FRAUD!

Posted at 6:56 a.m. ET

We've discussed this periodically at Urgent Agenda as one of the factors that can influence a close election in November - voter fraud.

Now the McCain campaign has gone public with its concerns.  Former Senators Warren Rudman and John Danforth, men of fine reputation, are running the campaign's Open and Honest Elections Committee, and, in a conference call with reporters yesterday, expressed worry that "honest" and "open" might not always apply on this election day:

Both Rudman and Danforth voiced concern that there is or may be a pattern of registering people who are not entitled to vote, noting that of particular concern is an organization called The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN).

“We are concerned that ACORN has been connected with Senator [Barack] Obama and that he has ties to it,” said Danforth. “He directed something called Project Vote; he taught classes for future leaders that are identified by ACORN; and he has represented ACORN in court in a lawsuit against the state of Illinois. ACORN’s political action committee has endorsed Senator Obama.”

Danforth expressed alarm that ACORN has been bringing in large numbers of names, many who are not qualified to vote, and the practice may be “gumming” up the system. He added that after the enactment of the Help America Vote Act in 2002, there has been a requirement for statewide computerization of registered voters and that the local overseers may become overwhelmed by the sheer numbers being put forth by ACORN.

ACORN has had a number of brushes with the law.  The strength of that statement by John Danforth, a man known for his mildness, should worry us all.  But it goes on:

Between Danforth and Rudman, they ticked off an inventory of what they perceived as likely trouble spots:

In Ohio in the last election, there were four counties where voter registration exceeded the number of voting-age people in the counties.

In Colorado, ACORN registered some individuals 40 separate times. Danforth noted that the ACORN director in Ohio played this down, saying in effect just because you register somebody 35 times doesn’t mean that they get to vote 35 times. “So, a fairly cavalier attitude,” he concluded.

In Nevada, nearly 1,000 felons were illegally registered to vote in 2004.

In Washington state, felony charges were brought against ACORN workers and some went to jail.

On Sept. 18th in The Washington Post, an article pointed out the danger that Election Day could become a real mess because of the applications turned in for registration of people who are not entitled to vote.

In Michigan, ACORN enrolled 200,000 voters and a spokesman for the secretary of state of Michigan has said that there appears to be a sizable number of duplicate and fraudulent applications.

The Clark County, Nev., registrar claims that there has been rampant fraud, and counts roughly 40 percent of registration applications submitted by ACORN from January through July had been rejected or questioned.

And that list goes on.  You might wish to read the whole bill of particulars.

“Our concern is that if this is a close election ... and if one side believes it has been cheated ... it is going to be harder to heal the wounds that are created at election time,” said Danforth.

But here is the tragedy:  If voter fraud is widespread, you may never know about it.  The very journalists who are putting Barack Obama in the White House will be the ones charged with bringing fraud to light.  How enthusiastic do you think they'll be?

And fraud will most likely center around minority voters.  Just the image of widespread probes of minority voting patterns right after America elects its first black president will be too much for the liberal press to bear.  The cry of "racism" will immediately be heard.  Even a defeated John McCain might, despite all evidence, choose not to pursue the matter, for fear of being labeled a "killer of the dream."

That is the way the game is played. 

Obama's support is centered in large cities with a history of voting "irregularities."  He is a product of the Chicago machine, where the dearly departed express their preferences on each election day, proving the Truth of life after death. 

Danforth and Rudman are not men who make wild charges.  This could be a scandalous election, but you may never know it.

September 23, 2008.