Democracy for New Hampshire - Fair elections

Mark Crispin Miller: Testimony to Congress on NH phone jamming election crime

Fri, 16 May 2008 11:21:46 -0400

MEMO FROM MARK:

This URL will take you to the Webcast for "Joint Hearing on Allegations of Selective Prosecution, Part II: The Erosion of Public Confidence in Our Federal Justice System" (You'll need Real Player for it. If you don't have RP, you can download it at the site.)
The hearing deals with the DoJ's blind eye toward vote suppression by the GOP. My testimony--which starts at 1:04:00--concerns Sproul & Associates, a stealthy pro-Bush outfit that played a big role in the theft of the 2004 election. I've attached my opening statement here; and I addressed some of the broader issues re: election fraud, etc., during the question period.
I recommend, however, that you watch the hearing from the start. The two witnesses who spoke before me were Allen Raymond, who was convicted for his role in the phone-jamming scheme in the 2002 election in New Hampshire, and Paul Twomey, the Democratic lawyer whose civil suit concerning the phone-jamming case was variously thwarted by the DoJ.

NH Attorney Paul Twomey: Statement to Congress regarding phone jamming election crime and related actions of US Dept of Justice

Fri, 16 May 2008 09:33:48 -0400

STATEMENT OF PAUL TWOMEY TO SUBCOMMITTEE ON COMMERCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE LAW & SUBCOMMITTEE ON CRIME, TERRORISM AND HOMELAND SECURITY

Hearing on “Allegations of Selective Prosecution Part II: The Erosion of Public Confidence in our Federal Justice System”

May 14, 2008

”No right is more precious in a free country than that of having a vote in the election of those who make the laws under which, as good citizens, we must live. Other rights, even the most basic, are illusory if the right to vote is undermined ...Competition and ideas in governmental policies is as the core of our electoral process and in the First Amendment freedom. (Justice Hugo Black, Williams v. Rhodes, 393 US 23, 30-31 (1968).

On November 4, 2002, over 2,000 volunteers and staff of the New Hampshire Democratic Party went to sleep with the hope and expectation that the next day they would take part in a fair and free election in which they would be allowed an equal chance to present the citizens of the state of New Hampshire with their policies and candidates for consideration. They expected to exercise their precious constitutional rights to vote, to freedom of association and to freedom of speech without interference or constraint. The staff and volunteers had spent thousands of hours preparing for the day when they thought they would partake in a fair and equal election. The New Hampshire Democratic Party and its candidates had spent in excess of 20 million dollars in order to present their positions to the electorate. (The Republicans spent a similar amount). Given the closeness of the polling results, both parties recognized that the key to success would lie in their ability to identify sympathetic voters and ensure that those voters went to the polls.

McCain Dodges Phone Jamming Connections in NH Speech

Thu, 15 May 2008 20:54:06 -0400

SOURCE: Democrats.com

McCain Dodges Phone Jamming Connections in NH Speech
May 22, 2006

This morning, Arizona Republican Senator John McCain returned to New Hampshire, but failed to explain why his New Hampshire State Director filed a letter with the court urging leniency on convicted phone-jammer James Tobin. Senator McCain failed to even mention the criminal campaign to disenfranchise New Hampshire voters in his remarks, despite the fact that one of his senior strategists was Tobin's supervisor at the time of the conspiracy.

Last week, Republican lobbyist Mike Dennehy, Senator McCain's New Hampshire State Director, sent a letter to Judge Steven McAuliffe that asked the judge for a lenient sentence and called Tobin the "the most ethical man I know" despite the fact that Tobin was convicted of multiple felonies over his role in the 2002 phone-jamming crime. The letter was the only such letter from any Granite Stater.

Phone jamming - White House - DOJ connections investigated on Capital Hill

Thu, 15 May 2008 20:52:05 -0400

SOURCE: USA Today

Panel probes election phone jamming plot
WASHINGTON (AP) — A House panel is probing the Election Day 2002 phone-jamming plot by GOP operatives against New Hampshire Democrats.

Rep. Paul Hodes, D-N.H., wants the panel to focus on key "unanswered questions" about whether the White House played a role in the plot — and whether the Justice Department dragged its feet on the case for political reasons.

"I want to know what the connection was between the White House, the Republican National Committee and the conspiracy to jam phones," said Hodes, who was scheduled to testify Wednesday before a joint panel of two Judiciary Committee subcommittees.

Hodes said the public deserves to know whether political interference delayed prosecution of the case until after the 2004 elections and President Bush's re-election. The controversy over the alleged political firings of eight federal prosecutors underscores the need to hold the Justice Department accountable, he said.

Collins: Polite Fascism Contracts The Right To Vote

Wed, 14 May 2008 10:10:05 -0400

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0805/S00179.htm

Polite Fascism Contracts The Right To Vote - Tuesday, 13 May 2008, 8:45 pm Column: Michael Collins

Another Supreme Outrage

Justices Stevens, Kennedy, and Roberts combined with Scalia, Alito, and
Thomas to take voting rights back to1898. Image (left), Image (right)

William Crawford, et al, Petitioners 07-21 v.
Marion County Elections Board et al.

Indiana Democratic Party, et al., Petitioners 07-25 v. Todd Rokita,
Indiana Secretary of State, et al.
U. S. ____ (2008) Opinion of STEVENS, J.

BradBlog: "'Hello,' They Lied: NH, TX Sec. of State Officials Continue to Deceive Voters"

Wed, 14 May 2008 10:10:31 -0400

SOURCE: The BRAD BLOG

'Hello,' They Lied: NH, TX Sec. of State Officials Continue to Deceive Voters

TX Official Claims 'Machines Not Faulty'; NH Official Claims Not to Know Whether They Use Same Diebold Op-Scan Voting System Seen Hacked in HBO Documentary (It Was)...

Posted By Brad Friedman On 13th May 2008 @ 13:13

Miller-McCune's David Rosenfeld files a good story (1) on the dreadful state of the hackable, insecure, error-prone machinery --- both DRE/touch-screen and paper-based optical scan --- still used across our electoral landscape in 2008.

Despite a few small-ish errors, Rosenfeld succeeds where so many before him have been unable: Properly quoting both the scientists and Election Integrity experts who know what they're talking about, while giving fair opportunity to respond from voting machine company and elected officials who are either in denial, uninformed, or simply willing to lie.

NH's Diebold (S)elections: Does everyone but the NH Dept of State "get it"?

Wed, 14 May 2008 10:10:50 -0400

Clueless in NH? Or just pretending to be? Claiming ignorance is not only absurd but a complete abrogation of responsibilities required in the job.

New Hampshire is another state that, even when faced with the irrefutable evidence, has retained vote-counting machines fraught with risks. Computer scientist Hursti, who was featured in Hacking Democracy, even went to New Hampshire and testified before the Legislature. The same Diebold Accuvote optical scanner shown in the film was used to count more than 80 percent of the ballots in the state's December primary, said David Scanlan, New Hampshire's deputy secretary of state. "I know we use an Accuvote," Scanlan told Miller-McCune.com. "I'm not technical enough to tell you whether it's the same one that was used in the film, but it's possible."

SOURCE: www.miller-mccune.com

Faulty Machines Ready to Count Your Vote

Join in this Important Two Hour Discussion/Debate: The constitution and voting

Tue, 13 May 2008 14:28:23 -0400

Join in this Important Two Hour Discission/Debate

"We the People": The Constitution, Our Vote & Election 2008

* Top Constitutional Experts, Media Leaders and Voting Integrity Advocates Explore The Dichotomies, Legal History and Challenges Facing us Today
* Latest Update on North Carolina and Indiana Election Results & Reported Problems

Special Guests:
Constitutional Panel
Alex Keyssar, Professor of History and Social Policy at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government
Jamin Raskin, Professor of Law, American University and Maryland State Senator
John Bonifaz, VoterAction.org
Mark Crispin Miller, Professor of Media Studies at New York University

Election 2008 & EAC
Brad Friedman, BradBlog.Com
John Gideon, VotersUnite.org

Are We Really Voting?
Ellen Theisen, VotersUnite.org
Susan Pynchon, Florida Fair Election Coalition

TWO Hour Radio & Internet Special Starting at 7PM ET Wednesday, May 7
“Voice of the Voters!” & “American Voices”
1360 AM Greater Philadelphia & and on the Internet www.voiceofthevoters.org
Please Call And Share Your Opinions and Questions 856-227-1360 or 267 250 2879 7-9 PM ET

As Americans struggle with the technology used to vote, what legal foundation supports them? Tonight our expert panelists explore the principles in our History, Constitution and current election process as they pertain to suffrage and principles of Democracy.

---Does the Constitution help us or limit us as we work towards transparent, secure and accessible voting?

HB 91 - Reduced Lobbyist Disclosure Law About To Pass Legislature

Tue, 06 May 2008 09:40:36 -0400

HEADS-UP ADVISORY ABOUT LOBBYIST DISCLOSURE LEGISLATION
House Bill 91

This Wednesday the House may consider "concurring" with the State Senate on legislation that would greatly affect our lobbyist disclosure and reporting laws, and in my judgment considerably reduce their effectiveness. For the first time in New Hampshire's history, we would be eliminating important right-to-know requirements in our lobbyist disclosure laws.

Consider that since March 10, 1909 we have had a lobbyist disclosure law that has required -- REQUIRED -- that people who are lobbying the Legislature register before they do so. Now, for the first time in 99 years, we are changing that law into what amounts to an "honor system," allowing for 10 business days before a lobbyist must register, that's two full weeks, and giving certain people 75 hours to lobby free-and-clear BEFORE they must register. My goodness.

I don't think this is part of either party's Legislative Agenda -- nor should we be asking Governor John Lynch to sign a bill like this in its current form. Going backwards is not something we should be doing when it comes to lobbyist disclosure. We have seen recent news media reports about how our laws may not be sufficient enough as they are.

BBV: Diebold is controlling OUR elections

Fri, 02 May 2008 17:01:06 -0400

SOURCE: www.blackboxvoting.org

My records show that YOUR elections district uses the Accuvote voting machine. This is the system hacked in the HBO "Hacking Democracy" film, being shown TODAY on HBO. It also goes by the names "Diebold", "Premier", "Global Election Systems" optical scan or OS. Your voting system uses both the Diebold /Premier machines and the GEMS program for BOTH mailed in votes and polling place votes. It is the Diebold/Premier Accuvote optical scansystem that you will see on HBO, altered in the blink of an eye to change election results without leaving a trace.

The film "Hacking Democracy", showing exactly how my organization, Black Box Voting, actually rigged a voting system like the one your votes are counted on. You'll understand this quite painlessly by viewing the detective story as it unfolds, on HBO or YouTube. The film will be shown on HBO on May 2, 4, 10, 12, 14, 17, 18, 23, 29, 25, 26 and June 16 -- mostly during daytime hours. Note that several of these showings are on weekends.

Scroll down for NEW INFORMATION on how this voting system may affect you personally in the Nov. 2008 election, and what to do about it.

If you don't have HBO, you can view HACKING DEMOCRACY for free in nine 10-minute segments at YouTube:

BlackBoxVoting Investigates NH Recount: Manchester Ward 5: INFLATED VOTE TOTALS

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 10:39:33 -0400

BY Jeannie Dean

JANUARY 24, 2008...

DAY 1 of the NEW HAMPSHIRE REPUBLICAN RECOUNT continues with ANOMALY after gross ANOMALY: MANCHESTER WARD 5, a DIEBOLD COUNTED ward of great interest due to the massive INFLATED VOTE RESULTS yielded from the original Diebold Counted results on election night to the hand RECOUNT results.

This video explores NH State Office's very strange, and even UNLIKELY, explanation for the anomaly, leaving us with more questions than answers...

ED NOTE: This video is not for the faint at heart. This was, by far, the most complex and textured video I've ever tried to birth; like a demon baby invetro, it has been haunting me above all others...

BlackBoxVoting disses EAC invite to Roundtable but submits comments instead

Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:21:46 -0400

SOURCE: BlackBoxVoting.ORG

"We do not consent"

Black Box Voting founder Bev Harris submitted the following comments to the Election Assistance Commission:

EAC VOTING ADVOCATES ROUND TABLE: April 24, 2008

I have accepted your invitation to submit comments to be entered into the recordon behalf of Black Box Voting, by its founder, Bev Harris.

To members of the EAC and participants of the Round Table:

The entire premise of technology-based elections is based on support for the "verifiable voting" concept. But before designing technology for elections, we must first determine how it will empower citizen controls, enabling the counting of votes in public rather than counting them in secret. We do not consent to any form of secret vote counting that is administered and controlled by government insiders and their vendors.

Any system that forces the citizenry to trust government insiders to count their votes represents a change in the original design of this nation. The United States of America was designed to uphold the right of citizen sovereignty over the government. In addition to hiding the counting of votes from public view, computer-counted elections hide the chain of custody of the vote data. Citizens are never allowed to view the original input in order to compare it to the output, and are relegated to trusting circumstantial evidence controlled by insiders. Such a system is, in fact, a transfer of power.

The people were never asked to approve such a transfer of power, have never consented to it, and indeed cannot consent, because the right of sovereignty over the instruments of government which we have created is an inalienable right, one which cannot be given away, nor can this right be removed through legislation. It is, admittedly, possible for a government to decline to honor this right, but such an act would justify extreme measures by the people subjected to such abuse of power.

It is the public counting that is key to citizen sovereignty, not computer verification. "Verification" of a computer report is not at all the same as public vote counting.

The core of elections was and again must return to the principle of citizen sovereignty over government. Elections can never be based on a requirement to trust government insiders and their vendors to count our votes, nor can elections be dependent on experts to tell the citizenry that the system is okay, nor should the detailed mechanics of elections be impossible for the average citizen to understand. Models which depend on experts and insiders create centralized control, and remove all control from government's rightful owners – the citizens. This represents a violation of the principles laid out in the Declaration of Independence.

Not only does my organization, Black Box Voting, refuse to participate in the design of such systems, but we will do our utmost to inform the populace that such systems must be revoked, by whatever means necessary.

"We do not consent."

Bev Harris

Groundbreaking New Book Documents Widespread Election Fraud

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 07:59:50 -0400

OpEdNews

SOURCE: OpEdNews

April 24, 2008, Groundbreaking New Book Documents Widespread Election Fraud, By Jason Leopold

Earlier this month, at a conference in San Francisco, several renowned computer scientists warned that electronic voting machines remain vulnerable to computer hackers due to serious security flaws in the operating software, calling into question the integrity of a presidential election that is still seven months away, and all other elections in the U.S. where paper ballots have been replaced by these paperless electronic machines.

There wasn't anything particularly new in the scientists' revelations other than the fact that the magazine PC World covered the issue and several other mainstream news organizations.

Hillary Clinton: The Luckiest Woman in the World

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 07:13:40 -0400

SOURCE: BradBlog

Hillary Clinton: The Luckiest Woman in the World, Posted By Brad Friedman On 23rd April 2008 @ 17:02

Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is the luckiest woman in the world. Just when it looks like she'll have no chance to become the party's nominee, extraordinary good news comes her way, just at the last minute. Again.

Take, for example, yesterday's Pennsylvania Primary. For weeks we heard endlessly how she would need a double-digit victory margin in the Keystone State to offer a legitimate reason for her to stay in the race. And, as the gods (1) would have it, she achieved the ability to trumpet that double-digit margin by a single tenth of a percent.

Video: April 18th Ballot Law Commission hearing on NH recount

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 18:50:24 -0400

Parts 1 & 2 below...

Part 1

Part 2