Franken benefactor backed by 'who's who' of left

[Confederate Kahanist]

http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=231765

By Aaron Klein
© 2010 WorldNetDaily

Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) attends a reception honoring Jewish-American Heritage Month in the East Room of the White House in Washington on May 27, 2010. UPI/Alexis C. Glenn Photo via Newscom

The Minnesota secretary of state who oversaw the recount of the 2008 U.S. Senate race that put onetime comedian Al Franken into office is backed by a "who's who" of the radical left.

Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie counts among his campaign donors members of the Democratic Socialists of America, founders of the socialist New Party, members of the Communist Party USA, and even a former associate of the Weatherman domestic terrorist group founded by Bill Ayers.

Personalities from several George Soros-funded think tanks and the terrorist-supporting Code Pink also show up on Ritchie's donor list.

Ritchie won second term earlier this month. He may oversee another recount, this time in the gubernatorial race between Democrat Mark Dayton and Republican Tom Emmer. According to the current count, Dayton leads Emmer by 9,000 votes.

Read the inside story on Minnesota's senator, in "...Pants on Fire: How Al Franken Lies, Smears And Deceives - (Hardcover)"

Ritchie has filed court papers asking the state to not call for a recount. At issue is how counties performed an election night task known as reconciliation: Some counties count the number of signatures on voting rosters, while others tally the receipts handed to voters in order to get a ballot.

Meanwhile, a review of donors to Ritchie's 2006 and 2010 campaigns finds a shocking list of radicals that reads like a "Who's Who' of the far-left world.

Ritchie was a beneficiary of the Soros-funded Secretary of State project.

"We helped re-elect Mark Ritchie in Minnesota," declares the project about Ritchie's 2010 race.

His 2006 donor list, reviewed by both WND and the New Zeal blog, includes:

    * Barbara Baran, a member of Democratic Socialists of America.

    * Harriet Barlow, a founder of the socialist New Party. WND previously reported on evidence suggesting President Obama was a New Party member in the 1990s.

    * Jeff Blum, a former supporter of the Weathermen domestic terrorist group.

    * Heather Booth, a founder of the Midwest Academy, which has trained thousands of "community activists" in the tactics of radical organizer Saul Alinsky. WND previously reported the executive director of Booth's group was part of the team that developed and delivered a group of volunteers for President Obama's 2008 campaign.

    * Paul Booth, a member of Democratic Socialists of America.

    * Cynthia Brown, a vice president for education policy at the Soros-funded Center for American Progress.

    * Dan Cantor, a co-founder of the socialist New Party, now leader of New York's ACORN and the socialist and communist-dominated Working Families Party.

    * Dan Carol, a member of the Soros-funded Tides Center board, also a founder of the Apollo Alliance, which is led by a slew of radicals, including former Weatherman terrorist Jeff Jones and Obama's former "green jobs" adviser and avowed communist Van Jones.

    * Doris Marquit, a veteran leader of the Minnesota Communist Party USA.

    * Erwin Marquit, a veteran leader of the Minnesota Communist Party USA, whose wife is Doris Marquit.

    * And Max Palevsky, a former trustee of the Marxist-oriented, Soros-funded Institute for Policy Studies.

Radicals who supported Ritchie's 2010 campaign included:

    * Jodie Evans, leader of the radical "Code Pink," which has sided with the Taliban and Saddam Hussein and has led marches in support of Hamas in Gaza. She is also a member of board of trustees of the Marxist-oriented, Soros-funded Institute for Policy Studies.

    * Margery Tabankin, an Alinsky-trained former member of the radical Students for a Democratic Society from which the Weatherman terrorist group splintered.

    * Patricia Bauman, a member of the Soros-funded, pro-Palestinian J Street Advisory Council.

    * And Martin Bunzl, a member of the J Street Advisory Council.

WND reported previously that the fallout from the "recount" that handed Franken the 2008 victory still is developing.

According to officials with Minnesota Majority, there have been several dozen prosecutions for fraudulent voting in that election.

In fact, spokesman Dan McGrath said when his organization probed Franken's 312-vote victory in the U.S. Senate rate in Minnesota in 2008, it was found that at least 341 convicted felons voted in Hennepin County, where Minneapolis is located, and another 52 voted illegally in Ramsey County, home to St. Paul.

The number of felons voting in those two counties alone exceeded Franken's margin of victory, the investigation revealed.

Incumbent Norm Coleman was found to have more votes at the end of the polling, but the victory was given to Franken after challenged recounts.

McGrath noted his organization's investigation into the 2008 election already has resulted in 75 people charged with voter fraud and about 40 convictions. Several hundred more cases still are developing.