Exclusive Interview: Sheriff Joe Arpaio Investigating Obama, Thinks There’s “Fire” as Well as “Smoke”

As most Americans shift their eyes from Michigan and Arizona towards Super Tuesday, a long simmering issue for some seems to have finally gained momentum. For weeks there has been a quiet murmur in the birther community that “America’s Toughest Sheriff,” Joe Arpaio, also known as “Sheriff Joe,” was on the verge of some big announcement.

I interviewed Sheriff Joe to find out.

Yesterday, the Drudge Report posted a World Net Daily article that celebrated the fact that even mainstream media outlets like ABC and NBC were requesting credentials to the press conference.

‘The event is tomorrow at 1 p.m. Mountain Standard Time in Phoenix, 3 p.m. Eastern, and will be live-streamed by WND.

The topic of discussion will be an investigation by Arpaio’s Cold Case Posse into concerns about Obama’s eligibility. It’s the first time an official law enforcement report has addressed many of the allegations about the presumptive 2012 Democratic nominee for president.

The issues include Obama’s eligibility under the U.S. Constitution’s requirements, questions about his use of a Connecticut Social Security number and the image of his purported birth certificate from Hawaii.”

World Net Daily has recently come under fire by the Huffington Post, who, in its best copy and paste fashion, accused the Sheriff Joe of being “bribed.”

Huffington Post:

“That cozy relationship defines Corsi and WND’s coverage of Arpaio and the investigation. It has been so fawning and biased that it appears to be an effort to guarantee that the probe generates a result favorable to Corsi and unfavorable to Obama — in other words, a form of bribery. On top of that, Corsi is violating journalistic ethics by playing both sides of the fence — writing about an investigation he not only instigated but participated in.”

While most of the Huffington Post claims are unsubstantiated, some people may have legitimate concerns about the scope and quality of the investigation. To address those concerns, WND has offered free copies of the report.

“In addition to the live-streaming, WND will make available to the public, the same day by email, the official report distributed to media by Arpaio’s investigators. Those interested in receiving the report can sign up for the free service.

Top national media organizations have indicated their plans to attend, and bookings for radio and television reports are in the works. Expected are reporters from the Associated Press, Reuters, Univision, the Washington Times and NBC, CBS and ABC affiliates, as well statewide radio networks, among many others.

When reached by me by phone this evening in Arizona, Sheriff Joe spoke of his reasons for the investigation. An elected official with over 20 years in law enforcement, Sheriff Joe told me that it was an independent, fair and non-politically motivated attempt to have qualified individuals examine the evidence.

In response to a request from over 250 tea party members in Arizona,Arpaio formed a five man “posse” Arpaio called his all-volunteer group the Cold Case Posse and the posse acted independently of the Sheriff office. “Since they were independent, I can fully guarantee that no tax dollars where used to fund this investigation,” Sheriff Joe stated.

A quick Wikipedia search yields that the use of a “posse” is not new in Arizona.

Building upon Maricopa County’s 50-year-old program, Arpaio expanded the all-volunteer citizen posse through heavy recruiting. The volunteers perform many duties for the sheriff’s office:

• Search and rescue
• Emergency communications
• Prisoner transport
• Traffic control
• Backup for sworn deputies
• Office administrative duties
• Holiday Mall Patrol (which provides motorist assistance and security for shoppers during the holiday shopping season)
• Deadbeat parent details targeting men and women with outstanding arrest warrants for failure to pay child support
• Assisting in immigration sweeps

The timing of the press conference has raised a number of eyebrows as Arpaio faces increasing pressure from a years long investigation by the Department of Justice.  An email sent out by  a group called Grassfire Nation reports that over 100,000 petitions were delivered to the DOJ by Arpaio supporters and informed members of attempts by the DOJ to have Arpaio put a stop to those petitions.

Though Arpaio gave few details of today’s announcement, he spoke confidently about the members of his posse which include three former law enforcement officers and two retired attorneys. According to a number of sources, today’s announcement will lead to some serious questions that will demand answers.

Sheriff Joe puts it bluntly:

“There is new evidence that can prove fraud, forgery and other criminal offenses, I am not accusing the President of committing such acts but these are not just allegations. There are a lot of smoke scree and a lot of smoke. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire”

Read more at Emerging Corruption