Racketeer Sizemore and Meathead Mannix form a trifecta of juicy, criminal goodness
Carla Axtman
In the ongoing saga that is the Rightwing Petition Signature Gathering Criminal Enterprise (or RPSGCE, for short), the criminal hits from Bill Sizemore, Kevin Mannix and the unfortunately named Tim Trickey (who runs the signature gathering company they're using) just keep on comin'.
Yesterday, Julia Silverman of the Associated Press reported the story:
A union-backed group says signature-gathering efforts for nine of the 10 measures slated for the November ballot were riddled with fraud and forgery. All nine measures in question are sponsored by conservative activists.
Willamette Week picks from there in their Rogue of the Week column:
But the Rogue Desk is far more troubled by allegations from Bradbury’s fellow Democrats that he is derelict in his duties as the state’s chief elections officer. Activists at the advocacy group Our Oregon have compiled a devastating catalog of signature-gathering abuses dealing with initiatives heading to the November ballot.Among their many examples: use of carbon paper to transfer signatures from one petition signature sheet to another, the apparent use of “writing circles” in which groups gather to manufacture signatures, and scores of signature sheets in which the address and printed name of the purported signer are written in a different hand from the signature.
So where did critics get their evidence? They requested copies from Bradbury’s staff, which has had the sheets for months.
I'm not so sure Bradbury is the main villain of this tale (although there's definitely some evidence to make a reasonable case). Let's take a closer look at some of those sheets.
This first sheet shows that the signature gatherer was using carbon paper to copy names and addresses down. I'm told that their defense of this method is so that a person can sign multiple sheets and then the signature gatherer can go back and add the addresses in without having to write it lots of times. Except that its evident from looking at the sheet that the signatures happened AFTER the addresses were added. The signature marks are clearly on top of the carbon ink. (Click images to enlarge them)
Another problem? There are multiple handwriting styles for the same signature gatherer.
Here's "Cairo":
And here's "Will Belser":
One guy that writes in six very distinct ways? Really?
I have a pretty tough time believing that Tim Trickey doesn't know exactly what's going on with this crap. But then again, if he doesn't get those sheets filled out and turned in, he and Sizemore won't get their sweet payday from the rightwing extremist fringe that fund their criminal enterprise.
Given Sizemore's history of racketeering/forgery, he's got to be neck deep in this. Mannix ought to know better than to hitch his wagon to these guys. But maybe that just proves he's as big a dirtbag as the guy he outed.
From what I understand, this kind of stuff is widespread throughout the sheets that have been turned in by Trickey and company. They're not even trying to be subtle anymore about the fraud their perpetuating on the people of Oregon.
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6:31 p.m.
Jul 10, '08
In other initiative news, Russ Walker's not having a good day--his IP51 and IP53 were both rejected today for not even having enough raw signatures to meet the threshhold. Does this mean Russ is actually trying to do them legally? I'm sure if it were a Trickey/Sizemore joint, they miraculously would have had just enough...
Jul 10, '08
This Will Belser has a Vancouver, Washington address. Is it legal for someone who is not an Oregon resident to circulate petitions? It seems to me like circulators ought to be registered Oregon voters, which would require residency.
9:57 p.m.
Jul 10, '08
Wow. Those sheets would crack me up if they weren't having an enormous (and in my opinion, negative) impact on our state's revenue and public services. I'm going to find the parties responsible and kick their @#$ (since our elections officials don't seem to want to do it.)
Jul 10, '08
Note to Carla: How old are you anyway? 12? Meathead? Someone must have given you the misimpression that name-calling constitutes good writing. Also, do your homework. The signature sheets the union goons are shopping around as "fraudulent" are perfectly legal under the law when they were circulated - 2007. That's why the Legislature, at the request of Mr. Bradbury, adopted legislation outlawing writing circles and other ills of the old system. If you and the Nigel J. at Willamette Week had done your homework you would know that. Yes, there were lots of sleazy things happening in 2007 and prior years, which is why the Legislature adopted the reforms that took effect in 2008. I thank the Legislature and Mr. Bradbury for adopting tougher laws.
Jul 10, '08
This is an appropriately brain-dead comment by someone who obviously isn't the brightest bulb on the tree:
That's why the Legislature, at the request of Mr. Bradbury, adopted legislation outlawing writing circles and other ills of the old system
The Willy Week provides a definition for "writing cricles" as I've generally heard it used:
the apparent use of “writing circles” in which groups gather to manufacture signatures
or pretty much a group of forgers and/or fabricators --- which has been illegal a lot longer than 1 year.
That said, Bradbury, like his predecessor, has been an incompetent embarrassment as Sec'y of State and, along with Kulongoski, an all-to-typical disgrace and embarrassment to our Democratic Party. Instead of doing his job here, he was off in other states peddling our idiotic VBM system.
Jul 10, '08
No shock here. In 2006 I saw some homeless people collecting signatures and then clearly being paid for each one by someone. I reported it to Our Oregon as others reported similar occurrences but there is only so much we can do. Sigh, Sizemore, cheaters never change...
12:31 a.m.
Jul 11, '08
The signature sheets the union goons are shopping around as "fraudulent" are perfectly legal under the law when they were circulated
It's true that a bunch of rules changed on January 1, 2008. But it was never legal to forge signatures. Period.
1:43 a.m.
Jul 11, '08
Wow, I think I know one of the people that signed one of those sheets. Maybe you ought to be checking with those individuals to see what they signed. If they only signed certain ones or didn't sign them at all, you would be on your way to proving fraud.
Jul 11, '08
Carla: I have to agree with TruthandLight. Calling Mannix a meathead is just wrong. Actually, he's a certified jerk. Other than that, nice post!
Jul 11, '08
Speaking of Willy-Week, do any of ya remember this? Perhaps the baptism of initiative cheating.
And what happened to these folks and their creativity. Nothing, Vote by mail made the ballot, the rest is history.
Look for the Open Primaries initiative by the same Keisling to qualify.
8:29 a.m.
Jul 11, '08
The signature sheets the union goons are shopping around as "fraudulent" are perfectly legal under the law when they were circulated - 2007.
Really? So it was perfectly legal to commit forgery in 2007? Could you show me that Oregon statute, please?
I can't believe you guys didn't enjoy "Meathead"! It's alliteration, dammit!
:)
Jul 11, '08
Actually Carla, there's a whole lot of us who agree with "Meathead".
9:01 a.m.
Jul 11, '08
I didn't see what you were talking about with Belser's signature. They were all very similar. Unless I was looking someplace else.
Small variations in size and what not but all were short choppy almost initials.
Have you ever had to write your signature over and over? I have when signing a bunch of checks in one sitting. I notice variations in my signature when I do that so it is really no surprise that his signature might vary.
As for the "carbon copy" stuff. Again, perhaps I am missing your point. But the people actually signed their signature did they not? It appears that it is only the other fields that were carbon copied.
Unless I am missing something then it seems folks are really reaching for straws on this one. More of a public relations strategy perhaps?
What I want to know is what has ever happened to the 25 or so folks who Trickey turned in for forgery? Seems like I read that somewhere. I know over the years that other chief petitioners have turned in potential forgers and have any of them been prosecuted?
And finally... I thought that removing the "pay per signature" law was supposed to fix all this?
All that did was increase the cost and hurdles for other people to put measures on the ballot.
Time to repeal measure 26.
9:33 a.m.
Jul 11, '08
Time to repeal measure 26.
More like... "Time to ENFORCE Measure 26."
11:17 a.m.
Jul 11, '08
Carla says meathead, you say goon -- and you don't like name-calling? Actually, it's the bosses who have goons. "Watch Harlan County, USA" sometime. Union thugs, to the extent they exist at all, tend to go with mobbed-up locals, which are rare and getting more so, since the Feds go after them, though not after corporations that use illegal intimidation tactics to prevent organizing and influence representation elections. Just which Oregon unions are you claiming are mobbed up? SEIU 503 or 49? OEA? AFSCME? Oregon Nurses Association? What a hoot. And checking signatures -- now there's a violent thuggish, goonish activity if I've ever heard of one. Check the WW link the other commenter give. Notice Don McIntire doing exactly the same thing. What a goon.
Hey Coyote, there are laws against murder, and guess what ...? Time to repeal the murder statutes, for sure.
Actually, of course, the reason you want to repeal M26 is that it does work, and has stopped significant amounts of fraud from working and punished some of it, keeping some reactionary measures from being put before voters illegally.
You're pretty much right about Will Belser IMO, though, except that #3 is clearly different.
The carbon thing is interesting, partly because the dates are all carboned too.
The Willamette Week story linked above says that the sheets had to be witnessed by a registered Oregon voter in 1998. Did that change since then to allow paid out of state gatherers? In addition to Will B. in Vancouver, "Cairo" gives a southern California address, in two handwritings. If the registered witness requirement has gone, it appears that at least one legal change has made industrial petitioning easier, not harder. Unless WW got it wrong.
There also are discrepancies between "Cairo"/Belser names & addresses and the handwriting doing the carbons on the dates & addresses above. I guess I can imagine a sort of assembly line process: Someone collects signatures including addresses on sheet for one petition and just signatures for other petitions, someone else forges name of gatherer when gatherer forgets to put it on, or prints but doesn't sign, or the other way around ("Cairo" in one case), someone else does carbons of dates & addresses from top-sheet petition.
But that makes the carbon thing suspicious to me, for two reasons. One is that sometimes when approached by a signature gatherer I will sign one but not another. It would only take one person out of ten to act that way to make the signature lists not correspond. Likewise even if it's two or three that I am signing, I go ahead and write my own address in myself -- I can't ever really recall leaving it blank for someone else. Perhaps if they were gathered at a gathering (after church, a meeting, a street fair table) ... but would paid out of state gatherers be doing those things?
It's all smelly.
11:22 a.m.
Jul 11, '08
One is that sometimes when approached by a signature gatherer I will sign one but not another.
Same here. In fact, I don't remember ever having signed each of the petitions being offered by a multi-petition gatherer.
Jul 11, '08
Bill Sizemore and Kevin Mannix are good citizens of Oregon and are simply trying to defend Oregonians from goofy policies of the union led democraps. You should be ashamed of your use of the website for putting down such leaders through the process of humiliation
1:21 p.m.
Jul 11, '08
Good citizens don't use deception and fraud as a means of forwarding public policy ideas.
Ironically, there is a quip on AXMAN's linked site which fits both Sizemore and Mannix succinctly:
If their Lips are Moving its probably a Lie!
Even more ironic are the rants against lawbreaking on his linked site. Ironic but utterly unsurprising.
It's simultaneously amusing and disgusting watching the reich-wing freaks froth at the mouth at alleged lawbreaking (or the advocacy thereof) by Dems yet they stumble all over themselves trying to make excuses for the alleged lawbreaking (or the advocacy thereof) by their fellow reich-wing freaks.
Jul 11, '08
Whenever I have signed petitions, I've always completed the entire line -- date signed, printed name, address, etc. -- in my own handwriting. This is the way such petitions are supposed to be filled out. Anyone interested in seeing a measure placed on a ballot should at least take the time to complete what little required information is needed on that line.
How can any sane person NOT acknowledge that there's likely to be fraud here. I would be suspicious if for no other reason than that 1) we don't really know when the individual signed the form; and 2) we can't link the signature with the address in the person's own handwriting. This doesn't even begin to address the ridiculous use of carbon paper and the opportunities for fraud THAT creates by making it impossible to prove that the petition signer actually knew he/she was signing a particular petition (or any petition at all, for that matter).
Any sheet that looks like those above should be rejected out of hand without further investigation. If this is the way these signature collecting firms operate, it makes me wonder if ANY of their petitions has EVER truly qualified for the ballot. One hopes the Secretary of State's office is at least going through these with a fine tooth comb. I would be less generous. I'd toss them in the trash the moment I came across one that looked like these.
2:02 p.m.
Jul 11, '08
I just want to see initiative fraud become a Measure 11 offense.
2:59 p.m.
Jul 11, '08
Coyote, the issue isn't the signature at the bottom of the sheets, which probably were all written by the same purported signature gatherer.
The issue is the writing styles of the addresses and other info, next to the signatures. The person doing the gathering is clearly writing that in, because within a sheet, the writing of all ten lines matches.
But from one sheet to the next, Belser's writing style varies widely.
Looks pretty bad from over here.
Jul 11, '08
Forging is and always has been illegal on initiative petitions. It also rarely happens.
You lefties like to holler and squeal as if the system is rife with fraud, and with the right judge and the right secretary of state to confirm your ludicrous claims, some people will believe you.
In the end you get what you want: A public that is suspicious of the system. But you are the frauds. Your minions at the State Elections Division and the County Clerks offices throw out ten times more valid signatures than the bad ones slip through. That is pure, unadulterated fraud and it is coming from your side.
Why are you so hell bent (literally) on making sure your fellow citizens do not get to vote on conservative ideas? What are Democrats so against Democracy? Now, you won't even let workers vote on whether they want to form a union.
Here's the bottom line: If this state is as liberal as you claim, you should have nothing to fear from conservative measures. Right? You should want them on the ballot, so you can crush them effortlessly and confirm how liberal Oregon is. Right?
But you don't. You stay in your little echo chamber and talk to youselves. You sound a lot wiser there.
I am sincerely trying to understand why you always assume that we use fraud and forgeries to get measures on the ballot. What is there that makes you jump immediately to that absurd conclusion? Do you really think it is so hard to get people to sign our petitions honestly?
Have you ever polled any of our measures while we are collecting the signatures? If you did, you would find that they typically poll two to one in our favor, which is why your side always spends millions of dollars fighting them once they make the ballot.
Ponder that, if you can. If a measure is unpopular, why would you care if it makes the ballot? Why would we waste money putting it on the ballot? If it is unpopular, it will just fail and be a lousy investment. If on the other hand, it is popular, as we believe when we decide to pursue it in the first place, why would we have to cheat to get it on the ballot? People will line up to sign our petition.
Is that concept all that difficult for you to understand? Is it too logical for you to grasp?
Let me make it simple. Our ideas are popular and it is easy to get the signatures honestly. You know that or you and yours would not spend millions trying to keep them of the ballot and campaigning against them after they make the ballot.
So all this fraud and forgery bunk is either ignorance on your part or intentional deception. Which is it, 'cause it sure doesn't make sense on its face?
Every once in a while I check out this blog and see what the crazies on the left are saying. You never disappoint. You always confirm the old adage: People believe what they want to believe. And do you ever!
5:56 p.m.
Jul 11, '08
David English said:
Wow, I think I know one of the people that signed one of those sheets. Maybe you ought to be checking with those individuals to see what they signed. If they only signed certain ones or didn't sign them at all, you would be on your way to proving fraud.
Could you check to see if that is indeed the person you know?
I don't know all the rules on this, but maybe it would be a good idea to check in with them to see if they did indeed sign these petitions.
I pretty much make it a rule to not sign any of these petitions. If it's something I want to see passed, I'll either sign through a very good friend or go to the campaign myself and get a sheet to sign and turn in. I've just run into too many paid collectors that are dishonest (such as telling me information about a ballot measure that I know to be false).
Jul 11, '08
AXMAN---Bill Sizemore and Kevin Mannix are "good citizens"? I can think of a lot of phrases to describe them, but only in an alternate universe would it be "good citizens".
Bill---"minions"? Really? We have minions? Can I get them to come clean my apartment? But....wait....you're the one that apparently has people sitting around forging signatures and looking for ways to abuse the initiative process to get your personal pet peeves on the ballot, so it sounds like you're the one with "minions". But really, Blue Oregon, if we have "minions" out there to do our bidding, I want to borrow one or two for a couple of days...Kari, do you have a minion acting as nanny or something I can borrow?
Carla....great post, but I too am not happy about "Meathead" ---but only because I now can't get the theme song from "All in The Family" out of my head. Thanks a lot!
6:37 p.m.
Jul 11, '08
I'm with you, Mel. I could use some of those minions to come clean my house.
10:55 p.m.
Jul 11, '08
"I am sincerely trying to understand why you always assume that we use fraud and forgeries to get measures on the ballot. What is there that makes you jump immediately to that absurd conclusion? Do you really think it is so hard to get people to sign our petitions honestly?"
Our Oregon can fill you in on the documentation. Or you could look above.
Or you could read The Merc from 06, where they literally captured it as it happened.
Or you could look up Sizemore's rap sheet.
Etc.
They're not assumptions.
Jul 17, '08
Sizemore asks: "Why are you so hell bent (literally) on making sure your fellow citizens do not get to vote on conservative ideas?"
Sizemore's proposals are not conservative! He and Mannix are anti-democratic radicals abusing a democratic system. We are not afraid of conservatives, Bill, but we will do all we can to protect our democracy.
10:18 a.m.
Jul 26, '08
This issue (or at least, something similar) is getting some play in the Seattle Times:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008063320_initiative21m.html
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