Made up of three retired law-enforcement officers and two lawyers with law-enforcement experience who were appointed by Sheriff Joe Arpaio (left) back in September, the posse is privately funded through a non-profit organization. At its press conference on Thursday, the posse released five videos that explored in detail how the forgery was made. Additionally, the posse has identified “at least one person of interest” in the alleged forgery.
The posse interviewed dozens of witnesses, examined hundreds of documents, and took “numerous” sworn statements from witnesses “around the world.” The posse concluded, according to Mike Zullo, its lead investigator, that the State of Hawaii’s Department of Health has “engaged in a systematic effort to hide from public inspection any original 1961 birth records it may have in its possession.” He added:
Officers of the Hawaii Department of Health and various elected Hawaiian public officials may have intentionally obscured 1961 birth records and procedures to avoid having to release to public inspection and to the examination of court-authorized forensic examiners any original Obama 1961 birth records [that department] may have.
After the birth certificate released by the White House last April was analyzed, the posse reported that “the evidence contained in the computer-generated PDF file released by the White House as well as important deficiencies in the Hawaii process of certifying the long-form birth certificate establish probable cause that a forgery has been committed.”
Two crimes were committed, according to the posse. First, someone in the White House created a forgery and claimed it was Obama’s official birth certificate. Second, the White House then claimed that the forgery represented positive proof that it was Obama’s original 1961 Hawaiian birth certificate. The posse was unable to name the “person of interest” involved in the forgery, claiming that “a continuing investigation is needed to identify the person or persons involved in creating the alleged birth certificate forgery and to determine who, if anyone, in the White House or the state of Hawaii may have authorized the forgery.”
The posse turned up additional evidence of possible fraud by showing that the Hawaii Department of Health Registrar’s name stamp and date stamp were computer-generated and not original hand-stamped imprints onto the document. Zullo concluded:
That we were able to cast reasonable suspicions on the authenticity of the registrar stamps was especially disturbing, since these stamp imprints are designed to provide government authentication to the document itself.
The investigators also say they “developed credible evidence” that the President’s Selective Service card is also a forgery, and were dismayed to discover that records from the Immigration and Naturalization Service filled out by passengers arriving from outside the United States in the month of August, 1961, are missing for the week of President Obama’s birth.
All of this means nothing according to Huffington Post except an attempt by Sheriff Arpaio to keep his name in front of his supporters and birthers. The Post claimed that all of these arguments and questions and challenges have already been answered: Hawaii has “repeatedly confirmed Obama’s citizenship,” while courts “have rebuffed lawsuits over the issue.” In fact, the Post claimed that the White House has now made a joke about the whole issue by handing out coffee mugs with copies of the President’s long form birth certificate on them to supporters.
It’s unclear from the press release what is likely to happen next. If the issue finally gets traction and the posse’s claims are proven to be true, then, according to Joe Farah, editor at WND.com and a supporter of Arpaio,
The man occupying the White House today and seeking re-election next year is a political enigma, an unknown quantity, completely unvetted and certainly not eligible to serve under the Constitution’s simple, straightforward requirements for office….
Every action he has taken under the color of authority as president should [then] be repealed, negated and voided.
It’s highly unlikely that this will happen. The vested interests in upholding President Obama's birth claims will be happy just to let Arpaio’s “Cold Case Posse” and its claims fade away into the mists of history.
Photo of Sheriff Joe Arpaio: AP Images
