”Challenging U.S. Human Rights Violations Since 9/11”
B. The Government's Duty to Count the Votes Accurately and Report to the People Honestly
These duties are described in the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights and Amendments, and are also part of the common law and the law of nations. The Administration uses the common law and law of nations in its reports on violations of law by other nations (see section 15 below). The U.S. has a commitment to enforce this law within the U.S. and in all of the actions of the U.S. government.
-by Ann Fagan Ginger
The most obvious duty of the federal government is to see that the votes in federal elections are counted honestly. This count permits the Electoral College to decide who won the power to run the administrative branch of the federal government, and the U.S. military.
12. Administration Statements Challenged
The sharp questions about the Florida and other election results led to anger at the Administration in many communities, particularly African American and low income. The Congressional Black Caucus took the unprecedented step of asking the United Nations to send observers to monitor the 2004 election. (The U.N. only has the power to grant such requests when a national government makes the request.)
Immediately after the allegations of lying about the election returns, the Administration made statements about weapons of mass destruction requiring U.S. invasion of Iraq. The U.S. Constitution article II is full of duties of the President to report to Congress and to the people. The U.N. Charter sets forth similar duties by the heads of state.
Voters Mistrust 2002 Election Results
(Source: http://www.bartcop.com/111102fraud.htm accessed July 31, 2004; Paul Krugman, "Hack the Vote," New York Times, December 2, 2002, http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/02/opinion/02krug.html accessed April 20, 2004; Elena Cabral, Oscar Corral, and William Yardly, "Angry Frustrated Voters Fault Officials for Lapses," Miami Herald, September 12, 2002, http://www.miami.com/mld/miami/4054880.htm?1c accessed July 13, 2004; Alastair Thompson, "American Coup: Mid-Term Election Polls vs Actuals," Scoop.co.nz, November 12, 2002, http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0211/S00078.htm accessed August 3, 2004; Thom Hartman, "If You Want to Win an Election, Just Control the Voting Machines," CommonDreams.org, January 31, 2003, http://www.commondreams.org/views03/0131-01.htm accessed July 8, 2004; Lloyd Freeman, "Florida Fouls up State Election: Reno Defeated," Howard University's The Hilltop, September 20, 2002, http://www.thehilltoponline.com/global_user_elements/printpage.cfm?storyid=278269 accessed July 13, 2004; Chris Floyd, ""Disappearing" the Republic at the Push of a Button, Vanishing Act," Counterpunch, September 26, 2003, http://www.counterpunch.org/floyd09262003.html accessed July 10, 2004; R.B. McHam, "A Government Hijacked, The Illegal Coup of '02," LinkCrusader.com, July 7, 2003, http://www.linkcrusader.com/vote_machines.htm accessed July 13, 2004.)
Wilson Stated Administration Used Information Known To Be False: Joseph Wilson
(James Bovard, "Bush's WMD Flimflams," Freedom Daily, September 2003, http://www.fff.org/freedom/fd0309d.asp accessed June 23, 2004; Joseph C. Wilson, "What I Didn't Find in Africa," New York Times, July 6, 2003, http://www.commondreams.org/views03/ 0706-02.htm accessed July 30, 2004; AFP, "White house Backs Off Iraqi Uranium Claim," Common Dreams, July 8, 2003, http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0708-09.htm accessed July 30, 2004; Robert Scheer, "A Diplomat's Undiplomatic Truth: They Lied," The Nation, July 9, 2003, http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20030721&s=scheer20030708 accessed July 30, 2004.)
Investigation of Administration Leak of CIA Agent's Identity: Valerie Plame
(Lakshmi Chaudhry, "The Importance of Being Joe Wilson," AlterNet, November 3, 2003, http://www.alternet.org/story/17091 accessed July 30, 2004; Bill Nichols and John Diamond, "War Critic at Center of CIA Flap Always Vague on Wife's Job," USA Today, October 1, 2003, http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2003-09-30-couple_x.htm accessed July 30, 2004; Associated Press, "White House Staff Investigating CIA Leak," JSOnline, October 4, 2003, http://www.jsonline.com/news/nat/ap/oct03/ap-cia-leak100403.asp?format=print accessed August 9, 2004; "Valerie Plame 2004 Headlines," Disinfopedia, http://www.disinfopedia.org/wiki.phtml?title=Valerie_Plame/External_Links:_2004 accessed June 21, 2004; Terence Hunt, "Bush Consults Lawyer in CIA Leak Case," Guardian, June 3, 2004, http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4162100,00.html accessed August 5, 2004.)
9/11 Widow Files RICO Lawsuit Against Bush: Ellen Mariani
(Philip J. Berg, "9-11 Victim's Wife Files RICO Case Against GW," November 26, 2003, http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0311/S00261.htm accessed July 30, 2004; Ellen Mariani, "911 Victim Ellen Mariani Open Letter To The POTUS," Scoop New Zealand News, November 27, 2003, http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0311/S00262.htm accessed August 5, 2004.)
National Commission Issued Report on 9/11
("Bush asks Daschle to Limit Sept. 11 Probe," CNN.com, January 29, 2002, http://www.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/01/29/inv.terror.probe/ accessed July 29, 2004; Brian Montopoli, "Schlep to Judgment," Washington Monthly, September 2003, http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2003/0309.montopoli.html accessed July 27, 2004; Laurence Arnold, "Bush Calls White House Data on the 9-11 Attacks 'Sensitive'," Associated Press, Oct. 27, 2003, http://www.apfn.net/messageboard/10-28-03/discussion.cgi.75.html accessed July 29, 2004; Ken Silverstein, "Congress Presses White House For 9/11 Papers," Los Angeles Times, Oct. 27, 2003, http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/1027-07.htm accessed July 29, 2003; Patrick Martin, "Terrorism Commission Caves in to White House over 9/11 Documents," World Socialist Website, November 24, 2003, http://wsws.org/articles/2003/nov2003/911-n24.shtml accessed July 27, 2004; Hope Yen, "9/11 Panel Says Iraq Rebuffed Bin Laden," Associated Press, http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040616/D83860A00.html accessed July 29, 2004, 2004; Editorial, "The Plain Truth," New York Times, June 17, 2004, Section A , Page 28, http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/17/opinion/17THU1.html accessed July 27, 2004; David Johnson and Douglas Jehl, "Report Cites Lapses Across Government and 2 Presidencies," New York Times, July 23, 2004, p. A1; Philip Shenon, "9/11 Report Calls for Sweeping Overhaul of Intelligence," New York Times, July 23, 2004, p. A10; "A Citizen's Critique: The 9/11 Commission Process," 9/11 Citizens Watch, http://www.911citizenswatch.org/9-11-Commission-Critique.rtf accessed July 27, 2004; Ron Hutcheson, "Bush Agreed to Talk to Kean Commission only with Cheney at his side," New Jersey News-Ledger, http://www.911citizenswatch.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=173 accessed July 27, 2004; Greg Gordon, "Dayton: FAA, NORAD hid 9/11 failures," Minneapolis Star Tribune, July 31, 2004, http://www.startribune.com/stories/484/4904237.html accessed August 3, 2004; "Letter From Sibel Edmonds to the 9/11 Commission," OpEdNews.com, August 1, 2004, http://www.opednews.com/edmonds_080304_911_commission_letter.htm accessed August 4, 2004; Audio interview with Sibel Edmonds and Daniel Ellsberg at "Sibel Edmonds Story," http://www.kathymcmahon.utvinternet.com/mrn/Sibel-Edmonds.htm accessed/listened to August 9, 2004; Judy Sarasohn, "9/11 Commission Gets Outside PR Help," Washington Post, August 5, 2004, http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A41221-2004Aug4?language=printer accessed August 6, 2004; Verena Dobnik, "9/11 Commission's Book Selling Well," Associated Press, July 23, 2004, http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4344568,00.html accessed August 6, 2004; Mitch Jeserich, "Bush Responds to 911 Report." Free Speech Radio News, August 2, 2004, http://www.fsrn.org/news/20040802_news.html accessed/listened to August 4, 2004; Zachary Coile, "Bush has own plan for new spy chief: Job wouldn't be in Cabinet as report urged," San Francisco Chronicle, August 3, 2004, http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/08/03/MNGDL81RFT1.DTL accessed August 8, 2004; "Bush Nominated Goss for CIA Head" Democracy Now!, August 11, 2004, http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/08/11/144246 listened to and accessed August 11, 2004.)
Waxman Report Exposes Administration's Misleading Statements: Henry Waxman
(Committee On Government Reform -- Minority Staff Special Investigations Division, "Iraq on the Record: The Bush Administration's Public Statements on Iraq," a.k.a "Waxman Report," United States House of Representatives, March 16, 2004, http://www.house.gov/reform/min/pdfs_108_2/pdfs_inves/ pdf_admin_iraq_on_the_record_rep.pdf accessed August 9, 2004.)
U.S. Office of Strategic Influence Proposed to Issue Lies
(Tom Carver, "Pentagon Plans Propaganda War," BBC News, February 20, 2002, http://www.100777.com/node/view/317 accessed June 21, 2004; Sonoma State University, "CIA Continues OSI Programs," Censored Alert, Fall 2003, v.7 issue 1 p. 4; "The Office of Strategic Influence is Gone, But Are Its Programs Still In Place?" Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, November 27, 2002, http://www.fair.org/press-releases/osi-followup.html accessed August 9, 2004; Press Briefing Transcript, "Secretary Rumsfeld Media Availability En Route to Chile," United States Department of Defense, November 18, 2002, http://www.defenselink.mil/transcripts/2002/t11212002_t1118sd2.html accessed August 9, 2004.)
U.S. Lawmakers Ask UN to Monitor 2004 U.S. Presidential Elections
(Joe Garofoli, "Lawmakers Ask U.N. to Monitor Elections," San Francisco Chronicle, July 9, 2004, http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/07/09/BAGBC7I14712.DTL accessed July 9, 2004; Letter from Rep. Bernice Johnson to The Honorable Colin Powell, U.S. Secretary of State, July 8, 2004; Dan Morgan, "Proposal to Have U.N. Monitor Elections Ends in Partisan Clash," Washington Post, July 19, 2004, Page A15, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60143-2004Jul18.html accessed July 19, 2004; Joseph Farah, "Renewed push for U.N. to monitor U.S. voting," WorldNet Daily, July 21, 2004, http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=39549 accessed August 9, 2004.)
Florida Puts Ex-Felons Back on Voter Roles
(Associated Press, "State Clemency Board Restores Rights to Thousands of Felons," News4Jax.com, June 17, 2004, http://www.news4jax.com/news/3430292/detail.html accessed July 15, 2004; Associated Press, "Florida Won't Strip 2,5000 Ex-Felons of Voting Rights," News4Jax.com, July 8, 2004, http://www.news4jax.com/politics/3506963/detail.html accessed July 15, 2004; Associated Press, "Voter Purge List Released," News-Press.com, July 2, 2004, http://www.southwestfloridaonline.com/news/local_state/040702ruling_lee_bon.html accessed July 15, 2004; CNN, "Florida Scrapes List of Suspected Felons Barred from Voting," CNN.com, July 12. 2004, http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/07/12/felons/ accessed July 15, 2004.)