Chuck Lowery / California Electoral College – 2005-01-08 15:18:17
http://www.envirosagainstwar.org/edit/index.php?op=edit&itemid=2240
January 6, 2005: A Moment of Hope For The Entire World!
Chuck Lowery / California Electoral College
(January 6, 2005) — Today the people of the United States stood up against arrogance and fear…and both buckled. At the urging of tens of thousands of concerned citizens, California Senator Barbara Boxer joined the House challenge of the Ohio Electoral College vote. The result was the televised broadcast of dozens of charges of voter fraud to millions of watching Americans. Everyone could observe for themselves the attitude of denial taken by Republican representatives who were obviously unprepared to say anything of substance, much like their President.
The passion and fire of the members of the House Caucus was truly inspiring. Each one spoke with great sincerity and truth, weakly challenged by the “get over it” statements of those who sought to deny that there are any problems with our Democracy. In addition to acknowledging those brave members of the House of Representatives, we must individually write, phone, and fax OUR Senator Barbara Boxer. Without the support of Senator Boxer, we would have had a repeat of that ugly scene from Fahrenheit 9/11 where President-elect Gore told each Caucus member to sit down and shut up.
[Many senators] are still afraid to stand up to the White House Bully for fear of losing some of their own power. In addition, their staff could lose their premium parking spaces, another fact of life in the Democracy of the United States of America. It is now time for us to acknowledge Senator Boxer.
Her contact info is below so you can write her your own message of support.
• Tell her YOU will be there to help her when she needs your letters, faxes, and phone calls.
• Tell her how grateful you are that she decided to represent YOU, rather than some unethical corporation.
• Tell her you want to be added to her email list so YOU can be informed.
• Tell her that without the action of the brave Senator Barbara Boxer, our Democracy would be no more than that hollow shell being forced upon Iraq.
I am so grateful to each of you for joining together in this struggle to take back our Democracy! This small victory will guide us to a future of restored compassion for all people, of all nationalities, ethnicities, and beliefs.
Senator Barbara Boxer’s Contact Info:
Phone: 202.224.3553 (DC)
Fax: 202.228.3972 (DC)
Email: http://boxer.senate.gov/contact/webform.cfm
Chuck Lowery is the secretary of the California Electoral College
The Boxer Rebellion
Vivienne Verdon-Roe
(January 6, 2005) — Five senators stood up and contested the election!! I got a call from the wife of someone who is working sound in the senate!! I also received the following email this morning which describes what happens now. It also states, quite rightly, that this would NEVER have happened if it hadn’t been for the grassroots protest and action. Doesn’t it feel terrific to be part of this extraordinary day?! What a great way to start the new year! Thanks again for your support of our Champions of Democracy.
A wee bit of history to start with.
The last time Congress was forced to interrupt the joint session to certify the Electors was in 1969, when a “faithless” Nixon elector broke ranks and threw his vote to George Wallace. After about twelve seconds of discussion, the vote was allowed to go for Wallace. Before that, we
have to go all the way back to 1877, during the disputed election between Rutherford Hayes and Samuel Tilden. Hayes eventually won.
In short, what is happening here in Washington today has almost never been seen in the history of the republic.
This is the latest as I have it: Senator Boxer made the decision to stand and support the challenge to the Ohio electors. She transmitted a letter to Rep. Tubbs-Jones this morning which stated, “I have concluded
that objecting to the electoral votes from Ohio is the only immediate way to bring these issues to light by allowing you to have a two-hour debate to let the American people know the facts surrounding Ohio’s election.”
Right now, several other Senators are preparing statements of Support for the Boxer/Tubbs-Jones challenge, and a number of House members will also rise in support. There is every expectation that Senators Clinton, Obama and Dodd will be among those offering statements of support.
Reps. Waters, Conyers and Kucinich will be among the House members who stand. Though Rep. Conyers was the main impetus behind this process, it was decided that Rep. Tubbs-Jones should be the one to make the official challenge, as she is a representative from Ohio, where the dispute is centered.
There is a rumor floating around that one of the Senators to rise in support will be a Republican. That is not in any way confirmed.
The process will begin to unfold at 1:00pm EST. Cheney, in his role as President of the Senate, will rise and ask if there are any objections. Tubbs-Jones will then announce her objection, and state that a Senator
has signed her objection. The joint session will then adjourn, and there will be two hours (perhaps less) of debate on the issue. At the
conclusion a straight up-and-down vote will take place on whether or not to support the objection. Almost certainly, the objections will be defeated along party lines.
This is an incredibly important day for this country, for two reasons.
First, this will initiate a national dialogue on how we run elections, and push forward the process of reform that is so desperately needed.
Second, this was a people’s movement. None of this would have taken place without the grassroots effort. Look at the stars in the sky or the grains of sand on the beach. That is how many phone calls, emails, faxes, letters and telegrams were sent by ordinary people to the Capitol building in support of what Boxer has done. Jesse Jackson, David Cobb, Progressive Democrats of America and others were involved in getting this done, along with Rep. Conyers.
But it was the folks who got this done. If nothing else, this proves that concentrated activism and advocacy works. It works. It worked. Make sure it keeps working.
Today is history.
Send Thanks to Sens. Boxer and Reid
Moveon.org
Yesterday in Congress Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) joined Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-OH) and objected to certifying the Ohio Electoral College vote from the presidential election.
The 2004 election, like the election four years ago, was marked by widespread voting problems that denied tens of thousands of Americans their right to vote. Unlike in 2000 when every senator stood silent, Senator Boxer’s challenge brought national attention to this crisis in our democracy and forced a two hour debate on voting and elections.
Sen. Boxer sat in the Capitol chamber like an iron-jawed angel and sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Sen. Boxer was her Democratic leader — Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada. Senator Reid spoke out against an “insidious form of [voter] disenfranchisement” that “continues to taint our electoral system,” and was joined by many members of the Democratic Senate caucus.
Sen. Boxer and Sen. Reid need to hear a big thank you from all of us now that we’ve begun this public debate. Please let them know that you support them by signing our thank you letter at the link below.
http://moveonpac.org/boxer_reid/
