| For Immediate Release Jan 11, 2001 |
Contact: Press Office 202-646-5172 |
Judicial Watch Agrees With Supreme Court That Voting System Irregularities Create Denial Of Equal Protection, But Skeptical About Claims Of Racial Discrimination May Both Support and Oppose NAACP and ACLU Positions (Washington, DC) Judicial Watch, the public interest law firm that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, and which was the first party to initiate inspection of Florida�s Presidential ballots under its Public Records Act last November 10, 2000, will itself file a complaint and/or intervene in the voter rights lawsuit filed yesterday by the NAACP and ACLU. Judicial Watch, a conservative organization, agrees with the NAACP and ACLU, based on a recent Supreme Court ruling, that irregularities in the voting system deny equal protection under the law to not only African-American voters but to all voters. Accordingly, Florida�s election voting system, as well as those in many other states, needs to be overhauled and modernized. However, Judicial Watch, which is continuing to conduct ballot inspections in Florida -- the results of which it will submit to the Court as evidence -- has thus far found no evidence that racism played a role in the Florida election. If this conclusion holds up upon further investigation, Judicial Watch will support the NAACP and ACLU on the equal protection argument, but oppose them on charges that racism influenced the election results. However, if further investigation shows that the NAACP and ACLU are correct, Judicial Watch will support them on this issue as well. �It is important that not only ultra-leftist groups like the NAACP and ACLU be allowed to litigate the issues of voters� rights, but that the Court have the benefit of participation by the leading [conservative] public interest group in the area of government corruption,� stated Judicial Watch Chairman and General Counsel Larry Klayman. �Judicial Watch�s participation will help balance the Court�s analysis so that it is not skewed to the left,� added Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. Klayman added, �No one disputes that our voting system is broken. Despite this, we do have a legitimate President, George W. Bush, and recent comments by President Clinton to the contrary are not only inappropriate, but further disgrace the office which he holds.� | |