Is it because this is about metro government and the media supports metro government? After all the News-Sentinel has printed the petitions as an in-kind contribution to Knox Accountability and has editorialized in support of amendments. So, it will be up to the people of Knox County to ensure that not fraud exists. It will require the people (through a public records request) to obtain a copy of the petitions and verify the signatures and double check the election commission’s verification.
Original Post: Sunday August 31, 2008 @ 9:43 p.m. A source of Brian’s Blog has supplied us with a report from an applicant that attended the Knox County Election Commission training for potential signature verification temporary employees. It appears from our individual that attended the training that Greg McKay does not want signatures presented to him for verification. Here is the report.
In the “training” time, we were shown on the power point overhead, a picture of a very clearly written signature.”Greg McKay.” Mr McKay (conducting the session) said it was his voter registration card from the files when he was 18 years old. (We will be comparing those cards to the signatures on the petitions.) Underneath that signature, there was a scribbled line or two. If anything, it “might” have been initials, but they did not resemble a “G” or “M”! (It looked like a toddler’s random scribble. If they were letters, they were basically on top of each other.) Greg McKay said that what we were seeing was a legitimate signature. Several people questioned this comment, in the sense of disbelief. His comment was basically, ” I’m telling you. this is a legitimate signature.”!
An attendee commented/questioned to Mr. McKay that weren’t we to “preview” and mark these questionable items and then someone in authority make the final decision? Mr. McKay’s comment was something to the effect that we had 80,000 signatures to verify, and they didn’t want a lot of those being sent to them. (he said they would go to him and his staff) and we had to get this done because they have an election to be getting ready. He reminded us that it was a legitimate signature. He expects us to use good judgment. (in other words, I understood him to mean not send him a bunch!) He said it had to get done in order to get the amendments on the ballot to be mailed overseas on 9/21 I believe.
