Bernie Sanders: Trump Won Because People Are Tired of Politically Correct Rhetoric

[DonViejo]

Source: Mediaite

by Alex Griswold 12:14 pm, December 13th, 2016

When asked to diagnose why Republican president-elect Donald Trump won the presidency, former Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders said the public was tired of constantly politically correct rhetoric.

Obviously, (Trump) said things that created tremendous controversy, offense, in some cases, real genuine pain for some folks, Muslim-Americans in particular. But theres a sense he was violating some set of manners that shouldnt exist. What do you make of that? MSNBCs Chris Hayes asked Sanders during [link:http://www.mediaite.com/tv/chris-hayes-and-bernie-sanders-hold-town-hall-with-trump-voters-in-wisconsin/their townhall Monday night].

I think he said he will not be politically correct, Sanders replied. I think he said some outrageous and painful things, but I think people are tired of the same old politically correct rhetoric, and they believe that he was speaking from his heart and willing to take on everybody.

Sanders’ definition of political correctness was someone different than its usual meaning. “It means you have a set of talking points which have been poll-tested and focus-group-tested and that’s what you say rather than what’s really going on. And often, what you are not allowed to say are things which offend very powerful people,” he said.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.mediaite.com/tv/bernie-sanders-trump-won-because-people-are-tired-of-politically-correct-rhetoric/

[pnwmom]

1. It's not "political correctness," Bernie -- it's not being a racist.

It's disturbing that Bernie is downplaying the fact that DT won the EC because too many people are racists or at least comfortable with racist campaign memes.

[bettyellen]

5. He's claiming it's about tippy toeing around powerful people?

See the quote:
"It means you have a set of talking points which have been poll-tested and focus-group-tested and that’s what you say rather than what’s really going on. And often, what you are not allowed to say are things which offend very powerful people,” he said.

[pnwmom]

15. He has a strange definition of political correctness -- designed to distract

from the racism, misogyny, homophobia, Islamophobia, and anti-immigrant fervor of many of DT's supporters.

[Hoyt]

29. Exactly. When I hear someone use "PC," I know darn well they are an ignorant white wing racist.

Maybe once in a while that's not true, but not many times.

[NewJeffCT]

53. agreed

politically correct means using "African American" instead of the N word or similar and generally not insulting people because of how they look (i.e., firing a woman on TV because she's past a certain age) or because of their background.

[lunasun]

55. I agree and what's with this politically correct BS for trump bile anyway Bernie?

[ananda]

7. Agree completely.

Many of Trump's deplorables would rather die than see the people
and groups they hate be treated equally with full human and civil
rights and equal opportunity.

They will give up healthcare; all social safety nets; decent public
education; safe food, water, and drugs; a liveable environment;
and a planet with the ability to support our lives -- just to keep
Blacks, immigrants, LGBT's, Muslims, and others from being
part of their lives and getting a fair shake.

And they don't mind taking the rest of us down with them.

[Txbluedog]

35. Trump's deplorables don't care if the starve to death

as long as all those "others" starve to death with them

[Different Drummer]

93. +1. n/t

[sfwriter]

65. It's because Bernie hopes we can win their votes. EOM

[Hoyt]

68. You can win their votes by talking the trash that Trump used. I'm opposed to that.

[Baitball Blogger]

100. That's a truth. Maybe he is being politically correct by not coming out and spelling it out?

The typical Trump supporter was racist and and Trump did not hold back in talking directly to them.

[Me.]

32. Couldn't Agree More

Couldn't win but can't shut up

[Plucketeer]

47. "Couldn't win but can't shut up"

as opposed to: Couldn't win and has shrunk into mute conclusion.

[Me.]

69. You Have No Way Of Knowing That

[ehrnst]

42. He's the first to let you know that he's the smartest person in the room.... (nt)

[Rincewind]

94. I think a better title would be

Bernie Sanders babbles incoherently again.

[bettyellen]

3. Sanders steals the term "PC" and repurposes it to mean against corporate America?!?!

What the ever loving? If ever a man with a hammer was finding nails everywhere he looked....


"Sanders’ definition of political correctness was someone different than its usual meaning. “It means you have a set of talking points which have been poll-tested and focus-group-tested and that’s what you say rather than what’s really going on. And often, what you are not allowed to say are things which offend very powerful people,” he said.


Whut?

[seaglass]

17. Bernie needs to sit down. He is completely clueless. n/t

[RedWedge]

4. Not being a racist ass does not mean you're being politically correct. It means you're not being

a racist ass. Conflating these two is ignorant and out of touch.

There's definitely a place for people who speak honestly in politics. Paul Wellstone spoke from his heart and people on all sides voted for him -- even those who didn't agree with him. They felt it was better to get the devil they think is honest rather than the devil they think lies. A lot of people will vote that way. But it has nothing to do with so-called political correctness. I'd say Sanders should know better, but we saw throughout the campaign that he really doesn't.

[bravenak]

6. Fuck you

You were never on the side of the oppressed, you just played your fans for fools and they were down with the okey doke because none of that racist rhetiric harms you or the people you care about. Fuck you, sir. Fuck you and fuck off.

[SunSeeker]

8. With friends like that, who needs enemies?

I mean seriously. To dismiss objections to hate speech as "the same old politically correct rhetoric," is to dismiss hate. "Politically correct" is a pejorative meant to malign as political and prudish any demands for an inclusive public discourse that does not denigrate people based on their sex, race, religion or ethnic origin. I guess all that stuff in the Constitution is "the same old politically correct rhetoric."

[TeamPooka]

9. "Politically Correct Rhetoric" Treating others with the same respect you want for yourself.

[oberliner]

10. Headline is a lie

Bernie did not say that was the reason Trump won.

[alarimer]

12. But it gives another excuse for Bernie-bashing

so it's all good.

[Plucketeer]

50. Indeed

Where's the photos of an SoS chained to other protesters???

[pnwmom]

19. No, it's justified by the article.

When asked to diagnose why Republican president-elect Donald Trump won the presidency, former Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders said the public was tired of constantly politically correct rhetoric.

[oberliner]

31. That is not what he was asked

So the article is also a lie (not just the headline).

Watch the video.

[LanternWaste]

39. Rational inference seems a rather dramatic blind spot of yours.

Rational inference seems a rather dramatic blind spot of yours. Unsupported allegations however, are not.

[oberliner]

43. He definitely does not say that Trump won because of political correctness

Nothing he says at any point in the town hall indicates that he believes Trump won because of political correctness.

He is asked about specific Trump voters and gives his thoughts on them.

[pnwmom]

54. We just saw a tiny clip of the interview. How do you know what the larger

context was of their discussion -- the questions preceding this brief clip?

[oberliner]

76. Watch the whole town hall

You can find it on YouTube if you didn't see it when it aired on MSNBC.

Or how about this clip on the MSNBC website:

Sen. Bernie Sanders on why Trump won
"There's a lot of pain in this country," says Senator Sanders, who joins Chris Hayes for a town hall with voters in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

You can find the video here:

http://www.msnbc.com/all

Hayes explicitly asks Sanders why Trump won. Sanders does not mention political correctness.

[KPN]

103. +1000!! Bernie haters watch the video??

There's a novel idea -- but they didn't and won't. Doncha know that Hills lost because of Bernie.

These people are killing the democratic party before our eyes.

[LisaM]

20. The article said Bernie's quote was in response to being asked why Trump won.

This is a verbatim quote (not the beginning of the quote, but part of it).

“I think he said he will not be politically correct,” Sanders replied. “I think he said some outrageous and painful things, but I think people are tired of the same old politically correct rhetoric, and they believe that he was speaking from his heart and willing to take on everybody.”

I don't think the headline is that far a reach.

[oberliner]

30. That is not what was asked

Did you watch the video?

[otohara]

21. Here's The Question

When asked to diagnose why Republican president-elect Donald Trump WON the presidency, former Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders said the public was tired of constantly politically correct rhetoric.

[oberliner]

27. That's not what the question was

Did you watch the video?

[LisaM]

33. I'm not where I can watch the video. I read the whole article.

Please let us know what the so very different question was!!!

[oberliner]

38. Look at the question as quoted in the article

You will note that the actual quoted question in the article does not include Hayes asking Sanders if he thinks that Trump won because of political correctness. Hayes does not ask that, nor does Sanders make such a claim. Thus, the headline is a lie and the article itself is a lie since it begins with "When asked to diagnose why Republican president-elect Donald Trump won the presidency.." which is something that is not present in the video (nor anywhere in the town hall).

[KittyWampus]

73. I watched his performance last night at Town Hall. Did you? He redefined Political Correctness.

He redefined it to jive with his skewed view of the world where everything begins and ends with economics.

He completely ignored the FACT that political correctness is a term used by racists to condone their hate.

[oberliner]

77. Yes

Also, he at no point said that the reason Trump won was because of political correctness.

On the MSNBC website, you can see Hayes explicitly ask him why he thinks Trump won.

He does not say political correctness.

[bettyellen]

92. But it is a bizarre definition of "PC". Racial matters are not trade deals for fucks sake.

What the hell was he thinking? Coates was on Chris Hayes and was very disappointed, compared it to similar boneheaded pivots we saw during the primary.

[Arazi]

99. Agreed. This article is a lie. DUers need to see the entire town hall

There's a link to it in the Bernie Sanders group.

This is just another excuse to Bernie bash

[oberliner]

101. Bernie was great in that town hall

Made some very salient points.

[geomon666]

11. In this thread people are pissed off but what he said is true.

Hayes then asked what political correctness means to Sanders. He responded:

"What it means is you have a set of talking points which have been poll-tested and focus-group-tested and that's what you say rather than what's really going on. And often what you are not allowed to say are things which offend very powerful people. For years and years we have been told by Republicans and many Democrats that our trade policy was a great idea, that it was working for America. The American people don't believe it. The American people I think want candidates and politicians to have the guts to stand up to the billionaire class and start representing the middle class and working families of America. I don't think it's more complicated than that."

Hayes then challenged Sanders' contention that political correctness has anything to do with trade policy. Instead, Hayes suggested that political correctness was more about not offending people for identity-based reasons.

"[Trump] was going after these consensus things but he was always saying things frankly that when we talk about political correctness are basically just rules about not being a jerk," said Hayes. "He's violating taboos that a lot of people think we should keep."

But Sanders hit back. "He was talking about the media," said Sanders. "Do people here think the media reflects the reality of American society?"

He's absolutely right but nobody can be bothered to read or even if they did, understand what he's saying.

[seaglass]

18. Because that is not what PC means. Is he dumb or out of touch? n/t

[alarimer]

23. But it isn't what it means to most people, though.

I think Hayes is right about that. Most people who invoke PC are those that don't care who they offend. Now, Donald Trump may well have been talking about the media, but his followers didn't get that and many of the worst just want to use these words with impunity, which I hope never become accepted.

Mostly it is about not being a jerk, but it sometimes does seem like people are overly sensitive.

[pnwmom]

24. What he said is wrong. That is NOT the meaning of "politically correct"

and he knows it and I'm sure you know it, too.

What Sanders did was dismiss the reality of the racism behind DT's supporters. Why, I don't know.

Political correctness - Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_correctness

Political correctness. ... The term political correctness (adjectivally: politically correct, commonly abbreviated to PC; or P.C. or to p.c.) in modern usage, is used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to particular groups in society.

[geomon666]

52. He's talking about Trump voters and why they voted for him.

You say Sanders dismissed the racism of some Trump supporters. You are obviously wrong. Go watch the video. He's talking the Trump voters who wanted change in the political and didn't see it with Hillary. If you want to label those people racist and dismiss them again,you're free to do so. I believe doing so risks having us being handed our asses again to us in '18 and '20.

But I implore every here, to go watch the video. I'll even link the full video.

[pnwmom]

57. Many of them ARE racists and/or misogynists and/or homophobics,

and/or Islamophobics, and/or anti-immigrants.

And he IS minimizing that and trying to excuse their feelings.

The average DT supporter is financially better off than the average Hillary supporter -- even though the red states are less expensive areas of the country. And the people in exit polls who said they were most concerned about economics voted for Hillary. So economics wasn't the primary motivation of many DT supporters.

[geomon666]

61. No he's not. He's talking at a Wisconsin town hall

Do they look like neo nazis to you? And I agree with you, many are racists but he is trying to reach those who can be changed. That's the whole point.

[pnwmom]

66. Since when can you tell who's a neo-Nazi by how they look?

If he's trying to reach them, he should start by giving them real information. For example, when the woman complained about Obamacare, instead of just nodding his sympathy, he should have explained that her Governor rejected the funds for Medicaid expansion.

This article was written in 2015, before DT's hate campaign really got going. It's probably worse in WI now.

http://www.wausaudailyherald.com/story/news/investigations/2015/08/13/wisconsin-hate-groups/31567043/


Experts fear a string of racially motivated crimes in the South could spark other cases across the country, including Wisconsin, where nearly a dozen active hate groups exist and more than 300 hate crimes have been committed over the past five years alone.

Extremist groups here demonstrated the violence they are capable of in March when a one-time skinhead went on a bank-robbery spree that left himself and two men dead, including a Wisconsin state trooper.

A Gannett Wisconsin Media investigation revealed that 11 of the nation's 784 active hate groups operate in Wisconsin with Green Bay, Mercer, Milwaukee, New Berlin, and Shawano serving as home bases for several groups. A handful of Ku Klux Klan chapters were active in the state as recently as recently as 2013, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, a national organization that tracks such groups.

[geomon666]

74. I agree with you about the Obamacare thing

What does the rest of that have to do with this town hall meeting? You had elderly folks in there, you even had some POC in there. Are they racists too?

Bernie is trying to reach those Trump voters who got swindled by talk of jobs coming back. These people don't give a fuck about Mexicans or Muslims. These people have seen their towns disappear over the years and here comes Monorail Trump promising them the moon. We're trying to get them back on our side.

[ehrnst]

40. Yeah, all those swastikas and confederate flags were about trade policy & anger at billionaires.(nt)

[geomon666]

46. You're equating the neo nazis to all of Trump voters

and that's a mistake that's going to cost us in '18 and '20.

[ehrnst]

83. Not as reckless as equating Trump's win with "pandering to identity politics." (nt)

[Nevernose]

86. The is EXACTLY like Hill's "deplorable" comment

When only part of it is transcripts bed, or posters only read part of the quote, or only care about the part that confirms their inherent bias, it has a meaning that is quite different than either what he said or intended.

It!s exactly like when Hillary said many of Trump's voters were deplorable, but some of them were deplorable -- and then went on to define deplorable. What Trump voters heard was "you're deplorable," based on their inherent bias, and that's EXACTLY what we're seeing with this quote now.

[RobinA]

96. I Totally Agree

with what he siad. I have also heard "politically correct" used in the way he defines it, particularly by younger people, although that's just my anecdotal observation. I think the term is morphing, and it pays to understand how a person is using it if you are having a discussion with them. People can threaten to hold their breaths until the term is used "correctly" (in their minds), but that won't do much to slow the change in the meaning of the phrase if that's where it's headed.

[TomCADem]

13. Racism and Sexism Are Real...

...it is not just make believe political correctness and Trump saying racist and sexist things does not make Trump truthful. It makes Trump a racist and a sexist.

[spooky3]

62. +1

[MosheFeingold]

98. Concur, but

There are a fair number of people who cry wolf about racism/whateverism and make legitimate complaints look stupid.

For example, per capita Jewish people are, by a factor of 2X, the most common victims of hate crimes. It's a real problem. There was not a month I went by in NYC where someone would not give me a hard shoulder and call be a "fucking Jew." In NYC! Which is probably 1/5 Jewish.

And yet, I see various self-appointed leaders of my religion decrying silly crap that sucks oxygen from legitimate complaints.

I'd like them to shut up so real issues can be resolved.

[think]

14. Hopefully some will take this in context of this event. It was aimed at Trump supporters

in an effort to inform them on the issues and the Democratic alternative to what Trump was offering.

He made sure to keep his call outs of racism focused on Trump rather than the voters.

Trump voters were then asked about Trump's racist statements and they then had to distance themselves from those things.

Bernie then asked why they voted for Trump if they disagreed with those things Trump said.

Something to consider ...

[KPN]

104. My, the lack of response to this post is telling.

Think -- seems like they don't. This OP is just an attack on Bernie by people who seem to have a chip on their shoulder and are willing to alienate those of us who share, support and empathize with them and their social/equality issues and views. This is a zero sum game for them. It's disheartening ... and alienating.

[MrWendel]

16. Alex Griswold...

Is a right wing hack on Mediaite.

[arithia]

22. talk about a bullsh*t oversimplification of multiple issues that led to his victory

I guess it's easier to go with bashing political correctness than it is to point out the problems with our voting technology, voter suppression (both through laws that disenfranchise and through voter intimidation), fake news, the American cultural assumption that one person's ignorance is the same as another person's knowledge, racism and bigotry driven by diminished natural resources and escalating global conflict, institutionalized racism and sexism, foreign powers interfering, etc etc....

How is this for politically incorrect- if you are going to be this disingenuous, Bernie, go f*ck yourself.

You know what the problems are.

You know how to fix em.

Adopting Trump's use of dog whistles (and yes, attacking "politically correct speech" while spouting abusive sexism and racism is in fact a dog whistle) to fire up his asshole base won't fix any of these problems. Changing the meaning of "PC" to something new in order to make your case doesn't change the facts of what you are doing, either.

[murielm99]

25. Go back to your back bench, Bernie.

We are all tired of you. You are yesterday's news.

People need to start booing him at his pathetic little public appearance thingies.

[bravenak]

26. Absolutely

He needs to find a seat and stay his ass in it

[murielm99]

37. If he really wanted to do something

(other than pimping his book), he would use his influence with the following that he still may have. All those dreamy eyed political idealists and young fools who think he is a god could be mobilized into groups to protest, make calls, obstruct trumps agenda, etc.

And I don't mean that Our Revolution crap. That is just more self-serving bullshit. He should be working with he rest of us to thwart trump. He could work with a coalition to save our country.

And he does not have to be in the front ranks to do this. I'm talking about working with others. But his colleagues say he has never been any good at that.

[bravenak]

41. He does not seem to want to work with anybody

Some folks like to start fires to watch them burn.

[Tarheel_Dem]

88. Thank You!

[swag]

28. Nothing personal to the person who posted this, but extremely misleadin headline by Mediaite.

as I told them on Twitter.

[ZoomBubba]

34. I'm not sure who loves the spotlight more ...

... Sanders or Trump. It's amazing how similar the two are in the fact that they are masters of self promotion and building cults of personality. Plus, despite having no record of party loyalty, they've become the voices of those parties in a short time.

I'm not a fan of personality cults. You can see why on FB.

[ehrnst]

36. Bernie selling the Bernie brand. He believes everything that comes out of his mouth. (nt)

[stillcool]

44. Huh...I'm just loving

the effects Trump's plain-speaking and lies have had on this country so far. Thats for sure what we need more of. God forbid there should be respectful political discourse, rather than the trash and bash and empty promises not even possible of fulfilling. The gutter isn't low enough...let's get in the sewer.

[Generator]

45. Speaking from the heart?

Trump only has a heart of hate. If Trump spoke to Americans heart, i don't want to be an American. They ARE idiots and they have just selected a fascist that is going to destroy everything. The ones that aren't idiots know what they are doing and are evil. They want to take rights from people of color, they believe America is only meant for white men. That women need to breed the white babies and stay home. You think I'm kidding? That's the Bannon crowd. I have a relative who voted Trump-the one that has the million dollar house and that's what he believes. He hates anyone that isn't a white man. Mr alt-right. That's what Conway really believes. Her obsession is getting rid of abortion.

Bernie where's the revolution? Oh yes just talk. Revolutions happen in the streets and involve flesh and bone. But he won't call anyone to the streets. He's going to appease. Bernie is clueless if he thinks this is about economics. Is Trump offending people in power now? Meeting Gates, they LOVE Trump on CNBC-this is bullshit. Is Tillerson not powerful enough? Bernie is becoming a useful idiot.

[hrmjustin]

48. WTF does that even mean?

They want to feel good again about discrimination and bigotry? They want me back in the closet or dead, woman back in the kitchen, and minorities in the back of the bus!

Fuck that shit!

[oberliner]

49. This is a Right-Wing BS smear by a right-wing BS writer (Alex Griswold)

Thankfully at least a few posters here are realizing this and not taking the bait.

To those that do, watch the whole town hall.

[pnwmom]

60. I read many opinions of that Town Hall and have no interest in watching

that fiasco.

For example, why didn't Bernie correct the woman who blamed Obamacare for the governors in their states that turned down the Medicaid expansion?

He did too much commiserating and not enough explaining.

[oberliner]

78. That's fine

And I have no objection to anyone who wants to criticize the things that you bring up.

The point remains, however, that this article was written by a right-winger and is simply not true. It in fact deliberately misrepresents the truth.

[LaydeeBug]

51. Headline and OP are misleading and unfair to Bernie

This is how they divide and conquer.

I stand with Bernie! I stand with Democrats. I stand with Hillary.

[otohara]

59. He Divided This Party All By Himself

A generation will never trust the Democratic party unless he takes over - and if that's the case ....

You know here in Colorado we rejected ColoradoCares by a yuge margin in spite of his endorsement and four campaign stops.

[LaydeeBug]

67. No...Russia divided our nation. Apathy helped them. nt

[LenaBaby61]

56. Bernie ....

PLEASE, just stop it

[KPN]

105. Chris Hayes asked Bernie to participate in this "All In With Chris Hayes" hour.

Send your message to Chris. Bernie did fine.

[yurbud]

58. You should highlight the definition of "politically correct" Bernie was using.

[George II]

63. Sorry, but he's living up to his initials.

[DonCoquixote]

64. Bernie, thank you for reminding me

that while I had bitter disagreements with Hillary, I could not vote from someone who was as clueless on social matters as you.

[Buzz Clik]

72. +1

[GusBob]

70. How many hate crimes have been committed since the election?

[Buzz Clik]

71. Someone remind Bernie his fifteen minutes are up.

Shoving his nose up Trump's rump is not going to make us Feel the Bern.

[killbotfactory]

75. This thread is a great reminder that most people don't read past the headline

If it confirms your biases, just pile on.

Who needs context?

[oberliner]

79. Yes, indeed

Or check who wrote the article and what their agenda might be.

Or take some time to go to the actual source material and find out what was actually said.

[LisaM]

89. No, many of us read the whole article.

I wasn't able to click on the link, but the headline matched what was actually in the article.

[KPN]

106. Bingo!

[Legends303]

80. I be no means am a Trump fan

but Sanders is right on the money on this, we need to stop with morally outrage crap and address legitimate economic issues of people, not all Trump voters are racist. If we continue down this line we are going to give Trump another 4 years.

[KPN]

107. Agree.

This stuff is small minded and undermining our ability to progress.

[Devil Child]

81. Is it primary season again?

More click-bait headlines and whipping up another round of foaming at the mouth Sanders bashing and even bashing of Sanders supporters.

[agincourt]

82. Trump won because too many American voters are ignorant

in addition to be neverending enablers of the GOP.

[leftyladyfrommo]

95. And they think everyone should live

the way they think is right.

Somewhere along the way they lost sight of the fact that the whole purpose of a democracy is that people with differing views can live together peacefully and safely.

And I think there is a great deal of deep seated fear involved. I have never really understood the fear but it's there. Deep seated very low esteem.

[ismnotwasm]

84. Not surprising.

Unfortunately.

[Nonhlanhla]

85. Yup. Still not feeling the Bern.

This is why.

[baldguy]

87. More proof that Sanders is not a Democrat, never was, and should never have been treated like one.

[LisaM]

90. He and Trump should tour together (aren't they both in Wisconsin right now?)

The mansplaining "Everything Hillary Ever Has Done was Wrong" barnstorm.

[riversedge]

97. Sanders was in WI Mon.eve. The Trump gang, Walker, Priebus, Paul Ryan, Duffy, Sheriff Pitchfork

Clarke, Pence and other bigot Repugs were here last evening. Sold lots of Trump hats I hear. Ryan and Walker gave out Christmas presents to Trump--Packer shirts. I hate it when Repugs like Walker and Ryan use the Packers for their little political stunts. Everyone was lovy dovy last night. BARF!!

[Paladin]

91. The very last person I want to hear from about Trump's "victory" is Bernie Sanders. (nt)

[Marthe48]

102. HRC is ahead in the popular vote 2.8 million

I wish people would stop saying commie d.ump won. He has the smallest popular vote of any person going to the White House, if he actually goes. Anyone calling him a winner is exaggerating d.ump's actual position as a minority president.
He has no mandate. The only reason he gets to call himself president is that he got a larger number of votes under stinking circumstances.