Saturday, October 31, 2009

Petrilla rakes in the bucks




Luzerne County Democratic Commissioner Chair Maryanne Petrilla has raised $54,000 this year and has $78,000 cash on hand according to her latest campaign finance report. That is more money than all the row officer candidates running this year combined.
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Indicted Jury Commissioner Jerry Bonner gave her $500 but she sent it back. There are a few other names that are in the news listed in the report.
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Wilkes-Barre Area School Board President Frank Pizzella kicked in $125 for her golf tournament that is also listed on his CFR. Pizzella has been charged with conspiracy in a teacher job-selling scheme in 2004. I didn't know that she played golf.
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Michael Pasonick is the owner of an Architect/Engineering firm that does business with just about every government agency in Luzerne County made 2 donations totalling $1750 to Petrilla.
Pasonick was recently identified as the person who paid the bribe of $1400 to Housing Authority member Billy Maguire that was passed on by fellow board member Jerry Bonner. I wonder what the vig was in that deal? In one of the most creative excuses that I've ever heard Maguire said that he was reluctant to ask the housing authority for reimbursement of $1,400 he spent while attending a meeting of the National Leased Housing Association with Bonner in late January 2009 because of the debit card scandal and previous publicity that he was travelling the world on the taxpayer's dime when he was working in law enforcement. So he got Bonner to ask Pasonick to pick up the tab. At least he didn't try to double dip because records show he was not reimbursed by the authority. Bonner's attorney Mike Butera made the revelation about Pasonick. Butera has contributed $1000 to Petrilla.
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Sometimes this gets confusing. Patrilla's committee received contributions from Hazleton State Rep. Todd Eachus' and DA Jackie Mo Carroll then her committee sent money to Eachus and Jackie Mo's campaign committees. Scott Gartley kicked in $500 and Petrilla contributed $1000 to Tina Gartley's judicial campaign. I guess this is an example of 'you wash my back, I'll wash your's.' These people don't use their own money to go to all these events, the donor's pay for it. In addition to Gartley she contributed to 2 other Luzerne County judicial candidates. She sent $250 to Joe Musto and $125 to Bill Amesbury.
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In the row ofifce races she(her committee) gave $250 to Dem Prothonotary nominee Nancy Bellas who's husband has been indicted for taking a bribe and Democratic Controller hopeful Bob Morgan got $550.
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Some Luzerne County officials chipped in for the boss.
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Director of Assessments Anthony Alu $125
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County Solicitor Vito DeLucca $375
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Prison Warden Joe Piazza $500
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This one I find interesting. Former Commissioner Todd Vonderheid ( Bond Brother) who is now the head honcho of the local Chamber of Commerce chipped in $250. Vondy ran as a team with Greg Skrepenak for Luzerne County Commissioners telling people we didn't need home rule because we can trust them. That worked out well. Vondy quit before his term was up.

Happy Halloween



UNLESS YOU WANT BUCKSHOT IN YOUR BAGS, STAY AWAY FROM MY DOOR THIS HALLOWEEN, YOU DELINQUENT PUNKS!!!
By Mean Old Man


Once again it’s time for the Godless holiday of Halloween and I ain’t my usual happy self!!! Every year I have to put up with juvenile delinquent thugs roaming my neck of the woods. And to top it off, since the liberals have put my hero Judge Mark Ciavarella out of commission, there’s going to be even more of the useless punks this year. Damn!!!


In my day kids went trick or treating too; but we had respect for our elders and knew our place. And let me tell you, on a good night you were lucky to get a few candy bars (which the old man usually confiscated for “our own good”) and maybe a couple of pennies. But not today; the spoiled spawns of the hip hop crowd want money, and lots of it, too!!! I remember one Halloween when Thelma Jean made me keep the front porch light on and one midget degenerate dirt bag came to the door. I threw a few tiny packages of M&M’s (now there’s a good candy) into his dirty bag. He looked at me puzzled, asking “Doncha have any dead Presidents, dude?”


I told him that I did not, but that I probably had a rifle or a revolver or two of the kind that may have been used to off some of our Presidents if he’d like to try me. You should have seen the look on the goofs face. It was worth having to let all of the others in my door! He turned as white as chalk and ran away. I think some of the other dumbbell trick or treaters thought that he was masquerading as Casper. That was a fun year.


But now, what with the way our new President has outspent us and ruined our economy (remember how great things were when ol’ GW was in office?) I expect there will be even more mongrels out trying to get their hands on my hard earned money. They’re wasting their time!!!

So, let me give all you Halloweeners a message: Since most of you would still be in the slammer had our esteemed Judge Ciavarella not been railroaded by the press, the Obama Justice Department, and the blogger Gort, why don’t you all get out of my white hair and go to their houses instead. I’m sure that Gort would be happy to greet you at his doorway. Yeah, right!!! Show up anyway; hell, maybe he’ll even give you a first edition copy of The Complete Writings of Chairman Mao. Bet you’ll love that!!!



As for me, I’ll be sitting in my easy chair, smoking a Lucky, having a few bottles of Steg and listening to the soothing sounds of Eddie Fischer singing “Oh My Papa”. I always think of Pops every Halloween. He was a great guy; he taught me to hate the holiday and kids, too. I miss him a lot.


Happy Halloween; go to Hell!!! And don’t forget to stop at all the bloggers homes; just stay away from mine!!! I hate you all!!!!!!

Bullet voting

In a previous post I reported that supporters of Judicial candidate Dick Hughes have been urging people to vote for just for him even though you can cast 2 ballots for Common Pleas Judge in Luzerne County. Today I got an email from county GOP chairman Terry Casey asking people to vote for Hughes and skip the other 2.


A MESSAGE FROM CHAIRMAN CASEY

We’re in the final stretch of what has turned into a real horse race for two seats on the Luzerne County bench.
We’re fortunate because clearly the best candidate in the field of three is our very own Richard Hughes, the only Republican in the running.
Dick is running an upbeat, positive, bipartisan campaign.
Not only is Dick battling a lopsided registration edge but he has become victim of the same old dirty Democratic political machine that is fueled by sneaky and dishonest backroom tactics.
In case you haven’t heard, the two Democratic county commissioners decided to push that antiquated, mindless method of voting – straight-party ballot -- by adding some confusing language to the ballot.
They did this in September, a month after deciding in a public meeting that the language was not necessary.
They did not do this at a public meeting as required by law. The two Democratic commissioners approved the language in typical Luzerne County Democratic fashion – a backroom deal without advertising the meeting. Again, an illegal move.
And they didn’t tell anyone about it until they voted on it at a public meeting in October – a month after it was a done deal. By then the absentee ballots were printed and ready to go.
They tried to deceive you and me and all of the voters of Luzerne County and attempted to make an already uneven playing field even more crooked.
This was done at the urging of the attorney of one of the Democratic candidates who has everything to gain by this senseless system called straight-party voting.
They have wielded this political power for too long.
But we have the power now because we’re not going to take it anymore.
We have the power to show Maryanne Petrilla and Greg Skrepenak that we’re smarter than they think we are.
We can tell them we will no longer fall victim to their dirty political tricks.
But there’s only one way we can do this.
We have to cast a bullet vote for Dick Hughes. We have to vote for one and only one candidate for county judge: Republican Richard Hughes.
PLEASE tell your family and friends to vote for ONE and only ONE candidate for Luzerne county judge!!!!
That’s the only way our party will gain traction in Luzerne County.
That’s the only chance we have at getting a Republican on the bench.
That’s the only way the Democratic machine will stop trampling on our rights and our sensibilities ...
If we stand together we can put up a roadblock and stop that Democratic machine that uses unfair tactics to control our county.
We have the power to do that – in a single vote.
A single vote for Richard Hughes for Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas.





Bill O'Boyle in the TL explains the tactic. Bullet voting is a tactic that is employed in races in which there are more candidates than open slots. By not casting the allowable number of votes a voter helps his or her preferred candidate by not adding votes to his or her rivals.

The county GOP is still fuming about instructions being included on the ballot about straight party voting . Executive Director Renita Fennick said “We think the county election board’s decision to add language regarding straight party voting encourages the antiquated, mindless practice of one party voting,” she said. “They took an uneven playing field and made it even more lopsided.”

The usual suspects of political analysis, Tom Baldino, Terry Madonna and Ed Mitchell, had a mixed reaction to the tactic.


I've been bullet voting for years and I think it works. In the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board race the only person I will be voting for is Harry Haas. There are 5 candidates for 4 slots.

John Stewart explains Fox News

All Foxed up


The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10c
For Fox Sake!
http://www.thedailyshow.com/
Daily Show
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Political HumorHealth Care Crisis

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Luzerne County Controller

The Controller's contest continues to be the hot race with Walter Griffith complaining about Bob Morgan's campaign finance report after Morgan complained about his last one. They both filed corrections to the reports.

Griffith has been critical throughout the campaign of Maryanne Petrilla's performance as Controller in the brief time she held the office before becoming a Luzerne County Commissioner and Wil Toole took a shot at her in Monday's debate.

Toole gave the play by play of his pursuit of the endorsement of the AFSCME local that covers county employees saying he was a founder of the local union. They didn't endorse him. He said he wanted it then lobbed this bomb on why he didn't get it. "Then I found out that Maryanne Petrilla had hired the President's daughter two months previous."

Maryanne's response "He should be careful about what he says."

The Union President, Paula Schnelly, said "With all the controversy and corruption, we decided not to endorse anyone and stay clear of endorsements," she said. "Why he is making it personal, I don't know. ... I heard he alleged I am tight with Maryanne Petrilla. I know Maryanne Petrilla as well as I know Wil Toole."

Director of Assessments Anthony Alu recommended hiring Ms. Schnelly because she was the best qualified applicant.

Wil Toole chimed in on the CV website:


I think it incredulous to think that there are a hundred union members out of work and the Commissioners hired the union presidents daughter. I don't know about you but I don't think a hundred union members should be out of work and not even be offered the opportunity of a job. And by the way, if anyone believes that the commissioners hiring the union president's daughter is a coincidence then I have a bridge to sell. Where was that job advertised? I also find it amazing that after a hundred years of patronage, these Commissioner's have offered up the gift of job giving to their managers. Right!


Wil Toole, Former County AFSCME Union President

One last poll. Who should be the next Controller? Vote on the sidebar and give your reasons in the comments.



The Phillies win the phirst game of the World Series


Chase Utley put 2 out of the park and Cliff Lee went the distance scattering 6 hits and striking out 10 with no walks. I thought that CC was pulled too early but I'm not complaining because the Yankee's bullpen gave up 4 more runs. Whoever invented the pitch count should be shot.
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Yankee fan favorite Pedro Martinez is pitching for the Phillies tomorrow.
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The side poll tells me that there are more Phillies fans that visit this site than the Yankee faithful
Who will win the World Series? Phillies 41 (69%) Yankees 18 (30%)
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Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Retain the Judges?


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Luzerne County Judges Thomas Burke and Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. are up for retention to the Court of Common Pleas this year and they are feeling the heat of the fallout of the Juvie Brothers scandal that may result in them losing the yes/no vote. They may meet a similar fate as Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Russell Nigro? In 2005 Nigro lost his bid for retention because the state legislature voted themselves an outrageous pay raise in the middle of the night and the voters took their wrath out on him. They have not been accused of any wrongdoing but Conahan and Ciavarella are not on the ballot and they are. People I talk to are in a throw the bums out mood.
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PPO-2 has been in full campaign mode with a website up and has been raising money. Judge Burke hasn't raised a dime, doesn't have a website but has been pressing the flesh asking people for their vote and answering every question thrown at him.
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Olszewski’s trip to the Florida condo has been well documented and just may sink him. I've never heard anybody say a bad thing about Judge Burke and I even had him for jury duty recently and thought he was very fair. Then again I had Ciavarella for jury duty a few years ago and was impressed by him. Shows what I know. But I just can't get by this from a local attorney:
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Olszewski and Burke claim they did nothing wrong. "It wasn't me, It was them. I didn't know. How could I know?" Just men had a duty to discover the truth. Olszewski said the hearings took place a half a mile away in another building. How could he hear? How did an advocacy group over 100 miles away in Philadelphia hear enough to file lawsuits on behalf of more than 500 children? How did the FBI know enough about it to raid juvenile probation? Olszewski says if he knew he would have told the FBI. If "ifs" and "buts" were candy and nuts, oh what a party we'd have.
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I always vote no on these questions no matter what is going on but that's just me and all my Republican friends tell me I'm wrong to vote no on Burke. As unfair as it may seem to be to these gentleman ( I doubt their judgement and tin ears not their integrity) we have to send a message about what has been going on in the Courthouse and the way to do that is to vote no on retention.
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So tell me in the comments why I'm wrong and vote in the polls on the sidebar.

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Luzerne County Judges

The headline election this year is the election of 2 new Judges for the Court of Common Pleas. After the revelations that the Juvie brothers, Michael Conahan and Mark Ciavarella, have taken public corruption to a level unseen anywhere in history of this country the choice is especially important. Taking a bribe to fix a case seems almost pedestrian (they did that too) but designing a scheme to conspire to build a private juvenile penal colony then railroading children through the court system to ensure the place makes money is beyond corrupt, it is evil. And they had lot's of help.


17 candidates ran in the primary and now we have the choice of 3 very qualified people to fill the 2 open seats. Wilkes-Barre district judge Bill Amesbury won both nominations which in past years would assure his election because his name would appear twice on the old lever machine ballots but with the new touch screens he will only be listed once. Tina Gartley has been running the most energetic campaign and has been all over the place and her online outreach has been impressive, I think John Dawe knows how to work the intertubes. Republican Dick Hughes has solid support from the local GOP and many Democrats and independents that I talk to also like him.

My prediction is that Gartley will be top vote getter with Amesbury and Hughes fighting it out for the second spot. Some Hughes supporters are urging a bullet vote for him. A bullet vote is casting a vote for just one candidate when you are allowed to vote for more than one. In this case you can vote for two.


You can cast a bullet vote in the Gort42 poll on the sidebar.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Luzerne County Controller debate


I'm going to tell everybody here a dirty little secret if you really want to know the inside of politics in Luzerne County. The salary of elected officials have been kept low to keep good people out of government-Wil Toole
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I thought that was the best line of the night at the LuLac Political Letter Controller's Forum . Moderator David Yonki did a great job of asking tough questions and allowing the candidates to mix it up. He read every question from the audience and they were good ones and no one asked about UFO's or other such nonsense.
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The three candidates websites are here:
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I'm going to do a short recap but you can see the whole thing because it was filmed by PittstonPolitics.com.
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The 3 candidates opened by reviewing their resumes. Morgan mixed a few sports metaphors and Griffith took a shot a Morgan for saying he will work at PNC Bank if he is elected. Griffith promised to be a full time Controller and later Morgan and Toole also pledge to work full time.
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The questions started with the Times-Leader endorsement of Griffith. The TL says he is combative. When they asked about being combative and Gort is here, one of the local blog editors, has noted that I'm a pain in the ass. I'm always watching government and try to hold them accountable.
Morgan disagreed with the TL knock on his financial savvy and Toole addressed questions about his disability pension which was converted to regular retirement when he turned 60.
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All 3 answered some technical questions about the office and they all agreed that there should be better handling of cash payments with Morgan and Griffith wanting a central location to take all cash payments but Toole argued that would be unworkable.
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Griffith will work full time wants to eliminate comp time and ensure that all sick/vacation time should be tracked. Toole noted that he is retired so he nothing else to do and said the job can't be done part-time and said he will keep track of when employees sign in and out. Managers have to manage and that seems to be an alien thought in Luzerne County. He also doesn't favor buying a fingerprint/time clock machine and neither does Morgan. Morgan favors keeping flex time instead of paying overtime. He then pointed out that Griffith has run for 4 offices this year, Controller, Government Study Commission, Constable and Judge of Elections and asked what job he will he be doing on election day. Griffith responded that he will be a Judge of Elections because he hasn't been elected Constable or Controller yet.
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Toole said he couldn't give a schedule of audits because things are so far behind and Morgan agreed that the backlog has to be cleared. They both said that the top priority is to deal with the Sheriff's office. Griffith then took some shots at former Controller and County Commissioner Maryanne Petrilla, who is a Morgan supporter, saying she left the office in shambles, she didn't manage the office and defended the job Acting Controller AJ Martinelli is doing because he is doing double duty.
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They all agreed that the debit card scandal was a nightmare. Walter recounted that the Commissioners approved the debit card policy and it wasn't followed by the Chief Clerk, Sam Guesto. The people who didn't follow the policy, there was no reprimand...for those people who stole our money... They should have been fired. Toole offered some suggestions to control travel costs then blasted the Commissioners at the time. Skrepenak, Vonderheid, Urban...They made a major blunder and it's about time that they stood up and say we made a mistake and stop blaming their employees.
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At this point David joked that according to some of his readers all 3 have promised him a job.
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Morgan said that the pay structure has to be revamped. How can the Chief Clerk make $80K but his bosses are paid $40K. Griffith wants to stop management raises and playing games with eliminating and creating jobs. He said that the deputy's in the row offices are paid more than there bosses because they are expected to run the operation while the elected official often doesn't show up for work. Then Toole said elected officials salary's have been kept low on purpose to keep good people out of government. He recalled that years ago their was a salary increase for elected officials but the Commissioners at the time, Frank Trinisewski and Jim Phillips rolled it back. Why? Because they were terrified that good people were going to run for office and they would be out. He also decried the pay of entry level pay for qualified auditors. Walter took issue with the contention that good people won't run for the job because of the relatively low pay noting that many people live on a lot less. Morgan said he is Okay with the pay. Toole also said that Businesses want to come to Luzerne County because we have slave labor. He also gave the play by play of his pursuit of the endorsement of the AFSCME local that covers county employees saying he was a founder of the local union. They didn't endorse him. He said he wanted it then lobbed this bomb on why he didn't get it. Then I found out that Maryanne Petrilla had hired the President's daughter two months previous.
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Toole's pension controversy came up again and he said Judge Michael Conahan threw the case out despite the fact that he backed Joe Musto in the previous election. He blamed it on the administration that followed his tenure as Pittston City Clerk and was proud of the job he did. The administration that replaced me dragged me through a living hell. Morgan said that he doesn't have a conflict being an employee of PNC Bank that does a lot of business with the county and has an independent counsel opinion supporting that but would recuse himself from any pension board votes involving his employer.
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It ended with Toole and Morgan beating up Griffith saying he accused Controller office employees of falsifying an audit asking why he didn't ask for an investigation. He responded that he did contact the Auditor General and another agency. Morgan said You make accusations without facts. He then hit Griffith about running for 4 offices asking if he would serve 4 years if elected as Controller. Griffith said he would serve a full term.
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Post game: I was disappointed that the rest of Bentley's was closed as I was hoping to check out the place and catch some of the Eagle's game. Me and Forrest hit Mark's on the way home. Some elbows got thrown but then we all know that politics is a contact sport and afterward all 3 candidates were talking and joking with each other and the crowd. I can honestly say that this one of the best political debates I have ever attended. Things got tough but it remained civil.
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Monday, October 26, 2009

This is the matchup many of you wanted

The New York Yankees won the AL pennant tonight and will now take on the defending champs Phillies in the World Series. Most people that I know are fans of one these teams, in some cases both. This is the dream match up NEPA. So who will win? Vote on the sidebar and share your thoughts in the comments.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

CONTROLLER’S FORUM

The LuLac Political Letter will be having its Controller's Forum for Luzerne County Monday night from 7 to 9PM at Bentley's. All three candidates, Walter Griffith (GOP) Robert Morgan (Democrat) and Wil Toole (Independent) will be on hand to answer questions and talk about their campaigns.


Since the event will be at Bentley's and they have a bar with TV's it is perfect setting for a meeting of the Saturday OT Committee and Operatic Society. After the debate we can watch the Eagle's snatch defeat out of the jaws of victory . How did they lose to the Raiders? So come out and join us to address the financial crises by infusing cash into the malt beverage industry to ensure it's liquidity.

The local papers are full of it

Political coverage that is.

The Times Leader and Citizens Voice have done an outstanding job covering the corruption scandal and I think my fellow bloggers would agree that we can't do what we do without the efforts of their reporters and editors.

Today both papers had bunches of stories about the upcoming local elections that I will use in upcoming posts.

The TL:

Electorate can show strength by voting

Most school incumbents won’t be returning

ELECT: Luzerne County Judge

Listing of candidates on ballot for Nov. 3

ELECT:Judges Seeking Retention


Stankovic stresses her years in office

ELECT: Prothonotary


The CV:

Lawyer dollars feed county judges race

Corruption cloud hangs over seat for prothonotary

Third try for Congress uncertain for Barletta

Top contributors

Election facts

And many more.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

YouTube weekend

Elton John doing Bohemian Rhapsody. The Committee will have to approve.







I snuck this in:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQe07ureqQk

Sports weekend

The Yanks and Angels are rained out so we will have to wait another day to find who will have honor of losing to the Phillies in World Series.


Penn State wins for the first time in a long time at the Big House 35-10. I'm surprised. I expected a closer game but I'm not complaining.

Alabama holds off Tennessee on a blocked FG winning 12-10. The Vatican Bowl is going down to last minute with Notre Dame beating Boston College 20-16.

Friday, October 23, 2009

Luzerne County rogues gallery


I like this collage in the Times-Leader. It shows 16 of the 18 people who have been charged with a crime so far. I predict that 6 months from now they won't have enough space to put all the mugs on the front page.
The article also has a score card.

Thursday, October 22, 2009

The other row offices

I've been concentrating on the race for Luzerne County Controller because that is where most of the action has been lately. We have two other spots up for election on November 3rd and I hope this will be the last time we ever have to vote for candidates for these positions. But that is up to the Government Study Commission and then the voters to ratify a new charter.


I've been saying for months that Republican Carolee Medico Olenginski will romp to victory in the Prothonotary contest even without the news that her opponent's husband is a crook. I've never met Nancy Bellas and I was surprised that she won the primary against Duryea politico Art Akulonis and the most qualified candidate Gerald Mullery. I hear that the local Dems have given up on her and Mullery has even been handing out Carolee signs.

TL: Allan Bellas has resigned his post as President of Wyoming Valley West School Board President...Bellas has agreed to plead guilty to corruption charges related to his former post as Luzerne County Redevelopment Authority Executive Director. He previously accepted a bribe in exchange for helping a developer get a tax break deal.


Incumbent Democrat Register of Wills Dottie Stankovic is taking some flack over her work hours. The CV reviewed security records that show she never swiped her security card more than a third of the time over the last 21 months. But that does not mean she was a no-show at the Penn Place office on North Pennsylvania Avenue in Wilkes-Barre, Stankovic explained.
"I was in the office, and somebody else used their pass to open up the door. One opens it up, and five or six go in," Stankovic said.


Gina Nevenglosky, her Republican opponent, has claimed she has been to the Register of Wills Office "20-some times" this year and, she said, Stankovic was never there.

The suspicion that not all row officers put in a full day's is not new. Remember that Bob Reilly was selling used cars during business hours and a few years before that he was working in a beer store on weekdays.

This dust up just may be the answer to Gina's prayers of being elected.

Baseball Playoffs

We will have to wait a few days to learn who the Phillies will play in the World Series. Angels beat the Evil Empire 7-6.

Phillies are in the WORLD SERIES again

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Sam Stretton endorses Griffith

Most endorsements are only good for a press release unless it's a group that can deliver boots on the ground or bundle money or both. That's why Labor Unions are important for Democrats and outfits like the Club for Growth matter for Republicans.

This one matters.



Oct. 20, 2009


Luzerne County Republican Controller Candidate Walter L. Griffith Jr. has received the endorsement of attorney Samuel C. Stretton, solicitor to former county Controller Steve Flood.
In a letter to the “electors” of the county, Stretton said he “strongly” endorses Griffith as the county’s next “financial watchdog.”



“I have had the opportunity to talk to Mr Griffith on several occasions regarding the Sunshine Law and other issues and firmly believe that Walter Griffith Jr. has a firm grasp on the function and operation of Luzerne County Government,” Stretton said in the letter.


Stretton said he feels confident that Griffith would follow in Flood’s footsteps and “pick up his torch and make significant changes for the better for Luzerne County.”


Griffith called the endorsement an “honor” and said Flood is the type of public servant that all candidates, regardless of party affiliation, should emulate.


“I am humbled by Mr. Stretton’s confidence and consider it an honor that he would endorse me,” Griffith said. “I think it just goes to show that my reputation as a government watchdog is appealing to people of all political parties who want someone in the courthouse whom they can trust.”


County Republican Chairman Terry Casey said Stretton’s endorsement indicates that the message being conveyed by the rejuvenated GOP crosses party lines.


“Steve Flood is a Democrat who defeated the powerful Democratic political machine,” Casey said. “When he got into office, he proved he was a true public servant and worked for the people, not for the party. We now know that Steve Flood knew when something was amiss, long before the rest of us knew. That’s what we can expect when Walter Griffith is our controller.”


Rumors

I just heard that the Grand Jury has indicted a high ranking Luzerne County elected official. I'm working the phones to confirm it.