Republican operative Colin Small
What started as an isolated voter-registration controversy in Florida is quickly expanding -- and becoming an ACORN-style headache for the Republican Party.
A man who was being paid to register voters by the Republican Party of Virginia was arrested Thursday after he was seen dumping eight registration forms into a dumpster.
Colin Small, 31, was working as a supervisor as part of a registration operation in eight swing states financed by the Republican National Committee. Small, of Phoenixville, Pa., was first hired by Strategic Allied Consulting, a firm that was fired by the party after suspect voter forms surfaced in Florida and other states.
The owner of a store in Harrisonburg, Va., told a local television station that he became suspicious when he saw a car with Pennsylvania plates dump an envelope in back of his store. He recovered the envelope and alerted authorities.
Small was hired as a supervisor by Strategic Allied Consulting, which happens to be owned by Nathan Sproul. And who's Nathan Sproul? He's the Republican consultant with a lengthy record of scandals and accusations of fraud, who was hired to oversee the RNC's voter-registration efforts in swing states -- right up until Sproul's firm was caught allegedly submitting fraudulent voter registration forms in Florida.
Sean Spicer, a spokesman for the Republican National Committee, which paid more than $3 million to state committees to hire Sproul's firm, said Small was immediately fired, which is nice, but doesn't address what appears to be a larger series of 2012 election crimes.
What's more, before the RNC tries to blame Sproul's firm alone for hiring Small, let's note that the accused describes himself as a "grassroots field director for the Republican National Committee," though the RNC's Spicer denies this. It's not yet clear which of the two is telling the truth.
Also keep in mind, the L.A. Times reported that Sproul "created Strategic Allied Consulting at the request of the Republican National Committee because of the bad publicity stemming from the past allegations." I've seen some reports that this is a "new" Republican firm working with the state and national parties on grassroots activities, but it would appear Strategic Allied Consulting is new in name only.
Update: The L.A. Times report excerpted above describes Small as having been hired by Strategic Allied Consulting, but there are competing reports that suggest the accused worked for Sproul's firm by way of a payroll company called PinPoint, which has been used by Strategic Allied Consulting to pay workers for the firm's Republican registration drives. PinPoint has been connected to the GOP firm elsewhere, including in Florida.
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Also, the registered address for this firm in VA is the same as Karl Rove's Crossroads GPS (and another GOP run company which I cannot recall right now).
Our beloved democracy does have a potential fatal flaw, but that flaw is also the beauty of our democracy: We are witnessing anti-democatic, anti-social , unAmerican behavior that is allowed under our democratic traditions.
Yes, Karl Rove is no friend to the idea of one person one vote outcomes because he is afraid he has not enough persons to win at the ballot tallying time of any election cycle. He resorts to nefarious tactics that belie his fidelity to democratic sovereignty, as he is a Machiavellian by heart and mind.
So, Karl, Mr. Sproul and your minion Mr. Small - the harm you are perpetrating against our body politic is not going unnoticed, and should your cheating be held in check and not allowed to prevail, we will be ACORNING your a$$es all the way to the penal colony! -Kevo
I just went through the whole comments section. Did you ever notice when it's "them" screwing up. the troll population is conspicuous in it's absence . No sight of those who shall remain nameless defending the actions like we did for Acorn...
Some folks think their humour is droll;
Some think getting rich is their goal;
But I think that I've found
The worst parasite around
Is a lie-slinging, right-winging troll...
The one problem I have with the 'Vine
Is the way that the right-wing trolls whine,
But for Tyler and Sally,
This is right up their alley,
So, in time, everything turns out fine...
The troll's purpose here always is vague -
Of all of us, he's always the dreg.
From us, he brings our worst,
'Til he's banned 'cause he cursed -
But he always comes back a re-reg...
The Republican right to be wrong
Has fascinated us for so long...
The rigging by trolls
At political polls
Ensures Obama's lead will be strong...
love the poem
Here in Central Florida ,we actually had a guy at the door ,offering all Democrats the help of obtaining absentee ballots.He wanted our signature,address not required ,he said,he would fill it in later . Also he says you are so lucky to live in Orange County,they don't require any postage! Blatant lies. At the local post office we were told it requires Extra postage,due to the weight from being 3 pages thick.....
Her in Central Florida ,we actually had a guy at the door ,offering all Democrats the help of obtaining absentee ballots.He wanted our signature,address not required ,he said,he would fill it in later . Also he says you are so lucky to live in Orange County,they don't require any postage! Blatant lies. At the local post office we were told it requires Extra postage,due to the weight from being 3 pages thick...
In all the political strategy has any one of our brilliant campaign advisers thought to tell voters a vote for Romney/Ryan their vote goes to the newly tea partized republican party and all it's extreme members
I just love all those Crossroads GPS mailers full of lies that I get every day in the mail. They go right in the trash. Why would I believe anything that comes from Karl Rove.
His LinkedIn profile seems to indicate significant association with the GOP:
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/colin-small/31/8b1/a98
Also shows this alleged miscreant is an Eagle Scout. Should he be found to have done this I would say "Shame on you Scout!!"
He's 31, and he just finished his bachelor's degree program this year. What 's interesting about his LinkedIn profile is that there's nothing indicating what he did between the ages of 18 and 27.
Judging from his actions, maybe he did TIME between 18 and 27! He kind of looks like a skin head.
The story was updated. He is 23.
An ACORN-style headache, with the added benefit of being a crime as serious as what ACORN was accused of committing.
More serious...
Destroying properly-filed registration forms is actual voter fraud... Filing false registrations to increase the money per signature was theft against ACORN, not voter fraud...
ACORN fired the people who created bogus registration forms, and notified authorities themselves...
That pipsqueak posing as a pimp selectively edited the tapes he made to make ACORN look bad... The ACORN advisers who 'helped' also reported him to the police after he left, but the police couldn't find him because he gave ACORN fictional information... Breitbart and FOX didn't care ACORN was guiltless; they just smeared them anyway, and Republicans latched on like pitbulls on a chihuahua...
Actually, you're being unfair to Pitbulls. LOL Alligator maybe?
Except ACORN didn't break any laws.
Allowing black citizens to register- and vote!- is a crime, and ACORN paid the price.
NOT allowing blacks to register and vote is simply an "honest mistake". Nothing to see here, folks. Oh, and do NOT go to the warehouse where the voting machines are stored, because there is nothing to see there, either.
(Trust me, I am from the RNC. . .)
DAY...
You should be a little careful there, pilgrim...
Some new folks coming over from the Ed Show blog who don't know you might think you were serious...
As another sarcastic geezer, I'm willing to take the risk. It's just one of the hazards of field-testing Poe's Law.
No matter whether Day may be a joker which Johnston is attempting to point out -- I have been putting messages out that everyone should pay attention to the voting machines as they have been a major issue in some states. For instance, those old Diebold pieces of crap are still in use.
Add all the voting bills they've rammed through, the videos of Rethugs acknowledging they got it "DONE", the ongoing court actions about early voting, the intimidation by groups by taking videos,etc all supported by secret money but it's not secret; the continued advertising that you need voter ID when in fact you don't, the intimidation billboards; information printed with wrong dates -- we've had all the Rethugs playing these same games for years. They truly are scum -- always have been in elections. Rove -- that piece of sh|t deserves.........
Sproul and Priebus et al need to see some bars -- and I don't mean the drinking kind.
@meede1: "all the voting bills they've rammed through, the videos of Rethugs acknowledging they got it "DONE", the ongoing court actions about early voting, the intimidation by groups by taking videos,etc all"
Gee, you make it sound like a coordinated conspiracy! (And THAT can NEVER happen in our Democracy!)
Note to newbies: Before replying, check the batteries in your SnarkOmeter.
Us over from Ed's place know Day very well, and hope he continues with his singular outlook on our political cluster...
Excuse my ignorance, please. I thought there had been voter registration fraud with ACORN. Am I incorrect?
This is different than what was the issue at ACORN.
Sproul and Small are being investigated for throwing away legitimate voter registration forms. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/19/reince-priebus-rnc-consultant-voter-fraud_n_1988619.html?utm_hp_ref=elections-2012
ACORN workers registered false names and were fined, no longer exist. http://www.factcheck.org/2008/10/acorn-accusations/
I'd say there's a difference there, because the forms are to be turned in to be verified by officials in the voter registration.
The forms with fake names that would be turned in or were turned in would have been disqualified by officials.
I actually registered voters this year. These are real people and there can be no alterations to these forms and they are to be turned in as filled out by the voter to be registered.
The officials will not allow registration in 2 different places or without verifying identity. How does one verify Daffy Duck with no valid SSN?
meede1~ There's a new wrinkle in voting machine fraud and its name is Romney. Solamere a Tagg Romney run company has the Hart e-voting machines which will be used extensively in Ohio, among other places. You can read about it at TruthOut.org. If you thought the Koch Bros. tentacles were everywhere, so are the Romneys! This is getting scarier by the day. After all his lying and flip-flopping, you know that voting machine rigging wouldn't be beneath them or the majority of the higher up Republicans
On behalf of you all ... I'm a team player! :-) ... I went to Fox News to check if this story shows up anywhere and TA-DA!! No.
I did read some of the headlines ... good lord. The bias is overwhelming. I know this is a lefty blog but Fox really outdoes themselves. Just being on that site made me feel icky.
Fox News was on at the laundromat the other morning. My eyes, my ears, my soul was violated for two hours straight. Took me two more hours to shake it.
FOX 'News' may shock you with their audacity,
And have BIG problems with their veracity,
But, concerning the drama
Of how they hate Obama,
You have to admire their tenacity...
To rid yourself of the ickiness you may need to bathe in undiluted bleach and take a heavy dose of antibiotics. A flea dip is also recommended. Then exercise your mind - do a crossword or sudoku or read (anything non-biblical).
TEA Partiers don't care about the Truth.
They simply want to see Obama fall.
Don't care about his birthplace or his youth;
They hate the fact that he exists at all.
They think the poor are filthy, lazy blighters
Who don't deserve to live upon the dole,
And unions - teachers, cops and firefighters -
Have picking rich men's pockets as their goal.
Their propaganda machine, known as FOX,
Thrives on the fuel of lies and innuendo.
They'd love to open up Pandora's Box,
And watch the world collapse in cruel crescendo.
The Golden Rule they live by is for fools.
"Whoever has the Gold, he makes the Rules."
Very good doggerel, Mr. Johnson! Good political doggerel is hard to find.
According to Faux and their audience, only Democrats commit voter fraud.
ACORN committed no fraud, their volunteers made up names. This does NOT mean anyone voted fraudulently.
Throwing away registration forms already filled in is going to be taken as voter suppression and denial of opportunity to vote in our democracy. Outrageous!
Just make sure you are registered. Know the rules in your state. Website for VA: http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/elections/vregis.htm
It says here, first time voters must vote in person and in CA, the same is true and without I.D. may be given a provisional ballot, which is not actually the same as casting a ballot. There's a spot to verify your voter registration status. Register/verify today!
CA last day to register is Oct. 22nd! http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/registration-status/
I know exactly what you mean. It makes me feel that way too. It's queasy on the other side of the looking glass. What you need is a nice, psychic scrub to get all the ick off.
Yep... Gotta clean and balance all seven chakras regularly...
Third-level reiki healer... Been a long time since I last used it, but I still work on my chakras once in a while...
Scum rises to the top of the GOP. If they can't legislate it they will intimidate, lie and steal. Ask your god wtf he thinks about dishonesty. Then ask your grand wizard, chances are they disagree. Only you know who is your higher power. The rest of us have to wait to see how many people are willing to sell our country to the privileged few.
Republicans will pay a heavy price
For failing to fulfill the People's need.
They think their wealthy backers will suffice
To get them reelected, so why pay heed?
But backers don't buy votes, they make up lies,
While those with pockets picked will know what's true.
You don't retain a thief for further tries,
You fire him, so your wallet stays with you.
These bandits think we won't care how they're hiding
Their projects buried deep within their bill,
But we can see what menace is overriding,
Won't allow the world to weaken to their will.
Even President Bush told truth back then,
"Fool me once, shame on you, won't get fooled again!"
Why would you even associate this with ACORN? Wasn't the worst ACORN was accused of that people paid by the number of registrants made up fake names to get paid more ("Mickey Mouse" etc.)? Mickey Mouse never voted. Did I miss something -- I don't recall allegations of ACORN throwing out Republican voter registration forms? In this case, the voters who filled out the 8 forms that Small threw out will show up to vote, and won't be able to. That's 100x worse, and actually affects elections.
The only association is that the reThugs accused ACORN of this every election while they were doing it themselves. That old saying 'Those who doth protest too much' comes to mind.
They remind me of the person who yells "HEY WHO FARTED!!!"
Even worse meede1, how many forms have been destroyed that we DON'T know about? At least the recovered files can now be returned and registered. How many manila envelopes full of unfiled registration forms are sitting in dumpsters and town dumps?
How many others were thrown away that we don't know of.....
I wonder if the Eliot Ness of Acorn (R) Mike Johanns of Nebraska will be as agressive investigating this as he was investigating Acorn?Or how about Darrell Issa having another one of his Nuremburg style trial's on this matter.Does anyone think that will happen? Nah!
Right after the sun rises in the west. Immediately right after, they'll get right on it.
I'll have to watch Fox News tonight and get the latest details on this egregious act of voter fraud. No doubt, Hannity and O’Reilly will be all over it.
FOX reporting on this -- Yes Giant Kid -- there is a Santa Claus!!!!
Britt Hume's a "real reporter", bet he'll be all over it!
Know what I can't believe? That Chris Wallace now works for FOX 'News'... I used to respect his work on ABC News, like 'Nightline', and NBC News, like 'Meet the Press'... Now, I can barely stand the man...
Guess Murdock's money was more important than retiring with integrity...
Hope I am right about sarcasm here! :)
also from the la times piece steve links to:
"In 2004, there were allegations in states such as Nevada and Oregon that employees of Sproul's firm registered Democratic voters and then destroyed their forms."
I wonder if this guy can be tied to the Pennsylvania GOP in any way?
I always wondered what happened to Doogie Houser
Maybe, they need to see the large billboard that says VOTER FRAUD is a CRIME in their neighborhoods.
This chump-a-rella has the same dumb, defiant look you see on most white supremacists.
Why is it all white supremacists look like they're lower on the evolutionary scale than an amoeba?
Don't go by that photo, it's just the mug shot from his pedophilia arrest
And what is going to happen? Nada. Sproul will change the name again, get paid more, be involved with more states and do the same crap. It's all the teapubs have ever done, lie, cheat, and steal and they never pay the price.
I dunno. Is this one rogue destroying a few forms or part of a bigger pattern? Much as I'd like to (and often do) believe the GOP will cheat in any way it can, if it's the former, the lefty blogs are way overhyping this. I need to see stronger evidence before I'll believe it's the latter.
Video of a girl was exposed short time ago who hmmmed & haaaaed when asked questions. Was only registering Romney voters. Lied who she was working for, etc. She too was fired -- only because of being caught.
I remember that one. It too could be one person's overzealousness. I would want to see solid documentation (video, multiple eyewitnesses, or authenticated paper) of one or more of the following tied to the GOP:
- Multiple, widespread, systematic instances of registering Republicans only and/or discarding registrations
- Systematic training of workers/volunteers to register Republicans only and/or discard registrations
- Efforts to trick voters like directing them to the wrong polling place or the infamous "this year Democrats aren't voting until Wednesday" propaganda
- Voter intimidation
I've probably forgotten a few. By no means am I saying any of this isn't happening, I think it probably is; I'm saying until someone can produce solid evidence, the story isn't going anywhere.
Safeway Voter Registration Fraud
Since the polls are saying the presidential race is so tight, I fear distaster! This is a train wreck about to happen. Suppose that clerk didn't see the idiot dumping that envelope? How many more registrations did he dump?
If Romney is elected come Nov. 7, I for one will not accept that outcome. What recoarse do voters have if they show up to their polls and are not allowed to vote?
Supposedly, non-registered voters would fill out provisional ballots, which would only be verified and counted if the election results were so close, they'd make a difference, but I haven't seen them used yet...
Just as an observation has anyone noticed that our usual crop of garden trolls has decided to stay well clear of this one...or did I miss something
This isn't easily poo-poo'd with well-rehearsed talking points. They've yet to get instruction on what the party rebuttal will be.
Something along the lines of "Angry lone gunman" no doubt
He looks like a serial killer. It blows my mind that politics has gotten to the point that if you can't win voters with your ideas, policies, and beliefs, just throw away the ballots of people who vote against you. Pathetic yet scary. If Romney wins, I blame things like this because he cerainly won't win with lies.
He looks like a Waffen-SS wannabee... oh, right, serial killers were recruited there.
"Godwin's law"...although "Serial Killer" and "Militia recruit" would do just as well
He looks like a serial killer.
Get real. It's a mug shot, for cripesake. I've looked like a serial killer in most of my ID photos, especially the one taken after I'd been up half the night.
"What started as an isolated voter-registration controversy in Florida is quickly expanding -- and becoming an ACORN-style headache for the Republican Party."
Not even close Sir Benen. I think you should issue a retraction.
A retraction of which? The Acorn comparison or that the Republicans keep getting caught doing the exact things they accuse, but cannot prove their rivals are doing?
Embarrassingly, for all I notice the blatant projection in other things the GOP accuses Dems of, I admit I did not make the connection re: voter registration fraud. Probably b/c I associate election fraud and GOP with vote-tampering and voter suppression, and not actual registration fraud. But rest assured my lesson is learned: if Republicans accuse Democrats of a specific illegal activity, it is always b/c they are doing that exact thing themselves. Any actual truth to the accusation is completely incidental.
Its only cheating if you get caught. What a great example the Republican party is making for the young people in this country. The whole GOP has gotten more corrupt every day. If this is what they are doing now what happens if they win the election. Mitt's religion excuses this kind of activity if its to accomplish a greater goal. Sad isn't it. The GOP has no morals at all.
If Mr. Romney win"s it will be because his party cheated in the worse way, they lied to the people, and surpressed the vote, & hired a crook to regester voters all over the USA. THEY should all go to jail
I'm concerned about absentee ballot fraud perpetrated by the registrations that Sproul and his company made up. What's to prevent them applying for absentee ballots for all those fake people - the number of requests for absentee ballots has skyrocketed and this area of voting remains largely unregulated.
"Why is it all white supremacists look like they're lower on the evolutionary scale than an amoeba?"
Whenever I come across a large group of white supremacists, I always try to make the case that the negativity they produce is very harmful to their collective chakra.
I usually end up running.
Thank you David M. Johnston. Your combination of literary skill and political knowledge is appreciated. Teacher Jackie
Thank you... My parents were both elementary school teachers, so I know the long, extra hours for low pay they have to put up with... You have my blessings...
Check out my sonnets...