RP Des Moine Campaign Hdqtrs -- Database Files were sabotaged
Posted January 4th, 2008 by blakmira
output
Anybody know what went on here and if this is true??
Email from:
RE: [ronpaul-294] Update from Des Moines
On Jan 4, 2008 10:51 AM, Ben Hodges wrote:
Dear all:
I sincerely regret to inform you that today, the GOTV day, the biggest day of the whole Iowa campaign for the 300 students up here, was completely destroyed--and the circumstances point towards a deliberate sabotage.
We were told from the very beginning that all of our hard work would be nought if we didn't hit Iowa hard on January 3rd.
Our job? Call every Ron Paul supporter in the state (our numbers were bigger than Huckabee's), man as many precincts as possible, drive voters around, pick people up, get them back home, check voters off as they come in, &c., &c..
We were told to be ready to leave camp at 9 a.m.
...
We were ready.
But then at 2:30 in the morning, all the camp leaders received a phone call that the database the Des Moines office put together of all our phone banking and door-to-door canvassing was totally scrambled, jumbled, and even partly deleted. All the data was scattered and completely jumbled. Missing phone numbers. Missing precincts. A big box of random data. Thousands and thousands of voters.
The original file was supposed to have broken all voters down into counties and precincts. Didn't happen.
Each page was supposed to be correlated with precinct captains and chairmen. Didn't happen.
We were looking at a day of turning out over 17,000 voters. We maybe called 300.
We picked up nobody.
We manned no caucuses.
...
So what happened?
We were told we'd have the numbers by 11 a.m.
Then noon.
Then 2.
Then 3.
Then 4.
We finally got the numbers around 4:30. We couldn't even print them. A couple camp leader floored it to a Kinko's and printed them out. We got started calling at 5:15. Caucusers were supposed to show up at 6:30.
I have received word that one particular person is responsible for all this.
I've also heard word that this is not true. That's why I won't release the name.
In any case, the database the Des Moines office was supposed to be compiling was completely compromised, either technically or personally. The word used to describe the master file was "unusable."
I don't know what to make of this, but everyone here is super despondent.
b Hodges
--
Ben Hodges - bun@stygian.net
AIM: NoManismyname108
Cell: 770.314.1886
==================================
"For what is man? Calamitous by birth,
They owe their life and nourishment to earth;
Like yearly leaves, that now, with beauty crown'd,
Smile on the sun; now, wither on the ground."
-Phœbus to Neptune (from Pope's Iliad)
Bookmark/Search this post with:
my first question is who the
my first question is who the hell was the IT guy? even a novice knows how to forsee and avoid this.
second question- why would the campaign have a novice do data administration?
third question- if hes not a novice then why the hell did he sabatoge the campaign?
I have a question...
Did the database corruption lead to there being no one at these caucuses to step up and make a speech for Dr. Paul? I saw the cspan one and no one had anything to say on his behalf, and I heard that several places had no one speaking on his behalf.
WTF happened out there? If this is the way the state decides things, you would think the first thing the Dr. Paul supporters out there would have made SURE OF would be to have somone at these caucuses to try to sway votes. I don't get it, and I'm sorry, I dont see 5th as a WIN
From what I've read...
Yes, this kept volunteers from attending Caucus' and no representative spoke on Ron Paul's behalf. Others had a planned speaker.
That's what I've read here.
Sounds like a long night
Iowa was a tough state and unlike the Dems it really isn't a predictor of the final candidate. NH will be the big test. Big ups to the hard works by every one in Iowa.
Should read "I was there" below...
before anyone freaks out too much.
Learn from mistakes.
Look forward, move forward!
Just received independant verification -- DB and phone fiasco
I just received independent verification of the DB and phone fiascos from someone I know personally who was on the ground in Iowa.
Sickening.
Could it be?
Could it have been possible that someone unfamiliar with the system messed it by mistake? I know I have a hard time transitioning to Windows because I use a Mac..so perhaps it was an accident?
Cause is irrelevant.
As I have posted in many places before -- what the cause of the database problem was IS COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT the preparation and response are the same.
Every COMPETENT systems administrator in charge of a MISSION CRITICAL DATABASE will have in place a solid "disaster recovery" procedure that would allow them to have the system (or a reasonable facsimile thereof) online again in a matter of an hour or two.
So regardless of whether the server "died" or someone "messed with" it, or even if the whole building burned to the ground, there should have been a PRACTICED plan already in place that would have made any such problem a minor road-bump.
LOL
Jane, are you kidding me??
WTF
How are you a blogger?
NH Keep Hard Copy Records
Keep a paper record for this stuff !!!!! We can't allow this to happen again.
This better not be true...
...and I'll continue to assume it's not unless I see more information. Even if this was a City Council Election, there would be no excuse for something like this happening. Whether it was a software issue or a data issue, no excuse.
Note: I'm not calling anyone a liar. Just assuming that there has been a misunderstanding.
Do we have a problem with the official campaign?
If this is true, who will be fired? Considering the percentage of campaign resources that were focused on Iowa, this is 100% inexcusable. Sabotage, tech problem, or incompetence, it doesn't matter. Heads must roll if this story is corroborated. You'd think $19M could get us a GOTV list delivered on time.
I hate to publicly criticize the campaign, but we may need to address some things now, rather than in the campaign autopsy. Does the doctor have a team that knows how to win? Or is it a team that looked good when he planned to run an educational, Libertarian style campaign?
Every amazing thing about the campaign seems to originate with the grass roots. Fundraising, blimps, meetups, videos, materials etc. The candidate is definitely top-tier. The message is top-tier. The grass-roots supporters are top-tier. Is the campaign leadership?
I realize that I'm in the dark on just about everything the campaign does. I also have no idea how to win a presidential election. My concern is based on a few glimpses of the official campaign in action, so if somebody can set me straight, I'd appreciate it. Please point out something amazing that the official campaign is doing.
NH PEOPLE! BACKUP DATA!
Seriously somehow the master file was "corrupted"?!?! WTF!!! This is a RED FLAG for something fishy. Please find out what went wrong and provide proof please work with BlackBoxVoting and Bev Harris,and DIGG, viral this as fire on the net! Please get with the NH HQ official campaign and grassroots and make sure they backup on a SEPARATE REMOVABLE HARD DRIVE THAT IS ISOLATED FROM THE INTERNET to protect against attacks and on MULTIPLE COPYS ON MULTIPLE DRIVES. I know this may sound harsh or elementary but if there were no copys where you are at then that was a BIG mistake. AND IT OR ANY CAN"T BE REPEATED AGAIN IN NH.
I agree
with the poster below, the turnout was what killed us. We were told to expect about 100,000 and many in the state GOP predicted a lot less, like around 85,000. I didn't see the final totals, but WHO radio said about 124,000 and all those extra voters were Tax Hike Mike's evangelicals and Romney's senior brigades.
NEXT STATE!
This r3VOLution isn't stopping after this is it? Hate to sound like the Soup Nazi on Seinfeld but, "NEXT!"
Pick yourselves up, grab some slim-jims, bumper stickers and signs and head to the next battlefront. Considering Dr. Paul won most of the independents, won an entire county and turned up twice the Ghouliani percentage in light of this thread, it is a minor victory amongst a demographic that had Huckabee as a hero all along. We have only begun this fight! I'm at work trying to support those crucial foot soldiers by both writing here and earning more (devalued) dollar to donate to the camapaign and other advertising causes. Man your posts people!
BUMP!!
BUMP!!!
I was there
and one of the students who waited for hours to get the lists...
It wasn't an issue of files being backed up... it was an issue of software that was supposed to match up addresses we wrote down while canvassing door to door with the person's name, phone number, and caucus location malfunctioning.
80 students stayed up all night on the 2nd and manually fixed most of this. At the end of the day the corrupt data really only amounted to 2-3k of the voters... many of whom we had listed as 25% chance of turning out if we were lucky.
EVERYONE on the identified and potential supporters lists was called often more than once to get turned out.
WHAT HURT US at the end of the day most was the large turnout... we got out about what we expected in terms of definite yes supporters for Ron Paul. The potentials that we didn't get out were democrats and independents- people who notoriously never vote in a republican caucus... come states like NH and MI et al where you have all day to come out and vote.
Thanks
Thanks for your hard work! You helped put the Dr. in double digits.
Thanks for the eyewitness account
We can't let rumors freak us out. Thanks for all your hard work. We need to learn from mistakes and then move on. If you have any advice, please pass it on to other states.
Man thank you for your hard
Man thank you for your hard work and thank you for letting us know what kind of help the campaign really needs.
Important question, Dante
First, thank you for all of your efforts and keep up the good work wherever you may be.
Question: How do the percentages of each area correspond with the areas that boots on the ground were most visible? In other words, was the vote count substantially higher in the areas that were heavily campaigned by door to door people? This is critical to know as we will know how important door knocking potential is in upcoming states. If very significant, we may have to send 30 thousand people or more to every critical state to win this thing. Whatever it takes, we MUST DO!!!
Thank you
for all your hard work. And spread my thanks to everyone else who helped RP achieve 10%!!!
Great Job!
Crying over spilt milk? We cannot afford the time for this...
New Hampshire needs to be in our collective crosshairs now...
MOVE ON (no dot org needed ).
Sure This is Unfortunate, But
There is no excuse for not having a backup at the ready when your office is right next door to the Huckster's staff. For the lack of a backup, this one file, as you say, prevented the use of precious time yesterday leading up to the 6 PM arrival deadline.
I agree with the other poster below, maybe the campaign needs some secure IT infrastructure to prevent this from occuring again. Then again, if backing up one file is problematic, then how could one expect an entire server, or servers, to stay safe from this kind of harm?
Servers should be remote.
There is really no need for them to even be within the state, much less "on-site" at a particular campaign office.
The servers should be remote and behind solid firewalls, with web-based access screens and reports.
Not only is that the safest and most secure way of doing it, it is also the cheapest. (Think February 5th with 21 states... much easier to have a server farm at a single HQ with decent bandwidth -- and a backup farm at another location of course) than to try to setup 21 (or more) separate db server systems.
Anything else is obsolete and backwards.
I went back and checked
I'm a county chair and I received my GOTV list at 12:07 pm. I'm not saying there may not have been problems, but lists did get out to people to call.
Maybe there's another topic about this, but the problem in my county was turnout. The young and college-age r[evol]utionaires came out but the older voters sank us. People I talked to just days before who said they would come out suddenly didn't on caucus night, I offered them rides there and back, anything they needed short of physically breaking in to their houses and dragging them with me.
That said, we've had problems with "supporter" lists from day one. I got excited when I heard how many raw names we had but when I got my list yesterday, I had to spend half an hour stracthing off all the names of people I had already confirmed were not supporting Paul.
What?
You already confirmed the people who were not Ron Paul supporters and I assume, had informed the campaign office about them, so they should have been off the list already?
That doesn't sound good to me. Not to mention getting the list so late, at 12:07 PM -- it could very well be that you were one of the lucky ones, and others did get things very much later.
At any rate, I sure hope the campaign would be forthcoming about any sabotage. They may as well be transparent about it.
This seems more accurate,
This seems more accurate, thanks for your perspective.
No backup's of the
No backup's of the records?
We've got to realize that there are MANY people out to get us. We've always got to "CYA".
They need to have duplicates and triplicates of everything stored at several off-site locations.
This goes for the campaign, the State organizers, Meetup groups and individuals.
BACKUP EVERYTHING.
This needs to go on DIGG
Unfortunately you cant link DIGG to this web site. A little help people?
They love conspiracy stuff. Espeically when it involves computers and data.
Let's wait...
It needs to be verified with the campaign, and we still need to know the answer to "sabotage or screw-up." Played wrong, this will look like we're in a panic. Played right, it means we'd probably be tied for 3rd if this had not happened, and people will probably see it that way, too. If so, this is very good news for NH...
JMR
That is correct.
We wait and get our information before making ANY decisions.
If this is true, then the
If this is true, then the campaign is worse than I thought. You are talking about extremely important data, and NO backup? No contingency plan? Is this how Ron Paul's staff expects to run America? He has to have the worst campaign staff in presidential history. It is not Ron Paul, it is his staff. How many times are they going to mess up. Everytime they do, it hurts the entire campaign.
The campaign office should be ashamed. This is a war, we all know that. Tampering and destroying records is not new.
We love you Ron Paul!!! Make us proud!!
What happened?!!
Can someone please verify this with the official campaign
-------------------------
austinpetersen.com
CUBSCOUT MISTAKES!!!...What in the world
So we don't know how to BACK UP data?!?!?!?!
Howard
"If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, THE TRUTH, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." John 8:36, 32; 14:6
How many computer guys we
How many computer guys we have on this campaign and grass roots? Why do we have a server in IOWA and one in NH, and one in WHERE EVER. We need an internet application and the servers in a secure data center with backups, DR site some where else, etc... Then we have internet tunneling between each office and the servers off site.About 10 grass roots network guys watching for internet breakins. No more of this local server stuff.
I wouldn't put all our eggs in one basket
I'm talking to upstate NY folks about using the Advokit setup at http://revolutionvote.com... that NYC is using.
They guy running it said he could host other states, too, but I wouldn't put all our eggs in one basket, nor all our data on one server (even a backed-up one).
Read about Advokit here:
http://www.advokit.net/
"Advokit is a free web-based voter contact management system created by and for the grassroots. Using Advokit, you can combine the power of voter files and social networking to build your grassroots into an organization, and use that organization to identify and mobilize supporters. Advokit is an online hub for a campaign’s activist recruitment, voter registration, supporter identification, get-out-the-vote, door-to-door canvassing and phone bank work."
I also don't want to see each state re-inventing the wheel!
In a hindsight, always have
In a hindsight, always have multiple local backups available, and don't have just a single person to take care of them.
You're absolutely right. I
You're absolutely right. I work as an IT consultant and teach comp sci at a local college here in Springfield, Missouri. I'd be more than happy to offer any assistance (either in the planning or implementation).
If there is any
If there is any Oracle/Linux/Aix/Solaris involved I can donate time to set up replication or standby databases to remote locations.
Ben's a good guy.
I know the person that sent the email (Ben), he's very dedicated and trustworthy. He does a lot for this campaign in GA and abroad. You can trust the source, but I'd still like to hear from the campaign HQ there.
There are 2 types of people in the world.
Those who BACK UP critical data...
...and incompetent ID10TS!
Looks like RP campaign has the latter running it's system there in Iowa.
Third type-
SABOTEUR'S
Not to be a conspirisist,
Not to be a conspirisist, but maybe an employed troll?
Deliberate Sabotage, You Say?
I mean accidents happen BUT something like what you are suggesting sounds very illegal (criminal) to me and my untrained estimation.
What's the official verdict from the campaign legal staff? Surely we have such a staff // and surely they must have a comment in this regard.
What is the actual loss here? Is the number 300 or is it thousands and thousands? Would the number 300 have proved to be a drastic difference in the total percentage our hero (RON PAUL) would have received?
Someone earlier stated that the media would be waiting to JUMP on something of this nature, well, I say if there has been wrong (purposefully of course) done here then it needs to be public knowledge. Why hide more of the TRUTH when that TRUTH speaks of corruption? You honestly want to try and excuse something of this nature?
But like I said at the outset, mistakes happen -- mistakes are one thing BUT purposeful sabotage is entirely another matter. How can anybody be willing to turn the other cheek to something like that?
I think we need to hear from that campaign legal staff on this at once.
Vote RON PAUL 2008
I would like a full investigation and explanation
anyone else?
BUMP
BUMP
Unfortunately TYPICAL....
I am going to assume that this is a true reporting of what happened in Iowa until someone proves it false. I just KNEW that something was screwed up last night when the numbers started rolling in. How could we have been exactly at the pre caucus poll numbers, when we ALL know that our "real world" support is easily twice that, and that there was NO WAY our people were NOT going to get the vote out. Now we know why. And, once again, the "official" campaign looks pathetic.
SO....last night a KEY get the vote out system was blown out. Ever heard of backing up files? How about the two weeks ago revelation that Ron Paul was NOT on the Ohio ballot yet? How about repeatedly giving out incorrect information on press releases, including WRONG locations and dates? How about trying to chase the herd with a FAR TOO TYPICAL/MAINSTREAM campaign that spends huge amounts of money on 30 second TV ads to be run in states ovewhelmed by candidate ads ALREADY? How about S**TTY ads! How about consistently subverting grassroots enthusiasm and creativity with endless calls for a "steady stream" of donations.
Look, I am very well read up on how the primary/delegate system works, and know that this is a 50 state race. However - LAST NIGHT WAS CRUCIAL. Momentum is a huge "identity/validity/credibility" bomb that could have been dropped last night....propelling Ron Paul and our movement into NH and beyond. We HAD to at least beat McCain, a has-been war monger that draws a lot of independent support in NH. instead, we finish behind him, and ALL DAY TODAY I have heard endless punditry saying that McCain might have been the "big winner" last night because he has credibility going into a strong state for him (the "Live Free or Die" state, by the way). We also had to at least beat the washed up TV actor with about as much enthusiasm as a corpse. Sadly, no. And PLEASE, taking solace in beating Giuliani is a joke. His campaign is dead, even Megamedia says so. His "Florida stand" strategy is like standing below a bursting dam with a pot lid for a shield.
I also have a growing concern today. How much of the 20 million is left to continue the run for the long haul? I have been flagged multiple times on this site for suggesting that the "official" campaign is NOT operating in the best interests of this revolution, and that spaced out "money bombs" would ENSURE that they COULD NOT spend all of the money in the early states, trying to look and act like some mainstream frontrunner campaign. "Traitor" and "Troll" usually preceed my comments being removed. Since our poor showing last night (and it indeed WAS if winning is on our minds), a "home run swinging", long term, through MARCH campaign is of more importance than ever. We MUST allow the Ron Paul supporters EVERYWHERE to get a chance to vote for him.
Have you looked at the donor map on ronpaulgraphs.com lately? Look at all of those GREEN states dying for the chance to say something in this primary election. Unfortunately, I fear the "official" campaign does not see it that way. They are too busy trying to be something we are not. Or worse, they simply have no idea WHAT we are.
If we get an "official" email any day pleading for more funds to continue through February we will know how serious the problem is. All the future money bombs in the world will dry up without CREDIBLE RECOGNITION in the form of primary SUCCESS.
GET IT DONE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE! Get a bazillion supporters to sit in coffee shops all day talking. Get into the diners. Have house parties. Get Ron on local radio. Get it done. In my opinion we need at LEAST THIRD place in NH to gain back some credibility.
Sorry folks, I was going to hold my tongue until I had something more "positive" to say, but hearing the news from Iowa in this post has pretty much fried my mind right now. If you wish to innocently "explain it away" as honest *s**t happens, go right ahead......when the future of our country is at stake I refuse to be so accepting.
totally agree
official campaign needs to regroup.the tv ads need to be 60 sec vs 30 sec.
I will say it again,,,,"A New Hope" or something very similiar NEEDS to be put on television.
Most now know of the good Dr,now its his message we must sell.
Dirty Campaigning is nothing new
Dirty Campaigning is nothing new - I wish the supporters here would understand this - I have been campaigning for along time.
google campaign dirty tricks