The Presidential Coup – Bush Family Steals White House

Published in the Green Press, January 25 2001
By Joe Rigney

For supporters of Ralph Nader’s campaign for president, it comes as no surprise that the electoral system is corrupt. Our candidate was shut out of debates, ignored by the media, and scapegoated as a spoiler.

For others, the events of the last month must have been quite a shock. For the first time in over one hundred years a president who received the most popular votes appears to have lost the Electoral College. But worse than that, the decision of who is to be president is based on an illegitimate election.

The pattern of fraud and corruption on the part of the Bush family to steal the presidency is hard to miss:

·        On election night, Fox Network called the election for Bush and other television stations followed suit. Fox executive John Ellis, cousin of George and Jeb Bush, made the decision. John is reported to have been in close contact with the Bush Family on election night.

·        The election comes down to the choice of electors in Florida, a state where Jeb Bush is Governor and the Secretary of State is a member of the Bush campaign.

• The NAACP has uncovered a pattern of voter fraud in several states, including Florida. In stories reminiscent of the pre-Civil Rights era, Black and Hispanic citizens were turned away at the polls, intimidated by police, and told lies about their rights. (See www.naacp.org)
  
• A sharply divided U.S. Supreme Court rules largely along partisan lines that there isn’t enough time left for Florida to count it’s ballots. Five people on the Supreme Court make the selection of the president, and the Bush family coup is complete.

Issues of sovereignty and democratic rights have been brought to the forefront of our political landscape by massive street demonstrations that have occurred in the last year. As we enter the new millennium, the legitimacy of our most cherished and respected democratic institutions are now called into question by the selection of a president who did not receive the popular vote.

One thing is clear about election 2000: it isn’t over yet. The results of this election will haunt George W. Bush for his entire presidency. Many voters can now see clearly that the electoral system is terribly corrupt. For the first time, many of them realize that their vote doesn’t count. The time for a fundamental change in the electoral system is now.

The first major demonstration against the illegitimate election of a president will take place in Washington D.C. on Inauguration Day, January 20, 2001. Check www.inaugurauction.com for details.

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