Below is a story about the FBI targeting apparently law-abiding citizens who had the temerity to take part in political protests. Now comes this depressing column by Bob Herbert about voter intimidation in Florida. Apparently, state police officers have gone to the homes of elderly black voters (some of whom just happen to organize "get out the vote" drives in their Orlando community) to question them about allegations of voter fraud during the Orlando mayoral election in March. Dozens of people were questioned about a case that officials refused to provide details on, except to say it involved absentee ballots. (The very ballots people in Florida may want to use because of concerns about the new computerized systems.) Here's one amusing/disturbing exchange:
"I asked if all the people interrogated were black.They randomly selected elderly black people? Right. Just like the Bushes randomly left Hispanic felons on eligible voter rolls while eliminating blacks.
'Well, mainly it was a black neighborhood we were looking at - yes,' he said. He also said, 'Most of them were elderly.'
When I asked why, he said, 'That's just the people we selected out of a random sample to interview.'"
According to a lawyer who represents the president of the Orlando League of Voters, this "investigation" is working.
"People who have voted by absentee ballot for years are refusing to allow campaign workers to come to their homes. And volunteers who have participated for years in assisting people, particularly the elderly or handicapped, are scared and don't want to risk a criminal investigation."
Why Florida voters aren't demonstrating in the streets over suspect computerized voting, fishy manipulation of voter rolls and now this is beyond me.
