http://www.americanether.net/Shelley.htmlIs Kevin Shelley getting Davis'ed by Schwarzenegger?- E-Voting Critic getting shafted, while CA counties go broke.
Tell Governor Schwarzenegger to give the voters of California a fair and accurate election and to NOT withhold 17.5 million in federal funds from the Secretary of State Kevin Shelley, which in turn would go to state counties.
Last week, the Schwarzenegger administration said it would freeze spending authorization for $17.5 million in federal voter funds until an audit determines whether Secretary of State Kevin Shelley has properly spent previously distributed funds.
This audit is due to be finished in about 3 months and none of the money would be used for the November election - hmm, do you think the Governor could wait until after the election to do the audit?
So what would the 17.5 million in funds do and where would it go?
Having these funds could be mean the difference between California having a fair and accurate election and one riddled with malfunctions and untrained poll workers, as seen in the state's last primary. Most of this money was to be given to individual counties and used for training poll workers, hiring poll watchers, and most importantly about 5.5 million to add tough new security measures to electronic voting machines.
Kevin Shelley has been an outspoken critic of electronic voting systems that have been sold and entrusted to California voters for their elections. These systems have been tested by computer scientists and are said to be lacking in the most basic security standards, leaving an open window for vote manipulation. Shelley has been standing up to the E-voting manufacturers and demanding accountability and reliability of the machines California has purchased, decertifying Diebold equipment in all counties using one type of their touchscreen system.
Could it be, that Shelley is paying the political price for having integrity in his public service? He has come under such a multitude of attacks in the last few weeks, ranging from sexual harassment to laundered campaign donations, it seems a little strange that all this dirt is turning up - one after another. When stories like this come out - somebody has to go digging for it and for a reason. I don't know if the allegations are true or not, but one thing seems apparent, that someone is going after Shelley - but who and why?
If Shelley has acted unprofessionally or misused public funds, he should be held accountable, just like anyone who breaks the law, but that should not affect the counties that need the money Schwarzenegger has frozen. Could this be political revenge from companies like Diebold, which Shelley has given such a hard time?
Hmm, does this remind you of what happened to Gray Davis, when he tried to get CA's money back from Enron?
Also, according to recent investigations by Bev Harris and Andy Stephenson at
http://www.blackboxvoting.org, an internal Diebold email possibly suggests political retaliation to Kevin Shelley's demands.
Please contact Governor Schwarzenegger and demand this much needed money be used to ensure a fair and accurate election.
Talking points for the Governor:
* In a recent investigation from Blackboxvoting,org, the Diebold "Gems" central tabulation software is easier to manipulate than the actual voting machines, which are used in all CA counties that use Diebold machines.
http://www.blackboxvoting.org/?q=node/view/78&PHPSESSID=0cb76495753815020992279211ad8b54* Demand parallel electronic and physical monitoring of the central tabulation process, otherwise, large scale fraud could go easily undetected.
* Tell the Governor to do the audit, but not to withhold money earmarked for the state counties.
* Without the money the Governor has blocked, poll workers will not get properly trained, there will be a lack of sufficient election monitors, and planned security measures will not be implemented.
Tell Schwarzenegger to ensure your right to vote.
Governor's Office
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-445-2841
Fax: 916-445-4633
To send an Electronic Mail please visit:
http://www.govmail.ca.govRelated articles:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/08/28/BAG028FO861.DTLhttp://www.sacbee.com/content/politics/ca/story/10539991p-11459019c.html