"But the need for the audit isn't necessarily here in Otero County. Since then, Griffin has led an itinerant life. And I said, well, you're gonna know exactly where it's at whenever the forest catches on fire around there, because it's gonna burn the whole town down. Couy Griffin, an Otero County commissioner and co-founder of Cowboys for Trump, answers a question from the prosecution Monday, Aug. 15, at the First Judicial District Court in Santa Fe. Griffin had previously sued Toulouse Oliver claiming he was not required to register or file as a political committee. He saw the sawmill's work as "curating" the forest. At the meeting at the Nebraska senior center in early August, Clements appealed to his audience to get on social media and to keep showing up at county commission meetings, again and again, until local leaders are worn down and give in. My heart filled and I heard, We are going to win. . Subscribe now to access decluttered news, chosen by you. "I was never involved in anything violent on that day, and there was never anything violently done around me," he said when asked about the incident. The U.S. intelligence community has continued to warn that foreign actors are probably targeting American elections. Couy Griffin's Wife, Children Griffin is currently single, he was previously married to his girlfriend Kourtnie A Gates, but they were divorced in 2019. It sounds good and people believe it because it sounds authoritative if you dont know much.. Were in a contest of wills. . Clements won last year. Today, Couy Griffin is divorced, disparaged by family and confronts a political recall drive, a state corruption investigation and federal charges. Ramie Harper, a 67-year-old former bull rider from Fruitland, took a break from making custom hats to join the caravan. I never ever got the impression he was so radical about things like that and I felt stupid I had submitted a letter for this guy nominating him for this great award.. "I do believe our elections were stolen," he said. A year later, he still believes the election was tampered with. I said, God save us, please, please save our country, he recalled in a speech in Michigan last year. Allison Kuhn won outstanding team leader, Otero Electric Co-op Making Progress Restoring Power in Cloudcroft, Mescalero and Mountain Villages, KALH Radio Alamogordo Town News Exclusive PreTrial Interview with Attorney Johnathon C Miller, Ole Time Revival Feel Welcome to Counselor Johnathon C Miller Sets stage for Couy Griffin Trial, 2nd Life Media AlamogordoTownNews.com Event Calendar. Everette Brown, a Marine veteran and information technology specialist at Holloman Air Force Base who is Black, said that comment shows politics have changed Griffin, whom he once respected. Mr Griffin participated in a phone interview with Anthony Lucero on Alamogordo Town News radio edition on KALHRADIO.org 95.1 FM he explained the upcoming trail from his standpoint per a link at the end of this story. Griffin has claimed he did not knowingly trespass. "And he kind of laughed and said no. Copyright 2023 2nd Life Media AlamogordoTownNews.com. That happened Tuesday in New Mexico when a state judge disqualified Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin from holding public office. The Oath Keeper. See State ex rel. You can play on an old beat-out dirt lot.. Couy Griffin: As far as regret goes, I dont have any regret from that day. I got a better idea. Hes an advocate for stricter state voting laws and a die-hard opponent of COVID-19 restrictions who says hell no to taking the vaccine. They even quote me and cite my work on voting systems with modems and internet connectivity, but I disagree with every conclusion they draw from my work., I dont think he understands what hes talking about most of the time, said Greenhalgh. Griffin, who was convicted of a federal misdemeanor in March for his involvement in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, is representing himself in the lawsuit, which has attracted the interest of nationally known constitutional scholars and attorneys. He said people wanting to sing the song popularly known as the Black national anthem should go back to Africa. "I asked him, Mr. President, do you know where Cloudcroft, New Mexico is?" Many of the comments predated the 2020 election and focused on the potential for foreign interference. The first call to the press he made was to our reporter to the station we own. Page provides news from near and far about our hero of. I have done my best to shield and protect anyone who has supported me from the same attacks that I daily come under. "And it's cost me everything - from a marriage, to finances, to friends.". The group captivated the public imagination with its first outing, a 2019 flag-waving ride down the shore of the Potomac River to Arlington National Cemetery. Hear their stories. His grandfather Wee Griffin held the Catron County post from 1963 to 1966. He continued per the sent email; I believe another motivation for this charge is that by forcing me to register as a c-corp or non-profit it will force me to disclose all financials to the state and by doing that they will be able to unmask any past supporters of Cowboys for Trump to only destroy them with the same vindictiveness that they have come at me with. A New Mexico judge on Tuesday disqualified Couy Griffin, a county commissioner who founded Cowboys for Trump, from serving in public office ever again because of his participation in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.. Driving the news: The judge ruled that Griffin is "barred for life" from serving as an elected official, effective immediately, under the 14th Amendment because he took part in the . Mr. Griffin has opted to be defended by a public defender for this case with home court advantage. Each played a role on Jan 6. "There have already been three audits," including one by the Secretary of State's office and another by an independent contractor. Alice Fordham joined the news team in 2022 after a career as an international correspondent, reporting for NPR from the Middle East and later Latin America and Europe. Kourtnie Griffin, an Iraqi war veteran, understands "passions for God and country" and believes her ex-husband has a right to express his views, her lawyers said. Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver said dozens of people have complained about volunteers associated with the audit going door-to-door and asking residents about their vote. A New Mexico judge has removed a county commissioner from office and disqualified him from running for future office in response to his participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Hill riot . Cowboys for Trump, or C4T as it is known colloquially, was ordered by the New Mexico Secretary of State's Office to file as a political action committee and file all campaign finance reports or face fines. Couy Griffin was founder of a group called Cowboys for Trump and a member of the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. (Those findings were comprehensively rejected by the Maricopa County Elections Department.). Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, the founder of Cowboys for Trump, takes in the view from his ranch in Tularosa, N.M., on Wednesday, May 12, 2021. Washington - The founder of the "Cowboys for Trump'' organization and commissioner of Otero County, New Mexico, Couy Griffin, was sentenced Friday to 14 days in jail, a $3,000 fine, 60 hours of . In October, around the time he was fired from his university job, David and Erin Clements mailed a 261-page document to commissioners and county clerks across New Mexico alleging widespread issues with the voting systems what the congressional report called imaginary fraud.. Magda Jean-Louis and Alice Crites contributed to this report. All they need to do to change the system, he assured them, is to win over a handful of commission votes. Published: Saturday, August 13th, 2022 at 10:05PMUpdated: Sunday, August 14th, 2022 at 12:05AM. The couple soon found an ally in Couy Griffin, a flamboyant former Disneyland Paris rodeo cowboy who until this week was a member of the county commission in Otero, a rural New Mexico community. No matter what anyones opinion is of me, personally, that is irrelevant. TULAROSA, N.M. He rodeoed in a Buffalo Bill-style Wild West show, carried his message on horseback from the Holy Land to Times Square and was invited to the White House to meet the president. And yet, Griffin said in an interview that the audit is strategic, designed to forge a path so other counties in New Mexico audit their elections, a gambit that echoes a nationwide push by Republican officials to sow doubt about election results by pushing for audits. What is relevant is what our state government is doing to anyone who still believes in basic rights as a free American. He takes things and extrapolates them to a place that comes completely out of thin air. Last year, one report (produced jointly by the Brennan Center for Justice, the R Street think tank and nonprofit Protect Democracy) looked at five states where partisan reviews of elections are being pursued. Alamogordo Proud! Speak up a little.Officer: I said I am going to issue a citation for a seatbelt. Id see other happy families on vacation while I would bus their tables as an underage kid and say, is this it, Lord? , But, he said he realized, God was preparing me for something, to see artifice, to see lies.. It makes me sick whenever I watch it.". Couy Griffin will be featured on Wikipedia . She also worked as a podcast producer for The Economist among other outlets, and tries to meld a love of sound and storytelling with solid reporting on the community. The canvass was part of a controversial third-party audit that commissioners had voted to spend nearly $50,000 on in January, despite the fact that the county went overwhelmingly for Trump, with the incumbent winning nearly 62 percent of the vote. Later, he served as the vice chair for legal affairs of the states Libertarian party. Authors of the brief include Laurence Tribe, a professor emeritus of constitutional law at Harvard, and Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the University of California Berkeley School of Law. Griffin said David Clements knows what hes talking about and that he is the kind of expert Griffin wants to explain complicated voting systems to him, rather than the election officials in his own county. White House official grilled over Biden's summit with Puti Canadian teacher with size-Z prosthetic breasts placed on paid leave, What's next for Buster Murdaugh after dad's murder conviction, life sentence, US home prices just did something they haven't done since 2012, Celeb-loved jewelry brand Dorsey drops dazzling new styles, White Lotus actor jokes about being hit on following shows success, Is this the couple behind the Worst Art Job Listing Ever?, Undertaker transforms coffin into barbecue grill, Tom Sizemore And The Dangerous Burden of Desperation, Kellyanne Conway and George Conway to divorce. With Trump or without, Griffin still ascribes to unsubstantiated claims of massive 2020 election fraud. Clements says he is not paid for his appearances but asks for donations for travel expenses at the door. Under the first-look pact, Mortal Media will develop and produce a range of projects across film and television, in [] They say Griffin didnt partake in violence and was well within his free speech rights as he voiced election grievances and attempted to lead a prayer with a bullhorn. In a conversation with The Associated Press, Griffin says he learned to love the spotlight during five years as an expert rodeo hand in a Wild West show at Paris Disneyland park. Neither, however, has experience running elections or formal education in voting machine systems. Griffin took the oath of office in December 2018 when he was sworn in as a commissioner. Thank you so much for your time and consideration. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. WWG1WGA standing in Faith! Just weeks later, in October 2021, he was fired, by his own account, for refusing to wear a mask in class. Now, Clements has taken his message nationwide, traveling to small towns in more than a dozen states, with a focus, he said, on places that are forgotten and abandoned and overlooked. His crusade to prove that voting systems cant be trusted has deepened fears among election experts, who say his meritless claims could give Trump allies more fodder to try to disrupt elections in November and beyond. The need for the audit in New Mexico was more in the likes of Bernalillo County, and Sandoval County and Doa Ana County," referring to areas where President Joe Biden won the 2020 vote. The lawsuit against Griffin was filed in March by Marco White and Leslie Lakind, both Santa Fe County residents, along with Mark Mitchell of Los Alamos County. I was to the point that, You guys arent even telling half-truths anymore,' she recalled. ", But despite conversations with a Department of Agriculture official, nothing happened. As his zeal over election fraud heightened, other associates fell away. It concluded that if elections continued to be litigated and relitigated, without evidence of fraud, there is a serious threat voters will refuse to accept votes they do not like, and that the, "peaceful transfer of power, a hallmark of our democracy, could be at risk.". And he is disillusioned with Trump himself, citing an issue that brings him back to his earliest grievances: forest management. Cowboys for Trump co-founder Couy Griffin confronted a trial by jury on Tuesday on charges that he failed to register a political organisation without filing related public financial disclosures. Here are 13 more things about Couy: Griffin said he never entered the Capitol building. The January 6th attack and the events surrounding it constituted an insurrection against the government and Constitution of the United States as defined by the 14th Amendment, the suit alleges. Cowboys for Trump cofounder Couy Griffin is confronting a trial by jury on charges that he. But in a recent interview in Alamogordo, Griffin was determined to keep fighting for Trump, despite the audit's problems, plus the charges he faces for his role in the Capitol attack, financial difficulties and a profound disappointment in the former president himself. Their additional three locations remain open. A document that David Clements claims shows a failure to update voter check-in machines for 11 years is inaccurate, since the state uses a different check-in system, the secretary of states office said. That day, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released their report into the threat of election misinformation. De-extinction is a, Roundhouse Roundup: Paramilitary rules, youth parole, Rio Bravo Park cleanup will take longer than expected, Gun safety bill passes Senate, faces one more hurdle, Restaurants still struggling to recover from COVID, Roswell PD: Woman steals, drives wrong-way to get, More from KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos, State basketball tournament: Girls first round recap, BCSO: Kids were living in dirty home containing drugs, Local casino hosts National Fiery Foods & BBQ Show, UNM police arrest man for giving false ID, fleeing, Man connected to political shootings to stay behind, Whats happening around New Mexico Mar. It is being investigated by State Auditor Brian Coln after complaints prompted concerns about the procurement process. The second trial in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot case is underway Monday, with New Mexico county commissioner, self-proclaimed cowboy and noted conspiracy theorist Couy Griffin appearing . And thats what we had.. Jeff Swanson, chairman of the Otero County Democratic Party, says Griffins divisive remarks hinder county efforts to secure state infrastructure spending, and he has engaged in intimidation by recording Cowboys for Trump videos from his office with a shotgun within view. Ron DeSantis by about 15 points in a new Republican presidential poll, with newly announced candidate Nikki Haley and former Vice . The ruling comes after lawyers for Griffin's ex-wife, Kourtnie, filed an emergency motion in May to modify their custody and visitation agreement. It was a complete change. He says his obsession with politics has taken a toll, contributing to his 2019 divorce and tensions with relatives. Who is going to break whose will? Clements said. By MORGAN LEE February 28, 2023. The New Mexico attorney general investigated embattled former Otero County Commissioner and Cowboys For Trump founder Couy Griffin for using C4T funds for personal use and taking official acts as commissioner for his personal gain. Sledgehammers! a woman at the back of the room yelled out. Couy Griffin Griffin, who was convicted of a federal misdemeanor in March for his involvement in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, is representing himself in the lawsuit, which. And I pray to see you on February 28th at the Otero County Courthouse in Alamogordo N.M.Much love in Christ,Couy, According to case documents Griffin launched a GoFundMe account for Cowboys For Trump but used the funds for personal expenses, including court-ordered child support, used public funds to advance C4T and has taken official acts for personal gain.. Griffin participated in, encouraged, and promoted the January 6, 2021, attack on the United States Capitol, the suit alleges. Griffin delivered a scathing rebuke last year as the NFL announced game-opening renditions of Lift Every Voice and Sing, also known as the Black national anthem. They also alleged that unnamed bad actors massively manipulated voter registration rolls, allowing people to illicitly vote in the last presidential election. "There's no absolutely no reason for this," she said. Clements is one among a tightknit circle of Trump supporters who travel the country as self-appointed election fraud evangelists. He said he began examining the alleged evidence of fraud in contested states like Georgia and Pennsylvania in the days following the election, and later had some of those who claimed to have observed it firsthand appear on his YouTube videos. He says Griffin is right about lots of things, like the need for a border wall. So whats the solution?. Dominion officials have denied all allegations made against the company, filing multibillion-dollar defamation lawsuits against various people who spread the claims. Do you regret anything that happened? Ah cheer up, Chris - maybe the governor's State Police troopers can catch Couy doing an illegal lane change! She grew up in the U.K. and has a small jar of Marmite in her kitchen for emergencies. Couy Griffin Career Griffin was found taking active participation in the 2021 US Capitol riots and was arrested for the same on 8th January 2021. The Proud Boy. The 249-page lawsuit alleges that Griffin can be removed as an Otero County commissioner for violating his oath of office because the 14th Amendment states that no officeholder sworn to uphold the Constitution shall have engaged in insurrection against the same, according to the suit. Clements ended on a mournful note just before the audience began trickling out into the quiet evening, the sun setting over fields of thirsty corn. SANTA FE A New Mexico judge ordered Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin be removed from office, effective immediately, ruling that the attack on the Capitol was an insurrection and that Griffin's participation in it disqualified him under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. Cowboys for Trump cofounder Couy Griffin confronted a trial by jury Tuesday on charges that he failed to register a political organization without filing related public financial disclosures. Couy Griffin Wife, Children Griffin is currently single, he was previously married to his girlfriend Kourtnie A Gates, but they were divorced in 2019. But his allegiance to Trump has wavered. After years of unwavering support, Griffin suggested he. Cell phone video captured the violence and chaos of that day. This decision marks the first time since 1869 that a court has disqualified a public official under Section 3, and . Officer: Yep, still wasnt wearing his seatbelt. Republican primary candidates embracing Trumps stolen election rhetoric have flourished this year. She said in an online press conference that she feared, "a scenario where the tabulators would instantly become, you know, questionable, and we would have to completely take them out of serviceIt's just a really scary, unfortunate and nonsensical situation. His rides with Cowboys for Trump through numerous states were a reprise of proselytizing trips he made from Ireland to Jerusalem, before social media, to hand out the Gospel of John. Any person with disabilities who needs help accessing the content of the FCC Public File may contact KOB via our online formor call 505-243-4411. And yet he remains determined. Thus the State Attorney General filed the lawsuit and a trail by jury was ordered. He has made baldly racist and violent statements. The Cowboys for Trump website was not operational Feb. 13. As per edailybuzz, Couy Griffin is married to his wife, Kourtnie A Gates. Griffin lost that case but still appears to have failed to follow the court order. The arbitrator, who was chosen by Griffin and Cowboys for Trump, found for the Secretary of State's Office. Is it my county commissioners or these people sitting here who had lunch with Donald Trump and the MyPillow guy?, On June 17, the states deadline to certify election results, Clements drove several hundred miles in his old Buick, hoping to stop commissions across New Mexico from approving the votes. But this is also a man who beat a "Mom and Pop business" that has 5 kids out of thousands of dollars. Sicknick, a Capitol police. A group of prominent constitutional attorneys filed a friend-of-the-court brief on Aug. 1 arguing that Griffin should be removed from office. Couy Griffin is a white man from Tularosa, Otero County, New Mexico, United States. Griffin is one of thousands of Trump loyalists in public office who are charting an uncertain future ahead of the 2022 election cycle. Youre in the middle of elections that are fraudulent right now if what theyre telling us is true., If what theyre telling us is true, Holmes said, shouting, IF!. The attorney general also received numerous citizen complaints about Griffin. In fact, in Otero County he said they plan to conduct an election audit, looking for fraud. David and Erin Clements claimed that the states voting tabulators are insecure and miscount votes. Because I want to make sure our voices are accurately captured. Griffin went to court over the seatbelt ticket where he was ordered to pay the $81 fine. He is a pastor, a Republican and the son of a former commissioner in Catron County, New Mexico. A disdain for central government set in early, when conservation laws affected the family business. NELIGH, Neb. Clementss strategy is to target his message locally: to county commissioners and clerks, jobs that are lower profile but that wield an outsize role in administering Americas decentralized election system. And yet he remains determined. ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. Couy Griffin, Cowboys for Trump founder and Otero County commissioner, was arrested last year for his involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol riots. The criminal complaint which is basis for the lawsuit states that "on or between January 15, 2020 and March 18, 2022, Couy Griffin did willfully and knowingly violate and provision of the Campaign Reporting Act by failing to register Cowboys for Trump as a political committee with the Secretary of State, by failing to file all required finance reports and by failing to pay statutory fines for failure to file; after receiving a lawful order to do so, a misdemeanor offense.". And he boasted about his participation in the January 6 storming of the Capitol. Clements said in an interview that as an attorney he was eminently qualified to talk about the legalities surrounding voting machines, and that his wife, Erin, has two decades of expertise working with data as a civil engineer. Griffin has acknowledged using the county building for promotional videos but said he never claimed they were . At New Mexico State University, Clements was known for his engaging lectures, being available to students and grading papers late into the night, according to David Pecchia, a former student and retired Air Force master sergeant who was close to Clements and considered him a mentor. The allegations against CPAC chief Matt Schlapp. And that was one that got me, said Brown, part of a committee seeking to recall Griffin. Nichols, advised that the frivolous lawsuit would not pass muster in court and would cost the county more than $100,000. Emptying the Notebook: Can the Lobos get a defensive stop when it counts? Former Otero County Commissioner and well-known rabble-rouser Couy Griffin was pulled over in Alamogordo in his Dodge Ram in early November. A recall effort is underway, amid a bevy of lawsuits. Because what they get away to doing to me will be what they inevitably do to you. Updated: March 23, 2022 - 2:43 PM. Maggie Toulouse Oliver v Couy Griffin, Near mistrial results in not guilty verdict, Alamogordo Proud Flickinger Center Hosts Local Students to LP And The Vinyl, Alamogordo Proud local students take in the arts for free at Flickinger, Minor School Accident Bus #108 Tuesday NO Injuries, Maggie Toulouse Oliver v Couy Griffin Campaign Finance Violations Trial Day One Recap.

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