Texas, Iowa Threaten to Arrest Election Observers

By Gavin Aronsen | Mother Jones, Wed Oct. 31, 2012 3:42 PM PDT

When news broke last week that the United Nations-affiliated Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe was dispatching election observers from 23 nations to the United States [1], conservative groups went up in arms, claiming that liberal activists [2] had sought international assistance to fight Republican-led voting reform efforts. Soon afterward, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton [3] threatening the observers with arrest if they got within 100 feet of a polling place and complaining that OSCE officials had met with a group formerly affiliated with ACORN. Yesterday, Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz, who has made voter fraud a central theme [4] of his time in office, followed suit, saying [5] that there would be "no exception" made for OSCE members to enter polling stations.

As a member of the OSCE, the United States has invited outside observers into the country since 2002 without incident. The State Department dismissed Abbott's complaint, saying that the election observers are simply observers (and would be eligible for immunity [6] if they are arrested). "[T]he mandate of the OSCE is designed to be absolutely and completely impartial, and that's what we plan on when we participate and that's what we'd expect here," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told the Washington Examiner [7]. The OSCE expressed willingness to meet with both liberal and conservative voter groups and has acknowledged the controversy over GOP-led voter ID efforts in a report released earlier this month [8].

In any case, any role the OSCE plays on November 6 will probably be minimal. A list of election observers [9] uploaded by conservative attorney J. Christian Adams suggests that only two observers will be in Texas, both in Austin; two others are scheduled to be in Des Moines, Iowa. But the OSCE, which sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calling Abbott's threat of arrest "unacceptable," also responded to Abbott, saying that it plans to follow state laws [10] and wouldn't need to enter polling places in order to observe the election. In addition to monitoring potential voter suppression, the OSCE also plans to research [1] campaign finance, new voting technology, and the media. Meanwhile, many more American election monitors will be at polling stations, ranging from impartial observers to labor union members and recruits from a tea party group [2].

International Activities

This is the view from our son's apartment in Vienna, Austria. We were visiting our son and his family July 13-26 this year.

My grandson is just 3 years-old and already speaks German, Slovene, and English, sometimes all in one sentence.

My son's apartment is on the 21st floor of a building that overlooks Donaupark and that's within walking distance of the Vienna International Center (VIC).

He works at the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) in the VIC, which also houses the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

My son's wife works at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), so both hold positions in international organizations in Vienna.

We drove to Seattle on July 12th and flew out of SEATAC at 1845 to Copenhagen on Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) and on to Vienna via Austrian Airlines, arriving Vienna on Sunday, the 13th, at 1825. Flew SAS Business Class aboard Airbus-340. Excellent seats, adjustable to permit practically flat sleeping.

Overcast, rainy Monday in Vienna. Took brief walk in Donaupark, but spent most of the time indoors playing with grandson and getting reacquainted with his parents -- my son and daughter-in-law. Grandson's favorite plaything, other than the reluctant cat, is his train set.

Rode the U-Bahn to Heilingenstadt on Tuesday with my son and grandson and took a brief walk. There’s a large public housing project here, the "Karl Marx Hof," which looks a lot better than like housing in the States. As I understand it, every Austrian citizen is granted public housing – a basic apartment or flat -- if needed.

As we walk towards the Strassenbahn (electric streetcar) we pass a gypsy woman sitting at the side of the path begging. I drop a few euro coins in her outstretched hand. I come across a number of them at U-Bahn stops during my stay. They all seem to have a cane at their side.

Breakfast over here generally consists of bread or rolls, croissants, butter and jam, meats, like proscciuto and salami, and various cheeses, plus coffee or espresso, tea, or hot chocolate. I alternate between European and American breakfasts, just to keep my digestive tract as confused as my circadian rhythms.

After breakfast, we took a stroll on the Graben, which was crowded with summer tourists.

Part of our vacation was spent visiting in-laws in Celje, Slovenia. Stari Grad, Celje Castle, was built in the 2nd half of the 12th Century. It occupies a strategic location on a steep cliff overlooking present day Celje. We visited the castle on Sunday.