Kanjo looks to the future and wants to bury the past

Kanjorski sees change in atmosphere

U.S. Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski won a 14th term in Congress earlier this month and for the first time in a dozen years, he’s poised to join a House where his party is in the majority. The Nanticoke resident, who will turn 70 in April and appears to be in no hurry to retire, now has reason to stick around.

In the interview he notes that he is now the 2nd ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee and has his pick of what sub-committee he wants to chair. This is a big deal because the nuts and bolts of lawmaking is done in the sub-committees. He says it will give him an opprotunity to bring home the bacon in the form of Wall Street West. He wants to work with incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi "to bring civility back to the House."

Q: What do you think Democrats can reasonably accomplish in the next two years?

A: I think we’ll definitely get a change in the minimum wage … I think we can get a better competitive program on (Medicare) prescription drugs, which will lessen the cost of those drugs to the government … We have to do that. Nobody can justify why this nation’s people, not only those who get it through Medicare and Medicaid, but the general population are paying so much more than every other industrial nation in the world … All the other governments of the world do negotiate their drug prices.

Q: What else do you think you can do?

A: I think we’re really going to have to start looking at how we got into a war like Iraq and what future wars are out there. We can’t change that disaster now but we can hope and put into place things that should lessen the likelihood that the president can make that mistake again.

We'll see about that. Since WWII the Congress has abdicated its power to declare war. My view is if its important enough to fight and die for the people through their elected represenatives should follow the constitution and make a formal Declaration of War. Not pass a resolution such as Tonken Gulf or the last one giving the OK to the Iraq debacle.

Then there is Cornerstone Technologies.

Rep. Kanjorski denies avoiding deposition concerning firm controlled by his nephews.

Steering $9 million of taxpayer money to a firm owned by your relatives sure doesn't look good. Especially when the company goes belly up and has nothing to show for this "investment." Now the whole thing is wrapped up in litigation and the judge in the case had some choice words:

On Monday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Conrad confronted Cornerstone President Peter A. Kanjorski, the congressman’s nephew, saying the bankruptcy was aimed at preventing “yourself and your uncle from being deposed...I’ve sat through this case for four years, and I’ve watched the most twisted, obstructive effort to deny discovery that I have ever seen,” Judge William F. Moran said while ordering the contempt proceeding during a Sept. 5 hearing. “Maybe the people who are involved in this think they are immune from the law because of who they are. But they’re not in this county,” Moran said, according to a hearing transcript.