Voters Rage Against NorCo Dem Machine

I'm pretty sure last night's party for county machine Dems must have been a real dud. Besides Branco and Maher going down the tubes, McClure is in serious trouble. The two Dems who managed to win county seats, McHale and Barron, refused to participate in smear campaigns. Let me lay out the big losers and the winners.

Losers

Lehigh Valley League of Women Voters. It's time this group drop its stifling debate format, in which candidates become bobbleheads and voters learn nothing.

Tony "the crony" Branco. Unable to run a positive campaign on a nonexistent record, he instead rolled around in the mud, hiding behind the skirts of dirty dealer Tom Severson. The Morning Call's Glenn Kranzley last night told WDIY this kind of politics is "always disappointing to see ... suppresses the vote ... turns people off." Maybe Tony should have answered that LWV questionnaire.

John Maher. He disingenuously claimed to be running a positive campaign while simultaneously bad-mouthing his opponent in debates and at county council. His monstrous anonymous robo-calls and sleaze mailings infuriated most of the slate belt.

Tom Severson. The Darth Vader of Sleaze Politics, this political consultant is learning the hard way that sleaze no longer works. Of the four county candidates he worked for, he lost three races. The fourth? This brings me to . . .

Lamont McClure. All the King's Horses. All the King's men. Even Severson. Yet Lamont clings to an 88 vote lead over an underfunded unknown who had no time to campaign. Can you say recount?

Charles Dertinger. He was hoping to add a few votes to his Axis of Weasel, but may have lost two members. Oopsie!

John Morganelli. He's hand-picked two judges. Now, he's stacking county council. First, he plugs in McClure, whose wife works for him. Now, he tapes robocalls falsely claiming that Tony "the Crony" Branco is helping him fight crime. Voters aren't buying it. Unless Morganelli straightens out his act, they won't be buying him much longer, either.

Joe "the Bossman" Long. Against the advice of respected leaders like State Rep. Rich Grucela, he insisted that the party endorse candidates in the primary, only to see two of them go down in flames in the general election. He has constantly inserted himself in the political process, making himself and his own machine style an issue. An embarrassment to local Dems, Bossman Long should step down as party chair.

Winners

Debate at the State. The Express Times and State Theatre performed a terrific public service with its "Debate at the State," featuring Easton mayoral candidates. Its format enabled voters to see the sea of difference between Sal Panto and Gary Bertsch.

Pen Argyl Area Concerned Citizens. Tough but fair questions, candidate exchanges and direct encounters with the public make this the best forum in which to draw out the real differences between candidates.

Meg Holland. Against all odds, this diminutive Republican CPA stood against Bethlehem's old-guard Dems. Outspent three to one, she pulled off a stunning upset. Maybe DiGiacinto should have debated her after all.

Ron Angle. He actually took the high road! Go figure! When Maher called him an "antagonistic life long politician with a record of shenanigans," Ron just shrugged his shoulders and smiled! Must be drugs. When I called him late last night, he said "I'm going to Disneyworld!"

Steve Barron. He ran a very smart and positive campaign with limited resources against an entrenched incumbent, and pulled off an upset.

Easton. After years of poor leadership, Sal Panto is at the helm!

John Stoffa. An antipolitician, machine Dems tried to stack county council with cronies interested in partisan politics, not good government. Stoffa said long ago, "There's nothing wrong with government. But sometimes, the wrong people are in government." The voters listened.