Kanjorski-Barletta debate post game

Again I wanted to post the video from WVIA but I can't despite the embed link on the website.

Congressman Paul Kanjorski defended his record and attacked Mayor Lou Barletta's management of the city of Hazleton.

They started off by sparring over the amphitheater to be built on a sludge filled coal strip that Kanjo said was being investigated by the FBI. Mayor Lou denied anything illegal was going on.

Barletta denied that global warming is man made and Kanjo said he put his faith in science. Barletta talked about a solar park that Kanjo said was a pipe dream. Mayor Lou hit that one out of the park recalling Kanjorski's ideas for an inflatable dam, people movers and monorails that never happened.

Immigration.

Kanjo said that the Mayor doesn't understand the law or the Constitution. He said that Barletta knew better and said some people might think that he proposed his famous ordinance for political purposes, "Now, I wouldn't be that crass to say that."


El alcalde Barletta luego relató la historia familiar de violencia en Hazleton causados por inmigrantes ilegales y cómo se fue a Washington para pedir ayuda sólo para ser arrancado por la Administración Bush.

Then they got into amnesty. Kanjo said he always voted against amnesty and it was a 'Damnable lie' that he voted for it.

More skirmishing about taxes. Kanjo said Barletta raised Hazleton property taxes by 70% and earned income taxes by 20%. Mayor Lou countered that Kanjo voted to raise taxes 150 times and Kanjo parried by explaining that in 20+ years he voted to raise some taxes and cut others. It's easy to cherry pick voting records.

Kanjo defended the Health Care reform bill rebutting every bogus argument against it.

Then Barletta said something really stupid. He said that this will end up putting health care insurers out of business because it will lead to a single payer system. Nothing in HCR will put the insurance companies out of business.

The post game press releases are always fun.

From the Kanjo camp:


Barletta Makes False Claims in Debate

WILKES-BARRE -- Mayor Lou Barletta made a number of false claims about Congressman Paul Kanjorski's record during the WVIA debate on Oct. 28, 2010. Read the facts below:

1. Barletta Claim: Paul Kanjorski voted for an $800 billion economic stimulus bill that resulted in the loss of 2.7 million jobs.

THE TRUTH. Lou Barletta wants it both ways. With one hand, he waves his finger to complain about the Recovery Act, but with his other hand Mayor Barletta accepts more than $50 million in stimulus assistance for Hazleton.

§ Lou Barletta criticized the Recovery Act, but had no problem accepting federal funding from the law. Stimulus funding is being used to support the Hazleton City Authority’s water-related projects ($15.3 million), the Greater Hazleton Joint Sewer Authority’s upgrades ($33.6 million), and the purchase of equipment for and the construction of the Hazleton Intermodal Facility ($1.5 million), among other things.

§ Money from the stimulus has also allowed the Hazleton Housing Authority to modernize residential units ($524,000) and increased the City of Hazleton’s Community Development Block Grant to improve local resources and create economic opportunities ($255,000).

§ Lou Barletta criticizes the stimulus, but under his watch, the City of Hazleton has the highest unemployment rate in the state. Once again, Lou Barletta is trying to blame others and divert attention from his failed job as mayor.

2. Barletta Claim: The Hazleton mine reclamation project is safe for the people of Hazleton.

THE TRUTH. Federal officials have raised concerns about the mine-fill material and the public is concerned about their safety.

§ Human exposure to the experimental materials being used to fill Hazleton’s mine land is a serious concern to the federal Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry, a federal public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

§ In 2008, Barletta sold mine land to developers for $3 million when it was appraised for $8 million, resulting in a $5 million loss for the city of Hazleton (DredgingToday.com, 4/20/2010)

§ The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection attended a public meeting in Hazleton in August where citizens expressed concern for environmental and health risks of the mine reclamation project. (Standard Speaker, 9/1/2010).

§ The developers of Hazleton’s mine reclamation project had their offices raided by the FBI earlier this year.

§ The developers of the mine reclamation project donated $10,000 to Barletta’s 2007 re-election campaign for Mayor. (DredgingToday.com, 4/20/2010)

3. Barletta Claim: Paul Kanjorski voted for amnesty in the 1986 immigration bill.

THE TRUTH. Paul Kanjorski voted to oppose amnesty in the 1986 immigration bill.

§ During consideration of the 1986 immigration reform law, Paul Kanjorski voted to block amnesty for illegal immigrants (Roll Call #455).

§ Paul Kanjorski also voted for the 1986 comprehensive immigration reform law in order to create a new system of penalties for employers who knowingly hire or continue to employ illegal immigrants.

4. Barletta Claim: Paul Kanjorski voted for amnesty for illegal immigrants to allow them to stay in the United States.

THE TRUTH. Paul Kanjorski has consistently voted against amnesty for illegal immigrants.

§ Paul Kanjorski has been voting against amnesty for illegal immigrants for 26 years, while Lou Barletta just started to address the issue in 2006.

§ During consideration of the 1986 immigration reform law, Paul Kanjorski voted to block amnesty for illegal immigrants (Roll Call #455).

§ Paul Kanjorski has also strongly advocated for an enforcement-only approach, and helped introduce the SAVE Act which aims to remove the job magnet that draws illegal immigrants to the U.S. and to improve border and interior enforcement of our immigration laws.

§ An October 6, 2008 article from the Scranton Times-Tribune states “Both [Kanjorski and Barletta] oppose amnesty and pathways to citizenship for illegal immigrants.”

5. Barletta Claim: Seniors did not get cost of living increases this year, but Members of Congress gave themselves pay raises.

THE TRUTH. Paul Kanjorski stands up for seniors and is working to ensure that they receive the payments that they deserve. He will soon vote for a $250 payment for seniors.

§ Paul Kanjorski has fought for years to pass legislation that would ensure that seniors get the cost of living increases they deserve. He helped introduce legislation that would create a seniors COLA to ensure that the cost of living adjustment for Social Security recipients more accurately reflects the costs that many seniors incur moving forward. (H.R. 2365, 111th Congress).

§ Congressman Kanjorski announced his support for a $250 one-time payment to compensate for the lack of Social Security cost of living increases this year, which the House will soon vote on.
§ The cost of living adjustment is based on inflation and determined by the Social Security Administration. This unprecedented situation is a result of economic conditions, not the result of Congressional action or inaction.

§ Congress has denied itself an automatic cost-of-living adjustment 8 times since 1994. Paul Kanjorski voted against Congressional pay raises for 2010 and 2011.

6. Barletta Claim: The health care reform law will cut $500 billion from Medicare.

THE TRUTH. According to AARP, nothing in the health care reform law will cut benefits for seniors. Lou Barletta is only continuing his desperate attempt to spread fear and misinformation to seniors.

§ The health care reform law works to reform Medicare Advantage by reducing overpayments to insurance companies whose bottom lines have greatly benefited from the program.

§ The law works to reduce waste, fraud, and abuse from Medicare Advantage, and then inject that $500 billion in savings back into Medicare. As a result, it will extend the life of Medicare by almost 10 years.

§ The health care reform law will, in fact, provide cost savings for many seniors.

§ Paul Kanjorski will continue to protect Medicare for seniors.

7. Barletta Claim: The health care reform law will allow for the federal funding of abortion.

THE TRUTH. No federal funding will be used to fund abortions in the health care law.

§ Paul Kanjorski is pro-life and supports the Hyde Amendment, which prevents federal funding of abortion, and remains the law of the land. He also supported the Stupak amendment which ensured that no federal funding would be used for abortions in the health care legislation.

§ The President issued an executive order on March 24 which reaffirms that the health care reform law will not allow for the federal funding of abortion.

§ Paul Kanjorski worked to ensure that the high-risk insurance plan created for Pennsylvania residents under the new law will not allow for the federal funding of abortion. He specifically reached out to the U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary and the Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner to clarify this issue.

Barletta Claim: Kevin Cook, the CEO of Mercy hospital, said that the three hospitals are being sold in part because of the new health care reform law.

THE TRUTH. Kevin Cook recently told WNEP-TV, “I actually find it disappointing that a decision that we made that was in the best interest of the community has been politicized the way it has,” referring to the sale.

§ Unfortunately, Lou Barletta is purposely twisting the facts and knowingly taking Mr. Cook’s comments out of context, even after Mr. Cook clarified that the health care reform law is not the reason for the sale of the hospitals.

§ Paul Kanjorski has worked to secure $270 million total for the 11 local hospitals in Northeastern Pennsylvania over the last 6 and a half years for Medicare payments.

§ Paul Kanjorski helped obtain this funding because he understands the difficult financial situations that many area hospitals have faced and continue to face. He has worked to ensure that the hospitals receive the Medicare payments that they deserve.

§ Rather than helping to provide for his city, Lou Barletta raided his city’s pension fund, and a report published in July 2010 said that Hazleton’s pension fund was the most distressed pension fund in Luzerne County (Times Leader, 7/27/2010)


###

This one is my favorite because it cites an obscure local blogger.


From Lou Barletta:


During Thursday night’s debate, 26-year incumbent Congressman Paul Kanjorski said he voted against amnesty for illegal aliens, and said Lou Barletta’s statement that he (Kanjorski) supported amnesty was a “damnable lie.”

But the record proves Kanjorski absolutely voted for amnesty.

In 1986, Congress passed a major overhaul of immigration law, the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986. This law “granted amnesty to about three million illegal immigrants for the stated purpose of solving the immigration problem and securing our border. The enactment of the (IRCA) dramatically eroded border control not only by granting citizenship to millions of illegal immigrants but by encouraging millions more to enter into the United States illegally in the hope that they too would eventually receive legal status.” (“The New American” magazine, June 26, 2006).

The IRCA was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Oct. 15, 1986, by a vote of 238-173. Kanjorski voted for that amnesty bill, according to the same magazine article.

A search of the Congressional record shows Kanjorski voted for amnesty – twice. The votes were for the final House version of the IRCA (roll call vote #457, 10/9/86; source: 1986 Congressional Quarterly Almanac) and the final version of the IRCA after it was passed by the Senate (conference report roll call vote #469, 10/15/86; source: 1986 Congressional Quarterly Almanac).

Kanjorski is listed as voting for the IRCA amnesty bill in the book “Anatomy of a Public Policy: The Reform of Contemporary American Immigration Law,” which was written by Michael C. LeMay and published in September 1994. Kanjorski’s vote is listed in Appendix B: The Roll Call Votes Enacting IRCA. LeMay was professor and chairman of the Department of Political Science and director of the National Security Studies Program at California State University, San Bernardino.

A blogger who asked Kanjorski about his stance on illegal immigration in 2006 received a response that included this statement: “In 1986, Congress passed the Immigration Reform and Control Act with my support.” (http://gort42.blogspot.com/2006/08/kanjorski-responds-to-hazleton.html, Aug. 3, 2006)

-30-

Barletta Campaign threatens blogger

In what will go down as another boneheaded move the Lou Barletta campaign threatened blog buddy The Pennsylvania Progressive with legal action. You would think that one of the high priced out of town consultants that Mayor Lou has hired would know better than to try to silence criticism and instill some discipline.

Barletta Campaign: "Pull Down Your Blog"

I'm still waiting for the lawsuit Lou Barletta's Congressional campaign threatened me with two weeks ago. Are process servers on strike? Did someone in Hazleton realize how stupid this was? I wrote this article after press reports that Lou Barletta, running in the 11th Congressional District against incumbent Democrat Paul Kanjorski, declared the loan listed on his FEC reports for six years was personal and not a campaign debt...


John Keegan identified himself as "Lou Barletta's Lower Luzerne County Chairman for Lou Barletta For Congress Committee" (sic). This means he was speaking, officially, for the Lou Barletta For Congress Committee. He then quoted some comments I made about blogging in an online interview and said this:



That post demonstrates to me that you are aware of the consequences of posting false, inflammatory, and potentially libelous statements. Before this issue becomes more than it needs to me I cannot impress upon you enough to contact me to get the FACTS. My contact information is below. In the meantime I ask that you pull this blog immediately. I assure you that after you talk to me you will understand my demand. Thanks for taking the time to read this communication.


John D. Keegan R. Ph.


What sort of campaign engages in such behavior? Is this the kind of press/communications outreach Lou Barletta is engaging in? This is utterly irresponsible and reckless conduct and a symptom of acute Castoritis. What on earth possessed them to think they could demand I pull down my blog? This tells me several things: these people are exceptionally thin skinned and they have no discipline on their campaign regarding press contacts and official statements. The idea Lou Barletta can represent the people of the 11th District better than Paul Kanjorski, after reading these emails, is laughable.

Minuteman Project founder endorses Lou Barletta

This dropped into my inbox last week but it took me a few days to check it out.

Minuteman Founder Endorses Lou Barletta for re-election in PA 11

“True leader on ending illegal immigration and enforcing border security”

Aliso Viejo, CA – The Founder and President of the nation's leading grassroots activist organization on the issue of immigration reform and border security, Jim Gilchrist of the Minuteman Project, announced today that he is endorsing Congressman Lou Barletta for re-election to the US House in PA-11. 

Gilchrist cited Barletta ’s strong record on securing our borders, denying illegals any form of amnesty, and cracking down on taxpayer funded benefits that attract illegals to the United States .  Polls show that immigration reform and border security remains one of the top issues facing voters of the state of Pennsylvania in the upcoming May 8 Republican Primary.

Gilchrist stated, “There are few leaders in Washington , DC that have demonstrated real courage in the face of overwhelming media bias and distortion when it comes to the issues of illegal immigration and border security.  Congressman Barletta is a champion to those us who followed his courageous battle to have America ’s laws enforced in our communities.  That is why I am proud to stand next to Lou Barletta and give my total support for the Congressman to be re-elected.”

Gilchrist further commented on the record of Lou Barletta, “Congressman Barletta will ensure that Congress actually enforces current immigration laws to protect the jobs of Americans and the dollars of taxpayers.  Whether it is Washington’s failure to reduce illegal immigration at our borders, stop enticements that lure illegal aliens to America, or even penalizing employers who hire illegal aliens at the expense of Americans looking for jobs all across our nation – Lou Barletta is a true leader on ending illegal immigration and enforcing border security.”

Jim Gilchrist founded the multi-ethnic Minuteman Project on Oct. 1, 2004, after years of frustrated efforts trying to get a neglectful U.S. government to simply enforce existing immigration laws.  Called “the world’s largest neighborhood watch”, their volunteer members aid efforts of the US Border Patrol by watching for illegal activity along the US-Mexican border.

I asked the Barletta camp for a comment:

“Like many Americans, they agree that illegal immigration is a problem in the U.S. and recognize Lou Barletta as a national leader on the issue.

“Washington’s unwillingness to deal with the problem of illegal immigration has allowed millions of illegal workers to simultaneously take American jobs while depressing the wages of legal workers.  The failure of the federal government to fully address border, airport, and seaport security continues to put our nation at risk.

“These problems are important issues to Rep. Barletta and he will continue to lead the charge to take reasonable steps to secure our borders and secure jobs for legal American workers.”

Lance Stange

Campaign Manager

Lou Barletta for Congress

The Minuteman Project has collapsed amid infighting and accusations of financial misconduct.

SPLC:

The Minuteman Project, one of the country's largest, richest and most influential nativist extremist groups, is in a state of crisis.

Its founder, Jim Gilchrist, was fired in February by members of the group's board of directors amidst swirling allegations of embezzlement, gross mismanagement and fraud.

Gilchrist initially responded by filing a lawsuit against the board members and waging a public relations battle in which he claimed the Minuteman Project had been "hijacked." Then, in April, he suddenly dropped the lawsuit and incorporated a new competing organization: "Jim Gilchrist's Minuteman Project." 

This has been a messy fight.

 RWW:

Gilchrist, 58, a national figure in the fight against illegal immigration, was removed as president of the Minuteman Project this month by its board of directors, which accused him of abusing his power and leaving more than $400,000 of the organization's money unaccounted for.

…

Deborah Courtney, the group's recently appointed treasurer, said in an interview that a direct mail company helped raise $750,000 for the group in 2006, but that she believes the Minuteman campaign received only $311,000. Courtney said she and others had been unable to trace the rest of the money.

To get his endorsement other campaigns have been shaken down.

 A price tag for Minuteman support?

 To win the endorsement of the Minuteman Project and its founder, Jim Gilchrist, you need to believe in federal troop deployments to stop illegal immigrants from entering the U.S. and stepped-up deportations of those who do.

You may also need to pay several thousand dollars, according to documents from three Republican campaigns that sought Gilchrist’s endorsement....

Democrat-turned-Republican Alabama Rep. Parker Griffith have been among those accepting his support.

But Republicans in Griffith’s Huntsville district and in one other state say support for a border fence and stepped-up deportation aren’t enough to win Gilchrist’s endorsement: They also were told bluntly that they would need to hire a consulting firm closely linked to the Minuteman founder and run by the project’s political director, Mississippi political consultant Howie Morgan.

When they didn’t hire Morgan, the endorsements didn’t materialize.

Do we really want vigilantes enforcing the law as they see it? That worked out well in Florida recently.

 

Border militia: patriots or vigilantes?

 The proposed Special Missions Unit would allow armed volunteers to pursue and arrest people they suspect to be smugglers or undocumented immigrants....

Minutemen founder, Jim Gilchrist spearheaded the movement many accused of vigilantism.

“You’ve had a couple of ranchers and several law enforcement officers murdered by illegal aliens,” said Gilchrist.

He admits that his call to guard the border attracted extremist elements but still hopes other states will follow Arizona’s militia proposal.

 It looks like this movement has burned out.

Yahoo News:

 But today, the once-thriving Minutemen anti-illegal immigration fraternity has all but died out. No one knows exactly why the groups fizzled so quickly, but researchers and former border-watching leaders say infighting and bad press have taken a toll. At the same time, the tea party movement started to rise, which usurped members and stole the groups' thunder....Still, the movement's message and popularity have left an indelible mark on the Republican Party, whose leaders underestimated the anger in their base over illegal immigration. The GOP, which at the time was considering legislation to legalize undocumented immigrants in a version of Ronald Reagan's 1986 immigration reform law, rejected the popular movement at first. President George W. Bush dismissed the Minutemen as "vigilantes,"

 

            

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
The Enemy Within - Bologna Border Bust
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog Video Archive

       

 

Kanjo on the air, Corey pounds the pavement

Congressman Paul Kanjorski is running just his 2nd spot of the campaign. It is a positive ad reminding us of his support for veterans. The fact that he is staying positive suggest to me that his polling shows him to be in good shape. If his camp was worried about his challenger they would be on the air ripping him a new asshole.





For what he lacks in cash Lackawanna Commissioner Corey O'Brien is making it up with shoe leather and a great field operation.

From pa2010.com


But O’Brien is unfazed, confident—and more full of energy than one is used to seeing in politics. He’s been called the most competitive House primary challenger in the country, and while conventional wisdom says he’ll get blown out of the water on Tuesday, O’Brien says his upset win will be nothing but expected.

“I don’t care what some pundits might say about the race,” O’Brien told pa2010.com while riding on his campaign RV earlier this month. “I see it every day. People are going to say on May 18 that this is ‘a shocker, a surprise.’ I’m not going to be surprised.”



The third candidate in the race is Brian Kelly who will hurt O'Brien by siphoning off some of the anti-Kanjo vote.

The TL earlier endorsed O'Brien but the Citizens Voice recommends sticking with the devil you know.


Endorsement: Paul Kanjorski

While Kanjorski has made missteps in his long tenure – chief among them the federal funding that he directed toward a company owned by family members – voters have had several election cycles to consider those missteps and have continued to support him...Because of his efforts to secure development in the district, the benefits of his seniority and his key role in finance-industry reform efforts aimed at protecting consumers and taxpayers in his district and beyond, Kanjorski deserves his party’s nomination.

The winner of the Democratic nomination will face Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta in the fall. Barletta had some fun this week sending out this snarky press release.

Kanjorski and O'Brien agree neither can beat Barletta in November
.
May 13th

Hazleton, PA – Regardless of the outcome of Tuesday’s primary election, 11th Congressional District candidate Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta will win in November.

Don’t just take our word for it. Here’s what the campaigns of Paul Kanjorski and Corey O’Brien said about Lou’s chances in the fall:

“There is zero chance Paul Kanjorski defeats Lou Barletta. Zero. Paul Kanjorski doesn’t have Barack Obama [on the ballot] and without Barack Obama and the way the country is swinging with Massachusetts, at the end of the day, this is an easy pickup for the Republican Party.” Corey O’Brien, Politico, February 3, 2010.

"Our polling data not only shows Kanjorski crushing O'Brien in the primary, but Barletta crushing O'Brien in the general." Kanjorski campaign spokesman Ed Mitchell, Scranton Times, March 4, 2010.

And here’s what Kanjorski himself said about his re-election chances this fall: “If the election is decided as a referendum on the last 14 months, this coming November, the Democrats are going to lose.” (Hazleton Standard-Speaker, Feb. 18, 2010)

“We’re grateful for the endorsements of both the Kanjorski and O’Brien campaigns. Lou Barletta is gaining momentum every single day, and Lou will be ready to take on the winner of Tuesday’s primary,” said Vince Galko, campaign spokesman for Mayor Barletta. “Of course, there’s much work yet to be done, and Lou Barletta will be out meeting with voters, talking about issues, raising money, and criss-crossing the 11th Congressional District. Lou will work hard for every vote.

“We’d like to wish all candidates luck, and we encourage everyone to get out and vote on Tuesday.”

A further indication that Kanjo is confidant is that he will be in Washington this week doing his job instead of doing a last minute campaign push in the district. Corey O'Brien has invited his supporters to join him at at P.J.'s 1910 Pub in the Hilton Scranton, 100 Adams Avenue, Scranton, PA. The event is slated to begin at 8:00 pm. Brian Kelly hasn't announced any election night plans but will probably sipping a cup of tea somewhere.

Barletta claims big lead in poll

Hazleton, PA – The congressional campaign for Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta today released a memo from the nationally recognized polling firm The Tarrance Group. The poll was conducted on July 12-13. Four hundred likely voters in Pennsylvania’s 11th Congressional District were surveyed.

The poll showed that a majority of voters favored Lou Barletta over Paul Kanjorski by a margin of 56 percent to 37 percent. It also indicated that only 32 percent of voters believe Paul Kanjorski deserves to be re-elected.

Mayor Lou Barletta said, “The only poll I care about is the one taken on Election Day. However, this poll is a strong indicator that the people of Northeastern Pennsylvania realize Paul Kanjorski’s failed policies and reckless spending are hurting their lives, our region, and this nation. There are just over three months left for me to make my case to the voters of the 11th District, and I plan to do so at the grassroots level, over the airwaves, and through the Web. I only wish Paul Kanjorski would change his mind and agree to meet me in a series of debates and town halls across this district, rather than constantly send out negative attacks from his taxpayer-funded Washington, D.C., office. Kanjorski’s negative campaigning is not creating one job or improving our economy by one cent.”

On Monday, the Barletta campaign announced it had passed the $500,0000 raised mark with more than 10,000 individual donors. This puts the campaign ahead of where it was at this point in 2008.

On Wednesday, Lou Barletta for Congress began airing its first campaign commercial on both network and cable television. View the ad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9x2glOlrScY

Click here to view the full memo [PDF].

If you click on the link you will find that a few pages seem to be missing from the memo such as the methodology, the order of the questions and the cross tabs. You always have to take internal polls with a grain of salt whether it's from this outfit or Democratic pollsters such as Momentum Analysis.



About the Terrance Group


The Tarrance Group is an opinion polling and "strategic research" that works for Republican candidates, corporations and some non-profit groups.[1] On its website it states that it has "helped elect more than 80 Republican governors, U.S. Senators and Members of Congress, as well as scores of state legislative candidates. All of these clients would say one thing about The Tarrance Group: We hate to lose.

Of course I asked Ed Mitchell about this poll and he sent along this analysis:


Statement on 'So-Called' Barletta Poll by Ed Mitchell

These numbers look highly suspect to us. With such little information presented in the memo, we don't know what was tested but not revealed. It's hard to comment definitively on such unreliable and little data.

What we do know is that Barletta has a money problem. We'll know more about that tomorrow, but from what Barletta has said, he's raised less this year to date than in 2008. He's started a three or four day, small TV buy, which is laughable and almost a waste of money. And all this is aimed at drumming up interest in a major fundraiser event he has next week and raising money among Washington special interest PACS.

Moreover, Barletta is trying to shift attention from his botched job as mayor of Hazleton where he is laying off employees, contributing to the city having the highest unemployment rate in the state. He's raising taxes 70 percent and shipping toxic waste into the city. No wonder he wants to talk about something else.

This looks like more of two-time loser Barletta's smoke and mirrors. Remember, in 2008, Barletta repeatedly released polls showing he was going to win. Congressman Kanjorski won. Barletta lost again.

Lou Barletta para el Congreso

Barletta makes it official

Barletta challenges Kanjorski

Someone did a search of my Lou Barletta greatest hits that can be found here. Sitemeter is a great thing and if you read through them you will see that I'm not a fan. I used to like Lou Barletta until 2006 when Rick Santorum needed an issue in his doomed reelection campaign and got Mayor Lou to propose a ridiculous law that tried to make landlords and others into immigration agents.

It didn't take a constitutional law scholar to figure out that a small town in Pennsylvania can't usurp the powers of the Congress of the United States defined in Article I of the Constitution and a federal judge agreed. The case has been appealed but if Hazleton loses the city is on the hook for a big legal bill. Lou said the city may have to float a 20 year bond to pay off the legal fees, maybe he should run for county commissioner. I think it was one of the most reckless things that I've ever heard of a local official doing.

But it had a benefit for Barletta because he is now a regular guest on Lou Dobbs and Fox News blaming all of our problems on immigrants. Now his celebrity has propelled him into another run for Congress against Paul Kanjorski who wiped the floor with him in 2002 and will do so again. One issue candidates usually don't make it to far because it's a complex world with many things to consider.

So what is Barletta running for? Does he want to be a member of Congress or prime time host of a talking head show?

Some reactions.

Ed Mitchell sent me this email:

A campaign will provide an excellent opportunity for the people of Northeastern Pennsylvania to debate issues and to determine the future direction of our area and the country. I look forward to a full and vigorous debate on the issues that matter most to the people of the 11th Congressional District, such as strengthening our economy, reforming health care, ending the war in Iraq, and preserving Social Security and Medicare. But right now I am focused on doing the job I was elected to do in Congress. My top priority for the immediate future is to continue to craft legislation to help stabilize the economy and soften the impact of the collapse of the housing market.

Standard Speaker:

TJ. Rooney, chairman of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, called Barletta “a political opportunist,” adding “his recent publicity stunt highlighting his indecision has been beyond silly.”

“While Congressman Kanjorski has been fighting on behalf of his constituents to bring more than $150 million in additional Medicare payments to area hospitals, Mr. Barletta has been touring the country speaking to Republican fat-cat donors,” Rooney said. “While Congressman Kanjorski has been leading the effort to shore up our economy, Mr. Barletta has been appearing on Republican television and radio shows. While Congressman Kanjorski has been fighting to bring our troops home from Iraq, Mr. Barletta has been staging photo-ops and rallies.”

And just in time Paul Kanjorski reminds us of why we put him in Congress:

KANJORSKI LEADS SUCCESSFUL EFFORT TO EXPAND STIMULUS PACKAGE TO INCLUDE SENIORS

WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Paul E. Kanjorski (PA-11) helped lead the effort to include cash benefits for senior citizens and disabled veterans in the economic stimulus package in the U.S. House of Representatives. The Congressman was also instrumental in ensuring that the legislation denied tax rebates to illegal immigrants.

Here is Barletta's website.

Thanks to Danny for this shot of the Barletta HQ:

Barletta loses again

Mayor says city won’t give up

Hazleton loses appeal in immigration law case


“Our fight is not yet over. The city of Hazleton fully intends to appeal this incorrect decision and take the case all the way to the United States Supreme Court, if necessary,” Barletta said.

He said no city funds have been used for the city’s defense. The approximately $500,000 in legal costs have come from donations to the city’s now nearly depleted legal defense fund.

Great, the Hazleton ordinance has already been shot done twice in court and the donations have stopped coming in but he promises to press on. This decision is anti-climatic as just about anyone who has been following this case knew that the 3rd circuit would affirm Judge Muley's decision that it violates the supremacy clause of the constitution.

You can read the opinion here.

Hazleton is like many towns in PA that are making unpleasant choices to cut services and raise taxes and the city is on the hook for the legal fees of the defendants which may be in the millions. The prudent thing to do at this point is to cut your losses and drop the whole thing but this is Lou Barletta's claim to fame so that is not going to happen. His one trick pony approach to the campaign continues.

Congressman Paul Kanjorski's campaign has been silent on this issue today. I understand that, if your opponent is self destructing just sit back and watch.

Lou Barletta released this statement after his news conference yesterday:



El alcalde de Hazleton Lou Barletta publicó la siguiente declaración sobre el fallo de hoy por el tribunal federal de apelaciones en Filadelfia:
La decisión de hoy del Tribunal del Tercer Circuito, no es inesperado. No estoy desilusionado por esta decisión. Sabíamos que no sería la última parada de este viaje.
El Tribunal del Tercer Circuito opinión difería de un dictamen del Tribunal del Noveno Circuito en un caso similar en 2009. Ese caso se refería a una ley estatal de Arizona que exigía a los empleadores a utilizar el sistema de E-Verify.
Incluso el noveno circuito ha tomado una posición de Hazleton sobre esta cuestión, por lo que la decisión de hoy hace que el Tercer Circuito de la corte más liberal en los Estados Unidos en temas de inmigración.
Esta decisión constituye una pérdida para Hazleton y sus residentes legales. Es también un golpe a los derechos de los inmigrantes legales que decide llamar a su casa Hazleton. Estos inmigrantes jurídicos han seguido las reglas, y la decisión de hoy se pone en peligro sus puestos de trabajo.
La inmigración ilegal genera una mano de obra subterránea que reduce las posibilidades de empleo para todos los ciudadanos legales. La inmigración ilegal drena nuestro presupuesto y nos impide ofrecer una gama más amplia de servicios de la ciudad para los residentes legales, que pagan impuestos y sus hijos.
He dicho en repetidas ocasiones durante los años que la principal línea de defensa contra la inmigración ilegal es la eliminación de la disponibilidad de puestos de trabajo a extranjeros ilegales. Si los extranjeros ilegales no tienen lugar para trabajar, que se auto-deportar. De hecho, como la economía estadounidense empeoró recientemente, hemos visto que suceda. Nosotros, como nación debe adoptar medidas para detener extranjeros ilegales obtengan puestos de trabajo, especialmente ahora, una época en que los ciudadanos americanos y los que en este país legalmente no pueden darse el lujo de perder sus empleos.
Pero nuestra lucha no ha terminado todavía.
La ciudad de Hazleton toda la intención de apelar esta decisión incorrecta y llevar el caso hasta el final a los Estados Unidos la Corte Suprema, si es necesario.
Antes de hacerlo, me gustaría agradecer personalmente a los miembros del Concejo Municipal de Hazleton, que han apoyado esta ordenanza a través de los años.
También me gustaría agradecer a los residentes de Hazleton, que han apoyado consejo de la ciudad y yo en nuestra larga lucha.
Me gustaría dar las gracias a nuestro equipo jurídico, incluyendo Kris Kobach y Mahoney Hank. Han pasado muchas horas en este caso.
También me gustaría agradecer personalmente a los miles de personas a través de los Estados Unidos de América que han contribuido al fondo de la ciudad de defensa jurídica. Hasta la fecha, la ciudad no ha pasado un dólar de los fondos de los contribuyentes para pelear esta batalla legal - a pesar de que nos hemos enfrentado a numerosos fuerte, los opositores bien financiados que han amenazado con la quiebra de Hazleton como hemos tratado de mantener el Estado de Derecho. Animo a cualquiera que quiera unirse a esta batalla - y los que quieren renovar su apoyo - a visitar www.smalltowndefenders.com y contribuir a nuestro fondo de defensa legal. Una vez más, ese sitio Web es, www.smalltowndefenders.com.
Hace cuatro años, Hazleton se convirtió en la primera comunidad en la nación para defender por sí mismo. Debido a que nuestra población fue creciendo y nuestra base de impuestos fue disminuyendo, la inmigración ilegal constituye una pérdida grave y sustancial sobre nuestro presupuesto. Y si nos fijamos en nuestros números de desempleo local, se puede ver cómo esta mano de obra subterránea se llevó puestos de trabajo de los ciudadanos estadounidenses y los que están legalmente en este país.
Más importante aún, la calidad de un pequeño pueblo de la vida que había venido a disfrutar estaba siendo destruido por los delincuentes extranjeros que estaban haciendo subir el índice de delitos.
En lugar de sentarse, Hazleton decidió actuar.
Hazleton fue la primera - y Hazleton convirtió en el símbolo de esperanza para muchos en todo el país.
Desde que esta ley propuesta hace más de cuatro años, hemos visto la creciente frustración de todo el país. Lo hemos visto en lugares como Arizona y Valley Park, Missouri, y Farmers Branch, Texas.
Esta frustración no va a desaparecer - y no se irán hasta que el gobierno federal finalmente asegure nuestras fronteras y duras medidas contra la inmigración ilegal. Durante décadas, el Congreso nos ha fallado. Este problema necesita desesperadamente que se fijará en Washington, y voy a luchar para asegurar que las ciudades y los estados pueden protegerse contra los costos fiscales y penales de la inmigración ilegal.
La ciudad de Hazleton continuará con este caso, no sólo porque tenemos la razón, sino también por otras comunidades cuentan con nosotros.

In an unreleated issue the Kanjo camp responded to an ad by a group that missrepresents itself




Wilkes-Barre, PA - Dziś konserwatywne grupy przodu, że chce zniszczyć Ubezpieczeń Społecznych rozpoczął nadawanie reklam TV kłamie rekord Paul Kanjorski w celu ułatwienia wyboru Lou Barletta. Kampania Kanjorski jest wezwanie Lou Barletta wypowiedzieć te reklamy i popytu, że należy zdjąć z powietrza.

Grupy odpowiedzialnej za reklamy, 60 Plus Stowarzyszenie, jest konserwatywna grupa przodu, że od dawna w walce o prywatyzacji ubezpieczeń społecznych. Tego cyklu wyborów, grupa wydatków na ponad milion dolarów okłamać wyborców w Pensylwanii i wybiera członków Kongresu, które pomogą ich program pro-prywatyzacji.

"Lou Barletta twierdzi, że przeciwko prywatyzacji ubezpieczeń społecznych, to jego szanse to udowodnić. Grupie pro-prywatyzacji leżącego na Pennsylvanians pomóc Lou Barletta wygrać. Jeśli Lou naprawdę sprzeciwia się prywatyzacji, powinien wypowiedzieć te reklamy i wymagać, aby ich natychmiast przerwać ", powiedział Ed Mitchell, rzecznik kampanii Kanjorski.

60 plus Stowarzyszenie ma długą historię walki z prywatyzacji ubezpieczeń społecznych. W grudniu 2001 r., 60 Plus Stowarzyszenia uczestniczyli w konferencji prasowej sponsorowanej przez Amerykanów do reformy podatkowej, która poparła plan Busha zabezpieczenia społecznego do prywatyzacji Komisji Ubezpieczeń Społecznych (Amerykanie dla reformy podatku dochodowego od doradztwa prasy, 12/11/01). Jim Martin, szef 60-Plus Stowarzyszenie, napisał op-eds dla "Washington Times", w którym wzywa Social Security "przestarzały relikt minionej epoki" i "ciężar" dla młodych pracowników, promując system emerytalny, który młodych pracowników pozwala inwestować część swojego podatku. (Washington Times, 3/14/01, Washington Times, 8/1/01)

60 plus Stowarzyszenia, która nazywa się "bezstronne", wydała komunikat prasowy, w 2001 r., który wzywał pierwszych 100 Busha dni w urzędzie "złota era dla seniorów", a ukazał się w Filadelfii, podczas Republican National Convention w poparcie w 2000 r. bilet GOP. (Palm Beach Post, 6/17/01, National Journal Kongres Daily, 8/3/01)

"To jest obrzydliwe próby na zewnątrz grupy, aby okłamać wyborców w ich dążeniu do zniszczenia zabezpieczenia społecznego", powiedział Mitchell. "Czy Lou Barletta dopuszczę do wyborców z 11 Congressional District być okłamani przez grupę, która chce zniszczyć zabezpieczenia społecznego, czy będzie wstać i powiedzieć im, że już nie chce ich pomocy?

Fakty: Kliknij tutaj

I promissed Shawn I would be fair and balanced. Sorry Nicole but bloggers must have their fun.

Barletta on the issues

From the DCCC:


Bush-Republican Lou Barletta: Unprepared and Clueless about Cost of Iraq War



Republican Lou Barletta is running for Congress and doesn't even know the cost of the war in Iraq .

"At a time when General David Patraeus is on Capitol Hill and Congress is re-evaluating the toll of the Iraq War in terms of American lives lost and its huge drain on the federal budget, Lou Barletta is totally ignorant about how much the war costs,” said Carrie James of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

When asked on a recent Northeast Pennsylvania radio talk show (Sue Henry Show, WILK, 3/17/08) what the Iraq war was costing hardworking Americans, Barletta stammered and twisted and couldn't give an answer. The caller who asked the question actually had to provide the details.

"This only proves the point that Barletta is a one-trick pony candidate that grandstands and nothing more. The working people of Northeast Pennsylvania can't afford someone like Barletta who's embarrassingly unprepared when it comes to Iraq and the major issues."

This war has cost 4,000 brave Americans their lives, nearly 30,00 have been injured, it has pushed our military to a breaking point, and diverted tax dollars that should be used to help working people and seniors fight skyrocketing gasoline, grocery, utility, and healthcare costs. All this and Lou Barletta is clueless about a war that some independent analysts state could cost more than $1 TRILLION."

“ Barletta should know better than to plead ignorance about a war that Americans are fighting and that's busting the federal budget at a time when a bad economy is hurting working people as never before. Barletta should do his homework and learn about one of the most important issues facing Congress. Anything less dishonors the brave men and women serving in Iraq ,” said James.

BACKGROUND:

The Pentagon tags the cost of the Iraq war at roughly $600 billion to date. [ New York Times, 3/19/08]

Independent analyses conducted by Nobel Prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz indicate that the cost of the Iraq war could exceed $1 TRILLION. [ Washington Post, 3/9/08]

Since the start of the war in Iraq , 4,011 American military men and women have been killed. [Department of Defense, 4/3/08]

An estimated 29,395 service members have been wounded in Iraq and, as of March 1, more than 31,300 have been treated for non-combat injuries and illness. [Department of Defense, 3/18/08; AP, 3/8/08]

Nearly 1.7 million U.S. troops have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan since September 2001 – more than 592,000 have been deployed more than once. [Department of Defense, 1/31/08]

Pennsylvania Congressional Redistricting

A Capitolwire (subscription required) story yesterday about the latest plan for the gerrymandering of Congressional Districts got the chattering classes and candidates , well, chattering. The first 2 maps floated here and here will not look like the final version according to this story.

The Republicans want to chop up Luzerne County
"Since the weekend the biggest change has been adding Wilkes-Barre and Pittston to the district of U.S. Rep. Tim Holden, D-Schuylkill, along with Scranton and other Democratic areas. Republican advisors to Rep. Lou Barletta, D-Hazleton, did not want those two areas to stay in Barletta’s district, fearing they could help lead to his future defeat." And they want to add Wyoming County to the 11th CD so Barletta can be another voice in Congress for the gas drillers and help his fundraising.

Lou Barletta's press guy Shawn Kelly gives a politically correct answer to this speculation.

No Barletta in proposed area district
W-B, Scranton in zone with Easton

“Why wouldn’t Rep. Barletta want Luzerne County whole?” Kelly asked. “He won it twice, handily – by 4.8 points in 2008 and by 13.4 points in 2010. It’s his home county. It’s where he’s best known. Rep. Barletta wants to keep Luzerne County whole. Period.”

Bill Vinsko blasts the Republican creative map making

ONCE AGAIN, CONGRESSMAN BARLETTA AND THE STATE LEGISLATURE ARE TURNING THEIR BACKS ON THE PEOPLE OF NORTHEAST AND CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA.


As has been widely reported over the last few weeks, the Congressional District Boundaries in Pennsylvania are being released this week. First, Lou Barletta got rid of the only county he could not win – Lackawanna County. Then he cut out the only county he won once – Monroe County.

Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, Duryea and Dupont, and several other Luzerne County municipalities, have always been a part of the 11th Congressional District. Interestingly, Congressman Barletta, in an effort to avoid having a strong challenge from Bill Vinsko on November 6, 2012, is supporting a move tonight to surgically remove Wilkes-Barre, Pittston and several other Luzerne County municipalities from the 11th Congressional District. It seems now that he does not even trust the people who actually elected him.

We are calling on Congressman Barletta, the Governor and our state legislators to work to keep Luzerne County intact and put the people ahead of politics now! It is no wonder why people are fed up with Congress. Now, our own Congressional leaders are attempting to steal the election and take away the rights of the people.


The following is a statement from Democratic Candidate Bill Vinsko:

“If Congressman Barletta is afraid to face voters who live in the heart of his own District, then he should work harder to convince them by doing his job. Under this plan it’s downright wrong that Luzerne County will be broken into parts and the voice of our people will be muted in Washington for brazen political reasons. I call on Congressman Barletta to publicly ask the state legislature and Governor to keep all of Luzerne County in the 11th and to keep the voice of Northeast Pennsylvania strong and united in Washington,” said Bill Vinsko.

Capitol Ideas says that the whole thing will be pushed off for a week.

Former 10th CD Congressman Chris Carney is lurking around.

Christopher Carney Gauging Support for 2012 Bid

On Friday, Carney met with a dozen Keystone State political fundraisers, former donors and organized labor representatives to discuss a 2012 campaign, according to a source who attended the roundtable discussion at a downtown Philadelphia political consulting shop.

Kanjo on the air

Congressman Paul Kanjorski has his first ad hitting the airwaves in which he comes out swinging at Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta





I asked the Barletta camp for a response:


Two months from the election and Kanjorski is leading with a negative commercial? That shows how desperate he is.

If Kanjorski wants to debate taxes or unemployment, we'll be happy to – oh, that's right, he refuses to debate or hold town meetings with his constituents.

Kanjorski has voted for the biggest job-crushing and tax-hiking bills in history – Obamacare and Cap and Trade.

Kanjorski continues to offer nothing to the voters of this district. There’s no reason to re-elect him, either by his actions as a congressman or in his commercials, so he's trying to smear Lou Barletta.

Lou Barletta received the Governor's Award for Fiscal Responsibility and Best Management Practices and was selected as the Best Mayor in Pennsylvania by his peers in 2008. Lou was re-elected as mayor with 90 percent of the vote. Who is a better judge of Lou Barletta's job as mayor - the voters of Hazleton or a career Washington politician?



Shawn M. Kelly, Communications Coordinator
Lou Barletta for Congress

Mixed messages

Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta is back in the news again which is not surprising being the media whore that he is. A few days ago he endorsed Dan Meuser in the 10th CD race and now he is complaining about a piece of franked mail that Congressman Kanjorski sent out a few months ago. When he endorsed Meuser I thought it was a sign that he was not going to run against Kanjo as one of the rules of running for office is that you don't get involved in other peoples arguments because you don't want to alienate the supporters of the candidates that you don't back.

.

Now he sounds like a candidate for Congress in the 11th District again. "This mailing was prepared, published and mailed at taxpayer expense.” Barletta said the current members of Congress spent $20.3 million last year for these mailings. “There is no need to use taxpayer dollars to send out your own political campaign mailings,” Barletta said. “They should be paid with campaign funds.”

.

Kanjo's new ace press secretary Abigail McDonough passed on Kanjo's scathing rebuttal: “Mr. Barletta’s criticism of using public dollars for this issue is quite curious coming from someone who used the Hazleton City treasury as a political piggy bank to advance his own career.”

.

Dr. Joe tells us Why Lou Barletta Should Not Run For Congress and Capitol Ideas puts Barletta's announcement in terms we can all understand:

.

Votantes El Hispanico De la Atención.

.

Alcalde de Hazleton, Lou Barletta, ha endosado a hombre de negocios Dan Meuser para el Congreso en la 10th raza del districto para el nombramiento Republicano,segun el Times-Leader de Wilkes-Barre. Meuser es uno de cinco candidatos al nombramiento. Los otros son Chris Hackett, Donald Ely, Paul Swiderski y Davis Haire. El titular Chris Carney es el Demócrata solitario en la raza. Carney derrotado pone Don Sherwood en 2006, terminando el asimiento de 44-year del partido republicano en el asiento. Barletta dicho su decisión a Meuser trasero no se debe interpretar como declaración contra cualesquiera de los otros candidatos Republicanos, segun el Times-Leader. "Sé que Dan personalmente y yo lo consideramos un amigo," jueves dicho Barletta. "Esto no se significa para colocar las calificaciones de cualquier persona." Barletta dijo lo y Meuser sentados abajo en octubre para discutir las ediciones y el Meuser pedidos la ayuda del alcalde. "Tenía una oportunidad de hablar con él en ediciones como seguridad de la patria y la inmigración ilegal," Barletta dijo. "Estoy satisfecho con sus posiciones y creo que convenimos en la dirección que quisiéramos ver el país ir

Lou Barletta targetted by enviromental group

The Natural Resources Defense Council is going after Congressman Lou Barletta for his votes to block new clean air regulations from the EPA. Last week the NRDC blasted Barletta and other PA US House members for voting for what they termed the "Fetal Poison Bill."

Fourteen PA Reps Have Dirty Secrets: They Support the "Fetal Poison Bill"

Who loses? Fetuses, babies and young children. Who wins? The 14 Pennsylvania members of Congress who are larding their campaign treasuries with dirty energy political contributions.
House bill 2681, the "Cement Sector Regulatory Relief Act of 2011" would repeal updates to Clean Air Act standards to reduce toxic emissions from cement plant,”
s – one of the biggest sources of mercury pollution in the US. It’s a “Fetal Poison Bill” because mercury exposure can cause serious brain damage to fetuses, babies and young children.

The NRDC has chart at Dirty Secrets that says that says Barletta has taken almost $ 80,000 from polluters.

Sticking to the party line that regulations kill jobs (they don't) Barletta sent out a fundraising email that seems to welcome the attack.

I supported delaying this job-killing regulation. Rather, they’ll resort to scare tactics.



Dear Gort --
The attacks keep coming. The latest is an accusation from a left-wing, radical environmentalist group that is accusing me of voting in favor of the “Fetal Poison Bill.” It’s an attack meant to grab headlines, which means there’s no truth to it...

Since taking control of the EPA, President Obama’s supporters have been putting forward radical new regulations not focused on protecting the environment, but rather to punish specific industries in this country. It’s a dangerous mix: a politically-motivated anti-business agenda and a struggling economy with 9% unemployment...

A recent EPA regulation, for example, would -- without Congressional intervention -- have resulted in the shuttering of nearly 20% of our nation’s domestic cement plants, putting thousands of jobs in jeopardy, and costing businesses $3.4 billion a year. The environmentalists won’t mention any of this when they tell you I supported delaying this job-killing regulation.


The President doesn't have an "anti-business agenda" and Barletta doesn't cite his assertion that 20% of cement plants would be closed. Do they just pass along this claptrap from a central source? I'm sure that SOP will correct me tomorrow.

Barletta spokesman Shawn Kelly and NRDC blogger Pete Altman had this exchange

“Claims that Rep. Barletta is ‘attacking’ the Clean Air Act are completely false. Not one of the roll call votes cited (#86, #140, #147, and #741) alters the Clean Air Act in any way. Every single vote cited keeps current EPA regulations in place and allows the EPA to continue to regulate pollutants. The roll call votes in question do not weaken or remove any EPA regulation currently in effect,”

Pete disputes that statement:

Denying the Facts: Representative Lou Barletta's True Record of Dirty Air Votes

Interestingly, Barletta’s team doesn’t bother denying the charge our ad actually makes, which is that he voted to let polluters dump more dangerous pollution into our air. And they deny charges we didn’t make – that Barletta voted to alter the Clean air Act and weaken and remove EPA regulations currently in effect.
We could have, though read the list


Here is the ad:

Barletta staffer may have broke the law

Shawn Kelly was candidate Lou Barletta's spokesperson in the 2010 election campaign and was given a staff job as Congressman Lou Barletta's spox on official business after the election.

I like Shawn and he has always been great about answering my questions in the election in 2010 and since then. I asked him a political question a few months ago and he referred me to the campaign for an answer. He explained that he is now a pointy headed bureaucrat that couldn't comment on the reelection effort.

So I was shocked when I read this

DANVILLE - The absence of Congressman Lou Barletta at a campaign event Tuesday night rankled his election opponent, Gene Stilp, and lead to unanticipated debate over the event's format.
The candidates for the 11th Congressional District were expected to debate each other at the American Legion during a Candidates Night hosted by the Danville Area League of Voters.
Instead, it was Stilp and a congressional aide trading barbs.

Stilp attacked Barletta for skipping the event, while Shawn Kelly, Barletta's communications director, said the congressman was simply keeping a prior commitment....
Kelly took a long pause and followed with an explanation that, as a employee of his congressional office and not his campaign, he did not know what event Barletta was attending Tuesday.
He did, however, say that "He committed to an event over two months ago and he's keeping that commitment.


KP is all over it:

 There’s just one problem: staffer, Shawn Kelly, doesn’t work for Congressman Barletta’s campaign, but is actually his Legislative Communications Director, who draws a taxpayer salary.

 If Kelly in any way charged the taxpayers by using resources issued to him by the United States Congress, that is really bad news for Barletta–especially considering the fact that Gene Stilp is responsible for bringing down this type of behavior in Harrisburg.

KP points to this part of Ethics Committee rules:

 It is permissible for House employees to do campaign work, but only outside of congressional space, without the use of any House resources, and on their own time (as opposed to “official” time for which they are compensated by the House).  Accordingly, any House employee who does campaign work must ensure that the work – including any telephone conversations or other communications concerning campaign business – is performed strictly in compliance with these limitations.

Edit: Executive branch personnel are subject to restrictions on partisan political activity by the Hatch Act (5 U.S.C. § 7321 et seq.), but those restrictions do not apply to congressional employees

Thanks Yuri and McG

  It’s still completely unethical.  He doesn’t know where Barletta is, because he’s not part of the campaign, but he’s debating at a campaign event. Total BS.

Update: You know I try to be Fair and Balanced. Barletta's campaign manager Lance Stange responds 

Gort,

 

Thank you for correcting some of Mr. Stilp’s bogus claims.  Since they were corrected, I won’t go into them but I would like to ask that you correct another:

 

The event in question was not a debate.  We have agreed to the same number of debates as President Obama and Governor Romney.  This has been widely reported throughout the district.  One was at Wilkes University under the sponsorship of the Times Leader; another was in Dauphin County under the sponsorship of WHP580 News Radio which covers Dauphin, Cumberland and Perry counties; the third will be on WVIA  in a week to cover the six northern counties – Carbon, Columbia, Luzerne, Montour, Northumberland, and Wyoming Counties.

 

If Mr. Stilp received the same letter we did inviting us to participate, he is also aware that it was not a debate.  The League doesn’t even describe it as a debate and, as a matter of fact, they clearly identified the event as the “Danville Area League of Voters Candidates Night” in the invitation letter.

 

About two months ago, Congressman Barletta agreed to participate in the Dauphin/Cumberland Fall Dinner.  Invitations that were sent out and the event was publicized shortly after that.  Less than two weeks ago, the campaign received a formal invitation to participate in the Danville Area League of Voters Candidates Night.  At that time, we indicated that we had a scheduling conflict.  The League understood but didn’t want to reschedule the event.  Instead, the League suggested that we send a surrogate so that’s what we did.

 

Mr. Stilp’s attack on the League suggesting they changed the rules at the last minute is also untrue.  The League determined the rules and notified us of them, in writing, on October 15.

 

Instead of making false charges and impugning the character of the League, Mr. Stilp should be explaining his plan for “the long run” to “get this country out of its fiscal dilemma” – something he said he would do over six months ago.

End year messages

Tomorrow is the end of the fundraising quarter and my inbox has been deluged with donation requests from just about every politician running for office in Pennsylvania and other places. I don't send them anything because I have better things to spend my money on and I think a better way has to be found to finance campaigns. I did read a unique New Year message from 11th CD Republican candidate Chris Paige who didn't ask for a penny.



My Confession


It's almost the start of a new year, so I want to confess my sins - most notably, the fact that I am a RINO. All of you who have suspected that I'm a Democratic plant are absolutely right, and here's the proof of my crimes:


I raised property taxes by 70%,
I raised income taxes by 87.5%,
I raised garbage fees by 18%,
I've stated publicly that there's nothing left to cut in government spending,
I've stated publicly that the best way to reduce government deficits is to raise taxes,
I publicly refused to endorse the GOP's Presidential nominee in 2008, explaining that I was unable to decide whether Barack Obama or John McCain better represented my values,
I believe that government should limit CO2 emissions,
I believe that the government should "invest" your tax money in minor league baseball teams, amphitheaters, and solar power plants,
I believe that the government should require you to present identity papers whenever you engage in routine commercial transactions,
I believe that you should pass laws first and determine their constitutionality later,
I believe that you should do what you think is right, even if it violates the U.S. Constitution because government has to have to power to do whatever it thinks is right.


Oh, wait a second, I didn't do any of those things, but LOU BARLETTA DID!


You think I might betray you? Lou Barletta already has! Rejecting me for him makes about as much sense as prefering Benedict Arnold to the Marquis de Lafayette because the Marquis was a foreigner. Perhaps I can't prove that I'll do the right thing in Washington, but Lou Barletta has already proven that he won't. Whether its taxes, government spending, the environment, or respect for the Constitution, Lou Barletta has ACTED like a Democrat, so just imagine what he'll do when he gets to Washington. Apparently, he's already telling people that he believes his primary task in DC will be bringing pork back to the District - if that's what we want in our Congressman, remind me again why we would get rid of Cong. Paul "Pork" Kanjorski, whose seniority makes him far, far better at getting pork?


If Lou Barletta and his groupies think I'm a phony, then they should welcome my invitation to debate - it's not like he can't use the free publicity. Most importantly, Barletta claims to be the guy who will fight for you, but he won't even debate for you! And I'm willing to let him debate before a hometown audience! His groupies keep saying what a brave guy he is, but - strangely - he lets his groupies do all the fighting for him. Such cowardice is unforgivable.

In other 11th CD news Cory O'Brien had his first fundraiser and called for the creation of "family sustaining jobs," a vision for the future, the importance of education, a need to "rebuild the United States domestically," and "wean the country off foreign oil."

I have been hearing the same claptrap from politicians about bringing "good paying jobs" to the area because we have a "good work ethic" for as long as I can remember, Kanjorski included. Few tell us how they are going to pull it off.

PA 11th CD mud wars

The NRCC has a spot up rehashing the Cornerstone controversy titled Kick Out Kanjorski and another one that is somewhat amusing using the the theme song from Deliverance riffing on the age old charge of flip-flopping.



Dueling Kanjos





The Kanjo camp went after Barletta over the sludge that is that being dumped around Hazleton.
Despite threats of a lawsuit the latest Kanjorski spot brings up the DeAngelo brothers involvement in drug dealing and their ties to Lou Barletta.



Lou Barletta: Bad Judgment, Bad Ideas.





The Kanjo ads have been fact checked by the unofficial Barletta oppo research website.

Both camps have been firing off press releases.

Kanjo


Wilkes-Barre, PA - When he first ran against Lou Barletta in 2002, Congressman Paul Kanjorski (PA-11) released his income tax returns. Barletta did not. The Congressman says he will release his last ten income tax returns again during this campaign, but if only if Barletta agrees to release all his income taxes from the same period.


The response from the Barletta campaign .


I like this one: The quantity of and amounts deposited in Kanjorski accounts in the Cayman Islands, if any.

If any? What BS. If Barletta has proof that Paul Kanjorski has a bank account in the Cayman Islands or Switzerland he better provide the details

El alcalde Lou Barletta quiere ver sus papeles

Lou Barletta strongly supports Arizona law against illegal immigration

Mayor: Where do Kanjorski, O'Brien, Kelly stand on the new law?
May 3rd

Hazleton, PA – Today, Hazleton Mayor and 11th Congressional District Candidate Lou Barletta strongly endorsed the Arizona law that cracks down against illegal immigration.

Arizona’s SB 1070 gives local and state law enforcement officials more authority to query the federal government about a person's immigration status.

“Four years ago, the failure of the federal government to address the problems created by millions of illegal aliens led me to introduce and champion the Illegal Immigration Relief Act in Hazleton. It's amazing to me that now, four years later, the federal government has still failed to secure our borders and deal with the drain of illegal immigration on municipalities and states,” Mayor Barletta said. “I commend Governor Jan Brewer of Arizona for signing into law what her courageous legislators passed. I understand the pressure they will now be under because I faced that very same pressure in Hazleton by the very same groups. I was called some of the very same names they’re being called right now.



“But, after reviewing the law and speaking with experts who helped draft the legislation, I am confident that the Arizona law includes sufficient safeguards against racial profiling and protects the rights of legal American citizens,” Mayor Barletta continued. “Just like the people of Hazleton several years ago, the people of Arizona were confronted with a dangerous problem and they looked to their elected officials for leadership. I’m proud to say I led the fight here in Hazleton, and I congratulate Gov. Brewer and Arizona lawmakers for standing tall in the face of misguided criticism.

“I'm disappointed but not surprised that the federal government is not taking any steps to stem the flow of illegal aliens into the United States,” Mayor Barletta added. “Our borders remain wide open to those wishing to sneak into this country. That poses an incredible threat to our national security. And, in these difficult economic times, the underground workforce of illegal aliens is taking jobs away from newly arrived legal immigrants, high school graduates, and other Pennsylvanians who desperately need a job.

Mayor Barletta started the national debate about illegal immigration in June 2006, when he proposed and spearheaded the Illegal Immigration Relief Act, an ordinance passed by the Hazleton City Council that requires all employers in the city to check the immigration status of all of its employees and for all landlords to keep on file a city-issued permit for all tenants. The ordinances also made English the language of official city business in Hazleton.

On the eve of the introduction of Pennsylvania’s own law, Mayor Barletta also asked where his opponents in the 11th Congressional District race – Rep. Paul Kanjorski, Corey O'Brien, and Brian Kelly – stand on the Arizona law.

“For more than a week, this legislation has been in the forefront of American debate, yet Mr. Kanjorski, Mr. O'Brien, and Mr. Kelly remain woefully silent on this critical national issue,” Mayor Barletta said. It's time they take a public position on this bill.

“I'd especially like to hear from Mr. Kanjorski, who absolutely needs to explain his inaction in securing our borders and stopping the flow of illegal aliens into the United States, Pennsylvania, and the 11th District. “He cannot continue to hide behind spokesmen. Let's hear from him directly.”