As dirty politics and smear campaigns continue headlining the ongoing Presidential race, a veritable smorgasbord of unethical tactics are being resorted to, primarily by Republicans — mailing racial, fear-inducing DVDs in an effort to scare the public into voting for McCain/Palin that have resulted in innocent children being gassed, voter suppression, dress codes while voting and phony letters telling voters that they’ll be arrested when they go to vote to name a few — tactics that are driving voters in droves to Democrats.
There are numerous allegations of plans to steal the next election, including, according to Robert Kennedy Jr., about 30 scams the Republicans are deliberately using, particularly in swing states to get Democratic voters off the rolls. Numerous deceptive ads full of lies are hitting newspapers across the country in attempts to scare people and coerce public opinion. Recently a high-level GOP IT consultant was subpoenaed in a case alleging tampering with the 2004 election. Crucial information on flaws in voting machines is still being withheld from the public.
A once beloved “War hero” turned into a hose bag — an intensely dishonorable man with a long list of lies and deceptions who is desperate to become President — who, if elected, albeit more likely appointed than anything else, will continue the destructive policies of President Bush, and destroy what is left of this once great country.
John McCain’s biggest problem, aside from all the desperation, was getting stuck with Sarah Palin as his running mate. Sarah Palin is about to be raked over the coals due to her illicit actions involving her Troopergate scandal and her association with corrupted Alaska Senator Ted Stevens. Knowing the Justice system under the Bush administration though, Palin will undoubtedly not be held accountable for any of her actions.
Some advice for Senator McCain: you may want to have FOX ‘News’ shut their unethical, slanderous traps for a change — they never can get their ‘facts’ right — and you may want to tighten the leash around Palin’s neck before they end up costing you even more politically. Talking about shady associations, when you have several yourself, is a pathetically stupid move. Turning a group into a lynch mob shouting racial epithets and calling for someone to be murdered is not only a hate crime, it could also be considered an act of Domestic Terrorism. America has had enough of having terrorists in the White House. More on the desperation of the McCain/Palin campaign can be found from The Daily Kos and Scholars and Rogues.
The Obsession DVD “Educational Campaign”
Approximately 70 newspapers recently helped distribute 28 million Obsession DVDs intent upon distorting and attacking the Muslim faith. The movie was distributed by Clarion Fund — a right-wing group funded by filmmaker Raphael Shore, in partnership with the Endowment for Middle East Truth — as an “educational campaign,” despite the graphic images of terrorism, videos of anti-American speeches from Mideast televisons and comparisons with Nazi Germany, in heavily focused swing states in attempts to scare Obama voters into voting for McCain. The DVD was also sent by mail. Many are still foolish enough to believe that Obama is Muslim despite the fact that he isn’t.
Newspapers that distributed the DVD are reportedly facing complaints and cancellations from readers, protests and questions about whether newspapers should offer a platform to everyone willing to pay for distribution. The Clarion Fund spent millions distributing the DVDs, mostly in battleground elections states, raising more questions about the group’s motives.
Several million dollars in donations from unnamed individuals were spent to distribute the DVD. The DVDs were supposedly sent to swing states as a means of drawing media attention, not to influence election results. Uh huh, and I know where you can buy a Bridge to Nowhere with a view of Russia…
The Raleigh, N.C. News & Observer has received about 500 e-mail and phone messages, mostly negative, and had about 50 cancellations. The News & Observer wrote a front-page story calling attention to “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West.” Apparently papers only reject ads if they promote illegal activity or might incite violence and the Obsession DVD supposedly only makes people angry.
However, the Obsession DVD — though barely reported by National Media — did incite violence in Dayton, Ohio where Muslim children were gassed at a mosque after the DVD was released. More information about the Obsession DVDs can be found from My Fox Tampa Bay, Talking Points Memo and NPR.
Increasing Number of Voter Scams
With less than a month to go before the Presidential election, voter intimidation is reportedly being utilized in Philadelphia neighborhoods. The fliers appear to be targeted at supporters of Democratic candidate Barack Obama. It’s not known who is behind the fliers, but the matter has been referred to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the District Attorney.
African-American neighborhoods have been inundated by an anonymous flier circulating in North and West Philadephia stating that voters facing outstanding arrest warrants or who have unpaid traffic tickets may be arrested at the polls on Election day. The message on the flier is completely false according to Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Everett Gillison, who plans to put statements on the city and police web sites informing the public of that. Gillison said he will also record a public-service announcement for broadcast.
This same type of trickery was used in Maryland’s 2002 Gubernatorial election when anonymous fliers were distributed in African-American communities warning people to pay parking tickets and resolve outstanding warrants before they headed to the polls. It’s becoming increasingly clear that the RNC has some major racial issues. We still have a few weeks to go before Election day, so don’t be surprised when more illegal tricks and fliers are utilized as the desperation grows. More on the growing desperation for the Republican Presidential campaign can be found at Salon News. The same type of voter scare tactics are also being used on many college students around the country.
An article from CBS News details numerous issues affecting the 2008 Presidential election — dress codes at polling places, scare tactics being used against college students, foreclosure problems and how they affect voters, concerns that bureaucracy, misreadings of election law, laws regarding felons and their right to vote and plain stupid mistakes that may cost many Americans their right to exercise their vote. National Public Radio (NPR) reported on Republican challenges to numerous voters in numerous states and worries about voter intimidation running high. There are a lot of games being played right now as the Republican party realizes that they’re going to lose big time.
Major Fluctuations In Numbers of Registered Voters
USA Today reported that Democrats have added more than 800,000 voters and Republicans have lost 300,000 in eight of the most tightly fought states in the presidential race. The major fluctuations in the numbers of registered voters can probably be attributed to Bush’s destruction of the Republican party.
The 2008 Presidential Election is a very important election because there is so much at stake. As noted by the San Francisco Examiner, “The presidency will continue to grow in power and scope for as long as Americans insist as seeing it as the center of the political universe — or even of the whole universe. It will be a problem so long as the office is loaded with unreasonable power and inhuman expectation. And so long as that is the nature of the office, contenders for White House residency will be politicians who (insanely) think they’re up to the job or else are simply willing to grin and promise everything under the sun.”
The smartest thing for eligible voters to do is to not be intimidated and to make sure their registrations are in order before they go to vote. More tips on how to avoid Election Day hell can be found at Fire Dog Lake. Helping others register to vote can also be rewarding. Rest assured, the attempts at rigging this election are going to get a whole lot worse the closer it gets to Election day. It wouldn’t be surprising if the Bush administration performs another terroristic tactic against America or creates phony threats to get their way or sway the election either — it definitely wouldn’t be the first time that’s happened.
The last thing this country needs is another rigged election. No better proof of that can be found than looking at the last seven and a half plus years this country has endured courtesy of 5 corrupt U.S. Supreme Court Justices. It’s time to put an end to the delusional attempts at American Hegemony and it’s time for accountability. The 2008 elections give America a chance to change the direction this country has headed down under the corruption of the Bush administration and put representatives in Congress who will stand up for the people they represent instead of adding to the corruption in Washington. You can make a difference. If you encounter voting rights problems, ask to speak to an election official or voting rights volunteer, or call the toll-free voting rights hotline at 1-866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683).
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