A Soros Story: Recounts, Coincidences, and Connections

In the world of George Soros, it's hard to believe that much is a coincidence. But let's entertain the possibility of some such coincidences for the next few minutes.

Imagine: What if George Soros just happened to be connected to group that helped elect a secretary of state; who then oversaw two recounts that ended in the election of Democrats; that one of those elections was for a governorship; and then the newly-elected governor turned around and attended a fundraiser to cover those recount expenses at George Soros's house headlined by a  former president? You would say that's just a George Soros coincidence, right?

Well, that all just happened. Here's how.

It all started in late 2006. Then, George Soros backed the Secretary of State project (SOS) through the Democracy Alliance. SOS was founded to make sure that liberals and progressives, instead of conservatives, oversee key elections (which includes recounts).

The idea is simple according to Matthew Vadum of The American Spectator. "A group backed by Soros is gearing up to steal the 2012 election for President Obama and congressional Democrats by installing left-wing Democrats as secretaries of state across the nation," he writes in 2009. "From such posts, secretaries of state can help tilt the electoral playing field."

"It's been said the hand that rocks the cradle controls the future," the editors at Investor's Business Daily wrote last month in agreement. "SOS was founded on the belief that the hand that runs the election machinery controls our democracy."

And for what it's worth, so does Stalin: "The people who cast the votes decide nothing. The people who count the votes decide everything."

Just a coincidence.

SOS has been successful. It boasts about those it has helped elect on its website. One such success story is two-term Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie. First elected in 2006, he was re-elected this year.

"We are proud of our 2006 victory in Minnesota, where long time reformer Mark Ritchie pulled off a major upset with our support," their website says. It goes on to pat itself on the back for Ritchie's re-election this year.

Backing Ritchie seems to have helped SOS achieve the overall goal Vadum mentions. Ritchie later oversaw the recount between Democrat comedian Al Franken and Republican Norm Coleman, which eventually led to Franken being elected despite voter irregularities. As IBD says, "Under Ritchie's supervision, it was decided which ballots would be counted, which would be discarded, and how and when recounts would occur." That helps when "we now know that more felons voted illegally in that race than the margin of Franken's victory, and felons, it has been determined, tend to support Democrats."

That seems like a good investment, especially since SOS praises Ritchie for his work and helping send Franken to the Senate "where his vote has been much needed."

Ritchie, you'll remember, was exposed by Trevor Loudon as a "friend" of the Communist Party in one of its not-for-publication letters. Just a coincidence.

Ritchie also oversaw this year's Minnesota gubernatorial recount between Republican Tom Emmer and Democrat Mark Dayton -- Dayton won. And while no Franken-style irregularities have been reported, SOS made sure to have its man in place should it need him.

That brings us all the way back around to George Soros. It was reported Monday that Mark Dayton, the new governor-elect, was meeting with Soros and donors at a Monday night closed-door meeting at Soros's New York apartment. The event was to feature former President Bill Clinton, slated to help Dayton raise money to refill his coffers after the costly recount.

So if you're following, here's how it plays out:

1. SOS is a Soros-backed organization whose goal is to oversee elections and achieve progressive ends.
2. SOS lists Ritchie twice as one of its success stories (2006 and 2010).
3. Ritchie oversaw the senatorial recount of Franken in the past, and is currently overseeing the gubernatorial recount.
4. The Democratic winner of that recount, Dayton, visited with Soros at his apartment Monday tonight for a fundraiser.

But remember, it's all just coincidence.

The Secretary of State Project

SOS leadership reads like a who's who of liberal and progressive titans. The website lists the following people as its founders and leaders, and gives short descriptions:

Co-founder Becky Bond works for a socially progressive mobile telephone company based in San Francisco. She serves on the board of the New Organizing Institute and ActBlue.com.

Co-founder Megan Hull was a Project Director for Democracy Reform at the Center for Civic Participation. In 2004, she was a Co-Director of the coalition that investigated polling place problems and vote counting irregularities in Ohio and New Mexico.

Co-founder Michael Kieschnick is a social entrepreneur based in San Francisco. He is also a board member of the League of Conservation Voters, among other progressive organizations.

Laura Packard most recently worked as the New Media Director for the Bill Halter for U.S. Senate campaign, and has worked and consulted for many campaigns and organizations around the country. She also served as an election worker in the city of Ann Arbor for several years.

Those descriptions alone are enough to give many pause. But, not surprisingly, they don't tell the whole story. In fact, it seems SOS doesn't give their leaders full progressive credit and doesn't even list all their founders. Again, just a coincidence.

For example, take co-founder Michael Kieschnick. While the website gives him the ho-hum description of being a "social entrepreneur" and sitting on the boards of "progressive organizations" that doesn't do him social justice. Kieschnick is actually the co-founder of a wireless company called Working Assets "that donates a portion of its revenues to progressive groups." Donate he does. Last year alone his company donated to Media Matters, the ACLU, and Color of Change. This year, he's repeating many of the same donations.

And what about being on the board of "progressive organizations?" What the site fails to mention is that Kieschnick used to sit on the board of Sojourners, Jim Wallis's progressive, "social justice" group.

How about fellow founder Becky Bond. Her description on the website seems cryptic -- what is a "socially progressive mobile telephone company?" Come to find out, it's Kieschnick's Working Assets. And from the donations already outlined, the group lives up to its billing.

Bond, as is listed, also serves on the board of ActBlue.com, a fundraising website that channels money to Democratic and progressive candidates and groups. It even calls itself the "online clearinghouse for Democratic causes."  Not surprisingly, the only way to donate to SOS is through ActBlue.com.

And just some food for thought, "election worker" and current SOS leader Laura Packard used to work for the AFL-CIO in Arkansas.

Again, all just coincidence.

But the biggest coincidence of them all may be who was left off the site's page. Absent is co-founder James Rucker. Rucker's name may sound familiar. Not only has he worked for the progressive group Move On and led a boycott of Glenn Beck, but he's also the current head of Color of Change, the anti-Beck activist group co-founded by Van Jones.

The Money Trail

Trevor Loudon of NZPatriot.com has uncovered the list of donors to election overseer Mark Ritchie's campaigns. In just another coincidence, the names include not only Kieschnick and governor-elect Dayton, but even Soros himself. You may recognize some of the others:

• James Rucker A former Director of MoveOn.org and a founder of the Soros funded Secreatary of State Project which backed Mark Ritchie
• Michael Kieschnick From Working Assets, a credit card, Internet and broadcasting company that donates a portion of its revenues to "progressive" nonprofit groups. A close associate of Tides' Drummond Pike
• Drummond Pike Founder and Chairman of the Tides Center, Democracy Alliance treasurer
• Mark Dayton Former US Senator [and projected winner of the Minnesota gubernatorial recount]
• George Soros The man himself. A leading financial supporter of the US and international socialism

So in the end, what do we have? Technically, a long list of coincidences. Soros is tied to a project, that's tied to an  organization (dripping with progressive organizers) whose goal is to stack the election-oversight deck, that's tied to a secretary of state, who's tied to communists, who's also tied to two election recounts (one that was very controversial), which ties him to the winner of the latest recount (the new governor-elect who is also a campaign contributor), who just happened to spend Monday night raising money with George Soros (who also donated to the secretary of state).

Now don't go getting any crazy ideas. Like I said: Remember, this is all a coincidence.