Greg Palast: How Racist Voter Suppression Could Cost Jon Ossoff the Georgia Election

[mitty14u2]

The race for the 6th District in Georgia is the most expensive congressional race in U.S. history. On Tuesday, voters will head to the polls to fill the seat left vacant after Tom Price resigned to become secretary of health and human services. Polls show Democrat Jon Ossoff and Republican Karen Handel in a virtual tie. But civil rights leaders fear that racist voter suppression tactics could cost Ossoff the election. For more, we speak with investigative reporter Greg Palast and air a report he produced in Georgia.

https://www.democracynow.org/2017/6/15/greg_palast_how_racist_voter_suppression

The GOP’s Attack on Voting Rights Was the Most Under-Covered Story of 2016

there were 25 debates during the presidential primaries and general election and not a single question about the attack on voting rights, even though this was the first presidential election in 50 years without the full protections of the Voting Rights Act. Fourteen states had new voting restrictions in place for the first time in 2016—including crucial swing states like Wisconsin and Virginia—yet we heard nary a peep about it on Election Day except from outlets like The Nation. This was the biggest under-covered scandal of the 2016 campaign.

https://www.thenation.com/article/the-gops-attack-on-voting-rights-was-the-most-under-covered-story-of-2016/

Cheat, Lie and Steal, the Republican way!

[Chasstev365]

1. Few things make me angrier than this!

People died in the 1950's & 1960's to end this and these GOP fucks think it is OK!

[malaise]

2. Saw him on AM Joy this morning

Get thee to the greatest page - very important

[onecaliberal]

3. K&R

[LenaBaby61]

4. Which is the reason why ...

I'm not as sure of a win for Ossoff--no matter HOW angry voters my seem to be @ thuglicans. Some of my friends think that I'm being negative. Fine, but if they want to keep ignoring GOP-driven voter-suppression, voter-purging, voter-crosschecking voter ID laws which will be on 'roids come our next 2 election cycles, then have at it. Some also are down-playing ruskie interference as well, stating that while they did spread lies, propaganda, Anti-Hillary information, work with WikiLeaks etc, they don't seem to think that their interference/meddling did all that much to affect our election in terms of removing votes etc. It seems that every other month something comes out via credible sources showing that the russians interfered more than first imagined in our 2016 GE.

Report: Russian Hackers Targeted Voting Systems In 39 States Total.
*******************************************************

Voter databases and software systems in an overwhelming number of states—39 to be exact—were targeted by Russian cyberattacks over the summer and fall of 2016, Bloomberg News reported Tuesday.

That number, and Bloomberg’s revelation that hackers attempted to delete or alter voter data in Illinois and successfully accessed a campaign finance database in another state, indicates that Russia’s election interference was even more vigorous than has previously been reported.

It builds on a NSA document leaked to The Intercept and made public last week that offered hard evidence that Russian meddling involved not only the strategic hacking and distribution of campaign communications, but efforts to interfere with America’s election infrastructure.

Three people that Bloomberg describes as having “direct knowledge” of the federal Russia probe said that the hackers gained access to software intended for poll workers to use on Election Day as well as to Illinois’ entire state voter database.

They did not alter vote tallies, however, as various intelligence officials have testified in congressional hearings. One anonymous U.S. official posited to Bloomberg that this was because Russia only accessed American voting systems months before an Election Day, lacking the time needed to master a complex network that varies between thousands of local jurisdictions.

Former President Barack Obama attempted to intervene last October, according to Bloomberg, using the so-called “red phone” secure messaging channel established between Russia and the U.S. to deescalate the threat of cyberattacks.

Putin said only that he would look into the matter, and has categorically denied that the Russian government took any steps to interfere in the U.S. election. He allowed earlier this month that “patriotic individuals” could have carried out cyberattacks independently.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/russian-hackers-reportedly-infiltrated-voting-systems-39-states


At this point, and only 6 months removed from the 2016 GE, who knows what role the ruskies played in our 2016 elections and how much they interfered? Who knows what NEW AND IMPROVED trucks they'll have come up with in 2018 & 2020 to keep the Senate, House & Presidency in thuglicans hands--as they continue to destroy our democracy along WITH thuglicans.

[diva77]

5. I'm not so sure either considering Karen Handel's past as 1st repug SOS in GA

I posted about this here:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10029216234

[IronLionZion]

6. This is so infuriating, and is mostly in states controlled by GOP

I hope our party has people and lawyers doing whatever they can to make sure our voters can vote. The other party is doing the opposite, to stop certain types of Americans from voting.

[Initech]

7. If the GOP can't make it, they'll steal it.

[Different Drummer]

8. I am hoping Ossoff wins, but...

I'm thinking Handel has it, by whatever means necessary.

[YOHABLO]

10. I hope there is some oversight going on by the Dems and Independents.

[YOHABLO]

9. The Republican Party is what is holding this country back from greatness.

[ProudLib72]

11. I hope if it goes to Handel

that Ossoff makes a huge stink about it so there can be some deep investigation (and dare I say "legislation&quot .

[Gothmog]

12. The GOP is the party of voter suppression and relies on voter suppression to win races

[stevepal]

13. If the voter suppression isn't sufficient to do the trick,

the absolutely unverifiable and easily rigged voting machines will make up the difference. Ossoff's chances in GA are about the chances of a snowball being discovered in hell.

[edhopper]

14. And the MSM's response to

glaring voter suppression...

[IMG][/IMG]

[dalton99a]

19. +1

[Lonestarblue]

15. How to ensure fair elections in 2018

There is little chance of Republican-controlled states doing anything to ensure that either the Russians or Republican sympathizers cannot tamper with votes or voter rolls in future elections. How can we overcome this issue? Paper ballots are one way, but the states have to agree to this. The only other way I can think of is to have an independent election monitor collecting votes from people as they leave polling places. In other words, give people a preprinted form as they go in to vote, ask them to fill it out, no personal information necessary, just check off the names of the people they voted for. These counts would then serve as a check on the electronic system.

[Amaryllis]

20. Verified Voting is doing a lot of excellent work on this.

https://www.verifiedvoting.org/about-vvo/

[33taw]

16. Maybe we need to mobilize in the states where this is occurring and ensure that

Everyone with who wants to vote is aware of the relevant laws and has what they need more than two days before the election.

[Susan Calvin]

17. Bless him. He's been on this and stayed on this. nt

[Haiti2Quebec]

18. No Excuse

We know their tactics and we continue to get caught with our pants down . we need to ask ourselves do we really want to win an election? Do we have the will to win or simply sob and complain about what we should have done? We need a game plan and we need it now. How can we expect the independent voter to have faith in our party if we continue to have the same rhetoric, how can we energize voters if we continue to predict the same outcome. Trump unpopularity is not enough ... Now what are going to do about it....

[Hortensis]

21. Are you by any chance a party higher-up come to DU to

reveal you guys have no "game plan?"

If you're from somewhere else altogether, DU posts many links people can follow to educate or re-educate themselves.

As for this very negative first post, perhaps you could start reading and try to infer what we are doing from the clues. That's what analysts are doing, constantly. Then you could come talk about what you have learned.

After all, knowledge is power, meaning keeping us ALL just guessing is necessary. But that doesn't mean we can't inform ourselves and be valuable assets to our efforts.

Certainly the kind of wobblies who failed to vote or shockingly voted for Trump and the rest would not have done so had they educated themselves halfway decently, instead of just soaking up and regurgitating the anti-Democrat lies the right, and far left, shoved at them. fed them. so conveniently spread.