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One of two Democrats named to President Donald Trumps commission to investigate voter fraud said even though he disagrees with Trumps claims that millions voted illegally in November, hes willing to give the president the benefit of the doubt and is in a much better position to influence the effort by serving on the panel.

When the White House announced the voter fraud investigation on Thursday, many voting rights groups were quick to denounce the effort as a sham. Critics also said any serious election expert should stay as far away from the commission as possible to avoid lending it credibility. Although state election officials consistently have said extensive voter fraud is extremely rare, Trump has claimed without offering any evidence that it was widespread in the 2016 election.

But Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap (D) said that for him, it was more important to have a seat at the table to influence the panels work. Dunlap told HuffPost on Thursday that while he didnt believe voter fraud occurred, he wanted to hear the presidents case for it.

Calling himself an institutionalist at heart, he said that whether I agree or disagree with the president or vice president, you know, they are the president and the vice president and you give them a little bit of the benefit of the doubt.

We are talking about politics in the panels formation, Dunlap said. If we find not very much voter fraud and theres an effort to conflate that into some major public policy crisis, I think Im better postured to counter that from my own understanding and knowledge from within the circle than I am from without the circle.

Trumps commission is headed by Vice President Mike Pence. Serving as vice chairman is Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach (R), who has pushed an extremely restrictive voting law in his state and has a long history of exaggerating the extent of voter fraud.

Six people have been named to the commission so far; the other Democrat is New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner. The White House said the panel eventually will have about a dozen members, and the commission announcement noted its bipartisan nature.

Dale Ho, head of the ACLUs voting rights project, said any election expert who participated in the commission risked undermining their credibility.

Theres nothing for them to investigate, Ho told HuffPost. Trump and Kobach ``already believe that there is this massive fraud, despite the fact that there is no evidence of it. If you participate in that process, all youre doing is lending your credibility to a process thats going to arrive at that pre-determined result to justify unnecessary restrictions on the right to vote.

The final count of the popular vote showed Hillary Clinton leading it by about 2.8 million.

Bob Bauer, who served as White House counsel to President Barack Obama, wrote in a blog post that Dunlap and Gardner were being used by the White House and that election administration experts should keep their distancefrom the panel.

Their cooperation will allow for the administration to pretend to have had serious bipartisan support for its work, which can be expected to result in politically charged claims and legislative and other proposals to restrict the right to vote.

Dunlap said he hadnt yet been told what the commissions focus would be, nor had he had time to speak with Gardner. He also said he wouldnt hesitate to quit if he believed the panels work was partisan.

If I felt that this was getting me absolutely nowhere and it was a press farce, then yeah, I probably would say enoughs enough and Id probably say something to that effect publicly, Dunlap said. If we get to the very end of it, and they issue a report that I adamantly disagree with, I will speak to that.

He said his interview with HuffPost highlighted the significance of serving on the commission.

If youre not in a position to counter it, then no one is going to be paying attention to you. I mean, would you be calling me today if I was not part of this? he said.

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Why A Democrat Is Participating In Trump's Voter Fraud Investigation - HuffPost

(1 of ) Tribal chairman of the Mishewal Wappo Scott Gabaldon, at Pepperwood Preserve overlooking his tribe's ancestral lands, plans on appealing the court decision which turned down the attempt to be restored as a tribe. (Christopher Chung/ The Press Democrat)

CLARK MASON

THE PRESS DEMOCRAT | May 12, 2017, 5:13PM

The Mishawal Wappo, a Sonoma County tribe pushing to regain federal recognition, has lost its latest appeal and perhaps last round in a court case it filed eight years ago.

A federal court of appeals agreed that the Wappos waited four decades too long to bring their lawsuit against the Secretary of the Interior claiming the tribe was illegally terminated in 1961 when its Alexander Valley rancheria was dissolved.

Opponents of the tribes lawsuit, which at one time included the counties of Sonoma and Napa, worried that if the Wappos were successful, they would open a casino.

Tribal Chairman Scott Gabaldon on Friday said the tribe is primarily interested in regaining federal recognition so its approximate 345 members can access health, education and housing benefits available to tribal members.

He said the tribe has yet to decide if it will appeal to the next level the U.S. Supreme Court but conceded it was a long shot.

We have to decide which route were going to go next, he said.

As for getting a casino built if the tribe prevails, he said we are not going to rule out that possibility, but insisted it is not the main impetus.

If you look at a golf ball, you see divots on the ball, he said.

The casino is one divot. Theres a lot more to it than a casino.

Gabaldon, a general contractor who lives in Windsor, acknowledged that the tribes legal bills which he estimated at around $2 million have been subsidized by Greg Akopian, who has been associated with at least one potential casino development and runs a trucking company in Los Angeles with his brother, Grish.

Concerns that a restored Mishawal Wappo tribe would be able to buy land for a reservation outside local land-use controls and build a casino led several cities including Napa, American Canyon and Yountville to take stances opposing the tribes attempt to regain sovereignty.

California Sen. Dianne Feinstein also said the Wappos should not be recognized without restrictions on tribal development in Napa Valleys agricultural reserves.

And Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, opposed the tribes move at restoration.

By the groups own admission, if the lawsuit was successful, they would have attempted to build a casino in Napa or Sonoma counties, he said in a statement when a U.S. District Court judge in 2015 ruled against tribal restoration for the Wappos.

Last month, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the lower court.

Its the result we sort of expected, given the law, Sonoma County Chief Deputy County Counsel Jeff Brax said Friday.

It should be the last chapter in this lawsuit.

But both Brax and Gabaldon mentioned the possibility that the tribe could try to seek recognition through an administrative decision from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The Wappos are recognized by other tribes and state agencies that include Caltrans and the Native American Heritage Commission, according to Gabaldon.

They and many other California tribes lost their federal tribal status after Congress passed a law in 1958 aimed at privatizing the states small reservations, known as rancherias. Some of those tribes regained their status when courts ruled the federal government didnt keep a promise to improve living conditions on their reservations, which the U.S. had held in trust for tribe members.

The Wappos ancestral territory encompassed parts of Sonoma, Lake and Napa counties. But by the early part of the 1900s, they were living on 54 acres held in trust for them by the federal government, at the end of Soda Rock Lane, next to the Russian River.

The Wappos claim the federal government acted unlawfully between 1959 and 1961 when it dissolved the rancheria because it was done at the request of a non-Wappo leader who received two-thirds of the land.

But the court said a timely action challenging the distribution and termination should have been filed within the six-year statute of limitations by 1967.

You can reach Staff Writer Clark Mason at 707-521-5214 or clark.mason@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter@clarkmas.

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Sonoma County tribe loses bid to regain federal status - Santa Rosa Press Democrat

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On election night, the Associated Press called Mellos loss a setback for supporters who argued that the Democratic National Committee and abortion rights groups were wrong to attack the anti-abortion former state senator.

Mello, a 37-year-old Catholic from Omahas working-class south side, had become a flashpoint for the internal Democratic battle over whether a candidates position on reproductive rights should disqualify him from support by the national party after its crushing losses around the country last year.

Tuesday, Mello acknowledged the completely different dynamic the campaign took on in the closing weeks, but noted what he described as unified support across ideological lines.

We tried to run a campaign that was inclusive from the beginning regardless of political affiliation, regardless or ideology under the banner of change, Mello told hundreds in a west Omaha hotel ballroom.

Democrats hope for a victory in the race appear to have been hurt, rather than helped, when the Democratic National Committees unity tour featuring new chairman Tom Perez and former Presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) stopped in Omaha on April 20.

Rather than boost Mellos candidacy, the subsequent comments byThe National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League criticizing the Democratic National Committee for backing Mello apparentlyhad the effect of lowering Democratic turnout for Mello in the Omaha municipal election:

Responding to the criticism, Democratic party chair Tom Perez declared that, every Democrat, like every American, should support a womans right to make her own choices. His comment sparked a fierce debate within the party over whether there should be an abortion litmus test, with Mello caught in the middle.

Its astounding that our party chairman would say pro-life Democrats are not welcome, Nebraska Democratic Party Chairwoman Jane Kleeb told The Associated Press Tuesday as Mello conceded.

A CBS News poll taken in January found 15 percent of Democrats nationally believed that abortion should not be permitted.

On election night after conceding the race, Mellos comments suggested he would consider other political races in the future.

Despite high levels of energy displayed by far left activists within the Democratic party since the election of President Trump, most of their electoral efforts since January have failed.

In Kansas, a Republican candidate held off a Democratic challenger to win CIA Director Mike Pompeos former Congressional seat, and in Georgia, the well-funded national efforts to give Democrat Jon Ossoff a jungle primary victory also failed. Ossoff now faces a runoff election in June against Republican candidate Karen Handel.

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Anti-Abortion Democrat Candidate Defeated in Election for Mayor of Omaha - Breitbart News

Remember Health Mello? Hes the Democrat who ran in Omaha, Nebraskas mayoral race that voted for a sonogram bill when he was a member of the state legislature. It caused great heartburn for the Left, who are going through an identity crisis over whether to be a pure pro-abortion party, or accept that in some racesyou might have to back a pro-life Democrat to win. Pro-life Democrats make up a sizable chunk, around 25 percent, of the Democratic Party. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) supported Mellos candidacy, which irked his progressive following, though the darling of the Left said in order to protect a womans access to abortionDemocrats need to win again. That hasnt happened yet.

In the era of rambunctious town halls and left wing grassroots energy, you would think the Indivisible crowd would, you knowwin some elections. They havent. Mello lost the mayoral race Tuesday, marking zero wins Democrats have racked up so far in the Trump era. This loss is just another reminder to the left that their messaging is, welltoo nutty for most of Middle America (via AP):

His loss was a setback for supporters who argued that the Democratic National Committee and abortion rights groups were wrong to attack the anti-abortion former state senator.

It was also another near miss for Democrats fighting in typically Republican territory since Donald Trumps presidential election victory. Democrats lost a special election for a House seat in Kansas and narrowly missed an outright win in a special election in Georgia.

Mello, a 37-year-old Catholic from Omahas working-class south side, had become a flashpoint for the internal Democratic battle over whether a candidates position on reproductive rights should disqualify him from support by the national party after its crushing losses around the country last year.

Tuesday, Mello acknowledged the completely different dynamic the campaign took on in the closing weeks, but noted what he described as unified support across ideological lines.

Well, obviously not since you lost, Mello. Republican Jean Stothert was re-elected to a second term.

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Another Resistance Fail: Democrat Loses Omaha Mayoral Race - Townhall

Rep. Anna Eshoo (D., Calif.) / AP

BY: Elizabeth Harrington May 11, 2017 3:00 pm

A Democratic lawmaker from California referred to Middle America as "Podunk, USA," during a committee meeting last week, several sources inside the meeting told the Washington Free Beacon.

Remarks by Rep. Anna Eshoo (D., Calif.) during a closed-door Energy and Commerce Committee meeting with Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai raised eyebrows from those present.

The moment occurred when Eshoo pushed back against Pai when he was discussing expanding broadband access to rural areas.

Pai saidthat eliminating Title II net neutrality rules would benefit places he has traveled to, such as Parsons, Kan., Elverson, Pa., and Cadillac, Mich.

Sources inside the meeting told the Free Beacon that Eshoo was frustrated with Pai's comments. She wished out loud that Pai would stop talking about "Podunk, USA" and instead be more concerned about the venture capitalists on Sand Hill Road in her district near Palo Alto, according to the sources.

Many in the room reacted negatively to Eshoo's remarks, sources said. A member who represents a flyover state did not appreciate the term "Podunk," which means a small, unimportant town, and said districts in Middle America are just as important as those in Silicon Valley.

Eshoo's office declined to comment.

Democrats have been criticized for beingout of touch and representing only the interests of coastal elites since suffering significant losses in the 2016 elections. House Democrats opted to reelect Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco as their leader rather than Tim Ryan, who represents Youngstown, Ohio.

The FCC's plan to reverse Title II net neutrality rules, which would end the Obama administration policy of treating Internet service providers as utilities, has become a hotly contested issue, withChairman Pai receivingdeath threats.

Pai believes net neutrality subjected Internet providersto unnecessary regulatory burdens. He has made expanding broadband access to rural areas a top priority of his chairmanship.

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Democrat Refers to Middle America as 'Podunk, USA' - Washington Free Beacon