Arizona sheriff promises Obama-eligibility probe

Arizona sheriff promises Obama-eligibility probe:

MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. – At the request of tea party leaders in Arizona, famed Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has promised to investigate the validity of Barack Obama's purported long-form birth certificate in a determination of the president's eligibility for the county's 2012 election ballot.

Tea party leaders in Surprise, Ariz., met with Arpaio and WND senior reporter Jerome Corsi Thursday morning to express concern that a fake birth certificate would be used to document the president's eligibility to run in Maricopa County, where Arpaio is the chief law enforcement officer.

Arpaio's tough crackdown on illegal immigration has made him a national figure.

At a one-hour meeting in Arpaio's office, the tea party leaders presented the sheriff with a petition that was drafted after a speech by Corsi the previous night. Corsi, author of a best-selling book challenging Obama's eligibility, "Where's the Birth Certificate?", presented evidence from numerous computer-imaging specialists who believe the document presented by the White House April 27 is not authentic.