just say no deal

All,

In the days after Denver, so many of you have written and there is certainly no unanimity about next steps at the conclusion of Hillary’s 2008 campaign. You can imagine the combinations and permutations. In a completely unscientific selection, some of you will leave the party and enthusiastically vote for McCain or blank the President line; some will reluctantly vote for McCain; some for Obama but no-one, so far, enthusiastically; some simply want a Democrat out of habit or tradition, or believe they are following Hillary’s wishes and are ready to move on. No takers for Barr or Nader.

I find it hard to look at the polls without thinking about the large bounce Hillary would have received had she been the nominee. Here too the opinions run the gamut, from tears and appreciation for her grace and dignity, to fury with the way she was treated/compromised, with some who felt she “caved”.

Among those who will support Obama, tepid is certainly the descriptor. So far few seem inclined to give money to him and none to the DNC; many think he will not, or should not win. There are certainly issues of accountability and trust that will have to be rebuilt, some on a very personal level.

Virtually everyone seems tired, wrung out, disillusioned. Some express total alienation; others say they will regroup and be “back” although unclear how and to what degree. Some speak of a grieving process. “Angry”, “sad”, “cynical” pepper your comments. Some report crying in frustration or sadness. One broke a favorite glass while anxiously listening to the roll call totals.

Several of you wrote in confusion as to the discrepancy between state primary votes and votes cast in the “roll call”. Some delegates reported hearing that in the preliminary vote, Hillary received anywhere from 1650 to 1920 votes. Between that time and the convention roll call, no-one can quite explain what happened to many of those votes. Many delegates said that the roll call was like another fraudulent caucus, writ large. Many report intimidation, threats and yelling.

Call me naive, but after all she has done, ways she has extended herself, could BO not have been a bit more gracious, let people vote their conscience, represent their voters and celebrate her candidacy? We owe deep appreciation to all the Clinton pledged delegates and Super Delegates who understood her to be the best and only electable Democrat. If my inbox is any example, HRC delegates with feet of clay will be hearing from many of you who sent them to Denver to vote for Senator Clinton.

Where do we go from here? Even as many hundreds used the ELECTABILITY WATCH to try to make change we could believe in - Hillary as the nominee of the Democratic Party - on some level I think we knew the convention would be a farce, hoped not, but were still shocked to see how overt and deep the corruption and abuses of power have become.

Some have called me a “bitter” Hillary supporter. NOT. I am a lifelong, deeply committed Democrat, but not to the Democratic Party as currently constituted and its anti-democratic practices. The party joined with the Obama campaign to steal our best chance for a truly great President. It is NOT just that HRC lost - but rather the way she and her 18 million voters were flicked off, except for some of our rolodexes.

I am concluding that the only way I and many of us can register our disappointment/disapproval/distrust is by blanking at the top. It is the only way to convey my disgust with the party and its choice, by having a large differential between those who vote Democratic and those who vote for BO. It is important that it be publicly discussed as a strategy so it is not just treated as a statistical anomaly.

I will also be working for down ticket Democrats to ensure a veto-proof Congress, letting you know about candidates who backed Hillary and need our help. This is one of the ways we try to remedy some of the more extreme distortion of values and systems we have all experienced from the Obama gang and the DNC and its leaders.

To understand some of the results of the Convention and the aftermath below, by state, are some of the comments and observations I have received. Part Two will focus on the ELECTABILITY WATCH, charts of the so-called roll call vote, and some of the other commentaries.

As for the so-called roll call, almost without exception reports are of chaos, rumor, contradictory information and outright misinformation as to where, how and when to vote, and then who really voted for whom. Donna Brazile’s mother may have told her there were rules, but mine told me to be generous and gracious in victory. According to the first hand accounts I am receiving, Barack Obama’s mother failed to instill this in him. There is widespread agreement that he could have been gracious in victory, and his inability to do so is really a characterological flaw.

A number of writers asked their comments be listed as anonymous out of fear of retribution, including:

“Regarding the roll call vote. I’ve spoken to many delegates in many states. It appears that the delegates who were pressured the most were in the Swing States. Anyone who had any sort of job in politics or the DNC were pressured the most to switch. Many Governors demanded that their delegates switch because they would not get any money for their state races if they did not. It boils down to the fact that the Obama campaign had power over the State Party Chairs. These State Party Chairs get the money for all of their candidates. If they did not switch they were threatened. The delegates who stood firm with Hillary… took their pledge seriously. It still does not make any that Obama felt compelled to threaten the delegates. He would have won anyway. I guess they used these tactics all along, and they could not help themselves. What the experience in Denver resulted in is a bunch of angry delegates going home to tell their constituents what really happened. In the end I think it was a terrible move by the Obama campaign. I don’t think he realizes that his moves throughout the primary has ultimately de-energized a large part of the base which will result in his loss. Eventually it will go down in the history books as what not to do to voters. The voting results should be public but we have had a few delegates request the results to no avail.

I will not vote for McCain, but I will be leaving the top of the ticket blank.”

ARKANSAS: “I was so angry at the sham of a roll call that I just wanted it to be over… ” “the last time I felt such unbearable group pressure was on a jury” ” Obama representatives yelling, you’ll be sorry” to “hold outs”. It was brutal.”

An alternate kept calling out that the state voted 70% for Hillary yet recorded its 47 delegate votes for Obama - “how could that be?”

CALIFORNIA: Chris Stampolis reports “I cast my signed vote for Hillary this morning. It will be added to the roll call count for California”. Except, we may never know how California voted…

Delegate Ray Panko reports that, “The California vote was about 230+ for Obama to 160+ for Clinton which did not reflect the state vote. The process was completely controlled by the DNC and the Obama campaign. They had us all vote at breakfast. They took our votes and tallied them. They did this to see how close the numbers would be between Obama and Clinton. The aim was to prevent the public from seeing the closeness of the race. California passed because the Obama/Dean,Nancy Church(DNC) told it to pass. It was a sham, show, farce, gimmick.

Overall, the process was reprehensible. Each delegation was told a different story. No one was told the actual rules of the DNC which say delegates are required, in good conscience, to vote on the first ballot a vote that reflects the will of the voters who sent them to the convention. Gloria Allred was prevented from speaking to the California Hillary delegates to inform them of this rule and that it applies regardless of whether or not the candidate releases us or not.

People understood that pledged delegates would do what they came to Denver to do - vote for one of the nominees to reflect the votes of those who sent them. We expected there to be respect for the 18 million votes and Hillary’s historic candidacy. We even thought that Super Delegates would be allowed to do their job - to select the electable Democrat. But that was not to be. Instead, the roll call turned into one chaotic caucus rigged to be sure that the final vote would never be known, without any sublety or reverance for the sanctity of the vote or individual obligations.”

A Super Delegate reported that “CA “passed” without ever recording its votes because the Hillary delegation stood firm and had the vote been given accurately, Hillary would have been temporarily ahead in the roll call”.

Clinton delegate and LA attorney Gloria Allred grabbed a napkin from the tables at the California delegation breakfast and wore it as a gag to protest not being allowed to speak at the breakfast. “I was not elected to be a potted plant,” Allred said through her gag, holding up DNC rules that say delegates must vote as they are elected. Californnia had 204 delegates pledged to Hillary Clinton, versus 166 for Obama.”

CONNECTICUT: “I felt blindsided, bullied, mugged. I saw delegates being verbaly arm twisted with threats of loss of positions.” “One Obama delegate was bright red, yelling right up in my face”.

FLORIDA: Barbara Bassett to Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz: “Do not be party to the DNC and its efforts to further disenfranchise the voters of our state. Had our votes counted on Jan 29, 2008, we would be looking at the nomination of Senator Clinton. Again if our votes counted on May 31, 2008 we would be looking at the nomination of Senator Clinton… Stand up and say, ‘We the People of the great state of Florida vote for Hillary Clinton’. I want to be heard, once during this election. I want to be heard. ONE person, ONE vote. I count, I matter. We voted, we spoke and we look to you to honor the integrity of our vote”.

Ladyhawwke: To Former President Jimmy Carter BY FAX: (404) 331-0283. “I am one of the 18m who supported Senator Hillary Clinton in her quest to become the first female president in history. I had hoped for a fair roll call in order that Sen. Clinton’s delegates would have the opportunity to vote for her as our Party’s nominee. I am angry and disillusioned. I have never seen such a farce that was perpetrated upon the American people by the sham roll call. Where were you when our voices were crying out to be heard? Why is it important to have fair elections abroad and not in the U.S.? Why were the delegates threatened by members of congress, Nancy Pelosi and Howard Dean?”

A delegate insisted that someone take notice that the state, which voted heavily for Hillary and was punished by having its delegates halved, somehow announced 136 votes for BO and 51 for Hillary. At least 6 Clinton delegates had been replaced by Obama supporters before the Convention. Others were intimidated and warned their jobs and positions would be pulled.”

GEORGIA: (text message) “This is insane. They are yelling at the delegates to vote bo or their political careers are over”.

IDAHO: A delegate: “the feel was of a Republican convention, totally controlled and scripted. No humor or mistakes”.

ILLINOIS: “Bill and Hillary did way MORE for Obama than he ever deserved!! I am anxious to see how he will return the favor for them! He owes them both, big time!”

IOWA: “Does anyone think this has been a fair, open, transparent process? Voting before nominating speeches? Voting in front of people who have power over many of the delegates? No clear process to avoid ballot fraud? Remind you of caucuses??? Chaos and lack of clarity and consistency?”

KENTUCKY: Moretta Bosley: “I was overwhelmed by e-mails in support of Hillary. I want you to know that kept my word and voted for Hillary despite strong pressure to do otherwise.”

A delegate: “Our Hillary delegation was shouted at, told that they would be perceived as racists, told that their careers would be over if they voted for Hillary. Perhaps because of this, Hillary had a private meeting to thank our delegates. Clinton won the state by nearly 40 points. Nonetheless, the roll call was annnounced as Obama 36, Hillary 24.”

Martha Ziskind, a prominent Louisville attorney: “I’m feeling pretty disheartened right now, particularly by the media’s vitriol. Hillary didn’t just speak for the “undereducated”. If anything, her story strikes an all too familiar chord with well-educated, highly competent women of a certain age… My only comfort is that I know she will continue to make a name for herself in the Senate — and perhaps the Supreme Court”.

MARYAND: Donna Inches: I am extremely proud of the Clintons, however, I am no longer a democrat. I cannot forgive the DNC as easily, I cannot forget the caucus fraud, nor can I forgive the democratic leaders who allowed the mass media to treat Hillary in such a horrendous manner. I cannot ignore Obama’s unscrupulous associations or his dirty politics. He is not my candidate… My mom called me after Hillary called to suspend the roll call vote. I don’t believe I have ever heard my mother cry before. It broke my heart. She told me that her vote for Hillary is the last time she will ever vote. The despair in her voice was unbearable… I can only say, I will not be voting for McCain, but I will be voting against Obama.

MASSACHUSETTS: “What a contrast to the Olympics where in spite of the cutthroat competition, there is at least a veneer of sportsmanship and mutual support”.

MICHIGAN: Not only did Hillary not “lose by a tiny margin”, she lost through thuggery and cheating. And this is the man around which we’re supposed to rally?” “And as with MI earlier, unearned votes were taken from HRC and given to BO.”

MINNESOTA: “I voted for Senator Clinton today, and my delegation chastised me. I was told, ‘You just made your worse political decision, and it will be your last.’ At least I can sleep at night knowing I voted for what I believed in”.

NEW HAMPSHIRE: “What thugs they are. They make it clear that they really do not need us and have no intention of doing anything about the unity they mouth.” “Our state voted strongly for Clintonhas but has a close senate race and the candidate, the head of our delegation, was threatened that funds would be withdrawn. The state cast most of its votes for Obama”.

NEW JERSEY: “We overheard delegates from our state which had voted strongly for HRC saying that they understood DNC funding for local races in their state would be dependent on a unanimous delegation vote”.

A delegate was told “he needn’t worry about his vote - the totals for New Jersey were irrelevant, that the delegation was going to announce as unanimous”.

NEW YORK: “My guess, with no inside information at all, is that no-one expected her votes to melt away or be driven away - that the BOs would be gracious enough to let her have her votes and she would then nominate by acclamation. That she did, but they had snarked away her delegates for maximum humiliation value”.

From her office, after being quoted as saying she would vote for Obama, a note that “Carolyn B. Maloney has asked me to inform you that she will be voting for Sen. Clinton tonight on the first ballot”. Except we may never know how New York voted…

Jeanne Wikler: “Driving west through the golden hills of the California desert I realized why, to me, Hillary is the true leader. While Obama gives you the impression that he is a special person, Hillary gives you the impression that YOU are a special person”.
Lady Boomer NYC: (excerpts from Null and Void: Democrats Roll Call in Retrospect) “What exactly did we see on the “Democratic” Convention floor last Wednesday, August 27, 2008? Why was the roll call halted halfway through? Why did state after state in which Hillary won the primary election and a majority of delegates declare their votes for Obama? Who and what do all those delegates’ votes represent? As each “Great State of” our Union called out its numbers, I wondered, what was the actual delegate count? … The delegate count in this election was not a fair reflection of the Democratic Party electorate. 1) Hillary Clinton WON the popular vote. 2) There exists growing documentation, that caucus fraud was rampant. This occurred in the form of systematic, deliberate suppression, misinformation, pressure, and bullying, mishandling of voter and caucus rolls, and ignoring basic caucus rules. 3) Each delegate elected from a district or region in a primary state represents approximately 12,225 primary voters, but only 2,110 voters in a caucus state. Accordingly, a caucus delegate represents about 5.8 times fewer voters than one elected in a primary. So, when Obama “won” a caucus, each of those delegates stood for far fewer voters. This is especially important in the general election in the red and swing states.” http://riverdaughter.wordpress.com/2008/09/02/null-and-void-democrats-roll-call-in-retrospect/

Edith Padilla: ” Hillary was just fantastic! I was so proud of her. So proud to have been part of her campaign. The lady interviewed at the end on CNN said so much of what we all felt last night. Hillary is the one that should be our leader, we love and support her no matter what happens. Our party should be ashamed of themselves expecting her and Bill to clinch the deal for BO!”

Marcia Pappas: “On a personal level”. Those words are so true. I have personal friends who did not stand up for Hillary. I can’t even look them in the eye, break bread with them, or even make small talk. I have taken this very personal, and I know many other women who feel the same. I have professional friends as well, who did not support Hillary. Mind you, not many, but they were out there, and the tension was so great I could cut it with a knife.”

GN: I don’t know if in the future I’ll support the women who didn’t understand the importance of supporting the greatest symbol of women’s achievement. In sadness I wonder, where has all the Sisterhood gone? Generation gap? But even the women ‘of a certain age’ couldn’t reliably be counted on. And my closest friends didn’t necessarily get it. For how long has sisterhood imperceptibly been slipping away?

Mike Brady: “Watching her these past two nights….she amazes me with her grace and strength. Her friend Eleanor Roosevelt would be proud.”

“Getting up with grace, especially in the face of injustice and indignity is indeed a rare quality!!!”

PENNSYLVANIA: An elderly weeping delegate who wanted to vote for Hillary was consoled by several fellow delegates who said they were all sent to Denver by their friends and neighbors to vote for Hillary but, “no-one seemed to care”.

OHIO: Flo Gurwin After watching the convention proceedings in Denver, I certainly do believe in HIS change–his ability to continually change his mind. I do not trust him. I think he’s a snake and the scumbags surrounding him leave little doubt in my mind that he is not the sort of person I want for my president.”

Mary Anne Saucier, writing from the “home front” reports, “The Obama people are really angry, upset, scared, and thereby potentially dangerous people. After getting selected but not elected by the corrupt Democratic Party, Obama and his minions are now confronted by uncooperative voters.

Yesterday, my neighbor, three doors north of my house called to say that two Obama canvassers, aggressively working both sides of the street, were on their way toward my house. “They are trying to find out how people are going to vote,” she warned. My neighbor, just recovering from back surgery, is a feisty independent lady, as am I, and would not say. She figures that is her business and she owns her vote. My comment was that they probably would not stop at my house because I have a “Hillary for President” sign in my yard.

We live on a busy street and my sign has been there since the early days of the Democratic Primary. Over all the many years I’ve put political signs in my yard, none have ever been stolen or in any way damaged or mutilated. What happened yesterday is a first, but not unexpected after what has happened this year to so many who have refused to support unqualified Obama.

No one stopped at my house, but I immediately found my Hillary sign in a crumpled heap with one side slit to cut it off the metal frame.

Now, I have another treasured war trophy to encourage the faint of heart to join the crusade for substance, democracy, and valid votes over vapidity, intimidation and fake control.”

OREGON: Sue Castner: “I DID scream “nay” when Pelosi called for the unanimous acclamation. When I told the Oregon DNC state committeeman I wanted it recorded, he said it didn’t matter. It was already recorded. So much for celebrating the passage of the 19th Ammendment on Tuesday.”

RHODE ISLAND: “I think the whole party just blew what should have been a Democratic shoo-in”. “Nancy Pelosi and The DNC insulted and humiliated the Clintons during this convention and it I can’t be the only one who noticed.”

TENNESSEE: Jackson Slade: To the Editor, NYT: “After hearing Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s superb speech, I must express my admiration for Senator Barack Obama’s confidence. By choosing Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. as his running mate, he obviously feels that he can win without her and her passionate supporters.”

TEXAS: Frances Morey: “I was less than enthusiastic about the impeachment of Bush AND Cheney because Pelosi would have been next in line for the Oval Office”. She also noted that “going into this convention Obama was flat-lining in the polls. If there is a bounce to follow we know who is responsible–The Clintons”.

“This morning I got my credential and was directed to go to another room. There I showed my badge and my id and indicated my presidential preference on a sheet next to my name and signed my name. This is the state tally sheet. Texas delegation officials, Boyd Richie’s staff and volunteers, have total control of this. They will use this tally sheet to report the Texas delegation totals for todays roll call vote at the Pepsi center later today.”

Blanche Darley, wearing a button saying ObamaNation Scares the Hell out of Me, on the impact of HRC’s speech: “We love her, but it’s our vote …we don’t trust or like him…”

Nata Koerber: “Hillary has a life-time of service to the Democratic Party and has done everything required and then some to encourage support of Obama. The responsibility of uniting the Party lies squarely in the lap of Barack Obama, and Joe Biden, Obama’s preferred choice for VP.”

A HRC pledged delegate, realizing that it did not matter how his delegation voted, announced that “it is obvious that the Obama campaign has no regard for the Clinton delegates or voters, that they were making it clear that Obama does not feel he has to treat us with even minimal respect.”

VERMONT: A demonstrator wondered if we would ever see totals, if there is a paper trail, and then corrected himself asking why anyone would believe it if one surfaced?

VIRGINIA: a delegate: “Maybe you noticed, excuse me but wasn’t that HER health care plan - the same coverage as offered to members of Congress???”

WASHINGTON: a delegate reports that the delegation chair did not hold a breakfast vote, telling the HRC delegatess to vote after what turned out to be the deadline, But in the end, “the WA HRC delegation held firm, but never got to register its votes”.

WASHINGTON, DC: Nancy Beang: “Barack Obama…the audacity of hype. It’s really unfortunate that people are so wow’d by…nothing. Nobody I’ve met, young or old, black or white, (and I meet LOTS of people) can tell me WHY they support him, except to say he represents change. No list of accomplishments…even when I ask “what has he accomplished?” all those people just scratch their heads and look embarrassed. The anointers are going to be sadly & sorely disappointed. This was our Democratic year to pull it out, and I’m just afraid it ain’t gonna happen…it’s a good thing Hillary isn’t on the ticket…she won’t EVER be thought of as a loser.” “after her speech last night, no one can blame her when he loses. Obama funders and delegates heard grumbling that she did not praise BO enough or apologize for saying during the primaries that he had no experience. Unity or appreciation anyone? Guess not…”

A DC delegate: “Donna Brazlle in spite of her bluster that she would quit the Democratic Party if the SDs cast deciding votes, did not quit as promised and cast her vote with the DC delegation.”

Heidi Li Feldman, The Denver Group From the wicked to the absurd: the saga of the California “pass”
Posted: 03 Sep 2008 12:15 AM CDT
Let me begin with a credit to somebody who left a comment on the previous post on this site, And the Wickedness Goes On…. That commenter=2 0drew my attention to what I had previously thought might have been a principled refusal by the California delegation to the Democratic National Convention’s rigged internal election of its nominee (otherwise known as the roll call vote). The LA Times decided to look into the matter. In its first story , on August 28th, on the situation the Times wrote, “The state takes a pass simply because a tally of its 441 delegate votes wasn’t completed when the state’s name was called.”

Then yesterday, September 2, the Times followed up with this story, announcing that only by September 2 did the state complete its tally. Furthermore, the L.A. Times reports the following about its inquiry to the DNC the about the total roll call vote tally:

As for the total vote, well, Democratic officials were still working on it as of late this afternoon.
A spokeswoman for the Democratic National Convention Committee, Natalie Wyeth, said paperwork had been shipped back from the convention site in Denver, but that the Labor Day holiday delayed the tally.
Wyeth said she expected the official count to be released soon, perhaps by day’s end.
Say what? Let me get this straight. In their rush to fake a roll c all vote, first the DNC does not give one of the largest and most populous states in the country a full opportunity to have its tally completed and reported at the convention; then the DNC gives a major news paper the lamest excuse I ever heard for its failure to have a final tally completed as of yesterday. Labor Day weekend made it hard to count any sooner.

Say what? I worked over Labor Day Weekend but would happily have headed over to the DNC to help count if that was the problem. And you can be sure that if the DNC can’t count votes any quicker than this, no way are they going to be ready any time soon to gather and ready to release information about which delegates chose to vote against the way they were pledged.

Rank and file Democrats need that information - facts about which delegates decided that their consituents’ interests would be most faithfully carried out (the standard defined in the Party’s rules) by voting for somebody other than the candidate the consituents voted for - so that ordinary Democrats can decide whether they want to entrust their franchise to these particular representatives should any try to become delegates again.

Now, it appears that a large number of Clinton delegates from California, where Senator Clinton won big in the primary, did not care to switch their allegiance from Senator Cinton to Senator Obama on the first ballot.

Now, maybe it was sheer ineptitude that led to California’s inability to count its delegates in time to actually participate in the sham roll call. Or maybe Nancy Pelosi - DNC official, Obama supporter, and prominent California politician - thought that by not giving California time to finish its tally she would preempt the possibility that one of the early states to vote would assign a large chunk of its delegates to Senator Clinton.
Whatever the case, the California experience epitomizes the wrongfulnes of the DNC’s apprach to it

And the wickedness goes on… Posted: 02 Sep 2008 06:16 PM CDT
How [X] has conducted himself while winning campaigns is a subject of no small controversy in political circles. It is frequently said of him, in hushed tones when political folks are doing the talking, that he leaves a trail of damage in his wake—a reference to the substantial number of people who have been hurt, politically and personally, through their encounters with him. [X]’s reputation for winning is eclipsed only by his reputation for ruthlessness, and examples abound of his apparent willingness to cross moral and ethical lines.
Almost precisely these words appeared in The Atlantic magazine. I say “almost” because where I have inserted “X” The Atlantic article refers to Karl Rove.

The day has come, however, where we can almost substitute for Mr. Rove, a person from whom I stay immeasurably distanced, any of the following: Howard Dean, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and various others. These political operators and the people who they control seem willing to cross any and all moral and ethical lines in their relentless insiste nce on depriving Democrats of internal due process. I say we can “almost” substitute their names for Mr. Rove’s because they do not seem nearly so adept at actually gaining their stated objective - the election of Barack Obama to the Presidency, an outcome that seems less likely with every gaffe and every new poll result.

The newest evidence of the wickedness of the current crop of DNC leaders is the fact that nobody in the DNC is willing to supply the following information: how the delegates actually voted in their private morning caucuses on the day of the roll call rigamarole orchestrated by Democratic Party state and national leaders. At those meetings the state party leaders, made fearful of any sort of “floor fight” (read “honest, open, legitimate, unrigged roll call vote”) cajoled, pressured and demanded that delegates pledged to Senator Clinton switch their votes to Senator Obama. Wickedness.

I have been informed by various sources that delegates cannot get, from either the DNC or their State party chairs the following information: the actually tallies and ballot sheets from the morning caucuses. This means that nobody can check whether in fact Clinton delegates did switch or which of them did and which of them did not.

There is every reason to ask for this information if one cares about the Democratic Party’s integrity which is rapidly reaching the vanishing point. When delegates ask for this information they are being told things like “We don’t have copies of the ballots” or “W e are too busy with campaigns”. They are being told, in essence, to take a hike; process be damned, all that the Democratic Party cares about is result, with no heed to how it is achieved.

That type of thinking brought America an attorney general and a President who decided torture is not torture if it gets you what you think you want.

The DNC’s own rules disqualify secret ballots at the convention. If the Party does not release full and verifiable tallies and ballot sheets post haste, they are not only in violation of this rule, Party officials become ever more indistinguishable from the man who stole Florida and deprived Al Gore of the Presidency in 2000.

Voting rights are at the foundation of any legitimate democratic institution. Ballots disappearing, delegates being given the runaround as they try to verify the result that was announced at the convention - these are wicked tactics, much like the threats to de-accredit delegates who at all tried to treat the Democratic Party Convention as the “deliberative body” is is supposed to be, according so “delegate guru” Phil MacNamara over on the DNCC website.

The purveyors of such political wickedness are tearing apart the Democratic Party and corroding its foundations. I for one shall remain immeasurably distanced from them and from the candidate who has capitalized on the leadership’s wicked ways.

HILLBUZZ: DENVER - Senator Barack Obama’s acceptance speech last week seemed vastly different from the stands of this city’s Invesco Stadium than it did to the 40 million who saw it on television. Melancholy hung like think smog over the reserved seats where I sat with Democratic Party staffers. The crowd, of course, cheered mechanically at the tag lines, flourished placards, and even rose for the obligatory wave around the stadium. But its mood was sour. The air carried the acrid smell of defeat, and the crowd took shallow breaths. Even the appearance of R&B great Stevie Wonder failed to get the blood pumping.

The speech itself dragged on for three-quarters of an hour. As David S Broder wrote in the Washington Post: “[Obama’s] recital of a long list of domestic promises could have been delivered by any Democratic nominee from Walter Mondale to John Kerry. There was no theme music to the speech and really no phrase or sentence that is likely to linger in the memory of any listener. The thing I never expected did in fact occur: Al Gore, the famously wooden former vice president, gave a more lively and convincing speech than Obama did.”

On television, Obama’s spectacle might have looked like The Ten Commandments, but inside the stadium it felt like Night of the Living Dead…

AND FINALLY,

HILLARY FOR SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: For those who would like to sign this letter, please go to http://tdg.typepad.com/hrcsenatemajorleader09/