Texas Secretary of State holds hearing on electronic voting machines

"You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, nor lie to one another."
Leviticus 19:11

Should Texans have the same degree of confidence in the integrity of their elections as residents of New Hampshire?!?

This afternoon, the Texas Secretary of state held public hearings on certification for two types of electronic voting machines.  It was a flashpoint for concerns from activists around Texas over questions that have recently emerged over the reliability of said machines.  Literally zero people testified in favor of electronic machines.

Speakers universally spoke in favor of some form of paper balloting.  As Katie Brewer of Texans for Accountable government explained: "I don't write code, but I can count paper ballots."  Speakers pointed out that, in the event paper ballots became the standard, people would come out of the woodworks to help count them.

The most compelling speaker was Kurt Hyde, a Denton county activist who "began the paper trail movement in 1986."  As Hyde continued, "nothing in that time has changed my mind."  Hyde detailed how counting paper ballots can be accomplished in a timely manner.  Hyde also pointed out that New Hampshire has had a paper trail law on the books since 1994.

The New Hampshire law got us thinking.  Obviously, we just came through a presidential primary where both parties' nomination contests featured accusation of election fraud.  But we didn't remember any accusations related to the contest in New Hampshire.  Google confirmed it.

Laura Pressley said "the Texas Secretary of State does not have public trust" and gave several reasons related to her election challenge:

• A cast vote record is not a ballot image.

• Poll watchers were kicked out of the election office in Dallas county on the night of the primary.

• The Sec'y of state's office has granted numerous waivers related to election integrity matters.

While we didn't catch the CV of the woman who conducted the hearing, it is worth pointing out that nobody from the Secretary of State's election division showed up.

Bottom Line: Paper ballots aren't perfect, but they'd be a heck of a lot better than the mess in which we find ourselves today.

Help Mess with Teachers Unions!!!

Up in New Hampshire, Granite Grok has found something interesting:

I was forwarded a copy of the candidate survey sent out to New Hampshire Legislative Candidates from the American Federation of Teachers (AFT-NH).  It is twenty-five questions whose focus can be summed up in two words; Money and Power.

The entire survey is dedicated to asking whether you will do anything to curb public union power or will vote to change how public union teachers are compensated, their pensions,  including whether you would support any legislation that would make it harder to raise taxes.

Can’t put road blocks on the path to legal plunder.  Gotta have more taxes.   Money and Union Power. That’s the entire survey.

There are questions on voter ID, Vouchers, Charter Schools; do you support right to work and collective bargaining rights; would you block dues collection through payroll deduction, and they even ask if you would vote to block Obamacare?  But my favorite….”Do you support the Free State Project?”  I kid you not.

So what about the children?  Screw the children. There is not one question about kids, students, materials, curriculum, facilities, or anything that has anything to do with legislators concerns about public education or educating children, unless you count the questions on whether you might be even remotely inclined to let parents (see also taxpayers) decide where to educate their children.  Like I said, money and power.

If you are wondering, I am not a candidate, but I’d still get a zero and not just because I support the Free State Projects rights, just as much as I support the right of Democrats, to express their opinions and agendas, and to engage in the political process.  I clearly have more in common with them than the AFT, a lot more, but the question does not ask that does it?

So does the AFT survey tell us about their proprieties for “education?”  Damn right it does.  Public education is merely a vehicle to money and Union power. And your chidlren?  They don’t even make the the candidate survey.

Here's the Link to the Survey