The Education of ACORN Whistleblower Anita MonCrief
There's nothing more dangerous to the liberal Democrat leaders than an intelligent African-American man who thinks for himself, except an intelligent young African-American single mom who chose life for her baby, thinks for herself, has computer skills and was in the right place to learn the truth about ACORN.
ACORN whistleblower Anita MonCrief has learned that conservatives are not the "crazies" she had been told they are (which is not to say that there are NO crazies on the Right). If Ms. MonCrief had learned that before Election Day 2008, the result might have been different.
Last year, before Election Day 2008, Ms. MonCrief testified in a Pennsylvania state court about the Associated of Community Organizations for Reform Now, better known as ACORN.
Ms. MonCrief wanted both ACORN corruption to be exposed and then Democrat presidential candidate Obama to win.
Ms. MonCrief got both, but the powers that be at ACORN that Ms. MonCrief wants removed are still in control and set to benefit hugely from the legislation backed by the Obama Administration.
That. Ms. MonCrief did NOT want.
Soon after testifying, computer savvy Ms. MonCrief set up a blog (www.anitamoncrief.blogspot.com). In her first entry she reported her decision to testify and how her telling the complete truth shocked ACORN.
Ms. MonCrief:
"Coming forward was not an easy choice and I weighed my options repeatedly and realized that there was not much of a choice. ACORN is a corrupt organization that is preying on the marginalized in this society and they have become the cancerous growth of this election.
"I have never claimed to be perfect and only answered questions honestly on the stand. ACORN brought 3 witnesses to testify but only two did. What happened? Karyn Gillette had the opportunity to take that stand and call me a liar and 'set the record straight' and instead she fled the courtroom. Ms. Gillette sat two seats from me on the same row and as I prepared to face my former mentor and the woman who I thought was my friend, I realized that she had no idea that I would completely tell the truth and therefore she was confident in her role as the person sent by ACORN to discredit me.
"After I testified under oath, I noticed that the attitude of the ACORN people had changed in the room, the intimidating stance was gone as Karyn typed on her Blackberry at lightning speed, and the other ACORN folks heard the truth in my words.
"I am a liberal Democrat, pro-choice and a[n] Obama supporter. I never wanted for this to progress to this point. I tried contacting www.rottenacorn.org in June of 2007 before the credit card [Note: Ms. MonCrief charged some personal living expenses on an ACORN credit card], before the termination. I was told that it could get ugly and that since I was a single mom and needed this job for my baby, that I should try to find somewhere else and then contact them again."
Tellingly, Ms. MonCrief was pleased with her decision to tell the whole truth and ended her first blog entry with this call for others to come forward: "I urge Karyn and Brian Kettering to follow my example and stop hiding behind the media. If I am such a liar, then by all means, say so in sworn testimony. Why did Karyn Gillette leave the courtroom? Only she knows, but I guess it had something to do with the fact that I told the truth and she wasn't willing to get on the stand and do the same thing."
The day before Election Day, Ms. MonCrief mused about the upcoming election, ACORN, emotion, truth and corruption, as follows:
"When I heard about Hillary Clinton's book deal with Harper Collins in 2000, I told everyone that I knew that 2008 was going to be her year. I watched as her year became Barack Obama’s and I got behind him with trepidation. At times, I was afraid to even contemplate a win. On the eve of one of the most important elections of my life thus far, I cannot say that I have the same nervous excitement. My problem has never been with the candidates but with the media circus that surrounds the process itself.
"I do feel that in the fervor of the elections that we have let our emotions cloud some truths. Much has been reported to try [to] sway opinions one way or the other. However, one fundamental fact is undeniable. ACORN has been hiding behind the age old tactic of race baiting and demeaning tactics. As 'poverty pimps' they have misused the system and polluted the fundamental right that so many have shed blood for (black, white, men and women). Tomorrow is so important for many and it is frustrating to see honest, good, law abiding people fighting someone else’s bogus fight. ACORN is better than the mob because they use the underlying fears of people used to fighting to be heard to make money and influence elections.
"This may be Obama’s year, but if it had been Clinton’s ACORN would still be using the same tired voter registration practices and using intimidation to worm their way into the campaign. As an African American running for president Obama was put in the unique position of denying ties to an organization that Clinton and Edwards actively and openly courted. ACORN’s strategic plan for the new administration was set way before the first candidate threw their hat in, and much attention has been paid to the Obama and ACORN connection. What about the ACORN and corruption connection?"
The day after Election Day 2008, Ms. MonCrief joyously and hopefully celebrated the Obama victory and her vote for him.
Ms. MonCrief:
"I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the past 24 hours. I am sure that everyone has touched upon the historical significance of Obama’s win. However, for me, that is just the tip of the iceberg. Last night, despite the best efforts of the GOP on one side, and ACORN on the other, no one was able to stop the true movement of people. America spoke in shades of brown, tan, white, and other. They spoke from comfortable homes, dingy apartments, and military posts. What ACORN and the GOP failed to realize is that there is a true need for people to organize to be heard; but when groups try to divide those people for monetary purposes, our voices are diluted.
"My daughter and I walked through the rain yesterday to vote, and though I knew that there are some who didn’t want my vote, who said that I was the enemy, I have never wavered in my support of Obama and wanted to give my vote to him. My connections to this campaign started in 1963 when my mother was born on the Southside of Chicago, and like some of Michelle Obama’s extended family, we too chose to migrate south, but maintained strong Chicago roots. To me, yesterday was more than making history as the first African-American president, it was a reaffirmation that like Obama has said, ‘it doesn’t matter where you come from’. The American dream is alive and well in its people who never stopped believing that anyone can start a new life and become something great.
"As a student of history, I look at the Ford’s, the Rockefeller’s and the Kennedy’s. Joe Kennedy was a bootlegger who did what he had to do to pull his family out of poverty, and though this was not an ideal situation; that is exactly where America is now. America has realized that we were in a period of darkness, but we are clawing our way towards that light of a new day. President-elect Obama was right when he asked for our help. We have to be prepared to get our hands dirty and move forward when it looks like we are headed towards the edge of a precipice. America has always been about taking nothing and making something great. I saw this greatness last night, not onstage, but in the crowds with their barely constrained emotion.
"At ACORN I always advocated for including the middle class in our membership. I stated that by making something an issue that only affects the poor and minorities, which we were missing the true 'mavericks' who had fought and won during the sixties. These people may have traded in the flowers, tents and VW bugs for houses, BMWs’ and 401ks’; but that their enduring spirit of purpose had propelled America for the last 40 years. However, ACORN never wanted people that would ask questions or buck against the status quo, and this meant that their primary vehicle for money and defense against the attacks became the marginalized.
"I hope that the new administration will help remove the albatross from around the poor’s neck and let us join the rest of America in advocating for true change."
But, less than four months later, Ms. MonCrief attended the CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) and, on February 26, 2009, she posted "Confessions of an ex-Democrat: Blogging live from CPAC."
Ms. MonCrief:
"A year ago I would have laughed at the suggestion that I would ever attend (and enjoy) the Conservative Political Action Conference, but as they say, what a difference a year makes.
"[Over] the past 6 months I have had to defend my liberal 'street cred' to those who claimed that by attacking ACORN that I was a paid Republican plant. The more that I tried to defend my liberal status, the more I realized that maybe I should not have to. A political party is not like a tattoo, I can change my mind. If the liberal Democrats thought that I was not worthy; then maybe it was time to move on. As the box marked Democrat became increasingly unavailable to me, I began looking for another box to check.
"Since the 2006 elections, I have watched the power hungry Democrats led by a rabid Pelosi destroy the very party that I so ardently defended to all detractors and enemies."Contrary to what the Dems will say about CPAC, I have not seen Karl Rove rise up from hell and give a speech on Reagan. I have not seen a bunch of right wing crazies or any of the other tired slurs that the Democrats have thrown around.
"On my first day at CPAC, I believe in the resurrection of the right, and I am confident that it is only a matter of time before America begins to follow my lead. I think that there are a lot of Democrats who feel just as helpless as I do. The course that we are headed on is not the path that was promised to me in 2006. Democrats cannot blame Bush for everything. Their own internal wars and ineffectiveness have also played a lead role. The core values of the GOP are still attractive to most Americans. They really just have to work on messaging and packaging. The ideas that have been explained to me like the Fair Tax movement and the fight against 'card check' make sense to me, a single, African American mom.
"Yes, the right should do a better job of reaching out to people of color and other marginalized undecided voters, but I realize that many Democrats have been led by people who want to keep them poor and helpless. Pelosi and her inner circle have not acted in my interests and have embarrassed me. When a party makes you question what you really believe in, then maybe they do not really represent you.
"In the 60's activists traded in their signs for 401k's and BMW's. It's not that they 'sold out,' they grew up and realized that passion can never replace knowledge and self awareness. Catchy slogans can never replace a well thought out plan.
"CPAC's first day has been a seductive dance for me and a journey towards self discovery. More to come."
It has been said that if you are not liberal when young you have no heart and if you do not become conservative as you mature you have no head.
Ms. MonCrief seems to have matured fast, and kept her heart in the process.
Unfortunately for President Obama, he has been an ACORN man for many years and he lied about his relationship with ACORN as a presidential candidate.
The lie worked as a short-term political tactic, but it did not change the truth (no matter how much was removed from the Internet).
Now Ms. MonCrief has a choice to make: Which is more important, President Obama's political fortunes or the complete truth?
Ms. MonCrief acknowledged that telling the complete truth worked well for her when she testified in that Pennsylvania court house.
Telling the complete truth about her communications with The New York Times before Election Day 2008 would work well for America as well as Ms. MonCrief. That President Obama did not tell, and The New York Times did not report, the complete truth, is not Ms. MonCrief's fault.
There's nothing more dangerous to the liberal Democrat leaders than an intelligent African-American man who thinks for himself, except an intelligent young African-American single mom who chose life for her baby, thinks for herself, has computer skills and was in the right place to learn the truth about ACORN.
Michael J. Gaynor has been practicing law in New York since 1973. A former partner at Fulton, Duncombe & Rowe and Gaynor & Bass, he is a solo practitioner admitted to practice in New York state and federal courts and an Association of the Bar of the City of New York member.
Gaynor graduated magna cum laude, with Honors in Social Science, from Hofstra University's New College, and received his J.D. degree from St. John's Law School, where he won the American Jurisprudence Award in Evidence and served as an editor of the Law Review and the St. Thomas More Institute for Legal Research. He wrote on the Pentagon Papers case for the Review and obscenity law for The Catholic Lawyer and edited the Law Review's commentary on significant developments in New York law.
The day after graduating, Gaynor joined the Fulton firm, where he focused on litigation and corporate law. In 1997 Gaynor and Emily Bass formed Gaynor & Bass and then conducted a general legal practice, emphasizing litigation, and represented corporations, individuals and a New York City labor union. Notably, Gaynor & Bass prevailed in the Second Circuit in a seminal copyright infringement case, Tasini v. New York Times, against newspaper and magazine publishers and Lexis-Nexis. The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed, 7 to 2, holding that the copyrights of freelance writers had been infringed when their work was put online without permission or compensation.
Gaynor currently contributes regularly to www.MichNews.com, www.RenewAmerica.com, www.WebCommentary.com, www.PostChronicle.com and www.therealitycheck.org and has contributed to many other websites. He has written extensively on political and religious issues, notably the Terry Schiavo case, the Duke "no rape" case, ACORN and canon law, and appeared as a guest on television and radio. He was acknowledged in Until Proven Innocent, by Stuart Taylor and KC Johnson, and Culture of Corruption, by Michelle Malkin. He appeared on "Your World With Cavuto" to promote an eBay boycott that he initiated and "The World Over With Raymond Arroyo" (EWTN) to discuss the legal implications of the Schiavo case. On October 22, 2008, Gaynor was the first to report that The New York Times had killed an Obama/ACORN expose on which a Times reporter had been working with ACORN whistleblower Anita MonCrief.
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