International Vote Monitors Warn Texas: Don't Mess With Us.

[elleng]

Source: nyt/reuters

International election monitors took a dim view on Wednesday of Texas' threat to prosecute them if they observe voting in the state a bit too closely on November 6.

The exchange pitted the Vienna-based human rights watchdog Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe against Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, who warned the OSCE not to interfere with polling in state elections.

"The threat of criminal sanctions against OSCE/ODIHR observers is unacceptable," Janez Lenarcic, director of the OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) monitoring arm, said in a statement.

"The United States, like all countries in the OSCE, has an obligation to invite ODIHR observers to observe its elections."


Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2012/10/24/us/politics/24reuters-usa-elections-texas.html?hp&_r=0

---

THOUGHT y'all would like this!!!

[allan01]

1. re:International Vote Monitors Warn Texas: Don't Mess With Us.

puts texas in their place

[gasser85]

76. Just voted for Obama in Texas

and due to the Electoral College I liken the experience to self flagellation. In the procreative sense whipping the pony is counter productive but does provide a temporary "feel good".

[zentrum]

2. If Republicans...

....are so damned concerned about "illegal voters", you'd think they'd welcome these international observers who will "catch" the "fake citizens" instead of this ugly reaction.

[The Wizard]

9. Republicans are full of shit

Their ultimate goal in 1960s parlance, "Keep the brown down."

[MountainMazza]

3. I have a feeling -- they have overseen elections in rougher places than Texas ;)

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

11. True that.

[Dawson Leery]

4. The global community is putting right wingers in Texas in their place.

About time!

[RKP5637]

18. If Romney wins we well might need the help of the global community to survive as a country. And

I'm not joking.

[silvershadow]

27. at a minimum. n/t

[freshwest]

39. +1

[oldbanjo]

52. Your 100% correct.

[defacto7]

90. I believe this to be an unfortunate fact.

[ProudProgressiveNow]

46. +1

[Tigress DEM]

5. THANK YOU UN!!

[freshwest]

40. +1

[avebury]

6. I would love to see this group in every

state that uses the electronic voting machines provided by the company that has a relationship with Romney's son.

[cui bono]

60. I would love to see them demand paper ballots and hand counting! n/t

[go west young man]

7. Those Texas bugs do not like the light shined on them.

[Hutzpa]

31. +1

[The Wizard]

8. Teabillies getting their panties in a bunch already.

What could they possibly be hiding?

[freshwest]

41. Their heads will be exploding next. Bet Alex Jones is having a stroke on the air...

[blkmusclmachine]

10. Yeah, TX got awfully defensive awfully fast on a mere suggestion that someone might be watching them

Makes you wonder what TX has up its sleeves for Nov. 6, huh?!

Hey, TX: If you're not doing anything wrong, then you don't have anything to worry about. Sound familiar???


OPERATION NORTHWOODS

[BlancheSplanchnik]

15. oh yeah

That sounds VERY familiar!

[RKP5637]

19. Exactly!!! n/t

[NavyMom]

28. Ole Tricky ricky is up to his old tricks, we NEVER thought

he received as many votes in the Houston, Dallas, Austin or San Antonio area in the race against Bill White. Bill White that left the mayor's office with an approval rating in the high 80's, Houston that elected a lesbian mayor by a large margin.

Tricky ricky along with his friends pulled a fast one by having Bill White win these cities by 52-56 percent knowing that if Bill White won by the 75%+ he won REALLY won by his slick tail would be off the gravy train. How VERY convenient the warehouse caught on fire right before the election and Harris County needed to "borrow" equipment somewhere else.

BTW, I voted early but I will be taking around 65 people to the polls on November 6 and I PRAY on of those so called poll watchers get in our face. Man will they have a rude awakening.

[Hutzpa]

32. Make sure you guy pay close attention to those machines

I heard they are known to perform some type of miracle.

Edit
Saying I was baffled by Mayor Bill White's defeats is an under statement, I was in Texas during that election and I saw bill boards in places I least expected supporting Mayor Bill White yet he lost. An approval rating of 75+ does not really matter I suppose. The Texas shenanigans got to stop by setting an example this election.

[niyad]

89. don't forget the richardson/bush election--ann had a nearly 70% popularity rating (if I recall

correctly), yet, chimpy "won" the governorship--it appears the dirty tricks go a LONG way back.

[silvershadow]

34. Just tell them they're there to keep make sure there is no voter fraud.

[AllyCat]

68. Remember, this meme only applies to non-Republicans. The cons can do whatever

they dang well please because, well, God or Jeebus is on their side, or any number of other made up excuses.

[chuckstevens]

12. The UN Inspectors

I hope they are all from France! That will drive the right even crazier. They probably still call them "Freedom Fries" and "Freedom Toast" in Texas!

[kentauros]

45. No, we don't replace "French" with "Freedom"

for our food here in Texas. I thought that was primarily on the East Coast, starting with D.C.?

And France has had its influence in Texas, too. Remember the "Six Flags"? (and I don't mean the theme park.)

[Bernardo de La Paz]

72. Romney speaks French, loves the French. nt

[rhett o rick]

77. LOL. Yeah that was last week. How does he feel about them today? nm

[Bernardo de La Paz]

85. Sure. But Ts might stay home rather than vote a Frenchy-lover (francophile too big a word for them)

[rhett o rick]

93. Excellent point. nm

[BlancheSplanchnik]

13. WOW! Almost too good to be true!

I'm soooo glad and relieved it really IS true!

Sad that it's necessary, but screw that egoism......we need it and thank the good energies of us People for doing it. (no deity is responsible; its all up to people and what we decide to fight for.)

[xtraxritical]

49. Is that a Pomeranian? We've got four!

[burrowowl]

14. Today is UN Day!

[maindawg]

16. they better have computer experts monitoring the computer voting machines

along with people standing at the table observing the voters and the poll workers interaction. And they need 10,000 of them.
Actually, they need to concentrate on the machines that tag or whatever the fuck his name is ,owns.

Let me tell you something, The right wing machine is a monster , and the monster is hungry. It wants more war, it wants more of everything.It wants the 2 trillion dollars SS fund. The monster does not understand that it is already full. It does not understand that if it eats the last tree , it will die also.

You know them motherfuckers have a plan.....

[RKP5637]

21. They want world domination. All the money Romney wants to throw into

defense should raise a huge WTF in the global community. Like how many times over does the US need to kill every living thing on earth. Once is not enough? Maybe like 50 times?

[freshwest]

58. +1

[Cobalt-60]

92. Republicans use the Pentagon as a Money Laundry

That's why they can't get enough war, nor waste enough money on weapons.
In the congress they borrow the money in our - we the people's - names.
They see that as much as possible gets cycled through the Pentagon to war industries in which the *Republican Party's owners are heavily invested.
The Owners, - campaign contributors - receive clean money as profit in the form of dividends.
And the American People are left with the bill - and the interest.
Then the Owners kick back cash to the *Republicans.
Everything the pukes want in the congress fattens this stream of profits to their owners.
Their goal in congress is to eliminate the taxes their owners pay to prime this cash pump.

[freshwest]

80. You nailed it! That is already being reported, that people are catching their votes being flipped...

[toby jo]

17. I wonder if the righties at large are aware they're going to be monitored this time?

Wait'll this one sinks in over at faux and beck and rush etc.

Hope they're armed.

[malokvale77]

20. The GOP has every reason to be afraid of scrutiny in Texas.

They've been stealing elections since Bush ran against Richards for Governor. Election stealing started in Texas. Elections aren't the only things politicians steal here.

[TBF]

22. This Texan welcomes the ODIHR - please come observe!

[hamsterjill]

55. Seconded by another Texan.

We welcome the help! Come on down!

[angel823]

74. and yet another

"True" the Vote my ass.

Angel in Texas

[hamsterjill]

75. Welcome to DU!

I am happily seeing many new Texas DU'ers!!! Welcome, welcome, welcome!!!!!

[freshwest]

81. Texas native in the northwest for good. But eager to see Texas escape Teahadism. FREE TEXAS!

I was there when Ann Richards was Governor. It was great.

[hamsterjill]

94. Ann was a classic!

Loved her...miss her!

Yes, there are MANY of us who are ready for Texas to go back to being blue! Thanks for your support!

[neversaydie]

23. phone calls in Florida

thanks for the post. Did anyone else hear about phone calls in Florida telling people that they can vote right now, by phone, then you won't have to go to the poll? It was on NBC news this morning, i think. The woman who received the call contacted the news and wants to file a complaint. She asked who was calling and they hung up. She dialed *69 to get the number that called, but no luck there either.

I remember from 8 years ago letters telling people to vote on a specific date; the day after the election.

[SCVDem]

24. There's that American arrogance again

We observe others and others observe us. That's the way it is.

Get over it!




ed:sp

[sheshe2]

25. hey elleng...Great Post

Don't mess with Texas!!! Ha
Don't mess with the OSCE!
As I said in a previous post....what do they have to hide???

[AlbertCat]

26. Hey, Partner...

These people don't believe or fall for that stupid, fake wild west tough guy fantasy crap.

[Hutzpa]

29. I just hope they are really serious in clamping down.

[Dustlawyer]

30. Yet another reason to be ashamed of the leaders of my great state! I hope they do send 10,000

Monitors! We need even more! Texas is the example of what happens when Repugs control everything! That alone should get people off of their asses and vote Democrat! They all feed at the money trough here. Corporations and 1% assholes sell politicians choice land way under value, only to be sold by same politician a year later to another asshole way over value! Gregg Abbott, the crippled AG making the threats was a young insurance defense attorney who was crippled while jogging in a park when a tree fell on him. He sued and received millions. He later pushed a measure to put caps on these same types of suits so no one else in his position could recover like he did! If he ever had a soul, he sold it long ago! I would love for the monitors to shine a bright light on this place and do exit polls. That would show the fraud they WILL COMMIT with the electronic voting machines. Why have exit polls been cut back drastically before this election? It is NOT a coincidence, yet they is almost nothing on this in any media. This country is headed for real pain and real trouble, mark my words. I do not welcome it, but I will not shirk my duty as a citizen. Places like Texas are the front lines in a growing conflict where the rich and powerful nakedly exercise their power with little, but growing resistance. I wish we had the DNC 50 state battle like we had under Gov. Howard Dean!

[Not Sure]

54. +1

Everything in the preceding post correct.

[SoapBox]

33. Way cool.

[Tom1960]

35. Well if Texas is conducting their elections according to the law

then they have nothing to hide right? Right.......

[CapnSteve]

36. As part of the Democratic majority in Texas, I welcome election oversight!

When I moved down here over twenty years ago, Texas was a blue state. Anyone remember Bill White and Ann Richards?

What happened? Carl Rove, Tom Delay and their ilk figured out how a Republican minority could manipulate the district boundaries, game the electronic voting system, and send the Democratic majority into hiding in a tide of hate and fear.

The demographics are with us, and we are getting bluer everyday.

As Samuel L. Jackson says we have to "wake the fuck up!"

[ProudProgressiveNow]

47. +1

Same is happening in Arizona.

[John2]

37. Eric Holder

They were invited in by American Civil Rights organizations because Eric Holder is too timid. The Rightwing Republican Party has been too much of a bully. So it was Americans that asked for assistance against a rightwing Party. Now International organizations have an example of what the Democratic Party is dealing with in the United States. If push come to shove, so be it. Somebody in Texas said something about seceding? You also got some nut thinks rape is not rape in that Party.

[DMacTX]

38. Viva Texas!!! ( but please put ALL the observers in Ohio!)

[CapnSteve]

42. Oh, and did anyone see the article about the "True the Vote" founder in the Houston Chronicle?

Lives here in the Houston area. She is crazy as a loon, but has backers with big money. Yikes! Maybe it is something in the water down here?

[drdtroit]

43. "Texas to prosecute ...": Nice rhetoric from the safe haven of war criminals! n/t

[Posteritatis]

44. Pretty sure Texas don't get to disallow election observers in federal votes

Actually, pretty sure Texas doesn't get to do a lot of things in federal elections, given their behaviour still obligates them to get the federal government's permission first.

[TexasTowelie]

48. It looks like they might be needed based on this article about voting machine errors:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10784436

[elleng]

50. No 'might' about it.

Here we go again.

[DFW]

51. Bill White would have welcomed the observers

Rick Perry's people are terrified of them.

That says it all.

[Gabby Hayes]

53. A reminder for "Pop Gun" Abbott:

You have to abide by the same laws. Actual Texans will be watching your Walmart Boot Gangs with video running, and we will file criminal charges.

And by the by, Pop Gun, you are threatening the UN in behalf of Texans who likely won't vote anyway because they are afraid of jury duty and the accompanying criminal background check. That's not to mention those who are afraid the alien lizard people will lift their fingerprints from the voting machines in preparation to arrest Christian gun owners. Removing directions to state's city halls from the backs of highway signs was just a waste of money because the super-intelligent aliens most likely have access to Google Map.

[GrantDem]

56. Wouldn't these observers have diplomatic immunity?

If so the Texas AG can shove it up his ass.

[Posteritatis]

61. Not to mention the federal government's backing

Texas doesn't get much of a say in what happens in federal elections, at least not without Washington's permission first.

[Odin2005]

57. I hope the observers have bodyguards.

I fear they will be roughed up or worse by RW lunatics who think they presage UN black helicopters and that usual anti-UN RW conspiracy shit.

[cui bono]

59. I am SO glad our elections are being monitored now. FINALLY!

I have been wondering about this for years now, with all the shenanigans we've suffered over the past decade it's about time we get international monitoring.

I hope the more threats they get the more monitors they bring.

[flamingdem]

62. I luv you Janez Lenarcic, director of the OSCE

[barbtries]

63. i think it's really interesting...

it appears that those of us on the left are happy to have international observers, but on the right, they're all squealing and pissed. why would that be?

[Posteritatis]

65. The American right loses thirty IQ points whenever other countries are mentioned. (nt)

[cprise]

64. If US membership in OSCE is by treaty...

then Texas law doesn't apply (see 'NAFTA').

[olddad56]

66. shouldn't apply anyway, it isn't the US, it is Texas

[Rider3]

67. They have already started cheating

We need these folks to oversee the voting. It's already been proven that votes are not being noted correctly.

[elleng]

71. And have been preparing to cheat for 2+ years.

Consider all the state 'register,' 'voter i.d.' laws crap.

[freshwest]

82. Oh, no. Go back to when Shrub became Governor. Or the PNAC was written. All there. World Domination.

[elleng]

88. Right of course, fresh.

I was referring to repug states conscientiously playing games with voting registration/I.D., etc.

[freshwest]

91. Well, yeah, the voter ID is Teahadist, since 2010. But the Diebold, vote flipping machines, etc.

has been in place since before the coup of 2000, which they laid the groundwork for in Florida and Texas. There was an incestous relationship between the Texas DOC records and Harris. And of course Jebbie did his part.

Gramm and Delay and later Shrub as POTUS, were so involved in all of these things, that they destroyed half a century of progressive governance in Texas. I hope that members here who have posted about irregularities can make a difference with an impartial observer looking for this.

That will require upclose viewing and discussing voting with voters. They need to be there to document what these folks have said. The Teahadists are still being funded and intend to steal the vote. And get rid of Eric Cantor!

[Zoeisright]

69. Cheaters and thieves get nervous when they're watched.

After all, isn't the standard repuke meme if you aren't doing anything wrong, you don't need to worry about being watched?

Oh, that's right - that only applies to OTHER people.

[Sophiegirl]

70. Why isn't there an external non-profit, non-partisan organization

given the opportunity to examine these voting machines for inconsistencies? There are actually NfP entities that can do this.

Not every organizations is partisan.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

73. I am so embarrassed for this once great nation...

They began monitoring here in 2002 when Bush invited them in...this is the first time they are sending in such large numbers, looking for specific things like voter intimidation...

[Tx4obama]

78. Kick! n/t

[politicaljack78]

79. Thanks for the heads up, I wish more mods would link to the other article.

Might be something to bring up at the next meeting of the mod squad.

[midnight]

83. K&R

[freshwest]

84. Some mentioned Obama calling in the National Guard on the dupe that brought me back here, so:

From the Civil Rights era of the Sixties:

1962 -- President Kennedy sends federal troops to the University of Mississippi to quell riots so that James Meredith, the school's first black student, can attend.

The Supreme Court rules that segregation is unconstitutional in all transportation facilities.

The Department of Defense orders full integration of military reserve units, the National Guard excluded.

1963 -- Civil rights leader Medgar Evers is killed by a sniper's bullet.

Race riots prompt modified martial law in Cambridge, Maryland.

http://edition.cnn.com/EVENTS/1997/mlk/links.html

I thought National Guard units are called out by the governors in the different states, and Rick Perry won't do it. I'm confused by this article on who can call them out to keep order.

Their being callled out probably would be going against the AG of the State of Texas, or the rovering gangs of Teahadists called True the Vote, who are determined to intimidate and interfere with the vote, IMO. Here is part of the Wikepedia entry on the National Guard:

Jurisdiction

The National Guard is directed and primarily funded through its respective state. Federal funding is given however. The Army Reserve is solely funded by the federal government. It is also, however, restricted by posse comitatus.

The rest of the description of the National Guard, its history and the changes to the laws, are here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Guard_of_the_United_States

The Teahadists have been calling for civil war down in Texas this year, or at least one elected official did, and of course they've got all of the Patriot Movement running loose there. Just a few names in the mix and what our Democratic Texans are up against:

http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2012/08/22/texas-judge-preparing-for-civil-war-if-obama-re-elected/

http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/intelligence-files/profiles/alex-jones

Yes, I think it's time to call in the UN observers, alright. This is getting out of hand. IDK if the Texas AG is acting legally or not.

[wakemewhenitsover]

86. This Abbott guy... what a buffoon.

Not the first time I've hoped that Europeans understand that we're not all such morons.

[Thinkingabout]

87. I am a Texan working voting location in Harris County.

We have members of both parties working but I will also be watching for Amy oddities. Bring the monitors on, our group runs a clean operation but maybe this does not happen everywhere.