Republicans Refuse to Disclose Their Convention Delegates
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ALERT
From the Democratic National Committee:
What Are They Hiding?
New York City – Responding to news reports that with just days to the Republican Convention, the Republican National Committee and Republican State Parties are refusing to fully disclose their list of delegates to the Republican National Convention in New York the Democratic National Committee offers the facts about the Republican secret scheme.
“Secrecy and hidden schemes are standard operating procedure in the Bush-Cheney- secret-energy-task-force-undisclosed-bunker Administration,” said DNC spokesperson Jay Carson. “Their secret delegate scheme comes as no surprise at this point, but the real issue is that voters in battleground states and residents of New York deserve to know why all there is so much secrecy.
THE FACTS ABOUT THE REPUBLICAN SECRET SCHEME
Republicans Refuse to Release List of Delegates
Gillespie Refuses to Release List of Delegates; Incorrectly Says Democrats Did the Same. RNC Chairman Ed Gillespie recently refused to release a list of delegates to the Republican National Convention in New York. In doing so, he gave states the authority to hide the names of their delegates, or, perhaps worse, selectively release some delegate names while hiding others. Gillespie cited concerns for delegate safety and then incorrectly asserted that Democrats refused to release a list of delegates prior to the Democratic Convention in Boston. [St. Petersburg Times, 8/5/04]
Florida GOP Selectively Releasing Delegate Names.
"GOP officials in Florida are refusing to release the names of state delegates to their party’s national convention in New York later this month, saying some delegates have expressed concerns over privacy and security. The state will identify a few delegates as official representatives to speak for the group, Agostini said. Florida will send 112 delegates to the national convention to be held Aug. 30-Sept. 2 at Madison Square Garden." [Gannett News Service, 8/3/04]
Gillespie Wrong; Democrats Released All Delegate Lists.
The Democratic National Convention Committee released the names of
all delegates on their website, http://www.dems2004.org.
Visitors can obtain lists for each state by clicking on the map at:
http://www.dems2004.org/site/pp.asp?c=luI2LaPYG&b=107686
Republican National Committee Requires Voters To Sign Loyalty Oaths
Rally-Attendees In New Mexico Were Required To Sign Endorsement Forms Before Entering Bush-Cheney Rallies. The Republican National Committee is requiring voters to sign endorsement forms before they attend campaign rallies featuring Vice President Cheney or President Bush. When Vice President Dick Cheney spoke on July 31st to a crowd of 2,000 in Rio Rancho, NM, voters were required to sign an endorsement form in order to receive a ticket to hear Cheney “Whose vice president is he?” asked a 72-year-old John Wade. “I just wanted to hear what my vice president had to say, and they make me sign a loyalty oath.” The form’s endorsement begins, “I, ___,” requiring individuals to state their name, position, hometown and state, “do hereby endorse George W. Bush for re-election of the United States.” Attendees then date and sign the form. A disclaimer box underneath the signature line states, “In signing the above endorsement you are consenting to use and release of your name by Bush-Cheney as an endorser of President Bush.” [Boston Globe, 8/9/04]
RNC Falsely Claimed That Bush-Cheney Events Do Not Require Endorsement Forms. An RNC spokesman, Danny Diaz, claimed that RNC rallies are separate from Bush-Cheney campaign events and that the Bush-Cheney campaign does not require endorsement forms from attendees. Diaz justified the policy saying, “They want to make sure people can hear the president and vice president’s vision for the next four years,” he said. “There are thousands of volunteers who sacrifice and work hard on the campaign and who deserve to see and hear their president without being disrupted and disrespected.” However, Democrats and Independents have been turned away at Bush-Cheney rallies in Minnesota, Iowa, Nevada and West Virginia. [Boston Globe, 8/9/04; AP, 7/10/04; Saint Paul Pioneer Press, 6/19/04; Telegraph Herald, 5/4/04; Reno Gazette-Journal, 6/19/04]
• A World War Two Veteran Didn’t Qualify To Hear The President. Bill Ward, a veteran of World War II, tried to get tickets to see Bush in Dubuque, IA. He waited in line for an hour, and when it finally came time to show his identification campaign staff asked him if he had voted for Bush in 2000. “I didn’t vote for him then and I won’t vote for him now,” declared Ward. Ward identified himself to the campaign workers as a World War II vet who served in France and Germany. Critical of the war in Iraq, Ward said, “The only thing I wanted to do was get down to the riverfront and ask Bush some questions.” Ward recalled, “They asked some girl to escort me out and I told them I don’t need to be escorted out. I’m a veteran of World War II.” [Telegraph Herald, 5/4/04]
• Family of Three Was Kicked Out Of Bush Event For Bringing A Pro-Choice T-Shirt. The Millers, a family of three—husband, wife and daughter – were removed from a Bush-Cheney campaign event because the wife, Barbara Miller, brought a pro-choice t-shirt with her. A campaign worker confiscated the t-shirt informing the family that “We don’t accept any pro-choice, non-Republican paraphernalia.” The campaign worker returned an hour later with another worker and a security guard and accused the Millers of “smuggling t-shirts.” Barbara Miller, who brought the t-shirt because she was cold and had not considered the implications of its pro-choice logo, reports that a guard grabbed their three tickets from her hand and ripped them up “violently and told her, ‘They’re no good anymore.’” A Bush campaign spokeswoman, Jennifer Millerwise, defended the right of the campaign to ask individuals who intend to “disrupt campaign events” to leave. “These events are put on ... for people of an open mind who are interested in hearing [Bush’s] positive message and his vision for a future,” she said. Theresa Miller, the daughter, said that was what she was there to do. “I’m not an American? I can’t see my president?” she asked. [Saginaw News, 8/6/04]
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ALERT