White House publishes profanity-laced criticisms of its voter fraud commission
Public comments on the voter fraud commission released by the White House late Thursday were overwhelmingly, and in many cases profanely, critical of the project.
The Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity posted on its page on the White House website, without comment or explanation, 112 pages of emails received through July 11, commenting on the organization’s request for states to send them voter information. The posted material did not redact the email addresses, phone numbers and home addresses of the authors.
“Please note that the Commission may post such written comments publicly on our website, including names and contact information that are submitted,” read a blog post published Thursday on the White House’s site. It is unclear whether this messaging was attached to the email address prior to July 13.
The commission is headed by Vice President Mike Pence and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach. It was created by President Trump after his unsubstantiated claims that millions voted illegally in the 2016 election. Kobach has said in interviews that he just wants “the best data possible,” but most states have refused the commission’s request beyond handing over publicly available information. Kobach’s home state of Kansas is restricted by law from turning over all the information suggested by the commission, which includes the last four digits of voter Social Security numbers.
The commission has been sued by the American Civil Liberties Union, but if the intention of the program — as some critics have suggested — is to suppress the vote, it may already be a success. Hundreds of voters have withdrawn their registration in Colorado, representing a 2,000 percent increase compared with the period just before the commission’s request for information. An elections official in Florida said he had received a number of phone calls from people attempting to “unregister” from the rolls, although the limited information the Sunshine State planned to pass on was already public.
Some of the initial responses from state election officials were colorful, such as Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann telling the commission it could go “jump in the Gulf of Mexico” and suggesting his home state as a launch point, while others pointed out Kobach’s history of voter suppression charges. The emails released by the White House are slightly more creative and far more profane, including one responder who sent a nine-page missive listing Republicans who had been charged with or convicted of sex crimes. There were some constructive suggestions and a few that supported the commission, along with those recommending that Kobach — who has announced his intention to run for governor of Kansas in 2018 — consider fornicating with himself.
“Who the f*** are you evil people?” wrote one emailer.
“Read the article and maybe hire some IT people who know what they’re doing,” suggested another, linking to a Gizmodo story on the insecure email being used by the commission.
“I know you are looking for ideas from the public on ways to ‘undermine the American people’s confidence in the integrity of the federal election process,'” said another emailer. “Your panel sounds like a good way to start.”
“Hi, I voted in all 50 states,” read another email. “Just wanted you to know.”
Read all the emails below:
Voter fraud commission comments received June 29 Through July 11 2017 by Yahoo News on Scribd
