Posted on 06/23/2002 12:38:38 AM PDT by Johnny Shear
MIAMI (AP) - Gov. Jeb Bush and Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris criticized the chairwoman of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission on Friday for saying they have not done enough to ensure Florida's flawed presidential election isn't repeated.
Bush called the Mary Frances Berry's commission "a badly discredited institution" and saying it is reopening a controversy "that most Floridians have long forgotten." President George W. Bush, the governor's brother, won the White House in 2000 after a partial recount of the state's ballots.
"Florida is indisputably a national leader in election reform," Bush said, saying the state will spend $30 million to ensure future elections run smoothly. "The commission appears stubbornly determined to ignore the progress our state has made."
A statement issued by Harris' office called Berry the "doctor of distortion" and said the chairwoman "maintains the absurd pretension that she possesses the moral authority to speak regarding the fairness of elections in Florida."
"Florida remains the only state in the nation that has passed and funded comprehensive election reform legislation," Harris said, saying election reform has been her top priority.
Berry, who was in Miami to assess legislative and policy changes adopted since the 2000 election, had said Thursday she believes the election reforms go only about a third of the way toward addressing problems the commission examined after the U.S. Supreme Court stopped the recount.
Berry had said she was "especially disappointed" that no state officials attended the meeting and blamed Bush and Harris for "shrugging off" responsibility for voting reforms.
When contacted Friday, Berry said she was "flabbergasted" by Harris' comments.
"It's not a question of moral authority, it's an issue of practicality and our hope that everything will go well for the September primaries," Berry said. "We are sounding an alert and hoping she and other officials get the system fixed."
The U.S. Justice Department, which also examined Florida's elections, decided earlier this month to sue and immediately settle with three counties. No other suits were planned because the department didn't expect it could get much more than the new state laws provide.
Democratic National Chairman Terry McAuliffe said Friday that the Justice Department has not addressed all the allegations in Florida and that President Bush should look into this.
"If he remains passive and uncommitted, the country will see a repeat of voter disenfranchisement in 2002," he said.
I have to admit I am somewhat impressed by Berry on her satement. I would never have believed she knew any four syllable words.
AP probably helped out with that.
Hmmmmm. No mincing of words from Gov. Bush of Florida. I applaud is bluntness.
Our Florida Constitution requires a full recount of all counties after this close of an election. We can write a book on the Dem. attempts to steal the election, but the press is lying about the recount being partial. EVERY county recounted, they just didn't all recount more than once...in spite of the "Recount Primer" put out by the Dems. for Dems. telling them how to steal a close election by pushing for multiple recounts....where they can continue to manipulate punch card ballots, circle and write on electronic ballots and generally create a win from a loss.
In Palm Beach County at least a few thousand ballots for Bush were not counted, were turned into overvotes by punching a second hole, or twisted to dislodge chads. The numbers simply don't add up. Palm Beach was one of three Florida counties where Bill McCollum, Senate candidate and house impeachment manager, received more votes than President Bush (two other counties...Republican Lee and Republican Charlotte also had more votes for McCollum than Bush, and also had a higher than expected vote % for Gore, and lower % for Bush. Both Lee and Palm Beach were Votomatic counties. The 12 Votomatic counties were all in Gore's top 50% of votes received vs. registered Dems., and Bush's bottom 50% of votes received vs. registered Republicans...though the press continues to blame the Votomatics for Gore's loss, the opposite is true. Votomatics clearly favored Gore...ballot fraud is the only explanation). Palm Beach was Gore's best county with his Dems., Bush's worst county among registered Republicans....numbers don't add up.
West Palm Beach was a created "scandal" as dishonest and rotten as any in election history...from Telequest to recount #3, from Wexler and Jesse Jackson, to the army of lawyers soliciting complaints at shopping centers across the county on Nov. 8th.
Jeb and Katherine Harris are right. The Civil Rights Commission should be sued for slander by the whole Republican party.
She needs to GO.
If you want on (or off) of my black conservative ping list, please let me know via FREEPmail. (And no, you don't have to be black to be on the list!)
MFB is one hideous looking creature. Might I interest her in some Sta-Sof-Fro?
;-)
I guess an indian burn is too.
You forgot while holding the head in a vise grip.
Impossible, she is already bald headed.
I sure as hell wouldn't give her a purple nurple.
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