Warning Your Voter ID Is Controversial And As Dangerous As A Concealed Weapon!

Warning Your Voter ID Is Controversial And As Dangerous As A Concealed Weapon!

Missouri Voter Refuses Illegal Demand to Show Photo ID at Poll, Gets Thrown in Jail

BLOGGED BY Brad Friedman ON 8/7/2008 9:29AM

The charge on the citation: "Did knowingly cause a disturbance/disorderly conduct to wit: acts in a violent or tumultuous manner toward another, placing such person(s) in fear of safety by refusing to show proper I.D. when voting".

This story is unfrickin'-believable. Or maybe it isn't. It took place in Thor Hearne country, after all. And though she didn't get arrested and thrown in jail, a similar incident happened to the Missouri Secretary of State during the 2006 election.

A voter in Kansas City on Tuesday --- one I happen to know, because he's an Election Integrity advocate in the Show Me State --- was arrested and sent to jail after he refused to show a driver's license at the polling place before attempting to vote during the state's Primary Election.

The voter is Phil Lindsey of ShowMeTheVote.org and he posted the details of his harrowing tale over at DemocraticUnderground.com, where he posts as "galloglas", after being released on Tuesday night.

The charge on the citation: "Did knowingly cause a disturbance/disorderly conduct to wit: acts in a violent or tumultuous manner toward another, placing such person(s) in fear of safety by refusing to show proper I.D. when voting".

He told me, via email late last night, that he's been in close touch with MO's Secretary of State Robin Carnahan following the incident, and that both local media and folks such as nationally syndicated radio host Thom Hartmann have been in touch with him since the story broke last night. He was surprised, but pleased, that the incident has received so much coverage already.

Never mind that requiring a voter to show a driver's license in MO before they can vote was found unconstitutional in 2006. Never mind that he showed the pollworkers a perfectly legal and proper precinct-issued voter ID card when he went to vote. Never mind that he had even called to check with the local Board of Elections before going to vote, to make sure that the ID would be acceptable. Never mind that he even brought a copy of the MO law to show the pollworkers who had demanded a driver's license (much as they had done, illegally, in a previous election he'd voted in).

The cops were called, and he ended up going to jail anyway. The charge on the citation: "Did knowingly cause a disturbance/disorderly conduct to wit: acts in a violent or tumultuous manner toward another, placing such person(s) in fear of safety by refusing to show proper I. D. when voting"...

BRAD BLOG readers may remember that Carnahan herself was told, three times, by a pollworker in 2006, that she had to show a driver's license in order to vote. Never mind that she's the Sec. of State and had some familiarity with the law in this case.

My father, as I'm originally from St. Louis, also had a similar incident, (sans the being arrested part) at the polls in 2006, which he documented for us here at the time.

Moreover, a report from the MO SoS after the 2006 election listed a number of incident reports [PDF] where voters were illegally asked for Photo ID's, and even reports of polling places illegally posting signs claiming that Photo ID was required to vote. Clearly, it wasn't an accident that so many poll workers were instructed to do exactly that. Looks like not much has changed in the two years since.

Here's how Lindsey recounts the moments after the cops arrived at the polling place, where Lindsey held his ground in refusing to proffer a different ID to the pollworkers:

One officer then turned to me and said, "This is your last chance. Leave and never come back here." I said, "You're kidding, surely. Never? And where do I vote in November?"

"Are you going?" he asked again. I asked, "You mean leave without even having an answer as to why I am not allowed to cast my ballot?"

His answer was nonverbal; but he leaned in close, and I knew he was waiting for an answer. "Uhhh... with all due respect, officer... I feel that if I did so, I would be betraying my own conscience, and setting a bad precedent for all those citizens who share my right to vote."

About two nano-seconds after finishing my sentence, an officer behind me grabbed my wrists, handcuffed me, pulled me by the arm and pushed me into the back seat of a caged police car.

Once he was finally released from jail, he went to the Eastern Jack Election Board upon the suggestion of both the Republican and Democratic Election Directors who had called his son (he had gone to vote with his father, and was similarly denied his right to vote) after he'd notified them of the incident.

Lindsey writes that Republican Director Charlene Davis was particularly hostile when she greeted him, but she and her Democratic counterpart eventually offered him another chance. Sort of...

The final attempt by the Board to mollify my son and I was to offer us the chance to actually vote (it was about 3:30PM then). I asked, "At our precinct?"

"No," I was told, "I'll give you a ballot right here to cast."

"Why can't we vote at our precinct?" I asked. "You have acknowledged that we were correct, and should have been allowed to vote. Why can't we."

"Well," she said, "if you go back out there, you may be arrested again."

"For what?"

"Well those judges filed a complaint the first time. I'm can't guarantee it won't happen again."

Thinking for a second, I suggested, "Why don't you go out with us? Or send someone."

Well, that was as far as she would go. The offer to cast a ballot at the Board Office. And I told her I would not be willing to vote a provisional ballot but she replied that it would not be provisional. I suggested she give me a moment to consult, by phone, with the SoS's Office. I was told that I would have to leave the building to do so.

I did so, checked on the status of the complaint I had already filed with the SoS by phone, then decided (since I doubt any race would be decided by my vote) that I did not want to chance setting any precedent by voting at the Board after having misdeneanor [sic] charges filed against me by the Election Judges.

Lindsey's story is remarkable and a chilling sign of what is likely to come --- in spades --- this November.

Missouri has historically been a fierce battleground. McClatchy's Greg Gordon called it "Ground Zero" for the GOP's voter fraud/suppression campaign in 2006, in no small part, because it's home to master GOP "voter fraud" scamster, Mark F. "Thor" Hearne, of the now-defunct (though they've just slithered back underground) "non-partisan" front group "American Center for Voting Rights" (ACVR). The BRAD BLOG first outed Hearne and his sick scheme in early 2005 and, we've been following the democracy terrorist closely every since. It remains a mystery where Hearne, the national general counsel for Bush/Cheney '04 Inc., close friend of Rove, received the $1 million dollars to start up his tax-exempt vote suppression outfit, even though they are legally required to disclose that information. ACVR operatives were also found to be at the center of the U.S. Attorney Purge scandal where Bush-appointed USA's were fired by the Bush-DoJ after refusing to prosecute phony voter fraud charges.

Lindsey noted in his email tonight, in regard to his fellow Missourian Hearne, "from his looks the last time I saw him, the years are wearing on him." Well, gosh, we're so sorry to hear that. Perhaps the guilt from helping to keep 90 year-old nuns, U.S. Army veterans and untold numbers of students and minority voters who don't even try anymore, is beginning to wear on him. But I doubt it.

Lindsey's full story, as he posted it (typos and all) at Democratic Underground Tuesday night after he finally got home, has got lots of detail, but it's well worth the read. Don't say you haven't been warned.

Ohio Sues Diebold (It's About Time!) (Open this link. There is a treasure Chest Inside)

04 OH Election Case Revived: Case Reignited, Attnys Cite Evidence of Fraud

GOP High-Tech Guru 'At Scene of Every Crime (Serial Vote Killer Still At Large)

So we learned last week that new information concerning Republican high-tech guru Mike Connell's alleged participation in computer-aided fraud from Florida to Ohio to the Swiftboaters to RNC headquarters to Congress has helped lead Ohio attorney Cliff Arnebeck to reignite a long-standing federal lawsuit concerning Ohio's 2004 Presidential Election.

We learned this week that Connell may have been threatened by Karl Rove should the GOP's "high IQ Forrest Gump" --- so described for his uncanny ability to be found "at the scene of every [GOP] crime" --- fail to "take the fall" for election fraud in Ohio, according to a letter sent by Arnebeck to AG Michael Mukasey asking for Connell's protection.

But who exactly is this exceptionally successful, yet largely-below-the-radar-until-now Republican operative?

The following clip (appx 6:45 mins) from the new documentary film, FREE FOR ALL! (downloadable in full, free for all at www.freeforall.tv) by filmmaker John Ennis, gives us a small taste of who Connell is, and how he fits into the big picture.

The High-Tech HighJack of Ohio

Rove Issues Threat, Protection Sought

Even The Kids Are Smarter Than O’Reilly

O'Reilly thinks he can teach our children proper behavior, and we can't think of a worse father figure than an angry, hate-filled shock jock notorious for telling guests to "Shut up!" We wondered what would happen if kids read O'Reilly's book and then saw the real O'Reilly for themselves. So we put together a video to illustrate O'Reilly's duplicity.

http://www.stopfascism.com Join Today!

Scaring Up Votes: Tell the FEC to Investigate Wal-Mart's Partisan Political Meetings

Scaring Up Votes: Tell the FEC to Investigate Wal-Mart's Partisan Political Meetings

In case you missed it, we just sent out an e-mail to our members asking them to write to the Federal Election Commission and demand an investigation into Wal-Mart's shady tactics. If you haven't heard, the Wall Street Journal broke a story on Friday about mandatory meetings Wal-Mart was having where they were telling their employees not to vote for Democrats. This is, hands down, a disgusting abuse of power, and it may just be illegal too! So take a minute or two to write to the FEC.

Below is the full message that went out to our members, if you didn't get it, you should sign up!

Wake Up WalMart's diary :: ::

Mandatory political indoctrination, Democrat-bashing, voter intimidation. Yes, it's business as usual at Wal-Mart.

This summer, Wal-Mart has organized mandatory meetings across the country, all with one purpose: to intimidate rank-and-file employees into voting Republican. The company's workers have been forced to attend ideologically-charged, Wal-Mart-sponsored rants against Democrats, Barack Obama, and landmark legislation that would allow workers to vote for or against representation.

We have received several calls from workers, their stories are very similar and similarly unsettling. As one worker put it, "they were telling me how to vote." Another Wal-Mart worker, Beth from Alabama, was told by Wal-Mart management that if she "voted for John McCain, then everything would be okay."

We believe that ideological indoctrination and political scare tactics are completely inappropriate for the workplace. Yet again, Wal-Mart’s management has crossed the line, possibly breaking the law in the process. In light of these developments, we are calling for an immediate FEC investigation into Wal-Mart's political bullying at work, but we need your help to make a real impact.

Please tell the FEC to investigate Wal-Mart’s mandatory political meetings today.

Outright political intimidation may seem too risqué for a global corporation. Not for Wal-Mart. Stories like the above are actually an emerging part of Bentonville's corporate culture.

Take 2006, when Wal-Mart organized a "voter education program" for employees. The company placed Terry Nelson at the helm: formerly George W. Bush's political director, and later fired for making racist ads about a Democratic politician. Unsurprisingly, Wal-Mart's "education" program amounted to a thin veneer over strident attacks against Democratic candidates nation wide.

Why has Wal-Mart made such an effort to control its workers' voting habits? For one, The company is terrified that Democratic gains will ensure passage of the Employee Free Choice Act. For Wal-Mart, an organized workforce could spell higher wages and better benefits—two things the company has fought tirelessly to avoid.

In the end, Wal-Mart's motives are a moot point. The company has crossed the line, again, and it's time to hold them accountable. You can help us end Wal-Mart's sleazy political schemes by taking a moment to write the FEC today.

Please write the FEC and demand an investigation into Wal-Mart's mandatory employee meetings

Thanks for joining us in support of justice in the workplace, for Wal-Mart workers everywhere,

The Team WakeUpWalMart.com

MoveOn.org: Impeachment (If Not Now, When?)

MoveOn.org: Impeachment (If Not Now, When?)

Moveon.Org Has A Lot Of Questions To Answer For Its Members If Expects To Keep Its Membership And Support!

And I am one of those members who will not ante up another dollar or make a move to support or join another street action in Washington DC until they do so.

I will not, as of this day, even post an announcement or a request from MoveOn until our questions are answered.

1) What is the organization’s official position on Impeachment?

(If not now, when?) ( are you going to continue burying the issue in confusing survey forms, the dating of which has given rise to the wide spread resurfacing of this issue as they seem to be little more than lazy Performa recycling of previous documents.) I am not prepared to pay for that form of advocacy.

2) Given the fact that the House Committee on the Judiciary has already conducted one hearing on the efforts of Mr. Kucinich and his supporters nationwide; is MoveOn prepared to join the battle and make a real difference.

An unwillingness or failure to do so would say to me that MoveOn is no longer an advocacy organization of the people but a submissive collaborator and wholly owned subsidiary of the Pelosi-Reid Democratic leadership.

3) Has MoveOn bought into the “spin lines” that it’s too late to do anything now, and that there are other things more important at the moment than the restoration of Constitutional Law in this land and Executive Accountability, (like doing anything controversial might endanger the election of Democrats in November regardless of whether they are worthy of election or reelection)?

4) Is MoveOn prepared to explore or support the exploration of the Suskind allegations?

5) Is MoveOn prepared to act on the clear fact that this administration has engaged in Torture, contrary to our own laws and in total arrogance and defiance of The Geneva Conventions?

6) Has MoveOn become a co-opted organization, co-opted by the Democratic Party leadership to the point where it will sit out any issue that the leadership deems to be uncomfortable and represent that position as the will of the membership of MoveOn as determined by survey techniques designed to provide cover for the leadership of the organization while it enjoys the fruits of the members donations?

These questions need and deserve candid “no spin” responses. In Google groups and organizations across America serious questions are being raised as to the value and integrity of MoveOn. When Members raise such questions; something is very wrong; trust has been lost.

I am not pleased to have to raise these matters in such a public forum.

But when you do not answer my email inquiries and I get a telephone run around after having to do some serious searching even to initiate some calls; I have no other choice.

Denver and Minneapolis Convention Streets Update

Hey R-68ers, we will try to share with you new information each e-news flash. We are also fond of reminding you of important past stated information that you should be planning for and assisting us in spreading the word. We will be sending new information almost weekly. Look for our next R-68 E-news Flash to hear about more speakers and our music line-up. Until then, enjoy and never under-estimate what a committed few can accomplish. Remember, "Do it in Denver!"

In The News | Not In My Name; Not On My Ground; It’s Over

Kris Kristofferson.

Re-Create 68, “If confronted with violence by police, we will defend ourselves.”

http://www.recreate68.com/

http://dncdisruption08.org/?p=39

http://www.ruckus.org/

Anarchists UNITE in Denver

http://www.westword.com/2007-10-25/news/anarchists-arise

http://www.westword.com/search/?keywords=Anarchists

http://illvox.org/2008/07/02/unconventional-denver-camp/

http://www.westword.com/2007-10-25/news/recreate-68-plans-to-do-just-that/full

http://www.unconventionalaction.org/strategies/strategies.html

Chicago or Denver (Hint - It's Not About Football)

http://realdemocracy2008.org/

unconventionalaction.org

http://www.codepinkalert.org/article.php?list=type&type=355

http://www.tentstate.org

http://sfpj.org/Students_for_Peace_and_Justice/Upcoming_Actions.html

http://studentsforademocraticsociety.org/home

http://denversds.org

http://www.rmpjc.org

http://ivaw.org

http://ivaw.org/chaptersandregions

http://www.indigenoussupport.net/index.php

http://www.veteransforpeace.org

http://www.internationalsocialist.org

http://socialistworker.org

http://www.myspace.com/unconventionaldenver

http://www.myspace.com/denvercopwatch

http://www.colorado911visibility.org

http://www.hackasheville.com/nornc/uaftp/downloads/paper_spreads.pdf

http://www.codepink4peace.org

http://www.worldcantwait.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4805&Itemid=223

http://www.unitedforpeace.org

http://www.comeuptodenver.org

http://www.jwj.org

http://www.firstunitariandenver.org/standing/socialaction.shtml

http://www.velvetrevolution.us

http://nyc.indymedia.org/en/2008/07/98597.html

http://nyc.indymedia.org/en/index.html

http://www.aclu-co.org/dnc/dnc.htm

http://www.a28.org

1. Event Reminders During the DNC in August

2. Adopt and Activists

3. Last Media Training

4. Film Festival

5. Puppet Making Parties

6. Housing Needs and Help

7. R-68's Participation in the August 2^nd National Call to Action to Protect Iran

8. Benefit Rock Show

9. Legal Observer Training

10. June 22 Consulta

11. Blast From The Past

http://www.recreate68.com/direct_action.pdf

http://www.recreate68.com/shieldbook.pdf

http://www.recreate68.com/direct_action.pdf

http://www.recreate68.com/ruckusactionplanningmanual.pdf

1. Event Reminders

R-68 and other national and local groups and individuals are planning massive protest during the convention. Please make your plans to join these and other great events during the week. More importantly, affinity groups should be planning their own actions to compliment these larger events!

End the Occupations March and Rally

Sunday, August 24 - No more free pass for the Democrats. Join R68 and others as we march to end all illegal imperialist occupations in Iraq, Palestine, Afghanistan, Puerto Rico, Haiti, Hawaii, North America, and others. The Dems have the power to put an end to the United States' illegal colonizations and wars, but they will not without pressure from the people. This is not an organizations march, but rather the People's march! Do not let differences separate us from presenting a united voice as we say in solidarity:

NO MORE! NOT IN OUR NAME! BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!

Freedom March and Rally

Monday, August 25- Join supporters of Leonard Peltier, Mumia Abu Jamal, The Cuban Five, and other political prisoners for the Freedom March and Rally! Leonard Peltier's parole hearing will take place in 2008. Let us not forget that the Clintons left him in jail and did not pardon him. Free Mumia, the Cuban Five, the Guantanamo detainees, and others. The march will begin at the State Capitol and end with a rally at the Federal Court House.

Hear a personal recording specific for this protest and the DNC from Mumia and Leonard

Listen to an all-star list of speakers

Call for the Freedom of Mumia and the Cuban Five

Call for an end to Human Rights abuses

Shake Your Money Maker

Monday, August 25- It's time to redistribute the wealth. Between security and corporate pay-offs, the DNC will cost over 100 million dollars for a party. We think the people deserve that money. Join us as we encircle the Denver Mint (where U.S. currency is produced) and use our collective power to raise the mint building in the air and shake the money out of it for the people. Help us shine a spotlight on the issues of poverty and class warfare. Don't forget a sack to put all of your loot in.

Bring noisemakers, energy, spells, magic, costumes, anything that gives you power. We'll need it!

Get Started Right

Saturday, August 23 - When you arrive in Denver, find your way to Lincoln Park in front of the State Capitol for the sharing of important information. We will be presenting trainings and knowledge shares on logistics of Denver and the DNC, "Know Your Rights" trainings, Legal Observer trainings, non-technical blockade trainings, self-defense trainings and more that will help you throughout the week.

2. Adopt An Activist (AAA for the Radical)

R-68 will be bringing in high-profile activists from oppressed communities whose voices are usually drowned out on the political stage. Help us make this a reality. Instead of speaking for the oppressed, we want their voices to speak for their communities. Any amount of money you can provide will aid us in this endeavor. Food and housing have already been arranged. If you like, your name, or your organizations name, can be added to the website as a supporter of this historic event, or if you wish, you can remain anonymous. Please check our website, within the week, we will be providing biographies of the activists that will benefit, as we all will, from your generosity. Thank you in advance. Please send an e-mail to gspagnuolo@recreate68.org with the name of the activist and the amount you would like to donate. You will receive additional information at that time. Listed below are some, but not all of the voices to be heard.

· Fred Hampton Jr.

· Kathleen Cleaver

· Larry Hales

· Larry Holmes

· Natsu Saito

· Glenn Morris

· The families of the Cuban Five

· Pamela Africa

· Refugees from Palestine and Iraq

· Special guest speakers to be announced soon

3. Last Media Training for Active R-68ers

Tuesday, July 15 at 5 pm - Tuesday at 5 pm, prior to the Tuesday night film festival at Hooked on Colfax at 3215 E Colfax, Denver, R-68's media committee will be holding a two hour media training. If you plan on speaking to the media prior to and during the DNC or would like a refresher on media strategies, you must attend this training. For the already media savvy activists, trainings always brings back forgotten skills, so please consider joining us.

4. Film Festival

As many of you know, R-68 has been hosting a great film festival every Tuesday night of July at Hooked on Colfax at 3215 E Colfax, Denver. The cheapest night out in Denver. Come and bring a friend. For more information on upcoming films go to: http://recreate68.com/?p=66

5. Puppet Making Parties

Members of R-68 and other collectives have been making large scale puppets and signs that will be used to create a visual statement of our resistance. Please consider spending some time helping the crew. For more information, call Tom at: 720-366-1590

6. Housing Needs

Please consider opening your house/space/backyard to activists coming into town for the DNC protests. We are trying to get this done, but we need more housing! Please, if you cannot offer your space, send this E-news Flash out to folks who may (even if they can't, then they can forward this email to others who may be able to). Call people in your cell phone and ask them; forward this call to lists, your address book, etc. Time is of the essence!

Give out our housing email, housing@recreate68.org, give it out and have folks contact us ASAP. We cannot wait any longer for your aid in this area.

Please try to commit to telling at least five people about the housing, and have them tell five others.

There are old and young folks. There are folks with special needs and no needs but a wood floor. There are folks with tents and such...and need a backyard.

You are not responsible for feeding or entertaining, just a roof (semi-roof for campers). As activists, please try and spread the word, at least!!

7. R-68's Participates in the Aug. 2^nd National Call to Action to Protect Iran

Reputable anti-war activist at a national conference put out a call for local groups to participate in a national call to action to say loud and clear, "Don't Bomb Iran". Recreate 68 and others will converge on the State capitol on August 2^nd at 11 am. Please plan on joining us and lending your voice to this national statement of peace!

8. DNC Benefit Rock Show and Party

In preparation of the DNC protests, there is going to be a benefit show at the Hi-Dive on July 23, Wednesday. 7 South Broadway, 9pm. Pleistocene, Asphodel, and Radical Knitting Circle (Boulder) will be playing.
$6.00

Please come out to support Denver's only radical film festival.
www.visualizedfilmfest.org
myspace.com/visualizedflmfest

We need support! We love our community!

9. Legal Observer Training

A legal observer training will be conducted on July 16 from 7-9 pm at the Laughing Bean Cafe 901 West 10th Avenue (10th and Santa Fe). This event will be tailored to the needs and interests of attendees, particularly those who are interested in relaying presented materials and information to their communities.

• Overview and discussion of constitutional rights at stake in civic participation
• How to protect those rights at this year's DNC
• Function of legal observers
• How to serve as a legal observer this August

Please attend so you can help disseminate this information to our communities in preparation for August 24-28.

People's Law Project
www.dnc-plp.org

10. June 22^ndConsulta

Re-create 68 will be hosting the next community information meeting in a series of meetings consisting of all groups (including those separate from R-68) that are organizing for the DNC. Please come with your information in regards to your planned events to share or come to be informed of activities.

Sunday, July 20th, 11 am
The Tivoli Center on the Auraria Campus in rooms 320 a & b
Parking will be free

11. Blast From the Past

As promised, the blast from the past is back. Young warriors are important in the community, but unless we learn from the elders who paved the road we travel, we stop acting as a whole community and begin acting like individuals concerned only with ego. The voice in this E-news Flashes "Blast From the Past" comes to us from pacifist and Chicago 8 defendant David Dellinger, a pacifist who gets solidarity and what is truly at risk.

"We live in the United States, so our struggle is here. With this "way of life" ("death" would be more appropriate) there can be no truce, nor quarter. The prejudices of patriotism, the pressures of our friends, and the fear of unpopularity, imprisonment, or death should not hold us back any longer. It must be total war against the infamous economic, political, and social system that is dominant in this country. The American system has been destroying human life in peace and in war, at home and abroad, for decades. Henceforth no decent citizen owes one scrap of allegiance (if he ever did) to American law, American custom, or American institutions."

e-news@recreate68.org

http://www.whiterosesociety.org/WRS_pamphlets_home.html

McCain McBush ...The Word Is Out

Nader Financial Data

His portfolio includes Cadence Design Systems Inc. (a $1.1 billion company that designs software for semiconductors), Iomega Corp. (a $1.5 billion company that makes information storage devices) and Ziff-Davis Inc. (a $702 million media firm focused on technology, once a market leader but now selling off to CNET Networks).

Nader also has a $1.2 million investment in Cisco Systems Inc., which makes products and software to power the Internet. Cisco dominates its market, perhaps even more than Microsoft's domination of the computer operating systems market. And yet Nader and the federal government have singled out Microsoft, depressing the company's stock price and throwing the U.S. stock market into a turbulent year.

"Cisco controls a bit more than half the overall data-networking market but has, for example, 89 percent of the market for high-end routers," reported Salon magazine. "…Cisco's Washington lobbying has been concentrated on objectives like making it harder for disgruntled shareholders to sue their companies – something Nader and his various groups have vociferously opposed. It has also focused on passing legislation to issue more H1-B visas to foreign workers, while Nader has taken a strong stand against the visas."

When some of these facts about Cisco were brought to Nader's attention, he and his associates acted surprised. "Nader's raiders," who take pride in their comprehensive investigations of big business, seem not to have done their homework on Cisco.

But Nader's reaction to Cisco's extensive operations in China was more nonchalant, despite the apparent contradiction between Nader's investment and his opposition to the China trade bill that paved the way for the country's membership in the World Trade Organization. When the bill passed in Congress, Nader associate Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen, said lawmakers had "sold out to corporate interests to help them rake in even bigger profits."

Cisco is one of the leading beneficiaries of the China trade bill. The company's operations in China include technology laboratories, manufacturing alliances and joint research and development programs. Cisco CEO John Chambers has bragged that the company's 15 Chinese manufacturing partners will provide $650 million worth of parts to Cisco this year, and sales in China will reach about $500 million.

Nevertheless, Nader defended his investment to CNN's Judy Woodruff: "I don't mind trade with China in non-weapons and non-toxic materials," he said. Nader contrasted Cisco to "multinational U.S. corporations who are taking factories and setting factories over there."

Nader's financial disclosure report gives little detail about where his donations go.

But it suggests that he gives primarily to organizations he founded or controls, or which promote his ideological interests. Nader's philanthropy is hardly selfless. Indeed, it supports his own left-wing activism.

In the report, Nader lists several favorite causes, such as aviation safety. He reports that he gave an undisclosed amount to several Public Interest Research Groups. And he subsequently told the Washington Post that he donated $200,000 for "civic action projects" at his alma maters, Princeton and Harvard.

The report mentions donations in the 1970s to what Nader calls the "Congress Project"; the Washington Post says the Project received $500,000. The group no longer exists under that name. Today, "Congress Watch" is a division of Public Citizen, a group Nader founded in 1971.

In the report, Nader identifies himself as a member of the board of directors of the Appleseed Foundation and the Center for the Study of Responsive Law. The Appleseed Foundation is one of the latest Naderite groups, having been created in 1993. The network of "lawyers for justice" has formed 17 public interest law centers in 15 states with an "average annual budget" of $750,000. It claims to have "helped millions of people and affected billions of dollars," although it doesn't provide legal services to individuals.

The Center for the Study of Responsive Law, founded in 1968, was once described by Forbes magazine as "Nader's headquarters" and is at the center of the complex network of Nader-linked organizations. It promotes greater government interference in the American marketplace.

Although Nader discloses ties to only two groups, his reach is much longer. The New York Post estimated in 1996 that Nader controlled, to varying degrees, 29 organizations with combined annual revenues of $80 million. A 1982 book by Dan Burt, Abuse of Trust: A Report on Ralph Nader's Network, uncovered a network of 50 small corporations and organizations linked to Nader. Burt concluded, "Mr. Nader and his groups cannot have it both ways. On the one hand, they agitate for more and more corporate and governmental disclosure to the public. On the other, they do not feel a duty themselves to make such public disclosures."

Despite the unanswered questions, it may well be that Nader has been helping to fund all of these groups to the tune of "millions of dollars." But if we are going to believe Nader's claim that he has been a generous philanthropist over the last several decades, we have to take the word of a man who was secretly investing in the capitalist system and making millions of dollars while publicly attacking it.

http://www.realchange.org/nader.htm#hypocrite

If LaDuke is looking for Occidental stockholders to criticize, she might want to look a little closer to home. In the financial disclosure form Nader filed on June 14, the Green Party presidential candidate revealed that he owns between $100,000 and $250,000 worth of shares in the Fidelity Magellan Fund. The fund controls 4,321,400 shares of Occidental Petroleum stock.

The Rainforest Action Network -- whose members no doubt include myriad Nader Raiders -- has slammed Fidelity for "investing in genocide," and called for the fund to divest its Occidental holdings.

But even if Fidelity were to divest its holdings in Occidental, it holds shares in so many companies Nader has crusaded against, it's hard to escape the conclusion that Nader's participation in the fund is supremely hypocritical. The fund, for example, owns stock in the Halliburton Company, where George W. Bush's running mate, Dick Cheney, recently worked as president and COO. The fund has investments in supremely un-p.c. clothiers the Gap and the Limited, both of which have been the target of rocks by World Trade Organization protesters, as well as Wal-Mart, the slayer of mom-and-pop stores from coast to coast.

http://archive.salon.com/politics/feature/2000/07/13/laduke

But winning's not the point here. For a national candidate, LaDuke seems strangely ambivalent about the results. She’s not having any of that "spoiler" stuff, the accusation hurled by many Democrats - and most prominently, the New York Times editorial page -- that all she and Nader can do is ruin Al Gore, a man whom she finds inadequate, though preferable to George W. Bush. But Gore hasn't earned those votes, she'll say, and if he loses, that's too bad. Besides, to many Americans, it doesn't matter who is in Washington, anyway.

Ralph Nader and Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems Watered Stock Scheme Captures Ralph Nader, Watered Stock Defined .... to extend an offer to provide investment advisory services to Mr. Nader ... On page 15 of Schedule A, Nader was forced to disclose his shares of Cisco Systems, valued at the time at $1,158,750; Fibercore Inc., between $15,000 and $50,000; Iomega Inc., $15,000-$50,000; 3 Com Corp., $50,000-$100,000; and Ziff-Davis Inc., $50,000-$100,000, among other corporate holdings. Those were just his direct investments. Nader held an additional $2 million-plus in Fidelity and other mutual funds. You'd think that someone who so loosely throws around epithets like "corporate criminals" and "corporate crooks" would never trust corporate brass with so much of his own money. http://herndon1.sdrdc.com/cgi-bin/fecimg/?C00397216

Nader Financial Disclosure 2003 President
An annual disclosure report detailing earned and investment income, assets, financial transactions, liabilities, outside reimbursements, gifts and honoraria, positions held outside government, and agreements, arrangements and contracts.

Nader Financial Disclosure 2000 President
An annual disclosure report detailing earned and investment income, assets, financial transactions, liabilities, outside reimbursements, gifts and honoraria, positions held outside government, and agreements, arrangements and contracts.

http://www.publicintegrity.org/bop2004/candidate.aspx?cid=13&act=details#asset

Fidelity Spartan Money Market Fund	2004	$15,001	$50,000
National School Boards Assn. San Fransisco, CA	2004	$20,000	$20,000
Defined Benefit Pension Plan -- American Fedof Television and Recording Artists	2004	$16,218	$16,218
Window & Door Mfg Assn. Napa California	2004	$15,750	$15,750
Retention Trust -- note Teminated on 7/03 WashDC	2004	$5,001	$15,000
Amalgamated Bank of NY Sav. & check axxts WaDC	2004	$5,001	$15,000
Seven Stories Press New York, New York	2004	$14,642	$14,642
American Academy of Achievement Wash. DC	2004	$13,500	$13,500
Assn of College Unions INTL, Chicago Ill	2004	$12,425	$12,425
RX Insight Inc. Boston, MA	2004	$12,000	$12,000
North Mich. Univ. Marquette College Fulton, MO	2004	$12,000	$12,000
St Louis Public Lib. St Louis, Missouri	2004	$12,000	$12,000
Franklin Marchall Coollege Lancaster PA	2004	$12,000	$12,000
Indiana Univ. of Penn Indiana, PA	2004	$12,000	$12,000
Nova Scotia Barristers Society, Halifax, NS	2004	$12,000	$12,000
Univ. of Texas Permain Basin, Odessa Texas	2004	$12,000	$12,000
Univ of South Carolina, Columbia, SC	2004	$11,621	$11,621
Foundation of Excellence in Schools, Lake George, NY	2004	$11,250	$11,250
Texas A & M Kingsville, Texas	2004	$11,050	$11,050
Earlham College Richmond Indiana	2004	$10,626	$10,626
Miami University Oxford, Ohio	2004	$10,625	$10,625
Queens Univ of Charlotte Chalotte, NC	2004	$10,625	$10,625
Northwestern State Univ. Natchitoches, LA	2004	$10,200	$10,200
Westminster College Fulton, MO	2004	$10,200	$10,200
Univ. of Ottawa Ottawa, Canada	2004	$9,500	$9,500
University of Rochester Rochester, New York	2004	$9,350	$9,350
University of Minnesota Rochester, Minnesota	2004	$9,000	$9,000
Univ of Notre Dame Notre Dame IN	2004	$9,000	$9,000
California Nurses Assn. Oakland, California	2004	$9,000	$9,000
Omega Institute Rhinebeck, NY	2004	$9,000	$9,000
Ameican Library Assn, Canada	2004	$9,000	$9,000
University of Deleware Newark, DE	2004	$8,685	$8,685
Canisius College Buffalo, New York	2004	$8,500	$8,500
Bismark State College Bismark, ND	2004	$8,500	$8,500
Hamilton College Clinton, New York	2004	$8,500	$8,500
Washington St. Univ. Pullman, Washington	2004	$8,075	$8,075
Boise State University Boise, ID	2004	$7,863	$7,863
Jamestown College Jamestown, Maryland	2004	$7,650	$7,650
Idaho State Unive. Pacatello, ID	2004	$7,650	$7,650
Texas Library Assn. San Antonio, Texas	2004	$7,520	$7,520
Clemson University Clemson SC	2004	$7,200	$7,200
Hollins University Roanoke, Virginia	2004	$6,800	$6,800
Corporate Knights Ins. Toronto, Canada	2004	$6,750	$6,750
Mental Health Assn. of Lucas County, Toledo OH	2004	$6,400	$6,400
Denison University Granville, Ohio	2004	$6,375	$6,375
Univ . Mass-Dartmouth, N Dartmouth MA	2004	$6,375	$6,375
American University Law School, Wash. DC	2004	$6,000	$6,000
CUNY Graduate School/ Univ. Center NY, NY	2004	$5,400	$5,400
Streamline Publicshing Inc. NY, NY	2004	$4,500	$4,500
Univ. of Central Florida Orlando, Florida	2004	$3,816	$3,816
Riggs Bank checking acct Washington, DC	2004	$1,001	$2,500
Federated Money Market	2004	$1,001	$2,500
American Medical Student Assn. Phil, PA	2004	$1,800	$1,800
Alan Freed Ass. Washington, DC	2004	$1,750	$1,750
RX Insight Inc. Boston, MA	2004	$1,500	$1,500
Georgia Environmental Org. Inc. Atlanta, GA	2004	$1,350	$1,350
Weekly Newspaper Column	2004	$1,189	$1,189
Fidelity OTC Fund	2004	$201	$1,000
Fidelity Magellan Fund	2004	$201	$1,000
NASDAQ 100 Trust SRI	2004	$201	$1,000
Amercan Humanist Assn. Washington, DC	2004	$1,000	$1,000
Amer Council of Consumer Interests Wash, DC	2004	$1,000	$1,000
Turner Broadcasting Sys. Atlanta, Georgia	2004	$1,000	$1,000
Milton Eisenhower Fdn Washington, DC	2004	$1,000	$1,000
South Shore Bank CD Chicado Illinois	2004	$201	$1,000
E. P. Entertainment Inc. Burbank, California	2004	$902	$902
Tribune- LA Times Los Angeles, CA	2004	$500	$500
M&T Bank -- savings acct. Washington, DC	2004	$0	$201
Black Rock of NA Govt. Income Fund	2004	$0	$201
CNET/Common	2004	$0	$201
Cadence Design/Common	2004	$0	$201
Ciena/common	2004	$0	$201
Cisco/Common	2004	$0	$201
OpenTV Corp./Common	2004	$0	$201
Alliance Money Market	2004	$0	$201
Oracle/Common	2004	$0	$201
Washington Post Washington, DC	2004	$200	$200
The Nation Magazine New York NY	2004	$150	$150
The New Press New York, New York	2004	$100	$100
American Library Assn. Chicago Ill	2004	$100	$100
	2004

Asset Name	Year Filed	Min	Max
NASDAQ 100 Trust SRI	2004	$1,746,500	$1,746,500
Fidelity Spartan Money Market Fund	2004	$1,444,824	$1,444,824
Cisco/Common	2004	$250,001	$500,000
Federated Money Market	2004	$275,663	$275,663
Amalgamated Bank of NY Sav. & check axxts WaDC	2004	$100,001	$250,000
Riggs Bank checking acct Washington, DC	2004	$100,001	$250,000
Fidelity Magellan Fund	2004	$50,001	$100,000
Cadence Design/Common	2004	$50,001	$100,000
South Shore Bank CD Chicado Illinois	2004	$15,001	$50,000
Fidelity OTC Fund	2004	$15,001	$50,000
Alliance Money Market	2004	$15,001	$50,000
Oracle/Common	2004	$15,001	$50,000
M&T Bank -- savings acct. Washington, DC	2004	$1,000	$15,000
CNET/Common	2004	$1,000	$15,000
OpenTV Corp./Common	2004	$1,000	$15,000
Weekly Newspaper Column	2004	$1,189	$1,189
Retention Trust -- note Teminated on 7/03 WashDC	2004	$0	$1,000
Black Rock of NA Govt. Income Fund	2004	$0	$1,000
Ciena/common	2004	$0	$1,000
Defined Benefit Pension Plan -- American Fedof Television and Recording Artists	2004

http://www.publicintegrity.org/bop2004/candidate.aspx?cid=13&act=cp

http://www.publicintegrity.org/bop2004/candidate.aspx?cid=13&act=pfin

Based on previous disclosure forms, his stock portfolio (thru the Fidelity Magellan Fund) includes: Halliburton, Occidental Petroleum, the Limited, the Gap, Wal-Mart, Exxon-Mobil, Shell Oil Company, Sunoco, Texaco, Chevron Corporation, Raytheon (a major missile manufacturer), other various defense contractors, and Bristol-Myers Squibb. <61> <62> <63>

Even though almost ANY Democrat would be better for the country than almost any Republican, Nader only crawls out of the woodwork to attack Democrats. In spite of making money writing books on populist topics, his assets are invested in some of the worst right-wing corporations. Where he puts his money speaks more of the man than what comes out of his mouth.