Nothing to see here, move along.
#PalmBeachCounty elections supervisor bans media cameras from public ballot counting & threatens them with arrest.
How much more will it take to convince skeptics that what is happening in Palm Beach & #BrowardCounty is not a normal elections process? https://t.co/NzoNAYCZFN
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 10, 2018
This is a public canvassing board meeting in Broward, why are the media not being allowed inside??? @nbc6 pic.twitter.com/H3oxhf9itZ
— Dan Krauth (@DanKrauthABC7) November 9, 2018
Police officers guarding the door @nbc6 pic.twitter.com/lQgIxtxJ7e
— Dan Krauth (@DanKrauthABC7) November 9, 2018
Tensions flared Friday morning when Bucher threatened to have camera operators and newspaper reporters arrested for filming ballot tabulation as Palm Beach County. The meeting at least half a dozen television cameras and even more reporters as Palm Beach County is one of the last in Florida to report unofficial results in an election with three tight statewide races. Bucher accused several reporters of illegally taking pictures and videos of signatures on the envelopes of mail ballots.
Reporters repeatedly assured Bucher that they were filming the board members from a safe distance as they examined ballots and decided whether to toss or count them. Signatures were not visible in any Palm Beach Post photos.
Still, Bucher insisted that she’d bring officers to forcibly remove any member of the media who filmed the process.
The effort by Susan Bucher, Palm Beach County elections supervisor, went to naught. A judge ordered the board’s deliberations open.
NBCUniversal, Scripps Media and Fox Television are suing Susan Bucher and the Palm Beach County Canvassing Board for refusing to allow us to record video while they review ballots in a public meeting @nbc6 #EmergencyPetition pic.twitter.com/wPCcNapaTv
— Marissa Bagg (@MarissaNBC6) November 9, 2018
#BREAKING Judge agrees with @NBCNews, @nbc6 and other media outlets— cameras are now allowed to record inside room where provisional ballots are being reviewed by canvassing board in Palm Beach County #Transparency pic.twitter.com/evGNQHVuKX
— Marissa Bagg (@MarissaNBC6) November 10, 2018
Bucher decided a little humor was in order to lighten the mood.
Palm Beach County Elections Supervisor Susan Bucher says the nation's highest elected officials are trying to disrupt democracy.
— Frances Robles (@FrancesRobles) November 9, 2018
When under attack for trying to cheat, scream “raaaaaaacism!”
JUST IN: Facing criticism from Pres. Trump, Sen. Rubio, Gov. Scott and other Republicans, Palm Beach Co. supervisor of elections says it's “unfortunate” that they “are trying to disrupt our democracy because they don’t like the demographics of our voters.” https://t.co/XgxNvfogar pic.twitter.com/CKFLNNseOa
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) November 9, 2018
That’s just Palm Beach County. How are things in Broward County with our friend, elections supervisor Brenda Snipes?
About what you’d expect.
Broward’s elections supervisor accidentally mixed more than a dozen rejected ballots with nearly 200 valid ones, a circumstance that is unlikely to help Brenda Snipes push back against Republican allegations of incompetence.
The mistake — for which no one had a solution Friday night — was discovered after Snipes agreed to present 205 provisional ballots to the Broward County canvassing board for inspection. She had initially intended to handle the ballots administratively, but agreed to present them to the canvassing board after Republican attorneys objected.
“We have found no clear authority controlling the situation faced by the board,” said Broward County Attorney Andrew Meyers.
Snipes had absolutely no authority to handle the ballots “administratively” — having her staff take care of the counting without handing the ballots over to the canvassing board. That’s against the law. And Rick Scott’s suit against Snipes specifically called her out for this. A judge ruled in Scott’s favor, forcing Snipes to follow the law and hand the ballots over.
Senator Marco Rubio has been on top of this drama from the beginning. He asks what the hell is going on in Broward County.
Under #Florida law county must upload by 7 p.m. day BEFORE election ALL early votes canvassed & tabulated by end of early voting & report results within 30 minutes of polls close
60 hours after that deadline only 1 of 67 counties is still counting early votes, #BrowardCounty pic.twitter.com/oP7HdpZcTk
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 9, 2018
The incompetence of & the violation of #Florida reporting requirements by #BrowardCounty elections dept could impact more than just the outcome
The last thing our already dangerously divided nation needs is an important election 1/2 our people believe was rigged by the other 1/2
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 9, 2018
Instead of asking questions like good little reporters, the media is all in with the notion that objections to these violations of Florida election laws are just one more gigantic conspiracy theory by Republicans.
So the federal judges who ruled in favor of Rick Scott’s lawsuits also believe in the “conspiracy theory”?
It’s quite simple: Democratic election officials in at least two of the most populous counties in Florida are either ignorant of the law or are deliberately subverting it when it comes to proper ballot-counting procedures. Two judges have called them out for violating the Florida constitution and election laws. What’s it going to take for the media to start paying attention, asking questions and digging for answers?
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