Rep Taylor's NO vote on CAFTA changed by glitch to YES

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

Rep Taylor's NO vote on CAFTA changed by glitch to YES

Taylor's `no' vote on free trade pact goes uncounted

published: July 29, 2005 6:00 am
ASHEVILLE � Rep. Charles Taylor says an electronic glitch kept
his vote against the controversial Central American Free Trade
Agreement from registering, but his explanation hasn't stopped
criticism from some Democrats....

Potter said House members have electronic cards that allow them to
vote from another location when they can't make it to the House
floor.

"At the terminal where he put his card in and voted, he voted
no," Potter said.

The machine apparently recorded Taylor's vote as an invalid card,
according to Brian Walsh, press secretary for Congressman Bob Ney.
Ney's office oversees the House Clerk's Office

http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?
AID=/20050729/NEWS01/50728044/1001

or
http://tinyurl.com/9oa4j

[halobeam]

1. So now what!!!!????!!!!!

[Bill McBlueState]

2. bad headline

The headline is actually "Taylor’s ‘no’ vote on free trade pact goes uncounted."

This is important because if his 'no' vote were changed to a 'yes,' then the final vote would have been 216-216, a tie. Since his 'no' vote went uncounted, the vote would have been 217-216 if his vote had been properly counted.

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

4. he says glitch

In the article it is blamed on a glitch.


"Rep. Charles Taylor says an electronic glitch kept
his vote against the controversial Central American Free Trade
Agreement from registering, but his explanation hasn't stopped
criticism from some Democrats...."

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

5. sorry, see what you say

you are right.

[Bill McBlueState]

6. still, I agree with the main point

This plus

"In addition to Taylor, Rep. Jo Ann Davis, a Virginia Republican, also planned to vote against the measure. But Davis was traveling in her district and failed to get back in time."

makes for a very suspicious scenario.

[wishlist]

3. Another Repub (article doesn't say who )claims she wanted to vote no

This article mentions another Repub who says she intended to vote no but couldn't get there in time. There is another thread describing how Repub Robin Hayes of N.C. who opposed CAFTA voted yes instead of no at the last minute after being convinced by Hastert that lost jobs problem would be looked into. Some funny stuff by Repubs at the last minutes that managed to slide this through.

"The controversial trade bill narrowly passed the U.S. House early Thursday by a vote of 217-215. With Taylor’s vote, the measure still would have passed, but only by one vote. Another Republican House member said she planned to vote against the measure, but didn’t make it back from her district in time."

Dem challenger Heath Shuler is doing a good job getting TV and print coverage of Taylor's puzzling failure to vote no:

"Swain County Democrat Heath Shuler said Taylor “gave us his word that he would vote against CAFTA, and I don’t understand why he did not.”

http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050729/NEWS01/50728044/1001

[walkon]

8. Did she have an electronic card?

[wli]

7. this House of Representatives vote brought to you by Diebold

[Fly by night]

9. Does this make two or three voting "glitches" now reported on CAFTA?

If we now have enough voting glitches (not "changes of heart" or "failure to vote" but actual "glitches") now reported to have reversed the outcome, this becomes a major story and something that Pelosi et al could make hay with, IMHO.

I would try to answer the question myself, but I can't get DU's "simple search" function to work today. Anyone out there know the answer?