Statement from (Iowa) Secretary of State Paul Pate Regarding Misleading Mailer from Cruz

Oskaloosa News ^

[springwater13]

Today I was shown a piece of literature from the Cruz for President campaign that misrepresents the role of my office, and worse, misrepresents Iowa election law. Accusing citizens of Iowa of a "voting violation" based on Iowa Caucus participation, or lack thereof, is false representation of an official act. There is no such thing as an election violation related to frequency of voting. Any insinuation or statement to the contrary is wrong and I believe it is not in keeping in the spirit of the Iowa Caucuses.

Additionally, the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office never "grades" voters. Nor does the Secretary of State maintain records related to Iowa Caucus participation. Caucuses are organized and directed by the state political parties, not the Secretary of State, nor local elections officials. Also, the Iowa Secretary of State does not "distribute" voter records. They are available for purchase for political purposes only, under Iowa Code." - Paul D. Pate, Iowa Secretary of State

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

http://theconservativetreehouse.com/2016/01/30/iowa-secretary-of-state-identifies-cruz-campaign-voter-shaming-letter-as-fraud-misrepresents-iowa-election-law/

[Wissa]

Does this mean it was approved and authorized by the campaign?

It was mailed out using the campaign's postal permit (not one of his PACs). Of course it was approved and authorized by the campaign.

[Boardwalk]

Lighten up frances!

[TontoKowalski]

And now on Drudge. Linking to "The Hill" article.

[catnipman]

“Well, it looks like the Iowa Secretary of State decided to put this mess on the Front Page of every Sunday p[aper in the country. “

Correct. SecState announcement just moved it from twitter, conservativetreehouse, IJReview, FR, etc. to an MSM outlet, thereby giving all the OTHER MSM outlets a free pass to go wild with this. Not to mention it should put an end to the authenticity issue as well.

[Yaelle]

The “without my knowledge” defense, if Cruz comes out with that, will please one Mao jacket- wearing, bug-eyed candidate who is hoping to use that very same defense to some minor top secret email complaints by the FBI.

[Boardwalk]

Old news to us now!

[true believer forever]

 

SHAME ON YOU,  SENATOR CRUZ

 

Tom Hinkeldy, a resident of Alta, Iowa, tweeted a photo (which was later deleted because it included his personal address) on Friday evening of a mailer Sen. Ted Cruz’s campaign sent addressed to his wife, Steffany. The mailer was a large card printed to look like a manila envelope on one side and was labeled in all capital letters, “ELECTION ALERT,” “VOTER VIOLATION,” “PUBLIC RECORD,” and “FURTHER ACTION NEEDED.”

The mailer said in red letters at the top, “VOTING VIOLATION.”  The text reads:

“You are receiving this election notice because of low expected voter turnout in your area. Your individual voting history as well as your neighbors’ are public record.  Their scores are published below, and many of them will see your score as well.  CAUCUS ON MONDAY TO IMPROVE YOUR SCORE and please encourage your neighbors to caucus as well. Follow-up notices may be issued following Monday's caucuses. 

 

Cruz spokesman Rick Tyler confirmed to IJ Review that the mailer was theirs in a phone call Friday evening, saying that the targeting had been “very narrow, but the caucuses are important and we want people who haven’t voted before to vote.”

MoveOn did similar voter-shaming mailers in 2012 for Obama.                                                                           

[Charles Henrickson]

Oh, I think there are a lot of us Cruz supporters who see this mailing as an unforced error and are disappointed by it. It’s not necessarily a campaign-killer, though. I still think Ted is the best all-around social and constitutional conservative in the race, and I still plan on voting for him.

[txhurl]

This mailing IS despicable. But Cruz didn’t approve it.

Why have we only heard from that one guy who said he’s now voting for Rubio over it? This story is being stomped on for a reason.

[Pravious]

“nude pictures of his wife posing nude”

Well, that’s a lot better than clothed pictures of his wife posing nude.

[catnipman]

goodbye or not, i was out of line. there are some others here who are routinely posting wild, madeup lies. AND you did in fact post evidence to the veracity of your claim.
I apologize for what it’s worth.

[Yaelle]

Heh heh!

[HiTech RedNeck]

There is a level of tact. A sweet appeal that based itself upon knowledge of the neighborhood, without going deeper, would have gone across a lot better, just saying.

Just because you know where your neighbor’s lost sock went, doesn’t mean you have to scream that he is a sock loser.

And here is where I do beat on Cruz more than I would Trump. Cruz is the Christian. That is supposed to be about the grace of God, the suffering of Christ so that we would not need to suffer, the whole sweet nine yards. Instead we have the Religious Preachy Person. Trump isn’t pretending he knows anything more about gospel than goose feathers, though his benevolence looks a bit like that of the centurion that God noted to Peter to evangelize. Like it could be gropings towards Christ.

[HiTech RedNeck]

How about you read the bible then get back to us, okay?

Like who will get into heaven faster than the pharisees? Yep, the prostitutes....

[Marie]

Aw! I think of you when I’m scrubbing, too! lol!

How are you cleaning her? (I’ve got a great product for you. It’s cheap!)

[RegulatorCountry]

This mailing IS despicable. But Cruz didn’t approve it.

Dispicable? That's in the eye of the beholder. For those campaigns that have benefitted from it, it's not. For those recipients who found it invasive, it was or is. It's very doubtful that such an expenditure was made without proper signoff from Cruz.

[Yaelle]

Oh, I think there are a lot of us Cruz supporters who see this mailing as an unforced error and are disappointed by it. It’s not necessarily a campaign-killer, though. I still think Ted is the best all-around social and constitutional conservative in the race, and I still plan on voting for him.

---

As long as you understand that Trump voters also know his failings and will vote for him anyway, as well.

[Catsrus]

It’s against election laws, dumb, dumb. And, in case you aren’t aware - the Cruz campaign is also sending out mailers with a so-called check inside. Get your head out of the sand -

[TontoKowalski]

Why have we only heard from that one guy who said he's now voting for Rubio over it? This story is being stomped on for a reason.

Now on Drudge. A link to "The Hill" article.