http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6210240/

• December 2, 2004 | 8:13 p.m. ET

Jackson verses Blackwell (Keith Olbermann)



SECAUCUS - The complaint about the voting irregularities story has been that has been a little austere, a little impersonal. Part of its lack of appeal to the mainstream media has been its lack of “name players” — the aloofness of John Kerry, as an example. You wouldn’t think you’d have to sex up something as important as the integrity of the democratic process, but it turns out that in these early years of the 21st Century, you have to sex up everything — ask Monday Night Football.

But, not to worry, two players have taken to the stage, big-time. If Ohio actually gets the notice it deserves, the credit will go to Reverend Jesse Jackson, and Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell.

You will recall that in his syndicated Op-Ed column (appearing principally in The Chicago Sun-Times) earlier this week, Jackson wrote the Ohio vote count was "marred by intolerable, often partisan, irregularities and discrepancies,” and added that "U.S. citizens have as much reason as those in Kiev to be concerned that the fix was in."

During the day Thursday, Secretary Blackwell's media secretary was firing back... calling the column blatantly inaccurate: "We expect someone writing an Op-Ed and a syndicate distributing that Op-Ed would fact-check information and have a responsibility to the facts."

Proving two can play at this game, Blackwell has wrote his own Op-Ed piece in response, and it was made available to newspapers today. Jesse in turn, actually turned up on CNN this evening on Paula Zahn's news hour, talking about the same stuff he talked about on Countdown on Tuesday, and that we've been talking about here since the week after the election. Somehow I'm thinking it was a good idea that Blackwell and Jackson appeared on consecutive nights on Countdown, and not the same one.

Blackwell, incidentally, got sued again, by the Greens and Libs again. The Badnarik and Cobb parties are already due back in court tomorrow to try to get a Federal Judge to vacate the temporary restraining order against the re-count inside Delaware County, Ohio. Today, they filed another federal action, naming Blackwell directly, accusing him of stalling the re-count and abusing his authority. The suit asks that the recount begin immediately... since the electoral college is scheduled to meet just eleven days from now — although its vote won’t be opened by congress until January 6.

Blackwell gets to wait until Monday to certify the state’s vote, even though all 88 counties in the Buckeye State have finished their own confirmations. Data is still sketchy, but it turns out election officials accepted about 77% of the provisional ballots — about 121,000 of them. No statewide count of the provisionals yet, though results reported by one county — Franklin (that's Columbus), indicated that Senator Kerry had gotten nearly 7,700 of the more-than 12,000 provisional votes counted.

But of all the developments out of Ohio, the most provocative, clearly, is still stalled under the weight of its own paperwork. The Alliance for Democracy is not quite ready with its challenge to the vote yet. Lawyer Cliff Arnebeck, with who else but Reverend Jackson by his side today on the steps of the Ohio Supreme Court, said that the group hopes to file its election challenge tomorrow — if not, Monday — but it’s not guaranteeing anything.

If and when it gets around to it, the Alliance will be asking one high court justice to set the election results aside, pending a full investigation and hearing. Arnebeck said today he believes that if all ballots were counted in what he calls a "traditional context,” the outcome would not just swing from President Bush’s 130,000 vote election night lead — it would swing all the way in the opposite direction, and give Kerry a 130,000 vote lead.

“Once we file the litigation.” Arnebeck added, “aggressive discovery will proceed, and we'll get to the truth. I want to reemphasize once again as we did at the previous press conference that the purpose here is not partisan, the purpose here is not destructive toward anyone and we invite all candidates, we invite the Bush campaign and the Kerry campaign to join and cooperate in a non-partisan effort to find the truth, gather the facts, and assure the public, and assure both candidates, that this is an honest election."

Arnebeck sounded a little like a protestor in Kiev: "Our presidential election affects not just this country but all the citizens of the world. And therefore it's absolutely essential that the person who assumes the mantle of that office has the full confidence of our public and the world community that it was an honest election.”

Amen.

One final note here. I should clarify what I wrote in this space last night about Countdown’s interaction with Bev Harris of Black Box Voting. My staff is not certain that any of our messages to Ms. Harris inviting her on the show since the week of November 15 have specifically asked her for permission to play the videotapes of her work trying to audit the Florida vote. We think so, but I’ve got only three people booking all the guests on this program, and they each probably make about 100 calls a day.

Complicating our effort is the fact that even as we hoped to provide a platform to publicize and illuminate her efforts, Ms. Harris had returned none of the messages left on her own voicemail by Countdown staffers since she spoke to our staffers briefly, twice, during the week of November 8. Only today did she even get back in touch with us, and was so belligerent, threatening, and demanding, that we have chosen to withdraw our invitation to her to appear, or to have videotape of her efforts played, on Countdown.

Threats against myself or my staff will not be tolerated. We are not only busting our humps on the voting irregularities beat, but we remain the only mainstream news organization to continue to cover this vital story. These are my people — they are running professional risks I can’t begin to describe — and I will stand up for them, first, last, and always.

E-mail me at KOlbermann@msnbc.com

Keith,

Please get over yourself, you are turning into the O'Reilly of the left.

Bev is up to her eyeballs in matters far beyond what you can comprehend.

Well I do think all of this is a shame.

I do not know the facts in this case so I can not comment on if anyone is lying - my hope it was just a communication problem and misunderstanding. It is confusing when there are so many tapes - polling tapes, and two different video tapes. If there was a problem with the voicemail system - as I read on the thread on Democratic Underground where Bev responded - I suppose it's entirely possible they did try to contact her, and she just did not get the message. I think they just grew too fast from the publicity they did get, so that they could not handle all of the emails, and phone calls, and volunteers that were coming in (esp. with the people trying to hack into the system) as well as they might if they were a larger organization to begin with.

I think we must appreciate though - that Keith is the only person on tv willing to cover this (and not chalk it up to crazy people), and try not alienate him into dropping the story. My one experience volunteering for BBV, made me not want to get involved with them further - so I tend to sort of side with Keith if push comes to shove - though I wish Bev and her group the best and hope they succeed - and that nothing else like this comes up.

Meg

Bev is up to her eyeballs alright. She could pick up a phone and call Olbermann herself. Is her arm broken or is she just tooooooooo busy? I think she is a dangerous loose cannon. I wouldn't want to associate with her if I had a ten foot pole.

Okay, I have to defend Keith on this one. While I admire Bev's work, Keith and his staff have put their neck on the line to keep this story afloat. Keith's journalistic integrity is to be admired, even if one doesn't always agree with him.

Keith's slightly wry, tongue in cheek take on this whole mess has been a breath of fresh air.

Dear Keith

Thanks for your article tonight. Thank you for continuing the coverage on the election.

Please extend a olive branch to Bev. I realize that she can be rude and crass. Yet

everyone deserves a 2nd chance. I think she needs a good PR person so she can work.

She is trying to wear too many hats!

Any good CEO knows when to have backup!

I think that adulation for anyone is unhealthy. You don't know Harris personally and can't say for certain that she's an honest broker. At least you can evaluate Olbermann's words because you can see and hear him utter them and you can read his every word.

I think the last thing anyone need do is launch an attack on the one journalist who is pursuing this issue publicly at the moment in order to defend someone who, by many accounts, may be doing something good but who also seems to be a loose cannon.

Keith

Thank you, keep on reporting about this issue.

Acryliccalico

tx for the Olberman blogger update. As to Bev Harris, I know nothing about her, so have nothing to contribute. It does seem to me though, that kicking the allies in the teeth (and Keith is an ally at the moment) is not the wisest strategy. But then, what would I know about what Bev is up against, it's her call. Whatever weight she has to lend to this whole thing, sure seems timely to me that she provide it now. Again....what do I know.

bump.

bump

I find the whole thing strange on Bevs side, you would think she would be running to one of the very very few national media places that are more then willing to show her on the air and especially one that has did its best to keep the people informed. I dont believe kieth would of made this up, what purpose would it serve him to lie about it? He has nothing to gain from it and everything to lose.

Something interesting also... Bev said she was not making the video about the vote fraud which i believe, but she has never said she is not getting a cut, has anyone else seen or heard anything from her denying that she will not recieve one penny from the video ever?

i don't agree with how Bev handled this... just my two cents..I think Keith is an ally...