LISTEN: Joe Arpaio Will Make Arrest On Obama Birth Certificate Once He Figures Out Who Forged Documents

"When I go to the toilet, I make international news." With that comment, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio bemoaned what he called "probably the biggest censorship blackout in the history of the United States."

In the radio interview last week, he also reiterated that he found "probable cause" that President Obama's birth certificate and related document are fraudulent; when asked if arrests were forthcoming, he said that he first needs to find out who is responsible.

He made the comments on Roger Hedgecock's radio show.

Arpaio also has asked the Director of the U.S. Selective Service System to produce the President's registration form from 1980, and to conduct its own investigation into whether it is forged. Here is the Sheriff's official news release:

Date: March 21, 2012
SHERIFF ARPAIO REQUESTS INVESTIGATION
BY SELECTIVE SERVICE DIRECTOR INTO
PRESIDENT OBAMA’S 1980 REGISTRATION CARD
(Phoenix, AZ) Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has sent a letter to the Director of
the U.S. Selective Service System headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. The Sheriff is
asking the agency to conduct an investigation of Barack Obama’s Selective Service
registration form from 1980 after the preliminary findings of the Sheriff’s six-monthlong
investigation determined that it may be a forgery.
The letter also asked Director Lawrence Romo to produce the original form so
forensic document examiners can analyze the document to determine if it is authentic.
(letter attached)
Because of inconsistencies on the form itself including an unusually incomplete date
stamp, Sheriff’s investigators suspect the form, which was allegedly filled out in
Honolulu, Hawaii in 1980, may be a forgery.
Sheriff’s investigators were able to replicate the alleged forgery by obtaining a circa
1980 pica stamp and a circa “2008” date plug. Investigators were able to clearly
demonstrate the “80” (which should have actually read 1980) in Obama’s Selective
Service Registration form resulted from cutting out the “08” from an authentic “2008”
date plug, and inverting the “08” to read “80” when the cut plug was loaded into the
year slot on the 1980 pica stamp. (see form attached)
Sheriff Arpaio is asking Director Romo to respond to him within 30 days on whether
or not his national office will provide the Sheriff with the original document and if his
office will move forward with an investigation of its own.
Lawrence Romo, who was appointed as Director to the U.S. Selective Service System
in 2009 by President Obama, reports directly to the President.
“While my office will continue pursuing this investigation, I have spoken of the need
to enlist the aid of other agencies. As a first step to that end, I am now requesting the
assistance of the U.S. Selective Service System asking them to conduct a concurrent
investigation to verify the authenticity of this document,” Arpaio says.
Arpaio says he foresees the need to ask for the assistance of other agencies as well to
ultimately determine whether the President’s birth certificate and Selective Service
registration form are in fact forgeries.
“Failure to register or otherwise comply with the Selective Service registration
process is a serious offense,” Arpaio says. “The law says a person who fails to register
can end up with a $250,000 fine, five years imprisonment and is ultimately prohibited
from holding any job in government.”
Arpaio, a Korean War veteran who served in the U.S. Army, believes strongly in the
importance of registering for the selective service. He even started a program in 2004
to encourage inmates, including non-U.S. citizens, to register. Since then, about
40,000 inmates including 9,000 non U.S. citizens have registered for the selective
service. END

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IRONY & CHUTZPAH ALERT: Schweikert Campaign Running With Club For Growth "Endorsement", Slams Quayle

Well, the Club for Growth says it wants to stay neutral in the Republican primary contest between freshman incumbents David Schweikert and Ben Quayle, but the Schweikert campaign is using yesterday's demand letter as an endorsement.

One day after the letter which Quayle described as "astonishing", the Schweikert campaign sent out an "ICYMI" (in case you missed it) fundraising e-mail, touting the CFG letter as evidence that "Schweikert has always had the courage to stand up for our shared conservative principles - even when members of his own party are on the other side.
(italics added).

Since Quayle and Schweikert are typically on the same side of most votes, and since Quayle has had a higher ranking from the Club than Schweikert, it is worth emphasizing the last part of that campaign e-mail quote.

The next, call-to-action quote is similarly noteworthy:

"With way too many politicians refusing to get government spending under control and lacking the commitment to reduce the size of government, we need someone who will stand up!" (That is a clickable sentence which takes the clicker to the contribute page.)

Campaign e-mails may be held to a different - lower - standard, and hyperbole may be de rigeur. But, the chutzpah and irony of a campaign turning a neutrality demand letter into an endorsement is certainly worthy of mention here.

***
Here is the body of the e-mail (a fundraising update and the AP article is appended but not included here):

Yesterday, the powerful anti-tax group Club for Growth fired a warning shot across the deck of the Washington establishment.

The Associated Press, along with other national news outlets filed stories on the Club's warning to House GOP leadership. Club for Growth President Chris Chocola said:

"We will not sit back and allow House Republican leaders to invest resources with impunity against an incumbent fiscal conservative like Rep. David Schweikert... [who] stands for the principles of economic freedom even when members of his own party pressure him to do otherwise."

David Schweikert has always had the courage to stand up for our shared conservative principles - even when members of his own party are on the other side.

With way too many politicians refusing to get government spending under control and lacking the commitment to reduce the size of government, we need someone who will stand up!

Can David Schweikert count on your help TODAY?

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Three of Arizona's 8 House Members Singled Out In New "Family Affair" Ethics Report For Questionable Reimbursements, Earmarks; Reps. Flake, Pastor, Quayle

Three Arizona Congressmen were included in a new ethics report released today by the non-partisan Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington ("CREW") and database site LegiStorm. It singled out Rep. Ed Pastor (D-CD4) for his repeated earmarking to non-profit organizations at which family members are employed/involved, dinged Rep. Ben Quayle (R-CD3-running-for-new-CD6) for his campaign renting a facility from his father's company, and harangued Rep. Jeff Flake (CD6-running-for-Senate)for using campaign funds to reimburse himself (and his wife) for travel expenses.

The entire 347-page "Family Affair" report can be found here. It includes 248 members (out of approximately 435, depending on whether they included resigned members such as Gabrielle Giffords), some for seemingly-minor expenditures and some for serious offenses that have already prompted legal and/or ethics actions.

The section on Rep. Pastor sets out some of the earmarks items that have already been publicized by the Washington Post and others, and add a bit more. Pastor has earmarked $1.8 million to programs administered by Chicanos Por La Causa, where his wife had previously been on the Board of Directors, and his nephew had previously been (there might have been an overlap in 2008) employed.

ED PASTOR (D-AZ) is a ten-term member of Congress, representing Arizona’s 4th
congressional district.1 He is a member of the House Appropriations Committee, as well as chief
deputy whip.2
Rep. Pastor’s campaign committee, Pastor for Arizona,3 donated to a program affiliated with his
daughter and paid catering fees to a company that had employed his niece. In addition, Rep.
Pastor has earmarked to his family members’ employers.
Verma Mendez Pastor (wife) and Carlos Pastor (nephew):4
• Ms. Pastor was a member of the Board of Directors of Chicanos Por La Causa from 2005
until 2007.5 In addition, Mr. Pastor was the vice president of marketing for Chicanos Por
La Causa in 2008.6 In fiscal year 2008, Rep. Pastor earmarked $490,000 to Chicanos Por
La Causa.7
• In fiscal year 2009, Rep. Pastor earmarked $625,643 to Chicanos Por La Causa.8
• In fiscal year 2010, Rep. Pastor earmarked $700,000 to Chicanos Por La Causa.9

Laura Pastor (daughter):10
• Ms. Pastor has been the director of the Achieving a College Education (ACE) program at
South Mountain Community College in Arizona since 2005.11 An internal investigator
for the college found she was hired despite scoring lower on hiring evaluations than at
least one other candidate, though the investigation found her hiring did not violate any
regulations.12 The college approved two salary exceptions at the time of her hiring,
putting her at the top of the pay scale.13 Rep. Pastor steered over $1,000,000 in federal
grants to the program four months after his daughter was hired.14
• In fiscal year 2008, Rep. Pastor earmarked $984,000 to the ACE Program.15
• In fiscal year 2009, Rep. Pastor earmarked $951,500 to the ACE Program.16
• In fiscal year 2010, Rep. Pastor earmarked $1,000,000 to the ACE Program.17
• Ms. Pastor participated in the class of 2010 Emerge America Arizona program, dedicated
to developing and electing women leaders.18 During the 2008 election cycle, Rep.
Pastor’s campaign committee gave a $500 donation to Emerge Arizona.19
Sonya Pastor La Sota (niece):20
• Ms. Pastor La Sota was a senior government relations representative for Salt River
Project from 2008 to 2009.21 During the 2010 election cycle, Rep. Pastor’s campaign
committee paid Salt River Project $537 for catering.22

Rep. Pastor defended the ACE earmarks in the Washington Post article:

“The perception is that you helped your daughter, but if you evaluate the kids who benefited from this, it was worth doing,” the congressman said. “I believe thousands of kids have a better life today because of this program.”
. . .
“She was never my motivation,” Pastor said. “I wasn’t aware she was applying. If I knew, I would have contacted the chancellor and said, ‘What kind of position does this put you and me in?’ ”

Rep. Pastor has been asked for a response to this report.

* * *

Rep. Flake has already been sniped at by his primary opponent for publicly-paid trips he's taken as a member of Congress. This new report notes that Mr. and Ms. Flake have received nearly $21,000 in campaign committee monies to reimburse them for travel expenditures.

JEFF FLAKE (R-AZ) is a six-term member of Congress, representing Arizona’s 6th
congressional district.1 He is a member of House Appropriations Committee.2
Rep. Flake’s campaign committee, Jeff Flake for Congress,3 reimbursed the congressman and his
wife.
Jeff Flake (self):
• During the 2008 election cycle, Rep. Flake’s campaign committee reimbursed Rep. Flake
$3,719 for travel and other expenses.4
• During the 2010 election cycle, Rep. Flake’s campaign committee reimbursed Rep. Flake
$14,714 for travel, meals, and other expenses.5
Cheryl Flake (wife):6
• During the 2008 election cycle, Rep. Flake’s campaign committee reimbursed Ms. Flake
$2,487 for airfare, travel, and event expenses.7

Such reimbursements are legally and ethically questionable under FEC (Federal Elections Commission) and House Ethics rules and regulations. The House Ethics Manual repeatedly warns members to be careful when reimbursing themselves or family members for travel. Finally, it notes that even "mixed use" trips - where there is both a personal and a campaign purpose - may be violative unless there is a reimbursement from the member to the campaign committee for the portion allocated to personal use.

The regulations also address two ―mixed use
situations:

Campaign-funded that includes both campaign-related activities and
personal activities; and
Use of a for personal purposes in an amount that is more
than de minimis.
In both of those situations, the person(s) benefiting from the personal use
must reimburse the campaign in an appropriate amount within 30 days.

Arizona's Politics has asked the Flake campaign whether there was such a reimbursement.

* * *

Finally, the report points out that Rep. Quayle's campaign committee paid $250 to a company of which his father (former Vice President) is chairman of a subsidiary. (Classifying this as a de minimis note, Arizona's Politics is not requesting a response.)

BEN QUAYLE (R-AZ) is a first-term member of Congress, representing Arizona’s 3rd
congressional district.1 He is the chairman of the Technology and Innovation Subcommittee of
the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee, as well as the vice chair of both the
Intellectual Property, Competition, and the Internet Subcommittee of the House Judiciary
Committee and the Border and Maritime Security Subcommittee of the House Homeland
Security Committee.2
Rep. Quayle’s campaign committee, Quayle for Congress,3 paid a company affiliated with his
father.
J. Danforth “Dan” Quayle (father):4
• Former Vice President Quayle is now the chairman of Cerberus Global Investments,
LLC, which is part of Cerberus Capital Management.5 During the 2010 election cycle,
Rep. Quayle’s campaign committee paid $250 to Cerberus Capital Management for
facility rental and staffing services.6

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Rep. Quayle Responds To "Astonishing" Club For Growth Letter And Its New Role As "Imperious Referee"

Rep. Ben Quayle (R-CD3-running-for-new-CD6) fired back this morning at the Club For Growth, calling yesterday's laying down the law letter from the conservative pro-growth group "astonishing" and questioning its new role as being "the imperious referee of Republican support in primary races."

The Club for Growth issued its letter to the House leadership yesterday, demanding that they equalize their support for Reps. Quayle and David Schweikert (R-CD5-running-for-new-CD6) in the primary race and then maintaining neutrality. The text of CFG's short letter is here.

Quayle has received a $10,000 contribution from House Speaker John Boehner, but fellow conservative frosh lawmaker Schweikert has not yet received his.

Quayle calls on the Club's board to make a "full inquiry" into why CFG President Chris Chocola suddenly issued his demand, and notes that he, Quayle, is more deserving of the Club's support, anyway. Here is the text of Quayle's letter:

The Honorable Chris Chocola

Club for Growth

2001 L Street, NW

Suite 600

Washington, DC 20036



SENT VIA MAIL AND FACSIMILE



Dear Mr. Chocola,



I have reviewed the letter you sent House leadership yesterday regarding the primary race in Arizona’s newly-drawn 6th Congressional District. The correspondence is astonishing on several levels.

First, as you well know, I have received a higher legislative score from the Club For Growth than Congressman Schweikert, to go along with a higher ranking as well from the National Journal, which found there to be no more conservative member of Congress than me. It is therefore quite a contortion for you, as the Club’s president, to now threaten on any basis the provision of financial support to my primary opponent.

It is still more of a contortion for you to so threaten on the basis of leadership support for my campaign. First, I have been under the impression that the Club For Growth was formed by its founders, funded by its members and directed by its board to support pro-growth candidates. I was not aware that the Club's mission includes dictating to high-ranking officials who they may and may not support. It is ironic that an organization founded in principles of freedom and limited government could have come to such a dictatorial turn.

This new, self-appointed role for the Club raises a number of questions. For example, Sen. Jon Kyl, a member of Senate leadership and perhaps the leading Arizona exponent of pro-growth and conservative policy since Barry Goldwater, has enthusiastically endorsed my candidacy in this race. Can Sen. Kyl now expect a similar cease-and-desist letter from you and the Club, together with a threat to shower my lower-rated opponent with Club funds, should he not withdraw this support?

So far as House leadership is concerned, moreover, it seems that your fears may be badly misplaced. In the most recent policy matter in which Congressman Schweikert and I differed -- Barack Obama’s misbegotten payroll tax deal -- it was Schweikert, not I, who voted with the leadership and Obama. I cast the more pro-growth and fiscally responsible vote, in this case a “no.” Schweikert, alone among Arizona Republicans, voted for this non-growth, deficit-expanding policy that is contrary to sound economic and tax policy. Isn’t this exactly the kind of voting behavior that the Club was founded to discourage and marginalize in favor of more reliable representatives in Congress?

Your correspondence points out that both Congressman Schweikert and I have pro-growth voting records, and I will not quibble over that. Nevertheless, you neglect to mention in correspondence threatening to throw him financial support that my legislative rating from the Club is in fact higher than his. This cannot be a mere oversight and must be a contrived omission.



I urge you and your board and members to reconsider the path your letter seems to set for the Club. Your mission is important and the work of the Club has borne fruit, over time, for the free-market and limited government principles which we share and for which I have fought hard in Congress. In light of my superior Club rating I would expect, if anything, to receive the Club’s support over my opponent in this race; it is certainly odd to read instead this letter, apparently delivered to the media prior to its delivery to the leadership. I hope that the Club will maintain its vital mission, rather than seek for itself some highly questionable role as the imperious referee of Republican support in primary races, and I further hope that your board will make a full inquiry as to exactly how this correspondence came about.

Sincerely,





Congressman Ben Quayle

This fascinating battle is just starting to heat up. Both between Reps. Quayle and Schweikert, AND between the Club for Growth and the Republican leadership. In many ways, the CD6 primary race is simply a battlefield in what is becoming a national war in the Republican party.


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Gov. Brewer To Have Ears Of Most Of Arizona's U.S. House Delegation On Obama's "War On Arizona's Jobs"; WATCH: Rep. Gosar On War

Most of Arizona's Congressional Republicans will take hearing testimony from Governor Jan Brewer (R-AZ) tomorrow in downtown Phoenix. The lone House Republican not confirmed to attend the hearing tomorrow is Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6-running for Sen.).

The hearing is being put on by the Congressional Western Caucus (the "CWC"), of which all of Arizona's GOP Congressmen are members. They have titled the hearing "Washington Barriers to Prosperity and Property Rights in Arizona," and their media advisory indicates that the witnesses "will examine the Obama Administration's environmental and natural resource policies and their impacts on jobs, economic growth and private property rights across the West and specifically in Arizona."

In his address on behalf of the CWC, Rep. Paul Gosar (R-CD1-running for CD4) discusses the Obama Administration's "war on Arizona's jobs." Given that the hearing "will shed light on specific examples, the extent of the problems, and help facilitate a discussion on what needs to be done to fix them," and Gov. Brewer's repeated comments about the Obama Administration, it is expected that she will support the notion of a federal war against Arizona.

Gov. Brewer will have the witness table to herself, and will be followed by a panel of representatives of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce, the Arizona Farm Bureaus, the Irrigation & Electrical Districts Association of Arizona and the Mohave County Board of Supervisors.

The hearing begins at 10:30a.m. in Senate Hearing Room 1 at the State Capitol.

*****
The Congressional Western Caucus website currently features Rep. Paul Gosar as their (periodic) "Weekly Address", speaking about how the Obama Administration is waging "war on Arizona's jobs".



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Sheriff's PR Pros Must've Abandoned Him On Birth Certificate News Release

I'm thinking that Sheriff Joe Arpaio's well-paid media team must have abandoned him when it came to writing up the news release for today's big press conference on the not-quite-conclusive results of the investigation into President Barack Obama's birth certificate. The five-page news release seems more akin to something written by birth certificate expert Jerome Corsi.

And, the paid PR staff likely would not have inserted section headings into the release, ending with one titled "Conclusive Remarks". Especially, when the next sentence is anything but conclusive:

Conclusive remarks
Sheriff Arpaio stresses that these are preliminary findings....

Much more troubling than who wrote the news release and whether they inadvertently used a word that indicates that Arpaio has reached a conclusion on the evidence, is why any Maricopa County resources are being used in this matter; here is a post shedding more light on that.


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Why Is Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio Using ANY Taxpayer Resources On Obama Birth Certificate Investigation?; Also, Promoting Private, Political Interests

The following post raises some questions based upon facts observed in reviewing this story. This blog is not intended to be opinion-driven, but will label posts as "commentary" when necessary.:

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is proclaiming loud and often that taxpayers funds are not being used to investigate the birth certificate of President Barack Obama. However, there is no question that county resources are being used to publicize the sheriff and his findings.

He set up the Cold Case Posse, which is a registered 501(c)(3) and does collect donations. It reportedly absorbed all the costs of the investigation.

But, he then proceeded to use his County offices to release the report, issue a news release about the report, use his official Twitter account to promote the report, and so on. The press conference was promoted by World Net Daily and was used to collect monies by them. The news release promotes videos shown at the news conference that were posted on YouTube by a private individual(s) billed as "TeaPartyPowerHour".

The lines are blurry, but walking along such lines certainly raises questions. Questions about the appropriateness of spending any public resources promoting an investigation into which Maricopa County's jurisdiction is limited, to say the least. Questions about whether there is a tit for tat element, or a bargaining chip element to this, or an implied threat element to this. Questions about whether the sheriff now has an obligation to try to pursue charges now that he has found "probable cause" that there is a forgery and that someone or someones in the White House lied last April.




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McCain Forgets The Landscape 4 Years Ago; Mitt In Town Tonight To Claim A Victory?

Arizona Senior Senator John McCain was in the arena for the presidency four years ago, yet his memory of it seems to be a little skewed to match his present-day desires. The Boston Herald interviewed McCain and features his call to "Close Curtain On GOP 'Greek Tragedy'".

He bemoans the attacks on Mitt Romney, the man who he has endorsed, and says it weakens the chances for Romney in the November general election.

Of course, at this time four years ago, McCain had finished attacking Romney and had sewn up the GOP nomination, and then spent the next few months watching with barely concealed glee as Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton and their supporters savaged each other. And later, as Clinton and supporters continued to claw at Obama as he became the more likely Democratic nominee.

The Herald reporter did ask McCain about the 2008/2012 comparison, but McCain brushed it off by saying that the current GOP fight is much more savage than the Democratic battle was. He cites the 3a.m. phone call as evidence of the tameness of the 2008 internecine fight.

It would appear that he forgets just how vicious he, other Republicans and just about everyone thought that television ad was at the time. Not to mention the Rev. Wright attacks, and the other innuendos that were supposedly being floated by Hillary operatives.


****

An interesting tidbit in the Herald article: it notes that McCain will be rallying with Romney in Phoenix tonight. (3rd graf)

No mention of this officially, though it would not be surprising for the candidate to catch a flight out of Michigan, use the time difference and make it to Arizona in time to make a victory speech in a state where he is likely to claim a decent margin. Certainly, McCain, Brewer and Company could hold the crowd at the Hyatt Regency for a while if whispers are in the air that Mitt is in the air.

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