Patrick Moran (Screen shot: Business Insider)
ARLINGTON, Va. (TheBlaze/AP) — Police say they have launched a criminal investigation following the release of undercover video showing the son of Democratic Rep. Jim Moran of Virginia discussing a plan to cast fraudulent ballots.
Patrick Moran resigned Wednesday as field director of his father’s campaign after Project Veritas, an organization led by conservative activist James O’Keefe, released the video.
It showed an undercover operative pitching a voter-fraud plan to Patrick Moran.
In the video, Patrick Moran expresses doubts about the plan but eventually tells the volunteer to “look into it.”
Patrick Moran has said he thought the person who approached him was unstable and that he was only humoring him.
“In hindsight, I should have immediately walked away, making it clear that there is no place in the electoral process for even the suggestion of illegal behavior, joking or not,” Patrick told Politico in an email.
His father’s campaign also responded, saying it welcomes a thorough investigation.
“The incident involving Patrick was an unfortunate situation,” the statement said. “While clearly lacking good judgment, Patrick’s unsolicited interaction with a right wing political operative seeking to trap him in a damaging conversation did not constitute an unlawful action. We are confident this unwelcome chapter in the campaign will be quickly and favorably closed.”
The elder Moran meanwhile took the opportunity to bash O’Keefe’s group, calling the videographer a “trained political operative bent on goading him into a specific response.”
“But the fact remains that the conversation drifted into discussions that reflected a serious error in judgment that Patrick wishes he could take back,” he added, according to Politico. “In life, if we learn from our mistakes, we move forward stronger, wiser, and committed to ensuring they are not repeated. I know Patrick will come out of this tough situation a better man for it.
Submitting your tip... please wait!
Comments (48)
jettson
Oct. 26, 2012 at 10:49amThis guy should be in jail. W hat BS Where is the law. NOBAMA in 2012
Report this comment
Sosorryforyou
Oct. 26, 2012 at 11:45amSo should this guy and all those involved with GOP Voter Registration Fraud
“The latest drama began to unfold on Oct. 17, when the manager of a Tuesday Morning discount store in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley saw a man throwing a garbage bag into the store’s private dumpster. Inside the bag was a file folder containing eight completed Virginia voter registration forms.
The manager described the man to Rockingham County sheriff’s deputies, who the following day arrested Colin Small, 23, a voter registration drive contractor for the Virginia GOP — and charged him with eight felonies and five misdemeanors related to the destruction and disclosure of the applications and obstruction of justice.
A few weeks earlier, the GOP had been under fire following reports of suspicious registration applications that had been submitted in 10 Florida counties by a company run by Nathan Sproul, a Republican operative who has long been trailed by allegations of voter fraud. The Republican Party paid Sproul’s company, Strategic Allied Consulting, about $3 million this year for registration drives in five swing states: Colorado, Florida, North Carolina, Nevada, and Virginia.
In Palm Beach County, Fla., alone, about 100 questionable voter registrations were flagged, more than half of which involved changing a voter’s party affiliation to Republican or independent. Discrepancies were also found in North Carolina.”
Report this comment
Dont-hate-on-me-2
Oct. 26, 2012 at 2:06pmsosorryforyou:
Do you have a link. I think we would all like to read about these. I am pretty sure that you dont have a link tho. I may be wrong
Report this comment
Palmer1943
Oct. 26, 2012 at 3:24pmWith Eric Holder as head of the DOJ, I am pretty sure that any charges/prosecution will simply disappear.
Report this comment
Chet Hempstead
Oct. 26, 2012 at 4:16pmThis is jive. The guy never told them that they should do anything illegal and repeatedly told them not to. You can’t jail somebody just for telling you how to do something illegal. We don’t forbid knowledge.
Report this comment
AsherX
Oct. 26, 2012 at 4:18pm@DontHateOnMe2
Here is a link that he selectively cut the news article from… Personally I am a Conservative but prefer the truth from either side.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/25/gop-voter-fraud_n_1990104.html
It goes on to say:
What none of that explains, however, is what might have motivated Small — who, after all, didn’t submit fraudulent applications; he’s charged with throwing out legitimate ones.
Because Virginia doesn’t register people by party, “it’s not possible to tell a party affiliation just by looking at the voter registration form,” said state board of elections spokeswoman Nikki Sheridan, ruling out one potential answer.
The eight applicants varied in age, and the rural area where they live is overwhelming white, ruling out two more.
So as it turns out, although county officials won’t confirm it on the record, the most likely possibility may be that Small was throwing the applications away because he’d waited longer than the statutory 15 days after he collected them to turn them in, and was afraid of getting in trouble.
Virginia’s guidelines for voter registration drives clearly state that failure to turn in completed applications within 15 days can lead to prosecution for a misdemeanor.
Small, although he was released from jail not long after his arrest, could not be reached for comment.
Sheridan, from the state board of elections, said that the eight applications found in the dumpster were processed by loca
Report this comment
SocialistSlayer
Oct. 27, 2012 at 8:37amWhy hasn’t both Morans ( Pronounced Morons) been arrested and placed in jail? Oh wait I know why – Fairfax County Virginia is a Commie-Liberal Communist stronghold where half the residents work for Communist obama and the other half are illegals ! That should explain everything. This will be sweep under the rug until after the election and it quietly goes away ! How Pathetic !
Report this comment
dmerwin
Oct. 27, 2012 at 12:34pmThis will not be covered in the mainstream, therefore they can continue to claim that there is no “evidence of voter fraud”. You cannot find what you don’t look for.
Report this comment
aquablue
Oct. 26, 2012 at 10:31amThank you James O’Keefe. I know this isn’t the only Dem place you’ve found fraud at. Its scary!
Report this comment
AlwaysAmazed
Oct. 26, 2012 at 10:29amHey, what can I say?
Report this comment
jessieH
Oct. 26, 2012 at 10:15amDon’t forget to check out his daddy, too.
Report this comment
TexasTeaPartier1967
Oct. 26, 2012 at 10:13amAnd the plot thickens!
Report this comment
G-WHIZ
Oct. 26, 2012 at 10:44amDon’t need any cornstarch to thicken this plot! But NoWorries… daddy-Witholder will kill the investigation as soon as King-O’commie gets reInnaugerated!!
Report this comment
jcwill25
Oct. 26, 2012 at 10:13amThe more I hear of the Democrats, the more I think of North Korea or better yet, the French Revolution! They are wasting away the very best this country has to offer in order to worship their goddess of reason. What brought the FR to an end? Napoleon!
Report this comment
TexasTeaPartier1967
Oct. 26, 2012 at 10:11amI am glad this sleaze bag got caught. This is why we need Voter ID laws.
Report this comment
Amazingoly
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:36amWhat he did is a felony. Like father, like son. Hope this costs bully Jim Moran his seat.
Report this comment
SPIN_MD
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:34amWhat surprises me is that people are still acting like they are shocked by voter fraud in connection with Democrats. They brag about it. Google it. LBJ, Richard Daley, Huey Long are just a few that are particularly outspoken on using any means possible to win an election. There has never been a Democrat in recent times that has won an election without massive voter fraud….none, including the last election. They are so comfortable with it now the DOJ is actively advocating voter fraud. People you need to wake up. If we don’t we will have pre-WWII Germany with much stupider people running the country.
Report this comment
Frederick_Douglass_Republican
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:21amDemocRATs embrace fraudulent voting. They embrace inequity. They embrace evil. Anything up to and including the destruction of our country is embraced as long as they think they will stay in control.
Report this comment
progressiveslayer
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:10amCongressman Moron is an A hole just like his idiotic son and I detest lifetime politicians like Mr. Moron,they get addicted to power that’s why they die of old age in office. That’s right investigate anyone who investigates you or your idiotic son,sounds like the E.German stasi at work here.
Report this comment
Gary_K
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:06amI would wager that this is going on in all of barry’s (father unknown) 57 states.
Report this comment
PaulreveresDarknight
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:05amNavy SEALS dad raised a man. A Real American Hero. You sir raised a traitor. Apples are not fare from trees. Dont Retreat. REload
Report this comment
RJJinGadsden
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:04am“The elder Moran meanwhile took the opportunity to bash O’Keefe’s group, calling the videographer a “trained political operative bent on goading him into a specific response.”
If the thought of win by any means had not been on Junior’s mind in the first place, he would have ignored O’Keefe’s reporter from the very beginning. Hope he screws up during questioning and implicates dear old dad too.
Report this comment
progressiveslayer
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:19amYou make a very good point there RJ because when someone’s up to no good when they get caught their instinctual response is I didn’t do it. In this case there’s a video so now they’re claiming entrapment but that won’t fly either because we know the dems are notorious for voter fraud,hell their messiah is a fraud who’s been exposed as such.I detest lifetime politicians R D or I I don’t discriminate because our founders would be horrified to know that there’s such a thing as a lifetime politician of which Mr.Moron is one.
Report this comment
G-WHIZ
Oct. 26, 2012 at 10:46amLike father like son…gota pleadeal for y’a…ratt on your daddy and no jailtime for you!
Report this comment
ADNIL
Oct. 26, 2012 at 11:18amLove how they scream “entrapment” when they get caught. He should have sent the guy packing as soon as he understood where he was going with his inquiries. The fact that he entertained the notion and advised him says it all.
Report this comment
SocialistSlayer
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:56amOh, this was no joke and Congressman Moran should resign also! They are known political criminals in Northern Virginia and this is just one more piece of proof ! They should both be in jail !
Report this comment
gbfreak
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:53amTypical liberal response…It’s the other person’s fault for trapping me….Lol
Report this comment
RJJinGadsden
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:05amThat is no more entrapment than what the FBI and informants have done to catch potential terrorists in the act.
Report this comment
PIGSWILLNEVERFLY
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:50amSure they want it investigated. Who will come to James defense? Time to rally around him, he’s another “Breitbart” and is a champion for truth and justice in a sea of corruption.
Report this comment
AJAYW
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:35amHolder will be sure this don’t go anyplace. You have to keep in mind to holder , blacks and liberals can’t commit crimes only whites can.
Report this comment
Master.Debater
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:32amIf it’s true he thought the man was unstable and was only humoring him, the correct thing for Patrick Moran to do after his 20 minute planning session would have been to immediately report the incident to the authorities. Did he do that? NO!
Report this comment
RJJinGadsden
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:07amBingo!
Report this comment
Experiment626
Oct. 26, 2012 at 11:43amNo, instead Moran told him to come outside (so their discussion wouldn’t be overheard.)
Report this comment
gsplgtr
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:30amThe apple don’t fall far from the tree. Investigate his dad, too. we Virginians can’t stand these carpetbagger liberals!
Report this comment
DZ-015
Oct. 26, 2012 at 10:11pmIt’s more like the road apple doesn’t fall far from the jackass. Jim Moran (D) VA was first elected to Congress in 1990, and represents a left leaning Northern Virginia district. He is a loudmouth partisan bully who, around 2000, laid hands upon an 8-year-old african american boy he accused of attempted carjacking. He said he thought a bulge in the child’s pocket might have been a gun (It was candy), so, while cursing the child, carried him to a police officer and attempted to press charges. What a great role model for his own son.
Report this comment
BLACKDIAMONDSKIER
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:26amI wonder if……”I was just kidding” is now a legal defense against voter fraud.?
or
“Hey….Patrick is a good guy, he just messed up”?
Report this comment
beatobama
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:35amTo quote an old but appropriate cliche:
“The acorn doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
Report this comment
ricckky
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:24amThis will go no-where–corrupt Dad, Police and most of the state. Hell, Va. is almost all Dem anyway—-Why do these fools want to take a chance—-Well, a Liberal has a Marxist soul and believes the ends justify the means!! (Machiavelli)
Report this comment
Fubared
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:46amVa is far from mostly lib. All of NoVa and the inner city peeps sure, the rest of the state is far from that. Very polarized.
Report this comment
MittensKittens
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:14amThis surprises us why? He’s a demoncrat for gods sake. What’s sad is as close as this race is we very well could get conned into another 4 years. Then we’ll really see the fireworks fly!
Report this comment
BODYBAG
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:04amIt is tragic and sad that the very first thing that comes to mind is that this will
never go anywhere because the guy’s bosses control law enforcement. Bringing
charges against him is nothing more than theatre.
Corruption at its finest.
Report this comment
Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Oct. 26, 2012 at 9:02amThe Chicago way.
Report this comment
338lapua
Oct. 26, 2012 at 7:59amOn to Wisconsin!
Report this comment
TNT75
Oct. 26, 2012 at 8:11amIt always seems to show up here too! Fricken liberal judges that wont allow voter ID yet the Supreme Court says its Constitutional.
Report this comment