Our rented Chevy pulls up to a quiet customs post on the Canada-US border. It is just after midnight. Our goal is to launch a pre-emptive strike against American President George W. Bush. We don’t articulate our purpose to the customs official in precisely this way but simply say we are volunteering to help elect Senator John Kerry as President in the November 2 elections.
The border patrol lets us pass without much questioning. Perhaps he is a Democrat.
True, the sovereignty of nations suggests that elections are the exclusive domain of a country’s citizens but the Bush Doctrine has overturned these traditional notions. The Bush Doctrine justifies the pre-emptive invasion of foreign nations (like Iraq) that threaten U.S. security. Given the mess Bush is making around the world with potentially nasty impacts for Canada we figure our intervention on U.S. soil is fully justified.
We pass through Buffalo and head west along Lake Erie towards Cleveland before turning south towards our final destination of Canton, Ohio, about 600 kilometres from Toronto. In Canton, a waning industrial city of 90,000 people, we join up with about 100 volunteers from Washington D.C. that belong to groups called Americans Coming Together (ACT) and America Votes. They share our vision of regime change. Canton traditionally votes Republican but with major local job losses in the steel industry, the State is ripe for a swing to the Democrats.
It’s heartening to be among Americans who share our deep distrust and dislike of the politics of George W. and the GOP (“Good Old Party”). Diplomacy prompts us to tell our fellow volunteers that we are from “outside Buffalo” although those who know of our Canadian origins welcome us all the same. Three other Canadians, who are working or studying in the U.S., had already infiltrated this group of anti-Bush campaigners.
ACT and America Votes are known as 527s, because of a curious U.S. law that permits partisan, politically active groups to raise money outside of strict election contribution limits. American tycoon George Soros, for instance, apparently donated $6 million to these two groups although he could not directly donate a similar amount to Kerry. The main restriction on these groups is that they may not specifically tell you who to vote for (or against) even though their activities make their preferred candidate obvious. In the same way the group, Swift Boats against Kerry, could malign Kerry but not tell people to vote for Bush. There are other quirky U.S. laws and practices — such as a prohibition against putting election brochures in mailboxes — but none quite as significant as the 527s.
Most of our work before Election Day involves visiting the homes of union members considered sympathetic to the Democrats. We remind people of the reasons for voting against President Bush: 230,000 jobs lost in Ohio, $200 billion squandered on the war in Iraq, and $60 billion in corporate tax breaks across the country. With those statistics our script requires little in the way of reasons to vote for Kerry.
Most people agree that Bush has made a mess in Iraq and is hurting the economy but many are also anxious about the “moral values” of the Democrats. Abortion, gay marriage, and gun control are issues we hear often. One woman vows to shoot Bush if he comes to her door but also says, “I am worried about the morality that Kerry is showing to our young people.” The illegal war in Iraq and the ensuing deaths of thousands of innocents has not occurred to her as an obvious example of immorality.
Another fellow is furious with Bush for job losses but equally worried about Kerry taking his gun away. “The only reason the terrorists haven’t attacked us in our homes is because we have guns. Look at places like Australia and England where people don’t have guns,” he said. His point escaped me, although I wasn’t sure what CNN and FOX had been reporting about those countries.
On Election Day our task is straightforward but exhausting. At 5:30am we begin dropping off written reminders at households that have been identified as Kerry supporters. Later in the day we return to make sure the message had been heeded. Our job is tiring but the voter has a far more complex task when faced with the ballot. Their choice is not only whether to vote for Kerry or Bush but also to choose among an array of federal and local officials running for public office. “Everyone except the dogcatcher is elected,” as one person put it. In Canton signs for the Senate position vie with advertisements for local family court judges, prosecutors, commissioners, and Court clerks, all running under the banner of a political party.
When we finish our Election Day work, our group of volunteers feels optimistic. We are certain that the high voter turn out will favour Kerry. In fact, we are not surprised when Kerry takes an early lead in Ohio.
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Our optimism begins to fade by 9:30 that evening. Bush has not only taken a lead in the State but is maintaining it.
We leave Canton just after 10pm on election day – the third day of our Canadian invasion. Buses will shortly be arriving to take other volunteers back to their homes in Washington D.C.
By the time we cross the border into Canada at 3:30am the radio reports are sounding pessimistic about Kerry’s chances of becoming President.
Our preemptive strike does succeed in winning Stark County (where the City of Canton is located) for Senator Kerry. It’s one of the few counties in Ohio where the Democrats will win a majority of votes.
Next time we will send a larger Canadian contingent.
