Does Congress Need Paper Ballots?

Whether you are for or against CAFTA, how that vote went down in Congress is still disturbing. Looks like the worst of the lying politicians on this one are Carolinians.

Sue Myrick admitted that she didn't read the agreement, and she didn't have to because her special interest buddies told her to vote for it. At least she was honest about that, her comments are well documented.

Joe Wilson of South Carolina said he would vote no all along, then voted yes at the moment of truth.

Robin Hayes said he would vote no, and actually did, but then later in the drawn out proceedings (a 15 minute voting period that lasted over an hour -- a problem in and of itself, holding the polls open until the vote comes out the way the administration likes it) switched his vote to yes. His explination is truly idiotic. The best possible face he can put on it is that he realized it really wasn't about free trade at all, at least where the textile industry is concerned, and that made it OK. The more obvious explination is that someone in the Bush adminstration got to him in that hour. I hope it was blackmail, not bribery, that moved him. That guy has always creeped me out.

But the wackiest adventures in selling out one's constituents belong to Charles Taylor, one of the strongest voices of opposition up until the vote. First he claimed his remote electronic voting card didn't work (although had been working fine all day up to that point). This morning's news brings word that he has changed his lame story. Now his aide says he was on the floor after all, voted early and just didn't notice it wasn't registered. If either of Taylor's stories are to be believed then the elctronic voting system used by the US Congress is about as accurate as the one used in Carteret County last year, where over 4400 votes were lost, throwing two close statewide elections into chaos.

The final vote was 217-215. These betrayals and snafus made the difference. Again, this post is not about CAFTA itself. It's about the lies and corruption our alleged representatives are willing to resort to during a close important vote.

Thanks to Jim Capo and Thomas Hill for information on this topic.