12 anti-Nader PA Dems charged with theft, conspiracy

[murdoch]

Source: PA. Attorney general's office

Attorney General Corbett announces charges in legislative bonus investigation - 12 suspects charged in 1st phase of the investigation

HARRISBURG - As part of an ongoing public corruption investigation, agents from the Attorney General's Office today filed numerous theft charges, as well as criminal conspiracy and conflict of interest charges, against 12 suspects, including a state representative from Beaver County, a former House Democratic Minority Whip and four current House Democratic staffers. The investigation has uncovered the illegal use of millions of dollars in taxpayers' funds, resources and state employees for political campaign purposes.

These efforts were by no means limited to House races. Two outstanding examples of misappropriation of taxpayers' resources on petition challenges were the Ralph Nader for President of the United States in 2004 and the Carl Romanelli for the United States Senate in 2006.

The grand jury found that as many as 50 Democratic House Caucus staff members participated in the Nader petition challenge and contributed a staggering number of man-hours. A House Democratic employee testified before the grand jury that "everybody was working on this." It was virtually a caucus wide endeavor and many of the employees spent an entire week on the Nader petition challenge.

Read more: http://www.attorneygeneral.gov/press.aspx?id=3771

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I guess these must be the first Democratic martyrs of the anti-Nader movement. Thank God they took away people's ability to vote for a candidate who unlike the others supports single payer health insurance, abolition of Taft-Hartley, a reversal of US Mideast policy, cutting the military budget so the US just defends itself instead of ringing the world with military bases etc. I hope it was worth it for them as they sit in jail for their cause.

[Ian David]

1. Another Loyal Bushie prosecutor engaging in yet another witch hunt. n/t

[sudopod]

9. Don Siegelman called

He knows a GREAT lawyer.

Let's give these folks the benefit of the doubt, because we know that our opponents aren't above using dirty tricks like trumping up false charges.

[Freddie Stubbs]

13. Actually, as PA State AG he is elected by the voters rather than appointed by Bush

And he is up for reelection this year. John Morganelli is the Democratic nominee. Morganelli actually took former Governor Casey for not signing a death warrant.

[comtec]

2. I call BULLSHIT!~

just...bullshit!

[Dogmudgeon]

3. Corbett is a Republican. A *staunch* Republican.

Check out the last couple of years of his investigations. For a state with a long-entrenched Republican Party that still controls most of the small offices, we Pennsylvanians either have overwhelmingly evil Democrats, or perhaps an AG who plays favorites.

Speaking of vote martyrs, it's little like Florida.

You're familiar with the Florida GOP, right?

--p!

[anniebelle]

4. Our gestapo at work! Our new improved DOJ is doin' a hell uva job. nt

[superduperfarleft]

5. Good.

That was disgusting behavior on their part.

[AlphaCentauri]

12. "democracy" at work

[stimbox]

6. I can already hear the cries to Free the Anti-Nader 12!!!

:rofl:

[CANDO]

7. This may be very bad for a blue PA

In 2006 there were something like 38 incumbents(mostly R's) thrown out on their asses because of a back door legislative pay raise. It was somehow tied into the state judges. One of those state supreme court judges got the ax also. Now the Dems, with their razor thin majority are caught funneling bonuses to paid political staffers for working on purely political projects (allegedly). Folks, this will not be pretty. Obama may and should carry the state this November, but this kind of corruption is just what got the GOP ousted out of the majority in the first place. This will carry into future elections.

[gauguin57]

8. Corbett is planning to run for governor. I'm sure that's fueled his zeal in clapping Demos in irons.

That said ... you're not supposed to do political work on the public dime. So if they did, they were in the wrong (and yes, this looks REALLY bad for the Dems ... my county's former Democratic chair and his wife were arrested ... several of those arrested were taken away in handcuffs in front of photographers (that's when we REALLY knew Corbett was running for governor!!).

http://articles.lancasteronline.com/local/4/224299

12 tied to Pa. House named in probe

Associated Press

Twelve people connected to the state House Democratic caucus, including a state representative and the former caucus whip, were charged Thursday after grand jurors concluded that millions of taxpayer dollars were illegally siphoned from the public treasury to underwrite political campaigns.

Grand jurors reported that public funds were used to dole out hefty taxpayer-financed bonuses under a system in which employees were ranked according to their willingness to pitch in on campaigns; state computers and equipment were commandeered for election purposes; and lucrative public contracts were issued for partisan purposes.

Former Democratic whip Mike Veon; Rep. Sean Ramaley, a Beaver County Democrat currently running for state Senate; and Michael Manzo, forced out in November as chief of staff to House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese, D-Greene, were among the 12 people who were charged. Also implicated were Scott Brubaker, the former chairman of the Lancaster County Democratic Committee, and his wife, Jennifer.

(Attorney General Tom) Corbett, a Republican and potential 2010 gubernatorial candidate, said he expects more arrests. He declined to say whether the investigation has uncovered evidence of similar illegal acts within the House Republican, Senate Republican or Senate Democratic caucuses. ...

[Better Believe It]

10. They Fought Ralph Nader Instead of George W. Bush!

If Kerry and the DLC had devoted as much time, energy and money into campaigning against Bush instead fighting Nader, Kerry might have won the election!

Millions of dollars and countless hours were spent all over the country trying to prevent people from voting for Nader by challenging his voter petitions for ballot status.

And in Illinois where George W. Bush failed to meet ballot status requirements, the Democratic party controlled state legislature passed a special law exempting Bush from Illinois ballot certification requirements! They put Bush on the general election ballot and knocked Nader off.

Now that's really smart politics .... unless they preferred Bush over Nader.

[AlphaCentauri]

11. For some Democrats Nader is more dangerous than a far right right win republican

some times is hard to distinguish who is who

is the democratic party infiltrated by republicans or is just a coincident?

[Freddie Stubbs]

15. 44% of Illinois voters voted for Bush

They probably would have been pissed if he had not been on the ballot. The half of a percent that may have supported Nader was not considered as important.

[Political Heretic]

14. Don't fuck with us. :)

(EDITED to make sure I'm not misunderstood)

On a serious note (meaning I was kidding) - did it ever cross your mind that maybe, maybe this was a politically partisan prosecution?

Look, there's not a soul at DU - at least no one worth taking seriously - who would approve of election illegality against anyone. Nader, Bush - anyone. So, hopefully any true law breaking is appropriately punished.