Will Power's Northampton County Council Bid

Morning Call columnist Bill White decided to grade performances during last week's evening with Northampton County Council candidates. He nearly flunked Will Power, who narrowly escaped with a D+. Will did tell everyone his wife was ovulating and it's hard to overlook that kind of gaffe. But as Bill himself later explains on his blog, "I was strictly grading their performance in that debate, as I perceived it, not their merits as councilpeople or county executives." If you judge Will on his merits, as opposed to his rhetoric, he certainly should be one of the top five Democrats.

Will's weakness is those occasional missteps. But he knows county government and, as The Express Times Voter Guide makes clear, understands that council's primary role is fiscal responsibility. Unlike his fellow candidates, Power has consistently criticized machine politics.

Video Credit: Jeff Stoffa

Will Power Slams Dertinger's Unprofessional Behavior on Council

LWV Moderator: County Council regularly functions in a state of dysfunction and unprofessionalism. How do you think this has hurt the community? How would you maintain decorum while engaging in civil, political discourse?

Charles Dertinger: "I would love to address that. Remarkably, it's - and this is no disrespect to the reporters - remarkably they report the arguments. There have been time and again when there are issues that do breed quite a bit of animosity. There are issues that we see as completely opposite to one another. And then, right after that, you'll see two or three unanimous votes.

"These issues are important. These issues need to be debated. People who have strong feelings about them should voice their opinions. If we think for a second that anything else is going to be appropriate here, I don't think people are going to be given their full measure when they arrive here.

"You need to advocate for what people have sent you here for. I ran on a very clear ticket of open space preservation, farmland preservation, park development. Every time that issue comes up, I will fight it to the very end. I'm a building trades professional. I know how those projects should be done. When those issues come up, I will fight them with every bit that I have as well. And those who disagree with me, I expect them to do the same."

Will Power: "I promote debate rather than fights. The very last meeting I went to, my stomach had never been turned so much before at a public meeting. And I attend a lot of them. I'm no Ron Angle, but I attend a lot of meetings. I walked away sometimes ashamed of my own behavior. But I was never more ashamed of you [referring to Dertinger] and Lamont McClure that night. That was just horrendous. And both of you ...

Dertinger: "Dare we be specific?"

Power: "This is an example ..."

Dertinger: "Well ...

Power: "Nobody interrupted while you were talking ...

Dertinger: "I didn't tell a story ..."

LVW Moderator: "You'll have a statement at the end."

Power: "While not being disagreeable, I'm pointing out that I thought your behavior was irresponsible."

If you'd like to hear the thuggish behavior of Charles Vanderbilt Dertinger during a County Council meeting, just click here, look for the 64Kbps M3U (Lo-Fi) at the left sidebar and enjoy. A verbatim transcript is located here.

Will Power & Bill Hall Rage Against Northampton County Dem Machine

In the same scam used to get himself elected, Northampton County Dem Boss Joe Long has a penchant for scheduling endorsement meetings without notifying people he'd rather not see. He did that in 2007, when the party endorsed its favored few over Will Power and Bill Hall for county council seats. He's done it again this year, asking a handful of about thirty committeemen to endorse a slate at what he himself called "petition signing meeting." There was no roll call. Candidates who may not even be committee members were never told they had no vote.

Refusing to go gently into that good night, Power and Hall are again running for county council.

Last time he ran, Power was the victim of a vicious smear campaign orchestrated by Lamont McMud, which even included allegations that Power had assaulted his own disabled brother. Unfortunately, he has passed away a few years ago, and Power was forced to produce a surreal voice from the past on his laptop. "My brother never struck me or did anything to hurt me. I apologize for what I did. I love 'ya, brother." Even State Senator Lisa Boscola, Will's sister, publicly denied the allegations. It was too little, too late.

Bill Hall believes he should represent the people, not some party machine. He advocates thorough and honest reform in our government institutions, arguing that integrity, independence and courage should be the qualifications of a candidate. He has previously condemned Northampton County Democratic machine politics. Last year, Hall considered filing a primary challenge to Sam Bennett, but backed off at the midnight hour.

Isn't it time for Big D Democrats to start acting like little d democrats and let the people decide these things?

Update: Power's In, But Hall is Out. Although Bill Hall assisted in gathering petitions, he himself will not be a candidate in this year's council race. Power filed his nomination petition late this afternoon in an office swamped by paper and candidates.

McClure's McMud Wins Primary, But Makes Him a Loser

McClure's McMud worked ... in the primary. In a campaign against an unknown with no money, McClure just had to slime his opponent. His negative campaign, in which he resurrected the memory of Will Power's quadriplegic and deceased brother, revealed a lot more about McClure than it did about Power.

With most precincts in, McClure has 2,559 votes to a very strange 666 for Power, or 79% of the vote. He'll be facing Republican Mark Schwartz, who ran unopposed for the Republican nomination, this Fall.

The more people get to know McClure, the less they like. He'll lose this Fall.

McClure's Sleaze Campaign Designed to Chill Boscola's Congressional Aspirations?

A student of local politics tells me why McClure's smear campaign was launched. It has nothing to do with Will Power and everything to do with state senator Lisa Boscola! Here's the theory.

1.) We all know [Norco Dem boss] Joe Long would like to see Sam "0 for life" Bennett be the Dem nominee in the 15th Congressional District. As one county Dem on the ballot put it to me, "Let's face it, Sam's been more loyal to Joe than Lisa."

2.) McClure, in his psychosis, believes he will one day be Congressman McClure, so he wouldn't mind seeing Sam run and lose to keep the seat away from more prominent Dems (Lisa, Jenn Mann, Callahan).

3.) "Boss Long" believes he is making his point with the Stofkos [Lisa's family] to convince Lisa to stay out.

4.) McClure believes the same.

5.) One of the big hang ups for Lisa about running is that her family believes a run will be stressful. By decimating Will, "the machine" folks are proving their point to her. This is what lies ahead of her.

Sounds sexy. Personally, I think McClure is just a bully.

Lamont McLure Deserves No Seat on Norco Council

I've written about Lamont McClure, aka McMud, so many times I could probably devote an entire blog to his nefarious antics. He's earned the unflattering nickname.

One thing he hasn't earned is a seat on Northampton County Council. He's lost whenever he's run. He'll win on Tuesday, but his sleaze campaign against Will Power has probably guaranteed that Dems will lose control of county council in the general election.

I've already told you what I think. Here are some other voices in the blogosphere.

NewsOverCoffee, a Nazareth blog in McMud's district: "Campaigns almost always devolve into one candidate knocking another one down to boost one's self in the process and it makes no constructive contribution to our knowledge of these individuals or their ability to perform. Pointing out convictions of crimes would be fine, but accusations that were not upheld is not right and speaks volumes of the individual presenting the material."

Lehigh Valley Poliblog: "Using a candidate's dead relative in an attack mailing against him, twisting the facts and words of someone who is no longer alive and can't set the record straight, is the lowest form of gutter politics I have ever witnessed, and i've personally seen some nasty crap."

Blue Coyote a relative newcomer to Blogistan, says it best of all: "I am reminded of a quote from Marcus Aurelius - 'A noble man compares and estimates himself by an idea which is higher than himself; and a mean man, by one lower than himself. The one produces aspiration; the other ambition, which is the way in which a vulgar man aspires.' "

State Senator Lisa Boscola Rips County Council Candidate

"I'm very upset and disappointed that someone would resort to using my deceased, quadriplegic brother to falsely portray my brother Will in such a nasty, negative way."

Those are the words of state senator Lisa Boscola, and they are directed at lies and half-truth's in Lamont McClure's smear campaign for Northampton County Council. McClure's opponent is Lisa's brother, Will Power.

Bernie Kieklak, Lisa's brilliant chief of staff and frequent contributor here, has a few interesting observations about McClure's McMud.

1) You NEVER attack your opponent unless you are behind. (Unless you are a spineless shitbag like Charlie Dent and panic at the mere thought of having any opponent, because you know full well how shitty your polling numbers really are.)

2) A well-funded incumbent should NEVER acknowledge that he or she EVEN HAS an opponent--especially an opponent with no money, no record of accomplishments to run on, and no political base.

3) You NEVER burn money in the Primary unless it's absolutely necessary for you to survive and advance, because it will always come back to bite you big time in the General Election in the fall;

4) You NEVER level a personal attack against a family member of a 3-term, sitting, senior State Senator who was just re-elected with 73% of the vote unless you have such a serious, irrational death wish that you WANT to commit political suicide; and

5) 3 negative campaign mailings right before the election cannot win more hearts, minds, and votes than a solid record of hard work, a passionate commitment to stand up for over-burdened taxpayers, and the ability to fight every single day for what is best for the people you represent, without a shred of hesitation or fear.

Norco Councilman Lamont McClure Bullies A Little Guy

He looked shell-shocked.

Early this afternoon, I visited the dark and dank halls of the Governor Wolf building because Will Power , candidate for Northampton County Council, was having a press conference. Reason? To refute countless accusations, some of them twenty years old, hurled by his mean-spirited opponent, Lamont McClure.

Will knew this was coming. John Morganelli warned him. So did I. Even the oracle, BTNP, had predicted McClure would launch a nuclear strike against Power. But Will still seemed unprepared for the vicious nature of these attacks. He quietly called it an "all time low, at least in 2007."

Power has spent no money to deliver his message. But McClure, between January 1 and the end of April, has raked in a cool $16,500. And as he's done in his previous losing bids, he's relied mostly on special interests - big city lawyers, the DA's office (where his wife works), and an alphabet soup of unions. Very little of his money is local.

And McClure has spent this money to pummel a little guy - a bridge guard, father, and husband - into submission. It's been ugly. But whether he realizes it or not, McClure's negative campaign has accomplished what Power himself was unable to do - establish some name recognition.

At the end of a lonely hall, Power set up his briefcase, boom box and a laptop computer with a picture of his baby son as a screen saver. And waited. And waited. For the mainstream press -last refuge of little people bullied by the powerful.

Reporters Joe Nixon and Sarah Cassi answered Power's request and attended his press conference. They listened sympathetically as Power defended himself. "He tells only half the story at best." Whatever they write, which depends on other stories and limited space, will be Power's sole campaign ad. And it won't be enough. He'll lose Tuesday.

The saddest thing, at least for me, was a video broadcast, now seven years old. Among the many stones cast by McClure, Power supposedly assaulted his own disabled brother. Unfortunately, he has passed away a few years ago, so we listened to a surreal voice from the past on the laptop. "My brother never struck me or did anything to hurt me. I apologize for what I did. I love 'ya, brother." At times, he would use pet names I don't quite get. It was very moving, yet so very sad.

McClure would have easily defeated Power without a negative message. But that wasn't enough. He had to kick Power while he was down. Make sure he doesn't take your lunch money. Tuesday, McClure will be the Democratic nominee for Northampton County Council.

Makes you proud, doesn't it?

Update: Sarah Cassi's account of McClure's McMud tells us something new. State Senator Lisa Boscola, Power's sister, claims her brother is falsely portrayed. But District Attorney John Morganelli, who never prosecuted Power, says otherwise. "I did Power a favor at that time." Now, John is doing favors for Lamont. He employs Lamont's wife. And McClure's campaign finance report reveals a $1,000 favor from John.

Norco Dem Committee: We Know Best, If You Don't Like it, Leave!

Many of us were up before dawn last Saturday. It was the first day of fishing season, and there was no rain! Even more of us were listening to the crack of a bat and that loud snap we hear when a well-thrown ball hits the leather of an infielder's glove. But while most of us were breathing in the Spring air, a much smaller group was hunkered down in a dark and dank smoke-filled Nazareth bar. Twenty members of this group are intent on destroying our right to choose our leaders, one of our most fundamental liberties. They even ejected a dissident who complained just a little too loudly. This group of oligarchs? The Northampton County Democratic Committee. The man who had the gall to demand that the group be more democratic? County council candidate Will Power. Let me tell you how this happened.

Northampton County has 149 voting precincts. We should, therefore, have 298 persons serving the Democratic party in Northampton County, a man and woman in each district. But only about 195 people were elected last Spring. The local chair can appoint members in precincts having no elected members, but he's having trouble. The website practically begs people to get involved.

On Saturday, Boss Long's county committee decided to endorse candidates seeking the Nazareth and Slate Belt district seats for Northampton County Council. Neither seat is county-wide. The county committee gave no endorsement to candidates seeking local offices in Bethlehem or Easton. But for reasons that elude me, it selected Sunshine Act violator Lamont McClure over reformer Will Power in Nazareth. And the Slate Belt seat was awarded to John Maher over Bill Hall.

Veteran reporter Madeleine Mathias tells us seventy-five people attended this coronation ceremony. That statement led me to believe that there were seventy-five committee members involved. Maher's 20-12 endorsement, I surmised, came from the committee people in his slate belt district. But guess what? Just thirty-two people were allowed to decide on behalf of the entire county Democratic party, a mere sixteen percent of the popularly elected committee members. Only ten percent voted to endorse Maher. How many of these committee members were actually from the slate belt district? Your guess is as good as mine, but it had to be significantly less than ten percent.

Do you think a law enacted by ten percent of Congress or the state legislature would have any validity? Welcome to the world of Dem boss Joe Long.

Will Power, aggravated by this obvious insult to the democratic process, was tossed out of the meeting. Joe Long, Rodney Applegate, Charles Dertinger and William Wallace turned the Power off. These Dems are scared to death of the people. Power has his own first hand account. John Maher tells me Power was being "disruptive." It's called democracy, John. Let the people decide. Is that so hard?

Just a few weeks ago, council candidates turned in their nomination petitions. County Councilman Ron Angle told John Maher there were all kinds of problems with Hall's petition. He also told Bill Hall there were all kinds of problems with Maher's petition. And he was right! Both petitions are screwed up. Now Ron was just trying to trick potential adversaries into cancelling each other out. But they refused to take the bait, just like the trout I tried to angle on Saturday. Maher and Hall both told me the people should decide these matters, not judges. Looks like Maher has had an unfortunate change of heart. He's increasingly looking like a Joe Long puppet.

I'm told state rep. Rich Grucela had a statement for the small segment of the committee who actually attended Saturday's meeting. He opposes party endorsement of candidates in contested races. He's right. A party who predecides its candidates in dark bars, leads to public officials who will predecide the people's business behind closed doors. It results in only 195 people getting elected to a body that should have 298 seats.

Everyone else thinks they have a better chance fishing or playing ball.

Update: Larry Kisslinger, the former local Republican party chair, has his own very interesting and eloquent perception. Political parties are a thing of the past, unless a very civic minded person is in charge always trying to have "more" people involved in decision making at the Party level. If few people desire to make decisions and/or dictate to their Party members is tunnel vision. I was County R Chair '86-'88 and when I promoted more to attend meetings was rebuked by nonsensical advice by some, still in charge, to stop doing so. "Why do we need "all" of these people here, we used to do things with only a few of us attending"?... was their mantra...I resigned since nobody wanted input from all!

Will's Power Point - Even Pols Can Be Frugal

Will's latest Power Point deals with the importance of frugality.

Now he tells me!

The lessons he's learned in becoming such a cheap bastard are evident in his county council campaign - he won't spend a dime. Other pols, who spends gobs from campaign contributors, will have no trouble raising your taxes.

Instead of Feeding Hungry Pols, Why Not Feed a few Kids?

Will's Power Point today deals with campaign finance. Instead of taking your money, he's asking you to contribute to Feed the Children. He'll match any contribution made up to $7,000, his annual salary once elected to county council. Very classy.

Will's Power Point - McClure's Law & Order Committee

In today's Will Power Point, we peek at Lamont McClure's "Law and Order" committee, and its trouble with that pesky Sunshine Act.

Norco Council Candidate Will Power Has a Campaign Blog!

Will Power, candidate for Northampton County Council District 3, has started a campaign blog! He's swimming upstream against the local party machine, which will endorse Lamont McClure this Saturday. McClure plans to buy your vote with a flood of negative ads designed to make Power look as bad as a middle school principal. That's no surprise because McClure has established himself as a bully.

McClure's not really interested in what you think. He'd rather follow the marching orders of Abe Atiyeh and the DA, who contribute heavily to his campaign. Power has no money and refuses to accept a dime. He won't even ask his sister, a powerful state senator, for help. But he's got a message. Perhaps the Internet, our great equalizer, can even the odds. I've signed on as a contributor, and you can look forward to regular postings from me about McClure's shoddy record on council. And Power will post his own blogs on county issues. So get a breath of fresh air from time to time and check out Will's blog.

Will Power - Voice for Reform in Northampton County

Every now and then, I get these delusions of grandeur. I begin to think I know all about political strategy. I'll share my brilliant insights with LVDem or Chris Casey, or I'll dump all over poor Rich Wilkins.

The truth? I'm an idiot. I do care about good government, but my political skills are horrible. Whenever I associate myself with a campaign, it's the kiss of death.

I'll give you one of many examples. Single-handedly, I dragged poor Karl Longenbach down to defeat when he ran for judge. I was just a sign planter, but even screwed that up. I got the brilliant idea of strapping a sign to my back and riding my bike to the courthouse every day. I pissed off motorists, who had to wait for chances to pass some fat guy on a bike with a campaign sign. But the worst thing was what happened election day. I propped a big "Karl Longenbach for judge" sign next to my bike at the courthouse, changed in the can, and discretely hung my wet clothing on my bike. Unfortunately, my dirty and wet underwear fell out, and was right next to the Longenbach sign the entire day. The courthouse had a lot of traffic that day, and Karl lost by a handful of votes. Karl eventually did forgive me. But whenever his wife sees me, she starts saying strange things in Spanish.

I warned Will Power about all of this, but he gave me a second chance. I circulated a petition for him in Nazareth. I even got 30 signatures in just one cold day, walking up and down the streets, terrorizing folks trying to eat. Guess what? I lost them. Now that the deadline has passed, they'll show up. I did circulate another petition. But if Power was really counting on me, he wouldn't be on the ballot. Although I have no skills as a political strategist, I know we need reform-minded people on council. We need independent thinkers, not those who follow the commands of either the Democratic or Republican cliques. Power is a voice for good government, and here's why he's running.

"I am running for County Council to fight against, and help clean-up the corruption in Northampton County government. The election of John Stoffa was a very good start, yet there is a deep need for such integrity on county council. To accomplish this goal, I will propose an County Ordinance called the Code of Civil Ethics, which will outline how council votes must be made with a full disclosure as to if and when any campaign contributions or gifts were made by any and all persons whom are conducting business with the county. Moreover, this ordinance will demand full disclosure of any and all campaign contributions or gifts made by any and all persons whom conducted business with the county in the past from yesterday to up to 3 to 5 years ago. More watchdog ordinances would follow in the same spirit of integrity and accountability. (NOTE: This action will be far more relevant than the make-believe ordinance McClure authored, which is really just a tool to squash public dissent of council’s business, and will hold all members of County Council immediately accountable if there is a “money trail” connected to their votes.)"

"I am also running to keep property taxes down by cutting spending, especially in the forms of grants, and by reducing entitlements such as tax abatement programs that are taken advantage of by the wealthiest real estate investors whom certainly are not paying their fair share of taxes. I openly take the position that County Council was wrong to vote in favor of a nearly $500,000 renovation to County Council’s own chambers, when that amount so grossly exceeds the value of an average taxpayer’s own entire home."

"Moreover, I am running to promote a more cordial council-executive relationship, so that more positive things can be done for Northampton County citizens in the vital coming years. These next few years are too important for such infighting as we’ve seen this past year, and McClure is an obstructionist to good government in far too many ways."

LaMont McClure Wants Child Expolitation Unit, and He's Serious This Time!

Two-time loser Lamont McClure is at it again. He's running for county council. He told the Morning Call that if we elect him, he'll start a child exploitation unit. And this time he means it! Really! He brags about his "perfect" attendance record as a selected member of council, plays the open space card, promises to shake down criminals who don't pay their fines, and takes a bow for his code of civility. Unfortunately for Lamont, he now has a record. And actions speak louder than words.

1. Child exploitation unit? First of all, why is Lamont calling it a child exploitation unit? Shouldn't it be a child exploitation prevention unit? No matter. He's just playing to the crowd. We've heard it before.

In his county council audition over a year ago, McClure promised "to address the issue of online sexual predators and perhaps create a county child exploitation unit." He explained that the county could hire an investigator and set up the software to nab pedophiles. Council not only appointed McClure, but gave him the chair of council's law and order committee. In its three meetings, McClure never mentioned a child exploitation unit. And this year, he has yet to schedule a hearing. Yeah, he must really care.

2. McClure's perfect attendance record? Council's eight standing committees conducted twenty-two meetings last year. Every member of council is encouraged to participate in every committee. It's an accurate gauge of the time and effort each councilperson devotes to government service. McClure attended just four meetings last year, and is tied for last place. He's a slacker.

3. Open Space? McClure is one of the councilmen who actually voted against Stoffa's open space plan, Northampton County's first concerted effort to curb rampant overdevelopment. Although The Morning Call labeled Stoffa's plan as a "farsighted approach" that will save us money in the long run, McClure didn't want a tax increase on his record. He actually wanted to invade the county's rainy day fund. Council changed course when it learned it had no authority to do so under our Home Rule Charter. But not Lamont.

4. Criminal Shakedown. Despite all his braying about improving our criminal collections, he has never even visited the office. He wouldn't know the employee who actually does collections if he fell over her. But why should Lamont bother to meet her? He just wants to get elected.

5. Code of Civility. This is a thinly veiled instrument to muzzle councilmen and citizens who speak truth to power. McClure claimed to be concerned "the public has not been getting the message about the good work" being accomplished. His solution? Silence dissenters. It's an obvious First Amendment violation.

In practice, McClure himself has been a regular violator of his own code. As recently as last Thursday, he repeatedly interrupted Council Prez Grube and called a county employee "disingenuous." He popped on this blog anonymously, lied about who he was, and called me a "goo goo." I don't know what the hell that means, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't intended as a compliment. So much for his code of civility. I outed him.

The Real Lamont McClure. The real Lamont McClure
* pockets a $1,000 check on November 16 from developer Abe Atiyeh, who's always getting tax breaks from local governments.
* ignores Lower Saucon Township residents in his own district, who are concerned about the possible destruction of the historic Meadows Road bridge.
* violates the Sunshine Act and tries to bully me for pointing it out.
* wants to spend $500,000 for lavish council chambers when courthouse employees have not seen raises for over three years.
* lavishes Bethlehem with $700,000 for shrubbery and signs along a road while Gracedale windows leak all over seniors.

Lamont McClure Antidote? Will Power.

Sitting in the Peanut Gallery With John Morganelli

I was pretty nasty to Northampton County DA John Morganelli yesterday. I called him "Farmer John," made fun of his new book (I'm really just jealous), and even belittled his crusade against undocumented workers. I've done it before. A few months ago, I falsely reported that John was building a wall around the Lehigh Valley to insulate us from dreaded illegal immigrants. It would be funded by surcharges at Taco Bell.

After casting my stones, I was having great fun in the peanut gallery at last night's lengthy meeting of Northampton County Council. The suits were trying to save $2.6 million in public funding for a Wind Gap developer's road. This project was funded six years ago, but has gone nowhere. Council was finally ready to pull the plug. Ralph Stampone noticed that whenever the suits started talking, their noses grew longer. And from behind me, John Maher whispered that WWII was over in less time than has been allotted for that road. Some goofy old guy in a gigantic cowboy hat kept insisting they were really serious this time. Really! And his Green Knights had a gazillion dollars to back the project. Council finally flushed this project, no thanks to Lamont McClure or Charles Dertinger.

While we were laughing at these developments, somebody plopped right next to me in the peanut gallery.

It was John Morganelli! Holy cannoli!

He nailed me before I could run and hide. No wonder he's the DA! He laughed off yesterday's blog post, and even agreed it was funny. After this, I "introduced" John to Will Power and asked for John's support. I'm trying to "clear the field" for Will. Before long, John was laughing in the peanut gallery with the rest of us.

Morganelli is a very powerful Democrat, and I do pick on him at times. But I do respect and admire him. He's very accessible, personable and is probably Northampton County's best district attorney. Obviously, he has a great sense of humor. I just don't like his taste in county council candidates.

One final point. During last night's meeting, Nazareth councilman Jack Herbst made an eloquent pitch for county participation in a skate park. Council Prez Grube whispered, just a little too loudly, that he couldn't wait to see it built so he could watch me fall on my fat ass.

Since I'm always braying about open government, I can only blame myself. Now I'm going to cry myself to sleep on my little pillow.

Norco Democrats Afraid of Democracy

They call it "clearing the field." As the Lehigh Valley's farms are brushed aside for fancy new developments like Saucon Valley Meadows, farmers John and Joe don their overalls and grab their sickles.

Farmer Joe, aka Norco Dem boss Joe Long, is planting Sam Bennett seeds out in the congressional field, making sure no Boscola weeds spring up. Farmer John, aka DA John Morganelli, is out in the county council pasture, stepping carefully over council plops to cut down a virulent Will Power ivy. Farmer John has plenty of seed money for his Lamont McClure crop, but first he's got to yank Power by the roots.

These Dems are "clearing the field" for their inside picks, making calls here and there. For them, the selection of a Democratic nominee is too important a decision to be left to voters.

As chair of the Northampton County Dems, Farmer Joe should be promoting all Dems interested in office. And Farmer John, who is supposed to be a full-time DA, should really stop making so many political calls from his law enforcement office just to promote his little pawn. Gee, wasn't it Morganelli who insisted his office be full-time? Taxpayers aren't paying him to play politics in the DA's office. They're paying him to write the "D-Day Bank Massacre," to be followed soon by "Illegal Aliens Abducted Me."

What are these guys afraid of, a little democracy? Let the voters decide and stop playing kingmaker behind closed doors. Backroom tactics like these lead to public officials who thumb their noses at the Sunshine Act.

Many thanks to LVDem, for putting his finger on this problem.

Is Will Power Challenging McClure For Norco Council?

Northampton County's District 3 is a hodgepodge of Allen, East Allen, Bethlehem, Lower Nazareth and Lower Saucon Townships. It also includes the Boroughs of Nazareth, North Catasauqua, Northampton, Bath and Freemansburg. Its council seat is currently occupied by asbestos lawyer Lamont McClure, a Wilkes-Barre native. He was finally appointed to the post after losing an election . . . twice. In my opinion, the fix was in.

In his last losing campaign, McClure raked in about $10,000 from big city lawyers. Unions kicked in another $3,440. DA Morganelli, who employs McClure's wife, donated $1,500, and one of his detectives provided an additional $500. Reibman sweetened the pot with $1000 in pool party dough, and Council Prez Grube dropped $500. Despite this money, McClure was rejected by the voters. So he owes nothing to us. His allegiance is to unions, lawyers, the DA and Grube. In fact, DA Morganelli is Godfather to one of McClure's children.

McClure's work record in his year on council has been insulting. Council's standing committees conducted twenty-two meetings last year. McClure attended just four, less than anyone on council except Dertinger. He's also ignored pledges to start a child exploitation unit and to yank a $3 million county grant for a road to Walmart. He's violated the Sunshine Act, and attempted to bully me for pointing it out. He's pontificated about criminal fines collections and a theft in the criminal division, but has never even visited the office.

He's a political hack. He doesn't belong on council. His friendship with DA John Morganelli is the only reason he's there now.

Jerry Seyfried, a former county exec and walking encyclopedia of Northampton County knowledge, is the logical choice for District 3. Party boss Joe Long told Jerry the position was already taken when Long was "clearing the field" for Lamont last year. (He does that sort of thing). And Jerry has had enough. I can't persuade him to run for an office he'd easily win.

But there's a fellow from Freemansburg who's now interested. He's no stranger to political controversy. Northampton County's deathmatch politics should not phase him a bit. In another lifetime, he was Darin "Will" Stofko. You may know him as Will Power.

Unlike McClure, Power is a Lehigh Valley native, an 1984 Freedom High grad and honor roll to boot. At Moravian College, he was a Dean's list student who graduated with degrees in political science and business management. He even earned a professional certificate to teach secondary social studies. He's forty years old, married seven years, and has a two year-old son.

Although he's never held public office, he can win. He was elected to serve Pennsylvania's Democratic State Committee in 1988 and 1998, and served in 1992 as a Delegate to the Democratic National Convention.

Yep, he's the same guy who simultaneously ran for Northampton County Executive and Bethlehem Controller. Everyone laughed at that. Ha. Ha. Will even made it into Bill White's Hall of Fame after that. But then Northampton County party bosses decided last year there was nothing wrong with one person holding two offices, and actually appointed Hellertown Borough Council Prez Tony Branco to Northampton County Council. When it involved one of the insiders, it was good government. I guess the joke's on us.

Will has matured over the years, and I hope he decides to run against McClure. With Will Power, we could at least be assured that he's his own man. He would not be taking orders from the DA or party bosses, but would be following his own conscience. We could do with a bit more of that. And let's face it, McClure has done the bare minimum on council.

Oh, I almost forgot. State Senator Lisa Boscola is his sister. But I think he deserves a shot at council on his own merit.