Incumbents Survive In Pennsylvania Despite Specter Loss

Who would believe that two incumbents under indictment in the Bonusgate/Misuse of Taxpayer Funds investigation by AG Tom Corbett would survive their primary challengers. First off it takes chutzpah to run in the face of an indictment. Secondly it is unbelievable that on both sides of the political aisle a Democrat and a Republican would prevail in their races.

In this report from the Pennsylvania Independent ERic Bohem writes State representatives Bill Deweese (D-Greene) and John Perzel (R-Philadelphia) easily survived primary challenges despite the fact that both are under investigation for public corruption.

He also chronicles that Pennsylvania incumbents running to retain their seats in the U.S. House of Representatives had a 100 percent survival rate, and few even faced opposition from within their own party.

It is amazing that corruption is so tolerated in Pennsylvania by both parties. However, the independents didn't have a voice. Couple that fact with an extremely low voter turnout, in some places around 20 percent, and the fall political season may have a few surprises.

Eachus John Paul Jones Grand Jury Testitmony

Thursday, August 27, 2009
Amazing How Much State Workers Time Spent On Campaigns
It is amazing the amount of time documented in AG Corbett's Bonusgate investigation that Pennsylvania legislative employees spent on campagin work. AG Corbett once stated "It would shock the conscience" and he wasn't far off.

While I can understand Michael Veon's position that the investigation appears partisan and selective the reality is that there is a very active investigation continuing. If one choses the endpoint as today Veon would appear to be correct but the truth is that the endpoint is not today. Unfortunately like a tournament his "team" made it to the plate first so "elimination" occured early in the round.

There is a part of me that likes this guy but can't explain it. Yes, he may have gone astray but, in truth, after reviewing his documentation for Motion For Dismissal-Selective Prosecution in person, AG Corbett would have to arrest a significant percentage of the legislature and its employees for the same actions.

Veon should take a lesson from the Judge Eugene Kosik. Unless he really believes he will prevail against the charges against him the law of self preservation should set in. He needs to show remorse and take responsibility for his own actions. In time each participant will meet their fate and have the opportunity to do the same.

It is time to resume the journalistic chronicle of the public record with regards to actions by Todd Eachus and staffers under his direction that appear to speak for themselves and the Bonusgate affair. Keep in mind that previous posts were from January. These start in May so the record indicates that at no time were these actions addressed as wrong.

From: Eric Buxton [mailto: govercom email address]
Sent: Monday, May 14, 2007 2:32 PM
To: Jones, John Paul
Subject: Re:

sure manm, let me know what time

Jones, John Paul wrote:

can we meet on Friday to go over hdcc website...I have some text changes, etc.

John Jones
Rep. Todd Eachus
717.787.4819

From: Eric Buxton [mailto: govercom email address]
Sent: Monday, May 14, 2007 5:21 PM
To: Jones, John Paul
Subject: Re:

where?

Jones, John Paul wrote:

11 Am

From: Eric Buxton [mailto: govercom email address]
Sent: Tue, May 15 13:30:53 2007
To: Jones, John Paul
Subject: Re:

does todd smoke cigars?

Jones, John Paul wrote:

todd's office

From: "Jones, John Paul" [mailto: JPJones@pahouse.net]
To: ERic@......
Sent: 2007, 05.15 Tue, 13:43:07
Subject: Re:

Attachments:

Yep

Well, at least we know Mr. Eachus enjoys a fine cigar with its character and flavor. Ohhh yes there were a bunch of characters in this mess.

-----Original Message-----
From: Myers, Melissa
Sent: Friday, May 18, 2007 1:00PM
To: Jones, John Paul
Subject:

Melissa Myers
Research Analyst
House Majority Policy Committee
Rep. Todd Eachus, Chairman
717-783-5680

From: "Jones, John Paul" [mailto: JPJones@pahouse.net]
To: Eric Buxton
Sent: 2007, 05.18 Fri, 13:00:29
Subject: Fw:

Attachments:
(By me- a .tif file with Eachus's name on it)

Eric,

Attached is todd's signature

If you have been following carefully you will remember Todd Eachus's statement to the Times Leader about his knowledge of Rachel Manzo's invovlement. Read on.

From: Eric Buxton [mailto: govercom email address]
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2007 10:41 AM
To: Jones, John Paul
Subject: Re:

these are ready. they will need to creat their identity in VMail once they log in. password for all is (redacted by me for privacy)

Jones, John Paul wrote:

Eric,

Can you set me up with some more email addresses please:

Rachel@Toddeachus.com
Melissa@Toddeachus.com
Todd@Toddeachus.com
David@Toddeachus.com

Thanks,

John Jones
Rep. Todd Eachus
717.787.4819

From: "Jones, John Paul" [mailto: ...@pahouse.net]
To: Eric Buxton
Sent: 2007, 02.09 Fri, 12:35:18
Subject: RE:

Attachements:

shit...forgot i need one more:

Larry@Toddeachus.com

Island Of Misfits- Tony Phyrillas

More on this humor over at Tony Phyrillas' site.

DejaVu- Stish, Eachus, DeWeese

The arrest of Bill DeWeese, recent alleged Harrisburg corruption defendant, reminded me of the way Todd Eachus was elected in the 116th District that includes the City of Hazleton. Role the tape back to 1994 when Democrat Representative Tom Stish, 116th, decided to switch parties and become a Republican at the behest of then House Majority Chairman John Perzel, another recent alleged Harrisburg corruption defendant.

Bill DeWeese seized on the party switch to convince Exeter businessman Todd Eachus to move into the 116th and run as a Democrat against Tom Stish.

From Todd Eachus's bio:

Todd was born September 26, 1962 in Harrisburg, Pa., moved to Wilkes-Barre, Pa. in 1964 and graduated from Wilkes-Barre Coughlin High School in 1980. He received his bachelor’s from Pitzer College of the Claremont Colleges, Claremont, Calif. in 1984, where he also was a three-year College Football Letterman, Pomona/Pitzer Fighting Sagehens. He married Ellen Kusiak-Eachus of Plains, Pa. in 1985. They have three sons: Anthony, Benjamin and Nathan.

Todd began his public service career in 1985 on the staff of Congressman Frank J. Guarini, until opening his own small business in 1990 as President and Owner of Portable Space in Exeter, which he ran until being elected to the state House in 1996.

I believe they call that carpetbagging. Bill DeWeese was so enthused to enlist Eachus that he even broke House Rules.

Mr.DeWEESE. Todd Eachus; Todd Eachus. Have you ever
heard of that name before? Todd Eachus. This is the Todd Eachus
proposal, and I am pleased, like my colleague, the gentleman
from Allegheny County, Mr. Trello, to be here and support the
Todd Eachus bill.
People out in our great rambling State often wonder if they can
have an impact on government by running for public life. They
can. This young hard-charger from the Hazleton area is having
an-
The SPEAKER. Mr. DeWeese-
Mr. DeWEESE. -impact today in the General Assembly of
Pennsylvania.
Yes, Mr. Speaker ?
The SPEAKER. Mr. DeWeese, I believe-
Mr. DeWEESE. What ?
The SPEAKER. -I believe, without looking at the rules, that
bringing in the names of opponents of members is improper, and
I would ask you to not do that.
Mr. DeWEESE. Out of respect for the Speaker, which knows
no limit, I shall not use Mr. Eachus' name again, until he is
elected.
The SPEAKER. Well, I think you were right; you will not be
using that name again.

Well Perzel actually turned out wrong with that last statement but then again with DeWeese's arrest probably now receives some vindication.

DeWeese used intimidation to keep his Democratic members in line, something Eachus picked up on and tried to emulate.

DeWeese accused Stish of seeking his 15 minutes of fame at the expense of fellow Democrats with this infamous and memorable quote: “He is like a dead mackerel in the moonlight. He shines and stinks at the same time.”

Mario Cattabiani of the Philadelphia Inquirer recently tracked the now-unemployed, just-barely-scraping-by Stish down in Florida.

Stish told Cattabiani that the Big Switch cost him childhood friends, his marriage and earned him hatred and enemies. He was the target of vandalism and graffiti. He lost re-election in 1996 because the Democrats wanted his scalp so badly. Ridge gave him a job in his administration for a while but Stish said he was eventually forced out. He claimed abandonment by his Republican suitors.

Stish told Cattabiani, that he'd tell any lawmaker pondering a similar move: “Just don't do it. You will be basically giving up everything of worth. If you do it, be prepared." Stish said he is “barely making it,” surviving on his two state pensions from eight years in the Legislature and previous time as a teacher.

Now DeWeese – who to this day speaks contemptuously of Stish -- is making sure every House Democrat hears Stish’s words about what happened to him. He is copying and distributing to all remaining and incoming Democratic House members a copy of the Inquirer’s account quoting Stish.

Now Eachus, as House Majority Leader, has words coming back to haunt him.

Now DeWeese and Reps. Keith McCall and Todd Eachus, neither of whom yet get the kind of awed respect for tactics, politics and acumen that Veon earned, have to get on-the-job-training.

They have to step in during a tough budget year, with tax votes, a major transportation funding increase, a property tax fight and do the legislative magic that Veon used to do.

Those are big cowboy boots to fill. And if they fail, if they lose votes, if the increasingly conservative House Republican caucus unifies and denies them on a few key votes, the House Democrats will look weak.

Also, if a House Democrat runs for local office (mayor, county commissioner) and has to leave office at some point, their majority could be called into question.

Also, while many Democrats in the east are delighted that younger members like Eachus, D-Luzerne, and Reps. Josh Shapiro and Mike Gerber, both D-Montgomery, are taking major roles in party affairs, many are not.
Some long-time and mid-tenured House Democrats who have seen seniority rewarded their whole careers say privately they would like to see the young whippersnappers get tripped up.

The budget fiasco and the hold up of table game legislation bore out the inept and unqualified credentials that led the Democrats to elect Eachus as House Leader. It will remain to be seen whether he holds onto that position. Insiders are saying he already lost it.

Eachus's associations with Robert Powell, Jill Moran, Greg Skrepenak, Bill DeWeese, Steve Stetler, Michael Veon, Michael Manzo, and Rachel Manzo are part of a new book coming out called "It's The Company I Keep."

It is challenging to hold onto one's office when a Representative will fight like hell to secure $500 million for a "fantasy airport", but won't help with a dime for the biggest city in his district. Eachus is putting up opposition to cleaning up mine reclamation but has no problem with dirty laundry all around his feet.

Since Eachus wasn't from this area before representing it he lacks the passion for its constiuents. Moving here was about furthering a career not because he wanted to be a part of the area. That is the precise reason he hasn't supported major projects in Hazleton with any funding. The repugnancy he demonstrates against Republicans is such an instinctive antagonism that he can't see how he morally failed Hazleton as its representative. Of course with a teacher like DeWeese it is no wonder.

Breaking New- Attorney General Corbett Announces A New Round of Charges In Bonusgate

AP Photo PennLive Website
Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett announced that he will be holding a press conference at 1P.M. concerning a new round of arrests in the Bonusgate scandal.

SOP's information is that as this post is written the defendants will be turining themselves into District Magistrate offices for processing. According to a source close to SOP there will be a slew of arrests this round.

Pennlive is reporting that these arrests could bring to a close a 16-month grand jury probe of House Republican operations that sought to determine whether caucus leaders had used publicly-funded resources to support candidates and campaigns.

Among those believed to be targets of the investigation are former House Speaker John Perzel, R-Philadel[phia, his longtime chief of staff Brian J. Preski, and former House Republican chief counsel Brett Feese.

A source close to SOP stated that the investigation will be ongoing even after the arrests. Bonusgate will more than likely last past AG Corbett's term.

Update: Watch PCN Live which is carrying the announcement.

Update 2: Here are three links to the Grand Jury Presentments found on the Post Gazette Website" Part I Part II Part III Here is a link to the investigation timeline. Here is a link to a list of the defendants and the charges.

What I found interesting in listening to Corbett's announcement was his emphasis and slight chastise of the media for calling this investigation "Bonusgate." He distinguished between the actions of the Democrats charged where they used taxpayer money to pay bonuses for work on campaigns in contrast to the Republican role of using taxpayer money to develop campaign software and technology for campaign purposes. Corbett stressed that his investigation concerns the misuse of taxpayer money for any purpose other than a legitimate one. He reminded the media repeatedly that they tagged the first round as Bonsugate and that it would be up to them to label this round. So let SOP throw in the term Techo-Gate as a possible sequel to Bonusgate.

Corbett reiterated his position that the investigation is ongoing. SOP believes the same scenario of sending invitations to testify before the grand jury will precede the next round of arrests.

Mr. Perzel issued a statement before Mr.Corbet's news conference was over denying the charges.

"First and foremost, I am innocent of the charges against me," the statement said. "I have faithfully served the people of my district, my city and my state for more than 30 years, and I have never used public funds for my personal or political gain.

"Second, this investigation has lasted for nearly three years, and it's only now, on the eve of his gubernatorial campaign and in response to claims that he was unfairly pursuing only Democrats, that Attorney General Corbett has decided to bring charges against 10 Republicans, including me. It smacks of political opportunism at the expense of my reputation, and I am going to fight very aggressively to prove my innocence."

Asked about Mr. Perzel's statement accusing him of using the prosecution to boost his gubernatorial bid, Mr. Corbett flatly refused to respond.

"Why should I?" he declared.

Click here for a link to AG Corbett's press release.

Republicans Preparing For Bonusgate Issues...But

As previously reported here the time is nearing for the next round of Bonusgate indictments. CasablancaPA has been providing excellent detailed coverage of the "possible participants" in the Bonusgate tale of taxpayer wasted dollars.

However, the folks at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review are relentless in their coverage of what could possibly turn out to be Harrisburg's biggest political scandal of the last 100 years. Brad Bumsted's excellent coverage extends to today's article about Minority Policy Chairman Stan Saylor's advice to freshmen on what to expect when the "General" files charges against current or former GOP members or staffers in an ongoing corruption case.

"I think there's a belief that Thursday is the day (Corbett) will bring down the findings," said freshman Rep. Mike Reese, R-Mt. Pleasant.

If you read the article it focuses entirely on Republicans since, to date, only Democrats have been charged in this scandal.

Hold onto your hats, folks. The Democrats are not off the hook by a long shot according to our sources in Harrisburg. Although there have been no reports of target letters it is SOP's information that a top legislator and the person he replaced as top legislator will be indicted. It is possible other persons in their offices will receive the same fate but, as of now, SOP can only confidently report that at least those two will be "invited to the party."

On the Republican side it is pretty much a forgone conclusion that former speaker of the House of Representatives John Perzel and his former chief of staff Brian Preski will be receiving a "present" as the General likes to term it.

Mike Veon, one of the original twelve indicted, brought up the names of Todd Eachus, Bill DeWeese, Steven Stetler, and others in his court filings. Word has it that those filings didn't go unnoticed on the 16th floor at Strawberry Square.

Looks like it is onto Bonus-Gate after Budget-Late in Pennsylvania.

Perzel Next To Visit Grand Jury- Maybe

As the saga of Bonusgate reached its 1,000th day the sun started to emerge from behind the cloud that only Democrats were going to be charged in the investigation. Its always good to have a friend or two on the inside. In the very near future look for action against the Republicans. But, a warning for the Democrats, the division looking into your irregularities did not pack up and go home. They are as active as ever.

The media reports trying to second guess Tom Corbett's investigation have all been unsubstantiated hype. AG Corbet has said and did give this investigation a high priority. But the public wants action. Its the old story about the young bull and the old bull on top of the hill. The young bull wants to hurry down the hill and have his way with but one. The old bull says take your time and we can have them all.

Today's announcement on Philly.com reveals the culmination of countless overtime hours spent on this investigation.

Prosecutors have offered Rep. John M. Perzel of Philadelphia, the former speaker of the Pennsylvania House, a chance to testify before the so-called Bonusgate grand jury in what lawyers say is a sign that criminal charges may soon be filed against him.


Perzel's former chief of staff, Brian Preski, and as many as 10 other current and former House Republican aides have received similar letters, according to lawyers with knowledge of the investigation.


Perzel, 59, could not be reached for comment yesterday. In the past he has said he did nothing improper with the state money that is at the center of the investigation.


The letters from prosecutors, received within the last two weeks, are the clearest indication yet that state Attorney General Tom Corbett, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, is contemplating criminal charges against members of his own party in the sweeping probe known as Bonusgate.


The letters from prosecutors in Corbett's office invite Perzel and the other recipients to testify Monday before the grand jury. The letters say such testimony would be voluntary and given without a grant of immunity.


Experts say such letters from state authorities are akin to the "target letters" that federal prosecutors often use to advise people that they are likely to face criminal charges.

If you are a fan of Bonusgate take this statement to the bank. Bonusgate will go on long after Tom Corbett becomes Governor of Pennsylvania. So, make some popcorn, order a Big Gulp, and enjoy the movie. What you have seen up to now have been the previews, no rating necessary.

Oh, and for those who ask why a conservative blogger would write about Republicans realize that as leaders we must face the music like everyone else. Public trust is the number one priority. If we demonstrate that we are committed to the taxpayer loyalty will follow.