Author:
Publication: Press Release
via Common Dreams
Date: December 13, 2000
Washington, December
13 - Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. today said, "As a U.S.
congressman I swore to uphold the Constitution and the laws of the United
States. Today I reaffirm that oath. I also reaffirm that we
are a nation of laws and not of men, thus, I accept and will abide by the
ruling of the Supreme Court.
"However, even as I accept
and will abide by the decision, I also -- with every bone in my body and
every ounce of moral strength in my soul -- strongly and vigorously disagree
with it. In third world countries when democratically cast votes
are not counted, or the person who most likely lost wins in a highly questionable
manner, we usually refer to that as a coup d'etat -- the overthrow of a
government, usually by a small group of persons. All legal votes
in Florida were not counted. If they had been counted, there is at
least a strong possibility that Vice President Gore would have received
the most votes in Florida as he did in the country -- which is why the
Bush people did not want the votes counted. Even more important than
partisan politics, the votes should have been counted in the name of democracy
in order to give the maximum amount of credibility and legitimacy to the
eventual winner. What we have just witnessed is a Supreme Court that
was used as a willing tool of the Bush campaign.
"After the Soviet Union
collapsed, many of its satellites fell. In the case of the Czech
Republic, Vaclav Havel became the new President on the basis of a legitimate
people uprising and a democratic "Velvet Revolution." In 2000, the U.S.
Supreme Court orchestrated a questionable 'velvet legal coup.'
"The basis of politics
and legal authority in the United States is the Constitution. The
first words in the Preamble are 'We the people.' We the PEOPLE are the
ultimate source of power and legal authority for our government.
The people express their will through the vote. And the will and
intention of the voter, as best it can be discerned by machines, bipartisan
hand counters and accompanying public witnesses must be the legal standard.
"While I urge calm and
a political response in 2002 and 2004, I see this decision as a potential
threat to our democracy and potentially de-stabilizing to our democratic
institutions. I see it as undermining the legitimacy of a President
Bush should he be elected without all of the votes being counted.
All Americans can live with votes counted for Gov. George W.
Bush. But democracy cannot live if the votes of the American people
are not counted. An uncounted vote says to the American people that
THEY don't count.
"I do not believe that
over 100 million Americans went to the polls and cast their ballots with
the expectation that they would not be counted. I also do not believe
they voted with the expectation that their next president would be selected
by five conservative, strict constructionist, narrowly ideological, Republican-
appointed justices who used the means of legal nitpicking and highly questionable
legal technicalities as a substitute for the peoples' democratic will as
expressed through their vote.
"Justice Scalia, in the
previous decision, went so far as to say that there is no legal right of
suffrage in the Constitution. Thus, the American people, through
their federal and state elected officials, may need to amend the constitution
making the right to vote -- which all Americans thought was implicit in
our Constitution and laws -- explicit in the Constitution. This decision,
with the kind of thinking reflected by Justice Scalia, is a threat to our
democracy. It is hard to imagine that Bush v. Gore will be
viewed as a high water mark in the history of the Supreme Court when viewed
through the eyes of history. It will more likely be compared to other
infamous decisions such as Dred Scott and Plessy v. Ferguson.
"The road is now even
tougher for Vice President Gore, but it is still up to him as to whether
he pursues any further legal or political remedies. I still strongly
support all legal and political efforts to make sure that all voters who
cast votes on November 7 have their votes counted. Legal options
seem to have exhausted any hope of getting all the votes counted.
However, there may be political means in Congress still open to the Vice
President that he may wish to pursue. I will respect whatever course
he chooses.
"The Vice President won
the most national votes. And I believe that if all votes cast in
Florida had been counted he would have won the most votes there as well
-- and, thus, the 25 electoral votes and the presidency. Legal matters
have been pursued through the courts, ultimately with no relief.
If everything remains the same, it appears that the Electoral College vote
will go to Governor Bush.
"However, beyond and
even more important than Bush or Gore, is the issue of the integrity of
the voting system itself. There appears to be 'voting rights' violations
that should be pursued regardless of who wins the election. Congress
needs to pass legislation to federalize and nationalize future elections
to the extent that there is one, fair, inclusive national standard and
mechanism for conducting our federal elections.
"It appears, through
a combination of inferior voting machines, police roadblocks, questionable
voting procedures, roll purges and other such mechanisms, that a significant
number of African Americans were denied either their right to vote or to
have their vote count. These matters should be fully investigated
beyond the election results and corrective procedures should be put in
place for the future. African Americans should remain more determined
than ever to vote and to have their vote count. If there is a fire
and water is poured on it, but it doesn't put out the fire, don't conclude
that water doesn't put out fires. Conclude that it will take more
water. By the same token African Americans should NOT conclude that
voting doesn't count, but that we need even more votes to achieve the desired
effect. We must spend the time between now and 2002 registering and
politically educating the nearly 8 million yet unregistered black voters.
In fact, we must register all Americans to vote regardless of race, creed
or color," Jackson concluded.
