29
Sep
What Did Roberts Do in Florida?
Did the Nominee Help Obstruct a Recount?
As Judge John Roberts inches closer and closer to confirmation as Chief Justice, what little debate there has been about his suitability to serve has focused on his opinions — or, more precisely, the lack of them — on a variety of issues. We know about his legal training and “achievements” — or lack of them — but not about his role as a White House political operative.
Specifically, what role did Roberts play in the Bush campaign in 2000 in Florida, where 175,000 votes went uncounted? Was he part of the obstruction of the recount that was carried out by a small brigade of militant GOP protesters who had been organized by the just-indicted House GOP minority leader Tom DeLay? DeLay was known for “bare knuckles” politics that often “skirted the ethical edge,” according to the Associated Press.
We know that Roberts, who has been pictured as a moderate-tempered and restrained jurist, was in Florida in 2000 as part of the GOP hit squad that planned to get President Bush elected at all costs.
That decisive protest run by intensely partisan GOP staffers and Congressional aides was ordered by hard right-wing Republican Congressman John Sweeney to “shut it down,” according to the Miami Herald’s reporter. There were reports that UN Ambassador John Bolton was in that mob.
Was Roberts there too? If he was, if he was part of that action faction/affinity group, then his image as a man of detached and scholarly calm needs a second look. If he wasn’t, what exactly did he do in a campaign characterized by disenfranchisement and dirty tricks?
Here are some pictures of John Roberts looking judicial:
And another one. Again, John Roberts!
Now, look at these two pictures of the GOP mob in Miami: Is that John Roberts?
Sure looks like him — or could this enthusiastic participant possibly be a “double,” a twin, or just a look-alike?
The images were taken from video shot inside the Miami Dade County building when GOP activists, led by propagandist Jim Wilkinson (later the head of the Coalition Media Center in Doha during the war, and media at the 2004 GOP convention in New York), stormed the recount. They aimed to stop it with a disruptive protest, charging “voter fraud. ” They claimed, but could not prove, that the Miami election commissioners were stealing votes for Al Gore — who most observers believe would have won the election if all the votes had been properly counted.
This sordid story and the video appear in Counting on Democracy, the film I directed on the 2000 election.
http://www.globalvision.org/program/fla/fla.html
Democrats later denounced the noisy demo as possibly illegal, and certainly over the ethical edge, because it intimidated county officials who later stopped the recount.
Remember: The final official margin of victory in Florida was only 537 votes.
QUESTIONS
Was John Roberts there? Is this him? Or, as in the case of Saddam Hussein, did he have a “double?” If he wasn’t there, did he approve of the tactic? Was he ever asked? Did he ever speak out about it or against it? How does he feel about that Supreme Court decision by a Republican majority that stood the 14th Amendment, (a measure designed to protect minorities) on its head, claiming that Republicans were discriminated against and thus, with convoluted legal “logic,” gave the White House to a fellow Republican? (And then said the decision should not be a precedent.)
Was his nomination payback for the key work he did in the political trenches in Florida? Part of the reason that we don’t know all these details is that the press did not tell us. Was Roberts’ name ever mentioned in the acres of “reporting” about that “election?” Not that I saw, and I paid a lot of attention, compiling a book (with Roland Schatz) about the media coverage of the debacle in 2000. The election will be disputed forever. The book is called Mediaocracy: Hail To the Thief (Inovatio). It details the role our media played in assuring that the public didn’t know what was happening. It argues that the media undermine our democracy rather then strengthening it. (I recently wrote a Miami Herald reporter to ask about whether Roberts was in Miami that day, but had no response. Typical!)
So, it’s not surprising that there have been few media investigations into John G. Roberts as a partisan activist in an effort to undermine an important recount. Do we really know the mind of that stealth ideologue dressed in that black robe? Being cordial and having a photogenic family is not a qualification for running the highest court in the land FOR LIFE!
Henry Kissinger went to Harvard too.
Most of us still don’t fully grasp how Bush “won” an election he lost.
Other questions:
As a clerk for the late Justice Rehnquist, was Roberts aware of the evidence showing that his mentor, before becoming a judge, had reportedly been personally involved in an ugly incident discriminating against minority voters?
How does he believe that the Supreme Court can protect the rights of voters threatened by discrimination, illegal “purges” of felons, and the like?
Wouldn’t you like to know more about his theories and partisan PRACTICES on this key issue for our democracy?
Roberts was a key GOP player in 2000 in Florida one of the dirtiest elections in our history.
THE 800 POUND GORILLAS
The Miami Herald has acknowledged:
The role of U.S. Supreme Court nominee John Roberts in the 2000 election aftermath in Florida was larger than has been reported.
U.S. Supreme Court nominee John Roberts played a broader behind-the-scenes role for the Republican camp in the aftermath of the 2000 election than previously reported — as legal consultant, lawsuit editor and prep coach for arguments before the nation’s highest court, according to the man who drafted him for the job.
Ted Cruz, a domestic policy advisor for President Bush and who is now Texas’ solicitor general, said Roberts was one of the first names he thought of while he and another attorney drafted the Republican legal dream team of litigation ‘’lions'’ and ‘’800-pound gorillas,'’ which ultimately consisted of 400 attorneys in Florida.
This went beyond just providing legal advice to Gov. Jeb Bush in the weeks following November 2000.
Noted the Herald earlier:
Roberts, at the time a private attorney in Washington, D.C., came to Tallahassee to advise the state’s Republican administration as it was trying to prevent a Democratic end-run that the GOP feared might give the election to Al Gore, sources told The Herald.
Why has this issue been downplayed? Why was this Gorilla’s role forgotten?
A liberal blog offers other sources:
According to the Dallas Morning News: “Although his name did not appear on the briefs, three sources who were personally aware of Judge Roberts’ role said he gave Republican Gov. Jeb Bush critical advice on how the Florida Legislature could constitutionally name George W. Bush the winner at a time when Republicans feared that if the recount were to continue the courts might force a different choice. ”
Said Representative Robert Wexler (D-FL): “President Bush’s nomination of Judge Roberts threw salt on the wounds of the thousands of Floridians whose voting rights were disenfranchised during the 2000 election. Judge Roberts worked to ensure that George Bush would become president—regardless of what the courts might decide.”
Blogger Jerry Bowles at Best of the Blogs writes: “John G. Roberts Jr. was the 800-pound gorilla at the center of the 2000 Florida recount battle that led to Bush’s selection by the Supreme Court. Payback? We insinuate. You decide.”
Writes the Miami Herald: “Roberts’ perceived partisanship during the recount has been enough for some Democrats to suggest that his nomination should be rejected by the U.S. Senate.”
Isn’t this an issue that deserves more investigation? Senators, it’s your turn.
Please forward this report to friends and any politicians who care.
OMG, the Republican agenda is looking more like a Republican conspiracy. With Tom Delay being indicted and now to find out this about John Roberts and not to mention George Bush sending us to war under false pretenses, the pieces of this deranged puzzle are starting to come together to make perfect sense.
I only hope to God that the honest Democrats in the Whitehouse and honest Republicans keep themselves as informed and well read as I have. There is much to be said for preminition. In 1999 I had a horrible preminition of what was to come and now that it’s all happening in front of my eyes and all the message boards and blogs I have been banned from for simply speaking my mind because I saw America’s future going to hell in a hand basket and is unfolding in some of the most despicable ways worse than I could have ever imagined.
To all those that wouldn’t listen to my pleas to stop the Republicans from destroying this great country of ours, bitterly I say, I told you so. You get the Government you deserve.
And to those that listened, like my family did and changed political parties, I say, now you too see what I have been saying was true, all along. I am so sorry that we live in a country where greed, biggotry and ignorance is more abundant, than not.
Take Care, Chuck :( aka Chucks_Party
September 29th, 2005 at 12:10 pmDr. Dennis Loo wrote an article,
http://www.projectcensored.org/newsflash/voter_fraud.html,
about the 2004 election results. He began his discussion of those results with this excerpt from “Through the Looking Glass:”
“Alice laughed: “There’s no use trying,” she said; “one can’t believe impossible things.” “I daresay you haven’t had much practice,” said the Queen. “When I was younger, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.”
Since this election was won not by the regular electoral process of presenting the opposing views to the electorate and then letting the normal electoral process determine the president, I would think that all the federal legislation passed in the last five years and all the appointments made during that same period of time would be illegal since the way the election was conducted was illegal. In that case the appointment of John Roberts would be invalid and he wouldn’t be able to sit on the bench of the Supreme Court. This is just a thought, but certainly a thought that should be entertained for the sake of preserving respect for the law itself.
September 29th, 2005 at 5:23 pmPresident George W. Bush is my hero. I don’t know what I will do when he leaves office. I get up every morning,thinking of what a great presid-
September 29th, 2005 at 7:21 pment we have.Maybe its because he is led by our Lord and Savior,Jesus Christ, the Son of God.As long as the president is a christion and follows
Christ in his everyday life,we will have a great president.It was God,not a republican conspiri-cy, who put him in office as president. Thats the reason he is doing such a great job,leading our great country and thats the reason he will not fail.
My heart aches for people like Ian. They have bought the illusion of Christianity espoused by this president and his “men”. Christians are not arrogant, vindictive or unaware of people less fortunate than themselve. And if you are a true Christian what part of “Thou shalt not kill” is so hard to comprehend. Bill Clinton screwed Monica. George Bush is screwing all of us and doing it in the name of “God”
September 29th, 2005 at 8:05 pmWe The Sheeple must follow, no matter how corrupt and unConstitutional our leaders are, because we are all sheep.
We stood for the 2000 stolen non-election.
We stood for the world’s biggest, most impossible lies, ever! In fact we still stand for them, every day. SHAME ON US.
We stood for the 2004 non-election.
And on September 29th, all of a sudden, our Senatorial Congresscritters are supposed to wake up and suddenly begin upholding their oaths of office?
Yeah, right. Nice try, Danny. Please bleat sooner and louder next time.
September 30th, 2005 at 2:35 pmWe The Sheeple must follow, no matter how corrupt and unConstitutional our leaders are, because we are all sheep.
We stood for the 2000 stolen non-election.
We stood for the world’s biggest, most impossible lies, ever! In fact we still stand for them, every day. SHAME ON US.
We stood for the 2004 non-election.
And on September 29th, all of a sudden, our Senatorial Congresscritters are supposed to wake up and suddenly begin upholding their oaths of office?
Yeah, right. Nice try, Danny. Please bleat sooner and louder next time.
September 30th, 2005 at 2:42 pm“Ian Tyson” was just being sardonic, right ?
September 30th, 2005 at 4:00 pm(I’m hoping nobody’s really THAT deluded)
“Ian Tyson” was just being sardonic, right ?
September 30th, 2005 at 4:12 pm(I’m hoping nobody’s really THAT deluded)
That sure does look like him. The K Street Rioters that strongarmed Tallahassie are being rewarded for their loyal service. Bolton led the gang, he gets to demolish foriegn relations. Roberts? Chief Justice Roberts?!? Gak!?! There have been several others from that Thuglican action that have been given crony plums, the names escape me, anyone tracking those bastards, please fill in.
October 1st, 2005 at 2:41 pmHey Chuck, Welcome to the post Reagan Nightmare, too bad you didn’t wake up when Poppy Bush armed Saddam to fight the Iranians that he sold missles to to raise money for his illegal wars in Central America that swamped this country with cheap Cocaine. The belligerence and greeed of the GOP (and the enabling by the Ds) since 1980 have brought this Nation to the brink and the “Leadership” in the Executive and Legislative branches seem intent on driving us over.
Ian, I hope that is straight-faced irony, If not, get help. Bush and his Thugs have violated the Ten Commandments as a matter of policy, lying, killing, covetting and taking other peoples goods, bearing false witness… They are NOT Christian in any sense of the word. It would be funny if the consequences weren’t so lethal, they call themselves the Culture of Life while they kill thousands of people in the Middle East and push the Death Penalty here and abroad.
They are also NOT conservative, they are Radical in the extreme. Their agenda includes stripping away any conservation protection, looting the treasury with fat crony contracts and shredding the Bill of Rights. Much of their plans are illegal under domestic and international law which is why they “un-signed” the International Criminal Court (the Rome statute) and why they are packing the courts with cronies. Thugs should not be allowed to pick their own judges.
The theft of the 2000 election was criminal. Proving that is tough, but it may be the only peaceful way to remove Bu$hCo’s pee stain from our highest court. Otherwise were stuck with him for the rest of my life and we finally got out from under Nixon’s Bastard.
Peace
CV
I live in Canada, but I have been following the toxic U.S. political environment since 2000 and have also read about the U.S. military-organized importation of Central American cocaine in the late 80’s which I believe is related to the trial of Oliver North. I am just wondering: what can concerned U.S. citizens such as yourselves do to combat the domestic and global injustice which has been perpetrated by the GOP for decades? Furthermore, where can concerned outsiders (and there are many for obvious reasons) apply pressure most effectively?
October 1st, 2005 at 11:01 pmAw come on people… Ian Tyson’s comment was purely tongue in cheek. No right wing Christian would be so moronic as to post those loopy rapture-like remarks on THIS site, right? I mean, RIGHT?
Cause if I’m wrong? The US of A is truly hooped and all the sane people remaining OUGHTA be praying hard, atheist and agnostic and muslim and christian and hindu and buddhist and whatever I left out, all should drop to their collective knees and pray for the 2nd coming.
A savior to extricate your beloved country from Bush’s unholy mess is LONG overdue.
October 2nd, 2005 at 2:00 amVery interesting — did anyone in Congress ask Roberts about his role in the 2000 election fight, asking him to elaborate on what his activities were? Was he in Miami on the date in question? Any way of checking?
October 3rd, 2005 at 2:03 pmI’ve read that he helped conduct a mock oral argument for Ted Olsen, the guy who argued the case before the supremes. I think that another person that might have helped out is one of Justice Scalia’s kids who works for the same law firm as Olsen and also participated in the Republican campaign. And Thomas’s wife was up for some kind of position on the Bush team. But hey, has a single neocon on this supreme court ever recused himself simply because his participation in a decision looks sleazy and smells ranker than a rotten fish? Roberts should feel right at home.
I’ll ask you a question that I’m more able to substantiate than yours. Are you full of shit? Dancing on the edge of “reporting” facts, is just as irresponsible as not answering your own questions. If it’s true, I wouldn’t have any inclination to believe you because you haven’t proven anything, just asked a bunch of questions. If you’re right, you’re telling me that a bunch of liberal press let something slip by them BEFORE the confirmation and they didn’t shout it from the yardarm? Get a life.
October 22nd, 2005 at 2:50 pm