Will Power - Voice for Reform in Northampton County

Every now and then, I get these delusions of grandeur. I begin to think I know all about political strategy. I'll share my brilliant insights with LVDem or Chris Casey, or I'll dump all over poor Rich Wilkins.

The truth? I'm an idiot. I do care about good government, but my political skills are horrible. Whenever I associate myself with a campaign, it's the kiss of death.

I'll give you one of many examples. Single-handedly, I dragged poor Karl Longenbach down to defeat when he ran for judge. I was just a sign planter, but even screwed that up. I got the brilliant idea of strapping a sign to my back and riding my bike to the courthouse every day. I pissed off motorists, who had to wait for chances to pass some fat guy on a bike with a campaign sign. But the worst thing was what happened election day. I propped a big "Karl Longenbach for judge" sign next to my bike at the courthouse, changed in the can, and discretely hung my wet clothing on my bike. Unfortunately, my dirty and wet underwear fell out, and was right next to the Longenbach sign the entire day. The courthouse had a lot of traffic that day, and Karl lost by a handful of votes. Karl eventually did forgive me. But whenever his wife sees me, she starts saying strange things in Spanish.

I warned Will Power about all of this, but he gave me a second chance. I circulated a petition for him in Nazareth. I even got 30 signatures in just one cold day, walking up and down the streets, terrorizing folks trying to eat. Guess what? I lost them. Now that the deadline has passed, they'll show up. I did circulate another petition. But if Power was really counting on me, he wouldn't be on the ballot. Although I have no skills as a political strategist, I know we need reform-minded people on council. We need independent thinkers, not those who follow the commands of either the Democratic or Republican cliques. Power is a voice for good government, and here's why he's running.

"I am running for County Council to fight against, and help clean-up the corruption in Northampton County government. The election of John Stoffa was a very good start, yet there is a deep need for such integrity on county council. To accomplish this goal, I will propose an County Ordinance called the Code of Civil Ethics, which will outline how council votes must be made with a full disclosure as to if and when any campaign contributions or gifts were made by any and all persons whom are conducting business with the county. Moreover, this ordinance will demand full disclosure of any and all campaign contributions or gifts made by any and all persons whom conducted business with the county in the past from yesterday to up to 3 to 5 years ago. More watchdog ordinances would follow in the same spirit of integrity and accountability. (NOTE: This action will be far more relevant than the make-believe ordinance McClure authored, which is really just a tool to squash public dissent of council’s business, and will hold all members of County Council immediately accountable if there is a “money trail” connected to their votes.)"

"I am also running to keep property taxes down by cutting spending, especially in the forms of grants, and by reducing entitlements such as tax abatement programs that are taken advantage of by the wealthiest real estate investors whom certainly are not paying their fair share of taxes. I openly take the position that County Council was wrong to vote in favor of a nearly $500,000 renovation to County Council’s own chambers, when that amount so grossly exceeds the value of an average taxpayer’s own entire home."

"Moreover, I am running to promote a more cordial council-executive relationship, so that more positive things can be done for Northampton County citizens in the vital coming years. These next few years are too important for such infighting as we’ve seen this past year, and McClure is an obstructionist to good government in far too many ways."