Senate 14 update

A press release from Ed Mitchell


COURT DOCUMENTS SHOW YUDICHAK LINKS TO BONUSGATE ACTIVITIES

WILKES-BARRE — Official court documents filed by state attorney general Tom Corbett at the courthouse in Dauphin County show state Rep. John Yudichak, D- Nanticoke to be an active player in the ‘Bonusgate’ scandal of the Pennsylvania Legislature (see attachment).

E-mails to Yudichak link him directly to an indicted former legislator who is charged in the ‘Bonusgate’ trials.

Court papers filed in the indictment of former state Rep. Steve Stetler, who was head of the House campaign committee, show Yudichak participated in the use of state employee personnel and services for political purposes.

E-mails sent to Yudichak’s official taxpayer-funded legislature account show communication to him on behalf of former state Rep. Tom Tigue’s, D- Pittston, campaign for reelection that links Yudichak to the use of state employees on taxpayer time doing political work in the campaign.

The e-mails further question Yudichak on his political activity on behalf of Tigue.

“John Yudichak is part of the Bonusgate corruption scandal in Harrisburg. He has a number of questions that should be answered, “ Tom Leighton said. He asked Yudichak:

“What was your relationship with indicted Rep. Steve Stetler in regard to political activities on the state dime for Tom Tigue? How did you benefit?

“What services did PAC 102 provide to the tune of $8,000 for your current campaign? Did Marty O’Rourke or his company provide any services to your campaign? O’Rourke worked for Tigue and is the spokesman for indicted former Speaker of the House, John Perzel.

“Who runs PAC 102? Who are the officers? Detail your current and past relationship with them.

“Was any state legislature’ political activity using taxpayers’ funds used in behalf of your current or previous campaigns?

“What was Steve Stetler talking to you about in his email to your taxpayer-funded email account? Were you doing political activity using taxpayer-funded services?

“When you did work for Tigue’s campaign, were government staff on taxpayer time used?

“What were you trying to find out about then-Monroe County Commissioner, Donna Asure, Tigue’s election opponent, from the opposition research, performed at taxpayer expense that you are linked to in the Tigue campaign and the Stetler email?

“Did you arrange for housing for the staffer mentioned in the Stetler/Tigue email, as you were asked to do by Stetler?

“Did you know, as the e-mail suggests that this research was being done using government employees, and facilities?” Leighton asked.

“These documents show that John Yudichak is tied to the culture of corruption known as Bonusgate, in Harrisburg.

“He campaigns as a reformer while he avails himself of per diems to pay his personal mortgage and of all the other perks and political benefits of the broken system. These services were generally provided using taxpayer funded staff and services. That’s illegal and it’s also hypocritical,” Leighton said.


From SPPE



Yudichak response


The careening Leighton campaign has officially gone off the rails with today's despicable, scurrilously false insinuations. Tom Leighton's utter lack of ethical integrity and willingness to engage in the worst sort of dirty, gutter politics clearly indicates that his campaign has imploded beyond recognition.

Tom Leighton for months has deliberately and willfully mislead the voters about his role in writing a get out of jail free letter for a convicted felon caught up in the worst corruption scandal in Luzerne County history. The record is clear on how each candidate responded to the culture of corruption in northeastern Pennsylvania. I stood with the people and voted to strip public pensions from corrupt politicians. Tom Leighton wrote a letter to get a convicted felon a lighter sentence.

Tom Leighton has already demonstrated that he will evade the truth to serve his political ambitions. Now, he wants to abandon the truth all together and make wild allegations that have no merit or basis in reality. At no point in time have I ever had contact with the Attorney General's Office in conjunction with the Bonusgate investigation. I have consistently and openly challenged the leaders involved in the Bonusgate scandal. The same cannot be said of some of Tom Leighton's biggest political friends and contributors.

It's also reprehensible of Leighton to impugn the integrity of former State Representative Tom Tigue, a decorated Vietnam war hero, an honorable man, and an effective legislator. For 12 years as State Representative, I have adhered to the highest ethical standards.

I have been lauded by good government watchdog groups for voting in the best interests of the people I represent and conducting myself in an open, honest and transparent manner. I was one of a very few elected officials who voted 'No' and refused to accept the legislative pay raise and pension hike. Yet, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, the desperate Leighton campaign has once again resorted to more of the same filthy political tricks that voters have rejected.

Today's maliciously false insinuations are the handiwork of Ed Mitchell who is running Tom Leighton by remote control and whose last notable accomplishment was helping to elect three corrupt judges in Luzerne County. It's time to put an end to this reign of corruption in northeastern PA and the win-at-any-cost mentality. It's time for Tom Leighton to do the right thing and salvage what tiny shred of integrity he may have left because he cannot salvage his campaign.