(cross-posted at Daily Kos)
I know there have been several diaries detailing Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s Rolling Stone article about the 2004 election being stolen. I know it’s always been site policy to disregard these so-called ‘conspiracy theories’, but I think it’s time for Markos, the other FPers in general (well, except G10, who was/is the only FPer I can recall who vigorously questioned the outcome of the election with her fine work in late 2004), and the Kossack community to acknowledge the plain and simple truth: the 2004 election was most likely stolen, and George W. Bush was illegitimately elected.
I don’t think what any of us have been putting out there are necessarily ‘conspiracy theories’ – that is the type of stuff Wayne Madsen was posting after the 2004 election, going as far as somehow tying in the BCCI into the stolen election. These are concrete facts that have been coming out. Do you honestly believe the bullshit that Bush voters were less likely to tell exit pollsters who voted for them? Do you honestly think it’s just a happy coincidence that every notable problem in the election had to deal with Bush getting more votes? Do you think that it is not possible for the GOP to backhandedly change vote totals in paperless ballot machines when the largest electronic voting machine companies are headed by big GOP donors? Do you think the Republican effort to suppress turnout by scaring African-Americans and former convicts was the only step they took? Why do you think Karl Rove was working the phones at night when the exit polls were showing Kerry overwhelmingly winning? How to do you explain a methodology that was hailed as by far and away the most accurate polling project ever?
There are too many questions and not enough answers. It’s shameful that the largest progressive site like Daily Kos does not address these issues more seriously. The fact that the people who are the most prominent on this site seem to repress these notions don’t help the cause. Chris Bowers wrote about getting serious about election reform, but let’s keep in mind that our strength is in numbers. Daily Kos is the largest liberal blog out there. We can individually do our part, but nothing has the organizing power like a full blog behind an effort – just see what our efforts did for Paul Hackett. If the gatekeepers of Daily Kos continue to disavow the notion that the 2004 election was honestly won by Bush, then there is something deeply wrong. I understand that progressives need to be forward-looking, but you only learn from your past mistakes, and if we continue to believe that turning out more voters will be the key to winning elections, we will keep losing. We need to fix the system that was broken in 2000 and 2004, and we need to have the full support of Daily Kos to do it.
I cast the first vote–for STOLEN!–which is what I’ve been saying consistently since 6 a.m. the morning after election day.
Exit polls are accurate. They were accurate in every state in the union, except for Ohio and Florida.
What more do you need to know?
Add “A special prosecutor needs to be called to investigate Election Day 2004 voting irregularities.”
I’m firmly in the camp that no charge has been proven, but more than sufficent evidence is in existance to estabilish probable cause that criminal acts took place on Election Day 2004. A full Federal criminal investigation needs to be started. There has been no evidence gathering. No “proof” can be established until evidence is gathered and made part of the public record.
Sorry I’m being nitpicky, but language is important here. We are not trying to prove “whether the 2004 election was stolen.” We are trying to show probable cause exists indicating criminal actions took place on Election Day 2004 leading to wide-spread voting irregularities.
I’m with you 100% on your angst. You are absolutely right.
However, I just saw Markos and Jerome on Tim Russert and it suddenly became crystal clear to me why Markos sends out the troll squad to suppress election fraud discussions. If 2004 was stolen then the premise for his book would be completely irrelevant.
His premise is that the election was lost because the Democrats just don’t do the things that the Republicans do so well, like defining and marketing their message. The democrats aren’t focused and organized and don’t have think tanks and are just generally all over the place.
After listening to Markos on Russert, I came away with the sense that Markos is a closet Repubican. After all, let’s remember that he started out as a Republican to begin with and then was converted during his experience in the military.
For example, it’s ridiculous for him to praise and envy Republicans for their ability to get out the message, when the Republican party leadership consists of corporate dynasties like the bu$h family that have invested considerable resources into their right to amass and control obscene amounts of wealth.
Foremost in their strategy was a consolidation and takeover of the media. This began during the Reagan administration when certain government regulations concerning media ownership were dismantled. Reagan was all about “getting the government out of big business.”
What the government was doing in big business was regulating corporate greed. When the government gets out of big business, then you end up with things like Enron. In order to deal with corporate malfeasance, the government gets back in again to straighten it all out, after the fact, when millions of innocent hard-working people have already paid the price through loss of jobs and retirement benefits, and exorbitant energy bills. Thanks alot!
So how Markos can sit there and praise the Republicans for their ability to get out the message without addressing the corporate takeover of the media is beyond me. That is just blind and willful ignorance. Look at what has happened to PBS and NPR, for example. I remember when I could actually get the news there, but now they just spew pablum and the real news has retreated to KCRW, Link TV, the Comedy Channel, KO on MSNBC, and the internet. Meanwhile we have this ridiculous myth of the liberal media so if news outlets do actually try to tell the truth about the corporate bandits who have hijacked our democracy, it is dismissed as liberal propaganda.
It doesn’t matter what message the democrats have or how significant or how well we frame it with the brilliant expertise of linguists like George Lakoff, if we don’t have the megaphone to broadcast that message, it won’t be heard. And we don’t.
On the other hand, whatever talking points Carl Rove cooks up in his evil little brain over coffee each morning will be in the ears of millions by ten o’clock the same day. We only need to look at the inner workings of the Valerie Plame scandal to see his subversive role in media manipulation.
So, again, it just baffles me beyond words that Markos is not addressing these critical issues, but instead pretending that there was no election fraud in 2004 so he can sell his book with all of its magical solutions about how to fix the democratic party.
I’m not saying that there’s nothing wrong with the democratic party, there’s always room for improvement. We should be constantly vigilant, and I’m sure that Markos and Jerome have a lot of good suggestions to offer. They said some good things on Russert that I totally agreed with. I thought they had some good insights on the inside-the-beltway bubble that most politicians live in.
But there was definately election fraud in 2004, it could well have cost Kerry the presidency (as it cost Gore the presidency in 2000), and Markos and Jerome are not the saviors of the democratic party.
Just thought I should mention that I am not cross-posting this on Daily Kos.
This morning I just happened to read this post over at BOP News. . .LINK:. . .which delves into your very point about the corporate takeover of the media. His thesis is that the U.S. is a Propaganda State, thanks to media consolidation. (Scroll down to the article, “Why does the media have pro-Republican story lines?)
Great reference, I bookmarked the site, which looks good. I’ve never been there before.
Yes, propaganda state just about sums it up.