IESI is the corporation that owns the Bethlehem Landfill, and it wants to expand. In order to do that, it needed a compliant Council. On October 23, I reported that the landfill had quietly dumped $95,600 into the Lower Saucon Township Council race, according to campaign finance reports on file at the Northampton County elections office. Its goal was to remove landfill opponents Priscilla M deLeon and David Willard, who were incumbent Council members. It was supporting incumbent Tom Maxfield and challenger Sandra Yerger.
On election eve, I told you the landfill had dumped another $28,700 into the race. The company reported its expenditures. All very legal.
This strategy succeeded in part and failed in part. Landfill opponent Dave Willard was narrowly defeated, but so was landfill proponent Tom Maxfield. Priscilla deLeon managed to hold on to her seat by defeating Maxfield by a scant five votes. Sandra yerger, who is supposed to be an environmentalist, was swept into office with the landfill's money.
According to an annual report that IESI just filed with the elections office, it spent another $21,596.67 after the election, on 11/30/15, for what it calls "individual employee services."
Adding it all up, IESI spent $146,796.67 to buy a local government. Legally.
Disgusting.
ReplyDeleteBecause, as we all know, Corporations are people too!
ReplyDeleteRight then....all perfectly legal here in the Commonwealth.
ReplyDeleteThe best government money can buy.
ReplyDeleteOnly if someone wants to be sick to their stomach should attendance at one landfill hearing be a must-do. Liquid seepage drips down the landfill's piles and where it lands, only neighbors can say. These large dollar amounts must be tempting to
ReplyDeletea small community where many candidates use photocopied flyers and door to door
knocking.
I believe that smell is actually PD.
ReplyDeleteBernie, off-topic here but were you going to have more on the Lehigh County/FBI story?
ReplyDeleteI thought your original post said you would.
Thank you for exposing this. Although it may be legal, people recognize it for what it is - bribery. Maybe the public will get sick of the corrupting influence of money in politics & strengthen codes of ethics for example barring officials who have received campaign contributions from voting on matters that benefit donors. Elected officials should also be barred from employment by entities that have received favorable votes for a certain period of time after they leave government service. More could be done to reduce the ability of special interests to corrupt government but in reality it comes down to the personal integrity of officials because people so inclined will always find ways to manipulate the system for personal gain.
ReplyDelete8:33, Then why don't you ask me on that post instead of diverting the topic here? I intended to provide more detail about Lehigh County, but was pleasantly surprised that the topic was thoroughly covered in the MC, Casey and by WFMZ-TV69.
ReplyDeleteGary W. Gorman posts:
ReplyDeleteI still believe that you should endorse Massengil or Summers Eve and run with their money and market what you have basically become....
This vulgar remark comes from the candidate who finished last, and he just demonstrated why tge voters' assessment of him is accurate. When a major corporation attempts to buy an election, as indisputably happened here, people need to know. I find it interesting that even the landfill refused to support you.
ReplyDeleteGary W. Gorman laughs:
ReplyDeletebecause I'm waiting for bigger endorsements. IESI had nothing.
(BTW, bern...I know that you would love the real scoop).
Gary W. Gorman laughs more...
ReplyDelete'Vulgar', Bernie?
I couldn't have been nicer if I tried. and, how I've tried.
tomato, tahmato