Congress’ Revolution
Against Democracy.

Written by Paul Lehto to
The New York Times concerning election reform, the Holt Bill (H.R. 811) and the corruption of American elections by Congress, May 5, 2007

To the Editor:

Your May 5 editorial “Trust in Paper” ballots ignores the Bush v. Gore decisions that rejected Gore's partial recounts as well as Florida's complete recounts. Citing Equal Protection, Florida's recount was stayed [by the U.S. Supreme Court] for threatening "irreparable damage" to Bush's "apparent victory."

Election termination also occurred after a close June 6, 2006 California special election. The June 13 Congressional Record admits that 68,500 votes were uncounted even once. Nonetheless, Congress swore-in Brian Bilbray unconditionally anyway and then claimed no court or entity except the House had any power to do anything about it or the election irregularities. See Jacobson v. Bilbray.

Congress eliminated accountability on critical first counts that dictate headlines for its own elections by letting corporate contributors privatize democracy and claim trade secret [electronic vote] counts. Trusting paper's smart, but HR811 relegates paper to vulnerable post-election procedures.

Congress fails to guarantee inalienable rights precisely when needed: voting out cheating bums. While handing themselves secret counts, Congress bets our democracy corporations behave better in secret than public, and Congress gambles our freedom politicians never cheat. Only the ignorant and unpatriotic accept revolutions against democracy.

— Paul R Lehto, Juris Doctor
—Everett, WA

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