Debacle in the Shelby County August 2 Primary

There is something funny going on with George Flinn, Jr.'s petition that he filed with the Shelby County Election Commission so that he could be on the ballot for the August 2, 2012 primary.  Upon examination of Flinn's original petition, it looks like Mr. Holden ~Administrator of Elections~ did not check his signatures by noon on April 5, 2012 ~the deadline for petitions to be filed.~  It also looks like there was a date change on the form that Holden signed signifying that George Flinn, Jr. had 26 qualified signatures.  This indicates that Flinn did not meet the deadline for turning in his petition.  George Flinn, Jr. should not have been on the ballot for the August 2, 2012 Primary; therefore he should not be certified by the Shelby County Election Commission to be on the ballot as the Republican nominee on November 6, 2012.

This has been brought to the attention of the Shelby County Republican Party and they are ignoring it as well.  If they think that Cohen will not use this against Flinn ~if he remains on the ballot for November~ as an October Surprise; they are more than naive.  

 As Ms. Bergmann stated yesterday at the news conference "We do not live in a Banana Republic."  We are a nation of laws.  The cavalier way that the Shelby County Election Commission, the TN Secretary of State, the Republican Party of Shelby County and the media have treated this whole election process is unacceptable.  Who has the courage to stand up and cry "Foul!  Not on my watch!"  Do we really want to see change in Memphis and Shelby County?  Or is it just something we say because it sound good?

I am absolutely incensed.  Elections matter and the incompetence and probable fraud in the Shelby County Election Commission is unacceptable.  I’m tired of the “good old boy network” in Shelby County.  No wonder there’s animosity between the two major communities in Memphis.  There’s incompetency at all levels and those in “power” don’t care or listen to the complaints of the “other” side.  There is NO communication going on.  A prime example is how the August 2 Primary was handled and how errors brought to the attention of the Commission ~both State and County~ are being handled and swept under the rug.  

My curiosity was piqued when I was discussing the Primary election with a friend and I wanted to know about a specific date concerning one of the candidates for TN-9 Congressional district.  I went to www.Shelbyvote.com ~the Shelby County Election Commission’s website~ to look at the petitions filed by each of the candidates.  When looking at the different candidates petitions, I noticed that some were time/date stamped and some were not.  Knowing that the petitions had a specific time and date deadline for filing their nominating petitions with registered voters’ signatures; I decided to investigate further.  I went down to the office on 980 Nixon on August 13, 2012 and asked to see the original petitions filed by the candidates.  What I saw was glaring incompetence at the least ~good old boys network~ and possible vote fraud.  I received copies of the petitions and went home to study them further.  What I discovered is that Richard Holden did not check George Flinn, Jr.’s signatures.  Mr. Holden stated that there were 26 valid signatures, but it’s not clear whose signatures he was counting or excluding.  By looking at ALL the petitions filed and checked by even Mr. Holden himself, it’s clear that “one of these things is not like the other.”

I followed the protocol for filing a complaint with the Secretary of State’s office in Nashville and waited.  I attended the Shelby County Election Commission’s committee meetings and general meeting on August 20.  What I observed was the absolute breakdown of communication and CYA.  The commissioners certified the election w/o even looking at the stacks of info that was presented to them.  Mr. Monger and Ms. Lester brought up the incompetence of Richard Holden and asked for his resignation.  The Republicans on the Commission voted that down with the caveat that they wanted to see what the state audit had to say about it.  While I agree about not rushing to judgment ~which it’s apparent happens~ I agree with Mr. Monger and Ms. Lester about Holden.  He was the election official that I cited specifically in my complaint about the candidates’ filing petitions.  After the meeting I talked to both Mr. Meyers and Mr. Monger about what I had found.  Both said that they would look into the matter.  I emailed them both a copy of my complaint filed with the State that specifies the irregularities on the petitions and impressed upon them how important it was that they looked at the originals.  Mr. Meyers emailed me back and said that he referred the matter to the attorney.   Mr. Monger emailed me back and said that he would look into it himself.  I have not heard back from either them since. 

Meanwhile, one of the other voters that went down in person with me to see the petitions ~who also filed a complaint~ received a reply from the State informing him that she had looked into the complaint and called Sharon Logan at the Shelby County Election Commission office who verified that Dr. Flinn did indeed have 25 valid signatures.  Talk about the fox guarding the hen house.  Of course Ms. Logan is going to say that Dr. Flinn’s petition was correct.  This is why we originally filed the complaint with the state election office.  I want to know from Ms. Logan and Mr. Holden exactly which of those signatures were valid on April 5, 2012 at noon which is the deadline for filing.  

I've been interviewed by one local tv station.   I showed them my copies of the nominating petitions.  Both the reporter and the camera man acknowledged that they could see what I was talking about in reference to the petitions.  Charlotte Bergmann ~who lost the primary to George Flinn~ called a press conference to allow several of us citizens who filed complaints with the TN Secretary of State concerning the election to alert the local media.  We had one show up and she received a call from Bart Sullivan at the Commercial Appeal.  He's based in D.C.   He posted an article about it trying to make it look like sour grapes for Ms. Bergmann.  He called Mr. Holden from D.C. and asked him if the allegation was true.  Of course Mr. Holden denied it.

This is my response to Bartholomew Sullivan and the rest of the media.  

"Mr. Sullivan, have you even looked at the original petition filed by George Flinn, Jr. ~or any of the other candidates that were on the ballot~?  Or are you just going to take the word of an incompetent administrator?  Why is it that voters have to do the job of the Shelby County Election Commission, the Secretary of State of TN and the media?  This is a job of CYA by Richard Holden.  What do you expect him to say? “I didn’t do my job?  I am incompetent?  I signed an election document because my friend George Flinn, Jr said everything was OK.”   I witnessed the fiasco of the Shelby County Election Commission committee meetings and general Meeting on Monday.  Talk about a joke.  At least the Democrats on the Commission were willing to call Holden out on his incompetence.  

The facts are these:  Mr. Holden signed the form verifying that George Flinn Jr.’s petition had 26 qualified voters.  Mr. Holden never checked the petition.  I challenge ANYONE to go down to Election Commission offices at 980 Nixon and look at the original petitions of all the candidates for TN-9 Congressional District. .  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that “one of these things is not like the other.” There was also a date change on the form that Mr. Holden signed among many other irregularities.

Mr. Sullivan; instead of pontificating from Washington D.C. on something that you haven’t even seen; why don’t you get yourself down to the Shelby County Election Commission and pull the original petitions yourself and do a little investigating.  Why don’t you ask Mr. Holden which of the signatures on George Flinn, Jr.’s petition are the 26 qualified registered voters as of April 5, 2012?"

These are some of the irregularities that I found when examining the ORIGINAL petitions filed by the TN-9 Congressional Candidates.  

1.       Although Holden indicated on the Nominating Petition Signature Verification Form that George Flinn Jr.’s nominating petition contained twenty-six eligible signatures and addresses, when the check marks are counted, they total up to only nineteen (19), well under the required twenty-five (25). The rest of the marks being minuses or indistinguishable. If this is the case, then George Flinn, Jr. should not have been placed on the Aug 2 ballot for the Republican primary. 

2.       I inspected the marks placed on the original nominating petitions by the officers of the Shelby County Election Commission while in the process of validating the names, registration, and district of each voter.  On all the other petitions, except for George Flinn Jr.’s, it is very apparent which voters were considered valid and which voters were invalid by the election officer.  This is not true of the marks placed on Geroge Flinn Jr.’s nominating petition. On his petition, which is validated and signed by Robert Holden, it is difficult to distinguish by the marks on the petition, which of the signatures Holden accepts as valid and eligible and which he does not.

3.       It is further noted that on all the other candidate’s petitions, including one that is also validated by Robert Holden, the verification marks and comments are made in the margin in red ink and the total number of valid signatures for each page are noted and circled at the bottom of each page. This makes it quite simple to add the circled numbers on each page of the petition and arrive at the total number of valid signatures.   There is no total of valid signatures notated at the bottom of any page of the petition submitted by George Flinn Jr.

4.       It is stated in the Shelby County Election Qualifying Procedures that the signature of the candidate does not count toward the required twenty-five (25) signatures Candidate George Flinn, Jr signed his own petition and that is not noted in the margin by Holden; however, on the petition submitted by Saulsberry ~which was also checked by Holden~ the candidate signed his as well and the notation “candidate” was noted in the margin.

5.       On the Nomination Petition Signature Verification page for George Flinn, Jr the Date Verified appears to have been changed from 4-5-12 to 4-4-12 by Richard Holden.

6.       Date on the form that the candidate signs stating that none of their relatives are serving as election officials appears to have been changed on George Flinn, Jr’s form from the 5^th day of April to the 4^th Day of April.

7.       Date on Sec 2-9-108, TN Code Annotated page was changed from 4-5-12 to 4-4-12 but the change was initialed by Hart. 

8.       Time/Date stamped on the petitions submitted by Rollin Wilson Stooksberry ‘s final signatures and on Tomeka Hart’s signatures were too late for the certified copy (which were given to the candidate when the petition was submitted) to have been filed at the State Election Commission in Nashville by noon on the 5^th of  April deadline as required in TN State Law. 

Thank You Commercial Appeal

It’s no secret which way the editorial board at the Commercial Appeal leans; so is it any wonder that they are wanting George Flinn as the Republican to run against Steve Cohen in November?  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure it out.  Their goal is to re-elect both Cohen and Obama.  They know that Flinn cannot beat Cohen.  What’s funny though, is that they unwittingly gave Charlotte Bergmann a compliment.  They called her a scrapper.   The definition of a a scrapper: “Someone who looks small but is really wired and can kick some major ass even though he doesn't look like it.”  That describes Charlotte Bergmann to a T.  She has already proven her grit and determination in the face of opposition and bullying.  Her “interview” with Thaddeus Matthew in January is a great example.  While he was hurling insults and names at her, she graciously listened to his onslaught; but upon leaving, she took action.  Because of this incident, Matthews is off the airwaves in Memphis.  By the way, we can thank Flinn for Thaddeus Matthews ~see here for connection and comments about Matthews by Flinn~.   Flinn also claims that he will fight for jobs; yet recently several radio hosts at one of his radio stations ~WMPS-The Point~ lost their jobs due to “reformatting”.  The hosts that lost their jobs were gaining in popularity, so why would be replaced?  Makes one go hmmmmmmmmmm.  

Flinn couldn’t beat Fincher in the Republican Primary in 2010; he couldn’t beat Wharton for Shelby County Mayor in 2002 ~he lost 62% to 37%~; what makes him think that he can beat Cohen in 2012? 

Charlotte Bergmann is the only Republican that can beat Cohen in November and both the CA and Cohen know it.  As a “scrapper” she will fight to bring Liberty and Reconciliation to Memphis, which in turn will bring Prosperity to Memphis.  Liberals like Cohen ~and the CA~  know that if Charlotte wins, the Democratic Party’s stronghold over the upwardly mobile, freedom loving voters in the NEW 9^th District is cooked.  As we head into the heart of perhaps one of the most important – but racially and economically polarized election cycles of our lifetime – we need to continue our success in carrying the message of freedom.  Charlotte is the only one that can do that.  She needs your help though.  First, she needs you to vote for her on August 2, 2012 in the Republican Primary.  Here is a sample ballot for the Primary.  Second, she needs you to tell your family and friends about her and encourage them to vote for Charlotte. Third, she needs your help financially.  It costs money to get the word out about Charlotte, and she would appreciate any donation that you can give her.  You can donate here.  If you live in a safe Republican district, donating to her campaign is something you can do to help get Charlotte Bergmann to D.C.  

How will you help bring sanity and Constitutional government back to D.C.?

Truth about the Memphis Commercial Appeal Truth-O-Meter

The attack arm of Steve Cohen and the Democrats strikes again.  I'm speaking of the Commercial Appeal; specifically their  Politifact reporter Bartholomew Sullivan. Here is a letter to the editor sent in by a retired Shelby County Schools teacher.  We'll see if the Commercial Appeal deigns to publish it.

Turn the Truth-O-Meter on yourself Commercial Appeal

Meet Mr. Truth-O-Meter: Bartholomew Sullivan

Scripps Howard News Service Political Coordinator.  Check out his Politico Facts and try to guess what his is agenda is. Do you think he might have it out for any and all Republicans? 

http://www.politifact.com/tennessee/staff/bartholomew-sullivan/

Not only did the CA endorse Ms Bergmann's opponent this weekend who they know can not defeat their REAL congressional choice, Steve Cohen, (Just watch who they endorse in October) they sic their attack dog Sullivan to split hairs on exactly how big the BIG Obama Tax is. The REAL true fact that come across in this article is that, Yes, maybe, the tax to fund WWII in 1945 MIGHT have been larger than OBAMA TAX, it doesn't dispute the REAL TRUE FACT that is undisputed in the article that OBAMA TAX is one HUGE TAX that is on the way whether we like it or not. Do you think the people who are in the path of a hurricane care if it is a category 8 or 9?

Oh BTW the data that PolitiFact author Sullivan used to refute Ms. Bergmann's claims was the OTS papers from the Department of Treasury.  Sounds pretty impressive, right? Well according to the Department of Treasury's own website the OTS Papers is characterized as follows:

"The Office of Tax Analysis (OTA) Papers is an occasional series of reports on the research, models, and datasets developed to inform and improve Treasury's tax policy and analysis. The papers are works in progress and subject to revision. Views and opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent official Treasury positions or policy. "

Commercial Appeal Editor, Since  Bart Sullivan was using questionable data in his article, when will we be seeing a retraction?

In case you missed the taxes that Ms. Bergmann  is referring to when calling the ObamaTax the largest tax in history, here are just some of what is in ObamaTax:

• Starting in 2013, Medicare payroll taxes increase 0.9 percentage points for people with incomes over $200,000 ($250,000 for couples filing jointly). Also, people at this income level would pay a new 3.8 percent tax on investment income. The 10-year tax increase: $210.2 billion.

  • Starting in 2018, a new 40 percent excise tax on high-cost health plans, so-called "Cadillac plans" (over $10,200 for individuals, $27,500 for families), kicks in. That's a tax increase of $32 billion in 2018 and 2019.

• Starting in 2014, a new annual fee on health insurance providers begins. Total estimated 10-year tax increase: $60.1 billion.

• Starting in 2013, the floor on medical expense deductions on itemized income tax returns will be raised from 7.5 percent to 10 percent of income. That's estimated to be an additional tax of $15.2 billion over the next 10 years.

One of the facts that Mr. Sullivan conveniently left out of his article is that they keep finding out new costs/taxes in this bill.  The CBO ~Congressional Budget Office~ has revised it's numbers upward as the years of full implementation of ObamaTax become a reality.

CBO’s initial scoring of Obamacare analyzed its effects from 2010 to 2019, including only six years of full implementation, since main spending provisions do not go into effect until 2014. The new document reports on 2012 to 2021, including an additional two years of full implementation. This still fails to show the true 10-year cost of the law, but gets a little closer. Over eight years, the gross cost of Obamacare’s coverage provisions jumps from $938 billion to $1.39 trillion, which includes $677 billion to create a new health entitlement offering generous subsidies to the middle class to purchase health insurance.

 Here is a chart that shows the upward trend of the real costs of ObamaTax.

The CBO is going to adjust their scoring on the ObamaTax yet again due to the recent Supreme Court ruling.  How much more will it cost us, the American taxpayer?

When the Bias-O-Meter is pointed at the Commercial Appeal, the needle points to 100% Liberal.

Proof: Charlotte Bergmann is a Threat to CongressCritter Cohen

You don't draw flak unless you are over the target. Congressional candidate Charlotte Bergmann is drawing flak from the Cohen campaign. The Commercial Appeal ~specifically Bart Sullivan~ is the tool that the Cohen campaign is using.

Let's connect the dots. The national media is in the tank for BO/BS. A recent example of this is a story by the Washington Post alleging that Romney "bullied" a student when he was in High School in 1965. The only problem is it never happened. This is according to the alleged victims family as reported by Breitbart.com. Another recent example of the media lying is the Trayvon Martin fiasco. NBC and ABC were caught editing audios and visuals. In fact NBC has fired people over it. CNN has also backtracked on their "audio" expert that claimed that Mr. Zimmerman used a racial slur during the 911 call.  The media is now in full retreat mode due to the fact that they realize that most Americans know the truth. 

Let's now go local to Memphis.  In both 2008 and 2010 The Commercial Appeal endorsed Cohen.  Charlotte Bergmann's message of Liberty and Reconciliation that will bring Prosperity to All Memphians is a threat to the Cohen campaign.  Her courage in the face of the obvious hostility and vitriol of Thadeus Matthews  underscores her commitment and passion for the citizens of Memphis.  Ms. Bergmann's personal story of how hard work, perseverance and faith helped her triumph over the obstacles of being a single mom and living out of her car at one point is an example to the voters of TN-9 that Mr. Cohen doesn't want  them to hear.  Mr. Cohen realizes that the biggest threat to his job is from Charlotte Bergmann, not George Flinn.  George Flinn is who Mr. Cohen would rather face in November.  Enter Mr. Sullivan and The Commercial Appeal.  Mr. Sullivan's recent hit piece article takes the word of Dr. Flinn's campaign manager that Flinn didn't receive his invitations for the forums ~maybe her dog ate them~  And his implication that no one showed for them is flat-out wrong.  I was there for both.  Also, Mr. Sullivan's attempt to smear Bartlett City Alderman David Parsons by claiming that he hadn't responded to email or voice messages is questionable.  Maybe Mr. Sullivan should allow more than 10 or 15 minutes for a response.   ~This is a common tactic used by the media.~   As far as Mr. Sullivan's other quotes and sources; I just know ~and most people know~ that you can get the answers you want by the way you word the questions or by omitting part of answers. 


The bottom line is Charlotte Bergmann is the Congressional candidate that CongressCritter Cohen fears; not George Flinn with all of his campaign cash.  This is just the latest round of flak that Charlotte Bergmann is receiving.  


To donate or volunteer to help get the word out about Charlotte Bergmann, go to TheNew9th.com.

What is the Dems Plan?

Last weekend, CongressCritter Steve Cohen was interviewed by Neil Cavuto and 1) disputed the fact that according to the Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation, over 1/2 of Americans don't pay Federal Income Taxes and 2) that even if that were true, these 50% of Americans shouldn't pay any because they are poor and can't afford it like the "rich".

Apparently, I wasn't the only taxpayer that took note of Mr. Cohen's answer and he too wants to hear Mr. Cohen's plan for how he would reduced the deficit.
From the Commercial Appeal

Kudos to U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen for his candor regarding the fairness of the tax code. When confronted by Neil Cavuto with facts showing that the rich already pay most of the taxes while half of Americans pay no income tax at all, Cohen acknowledged that fairness is not the real issue. Comparing the federal government to "bank robbers," Cohen explained that the real reason the rich are targeted is because "that's where the money is."

What Cohen fails to mention, however, is the fact that taxing only the rich will not raise enough revenue to solve our nation's debt problem. The balanced approach advocated by the Democrats will require raising taxes on families earning well below $250,000 who do not consider themselves to be rich. I therefore urge Cohen to put forth a specific, detailed deficit reduction plan so that we can see exactly whose taxes he plans to raise and by how much.

Brian Teepe

Cordova

In the comments, one supporter of Mr. Cohen offered up this summary of Mr. Cohen's plan.
cpcobb writes:

"Congressman Steve Cohen supports President Obama's plan for reducing the federal deficit. In a city where so many citizens are dependent upon social security, medicare, and medicaid, Congressman Cohen has said he does not want these benefits reduced, so he is in favor of reduced defense spending, closing corporate tax loopholes, and raising taxes on those whose income is $250,000 and more -- that is, Obama's plan. Congressman Cohen is championing the Memphis Aerotropolis, a long-term development plan to boost Memphis business. Personally, I would like to see corporate tax loopholes closed but at the same time have the corporate capital gains tax rate reduced to promote business development. All things considered, Congressman Steve Cohen is the best person to represent the best interests of all Memphis citizens in the federal government."

My answer to this was:

"Actually BO/BS doesn’t have a plan. He never put one down on paper.

1) SS, M/C, and M/D are broke. They have to be restructured if anybody is going to be benefiting from them in the near future.

2) BO/BS's idea to close the "loophole" for corporate jet owners would only put $3 Billion into the treasury over the next decade according to Bloomberg.

3) You could eliminate Defense spending ~which is the main job of the federal government~ and still only reduce the deficit by 1/3.

4) The rich don't earn enough to cover what Congress spends each year.
From 2009 per the IRS:

AGI over $200K = $1,964.3 B Taxes paid = $434.3 B
AGI under $200K = $5,861.1 B Taxes paid = $431.6 B
Individual Income Taxes paid in 2009 = $865.9 Billion.

You could confiscate all incomes over $200K and NOT cover DemonRat Congressional Spending.

You could double all individual income taxes and NOT cover DemonRat Congressional Spending.

The problem is spending, pure and simple. We send enough $$ to politicians in D.C.
The National Debt has increased by $4.8 Trillion since Mr. Cohen was elected to Congress in 2006. His plan is to continue to buy votes by spending taxpayers money. Taxpayers can’t afford him anymore."

Another commenter ~New Guy~ took issue with my facts from the IRS about how much the rich could pay with this comment:

"this statement is factually incorrect in composition statistics intended to be misleading. As reported quite widely in news (including Fox) the return of rates to 2001 levels for 200k/250k people would raise $70B alone. That is a 3%-4.5% increase in their marginal rate only. I'm not suggesting it be this, but if you raised it 70%, it would be well over the deficit all by itself."

To which I replied:

"You must have went to Memphis City Schools and flunked math. $70 Billion does not even touch this year's deficit. The deficit for 2009 was $1,400 Billion; 2010 was $1,300 Billion and it's on track to be $1,600 Billion this year. The Federal government will spend $3,800 Billion this year and borrow $1,645 Billion.
If you taxed those $200K and up at 100%, you would only get $869 Billion."