Northampton County Council: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

Follow the money. That's what they tell you. If you want to know how you're government rep feels about runaway development or corporate welfare, look at where he's getting his campaign contributions. Under the influence of now convicted campaign consultant Michael Solomon, former Northampton County Exec Reibman developed a highly refined system under which thousands of dollars from county contractors and employees poured regularly into his campaign coffers. Things had become so obscene that, when he ran for exec, John Stoffa shunned these legal bribes and won, which certainly tells us how Lehigh Valley residents feel about this practice. But what about the members of Northampton County Council? Do they spurn big money from special interests, like Stoffa, or do they believe in business as usual?

I've looked at the campaign finance reports for each of our illustrious County Council members. It's a tale of the good, the bad, and the ugly.

The Good

Surprisingly, most of them are actually good. Wayne Grube, John Cusick, Ann McHale, Ron Angle, Mike Dowd and Diane Neiper all rely on their own funds, and a scattering of small contributions, mostly from individuals. Their reports make clear they owe nothing to anyone.

The Bad

Charles Dertinger wants to be your next U.S. Congressman. But if you look at his campaign finance report, you'll soon realize that he won't be your Congressman at all -- he'll instead be a union puppet. In his successful quest for a Council seat, almost all of his campaign funds came from union PACs. They gave him over $15,000! He also managed to get $500 from the King of Special Interests, Glenn Reibman.

Most of this money isn't even local. Come to think of it, neither is Charles! He himself happens to work for a union, and is based in Flushing, NY How convenient! I guess Charles can think about County business while burning fuel during four hour commutes.

Now don't get me wrong. My own sentiments are strongly pro-union. We need them. But when one candidate not only works for a union, but gets almost all of his campaign funds from them, he's obviously their slave. Hey unions, why don't you let us elect our own guys with our own money?

The Ugly

I put Lamont McClure and Anthony Branco in the "ugly" category because, even though both relied heavily on money from special interests, the voters still rejected them. They lost. Yet they both now sit on Council, thanks to back room shenanigans.

Anthony Branco didn't raise as much money as Dertinger, but most of it came from special interests. Developers Atiyeh, Tuskes and Pektor were major contributors ($2,400), and I'm sure Tony will remember that when they ask for TIF financing or to place a property in the KOZ.

Lamont McClure is the strangest of them all. In a losing campaign, he managed to pull in about $10,000 from lawyers, most of whom are big city lawyers. Unions kicked in $3,440. DA Morganelli, who employs McClure's wife, donated $1,500, and one of his detectives provided an additional $500. Reibman sweetened the pot with $1000 gathered from his pool parties, and even Grube provided $500.

This guy owes nothing to us -- remember, we rejected him. But pals like Council Prez Grube and DA Morganelli wanted their boy on Council, and that's what they got. He's not our Councilman: he belongs to unions, lawyers, the DA's office, and Grube.

Incidentally, many of these nonlocal attorneys who gave to McClure, and McClure himself, work for Mr. Baseball, Peter Angelos. Although Angelos has pretty much destroyed the Orioles, his control of Maryland's legislature is legendary. His measures are simply called "Angelos bills." He's a heavy campaign contributor. He now spreads his tentacles to Northampton County. Maybe he wants to buy the Lehigh Valley Dawgs!

The Need For Reform

County Execs and elected officials like the DA should not be permitted to donate to candidates who decide their budget. And just as the Home Rule Charter prohibits a Councilman from being employed by the County, the same argument should apply to a Councilman's spouse. Even if Morganelli didn't give McClure a dime, do you really think McClure could give an objective evaluation of the DA's budget when the DA is Mrs. McClure's boss?

In addition to the possible conflict of interest presented by accepting money from elected officials, the dangerous influence of NONLOCAL political money is being felt, especially with Dertinger and McClure. Council will have to approve 11 union contracts. How can we expect Dertinger to look at them fairly when he himself is a union puppet? And will McClure, beneficiary of all kinds of money from big city lawyers, try to steer swaption deals or bond work their way? To prevent Philly or New York special interests from deciding what happens in Northampton County, politicians should be barred from using nonlocal money to run a campaign.

The best way to minimize the influence of special interests in elections is to make them irrelevant. How do we do that? Adopt publicly funded clean elections laws. In this system, candidates are provided a flat sum by the government to run their campaign if they pledge to seek no money from private sources. This system is up and working in six states.

This proposal has not been considered in the land of midnight legislative payraises, where local write-in results are available to the press on election night, but are shrouded from the public ten days after an election, and where campaign finance reports in the hotly disputed 133rd legislative district are still not posted on the net.

Do we want reform or business as usual? Business as usual is what we'll get from Dertinger, McClure, and Branco. That's what their little publicized campaign finance reports tell us.

A Win For the Angry Mob

"The People Have Spoken ... Fuck 'em!"

That's what my Dad told a radio station after losing a close DA race to Charlie Spaziani back in the day. It drove the announcer nutz. People still remember and remind me of that wisecrack.

My father's pithy remark was mostly a joke, but it pretty much sums up my own feelings about Tuesday's election.

The Gracedale Vote

A mob of just 19,690 Northampton County voters have very likely condemned Gracedale's residents by refusing to permit its sale to a union-friendly private company that is more than willing to provide high quality care to indigents. Because the County can no longer afford a nursing home, and Council is unwilling to increase taxes to pay for it, Executive John Stoffa may have no choice other than to slowly close it down. He needs $3 million to keep it going until the end of the year. If Council is unwilling to approve a budget amendment to pay for it, he might have no choice but to lay off staff. He can get $3 million by shedding 60 workers.

Or Council can cave, in which case major tax increases are looming. Because Gracedale is not the County's only expense, I think the projected increase will be higher than the 9-30% figure mentioned by Stoffa, and I think it's very likely that these increases will continue for several years.

In a few months, when the other 90% of Northampton County's 196,308 voters wake up and ask why nobody told them what was going on, I will remind them that Ron Angle and John Stoffa conducted eight town halls.

This was a win for mob rule, unions, election fraud and orchestrated disinformation. It is a loss for taxpayers. Even worse, it is a loss for Gracedale's residents.

A Bad Judge in Wilson

In Wilson and West Easton, just 794 people elected a truly scary guy to serve out the remaining four years of Judge Koury's term as a District Judge. Richard "King of Law" Yetter ran a campaign that demonstrates convincingly that he has absolutely no common sense. One of the craziest things he did, on Election Eve, was to produce a Youtube video that included a detailed closeup of a check from Attorney Stan Margle, right down to account number, routing number and signature. He also prepared goofy "reality show" videos with really, really bad acting.

Widely regarded as an idiot in the legal community, he's bound to create headaches for judges. But he latched himself onto the Gracedale crowd and even sat in the audience when Larry Otter was after me for attorney fees.

Over the next few years, as people see this guy in action, the other voters in Wilson and West Easton will ask why nobody warned them about Yetter.

I did.

The Gang of Four Prevails

In Northampton County, the mob is union-inspired. But an equally ugly mob of tea party enthusiasts, aided by bluebloods like Charles Darwin Smelling and a right-wing radio host, managed to get rid of a courageous public servant who would rather vote his conscience than listen to the whims of a dictatorial party boss. The Gang of Four - Scott Ott, Lisa Scheller, Vic Mazziotti and David Najarian - defeated Dean Browning, perhaps the most conscientious public official I've ever seen.

Next year, when Lehigh County government is in gridlock, Scott Ott's Scrappleface routines won't seem so funny. Around that time, Dean Browning will look pretty good.

The message of this year's municipal primary is that mob rule is alive and well. Blogger Chris Casey makes the same observation. We are all going to pay for the choices made by about 10% of the registered voters.

Silver Lining

Although the news is bad, there is one silver lining. Northampton County Council member Mike Dowd, who had been targeted by the Gracedale Goons, easily defeated Keep-Gracedale candidate Bill Whitman by a 61% to 39% margin.

This Fall, after voters wake up with buyer's remorse, I suspect that the Pro Tax Council members will be squirming.

Updated 10:10 AM: Yetter Win For Full 6 Years. - I got the term worng. He will serve a full six years. And may Gd have mercy on the souls of people from W Easton and Wilson.

2017 Election - Winners and Losers

Winners

1) Civility.- Tuesday's election was a firm rebuke, not of Republicans per se, but of Donald Trump's presidency and authoritarianism. In the NorCo Exec race, Democrat Lamont McClure defeated Republican incumbent John Brown with 53.8% of the vote. Democrats captured four of the five county council seats up for grabs. The balance of power has switched from a 7-2 GOP majority to a 6-3 Democratic board.

In Lehigh County, Democrat Phillips Armstrong defeated Republican Brad Osborne in the Exec race with 52.69% of the vote. 

This Democratic surge was seen elsewhere in southeastern Pa. According to The Inky, two Delaware County Council seats - the only two up for grabs - went blue for the first time. Four Chester County row offices also went Democratic for the first time.* Bucks County elected four Democratic row officers for the first time in over 30 years.

Democrats also made inroads in Pittsburgh 'burbs.

What happened in the Lehigh Valley and Pennsylvania is also what happened in Virginia and New Jersey, although New Jersey may be more Democratic.

Last year, billionaire Donald Trump attracted Lehigh Valley already conservative Democratic voters by appealing to their darker natures and appearing less elitist and out-of touch than Hillary Clinton. But after a year's worth of ugly tweets that have made us a laughing stock internationally, citizens have become Trump-weary. Their vote on Tuesday is an early indication that Season 2 of the Trump reality show may very well be cancelled.

"This was a rejection of anger and narrowness inside the Republican Party," said Ohio Governor John Kasich, who is rumored to be interested in Trump's job. "I think the party has to sit down and look at itself and say, 'Who are we appealing to?' If we're just appealing to a handful of people in our own base, I think you don't win. You have to be broader than that."

2) Women. - Though a woman was rejected as a presidential candidate only last year, they were quite popular in this year's municipal and judicial races. Three women - Peg Ferraro, Lori Vargo Heffner and Tara Zrinski - were elected to Northampton County's nine-person county council. This is a first. in Lehigh County, Amy Zanelli was elected as a Lehigh Commissioner, representing west Bethlehem and Allentown's east side. But the big story is that women, Democrat and Republican, swept in the statewide appellate court races.

This was bad news for Northampton County Judge Emil Giordano, who unfortunately came up short in his second bid for the Superior Court. But without question, women are under-represented in Pennsylvania government. According to a recent study by  Representation 2020, Pennsylvania ranks #49 out of 50 states in terms of the percentage of women in elected office.

We did beat Mississippi.

3) Facebook. - Although anyone in high school seems to hate Facebook, we baby boomers in particular  love it. This was the first municipal campaign I've seen in which a concerted effort was made through to reach voters via Facebook, primarily in Lamont McClure's executive campaign. He used it to boost messages and create more of a buzz.

I decided to try it myself.

I created a "Say NO to Seth Vaughn" Facebook page, drawing attention to his abysmal 64% attendance over the past three years and his "So what!" "Who cares!" attitude about his duty. "I'm still going to win the election next year, pal," is what he said to me last year after I took him to task for missing the most important budget hearing of the year, i.e. the one in which Council members propose amendments. I boosted a post on that page on the Friday before the election. It reached nearly 2,000 Northampton County Facebook users over the next two days, resulting in 61 "likes" and 21 shares.

Total cost to me? $32.13. Cost to Seth Vaughn? Hard to say, but he finished ninth of 10 candidates in the NorCo County Council race.

But that's nothing compared to a devastating Facebook video posted by the Northampton County Democratic Committee on election eve. (You can see that video on YouTube). In the span of just three or four days, that video was viewed by 27,000 Northampton County Facebook users. This resulted in 410  "likes" and 99 shares.. This video was created by former Easton City Council member Jeff Warren, a principal at Progressive Consulting Strategies. 

4) Dr. Paige Van Wirt -  She staged an unsuccessful write-in campaign in Bethlehem for City Council against four incumbents who had no challengers. Although she knew she had little chance of succeeding, she gave Bethlehem voters something they previously lacked - a choice. She energized pockets of Bethlehem, especially in the north side. This increased turnout of Democratic voters made her an instant friend with Lamont McClure, whose victory margin in Bethlehem was 1,902 votes.

In addition to promoting her own campaign, Dr. Van Wirt made it a point to stand by other women who were running, and attended the County Council debate.

Although she may have fallen short in her quest for City Council, there may be vacancies in the County soon. She would make an excellent Director of Human Services, and has very specific ideas about combatting the opioid crisis, a topic that stumped everyone else.   

5) Steve Barron -  Northampton County's Controller, Steve Barron, purchased an autodialer several years ago. He has used it to help Democratic candidates reach voters through polling and robocalls. Although campaign finance reports show payments to him, he does not benefit personally. He uses the money received to purchase minutes.

He helped with several robocalls for McClure, including one prepared by DA John Morganelli.     

6) The Lamont McClure campaign. -  Whether you like him or not, McClure's executive campaign is the most masterful executive race I've ever seen. If his stewardship of the County is anything like the way he managed his campaign, the people of Northampton County can rest easy for he next four years.

McClure's opponent, John Brown, used precious campaign funds to repay debt to himself. He also paid out large chunks for a campaign manager and a consultant.

McClure, in contrast, did everything himself. His webpage as free. He wrote his own ads, though he did use a designer. He paid no consultant or campaign manager. He relied on volunteers like Jim Schlener, who planted the signs you saw placed every three feet, and Barron. The money he saved went to more mailers and TV time.

McClure engaged in a classic negative campaign, and was able to paint Brown into a corner on a new jail. Brown, who likes to play his cards close to his vest, was revealed as nontransparent and secretive. By the time he finally ruled out a jail at any location other than where it already is, it was too late.

McClure also is the first executive candidate I've seen to make heavy use of Facebook. By contrast, brown had three different Facebook pages, which just confused people.

7) Northampton County employees and retirees. - There are 2,200 Northampton County employees, and close to 1,000 retirees. They were on the receiving end of numerous county vacancies. At the jail, corrections officers were placed on mandatory overtime as vacancies hit 30. This endangered lives. In addition, Brown decided unilaterally to cut health benefits paid to county workers. Most people in the private sector would have no empathy on this issue, which was rarely mentioned by McClure's campaign. But he made sure that these employees voted. 

8) John Morganelli. - Northampton County's affable District Attorney has been sought out as a Congressional candidate who will bring the same civility and decency to the office that Congressman Charlie Dent has done. Dent is a centrist who leans right. Morganelli is a centrist who leans left. Morganelli is actually popular in conservative circles like the tea party because of his tough stance on topics like crime, the death penalty and illegal immigration.  He has been waiting for this election to decide whether to run.

He has his answer.

Losers

1) Northampton County GOP - Last year, General Lee Snover and the Northampton County GOP delivered the county to Trump after an energized election that included flash mobs and numerous volunteers. That seemed to go to her head. Snover lost sight that her main function is to recruit Republicans and get them elected in her own county. She instead alienated Congressman Charlie Dent, the most popular Republican in the Lehigh Valley. She followed that up with a "Chairman's Dinner" in which she promoted supposed Trump acolytes like Justin Simmons for Congress, while snubbing three of the four GOP Council candidates.

2) The Express Times.  - This supposed daily newspaper provided no pre-election coverage and only began writing about municipal races on election day. The Morning Call provided excellent coverage of the Allentown Mayoral campaign, and there was some exposure of the Northampton County races. Tom Shortell covered the Executive debate and columnist Bill White wrote several columns. But his column focusing on Ron Angle's last place finish in the Council race strikes me as mean-spirited. I admit I am a bit biased here and consider Ron a close friend  But what was the point, except to gloat? Angle has been out of office for several years, so Bill White was hardly afflicting the comfortable.     

3) Justin Simmons. - Simmons has predicated his opportunistic Congressional gambit on the theory that he is a Trump acolyte who will drain the swamp. He thought nothing of trashing Charlie Dent, who helped him raise money and endorsed him in the past. By now, it should be dawning on Simmons that the 15th Congressional district includes numerous Republicans and Democrats who detest Trump, as well as numerous ordinary citizens who will be put off by the way Simmons went after Dent.

4) John Brown. - During his first term in office, NorCo Exec John Brown ran for state auditor general. During his second term, he was going to challenge Matt Cartwright in the 17th Congressional District. His poor showing in Northampton County is going to force him to rethink that strategy.     

5) Allentown - What can I say?  Leave it to the people of Allentown to elect the worst possible candidate for Mayor despite being provided with 54 good reasons from no less an authority than the United States of America to vote him out.
_____________
* An Inky news account indicates that in 1799, these seats were won by the Democratic-Republican party, and confuses that with the Democratic party. In reality, the Democratic-Republican party is the party formed by Jefferson and other Southern aristocrats to espouse state rights, and by extension, slavery.

Updated 8 am. In my original story, I incorrectly stated that Democrats gained a Lehigh County Comm'r sear.

Where's COA For Collapsed Easton Building?

323 Northampton, latest design

Yesterday, I told you about the building collapse last week at 323 Northampton Street in Easton. The good news is that nobody was hurt, which is something of a miracle because one woman had walked by just before the wall came crashing down. But the bad news is that the developer and owner of this building may have been winking at Easton's code enforcement laws, particularly the requirement that no work be started without something called a "Certificate of Appropriateness."

This building, a former Dollar Store once known as the Semple Building, is currently owned by Luan of Kosovo, LLC. It was purchased from the Cusano family in December 2014, for $337,000.  Papers filed with the Department of State list company headquarters as the River Grille, which is owned by Mick Gjevukaj. He is also the owner of another Easton eatery called Ocean 235.  The Deed on record for 323 Northampton directs that all tax notices be sent to 5 Deer Run Road in Pittston, N.J., which is owned by Faruk Gjevukaj.

We know from a news account in October 2015 that the old Dollar Store was being converted into yet another downtown restaurant that one could hope would match the success at River Grille and Ocean.

This is where things get strange.

Like many cities, Easton has a Historic District, and this property is in it. Under Easton's Historic Preservation Ordinance,

The Code Administrator shall not issue a building permit(s) for any erection, alteration, reconstruction, repair, restoration or demolition of all or part of any building in the district until Easton City Council has issued a certificate of appropriateness (COA). If the Code Administrator or his or her representative issues a building permit(s) without a COA due to an administrative or clerical error, said building permit(s) shall be voided

Thus, any of the work done at 323 Northampton St, whether it is tearing down a facade or gutting a building, requires a COA.

In October of last year, when Gjevukaj first began demolition work on this site, did he have a COA?

That concern was expressed at the Easton Facebook page yesterday. Bill Carr states, "[T]here was never a C of A issued for this project. ... Any external demolition from the outset required approval from the Historic District Commission in the form of a Certificate of Appropriateness and this never happened. No demolition should have been authorized or given a permit without HDC approval."

But Easton Mayor Sal Panto disputes this contention. "They [the owners] did a great job on Ocean and RiverGrill. They are investing millions in our city and creating jobs. The inspections have and will take place but we don't have an inspector on site all day. And as far as taking off the ugly 50's facade however can they tell what they have? The HDC has approved their plans and their C of A."

Who is right?

COAs must be approved by City Council before any work is started. So if City Council did approve one for 323 Northampton, as Panto claims, this could be confirmed by reviewing Council minutes. I reviewed the Council minutes of every meeting in 2015 - twice - and am unable to locate any COA. Perhaps I missed it. Perhaps Panto misspoke.

According to Panto, "The city filed two citations today against the owners and the contractor. But that doesn't solve any of the problems of the past.  It only charges them with some fines for their actions. The important thing to remember is that they are acting responsibly to stabilize and then demo the affected area and continue with the project as presented to the historic district commission. So this is my final comment on [Facebook] but the next time people call city hall and don't get an answer or an answer they like all they have to do is call me. I am totally accessible.".

If they are acting responsibly, why the citations? If they are acting responsibly, why the hell did the building collapse? Was the City using unqualified workers?

Updated 2:30 am: For the second time, an Express Times article about this collapse calls it storm damage. While there is little doubt that Wednesday's downpour might be the immediate cause, poor workmanship might be the underlying reason. The contractor doing this demolition has been identified as Tamco Construction, which has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.

Updated 10:20 am: An Express Times news account indicates that the two citations referred to above have been lodged against owner Luan of Kosova, identified above, and contractor Bee Green Homes. This is not the contractor previously identified.

Poor Sportsmanship in Youth Sports

I suppose I'm lucky. My grandson, who loves basketball, has been playing that and other sports since he was five. I still remember the first team on which he played in South Allentown. Parents would picnic there all day as their sons and daughters played. Everyone would eat, talk, joke around and play chess. This is where I first met Chuck Rockmore and his sons. It's where I met Toomey Anderson, now known as the Dean of Awesome. When I noticed how much work he put into it, I once asked Toomey, "Why do you do this?" His answer. "We do it for the love." My grandson learned much more than the fundamentals from these and other mentors who would later include class acts like Emil Giordano, Marc Corsi, Mike Frew, Craig Golden and Dennis Csentsis. They taught their charges to be humble in victory, yet gracious in defeat.

Unfortunately, there are those who fail. In youth sports, basketball courts and other playing venues are actually classrooms in which good sportsmanship is taught. In fact, this is part of the pre-game prayer before every Allentown Central Catholic basketball game. Athletes and (most) coaches get it, but some students and parents can be downright ugly. That's what happened following a recent basketball tournament outside Wilson Area High School. It also happened during a recent hockey play-off game between between Parkland and Northampton Area High School. One of Northampton's players is a junior named Alyssa, and was taunted during the game because she's a she.

Here's what her aunt, Donna Bloss, posted on Facebook:

So here it is… My first serious rant on social media.

Those of you that know me, know that I generally do not do a lot with social media, or in my case, Facebook, which is the only thing I even play with. When I do post, it’s generally something lighthearted and simple. Not this time!

My niece Alyssa, is a junior at Northampton High School. This tiny little thing is an amazing hockey player. And I’m not talking field hockey… I mean ice hockey. She plays for the Philadelphia Jr Flyers team that travels everywhere and is ranked sixth in the country.  She also plays for her high school varsity team where she is loved and respected by her team and flies around her opponents like a little gnat on the ice.

This past week Northampton was in the championship playoffs with their arch rivals Parkland High School. The level of unsportsmanlike conduct during these several championship games was mine boggling. I’ve toyed with whether or not to even put this out there for fear of upsetting my niece even further but she knows this was done out of sheer jealousy. They couldn’t go after her personality… She rocks. They couldn’t go after her skill… She kills it in the games. So this is what we’re left with. The Parkland fans stooping to an all time low. So now I have something to say to each of you…

TO THE PARKLAND COACHES:
Congratulations on taking the championship. WIN Is clearly the only message you convey to your players. Your heads are not in the sand (although I could probably tell you where they are) and we know you heard and saw things that you knew weren’t right and could’ve stopped. My brother‘s family was getting text messages from several people telling them that your team is walking around saying they’re gunning for Alyssa to hurt her. You had to know that that was their mindset. What makes it worse is the fact that you know this family. Your kids played with their kids when they were younger. You’re supposed to be role models for your team and instead were all about the “Win at all cost”. Shame on you!

TO THE PARKLAND TEAM:
I’m sorry… i’m sorry that you’re clearly upset that you have to play against a girl. I’m sorry that this girl could skate circles around you. I’m sorry that this girl is getting the attention of college scouts, and you’re not.  I’m sorry that you’re so threatened by this tiny little thing, who goes from skates and pads during the day to a dress and heels in the blink of an eye and looks fantastic! Congratulations and enjoy your trophy albeit tarnished from the ignorance of you and your fans.

TO THE PARKLAND FANS:
WOW! What a classy group you are. From the parent yelling “take her out“ to the group chanting “she has a penis“ and “35 you’re a dude“ to hanging this ridiculous sign. Competitive banter and egging each other on is all in the spirit of game. When a player on your, team twice her size, checks her extra hard into the wall and takes her down, she handles it like a pro. It’s rough but she gets back up knowing it’s part of the game. But personal attacks, bullying and borderline sexual harassment has no place in high school sports or anywhere for that matter. Have you people learned nothing??? And the principal of the high school knew about the sign. Another epic role model fail!

This concludes my rant. Please feel free to share this in hopes that it causes some conversations and awareness with regards to being kind to one another. She still has her senior year to go and hopefully next year will be a different story.

I am sorry for this bad experience. I'm certainly no Parkland fan, and would only point out that a hockey rink is a classroom for good sportsmanship, too. The failures are almost always insecure parents (from any school) or kids (from any school) who are still immature. My experience has been that Parkland fans and parents are mostly decent folks.

Bad Optics at McClure Fundraiser

Last night, Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure conduced his annual fundraiser at Bethlehem's swanky Edge Restaurant. Despite what they may tell you, few contributors write out $500 plus checks because they believe in good government. Unions, contractors, engineers and lawyers and county employees go to these things because they want something. It could be as simple as a paycheck or a major contract. Even when there is no quid pro quo, it is still a legalized form of bribery. Unfortunately, it's also an ugly necessity. Most public officials lack the personal resources to wage an effective campaign and have their message heard. Unless you want a government of oligarchs, you have to trust that candidates will do the right thing, which they usually do. Besides, after the election fiasco on November 5, McClure will almost certainly face opposition when he seeks re-election. He may even have a primary opponent. So it's understandable, as ugly as it is. But the bad optics of dunning county employees and vendors for money was made worse by two other things over which McClure has no control.

1) Municipal Vehicle Illegally Parked at McClure Fundraiser

Parked outside The Edge at an expired meter was the municipal vehicle you see above. It's not just any municipal vehicle, but hs been identified by my secret agent as a police car. He knows this because he happens to be a police officer himself. Is it a county or city car? My guess is Bethlehem City, and a top-ranking officer. It's too nice to belong to the County. The license plate number is MG0745L.

I understand it was cold and a little windy last night, but that's no excuse for acting as though you are above the law you should be enforcing. What's more, this public resource was being perverted for partisan political activity.  Actions like this lead to politicians like Edwin "Fed Ed" Pawlowski.

It is my hope that Executive McClure and Mayor Bob Donchez both identify the person who was misusing this public resource and discipline that person.

2) Judge Morganelli Attends Partisan Fundraiser

After noting the illegally parked police car, my spy slipped into the fundraiser to see what was happening.  He was unaware that there was a fundraiser, but knew some sort of event was going on. He noticed several people ponied up at the bar. They included Chief Public Defender Nuria DiLuzio and District Attorney John Morganelli.

Now it's no crime to stop at a bar and hoist a few. But Morganelli is more than the County's District Attoney. He is a judge-elect, and as such, should not have been within 10 miles of a political and partisan fundraiser

Morganelli did more than sit at the bar. He actually attended the event, though he made no contribution.

According to Morganelli, he is neither a judge nor a candidate. He tells me he has sought an ethics opinion, and that Judge Edward Reibman has written one under which Morganelli can continue to raise money and make contributions until he is sworn in.

That sounds nice, but is contrary to Canon 7 of the Code of Judicial Ethics, which provides,

"Judges holding an office filled by public election between competing candidates, or a candidate for such office, may, only insofar as permitted by law, attend political gatherings, speak to such gatherings on their own behalf when they are a candidate for election or reelection, or speak on behalf of any judicial candidate for the same office, identify themselves as a member of a political party, and contribute to a political party or organization."

It also provides, "Judges should not engage in any other political activity except on behalf of measures to improve the law, the legal system, or the administration of justice."

The notion that Morganelli is free from the Canons simply because he is waiting to be sworn in is simply ridiculous. If a judge-elect is permitted to engage in partisan political activity, this undermines public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.

He should have stayed away.

Lehigh County Local Government Web Pages: Good, Bad & Ugly

Northampton County's first webpage was its very own liberty bell, whose iron tongue sang out on July 8, 1776, to announce the Declaration of Independence. It also tolled to announce court sessions, fires and important news. Now we have the Internet, and can connect to our local government at will. Does the Internet really make local government more transparent and accountable? A good site does both.

I've rated Lehigh Valley local government websites, starting with those in Lehigh County. I've tried to keep it objective. Here's how it works. Any local government with a website gets a point. Additional points are awarded for meeting agendas, minutes, online newsletters, calendars and email contacts (to elected officials only). If the local government includes other items designed to inform its citizens or make government more transparent, more points are awarded.

Almost no municipality provides an email address for its elected officials. But there's been a terrific effort to bring government closer to the people. Emmaus features webcasts of its borough council meetings, and Allentown permits you to pay your bills online.

Here's how it breaks down in Lehigh County.

Emmaus, scoring 8, leads the pack.

Allentown, with 7 points, is breathing down Emmaus' neck.

There's a bottleneck for third place. Alburtis, Hanover, Lower Milford, South Whitehall and Upper Saucon each earn 6 points.

Catasauqua, Fountain Hill, and Macungie, proud boroughs all, earn a respectable 5 points.

Lehigh County and Bethlehem, both of whom have young and supposedly progressive leaders at their helm, earn a disappointing 4 points. Lower Macungie and Weisenberg were able to match that.

Coopersburg and North Whitehall, neither of whom can be bothered to post minutes or agendas, get a lousy 3 points.

Coplay, Salisbury, Upper Macungie and Upper Milford get 2 points for showing up. Their webpages are little more than a mailing address.

Heidelberg, Lowhill, Lynn, Slatington, Washington and Whitehall must still use a bell. They get 0 points.

Here's the data I complied to arrive at these results. If my math is wrong, mea culpa.

Lehigh County: Score - 4.
Minutes? No.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? Yes (for commissioners).
Online newsletter? No.
Online calendar? Yes, It tells us about street festivals and concerts, but fails to list commissioners' meetings.

Allentown City: Score - 7.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? No.
Online newsletter? Yes, on the home page under "What's news?"
Online calendar? Yes, but it fails to list meeting dates.
Special notes: Allentown's webpage includes a "lost and found" section, a section for paying bills online and a link for kids.

Alburtis Borough: Score - 6.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? Yes, one address for borough.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Online calendar? Yes.

Bethlehem City: Score - 4.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? No.
Online newsletter? No.
Online calendar? Yes, but it fails to list any public meetings.

Catasauqua Borough: Score - 5.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? No.
Online newsletter? No.
Online calendar? Yes.
Special notes: Catasauqua's online codebook is a nice feature. Pending legislation is also linked.

Coopersburg Borough: Score - 3.
Minutes? No.
Agendas? No.
Email contacts? None.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Calendar? Yes, but it fails to list the time or place of its meetings, so it's worthless.

Coplay Borough: Score - 2.
Minutes? No.
Agendas? No.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? Yes.
Online newsletter? No.

Emmaus Borough: Score - 8.
Minutes? Yes. (An extensive list).
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? None.
Calendar? Detailed.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Special notes: Emmaus contains webcasts of its most recent council meeting. Its home page has both an announcements features and lists the next scheduled public meeting prominently.

Fountain Hill Borough: Score - 5.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? Yes, a meeting schedule.
Online newsletter? Yes.

Hanover Township (Lehigh County): Score - 6.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? No.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Special notes: There are links to Hanover's code of ordinances and the state building code. Minutes are also included for the planning and recreation commission and "special" council.

Heidelberg Township: No webpage. Score - 0.

Lower Macungie Township: Score -4.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? Yes.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Special notes: The site still lists Pat Toomey as our area congressman and Charlie Dent as a state senator, so it loses a point.

Lower Milford Township: Score - 6.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? Yes.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Special notes: The home page has a news ticker for recent announcements. A listing of township ordinances is provided, but the ordinances themselves are unavailable. Agendas for the planning commission are also available.

Lowhill Township: No webpage. Score - 0.

Lynn Township: No webpage. Score - 0.

Macungie Borough: Score -5.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? No.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? No.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Special notes: Macungie also maintains minutes for its zoning hearing board and borough authority, has a news ticker for announcements on its homepage, and contains links to its trail plan and a plan for southwestern Lehigh County.

North Whitehall Township: Score -3.
Minutes? No.
Agendas? No.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? Yes.
Online newsletter? Yes.

Salisbury Township: Score - 2.
Minutes? No.
Agendas? No. Only most recent.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? No. The webpage is set up for a calendar, but no one has taken the time to enter any events.
Online newsletter? Yes.

Slatington Borough: No webpage. Score -0.

South Whitehall Township: Score - 6.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? Yes.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Special notes: The webpage includes agendas and minutes for all boards and commissions.

Upper Macungie Township: Score -2.
Minutes? No.
Agendas? No.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? No.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Special notes: Although a half-hearted effort is made to post some minutes from April and May, that's it. And only one agenda is posted, from a meeting in May.

Upper Milford Township: Score - 2.
Minutes? No.
Agendas? No.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? No.
Online newsletter? Yes.

Upper Saucon Township: Score -6.
Minutes? Yes.
Agendas? Yes.
Email contacts? No.
Calendar? Yes.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Special notes: Proposed ordinances are posted, and it appears that all ordinances will eventually be posted.

Washington Township: No webpage. Score - 0.

Weisenberg Township: Score - 4.
Minutes? No. There are minutes for only one meeting.
Agendas? No.
Email contacts? Yes.
Calendar? Yes, but no public meetings are included.
Online newsletter? Yes.
Special notes: The site contains a news ticker and a special section for its environmental advisory council.

Whitehall Township: No webpage. Score - 0.

Correction: Lynn Township does have a webpage. My thanks to David C. for making me aware of my error. Here's the lowdown: Minutes? Yes. Agendas? No. Email contacts? No. Online newsletter? No. Calendar? No. So like Coplay, Salisbury, Upper Macungie and Upper Milford, Lynn gets 2 points for showing up.

Norco Dems Resort to Sleazeball Politics in County Council Races

Sleazeball politics has reared its ugly head, as usual, in the race for Northampton County Council.

BethlehemDem reports that, even though he and his wife have lived in Lehigh County for the past two years, they still got an anonymous robo call over the dinner hour telling them NOT to vote for Peg Ferraro. In fact, Peg got a call herself, and was surprised to learn she voted to increase taxes a gazillion per cent. One of Peg's close friends, who has never even voted, has already called Peg to yell at her.

In Ron Angle country, things are even worse. So far, he's been nailed with at least eight robo calls, all coming from the same number, 484-548-6400, being used against Peg. He's been accused of everything, from being a serial shoplifter to human sacrifices. In addition to the robocalls, he's being slammed with slime mailers. Some are being paid for by his opponent, while others come from Joe Long's Democratic machine. Angle tells me the negative campaign against him is the "worst piece of garbage and filth I've seen yet." He estimates at least $60,000 has been spent to unseat him.

Ferraro and Angle's opponents are both using the same political consultant - Tom Severson, the Darth Vader of Politics. Severson is noted for this type of stupid anonymous smear. He just used that tactic last May to smear magisterial candidate Brian Monahan. That one blew up in Vader's face. “The Force is strong with this one.”

Dirty politics usually backfires. I saw that first-hand last week, during the Debate at the State. Bertsch was holding his own until he started to smear Panto. You could hear the audience groan in disgust the moment Bertsch went to the dark side.

Smear tactics also hurt people. Peg, a class act, recently suffered the sudden loss of her husband. She doesn't need to be kicked right now. And although Ron won't admit it, he hates to see how this bothers his wife and sons. But we're the real losers. This type of campaigning is precisely why many good people won't run. And it's why many other good people don't even bother to vote. It's bad for democracy.

Next week, I'm doing have to fill you in on those county council races. Does anyone know where Tony Branco is? He was MIA during yesterday's budget hearing, a hell of a way to serve the county. How's that Democratic machine working out for John ("I come from the corporate culture") Maher? Stay tuned.

Update: Nazareth blog NewsOverCoffee has posted a recording of one of the anonymous smears against Ferraro. You can listen here.