Guest Blogged by John Gideon of VotersUnite.Org
As Lou and Kitty look into the investigation by the US Treasury Department into the sale of Sequoia Voting Systems to Venezuelan nationals Lou summarizes and speaks for many; “The idea that we are at this stage with all of the problems that you’ve documented that have been demonstrated with these machines, the ties between the testing laboratories and the manufacturers, the fact that software is proprietary and that election officials wouldn’t be in charge of a recount on these things, it’s just mind-boggling.”
The text-transcript of Monday’s segment on Lou Dobbs Tonight follows in full…
The sale took place in March of 2005. Unbelievably, it has taken the United States government a year and a half to decide to investigate this sale.
Kitty Pilgrim reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We’re here to talk today…
KITTY PILGRIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It’s about time. Just days before the midterm elections, the U.S. Treasury Department is looking into Venezuelan ownership of an American voting machine company.
Sequoia, the Oakland, California, based voting machine company, was sold in 2005 to Smartmatic, a company 90 percent owned by three Venezuelan businessmen. Today, at a president press held by Smartmatic, the company showed charts of complicated holding companies, saying people just don’t understand the corporate structure.
But some in Congress understand only too well, and in June called for a review of the sale.
REP. CAROLYN MALONEY (D), NEW YORK: I have urged Treasury twice in written requests to include a review of this company. Voting machines are central to our democracy. I feel it’s a national security concern to know who owns the companies that manufacture such an important part of our democracy.
PILGRIM: Smartmatic pretends to be an all-American company, with corporate headquarters in Boca Raton, Florida. But don’t let that fool you. Only 10 people work there. Five times that many work and live in Venezuela.
But Smartmatic is in denial.
JEFF BIALOS, ATTORNEY FOR SMARTMATIC & SEQUOIA: The companies are — have been in full disclosure mode with the government. They’ve given the government a good deal of information. We’ll give them whatever they want in this area. And the companies look forward to a very full and fair inquiry by CFIUS.
PILGRIM: Of deep concern is that the Venezuelan government is openly hostile to the United States. A government led by Hugo Chavez, who at the U.N. General Assembly railed against President Bush as the devil.
Smartmatic say the Venezuelan government is not involved in its company. But the same businessmen early in their careers received startup loans from the Venezuelan government for another of their companies. They downplayed the importance of those loans, saying they paid the money back before they bought the U.S. voting machine company.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PILGRIM: During today’s press conference, Smartmatic was continuously asked when the CFIUS review process started and how long it had been going on. The company refused to answer that question, but they told this program months ago they were providing documents.
Now, Treasury late today confirmed the formal review has started but cannot tell us how far along they are in that process — Lou.
DOBBS: We need considerably more transparency in the CFIUS process, or just simply to blow it up and put together something that actually works in the interest of this country altogether. But there is some — as you look at this absurdity, at least you find some irony.
Diebold, which had been run by a man with very specific affections for the Bush administration; Sequoia now with a company that appears to have very specific affections for Hugo Chavez. There’s some symmetry, if not sense, in all of that.
It doesn’t do anything, of course, to make any of us feel better about what’s going on with e-voting machines in this country.
The idea that we are at this stage with all of the problems that you’ve documented that have been demonstrated with these machines, the ties between the testing laboratories and the manufacturers, the fact that software is proprietary and that election officials wouldn’t be in charge of a recount on these things, it’s just mind-boggling.
PILGRIM: It’s truly shocking that we’re this close to the election and much of this has not been resolved.
DOBBS: Kitty, thank you very much.
Uh oh, now they’ve gone and pissed off Lou Dobbs..
What’s most amazing is that this administration is willing to investigate an e-voting machine company that has anti administration leanings, meanwhile, the even more egregious Diebold, with it’s PRO administration leanings, goes about it’s shady business comepletely untouched!
Despicable
Anti-American
Un-Patriot
Fascist Criminals
This is the new America of greedy thieves who line their pockets and have effectively destroyed our system of government which made us different than the monarchies, communism, dictatorships etc.
They have taken over our country with a corporate agenda and a plan to destroy the planet.
Some are Democrats and the all are Republican. Most are involved with the changes to our Constitution(eroding the rights of US citizens), reversing over 200 environmental laws, and taking America to war in Iraq. A country which had as much to do with the government orchestrated 911 (WT Building #7 and the Pentagon) as Canada or Mexico.
These lying murderers must be stopped. I will see these bastards Bush/Cheney/Rice/Rumsfeld/Ashcroft and all the other corrupt bastards in jail for their crimes against Americans and the Iraqi citizens.
As they race to an election where they have sold these rigged unverifiable voting machines, we are on THEIR PATH OF DESTRUCTION.
We have 2 years to lower the carbon dioxide level to stop a dangerous climate change that will kill off over 1 million different species from this planet.
Their oil war. World people hate the American goverment now. Their war based on lies is rallying a threat of violence and escalating nuclear war.
These fcks have built jails throughout the country in the last 2 years and we must put them in jail.
Mark my words your disgusting people who have abused our American system with your perversions, materialism, and a will to take away any connection to life on this planet. You think you are smarter than everyone. We’re gonna take you over.
This is exactly the kind of craziness that is only possible in today’s media-technology-politi-sphere. Comments by TV personalities are instantly linked via YouTube and dismantled. How much more for the politicians? They can barely speak without the blogosphere lighting up. But, I think the changing face of politics is a great thing. The technology involved in this year’s mid-terms will pale in comparison to the ’08 efforts…mark my words. I talked about it on my podcast today, if you’re interested…the hub on politics and technology…you’ve obviously got one heck of a technology portal here at bradblog so you’re a part of the amazing transformation going on right now in American politics…bravo.
Dobbs is lying. He couldn’t care less.
November 7, 2006
Arthur W. Anderson
Supervisor of Elections
240 South Military Trail
West Palm Beach, FL 33415
Dear Mr. Anderson,
I am writing this letter of complaint regarding the election process of 2006 in Jupiter Florida, district 1083.
First Complaint:
I received 2 separate mailings indicating to me I would be voting at the Jupiter Community High School.
On the morning of November 7, I drove to the school and there was no visible activity of voting. There was no sign indicating a location change. I drove back to the Jupiter Convention Center where I saw a sign stating “Vote Here”. I went inside and was told by election volunteers to go back to Jupiter High School and use the entrance at Tooney Penna Drive. I drove to that location and again there was no visible sign of voting. I saw another “Vote Here” sign across Military Trail at the Library and went in to see if I could vote there. The first gentleman I encountered informed me that a police officer had been in previous to me and was asking the same question. I was directed to the supervisor and was told to go to Harvest Community Church on South Pennock Lane, an obscure location. I went inside and of the three people standing at the registration table, two were complaining about going to the wrong location before arriving at this one. I was the fourth person and also complained to an apathetic female supervisor wearing a head band.
I live in one of the poorest districts in this most affluent community known as Jupiter. I believe this was an intentional run-around given in an attempt to keep us away from the polls!
Second Complaint:
I voted with no trouble using the Sequoia voting machine. That is until I cast my ballot. I saw a paper scrolling out of the back of the machine. My initial thought, was “good, a paper trail, I am happy”.
I left the building and got into my vehicle. I though to myself, wait a minute, I don’t know what the paper said. I went back inside the polling location and examined the paper that had scrolled out. It indicated all zeros in the fields to select the candidates. By this time the supervisor approached me and asked if I needed help. I told her there were all zeros in the fields and she informed me that was normal procedure and at the end of the evening a final paper scroll would show the actual result of my ballot. This is COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE! What purpose does this paper hold? Obviously it is a sense of false security for it’s users who, I can assure you, are overwhelmingly fooled into a sense of false security. This paper and ink are a total WASTE!
With the old paper butterfly ballots, I saw which holes I punched and turned it in ““ that was my proof of how I voted! With this Sequoia Machine I have absolutely no indication what I cast is what the machine actually recorded.
Shame to all of you who have blindly contributed to the demise of what was once a legitimate Democracy!
Sincerely,
Mike Pollutro