Many readers here will recall this scripted moment less than fondly. I call it scripted because although the party tried its best to hide the truth, many knew at the time, and many more know now, that what was being televised was not a true and transparent roll call vote. It is no secret by now among Democrats that the actual vote was taken in hotel rooms that morning and that committed Hillary delegates that we sent to cast votes for her were coerced to vote otherwise before Hillary released them. What we saw here, deplorable as it was to see a valid candidate and the winner of the popular vote on the convention floor, was theater.
Hillary Clinton was escorted onto the convention floor to rescue the party’s unity and request a unanimous nomination of Barack Obama. It was a spectacle, for sure, and not the party’s finest moment.
The party seems to have a penchant for the theatrical since something appears to be rotten in the state of New Hampshire as this year’s primaries commence. Curtain up! A swiftly organized write-in campaign for HRC in the New Hampshire primary was launched in early December and was publicized here, at other Hillary blogs, and in myriad Hillary Facebook groups. We shared and we tweeted no end to get the word out to New Hampshire voters that on the Dem side there was more than one choice.
Tuesday, the 10th was primary day, and by the next morning we saw these results from C-SPAN. They were posted here on this blog.
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Race
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Status
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Candidate
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Votes
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Vote %
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Del*
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Est. % In
|
|
New Hampshire Updated 1:59 p.m. EST, Jan 11, 2012
|
 |
48,970
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82%
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0
|
100%
reporting |
|
|
Total Write-ins
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5,908
|
10%
|
0
|
We were informed by the New Hampshire Secretary of State’s office that the write-in tallies would be available the next day – today. You can imagine the shock waves that traveled through the Hillary sites today when that office made these results available.
Presidential Primary Election January 10, 2012 President of the United States – DEMOCRATIC
Suspension of disbelief is possible when the plot is reasonable, but these results are not. No one voted for HRC? Democrats wrote in the GOP clown car occupants on the Dem ballot? No one wrote in any other Democrats or independents on that ballot? Smells fishy to me! So, many of us had our Hamlet moment today since something indeed is rotten in the state of New Hampshire. The only voters missing are Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, but I guess it is harder for them to register now that ACORN has bitten the dust. Anyway, Shakespearean productions are almost never accompanied by cartoons.
The only other explanation is that the Hillary Clinton write-ins were inscribed with disappearing ink. We are undaunted, because for our money, the finest moment of that 2008 convention was this. Yes, Hillary, we will keep going!
Yes, we will keep going!!! We’ve been here for four years and they think we’re about to be done in by a little bookcookery???
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Obama has taken us back to reconstruction..
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Except that he isn’t reconstructing anything. At all!
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Well, the word is definitely out there…regardless of bookcookery.
I received a phone call yesterday from a reporter in Texas, wanting to know about the petition to Draft Hillary and the “puma group”. I answered a few questions, then Steve sent her more information. Hmm, that was for a Ft. Worth newspaper. Out of the blue.. She had also spoken to Will Bower.
Yep, keep going!
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Right – I got an email from Tim Mak at POLITICO. Will sometimes gives them my name. This time I don’t know. He used the contact page on this blog.
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I have heard personally from at least 2 of my in-laws who wrote Hillary in. So there.
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Thank you, Murph! We knew we weren’t crazy! Of course there were Hillary write-ins! (Love your profile pic! Guilietta Massina, right? In La Strada.)
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(Thanks! You’re absolutely correct!)
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Do they live in Exeter? If not, then that makes at least 7 votes for Hillary. We know people voted for her. We don’t know how many. We may never know how many. But we do know that at least 18% of the Democratic ballot in NH was NOT for Obama.
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No, they’re in Manchester, and they have many friends who are Hillary fans.
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I find that result strange at best. Didn’t yiu say at one point that phone calls went out? Am I to believe that the people who organized those calls decided to write in Mitt Romney instead at the last minute? Curiouser and curiouser.
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Yes, there are continuing reports of robocalls (we don’t know who is doing this) and early ones were to NH. Yes, Alice, curiouser and curiouser. Funny, where HRC is concerned, from the time I began blogging about her, Alice keeps popping up. I think we all went through that rabbit hole long ago!
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They’re still doing the robocalls? I didn’t know that! I thought it was something they did for a few days and then it stopped. (I don’t know who “they” are, in case anyone’s wondering.)
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Last week reports of robocalls in Sherman Oaks CA.
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Good effort. Although I wonder if it will make a difference. I yearn to see Hillary become president, but the powers that be would never allow it. She may have a chance in 2016 if she changes her mind and runs again, but we are stuck this year with Obama.
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Not without a fight. We are only beginning, and I won’t stop unless/until HRC tells me to. She knows where I live. We will keep going!
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If we had not witnessed the many low life tricks of the Obama campaign and the DNC – including the death of democracy in May, when DNC stole Hillary’s votes, and in Denver, as Still noted – can you imagine how totally surprised we would be about the disappearing votes?!
After 2008, these shots at Hillary and at her supporters provoke little to moderate surprise. However, for me, the outrage and anger at the never ending thuggery and crooked tricks provoke even greater anger and outrage. In 2008, disappointment in the actions of the DNC and a sense of loss (of identity with party) were mixed with the anger, for me.
Now, that sadness is gone. The disappointment in the Dem Party transformed into lessons learned – expectations lowered – respect destroyed. Loss of identity with party, replaced by independence, maturity, critical thinking.
Without these other feelings to diffuse the anger, it becomes more intense with every new attack in the ongoing war on Hillary.
My guess is that every other Hillary Supporter (PUMA – in my case) is just as angry.
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PUMAs are fierce. Claws come out. Fangs are bared. We knew this would not be easy, but we will prevail! We will find a way, and we will fight the party for our genuine voice. One voice. Give us our vote!
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The ONLY restitution possible for me would be a tell-all book written by the Clintons or an author who had factual evidence of the secret scheme to defeat Hillary that started in 2004 by the selectors of 0bama whom I believe to be Nancy Pelosie and Rham Emanuel since they were the recruiters for congressional house seats that would lead to a dem house majority and make Pelosie Speaker of the House.
I heard Pelosie herself say in an interview “after” the 2008 election that once they achieved the house dem majority they realized they still could not get their agenda through the congress without a dem POTUS. It has been reported that Pelosie and Emanuel did not like Hillary’s vote on the war and complained she would be too polarizing. The decision to select 0bama began with his speech to the dem nat’l conv in 2004 before 0bama was even elected to the US Senate. Once 0bama was elected to the Senate in 2004 then Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid called 0bama into his office and told him they would like for him to run for POTUS. 0bama was fundraising and garnering super delegate support by 2006 under the wing and direction of Pelosie. Watching the systematic destruction of Hillary’s candidacy by these political criminals in her own party began for me with the Iowa Caucuses. Every subsequent contest had evidence of this, especially the fraudulent caucuses. I’ve never witnessed anything as brutal, as deceptive as this intentional derailing of a candidate who had been the frontrunner for a year. I Never dreamed this could even happen. Completely disillusioned with politics in general and the democratic party in particular, I was transformed into a very critical if not completely distrusting political thinker. Today I only respect two democrats – the Clintons.
The only thing that could make this more painful for me would be if Hillary decides to be 0bama’s VP running mate in 2012 instead of running against him. I would throw in the towel if she decides to do that!! Seeing the role Joe Biden has played – Cheerleader-in-Chief for 0bama has made me very thankful Hillary accepted the Sec of State position. I don’t think there is an ounce of love lost between the Clintons and 0bama, but the Clintons have played their loyal party roles too well at times to suit me. I know there is no choice there if HRC is going to work for this thief who masquerades as POTUS. But I would draw the line if Hillary helped this incompetent know-nothing win a second, undeserved term.
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I have heard the same – read the same here and elsewhere – from many HRC supporters. I am at a point where, given how hard she works and the heart and soul she pours into her work, the only thing I want for her right now is happiness. As far as I am concerned Hillary Clinton does not owe us, the party, or the administration another thing. Her lifeblood goes into her work, and if she decided she wanted to replace Grandma the Clown in the Big Apple Circus I would say “Go for it, sweetheart, and have a great time!”
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tOtally agree!!
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For a guarantee that their legislative wishes come true, a party needs a president from their party in power. There’s nothing sinister about that. It’s the only way to ensure that your party avoids a veto and a messy fight if Congress wants to overturn a presidential veto. After that speech at the 2004 convention, it wouldn’t surprise me a bit if Barack Obama was on the leadership’s short list for candidates. It was a good speech an a heck of an introduction. It got a lot of attention. Also, just because one candidate seems like they’re on the fast track to the nomination months ahead of the convention, it doesn’t mean there can’t be others in the race. If that were the case, we wouldn’t have a primary process at all.
I don’t know what the ins and outs of the caucus processes were, but, at least with regard to needing a Democrat in the Oval Office, I believe you’re seeing malicious intent where there isn’t any.
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Both Gigi Gaston (on video available in the sidebar here) and Lynette Long (in book form) gathered overwhelming evidence of caucus fraud in 2008. It is not a perception. It happened. CNN even received live on-the-air phone calls reporting this from Iowa the night of that caucus as it was happening. The Iowa caucus was gamed by out-of-state operatives bussed in who did not live in the precincts and signed in under Obama’s name before the actual registered voters arrived. It is documented – not a perception. HRC’s campaign, at one point, began a law suit that was later dropped, but not for lack of evidence. As I said elsewhere, we tend to assign to others our own characteristics. If we are trustworthy, we expect others to be trustworthy. That is not the way it is necessarily.
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I said I wasn’t talking about the caucuses because I haven’t looked into it. I remarked on some other points raised in which I do not feel there was any darker motives than the usual grey ones that accompany political dealings.
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A look at what happened in those caucuses provides a glimpse into how that campaign operated. Just sayin’.
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And now they’re doing it again.
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We should have done what HRC said to after Chelsea’s wedding and used USHAHIDI. She knew we would do this, and she knew they would do what they are doing.
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Well, believe me, discourseincsharpminor, I have looked into it! I was a dem party activist for over 20 years, a feminist, and even a delegate to a dem nat’l conv. It was always my understanding that high-profile party types remained uncomitted until after their nominees are chosen. 2008 was the first time I saw this general rule completely violated over and over. The news media had always at least appeared to be unbiased throughout. Seeing media bashing both Clintons from Iowa to Montana was indeed shocking. I watched online, in the newspapers, magazines, etc. I participated with online blogs of primarily Hillary supporters from across the country who reported so much – for example, that Donna Brazil traveled across the country for the DNC trying to get states to not have primarys and instead have caucuses. Why? Turns out caucuses are more easily manipulated. They were organized online by MoveOn.org – one of Soros’ groups. Dr. Lynette Long nailed much of the caucus fraud – by an indepth analysis of the 4 states that had both a state-run primary AND caucuses. 0bama won ALL of the caucuses by 12%-40% margins EVEN when he lost the primary in the same state. Dr. Long said that was a mathmatical impossibility (she is the author of 11 math books and is writing a book on the 2008 caucus fraud) since one should have reflected the other. BTW, the delegates 0bama racked up (211 or so delegates) was exactly the number over delegates Hillary won in all but two of the blue state primaries that put him over the top for the nomination.
The caucus fraud was by no means the only thing used to defeat Hillary. It was a, yes, sinister combination of the caucus fraud, the DNC, the dem leadership working like ants in hot ashes behind the scenes, AA leaders endlessly bashing the Clintons calling them *racist* to make sure Hillary got no AA votes, George Soros’ organizations – MoveOn.org ($40M), SEIU ($120M), and, of course, the news media that basically gave 0bama free ad time, often not even having a Hillary representative on the panels.
So, indeed, discourseincsharpminor, before making further remarks about “no malicious intent”, it would behoove you to take a more critical look into the 2008 Primary season. It was life-changing for many and the reason I am no longer a democrat and instead am now an independent.
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When big strong young men chase frail elderly ladies away from polling places saying. “If you’re voting for Hillary, you’re not voting here,” I call it malicious. But then you would only know about that by looking into it. That’s why I have “We Will Not Be Silenced” in the sidebar.
Then again, it’s just old ladies. Who needs their votes when we can have this pre-ordained star who made this speech in 2004 and voted “present” in the Senate? I mean some of them were born before women had the vote anyway. So who cares if some old ladies didn’t get to vote?
My tongue us deeply in my cheek as I say all that, but it absolutely was malicious and in some instances bordered on assault. To me, it reeked of the same toxin I smelled when Rosa Parks was assaulted by a big, strong, young man.
What’s that letter from WWII? They came for the Jews, but i was not a Jew. Then they came for the Gypsies, but I was not a gypsy. Then they came for the Catholics, but I was not a Catholic. They came for the gays, but I was straight. And then they came for me.
Denial of what happened and is documented is dangerous.
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I made what I was commenting on pretty clear and I think my comments about voting rights make my feelings about that topic well known, too. I never denied a thing, but it’s a lot more fun to just ignore that.
Hat tip for working in the older voters, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Holocaust in reply to what was actually a dull post mostly dealing with how to avoid a presidential veto. I had no idea that would put me in league with racists and Nazi sympathizers.
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It’s so lovely to to have words I written twice in the same comment thread completely ignored. I will say it again. With regard to the Democratics needing a Democrat in the White House, the fact that the 2004 convention speech made Barack Obama someone to watch in the Democratic party, and the fact that even “inevitable” nominees deserve to be challenged, I do not see malicious intent. You’re arguing shady dealings in the caususe, which I don’t know enough about to either defend or condemn. Before dismissing my comments, you might want to make sure I said what you think I did.
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I’m not a political scholar and I know that statutes vary from state to state but, as I understand it, this election information might be able to be obtained using a FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) request.
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Disclaimer – that’s is generally regarded as a a last resort type of thing, so it may not be necessary and, again, I am unfamiliar with the New Hampshire state statutes regarding FIOA.
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*Edit* – FOIA, it’s FOIA. Sorry.
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Knew what you meant – I think Brian is looking into this today.
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I know that you knew, I just want to make myself clear for those who might not be as familiar with these things. Your international audience, etc.
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As I said yesterday. we will never forget what happened. The 2008 primarys where so exciting and ended so sad. She won the popular vote. That is what make me so angry.
I do not understand NH and the write-in proceedures. But something not right about no one writing in Hillary’s name. I thought for sure she be on the write ins.
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I don’t understand why it is such a shock that Hillary’s write-in votes were either dismissed, discarded, or whatever. There was a huge effort to bring out Iowa Caucus dems for 0bama on Jan 4th even though it was unnecessary since he is the dem presumptive nominee for 2012 (so far!) They are not going to allow one opportunity to pass them by to give the appearance that 0bama is unbeatable. They are able to text his so-called supporters (hundreds of thousands of them) with one click of the mouse. That’s all you need to know. These thugs are still in charge from the local level all the way to the top. [note: I’m on many of their lists and never pass up an opportunity to blast whoever is writing me for money]. Apparently no one reads the replies. I’ve even asked to be taken off their lists to no avail.
I hope somewhere soon in the caucuses that follow, there will be a revolt for the fraudulent 2008 caucuses as well as other primary season discrepancies and how they were allowed to stand despite thousands of complaints to the DNC who looked the other way. Indiana’s state dem party chairman has resigned over 2008 primary voter and election fraud That’s at least a start.
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I hear ya! I don’t think the shock was that Hillary votes were not reported,so much as that not a single HRC vote was reported when we knew there were some. It is so blatant a denial – no finesse whatsoever. Meanwhile, according to the NH SOS office on Friday – they actually were not finished tallying these votes. Why they bothered to publish anything at all is the question.
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I can’t watch the first video. But during her convention speech, I remember how Michelle Obama looked sitting in the audience — her face writ large with fear and worry (and may be shame if she had any conscience), as if she feared what Hillary would say and thereby snatch away what Obama had undeservedly stolen from her. Look where we are today. Obama will lose this election.
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People often project their own tendencies and impulses on others, rather than analyzing the other’s character. When you are trustworthy,, you think everyone is trustworthy. No one who really knew Hillary’s character – and there were at LEAST 18 million of us – expected anything but the most gracious and supportive words from her. If Michelle expected something different it is testament to this quote in the sidebar right here:
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I couldn’t agree more, Still. It was evident from the minute Hillary stepped on the stage that Michelle & her crew were very uncomfortable. From the rousing applause and standing ovation which signalled the love & support Hillary had then (and still has today) to the moment Hillary spoke her last words, Michelle was probably panicked and ready to bolt at a moment’s notice.
When you are the type of person who woud stop at nothing to get what you want, you expect that others are just the same. Oh how that crew must have been on pins & needles all 28 minutes of our gir’s speech!
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Yes, and I have to wonder what on earth they expected her to say? All I can think of is that they thought she would expose what went on in the caucuses. She would never do anything that cheap and shoddy.
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It is not so much what they thought she would say — it is what they knew they had done to get where they were. We have a saying in my native tongue “when someone cried pumpkin thief, he put his hand on his shoulder”. It is their conscience killing them. Jodi Kantor’s book reveals what an ugly race-baiting person, inside and out Michelle Obama is (and her husband too).
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Hmmmmm… I like that saying. When one is in that frame of mind and preoccupied with one’s own tangled thoughts, I am sure it is impossible to attend to the message you are hearing. In other words, it is impossible really to listen.
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Thanks so much for reporting on this!! I refuse to believe that not one person wrote in Hillary Clinton. As its been raised by others, where are the other standard bearer write-ins for Nader, McKinley, others? Another curious point is the fact that Darcy Richardson was not listed on the results (as far as I can see). Might we not work with Richardson, of the New Progressive Alliance, to get those details released? Wouldn’t he want to know if he garnered one single vote and was thrown in the “scattered” category as a result? Does anyone know a NH Richardson supporter?
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Good points, and a good question!
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Whether we find out about the write-ins or not, one result hasn’t changed– Obama did not do well in NH. Dem turnout was low and 18% (maybe more) of the Democratic voters chose someone else. That number doesn’t even reflect the cross-over voters who’d normally vote Dem but switched their Party affiliation and cast a GOP ballot. Any way you slice it, NH was not good for Obama.
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Victoria called the NH SOS office a little while ago. The woman sighed when she asked and told her they have not finished tallying the write-ins yet! So why did they publish those stats?
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