Election Reform Commission

This from BradBlog today:

“Executive Director of National Election Reform Commission Goes Ballistic at BRAD BLOG!
Dr. Robert A. Pastor Accuses Velvet Revolution of ‘Harassment’, Sending Fake Email!
Supplies no evidence for his conspiracy theory, nor his firm belief that Republicans won Election 2004.

“Earlier this evening, we received a phone call from Dr. Robert A. Pastor, the Executive Director of the Baker/Carter National Election Reform Commission.

“It was an interesting conversation.

“Apparently, he was irate at us because Americans are sending Email to him and the commissioners complaining about the fact that James A. Baker, III is co-chairing the Commission. Baker, of course, is the long-time Bush Family loyalist and Bush/Cheney trial law attorney who architected the strategy to ensure that Americans’ votes would not be counted in the 2000 election.

“Pastor made it clear that he felt those Emails, sent by individual American citizens to the commission, actually constituted “harassment” and he charged that the thousands of Emails that he and the commissioners were receiving was, in actuality, being sent by “about 6 or 7 people”!

“Velvet Revolution is a coalition of some 100 Election Reform and Voting Rights organizations, none of whom were invited to participate in this commission in any way, nor even knew anything about its creation. VR is co-founded by BRAD BLOG and has created a page where Americans can send Email to Jimmy Carter and the commissioners to let them know how they feel about Baker sitting as Co-Chair and some of his other cronies being seated on this commission.

“If you are not one of the “6 or 7 people” who have already sent Email via that page, feel free to do so now.

“If you are one of the “6 or 7 people” that have sent email via that page, you can let Bob Pastor know that it was really you who sent the email hoping to make your voice heard, by sending him another email to that effect at his email address, rpastor@american.edu, which is posted on his public webpage at the American University, Center for Democracy & Election Management site. His phone number is also listed on that page if you’d like to chat with him, but we will do him the courtesy of not reposting it here.

“We did our best to make notes of the extraordinary conversation that took place during the phone call as it unfolded…These are some of the highlights…or lowlights as the case may be…

“If you’re trying to make sure you are heard,” he yelled at us on the phone, “you’ve been heard! But we’re not going to work with you because you are harassing us!”

“How is individual email being sent by individual American Citizens to let you know that they find it absurd that the man responsible for ensuring the votes of Americans would never be counted in the 2000 Election would be appointed as co-chair of a secretly formed Election Reform Committee?…That there couldn’t be a more inappropriate choice for the job…how is that harassment?” we asked him….”

More here. I have taken the time to write to Dr. Pastor an individual email assuring him that I’m one of the “6 or 7 people” who sent an email last week and I’ve asked him how the Commission members were appointed and by whom. No reply so far.

I’ve also taken the time to send the following email around to many of the media outlets:
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Subject: Carter-Baker Election Reform Commission doesn’t care what Americans think.

To Whom It May Concern,

I would like to call your attention to a matter of grave national
concern, and that is the integrity of our voting process. Apparently,
Dr. Robert A. Pastor of the Commission on Election Reform, who asks
for citizen input, does not want to hear from the American public of
their grave concerns over some of the appointments to the commission
and has recently told Brad Friedman, who heads up a coalition of over
100 election Reform and Voting Rights organizations, that we, the
American People, would not be listened to. Dr. Pastor received
thousands of emails from concerned citizens (about the Carter-Baker
Commission), and he believes they were sent by only 6 or 7 people.

I find it very disturbing that while no one in the established voting
rights community had advanced knowledge of the Carter-Baker
Commission’s creation, the group ACVR did. ACVR, as anyone can plainly
see by reading their 31-page report, is a fraudulent voting rights
group. ACVR is composed of top GOP lawyers and activists, while
claiming to be non-partisan. ACVR was deceptive in concealing their
partisan nature at the House Administrative Committee’s hearing on
voting issues. ACVR completely avoids the topic of paperless
electronic voting machines – which is the number one danger to our
democracy. ACVR places the blame of all fraud on left-leaning groups,
while not acknowledging any on the right. ACVR is hardly
“non-partisan”. That ACVR endorsed the Carter-Baker Commission shortly
after the Commission was announced also makes the Commission highly
suspect.

To be blunt, I have very good reasons to suspect the Commission was
created to whitewash the 2004 election issues, and to make voting less
transparent. I fear that this Commission is nothing more than another
administration / Republican party sham and smokescreen designed to
defuse legitimate investigations into the actual process and to short
circuit meaningful election reforms.

I am writing to you because I am hoping you will assign an
investigative reporter or two on this story and thoroughly cover the
issue. More information about all of the above can be found here:
http://www.bradblog.com/archives/00001337.htm
and
http://velvetrevolution.us/

Thank you for your time and consideration.

{signature}
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So far, I have received form letter responses from the NYTimes and the Washington Post, who advised me to redirect my letter to national@washpost.com, which I’ve done. Please read the entire entry at BradBlog linked above and also the comments from readers that followed on that entry. If you feel moved to write letters to express your opinion about this matter, please do. Also consider writing to media outlets to inform them of what is taking place.

Thanks.

***Update: Dateline NBC responded with a form letter, but assured me they will read my email.