Posted on 01/06/2005 1:09:13 PM PST by hinterlander
[Below is the floor peech of Rep. Ric Keller (R.-Fla.) regarding Electoral Vote count delivered on January 6, 2005.]
There's a wise saying we've used quite a bit in Florida over the past four years that the other side would do well to learn -- GET OVER IT. Isn't it ironic that the only people who refuse to "move on" are the people from MoveOn.org and their hero Michael Moore?
My colleagues across the aisle have two sides to choose from, the John Kerry side that acknowledges the election is over and President Bush has won. Or the Michael Moore side that defines "democracy" as Democrats going to the polls, and "conspiracy" as Republicans going to the polls.
The election is over and the results couldn't be clearer. We know that President Bush won the electoral vote by 286 to 252. We know that President Bush won the popular vote by 3.3 million votes. We know that President Bush won Ohio by more than 118,000 votes, an overwhelmingly comfortable margin. We know that in every area of Ohio, bipartisan county boards have verified and vouched for the integrity of the Ohio election results.
Why are we here wasting time on silly Hollywood inspired conspiracy theories?
Well, since Hollywood likes conspiracy's so much, here's a real one. On June 23, 2004, the Michael Moore movie Fahrenheit 911 premiered in Washington, DC. According to U.S. News & World Report, New York Times, and National Journal, one of the few Senators who attended this premier was Senator Barbara Boxer. In this movie, Mr. Moore said it was shameful that not one U.S. Senator objected to the electoral vote count in Florida. Two days ago, on January 4, 2005, the same Michael Moore published a new letter to Senator Boxer and other Senators reminding them that they didn't object to the electoral vote count four years ago, and requested that they rise and object to the vote count from Ohio today. Today, in fact, Senator Barbara Boxer just objected to the Ohio vote count.
Is this all merely a coincidence? Is this pandering to the Michael Moore wing of the Democratic Party? Is it worth wasting two hours of Congress' time? The only bigger waste of two hours would be to go see Fahrenheit 911.
Do the people in the Michael Moore wing of the Democrat Party really think that the American people and their congressional representatives, are so stupid that they could be tricked into objecting to these electoral results? Well, the answer is "yes."
Michael Moore told a British newspaper "Americans are possibly the dumbest people on the planet...We Americans suffer from an enforced ignorance. We don't know about anything that's happening outside our country. Our stupidity is embarrassing."
In Germany, Mr. Moore told the German people "You can see us (Americans) coming down the street...We've got that big grin on our face all the time because our brains aren't loaded down." He further asked the German people, "Should such an ignorant people (as Americans) lead the world?...Don't go the American way when it comes to economics, jobs and services...it is the wrong way."
Regarding those who are now killing Americans in Iraq, he said, "The Iraqis who have risen up against the occupation are not insurgents or terrorists or the enemy. They are the revolution, the minutemen and their numbers will grow -- and they will win."
How many normal people in this country really believe that a terrorist like Al - Zarqawi, who chops off the heads of Americans over in Iraq, is on the same level as Paul Revere, the folk hero of the American Revolution?
Here's some straight talk. In 2000, they didn't like the way the votes were counted in Florida. Now, they don't like the way the votes are counted in Ohio. In the blue states, they call it a recount. In the red states, we call it what it is: sour grapes.
Mr. Speaker, President Bush has clearly won the electoral vote and the popular vote. Certifying these electoral votes is the only course for us to follow. Why allow the conspiracy theorists to undermine the public confidence in the electoral system itself? Let us vote down the objection, certify the electoral college results, and prepare to celebrate the happy day of January 20, 2005, when President George W. Bush is once again sworn in as the President of the United States.
it seems Michael Moore has started his campaign for the DNC chair...
Michael Moore has to be a Republican plant.
Marching orders from Michael Moore.
Maybe Mikey thought her name was Barbara Boxedlunch and gave her a call...
Bit#@ Boxer (and I use the term in an affectionate way ala 9th Circus Court Of Appeals) is now attempting to disenfranchise 62 million voters who voted for W (and we know how much liberals hate to be dissed!).
Excellent!
Awesome speech.
Yup!
Isn't that a federal crime, to interfwere with an election, to influence its results?
I'm sure France will take him.
They keep this up an' there won't be no Hellywood ... they'll all leave the country.
Look at the good side. By wasting two hours of congress' time, we had no tax increases or liberty-losses during those two hours.
Now I know why Boxer was crying when she objected! She thought about it and was like.."I'm taking orders from Jabba The HUT!"
Actually, I'm hearing that many normally Democratic leaning Ohio voters are getting really annoyed with the national party's aspersions on our electoral process. If I'm not mistaken, the only Ohio congressman to sign onto this clusterclinton is Stephanie Tubbs Drone.
Perhaps a couple GOP Congressman (and one Senator) should challenge Pennsylvania's vote. IIRC it was closer on a percentage basis and certainly Philadelphia deserves some scrutiny.
-Eric
I've lurked at conservative and liberal blogs/discussion forums for some time now. Rarely do I ever comment on anything. But I can't hold my tongue on this one. The conservatives are raising hell about fraud in Washington State. Now the Democrats are doing the same about Ohio. Both sides are throwing stink bombs at each other.
Are fair elections a partisan issue? Who are the conspiracy theorists anyhow? I guess it depends on which party you belong to, or what election you're talking about...
What gripes my butt is the left wing-nuts keep trying to show what they believe to be Republican fraud. They won't say nothing about fraud attributed to their party. The goons that invaded Republican Party headquarters around the country, the slashing of tires on vehicles in Wisconsin that were to be used to help get Republican voters to the poles that needed help to get to the polls (one of the suspects is Rep. Gwen Moore's son), and the thousands of voter registration cards that had no legitimate addresses. You don't hear about that and they don't want you to. I think the only thing that will make the left wing-nuts happy is the day when there is only a one party system (Democrats and everyone else being denied the chance to vote). Only then will they be truly happy.
John Kerry says that the election is over, but then he undermines the process by encouraging recounts, encourages protests of the electoral vote and does all in his power to undermine the country's faith in the sysem.
And haven't you been here under another name?
No.
I don't see Republicans contesting election after election, refusing to concede and dragging the country through hell while completeley undermining our electoral process.
what is going on here is obvious.
Sorry, but in my conservative mind I cannot see how these two issues are the same. Maybe you can explain that to us ignorant conservatives?
Bye Bye
Pray for W and Our Troops
"I've lurked at conservative and liberal blogs/discussion forums for some time now. Rarely do I ever comment on anything. But I can't hold my tongue on this one. The conservatives are raising hell about fraud in Washington State. Now the Democrats are doing the same about Ohio. Both sides are throwing stink bombs at each other."
Interesting observation.
Would you please expound on the similarities and/or differences you see between what's going on in Ohio and in Washington?
OOH OOH OOOOOOOOOH
WHOA-OH-OHHHHHHHHH
---"The Moderate Fight Song" (Dave Mason)
-Dan
Only a lib could equate what is happening in Washington state to the tin foil hat groups that are spewing out fantasies about the Ohio election.
See you at DU!!
Yes, he promised her sex if she challenged the vote.
I just called Boxer's office to let her know what an embarrassment she is for the State of CA. Since she's so concerned about voter fraud, perhaps she should return to California and check into all the fraud that took place here during the Nov. election by her Liberal Democrat friends.
You may have picked up a case of relativism from some liberal website. Take whatever you heard there with two grains of salt, and check in with Laura Ingraham in the morning.
Senate vote: 74 NO, 1 YES. The good voters of California should recall Ms. Boxer and put her out to pasture. Most people that are not with it are either idiots or morons. In Ms. Boxer's case she is both an idiot and a moron. Californians, recall the witch immediately!!!
I knew that Michael Morre was a puppet of Karl Rove.
Maxine Waters dedicated her support of the objection to Michael Moore.
Which suggests a rather apropos analogy in the case of Ms. Boxer.
-Dan
What an awesome speech! Thanks for posting it!
Isn't Boxer a California Senator??? Why is she intervening in Ohio's business.
She has nothing to do here in California. If she wants to be an Ohio activist and ignore her duties to the state of California, maybe she should be recalled (fired).
I'm not a fan of relativism. I started out more as a fan of objectivism in college.
The reason I lurk at both conservative and liberal sites is I believe it's instructive to see what both sides are thinking. What I see is a lot of name calling and unwillingness to try and see the other sides point of view.
Thank God I live in a place like South Dakota, where people still see some value in civility.
Moore: "I never promised you a Rose Garden. I said 'Hose Garters!'
Both sides are throwing stink bombs at each other.
BS. Both sides ARE NOT standing up in Congress spewing their haterd and stupidity for all the world to see..THAT, My Friend, is being done by DEMOCRATS!
The Chair would have to be replaced by a couch.
Hmmm...South Dakota you say? Yup. That Tom Daschle was always civil, never throwing stink bombs. Look Dave, I'm from Ohio and we're pretty unhappy with having to shell out $1.5 million for this waste of time recount. And to compare what happened in Ohio which was instigated by a bunch of outsiders{Jesse Jackson, etc.} to Washington is absurd.
Dave, welcome to FR.
Washington State: 129 vote margin after three recounts and more voters in King County than registered.
Ohio: 118,000 vote margin after all the provisionals were counted.
Have you lurked here enough to know most of us believe in common sense? Truth? The Rule of Law?
Washington, on the other hand, which was not conducted within acceptable parameters to be concluded as a successful election, is being buried by the MSM.
There is no moral equivalence between the two, even if you are insufficiently educated to see the difference.
The conservatives are raising hell about fraud in Washington State. Now the Democrats are doing the same about Ohio. Both sides are throwing stink bombs at each other.
One key difference - the counts in Ohio went overwhelmingly for Bush. The recount changed the total by some 300 votes. No signficant discrepancies were found, no sign of cheating.
Conversely, there are serious discrepancies in King County, Washington that threw the extremely close election to the Dems.
So, at the end of the day, Republican objections in Washington are buttressed by facts. Dem objections in Ohio are a bunch of bull.
So we don't have to call you names. You did a fine job all by yourself proving that you're a dumba**.
We don't do civility here Dave. This is a conservative site. That means that there's still a thought process going on. If you can't hold your mud, maybe you better scoot back to the middle of the road.
You'd be better off to continue lurking. It's obvious you haven't a clue about what you speak.
That's what separates you from us, Dave. Apparently for you, belief is sufficient. However, the facts don't support the belief of the Dems in their opinions about elections - for example, to this day they believe that Gore would have won Florida, even though exhaustive counts performed by several newspapers show that Bush would have won even if the recount fiasco had been allowed to continue.
But, apparently to you, Dems contesting Bush winning Ohio by 118,000 votes, with no indication of fraud, is somehow equivalent to Washington where only a few hundred votes separate the two candidates and where there are thousands more votes cast in King County than there are registered voters.
"Batteries Not Included."
couldn't agree with you more.
washington state and ohio are so far apart that its like dave is compairing classical to rap or steven hawkins to rodney king or audey murphy to john f'n traitor kerry
i could go on but i think my point is made.
I think Boxer is the type who would do something like this without Moore's help.
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