I'm Over It

 I spent part of yesterday trying to dissect the tsunami that hit the Democrats in Virginia.  And New Jersey, and a Texas House seat.  Virginia was he big news, but New Jersey was a very close race that should have been an easy win for Democrats, and Democrats lost a long time House seat in San Antonio.

This was not just about Virginia, although Virginia is hugely important.

If you look on the left side of the aisle, they are taking the wrong message from what happened to Tuesday.  According to the woke crew, it was all about white supremacy.  For example:

Or maybe this:

I'm over it, and have been since the early 70s.  It's true that I was born in deep-South Louisiana, but I've been over the racial divide since I became an adult. Since When I was a child, I did childish things, but when I became an adult, I served with magnificent black officers and NCOs  who I trusted with my life and who I counted as brothers. As a civilian police officer, I served with countless magnificent black officers who I trusted  with my life and counted as brothers. and sisters.  I've been over race for fifty years.

The Democrats in general, and the left in particular, needs to get over race, and catch up with a broad swath of the country who judge people by the content of their character.  We've been over race for years.  

Maybe, just maybe, some of the ideas that the Democrats espouse don't fit the ideals of many Americans.

Perhaps, calling whole segments of the electorate "white supremacists" isn't a good idea.

Perhaps, pushing transgender policies while covering up rape in a bathroom isn't a good idea.

Perhaps calling concerned parents "domestic terrorists" is not a good idea.

Perhaps allowing huge populations of illegal migrants into the country is not a good idea.

Perhaps lockdowns, mandates, and vaccine passports are not a good idea.

Perhaps raising taxes is not a good idea.

I could go on for a while.  Call me a racist if you like, of a trans-phobe, or a sexist, or any other of your labels to divide us.  But don't expect me to vote for you.  I am over your labeling.

No Fraid

 It seems that an audit of votes in one New Hampshire election were wrongly counted by a machine, and wrongly assigned to the Democrat candidate.  But there was no fraud.

"We found no evidence of fraud or political bias," Mark Lindeman, one of the three auditors and the acting co-director of Verified Voting, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization, said. "I have heard no one actually articulate a credible hypothesis of how fraud could account for what we found."

It was simply a machine error that assigned votes wrongly to the Democrat. 

The town used the machine to fold the absentee ballots before sending them to voters. After they were returned, the ballots were fed into a counting machine. Because the folds on some ballots went through a Democrats name, the ballot was either not counted or a vote was wrongly given to the Democrat.

It seems that the recount and audit were requested by a losing Democrat candidate.  What they found was that the machine counted some votes for the Democrat, but the Republican won anyway. Now that the audit is complete, it appears that the Republican won by a wider margin than was originally reported. 

Maricopa County

 Maricopa County, AZ is not in the news, and it should be.  The auditors have found some discrepancies that may suggest that the vote was rigged.  The audit is not complete yet, but they are finding things like databases being deleted, a lack of password protection on key systems, and discrepancies with the actual votes in boxes.

“Do you know how shocking that is? 17.5% discrepancy in a batch is beyond belief.” He added, “In one they’ve got 18 more than there’s supposed to be, which is a 9% discrepancy. Again, if we are to have any confidence in elections in this country, how can we possibly be okay with discrepancies of double digit percentages? It’s absolutely mind boggling, anything above a tiny fraction of a percentage is unacceptable, by the way, unacceptable according to the Federal Elections Commission.”

Elections are won, county by county.  It seems that Maricopa County officials have questions to answer.  There are now serious questions regarding whether of not Joe Biden actually won Arizona.  This won't change the fact that Biden is president, but it should provide a cautionary tale about vote fraud. It also raises questions about Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Georgia.  Those audits won't change the current result, but it should provide incentives for the next election.  Elections should be free, fair, and accurate.

As for the current election officials in Maricopa County?  Hanging might be a bit severe, but leading a coup has always been a hazardous occupation..

SCOTUS Punts

 The US Supreme Court has once again punted on the Pennsylvania election case, claiming that now that the election is over, the question is MOOT.  

Here’s the thing about this particular case in Pennsylvania. The legislature had voted and passed legislation that mandated ALL ballots, including absentee ballots, be received by 8pm on election night. Any ballots received after that deadline wouldn’t be counted. This was a well-known rule throughout Pennsylvania. 

 But then, the State Supreme Court got involved after Democrats sued. Suddenly, in the midst of the election, after ballots had already been sent out, the court moved the deadline to three days AFTER the election. Their reasons? Covid and the U.S. mail. Stupid reasons if you ask me. But that is what Pennsylvania’s court did. They arbitrarily overruled the legislation because reasons. What’s even worse about their ruling is it also opened the door to allowing ballots to be counted, even if no signature nor a valid postmark. But nothing to see here, no potential of election fraud whatsoever. None.

Here's the problem as I see it.  The legislature allowed these shenanigans.  The legislature had recourse, after the election date.  The US Constitution requires that the legislature meet after the election, to certify the results. If the legislature had refused to certify the results of the election based on the changes made in election procedures, the result would have been that Pennsylvania would have sent no electors to the Electoral College.

Likewise, in Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, et al, if those legislatures had refused to certify the results to the election.  There would have been a huge uproar, but it would have been Constitutional,  The legislature holds the responsibility to certify the results of the elections in their respective states, and that certification should be more than a rubber-stamp..

As much as I rail at the Supreme Court, they may have backed into the correct conclusion.  The certification of an election rests with the legislature.  If the legislature fails to hold the election officials accountable, then why should the Supreme Court hold them accountable?

Was the Election Stolen?

 The Democrats really don't want this drum beaten, so I'll keep whacking it.  And, I see that John Hinderaker, at Powerline, is beating it as well.

Democrats are making extraordinary efforts to suppress all discussion of whether Joe Biden actually won the 2020 presidential election. In fact, they go even farther: they want to suppress all discussion of the extent to which voter fraud occurred. That naturally makes me want to write about voter fraud, and who really won the election.

There is no doubt tat there was fraud.   That is plainly in evidence, and whether or not there was enough fraud to steal the election is a matter of question.

Even greater doubts about the election arise from the deliberately loose procedures that governed voting. Something like 69 million mail-in votes were cast, and until two months ago, everyone agreed that mail-in voting is highly susceptible to fraud. But the laxity in 2020 went far beyond the risks inherent in mail-in votes. I put it this way: I don’t know whether the Democrats stole the 2020 election, but I do know that they tried hard to steal it.

Go read the whole thing.   

I do know that in the case o Louisiana, we routinely try to catch and prosecute those who attempt voter fraud.  We recently identified and arrested one such scoundrel.  But, the Democrats don't even want to talk about election integrity.  You have to ask yourself why.

No Fraud, Huh?

 It takes a while to root these bastards out, but voter fraud is everywhere.  For example, in Amite, LA, we have this heartwarming story.

Emanuel Zanders, a councilman in Amite, Louisiana, has been arrested and charged with eight counts of voter fraud, Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry announced Wednesday morning.

Evidently, he wanted people to be able to vote or him in his district.

 Landry says Zanders allegedly urged 22 people to list vacant lots as their home addresses in order to attempt to increase the number of people who were eligible to vote for him.

Hopefully, before long, the dirty scoundrel will be wearing  jail-house orange for a few minths before swapping it o the blue chambray shirts worn by inmates in the state pen.

Don't tell me that there is no voter fraud.

We Can Still Fix This

 Biden is going to be sworn in.  There is nothing we can do about that.  But, there is no reason why each state can't fix the problem that led to this abomination of an election result.  The Constitution is clear, that the state legislatures control the manner in which electors are chosen.  Not the bureaucrats, not the Governor, not the state courts.  The legislature.  In any reading of the US Constitution, that is plain.  What is also plain from the recent Supreme Court "punt" on the question, it must be fixed in each state.  One state cannot sue another state to fix this particular problem.

In an article at PJMedia, Stacey Lennox talks about this problem:

Many Georgia residents are horrified that we live in a state supposedly run by a Republican trifecta, yet our election procedures deviated so drastically from the election laws passed by our legislators.

Well, if Georgian residents are horrified at the outcome, they need to fix the problem.  The legislature needs to assert itself against those who would thwart their intentions, and if necessary, take it all the way to the US Supreme Court.  Surely, if Texas cannot, then the legislatures in the several states can sure their Governors and election officials to ensure that the will of the legislature is followed.

Our Governor in Louisiana tried to loosen our election procedures to achieve a desired outcome, and he greatly expanded fraudulent voting to achieve those ends.  Luckily, our Secretary f State was able to mitigate the most extreme wishes of our Governor to modulate the practice.  I am convinced that the election returns in Louisiana accurately reflect he will of he people, but I will be contacting my legislators to  ensure that the will of the legislature is followed whether the Governor likes it or not.

The several states listed recently as "battleground" states should follow the same course,  If the voting practices in those states do not scrupulously follow the law, then it is the legislatures responsibility to hold those election officials accountable.  If the state Courts don't fall into line on scrupulously backing the legislature, then I'm sure that there are impeachment remedies available to the legislatures.

People Ask: That Texas Suit

 People are asking me, and I have o idea why, about the motion that Texas has filed seeing suit against the battle ground states.  I'm not a lawyer, but I did spend a lot o time in court rooms durg my street-cop career.  The rarefied air of the highest court is something with which I have no experience.  I"m sure that they are nicer digs than the tawdry parish courts I testified in.

But, I am a casual observer, and I can read, and I notice that Article 5, Section 2 of our Constitution akes the Supremes the original jurisdiction controversies between states.  It's their job to listen to squabbles between states.

I'm sure that the last thing that the Supremes want to get involved in is this particular squabble.  They would rather opine at leisure about arcane matters of obscure law.  If they wanted to get involved in precinct-level politics, they would be working in some public defender's office.  And, precinct-level politics is precisely what is at stake here.  Texas is claiming that changing the rules in mid-stream in those other states has harmed the citizens of Texas.

John Roberts is squishy at best.  And you can believe that he would love to punt on this one.  His law clerks are (if my guess is right) are currently looking at lots of dusty law books.  Some observers believe that the Texas motion is frivolous, yet it may go squarely to the Equal Protection clause.

There is no doubt that there were shenanigans.  Seventy-four million Americans feel that they have been robbed.  If the Supremes punt on this one, they may initiate a constitutional crisis, the very thing they are supposed to prevent.

It will be interesting to see what they do.

The Problem With The Press

 The problem with the press is that they have seemed to lack all manner of objectivity.  Instapundit has for years described them as "Democrat operatives with bylines", but the willful lack of objectivity and total lack of curiosity abut anything that runs counter to the narrative is appalling.

There is no conceivable doubt that there were Democrat shenanigans during this past election.  Half of America is wondering what-the-hell happened, yet the press seems to be absolutely disinterested in  knowing how many votes were tampered with, 

The head of the GOP in Michigan, Roma McDaniel, has filed a suit alleging misconduct across a broad swath of Michigan.  In her press briefing yesterday she detailed 131 affidavits of wrong-doing.

McDaniel detailed the claims of many of the affidavits. “I hope you look at these affidavits,” she told the press. “And I hope you hear from the people who were there [in Detroit].” She also urged the media to care about the reports of voter fraud and intimidation instead of just ignoring or suppressing them as they have been doing and moving on with the news cycle as if their declaration of a win for Biden is the final word on the matter.

But, the press is so giddy with the thought that they won, that they chose to heckler her instead. 

If there is oe count of voter fraud, t should be investigated and prosecuted.  The integrity of the process is vital to the continued assessment of the population that our process is fair and equitable. Whoever is in charge should insist that our election process be rigorous and equitable.  

For a time, I was involved in politics.  I ran as a candidate.  I lost, but I took solace in the knowledge that the process was fair and that the people of my parish had made their choice. I was okay with that.

If, though, the American people ever lose faith in the electoral process, if they lose faith in the ballot box, the only alternative might be the cartridge box.

It is time for the press to become curious about election shenanigans, because the alternative is simply unthinkable.

Jason Miller Outlines Ballot Harvesting In GA

This election isn't over yet.  

Corruption? Much?

It May Be Over

 It looks like the mail-in ballots swung the pendulum to Biden's side.  Decision Desk has just called the race in Pennsylvania for Joe Biden, and their electoral votes puts him over the 270 needed to win.

On Friday morning just before 9 a.m. Eastern, Decision Desk called the State of Pennsylvania for Democratic nominee Joe Biden, giving Biden 273 electoral votes and the presidency. According to Decision Desk, Biden win with just over 5,000 votes. The vote-counting is not over yet, however. The results take some time to confirm and President Donald Trump’s campaign has formally requested a recount in at least one swing state.

It isn't looking good for the home team in Arizona, nor in Georgia.   Mail-in ballots seem to be the key to winning close races.  How many of those are fraudulent are yet to be seen, but we may never know the answer to that question.

As of this writing, it looks like we kept control of the Senate, and made gains in the House.  Hopefully our legislators can stand as a firewall against the more onerous depredations of a Biden administration.

I'm sure that Biden is breathing a sigh of relief.  It's fairly settled law that no one can indict a sitting president, so he's safe for the time being.  With his Justice Dept., it's highly questionable whether Hunter will ever be prosecuted for money laundering.

I have a feeling that the Biden years are going to be very interesting.

Analysis; True

 The pollsters were wrong, the pundits were wrong, the only guys who were right were:

Mail-in ballots are a pox on the democratic process.  The only way to have secure, reliable elections are with in-person voting with proper ID requirements.  Anything else is an invitation to fraud.  Which is what we are seeing right now

Too Close To Call

 For the second time in my lifetime, we awake the morning after a major election and don't know who the winner might be.  The first I recall is the 2000 "hanging chad" debacle in Florida.  Now, we have the multi-state mail-in ballot Some states may not yet have received all the ballots that ere cast, allowing extra time for the Post Office to deliver the mail.

As Joe Stalin some famously said, it doesn't matter who voted, what matters is who is counting the votes.

We'll just have to wait and see.

I'm going to the woods this morning.  Maybe we'll know more when I get back.

Early Voting Begins

 Early voting (in-person voting) begins in Louisiana today.  Belle ad I intend to vote later today or tomorrow, but this morning I fulfilled my duty and had a long talk with my mother abut the sample ballot and what my thoughts are on the many, varied candidates and proposals that we'll be deciding on.

My mom makes up her own mind, but she asks me anyway.  She is a reliable Republican, and takes a keen interest in her voting  I don't try to sway her vote, but I try to give her my best guess.  

I'm happy to do it, and I enjoy talking with my mom.  I'm glad that she values my opinion.

To Choose A President

 It's interesting the way we choose a President, and have done so or over 200 years.  The rules are plain to see in our Constitution.  A state chooses a set of electors who then elect a president.  We call this the Electoral College.  If the Electoral College cannot decide on a president; if the vote is tied, the responsibility to elect the president then devolves to the House of Representatives.

And here is Nancy Pelosi's quandary and worst nightmare.  Under both Article II, Section I, and the 12th Amendment, when the responsibility to elect a president falls on the House of Representatives, the vote falls not to individual electors, but to the state delegation as a whole.  Each state gets one vote.

If my count is correct, the Republicans hold 26 state delegations.  This, under the current scenario, Should the election be thrown into the House,  Nancy Pelosi may preside over an election that gives Donald Trump a second term.

The irony is delectable.

Palace-Court Drama

This morning we are watching a huge power play.  Whether the populist communist Bernie Sanders will prevail against the entrenched in the Democratic party.  There are only four candidates now, and it looks like the institutional Democrats are coalescing behind Joe Biden, while the young upstarts are aligning with the aging socialist from Vermont.

We will learn more after the polls close tonight, but the struggle is real and the battle lines are forming.  What interests me is that it is almost exactly the same dynamic that played out four years ago in the Republican party.  Then, we had a field of institutional Republicans led by Jeb Bush aligned against a rebellious realtor from New York.  The party wanted the solid, respectable Jeb Bush and the people wanted the pugnacious Donald Trump.  Of course, we know how that turned out.  Trump went through the field of candidates like a shredder being pulled behind a John Deere tractor.  He clear-cut everything.

I've never understood why the Democrats let Bernie Sanders run as a Democrat.  He's not a Democrat,   If they wanted to stop him, they could have simply not allowed him to run as a Democrat.  But, they didn't.  Today they have a choice to make, and it may well be out of the hands of the institutional politicians.

As Nigel Farage said recently, "There is a reason why populism is so popular."

The Sunday Paper

For many years I enjoyed the Sunday paper with my coffee, a ritual that gave me great comfort.  Several years ago, our local birdcage liner devolved to the point where a subscription was simply an extravagance that I could no longer justify, and the internet had become my preferred news gathering media.

So, nowadays I get up, get a cup of coffee and click on trusted links to get my news.  I see this morning that Crazy Uncle Joe won the South Carolina primary, with almost half the vote. He thoroughly trounced Bernie, which means his campaign is good for another three days.

Super Tuesday happens in three days, when fourteen states (IIRC) hold their presidential primary.  Some of the heavy-hitter states are in the lineup, and we'll see who comes out of that contest with a viable candidacy.

The Louisiana presidential primary comes on April 4th, which is still a month away.  I, personally, have been drafted to take a bigger part in my local party committee, and I'm standing for election on that day, although I have not campaigned as vigorously as I did when I was running for Sheriff.  It's a small, unpaid post, and I'll happily serve if elected.  Others are campaigning for a ticket of conservatives, and I think that act bodes well for the local committee.

The Winner In Iowa

As of this writing, 0550 on 02-04-020 it's unclear.  I awoke this morning, got m y coffee, ad sat down at the computer.  Who won in Iowa?

No one knows.  It appears that the system crashed and there are no official numbers available to guide us in our question.

It's not like they didn't have four years to get ready.  And, I note with some small mirth that the Dems have had quite a week.  First, their impeachment effort augurs-in, then their first caucus crashes and burns.  Complete and total disaster seems to be their continuing modus.  Some are claiming that their app was hacked, others are claiming that their whole party has been hacked.

Joe Stalin once said that it didn't matte who voted, what mattered was who was counting the votes.

I have never understood the caucus system, but shrugged off my lack of understanding.  Let Iowa do what Iowa will do.  Now, I've come to believe that Iowas doesn't understand it either.

The big winner?  Donald Trump and the GOP.  The Democrats have now tainted this entire process and voters are sure to take note.

Sanctuary Spaces

The fist time that sanctuary spaces (city, county, etc) thrust itself into my consciousness, it was local folks rebelling against immigration law. (You know, like California did.) I thought then that it was silly, and sad, and a bit wrong-headed.  I still do.  The law is the law.  If you don't like the law, work to change it.

Moe recently, I see counties in Virginia declaring themselves 2A Sanctuaries in the wake of what seems to be a push to enact draconian gun laws in that state. I note that these laws have not yet been passed, and I hope that the political pressure that is being applied will be sufficient that they never see the light of day, but most pundits are declaring gloom-and-doom for gun rights in Virginia.  So, many locales are choosing sides.  Below is a map that is probably alreay out of date.

If I am going to be consistent, I have to declare that sanctuary locales are sad, and silly, and a bit wrong-headed.  I note that nothing yet has happened in Virginia.  The threat is certainly valid, and noted, and it seems that Virginia is on the way to becoming New Jersey, but it hasn't happened yet.

My prayer is that sane people will prevail.  Some are talking insurrection and that never bodes well.  Some officials are proposing novel solutions to shield their citizens from the more onerous aspects of the law.  Still, it might have been better if the 2A advocates had spent a little more time being engaged in local politics so that all this might have been avoided via the ballot box.  Hopefully the freedom-loving citizens of Virginia will figure a way out of this mess.