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While Manjoo seeks to discredit RFK's excellent piece on the 2004 election, and says Kennedy would rather press the hot button than propose a solution, I find Manjoo's tenacious rejection of hanky-panky in Ohio silly on its face.
I traveled, at my own expense, to Columbus Ohio in October 2004, and spent some considerable time going door-to-door for the Kerry campaign. I also spent time with professional operatives from Kerry's national headquarters who were there to help and to monitor Blackwell's repeated, and widely publicized, attempts to suppress the Democratic vote even before the election.
I found overwhelming Kerry support sufficient to say that the only Bush supporters I came in contact with were in the Republican suburbs, none of which were short of voting machines on election day or had long lines waiting to vote.
What has puzzled me, actually made me quite angry, however, is Kerry's inaction following the election. His operatives in Columbus outlined for me, and the many other volunteers who have traveled from far and wide, precisely the kinds of tactics they expected or were already seeing to deny Kerry a victory in Ohio. They also claimed they had 2,500 volunteer lawyers ready to stop the shenanigans before and after election day. When Kerry conceded without any fight I couldn't understand why, and I still don't.
When someone, like Manjoo, denies the reality of something I have experienced personally my inclination is to ignore them, and I certainly will ignore Manjoo from now on. I don't know what his agenda is, but he's got one, and it doesn't have much to do with the truth. Kennedy is far from perfect (I have known him for 20 years), and he's far more credible than whatever the rightwing serves up through Manjoo.
I was sorry to see Salon publish this deceptive piece.
