Kanye West to run for president?

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Frank Underwood

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How did he get on the ballot in the first place if he missed the deadline?
 

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How did he get on the ballot in the first place if he missed the deadline?
The latest article I read said he was kicked off due to his late registration. It also said that Kanye missed the deadline by seconds. Kanye's attorney is claiming the registration was on time because the paperwork was filed the same day. The attorney said if it had been late, the election staffer would have filed the paperwork the following day.

The Green Party was officially denied ballot access in Wisconsin as well. They're claiming it's because there's a discrepancy with the VP candidate's address, which could be corrected. The election commissions that make these decisions are comprised of Democrats and Republicans, and they have a vested interest in keeping third parties off the ballot. It's clear they're focused on the tiniest mistake and loophole to kick them off, which is why they have to make damn sure everything is in order when they file.
 
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"I don't think it's unreasonable or unfair to expect that candidates who want to be President of the United States can follow the clear rules that each state sets out," - Jeff Mandell, attorney challenging the validity of some of the nominees for Angela Walker.

The question to ask is why weren't the Green Party on top on this? Why didn't they check that they were following the procedures correctly? Everyone knew the rules. If an idiot like Trump can get his nomination papers in correctly why couldn't the Green Party?
 

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"I don't think it's unreasonable or unfair to expect that candidates who want to be President of the United States can follow the clear rules that each state sets out," - Jeff Mandell, attorney challenging the validity of some of the nominees for Angela Walker.
Democratic attorney Jeff Mandell, at that. He obviously has a dog in this fight.

The question to ask is why weren't the Green Party on top on this? Why didn't they check that they were following the procedures correctly? Everyone knew the rules. If an idiot like Trump can get his nomination papers in correctly why couldn't the Green Party?
Walker moved during the petition drive to get the Green Party on the ballot. Her address is only incorrect on the petitions collected while she was living at her former address. It's an understandable mistake under the circumstances. I must say I find it rather funny that your "research" only led you to a one-sided response from a Democratic attorney.

It's also funny how you hold the Green Party accountable for a trivial procedural error, yet you defend Biden and the Democrats who've committed actual atrocities.
 
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Angela Channing

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Walker moved during the petition drive to get the Green Party on the ballot. Her address is only incorrect on the petitions collected while she was living at her former address.
So why didn't they check the papers were valid before they were submitted. "I don't think it's unreasonable or unfair to expect that candidates who want to be President of the United States can follow the clear rules that each state sets out" is a fair comment to make regardless of whether or not it is by someone with "a dog in this fight".

I asked 3 questions:
  1. Why weren't the Green Party on top on this?
  2. Why didn't they check that they were following the procedures correctly?
  3. If an idiot like Trump can get his nomination papers in correctly why couldn't the Green Party?
They are reasonable questions that The Green Party and their supporters should address instead of blaming the State of Wisconsin for implementing the rules that all candidates have to abide by. Maybe you think there should be one law for The Green Party and another law for everyone else?
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So why didn't they check the papers were valid before they were submitted. "I don't think it's unreasonable or unfair to expect that candidates who want to be President of the United States can follow the clear rules that each state sets out" is a fair comment to make regardless of whether or not it is by someone with "a dog in this fight".

I asked 3 questions:
  1. Why weren't the Green Party on top on this?
  2. Why didn't they check that they were following the procedures correctly?
  3. If an idiot like Trump can get his nomination papers in correctly why couldn't the Green Party?
They are reasonable questions that The Green Party and their supporters should address instead of blaming the State of Wisconsin for implementing the rules that all candidates have to abide by. Maybe you think there should be one law for The Green Party and another law for everyone else?
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It was a minor oversight that occurred during the VP candidate's move to a new address. Perhaps you believe the commission should function as robots, rather than take into account any special circumstances on a case by case basis. The commission was deadlocked 3-3, so half the commissioners were more understanding of the minor discrepancy.

All three Democrats on the commission voted against the Green Party. Their claim was "they could not accept hearsay evidence" regarding Walker's change of address. In contrast, Republican Commissioner Dean Knudson said "it was clear, based on the dates on the ballot petitions, that Walker had moved on either July 29 or 30."

The Green Party is suing. Green Party co-chair Andrea Merida noted that "In 1980, independent candidate John Anderson changed his running mate between the time he circulated nomination papers and when the election occurred." That's an even bigger discrepancy, and yet they made an exception and let Anderson remain on the ballot.

If you want to talk about a party that's truly above the law, just look at the Democratic Party that you support and defend. The Iowa caucuses and exit polls were filled with giant discrepancies, but you support the Democrats anyway. The Democrats are war criminals who illegally spy on Americans and trample on civil liberties by supporting the Patriot Act, but you support the Democrats anyway. But hey, at least you have the courage of your convictions to stand up against a trivial oversight regarding an address!
 
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Angela Channing

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It was a minor oversight that occurred during the VP candidate's move to a new address. Perhaps you believe the commission should function as robots, rather than take into account any special circumstances on a case by case basis. The commission was deadlocked 3-3, so half the commissioners were more understanding of the minor discrepancy.

All three Democrats on the commission voted against the Green Party. Their claim was "they could not accept hearsay evidence" regarding Walker's change of address. In contrast, Republican Commissioner Dean Knudson said "it was clear, based on the dates on the ballot petitions, that Walker had moved on either July 29 or 30."

The Green Party is suing. Green Party co-chair Andrea Merida noted that "In 1980, independent candidate John Anderson changed his running mate between the time he circulated nomination papers and when the election occurred." That's an even bigger discrepancy, and yet they made an exception and let Anderson remain on the ballot.

If you want to talk about a party that's truly above the law, just look at the Democratic Party that you support and defend. The Iowa caucuses and exit polls were filled with giant discrepancies, but you support the Democrats anyway. The Democrats are war criminals who illegally spy on Americans and trample on civil liberties by supporting the Patriot Act, but you support the Democrats anyway. But hey, at least you have the courage of your convictions to stand up against a trivial oversight regarding an address!
The Republicans clearly voted to achieve what you seem to support: splitting the anti-Trump vote to enable Trump to be re-elected. And before you say it, yes I want the Green Party off the ballot because I think they will take more votes from the Dems than from the GOP.

Whether it was a minor or major error, the Green Party got it wrong and submitted papers incorrectly. Let's accept that Walker changed address, why didn't anyone in the party check that residents were using the the correct address when nominating her? It's not like the rules were changed at the last minute so there must have been adequate time to make this simple check.

The rules should apply to all candidates and I don't see any reason why the Green Party should think the rules don't apply to them.
 

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The Republicans clearly voted to achieve what you seem to support: splitting the anti-Trump vote to enable Trump to be re-elected. And before you say it, yes I want the Green Party off the ballot because I think they will take more votes from the Dems than from the GOP.
No, what will enable Trump to be reelected is a callous Democratic Party that puts the interests of their donors and military contractors above the needs of the average citizen. Outside of superficial civility politics, Biden's governing style won't be much different from Trump's. That's why I'd rather vote my conscience than vote for business as usual.

By admitting you want the Green Party off the ballot, you're admitting you don't care about democracy. It's called voter suppression, and is a classic Republican tactic. Then again, we would have ranked choice voting so people couldn't "split the vote" if the US were truly democratic. Unfortunately, people like you defend The US's duopoly instead.

Contrary to what you and the Democratic Party believe, the left's vote isn't owed to anybody. It must be earned. Platitudes and fear mongering don't cut it for me. The Dems formed their coalition with disaffected neocons and elitist neoliberals, while showing contempt for progressives. I'd just as soon not vote at all than vote for scum like that.

Whether it was a minor or major error, the Green Party got it wrong and submitted papers incorrectly. Let's accept that Walker changed address, why didn't anyone in the party check that residents were using the the correct address when nominating her? It's not like the rules were changed at the last minute so there must have been adequate time to make this simple check.
It's my understanding that the petitions with Walker's previous address on them were collected while she was living at that address.

The rules should apply to all candidates and I don't see any reason why the Green Party should think the rules don't apply to them.
What do you think judges and commissioners exist for? Yes, there are rules and laws people have to abide by, but there are also extenuating circumstances to consider as well.

All this does is expose Democrats for the hypocrites they are. When Republicans try to impose voter ID laws and prevent mail in voting, they rightly condemn these actions as voter suppression. But when Democrats kick the Green Party off the ballot over incorrect addresses on petitions collected prior to a candidate's move, they applaud the action. I don't believe either Biden or Trump are fit to be president, but I would never support suppressing people's right to vote for them. It's called believing in democracy.

And as I've previously pointed out, the Democrats don't believe rules and laws apply to them anymore than Republicans do. But I'm sure you'll just keep ignoring that part.
 
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Angela Channing

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Election laws exist not to suppress votes but to ensure that all candidates are treated fairly and equally. The rules that apply to the Biden and Trump campaigns should also apply to the Hawkins campaign. If a candidate falls foul of election laws then it's not the Democratic Party that's responsible, but the candidates who are affected for not ensuring they complied with the regulations. Blaming somebody's own failure on someone else is a page from the Donald Trump book of dishonest politics.
 

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Election laws exist not to suppress votes but to ensure that all candidates are treated fairly and equally. The rules that apply to the Biden and Trump campaigns should also apply to the Hawkins campaign. If a candidate falls foul of election laws then it's not the Democratic Party that's responsible, but the candidates who are affected for not ensuring they complied with the regulations. Blaming somebody's own failure on someone else is a page from the Donald Trump book of dishonest politics.
So sanctimonious. You support a racist war criminal who tramples on civil liberties, and you're telling me that an incorrect address is on par with Trump's behavior? Nonsense!

The only reason you're being so rigid is because you want the Green Party off the ballot. Humans are fallible, and any reasonable person should find the error to be an honest mistake under the circumstances. That's the conclusion the Republican commissioners came to. They also determined when Walker moved based on the dates on the petitions.

Having your former address on petitions in the midst of a move is hardly on par with Trump's blatant and egregious lies. Dems are to blame for ignoring the extenuating circumstances, not for the error itself. And yes, it is a form of voter suppression. Same as voter ID laws and gerrymandering. To claim otherwise is "dishonest politics."
 
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Angela Channing

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So sanctimonious. You support a racist war criminal who tramples on civil liberties, and you're telling me that an incorrect address is on par with Trump's behavior? Nonsense!

The only reason you're being so rigid is because you want the Green Party off the ballot. Humans are fallible, and any reasonable person should find the error to be an honest mistake under the circumstances. That's the conclusion the Republican commissioners came to. They also determined when Walker moved based on the dates on the petitions.

Having your former address on petitions in the midst of a move is hardly on par with Trump's blatant and egregious lies. Dems are to blame for ignoring the extenuating circumstances, not for the error itself. And yes, it is a form of voter suppression. Same as voter ID laws and gerrymandering. To claim otherwise is "dishonest politics."

You call me sanctimonious, you suggest I support voter suppression yet you are happy to support a candidate who many believe rigged the Green Party primaries to ensure he would be victorious. But let's turn a blind eye to that because it doesn't fit in with your anti-Biden narrative.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, political parties cannot in good conscience participate in a presidential campaign which has even the slightest chance of helping return Donald Trump to the White House.

You say I support a racist but I don't know who you mean by that. Trump is the racist and I expect he will continue encouraging neo-confederates, white supremacists, and outright Nazis. Trump is corruption, hate, and an ecological catastrophe. That is why Trump must be stopped. Replacing Trump with Biden won't end racism, sexism, and policies that favour the rich at the expense of everyone else, but that fight is for the future, first Trump must go.
 

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You call me sanctimonious, you suggest I support voter suppression yet you are happy to support a candidate who many believe rigged the Green Party primaries to ensure he would be victorious. But let's turn a blind eye to that because it doesn't fit in with your anti-Biden narrative.
I never followed the Green Party's primaries, so it's impossible to turn a blind eye to something I wasn't aware of.

But yes, I just read that some members of the Green Party allege that their primaries were rigged. If that's true, I obviously think that is wrong. Primaries should be fair and democratic across the board. That said, I'd likely vote for Joe Biden knowing that the Dems rigged the primaries in his favor if that were the extent of their guilt. Unfortunately, my anti-Biden narrative runs much deeper than that. It includes Biden's support for wars, mass incarceration, work with segregationists, and support for the Patriot Act.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, political parties cannot in good conscience participate in a presidential campaign which has even the slightest chance of helping return Donald Trump to the White House.
But that's not how democracy is supposed to work. Any party should receive ballot access if they meet the signature threshold, and they shouldn't be denied access over a trivial error. People like myself deserve the right to vote for a platform we support, as opposed to having to choose between varying degrees of right wing trash we despise.

Personally speaking, I wouldn't vote at all If the Green Party wasn't on the ballot in my state. Third party supporters and non voters are tired of being taken advantage of.

You say I support a racist but I don't know who you mean by that. Trump is the racist and I expect he will continue encouraging neo-confederates, white supremacists, and outright Nazis.
If you "don't know who I mean by that," you either didn't read this article I shared with you, or you've convinced yourself that racism is only bad when it comes from Trump.

Here's the article once again: Will Black Voters Still Love Biden When They Remember Who He Was?

Trump is corruption, hate, and an ecological catastrophe. That is why Trump must be stopped. Replacing Trump with Biden won't end racism, sexism, and policies that favour the rich at the expense of everyone else, but that fight is for the future, first Trump must go.
I love how Biden supporters admit nothing will change and say "that fight is for the future," yet they still believe replacing Trump with Biden is a moral imperative. When Biden supporters say "that fight is for the future," they're denying the urgency of our situation. They're also enabling Biden's inaction. The truth is the Democrats don't want to end wars, racism, sexism, or policies that favor the rich at the expense of everyone else anymore than Trump does. They've made that very clear by their positions and their coalition with neocons. Yes, Trump needs to go. Unfortunately, Joe Biden is also corruption, hate, and an ecological catastrophe. Those are facts his supporters refuse to face.

Biden supports corporate money influencing politicians and has deep ties to Wall Street. He wants to gut vital social safety nets that would hurt vulnerable Americans, and he places the for-profit health insurance industry above the health of the American People. He has blood on his hands with all of the wars he's supported, he helped militarize the police and incarcerate black people, he supported the Patriot Act which led to illegal spying on Americans, and he recently said he refuses to ban fracking. He's also taken Trump's stance against "rioters and looters," rather than addressing the root cause of the problem. So yes, Biden is just as corrupt and hateful as Trump in his own right.
 
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Angela Channing

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But that's not how democracy is supposed to work. Any party should receive ballot access if they meet the signature threshold, and they shouldn't be denied access over a trivial error. People like myself deserve the right to vote for a platform we support, as opposed to having to choose between varying degrees of right wing trash we despise.
Those weren't my words but those of the Rhode Island Green Party who refused to nominate Hawkins. They said " THIS YEAR IS DIFFERENT. This will be the first time since 1996 that Rhode Island’s presidential ballot won’t include a Green Party candidate. The critical danger of Trump's return to power makes this break with the past an absolute necessity." (My use of bold). They are correct.
you've convinced yourself that racism is only bad when it comes from Trump.
I'll again quote the Rhode Island division of the party you love: " Trump is responsible for immigrant children in cages, countless victims of escalating racist, anti-Muslim, anti-semitic, and anti-Asian attacks, and tens of thousands who have needlessly died or lost their financial lives in the coronavirus pandemic... RI Greens have earned a reputation for principled local activism and engagement with the state's peace movement; pipeline and fossil fuel activists; homelessness, immigrants’ rights, racial and social justice communities; Latinx political groups; surveillance, privacy, and internet access advocates; and grassroots political workers in many other areas—the very people, especially immigrants, youth, trans people, and people of color, most directly impacted by Trump’s cruelty and ruthlessness. These are the people for whom ending the Trump presidency is a most pressing and urgent priority. Their very survival is at stake, and we will do nothing to weaken their power, resistance, and resolve. Our party is not more important than their lives. " (My use of bold). Again, the Rhode Island Greens are correct.
 

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Those weren't my words but those of the Rhode Island Green Party who refused to nominate Hawkins. They said " THIS YEAR IS DIFFERENT. This will be the first time since 1996 that Rhode Island’s presidential ballot won’t include a Green Party candidate. The critical danger of Trump's return to power makes this break with the past an absolute necessity." (My use of bold). They are correct.
The only reason you believe they are correct is because they're affirming your opinion.

In reality, suppressing the vote by denying ballot access to a party over fears of splitting the vote is anti democratic. There is simply no way around that fact. In my ideal world, there wouldn't have been a single moderate or neoliberal candidate in the Democratic primaries. I could just as easily argue that the critical danger of a neoliberal engaging in civility politics as they ultimately continue Trump's policies makes this an absolute necessity. However, I accept the right they had to run as part of the democratic process.

I'll again quote the Rhode Island division of the party you love: " Trump is responsible for immigrant children in cages, countless victims of escalating racist, anti-Muslim, anti-semitic, and anti-Asian attacks, and tens of thousands who have needlessly died or lost their financial lives in the coronavirus pandemic... RI Greens have earned a reputation for principled local activism and engagement with the state's peace movement; pipeline and fossil fuel activists; homelessness, immigrants’ rights, racial and social justice communities; Latinx political groups; surveillance, privacy, and internet access advocates; and grassroots political workers in many other areas—the very people, especially immigrants, youth, trans people, and people of color, most directly impacted by Trump’s cruelty and ruthlessness. These are the people for whom ending the Trump presidency is a most pressing and urgent priority. Their very survival is at stake, and we will do nothing to weaken their power, resistance, and resolve. Our party is not more important than their lives. " (My use of bold). Again, the Rhode Island Greens are correct.
I don't "love" any party. If Bernie Sanders were the Democratic nominee, I'd vote Democrat this election. My support will always be for the candidate I agree with the most.

I do agree that the Green Party's criticisms of Trump are correct. However, keeping the Green Party off the ballot is not correct if you value democracy and freedom of choice.

Also, much of what they criticized Trump for can also be attributed to Biden. He has a racist past, thousands of people died in wars he supported, he has ties to Wall Street, he deprived people of bankruptcy protections, he tried to cut social programs, he helped militarize the police, his crime bill led to mass incarceration of black people, he supports illegal surveillance, he supports the fossil fuel industry and fracking, he's on the side of the for-profit healthcare industry, etc. Hell, the cages that the RI Greens complained about began under Obama. It's infuriating that so many anti-Trumpers ignore Biden's own cruelty and ruthlessness, and it's even worse when they defend and enable it.

Trump is loathsome and is responsible for much suffering, but Biden's also contributed to that suffering. And to top it off, Biden's refusing to alleviate that suffering.
 
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