A Damning Exposé of Obama, ACORN, and the New York Times

I saw this segment the other night on O’Reilly but, per usual, Fox failed to post the video. (Lately, many of Fox’s best videos are not getting posted at their site. It’s disappointing.) Anyway, RockTheFacts kindly sent me the video he took care to post:

BELOW, you have to check out an astounding article on a hearing in which ACORN was implicated in voter intimidation and illegal voter fraud, and how Chairman Conyers, caught unaware that ACORN was being implicated in voter fraud and intimidation, along with questionable donation methods, tried quickly to minimize and cover up the damning evidence:
First: The revelations about the New York Times, sadly, are not a shock to any of us. I feel nervous using any Times article as a source because I wonder what has been excised or not investigates, which calls have not been returned or sources not checked. I realized — and so do you — that complete objectivity and “just the facts, ma’am” writing is impossible since all writers and editors are influenced by their conscious and unconscious prejudices and emotions, as well as their reliance on certain sources over others. Stil there should be some effort made, but it’s clear the Times flat out doesn’t care.

The bigger issue here is ACORN. Do you think that Rep. Jerry Nadler will convene a hearing on ACORN? Yeah, me too. Should we compel him to? Shall we raise a stink? I say YES! So, if you have a blog, grab this video, and post it. Link to this video in e-mails and comments at other blogs and in mailing lists. Get the word out.

ALSO: Be sure to include the link to the Townhall article, “ACORN Whistleblowers Produce Shocking Testimony on Capitol Hill.”

Late last week, Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), chairman of the House Committee on the Judiciary, called for a hearing to investigate ACORN. You read that right. At a Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties subcommittee hearing entitled “Lessons Learned from the 2008 Election” last Thursday, witness testimony not only drew Conyers to the subcommittee hearing but events led to Conyers strongly urging that subcommittee chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) conduct a full hearing on ACORN, calling allegations made at the hearing “serious.”

The shocking testimony that began the chain of events came from Pennsylvania attorney Heather Heidelbaugh, who in October of last year represented “a candidate, voters and the Republican State Committee of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania” seeking a preliminary injunction against ACORN and the Secretary of the Commonwealth. The complaint alleged violations of the election code, fraud and misrepresentation, and violations of equal protection and due process.

Heidelbaugh brought with her to the hearing ACORN whistleblowers, including Anita MonCrief, a former Washington, D.C., ACORN employee who came forward to testify last October in the Pennsylvania case. MonCrief, a Democrat who voted for and still supports President Obama, made allegations including the exposure of Obama maxed-out donor lists illegally shared with ACORN, allegations of illegal intermingling of non-profit employees between ACORN and Project Vote, and the use of intimidation tactics and training methods to skirt regulations, among many other assertions.

Testimony also revealed ACORN’s unofficial “Muscle for the Money” program directed at fundraising from corporations. Allegations were made of payments from Service Employees International Union (SEIU) to ACORN’s D.C office to harass The Carlyle Group and specifically David Rubenstein, a founder of the company. Even though ACORN D.C. had no interest in The Carlyle Group, they were allegedly paid by SEIU to go break up a banquet and protest at Rubenstein’s house.

It was called “Muscle for the Money” because they would go “intimidate people and protest.” Targets of the protests included Sherwin-Williams, H&R Block, Jackson Hewitt, and Money Mart among others, testimony revealed. The apparent purpose was to get money from the targeted entities for ACORN.

Perhaps the most controversial accusation revealed by whistleblower testimony was the scheme by which ACORN and Project Vote are paid by foundations per voter registered and the submission of copies of actual voter registration cards to the foundations, which is a violation of federal law.

I spoke with whistleblower Anita MonCrief at the hearing. “ACORN itself is sometimes paid by foundations per registration and, in some case,s they would send copies of the voter registration cards straight to the funder,” MonCrief said. “Workers are improperly trained. … They are trained to never ask, ‘Are you registered to vote?’ because if the person says ‘Yes,’ they have to move on. They ask, ‘Did you vote in the last election,’ and if the person says ‘No,’ they register them again. This is how they duplicate registrations and flood the offices.”

When these allegations began to surface in hearing testimony, Conyers suddenly appeared at the subcommittee hearing and asked to be recognized, saying that he was “… unaware that this was a hearing on ACORN.” Conyers probed those assembled, asking if any representatives of ACORN were present to defend the organization. Conyers called the accusations made against ACORN a “pretty serious matter.” When no one from ACORN came forth, he asked subcommittee chairman Nadler to hold a hearing on ACORN so the organization could defend itself, to which a shocked Nadler replied, “I’ll take it under advisement.”

Conyers pressed the matter, saying, “I think that it would be something that would be worth our time. We’ve never had one person representing ACORN before the committee. … I think in all fairness we ought to really examine it.” An exasperated Nadler said he would hold a hearing when he had “credible allegations of misconduct.”

Nadler abruptly dismissed the panel shortly thereafter. …

WHAT A COVER-UP.