And it could be that it may not be of his own volition! Imagine that!
From WDIV-TV Detroit:
DETROIT – Congressman John Conyers’ effort to win a 26th term in the U.S. House may have hit a huge setback Friday as a preliminary report from the Wayne County Clerk’s Office says Conyers did not collect enough valid signatures to qualify for the ballot.
According to the report, Conyers has only 592 valid signatures–more than 400 short of the 1,000 required to make the primary ballot. (My emphasis – Ed.)
Please pardon me while I Roll On the Floor and Laugh My American Infidel Ass Off!
And it gets even better. According to Local 4, one of his petition collectors is allegedly not registered to vote in Michigan…and may have also violated his probation!
At the center of Conyers’ petition debacle is Daniel Pennington, who was hired to collect signatures for the congressman.
Local 4 spoke with Pennington on the phone Friday: “I violated my probation, yes, BUT I’m in the process of handling that though with my lawyer and my mother.”While Pennington’s criminal history looks bad politically, the fact that he apparently wasn’t registered to vote, required by Michigan law for petition gatherers, is more problematic for Conyers’ campaign.
However, Pennington claims records that do not show him as a registered voter are wrong.“Yes, I registered to vote,” he said. “Yes, I sure did and I don’t know why they’re coming after me. I believe they’re using me as a scapegoat.”
Ultimately, though, Pennington’s voter status may not matter because he admits making untruthful statements on petition forms. Pennington told Local 4 that he never lived at the address listed as his residence on petitions forms. Still, he remains adamant that he did nothing wrong.
“I am a registered voter there,” he said. “As long as I am a registered at that address no matter if I move, say if I move, so long as I’m registered there I can still use that address.”While Conyers’ faces the daunting task of running for re-election as a write-in, Pennington’s fate appears to be significantly more grim.
The Michigan Department of Corrections said Pennington could face between 17 months and 15 years in prison for violating his probation.
Why should Conyers care? He’s got his lifetime Congressional Pension all lined up and ready to go. With all those daunting tasks ahead to run as a write-in, perhaps he really will take the hint…and simply retire.
Tags: Detroit, John Conyers, Michigan
