governor s race in 1981. the republicans flew in national political operatives. they launched this very aggressive scheme where they challenged the registration of thousands of new jersey voters who turned up to the polls in newark, camden and trenton. and in about 75 minority heavy precincts across new jersey that year in that race, they put up these four-foot tall warning signs. when i first saw images of these signs online and in old newspaper articles and stuff, i thought these were like flyers and the piece of a paper and put them on telephone poles or something. they were sandwich board posters, four-foot tall signs that they put outside of polling areas saying, warning, this area is being patrolled by the national ballot security task force. it s a crime to violate election laws. and they were not bluffing.
ballot security task force arm bands. many were openly carrying guns and they stalked around polling places in minority-heavy districts while they demanded that election workers strike these people off the election rolls. several of these signs were reported at polling places at newark s fourth ward. poll watchers, some of them off-duty policemen wearing guns and arm bands were also near the polls as part of the task force set up by the republican and national state committees to guard against fraud but democrats charge it was a scare campaign to intimidate voters primarily in minority neighborhoods. yeah, you think? who knows how many people were blocked or intimidated from voting in that election in new jersey in 1981. but as voter suppression schemes go, this one clearly worked. both parties would claim that it definitely worked. there were 3 million votes cast
in that governor s race. it was decided by less than 1800 votes. and the republican won. and then the democrats sued. the democrats sued the republican party over this ballot security task force stunt. and you know who the republicans used as their lawyer to defend them in that case? donald trump s brother-in-law. the crazy eddie guy who was married to donald trump s sister. he was the lawyer for the republican party in that case in new jersey. and he got creamed in court. i mean, the damage was already done in terms of that governor s race. the republicans won that election by this many votes, right? and the democrats weren t going to be able to get that election back. but what the democrats did get was something called a consent decree, which bans the republican national committee from doing this kind of thing again, from doing anything like this, that problem hib bits them from being involved in any poll-watching shenanigans that
republican party over this ballot security task force stunt. and you know who the republicans used as their lawyer to defend them in that case? donald trump s brother-in-law. the crazy eddie guy who was married to donald trump s sister. he was the lawyer for the republican party in that case in new jersey. and he got creamed in court. i mean, the damage was already done in terms of that governor s race. the republicans won that election by this many votes, right? and the democrats weren t going to be able to get that election back. but what the democrats did get was something called a consent decree, which bans the republican national committee from doing this kind of thing again, from doing anything like this, that problem hib bits them from being involved in any poll-watching shenanigans that targets minority voters. and now today, in 2016, now the snake starts eating its own tail. in 2016, it s not donald trump s brother-in-law, it s now donald trump who is losing that exact case al
in that news footage from that time in 1981, you saw those arm bands that the ballot security task force wore? you could go to a website called stop the steel or another called vote protectors, they directed you to the same place. if you went to those websites until tonight, you could use something called an i.d. badge generator. you enter your details and print out effectively this year s version of the republican party ballot security task force. this year in 2016, this is the badge you get if you use that thing onhine. a vote protector semiofficial looking i.d. badge. that s the picture there and the name of a reporter from the huffington post on the left. she also added in joe schmo, not a real person and a picture of the frog racist trump character from online to show that you can enter anybody s photo and anybody s name and get one of these badges.