Sue Cobb Sides With Diebold Again

Jim Davis takes Florida Secretary of State Sue Cobb to task creating the new rule that requires county election supervisors to notify voting machine companies when equipment is tested.

“The new rule offered by Florida’s secretary of state will make it harder for local supervisors of elections to test the integrity and accuracy of voting equipment,” said Davis. “We should be making it easier for supervisors of elections to conduct free and fair elections, not making harder to independently test voting machines in advance of Election Day.”

That is the furthest thing from Cobb's mind. Remember, she threatened legal action against Ion Sancho after he tested the Diebold machines and found they could be hacked. After Sancho went public with his findings; none of the voting machine companies that had contracts with the state would do business with him. Cobb then filed legal action against Sancho for not having machines in place. Charle Crist's office issued investigative subpoenas to Diebold Inc., Election Systems & Software Inc., and Sequoia Voting Systems Inc. The investigation is still ongoing. Diebold agreed to sell voting machines to Leon County after the subpeonas and negative media and blogging attention. Sancho was vindicated.

To understand why Jeb Bush's office is so protective of Diebold is simple. Diebold gave $200.965 to the Republican party in 2000 and 2002. Diebold donated zero dollars to Democrats during that time. Former Diebold chief executive officer Walden O'Dell was quoted saying that he was committed "to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the President." Diebold has refued to provide paper trail records for their machines.

If Sue Cobb wants to follow the career path of Katherine Harris then more power to her. Jeb Bush won't go to bat for her. Republicans will only give lip service to supporting you, Sue. Taking one for the team is something Republicans believe the person sitting next to them on the bench should do. Voters are tired of Florida elections being a national disagrace. Sancho proved that standing up to the Jeb Bush and Diebold juggernaut is possible. Sue, I hope you have a nice job in the private sector waiting for you.

Update: Ion Sancho is not happy.

"I simply do not see how the state has the authority," Sancho said.

Sancho accused the department of using the rule-making process to punish him for tests he conducted last year. The tests uncovered a security flaw in the Diebold optical-scan voting system that could allow hackers to skew election results. A group of Sancho supporters who gathered in an auditorium at the R.A. Gray Building for the workshop burst into applause. Sancho accused the state of ignoring his test results until they were duplicated in California.

"Not only were the test results valid, but they identified a security threat that went all the way through the traditional testing process without being detected," Sancho said.

Developing.