Kerry Campaign: Fraud? What fraud? *wink wink*

OK. I'm not in the Kerry campaign. I don't know anyone who is. I'm just a young musician in Texas who still can't quit obsessing over this damn election and get back to writing songs. I can't let it go because of a deep-down bad feeling that the balance of the universe was thrown out of whack by the final outcome.

Or as Obi-Wan would say:

"I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced."

Yeah that sounds about right.

Wait....you don't think they would go as far as election fraud? Have you been living in the same country as I have? Ann Coulter may seem like a fringe looney to the reality-based community, but she's embraced by the right wing. Isn't she friends with President Bush?

So when asking yourself "How far would the right go in order to keep the Neocon dream in place?" also ask yourself "What would Ann Coulter do?" They already lied us into a war...so shifting a few votes around seems almost lightweight in comparison.

Or, if you like, "W.W.A.C.D.?"

But thats not my point currently.

I'm hearing and reading some people starting to feel down over the fact that Kerry and his gang have not been shouting "Fraud!" all over the place, despite there being some compelling evidence that something really wacky happened on election day.

For example, the Cobb votes in Ohio: http://64.71.168.78/

Some of you may have seen this. I found it in a diary here a few days back, and I hope it doesn't disturb the original poster of this link if I pass it along. How does a person lose thousands of votes? I forget Cobb's final numbers in Ohio but they were ridiculously low when compared to the other third party candidates. Fittingly, Cobb is one of the people requesting the recount. My uneducated guess? A sloppy job of hacking.

(Unless this has been debunked already, in which case, nevermind.)

On the surface, to those of us who suspect malfeasance, it may appear that Kerry and his gang are either oblivious, delusional, or simply too whipped and beaten to put up a fight. To them I say, don't despair yet. There is no telling what may be going on behind the scenes. Maybe nothing, maybe everything. That Mike McCurry would come out on Al Frankin's show and proclaim "There was no fraud" could mean two very different things:

1. They really truly believe that, and are being honest, or
   
2. They don't believe that at all, but are playing dumb for the time being until votes are fully recounted or the smoking gun is unveiled.

Beats me.

But if you read between the lines, hints do emerge.

For instance, why are Cobb, Badnarik AND Nader going through the trouble of insisting on recounts in states they have no chance in hell of winning?

Why did Elizabeth Edwards say in a post on D.U., in a moment of cander, that she thought it was "impossible" that they lost Ohio?

And why does Bush seem so lifeless and down lately? Listen to his vocal tone. Look at his face. It's like his dog just died. Shouldn't he be in the joyous smiley afterglow of the great triumphs of his life? Is this a man who realizes he may be in deep shit soon?

Things that make you go "hmmmmm...."

(and no thats not me!!)

•  in other words, KEEP HOPE ALIVE!

  i hope i was able to provide some encouragement

  by Scan Hopper on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:04:44 PM PDT

  •  I can hope

    that it's true... Think about a debunked and defeated Bush going down in shame. My only question is how will the "moral majority" react?

    by dmac on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:15:09 PM PDT

  •  Kerry's has lost this thing for sure

    and I was pretty disappointed for awhile.  

    But I agree about your observations about Bush.  Perhaps what you observed was some evidence of conscience?  I didn't really think so either ...

    I'll probably get in trouble for saying this, but there's probably more entertainment value at this point in a Bush presidency anyway.

    by BCF on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:42:47 PM PDT

•  yes

  by all means, let's keep making ourselves think that Kerry will be President in January.  There is something oddly sad about this.

  It's funny... when I saw the title of this diary, I assumed it was about Kerry's $15 million slush fund.

  by Rally Burger on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:10:02 PM PDT

  •  whatever

    i said clearly i don't know whats happening, but some of us are trying to figure out whats going on behind the scenes of an odd and troubling situation. the odds are against Kerry being president, but before the recounts are done and the electoral college meets, no one is the winner.

    by Scan Hopper on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:18:57 PM PDT

  •  actually

    I have a question about "fraud" and the $15 mil.

    If KE04 was so gung-ho about legal compliance in the late day of the campaign to go so far as to raise $7 mil more for their recount/legal compliance fund, why didn't they just transfer over some of that primary money to the legal compliance fund before they asked us for it?

    Doesn't that constitute a type of fraud (i.e. we really need the money for the recount, so give it to us)?

    Just curious

    by wmtriallawyer on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:21:39 PM PDT

    •  Verboten

      Transfering the primary funds to the legal compliance fund sounds to me like a violation of the "no spending primary funds after the convention" rule. Regardless of HOW it gets spent, it's a violation.

      I may be mistaken. It happens.

      by Maryscott OConnor on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:25:35 PM PDT

      •  Normally, I would have agreed with you, but...

        ...the new story is that they are transferring $4 to $5 mil of the primary money to the legal compliance fund.  Link is here

        by wmtriallawyer on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:30:48 PM PDT

•  Bush's facial expression

  I totally agree about Bush. I noticed in the picture he has this nervous look on his face like when you're a kid and you broke something but your mom didn't figure it out yet. Nervous anticipation.

  I also noticed in the week preceeding the election you could see in his face he was nervous. He knew he was gonna lose.

  And now he know he's gonna get caught.

  by deminjapan on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:12:31 PM PDT

  •  He always looks like that

    I think it is from a lifetime of guilt!

    by glitterscale on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:23:26 PM PDT

    •  you give him too much credit.

      i've been thinking about this a lot, and guilt is not a quality that goes with being a republican these days.

      it's more likely a medication problem. i still want him to take his physical and publish the results.

      by yankeedoodler on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:29:03 PM PDT

  •  Bush IS Nervous

    But I have a different theory.  Read down to my last 2 comments where I go into the motivations for a preplanned domestic terror event.

    by winstnsmth on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:27:18 PM PDT

    •  Hey, FWIW

      I'm an old-timer here, and I've read your stuff, and I think it has considerable weight. Please keep reporting and writing!

      by Timaeus on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 06:07:32 PM PDT

      •  Thanks for the encouragement

        I had thought that even around here I was a candidate for a reynolds wrap gift certificate.

        by winstnsmth on Fri Nov 19, 2004 at 03:10:18 AM PDT

•  Recount

  Ohio is not capable of recounting the ballots fast enough, so even if Kerry wins the state, the electoral ballots will already be cast.

  by political on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:19:59 PM PDT

  •  Really?

     I thought that the electors don't actually cast their votes until Jan. 6th

    by dmac on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:21:46 PM PDT

  •  They're plenty capable....

    they're just not willing. The law gives them 11 days to get it done but it doesn't say they have to take all the time. Seeing as they've been put on notice that a recount is coming they should be setting up for it now. You, know damn well that if it was Bush that was down they would be moving heaven and earth to get it done.

    by ineedalife on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:23:57 PM PDT

  •  Anyone that tells you that..

    is full of a load.  In 1990 a contentious election for the Attorney General post in Ohio resulted in a statewide recount.  It took a grand total of two days.

    by DanD on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:30:25 PM PDT

    •  I remember an election for President once

      that was pretty close and all the ballots were paper.  There were about 70 million votes and they pretty much had the counting wrapped up by the next morning.  

      by BCF on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:50:04 PM PDT

      •  Which one was that?

        I was refering the Fischer v Peiffer race for the AG of Ohio.  The actual recount took two days.  Most of the info you can easily find on the web is misleading since Peiffer fought the recount and the findings of the recount for months.  They usually mention that the end of the court cases happened in March, they rarely mention that the actual physical recount took two days.

        by DanD on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 08:00:33 PM PDT

        •  I was referring

          to the 1968 presidential election.  I said it as a way of supporting the spirit of your post.  There is no way on earth these counts should be taking so long.  

          by BCF on Fri Nov 19, 2004 at 04:27:57 PM PDT

          •  Wasn't certain

            I was 18 months old for that one.  Just a bit before my memory.  Sorry if I sounded snotty.  I wasn't sure if you were being snarky or not with your post.

            by DanD on Mon Nov 22, 2004 at 03:38:11 AM PDT

•  Write in?

  Was Cobb was a write-in in Ohio?  He and a couple other minor candidates have a WI after their names on the Ohio SoS web site instead of a party designation. Badnarik and Petrouka had lines on the ballot and garnered the 0.5% protest vote.

  Actually I think a failing this election cycle was not kicking a little cash Badnarick's way. A few TV spots or a spiffy mailer may have chewed another percent or two from Bush's total.

  by ineedalife on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:20:13 PM PDT

  •  yeah

    he may have been a write in. but he seems to have had thousands of votes before they were stripped away. like i said, unless this was debunked, in which case, let me know.

    by Scan Hopper on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:26:30 PM PDT

•   Another question

   I heard today that Bush won Iowa by only 1%. What is the policy on an Iowa recount if any of these other states come into question. I know that Kerry would win w/ Ohio or Florida but aren't NM and NEV still counting?

  by dmac on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:27:42 PM PDT

  •  too late in Iowa

    The Iowa statute on recounts is Section 50.48
    http://www.legis.state.ia.us/IACODE/2003SUPPLEMENT/50/48.html

    One must ask for a recount not later than 3 days after the county boards have certified their results. The deadline was November 12th. So the following information is moot for 2004.

    If the difference between the (apparant) winner and the requestor is less than 1% of the votes cast, then no bond or other cost is required to be paid by the requestor. If the difference is greater than that, then a forfeitable bond of $1,000 is required for a statewide recount.

    Yup. $1,000. But the result was close enough this year that it woulda been free.

    by IowaLibert on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 08:33:11 PM PDT

    •  sorry, that was *per county*

      99 counties in Iowa. That's $99,000. My bad.

      by IowaLibert on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 08:37:01 PM PDT

•  President Kerry prepares to take office

  announcement expected tomorrow...
  insiders wishing to remain off-record say Kerry is preparing to kick ass.
  Kerry is the president.  Support him now.
  Friday, Nov 19, is Protest Election Fraud day.

  by caoimhinski on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:32:55 PM PDT

•  W.W.A.C.D - that's great!

  You get a recommend from me just for that one.  Agreed - it ain't over 'til it's over.

  BTW = I think Bush is down cuz of Tom DeLay..but that's another matter.

  by grannyhelen on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 05:35:17 PM PDT

•  Bush down

  Someone commented on Veteran's Day that in the ceremony that was broadcast on CSPAN Bush looked really distracted and worried, and that he actually left the stage prematurely.  I was thinking then that he had been told "the jig was up", but that's probably just wishful thinking.  It felt good for awhile, though.

  by prm on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 06:09:07 PM PDT

•  Different take....

  And why does Bush seem so lifeless and down lately? Listen to his vocal tone. Look at his face. It's like his dog just died. Shouldn't he be in the joyous smiley afterglow of the great triumphs of his life? Is this a man who realizes he may be in deep shit soon?

  I , too, have noticed how down Chimpoleon looks recently.  Got a theory about this.  

  Karen "Mommy's here" Hughes told Chimpoleon that he was going to lose.  Then he watches the magic two hours on election night where it all turns around.  He thinks, "Wow!  I did it!  They love me!  I'm smart after all and Daddy and Mommie Bush will have to think I'm a good boy!!!!"

  Then, the next day, Karl tells him how he managed the whole thing.  Now he's thinking, "Fuck!  Wish they hadn't told me.  Now I know they hate me and Daddy and Mommie were right, but I have to go along with this shit."

  AND....now he might get caught!!!!!!!!  No wonder he looks like he stepped in shit.

  by NYBri on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 06:43:08 PM PDT

•  Not that I think he WILL win

  But I do think this is the strategy. Don't proclaim victory and don't refuse to concede, because you'll seen as a political opportunist, interfering with the offensive in Iraq, exacerbating the tension between democrats and republicans (could you imagine recount riots if Kerry didn't concede?) ...

  By shutting up you lose nothing.

  If the full count comes in and you've lost, you spent some time and energy, but you can at least say "every vote was counted" -- like you promised.

  If the full count comes in and it's close, let alone you win... then it's back on. (and I'd love to hear the Bushies start screaming "he conceded! not fair! i don't care what the votes say!")

  I've basically moved on, I'll be honest. I'm already looking at 2006, and trying to help build spirits and ideas in the small ways I can. But doesn't mean I'm not keeping one eye on those vote counts.

  by danthrax on Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 07:20:10 PM PDT