOP lawyers at the deposition to keep quiet.

[truedelphi]

42. Thank you for this good information. Can you possibly clarify for me

Where Connell was actually at, in his physical body, on the night of the 2004 election??

[Botany]

49. He was on Broad St. Columbus, OH @ the Ohio Sec. of State' s Office

... aka Ken Blackwell's office .... I just found out @ 9:00 PM he sent home the
head state I.T. guy and ran the computers himself .... as of 12:00 midnight
Kerry was winning after the vote data was shipped to Chattanooga, TN and
Smartech by 2:00 AM bush was winning by 2 points .... a 6.7 point shift.

Ohio Republican Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell hired Connell in 2004 to create a real-time computer data compilation for counting Ohio's votes. Under Connell's supervision, Ohio's presidential vote count was transmitted to private, partisan computer servers owned by SmartTech housed in the basement of the Old Pioneer Bank building in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Connell's company, New Media Communications worked closely with SmartTech in building Republican and right-wing websites that were hosted on SmartTech servers. Among Connell's clients were the Republican National Committee, Swift Boat Veterans for Truth and gwb43.com. The SmartTech servers at one point housed Karl Rove's emails. Some of Rove's email files have since mysteriously disappeared despite repeated court-sanctioned attempts to review them.

In 2001, Michael Connell's GovTech Solutions, LLC was selected to reorganize the Capitol Hill IT network, the only private-sector company to gain permission from HIR to place its server behind the firewall, he bragged.

At 12:20 am on the night of the 2004 election exit polls and initial vote counts showed John Kerry the clear winner of Ohio's presidential campaign. The Buckeye State's 20 electoral votes would have given Kerry the presidency.

But from then until around 2am, the flow of information mysteriously ceased. After that, the vote count shifted dramatically to George W. Bush, ultimately giving him a second term. In the end there was a 6.7 percent diversion---in Bush's favor---between highly professional, nationally funded exit polls and the final official vote count as tabulated by Blackwell and Connell.


http://www.freepress.org/departments/display/19/2008/3320

[blm]

93. Thanks Botany.

And thanks for keeping it real, Octafish. I'm sure the Coincidence theorists will be out in full force.......................yet again.

[truedelphi]

96. Much obliged for all this information on Connell n/t

[Peggy Day]

99. I hope he penned it down and "in the case of my untimely demise"

had it sent somewhere safe. That would be great.

[Octafish]

6. Behind the firewall: Bush loyalist controls Congressional secrets as his email sites serve Karl Rove

Truth from Fitrakis and Wasserman:

Behind the firewall: Bush loyalist Mike Connell controls Congressional secrets as his email sites serve Karl Rove

FreePress.org
July 29, 2008

In 2001, Michael L. Connell of GovTech Solutions, L.L.C., a notoriously partisan GOP operative and Bush family confidant, was selected to re-organize the Capitol Hill IT network. Under the guise of selecting a female-owned IT company (Connell’s wife Heather is listed as the owner), former Congressman and convicted felon Bob Ney reportedly arranged for Connell to be the man behind the firewall for the U.S. House of Representatives. Connell’s role and activities need to be investigated by putting Connell under oath and examining how arguably one of the country’s most zealously partisan IT specialists managed to land the contract and be allowed access to this electronic communication system.

Initially, Connell’s forays into partisan politics had very public ups and downs. Connell got his big break in 1987 as a staff member for former CIA Director and Vice President George H.W. Bush’s successful campaign for president. He programmed and developed an advanced delegate tracking system for Republican National Convention in 1988. With no presidential campaign in 1990, Connell emerged in partisan politics, this time in a well-publicized scandal. On November 11, 1990, Senator Dan Coats (R-IN) fired Connell for his role in a “push polling” scheme that Coats denounced as “clearly unethical.” Next, Connell resurfaced as a congressional staffer and mouthpiece as U.S. Rep. Martin R. Hoke’s (R-OH) Communication Director in 1993-4.

In 1996 election year, Connell’s back at partisan campaign IT activity. His newly formed New Media Communications began providing design makeovers and software for Republican candidates and organizations in Ohio and Illinois. Public records reflect that he specifically worked on implementing databases and web services for John Bohner’s (R-OH) Freedom Project PAC, John Kasich’s (R-OH) Pioneer PAC, and Dick Armey’s (R-TX) Majority Leaders Fund. Also during this period he did computer work for right-wing ideologue David Horowitz’s Center for the Study of Popular Culture and the website FrontPageMag.com.

Tom Brazatis of the Cleveland Plain Dealer described Connell as “an Internet consultant in 1998 for the winning campaigns of governors Bob Taft in Ohio and Jeb Bush in Florida.” The article stated that Connell told the Plain Dealer that he had been hired to do “special internet projects” for George W. Bush. “Connell declined to be more specific,” noted the Plain Dealer’s 2000 article.

After Jeb Bush won the governor’s office, Connell received various Florida IT contracts from the governor’s office, Florida Department of Education and Community Affairs, and did computer work for the Florida Republican Party. A few months after Bush’s 1998 Florida victory, New Media Communications merged with GOP lobbyist and operative Thomas J. Synhorst and formed DCI/New Media L.L.C. in Richfield, Ohio. Synhorst is listed as a co-founder of GovTech. Connell designed Jeb.org, JebWear.com, and GOPWear.com during that election cycle.

“I’m loyal to my friends and I’m loyal to the Bush family…” read a Connell quote in Inside Business magazine, November 2, 1999.

Crain’s Cleveland Business reported when Connell created GovTech Solutions in 2001 he told them he had “…decided to roll out a separate company for its political work because government and corporations are ‘two animals different enough to have it make sense.’” Connell told Crain’s that his “GovTech Solutions is the only private-sector company to gain permission from HIR to place its servers behind the firewall”

One has to wonder about the implications of the premier partisan campaign IT man, steadfastly loyal to the country’s most well-known security-industrial complex and CIA family, serving as the man behind the U.S. Congress’ firewall.

According to the Federal Election Commission, Connell’s company New Media Communications received more than $800,000 from the Bush-Cheney Re-Election Campaign between January 2003 and October 2004. During the same period New Media Communications brought in $1.2 million in contracts from Republican congressional candidates, political parties, and the National Rifle Association, according to the Akron Beacon Journal on November 24, 2004.

SourceWatch notes that Connell developed the websites for the House Intelligence, Judiciary, Financial Services, Ways and Means, and Administration Committees. According to SourceWatch, Connell teamed up with R. Rebecca Donatelli, Chair of the D.C.-based Campaign Solutions, to form Connell Donatelli Inc. (CD Inc.) as a specialized online advertising agency in July 2004. One of CD, Inc.’s first activities was to become the registrant, administrator and tech organizer for the anti-Kerry group Swiftboat Veterans for Truth’s website swiftboatvetsfortruth.org.

CONTINUED...

http://www.freepress.org/columns/display/3/2008/1665

I'm Spartacus, two.

[Skink]

2. So you're saying Bush stole the 04 election?

[Octafish]

8. I don't know if Bush stole them. I think he might have is a real possibility. Don't you?

[seemslikeadream]

13. I think it is a real possibility

[Octafish]

16. 1.6181

[Raksha]

78. Octafish, what is the connection between the number 1.6181 and the graphic?

That appears to be an image of the Virgin of Guadalupe, with the symbol for infinity and what I suppose is the geometric structure superimposed over it. But I don't get the connection with the number. Proportions of an oval??? Is it something that had a special meaning for Connell?

[immoderate]

90. That number is the Golden Ratio.

I'm not sure what it has to do with the figure, but it's used a lot in the arts and architecture, going back to the Greeks.

--IMM

[SpiralHawk]

26. I think it's a real likelihood

eom

[countmyvote4real]

24. duh?

* didn't win 2000
9/11 happened on * watch
False invasion/occupation/war profiteering of Iraq
Treason

Do you really have to ask?

Maybe you were being sarcastic.

[BrklynLiberal]

46. Absolutely

[DemReadingDU]

32. I'm in Ohio, and there were plenty of shenanigans in 2004

I don't believe that Bush actually won Ohio in 2004

[Stevepol]

59. The preponderance of the evidence says Bush stole the election. Of course,

there's no way to know since we don't live in a democracy.

In order to live in a democracy, the following would NOT be true (unfortunately it is):

About 80% of the vote in the US being counted in secret without verification by private companies using voting machines that have been shown in every serious study to be extremely vulnerable to hacking, patching, or fraudulent programming, especially by insiders, in ways that are totally undetectable.

In some states the result of the election is audited but the % of the audit is not adequate to assure that the count was correct, and even where there's paper available (where optiscans are used or touchscreens with paper audit trails), the audits are either non-existent or so negligible as to be virtually useless.

MN uses optiscans which means that recounts are possible in MN.

[valerief]

73. Is the Pope Catholic? Does a bear shit in the woods? nt

[truedelphi]

3. Scary paragraph toward the end of article

Quote "Various threats have been repeatedly reported involving Connell and other IT experts close to the GOP. On July 24, 2008, Arnebeck emailed Attorney General Michael Mukasey, stating: “We have been confidentially informed by a source we believe to be credible that Karl Rove has threatened Michael Connell, a principal witness we have identified in our King-Lincoln case in federal court in Columbus, Ohio,….”

[Octafish]

18. Lawyer to Mukasey: Rove Threatened GOP IT Guru If He Does Not 'Take the Fall' for OH Election Fraud

Psychopaths, Sociopaths, NAZIs, Tyrants, etc. believe they can do no wrong -- even when it comes to hurting another human being.

Lawyer to AG Mukasey Rove Threatened GOP IT Guru If He Does Not 'Take the Fall' for Election Fraud in Ohio

The Huffington PostDecember 21, 2008

Posted July 31, 2008 | 03:50 PM (EST)

[]Letter Sent to Attorney General Mukasey Requesting 'Protection for Mr. Connell and His Family From This Reported Attempt to Intimidate a Witness' After Tip from 'Credible Source'

UPDATED: OH AG Reportedly Asked to Provide Immunity Protection...

Karl Rove has threatened a GOP high-tech guru and his wife, if he does not "'take the fall' for election fraud in Ohio," according to a letter sent Thursday morning to Attorney General Michael Mukasey, by Ohio election attorney Cliff Arnebeck.

The email, posted in full below, details threats against Mike Connell of the Republican firm New Media Communications, which describes itself on its website as "a powerhouse in the field of Republican website development and Internet services" and having "played a strategic role in helping the GOP expand its technological supremacy."

Connell was described in a recent interview with the plaintiff's attorneys in Ohio as a "high IQ Forrest Gump" for his appearance "at the scene of every crime" from Florida 2000 to Ohio 2004 to the RNC email system to the installation of the currently-used Congressional computer network firewall.

Connell and his firm are currently employed by the John McCain campaign, as well as the RNC and other Republican and so-called "faith-based" organizations.

In a phone call this afternoon, Arnebeck could not publicly reveal specific details of the information that triggered his concern about the threats to Connell. The message to the IT man from Rove is said to have been sent via a go-between in Ohio. That information led Arnebeck to contact Mukasey after he found the reports to be credible and troubling.

SNIP...

The motion was made following the discovery of new information, including details from a Republican data security expert, leading Arnebeck towards seeking depositions of Rove, Connell, and other GOP operatives believed to have participated in the gaming of election results in 2004. A letter was sent to Mukasey at the same time last week, asking him to retain email and other documents from Rove...

"Mr. Rove's e-mails from the White House to the Justice Department, the FBI, the Pentagon, Congress and various federal regulatory agencies are obviously relevant to the factual issues that we intend to address in this case," Arnebeck wrote last week to the Attorney General. "We are concerned about reports that Mr. Rove not only destroyed e-mails, but also took steps to destroy the hard drives from which they had been sent."

In his email to Mukasey today, Arnebeck writes: "We have been confidentially informed by a source we believe to be credible that Karl Rove has threatened Michael Connell, a principal witness we have identified in our King Lincoln case in federal court in Columbus, Ohio, that if he does not agree to 'take the fall' for election fraud in Ohio, his wife Heather will be prosecuted for supposed lobby law violations."

"This appears to be in response to our designation of Rove as the principal perpetrator in the Ohio Corrupt Practices Act/RICO claim with respect to which we issued document hold notices last Thursday to you and to the US Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform," the Ohio attorney writes, before going on to link to The BRAD BLOG's coverage of his press conference last week and requesting "protection for Mr. Connell and his family from this reported attempt to intimidate a witness."

CONTINUED with LINKS...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/brad-friedman/lawyer-to-ag-mukasey-rove_b_115036.html

Like Jim Garrison said: "We are through the looking glass, people." Thank you for standing up, Spartacus truedelphi.

[truedelphi]

44. Given the eocnomic shambles tht this nation is headed for,

It is not hard to stand up.

better to live and die a patriot now than to starve to death two or three years down the road.

[defendandprotect]

100. This is probably a stupid question, however ....

Rove Threatened GOP IT Guru If He Does Not 'Take the Fall' for OH Election Fraud

If Michael Connell had agreed to "take the fall," wouldn't that nonetheless have

exposed all involved? I mean. how could it possibly have been believed that Connell --

closely tied to Rove/Cheney/Bush -- just thought on his own to visit Ohio and rig

the election? Wasn't Rove kind of looking for a miracle here?

Even in the case of TORTURE and their efforts to blame "bad apples," the truth came out=

Rumsfeld, Cheney, Bush.

PS: Has Blackwell been tagged in all of this?

[creeksneakers2]

77. In one of the court filings

The prosecuting lawywers said the witness was an anonymous source from the "blogosphere." The lawyers and advocacy group they work for have never given a name for this supposed miracle informant.

I've been studying this conspiracy theory all weekend and its a complete crock.

[byronius]

103. You forgot your sarcasm icon. Right?

C'mon. After all this time --

Uhhhh-huh. Oookay.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

5. Small Planes can be very dangerous.

Also, balconies on the Monterey Bay...

This nation oozes corruption.

[Octafish]

14. First reporter to ask Scotty about Plame/Rove leak "falls" to death

Odd how death suddenly happens to the little NAZI's foes.

Plame investigation demands another look at "suicide".

We haven't forgotten, Spartacus, BushDespiser 12. Sunlight makes an excellent disinfectant.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

15. This was way too close to home for me...

and I welcome the light that you so devotedly shine on the most desperately cloaked crimes of these bastards. There are a few here that dare to tread in the deepest shadows. I admire you all.

[Frustratedlady]

28. Look at the date - Dec. 28, 2006 -- Do they have something against December?

When did that "reporter" from Texas unofficially take his position in the WH Press Corps? The Marine prostitute. Wasn't that about this timeframe? Always interesting to see what pieces fit into this vast puzzle.

[blm]

101. Because that's when public is MOST distracted w/holidays, and when reporters

accept anything DC officials give them so they can have the holiday time off, too.

[SoCalDemGrrl]

7. THIS IS HUGE NEWS FOLKS - OMG the GovTech guys DIES!!!!!!

[HCE SuiGeneris]

9. WTF IS WiTh the CAPILTAL LettERS?

!!!!

iS IT AN ATTEMPT @ SARCASM?

[file83]

36. Teh CAPILTAL (lol) LettERS means they're SERIES!! Tihs is HUGH!!!

[Octafish]

19. Connell was the ''Forest Gump'' of GOP digital shenanigans.

Every time computers were involved in scamming votes or hiding the way they railroaded and imprisoned innocent men who were political opponents, Mr. Connell was there.

GOP Tech Guru Mike Connell 'High IQ Forrest Gump...At Scene of Every Single Crime' Say Ohio Attorneys

'Whether He's Pulling the Gun or Not...He's the Guy Who Made the Gun,' Allege Buckeye Lawyers About Man Said to Have Been Behind Florida 2000, Ohio 2004, RNC Emails, Congressional Computer Networks, & More...
-- Brad Friedman

Last week Ohio Attorney Cliff Arnebeck held a press conference in Columbus to announce his motion to lift the stay on the long-running King Lincoln Bronzeville v. Blackwell lawsuit in which massive improprieties, irregularities, and violations of the Voting Rights Act are alleged to have taken place in the 2004 Presidential Election in Ohio.

In the wake of the failure by the Buckeye State's Attorney General to properly investigate the allegations, and new evidence and testimony unearthed by Arnebeck and other private investigators, he is now asking that the stay on the lawsuit be lifted by the court in order to refocus the case and depose Karl Rove, and a number of other top GOP operatives believed to be involved in manipulating the results of the '04 election.

One of those operatives is Republican tech-guru Mike Connell.

Steve Heller covered last week's press conference for us, which featured comments from data security expert Stephen Spoonamore alleging fraud in the '04 election and Arnebeck's assertion that he believes "Rove will be identified as having engaged in a corrupt, ongoing pattern of corrupt activities specifically affecting the situation here in Ohio."

The following day, RAW STORY's Larisa Alexandrovna detailed related concerns by Arnebeck and Spoonamore concerning Diebold's questionable involvement in the 2002 Senate race in Georgia.


After last week's presser, Velvet Revolution's Brett Kimberlin sat down to follow up with Arnebeck and attorney/investigative journalist Bob Fitrakis, who participated in both the original '04 election lawsuits and has reported in detail on the related matters continuously since then at the Columbus Free Press.

In the video-taped interview, posted at right (appx. 10 mins), the two attorneys focus specifically on their concerns about GOP operative/IT specialist Connell, who, they allege, has been found to have been "at the scene of the crime" for numerous questionable elections since 2000. Connell's firm was also responsible for creating the RNC email systems used by Karl Rove and others. He is also said to have installed the existing Congressional computer networks for high-security House and Senate committees such as Judiciary and Intelligence.

CONTINUED...

http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6206

That's pretty much a handle on a lot of things, eh Spartacus SoCalDemGrrl?

[JackRiddler]

23. Would you like an award for cleverness in the service of ignorance?

Well, one out of two ain't bad.

[hardeeboy]

10. death

thats weird

[HCE SuiGeneris]

11. In what respect, hardee?

[Ellipsis]

17. If after every tempest come such calms,

May the winds blow till they have waken'd death!
Othello, Act II, Sc. I


You tube from the plane crash.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUsMFatV1pg&eurl=http://www.cantonrep.com/communities/x1069308876/Plane-crashes-into-house-in-Lake-Township





.

[Octafish]

21. Robert Boettcher knew about Bush-Moon Axis and died suspiciously.

That's heartbreaking. I've lost a cousin and a good friend in two separate small plane accidents.

Here's another suspicious death of someone who understood the inner workings of something corrupt, the Bush-Moon Axis, Robert Boettcher:



Know your BFEE: 1984 Death of Outstanding Congressional Staffer Buried Poppy-Moon Relationship

He fell to his death from the roof of his Manhattan apartment building.

[nc4bo]

37. Interesting eyewitness account of what the witness heard before the crash. nt

[Ellipsis]

39. Yeah probably started the "ran out of fuel" conjecture

In my reads one person said he could have froze the carburetor then stalled the plane during descent...


Who knows.


In one of the photos from the canton rep, it says he hit a flagpole... wonder if that contributed to the explosion and/or messed up his emergency landing attempt.

[anigbrowl]

86. Reports on the crash suggest bad weather may have played a role

saying that conditions had worsened considerably int he 30 minutes before the crash, possibly forcing the pilot to fly on instruments, which is always difficult. So there might be a prosaic explanation, too early to say now. Put it this way, these are the conditions in which an accident is most plausible (as opposed to the plane blowing up in a clear sky). This happened 2.5 miles from the airport, which would be a minute or less of flight time...so if it was a deliberate event, the perpetrators would have been cutting the margin awfully fine. Having said that, I know nothing about planes or what the potential for monkey business is - I'm just saying that if the guy wasn't famous, nothing abut this crash would seem unusual.

One does wonder, if he felt himself to be in danger, why he wouldn't fly commercial.

[Swamp Rat]

20. k&r

[Octafish]

22. Do any of these guys work?

Going from the hate he's spewn:
That guy's got the hots for Wilma and Betty.
Isn't that a sin, on many levels? Including mine for mentioning it.

¡Bueno verte, Hermano! ¿Como handas? Tol' mundo aqua ba'n bien. ¡Gracias Spartacus Swamp Rat!

[snot]

25. Just Want to Share Some Info From 2004:

Here's what I sent to a friend the morning after 11/4/04:

"So glad to get your message. As always, so sensible. I can’t blame the Dems for conceding, but I can’t help wanting to know more about the mechanics of the election.

"Per the New York Times, “surveys of voters leaving the polls . . . showed Mr. Kerry leading Mr. Bush by as much as 3 percentage points nationally.” Nonetheless, “ith 98 percent of the national vote reported as of 8 a.m. Eastern time , Mr. Bush was leading Mr. Kerry by a margin of 51 percent to 48 percent . . .”(http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/03/politics/campaign/04electcnd.html?hp&ex=1099544400&en=ba992171a995deaf&ei=5094&partner=homepage)).

"--so those exit polls were off by as much as 6 percent. Is that an unusually large discrepancy?

"Meanwhile, in this same election, the VNS Exit Poll System broke down—the main system that could have provided data to either discount or point toward any tampering. (http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/11/05/politics/main528252.shtml) The system that was extensively overhauled after the 2000 election in order to make it more accurate.

"http://www.popsci.com/popsci/generaltech/article/0,20967,714491,00.html
"Adding to the chaos, one network news reporter has received a tip that mercenary hackers were hired to alter the code of a particular brand of machine so that every 10th vote for Candidate A was recorded as a vote for Candidate B. Meanwhile, in Colorado, another group of hackers is boasting that they stole a box of electronic smartcards used to activate e-voting machines and reprogrammed them to allow multiple votes . . . .
"On Election Day, a group called TechWatch, made up of computer scientists and other volunteers, will monitor e-voting machines across the country. When trouble strikes-machines crash or suspiciously large numbers of votes for one candidate show up in a low-traffic polling place-the problem will be posted to the group's Web site, and a TechWatcher will be dispatched to document the problem and attempt to fix it. After the polls close, the group will have a detailed picture of which machines failed and where security may have been breached. If there's a recount, TechWatch can use this evidence to determine whether concerns about voting machine accuracy in particular areas are well founded."

"So, what did TechWatch find?

"Does anyone know what proportion of the voting machines in the swing states, especially Ohio, were electronic machines without any paper trail? Will there be any comparisons of results as between those with and those without paper trail?"

By the time my friend went to my NYT link just a few days later, the paragraph quoted had been deleted from the article.

[truedelphi]

43. Thank you for sharing this information.

And what good organization on your part. I have some of my important initial notes after the debacle of Nov 2004, but much other info is not where it should be.

[Norrin Radd]

27. kr

[Octafish]

110. Recently subpoenaed Bush/Rove IT expert, is Wellstoned (Lori Price)

Thank you, Progs Rock. Here's more from our friends at OpEd News:

Recently subpoenaed Bush/Rove IT expert, is Wellstoned:

by LORI PRICE (Posted by Stephen Fox) Page 1 of 1 page(s)

Recently subpoenaed Bush/Rove IT expert, is Wellstoned: Pilot killed as plane crashes in Lake Twp. --Witness: 'It blew up and shook the ground a little bit.' 19 Dec 2008 (OH) A single-prop, private airplane crashed next to a vacant house on Charolais Street Northwest Friday evening, exploding into flames and killing the pilot. Michael Connell, 45, of Bath Township, was alone in the plane, according to State Highway Patrol Lt. Eric Sheppard. Connell was a prominent Republican political consultant. He founded New Media Communications in Richfield, which developed campaign Web sites for Republican presidential candidate John McCain and President (sic) George W. Bush.

Ohio Attorneys Seek Protection for Mike Connell and his Family against Alleged Threats from Karl Rove 24 Jul 2008 Sources close to the Ohio Corrupt Practices Act/RICO claim sent us a copy of a letter that asks Attorney General Mukasey for protection for Michael Connell and his family who have been allegedly threatened by Karl Rove. Rove is believed to be the strategic mastermind behind the Bush 2004 re-(s)-election campaign and the possible Ohio election improprieties. The alleged threats appear to be the result of the re-opening, through the Ohio Corrupt Practices Act/RICO claim, of the stalled investigation into the 2004 Ohio Elections.

Stark Co. plane crash: Who was Michael Connell? 20 Dec 2008 Michael Connell was killed when the Piper Supercub he was piloting crashed three miles short of an Akron-Canton Airport runway. He leaves behind a wife and four children. Connell, of Bath Township, is considered to be one of the Republican Party's top computer experts. He led the companies that designed websites for the GOP and a virtual who's-who list of republican political leaders including President (sic) George W. Bush, Senator John McCain, as well as national organizations. Connell developed a host of federal government software and data management systems. Connell is also said to be a close confidant of the Bush family. Earlier this year, Connell was subpoenaed to testify in an Ohio federal court regarding voter fraud just days before the November presidential election. His alleged intimate knowledge of White House and Capitol Hill email systems has been a hot topic of conversation for Washington insiders regarding the Karl Rove/White House email scandal.

SOURCE:

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Recently-subpoenaed-Bush-R-by-LORI-PRICE-081220-507.html

These gangsters are mighty afraid of the truth. That's why we must spread it far and wide.

[Dennis Donovan]

29. ***What we know about the flight itself***

http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNumSQL.asp?NNumbertxt=9299N&cmndfind.x=15&cmndfind.y=8

N9299N

Aircraft Description

Serial Number 3257018
Type Registration Corporation
Manufacturer Name PIPER
Certificate Issue Date 08/21/2007
Model PA-32R-301T
Status Valid
Type Aircraft Fixed Wing Single-Engine
Type Engine Reciprocating
Pending Number Change None
Dealer No
Date Change Authorized None
Mode S Code 53161471
MFR Year 1997
Fractional Owner NO


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


Registered Owner

Name SIERRA-NOVEMBER AVIATION INC
Street 3046 BRECKSVILLE RD
City RICHFIELD State OHIO Zip Code 44286-9399
County SUMMIT
Country UNITED STATES

http://www.thesuburbanite.com/communities/x1060481746/Pilot-dies-in-Lake-Township-airplane-crash

Pilot dies in Lake Township airplane crash

By Madelin Reinersmann
The Suburbanite
Sat Dec 20, 2008, 02:58 PM EST


(MY OBSERVATION - wreckage is charred, indicating there was fuel on board at the time of the crash)

Lake Township -
The sound of an engine cutting out, the buzz of an airplane, an explosion and a burst of flame startled a quiet Lake Township neighborhood Friday night.

A single engine Piper Saratoga crashed into the front yard of a home. It ripped up a flagpole, slid across a yard and came to rest near some pines.

Dead is the pilot, Michael Connell of Akron. He was the only passenger in the seven-passenger plane.

The house, located at 2017 Charolais St., is in foreclosure. No one was living in the home at the time of the crash.

Debris from the crash was scattered over 100 yards.

According to Kristie Van Auken, director of communications at the Akron Canton Airport, Connell was en route to runway 23.

Greentown Fire Department Capt. Lorin Geiser said they believed Connell had to make an emergency landing was attempting to avoid the homes along Charolais.

The crash occurred shortly before 6 p.m. Greentown Fire Department received an emergency call at 5:55 p.m. and arrived on the scene in four minutes, according to department officials. Within five minutes the department extinguished the flames of the wreckage and the fire that involved the garage area of the house. Uniontown, Hartville, Plain and North Canton fire departments also assisted in the call. The Stark County Sheriff also responded.

Stark County Coroner Investigator Harry Campbell said Connell, 45, was wearing a business suit. Apparently, according to Campbell, Connell had breakfast in Washington D.C. Investigators found receipts in Connell’s wallet.

(MY OBSERVATION - The aircraft was unnattended by Connell - during his DC visit - while at College Park Airport, MD. Also, the report of "an engine cutting out" means likely mechanical error, not pilot error - unless, of course, the pilot failed to properly fuel the aircraft or check its oil quantity during pre-flight inspection)

From http://www.fltplan.com/AwTrackSelectToHistoricalMap.exe?a=1 (with aircraft registration data entered)



(MY OBSERVATION - No precipitation shown on the radar returns at the accident site)

I'm trying to retrieve the actual weather data for CAK (Akron-Canton Airport), but the NOAA/NSSL site is erroring out on me. I'll update with the weather data when I get it...

On edit: I decided to give this its own thread to encourge research from others:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=4695148&mesg_id=4695148

[Octafish]

111. Ohio TV station: Was Connell crash an accident or murder?

I don't know if it was an accident. The fact that Mr. Connell had been threatened should make the crash more than suspicious to authorities. Unfortunately, some of the nation's top "authorities" should be part of the investigation.

The good people at Raw Story are following the story:

Ohio TV station: Was Connell crash an accident or murder?

David Edwards and Muriel Kane
RawStory.com
Published: Tuesday December 23, 2008

The death of Republican "IT guru" Mike Connell last Friday in a fiery plane crash has been the subject of intense speculation online about whether it might have been murder -- but very little of that speculation has made it into the national media. Now one local TV station in Connell's home state of Ohio is acknowledging that there are questions about his death.

"Well, this sounds like a made up story," Scott Taylor of 19 Action News in Cleveland began. "One man rigging state elections to help his boss, President George Bush. After it's done, power players in Washington say 'Get rid of the guy.' Do I believe it? No -- for now."

Taylor noted that "bad weather could have played a part in the crash" but "some in Washington have a different opinion."

"Some say Connell was about to reveal embarrassing details involving senior members of the Bush Administration," Taylor explained, "including their involvement in destroying incriminating emails and rigging elections. Connell died on impact, and was only 3 miles from the Akron-Canton Airport. He was an experienced pilot. Was it an accident, or murder?"

CONTINUED...

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Local_TV_news_Connell_crash_accident_1223.html

Thank you for the important information, Dennis Donovan. What traitors and warmongers fear most is the Truth. When We the People get it, democracy works.

[Time for change]

30. I sure would like to know what information he did disclose

It sure would be nice to get to the bottom of this before I die -- or ever.

Thank you for this article Octafish.

[hootinholler]

31. What's with Sparticus?

:shrug:

Have to admit I don't know that story, something about a bathtub???

-Hoot

[Octafish]

33. We are Spartacus

I am Spartacus

Refers to a scene in the movie "Spartacus" starring Kirk Douglas as Spartacus. After the army of former Roman slaves led by Spartacus is defeated in battle by legions of the Roman army, a Roman general stands before the captured surviving members of the slave army and demands that they turn over Spartacus, or else all of the former slaves will be executed. Upon hearing this and not wanting his friends to be executed, Spartacus stands up and says "I am Spartacus." However, the loyalty of his friends is so great that each of them stands forward in succession, shouting "I am Spartacus!" until the shouts dissolve into a cacophony of thousands of former slaves each insisting "I am Spartacus!" Bewildered and still not knowing which of them is Spartacus, but impressed by the loyalty he inspires in his army, the Roman general has all of the slaves crucified in a miles-long display alongside the Appian Way leading back to Rome.

SOURCE: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=I%20am%20spartacus

[bluesmail]

34. wondering what Gov. Siegelman thinks.

[seemslikeadream]

41. probably thanking God he was in jail and not on a small plane

[glitch]

35. K & R nt

[bleever]

38. Karl had a special landline on election night 2004.

He was operating from a bank of computers sent up in the White House dining room. I've always wondered if there was something of interest written on the white label on the phone he's holding. Lots of Blackberry activity going on behind him too.

He sure looks active, for a guy just watching the returns roll in.

[truedelphi]

40. Funny how magnificently efficient he and Andy Card were that night

Able to snatch a victory away from the Dems and put it clearly in their pocket.

And how dreadfuly inefficent they were when Katrina hit some 10 months later.

If only someone had explained how they could have done some air drops, rather than sending trucks, it might have made a huge difference. <sarcasm>

[Wilms]

48. Yep. That photo pretty much proves the election was stolen.

That photo needs to be plastered all over the net because it clearly shows the election being stolen.

Never mind the Blackberrys. Look at Ralston's hand!!1!1.

[Botany]

50. 1/06/05 U.S. House of Reps

Tom Delay "What do these conspiracy people think that Karl Rove was in
the White House Basement flipping votes on a couple of computers?"

Rough quote Thanx for telling me Tom.

I remember I was with some Kerry people in a private room late 11/2/04 &
early 11/3/04 and when guy put his head in his hands and started to cry
.... around 11:00 the votes across the board started to come in 70 - 80 - 90%
bush .... it didn't matter what state, city, or precinct ... it was like somebody
flipped a switch.

Mr. Connell was a lose end that needed tying up ...... odds are his wife is too
scared to talk now or will meet some sort of quick and tragic death too.

For all the years of loyalty to the bush/Rove machine he was now seen as
a problem that needed to be taken care of ..... the bush family is a crime
mob of a massive scale.

[mod mom]

51. and sitting next to kkkarl is Susan Ralston (Abramoff/Rove/Bush):

Susan Bonzon Ralston, Special Assistant to the President & Assistant to the Senior Advisor Karl Rove, resigned October 6, 2006, "after disclosures that she accepted gifts from and passed information to now-convicted lobbyistJack Abramoff, becoming the first official in the West Wing to lose a job in the influence-peddling scandal." According to officials, Ralston "submitted her resignation to avoid causing political damage to President Bush a month before the midterm elections," Peter Baker and James V. Grimaldi reported in the Washington Post.

Background

Ralston was Abramoff's executive assistant at Preston Gates and Ellis and later at the Greenberg Traurig law and lobbying firm, where "she served as the assistant director of governmental affairs. Before moving to the nation’s capital, she was an office administrator for M&J Wilkow, Ltd., a commercial real estate firm in Chicago, Illinois." <1><2>
Ralston assisted Rove "in overseeing the strategic planning, political affairs, public liaison, and intergovernmental affairs efforts of the White House." <3>
Ralston is cited as being the highest ranking Filipino-American in the George W. Bush White House. The Philippine News Online reported September 22, 2004, that "Ralston, who was promoted special assistant to the president last July, is also actively involved in courting the Asian American vote."

-snip
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Susan_B._Ralston



Ralston was Abramoff's personal assistant until she moved over to Rove's office in 2001. Abramoff reportedly bragged to others that Ralston was his "implant" at the White House.

The White House announced an internal ethics investigation of Ralston after a Congressional report released last week showed extensive contacts between Ralston and Abramoff's lobbying team. Among other things, the report showed that Ralston had accepted thousands of dollars in gifts from Abramoff without compensating him. White House ethics rules prevent employees from accepting gifts worth more than $20.

White House deputy press secretary Dana Perino told the AP that Ralston resigned because "she did not want to be a distraction to the White House at such an important time and so we have accepted her resignation."

-snip

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/001747.php




Susan Ralston answers questions about Karl Rove's e-mails. He used private accounts "from day one."

Submitted by crew on 19 June 2007 - 4:16pm. Karl Rove Presidential Records Act Susan Ralston
Earlier today, we referenced the deposition of Susan Ralston by the House Oversight Committee. Excerpts of the transcripts -- not just links to the pdf documents -- have now been posted at The Gavel. Definitely worth a read. We're including two sections about Rove's e-mail usage:

BY MS. AMERLING: When did Karl Rove first start usìng his RNC e-mail account to send and receive e-mails from the White House?

A From day one.

<…>

Q For how long did Mr. Rove continue to use his political e-mail account to send e-mails from the White House?

A The entire time that I worked for hìm.

<…>

Q For how long did Mr. Rove continue to use his polit’ical e-mail account to send e-mails from the White House?

A The entire time that I worked for hìm.

Q Do you know how frequently he used this account?

A It would be hard for me to quantify how much. He used it a lot.

Q Did Mr. Rove have a BlackBerry provided by the RNC?

A I don’t know if the RNC actually provided the equìpment. It was a political BlackBerry, I don’t know if the BlackBerry came on — if he had it during the campaign — it was a political BlackBerry.

Q Did you ever see him use it?

A Yes.

Q When did he first start using this BlackBerry?

A I don’t know when he started using it in the White House. My best recollection is that he had it at the very beginning, but I can’t say exactly when it started.

Q Do you know how often he used it?

A He used it daily.

Q Many times over the course of a day?

A Yes.

Q Did he have a White House BlackBerry, an official White House BlackBerry?

A No, he did not.

<…>

Q Beyond Mr. Fitzgerald’s requests, were there other requests from other investigators for Mr. Rove’s e-mails?

A The only — there may have been, but the only other major investigation that I recall specifically was related to Enron.

Q Do you know when that would have been?

A I believe that was in 2001 sometime.

Q And you think in 2001 that Mr. Rove searched his e-mails to respond to a request for investigators relating to Enron?

A He or I searched.

Q And that search included a search of political e-mails sent over the political account?

A Correct.

Q Were other White House officials aware that Mr. Rove in 2001- was providing e-mails from his polìtical accounts to investigators who were looking at Enron?

A I believe so, because all of the documents that we collected were then turned over to the White House Counsel’s Office.


And then there's Rove other private, but not RNC, e-mails:

-snip

http://www.citizensforethics.org/node/29131

[BrklynLiberal]

45. K&R

[pleah]

47. K&R

[Raster]

52. Wow! A thread calling Connell's death "suspicious and disturbing" and

"denial boy" and his faithful companion "conspiracy smearist" haven't shown up to shit all over it.

[Raster]

81. I see I spoke too soon.

[lala_rawraw]

53. my mind hurts...

is anyone else feeling beaten down?

[bleever]

54. I've been really worried

about you. This must have hit you really, really hard. And I want to know that you're safe.

:hug:

[lala_rawraw]

62. i am fine

thanks for caring:) there is no reason for me to be unsafe - or maybe i am just being foolish - but i feel mostly worried that we will now never know the most important things.

[proud2BlibKansan]

65. lala, the testimony Connell gave on 11/3/08

Is it sealed or can we see it?

I am also curious about the timing of this plane crash. Why was he not Wellstoned before he testified in November?

Thanks so much for all you do! :patriot:

[lala_rawraw]

84. i have

no answers to the latter questions. i don't assume that he was wellstoned yet. i just think regardless of if he was or was not, the authorities need to secure evidence relating to the email scrubbing investigation pronto and keep everything in the light of day during their investigation. so, because I do not assume he was, I cannot answer as to why it was not done sooner.

you need to go to the court to get that sealed portion of the testimony. that said, parts of it were discussed in the motion Connell's attorneys filed with the court asking to quash the court order to compel testimony. hope that helps:)

[bleever]

66. Maybe I've read too many

intrigue novels, but if I were in his position, I would have created an "in the event of my death" file.

Take care of yourself, 'k?

[MinM]

68. Syriana's Stephen Gaghan talks about being 'Wellstoned'

Check this out if you get a minute:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x252110

keep up the great work :yourock:

[KoKo]

105. The more you get it out there...

and have the "support" the better off you are and you did good in putting out what you knew. It's not like the old days where only the "Mainstream Media" heard and reported what they did in a vaccum of reporter to reader through "newsprint."

Thanks for your work, Lala.

[glinda]

63. Yes. Up at Election time and down now. Reality check time.

Personally, I think Pelosi was threatened because she looks like a scared chicken. It would be a good idea for an immediate investigation tracking ALL Rove and Cheney contacts. ALL. I also think it a really bad idea for the new Administration to travel together on a train. Doesn't anyone understand a psychopathic personality???? THEY DON'T CARE. Anything goes. And who exactly is going to stop a total nut-bag taking over the whole Country since there lacks total accountability and backbone.

[Cleita]

67. I think Nancy Pelosi's scared chicken looks comes from her new

eyebrows that seem to be an inch higher than her old ones. More telling is her voice that gives her away. She does sound like a scared chicken, I agree. Close your eyes when you listen to her speak lately and there is a lot of scared there.

[glinda]

80. Not only her eyebrows are different but her boobs are also.

[diane in sf]

83. they probably threatened Pelosi's family

[KoKo]

106. Sad to say...because folks jump on us as sexist...but yes, she seems to have another

"eyejob" she's done. It's sad when the RW Radio Shills and the Left Wing Dems agree that Reid and Pelosi need to go. Although, the one thing I can say in her defense is that the HOUSE voted down Paulson/Bernanke's RAPE of AMERICA...while Dodd and others in the Senate were the ones that sent it back to the House with "Honey Pots for all attached" so that it would get through. But, then I think Hoyer runs the House and Nancy is just the "Female Power Woman Figurehead" that's supposed to be the DECOY..

But, then I'm very cynical these days. :-(

[H2O Man]

55. nominated

thanks!

[Cleita]

56. The new Congress needs to investigate all of this and they need to

put out an arrest warrant for Karl Rove to answer the subpoenas he has been ignoring to date. It's time to get this criminal behind bars without bail (protective custody would be a good excuse) so he can testify in Congress or Court under oath where ever and whenever it's needed. Will the new Attorney General be up to the task?

[rucognizant]

87. Yes.

It's just AWFUL that Fauz noise is ACTUALLY PAYING him, to be a pundit!

[barbtries]

57. it'll take a lot

to convince me this man was not murdered.

has msm reported his death? (no tv)

[stubtoe]

91. Barb, I did a quick google on this and found it's reported on the blogs

but only one "MSM" (?) site, the "".

Things that make you go "hmmmmmmmmm".

I was out of town this weekend and saw no news, so I can't be sure it was not reported on, but something tells me it probably wasn't.

[barbtries]

92. i figured as much

thanks

[Number23]

58. Kick! And a rec too!

[MsLeopard]

60. K&R

So much good information in this thread - bookmarking for future reference. As someone said upthread - the Bush mafia is a crime family on a massive scale.

[glinda]

61. Rove needs to be jailed now

as he and some others around him are a security threat to our new government. He needs to go now!!!!!!!!!!!! Stupid Dems and others for not reigning him in. If he has involvement in any of these murders and issues, which it really looks too close to not be, he is with no conscience and should be held until further notice.

[mod mom]

64. Finally up at Huff Po-please leave a comment.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/21/gop-internet-strategist-d_n_152657.html

[glinda]

69. Doss Aviation comes to mind

[ooglymoogly]

70. KR....On Utube "replies have been disabled on this video" nt

[johnfunk]

71. If you don't smell a rat behind this crash...

... and by "rat" I mean a corpulent, pale, balding, bespectacled turd of a blossom who'd, just to mention one example, betray the identity of a non-official cover CIA agent and endanger not only her life but that of anyone and everyone affiliated with her brass plate company just to get even with a former ambassador who dared tell the truth -- just to name one example of the kind of treasonous sleazebag said rat is -- then you're not an informed American.

[valerief]

72. K&R

:kick:

[kikiek]

74. I am hoping he was suspicious and left something behind in the event of his death.

[sellitman]

75. I wonder if we will ever know the truth now?

I hope this guy was smart enough to leave an electronic trail.

[tblue37]

76. Why don't people like this make sure they have fail-safes?

All they need is to ensure that in the event of their deaths, all the information gets disseminated. The DC madame could have done that. Connell could have done that (and thus protected his wife in the long run). If he thought his plane was being tampered with and was scared witless then he should have made sure that the crooks and liars would be exposed no matter what.

[bridgit]

79. If I were an IT dude working with some of the sickest, most deadly chaotic domestic enemies...

America has never been forced to endure; I'd have burned stacks of updated CD's before my suspicious death ever became an topic. In fact, they'd be trip-wired out there working my angles in my absence. I know I read allot of murder mysteries; but dude should have been reading some Agatha Christie here & there

[Name removed]

82. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[bleever]

85. I may say

you're a dreamer, but you're not the only one.

I think that's becoming more and more obvious.

:thumbsup:

[nyc 4 Biden]

88. Velvet Revolution is all over this.

If you are interested in fair elections and holding BushCo accountable for their crimes you should be frequenting Velvet Revolution's website.

http://www.velvetrevolution.us/

12/20/08: Bush Insider Who Planned To Tell All Killed In Plane Crash: Non-Profit Demands Full Federal Investigation

Michael Connell, the Bush IT expert who has been directly implicated in the rigging of George Bush’s 2000 and 2004 elections, was killed last night when his single engine plane crashed three miles short of the Akron airport. Velvet Revolution (“VR”), a non-profit that has been investigating Mr. Connell’s activities for the past two years, can now reveal that a person close to Mr. Connell has recently been discussing with a VR investigator how to tell all about his work for George Bush. Mr. Connell told a close associate that he was afraid that the George Bush and Dick Cheney would “throw under the bus.”

A tipster close to the McCain campaign disclosed to VR in July that Mr. Connell’s life was in jeopardy and that Karl Rove had threatened him and his wife, Heather. VR’s attorney, Cliff Arnebeck, notified the United States Attorney General , Ohio law enforcement and the federal court about these threats and insisted that Mr. Connell be placed in protective custody. VR also told a close associate of Mr. Connell’s not to fly his plane because of another tip that the plane could be sabatoged. Mr. Connell, a very experienced pilot, has had to abandon at least two flights in the past two months because of suspicious problems with his plane. On December 18, 2008, Mr. Connell flew to a small airport outside of Washington DC to meet some people. It was on his return flight the next day that he crashed.

On October 31, Mr. Connell appeared before a federal judge in Ohio after being subpoenaed in a federal lawsuit investigating the rigging of the 2004 election under the direction of Karl Rove. The judge ordered Mr. Connell to testify under oath at a deposition on November 3rd, the day before the presidential election. Velvet Revolution received confidential information that the White House was extremely concerned about Mr. Connell talking about his illegal work for the White House and two Bush/Cheney 04 attorneys were dispatched to represent him.

An associate of Mr. Connell’s told VR that Mr. Connell was involved with the destruction of the White House emails and the setting up of the off-grid White House email system.

Mr. Connell handled all of John McCain’s computer work in the recent presidential campaign. VR has received direct evidence that the McCain campaign kept abreast of the legal developments against Mr. Connell by reading the VR dedicated website, www.rovecybergate.com.

VR demands that the Justice Department conduct a complete investigation into the activities of Mr. Connell and determine whether there was any foul play in his death. VR demands that federal law enforcement officials place the following people under protective custody pending this investigation. Heather Connell who is the owner of GovTech Solutions, Randy Cole, the former President of GovTech Solutions, and Jeff Averbeck, the CEO of SmartTech in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Both GovTech and SmartTech have been implicated in the rigging of the 2000 and 2004 elections and the White House email scandal. Our prior request to have Mr. Connell protected went unheeded and now he is dead.

[SpiralHawk]

89. Ya gotta wonder if Connell's wife knows...

where the republicon skeletons are buried.

I'd bet a doughnut she does...stay safe, Mrs. C.

[peace13]

94. The fact that she owned the company puts her in a nasty spot.

If her hubby was up to no good with * and Rove, well...she's going to jail.

[Ysabela]

95. Kick. Media Blackout is trying to BURY this story. Keep it alive! n/t

[mod mom]

97. Excellent local News coverage:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24TCUbKFnh0

[nxylas]

98. The first thought that entered my mind

"Is he really dead or is he sunning himself on an island with Ken Lay"?

[robertpaulsen]

102. Kicked and bookmarked. Thanks for staying on top of this, Octafish!

:kick:

[byronius]

104. Jeez. What's wrong with you people? They're holding it down to 3%.

What more can you want? Everyone knows the GOP is the party of Justice and Honor and Decency. They should get a little sumpin'-sumpin' for that, right? Call it a fee. A little slice, just for being the 'tough guys', you know, the 'grown-ups'.

I mean, also look at what happens, hey? All this talk about Karl Rove just got a guy killed. And the people that are whipping up the herd, like this 'Spartacus', whoever that is, are just making it hard on everyone. It's boring, all right? It's over. You got Barack, so just leave it alone. Fair is fair.




(There is no icon for the extremely bitter venturing to nitric acid level of sarcasm embedded in this comment.)

I AM SPARTACUS!

[countmyvote4real]

107. K&R

[peacetalksforall]

108. In this thread, I think .....I think I read two things - that the crash was:

after 5 pm - in Ohio ,,, why do the photos make it look like it is daylight?

In this thread - the sequence stated is this: there was an explosion after impact with the flagpole or the ground? Yes? If yes, how do they find a wallet with breakfast receipts?

That's like finding Atta's passport in the debris on the ground within a few hours of his aircraft hitting the first tower.

Thanks to all of you who contribut so significantly.

[peacetalksforall]

109. If they have breakfast receipts, do they have a briefcase and computer? Blackberry?