O'Keefe: a criminal pitching only lies, by Len Fleischer

Though O'Keefe did pay $100,000 to settle a civil lawsuit over a misleading video he produced regarding ACORN in 2009, he was neither charged nor convicted of a crime in the matter.

And O'Keefe pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of entering a Senate office under false pretense after he and three colleagues pretended to be telephone repairmen to gain entrance to the offices of Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, and was not convicted of felony charges of tampering with her phones or breaking into the office.

According to The Sentinel, Project Veritas founder James O’Keefe will keynote the Cheshire County Republican Party’s annual Lincoln Day Dinner later this month. We have also learned that Sentinel columnist John McGauley “will also say a few words” before O’Keefe, a self-styled “entrapment journalist” with a lengthy criminal record, speaks to local Republicans.

Republican spokespeople report that they “wanted a good speaker” who “plays such a big part in the voter-fraud issue” and has “a national reputation” that “will be a big draw for people.”

Sentinel writer William Holt wrote an excellent story (“Project Veritas founder to lead local GOP event,” April 11) exposing some of the illegal and unethical activities O’Keefe has engaged in, making him a “controversial” choice as speaker. Here are just a few more (the list is long):

O’Keefe was convicted and forced to pay a $100,000 fine to settle a lawsuit with a former ACORN employee whom O’Keefe misrepresented in a widely distributed, doctored video.

In another case, he was caught doctoring videos and was blocked by Twitter from his own account, preventing him from using the social media platform.

O’Keefe was charged and convicted for tampering with phone lines at former Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu’s office.

During the 2012 New Hampshire primary, the Republican mayor of Manchester, Ted Gatsas, said that due to fake “voter fraud” activities, O’Keefe should be “arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

O’Keefe has been barred from seeking donations for his “charity” in several states, due to these activities.

James O’Keefe is a convicted criminal with a history of doctoring videos to advance his ideological agenda. You may not be surprised to learn that his loss of “charitable donations” has been alleviated by substantial donations from Donald Trump, the head of another shady enterprise.

It is time for some genuine veritas (Latin for “truth”):

James O’Keefe headlining Lincoln Day for local Republicans? Honest Abe would surely turn over in his grave.

LEN FLEISCHER

57 Wildwood Road

Spofford