Bonds, Luzerne County bonds

The Luzerne County Commissioners voted the other day to spend some left over bond money on things it wasn't originally borrowed for. I've been complaining about this sort of shell game as long as I have been blogging.


The bond money came from $32.5 million borrowed in November 2003 to fund Susquehanna River recreation improvements. The bond document did not earmark funding for particular projects, which means commissioners are free to spend the money as they see fit.

Tim (take your hat off) Grier has made the same objection and points out that that bonds are supposed to be used for long term capitol improvements not everyday operating expenses. County Budget/Finance Chief Sam Diaz, and noted debit card abuser, said there is no legal requirement to use the money on projects that will last as long as repayment. I think he is wrong on that point. Even if he isn't the county government shouldn't be borrowing money for one thing and spend it on another. A few years ago they borrowed $9 million to build a new juvi prison then gave a sweetheart lease to a Pittston facility that the state objected to and had to terminate the lease. Then last December they used that money as Christmas presents for all sorts of projects that had nothing to do with the reason for borrowing the money in the first place.

Diaz also detailed the shortfalls of the last piece of fiction that was passed off as the county budget.

In other business Thursday, Diaz released a report explaining how the county ended 2007 with a $13 million deficit.
The report blames the deficit on a $16.8 million revenue shortfall, predominantly due to the county’s failure to meet projections in the following areas: current-year tax collections, $5.3 million; prior-year tax collection, $4 million; sale of county-owned land, $4.5 million; securing of state probation grants, $637,700; and federal transportation grants, $503,000.

Now they want to use $2.5 million of the proposed new bond issue to buy some land from Louis DeNaples when they can't sell the land they were counting on the help balance this year's budget. WTF?

Grier has offered to drop his challenge to the latest $93.5 million Bond issue if the Commissioners would just explain in detail what the money will be spent on. To me that's a reasonable request but they won't do it. And even if they did spell out how the money will be spent the way the thing is worded lets them spend the money on other things. Am I just becoming an old cynical bastard that doesn't trust the government?

Wilkes-Barre attorney Pete Moses, who is handling the county’s bond borrowing legal matters, on Friday declined to say if the county will accept Grier’s offer. Moses said he finds it "curious" that Grier wants to settle at this stage and is surprised Grier went public with his interest in settling.

It should be noted that Peter Moses looks to make a pretty penny on the bond issue and is billing the county for his work on this challenge. He has the best of both worlds. It makes you wonder why the county would bring in a hired gun who has a financial interest in seeing the bond succeed when they have so many other solicitors on the payroll.

And Commissioner Greg Skrepenak said the debit card abuse is "not criminal." It may not be but if I used a company card to buy drinks at a strip club or a $800 dinner tab with a $300 booze bill or pay for my kids hotel bill I'm sure I would be on the business end of a bread line

Home Rule petitions

In 2003 the Luzerne County Home Rule charter was defeated 54%-46% with the help of both political parties. Democratic Commissioner candidates Greg Skrepnak and Todd Vonderheid argued the structure of the county government wasn't the problem but the people in charge had let us down. Trust us they said, we are a breath of fresh air. Well, we all know how that has turned out. Fictitious county budgets full of lies about imaginary revenues. Sweetheart deals to the well connected. State and Federal investigations into the business practices of the county and the people charged with keeping the public trust. Debit Cards used at strip clubs, no-bid contracts, falsifying tax liens, a fantasy airport, cronies hired for important jobs and when their incompetence was exposed they were shuffled off to other less visible county jobs. The list is almost endless. And bonds, bonds and more bonds just to meet payroll and keep the county operating.

We have a chance to fix this reign of incompetence.

Luzerne Home Rule

Luzerne Home Rule is proud to announce that it is now time to start circulating petitions to place Home Rule on the ballot in May. Click here to download yours today!


4,790 valid signatures are needed to get it on the May primary ballot that would elect another study commission that would draft a new home rule charter. If they use the 2003 Charter proposal with some tinkering it could be on the ballot in November.

Lou Barletta needs to read the Constitution

Congressman Lou Barletta sent me this email yesterday


Dear Gort --
This week, Congress will vote on a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution. A Balanced Budget Amendment would put an end to Washington’s out of control spending.

In fact, it’s a measure 74% of Americans agree with, yet Washington Democrats are labeling those of us who support a balanced budget as “extremists!”Extremists?!?

Hardly. 49 of the 50 states have balanced budget requirements.

Decades of reckless spending brought us to the mess we’re currently in. You sent me to Washington to fix it. A Balanced Budget Amendment will do just that.

The solution to this problem isn’t complicated. If you’re spending more money than you’re taking in, you need to spend less of it. Unfortunately, Washington’s career politicians just can’t seem to control themselves so a Constitutional amendment is a necessary step.

President Obama has already made it known that he will veto the Balanced Budget Amendment if it passes in Congress.
--Lou

Article V of the US Constitution says that an amendment must be passed by two thirds of the House and Senate then ratified by three fourths of the State Legislatures.

The President can not veto a Constitutional Amendment!

In addition to learning what is in the constitution he needs to learn something about history and economics. A law is not needed to balance the budget because there was a surplus as recently as 2000 under our last Democratic President until the Republicans decided tax cuts were more important than balancing the books. If such a requirement existed in the 1940's the United States would not have been able to fight WWII or before that deal with the great depression.

How do you even define a balanced budget? It's a very technical question. Who would decide if the budget is actually in balance if there is a dispute, the Supreme Court? It would take years to get a ruling. Will there be exceptions for war or recessions? Yes, the states have a requirement to have a balanced budget but they issue bonds for projects such as building roads and bridges that can't be paid for out of current taxes. If this actually passes would it eliminate T-Bills and Savings Bonds?

The Constitution is about rights and processes not specific policies. Prohibition was a policy that was added to the constitution that had disastrous results and was later repealed. A budget is a policy document that should be decided in the political arena of Congress and elections.

Bonds, Luzerne County bonds

Bond issue nets county $72.3 M

County closes on $87M+ bond deal

I know that you have to borrow money to pay for things you can't pay for today (house, car, appliances) but will be able to pay off in a reasonable period of time and government has to do the same thing. The trick is not to get in over your head and don't borrow for things you want instead of what you need. That's why I have a problem with this latest bond issue. The last time I checked Luzerne County was on the hook for over $300 million in principle and interest payments over the next 20 years. Remember that a bond is only a loan against future taxes. The list of projects in the TL doesn't have many details on what the money will spent on and the Luzerne County Commissioners in the past have had a bad habit of borrowing money for one purpose and spending it on another. Shall I remind you of one thing that is in the news:

In 2003 $9 million was borrowed to build a new for a new county-owned juvenile detention facility. It was never built because the Bond Brothers (Skrep and Vondy) decided to sign a 20 year $58 million lease with a private company, PA Child Care, that was owned by a business partner of a couple of local judges. Instead of returning the money or holding on to it to deal with a future emergency that eventually came they spent it on other projects.

Pack the board

The three Luzerne County Commissioners and the county controller sit on the salary board with row officers and the president judge having a fifth vote on the Salary Board for matters concerning their offices.

TL: But county officials have changed the rules in recent months by allowing department heads to cast a fifth vote.

I read the papers every day and didn't notice when that happened. Controller-elect Walter Griffith is being cautious before he blasts this change in procedure wanting to make sure he is on firm legal ground. County Solicitor Vito DeLuca said he recommended that department heads be allowed to vote based on his interpretation of the state County Code. I didn't know that the county solicitor could change the law. The TL story doesn't have any comment from Maryanne Petrilla or Greg Skrepenak. Steve Urban said he does not believe department heads have legal authority to vote.

In other county news Luzerne County government will receive $18.2 million in borrowed funds this week, even though the county was unable to secure bond insurance...Financial Security Assurance Inc., the primary insurer of government bonds, had expressed concerns about insuring the deal. Specifically, FSA wanted a guarantee in writing that the county won’t continue borrowing and refinancing to cover deficit spending.

Isn't this great, Luzerne County is now floating the equivalent of Junk Bonds.

Luzerne County bond update

Grier’s fight with county continues

Tim Grier has asked the Commonwealth Court to prevent Luzerne County from borrowing $93.5 million while he challenges it in court. The county also argued that public interest “will be harmed” by a delay in issuing the bonds because the proceeds will fund important projects.

Grier has a sensible response saying most of the bond proceeds have not yet been allocated to “identifiable projects.”

“A review of the ordinance in question proves this,” Grier’s response says. “If the projects have not yet been identified, let alone been subject to planning and cost estimates, how could the county be harmed by a stay in issuing the bonds to support these unidentified projects?”

Grier proposed the county use the delay to continue planning and producing cost estimates.

Go Tim.

HomeRule

Bonds at 712

The Phils host the Giants tonight. Barry Bonds is 3 dingers away from passing the Babe. The Phillies have won 5 in a row and evened their record. All the talk is about steroids, so what. Baseball has a long tradition of cheating. Why is this different than emory boards, spit balls or corked bats?

The S&P downgrade, so what

My friends on the right seem to cheering the S&P downgrade of US debt to AA saying it's the death knell of the Obama presidency. They ignore the reports assertion that


"Compared with previous projections, our revised base case scenario now assumes that the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, due to expire by the end of 2012, remain in place. We have changed our assumption on this because the majority of Republicans in Congress continue to resist any measure that would raise revenues, a position we believe Congress reinforced by passing the act."
The Lu Lac Political Letter

So they dropped the credit rating of the United States Government because Republicans won't agree to raise taxes to cut the deficit and Republicans cheer. Why do these people hate America?

The S&P has some credibility problems that the Treasury pointed out.

Just the Facts: S&P's $2 Trillion Mistake

The reaction of the markets was to buy more US Treasury bonds and sell off stocks, go figure that out teabaggers. I wish someone would lend me money at 2.3% for 10 years.

The deficit is a long term problem but the immediate problem in that people don't have jobs.

Apostate Bush underling explains


The Downgrade Rally

The bond market has reacted to the S&P downgrade of US debt with a big rally in US Treasuries. As I write, the US government can borrow money for 10 years at about 2.3% and for 2 years at under one quarter of a point. The market wants to buy, buy, buy US debt.

What the market wants to sell are stocks: ie, claims on the future earnings of private-sector companies.

In other words, the market is saying: We fear recession and deflation. The Washington consensus is that we need to fight debt and inflation. It’s utterly upside down, utterly perverse.

I don't agree with David Frum and Andrew Sullivan about everything but respect that they are open minded. A quality sorely missing in American politics today.

A side note: I put in buy orders for 2 stocks that I like if the price falls far enough. I'm an optimist who believes in American Exceptialism and believes the stocks I buy today will be worth more 10 years from now.

Local reaction has been a bit over the top:

See you at the thrift store


The Lu Lac Political Letter


McGruff

Bonds, not Barry

“We write our bond issues generically"-Luzerne County Budget and Finance Chief Sam Diaz

After the pre-election lies about a balanced budget Commissioner Greg Skrepenak and placeholder Rose Tucker voted to borrow $93.5 million to finance this year's deficit and fund some projects on the wish list. That brings overall debt to roughly $419 million in principal and interest through 2026 according to the TL. That's up from $309 million this year. Debt service will rise from $10.5 million this year to $22.2 million in 2008 and how will they finance the resulting shortfall? Float a Bond!

This is starting to look like using a Visa cash advance to pay a MasterCard bill.

Luzerne County scandals

No indictments yet but the buzz says it's just a matter of days. I've lost track of how many investigations are going on in the county.


The latest one is about the theft of funds from the treasurer’s office that DA Jackie Mo handed off to the FBI. I'm sure if someone gets caught with their fingers in the till they will get house arrest just like Robert Pritchard and Carl Salitis.


The more serious probe centers on the tangled web involving Judges Mike Conahan and Mark Ciavarella with PA Child Care owners Robert Powell and would be Hazleton Airport builder Greg Zapalla. Prothonotary Jill Moran also has ties to a company, W-Cat Inc., that they all have money invested in.


Then there is the Debit Card scandal that the Secret Service is investigating and the no bid contracts at the prison that some secret police outfit is supposed to be looking into.


I need a scorecard to keep track of all of this. Will someone help me out?


Luzerne County's greatest hits, so far:

Debit Cards

Sam Hyder

Luzerne County Prison

Bonds

No Bid Contracts

The Latest Outrage in Luzerne County



Did I miss something?


HOME RULE

Luzerne County scandals

SCRANTON – The U.S. Secret Service has concluded its initial investigation into the Luzerne County debit card scandal and has turned over the results to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for review, a federal prosecutor said Wednesday.

Forget the Secret Service and the US Attorney General the agency that matters in this is the IRS. I think it's pretty simple. If the people who had the debit cards in 2006 and charged personal expenses to it without declaring it as income on that year's 1040 should have to answer to charges of tax evasion.

Also, there has to be a Pennsylvania law about then County Manager/Chief Clerk Sam Guesto having a slush fund to pay the bills for Sam Hyder's trips to strip bars, etc. that then Controller Maryanne Petrilla claims she was not aware of. I don't know if any federal laws were broken but the PA Auditor General and Attorney General should be all over this.


Some of my previous posts on this and other related subjects:

Debit Cards

Sam Hyder

Luzerne County Prison

Bonds

No Bid Contracts

The Latest Outrage in Luzerne County

Luzerne County Controller

The county Republicans are looking for a sweep of the 3 row offices up for election this year and many local political observers have told me if they don't win this time they never will. Next to the Commissioners the most important job under the dome is Controller. The candidates are Republican Walter Griffith , Democrat Bob Morgan and Independent Wil Toole.


Toole is a long time Democratic politico from Pittston who flirted with a run for the Democratic nomination in the spring and applied for the job in 2008 when Maryanne Petrilla became Commissioner. Rapid Edward never got around to filling the post. He is now running as an Independent.

Toole was the first Controller candidate interviewed by the Times Leader Editorial Board and sometimes sounds like Rodney King. “I don’t know why we have to be at war. I don’t know why we can’t say, ‘This is wrong. Let’s fix it,’ rather than, ‘Ha, ha, ha, I got you.’ I just don’t see that as being necessary.” He touts his achievements as Pittston's as city clerk/administrator "I ran the city of Pittston for 13 years,” Toole said the city had low tax rates, paved roads, pristine parks, adequate staff, an over-funded pension fund and manageable debt load when he left in 1997.

The article also notes that Toole made headlines in 1999 when he agreed to repay Pittston nearly $19,000 in overtime the city said he illegally obtained. Pittston officials said he obtained that money by inflating the hours of overtime he worked during his last year of employment as city clerk. Felony charges of theft and tampering with public records against Toole were dismissed by a county judge. Who was the Judge?

I find it amazing that the TL would include that information in the article but not ask him to comment about it. I have asked Toole for his side of the story and will publish his response if he answers.


The Blogfather has been researching the PNC Bank ethics policy because Democratic nominee Bob Morgan is employed by that bank. He points out many potential conflicts of interest because PNC has been involved financing Luzerne County bonds and some pension funds also wash through PNC. The company prohibits outside employment that interferes with the employee's job responsibilities or schedule. Morgan is on record as saying he will keep his job at the bank and will devote whatever time he feels is necessary to the Controller's position. I'm just guessing but I think he keeps banker's hours so how is he going to be available for all the meetings of the Salary Board, Retirement Board, Commissioner's meetings and just running the day to day operations of the office? Maybe he has a lot of vacation time saved up.


The Lu Lac Political Letter is hosting a debate between the candidates at Bentley’s, Route 309 in Ashley Tuesday October 27th from 7 to 9PM. All three candidates have accepted David's invitation.

This is neat. A venue that I can grab a drink then go to a political debate. I think that we can make this into a blogger/committee meetup.


Update: The date for the debate is MONDAY OCT. 26th. We changed the date because of WVIA TV's broadcast debate on the night of the 27th. We felt it wouldn't be fair to the candidates to compete with that. So the debate is Monday, Oct. 26th

Skrep asks if law was broken

There is a first for everything. Please stop laughing before you read the rest of this post.

TL: Luzerne County Commissioner Greg Skrepenak is questioning the legality of an e-mail from board Chairwoman Maryanne Petrilla, saying he believes it meets the definition of deliberation that should have taken place at a public meeting..."Is that a violation of the Sunshine Act? Are we able to use the computer to make decisions? I’m very curious about that issue,” Skrepenak said Thursday.

He raises a valid point but where was he when every other legally questionable thing that has happened in the last few years. He usually made excuses like it was a mistake because they all (debit cards) look alike or the policy or law was not understood by the people involved. Although they were supposed to be hired because of their expertize and knowledge of the law. I'm glad that Greg spoke up about this incident because almost every other "bad news" story about the county would end with "Luzerne County Commissioner Greg Skrepenak was unavailable for comment."

Shall I list Luzerne County's greatest hits? It's hard to do because it is endless.

Debit Cards

Sam Hyder

Luzerne County Prison

Bonds

No Bid Contracts

The Latest Outrage in Luzerne County


As one of Dana's favorite actors would say ...excertera...excertera.

More on the Debt Limit

A comment on my last post: if the dems were doing this you would call then heros(sic), standing on ideals.


No I wouldn't and the Dems have never been this irresponsible. As I wrote
The debt limit was raised 18 times under President Reagan and 7 times when Dubya occupied the the White House.

Every economist in the country left, right and center have warned against a default on the debt. Should the US government run out of authority to issue new debt instruments such as T-Bills and Savings Bonds the entire world economy would be impacted. The first thing that would happen is the stock market would crash wiping out a big chunk of wealth not only for the big investors but everyone with a mutual fund, 401K or IRA.

Then interest rates would go through the roof and people will not be able to afford to buy a car, a house or anything else you usually buy on credit such as appliances, etc. Business will not be able to replenish inventories or upgrade plant or expand.

If people in our consumer driven economy can't buy stuff that will lead to widespread unemployment.

There would be one positive effect, sort of. The price of gasoline would drop to below $2 a gallon because of a collapse in demand.

The Republicans forcing a government shutdown is playing with dynamite. Threatening not to raise the debt ceiling is playing with nuclear weapons.

More bonds or maybe not

“I’m tired of being the scapegoat, and things are going to change around here. Everyone else is going to be accountable, too.” -DebitCardmmissioner Greg Skrepenak

County Budget Finance Chief Sam Diaz is predicting the sky will fall because Luzerne County might not be able to issue yet another bond because taxpayer Timothy Grier, of Wilkes-Barre, filed complaints with the state Department of Community and Economic Development to stop commissioners from borrowing $80.05 million to fund capital projects and the county deficit.

Tim's response:

Luzerne County Commissioner Greg Skrepenak, in regards to a possible county government shut-down, is quoted in one of today’s local papers as stating, “We have a very serious issue.”

All of the issues in county government are serious; Mr. Skrepenak is one of MANY at the Luzerne County Courthouse who are apparently just now figuring that out. Sadly, I believe that Commissioner Skrepenak and the rest of his cronies think that this is some type of game, as they continue to treat this issue as a matter of politics rather than policy. While American soldiers continue to die overseas for a government they believe in back home, Greg Skrepenak and political hacks like himself throughout Luzerne County continue to betray those individuals and their families.

Commissioner Skrepenak and the friends he hired ignored a policy the commissioner himself helped to create; they deceived us and bilked us out of tens of thousands of dollars so they could live like kings while the taxpayers were treated like peasants. These morally bankrupt individuals continue to remain unapologetic and refuse to acknowledge the gravity of their mistakes.

Have I made mistakes in life? Certainly. Not a one of us is perfect. The best we can do is get up every day and try to be the best we can be. Mr. Skrepenak, Mr. Hyder, Mr. Brace, and the rest of the crew at the Luzerne County Courthouse apparently get out of bed every day trying to figure out how to rip the rest of us off.

The petitions I submitted to DCED are clear. Deny the county’s requests to borrow as they stand, demand that the county follow the law and tell us what it intends to borrow the money for, and force the county to follow the guidelines for borrowing unfunded debt which are clearly established by the legislature.

Interestingly, just as Commissioner Skrepenak refuses to accept responsibility for the debit card fiasco, he is now trying to side-step my request. In another comment to Citizen’s Voice staff, Mr. Skrepenak claims, “We’re confident we can dispute any argument made.” I realize he is being told by his handlers, “stick to your guns, admit no shortcomings, give them nothing,” but Commissioner Skrepenak’s continued allegiance to those who paid for his campaign rather than to those who pay his salary may ultimately prove to be his downfall.

Mr. Skrepenak fails to understand the simple fact that if he follows the law, in this case the Local Government Unit Debt Act, I will withdraw my petitions. In fact, Commissioner Skrepenak, if you had done this from the beginning, it would not be such a grave issue today. I never would have had to file a complaint. This is now the quickest way to resolve this matter. There is no need to ask Commissioner Urban or anyone else to help you come up with a solution. The solution already exists; you continue to exacerbate the problem by trying to skirt the law.

I encourage everyone in Luzerne County to call on their state legislators and firmly, but politely, demand that this problem be rectified immediately and correctly – by the DCED forcing the county to follow the law. Contact information for state house and senate representatives can be found here:

http://www.house.state.pa.us/

http://www.pasen.gov/index.cfm

Swiderski out of PA-10 race

Swiderski Drops Out of Congressional Race; Focuses on Rebuilding County GOP

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Given the time constraints of tax season and a growing family, I have made a conscious decision to withdraw from the race for the Republican nomination for Congress in Pennsylvania's 10th Congressional District. Before announcing my candidacy I made a promise to my family and clients that they will take precedence over politics, and in keeping that promise I found it difficult to devote the amount of time necessary to effectively run a congressional campaign.

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A sincere thank you goes out to my wife for supporting my decision to run, to the thousands of wonderful people I have met along the campaign trail, and to the volunteers who worked hard on this grassroots campaign. I met many people who now call me their friend and hope to continue to strengthen the bonds of friendship over the next several years.

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I plan to stay active in the local party, beginning with making an objective and informed decision to support one of the other remaining candidates in this race and with rebuilding the Luzerne County Republican Party.

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I have not made a decision as to whom I will endorse but will do so after I meet with each of the three remaining GOP candidates in this race and discuss their positions on the issues.

The absence of an active Republican Party in Luzerne County has been and will continue to be a contributing factor in the number of unsuccessful races for our candidates on the county, state and federal level. Our current and future Republican candidates need the support of an active and organized county party here in Luzerne County. Our county party needs a leader, and I possess the qualities and character of a transformational leader. A good leader knows when to step up and when to step down.

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My intention of running for Congress is a clear indication that I have a sincere interest in entering public service, and my decision to withdraw from the race to focus on rebuilding the county party best serves the interests of the remaining candidates in the race, the voters of Luzerne County (and the rest of the district), and the Republican Party. My goal is to have the party reorganized by the end of April so that we can help elect and promote quality candidates running in November's election. I welcome your thoughts and anyone who is interested in helping me rebuild the party.

Skrep closes the debit card investigation

WILKES-BARRE -..."I have been informed by the proper authorities that the matter into the debit card situation has been closed," Luzerne County Commissioner Greg Skrepenak wrote in a May 11 letter to Acting Controller AJ Martinelli. "There were no criminal findings."

Martinelli denies the US Attorney has informed him that the investigation is closed and US Attorney Martin Carlson won't confirm or deny anything about any investigation. Skrep turned in receipts for about $2000 less than he charged on his card. He blamed that on poor eyesight as did Sam Hyder when he used his card in a strip club in Las Vegas.

All those that have been caught abusing the debit cards have supposedly paid back the charges that are not allowed. I would like to see one of the papers publish an accounting if they can get the numbers.

Republican Commissioner Steve Urban once said "We have a jail full of people who wish they could just pay it back."

If you are disappointed by the outcome of this investigation so far you can look forward to other scandals being swept under the rug.

Debit Cards

Sam Hyder

Luzerne County Prison

Bonds

No Bid Contracts

The Latest Outrage in Luzerne County

This is the short list. A few other things have come up such as health insurance benefits for unpaid prison board members and MORE.

The Debt Limit Farce

Up until 2011 the raising of the debt limit was just a a housekeeping chore that Congress had to go through occasionally. Whichever party that was  in power would vote to raise it  and the opposition against, usually unanimous on both sides. The debt limit was raised 18 times under President Reagan and 7 times when Dubya occupied the the White House

Saint Ronny even warned against not raising the limit:

"The full consequences of a default -- or even the serious prospect of default -- by the United States are impossible to predict and awesome to contemplate. Denigration of the full faith and credit of the United States would have substantial effects on the domestic financial markets and the value of the dollar."

When the Republicans took control of the Senate after the 1980 election it was time to raise the debt limit again and Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker met with his caucus and told them they had to vote to raise the debt ceiling. He got the usual objections from his members like "I never voted to increase the debt limit in my life", etc.  His response was the American people elected us to govern and now we must show them we are fit to govern. The Republicans then  all voted to increase it and all the Democrats voted against it. 

Now the Republicans are moving on from shutting down the government to threatening to blow up the world economy if they don't get their way. Do you know how many financial instruments are tied to the 30 year T-Bill? Not only in this country but around the world. If the Treasury has to decide between paying the interest on  the debt or issuing Social Security checks or paying other obligations there will be chaos not seen since 1929.

As I have said before these Tea Party people are not conservatives. They are anti-government anarchists. 

There is a way out of this ridiculous situation and Sen. Mitch McConnell of all people came up with it in 2011:

HP:
Under current law, Congress raises the debt ceiling, which allows the Treasury Department to issue more bonds to pay off debts and fund projects that Congress has already authorized. Raising the debt ceiling does not authorize or appropriate new spending, but merely settles old bills. 

Yet under McConnell's plan, which he called his "last-choice option," the White House would request an increase in the debt ceiling and Congress could only block that request with a veto-proof super majority -- effectively ceding control over the debt limit to the White House. A super majority would likely be difficult to amass, especially when neither party's leadership genuinely wants the nation to default.

Last minute emails

The election is tomorrow and a few candidates have sent me some stuff.

I don't cover Scranton or Lackawanna County unless a friend is running for office but the Mulligan camp has been sending things to me for months. This is the latest:

SCRANTON, PA - With just one day until Election Day, the Mulligan for Mayor of Scranton campaign continues to build momentum. And as the campaign continues to build, here is a look back at the numbers behind the momentum:

21,000            Number of doors in Scranton knocked on by the Mulligan Campaign

1890               Number of blocks walked in Scranton while going door-to-door

180                 Miles walked by Jim Mulligan while going door-to-door in Scranton

$154,165        Amount raised by Mulligan Campaign in less than three months

$66,703          How much less Bill Courtright's campaign raised than Mulligan in the last 3 months

41                   How many ideas Mulligan proposed to fix Scranton's finances

41                   How many more ideas Mulligan proposed than Courtright to fix Scranton's finance

1-0                  Jim Mulligan's record in debates against Bill Courtright

1                     Endorsement by the Scranton Times-Tribune of Jim Mulligan for Mayor

 Luzerne County Council candidate Eileen Sorokas talks about the budget:

The County Council has many issue they are facing prior to this election. In fact, all issue are important, that affect the public. Indeed, the most important issue, beside public safety, I will have to deal with is the budget. Through life experiences I have gain skills to manage budgets and understand the suffering people undertake when they lose their homes to foreclosures due to taxation or loss of jobs from budgets cuts. The hard decisions have to be made to either increase taxes or lay off people. My Goal is to “To Hold the Line on Taxes” with staff reduction through attrition. However, the county released an unbalance budget.  Consequently, putting fear into the public and employees with having an 8% tax increase or 160 employees to be lay off. Also, the unions will be asked for $2.7Million dollars concessions or 57 layoffs. Furthermore, the county cannot get a Crediting Rating for potential refinancing of their bond issue, unless they prove they have fiscal stability for at least two years. Also, no credit rating is causing our bonds fees to increase.  Appears my Goal may be out of touch with the main stream. Indeed, I will have to work harder to achieve my goal. Consequently, the County Manager and his staff should works to reduce taxes for all the citizens of Luzerne County.

The time for talking is over, we must go back to justifying all department cost.  Zero base budgeting. No more using past figures. Also, the taxation problem is state wide, but magnified with Luzerne County’s high debt. Furthermore, our State legislators should be working with our county to fine solutions. Indeed, there are some bills in the house and senate for tax relief using the States Income Tax and Sales Tax. Maybe, a local Drink Tax. However, the bills are not going anywhere. Incidentally, the Gaming Industry was for property tax relief, how much are we getting?  We have a Casino in Luzerne County and the county get very little if any benefit. We must look at other ways of taxation besides property taxes. Certainly, new taxation in the future to be equal for all citizens. By council working together and making it a goal, I believe the end result will be positive for all citizens of Luzerne County.

  Thank you 

Eileen M. Sorokas for County Council

As does Kathy Dobash:

 Luzerne County Citizens:

I attended the first public hearing about the Luzerne County Budget.

Below is the audio.  If you fast forward to the end of the meeting you will hear the intimidation thrown at citizens who stayed to speak during the public comment portion of the forum.

The County Solicitor is instructed to time everyone. 

10-29-2013 - First Luzerne County Public Budget Hearing

First I want to say, public comment should be allowed at the beginning of the meeting.  The meeting should take place in a larger room. 

A  tax hike of 8% was suggested throughout the meeting.

The majority of County Council did not want to hear the public outcry.  They are out of touch with those who live on a fixed income and working families.

The next scheduled budget hearings are:

November 12th, 18th and 19th.

My name is Kathy Dobash. I am a candidate for Luzerne County Council.

 I oppose tax hikes.  They hurt families and businesses.

On Tuesday, November 5th, help me OPPOSE the 8% tax hike.

Political Rants: 


Tomorrow is election day here in Pa. I am urging everybody to get out and vote. In particular (no fainting please) vote for Bednar for Controller and Harry Haas for council.

In the controller race, as much as it pains me to ever endorse a democratic candidate, this is an easy call to make. Sometimes the devil you don't know is a far better pick than the one we all know all too well.

For county council I am hoping everybody votes for just Harry Haas. Harry is a man of exceptional character and honesty and he deserves all of our votes.

Baseball

Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose and sometimes it rains- Crash Davis

I haven't posted about baseball since the start of the season as was pointed out in a recent e-mail by a disgruntled Phiilies fan. The Phillies got off to the usual slow start in April and are now seven games out of 1st place. The bullpen stinks and they leave the bases loaded all the time. The most consitent pitchers have been Jamie Moyer and Cole Hamels but you need more than 2 guys. Pat the Bat had two HRs yesterday with 5 RBIs coming out of a slump. Ryan Howard hit a salami after sitting for a couple of days. Maybe they should use him as a DH but that rule is not allowed in the NL. Barajas can't hit and the best hitter on the team is Rowand .

All the attention is on Bary Bonds breaking the all time home record of Hank Aaron that no one seems to be thrilled about and the the Rocket is going back to New York.