Thom Hartmann 7-12 Portland, The Corporate Takeover of America's Elections

The “End Corporate Personhood” group of First Unitarian Church presents:

A Dialogue with Thom Hartmann and Attorney Paul Lehto:
“The Corporate Takeover of America’s Elections –
Does Your Vote Count?”

Date: Saturday, July 16, 2005
Time: Presentation: 2:00–4:00 p.m. / Questions: 4:00–5:00 p.m.
Price: $5-$15 suggested (No one turned away for lack of funds)
Place: First Unitarian Church, Main Street Sanctuary, corner of S.W. Main and 12th,
Portland, OR (Allow extra time to find downtown parking)

Approximately one-third of the votes in the 2004 election were cast on paperless electronic voting machines, leaving voters unable to know if their vote was recorded as intended. Computers programmed by four private corporations counted nearly 100% of votes (including Oregon's) in the 2004 election. These corporations have highly partisan political and financial conflicts of interest, yet we are expected to trust them to count our votes.

Voting systems companies require election officials to sign contracts to protect company trade secrets. These private contracts prohibit anyone, even election officials, from viewing software source code used to count votes in secret. Public monitoring of vote counting, our right by law, is eliminated. Thousands of computer voting system irregularities were reported during the last three elections, but evidence is kept secret on corporate hard drives while we are told there is “no solid evidence” of problems. Meanwhile, our election outcomes and our democracy are left in doubt.

Thom Hartmann, local KPOJ and national progressive radio talk show host, is a best-selling author of 15 books. He has written extensively on corporate dominance and corruption of our democratic processes, and on the serious threat posed to democracy by corporate controlled electronic elections.

Paul Lehto is an Everett, WA attorney and author of a paper on election irregularities in Snohomish County, WA, involving Sequoia paperless electronic voting machines. Sequoia’s claim of proprietary trade secrets thwarted further investigation and led to his lawsuit stating the law provides the public the right to observe and monitor vote counting.

For more information contact: 503-665-3957
Or visit: www.thomhartmann.org or www.votersunite.org or ecporegon.org

PDF: http://ecporegon.org/lehtohartmannflyer.pdf

Especially now that Thom is there. I am envious of everyone who will attend.