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foolish?? Maybe republicans, not democrats

Posted By: gt on 2005-07-23
In Reply to: Please stop. You are making us all look foolish. nm - Brunson

Duh?  Foolish?  Told by a political friend he came upon failure=bush, check it out?  Foolish?  Well, heck, I would rather be **foolish** than murderous, lying, not trustworthy.  Enough of politically correct.  Do the republicans practice that?  No.  They are right now issuing talking points against Joe Wilson and thankfully the investigation is going on with a republican prosecutor who can see the forest for the trees.  The republicans since Clinton was elected back in the 1990s have done nothing but attack any ideology but theirs.  The democrats, on the other hand, have sat quietly by or, with Kerrys campaign, tried to take the high road until bushs election machine started attacking his patriotism and service to the country in Vietnam.  Please, Im so sick to death of being told we should not attack..We are only defending ourselves, we are attacking **Back** at the republicans. 


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    Democrats vs Republicans...
    I agree that problems occur on both sides of the aisle...obviously. What I find troubling, and I am being serious here, is that Democrats seem much less likely to own up to it when they do something wrong, even when caught, and the entire party seems to rally around them and somehow want to twist the wrong into a right or rationalize the wrong (he only lied about sex for example. He committed felony perjury, doesn't matter what the lie was about. If it was no big deal, why didn't he just tell the truth? I guess that depends on what the meaning of truth is?). Republicans generally fall on the sword when caught. There just seems to be something skewed about the Democratic party as a whole and their vision of what is wrong or right and it seems to be directly correlated to whether one of their party is guilty or the other party is guilty. This is just an observation. I am not a registered Republican nor Democrat. I am conservative, I am registered Independent but vote for whoever most closely follows my belief system, though they as a rule don't do as they say...and I mean ALL politicians. I just keep hoping for an honest one. Bush did what he said he would do for a long time, but I see him waffling now, and I am not sure that is a good thing. As I look at the two major parties in this country, it just seems to me that on the Democratic side they are more likely to support each other and try to spin wrongdoing even when caught at it, rarely if ever admitting to wrongdoing. I do not see that so much on the Republican side. I suppose now I should go back to the conservative side and let the process continue. I thought the boards were about opinion and discussion and debate. How can you expect to change any minds if you only talk to the like-minded? Thanks for your time, Lurker. I do enjoy talking to you.
    I see it with Democrats and Republicans. sm
    Where are all the progressives and antiwar people?
    Democrats vs Republicans

    1.  My research on the black liberation movement of which Obama's church is a part tells me all I need to know about whether or not I want to see him in office.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_liberation_theology


    2.  If McCain is elected I believe we will face a great depression which will make the depression of the 30s look like a Sunday School picnic.  People already losing homes, jobs, exploding deficit (and the piper will be paid sooner or later), cost-of-living getting so people can hardly afford to live.  McCain's judgement is questionable in his choice of a  running mate.  Totally reckless to name someone he has only met once but then there's oil in Alaska.


    I will not support or vote for either of them as were doomed either way.


    Democrats vs Republicans
    Just dropped in to see if either the Dems or Pubs on this board have given an inch.  They haven't.  Boring and useless.  I'm betting McCain will win so we'll never know about big, bad Obama for sure.  I'll drop back in after a few years of McCain to see how well y'all like him then. Like about now I'm really wondering if John Kerry wouldn't have been an improvement over George Bush.  I understand ole Georgie has an all time low approval rating.  Must be a bunch of Republicans who aren't as pleased with him as they thought they would be.
    Republicans and Democrats worked together on

    So why do you keep trying to demonize the Democrats.  Both parties made compromises - I believe the Democrats initially wanted about $20 billion more for the program, but they negotiated with the Republicans to secure their votes.


    You seem so worried about the cigarette tax not covering the program, and yet what we spend in Iraq in a day would cover the S-CHIP program for a year.  The money is there, but people don't want to make it a priority.


    Why is it so hard for you to believe that Democrats that voted yes on the bill (and don't forgot some Republicans did too) actually CARE ABOUT THE CHILDREN?  Is it so hard to believe that they actually want to do something to help kids?  I'm glad they are getting headlines, not because they are against Bush, because really - could public opinion get any worse for him?  I am glad because this is an issue that needs TONS of attention drawn to it.  I don't really care if more people dislike Bush over this issue.  People who like him will continue to and people who don't will continue not to like him.  I see bad headlines about him every week, but that is not my concern.  My concern is affordable healthcare for all children, no matter how high or low their parents' income level is.


    Yeah, Democrats and Republicans
    .
    The Democrats had enough votes to pass it without the Republicans...
    but refuse to. Why don't THEY grow up and go ahead and pass it? Because they don't want to be the ones to vote it in if it tanks. I repeat...put up or shut up, democrats!
    Excuse me. 10 republicans and 4 democrats. Nice try.
    nm
    I agree.... Foolish people act foolish.........sm
    Regardless of whether the bars are open or not, but with the huge crowds expected, why tempt fate because of some greedy city council that can't wait to get their hands on some $$$?

    I can bet if this were the Republican party's candidate (regardless of who he was), the Dems would be screaming. You couldn't pay me enough to be there.....not because of who is being honored, if you can call this type of debaucery an honor, but because of fear of life and limb even if I did behave myself.
    How foolish. SM

    I have spent a fair amount of time trying to point out the perfidy of the people who post here. Want to see attacks?  Look at both boards.  Both are good examples.  I asked for proof of a story I had not seen.  It was a horrible accusation and I would like to read it for myself.  HOW AWFUL OF ME!  You are the attacker.  It might behoove you to gain a little insight instead of making a fool of yourself.


    Not me for a minute!!! Foolish old man. nm
    x
    Not afraid of looking foolish cuz...
    Things are turning around in spite of people like you who prefer to sit and stew over the fact that the Democrats won.

    Sorry, but the world is moving on with or without you.

    Save your advice, you might need it.
    Please stop. You are making us all look foolish. nm

    .


    Also: Penny wise and pound foolish?
    x
    Also: Penny wise and pound foolish?


    What good to reduce out carbon footprint when China and India won't, and if it bankrupts our whole nation?


    Blind faith is foolish....people need to govern
    xx
    Your mistaking feeling duped/foolish with hatred
    They are two totally different things. I really really really do not hate the guy. I voted for him in the primaries. We were on the phone battling with our families cos they were for Clinton and we were trying to tell them about the Os plans, issues, etc.

    We like that the O is a nice looking man, has a nice looking family, has a good strong voice when giving speeches, is physically fit (minus his smoking and possible cancer that lies ahead for him) and especially glad he will not be throwing any "rodeos" for foreign diplomats that come to our country.

    However, once he was elected over Clinton the truth started coming out and we felt like quite the fools for buying into his lies. And now his lies are just blatantly out there and he doesn't care if people know he's lying. Our only ignorance was blindly buying into his bull without doing more research on him. The O worshippers/lovers who are cutting down people who have any question about his acquantances, history, citizenship, etc are the ones who are showing their true ignorance. My DH tells me all the time read everything and do not count on one source for information. They have an agenda. Knowledge is what will free the mind.
    go democrats..go
    Are they?  Where I live I go house to house to get people to sign up as democrats and frankly many are signing on as democrats and I hear anger and distrust and concern about Bush and his policies..So, dont know where you are from but I see the actual opposite..I also see many minorities, Blacks and Latinos signing on to the democratic party.  From your posts, IMHO you are a republican plant and so your posts mean nothing to me.  You are either a couch political potato who never goes out there and works the grass roots or you are a republican trying to put seeds of discontent in the democratic party.  Gotta tell ya, the democratic party is doing just fine and each time bush screws up, which has been many over the past five years, the democrats do even better..Yeehaww!!
    Democrats
    ...and I sure DO NOT appreciate union busters. This country has gone beyond "dog eat dog." Bush wanted to spend $$$$ for research on Mars?! I'm all for new discoveries and learning new things, but come on...let's do ALL that we can for the problems here on earth and her inhabitants first.
    The democrats did not cause

    this mess.  And it was not caused by the people who were extended credit. Here is part of what caused it: 


    Banks issued subprime mortgages to people at a rate they could initially afford but which would increase to an inflated rate after a period of time.  Those banks then immediately sold those mortgages at the inflated rates to other banks.  These adjustable rate loans were misrepresented to a lot of homebuyers, especially first-time homebuyers.  A lot of them didn’t realize, for example, they could not refinance for a period of time without huge penalties.  Then the market started to decline and many of those homeowners found themselves upside down on their loans and could not refinance.  Their interest rates had ballooned to rates they could no longer afford.  The banks who were sold the loans at inflated prices could not afford to lower the rates for the homebuyers because they had bought the loans based on the inflated interest rates and would lose money if they did.  People lost their homes and the banks lost the amount of the loans they had bought.   But the banks (and the CEOs) that initiated those loans walked away with a great deal of money. 


    It was because of greed.  And the deregulation that the republicans have passed over the years allowed it to happen. 


    Here are some other facts:


    Since 1960 the nation's deficit has risen during every republican administration and dropped during every democratic administration. 


    The standard of living and income has improved for everyone in the country during every democratic administration since 1960, EVEN for the top 1% of the country.  It has gotten worse for everyone in the country during every republican administration EXCEPT the top 1%. 


     


    Please tell me how you think the democrats...sm
    contributed to the economy diving in the last 2 years. Specifics please. The economy takes way longer than that to do anything. No economic bills have been passed. The last 8 years of the Bush presidency has put us into the tank. Stop parroting the party line. Lets be honest here. John McCain offers nothing better.

    Yes, well, those would be democrats as well
    --
    Democrats
     Obama, if elected the next President of the US, will change how other peoples look at the Americans:  He will restore respect and admiration for the American people that was lost during these last 8 years.  And the world will see that the American people do not discriminate (at least not the Democrats).
    Can't think of anything that would help democrats more
    Skip the landslide. It would be an avalanche.
    Obviously so do Democrats. nm
    *
    Like the democrats
    don't do the same thing.  When are people going to realize that both parties are just as crooked as the other here?  When the dems had control of congress during Bush's presidency, did the dems do anything positive for our economy then.  Of course they didn't.....why.....because they would hate to do something good during Bush's presidency because he might get credit for it.   This goes both ways and your post is very one sided.  We all need to wake up and realize that the only people we can trust is ourselves and stop putting so much faith in either party.  Government as a whole has screwed us over and I am sick and tired of putting all the blame on one party.  They all had their greedy little hands in the cookie jar and that is the reason we are in the mess we are in. 
    democrats and
    Pace your rage. It has only been 100 days.
    LOL, who lies, not democrats
    That is what dems say?  LOL.  I ask you to check out one of the top posts, i.e., Rush and Olbermann..Reality check starts attacking the poster, Olbermann, MSNBC, saying they lie, even though the transcript is on the web, also printed in his article, and on video..yet they are lying right?? and its the dems that always scream that people are lying, right? I thought up a new name for neocons after reading about that Xtian..NOT..Robertson stating Chavez should be eliminated.  Neocons are the American Taliban.  You are just as bad.  If everyone does not think, act, believe, live like you, then they are wrong and lying..You guys are ridiculous..
    Democrats/Liberals
    Amen,sm! I noticed that you used one word in one of your responses that is the tell-tale sign distingishing conservatives from liberals, that word being logic. Liberals have no logic and cannot reason, else why would they support Bill Clinton going to war in Bosnia/Yugoslavia when no attack at all had been made on our country and deploy our troops all over the world for no good reason, then pounce on President Bush who is only engaging us in this war on terror to protect all of us here at home, as well as those of our loved ones who have to travel the world over for companies they work for or those who serve our government in various capacities all over the world? Prior to 911, we had been attacked 19 times by terrorists over a period of 20 years or so and not one single president but Ronald Reagan and finally George W. Bush had the gumption to be a real leader and respond, with very noticeable results I might add. Does anyone remember Moamar Kadafi and how his terrorism stopped after President Reagan took care of him?? Bin Ladin and his terrorist organization had attacked us so many times without any response that he called the United States a paper tiger, believing his dreams of total destruction of our country were an inevitable event. I suppose the liberals prefer having our schools, supermarkets, shopping malls, sports arenas, etc., etc., be the targets for terrorists rather than following the advice of every top military general I can think of (save Wesley Clark who obviously has political ambitions)and fight the terrorists where they are amassed rather than fighting them here. To say that Saddam Hussein had no connection to terrorist organizations is nonsense. He hated us with the same vitreolic hatred Bin Ladin had for us and would have loved nothing better than to see us go down. In addition, he was paying a $25,000 reward for each Israeli killed in a terrorist attack. He was a WMD himself, just as Adolph Hitler was. You don't have to possess WMDs to be a WMD; the result is the same. Immediately after the 9-11 attack, 27 Al Qaeda terrorists were rounded up in the very small community in which I live (makes one wonder how many were in the larger cities and communities), and believe me, I feel a lot better knowing that they, along with their terrorist network, have been put out of commission under President Bush's leadership.  As of today, our military has brilliantly performed the task of reducing the entire terorrist organization to about 17,000 in number. Quite a feat!! God bless them all!! I recently heard that a letter from a top terrorist leader was intercepted and stated, We are losing the war. I have much more I could say, but I'll save it for another time as it is getting late.
    Psychotic democrats.
    Well I guess that is better then a psychotic democrat.
    I believe the Democrats will take the House
    and pick up seats in the Senate enough to make it very even.  When Lieberman is elected as an Independent, I predict he will change his party to Democrat when he gets into the Senate, a direct slam at the Democrats who failed to support him.  Lieberman, the only Democrat with a spine, will be the big winner.  I am not gnashing my teeth about any of this. Democrats are the one who do the teeth gnashing. They have been gnashing since Bush won the first election and their bitterness and sore loser attitudes have eaten away like a cancer all these years.  Democrats have no plan for keeping America safe, or winning the war against the fanatics. They have opposed most of the Bush administration’s domestic surveillance methods. They have opposed aggressive interrogation tactics designed to get information to protect us, including opposition to the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where detainees are treated better than they could expect if they were detained in their homelands... The terrorists in Iraq and elsewhere don’t speak of timetables for withdrawal or bringing their fighters home. They’re in it for the long haul. They believe we are not. A victory by Democrats will validate their view and encourage them to fight harder. Republicans have been far from perfect in this war. They have barely approached mediocrity in their handling of domestic issues. But to change horses and leaders mid-war is a prescription for a longer engagement, because this is a confrontation that will end only in victory or defeat for one side or the other. That’s why the Republicans need to keep their majority and conservatives need to keep the pressure on them to get back to the original GOP principles that brought them that majority. That’s a better strategy than Republicans acting like Democrat-lite.  Unfortunately, I think it is too late this time around.  But there is always next time.  God Bless our troops. 
    This is old news...and yet the Democrats in...
    congress voted to give the President the use of force in Iraq. They knew all this then. But they voted to use force. So I do not understand why it is being brought up again now like it was some big secret. Yes, 20 years ago the US did try to deal with Saddam. And you saw what his word was worth. Zip, nada, nothing. Much like the word of the Democratic Congress that sold South Viet Nam down the river to the North...broke the promises that were made to end the war. If you want to point fingers at something dispicable that should be HIGH on your list.
    WELL there are certainly NO liberal Democrats
    running for president...


    Sick of it too, but the Democrats are no different. sm
    Of the main candidates, our choices are a socialist, a Marxist, and a fascist. Which one do you think is not going to tax our eyeballs out, or force us further and further into a control grid? Obama sounds like the least harmful, but the only thing he is going to change is his mind. My vote goes to NOTA (none of the above).
    The rich ARE the democrats
    Look back over time. Who benefitted from tax breaks Clintons 2% of the richest people. Everyone makes it sound as though only republicans are rich. The democrat party has some of the richest people and they aren't paying their fair share. With the Democrats I've always had to pay more taxes. With the republicans I received refunds every year.
    One wishes the Democrats who are...
    Christians and live in rural areas would abandon the party that has created the kind of mentality that posts like this, so as not to be identified with such condescencion and intolerance. The Democratic party as it once existed is dead, and this is what rose from the ashes. Certainly something to be proud of...not so much.
    Me too! My parents both Democrats....
    the Zell Miller kind. THAT Democratic party is no more.
    Because they are Democrats....and toeing....
    the party line (congressmen) or Republicans who hate McCain. Not a one among them, I would be willing to bet, if you hooked them to a lie detector, would not get past the do you really think he would be a good President...lol Don't really think congressmen are the best judges...their approval rating is lower than Bush's. NO offense...just sayin.
    Democrats are not responsible

    for the mess we are in.  It's the republicans and all their deregulation, for one thing.  How about the war in Iraq and the huge deficit we now have?  And then there are the corporate tax breaks. All of those things have contributed to the mess we are in.  The money didn't trickle down, did it?  It only made the top 1% of the people in this country better off.  Those aren't things the democrats have done. 


    The republicans made this mess and then they have the gall to turn around and blame the democrats.  Do you know why?  Because there are those out there who don't know better and will believe them.  That's what they are relying on.  The republicans got into office with lies and misleading the public and they are still trying the same tactics.  Hopefully enough people will not buy into it this time. 


    I think that the democrats need to go home...sm
    and let the republicans sort it out with their president.  Hurt feelings are not a reason to vote for or against something that is good for the country because you are trying to make a point.  What a bunch of middle-aged/elderly/men crybabies.  I hope that the president lays it on the line to those that voted against his plan. 
    So would those 94 democrats who voted no.nm
    nm
    Yes, and 94 Democrats voted no. So why not...
    11 more democrats voting yes instead of 11 more Republicans?
    Oh yeah...right. Those same democrats who...
    got us into this financial mess. Let's reward them. NOT. For the first time in my life I am voting a straight Republican ticket.
    Democrats are not socialists and do not need
    credibility by defending themselves against this McCain campaign desperation. We can all see by now how well the current disparities in wealth distribution in our country are serving our overall interests. Our economy is in a meltdown. It's time for a different approach. Get with the program.
    Kendra, please do not think that because we democrats...sm
    do not agree with the war that we in any way do not honor our troops that are serving in the mid east. One has NOTHING to do with the other. Our soldiers are doing their duty for our country. I just do not believe that going to war was in anyones best interest. I also believe that injured and mentally scarred soldiers coming home should be given the best of care and their family's given every support by our government. Sadly, this is not the case most of the time. I hope you have a good support system and will pray for your husband to come home safely to you and his new baby son/daughter. God bless!
    I would feel better if democrats
    (This is not to you specially, just in general.)
    Would have more tolerance of others with very serious concerns about our future. Your statement holds true, but on the other side. I too tolerate everyone's opinion, but as a conservative I feel the democrats have bought into a "pile of manure" that the democrats are dishing out and I feel a lot don't care. Being in the party is more important than the issues we face. I'm not a conservative because of family values. Everyone has family values in whatever party they belong to. I don't hear a lot of "family values" being thrown at us from republicans. Second, contrary to the believe not all republicans are wealthy. However, we've lived through both republican and democrat presidents and under republican is when we've always had tax breaks (that is me, my friends, and my family that make anywhere between $25 to 75K). Every year that we've had a democrat president in not only do I pay 43% out of my paycheck every tax period but I also have to pay an extra $1500 and more at the end of the year because I didn't pay enough (p.s., I don't have a savings, I don't own a house, and I don't have a fancy vehicle, tons of jewels or anything - I live paycheck to paycheck). But not only for the tax reason I do not want a democrat president in there. I don't want a democrat president in because then all 3 branches of the government will be democrat. That spells danger to me in a very frightening way. The same exact frightening way it would be if all branches were to be republican. We as conservatives have the same concerns as liberals do, but what I see is the difference is that conservatives are looking at things in a broader sense. We are waying and viewing the plans of the candidates, the voting records, what they have done in their lives, who their affiliations are and if we think they are trustworthy. The liberals I am seeing are basing their decisions on looks and "star power". They are buying into the garbage that Obama is saying. I voted for Obama in the primaries, but after I did we NOW learn about what his real past is We now find out that he actually DID steal the votes from Hillary. It's just not sitting right with us about Obama. While most conservative will admit, no we don't care for McCain, there were so many others we wished was in there, however, he is definitely more qualified and able and trusthworthy than Obama is. As for the people supporting Obama. Most don't even know why. They have been brainwashed into believing he is the messiah. He has put the audiences into a transe and they buy his lies. I don't get it. I respect people's opinions but when you ask people why they are voting for Obama they say "his issues", then you ask then if they'd be upset if Obama wins to have Palin as VP and they say no, she'd be a great VP???? I'm like O-M-G. Obama's plans are way way wrong. I don't mind a democrat, but I don't want a socialist. First they try and con everyone into thinking it's your "patriotic duty" to pay more taxes and when that doesn't work he's now going around saying if you don't want to may more taxes you are "selfish". Oh yeah, that's real great. Sort of reminds me of the interview with Martha Stewart and she said people need to "suck it up" (funny coming from a billionaire). Someone said that was Marth's "Marie Antoinette moment". And that's how I feel with Obama. So as for losing money? If I have to pay more taxes (i.e. lose more money from my paycheck), which bill do you suggest we not pay - lights? internet?.

    People need to wake up from the transe they are under. Think for yourselves and not be told what you should do while candy-coating a very bad plan.
    FOR DEMOCRATS' EYES ONLY sm
    Did someone forget to tell the rabid republicans that Obama won?  Did someone forget to tell them how Palin made a fool out of McCain?  This is too hysterical for words.  I have to admit, I am really gloating here.  Watching all those formerly red states turn blue.... that was amazing.  Also, even if they are rabid creepublicans, they will still benefit from the changes Obama will make.  Send me a private email if you wish to gloat along with me.  These ladies are not very flexible, patriotic or bright.  I truly think it is time for everyone to back our new president and stop spreading the hate.
    Oh, I see. It's all the Democrats fault.

    Yep. Democrats are evil.

    So It's the Democrats' Fault?
    Being on welfare has nothing to do with the party system in this country.

    This is not a problem that was created by any one party, nor can it be solved by any one party.

    Until the Republicans quit trying to see everyting as Us versus Them, nothing is ever going to be accomplished in this country. I'm getting tired of the Republicans in this country being so divisive.

    How about using that energy for the GOOD of EVERYONE. Stop seeing things through party-line glasses.
    What the Republicans Don't Want You to See.

    Stephen Crockett posted this twice (at least) on the Conservative Board, in response to an old quote of his being used out of context and distorted by the usual suspects there.  Each time he posted it, it was deleted from the board.  It's certainly easy to understand why they don't want anyone to see this. 


    Please read quickly.  They think they should control our board, as well as their own, so it probably won't last very long here, either.


    African-American Voters Scrubbed by Secret GOP Hit List


    Published by Greg Palast June 16th, 2006 in Articles
    Massacre of the Buffalo Soldiers
    by Greg Palast
    As reported for Democracy Now!


    Palast, who first reported this story for BBC Television Newsnight (UK) and
    Democracy Now! (USA), is author of the New York Times bestseller, Armed
    Madhouse.


    The Republican National Committee has a special offer for African-American soldiers: Go to Baghdad, lose your vote.


    A confidential campaign directed by GOP party chiefs in October 2004 sought to challenge the ballots of tens of thousands of voters in the last presidential election, virtually all of them cast by residents of Black-majority
    precincts.  Files from the secret vote-blocking campaign were obtained by BBC Television Newsnight, London. They were attached to emails accidentally sent by
    Republican operatives to a non-party website.


    One group of voters wrongly identified by the Republicans as registering to vote from false addresses: servicemen and women sent overseas.


    *******
    For Greg Palast’’s discussion with broadcaster Amy Goodman on the Black soldier purge of 2004, go to
    http://gregpalast.com/armedmadhouse/palastDN6-14-06.mp3


    *******


    Here’’s how the scheme worked: The RNC mailed these voters letters in envelopes marked, Do not forward, to be returned to the sender. These letters were mailed to servicemen and women, some stationed overseas, to their US home addresses. The letters then returned to the Bush-Cheney campaign as undeliverable.


    The lists of soldiers of undeliverable letters were transmitted from state headquarters, in this case Florida, to the RNC in Washington. The party could then challenge the voters’’ registration and thereby prevent their absentee ballots being counted.


    One target list was comprised exclusively of voters registered at the Jacksonville, Florida, Naval Air Station. Jacksonville is third largest naval installation in the US, best known as home of the Blue Angels fighting squandron.


    [See this scrub sheet at http://flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=160156893&context=set-72157594155273706&size=o


    Our team contacted the homes of several on the caging list, such as Randall Prausa, a serviceman, whose wife said he had been ordered overseas.


    A soldier returning home in time to vote in November 2004 could also be challenged on the basis of the returned envelope. Soldiers challenged would be
    required to vote by provisional ballot.


    Over one million provisional ballots cast in the 2004 race were never counted; over half a million absentee ballots were also rejected. The extraordinary rise in the number of rejected ballots was the result of the widespread
    multi-state voter challenge campaign by the Republican Party. The operation, of which the purge of Black soldiers was a small part, was the first mass challenge to voting America had seen in two decades.


    The BBC obtained several dozen confidential emails sent by the Republican’’s national Research Director and Deputy Communications chief, Tim Griffin to GOP
    Florida campaign chairman Brett Doster and other party leaders. Attached were spreadsheets marked, Caging.xls. Each of these contained several hundred
    to a few thousand voters and their addresses.


    A check of the demographics of the addresses on the caging lists, as the GOP leaders called them indicated that most were in African-American majority zip codes.


    Ion Sanco, the non-partisan elections supervisor of Leon County (Tallahassee) when shown the lists by this reporter said: The only thing I can think of - African American voters listed like this - these might be individuals that
    will be challenged if they attempted to vote on Election Day.


    These GOP caging lists were obtained by the same BBC team that first exposed the wrongful purge of African-American felon voters in 2000 by then-Secretary of State Katherine Harris. Eliminating the voting rights of those voters —— 94,000 were targeted —— likely caused Al Gore’’s defeat in that race.


    The Republican National Committee in Washington refused our several requests to respond to the BBC discovery. However, in Tallahassee, the Florida Bush
    campaign’’s spokespeople offered several explanations for the list.


    Joseph Agostini, speaking for the GOP, suggested the lists were of potential donors to the Bush campaign. Oddly, the supposed donor list included residents of the Sulzbacher Center a shelter for homeless families.


    Another spokesperson for the Bush campaign, Mindy Tucker Fletcher, ultimately changed the official response, acknowledging that these were voters, we mailed to, where the letter came back - bad addresses.


    The party has refused to say why it would mark soldiers as having bad addresses subject to challenge when they had been assigned abroad.


    The apparent challenge campaign was not inexpensive. The GOP mailed the letters first class, at a total cost likely exceeding millions of dollars, so that the addresses would be returned to cage workers.


    This is not a challenge list, insisted the Republican spokesmistress. However, she modified that assertion by adding, That’’s not what it’’s set up to be.


    Setting up such a challenge list would be a crime under federal law. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlaws mass challenges of voters where race is a factor in choosing the targeted group.


    While the party insisted the lists were not created for the purpose to challenge Black voters, the GOP ultimately offered no other explanation for the mailings. However, Tucker Fletcher asserted Republicans could still employ the list to deny ballots to those they considered suspect voters. When asked if Republicans would use the list to block voters, Tucker Fletcher replied, Where it’’s stated in the law, yeah.


    It is not possible at this time to determine how many on the potential blacklist were ultimately challenged and lost their vote. Soldiers sending in their ballot from abroad would not know their vote was lost because of a
    challenge.


    __________________________________


    For the full story of caging lists and voter purges of 2004, plus the documents, read Greg Palast’’s New York Times bestseller, ARMED MADHOUSE: Who’’s Afraid of Osama Wolf?, Armed Madhouse: Who’’s Afraid of Osama Wolf?, China Floats Bush Sinks, the Scheme to Steal ‘‘08, No Child’’s Behind Left and other
    Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Class War.


    http://www.gregpalast.com/massacre-of-the-buffalo-soldiers