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Voter Fraud Guru up for Vote Tomorrow
Finally, the time has come. The Senate Rules Committee will vote tomorrow on whether Hans von Spakovsky, the former Justice Department official who former employees say was key to the politicization of voting rights section, will get a term on the Federal Elections Commission. Von Spakovsky is also a veteran of Republican efforts to target voter fraud.
It's not immediately clear what will happen tomorrow. Howard Gantman, staff director for the committee, said that Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) wants a vote on each nominee separately (as opposed to considering all four nominees, Democratic and Republican, in one vote) and that she continues to have serious concerns about Von Spakovsky. He also said that no deal had been struck.
Former employees of the voting section mounted serious opposition to von Spakovsky's nomination, with a group writing in a letter to the committee that he'd been "the point person for undermining the Civil Rights Division's mandate to protect voting rights." Von Spakovsky, however, portrayed himself during his confirmation hearing as just a lawyer in the section who gave advice when it was asked. It was a portrayal with real problems -- as von Spakovsky himself tacitly acknowledged when he modified his testimony in later written answers to the committee.
Von Spakovsky also sought to spike accusations that he'd retaliated against wrong-thinking employees (i.e. lawyers overly-preoccupied with African-Americans' voting rights) by, among other things, adding negative comments to their performance evaluations. But two former lawyers told us that he'd done just that -- and then went so far as to stifle their appeals of the changes.
President Bush put von Spakovsky on the commission as a recess appointment in December, 2005.
Josh
Zachary
Hey Look! It's the guy from MAD magazine! Is he as competent as he looks?
September 25, 2007 4:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
LOL. It's up to Dianne Feinstein to lead the opposition? You have got to be kidding. She’s Lieberman in a dress. Why in the world is anyone pretending not to know the outcome?
Hey, I’m not Carnac the Magnificent, but even Jonny Carson would know how this story will end.
September 25, 2007 4:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thank you for covering this, Paul.
Christie Hardin Smith has a blog up at FDL stating Reid and shumer might have made a deal to confirm this minority vote suppressor. they have phone senate committee phone numbers posted to call and try to stop this appointment. This man deserves jail time, not an appointment. Here is the link to Firedoglake article:
http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/25/hiding-the-sockpuppet/
September 25, 2007 4:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
Can we PLEASE start calling this joker "Dr. Strangevote"?
September 25, 2007 4:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
"What, me worry?"
September 25, 2007 4:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
"...Reid and shumer might have made a deal to confirm this minority vote suppressor."
Always dependable.
September 25, 2007 4:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
This about says it all (from a June 12 TPM):
"A group of former voting rights attorneys in the Division put it most succinctly in a letter to Sen. Feinstein yesterday urging rejection of his nomination: von Spakovsky was "the point person for undermining the Civil Rights Division's mandate to protect voting rights." Von Spakovsky reported to Schlozman, and the two worked together to purge voters from the rolls, ensure that voter ID laws were approved with no fuss, and punish lawyers who did not toe the line."
If the Dems vote to confirm this guy then they have betrayed their base as well as what is right.
September 25, 2007 4:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
Flush this turd.
(SFX: Va-doosh!)
September 25, 2007 4:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Supreme Court, with its current makeup, taking up voting rights case is a bad omen and this will make it worse heading into the 08 elections...
September 25, 2007 4:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
He vass only followink ordersss.
Actually, it's the guy from "Cracked" magazine, a MAD knockoff, Sylvester P Smythe.
The guy from MAD, Alfred E Neuman, looks like Bush. What me worry?
Bozos all the same
September 25, 2007 7:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
Diane the mole? Never trusted.
September 25, 2007 7:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
Anonymous wrote on September 25, 2007 4:04 PM:
LOL. It's up to Dianne Feinstein to lead the opposition? You have got to be kidding. She’s Lieberman in a dress. Why in the world is anyone pretending not to know the outcome?
Well said.Moreover,The witch is consistently potrayed as a dedicated liberal by the media until Glen Greenwald showed what a staunch hypocrite she is.I can proudly announced I have never voted for her and will never sacrifice my vote for Repuke like Dems.No love for DlC-ers here folks.
September 25, 2007 8:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
Isn't the same old song and dance. The hen in the hen house.
The worst abuser now running the department. DIane - Vote no on ALL if it means it will keep this piece of shit off.
September 25, 2007 9:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
What does it say about Bush that he supports this guy? What does it say about the American sheeple and MSM that there has been no outcry.It`s maddening what is going on in this country with little or no opposition from Dems,MSM,or the people who are getting screwed the most-the poor and the middle class.
In the 60s, Bush/Cheney would have been long gone,or the streets would be filled with outrage.
September 25, 2007 10:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
Feinstein could go a ways toward redeeming herself on bending over for the Patriot Act renewal (almost sounds quiant now) on the grounds they tack on some nonsense about Meth she thought would make her look good.
Cravenness, amorality and spinelessness in politicians can always be detected by any of the following:hysteria about drugs, condemning works of art (Guiliani), publicly confusing dissent with treason and attacking, no matter how subtly, any given minority. Attacking minorities leads us right back to our boy Von Spakovsky.
If Feinstein allows this Rovian creature to officially roam the FEC, it will be a sad commentary on just where, finally, the Dems are willing to draw the line, in chalk, and always one step behind where the Bushies are already moving the GOP. What the system cries for (and what neither party has much stomach for) is a series of Berlin Walls between partisanship and policy.
In fact, I'm beginning to wonder if the Democratic Party isn't looking at some of these enhanced executive powers and, figuring 2008 is a lead-pipe cinch for them, looks forward to using those powers against the GOP.
Too bad all these issues are too complicated for an I-Pod. It was a nice country. It always showed promise. Too bad the way it turned out.
September 26, 2007 12:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
"It was a nice country. It always showed promise. Too bad the way it turned out."
I still have hope and it's internet based. The corporate media have been exposed for what they are propagandists. People are moving away from traitional sources of news (look at the ratings for Network News ad Daily papers) toward sources they trust on the internet.
The campaign selection has already been made by the corporate elite media-(is it a coincidence that the corporation's candidate of choice just happened to appear on all 5 networks last Sunday?) The irony is, that only a few dedicated folks still turn in to this.
The republicans showed us that they were willing to infiltrate such formerly respected institutions as the DoJ and BOEs. Is it any wonder that they have taken over the pollsters as well, especially when some troublemaker activists dared to question deviations in exit polls in 2004?
We must use new media to take back our country and EXPOSE the wrong doing. Without justice, sweeping the wrongdoing under the rug, will just allow it to reappear in the future. Just think of who was associated with Iran Contra and BCCI.
September 26, 2007 11:44 AM | Reply | Permalink