Homeland Security Eyes Control of Election 2016

[Colonel Dan, SASS #24025]

Call me paranoid, but a little voice in the back of my head tells me this doesn't bode well for our desired outcome. Given this administration, I see it as throwing an added element of even more corruption into the mix.

 

Election 2016 is a critical one for all gun owners and now this anti-gun administration seeks overarching control of the process and outcome!

 

As Stalin said, "It's not who votes that counts, it's who counts the votes!"

 

Are you now even more concerned about where we're headed? You should be!

 

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/homeland-eyes-special-declaration-to-take-charge-of-elections/article/2600592

 

Re: US Constitution, Article 1, Section 4, Clause 1

 

The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of chusing Senators.

 

Do you see anything here that gives the Executive branch any role in prescribing the election process? More usurping of power not delegated by the highest law of the land! Will the Republicans sit still for this...yet again? Will the states accept this?

[Tell Sackett SASS 18436]

Question is, are you paranoid ENOUGH??

 

Does not bode well. Sounds like our wanna be Dictator wants to be sure the election turns out the way he wants. Stalin was right.

[Yul Lose]

We live in perilous times and at some point our resolve will be tested, IMHO, of course.

[Dubious Don #56333]

You are 100% correct Colonel !!!

Local police have been under attack for some time. The current method is when a police department or sheriff's office runs afoul of the federal law under the 10th, 14th amendments the feds take them to court where a judge issues a ruling and to avoid the feds actually moving in with their own people to do the job, the agency signs a consent decree. Under federal oversight they assign monitors who, in my experience, despite clear directions from a federal judge, insert themselves into every little nook and cranny of the day to day operations.greatly overreaching their mandate. The result is more paperwork, more regulations which DO NOT positively impact the law enforcement mission.

 

In all fairness some of these policies are good things that improve the efficiency of the organization. One is bodycams, which without this the agency would not have gotten because they would have spent that non-existant budget money on more critical issues. Yes they are a two edged sword and by themselves DO NOT show the whole story but all things considered they are a useful tool. Another, again in my experience were changes in reporting internal complaints. In the before time, if you had a beef with a deputy over a minor issue such as he was rude or didn't do the job properly you ended up talking to that deputy's first line supervisor, a sergeant. Sergeant was required to do a number of things by policy but unless the conduct rose to the level of serious the result of sustained, not sustained (IE it was a BS complaint or the deputy didn't do anything wrong) was not recorded above the supervisor notes that guy used to write your annual review. It was not recorded for stastical purposes.

 

When our monitors reviewed employee dicipline records, those records only contained serious offenses and the resulting stastics made it look like we were 85% bad, crooked cops because all those small complaints or complaints that were serious but dismissed right off because they were obvious BS none of that was written down. They changed the reporting structure and implemented a 'new' dicipline matrix. The former quiclkly changed those "stats" because those small offenses that were unfounded now got counted. Of course we all knew that only a very small percentage of bad conduct ever happens but now we have the numbers on paper to back it up. The new dicipline matrix...I'll give you two examples aside from saying that the new matrix is very unforgiving. Much more strict and it was, as I understand it, written by those outside the department.

 

A young deputy receives a complaint that basically amounted to "you were mean to me". On review by the sergeant who reviewed bodycam footage, written reports and interviewed everyone involved, he determined the complaint was unfounded because there was no voilation of law or department policy. That report goes upstairs for review by several levels. Even though he was ultimately cleared, this deputy was denied his annual salary increase because the new rule is, if you have an active complaint on "the date" you don't get your raise.

 

A deputy makes a traffic stop. Issues a citation and goes on his way. Days later he receives a voicemail from this kid's dad who is a retired firefighter. he basically berates the deputy for not giving his kid a break because his dad is a thirty year vet of the FD. He's told so solly charley, doesn't work that way. This guy then speaks to the sergeant and accuses the deputy of unprofessional conduct (IE being rude), specifically asking for a review of the bodycam footage. The sergeant reviews ALL footage as a matter of routine. Since this is an offical complaint, its more than just the sarge looking at the video and going yeah he was rude or naw, nothing there. There are rules for this and it takes a while. (think burearcracy) This deputy is on the promotion list for sergeant and while he is 'under investigation' he is not eligible for promotion so they skipped his name on the last pull. While he could be promoted later IF they open more spots, if the complaint is sustained he cannot be promoted. For two years. I do believe. Over a minor complaint.

 

Once upon a time I could make a traffic stop, write a ticket or several to the violator and conduct a records check and send that person on their way in about seven minutes. With the new computerized system, all done on the patrol car computer and highly sophisticated. When I retired not too long ago my BEST time was eleven minutes but the average was fourteen. We're not allowed to give verbal warnings, everyone requires either a ticket or a written warning. (hold that thought a sec) But the stop's not over because AFTER releasing the violator I still have more paperwork to do. There's a statistical sheet to be filled out which asks questions like were you mean to a person of color? Did you violate anyone's rights? (yeah, really) Did you pick on someone only because you thought they were an illegal alien? Why did you stop them? What race/gender did you think they were BEFORE you stopped them? What sex/race were they really? Now that there is a loaded question(s) because at two AM (yeah, the old fart worked nights by choice) and a car with tinted windows, how the heck am I supposed to know what they are before I get up there?!?? When I get a pale white guy with the name jose jiminez who speaks better english than I do do I check the hispanic box or the white guy box? (And NO, you can't ask'em) Same thing for gender but I'm not even going there. THEN I have to review the bodycam video and tag it to that specific stop. That takes time.

 

In addition to no verbal warnings on traffic stops the number of written reports required has dramatically increased. For minor calls you once had the choice of writing notes into the call itself under the sequential number ALL calls are assigned when taken by dispatch. It is a permanent record but for some calls like false burglar alarm calls, no written report is done. While that is still the case, for many other minor calls that once would have received no written report, they do now. That takes time. Used to be I could hold a report for a few days to conduct further investigation. Not anymore. ALL reports have to be done by the end of the shift and if you get a call five minutes before the end and have to write a six page report, sucks to be you. Cases I could have rolled up in a day or two now go to the detectives. Every report HAS the be reviewed by the detective sergeant and then assigned to a detective. Then that dective has to work down to that report in his pile, the one I COULD have rolled up the day after and recovered the stolen property maybe or developed the lead that would have led me to the suspect....a week down the road that trail's cold.

 

I'm going to be brutally honest here. I had it easy. My department was hardly the worst in the above areas and I know WHY those guys in Chicago, Baltimore and other places are doing what they're doing and WHY crime is going up. It's not just departments under consent decrees, the direction they are going is an end to proactive policing. "THEY" do not want you hassling those jamokes on the corner or stopping people on traffic stops or doing preventative policing AT ALL.

 

What does a peace officer want? He or she wants to go home safe at the end of his shift with everyone intact. He wants to have a career. If, by actions and policies you discourage him from doing proactive policing, he's good with that. Less work but it also is the single biggest reason that crime is skyrocketing. That cop doesn't like it, hates to see that but....that's what the bosses want. I know why cops are making less traffic stops and while I do not agree with ignoring a MINOR infraction that happens in front of you because the driver is a person of color (yeah, that really happens) I understand the why's.

 

So we know now that DHS has bought enough equipment, guns, ammo, armored vehicles to equip an army....which it is. BILLIONS of rounds, heavy machineguns like the M240. MRAPS that they use in Iraq/Afganistan to counter IED's. (And you thought that lightly armored BEAR the SWAT cops used was militaristic) and now, this same agency wants to protect our elections. In my County, that is the responsibility of the Sheriff's Office. Which we do. Security and escort, the actual vote counting and inner workings are handled by the elected County Recorder and staff.

 

I do believe that DHS is far overreaching their mission because the bigger that gets, the bigger their budhet gets. And the more power they get.

 

Yeah Stalin was right!