Posted on 07/21/2004 7:02:58 AM PDT by Mikey
WASHINGTON Undaunted by Kofi Annan's rejection of a plan for United Nations monitoring of the U.S. presidential elections this fall, Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-TX, is taking her case to Secretary of State Colin Powell.
Johnson has urgently asked Powell to make an official request that the U.N. provide observers for the Nov. 2 elections in the United States to "ensure free and fair elections."
Thirteen Democratic congressmen, led by Johnson, sent a letter July 8 to the U.N. general secretary requesting the presence of U.N. representatives in every county of the country during the voting process and any vote recount afterwards.
The U.N. immediately responded that such a request could not be accepted unless if came from the U.S. government. Otherwise, a spokesman said, it could be considered "intervention in a countrys sovereignty."
"As legislators, we should guarantee the American people that our country will not experience another nightmare like the 2000 presidential elections," the members of Congress said in their letter to Annan
In her letter to Powell, Johnson expressed grave concerns regarding electoral system reforms that were not undertaken after the 2000 election.
Recalling the contentious Florida vote count in 2000, the lawmakers urged the U.N. to "ensure free and fair elections in America."
"As lawmakers, we must assure the people of America that our nation will not experience the nightmare of the 2000 presidential election," Johnson said in the letter. "This is the first step in making sure that history does not repeat itself."
Meanwhile, Rep. Corrine Brown, a Florida Democrat, announced that theDemocratic Institutions and Human Rights Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe has confirmed that it will be present in the United States specifically, in Florida on Election Day.
However, state election authorities in Florida have already announced that such observers are not to be allowed access to the voting process and, in any case, they would have to remain at a distance of more than 50 feet from the polls.
Besides Johnson, the congressional signers to the original U.N. letters included Julia Carson of Indiana, Jerrold Nadler, Edolphus Towns, Joseph Crowley and Carolyn B. Maloney, all of New York, Raul Grijalva of Arizona, Corrine Brown of Florida, Elijah E. Cummings of Maryland, Danny K. Davis of Illinois, and Michael M. Honda and Barbara Lee of California.
Earlier stories:
The congressmen who want U.N. observers in U.S. vote
U.N. observers requested for U.S. election
Want to see the U.N. go byby, then stop wasting your vote on a republicrat (which will keep the status quo) and vote Constitution Party
Constitution Party of Virginia
Contact: Howard Phillips
Email:info@constitutionpartyva.com
Address: 450 Maple Avenue East
Vienna, Virginia (22180)
Phone: 703-753-9678
Yeah, go ahead and waste your votes, instead of voting against the Evil Democratic Fascist Machine.
Demonstration against Carolyn Maloney, one of the instigators of this request, and for her GOP opponent today (July 21) at 6 pm opposite the UN (Dag Hammarskjold Park).
I would rather have Nader in office than be envolved with the UN.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.