Mark Ritchie Falls Short...

Minnesota's current Secretary of State, Mark Ritchie (D-ACORN), a direct recipient of George Soros' "Secretary of State Project," somehow has a habit of turning his back on his most sacred sworn duty as Secretary of State, that of ensuring fair elections.

State Representative Dan “Doc” Severson, candidate for Secretary of State, today responded to news reports that say enough felons were allowed to vote in Minnesota in 2008 to have swung U.S. Senate election in favor of Al Franken. (see http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/07/12/felons-voting-illegally-franken-minnesota-study-finds/)

“Where was Secretary of State Mark Ritchie?” asked Severson. “Before and after the election, Mark Ritchie claimed there was no voter fraud. He claimed we had a clean election system. He claimed there were checks in the system to prevent felons from voting. But now it is obvious: Mark Ritchie lied.”

“Worse yet, Mark Ritchie sat idly by and allowed felons to steal legitimate Minnesotans’ votes,” said Severson.

Then again, what can you expect from a dyed-in-the-wool Alinskyite, cut from the same cloth as the master.

Really, Minnesotans--I thought the era of Huey Long died a long time ago.

***UPDATE***

--Gary at Let Freedom Ring has a lot more info.

Mark Ritchie--D-ACORN

I reported on Mark Ritchie and his association with Peace Coffee here. Blogger extraordinaire Drew Emmer from Wright County Republican found more interesting information about Mark Ritchie's 'enterprise':

It's amazing what the unintended consequences are of an inquiry about Peace Coffee. A friend asked about the beans being sold for charitable purposes at his local parish. God bless The Google. What did we discover? More than just a stimulating cup of Joe.

Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie is the "registered agent" for the Tides Center, alleged to be one of the most corrupt players in American political money laundering.

Read, as they say, the whole thing.

Memo to Mark Ritchie: Voter Fraud Happens:

I heard Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie (D-ACORN) proclaim this morning on KNSI-AM that voter fraud is not a problem in the state of Minnesota. Furthermore, Mark Ritchie proclaims that requiring voter ID is akin to Stalinist tactics and an affront to the right to privacy (this coming from an avowed socialist, mind you)

But lest you think that Ritchie has a point, that voter fraud is a non-factor in Minnesota's electoral process, let's take a gander at our neighbors to our south, shall we?

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Twelve people in Linn County have been charged with election misconduct after officials say they voted in November after losing their right to vote because they are a convicted felon. Convicted felons are not allowed to vote in Iowa until they complete their sentence.

Linn County Auditor Joel Miller says another 46 people are being investigated for voter registration fraud. He says they are suspected of giving a false address when they voted on Election Day.

The voters were mailed a registration card after the election. If the card is returned unanswered, election workers try to reach them again. If they are unsuccessful, the county attorney or secretary of state is notified for possible investigation.

For Mark Ritchie's and others' edification, Iowa, like Minnesota, has same-day voter registration. Iowa, like Minneosota, doesn't require photo ID.

Still think that there's no room for voter fraud in Minnesota's current election rules?

"Non Partisan," "highly ethical" Mark Ritchie?

Mark Ritchie on nonpartisanship:

"Elections must be run in a nonpartisan manner, with all political parties and candidates, including candidates not affiliated with any party, receiving equal treatment. Previous Secretaries of State Arlen Erdahl (R) and Joan Growe (DFL) operated the Office of the Secretary of State in this non-partisan manner, placing the interests of Minnesota voters above their own party’s interests. They were willing to make decisions that were right for the people of Minnesota, even if it hurt their own political party.

Under the current Secretary of State this approach has been abandoned. Decisions are made to benefit one party over others.

I intend to return the Secretary of State’s Office to this nonpartisan tradition by taking the following steps:

• Hiring elections professionals to run and staff the Elections Division of the Secretary of State’s Office. Employees will be hired for their experience, not their political connections. They will have the training and support necessary to accurately and efficiently administer the state’s elections.

• Supporting legislation to prohibit a Secretary of State from serving on the campaign committee of another candidate. This step will help garner the public’s trust that the Secretary is truly able to serve as a fair arbitrator of elections.

• Urging the legislature to address the complications that would be caused by a close election in which an incumbent Secretary of State is a candidate. Clearly, Secretaries of State should not be allowed oversee their own recounts. Instead, the Governor should appoint a disinterested third party to manage the proceedings.

• Eliminating practices that discriminate against smaller political parties and independent candidates.

I will take these and other steps to restore Minnesota’s tradition of nonpartisan election administration. I will get the politics out of the Office of the Secretary of State."

Apparently, Mr. Ritchie's "nonpartisan" agenda didn't include refraining from utilizing State mailing lists for partisan electioneering:(All emphases mine)

ST. PAUL — An investigation into allegations that Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie used a state mailing list for political purposes grew more intense Monday when the state’s legislative auditor said he will seek testimony under oath.

Auditor Jim Nobles said he was taking the rare step in response to a published report last week in which Ritchie acknowledged he was personally involved in giving the list to his campaign, which used it to solicit contributions. Initially, Ritchie said he did not know how his campaign obtained the list.

“If (Ritchie) was not forthcoming, that is a serious matter in and of itself,” Nobles said. “If we cannot confirm the veracity of the statements from him and others in his office we’ll have to take other measures to determine what went on.”

Nobles began looking into the data sharing last month after two Republicans who participated in a civic engagement program sponsored by Ritchie’s office questioned why they were getting electronic mailings from the DFL officeholder’s campaign committee.

On Nov. 9, Ritchie’s legal adviser, Bert Black, told Nobles in a letter that the mailing list was public information and widely distributed, including at the State Fair. Black said that was his understanding of how the directory was obtained by the Ritchie campaign.

Last week, Ritchie told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that he personally transferred the contact information from the Secretary of State’s office to his campaign organization. Ritchie made the same acknowledgment in an e-mail to Nobles later the same day.

In what is either a lame excuse, or a case of gross incompetence (after all, Ritchie is the State of Minnesota's Chief Elections Officer), Ritchie's office attempted to plead ignorance on the matter:

“The office of secretary of state takes the matter very seriously and we welcome the additional attention being given to this matter by the legislative auditor,” said John Aiken, Ritchie’s director of communications. “We’re looking forward to receiving their conclusions and implementing any recommendations.”

I wonder if Ritchie's offer to "implement any recommendations" extends to any recommendation that he should step down from his elected office.

Say Goodnight, Gracie...err..Mark Ritchie...

Gary Gross at Let Freedom Ring has the final nail in the coffin details.

Mark Ritchie unethical? *UPDATED*

It seems so.

It couldn't happen to a nicer guy. Or a more non-partisan Secretary of State.

That is all.

***UPDATE***

Gary Gross pounds another nail.

Republican Lies I Didn't Know Were Lies (until Mark Ritchie told me so)

Just for the edification of it all, I attended a MN DFL fundraiser last night in St. Cloud, called the "Minnesota DFL Local & Sustainable Foods Dinner."

Before I begin, let me say that my DFL hosts were more than gracious. The event was largely apolitical in nature. It consisted of a meal prepared from "sustainable area ingredients," consisting of yak meat (no, I'm not kidding--and it was quite tasty, as well), squash, tiny cherry tomatoes, a couple of pasta dishes, and a fantastic apple cobbler. The meal was followed by the local producers of the food, explaining how they grow them organically, as well as the chef (a fantastic chef, to be sure), who told how the meal was put together, and also gave a presentation as to chemicals present in non-organic foods. I sat with a DFL official from Cold Spring and his wife, and we had a great chat about a number of issues, including Iraq and my son's service there. They were very gracious, and wished my son well.

All well and good, and interesting.

Then came the keynote speaker of the evening, Minnesota Secretary of State, Mark Ritchie. Since it was an evening that had to do with "sustainable" foods, Mark Ritchie was invited, ostensibly due to his work with the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy.

Basically, what it all appeared to boil down to is that Ritchie applied his experience as a lobbyist for the organic food industry to advancing liberal/neo-socialist political causes. After taking some obligatory, uncalled-for swipes at former Secretary of State Mary Kiffmeyer, and telling the obligatory tales about blacks in the South being murdered on their way to vote, Ritchie went on to talk about large corporate food operations' alleged propaganda war against "sustainable" organic food operations, and applied the same process to supposed republican propaganda (read: lies). Said Ritchie,

"There's a whole propaganda machine out there that says you know better what to do with your money than the government, or that home schooling is better than public schools."

"Gee. Maybe the government does know best!" (/sarc)

Later, Ritchie loudly proclaimed another Republican lie; or rather the neo-socialist version of the "truth," saying:

"Just like Greenspan said, the Iraq war was all about oil!"

I thought to myself, "The minute Greenspan begins commanding our soldiers, I might give him credibility in that department."

Ritchie's comments drew cheers from some, silence from others.

Ritchie also brought up the supposed propaganda machine with regard to the use of oil, implying that ethanol was the end-all and be-all of liquid energy.

Ritchie went on to say with all the disgust he could muster,

"On my way here, I saw a Burlington Northern train, just spewing out black smoke, and carrying rail car after rail car full of coal!" "I hate oil." "I hate oil and coal!"

But, much to my surprise, not all DFLers present were prepared to drink the ethanol kool-aid! There were several who brought up the problems associated with using corn for ethanol, and one in the audience even went so far as to in effect say "the ethanol emperor had no clothes," and called the ethanol movement "a disaster." People also noted that switchgrass would be a viable alternative, citing that the ethanol-driven increase in the price of corn was increasing the price of food. Ritchie downplayed and/or dismissed the notion altogether, saying that,

"Americans don't eat corn; Americans feed the corn to cattle, and then Americans eat cattle."

Hmm. I guess that last piece of corn on the cob I ate must have been a figment of my imagination. But I digress.

Another in the audience went on to cite that in Mexico, where corn is a staple, much of the corn now growing there goes toward ethanol, rather than food; which resulted in a substantial price increase in food with which Mexicans were ill-prepared to deal.

Again, Ritchie dismissed this, saying "They grow a different kind of corn in Mexico, than they do in the U.S." But the audience member retorted, "But they're still growing corn for ethanol now, instead of food." Ritchie went on to say that if everyone pastured their cattle vs. feeding them corn, it wouldn't be a problem.

Finally, another DFL audience member stated, "Will there ever be a time when the DFL can have an open and honest debate about this?

Ritchie replied,

"Well, as you know, the DFL has always had open and honest debates about everything!"

A portion of my cup of Peace Coffee just about came out of my nose when I heard that.

Yet another DFLer asked Mark, "Seeing all the environmental and other problems that have come about as a result of ethanol production, do you still endorse corn-based ethanol as a viable alternative?

Ritchie replied, in a loud, forceful voice, "ABSOLUTELY!" and went on to say, "When you go about things, there's always the possibility that you'll do it wrong," [Tell me about it--ed.]. "But it's just like the Texas Instrument Calculators when they first came out--they were clumsy and didn't work too well--now look at them."

Yes, Ritchie proved himself a regular Mr. Bojangles on this topic.

He sidestepped, two-stepped and tried to tarantella his way out of it, but everyone saw through him like the combined wardrobe of Britney Spears and Paris Hilton.

As a sidenote, on my way out, I had a chance to compliment the gentleman who brought up the "honest, open debate," comment; he smiled and said that he knew that Ritchie wouldn't be able to answer his question, for he and the DFL were too beholden to the ethanol interests.

Ritchie then went on a spiel about how Republicans are fearmongers, and always try to play the fear card to maintain their power.

Incidentally, Ritchie followed those comments with,

"You gotta be careful, cause this is an armed country! Remember 1968, when our nation was willing to use bullets to stifle dissent! This isn't like Canada, or England. This is an ARMED country!"

If nothing else, it was a perfect example of the psychological defense mechanism known as projection. Not to mention a short memory, given that the 1968 riots occurred in Chicago. During the Democrat Convention. Under a Democrat Mayor who gave the orders to "shoot to kill;" and to utilize mace to detain youngsters.

Mark's comments suggest, in no uncertain terms, that the elitist Mark Ritchie wishes to portray conservatives in America as gun-totin' shootem' up paramilitary folk who are just chompin' at the bit to pick themselves off a few of dem dere hippies.

Puhleeeeze!

At the end of the evening, I approached Secretary of State Ritchie, and confronted him about his gratuitous Iraq war statement. Specifically, I told him about my son's service, and stated in no uncertain terms that Ritchie's comments served to demean his service. Ritchie immediately retorted with, "But Alan Greenspan said," to which I said, "I don't care what he said. The soldiers aren't there for oil! My son has helped the Iraqis build irrigation systems; he helped them get running water; he was protecting those people! Your statement deeply offended me."

Ritchie responded by stating something to the effect, "You're right, I should have been more careful of what I said."

I wonder if he'll remember that next time.

If I see pigs flying in the near future, I'll be sure and let you know.