February 4, 2014

"Trick Websites Dupe Democrats Into Donating To Republicans."

Think Progress is worried about websites that conspicuously display the name and face of a Democratic candidate and then invite contributions to "help defeat" that candidate.

Do these violate election law? Should they?

42 comments:

Fen said...

If the pitch "help us stop the GOP from throwing grandma off a cliff" is not a violation, neither is this.

Stick said...

Well, Democrats are apparently easy to trick. (Obama x 2)
Think of it like the lottery, a tax on the stupid.

Fen said...

Yup. Most Dems are LIVs who only identify as Lefties because they want to fit in.

Someone on the right exploiting their stupidity leads to Dem cries of "those are OUR useful idiots, back off

Brando said...

If the ad were truly fraudulent, then yes it should be illegal. Those particular ads aren't fraudulent though--if you're reading it close enough to figure out how to donate you'll quickly realize that you're supporting an effort to defeat and not help the candidate.

rhhardin said...

I notice some leftist outfit called something like Way to a Conservative Future is touting amnesty in a Rush commercial spot.

Mark said...

Legal maybe, moral no.

Not what Jesus would do. Not exactly sure how great a Christian one is if you practice deception.

Then again, what is good for the goose is good for the gander. The tide will turn and both side will suffer.

Paco Wové said...

I think the notion that ThinkProgress assumes its followers are too stupid to handle the Internets is worth a dry, mirthless chuckle.

Somebody get Brother Mark a rosary to clutch, stat!

Fritz said...

Did ThinkProgress just call democrats stupid and easily misled?

Mark said...

Didn't Walker set up a fake Mary Burke website this fall already?

paminwi said...

Do Democrats know how to READ? Right under the candidate's name and BEFORE you click on the amount you want to donate are words that say you want to DEFEAT a candidate like the one above.

Lordy, must we take care of the patheic Democrats who haven't learned how to read from those teachers that are union supported?

tim in vermont said...

"Did ThinkProgress just call democrats stupid and easily misled?"

Well, in Florida, 2000 they did vote for Buchanon when they didn't intend to vote for Bush, but rather Gore. So, I don't blame ThinkProgress for their low opinion of their own.

Mark said...

Low opinion of their own? You mean like Allen West and #speakamerican?

Peder said...

I'm sure at some level of fine print, this would be objectionable but I don't think this is it. They do clearly talk about defeating these people.

Bruce Hayden said...

You wonder whether literacy tests should be reintroduced. Sure, that the Holder DoJ would object, on the grounds that Blacks would be unjustly disenfranchised, since so many of them have been left behind by the government run unionized schools their leadership supports.

Still, they shouldn't complain too much - likely less money is raised this way by those trying to defeat these candidates than was raised by the left through illegal foreign contributions (which seem quite popular for Dems at the Presidential level, with both Clinton/Gore and Obama/Biden apparently raising money this way).

PB said...

So they want a website that is factually correct to be banned, but democrats can continually make claims that are factually incorrect?

What a wonderful world.

David said...

I think people should be required to show an ID before using such sites.

Brennan said...

Make a contribution to help defeat and candidates like her.

Is this not clear? Next thing you know Think Progress will start asking if they are fat and we'll have to lie to them.

FleetUSA said...

Caveat emptor

madAsHell said...

Doesn't this underscore the futility of political donations? You have no idea how the money will be used!!

On the other hand, it seems like a great get-rich-quick scheme.

TosaGuy said...

"Didn't Walker set up a fake Mary Burke website this fall already?"

No, it was the WI GOP, but only because Mary Burke is too dumb to leave www.maryburke.com available.

garage mahal said...

The GOP ain't much, but they're all we got.

Wince said...

If you think about it, the only basis for the deception claim is that the photo is complimentary of the Democrat candidate, where both parties' opposition ads typically use a less than flattering photo of the opponent.

Isn't this the "new civility" everyone wanted?

David said...

This post caused me to revisit dhmo.org, which is never not entertaining, and of course DHMO is much more of a problem crying out for government intervention than these websites.

jacksonjay said...


Mama used to say: "That idiot has more money than sense."

Scott said...

Election law pertaining to speech violates the First Amendment.

ngtrains said...

david,
thanks for the link to dhmo.org

really an interesting site.

as far as i an see, 100% accurate too

cubanbob said...

The ads are crystal clear in their intent. The comments at the think commie site are beyond parody-they are Atomic Bomb Strength Stupid. These ads are a model of truth-in-advertising compared to what the leftys run such as the voter integrity sites they run for example like the ones against FL Governor Scott.

Biff said...

The only time I ever have been a victim of credit card fraud, my card was used to contribute to MoveOn.org and other lefty causes.

Alexander said...

How is this even an arguable point? It's not even 'small print' - it's right there in big, bold letters between the picture and the donate buttons. There is nothing wrong here beyond the fact that it's even a possibility that the Republicans will take two steps backward when the Democrats demand they take three... and call it a win.

I'm sure no attempt to raise money for Democrats ever featured images of Limbaugh, Palin, Cruz...

Michael K said...

"Lordy, must we take care of the patheic Democrats who haven't learned how to read from those teachers that are union supported?"

Yes, and we need to be prepared to decide if their ballots were cast for the right candidate before counting them. Like Florida in 2000.

SteveR said...

In a vacuum you could make a case. You could. In light of the shenanigans of the democrat operatives like ACORN, etc. this is simply fair game.

Sorun said...

Reminds of the Dems who voted for Bush in 2000 because their cheatsheet had errors in which boxes to check.

Will Cate said...

Puh-leeze. Who exactly are Republicans tricking here, people who can't read?

geokstr said...

TosaGuy said...
"Didn't Walker set up a fake Mary Burke website this fall already?"

No, it was the WI GOP, but only because Mary Burke is too dumb to leave www.maryburke.com available.


Wow, just wow.

Mark, if you are actually claiming this "fake" Mary Burke site is being used for any purpose other than parodying and making fun of her, and that this makes any Democrat shenanigans OK, that does not speak well for your sense of ethics or honesty.

And if you really believe some of the LowInfo Democrat lever pushers might be monumentally stupid enough to believe anything else, that does not say much for your opinion of the intellect of the base of your party.

BTW, there is nowhere on the site to donate anything to anybody.

cubanbob said...

garage mahal said...
The GOP ain't much, but they're all we got.

2/4/14, 8:35 AM"

Ain't that the truth!

Mark said...
Legal maybe, moral no.

Not what Jesus would do. Not exactly sure how great a Christian one is if you practice deception.

Then again, what is good for the goose is good for the gander. The tide will turn and both side will suffer.

2/4/14, 6:03 AM"

Not really since most Republican voters are capable of reading. Next you will argue it's Un-Christian to not handicap the vote in favor of the stupid.

Sam L. said...

OK, tell me, how can those amazingly and immensely intelligent Dem voters be so easily fooled? My imagination...beggared, it is.

The Godfather said...

Speaking of the 2000 presidential election (someone was), reminded me of the famous Palm Beach County "butterfly ballots". I was watching G.W. Bush's inaugural parade, and one of the viewers along the parade route was holding up a sign that read "Another Elderly Jew For Buchanan". You've got to love someone who can laugh at himself!

Beldar said...

There's no helping some people. That's why public lotteries are best described as a tax on stupid people.

tim maguire said...

I always give my credit card number to web hosts who post pictures of people I like. What could go wrong?

Rocco said...

Biff said...
The only time I ever have been a victim of credit card fraud, my card was used to contribute to MoveOn.org and other lefty causes.


It was just a redistribution of wealth, comrade.

Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...

Stupid is as stupid does?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJe6-afGz0Q

Mark said...

Google now blocks one of the sites as a phishing site now, more expected.