Posted on 10/23/2004 7:29:43 AM PDT by abner
GOP attacks Rendell over military ballots
MICHAEL RUBINKAM
Associated Press Writer
PHILADELPHIA (AP) _ Republican lawmakers have accused Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell of trying to suppress military votes for President Bush by failing to push for an extension of the deadline to accept overseas military and civilian ballots.
Democrats said there wasn't a ``single shred of evidence'' to back up the claim.
Nevertheless, rumors of military disenfranchisement swirled Friday. Hundreds of angry callers swamped the governor's office, forcing it to set up a recorded message: ``The governor is very aware of this issue. Please leave your name and contact information.''
With military personnel traditionally voting Republican, the GOP is eager to garner as many military votes as possible in Pennsylvania, a key battleground state in the Nov. 2 election.
Republicans want Rendell to ask the courts to extend the deadline for counting absentee military votes until Nov. 17 _ something the governor has refused to do.
On Wednesday, a federal judge sided with the Rendell administration in refusing a U.S. Justice Department request to order new absentee ballots for military families and overseas voters and to give those voters until after the election to return them because of confusion over Ralph Nader's ballot status.
``The men and women who are most affected by who becomes commander in chief, their vote is going to be denied,'' said state Rep. Stephen Barrar, R-Chester. ``If 73 percent of these votes were coming in for John Kerry, she (U.S. District Judge Yvette Kane, a Clinton appointee), would rule the other way and so would Ed Rendell.''
Thousands of military personnel from Pennsylvania serve in Iraq and other hot spots around the globe. Pennsylvania law required the state's 67 counties, which run the election system, to start mailing absentee ballots to military and civilian voters in remote parts of the world by Aug. 24. All other overseas ballots were to be sent starting Sept. 20.
Brian McDonald, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of State, said all military ballots have been mailed on time _ an assertion disputed by U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum's office, which said Union and Venango counties were late in sending their overseas ballots.
State Sen. John Pippy, R-Allegheny, said he's heard from constituents whose family members are serving overseas in the military and have yet to receive ballots. Pippy, who served nine months with the Army Reserves in Iraq and Kuwait last year, said he himself never got a ballot for the November 2003 general election.
``If there is a concern about military votes and overseas votes not being included, the easiest way to alleviate that concern is to give the extra time,'' Pippy said.
In the state's April 27 primary, Rendell successfully sought court orders to extend the deadline for absentee ballots from military families and overseas voters until May 17 _ three weeks after the election.
But Rendell spokeswoman Kate Philips said the need then was legitimate. Because of a record number of challenges to nominating petitions, many counties did not mail absentee ballots on time, making a deadline extension necessary.
``The fact is, all military and absentee ballots have been mailed in Pennsylvania and there's certainly time to return those,'' she said. ``There's an implication that (Rendell) would put party politics over his responsibility as governor, and he would never do that.''
Late Friday, Democratic House leaders accused Republicans of using a ``pathetic scare tactic'' to prop up President Bush, who trailed Sen. John Kerry in Pennsylvania in the latest Quinnipiac University poll. Republicans, including Santorum, have been making accusations against Rendell ``without a single shred of evidence,'' Minority Leader Bill DeWeese and Democratic Whip Mike Veon said in a statement.
Put politics aside, said Melissa A. Hrinya, Pennsylvania legislative chairman of the 60,000-member American Legion Auxiliary.
``All we're asking is for two more weeks. I just want them to have a fair chance of voting,'' she said.
During war time, too; unconscionable! Rendell had better back down on this one, of face being replaced in office at his next election.
I'd love to see that pig in a poke.
And this jerk used to be the DNC Chairman.
I'd love to see him laying on a table with an apple in his mouth... surrounded by freepers with sharp forks ;-)
Thanksgiving will soon be here before we know it!! :)
BTW, LTNS :) Hope you're doing well {{{HUGS}}}
Point him to the federal online write-in ballot. http://www.fvap.gov/pubs/onlinefwab.html
This crap is going on all over the place. These hypocrites go so far as to circulate memos giving guidelines how to disenfrancise the military absentee voters, while at the same time having the nerve to screech about disenfrancisement of voters who have no legal right to vote in the first place. This just makes me livid!
I wouldn't trust them.
This mess is why I'm taking 3 days off work and spending money on air fare to vote IN PERSON.
Why do the dems want to piss off the military?
Sure, piss off trained marksmen and explosives experts. The dem machine needs fixin everywhere, maybe it'll start here.
They are playing with fire.
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