Northampton County Council member Lamont McClure's letter firing council solicitor Anthony Martino has earned him a well-deserved Express Times turkey. "Is McClure psychic? Has he peered into his crystal ball? As chairman of council's legal and judicial committee, he plans to recommend that Martino not be appointed, but it's up to the entire council to make this decision. Informing Martino that he is out was premature and presumptuous."
Saturday, January 03, 2009
McClure's Letter Earns Him Express Times Turkey
Northampton County Council member Lamont McClure's letter firing council solicitor Anthony Martino has earned him a well-deserved Express Times turkey. "Is McClure psychic? Has he peered into his crystal ball? As chairman of council's legal and judicial committee, he plans to recommend that Martino not be appointed, but it's up to the entire council to make this decision. Informing Martino that he is out was premature and presumptuous."
37 comments:
You own views are appreciated, especially if they differ from mine. But remember, commenting is a privilege, not a right. I will delete personal attacks or off-topic remarks at my discretion. Comments that play into the tribalism that has consumed this nation will be declined. So will comments alleging voter fraud unless backed up by concrete evidence. If you attack someone personally, I expect you to identify yourself. I will delete criticisms of my comment policy, vulgarities, cut-and-paste jobs from other sources and any suggestion of violence towards anyone. I will also delete sweeping generalizations about mainstream parties or ideologies, i.e. identity politics. My decisions on these matters are made on a case by case basis, and may be affected by my mood that day, my access to the blog at the time the comment was made or other information that isn’t readily apparent.
Anyone with a functioning brain knows he has always been a turkey.
ReplyDeleteWas O'Hare butt buddy Owens the one whomade the call.
ReplyDeleteOwens is a hack. Not to mention a moron.
ReplyDeleteIt amazes me how many "morons" and "hacks" are out there. Those names are applied to anyone who dares criticize either McClure or Dertinger.
ReplyDeleteThanks God for the hacks and morons at the ET and MC. Without them, you probably would have shut down this blog by now.
To call the Express-Times and their editor’s opinion a newspaper is an insult to all the reputable newspapers in the world. The difference between The Express-Times and this blog is they get more advertising!
ReplyDeleteWhat's really insulting is to see a supposed American citizen pander to the very people who promote a government that operates in the shadows. You must be very proud. No wonder you're a fly. You constantly crawl on shit.
ReplyDeleteYou said it BO! "Flies on s--t"
ReplyDeleteDo you feel proud to back people who promote government in the dark? Does it make you feel good to crawl all over their shit and then comes onto this blog to spread your filth? Is this what an Obama supporter does, back people who exceed their authority and who engage in so much intrigue and back-room dealing that it is nearly impossible to get anything done? You must be real proud of yourself. Like most of the people in the shadows, you operate anonymously.
ReplyDeletePeople like you, who exalt bad leaders because they happen to belong to a particular party, are worse than the leaders themselves.
I don't see anything in Fly's remarks exalting Dertinger and McClure. You manufactured that O'hare. And talk about spreading filth?! Do you read your own blog?
ReplyDeleteYou don't fool as many people as you think, but it is apparent you are fooling yourself.
Fly called you as you are.
One day you are screaming about how terrible the Call is, and today, right there in your own comment at 8:47 AM, you are praising them.
You should rename your roll of toilet paper.
How about Lehigh Valley Grumblings?
No, I think, "As Bernie's Fart Wind Blows" is more appropriate.
I await your witty, 4 column comment in response eagerly. Take your time B.O. Take a couple of hours on the toilet seat to think about it. Isn't that where you compose most of your rants anyway?
This is a diary of hate. Hate for Dertinger and McClure.
ReplyDeleteBO, I’m not gonna defend my political beliefs on a forum like this, But I do participate in the process.
ReplyDeleteIf you are so passionate in bringing daylight to our political processes then why not run for office and change it from the inside, instead of sitting in back of the room throwing mud at it! That is why I have problems with you and Ron Angle, you both are “cut from the same cloth”, make a lot of noise and do little to change the process!
Fly, Boonie is Angle's shill. Martino is Angle's choice for Solicitor. Boonie likes Zito and wants him to keep the 50K in the family. This is just politics as ususal wrapped in Boonie's self-righteous drivel.
ReplyDeleteAnon: 10:56 I have a serious problem with Zito’s law firm. That firm represents a number of municipalities as the municipal solicitor and how one law firm could influence public business!
ReplyDeleteFly, Anthony is a nice guy, and a good criminal defense lawyer. For them, this is just about the money. It's not personal,its just business for them. 50 grand in business which they have no business keeping.
ReplyDeleteWhere is there a perfect world?
ReplyDeleteI read many news sources daily (hourly) and at least with this source, you can say anything you want (truth, lies, innuendo's etc) and not be held accountable, unless you are Bernie.
We all have our favorite's. Look at how many favorites are booked marked in your web browser.
The mcall and lehighvalleylive do not let you and I print what we really want to say so from the very start, they do not allow freedom of speech.
Backroom politics is certainly not the answer and nothing that happens there will get reported here or anywhere in print (unless Bernie was invited)
Burne - did it ever occur to you that the Judges might want to continue Martino as Council Solicitor so that they could exercise a modicum of control over the body ?
ReplyDelete"If you are so passionate in bringing daylight to our political processes then why not run for office and change it from the inside,"
ReplyDeleteHere we go again. When a citizen sticks his nose in the people's buusiness, he's told to run for office or shut up. And this comes from an Obama supporter.
I happen to believe that citizens have rights, silly me. I happen to believe that my voice means just as much as any other.
It must be very annoying to have an independent voice looking at you, whether it is me or the ET. And just as I am attacked personally for expressing my opinion, so is Joe Owens.
How can I criticize and defennd the MSM at the same time? That's an easy one. My criticism of the MSM is that they do not provide enough coverage, but I have always recognized that if it were not for them, party machines like you would soon destroy our democracy.
Darn, what an insult to Turkeys.
ReplyDeleteO_o
Boonie, there you go again. No one questions your right to question. One might even consider what you do as a public service, if you did not so blatantly act like a political operative for the people you admire and the against the people you do not. But in fairness to you, as you sometime point out, this is merely blog that features your opinion.
ReplyDeleteThat and sometimes you let your relationships blind you and you can SEE.
ReplyDeleteBernnie the problem isn't you or Joe Owens going after McClure, have at it. The problem is as stated many times the 'selective' way at which you and Owens do your witch hunts.
ReplyDeleteWith some you and Owens go out of your way asking questions probing, stretching every possible point. Yet again selectively.
One example Stoffa, yes, your shinning city on a hill. You assume every concern about him is from 'closed, pay for play' governemet bad guys but have you or the MSM that promoted him, ever followed up on leads. No, you attack the anonymous post, unless its about Pawloski.
What about the very prominent non-profit head from whom Stoffa solicited a campaign contribution while offering a job in the same letter. Or the Stoffa cabinet member engaged in a Couthouse dalience to the point where Prez McHale wanted to see if a tape of the area existed.
The examples are numerous but you would rather continue to pound on these folks as opposed to checking your own idols. That is why you and the MSM have such low credibility.
Can you feel the love?
ReplyDeleteI've reported the turkey that the ET appropriately awarded to Lamont McClure for exceeding his authority and firing someone over the holidays. For making that report, the ET is attacked, I am attacked, Joe Owens is attacked, John Stoffa is attacked and Pawlowski is praised. I've just deleted a comment that even somehow works Scott Armstrong into the picture.
Let me explain what is going on.
McClure got caught. His letter to Martino, we all know, was either an abuse of his authority and violation of the Home Rule Charter, or it was a Sunshine Act violation.
This lawyer has willfully ignored the law for one and only one reason -- politics. He wants to remove Martino and replace him with someone that he and the Dem majority can control. It might be Perrucci. It might even be Otter. I've even heard Barb Hollenbach's name mentioned, but I doubt she has a chance because, like Martino, she is a lawyer.
McClure timed his mail to Martino so that it would arrive when it would be least likely to be discovered by snooping eyes. Angle was away and the two beat MSM were on vacation. He was hoping to get away with this with no repercussions, or at least not until it was too late.
Unfortunately for McClure, I stumbled onto his letter the very day that it was mailed. The two MSM papers were able to procure copies, too. So, instead of operating in secrecy and firing someone over the holiday with no one noticing, a spotlight was cast on McClure's abuse at both newspapers as well as here.
He's hopping mad, and so are the pay to play morons who were hoping this would go through. Anonymous "flies" now claim they are very concerned about Martino being the solicitor of Roseto Borough, but that was never expressed by anyone before. It's trumped up bullshit. Nothing in the HRC prohibits a county council solicitor from also acting on behalf of other municipalities. But people like Fly had no problem with assistant county solicitors acting as municipal solicitors, and there the HRC does expressly prohibit that practice.
Owens is called every name in the book although it is doubtful he had much or anything to do with this decision. I believe the "turkey" awards are decided by another editor, but I better not name him bc I'm not sure and I don't want this guy attacked, too.
John Stoffa, perhaps the most honest and ethical person I've ever seen in government, is dragged thru the mud, too, even though he has nothing to do with this. Now he supposedly is soliciting campaign contributions in exchange for jobs. Every time I have checked one of these spurious anonymous allegations against Stoffa, they've turned out to be lies. I was told that he had a gigantic treasury, but when I checked, he was in the hole. I was told he had raised all kinds of money, but when I checked, he has raised none. I was told he had become some kind of developer, but when I checked, that was another nonsensical claim.
Why do these people hate Stoffa so much? For the same reason I like him. For the same reason they want to get rid of Martino. They want someone they can control, as opposed to someone interested in doing the right thing.
These folks are corrupt. They may not be taking bribes, but willfully violate the HRC and Sunshine Act when it suits them. They suck up to union thugs, permitting a lynch mob to ruin a council meeting. They viciously slam cabinet level officials over nonexistent dalliances that were exaggerated by gossipmongers.
They do everything they can to prevent the public from looking at them. In this case, McClure got caught with his pants down. And the reaction is exactly what I have learned to expect -- attack the messenger. Make it brutal. Make it personal. Shout him down.
This is where they have a problem because I'm not going away. I have no political ambition other than casting a spotlight on local government. That's it, and it has been effective.
Though the MSM and I may have differences, we share a common interest in transparent, open and accountable government. Like cockroaches, county council members and their sycophants scurry away when someone casts a spotlight on them. In all the comments posted here, I am the only person who used my real name. The rest of you crawl out from under your pay to play rocks, make an anonymous slam, and quickly scurry away.
I've got news for you. If Stoffa runs, he wins. it won't even be close. People are beginning to see just how insipidly corrupt Northampton County Council has become, and that disgust will be reflected at the polls.
As for Mayor Pawlowski, he represents back room "pay to play" government, too. If you want to defend that kind of government, knock yourselves out. But I find it interesting that not a single one of you is willing to sign his real name to anything.
Otter is a smokescreen for Hollenbach.. She got McHale a YWCA award for her campaign and Hollenbach gets the solicitor position.
ReplyDeleteThat may very well be the case. Float a few outrageous examples of pay to play types and political hacks with the idea of promoting someone else. But none of that gamesmanship is necessay. Hollenbach is a very good attorney with no political connections. She may be pals with Ann McHale but would follow the law.
ReplyDeleteBut instead of back room meetings and letters wioth no authority, council better start acting openly or it's going to hang itself.
RFP's.
ReplyDeleteThree easy letters. Open government. Transparent results.
Bernie
ReplyDeletePlease forgive my ignorance, but what does MSM stand for? I've been following these blogs, and though I am not a political expert by any stretch of the imagination, I do appreciate your efforts to keep our elected officials above board!
MSM = mainstream media (the newspapers and TV)
ReplyDeletebernie, the only reason you deleted that comment is because it called out you and your pack of Blog Bullies.
ReplyDeleteeverytime you get hit with an undeniable truth you delete it so you can ignore it.
Bernie O'hare:
ReplyDeleteThe Drudge of the Lehigh Valley
traded any credibility for the privilege of being the most read.
Pretty cheap sale price for a soul.
No, the reason it was deleted is bc it was an anonymous personal attack. It also had nothing to do with the subject of my post. I'm fairly tolerant of most criticism, but that one even dragged Scott Armstrong into the fray, and he's from A-town. Since you probably wrote the comment, you know why it was deleted.
ReplyDeleteAnon 9:57,
ReplyDeleteI know, Iknow. It must be very disappointing to wake up and see this blog rated #1 in Pa. by BNN this week. But don't be sad. Don't kill yourself. There's always next week.
As I've mentioned before, the best poliblogs in the state are Micek, Politicker PA, PhillyWillDo and Attytood. BNN is easily gamed and I even wrote a blog on how to do it. I try to give myself a good rating at BNN at least once every day, and that's a chore bc the site takes forever to load. I will gladly concede I'm not really #1 and actually don't like being rated too high bc I've learned it makes too many other bloggers like you jealous. You're not going to believe this, but some of them are so whacky they actually make their own #1 banners and falsely proclaim themselves as #1. They get all caught up in the BNN rating. Very unhelathy.
The BNN rating means nothing. It adds nothing to my paycheck but does add to the grief from jealous bloggers like you. Ahhh, the price of success.
OHare you make allegations of pay to play about MClure and his friends but where there is more evidence you turn a blind eye because they were nice to you or pretend to take you serious even if they laugh at you behind your back. Example?
ReplyDeleteYou defend Zito because he and Martino are Angles guys but here we have an clear backroom deal struck with the republican senate.
1st Zito gets appointed Chief public defender by Reibman then he runs for judge as a Dem spends a ton of money and loses in the primary to a relatively unknown, then as a Dem he gets a Dem Gov to appoint him Judge but the Senate Rep says he can't run for election, then as a Dem he is appointed by the Dems to council Solicitor only to get reappointed by a Dem Gov to be a Judge again this time the Senate Rep allows him to run as a sitting Judge. Wonder why the Senate changed its heart then after so much Dem favor being bestowed on him he changes his registration, Curious? Or perhaps a backroom deal with Senate Rep fortifide with some contributions.
If MClure or Dertinger were as opportunistic as Zito you would be calling for the AG to do an investigation, but who care if someone buys a seat on the court.
Just as long as you like them.
Now we can add Zito to the list of people being unfairly slammed in a post about McClure's turkey. Typical misdirection from people unwilling to look in a mirror or identify themselves.
ReplyDeleteLet me tell you a little secret. When Zito came aboard as council solicitor, one person who was not happy was Angle. Let me tell you another secret. When Zito was first named judge, I was not crazy about the idea.
Zito proved us both wrong. As a judge, Zito has been bright, impartial and a worker. He exhibited those same qualities as solicitor. His performance, not his politics, is what swayed both of us.
If Northampton County's bench were made up of Zitos, there would be no backlog. He is without question the best of all county council solicitors I've seen. He promoted transparency and council tried to resist that.
You claim a backroom deal with Senate Rs. If this is true, then my respect for Lenny will go down a bit. But I'll have an opportunity to ask him about that during his campaign. And I will report his answer. I won't make anonymous allegations.
Yes, I do tend to like people who promote accountability and transparency and to detest those who don't.
Transparency for all but Stoffa and Angle. The O'Hare creed. Oh and don't forget Morganelli. Pretend to like O'Hare and he will follow you to Hell like a puppy.
ReplyDeleteNow you're adding Morganelli to the bad guys. Seems like everyone is bad except McClure and Dertinger.
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