POLITICS

DEMOCRAT'S NEW HERO RAHM EMANUEL IS PRO-WAR

JOHN WALSH, COUNTERPUNCH - I wrote that the chair of the Democratic
Congressional Campaign Committee, Congressman Rahm Emanuel, had worked
hard to guarantee that Democratic candidates in key toss-up House races
were pro-war. In this he was largely successful, because of the money he
commands and the celebrity politicians who reliably respond to his call,
ensuring that 20 of the 22 Democratic candidates in these districts are
pro-war. . .

In 2006, no matter which party controls the House, a majority will be
committed to pursuing the war on Iraq - despite the fact that the
Democratic rank and file and the general voting public oppose the war by
large margins. . .

How does Emanuel, the man who has screened and chosen the 2006
Democratic candidates for Congress, feel specifically about the war on
Iraq, the number one issue on voters' minds. Emanuel and Reed do not so
much as mention Iraq in their book except in terms of the "war on
terror." Nor does Emanuel mention Iraq on his web site as among the
important issues facing us, quite amazing omission and one shared by
Chuck Schumer who is his equivalent of the Senate side, chairing the
Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. . . . In January 2005, when
asked by Meet the Press's Tim Russert whether he would have voted to
authorize the war - 'knowing that there are no weapons of mass
destruction' - Emanuel answered yes. (He didn't take office until after
the vote.) . . .

When Jack Murtha made his proposal for withdrawal from Iraq, Emanuel
quickly declared that "Jack Murtha went out and spoke for Jack Murtha."
As for Iraq policy, Emanuel added: "At the right time, we will have a
position." That was November, 2005. In June, 2006, it was obviously
time, and Emanuel finally revealed his policy in a statement on the
floor of the House during debate over Iraq, thus: "The debate today is
about whether the American people want to stay the course with an
administration and a Congress that has walked away from its obligations
or pursue a real strategy for success in the war on terror. We cannot
achieve the end of victory and continue to sit and watch, stand pat,
stay put, status quo and that is the Republican policy. Democrats are
determined to take the fight to the enemy." The refrain is familiar;
more troops are the means and victory in Iraq is the goal. . .

http://www.counterpunch.org/walsh10242006.html

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KEEPING YOUR EYE ON THE CALL

THOSE DEMANDING voting machine reform often refer to the need for a
paper trail. But as Thomas McBirney wrote to the Washington Post, "It is
just as easy to build a machine that prints a non-trustworthy piece of
paper as it is to build a non-trustworthy machine that does not." The
best present solution appears to be this:

- Touch screen voting with a paper replica of the cast vote.

- Paper replica is inserted in an optical scan machine

- Paper ballot is deposited in a ballot box.

Both the touch screen and optical scan votes are counted and compared
for anomalies - with the paper ballot as a backup.

Short of that, it's best to use the old paper ballots and hope the
counters are honest.

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