If you look at 45,000 undervote ballots one after the other, and you see 30,000 true "no votes" (no markings of any kind) 5,000 ballots with varying degrees of perforation, and 10,000 ballots with dimples for a single candidate (either Bush, Gore, or another candidate, but only one), you realize very early on that the dimples DO reflect voter intent, that they could only be there because the voter tried to vote but was frustrated by the mechanical aspects of the machinery, and that the notion that the voter changed his or her mind a millisecond before completing the perforation is complete BS.
This notion that reading "dimples" on these ballots is some form of democratic voodoo mindreading is a fraud on the public, perpetrated by Republicans more interested in Bush's securing a victory than his doing so under circumstances where there is integrity to the victory. When digital photos of these ballots are released into the public domain, as they no doubt will be at some point, the extent to which they clearly reflect votes (and the extent to which the GOP argument that they don't is wrong) will be known to all. It will be a tragedy if that happens only after the election is decided, and it reveals that Bush lost not only the national popular vote, but also lost Florida.
And too bad Dubya is unwilling to apply the exact same standard in reviewing these ballots that he signed into law in Texas on this very issue. Under that law, any indentation sufficient to show intent of the voter is counted. There is no requirement of a perforation. And that law has been utilized in recounts conducted this year in local Texas races. Where I come from, that is called hypocrisy.
So much for restoring dignity and honor to the White House.
MST |
