The first-term county commissioner forged a group of rodeo acquaintances in 2019 into a promotional Cowboys for Trump posse to spread his conservative message about gun rights, immigration controls and abortion restrictions. "There's no absolutely no reason for this," she said. 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 of 69,000 along the Texan border. ", "To the extent that their goal is to actually have a negative impact on voter confidence," she added, "we are very concerned about the election in 2022, and obviously in 2024.". In Otero, two commissioners who had voted not to certify earlier in the week reversed their decisions and approved the results, bowing to an emergency order from the states Supreme Court that mandated them to follow their statutory duty. "There have already been three audits," including one by the Secretary of State's office and another by an independent contractor. The Otero County commissioner is facing charges for his alleged role in the January insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden sentenced Griffin in June to 14 days imprisonment, but credited him for 20 days he served in jail after his arrest. He has sent out a public plea in an attempt to win in the court of public opinion, by garnering a large showing of supporters, shoulder to shoulder to appear at the Otero County Courthouse. "And they're trying to spin routine election administration processes as somehow improper. He sees. I know they do. You think that the governor hates me as a county commissioner put a gun and a badge on me, and well see.. But my hope rests on the law, and the law is available to us all.. "I've had my own family say. This is yet another example of how lies about Dominion have damaged our company and diminished the publics faith in elections, Dominion spokeswoman Stephanie Walstrom said of Clements. White v. Griffin, No. Couy Griffin, the founder of the Cowboys for Trump group, appeared to turn on the former president during a QAnon event in Las Vegas. 1:07. In Alamogordo, Griffins rhetoric on race has steeled the determination of opponents who want him out of office. 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. Griffin shows hes not just an election denier, hes also a traffic ticket denier. Subscribe now to access decluttered news, chosen by you. The county sheriffs sole duty and responsibility is to protect our individual rights, he said. And since he is still in office, he was able to push for the audit. Griffin was convicted in federal court of entering a restricted area outside the U.S. Capitol. "But the need for the audit isn't necessarily here in Otero County. Clements said in a brief interview in Nebraska that he believes his efforts are noble. 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.. The role of creativity in resilience and community-building, Alamogordo Proud Downtown Nights Otero Arts Exhibition Opening, Late Shopping and More, Downtown stores open till 8 pm Friday student art exhibition and more, Alamogordo Proud It is All About the Fashion Spotlight Alamogordo Artisan Linda Swenson, Alamogordo Proud is All about the fashions of Alamogordo's Linda Swenson, AlamogordoTownNews.com Tularosa High School Students Excel in Competitions, AlamogordoTownNews.com Not Guilty! The lawsuit contends that Griffin violated the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits officeholders sworn to uphold the Constitution from engaging in an insurrection against the U.S. government. 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.". A Hubbard Broadcasting Company, said he never entered the Capitol building. 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. Im a child of the trailer park. Couy Griffin: As far as regret goes, I dont have any regret from that day. Do you regret anything that happened? and signed a child-support check to his ex-wife from his Cowboys for Trump account. Because what they get away to doing to me will be what they inevitably do to you. And yet he remains determined. 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 . By MORGAN LEE Associated Press February 28, 2023, 1:31 PM SANTA FE, N.M. -- 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. Griffin, an ardent conspiracy theorist who refused to certify the state's primary election results this summer in Otero County, told CNN he has been ordered to clean out his office and attacked. Im not asking you all to storm the beaches of Normandy, to suffer a bloody death to save our republic. Copyright 2023 2nd Life Media AlamogordoTownNews.com. Be safe.Griffin: Id be embarrassed if I was you guys.Officer: Alright. In Sandoval County, Clements had so riled residents that the commissioners had to be removed from the hearing room by sheriffs deputies for their safety after voting 4-1 to approve the results, according to County Commissioner Katherine Bruch, a Democrat. Their reports on election fraud are a jumble of conspiracy theories and full of errors. He sees. Thats something the media is not telling us right now, not showing us but its going to come out. Many of the comments predated the 2020 election and focused on the potential for foreign interference. The trial itself is expected to commence on Tuesday February 28th, 2023 with national media attention. "We would cut trees that had been blown over by the wind, we would cut trees that have been killed by forest fires," he said. And yet he remains determined. 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. Hes part of a smaller cadre who flirted with insurrection on Trumps behalf and may still pay a high price. The cowboy. KOB-TV, LLC Couy Griffin and his horse grift America. The former Disneyland rodeo cowboy once rode down New York's Sixth Avenue wearing the furs of bobcats and coyotes he trapped and skinned, brandishing an American flag. Just weeks later, in October 2021, he was fired, by his own account, for refusing to wear a mask in class. Both are extremely concerning and truly terrifying to say the least.. 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. They want to destroy our country, Griffin said in a video monologue. Griffin is scheduled on Monday and Tuesday for a trial without a jury before 1st Judicial District Judge Francis Mathew in Santa Fe. The Oath Keeper. Alamogordo Proud! 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. Officer: Where you headed to? Brittany Costello: Do you personally have any of those videos? Despite his Cowboys for Trump shirt, he said all but one of the fellow cowboys drifted away after January 6 last year. Clements, 42, was a popular tenure-track assistant professor teaching law in the business school of New Mexico State University on Jan. 6, 2021, when a mob loyal to Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol. Thats hard for me to accept.. I dont have the money to go up against those kind of people, Griffin said Friday. The first-term state representative and former Albuquerque middle school math teacher grew up in Chihuahua and has an engineering degree. Dysfunctional family. Investigators said the investigation was launched after Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver referred her investigation into Griffins refusal to register C4T as a political committee and disclose donors and expenses. Pacing the room at the senior center in Neligh, microphone in hand, Clements put the matter in stark terms. The folksy origin story might have helped his successful 2018 run for county commissioner but once in office Griffin amplified violence and bigotry. Emptying the Notebook: Can the Lobos get a defensive stop when it counts? This could either be the final nail in my coffin or this could be a true day of reckoning. The former Disneyland rodeo cowboy once rode down New York's Sixth Avenue wearing the furs of bobcats and coyotes he trapped and skinned, brandishing an American flag. Ive had my own family say some pretty nasty things, Griffin said. , VIDEO: Giant I-40 light poles sway in strong ABQ, Taxidermy birds used to make drones at New Mexico, PHOTOS: Storm leaves parts of state covered in snow, PHOTOS: Winter storm moves through NM leaving snow, PHOTOS: Storm causes snowy, icy roads across New, Map: New Mexico Veterans Monuments and Memorials, 13 Broadcast Pl SW, Albuquerque, NM, 87104, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Griffin participated in, encouraged, and promoted the January 6, 2021, attack on the United States Capitol, the suit alleges. As per the sources, He was married to him for a long time and got divorced in 2019. He has appeared on Fox News and on Bannons podcast. Theyre going find out he didnt have anything to do with these types of things, he said. That happened Tuesday in New Mexico when a state judge disqualified Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin from holding public office. Guitarist Ottmar Liebert bringing his unique blend of music Ottmar Liebert and his band Luna Negra will perform with the New Mexico Philharmonic at Popejoy Hall on Saturday, March 11. However, the new evidence . You people are funny that claim I harass Mr Griffin. 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. Defiance of federal government and its oversight of public lands are staples of politics in Otero County, which spans an area three times the size of Delaware, from the dunes of White Sands National Park to the peaks of the Lincoln National Forest. It is being investigated by State Auditor Brian Coln after complaints prompted concerns about the procurement process. I stand before you as someone who used to be an award-winning professor, an award-winning prosecutor who is unemployed, Clements said. Manage the news you want to see, read exclusive content and explore other subscriber benefits. 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. US District Judge Trevor McFadden heard one day of testimony without a jury on Monday before handing down a verdict in the misdemeanor case against Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, a. A recent report from congressional Democrats on election misinformation highlighted Clementss activities and concluded that the greatest current threat to democratic legitimacy now comes from lies by domestic actors who seek to convince Americans that their election systems are fraudulent, corrupt, or insecure., New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, who has clashed repeatedly with Clements and his wife, said the misinformation and disinformation were being seeded as core beliefs, not just with elected officials but the general public.. "It's been such a battle," he said. It singled out fraudulent audits in Maricopa County, Ariz., and Otero County as key drivers in an effort by malicious domestic actors to erode trust in American democracy. Ron DeSantis by about 15 points in a new Republican presidential poll, with newly announced candidate Nikki Haley and former Vice . For all his bombast and showmanship, Griffin's fortunes and conviction seem to be waning. For years, Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin has been Donald Trump's most flamboyant supporter in New Mexico, creating spectacles and controversy in equal measure. The Proud Boy. See State ex rel. Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin will face off in court Monday against three New Mexicans who argue in a lawsuit that he should be removed from his post as an Otero County commissioner for participating in an insurrection against the United States. Republican primary candidates embracing Trumps stolen election rhetoric have flourished this year. David Clements urged commissioners not to perform their statutory duty to certify the results, arguing that doing so would place them in legal jeopardy because of the problems they alleged with the machines. Updated: March 23, 2022 - 2:43 PM. Couy Griffin, of New Mexico, was arrested today in Washington, D.C., and charged by criminal complaint with one count of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful entry. Given his intelligence and accomplishments, the fact that hes decided to pursue this provably false theory is tragic and surprising, said Chris Luchini, the head of the Libertarian Party of New Mexico and a former colleague of Clements. Dozens of Albuquerque Academy students volunteered to help unload and deliver the furnishings, Olivier Uyttebrouck / Journal Staff Writer. All they need to do to change the system, he assured them, is to win over a handful of commission votes. Griffin is presumed innocent until proven guilty. The allegations against CPAC chief Matt Schlapp. The election was stolen from me, and then you just walk away? 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. Today, Couy Griffin is divorced, disparaged by family and confronts a political recall drive, a state corruption investigation and federal charges. FILE - Otero County, New Mexico Commissioner Couy Griffin speaks to reporters as he arrives at federal court in Washington, June 17, 2022. , Case dismissed for teen accused of taking gun to, Elderly man who killed sister takes plea deal, 2023 state basketball tournament brackets, Whats happening around New Mexico Feb. 24 Mar. 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. I just went to stand in what I believe is my constitutional right, to peacefully protest. On September 6, 2022, Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin was ordered removed from office by a New Mexico judge, as a result of his participation in the January 6th insurrection and attack on the Capitol. Here you have Couy Griffin as Cowboys For Trump not only hiding assets from his ex-wife and son. Clementss allegations extend to voting machines made by multiple companies, including Dominion Voting Systems, which are used in New Mexico and have been the target of false claims by Trump supporters. 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. (Those findings were comprehensively rejected by the Maricopa County Elections Department.). 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. 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. 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. And yet he remains determined. That is what our motive and our focus has to be. Griffin: You know the drugs right now are horrible, the property crime is horrible, and theres two of you guys riding around citing people for no seatbelts?Officer: So, wed probably be doing the drug stuff if you were wearing your seatbelt.Griffin: Oh, really? Griffin had recently been booted out of office following his conviction on federal charges for trespassing outside the Capitol building during the January 6 attack. Griffin said he is confident the judge will dismiss the lawsuit. My mom worked at Kmart and Lowes, my dad bagged groceries, he said. Mr Griffin, a county official in Otero County, New Mexico, added that the aftermath of the election had added to difficulties with relatives and his divorced wife. For now, Griffin has halted the petition with an appeal to the state Supreme Court, which hasnt decided whether to intervene. And that was one that got me, said Brown, part of a committee seeking to recall Griffin. I totally take exception to the idea that Robyn Holmes our Republican clerk doesnt know what shes doing. Wearing a Cowboys for Trump shirt, and sitting in the office he shares with the heads of a deer and an elk, Griffin discussed the roots of his brand of populist politics. So who is the leader here today? Swanson asked. A year later, he still believes the election was tampered with. I have done my best to shield and protect anyone who has supported me from the same attacks that I daily come under. I am already bracing for a media frenzy during this time because there is so much on the line. 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.. The ruling comes after lawyers for Griffin's ex-wife, Kourtnie, filed an emergency motion in May to modify their custody and visitation agreement. Kourtnie served in the US military and is a war Veteran. And it was a challenging venture into the barbecue restaurant business that he said pushed him into politics. No fewer than 86 judges rejected at least one post-election lawsuit filed by Trump or his supporters, a Washington Post review of court filings found. He means no malice on anybody, said George Seeds, outside the New Heart Cowboy Church in Alamogordo where Griffin once served as pastor. For years, Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin has been Donald Trump's most flamboyant supporter in New Mexico, creating spectacles and controversy in equal measure. 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. This guy has gone off the deep end. Alamogordo High School Alamogordo Proud Breaking Stereotypes and Winning in Welding Competition, Alamogordo was the only team to be represented with female welders. The donut shop has announced it has closed its South Valley and Northeast Heights locations. They have a Son Together was born in 2014. ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. Couy Griffin, Cowboys for Trump founder and Otero County commissioner, was arrested last year for his . Whenever you say, China stole the election. I take the seatbelts very serious.Griffin: Oh yeah, Im sure.Officer: Yeah, just because all the crashes Ive seen.Griffin: Its too bad you dont take more of the drugs and the other crime going on a little bit more serious instead of out here citing people for no seatbelts. 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. Couy Griffin Net Worth Couy Griffin has an estimated Net Worth of $1Million in 2022. 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. He sees himself as governor one day. He takes things and extrapolates them to a place that comes completely out of thin air. 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. 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. Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver said that her office was working to ensure the process does not compromise the "security and integrity" of the tabulating machines used in the elections. As CPAC's 2023 edition kicks off, the man who greets the myriad right-wing activists and supporters descending on Maryland . Griffin plans to ride the charges out to trial, claiming theres more than meets the eye. My heart filled and I heard, We are going to win. . Their county attorney, R.B. The audience, which included a local minister, a bank teller and farmers in their overalls, gasped in horror or whispered wow with each new claim. FILE - Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, the founder of Cowboys for Trump, takes in the view from his ranch in Tularosa, N.M., May 12, 2021. With calls for an independent investigation of the Capitol siege blocked by Senate Republicans, Griffin is out on bail and speaking his mind. I do worry about potential violence toward election officials, in particular around the upcoming general election, she said. Griffin recalled. Its all falsehoods and speculation. The Cowboys for Trump website was not operational Feb. 13. A jury will consider this week whether the support group . 89.9 FM Live From The University Of New Mexico. I got a better idea. Officer: Youre free to go. However he is on probation from the guilty verdict related to the participant and in the capital events of January 6th thus the stakes are now significantly higher. He is still facing federal charges. 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. A jury will consider this week whether the support group . But his allegiance to Trump has wavered. Couy Griffin has been booted from his seat as Otero County Commission chairman for violating his oath of office when he participated in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. 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. But David and Erin Clements pressed on, appearing before the three-member, all-Republican Otero commission with a new target: the states June 7 primary. Couy Griffin Wife, Children Griffin is currently single, he was previously married to his girlfriend Kourtnie A Gates, but they were divorced in 2019. He asked me to cover the prayer vigil we were the only press to do so and his attorney was happy with the coverage as was he and moved to tears. Former President Donald Trump leads Florida Gov. 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. What is sure to be a media circus for Alamogordo next week, Jury selection will begin Monday at the Otero County New Mexico Courthouse in the trial of the state of New Mexico v Couy Griffin, leader of Cowboys for Trump. Couy Griffin (via CREW legal filing) Leading First Amendment experts have weighed in on a lawsuit against a New Mexico man convicted in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, saying that he cannot use the First Amendment as a defense to the constitutional prohibition against insurrectionists holding public office. Because I care about the truth. And yet he remains determined. 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. 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. Hes also been suspended from Facebook and banished from Native American lands in his district as he contests charges of breaking into the Capitol grounds and disrupting Congress that could carry a one-year sentence. Griffin went to court over the seatbelt ticket where he was ordered to pay the $81 fine. Dont forget to wear your seatbelt. New . Pull him out of his pick-up, take him to the ground, and charge him with resisting arrest! In his disciplinary hearing, which Clements posted online, the university said he violated the schools covid-19 mask and vaccination policy. Griffin's term as county commissioner is up this year, and he has said he will not run again. This story has been shared 104,709 times. Couy Griffin Wikipedia And Age. But when it was operational, it offered options to donate to the organization by direct donation or by purchasing merchandise. Their additional three locations remain open. Where I need peoples support is to show up and stand shoulder to shoulder in Alamogordo for this trial.
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