Tuesday, July 13, 2021

State Rep asks for bizarre and belated election audit, gets rightfully slapped down by Election Board Secretary


Sometimes, I just don't understand why people do things. Over the past several years, and the last year in particular, there are many individuals who were otherwise solid who (at least temporarily) have lost most of the good sense that they previously possessed in a bizarre urge to pander to a certain crowd that will never be satisfied. They know full well what they're doing, and that their pandering will accomplish absolutely nothing other than inflame their intended audience and supposedly transfer some good will in their favor.

I don't blog to make people happy. I speak the truth where I see it. This obsession with indulging the Trump delusion that the election was stolen (and not the result of a botched campaign with a totally undisciplined candidate who undermined his own success at every turn, with the assistance of a willing and hate-filled media) will be the death of conservatism. 

Just stop it already and have some character. Quit selling your integrity to the Trump personality cult, the most views, and the latest outrage clickbait.

The latest in this sad saga is the following press release from State Rep. Sean Roberts. Possessing a voting record that is generally among the most conservative in the legislature, Rep. Roberts was a key player in the Platform Caucus, a core group of staunch conservatives who fought against major tax increases in 2017 and 2018. Now in his final term of office, it seems that Rep. Roberts might have lost some of that principle in a pursuit of cheap support and applause from the lowest common denominator in current GOP fads. Another elected official, further down this shameful track, would be State Sen. Nathan Dahm, but that's for another day. I'll offend enough people with this post for now.

Anyway, first up is the ridiculous Roberts press release, followed by a reasonable and well-stated response by the inimitable Oklahoma State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax.

Election Audit Request

OKLAHOMA CITY – State Representative Sean Roberts, R-Hominy, today announced he is requesting that the State Election Board Secretary call for a forensic and independent audit of the 2020 general election results in Oklahoma County and two other random Counties in the state.

“Oklahomans have the right to know their election results can be trusted,” Roberts said.

In a letter sent to the Election Board Secretary, Roberts states, “Every citizen deserves to have faith in the integrity of the election process and its outcome. It is my responsibility, as an elected public servant, to assure my constituents that Oklahoma’s elections are safe and secure.”

"There were clear signs of election fraud in various other states around the country such as Arizona, Georgia, and Pennsylvania," said Roberts. "Elections are the bedrock of our constitutional republic and the recent fraud across the country has led to voter confidence dropping drastically, we must prove our state elections are secure." The audit Roberts is requesting would consist of registration and votes cast audit, vote count and tally audit, election voting systems audit, and a reported results audit.

Constituents have stated over and over again that transparency is a must in our republic and every citizen should be confident that their vote counts as one. To ensure this Representative Roberts is also considering legislation next year that creates a more comprehensive audit process to protect future elections.


State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax responded with the following letter:

Oklahoma has an excellent elections system, perhaps one of the best in the nation. We'd be much better off as a nation if other states imitated what we have here.

I've appreciated Rep. Roberts generally conservative record in the legislature, but to be brutally frank this whole stunt was stupid. I'm disappointed.

I'll close with some wise words from the late, great Dr. Tom Coburn:

“The worst thing is being dishonest with your base about what you can accomplish, ginning everybody up and then creating disappointment. It’s a terribly dangerous and not successful strategy.”

2 comments:


  1. I won't delve into the fallacies of your post but hope that fraud deniers such as yourself will eat your words when the audits are completed in Arizona and Georgia.

    ReplyDelete

  2. The last full paragraph in Sec. Ziriax letter is key. There has been no major discrepancy found in any Oklahoma election for decades. Clearly our system is effective, efficient and secure. You are correct that we would all be better off if other states copied Oklahoma's system.

    ReplyDelete

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