The Pinocchio Awards - 3

U.S. Rep Stephanie Tubbs-Jones (D - Cleveland) will get the third award of our 'Pinocchio Award' Series. The other two recipients were Senator Tom Roberts D - Trotwood (2) and Jim Trakkas, R - SoS (1). Owing to the fact that this blog started up after Tubbs-Jones' faux protest on January 6, 2005, the day of Bush's election certification by Congress, we missed her swan song.

We apologize for our breathtakingly poor memory lapse as regards awarding her a "Pinocchio," and do hereby rectify that error. Please accept our sincerest apology.

It gets better however. In a January 9, 2005 article/column/ opinion/editorial for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, page H1 (paid sub. req.) Elizabeth Auster opined (via Lexis-Nexis)

Sure, voting will always be imperfect. But few citizens expect voting to be an all-day experience, and plan accordingly... And people forced into that situation have reason to be furious...

A wise politician heeds such fury. And Tubbs Jones is no fool... She calculated rationally that Republicans, who are understandably pleased with Bush’s victory, are unlikely to devote a major effort in Congress in the next few years to addressing imperfections in the voting system...

And it worked. For a few hours Thursday, she drew national attention to Ohio’s voting problems. Nothing tangible was achieved. But nothing tangible was harmed — unless you count as tangible the spirit of respect for tradition that ideally would govern conduct in Congress.

I am not sure whether to sputter in nonsensible outrage or laugh at the incomprehensibility of the phrase "Republicans... are unlikely to devote a major effort in Congress in the next few years to addressing imperfections in the voting system."

Since January 9, 2001 and Ohio's H.B. 5 (2001) Blackwell has tried to fix Ohio's punch-card system. Since the passage of HAVA 2002, Blackwell has tried to fix Ohio's punch-card system. Since the passage of Ohio's H.B. 262 (2004) by Taft and Co. mandating voter-verified paper trails, Blackwell has tried to fix Ohio's punch-card system. Thwarted by Jeff Jacobson in '01 , Blackwell has tried to fix Ohio's punch-card system. Thwarted by conspiracy theorists in relation to paper trails Blackwell has tried to fix Ohio's punch-card system. Thwarted by Ohio's House, Senate, Attorney General and Governor, Blackwell has tried to fix Ohio's punch-card system. Thwarted by activist judges Blackwell has tried to fix Ohio's punch-card system.

Nobody else has so much as lifted a finger to help. Tubbs-Jones' grandstanding is too little, too late and still does nothing to help Blackwell fix the problem.

Please e-mail the Editor-in-Chief with any questions.