Fleckster Spotted at Easton Area Coffee Shop

I told you last week that Miked Fleck, former best bud and political consultant to Allentown Mayor Edwin "Fed  Ed" Pawlowski, is back in the area. He has since been spotted at an Easton area coffee shop, attired in cargo shorts and flip flops.

He's Baaaaack

Miked Fleck, who never was called as a witness in the political corruption case against Allentown Mayor Edwin "Fed Ed" Pawlowski, is back in the area. He reportedly spent the past few years in Georgia and Texas. He will be sentenced May 10.

Updated: Fleck Plea Expected Today

Reliable sources tell me that Mike Fleck, Allentown Mayor Edwin "Fed Ed" Pawlowski's former right arm, is in federal court today and is expected to plead guilty to participation in a broad pay-to-play scheme that directly implicates the Mayor.

The federal information, now available on the US Attorney's Office webpage, presents an ugly picture of political corruption in Allentown and Reading. Far from being an unwitting victim duped by a craven political consultant, Fed Ed is portrayed as a greedy Mayor who was more than willing to use his clout as Mayor to punish those who failed to contribute.

When Fleck told Fed Ed that Donor #4 (believed to be Scott Allinson) had expressed concern about making political contributions, Fed Ed reportedly responded,

"Really! I've given him millions of dollars.. .. Relatively, compared to other law firms, they've given nothing. [Donor #4] for sure will get nothing now. ... You know, f--k them! And I'm not gonna [award work to Donor #4's law partner] or anything. Screw it all!"

Given the use of quotation remarks, this statement from Fed Ed may very well be a transcript from a wire that Fleck was wearing.

Here's what I can tell you.

Public Officials #1 and #3, as we all know, are former Reading Mayor Vaughn Spencer and Allentown Mayor Edwin Pawloski, respectively.

Donor #1 appears to be Jack Rosen, a major Obama fundraiser. Donor #2 appears to be engineering firm McTish and Kunkel, which was also implicated in the turnpike scandal but was never prosecuted.

Donor #4 appears to be Attorney Scott Allinson, and law firm #4 appears to be the Norris McLaughlin law firm.

I am unsure about Donors #3 and #5. What do you think?

Updated 11:48 am

Why The Morning Call Delayed Atiyeh Story

On July 31, in a story entitled "Fed Ed and Miked Fleck Funneled $1 Million to Honest Abe Atiyeh", I broke the story that entrepreneur Abe Atiyeh, Fed Ed and Miked Fleck cooked up a scheme that would enable him to buy the billboard company he always wanted. Fed Ed simply had his bobbleheads on City Council pay Atiyeh $1.4 million for land it does not need. They ignored their own appraiser in doing so. He had warned them the land was only worth $580,000. This story was picked up by WFMZ-TV69 pretty quickly, adding a few details that I missed. But The Morning Call downplayed the Atiyeh story until August 15, even though it was brought up during a City Council. I think I know why.

Toward the end of its account, The Morning Call parenthetically notes, "(Under an agreement with Digiview this spring, The Morning Call became the exclusive sales agent for Atiyeh's billboard network.)"

It did not want to bite the hand that feeds it.

Atiyeh is no longer discussing the matter, which seems like a smart thing for him. It is thanks to him that we know he used Miked Fleck as a consultant.

Happy Birthday, Miked Fleck!

Today is Miked Fleck's birthday.

Fleck and Wife Earning $300k/Yr at the End

Fed Ed political consultant Mike Fleck and his wife were pulling in over $300,000 per year at the height of their consulting business, according to a source from inside that office. About every three months, they would also go on vacations and cruises. His partner Samuel Ruchlewicz was pulling down between $75,000-80,000.

At one time, he had nine employees, although that varied.

"It was the most toxic place I ever worked," this former worker told me, describing Fleck as a "tyrant" who would throw things, demean other workers and do a lot of screaming and yelling.

He also liked to discuss which federal prison was the nicest.

Atiyeh Real Estate Deals Approved by Allentown City Council

About two years ago, Allentown bought two properties it does not need from Abe Atiyeh, giving him at least a $1 million capital gain. This money certainly went a long way toward helping the colorful entrepreneur in acquiring the assets of an existing billboard company that already had 13 locations. That company, Clinton Street Media, was the beneficiary of a new zoning ordinance that enabled Mayor Edwin Pawlowski, aka Fed Ed, to change the uses of city-owned property at his own whim. And he did. In a zoning challenge filed by Atiyeh, Pawlowski was subpoenaed to testify concerning what exactly happened. But he never did. The matter was resolved when Atyeh ended up owning the company about which he was complaining.

Mickey Thompson, a lawyer and Atiyeh's COO, had called the Mayoral exemption a "get out of jail free" card for special developers who are on Fed Ed's good side. Speaking of the blindfold on Lady Justice, Thompson added, "That blindfold's been ripped off and the City is picking winners and losers." I guess now that Atiyeh has been selected as one of the winners, the blindfold can stay off. Abe Atiyeh has suddenly transformed from being one of Fed Ed's harshest critics - one who actually sued over the Neighborhood Millionaire Improvement Zone (MIZ) - into being a lapdog who has resumed making political contributions to Fed Ed and all his puppets.

Real Estate Deals Approved By Council

On Friday, I told you about the real estate deals (Union and Basin, Martin Luther King Highway) in which Honest Abe's capital gain was at least $999,000. At the time, I was unable to determine whether this was actually approved by Council. But thanks to Richard Fegley, who was there, I know the spending plan was approved at Council's April 16, 2014 meeting, although there was no indication at that time of what exactly was being purchased. Jeanette Eichenwald cast the sole No vote. The money did come from the City's lease of its water and sewer funds.

This matter had been discussed in more detail the previous week, at a meeting of the Council as a Committee-of-the-whole. At that time, as noted by Randy Kraft in an exhaustive report for WFMZ-TV69, the proposal was opposed by residents Bonnie Bosco and Fegley.

Managing Director Francis Dougherty stated that a nearly nine vacant tract at the southwest corner of Union and Basin Streets, complete with a pre-existing billboard, was being purchased as an area where several trails can eventually connect.

I see.

Abe spent $350,000 to buy this property in December 2012. In June 2014, he sold this vacant tract, encumbered by a billboard easement in his favor, to the City for $950,000. How the hell does that happen?

The other property, nearly seven acres along Martin Luther King Highway, is the old Lebanon Fertilizer Company. Atiyeh walked away with $399,000 after unloading that property

There is no indication that any appraisals were provided to City Council so they could determine whether the City was being paid a fair price.

Suffice it to say that with $999,000 in hand, Honest Abe was clearly in a position to purchase the assets of Clinton Street Allentown Media LLC, the company that did have contracts with the City for billboards at 13 different locations.

Why Was Fed Ed So Afraid To Testify?

Why was Fed Ed so willing to give Honest Abe such a sweetheart deal? I doubt seriously that he was concerned very much about the legality of a new zoning ordinance that gave him incredible powers. But for some reason, he did not want to testify. He postponed his first appearance, and then the matter was just postponed generally.

Fed Ed may have been leery to discuss how he chose to deal with Clinton Street Allentown Media. I've been informed that Fed Ed's campaign manager, Miked Fleck, was working as a "consultant" for that company.

Fleck later would become Atiyeh's business consultant.

Clinton Street, a very successful cell tower company, was made up of Attorney Nicholas Pullen and Engineer Larry Romanowski. Pullen needed no consultant. He was an early Pawlowski campaign contributor and also was appointed by former Governor Ed Rendell as his Chief Counsel to the Pa. Comm'n on Crime and Delinquency. He managed Jim Eisenhower's bid to be Attorney General. He's currently a principal at Edgewater Partners, which describes itself as "[n]avigating the confluence of business and politics." Pullen already appears to be a first class crony capitalist with no need for someone like Fleck. But he used him.

Fed Ed's Atiyeh Connection

When you think of developer Abe Atiyeh, you might be thinking rehabs, nursing homes or even private prisons. But in recent years, he's really begun to focus on billboards. He was trying to get his foot in the door in Allentown, but Doylestown-based Premier Media beat him to it with plans for a series of electronic billboards. Abe Atiyeh now operates those billboards himself. How did this happen when the City and Mayor both have vendettas against him, as Atiyeh has claimed?

Two words.

Miked Fleck.

Atiyeh hired Fleck.

"Mike had access to the mayor and the approval process, why not use a consultant for that?" argued Atiyeh.

Because it sure smells bad. Though Fleck and Pawlowski both insisted there would be a separation between Fleck's business and political consulting, it's very clear that Atiyeh was brought on board to sprinkle different campaigns and PACs with money.

Atiyeh insists there was no quid pro quo. Fleck was wearing a wire for 90 days, and I'm sure he has no reason to be worried at all.

Source: Flipped Fleck Was Wired For 90 Days

By now, many of you have seen The Morning Call story citing anonymous sources to report that former political consultant Michael Fleck secretly recorded conversations in what increasingly appears to be a pay-to-play investigation. Ironically, I heard a similar story yesterday from a law enforcement source with ties to the Allentown office of the FBI. I was told a few things I don't see in The Morning Call story, and their story reveals a few things I had not heard.

What Morning Call Sources Say

From The Morning Call story, we know that they are relying on anonymous sources (that's plural). I have just one. Their sources say that Fleck recorded meetings with his customers and with Mayor Edwin Pawlowski.

What My Source Says

• Fleck was wired for 90 days.
• He recorded conversations for at least 30 fund raisers and over 100 meetings.
• They have many hours of taped conversation. 
• They know where he is in Georgia, and it's within spitting distance of a field office.

When I first head this story,  my question was whether I could rely on just one source. After discussing it with Michael Molovinsky, I decided to go ahead with it and just make sure you were aware I was relying on just one source. Then the Morning Call story appeared. I realized what is going on. The only reason The Morning Call or I have this story is because the FBI want us to have it.

They are shaking the trees to see if any ripe apples fall.

This also tells me three things about their case. First, it is very much a pay-to-play investigation, and is looking into Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski and Reading Mayor Spencer Vaughn. Second, the FBI insisted that Fleck wear a wire because recordings will corroborate what he says when he testifies. Finally, by using a bad guy to get other bad guys, they are possibly setting up a defense of entrapment for some targets.

The Ruchlewicz connection

I also learned yesterday that in April, feds were visiting neighbors of Sam Ruchlewicz, a Fleck partner at his business consulting firm. His Twitter account states, "Government, Politics, Business -- They all meet with me."

That might be one of his problems.

You see, in addition to acting as a political consultant for candidates seeking elected office, Fleck also acted as a "consultant" for private businesses seeking an inside track with the very people that Fleck would help elect.

Though there is no law barring this practice, Common Cause Pa Exec Director Barry Kauffman warned that it invites mischief.

"What you have to be cautious about, in this case the campaign manager is obviously a very influential person. ... The mayor needs to be cautious the campaign manager doesn't try to influence public policy decisions and serve as a conduit for major businesses who end up being campaign donors."

Fleck told The Morning Call that he keeps his business and political consulting in two different worlds, a point that was confirmed by Mayor Edwin Pawlowski.

But a campaign finance report filed by the Citizens For a Greater Reading PAC.tells a completely different story.

First, it was filed by Ruchlewicz, who was supposed to be in the business, and not political, consulting world.

Second, the $33,260 in contributions include people with no connection to Reading. Why would Sean Kilkenny, who is running for Sheriff in Montgomery County, donate $5,000 to a reading-based PAC? Why would Abe Atiyeh, who had hired Fleck and Ruchlewicz as business consultants, donate $2,000 to a reading PAC?

Third, business consultant Ruchlewicz walked away with $1,200. Fleck's H Street Strategies' take was $10,000, nearly a third of the money contributed.

Major businesses with City and NIZ contracts have been big campaign contributors. J.B. Reilly, Sean Boyle and Abe Atiyeh bankrolled a Pawlowski and Fleck inspired effort to get rid of Mayor Ed Hozza in Allentown,

The business and political consulting obviously merged.

Too Many Pawlowski Rumors

Throughout the day today, I heard lots of rumors that I have no way to verify unless I get an invisibility cloak. So after a week of nonstop Pawlowski, Fleck and NIZ stories, I'm catching my breath. ... Until Monday.

Fleck: The Devil Went Down to Georgia

As noted in a Morning Call story, failed political consultant left his Allentown home today, leaving a cloud of uncertainty about a federal investigation in his wake. I doubt King Edwin waved good-bye. Here's a few things I learned to supplement that story.

• Though Fleck's wife is from Texas and many think that's where they're headed, they are actually moving to Georgia.
• Federal investigators know where he lived in Allentown, too, because they executed a search warrant at his home about a month ago.
• He may have been  flipped as long ago as St. Patrick's Day,  but knew he was in their spotlight at that time. 
• In addition to leaving candidates high and dry, he also owes money to several vendors. 

Mike Fleck, Lounge Singer

Though reporters have had no success finding former Ed Pawlowski political consultant Mike Fleck, he appears to have landed on his feet as a lounge singer at Loupers. Men in black suits and sunglasses were with him last night. They told me they were there for the $4 margaritas. They seemed to enjoy Fleck's singing, but kept inserting microphones on different parts of his body, after which they'd order him to sing again.

Pawlowski - Smoke, But No Fire

For weeks, I've been hearing that both Allentown Mayor Edwin Pawlowski and his political consultant, Michael Fleck, are under scrutiny by federal authorities. Fleck's consulting business was supposedly raided a few weeks ago. I have heard this sort of thing before. Since nobody had any hard facts, I decided against writing about it. That changed with yesterday's disclosure, which first appeared in The Morning Call, that FBI agents were inside City Hall looking at contracts since 2005. That would be the entire time Pawlowski has been Mayor. So there's certainly smoke. But I don't know that there's fire.

An earlier version of the story, which mysteriously disappeared without comment, indicated that Pawlowski and his wife had actually been escorted to the federal courthouse. I have no idea whether that deleted statement is accurate.

Here's what I have heard. The feds have questions about professional services contracts with the city and the connection between them and political contributions made to Pawlowski. The reason his wife would be relevant is because she is his campaign treasurer.

For years, I have raised questions about his finance reports and he has sometimes been fined as a result. For years, I have made pay-to-play connections, which have also been suggested by The Morning Call.

I tried contacting Mike Fleck for his side of the story, but he has not responded. Although I was able to leave a message, others tell me that some of his numbers have been disconnected and that he is moving.

Readers of this blog know I am no fan of Pawlowski, his lack of transparency or his policies of shoving the poor under the rug. But I caution everyone that smoke is not fire. The fact that the feds have questions does not, by itself, suggest that the Mayor has done anything wrong.

Rumors have even made their way to Harrisburg, with reports that the Pawlowski situation is about to "implode." But how much of this is real and how much of it is politics from the Sestak camp? I don't know. If he is prosecuted, I shall shed no tears for Pawlowski. But everyone, including him, is entitled to a presumption of innocence. You're more than welcome to tell us what you know, but I caution readers to take everything with a grain of salt.

Updated 2 pm - Firm Cites Pawlowski Preessure: "We do work for a number of firms that are tightly tied to Pawlowski and the NIZ, such as Boyle, Jaindl, and Northstar. To say we’re getting pressure to contribute to his campaign would be a gross understatement. They are leaning on us like you would not believe, and if you don’t give to one, they want to know the $ amount of what you gave to someone else for Pawlowski’s campaign. It’s pay/play without a doubt, and I’m not sure it’s illegal because there’s no formal track. But the implied threat is we all made $$ on this and now it’s time to repay the favor. We’ll end up holding our noses and making a small contribution so as to not offend the people we work with, but this just sucks and is exactly the way Pawlowski conducts business."

Fleck Rules Out Seat on Allentown City Council

"A proper bastard"

In next year's state house race, there will be a new district for South Allentown's growing Hispanic population. The frontrunner, of course, is Gringo Pete Schweyer. He can spend a few years pretending to care about poor people, just like Jenn Mann faked it. Then he can follow her footsteps to make the big bucks as a ... "consultant."

So who will take over Schweyer's seat on Allentown City Council? Over the weekend, Council Prez Julio Guridy and King Edwin, at a meeting of Democrats, floated a familiar name Mike Fleck. He's their campaign manager and does intend to relocate to Allentown imminently , if he has not done so already.

But the Fleckster has vetoed this idea.

"If nominated, I will not run; if elected, I will not serve," he told me in his best William Tecumsek Sherman imitation. Sherman, a Northern General during the Civil War, is the proper bastard who promised, "I will make Georgia howl!" He did, too, burning Atlanta to the ground.

Fleck denies he has any plans to burn Allentown. He just wants to transform it. He claims too busy growing his business and getting candidates elected to even think about seeking office for the foreseeable future.

And the Winner is ... Mike Fleck

Mike Fleck with Mick Dee

No matter how the elections turn out, the biggest local winner is Mike Fleck. From what I've seen of local expense reports, he's raking in the dough. For the period between January 1 and May 6, this is what he's been paid by local candidates:

Edwin Pawlowski - $38,000
Ismael Arcelay -        $2,800
Bob Donchez -         $6,000
Glenn Reibman -      $10,075

That's $56,875, and does not include payments from Julio Guridy or Cynthia Mota

What The Morning Call Omitted From the Ruckus Story

The Morning Call reports, in a well-written story, that Ruckus Brewing is buying Neuweiler Brewery. Because the property is located located in Allentown's Neighborhood Improvement Zone (NIZ), Ruckus will be able to use state and City taxes for improvements. But there's one important detail missing. Allow me to fill in the blank.

Ruckus is represented by none other than Mike Fleck, who is campaign consultant to Mayor Edwin Pawlowski, Council Prez Julio Guridy and Council member Cynthia Mota. You see, in addition to running political campaigns, Fleck works out business deals with the very politicians he helps elect.

He gets them on the front end and the back end.

This kind of business arrangement has trouble written all over it.

Reibman Uses Drunk Callahan Look Alike

Political guru Mike Fleck, Edwin Pawlowski's campaign manager, was the person behind the attempt to kill the Kim Velez candidacy in Allentown. That effort failed, largely because Steve Barron's Solicitor, Tim Brennan, engaged in bully tactics. A Lehigh County judge corrected that error. I did not really fault Fleck for Brennan's stupidity. But Fleck, who also is running Glenn Reibman's Northampton County Exec race, has sunk to a new low.

The flyer, which I decline to reproduce here, includes a photograph of an obviously drunk John Callahan. For those of you on Planet Krypton, Callahan is one of Reibman's two opponents in the Northampton County Exec race.

But it's a look-alike, not the real Callahan.

This deceit is no surprise from Reibman. After all, he's the Executive who scandalized his office when a top aid was sentenced to federal prison for taking kickbacks on County contracts. Reibman spent more time in fornt of grand juries than he did in his office during his first term. And Mike Fleck is a guy who falsely claimed to be a college graduate when he himself ran for Mayor.

Neither Fleck nor Glenn Reibman is interested in being honest with you.

Reibman Campaign Manager: Money Launderer or Witch Hunt Victim?

Mike Fleck

According to The Reading Eagle and Channel 69, Reading Mayor Vaughn Spencer might be in hot water. He may have acted as a straw party in 2011 to disguise illegal contributions from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) to two Philadelphia City Council candidates. Philadelphia has campaign finance limits, and IBEW had already maxed out on donations to these candidates. What makes this story very interesting to me is that, at the time in question, Mike Fleck was running Vaughn's campaign. He is now getting paid $5,000 per month to manage Glenn Reibman's primary bid for Northampton County Exec.

According to Vaughn's 2011 post-election campaign report, Vaughn donated $20,000 to two Philadelphia City Council candidates on 11/4/11. The very next day, IBEW donated $30,000 to Vaughn.

I'm a little bothered by this, even though the Fleckster and I have had our differences over the years.This violation, if it is one, would be a violation of Philadelphia's campaign finance laws. Yet it is Berks County's Republican Board, who has hired and paid $8,000 to an attorney to look over Vaughn's records, that is doing the "investigation".

Vaughn is a Democrat.

If Berks County feels so strongly about this, why hasn't it enacted its own campaign spending limits? Commissioners, of course, deny that politics is involved.

And the sky is pink.

I'd feel more comfortable about the motives for this investigation if it were being conducted by Philadelphia or the state AG.

I have called Fleck about this matter, and will update this post with his response when I get it.

Updated 1:30 AM: Mike Fleck had this to say: "Unlike the Berks County elections commission and its staff, I will not comment about an ongoing investigation. When the report is released, I believe in less than a month,  I will have plenty to say about this waste of taxpayer money."

Mike Fleck Will Not Seek Re-Election to Easton City Council

Mike Fleck with his video guru, Mick Dee

For as long as I've been blogging, I've been picking on political and business consultant, Easton City Council member, Pawlowski campaign manager and occasional lounge singer Mike Fleck. So you can imagine my surprise when he invited me to visit him at his Allentown consulting biz yesterday. Ron Angle warned me it was a trap, and that once I walked in there, Pawlowski would jump out of a closet with a tomahawk. But aside from seeing my picture on a dartboard, the eleven people in that office were polite.

It was an expansive interview, and I'll share those details on Monday. But for now, I want you to know that Fleck told me he has decided against running for re-election to Easton City Council. "I have no desire to be an elected official ever again," he told me.

Part of the reason is his consulting business, which is taking up more and more of this time. Another big reason is his five-year old son, a basketball star in training. He wants to see his son play as he gets older, and I can understand that completely.

Every second we miss is a second we'll never get back.

Fleck added that he and his wife are seriously considering a move to Allentown, since that's where both of them work.

I'll have more on Monday.

I did check my car before leaving Allentown.

Fleck Denies Involvement in Allentown's Water Deal

Mike Fleck

On Friday, in a somewhat half-baked post, I told you that Mike Fleck has dived, head first, into Allentown's water and sewer deal. Since Fleck just happens to be Mayor Ed Pawlowski's campaign manager, I thought you should know.

Now I never confirmed any of this with the Fleckster, primarily because I never expected him to return a call. My relationship with Allentown's so-called elite is somewhat shaky.

But on Friday morning, Fleck called me!

He told me my story is wrong. This led me back to my original sources, and I'm inclined to agree.

As I told the Fleckster during another phone call on Sunday night, I do like to beat him up. But I like to beat him up with the truth. Some of my story from Friday is inaccurate, and this is a clarification.

What I Got Wrong:

1) Fleck's Involvement. - Fleck tells me he's had no contacts with anyone concerning Allentown's water and sewer lease. He claims that early in the process, he was contacted by an interested party to work as a consultant, but after discussing it with the Mayor, he decided to stay out of it. He adds this party never submitted a proposal.

2). Marcel Groen and National Development Council. - On Friday, I claimed that Groen represents National Development Council. But that's inaccurate. My sources contacted me later that day to tell me they had that wrong.

What I Got Right:

1) Marcel Groen does represent one of the bidders. I have heard two possibilities, but will wait until I am certain.

2) Fleck and Groen are friendly. According to Fleck,they still discuss politics and other matters, but have had no discussions concerning the water and sewer deal. Fleck denies knowing who Groen represents.

3) Groen's client, whoever it is, has the edge. According to what I hear, it's already a done deal. Those supposed public hearings are window dressing, as most so-called public hearings are with Pawlowski.

4) Fleck was involved in an insurance program for water and sewer ratepayers, but it was killed when the city decided to lease the facilities. It might be resurrected at some later date, but that will depend on whether the successful bidder already offers those kinds of warranties.