WAS THE PRESIDENT TALKING ABOUT RICHLAND COUNTY, S.C.?
U.S. President Barack Obama made an interesting remark during his second inaugural address this week. The statement was tucked into one of the more “progressive” sections of the speech, but it could have decidedly pro-conservative overtones here in Richland County, S.C.
Here’s the paragraph of the speech we’re referring to, with the remark in bold …
?It is now our generation?s task to carry on what those pioneers began. For our journey is not complete until our wives, our mothers and daughters can earn a living equal to their efforts. Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well. Our journey is not complete until no citizen is forced to wait for hours to exercise the right to vote. Our journey is not complete until we find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as a land of opportunity until bright young students and engineers are enlisted in our workforce rather than expelled from our country. Our journey is not complete until all our children, from the streets of Detroit to the hills of Appalachia, to the quiet lanes of Newtown, know that they are cared for and cherished and always safe from harm.?
Hmmmm ….
On this particular point, we are in complete agreement with Obama. In fact we would challenge his Justice Department to put some muscle behind these words and launch an immediate investigation into the “Richland County Robbery,” in which a $1.2 billion tax hike was approved in what we contend was a rigged election.
Efforts to pass this tax increase failed by just 600 votes in 2010 – prompting Republican and Democratic state lawmakers to oust a 30-year election veteran and install a puppet with all sorts of connections to the tax hike movement to run last November’s vote.
The result? Mysterious shortages (and malfunctions) of voting machines in precincts that voted heavily against the tax increase two years ago – leading to seven hour wait times in some of these precincts. These shortages and malfunctions resulted in widespread violations of a state law mandating at least one operable voting machine per every 250 registered voters. Thanks to this illegal voter suppression, the sales tax hike passed by a 52-48 percent margin.
If Obama is serious about preserving the integrity of the electoral process, his Justice Department will move against the “Richland County Robbers.”
Otherwise this line – like so much of what he says – was for rhetorical purposes only.
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22 comments
Like BO gives a shit about whatever the hell Richland County wants to do. I doubt the Feds care at all about our pigsty of a state government. All that talk about secession probably got them excited.
Efforts to pass this tax increase failed by just 600 votes in 2010 – prompting Republican and Democratic state lawmakers to oust a 30-year election veteran and install a puppet with all sorts of connections to the tax hike movement to run last November’s vote.
I still don’t get this conspiracy. You yourself admit it damn near passed. 600 votes? That’s fucking close. Last year’s election (there were two questions):
Yes: 56,473
No: 58,645
Yes: 55,857
No: 56,390
TOTAL: ~115k voters.
And in 2012?
Yes: 80,223
No: 73,648
TOTAL: ~154k voters.
You can go on and on about this Lillian McBride (who is an absolute moron that should be shitcanned) all you want but Richland County was definitely capable of passing this tax all on its own. If it was 600 votes away in 2010 and about 40k new voters were sloshed in for 2012, it isn’t inconceivable that this tax would pass.
Let them have their tax. It’ll be funny when they still can’t figure out why the bus system is failing a year or two from now.
FITS to often falls into the conspiracy trap on issues that the Rushes and Becks and Foxes to.
Look fellas, if you think 6 hour wait times had no impact on the last election then I’d say I’m believing the “conspiracy theory” stuff over you two.
That being said, even me- “Mr. Extreme” can see that there’s simply a possibility that that McBride was incompetent…but you can’t look at the situation, them retaining McBride and leaving working machines in warehouse not wonder.
In fact, I’d say it’s more rational to believe that some type of conspiracy to quell voter turnout among the employed than to believe that such a degree of incompetence may exist.(but I understand there’s latitude to go either way)
Now, the REAL ISSUE of the voting mess here is that there’s no denial that election law was violated. If we were a lawful society the election results would be invalidated and the “debate” would be whether to have another election now or wait until the next cycle.
That’s what most interesting, they’ve picked everyone’s pockets illegally in Richland…been caught doing it…and it DOESN’T MATTER!
It’s pure lawlessness/insanity.
edit: “that McBride was incompetent…but you can’t look at the situation, them retaining McBride and leaving working machines in warehouse not wonder.”
“in warehouses and not wonder.”(about their intent)
Sorry for the grammar mess.
2010 was a midterm election and, lets be real here, Obama wasn’t on a ballot so Richland’s black population stayed home. Look at the precints that had 5 hour wait lines compared to the ones that had a surplus of voting machines and you’ll see the one was a lot whiter than than the other. Richland county knows how to play the black electorate (also known as sheep) and they got the tax increase they so wanted.
I won’t deny that an element of corruption is there, nor will I deny that long waits could have had a small influence. What I am saying is that even without the long waits, I’d expect it to be extremely likely to pass due to higher voter turn-out, and yes, as Neil stated, a higher number of minority voters showing up to the polls.
Invalidate the results of the election and it might beat a 2014 vote, but it likely will not beat a 2016 vote.
Either way, the vote was irreparably fucked up and someone’s getting the finger, whether it be the voters that couldn’t wait in line for whatever reason they may have had, or whether it be the people who did vote having their voice muffled.
Since your contention is that the election mess in Richland County was a conspiracy on the part of the Democratic power structure to limit the turnout in certain precincts that were opposed to the sales tax hike, one might also argue that because of the Republican conspiracy to limit black turnout through the Voter ID Law, less black pro-sales tax voters turned out to vote. So maybe in the end one cancelled out the other.
The best answer is that in this benighted state the Democrats and Republicans probably deserve each other.
I don’t know which causes more harm: Democratic affirmative action–witness Lillian McBride and Richland County, or general Republican incompetence–witness the Dept. of Revenue fiasco.
No black person was denied the right to vote in SC because of a voter ID law that was not even in effect. On the other hand, thousands of Richland County voters, black AND white, were denied the right to vote because of incompetent people in jobs they were not qualified for. Fire them all.
I thought SC had an AG for this stuff. Where’s he at? Well I mean I know where he was today, at his Diddy’s house screaming. “You lie” at the teevee during Obama’s speech, all the while rubbing Lymes Disease ointment on Diddy’s ass crack.
That’s a great question. Where’s the fucker that supposed to be making sure everybody is obeying the law?
Silence….crickets….that’s just great.
At least in the days of the “wild west” when someone was wronged they were able to round up a posse and get some damned justice when there was no “law” about.
Now everyone simply takes it up the pooper and good forbid you’re a civilian trying to enforce the law…you’ll get shot or pepper spray and thrown in jail.
This is whatt happens when one party rules everything. Look at Banana Republics. Look at Venezuela. When one party rules, you can cover up things more effectively because you have more friends of your ilk, and no one likes to piss anybody off in South Carolina because you will see them at church or at the Cup in Camden, and because the absence of a competitive Democratic Party limits the power of inquiry and investigations.
Dick Harpootlian used to raise a lot of hell in the past as did Tom Turnipseed.
One size fits all government in this state makes us a cheap little Banana Republic and the JOKE of the nation.
It’s gov’t in general…it doesn’t matter which set of clowns are driving the clown car.
Until South Carolina replaces the iVotronic touch-screen voting machines, which permit no verification that the voter’s intentions were properly recorded, waiting in line to vote is not the only problem.
Great picture of the First Assclown. Who cut her hair, the Whitehouse tree trimmer?
Jakie Knotts, is that you?
hahaha! Good one, Jenny.
FITS: Be part of the solution! Start an on-line petition for the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the Richland County matter!
P.S. Why is my post on another thread “lost in moderation” for over a week now?
We should make sure no one has to stand in line for hours for anything related to an election. Unfortunately the current Republican position is no Republican should have to stand in line for hours. Everyone else? well, not so concerned.
Once again Republicans are shocked and incensed that white people are being treated like they are a minority.
Alvin Greene, is dat you?
No Jakie, its not.
Ummm, I don’t think 1 county in bumruck SC counts much when you have a huge systemic issue across the nation. Money talks shit walks.
“So now I’m rollin’ down Rodeo with a shotgun, These people ain’t seen a brown skin man, Since their grandparents bought one”