4/26/2007
The Onteora
Race
Petitions were handed in from three people vying for two
seats on the Onteora District Board of Education. Richard
Wolff of Shokan, Michelle Friedel of West Shokan and the
current school board president Marino D’Orazio of
Stone Ridge will campaign for a three-year term.
The deadline for handing in petitions to the central office
ended at 5pm April 16, but a snow day was called, due
to the nor’easter floods, that in turn closed the
district. District Clerk Jeanne Shultis said the deadline
did not need extending since no one else other than the
three requested petitions and they all turned them in
early before the Monday deadline.
West Hurley resident Dave Patterson and D’Orazio
will both be coming to the end of their terms in July.
Patterson will not seek re-election, but D’Orazio
would like to continue.
The vote for the district’s budget and the two board
seats is May 15, from 2-9pm.
The Onteora School District PTA Council will be hosting
a “Meet the School Board Candidates Night”
on Monday, May 7th at 7:00pm at the Onteora Middle/ High
School cafeteria in Boiceville. The forum will be moderated
by the Mid-Hudson Chapter of the League of Woman Voters.
Each candidate will give a short presentation and then
answer audience questions about issues facing the school
district. All voters in the Onteora School District are
invited to attend.
Tis The Season...
You’ve heard the names. Bob, Kathy, Jane, Rob, Jerry,
Larry…the list of folks claiming to run for Supervisor
in Shandaken is getting longer every day. While current
Supervisor Robert Cross Jr remains undecided about a bid
for a third term (well, at least he has not told anyone
his plans) many seem ready to step up to the plate.
There is plenty of time however for all this to iron out.
The political party caucuses, when parties vote to choose
which candidates they endorse in the general election
this November, don’t happen until mid to late summer.
We’ll let you know the minute someone takes the
upcoming election seriously and makes an announcement
of intent to run. Stay tuned.
Meanwhile, according to the Ulster County Board of Elections,
registered Democrats now outnumber Republicans in Shandaken,
albeit by merely 2 voters. The breakdown is:740 Dems,
made up of 426 women and 314 men, versus 738 Republicans,
made up of 342 women and 396 men.
Talk about interesting demographics... as one party member
quipped, “It’ll be interesting to see who
has the best parties, at least...”
Merger Meetings
Five public information sessions are scheduled so Ulster
County residents can discuss, receive information on and
ask questions about the impending consolidation between
Benedictine and Kingston hospitals. A statewide commission
on healthcare mandated the two hospitals unite under a
single governance body, reduce the number of total hospital
beds available and consolidate services.
The meetings will be held at 7 p.m. on the following dates:
April 26: Ulster County Office Building, 244 Fair St.,
Kingston
May 3: Ulster BOCES, Route 32, New Paltz
May 10: Ulster County Community College, Cottekill Road,
Stone Ridge
May 17: Cahill Elementary School, 134 Main St., Saugerties
May 24: Onteora High School, Route 28, Boiceville
Assemblyman Kevin A. Cahill, D-Kingston, will moderate
the first four meetings. Brian Powers, publisher of this
paper, will moderate the fifth. Thomas Dee, president
and chief executive officer of the Benedictine Hospital
and Michael Kaminski, president and CEO of The Kingston
Hospital, will be present at these meetings to give information
and answer questions.
Reservoir Caps?
Ten members of the U.S. House, from Pennsylvania, New
York and New Jersey, are calling for caps with the New
York reservoirs in the aftermath of the recent floods.
Rep. Patrick Murphy, a Pennsylvania Democrat, led a bipartisan
coalition of Representatives from states along the Delaware
River in writing a letter to Major General William Grisoli,
the Chair and Federal Representative for the Delaware
River Basin Commission. The other signatories include
Reps. Robert Andrews (D-NJ), Michael Arcuri (D-NY), Robert
Brady (D-PA), Chris Carney (D-PA), Chaka Fattah (D-PA),
Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Paul Kanjorski (D-PA), Joe
Sestak (D-PA) and Chris Smith (R-NJ). Murphy, a member
of the Delaware River Basin Task Force and leader of a
congressional advisory board of 8th district experts and
municipalities is committed to preventing and mitigating
damage from flooding. In the letter, Murphy cites the
fact that the Delaware River came within inches of overflowing
in most areas and actually did overrun its banks in several
locations.
Murphy called for a “sense of urgency” as
residents of this region have lived with the threat of
flooding for years. Murphy urged General Grisoli, the
four governors and the City of New York to maintain sufficient
room in the reservoirs to avoid flooding downstream. The
letter goes on to say that this is not an issue for one
state or one political party, and that through cooperation
we can improve the lives all families along the Delaware.
“We may have been lucky this week, but we can’t
afford to leave it up to chance”, said Murphy. “In
order to prevent flooding for all of the families along
the Delaware we will need a cooperative effort and that
includes relief from the New York reservoirs. We all have
to do our part to prevent the devastating damage of a
flood and we shouldn’t wait for another rainstorm
or even another minute to act.”
Our own Congressman Maurice Hinchey has also been involved
in the actions, both via active support and his work on
the House Appropriations Committee. He said this week
that he would like similar concerns addressed in other
basins affected by the city reservoirs, and greater funding
allotted to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help alleviate
local flooding problems that keep re-occuring.
Casino Watch…
Ulster County lawmakers are holding off of support for
a bill sponsored by state Assemblyman Kevin Cahill that
would compel the governor to gain approval from the county
before allowing a casino within its borders, hoping to
give towns and villages more of a say about casinos coming
to the area first. The shift occurred after dissension
appeared from the communities of Ulster and Ellenville,
where proposals are either being courted or considered..
The governor currently has the authority to approve a
total of three casinos in Sullivan and Ulster counties
without prior approval from local governments. This power
was granted shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks as a way to help the state recoup lost revenue.
One casino already has been approved for Monticello in
Sullivan County… although it is continuing to face
hurdles being thrown up by opponents in the region.
The current draft of what’s come to be called Ulster
County’s “casino resolution” would ask
the state to allow county towns, villages and the city
of Kingston to decide whether a casino could be placed
within their borders. The county would not hold decision-making
authority under the proposal, but would still be able
to weigh in through a full environmental assessment that
would consider a casino’s impact on county roadways,
resources and services.
Several municipalities around the county have adopted
resolutions against casinos, while some areas in the southern
part of the county are open to the potential tourism and
employment opportunities casinos could bring. The town
of Ulster and village of Ellenville have asked that they
be granted a decision making voice of their own.
Some in the discussion have recalled when the Modoc Tribe
of Oklahoma sought to establish a casino in the town and
the county, via then-Legislative Chairman Ward Todd, took
control of negotiating the allocation of the $15 million
offered by the tribe, ignoring the financial impact on
local municipalities.
Meanwhile, in a move that will delay any final decision
to approve the proposed Monticello Raceway casino, the
U.S. government agreed this month that a decision must
first be reached on the adequacy of the Interior Department’s
assessment of the $500 million casino’s environmental
impact on surrounding communities before the department
would be allowed to take the land into trust. A consortium,
led by the Natural Resources Defense League, filed a lawsuit
in federal court earlier this year seeking to have a full
environmental review conducted before any final approval
is granted by the federal government.
According to the agreement among the parties to the lawsuit,
the U.S. District Court must hear and rule on this case
before U.S. Interior Department Secretary Kempthorne will
be allowed to take the land into trust to allow the construction
of the casino complex. The government also indicated in
the court papers that Interior Department Secretary Kempthorne
has not yet made a final decision on whether to actually
approve the 29 acres land transfer for the Monticello
Raceway casino. The land would have to be placed in trust
for the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe.
Center Changes
Big changes are underway at the Catskill Center for Conservation
and Development. On the one hand, they’re personal,
with familiar faces coming and going. On the other, they’re
quite epochal, representing major changes in policy predicated
by the region’s pre-eminent environmental organization’s
success in some key areas, as well as a shift back towards
regionalism based largely on the failure of other organizations
to take a leadership role.
On the personal level, CCCD Director of Conservation Chris
Olney will be leaving the Center for a new job with the
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
helping the agency to further develop and implement its
conservation easement program at the DEC’s main
office in Albany. His last day of work at The Catskill
Center will be Friday, April 27th, after which Olney –
who will continue writing his column for this publication
with CCCD Education Director Aaron Bennett — will
take a month off to concentrate on finding a new house
within commuting distance to Albany.
And CCCD Board Vice President Debra DeWan, a former staffer
from the 1990s, will be coming back on hand in a consulting
position to help sharpen the Center’s new focus
on policy, smart growth and community outreach.
As Senior Associate at The Catskill Center in 1995, she
played a leading role in the historic NYC Watershed Agreement,
having helped to create the Upstate Downstate Partnership
and advocated for a mediated process. program development.
In 1997 Governor Pataki appointed DeWan as environmental
representative to the Board of the Catskill Watershed
Corporation (CWC), on which she continues to serve. DeWan
worked for seven years at Scenic Hudson, where she was
director of its Riverfront Communities Program, advancing
environmental protection, land preservation and community
planning. In October 2006 she received the Jane Jacob
Community Vision Award from Sustainable Hudson Valley
and the New York Planning Federation.
Catskill Center Executive Director Tom Alworth said of
the changes, which also include the departure of Assistant
Director Helen Budrock for a job with her home county
of Sullivan County, that “It’s a good thing
when you have staff that everyone else wants. Part of
the risk of hiring talented people is that they are marketable.”
Alworth added that the shifts actually coincide with a
planned change in direction for the Center, now in its
38th year. Olney’s concentration on building up
conservation easements and land trusts around the region
proved so successful, based on his having been mentored
by the late CCCD board president Bill Ginsberg, that Alworth
says it’s time for the Center to move on to other
issues.
“Our role is less central in that area now,”
he said, noting the involvement of numerous national and
local organizations in conservation efforts throughout
the region.
“Sure, there’s a huge hole here now because
Chris was such an expert on the Catskills,” the
director went on. “But he says he’ll still
give us his time…”
Alworth added that he’ll now be working with DeWan
to focus on new areas that need work in the region, primarily
involving issues of Smart growth, the term for economic
development that takes into account environmental issues,
sustainability, and a region’s inherent quality
of life issues.
“We’re starting to think more and more regionally,”
he added. “The time is right for giving the Catskills
the same sense of character as the Berkshires and other
such areas.”
Along such lines, Alworth said the Catskill Center is
starting to work on a new tourism initiative with the
Catskill Watershed Corporation, to develop better Scenic
Byways programs, and to become a more active partner in
a variety of top level research projects, including one
just starting up in tandem with Cornell University.
“We’ve been looking at levels of mercury deposition
and other matters,” Alworth said. “Often,
our role is to educate the public about what science is
finding out about where we live.”
As for those coming on, and leaving, he had only the best
words.
“It is a privilege to join forces with The Catskill
Center at this auspicious moment,” DeWan noted.
“Under Tom’s leadership, the organization
has accomplished a great deal, and I look forward to working
with him and his talented, dedicated staff to take exciting
and critically important next steps to further the environmental
health and economic vitality of the Catskills.”
As for Olney, he spoke about all he’d learned working
in the area he grew up in.
“It’s difficult for me to state how valuable
and enjoyable this job at The Catskill Center and our
time in the Catskill Mountains has been for me - it has
given me so much, and there is a whole world of people
and experiences that I’ve cherished and will be
taking forward with me,” he said. “I will
still be working in the land conservation field, however,
and not that far away from here, and I’ll be sure
to stay connected to the Catskills, and to the friends
and colleagues I’ve come to know, as much as possible.”
For more on the new directions the Catskill Center is
going in, as well as its new, and newly departed, employees,
call 845-586-2611 or visit www.catskillcenter.org.
New Consultant
The Board of Directors of the Catskill Watershed Corporation
authorized a contract this Spring with Liberty-based Dadras
Architects to serve as a consultant for the CWC’s
Business District and Historic Structure Rehabilitation
Program. The firm was chosen through a bidding process
to evaluate and provide restoration plans for commercial
and mixed-use structures in business centers and gateways
of Watershed communities. The CWC’s newest economic
development program is intended to return deteriorated
buildings to viable commercial use. Dadras’ first
task will be to evaluate the structural integrity and
rehabilitation potential of a Stamford building that has
been identified as a possible pilot project for the new
program.
Dadras co-founded the Sullivan County Main Street Redevelopment
Center and, from 1997-2004, served as Main Street Coordinator
for the Center, working to revitalize 31 communities.
For the past several years, Dadras Architects have been
consultants to the Main Street Programs of the Catskill
Center for Conservation & Development and of Greene
County. Deposit, Hobart, Phoenicia and several other communities
have also engaged Dadras to help with community improvements.
For more information on economic development and other
programs of the CWC, go to www.cwconline.org.
Timber Quotas…
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
cut only about half of the harvestable timber from state
forests, falling well short of its annual timber harvest
goals, according to an audit released recently by the
New York State Comptroller’s office. As a result,
the state lost approximately $14.6 million, about $4.85
million a year, in potential revenue from timber sales
over a three-year period.
DEC manages about four million acres of state owned land,
including about 762,000 acres of state forests which are
regularly harvested to promote forest health, sustainability
and biodiversity. Timber harvesting and other forest management
activities are overseen by DEC foresters, along with other
stewardship tasks, are responsible for determining the
specific areas that should be harvested to achieve the
desired forest density and mixture of species, and for
placing a dollar value on the trees to be cut.
Auditors found that, between April 2001 and March 2006,
the number of foresters working for DEC decreased from
46 to 33, about 28 percent reduction, while the amount
of state-owned forested land increased by 18,700 acres.
Because of the staff shortage and other competing priorities
for the time of foresters, DEC could not fully achieve
its forest management goals.
DEC generally agreed with the audit findings and has taken
steps to implement auditors’ recommendations.
The future of the state forests were discussed at a public
hearing hosted by the DEC April 23 in Margaretville. The
agency is seeking input to help establish a long-term
vision and goals to manage several; local forests, as
well as overall policy.The specific forests in question
cover parts of Delaware and Greene counties. The information
will be used to develop a draft unit-management plan.
Comments can be submitted at the hearing or by mail or
e-mail and will be accepted until May 23. Mail them to
Matthew Swayze, NYSDEC Region 4 Stamford Suboffice, 65561
State Highway 10, Suite 1, Stamford, NY 12167 or e-mail
r4ump@gw.dec.state.ny.us. For more information, call 607-652-3624.
New Watchdogs
Abused and neglected children have eleven more people
in their corner. On April 20th, Ulster County Family Court
Judges Marianne O. Mizel and Anthony McGinty swore in
the newest group of Court Appointed Special Advocates.
Taking the oath of office were Astrid Cernos, Marti Green
and Josephine Oliva, of Marbletown; Roberta Falatyn and
Stephanie Kovarnik, of Hurley; Laurie Hedlund, of New
Paltz; Edward “Juma” Lewis, of West Hurley;
John Miller, of Clintondale; Stephanie Turco, of Esopus;
Johanna Trimboli, of Bearsville; and Tanya Williams, of
Kerhonkson.
CASA volunteers review and monitor cases of children who
have been abused or neglected. Most of these children
are in foster care. Volunteer advocates work closely with
the children, family members, caseworkers and others.
They help ensure that children receive the services they
need. Equally important, they develop an independent assessment
of the case for the court, advising the judge about the
child’s current needs and what they feel would be
in the child’s best interest. Ultimately, the goal
is to ensure that foster care is temporary and that children
have a safe, permanent home to call their own.
CASA of Ulster County was founded in 1987 and is a private,
not-for-profit agency that is part of a nationwide movement
of community volunteers who speak up for the best interests
of abused, abandoned and neglected children, many of whom
are in foster care. For more information about CASA, call
339-7543.
Libraries OK!
Ten years after some experts predicted the demise of the
nation’s system of libraries as a result of the
Internet explosion, the most current national data on
library use shows that the exact opposite has happened.
Data released by the American Library Association (ALA)
indicates that the number of visits to public libraries
in the United States increased 61 percent between 1994
and 2004.
According to the 2007 State of America’s Libraries
report, there were nearly two billion visits to U.S. libraries
in fiscal year 2004.
“Far from hurting American libraries, the Internet
has actually helped to spur more people to use their local
libraries because it has increased our hunger for knowledge
and information,” said Loriene Roy, president-elect
of the American Library Association. According the ALA
report, virtually every library in the United States -
99 percent - provides free public computer access to the
Internet, a four-fold increase in the percentage of libraries
providing such free access over the last decade. By comparison,
Roy pointed to another study released in March showing
that only 69 percent of U.S. households have Internet
access. But unlike the Internet, particularly when accessed
at home, Roy said libraries still serve a unique function
in providing those who seek knowledge and information
with guidance from trained and educated professionals.
Overall circulation at public libraries in the U.S. rose
by 28 percent during the decade, partly driven by significant
growth in circulation of children’s materials, which
grew by 44 percent. Attendance in library programs for
children was also up 42 percent for this same period.
A full copy of the 2007 State of America’s Libraries
is available at www.ala.org/2007State.
Choco-Hell?
The federal Food and Drug Administration is proposing
to redefine the very essence of chocolate and to allow
big manufacturers such as Hershey to sell a bar devoid
of a key ingredient - cocoa butter. The butter’s
natural texture could be replaced with alternatives, such
as vegetable fats. And consumers would never know.
For every defender of traditional chocolate, there are
powerful proponents who want to replace cocoa butter with
vegetable oil: the Chocolate Manufacturers Association,
the Grocery Manufacturers Association and the Snack Food
Association. These industry titans have filed a “citizens
petition” to the FDA, as the Los Angeles Times recently
reported, as if there were some groundswell in society
to water down chocolate.
At the moment, chocolate requires two basic ingredients
- cocoa and cocoa butter. Cocoa provides much of the flavor;
cocoa butter, the texture. So if, say, Hershey wanted
to make a chocolate bar without cocoa butter, it can under
today’s rules. The product has to be labeled “chocolate
flavored” (for it still has the cocoa in it) rather
than “chocolate.” That gives the consumer
a signal that something less than chocolate lies beneath
the wrapping.
Women’s Health…
U.S. women with health insurance are more likely than
men to go without needed care because of higher premiums
and related costs, a study said. A larger percentage of
women also have trouble paying their medical bills.
More women didn’t fill prescriptions, skipped recommended
visits with specialists, failed to get tests, or just
didn’t seek treatment when they had a medical problem,
according to a national survey by the Commonwealth Fund,
a private, New York- based group that supports research
on health and social issues. Other studies have suggested
that women often pay more for care because they need more
routine exams, such as those related to pregnancy. These
issues should be part of the national debate as employers
switch to plans with higher deductibles and policy makers
seek flexible, lower-cost options for 44 million uninsured
and 16 million “underinsured” adults, the
report said.
More than 4,000 adults ages 19 and older participated
in the survey, researchers said. Of that number, 33 percent
of insured women and 68 percent of uninsured didn’t
get the health care they needed because they couldn’t
afford it, compared with 23 percent of insured men and
49 percent of uninsured men who went without care.
Among full-time workers, women earn 77 cents for every
dollar men earn, according to the most recent Labor Department
figures.
Almost 38 percent of all women surveyed reported difficulty
paying medical bills, compared with 29 percent of men,
the report said. Among the insured, 31 percent of women
had trouble with bills compared with 22 percent of men.
About a quarter of the women said they weren’t able
to pay their bills at all, and about the same percentage
said they’re paying them off over time.
A separate study by Harvard Medical School researchers
earlier this month said high-deductible or so-called “consumer-
driven” plans hurt women. The authors said the median
expense for men under 45 in the plans was less than $500,
while women typically paid more than $1,200. About a third
of insured men in that age group spent more than $1,050
in yearly medical costs, while 55 percent of women had
out-of-pocket costs at the same level.
Meanwhile, in Congress, Democratshave reintroduced the
Freedom of Choice Act in Congress a day after the Supreme
Court upheld an abortion-procedure ban. The bill could
lead to a reversal of the ban that broke legal precedent
by providing no health exception for the woman. The Act
would codify in federal law the rights established in
Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that found
abortion was part of a woman’s constitutional right
to privacy.
“We can no longer rely on the Supreme Court to protect
a woman’s constitutional right to choose,”
said Nadler, who chairs the House Judiciary Subcommittee
on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties.
“This Supreme Court may have gone out of the business
of protecting women’s rights; it is time that Congress
stand up to the challenge.”
Seven states have passed their own versions of the Freedom
of Choice Act: California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine,
Maryland, Nevada and Washington. At the federal level
prospects are cloudy for the bill, which has been introduced
in previous Congresses but has failed to win passage.
It was also revealed recently that nearly all American
women are in danger of heart disease or stroke and should
be more aggressive about lowering their risk - including
asking their doctors about daily aspirin use, the American
Heart Association said in new guidelines. It is the first
time guidelines have urged all women to consider aspirin
for preventing strokes, although specialists warn that
it can cause ulcers and dangerous bleeding. They said
it is probably not a good idea for young women with no
big health problems.
Get Healthy…
Two local events are currently available to ensure local
health.
Frost Valley YMCA in Claryville will host a “Healthy
Kids Day” on Sunday, April 29 from 1-4 p.m. The
event is free. The day’s activities will include:
a fun run, indoor climbing wall, obstacle course, hiking,
a jumping castle, mountain boarding, bike rodeo, tips
from firefighters, D.A.R.E./Child ID station, bike tune-ups,
sun safety and hiking safety, yoga for kids, story corner,
dental health station, composting/greenhouse and gardening
and a health check station. To learn more about the Healthy
Kids Day at Frost Valley YMCA, contact Sarah Balzano at
(845) 985-2291, ext. 305, or e-mail sbalzano@frostvalley.org.
Also, the American Cancer Society is offering two free
skin cancer screenings for individuals who are uninsured
or for those with insurance who have never visited a dermatologist.
The first screening will be Wednesday, May 2nd from 1:00
– 4:30pm at Advanced Dermatology, 2215 Route 5W
in Lake Katrine. A second screening will be Tuesday, May
15th from 8:30am – 12:30pm at Kingston Medical Arts
Building, Suite 204, 368 Broadway in Kingston. To schedule
an appointment for either of these free screenings, call
the American Cancer Society at 1-800-ACS-2345.
Host Family?
Local families are needed as hosts for international students
from July 23 to August 16 during the first International
Environmental Summer Institute at Ulster County Community
College. Students from ages 16 to 19 from Asia, Europe
and South America will be attending the program at SUNY
Ulster in Stone Ridge, during which they will attend classes
and participate in field trips related to environmental
issues.
Interested families can apply by contacting Richard Cattabiani
at (845) 687-5135 or cattabir@sunyulster.edu or Michelle
Rodden at 687-5165 or roddenm@sunyulster.edu.
Cellular Bees
Some scientists suggest that our love of the mobile phone
could cause massive food shortages, as the world’s
harvests fail. They are putting forward the theory that
radiation given off by mobile phones and other hi-tech
gadgets is a possible answer to one of the more bizarre
mysteries ever to happen in the natural world - the abrupt
disappearance of the bees that pollinate crops. The theory
is that radiation from mobile phones interferes with bees’
navigation systems, preventing the famously home-loving
species from finding their way back to their hives. Improbable
as it may seem, there is now evidence to back this up.
The alarm was first sounded last autumn, but has now hit
half of all American states. The West Coast is thought
to have lost 60 per cent of its commercial bee population,
with 70 per cent missing on the East Coast.
No one knows why it is happening. Theories involving mites,
pesticides, global warming and GM crops have been proposed,
but all have drawbacks. But German research has long shown
that bees’ behaviour changes near power lines.
Now a limited study at Landau University has found that
bees refuse to return to their hives when mobile phones
are placed nearby. Dr Jochen Kuhn, who carried it out,
said this could provide a “hint” to a possible
cause.
Prevailing Wage?
The Ulster County Industrial Development Agency has opted
to wait another month to change its longstanding prevailing
wage policy, which has become a topic of contention as
new project applications to the agency have dwindled.
The policy mandates that businesses that receive tax benefits
from the agency pay workers prevailing wage during the
construction phase of the project. The state Department
of Labor determines prevailing wage by occupation in the
county. For instance, prevailing wage for a carpenter
is $27.85 an hour and is $35 an hour for an electrician.
One possible change to the prevailing wage policy is the
implementation of a threshold. If a project is more than
$5 million, it would be required to pay its construction
workers prevailing wage. If it is less than $5 million,
it would be required to pay construction workers at least
75 percent of prevailing wage.
Voter Politics
For six years, the Bush administration, aided by Justice
Department political appointees, has pursued an aggressive
legal effort to restrict voter turnout in key battleground
states in ways that favor Republican political candidates,
according to former department lawyers and a review of
written records. The administration intensified its efforts
last year as President Bush’s popularity and Republican
support eroded heading into a midterm battle for control
of Congress, which the Democrats won.
Facing nationwide voter registration drives by Democratic-leaning
groups, the administration alleged widespread election
fraud and endorsed proposals for tougher state and federal
voter identification laws. Presidential political adviser
Karl Rove alluded to the strategy in April 2006 when he
railed about voter fraud in a speech to the Republican
National Lawyers Association.
Questions about the administration’s campaign against
alleged voter fraud have helped fuel the political tempest
over the firings last year of eight U.S. attorneys, several
of whom were ousted in part because they failed to bring
voter fraud cases important to Republican politicians.
Civil rights advocates contend that the administration’s
policies were intended to disenfranchise hundreds of thousands
of poor and minority voters who tend to support Democrats,
and by filing state and federal lawsuits, civil rights
groups have won court rulings blocking some of its actions.
The administration, however, has repeatedly invoked allegations
of widespread voter fraud to justify tougher voter ID
measures and other steps to restrict access to the ballot,
even though research suggests that voter fraud is rare.
Meanwhile, computer vote-memory card totals researched
inb an Ohio case failed to match electronic voting machine
ballot tallies in more than one quarter of the samples
checked from the November election in the state’s
most populous county. In the 37 sample precincts where
results didn’t match, there may have been corrupted
memory cards, missing or torn reports, faulty printers
or other problems, according to the independent audit
commissioned by the Cuyahoga County elections board.
The audit was conducted by 40 volunteers under the direction
of Cleveland State University’s Center for Election
Integrity. The governor and a U.S. senator were chosen
in the November election. Three of four county elections
board members have since quit, and the resignation of
chairman Bob Bennett, also the Ohio Republican chairman,
will become effective May 1. Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer
Brunner, a Democrat, demanded the resignations over problems
including the conviction of two board employees for rigging
a sample recount..
Meanwhile, federal investigators have found that the same
e-mail accounts involved in the current White House attorney
firings case were also involved in the Ohio vote scams.
Just wait on this one...
Terror Terms…
British officials have stopped using the expression “war
on terror” favored by President Bush, saying the
phrase strengthens terrorists by making them feel part
of a bigger struggle and noting that such a larger war,
as promulgated by the President in numerous speeches,
cannot be won by military means alone. They further note
that because this isn’t a war against one organized
enemy with a clear identity and a coherent set of objectives,
a different form of terminology is needed. Bush first
used the expression “war on terror” shortly
after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks ; it still appears frequently
in his speeches.
Gay Marriage...
Governor Eliot Spitzer pledged this week to introduce
legislation in the next few weeks that would legalize
gay marriage in New York, even while conceding the state
Legislature was not ready to agree with him on the issue.
"I do not think there is a realistic shot that it
gets passed, but I will submit it because it's a statement
of principle that I believe in and I want to begin that
dynamic," Spitzer said.
Spitzer's move speeds up his timetable for putting the
issue in front of state lawmakers. While the New York
Democrat had pledged during his campaign for governor
last year to propose such legislation, he had subsequently
said only that he would do so before the end of his first
four-year term.
Spitzer said April 23 that he had decided it was time
to press ahead with the issue.
Spitzer had previously announced his legislative priorities,
including an overhaul of New York's campaign finance law,
for the remainder of the Legislature's regular 2007 session
that is to conclude in late June. He had not included
gay marriage among those priorities.
Currently, gay marriage is only legal in the United States
in Massachusetts.
