Might Arpaio and Maricopa County Republicans be starting to freak out?

Respect Arizona, the committee organized to recall Sheriff Joseph Arpaio, was out with volunteers at numerous locations today throughout Maricopa County collecting signatures.

As if they didn't have anything constructive to do with their time, Arpaio supporters, including notable Tempe whack job Ann Heins did their best to disrupt the effort, but failed.

Ms. Heins, who at times seems incapable of exercising appropriate filters on what comes out of her mouth, was captured on a brief video today. Notice that at the beginning of the clip, a volunteer is explaining to Heins that she is not welcome to interfere with the collection of signatures for the recall. As soon as she recognizes she's being recorded on video, she launches into an explanation of her facetious alternative petition.

The industrious Ms. Heins has a clipboard... and a petition. And she says her petition "is better than your petition." Why? Well, her petition is to give citizens and non-citizens free food, iPhones, medical care, cars, and housing.

I say she's industrious because in addition to an apparently successful (not that I have any way of verifying) real estate business, she ran an aborted campaign for election to the Tempe City Council in 2011; is apparently active in the Tea Party (and had a campaign related group on freedomworks.org); and also in 2011 found time to be an all around P.I.T.A. at hearings and business meetings conducted by the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission. At the hearing in Mesa, she was among a handful of people handing out flyers before the meeting with some kind of false statements on copies printed with a heading pilfered from the AIRC website.

From two witnesses to Heins' exploits today, this is what I understand took place:

While gathering signatures at the library this seemingly sweet lady came with her petition. She immediately began yelling at me that my petitions were invalid and she was "calling the sergeant". Her group she told us was petitioning to give all US and non US citizens free food, iPhones, medical care, cars and free housing. She told us her petitions were better then our petitions, that she had every right to be there and when her phone rang in the middle of her stump speech she stated "that's the police.". Mind you this was all within the first minute of her walking up. I agreed "absolutely" she had every right to be there and went about my business. She never approached anyone to sign her petition but as soon as someone was signing for me she began yelling at the petitioner that her petition was better. One petitioner finally turned to her and said "Stop talking to me please", gave her the international symbol for talk to the hand and finished signing. This went on for a short while before security came out. Security told this seemingly sweet lady that she could be there but not to harass the library patrons. This dear woman told the female security guard "You're gay!"! Later while talking with a library official this sweet lady continued berating the security guard and the police were in fact called. The lady was told to leave and if she returned she would be arrested for trespassing. The entire time I kept getting signatures. The strategy was to cause a ruckus thus discouraging people from signing. It didn't work, I had more people sign this week than last week and registered two more voters.

The next person who witnessed Heins' childish behavior wrote this:

The police were called... First a woman [pretending to be] asking for signatures on a petition asking for free healthcare, cell phones, on & on for anyone crossing the border. She was yelling & interfering as one of our people was trying to get a signature. The woman signing told her she wasn't interested & to go away. The officer at the library witnessed the discussion & asked the woman to back off. She then talked to her a ways away & the woman said "You're gay". Another policeman was called & she [Heins] ultimately was banned from the Library for a year. 

The friend who took the pic posted above and who shared the video with me also told me that Tempe Library security advised him that Ann Heins has been banned from that facility for one year and that if she enters the property again, she will be arrested and charged with trespassing.

Arpaio and the Maricopa County Republicans sure have some doozies helping their (and perhaps inadvertently, our) cause.