(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.