"Character assassinated. Nomination withdrawn. It's got to feel very rewarding."That's one of the anonymous criticisms directed at me yesterday for my report about Fiscal Affairs Director nominee Bruce Gilbert. County Exec John Stoffa pulled the nomination after learning that Gilbert no longer had five votes.
The truth is that I feel pretty bad about it. I happen to like Gilbert, and despite my report, think he has been a productive, smart and dedicated member of Northampton County Council.
He also has five great kids. I'm sure these revelations hurt them.
But I also feel this story was necessary. Despite all of the negative financial information, compounded by Gilbert's lame explanations, five members of County Council were still ready to vote for Gilbert last week.
Even Monday, after a disappointing Gilbert news conference, Council President John Cusick told the Express Times' Sarah Cassi he'd still be voting for the embattled nominee.
Tuesday, Cusick suddenly reversed course. "The totality of it was so shocking," he now hypocritically claims.
What a difference a day makes!
What was really so shocking to Cusick was the public firestorm. That happened only because the press, despite lost profits and reduced manpower, did its job. Had there been no Patch, Express Times or Morning Call, this would have been a power play. Cusick already had his sights set on Gilbert's replacement.
If there were no press, Patch or even blogs, it would not be long before part-time Council members would be earning $100,000 a year.
It's by no means rewarding. Ask any reporter. But in a representative democracy, it is very necessary.
45 comments:
Lets stop all this pussy-footing around. Nominate Ron Angle for Director of Fiscal Affairs. He is the most knowledgeable and qualified person for the position.
Mr. Stoffa stop playing your political games and political paybacks. Prove you want the best person for the job and nominate Ron Angle.
End of Story!!!
Bernie this is not your fault. Responsibility for this rests squarely on Mr. Stoffa's shoulders.
Angle will never get the job.
Picking on Cusick and letting Stoffa and Angle off the hook is ridiculous. They knew what you knew and said nothing about their politcal ally.
The papers did their job??? They told half truths! What a joke. The Liberal Propaganda machine known at the PRESS wins again!
They forgot to mention which of these things have been long settled. For instance, I know for a fact that you cannot hold a Federal Securities License with a tax lien, so that has obviously been settled. Did ANYONE print that?
They not only ousted a Republican, they ousted an African-American Republican. A double whammy for the Democrat Propaganda Machines known as the Morning Call and the Express Times. All you have to do is take a look around County Government to find out what was truly at play here. Also, notice how Angle's long time charge of racism was never brought up. The papers completely ignore race when it is to their personal benefit. And anyone who doesn't see that is part of the machine!
Seriously anonymous 7:20am I mean SERIOUSLY! Give me a break.....
i'm sick and tired of people playing the race card everytime something happens to someone of a different race ... it's simple gilbert wasn't best suited for the job he had to much baggage and nobody caused that but him.
But the question is who knew what and when did they know it.
I commend Bernie for putting this out there and unabashedly saying he knew it for awhile but sat on it. He did not have to say that.
I hope Angle and Stoffa did not know about the charges or had some decent rational to not to make it public.
Seamus
"Picking on Cusick and letting Stoffa and Angle off the hook is ridiculous."
Even the Express times seemed to give a pass to angle, compared to Ferraro's and Cucick's comments.
Does angle own both this blog's and the express times reporters?
Cusick said he was voting for Gilbert. He already had someone in mind for Gilberts vacancy on Council. The repulican machine was already promoting a tea party person. I know this is true because I read it all on Bernie's Blog. Cusick should be politically castrated for his actions. We should make sure his political genes aren't passed onto the next generation. He is a Wuss with a capital "W". Lets hope he doesn't go any further in government than where he is right now.
Bernie,
You did the right thing. You gave Stoffa his opportunity to get it right. You went to Gilbert and gave him the opportunity to reset his sails before going public. You put their fate in their hands. I'm beginning to think you aren't as big a prick and asshole as you portray yourself and as people make you out to be. You did the right thing.
Bernie, You take such pride in looking to discredit others. SOmeone told me you were an attorney but had some issues. Were you disbarred permanently and if so what was the reason or reasons....Also do you still attend AA or did you relapse.? I think we should all know your high level of honesty and integrity.
Doing the right thing would include properly slamming Angle and Stoffa in the same way as Cusick. How far were they going to let the nomination go? Were they going to say something eventually?
MAN, DO THE REPUBLICANS LOOK BAD ON THIS ONE. Peg Ferraro, Ron Angle, and the two Democrats are the beacons of Council. I'mglad I voted for them
Well almost all of them....lol
I have deleted a number of comments that smear Angle needlessly, based on a deceased family member. There sure are a lot of hateful people out there.
I understand the criticism directed at Gilbert, Stoffa, Cusick or even Republicans generally.
I understand and will accept criticism directed at me, for sitting on this story a week. A reporter would have run with this right away, regardless of the circumstances.
But it's a stretch to try to use Gilbert's misfortune as yet another vehicle to attack Angle. Last Friday, Gilbert did have 5 R votes, but he did not have Angle. Angle, although he was unwilling to embarrass Bruce publicly, was privately telling Bruce he would not vote for him and was asking him to withdraw.
As for what Ron told Stoffa weeks or months ago, he may have voiced some general concerns based on his view of Gilbert's knowledge of finance, but he had no real specifics.
Angle did learn the specifics last week, at the same time I shared them with Stoffa and Gilbert. They were not made public at that time. If Bruce were to withdraw his nomination, they would not be public now.
I run EVERYBODY seeking public office. I know who has DUIs, foreclosures, divorces, PFAs, bankruptcy, etc.
Most candidates and elected officials are boring as hell, but some of them do have one or more of these things in their background.
To me, this is almost always irrelevant bc it casts no light on the person's ability to do his or her job.
In Bruce's case, I thought it did. He has served on Council for less tan 2 years and has no real public record from which to judge him.
But if you think he is the only person out there with a past, you are mistaken.
I understand this is a high profile position, but one would think, with the media frenzy that he was stepping up to be chairman of the Federal Reserve or something.
Judgements are unfortunate, but should not render a fine person with a multitude of experience and education, as useless and unfit.
What type of society is emerging here? This man has been hung upside down and backwards because of past financial strains, only because he stepped into a county cabinet job with good pay and benefits. Its so easy to judge a person when you have not walked in their shoes. Shame on all of the outlandish posts I have read.
Trish
balony trish... there are better candiates for the fiscal director job his finances only became relevant because the job he was seeking involves finances if he can't handle his owmn how can he handle the county's which in turn just didn't leave him suited for the job.... yes it is a judgement call...there are many jobs that require credit checks.he had the opportunity to withdraw and should have ... he choose to put himself and his family in the spot light.
Interesting anon.
So under this logic, nurses and doctors with past medical problems shouldnt be in healthcare
Lawyers with past legal problems shouldnt practice the law
And media specialists with past media propaganda shouldn't work in the media
How about a vet with a sick animal? Shut him down?
How about a teacher with a past learning disability? No job?
Trish
Interesting anon.
So under this logic, nurses and doctors with past medical problems shouldnt be in healthcare
Lawyers with past legal problems shouldnt practice the law
And media specialists with past media propaganda shouldn't work in the media
How about a vet with a sick animal? Shut him down?
How about a teacher with a past learning disability? No job?
Trish
Interesting anon.
So under this logic, nurses and doctors with past medical problems shouldnt be in healthcare
Lawyers with past legal problems shouldnt practice the law
And media specialists with past media propaganda shouldn't work in the media
How about a vet with a sick animal? Shut him down?
How about a teacher with a past learning disability? No job?
Trish
lets not go over board trish....everyone has had some sort of difficulty in there lives in one way or another ...your analogy is ridiculous ....the only problem here is when someone is dealing with billions of dollars and doesn't understand how his own car lease works or his credit card company etc.... put his competency for job in question.
This rejection is a big luxury for a community with a limited talent pool. I mean, we just had a huge budget initiative (Gracedale) led by and won by someone who believes that God talks to him about local politics. This isn't New York City. I hope they can find more qualified people to fill the position.
Lets ruin a pediatrician whose kids are sick
Lets ruin a psychiatrist with emotional problems
On and on and on
One would have to have their head examined to apply for this position. I say appoint Angle. All of the smearing, bashing, and sensationalizing has already been done, time and again.
Trish
trish i guess i don't understand your point here ...why would you give someone a job who has written bad checks not paid taxes ,car lease's etc... in the area of finances ? thats like putting a thief in charge of the bank ... no comon get real here... mr. gilbert will be fine the diretor of fiscal affairs just wasn't the job for him.... you need some skills regarding contracts and understanding them he didn't understand his own car lease ? credit card bill ? tax lienssn etc... ? i'm sure he's a great person but certain jobs require certian skills in this one finance's are paramount so yes his come into play here....but he choose that he had the oppurtunity to withdraw ..no one wanted to hang him out to dry ..it was his own decision.
Not necessarily. You dont know his financial situation, and neither do I.
The difference between us, is that you believe a man should be measured only by his faults, and none of his merits.
The man has skills, talent, merits and education, but all of those must be erased but for a handful smacks with our wonderful, upright, law abiding financial industry, and a tax code that has successfully extinct its middle class.
Trish
trish, thats simply not true ... i believe people are measured by all merits and actually think we only learn by our mistakes... in some cases such as applying for a job certain critera have to met ...unfortunately gilbert fell short.... as i have for certain jobs i went after.... doesn't make me less of a person just one who needs to do better...
I never learn by mistakes
Trish
Then you are a fool Trish...
And for the record I would never go to an overweight nutritionist...
Ron Angle's plan works to perfection! Harboring sour grapes over his lack of appointment to the director of fiscal affairs position, he finally gets to use info about Gilbert's transgressions that he's been sitting on since Gilbert first ran for office! Then he feeds it to his PR flack Bernie, who conveniently reports it before Gilbert's appointment and keeps Angle's fingerprints off of it!
Next Ronnie tells the papers that he warned Stoffa about it a month ago, thus sticking it to John for not choosing Angle in the first place! (Even though that part exposed some cracks in the Bulldog's plan, since Bernie claims Stoffa didn't know anything about it 'til Bernie told him. Whoops!)
Next Ron gets to claim in the newspaper that Gilbert is a fine, upstanding councilman and that they'll continue to work well together, assuming Gilbert is stupid enough not to realize that Ronnie was behind it all along! Guess that's what Gilbert gets for supporting Ron back when Cusick so-called "stabbed Angle in the back" last January!
Nicely done, Bernie! Whatever Angle's paying you, it's not enough!
6:48 Astute analysis. Angle has been angling for a County job for some time so that he can increase his pension so that he can give it to worthly persons. Who is the current trustee anyway?
Yes, compliment Gilbert now after he was torpedoed.
Well done principled one. Well done.
I have no idea what Ron told Stoffa some months ago. I suspect it was just some general reservations. I'll also point out that Angle does not know how to do a judgment search, and is computer illiterate and would not know how to check magistrate records. I do.
The simple reality is that I like Bruce, but felt compelled to disclose this information. Angle had nothing to do with it.
I will add that Angle had enough sense of right and wrong to be opposed to Gilbert's nomination. He chose doing the right thing over party and even personal loyalty.
Angle never misled Gilbert about his intentions, which is more than people like John Cusick can say. He heard all the details, as well as Gilbert's questionable explanations, and still was going to vote for him. I believe this is bc he wanted Gilbert off Council do he could put someone in there he could control.
He changed his mind about Gilbert when he saw which way the wind was blowing.
Anon 6:48 great conspiracy theory! Come to think of it I spotted black ops helicopters circling the courthouse last week with laser guided listening devices. Probably picked up a conversation in the cafeteria between Ron Angle and his confederate working in the civil court division. Maybe his secret buddy Archie?
Bottom line is Angle may be a prick but on this one he was right. He did tell Stoffa months ago about this issue. John had a conversation with a third party about this issue. None the less he still nominated Mr. Gilbert.
Bernie is right no but no one, well maybe Stoffa, but I know of no one else in local politics that has been given a pass on his past professional and personal record by the media. It has nothing to do with Republican or Democrat. hell no one is more Republican than Till and Owens. It is all about the person involved and if the press thinks you are a savior or a human.
Stoffa has a past before he became Executive that normally would have found its way into the newspapers, it didn't. But again outside of Stoffa, I am not aware of anyone getting a pass. Mr. Gilbert is just a mere mortal like most of us.
This is on Bruce for his actions and Stoffa for his arrogantly putting him out there and gambling with Mr. Gilbert's reputation. A Stoffa trait.
There is so much bullshit in this thread I don't know where to start, but I'll try.
Trish
"nurses and doctors with past medical problems shouldnt be in healthcare"
Sheer brilliance. Analogy from hell.
Stoffa -
His reacton was not one of regret, just that he did not have the votes. Cynically idignant, "...one without sin" John still thinks none of this should matter to the commoner, that Gilbert was still the best available candidate. It was all a witch hunt... OK, there, idiot Mr. executive.
The conspiracy theories -
No one was out to get Gilbert. To the contrary, even Bernie kept him viable as long as possible. Till? That dude would fuck himself to make a buck. If he had something on Bruce, you'd have seen it. Owens? zzzzzzzzzzzzzz. And the other paper is still trying to figure out how in the hell the doors are still open. Don't read too much into them missing anything.
Look, this blogger got it right, then gave up some credibility by deciding it was o.k. to sit on the story because he (mistakenly) ascribes a high level of intellect and moral compass to someone he likes. That's it.
Bruce Gilbert is no better, or worse, than those he aspired to join: An elitist, excuse-making, trough-feeding political hack who thought he was above scrutiny and reproach.
He was wrong and, thank goodness, someone gave it up before it was too late.
Anon 12:02, you must know Stoffa well. Many think of him as this down home farming type guy. In fact he is one of the most elitist guys around. Check out some of his sponsors, they are the cream of the elitist crop in the Valley.
He has always seen himself as quite a bit above his common folk. He passes it off with sly humor.
You really have him pegged. It was a crime what he did to Gilbert. He said on the 69 News he pulled the nomination to stop any embarrassment to Bruce. Of course the News ran the entire sordid affair. It was like an episode of Twilight Zone. There they are reciting Gilberts past problems, while showing closeups of Gilbert, capped off with a pious John Stoffa patting himself on the back by telling the media he was sparing Gilbert from all of this.
Hell John, you put him in this spot so you might as well have let him defend himself in a hearing if he wanted to. Once again Stoffa does what will work best for him and the bodies lay strewn in his wake.
Some things never change.
I feel very bad for Bruce. He is a decent guy. He is new to politics and he and his family should have been spared this embarrassment. Once again John Stoffa displays the incompetence that has been a hallmark of his tenure. This nomination was a mistake from the get go. Maybe Bruce would do a great job but with his past record, this was a disaster waiting to explode and it did. If it hadn't been O'Hare, someone would have caught it at some point. The most bizarre thing about all of this is that Stoffa then goes on to brag about it and makes fun of those concerned about the issues. I think he has been living to long in one of his fancy birdhouses.
I would take George W. Bush over John Stoffa in a heartbeat.
God, you're as bitter and hateful as Reibman.
Ron Angle would not vote him because he was privy to your findings and that is the ONLY reason!
Trish.....your comparisons are way out of line. This man has an accounting degree and has worked in the financial industry for 10 years and didn't know his taxes were wrong, the understanding of leasing contracts or even the most worst excuse of all, "someone broke into my car and stole my checkbook but I did not report it". FYI, you can thank your friend Bernie if you are so disgruntled because he felt it important enough to release the information and for once I actually agree.
I also believe that John Stoffa should have done this type of SIMPLE investigation and I believe he knew all along but thought he could once again slip one behind the backs of the residents of Northampton County.
Once again something is fishy in Northampton County
"God,your as bitter and hatefull as Reibman " Gotta hand it to ya Bernie as Mae West would say When your good your real good but when your bad your even better.
Hey Gut, even after thousands of voters told Stoffa they thought his plans were nuts, Bernie still thinks any anti-Stoffa comments must be from one or two people.
That is the funniest thing.
Guy, If you're going to quote me, please do it correctly. It's "you're," not "your."
I
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