NH PRIMARY DISINFO ALERT: Paper Ballot 'Problems' Misreported by MSM!

[BradBlog]

NH PRIMARY DISINFO ALERT: 'Problems' with Paper Ballots in State Inaccurately Reported by National Mainstream Media!
Reports of 'Voter Fraud' in Dixville Notch, Dem Ballots Unavailable to Voters, Both Debunked by The BRAD BLOG
Though Reasons Remain for Concern About Tabulation on Diebold Machines...

-- Brad Friedman, The BRAD BLOG

Our Spidey-sense started tingling before going to bed last night and hearing reports, on MSNBC, that there were 17 paper ballots cast in Dixville Notch, NH's midnight, first-in-the-country voting. The report said that there were only 16 registered voters in the tiny voting precinct, yet 17 votes had been cast --- suggesting that somehow, paper ballot "voter fraud" skullduggery was afoot.

Following on that, reports throughout the day appeared that NH precincts were out of paper ballots, and voters were unable to vote.
Trouble is, both reports are either completely untrue, or wholly misleading, or both, as The BRAD BLOG was able to confirm with two simple phone calls.

Each of those reports, however, would seem to go a long way towards giving the impression that paper ballots are a bad idea, and that "voter fraud" is easy to commit when using them. Given that one of those reports seems to have begun on The DRUDGE REPORT earlier today, we're not particularly surprised that the MSM kept repeating the easily-debunked stories running all day.

That, even while there are reasons to be concerned about how the paper ballots used in the New Hampshire Primary will actually be counted by the hackable Diebold optical-scan systems used in the state, as controlled and programmed by an outrageously bad private contractor there...

COMPLETE STORY, FULL DEBUNKING OF ABC, MSNBC, DRUDGE "REPORTING":
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=5529

[mod mom]

1. Pleas follow up on this story, Brad! Thanks!

[althecat]

2. KnR

[loudsue]

3. What struck me is how they programmed Edwards to maintain 17% ALL NIGHT

That was some pretty transparent programming, if you ask me.

THIS is what a gerrymandered, computerized voting machine election looks like. From start to finish.

Made me sick.

[Whisp]

4. I feel nauseous as well.

back of my mind kept telling me what the results are now, and how - but am still feeling sick to my stomach.

[loudsue]

5. Me, too, Whisp. Me, too.

I feel so friggin' frustrated & disheartened. What in the hell is wrong with the people up in New Hampshire? They must all be well-off corporatist fans.

[blogslut]

6. So, was Drudge bold-faced lying or bold-faced exaggerating?

The WaPo took a much calmer stance on the same story today:

Updated 4:36 p.m.
By John Solomon

The predictions for a big turnout in New Hampshire's primary -- especially on the Democratic side -- were materializing this afternoon as numerous town clerks began expressing concerns they were running low on ballots and summoned more forms from state election officials. The secretary of state's office said it received several calls for extra Democratric ballots during the day, but that no locations had run out.

As a precaution, the Secretary of State's office sent more ballots -- known as overruns -- to several of the requesting towns. In addition, clerks were told that if they ran low at the end of the day, they could use leftover absentee ballots or make copies of the forms, so that all voters could cast ballots, officials said.

"We planned for this and as of right now it is going on 4:30 pm, we have not heard of any places that have run out," Deputy Secretary of State David M. Scanlan said. "And we have procedures in place to deal with it if it does happen."

link: http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/01/08/extra_democratic_ballots_neede.html