Democratic attempts at intimidation

HOUSTON, Texas, October 25, 2010 - Catherine Engelbrecht and King Street Patriots, a group of citizen-volunteers, filed an answer in court today in a baseless defamation lawsuit brought by Texans Together Education Fund, parent company of Houston Votes, which has been accused of possible voter registration fraud by the Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector.

King Street Patriots has also been attacked by a lawsuit from the Texas Democratic Party and an coordinated ethics complaint filed by Texans for Public Justice. Both Texans Together and Texans for Public Justice receive funding from Open Society Institute, of which liberal supporter George Soros is founder and chairman.

"As a matter of law, corporations cannot sue individuals for defamation; this attack is baseless," said Kelly Shackelford, president/CEO of Liberty Institute, which represents Catherine Engelbrecht and King Street Patriots. "All these attacks are clearly an attempt to bully and silence a group of volunteer citizens who are just trying to keep the election process honest. This is pure desperation by a Democratic Party everyone knows is not doing so well."

Only a week into early voting, volunteer poll-watchers also are being verbally and physically harassed by people loitering at the polls with no intention to vote at the time, including a man identified as a reverend and Houston Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee who was seen inside the polling location electioneering and threatening to turn a poll-watcher's name to the Department of Justice for voter intimidation. Additionally, poll watchers have filed written descriptions of election judges and clerks attempting to influence citizens' votes by asking them if they wanted to vote straight ticket, shadowing voters as they cast ballots, and by even voting for people who did not know for whom they wanted to vote.

"Although I'm disgusted by these attacks, I am not deterred. Our work in Houston and our vision for a fair and free election in every county of the nation continues," said Catherine Engelbrecht, volunteer leader of King Street Patriots. "These lawsuits are exactly the kind of abusive disrespect for citizens that got our political leaders into trouble. We will not be intimidated by partisan attacks, by the Democratic Party, or by anyone."