Marie Cocco is one of those writers who is so filled with hatred for Bush - and Republicans in general - that she is unable to write any column that isn't filled with some sort of invective. This also blinds her to the facts most times, and her recent column (published with pleasure in the Fish Wrapper) on voter fraud is a prime example.

Here is an example from the column that illustrates my point.

The operative phrase is ``election fraud,'' though in Republican parlance it is usually called ``voter fraud.'' Republicans claim, loudly and regularly, that an army of ineligible voters -- illegal immigrants, convicted felons, dead people -- has been invading American polling places, diminishing the value of honest voters' sacred ballots. They make the charge in states where the administration of elections is highly competent, and in states where it is grossly incompetent. It is, of course, leveled solely against Democrats and their supporters.

The charges are almost invariably debunked -- by courts, by prosecutors, by state elections officials and by local newspapers that probe beyond partisan screeching and get down to the facts.