ACORN Fraud Rumors Squashed

[exponential]

Originally published at Exponential. You can comment here or there.

(Ok, I couldn’t help it.  I like acorn squash.)

Let’s deal with the ACORN rumors, shall we?  I think anyone who has worked with a non-profit will feel pain at reading this, because it is so often that when you are trying to do the most good for a non-partisan cause that bad nuts get

Comments

[exponential]

So, if there are equal numbers of sources questioning, that means it's real? One moment you're saying that the media is in the tank for Obama, and the next you're using the media's hype on sensationalist smears as a defense?

I used factcheck.org. You provided conservative editorials and articles that just rehash the facts and ask the question if it is really fraud. I'll deal with each article.

Ultimately, here's the facts: Federal money supporting an organization that registers voters is supportive of BOTH campaigns. McCain has PRAISED it in the past. The number of fraudulent registrations is extremely low, and have been traced back to individuals scamming ACORN, not ACORN scamming America

It's my opinion that he only now goes against the organization because ACORN'S efforts might increase votership for his opponent.

I have no opinion on the ID thing. I haven't looked into it close enough to have one. I was discussing ACORN as a NON-ISSUE.

First article, the American Thinker: Oh yes, quite a conservative, biased media here. Again, misstating that ACORN is involved in voter fraud. It's registration fraud, and there's a HUGE difference. However, I am reading some of the information from it.

Second article, the Town Hall post is an piece from a GOP source. They don't successfully connect ACORN to the 92 ballots they reviewed. Why only 92? 92 of how many? Did they take only the suspect ballots? Why wasn't Duran Duran caught by people reviewing the ballots? This information is really weak to connecting ACORN to voter fraud.

Third article, the Pittsburgh article says:

HARRISBURG -- A lawyer for the state Republican Party said Thursday that she will present a former ACORN employee to testify that the community group paid cash to workers and set quotas for collecting voter-registration forms.

There's nothing illegal about paying people and requiring that they meet goals. It IS illegal to steal from your company. The article only rehashes everything, the the factcheck.org handles each issue.

Fourth article: First, information came from a partisan source. Second, YES federal money was used to support ACORN. They are getting voters to the polls. Not for one person, not for a party. Just to vote.

[randy_68]

See my above point.

For every lib article there's a corresponding conservative article. Have we got that? I think we do now.

I have made my ACORN comments and will stick to them until the investigations are done.

I would take the position that any group that is unable to effectively control and monitor their employees activity and output (which I believe a federal investigation would suggest) should get taxpayers dollars.

If ACORN didn't target primarily democratic voting people and let their people wear one sides candidates shirts or the other, maybe I wouldn't complain as much. But the following makes me think abit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tMtLivgiBc -- pay attention to the last 25-30 seconds of reporting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HnuDmezbOc -- notice the meeting part at ~2:30. ACORN for Obama.

They are obviously for Obama. I believe a group promoting voter registration shouldn't put forth a candidate preference.

Democrats pushing to fund ACORN from taxpayer dollars over the recent years.

October 26, 2005: The U.S. House of Representatives votes on an amendment to sunset the Democrat-proposed ACORN slush fund after five years (Roll Call 541).
208 Republican vote YES
191 Democrats vote NO (only 2 Democrats vote yes)

May 22, 2007: The U.S. House of Representatives votes on an amendment to strip the ACORN slush fund from a housing reform bill (Roll Call 392).
155 Republicans vote YES
224 Democrats vote NO

May 8, 2008: The U.S. House of Representatives votes on a motion to prohibit the ACORN slush fund from benefiting convicted drug dealers, sex offenders, or mortgage fraud perpetrators (Roll Call 298).
196 Republicans vote YES
215 Democrats vote NO

July 23, 2008: The U.S. House of Representatives votes to officially create the ACORN slush fund, permanently writing it into law (Roll Call 519).
149 Republicans vote NO
227 Democrats vote YES (only 3 Democrats vote no)

September, 2008: Congressional Democrats insert a provision into the emergency financial rescue package to kick-back 20% of taxpayer revenue to the newly created ACORN slush fund.

It took all weekend for Republican negotiators to successfully remove this provision from the the bailout bill.

Here's the article link: http://www.wvgazette.com/News/200810170676