Constitutional Sheriffs Advertise With Lamar Billboards
The extremist Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association placed billboards on Iowa鈥檚 highways after signing a deal with Lamar Advertising. Constitutional Sheriffs leader Richard Mack then pitched a national billboard campaign to collaborators, including Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb. It was one of many times Mack reached out to Lamb for collaboration, according to emails Hatewatch obtained.
The Lamar Advertising Co., one of the largest outdoor advertisement companies in the world, signed a contract with a Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association (CSPOA) group to display billboards on Iowa highways even though they knew the signs to be 鈥減olitical,鈥� according to emails Hatewatch obtained. It鈥檚 not clear how many billboards were erected or for how long.
Gary Shawver, a retired well-drilling contractor from Wadena, Iowa, told Lamar account executive Mark Reeder on Nov. 22, 2021, that he was 鈥減romoting Sheriffs that follow the Constitution of the United States.鈥� The CSPOA espouses conspiracy theories and the debunked legal theory that sheriffs have final say on what laws to enforce in their counties. CSPOA鈥檚 leader, retired Sheriff Richard Mack, has called on sheriffs to investigate former President Donald Trump鈥檚 claims the 2020 election was stolen.
Shawver is a member of an organization called We the People for Constitutional Sheriffs, according to the Oelwein Register, a local Idaho newspaper. There is little public information about the group. Shawver told the Oelwin Register he and others formed the organization after seeing Mack give a presentation in Iowa in May 2021.
The back-and-forth between the company, commonly known as Lamar, and a member of the CSPOA group in Iowa raises questions about Lamar鈥檚 policy on allowing advertising to extremist organizations. Lamar claims to have over 363,000 displays across the U.S. and Canada. The company 聽its political billboards as a way to 鈥渢arget voters in key primary and battleground markets with the largest network of digital billboards in the U.S.鈥� in 鈥渢oday鈥檚 highly fragmented media environment.鈥�
Reeder asked Shawver on Nov. 22, 2021, for any art or ideas for the billboard. Then, Reeder informed Shawver that Lamar鈥檚 鈥渓egal dept is considering this Political [sic]鈥� and 鈥渨ill need to be prepaid.鈥�
Shawver replied: 鈥淚 will run this through an organization called 鈥楥onstitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officer鈥檚 Association鈥� otherwise known as CSPOA. I鈥檝e talked to the head of the organization, which I work with a lot.鈥� Shawver said the 鈥渢he invoice鈥� would go to CSPOA, and Mack 鈥渨ill pay it and it will show that the ad was paid for by the CSPOA or the organization鈥檚 name spelled out whichever he prefers [sic].鈥�
Shawver then informed Mack of the ad鈥檚 status and thanked him for his help.
Mack said: 鈥淧eople in IA wanted to put up some billboards and raised the funds to do so. So?鈥�
Lamar did not respond to requests for comment on the duration and cost of the advertisements, nor whether it has a policy on allowing extremist organizations to advertise on its billboards.聽
Antigovernment cooperation
Hatewatch did not obtain the entire conversation between Shawver and Reeder, only portions that Mack forwarded to Pinal County, Arizona, Sheriff Mark Lamb. Lamb is an ally of the CSPOA.
Mack said in the email, which he sent to 14 email addresses including Lamb鈥檚, that the 鈥渂illboard was funded and arranged by our CSPOA group in Iowa. Maybe it鈥檚 a project that we should take nationwide.鈥�
The emails further show that on May 16, 2022, Mack sought Lamb鈥檚 opinion on a joint press release between CSPOA and Protect America Now (PAN), another antigovernment sheriffs鈥� organization with which Lamb is involved.
Mack emailed Lamb the press release, which promoted debunked conspiracy theories that fraud caused former President Donald Trump to lose the 2020 election to President Joe Biden.
Mack asked: 鈥淥k, this is my edit and latest draft. What think ye?鈥�
The release says CSPOA and PAN 鈥渟tand united to call upon all Americans and Law Enforcement nationwide to come together in pursuit of the truth regarding the 2020 election.鈥� CSPOA 聽the press release in May 2022. PAN did not appear in the release.
Mack told Hatewatch he did not recall why PAN did not appear on the press release. Mack said he did not recall how much the advertising campaign cost, but said he was 鈥渟urprised鈥� at how little it was. He also said the billboards were up for approximately two years.
Mack disputed the CSPOA鈥檚 designation as an extremist organization. He said he has 鈥渘ever advocated violence or committed violence鈥� and is not racist. The Southern Poverty Law Center considers antigovernment groups those who view the U.S. government as 鈥渢yrannical鈥� and espouse conspiracy theories, among other reasons.聽
Lauren Reimer, the Pinal County Sheriff鈥檚 Office public information officer, told Hatewatch the sheriff鈥檚 office 鈥渉as no involvement with either CSPOA or Protect America Now.鈥� The office was not active in discussion surrounding the billboards nor the press release, Reimer said.
The release promoted Dinesh D鈥橲ouza鈥檚 debunked 2000 Mules documentary. The documentary uses the geotracking data from cell phones in five swing states before the election. Conspiracy group True the Vote paid $2 million for the data, 聽to FactCheck.org.
The data allegedly showed that 2,000 cell phones were in the vicinity of ballot drop boxes and left-leaning nonprofits. The film posited that this meant the holders of these cell phones were 鈥渕ules,鈥� illegally paid to traffic ballots for Biden.
State agencies including the Georgia Bureau of Investigation 聽the evidence did not prompt sufficient probable cause to investigate the claims. Geotracking experts told FactCheck.org that True the Vote鈥檚 data was not accurate enough to reach the conclusions in the film.
Mack鈥檚 release asked 鈥渁ll local law enforcement agencies to work together to pursue investigations to determine the veracity of the 鈥�2000 Mules鈥� information.鈥�
He further wrote that if 2000 Mules聽鈥渋s wrong, then we want that exposed.鈥�
But a previous email suggests Mack did not believe 2000 Mules聽could be wrong. On May 13, 2022, Mack sent Lamb an article from far-right fake news site WND (formerly WorldNetDaily). The article claimed Georgia officials were intimidating 2000 Mules investigators.
Mack wrote that CSPOA had 鈥渂een in contact with the investigators at the front of the documentary 鈥�2000 Mules鈥� 鈥�. The article below makes me believe that [Georgia] authorities are trying to ruin the investigation.鈥�
The CSPOA head said he needed to discuss the issue with Lamb. 鈥淚 have seen the movie and it is irrefutable.鈥�
Mack continued his election denial into 2022, the emails show.
On Nov. 29, 2022, Mohave County Board of Supervisors chairman Ron Gould 聽local Arizona radio station KTAR News 92.3 that he had no choice but to certify the results of the Nov. 8, 2022, general election in Mohave County, or 鈥淚鈥檒l be charged with a felony.鈥� A recording of Gould鈥檚 comments also went public on a verified Twitter account for Alex Nicoll, an Arizona Republican strategist.
That same day, Mack asked Lamb why Mohave County, Arizona, Sheriff Doug Schuster was 鈥渘ot investigating this crime mentioned by the county supervisor in this video.鈥�
Mack asked Lamb if Schuster made 鈥渢he threat鈥� and requested a follow-up.
Gould told KTAR News 92.3 that the county attorney informed him he would be charged with a felony if he didn鈥檛 certify the election.
No documents show Lamb responded to Mack via email.
