Al Gonzales and DOJ Issues Gag Order to RFK Jr. for 60 Days

[McCamy Taylor]

Story is at Bradblog. RFK Jr announced last week that he was going to be launching a whistleblower lawsuit targetting several E-Vote Machine manufacturers over a variety of fraud related issues. Today was the day we was supposed to file the suits. Like many I was looking forward to finding out who were the companies, what were the charges, what was the evidence etc. However, before he could file the suit, he had to consult the DOJ. I had a bad feeling when I heard that last part, and now my bad feeling is confirmed.

According to the story at Bradblog, the DOJ has issued a gag order that prevents RFK Jr and those involved in the case from talking about it for 60 days "as the Attorney General decides if they will join the complaint". This is total BS! Acting WH Counsel Al Gonzales has no intention of suing Diebold or Sequoia or any of the other E-Vote players whom RFK Jr may be suing. He is acting at Rove's orders to keep this out of the press for 60 days. That will give the E-Vote people time to get the suits tossed out or delayed or do something to get them squashed before the November election.

Even if the suits can not get dismissed, this gag order keeps Diebold and the others from having the secrets of their flaws and defects revealed NOW, when their customers might actually have time to do something like replace them before the upcoming election.

http://www.bradblog.com/

[benburch]

1. They need to leak the whole matter to somebody outside of the USA.

I can put them in contact with the right folks...

This is a gag order that needs to be violated.

[tridim]

9. Greg Palast? n/t

[benburch]

14. He was my first thought.

But I have several other ex-pats who would do a great job of breaking it and getting it published in real newspapers.

[liberaldemocrat7]

53. We need vote by mail with paper ballots counted by civil servants

in every state and we need civil servants to register voters and keep track of voter registrations.

I cannot trust private companies to count votes nor can we trust them to keep track of voter registrations.

[yurbud]

26. the rest of the world already knows our elections are stolen

it's just Americans who don't know.

[midnight]

42. O yes it does.

Get this info. to the right people.

[MissWaverly]

2. this is an outrage

Please DU'ers put your thinking caps on, what should we do, will it do any good writing our congress reps or not, they have no intention of participating in this, this is a repeat
of their strong arm tactics, ie Abu Ghraib photos, NSA wiretapping, investigation of missing
money in Iraq, 9-11, the list is endless.

[femrap]

11. I think it's best if we write LTTE....

it's up TO THE PEOPLE now. Let's inform them on what is going on...and now we have a BIG NAME involved, RFK, jr.

Get the story out there! Get people pissed off! Your vote has been stolen! What ya gonna do about it?

[unpossibles]

3. it amazes me they can get away with this sort of thing

isn't this pretty obvious? And why would you place a gag order on an attempt to find out it our election process is flawed/undermined unless you knew it was.

it's like they don't care if they're obvious anymore, like they have some way of thwarting the will of the people... :eyes:

[grannylib]

34. They've gotten away with so much, I am sure their arrogance will not allow

them to CONSIDER that they might not get away with everything...and you are right, it is SO obvious.

Can these 'people' really believe all the bullshit they spew??? Can anyone really BE that fucking stupid???

Oh yeah. Sorry. I forgot who we were talking about.

Yes they can be, and are, really THAT STUPID.

[PurpleChez]

48. These f-wads have never cared if they're obvious.

Since Corky came to power I've been amazed at how they have done so little to disguise their obvious and all-consuming bias toward the rich and toward corporations.

[Master Mahon]

4. DOJ can issue gag orders?

I thought only a Judge could issue a gag order, and only when a complaint or indictment is outstanding? WTF?

[Smarmie Doofus]

49. Good question; me too. NT

[Guaranteed]

60. No, I don't think they can. nt

[whistle]

5. Wow, that was quick, they must have something better in mind for

...Dubya. Nowm 60 days takes us to the middle of September, does that pass the time when e-vote machines can not be withdrawn?

[robinlynne]

6. I hate them.

[bullimiami]

7. listen to mike pap discuss it on last nights malloy show.

the archive is at whiterosesociety.org

this was not unexpected.

[OzarkDem]

8. Hope they appeal it

Shouldn't judges have to justify imposing a gag-order?

[JAYJDF]

10. Nice outrage

But, come on. The repubs are holding all the cards. Hold all the key positions. This does not surprise me. It just porves once again how strong their hand is over us. Anyone else hear the fat lady tuning up?

[Joanne98]

12. Was the RFK camp expecting this?

[MissWaverly]

15. I don't know

Brad Blog has a story on this up on his site, it says that the first lawsuit has been filed in
federal court. They say that the reliability of these machines is zilch and they intend to
challenge the manufacturers. I don't like the fact that Gonzales has issued a gag order for
60 days while the feds decide if they want to join the suit. What a joke, what have the feds done to preserve elections for the last 6 years. Zippo, zilch nada, and they took away the right to vote for as many latinos as possible. (I hope you're reading this Alberto.)

[sabbat hunter]

64. i dont think

the attorney general or the DOJ have the power to issue a gag order. that would have to come from a judge.


they can however request on be implemented from a judge.

[durrrty libby]

13. Kennedy is a smart guy. I trust he knows what to do K &R n/t

[Sanity Claws]

16. I think it's because a Qui Tam case

This is a type of case under the Federal Civil False Claims Act that allows a private citizen to file a suit in the name of the U.S. Government and charge fraud by government contractors and other entities who receive or use government funds.
As a matter of course, the AG can ask for 60 days to decide whether to join the suit. So I'm sure the attorneys were not taken by surprise by this.
I'm not sure whether the AG has the right to take over the case or how much he can swing the case if he does join in.

[Gregorian]

17. They've run out of time to prepare their lies for all of their fights.

They're all spun out.

Fight the fascists!

[blm]

18. Call your newspapers' national desks and say Gonzales is PROVING he's part

of the coverup with these actions - I guarantee most reporters are pretty unfamiliar with all of this and the fact that the Atty General would put a 60day gag order on a case just filed is a real heads up that they are SCARED of what will come out.

[autorank]

19. ============>THE SMOKING GUN<================= N/T k&r

[Straight Shooter]

20. No doubt, Gonzales believes voter's rights is a "quaint" notion. n/t

[Change has come]

21. They knew when they filed the suit...

There would be a 60 day period during which the details must be kept sealed. Here's a link to Brad's journal from earlier today.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/BradBlog

Mr. Papantonio mentioned this last night during his chat with Malloy. He couldn't even say where the suits have been filed.

[Peace Patriot]

22. Femrap says: Your vote's been stolen. What ya gonna do about it? Well,

I have a plan. There is not enough time to un-rig this election system before November, but there IS time to mount a massive Absentee Voter protest against the machines--a protest that is actually already in progress--initiated by individual citizens, on their own, trying get their vote counted. (It's up to 50% in Los Angeles.) AB voting does not solve the security and vote counting problems, but it IS a protest--and, if enough people do it, say it gets up to 70% and goes nationwide, the machines will be made obsolete--because nobody will vote on them! THEN we've got something--a major rebellion of the voters--and momentum for further change. AB voting is easy to do. Everybody can do it. This indigenous protest just needs a bit of leadership and some press releases.

Think strategically. Assess your resources. Take what's there and USE IT. 70% of the people against Bush. Will they vote Absentee? I'll bet you they will! They want and need to protest.

Bumper sticker: "Bust the Machines--Vote Absentee!"

---------------

More thoughs on this (end of OP) at:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2721048

And post #16 at:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1624579

[McCamy Taylor]

23. Be careful. They will "lose" the absentee votes if they are Democratic.

Usually absentee votes are GOP so they are treated like gold.

This plan works better if it is under the radar rather than as a form of protest.

[Peace Patriot]

31. Well, I've read horror stories about AB votes----but then, what's more

horrible than Bushite corporations "counting" all the votes with TRADE SECRET, PROPRIETARY programming code and virtually no audit/recount controls?

I don't agree that it should be under the radar. It USED TO BE THE CASE that AB votes tended Republican (because rich Repubs go to Tahiti and places like that, and don't want to be grounded by the need to vote). But that isn't true anymore. Now it's a very mixed bag--and many people are choosing to vote AB because they don't trust the machines; they think (and they're quite right) it's rigged for Bush and Bushites. If they mess with AB votes, they are NOT just messing with Dem votes. They would have to go through an elaborate process of matching up names and parties. And if, say, 70% of the people were voting AB, there would be more scrutiny of the AB vote counting, and they would be caught. Also, AB voting in NC and other places in '04 revealed an unmistakable, large bias toward Bush in electronic voting (by comparison with AB and other paper ballots). AB votes provide a good tool for investigators--especially in paperless electronic voting situations.

But mainly, a protest is a protest. If it's to be a protest, it must be visible. That would be the point. And who's to say Repub voters who are fed up with Bushites wouldn't also join it. (Lots of evidence that Repub votes for Kerry were stolen electronically in '04).

If you're going to do a Montgomery bus boycott, or a Gandhian salt tax protest, or a Boston Tea Party, your POINT is to be VISIBLE: to show your power, and to symbolize and epitomoze the need for change.

NO DOUBT Bushites will steal votes and elections in any way they can. That's what they do! They are like segregationists--to them, thievery is a religion (as oppressing blacks was a religion to the bigots who did it).

Why not bring it all out in the open with a GREAT BIG ABSENTEE BALLOT PROTEST? A Peoples' THUMBS DOWN on the rigged electronic systems. Make them deal with it. FLOOD THE SYSTEM with Absentee Ballots. BOYCOTT the machines!

We have 70% of the American people very unhappy with Bush. Tell them to protest with AB voting, and see what happens. I think it could be huge, and could throw a huge monkey wrench into the rigged election system.

[CoffeeCat]

41. I'm concerned...

...that if you have a very public AB campaign--that this will give the BushCo thugs time to game the system in their favor.

If they have pre-election knowledge of a massive AB effort--they'll figure out ways to steal the absentee votes.

I'm not saying that voting absentee is bad, or that a public AB campaign is a bad idea. I actually think it's quite clever. It's better than voting on machines.

I just worry that one of the outcomes would be more crimes involving ABs.

[flyarm]

44. or how about pinellas co fla where soe lost a box of 250= ab votes

but they were in her office in the box..under a desk..and they never got certified!

or boxes of ab votes were at a church and they were delivered to soe office soaking wet and unreadable..and it never rained!!

fly

[mod mom]

33. It's true. It happened to Harvey Wasserman of Free Press. Both his wife

(different last name) and he filed for absentee ballots. Hers came but his never showed up. In the case of the average citizen, they can target high Dem precincts. If you have a SOS like Blackwell, they could even go through their federally mandated data bases.

The military vote saw a 24% disenfranchisement rate in '04 and as MCM points out expats (who over whelming went for Kerry also have a huge disenfranchisement rate.

My point being-this has to be thought out a little more. Absentee ballot rules vary from state to state. What might be good in CA may be disasterous in other states.

[Cybergata]

46. Not if they are on the GOP's hit list!

I went the absentee ballot route, and I'm sure my ballot was tossed in the dumpster. Read Greg Palast, Armed Madhouse especially the part of voting in New Mexico to understand why I say this.

[yellerpup]

32. I voted absentee in 2004

I don't think my vote was counted at all -- unless they made note of how many they tossed.

[Peace Patriot]

47. What if 70% or 80% of voters chose to vote Absentee? That's all I'm

saying. It would be a BIG DEAL. Major protest. Public revolt. The people's thumbs down on the rigged voting machines. It's not THE answer, in and of itself. But neither was the Montgomery bus boycott.

A protest is a symbolization of a larger problem. Good ones are practical, down to earth--like the bus boycott, Gandhi's salt tax protest, the Boston TEA Party--but still only symbolize larger changes that are needed. Voting AB will NOT prevent the Bushites from stealing the '06 election, but it might well be the catalyst for finally defeating fascist rule.

AB votes have to be placed in the dustbin by human hands. Or smeared, Or disappeared. Or whatever people have always done to paper ballots, in the old days. They can also be "lost" in the mail. But these are only very limited acts of fraud, and are subject to being caught. Compared to the sheer scale, and the secrecy, of electronic fraud--one hacker, a couple of minutes, milions of votes changed, leaving no trace--they are relatively minor. That is WHY ordinary people are opting for AB voting in ever increasing numbers. What they want is a PAPER BALLOT, HAND-COUNTED. And an AB vote is the closest they can come.

AB votes can also be CHANGED when they're scanned into the electronic system. Many AB voters don't realize this.

But, once again, I am not talking about the safety of AB voting. I am talking about the PROTEST of AB voting--directed at the rigged machines. If enough people do it, the machines are history--and it COULD precipitate a lot of other good change as well.

[unpossibles]

50. I see what you're saying

but there are two - no three problems:

1 - they don't care what we think, obviously. This does not mean we should lie down and take it, but I'm not sure they're concerned about our message any more.

2 - the Absentee ballots already have problems

3 - they count the votes in many cases (I live in Ohio). It seems to me that it might not matter how we vote if they are counting.

Sorry - I am not trying to be cynical. I really would like to see more people vote and also to ensure that the vote is as close to 100% honest regardless of who wins.

[Dr Fate]

24. Which Democrats with media access are RAISING HELL ON TV???

OH-that's right-NONE.


NONE.

NOT ONE.

I guess that means they side with Gonzales on this one- or they are just too frightened, perhaps.

[Dr Fate]

56. Que in crickets & lonesome wind sound effects. n/t

n/t

[IndyOp]

25. Qui Tam Suits are ALL sealed for 60 days...

I am not a lawyer, but I've listened to RFK & Pap on 'Ring of Fire' and on Mike Malloy last night. They have explained - as best I understand it - that Qui Tam Suits are ALL sealed for 60 days...

This is *NOT* at gag order. This is *NOT* an outrage.

Qui Tam suits all go to the prosecutor for 60 days. If the prosecutor decides not to press the case, then the attorneys that filed the Qui Tam suit can prosecute the case themselves.

Pap was on Mike Malloy last night saying that he HOPED that the prosecutor would pass on the suit because he, Pap, is looking forward to sitting across the table from some voting machine company hacks and questionning them.

Even if the suit is unsealed in 60 days, it still is unlikely that it will have any effect on the November elections because the attorneys are not going to want to release the information they have to the public before they get into court.

It is up to US to secure the November elections...
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1620657

Do you know the name of your state's Secretary of State?
Who in your county determines election policy?
Have you spoken to them?

YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

Fliers! http://www.votersunite.org

[Gregorian]

39. Thank you for clearing up the 60 day fact.

It's all pretty complex.

[flyarm]

45. sorry but we are totally screwed in fla ...they have hijacked it all now!

[BradBlog]

27. 60 Days is Normal for Qui Tams...

Indy Op describes it correctly in his/her comment on this thread. This is, as I understand it, quite a normal procedure for the AG to be allowed 60 days to decide if they will join the suit or not. If they do, fine. If they don't, it moves forward any way with Papantonio, RFK Jr. and crew moving ahead on their own.

See my story on this today, including a link to Pap on last night's Mike Malloy in which he speaks about the 60 day issue specifically.

http://www.bradblog.com/?p=3065

Just don't want folks to get outraged about the wrong thing. There's plenty else to be outraged about for sure!

[bobbieinok]

29. explain qui tam suits, please..... did he have to file the suit this way??

[bobbieinok]

28. do NOT understand.....WHY did he HAVE to consult DOJ???????

"However, before he could file the suit, he had to consult the DOJ."

Does everyone filing a suit vs voting machines HAVE to consult DOJ?????????

[Recursion]

36. It's a question of standing and harm

As it is he can't prove specific harm to a specific person (we don't know *which* votes in particular weren't counted), so the basis of his case has to be fraud by a government contractor. If you're suing essentially in the name of the government, the government gets to look at it and decide if it wants to take the case itself.

AFAIK even if the government takes the case, the original plaintiff can still file & appear separately, but I might be wrong.

[McCamy Taylor]

40. So Al Gonzales cant take the case in 60 days, announce a SEALED

closed settlement for zero dollars and a vague promise that something will be done someday? RFK Jr would still be able to persue his case? Because the way I see it, the DOJ will step in to the case in 60 days, take over, slow code it, keep all the evidence under super secret wrap so that no one ever finds out what the E-Vote people did wrong and then sometime after the 2008 presidential election, they will reach a settlement with a sealed verdit in which the EVote people will get out with a hand slap.

That is the way I see this thing going down.

Some lawyer tell me if the DOJ does not have the power to do it that way.

Maybe we need to start thinking international law suits. Or the individual states could file their own suits.

[texpatriot2004]

30. Such bullshit this is! nm

[EFerrari]

35. I hope everyone can calm down a little. What is the best use

of the next 60 days?

Remember, this is a process. Let's walk through it!

We're not gagged, are we? :hi:

[Cocoa]

37. I couldn't find the story at that link

nothing about a gag order or about Gonzales.

[kimpossible]

38. This was entirely expected, and not a real problem

Bobby and Mike talked about it on Ring of Fire last weekend. The way that a "qui tam" whistleblower lawsuit works is for the government to have 60 days to decide whether or not to prosecute it. After that time, if the gov't declines, then the whistleblower gets to proceed with the suit on their own behalf.

Bobby and Pap will not be stopped so easily!

[jbond56]

43. need to create a word doc

and delete the whole thing then release it.

That should give them enough cover. Seems to happen all the time.

[Uncle Joe]

51. This DOI does not give a rat's posterior end about justice. n/t

[Terran1212]

52. Is it fascism yet?!

Wtf?

[Time for change]

54. If this isn't a dictatorship, I don't know what else you'd call it!!!

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

[Bushwick Bill]

55. Lemme guess, national security?

:eyes:

This is how they shut down all whistleblowing or other focus on their corruption. I would give my left nut to find out which high-profile Americans Sibel Edmonds says are linked to 9/11.

[rodeodance]

57. why call Gonzalas"Acting WH Counsel Al Gonzales"

....Acting WH Counsel Al Gonzales has no intention of suing Diebold or Sequoia or any of the other E-Vote players whom RFK Jr may be suing. He is acting at Rove's orders to keep this out of the press for 60 days. That will give the E-Vote people time to get the suits tossed out or delayed or do something to get them squashed before the November election.

[rodeodance]

58. k and r.

[rodeodance]

59. 7/13: FIRST RFK JR. VOTING MACHINE WHISTLEBLOWER LAWSUIT NOW FILED

I can not find the story on the blog for the IP.
But yesterdays story is there.



http://www.bradblog.com/?p=3065
BLOGGED BY Brad ON 7/13/2006 11:15AM
FIRST RFK JR. VOTING MACHINE WHISTLEBLOWER LAWSUIT NOW FILED IN FEDERAL COURT! NEW DETAILS!
Attorney Papantonio on Mike Malloy Show: 'We're gonna shut down some of these companies'!
Excoriates 'Indolent Democrats' and 'Lazy Media' for Not Taking Action; Lauds BRAD BLOG for Putting Issue on 'Radar Screen'…

The first of several federal whistleblower qui tam (fraud) suits have now been filed against one of America's major electronic voting machine companies, The BRAD BLOG can now report.

Florida attorney Mike Papantonio who, along with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. hosts Ring of Fire, weekends on Air America Radio, was a guest on Mike Malloy's radio program last night. He discussed the upcoming whistleblower suits that he and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. are filing against several of the voting machine companies. Pap was loaded for bear.

During the interview, he gave several new details on the federal fraud suits now being filed, which include several whistleblower plaintiffs whose stories were originally reported here at The BRAD BLOG, as mentioned last week in a quick item here, with some fresh details of our own. Pap reported last night that the "dream team of lawyers" they've assembled to take on these evil, irresponsible, anti-American companies includes a bunch of those who took on the tobacco companies in a successful quarter billion dollar suit — so they're not likely easily intimidated, we'd think.

[rjhill2]

61. No surprise from this end..

It's time for a revolution!!

[Stevepol]

62. Just visited BradBlog & didn't find anything re Gonzales, BUT...

I did find that the DNC -- That's right the DNC -- its Voting Rights Institute or Division has demanded a hand recount of the Busby-Bilbray race and Howard Dean is about to speak in CA at a place where a lot of Dem activists are frothing at the mouth.

Papantonio on Malloy's show has already said it's irrelevant to him what Gonzales says. Alberto has no power to stop a Qui Tam suit. He just has 60 days to decide whether or not to join in the suit. Pap didn't think the DOJ wd join the fray, but he didn't care either way.

But the news about the DNC is great news, the first time I've seen the DNC take any position about the possibility of the machines rigging elections.

[cascadiance]

63. ACLU needs to get called in for this!

They need to help with putting forth at lawsuit on voting rights. Our voting rights are under attack on all fronts now here in CA50, and now with this mess too! I dare these bastards in the administration to try and use State Secrets privilege to stop such a lawsuit!

[NVMojo]

65. FACISM HAS OFFICIALLY BEEN THE RULE OF ORDER SINCE 2001