Smerconish this morning

[Marvin the Martian]

Smerconish was talking about not turning singular irregularities into something more. He was quoting someone else, saying that we have voting locations that will average double the foot traffic of a Starbucks. These voting locations are one day popups. The workers are woefully underpaid.

Let me add undertrained. For decades I worked, we had a 2 hour training session, that was it. It had no role playing, no job shadowing, nothing. A person at the front lecturing. Your average Starbucks employee is better paid and much better trained.

There is a margin of error on election day. Do we think every Chick-fil-A balances every register to the penny every day? There will be precincts not balanced to the vote.

 

[Aloha Hoosier]

Smerconish was talking about not turning singular irregularities into something more. He was quoting someone else, saying that we have voting locations that will average double the foot traffic of a Starbucks. These voting locations are one day popups. The workers are woefully underpaid.

Let me add undertrained. For decades I worked, we had a 2 hour training session, that was it. It had no role playing, no job shadowing, nothing. A person at the front lecturing. Your average Starbucks employee is better paid and much better trained.

There is a margin of error on election day. Do we think every Chick-fil-A balances every register to the penny every day? There will be precincts not balanced to the vote.

I listen to Smerconish most days on POTUS. Good guy and good show. Very even handed. Used to be a Republican and worked in Republican campaigns. He’s officially independent now, but he’s conservative IMO.

 

[crazed_hoosier2]

It’s a very good point - which is why it’s a mistake to use absolute language in talking about elections.

There have always been and will always be occurrences of voter fraud. That does not mean that it’s rampant or that it’s affecting the outcomes of elections. But it’s also wrong to suggest it isn’t something we need reasonable safeguards against. It will always happen, but we can and should do things that make it hard to pull off while not making voting a laborious thing to do.

 

[snarlcakes]

Smerconish was talking about not turning singular irregularities into something more. He was quoting someone else, saying that we have voting locations that will average double the foot traffic of a Starbucks. These voting locations are one day popups. The workers are woefully underpaid.

Let me add undertrained. For decades I worked, we had a 2 hour training session, that was it. It had no role playing, no job shadowing, nothing. A person at the front lecturing. Your average Starbucks employee is better paid and much better trained.

There is a margin of error on election day. Do we think every Chick-fil-A balances every register to the penny every day? There will be precincts not balanced to the vote.

@dbmhoosier even Marvelous Marv has been compromised and is setting up the narrative for the steal. Are we prepared for it on the ground?

 

[snarlcakes]

He’s officially independent now, but he’s conservative IMO.

Your opinion doesn’t matter when it comes to conservatism.

 

[Hoopsdoc1978]

@dbmhoosier even Marvelous Marv has been compromised and is setting up the narrative for the steal. Are we prepared for it on the ground?

Marv is as incorruptible as Robespierre. If they got to him, it’s all over.

 

[Aloha Hoosier]

Your opinion doesn’t matter when it comes to conservatism.

My opinion is more valid than yours. I’ve been a conservative for much longer. I also know that there isn’t a great deal of conservative about Trump and understand that being a conservative Republican does not require supporting Trump. Don’t get into this “you’re not conservative, you’re a Democrat” bullshit again. It’s very stupid and tiring.

 

[Harry Hondo]

Smerconish was talking about not turning singular irregularities into something more. He was quoting someone else, saying that we have voting locations that will average double the foot traffic of a Starbucks. These voting locations are one day popups. The workers are woefully underpaid.

Let me add undertrained. For decades I worked, we had a 2 hour training session, that was it. It had no role playing, no job shadowing, nothing. A person at the front lecturing. Your average Starbucks employee is better paid and much better trained.

There is a margin of error on election day. Do we think every Chick-fil-A balances every register to the penny every day? There will be precincts not balanced to the vote.

When I voted the other day in Bloomington I had two people at each station to assist, as I made my way through. Presumably, they do this to check that it’s being done correctly. And frankly, it’s the same process as everyone goes through, so by repetition these workers should be well informed by processing hundreds each day. Also, it’s not rocket science if everything is setup and organized correctly from the start.

 

[Marvin the Martian]

When I voted the other day in Bloomington I had two people at each station to assist, as I made my way through. Presumably, they do this to check that it’s being done correctly. And frankly, it’s the same process as everyone goes through, so by repetition these workers should be well informed by processing hundreds each day. Also, it’s not rocket science if everything is setup and organized correctly from the start.

There has to be a D and R at each station to insure no shenanigans. The exception is there is only one inspector.

The day of election is more the problem. The vote center might well be staffed by people who work in the office. But day of requires a lot of people, people who show up after just the 2 hours. Now some may have worked previous years, but not all.

Even at the center theyake mistakes. The HT has an article about a student voting Day 1 being told he could not vote. Turns out he was a legal voter. In addition, he should have been offered a provisional ballot and wasn't.

There are a lot of questions that come up. Can person X help me vote? I moved yesterday, where do I vote? Is this an appropriate ID? When we used to have machines, how to know they were working. When we had paper ballots, if the form says use an X, is a checkmark allowed?

At some point election day, a list of names will be read off of people who voted remotely (probably absentee) after the poll book was sent out. The clerks have to go in and mark people as having voted. I will suggest that somewhere in the state someone is marking the wrong line.

 

[TheOriginalHappyGoat]

It’s a very good point - which is why it’s a mistake to use absolute language in talking about elections.

There have always been and will always be occurrences of voter fraud. That does not mean that it’s rampant or that it’s affecting the outcomes of elections. But it’s also wrong to suggest it isn’t something we need reasonable safeguards against. It will always happen, but we can and should do things that make it hard to pull off while not making voting a laborious thing to do.

To be fair, you're gliding right past a major aspect of the point he's making: tiny examples of honest error can and will happen, but none of them are necessarily fraudulent. They are just mistakes.

Vote totals always change when they do recounts. Why? Not because they caught cheaters. Because there were honest mistakes.

 

[jet812]

There has to be a D and R at each station to insure no shenanigans. The exception is there is only one inspector.

The day of election is more the problem. The vote center might well be staffed by people who work in the office. But day of requires a lot of people, people who show up after just the 2 hours. Now some may have worked previous years, but not all.

Even at the center theyake mistakes. The HT has an article about a student voting Day 1 being told he could not vote. Turns out he was a legal voter. In addition, he should have been offered a provisional ballot and wasn't.

There are a lot of questions that come up. Can person X help me vote? I moved yesterday, where do I vote? Is this an appropriate ID? When we used to have machines, how to know they were working. When we had paper ballots, if the form says use an X, is a checkmark allowed?

At some point election day, a list of names will be read off of people who voted remotely (probably absentee) after the poll book was sent out. The clerks have to go in and mark people as having voted. I will suggest that somewhere in the state someone is marking the wrong line.

Errors are unacceptable. I was taught my whole life that every vote counts, & I believe this. Too bad you don’t. There are too many radicals like Cosmicbot working at polls that undoubtedly will engage in as many shenanigans as they can get away with…

 

[Marvin the Martian]

I was taught my whole life that every vote counts, & I believe this.

I firmly believe every vote counts. My first time working was when I was 18. At that time, the parties did the training. My party instructed us to challenge votes. They were paper forms and the instruction was to mark with an X. So if I saw a check, or a fill in, of the other party I should challenge it. And of course the other party was expected to do the same. There was not a chance I was going to do that. Before we started counting I told the other clerk that I would not challenge votes that were clearly marked if they didn't.

People who show up to vote should be counted.

That said, I am realistic. Humans make mistakes, over the course of counting that many votes by that many people, there will be mistakes. As Goat noted, recounts are always slightly different. Even in heavily Republican areas.

 

[Cortez88]

Errors are unacceptable. I was taught my whole life that every vote counts, & I believe this. Too bad you don’t. There are too many radicals like Cosmicbot working at polls that undoubtedly will engage in as many shenanigans as they can get away with…

Do you volunteer as a poll worker?

 

[jet812]

Do you volunteer as a poll worker?

2028, I’ll be retired by then….🙂

 

[Marvin the Martian]

Smerconish said one more thing of interest, America is divided between those that see the world as Ted Lasso and those that see it as Yellowstone.

 

[mcmurtry66]

Smerconish said one more thing of interest, America is divided between those that see the world as Ted Lasso and those that see it as Yellowstone.

What’s amazing to me is how close friends, same education, careers, etc see things so differently. For instance my little iu group. Have emailed/texted on our chat for over 30 years. 7 of us. 3 will vote trump. 3 will vote Harris. 1 not sure. And I’m sure that’s the case everywhere

Shit brothers. Husbands and wives

 

[Univee2]

Smerconish said one more thing of interest, America is divided between those that see the world as Ted Lasso and those that see it as Yellowstone.

Well, sure. John and Beth Dutton and Rip have never played s*****.

And who can even understand the Brits in Lasso? They speak a different language.

Smerconish does have the only show on CNN worth watching.

 

[Marvin the Martian]

Smerconish does have the only show on CNN worth watching.

It is the only one I watch, on any network. I am not a fan of most TV hosts who tell us what we should be thinking. That isn't what Smerconish does and sets him apart.

 

[BradStevens]

It is the only one I watch, on any network. I am not a fan of most TV hosts who tell us what we should be thinking. That isn't what Smerconish does and sets him apart.

He needs to change his name, though.

 

[Indyhorn]

What’s amazing to me is how close friends, same education, careers, etc see things so differently. For instance my little iu group. Have emailed/texted on our chat for over 30 years. 7 of us. 3 will vote trump. 3 will vote Harris. 1 not sure. And I’m sure that’s the case everywhere

Shit brothers. Husbands and wives

I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s folks seeing things differently, but perhaps more just placing more value on one plank of the party platform than others. I think like you do, a multiple party system would work better in our republic.