http://www.democrats.com/view2.cfm?id=7546

27-May-02

Writes Mary MacElveen: "I find it odd that the Bush Department of Justice has just come out with an action to sue several counties in Florida over votes not being counted or purged during the 2000 presidential election. I find it incredibly odd that they have done this now, after we have learned that George Bush may have possibly known about terrorist warnings before September 11th, and then his administration stating that they did not tell him of these warnings. Could it possibly be that there is something there that will hurt Bush and the GOP in the upcoming midterm elections? Could this possibly be the real reason his DOJ is filing this suit now? I find this all to be too coincidental, and have come to title these recent revelations after last week, 'Operation Deflection.'"

The Message Has Been 'Get Over It' Now Use Your Anger To Answer Back
By Mary MacElveen

I find it odd that the Bush Department of Justice has just come out with an action to sue several counties in Florida over votes not being counted or purged during the 2000 presidential election. I find it incredibly odd that they have done this now, after we have learned that George Bush may have possibly known about terrorist warnings before September 11th, and then his administration stating that they did not tell him of these warnings. Could it possibly be that there is something there that will hurt Bush and the GOP in the upcoming midterm elections? Could this possibly be the real reason his DOJ is filing this suit now? I find this all to be too coincidental, and have come to title these recent revelations after last week, “Operation Deflection”.

Up until now, the consistent message from the Republican Party has been, “Get over it”. We have been told this ever since that fateful day when five Supreme Court Injustices decided for us who our president would be. It is after all these same Injustices who circumvented the Constitution of the United States in the first place in deciding this matter.

It is these same Republicans who are warning us Democrats not to politicize September 11th for our own self-interest. They are using our Department of Justice for the very same thing. The message that they are sending out through this civil action is -- we are looking for justice for those who were not served during the recount process. Sorry, Republicans, your message is a day late and a dollar short. We must forcefully connect with the voters not only down in Florida, but in Missouri and Tennessee which party was the one who stood shoulder to shoulder to have every vote count. We Democrats were the ones who were consistently marching into many courts in defense of every vote being counted. Where it was the Republicans who sought to stop it at every juncture. They even sent a mob down there to intimidate those responsible for the counting of those votes, and they succeeded. Everyone remembers that day, when they angrily banged on the doors of a public building, thereby terrorizing those inside. In my opinion, they were not protectors of democracy, but a band of domestic terrorists.

To me the real rub is that you cannot settle this matter in any court now, the damage has already been done. Thousands of Americans were denied their voting rights -- and that is a slap in the face not only to them -- but democracy as well. Miami-Dade County is one of the counties in talks with the Justice Department, county attorney Robert Ginsburg where Mr. Ginsburg was quoted as saying, ''I think it's going to be resolved amicably. I think it may have been already, I'm not entirely sure. But they're going to come down and talk to us about that,'' Where was that civility in tone when it actually mattered, Mr. Ginsburg? It was no where to be found. Those that were denied their civil rights must NOT become complicit, but MUST KEEP THE ANGER. All who were denied their voting rights in 2000 must come out and use this anger, and direct it at the party that kept their votes from being counted. It is just that simple. Remember it was Mr. Gore who stated, “In America, we count every vote”. We must also remember it was George Bush who used the legal system to circumvent that right.

We must also use this deep-seated anger to answer back in November, that we are NOT OVER IT. We must with using our right to vote, and have that vote counted, retake the House and retain control over the Senate. Thereby putting George Bush in legislative handcuffs. After all many of his policies and actions have put us as a country in many different handcuffs. For example, Social Security funds being raided; a surplus being turned into a deficit; education being cut in his budget; Head Start which has helped many minority children being cut to the bone; prescription drugs for seniors being all but forgotten and so many more issues that are targeted in favor of the top one percent, while forgetting about the bottom 99 percent.

While many victims died on September 11th during a terrorist attack, many also died back in the Sixties for voting rights. Our military fight in defense of the many freedoms we have in this country. And one of those freedoms is the right to vote and have it counted.

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