Election 2008 Produces No Change

Election 2008 was another staged election in a very backward country where labor is only 12% organized and where racism and homophobia are rampant. This article highlights the US, California and San Francisco results.

Presidential Election

In the US, there are 226 million adults of whom 108 million voted as of 6:57 a.m., November 5, 2008 with 96% of the precincts reporting.

The millionaire, warmongering, death penalty Democrat Barack Obama won with only 52% of the vote, defeating the millionaire, warmongering, death penalty Republican John McCain. This is not a mandate for change and of course, Obama did not offer any change whatsoever. His election on the basis of the color of his skin, being the first African-American president, is a sign of the depths of racism in this society, not the end of racism. Absolutely nothing has changed in this racist society and Obama offers absolutely no change whatsoever. He is bought and paid for by the same capitalist corporations as the Republican and will carry out the same agenda as the current occupant of the White House. The Democrats won the 2000 and 2004 elections, but refused to challenge the election fraud. This time, the Chicago Democratic Daley machine, an election-frauding gang for the Democrats, stopped enough of the election fraud to put a Democrat in the White House. It is said that the same gang made possible John Kennedy’s victory over Nixon.

The historical lesson of Dixiecrat Lyndon Johnson’s victory in 1964 with 61% of the vote over Barry Goldwater is about to be repeated. By the end of war criminal Johnson’s one elected term, preceded by his completion of President Kennedy’s term, who was assassinated by the CIA on November 22, 1963, Johnson announced he would not run for re-election because his promotion of his slaughter of 3 million Vietnamese and 58,000 Americans, accompanied by the continued existence of the draft and the declining American economy, made his re-election impossible. By 1968, the anger with the Democrats was so great that Peace & Freedom Party was formed as an anti-war party in many states, including California. It became a socialist party in California in 1974. For more on Peace & Freedom Party, see http://www.peaceandfreedom.org

CALIFORNIA RESULTS

In California, there are 27 million adults, of whom 9,800,00 voted as of 5:51 a.m., November 5, 2008 with 92.3% of the precincts reporting. This could go as high as 13 million votes within the next 30 days.

PROPOSITIONS

Proposition 2, demanding better treatment of farm animals, passed with 63% of the vote.

Proposition 4, restricting abortion by demanding notification of a woman’s parent or guardian if she is under 18, was defeated with 52% of the vote.

Proposition 5, an excellent drug treatment reform was defeated by 59% voting No. This horror was made possible by the viciously reactionary Democratic Attorney General, Jerry Brown, the same one who is prosecuting the San Francisco 8, for a murder they did not commit some 30 years ago, and for which they were tortured to confess, the confessions having been tossed out by the courts years ago. For more on the friendly relationship between Democrat Jerry Brown and the California prison guards, see:
“Jerry’s Brown-Nosin with California Prison Guards” by Daniel Abrahamson, dated November 4, 2008 at
http://www.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?itemid=6255#more

Prop 5 vs. the Prison-Industrial Complex by Ethan Nadelmann at
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/11/03/18548737.php

Proposition 6, a reactionary crime initiative, was defeated with 69% of the vote, made possible by the workingclass that did bother to vote in California. We must remember that at last count, only 1/3 of the adults voted in California. This could go up to 1/2, but that still means that most of the workingclass did not vote at all.

Proposition 9, another reactionary crime initiative, did pass with 53% voting for it, demonstrating there was not much of a workingclass vote at all in California.

Proposition 11, which would allow redistricting that favors the Republican Party, appears to be passing with 50.5% of the vote.

Proposition 8, the Anti-Gay Marriage Constitutional Amendment enshrining discrimination in the state constitution, appears to be passing with 51% of the vote, This will have to be repealed in the 2010 election. The No on Proposition 8 campaign was excellent but in an economic crisis, scapegoating takes over, and one form of scapegoating is attacking gays. We also have a low level of education in this backward country and a correspondingly high level of belief in superstition, commonly known as religion. And finally, we have the many failures of the Democratic Party such as Democrat Pres Clinton signing the anti-gay marriage Defense of Marriage Act but claiming to be against Proposition 8, and Barack Obama, Al Gore and John Kerry being against gay marriage but also against Proposition 8. This hypocrisy did not help, despite Clinton’s robocalls to California voters to vote No on 8 and the excellent TV ads, the means by which most people in California decide crucial issues, featuring Obama, Feinstein and Schwarzenegger calling upon voters to oppose Proposition 8 and a black actor highlighting the discrimination in marriage and other aspects that has occurred in California since non-whites could not marry whites in California before 1948.

By 2010, more young people will be voting and we can overcome the generational stupidity against gay marriage among older voters as well. The gay rights issue is both an education issue with those with a higher level of education being for gay marriage, and a generational issue, with the young usually being more supportive of gay marriage. We have now had 39 years of gay pride marches. It apparently will take at least 41 years of gay pride marches to make gay marriage legal. It is outrageous that gay marriage was taken to the voters; interracial marriage never was and would fail in many states today. It took until 1988 for interracial marriage to be acceptable in California among the majority of people. The proof of the backwardness in this bankrupt society can be seen in the fact that San Francisco only 76% voted No, when it was expected to vote 80% No at a minimum, and with the campaign we had in San Francisco, it should have been 90% No in San Francisco. Part of the problem may have been that Democratic Mayor Gavin Newsom, a big supporter of gay marriage, is anti-tenant and on just about everything else, is very reactionary. The horror of the 2008 election is made very clear with the passage of the hate constitutional amendment making gay marriage illegal in California, Proposition 8.

The funding for Proposition 8 was primarily from the Christian churches and the Republican Party, and it is the former that is entrenched in the workingclass communities, most adversely affected by the bank bailout supported by Democrats Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Lee and Barack Obama, among many others. California has been hit hard by the foreclosure crisis and is about 44th in school funding. For more on the fascist base that funded Proposition 8, see:
“Know Your Enemy, the Endorsers of Proposition 8” by Joe McCraw at:
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/11/04/18548821.php

The 2010 Campaign to Repeal Proposition 8 should not only stress that discrimination is now part of the State Constitution for the first time, and non-whites could be next to be discriminated against, but also the public officials who supported Proposition 8 should be targeted for defeat. A larger campaign must be in Southern California as we almost defeated Prop 8 in Los Angeles County and the repeal must succeed in Los Angeles County if it is to succeed statewide.

The Honor Roll of Counties for those counties voting over 50% No on 8 is:

San Francisco 76%
Marin 74%
Santa Cruz 71%
Sonoma 66%
San Mateo 62%
Mendocino 62%
Alameda 61%
Humboldt 60%
Yolo 58%
Alpine 56%
Santa Clara 55%
Contra Costa 55%
Napa 55%
Mono 55%
Santa Barbara 53%
Monterey 51%

For all counties’ votes on Proposition 8, see
http://vote.sos.ca.gov/Returns/props/map190000000008.html

SAN FRANCISO BALLOT

In San Francisco, there are 600,000 adults of whom 237,843 voted as of 1:04 a.m., November 5, 2008 with 100% of the precincts reporting. This may go up to 300,000 votes within the next 30 days.

Cindy Sheehan for Congress

San Francisco voters demonstrated how profoundly backward they are by giving only 16% of their vote (29,951 votes as of 1 a.m. on 11/5/08) to an excellent peace candidate, Cindy Sheehan. They gave the reactionary, pro-war, pro-bank bailout millionaire Democrat Nancy Pelosi 71% of their vote and 9% to the Republican, Diana Walsh. While Pelosi usually gets 80% of the vote, after the outstanding campaign Sheehan conducted, Sheehan deserved a far greater percentage of the vote. Please do not refer to San Francisco as “progressive” again; it is profoundly reactionary. Further proof of the very reactionary San Francisco electorate on the war and peace issue is its support of Prop V, the pro-JROTC measure, described below.

Board of Supervisors

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors retains its pro-rent control majority. It appears it still has only one Green Party member. We shall see if this new Board of Supervisors votes to put to an end to the Navy’s Blue Death flights over San Francisco. With all the money there is in San Francisco for nonsense proposals liking naming a much needed sewage treatment plant after George Bush (that was fortunately defeated with 69% voting No on Proposition R), perhaps someone will spend the money to put a proposal to end the Navy’s Blue Death flights over San Francisco on the November 2010 ballot, when other members of the Board of Supervisors are up for election, and when there will be a high voter turnout for the governor’s race.

Propositions

Housing is always an issue in San Francisco, which is why rent control is the litmus test issue for the Board of Supervisors. Proposition M, ending some landlord harassment, passed with 60% of the vote. Proposition B, demanding the Board of Supervisors set aside funding for affordable housing for the workingclass, appears to be losing with 50.54% voting no. There is no federal money coming from the warmongering millionaire just elected to be president for workingclass housing as we cannot have guns and butter, so we will have to try again.

San Franciscans again voted, either with legitimate ballots or by election fraud, it is unknown at the present time which, to oppose public power by opposing Proposition H with 59% of their vote, falling for PG&E’s lies about Proposition H. It is the private profit company, PG&E that is not elected and not accountable; the revenue bonds proposed in Proposition H would have been issued by the elected and very accountable Board of Supervisors. So, we will continue to have blackouts and very expensive gas and electricity rates courtesy the private profit utility that provides San Francisco residents and businesses gas and electricity in clear violation of the 1913 Raker Act, which mandated public power.

San Franciscans opposed giving prostitutes the right to sue, voting against Proposition K with 57% of their vote. There is clearly no analytical thinking taking place at all on the part of most voters.

San Franciscans claim to be for peace, and passed Proposition U, a policy statement to recommend no more be money spent for making war in Iraq, with 59% of the vote, a figure worthy of an average city, not a radical city. They then turned around and voted for JROTC in the schools by supporting Prop V with 53% of the vote. Prop V is only advisory and fortunately, the School Board plans to ignore it.

Another pretense of an election has occurred in the United States, changing absolutely nothing. As always, the class struggle remains, and with labor being only 12% organized, it is time to organize the unorganized. Only a strong labor movement can guarantee change.