If you think the controversy over President Obama's birth certificate is old news, think again.

"The mainstream media has not given this fair treatment," said political commentator, author and Denville resident Jerome Corsi, who spoke to a supportive, standing-room-only crowd Tuesday evening at the . "But this is not going away. … We really don't know who our president is." Corsi, who holds a doctorate degree in political science from Harvard University, has written several books that many critics dismiss as conspiracy theory riddled with inaccuracies. His influence among conservatives and Tea Party faithful, though, is strong enough that two of his books have landed on the New York Times' best-seller List.

As an author, he gained national attention with the 2004 publication of "Unfit to Command: Swift Boat Veterans Speak Out Against John Kerry," which questioned the war record and subsequent anti-war activism of the former Democratic presidential candidate. In 2008, he published "The Obama Nation," which painted Barak Obama as a radical leftist with strong ties to Islam. Both books were best-sellers, with the latter hitting the No. 1 position of the Times' hardcover nonfiction list. Tuesday in Morristown, he embraced the so-called "birther" movement that theorizes Obama was not born in the United States and is therefore not eligible for the office of president. Prior to his hour-long presentation in the second-floor meeting room of the lodge, Corsi did a brisk business in the lobby, selling and signing copies of his 2011 book, "Where's the Birth Certificate?"

The capacity crowd of about 250 people included several prominent Morris County Republicans, including Morris County Sheriff Edward Rochford, Assemblyman Anthony M. Bucco, Freeholder Thomas J. Mastrangelo, Morris Township Committeeman and former Mayor Scott Rosenbush and Morris County Republican Committee Chairman John Sette. "I don't do many local events, I like to stay out of local politics, but we did one not too long ago and the interest was great," Corsi said.

According to the organizers, Corsi's appearance last year at a Randolph Republican drew such a positive reaction that they looked for a larger venue in the area to meet the demand.

"We've been using the lodge as a meeting place for various grass-roots events and it seemed ideal for this," said Billy Baer of Harding Township, who helped to organize the event with Randolph Resident Dan Haggerty. Baer and Haggerty cohost the radio program "Patriot's Watch" on WNJC AM, which serves the Philadelphia area. Haggerty described his show as sympathetic to libertarian and conservative viewpoints.

Baer added the lodge was not a sponsor or affiliated with the event and the volunteers staffing the event, including members of the Americans for Liberty, had to pay for rent, equipment and the free hot buffet served before Corsi's talk. There was no charge to attend the event and Corsi was not paid for his participation, Haggerty said.