Sestak blasts Weldon for New Orleans / Katrina failures

Joe Sestak minced no words yesterday as he blasted Curt Weldon for his part of another one of the Bush / Republican Congress failures - the lack of preparedness and poor reponse to Hurricane Katrina.

From the Delco Times Aug. 30:

"The oversight responsibility of Congress is not being done," said Sestak
...
Sestak blamed Weldon and the Bush administration for failing to prepare for one of the worst natural disasters in American history.
...
Sestak cited recent reports detailing billions of dollars worth of no-bid contracts awarded after Katrina. He criticized the Republican-controlled Congress for wasting money in Iraq that could be used to bolster the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
"I believe we have our priorities wrong," he said, describing how the equivalent of FEMA’s annual budget is spent within weeks in Iraq.
Former FEMA director Michael Brown said Tuesday that the Bush administration "would not give me the money" for catastrophic planning.

Sorry New Orleans, and Mississippi, and other areas hit by Katrina.
Bush gave the money back to his campaign contributors. And Weldon helped him do it.

Pharma Firms fund TV ads for Weldon. Surprised?

Today's DelcoTimes article by Bill Bender (unfortunately not online) builds on some research done by AP (see Aug 29 AP piece) describing how Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA ) funneled money through the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to run ads for Republican Congress members who backed the flawed Medicare D plan ( see earlier post for details) and (surprise surprise), Curt Weldon is one of those! About $300,000 has been spent on these ads.

From the AP article:

The pharmaceutical industry quietly footed the bill for at least part of a recent multimillion-dollar ad campaign praising lawmakers who support the new Medicare prescription drug benefit, according to political officials.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce claims credit for the ads, although a spokesman refused repeatedly to say whether it had received any funds from the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.

According to Bender, Medicare Part D "passed the House in 2003 by one vote - including Weldon's." Also:

Democrats have seized on the news, claiming it is a payback from drug companies to Republicans who supported the program, which has triggered billions in [pharmaceutical] industry profits.

"That's quite a thank you from the big pharmaceutical companies," said Ryan Rudominer, spokesman for Weldon's Democratic opponent, Joseph Sestak.

Bender's research finds that pharma/health industry has backed Weldon with $62,150 in campaign contributions since 1989.

Pay-to-play? That's a small price to pay for the payback that pharma has gotten from Weldon's vote.

On this issue the Democrats had proposed using the full negotiating/purchasing power of the US Government to get better drug pricing from the pharma companies. This would have likely been resulted in great savings for seniors and all of us taxpayers who foot the bill for this prescription drug programs. Those taxpayer savings were turned into big pharm profits at our expense by Weldon's vote.

Weldon spokesman Michael Puppio (and our Delaware County Council member) had no explanation or information when asked by Bender to comment. We have no explanation on why Puppio is not doing his council job again today.

Finally, it seems that Weldon has been taking some of the new "fountain of youth" drugs that big pharma made using stem cells taken from Weldon's flip-flops. This customized medication seems to be working a little too well on Weldon...

Rothenberg Report: PA-7 declared a toss-up

Democracy fans: even in the era of big-money politics, you can change the political landscape in a jiffy with a great candidate. In six quick months, Sestak's campaign has turned the 7th district race into a true toss-up, according to the non-partisan Rothenberg Political Report.

Imagine what will be once the rest of the electorate knows about Joe.

O Puppio, Puppio! Wherefore Art Thou, Puppio?

..With apologies to William Shakespeare

Blog-iet:
Puppio, Puppio, Wherefore Art Thou Puppio?
Deny thy kickbacks and refuse thy pay;
Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my foe,
And I'll continue as a Democrat.

Puppio:
[Aside] Shall I hear more, or shall I speak at this?

Blog-iet:
'Tis but thy gall that is my enemy;
Thou art thyself, though not a Councilman.
What's Councilman? it is nor truth, nor toil,
Nor sweat, nor chore, nor any work for pay
Belonging to a man. O, be some other craft!

What's in some graft? that which you call a perk
By any other name would smell as foul;
So Puppio would, were he not Puppio call'd,
Retain that dear campaign job which he owes
Without that title. Puppio, doff thy pay,
And for that pay which is no part of campaigning, give back.

From the Delaware County Council website:

Michael V. Puppio, Jr. was elected in November 2003 to a four-year term on County Council, taking his seat on January 5, 2004. ...

Mr. Puppio maintains a private law practice at the law firm of Raffaele and Puppio and is Solicitor to the Delaware County Intermediate Unit and to the Collingdale Borough Zoning Hearing Board. ... Mr. Puppio has been a member since 1996 of the Governor’s Judicial Advisory Commission and served as Law Clerk in 1991-92 to Common Pleas Judge Anthony R. Semeraro. He is Second Ward Leader of the Republican Party of Springfield Township where he lives with his wife, Andrea, and their two children.

His direct areas of responsibility include the Planning Department, Court House & Park Police, Medical Examiner and Public Defender as well as Soil Conservation, Records Management and Public Works. He serves as County Council liaison to Library Services, the Planning Commission and the Brandywine Conference & Visitors Bureau. Mr. Puppio represents Delaware County on the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission and is a member of the Retirement Board.

If being the campaign manager for Curt Weldon is a full-time job, where does Puppio find the time to do the job the voters and tax-payers expect him to do as a Councilman?

Smells like Puppio is collecting one (or more) paychecks too many. I'd feel more comfortable about the accounting if he punched a time-clock somewhere or wore one of those ankle-bracelets that tracks your location.

What's the matter with Natter? Is Natter Weldon's boss now?

In today's Delco Times article GOP bigwig stumps for Weldon, Bill Bender reports on Weldon's statement that

... Weldon reminded the crowd that he has been endorsed by retired four-star Adm. Robert J. Natter, to whom Sestak once reported.

"He was my opponent’s boss in the Navy," Weldon said. "Need I say anything more?"

Natter heaped praise on Weldon last week at a campaign event in Ridley Township and took a backhanded swipe at his former subordinate, saying Sestak’s Navy experience wouldn’t necessarily make him a good congressman.

But Sestak supporters have called attention to Natter’s position on the board of BAE Systems, which has contributed a total of $32,500 to Weldon’s campaign. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, the defense contractor has given $14,000 to the congressman this election cycle, more than any other company or PAC.

This refers to Bender's recent story about former Admiral Natter backing Weldon describing how retired four-star Admiral Robert J. Natter who was U.S. Atlantic Fleet commander.

The facts behind the Weldon-Natter connection are these:
1. Natter was a Bush promotion (May 19, 2000, Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen announced today that the President has nominated Navy Vice Adm. Robert J. Natter for appointment to the grade of admiral with assignment as commander, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, Norfolk, Va. - source: see below

2. Natter is on the Board of Directors at BAE Systems, a large aerospace and defense contractor - source

3. BAE Systems is Weldon's largest campaign contributor, a large aerospace and defense contractor, which according to Bender "has contributed a total of $32,500 to Weldon’s campaign. ... the defense contractor has given $14,000 to the congressman this election cycle, more than any other company or PAC. Other sources

Looking at the money trail, it looks like Natter is Weldon's boss now. So of course he would support Weldon. In fact, this is the kind of money connection from a contractor company to a sitting Congressman who helps decide the company's fate that bugs the hell out of me!

---------------------------------------------
Note: The source on defenselink.com was no longer active and the information was taken from Google's cache of that page, found here. Wonder why this page is no longer available? The news release states in full:
IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 19, 2000
No. 266-00
(703)695-0192(media)
(703)697-5737(public/industry)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FLAG OFFICER ANNOUNCEMENT
Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen announced today that the President has nominated Navy Vice Adm. Robert J. Natter for appointment to the grade of admiral with assignment as commander, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, Norfolk, Va.

Natter is currently serving as deputy chief of Naval Operations for Plans, Policy, and Operations, N3/N5, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington, D.C.

Sestak, PA-7 race coverage on CNN

Several days old now, but didn't want it to get totally lost in the shuffle:

John Amato's Crooks and Liars blog points to the video of CNN correspondent Bob Franken's feature on the Sestak vs. Weldon "Bellwether Race."

Note that Weldon snuck in more of his Able Danger rhetoric. Franken kinda called him on it, but his delivery is so dry that you could almost miss it.

I really think Weldon's campaign is going about this all wrong. Rather than try to bring the spotlight to Curt, they should be doing anything they can to keep Sestak out of the news. The only real remaining obstacle to a Sestak victory is the voters realizing that they have a choice. The voters are looking for an excuse to punish the incumbents who have supported the Bush-Cheney agenda.

Weldon's Medicare Disaster: A Tough Pill to Swallow

In yesterday's Delco Times, John Roman writes how Sestak, Weldon at Odds on Medicare D.

Weldon claims in a commercial that Medicare D benefits close to 2 million seniors in Pennsylvania saving them an average of $1,100 per year.

First, 2 million is the number of seniors residing in Pennsylvania, NOT the number on Medicare D. Maybe the "D" stands for Dolt?

So... Curt is trying to claim that Medicare D is benefitting the hundreds of thousands of seniors with either no prescription coverage or those with coverage other than Medicare D. Or maybe it stands for Deception

Second, we should always be vigilant when someone like Curt uses the term "average". For example: If one person saves $100,000 dollars and 99 people save only $100, then the average savings are also about $1,100, which is more misleading than saying 99% of the people will save only $100. This is pretty much how the math worked out for Weldon's tax give-away to the top %1. Maybe the D was Weldon's math grade

Third, even if we take Weldon's claim of $1,100 in average saving... this is less than the savings would have been if Weldon had not sold out to the pharmaceutical companies to prevent the Medicare from negotiating drug prices. Maybe the D is for Disloyalty.

Fourth, Medicare D has a big hole in the coverage, the "donut hole". Under the standard plan, you pay $385 annual premium. Then, you pay the first $250 of expenses. Then, 25% of the next $2000 (which is $500).
So, if you have $2,250 of drug costs, you pay out $385 + $250 + $500 = $1,135 = 50.4%
Here's the hole: The next $2850 in drug costs you pay ENTIRELY YOURSELF.
So, for $5100 in drugs costs, you pay $3985 which is 78%.
That's more hole than donut. For seniors, the D stands for Debt.

Any costs beyond that are considered "catastrophic", and you have to pay only 5% until Dec 31st, Then,everything RESETS and you are back where you started.

So, a person with about $5,000 in annual drug costs gets less than a 25% discount on drugs that are already overpriced because Curt Weldon voted to stop the government from negotiating fair drug prices for seniors. The D is sounding more like a Double-cross.

There is only one response from the voters that Curt Weldon deserves for his treachery: Defeat.

Since, my initials are D.D., I am more than happy to help deliver it.

Democratic Vets Take On Republican Civilians

Margaret Carlson has a great article on Bloomberg

She points out how dozens of Veterans ran for congressional offices this year, with five Democrats and one Republican veteran remaining for the November election. Interesting how more Vets are on the Democratic ticket.

About a quarter of the article was devoted to our race here in the 7th.

Pennsylvania Battleground

One of the interesting contenders in what was once an uphill race to unseat an incumbent Pennsylvania congressman is Admiral Joseph Sestak, 54, a 31-year Navy veteran who served six tours of duty, including combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. He is running against Republican Curt Weldon, who isn't used to getting much of a challenge.

As Sestak has drawn almost even in fund raising, Weldon has gone on the attack. The Pennsylvania Republican Party tried swift-boating Sestak, accusing him of violating the Uniform Military Code by wearing his uniform while campaigning. Sestak struck back with language from the code allowing the uniform to be worn at memorial services, which is where he wore it while reading the names of the war dead at a Memorial Day ceremony.

Some of Weldon's attacks have fizzled. He accused Sestak of plagiarizing his health-care plan from the Progressive Policy Institute until the policy research group said it had offered it to him. Another broadside flopped when Weldon criticized Sestak for having his daughter treated at Children's Hospital in Washington rather than a local hospital in Pennsylvania. Sestak, whose child is recovering from a malignant brain tumor, quickly won that point.

Find the WMDs

One of Weldon's self-inflicted wounds remains open. The congressman, who never served in the military, said the ``jury is still out'' on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, a statement at odds with the findings of commissions set up to investigate. Even the president has now said that WMDs weren't in Iraq.

Weldon's antics and Sestak's reputation are receiving growing national attention. The race here in the 7th seems to capture the mood and desires of the country:
Replacing corporate shills and intellectual light-weights promoting failed policies with independent thinkers interested in real solutions to the problems we face.

UFCW leader sets it straight in support for Sestak

Wendell W. Young IV, President of UFCW Local 1776 set the record straight on labor's position supporting Joe Sestak in a letter to the Philadelphia Inquirer titled "There's no labor split in 7th District".

Young says:

As a resident of the Seventh District, I was proud that the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1776 led the debate that secured the endorsement for Sestak. He is clear on his intent to address the national health-care crisis, to stand for fiscal responsibility, and to use his seat in the Congress to fight for working families. The longer Weldon has been in office, the more he has supported the failed domestic and international policies of the Bush administration and Republican House leadership.

Working men and women need a change in Washington. Joe Sestak will apply his experience serving our country and his longstanding ties to the Seventh District to make us proud that he is our congressman.

Wow...we'd be hard pressed to put it more clearly than that! Great to see labor backing Sestak so proudly.

Thanks Mr. Young!

Weldon Gets 4-Stars for Failed Policies

According to Delco Times, Weldon hauled out Sestak's old boss, "Retired four-star Adm. Robert J. Natter, former commander of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet, praised Weldon's ability to work with congressional Democrats and defended the increasingly unpopular Iraq war Sestak opposes."

Wow! What brainiac on Weldon's staff thought this one up?

65% of the country opposes the War in Iraq, and Weldon hauls out a guy that not only promotes the war, but uses all discredited arguments to do so.

Some examples from the article:

Natter defended the Iraq invasion as an appropriate response to terrorist attacks against America and its military and described it as a crucial battle in fighting terrorism. He said the war was further justified by the fact that Iraqi troops had routinely fired on U.S. pilots enforcing United Nations sanctions.

First of all, IRAQ HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH 9/11 ATTACKS ON THIS COUNTRY. Under what twisted logic is invading a country that did NOT attack us an "appropriate" response? Saddam did not permit extreme religious terrorist organizations, like Bin Laden's, in his county because they would fuel sectarian violence and overthrow his regime. Oops. Too late. We did all that.

Second of all, Iraq opposed the no fly zone over it's country as well as American spy planes gathering information for a future attack. (The future would come in March 2003.) Of course they fired at us. Wouldn't we fire at Iraqi planes flying over the US checking to make sure we weren't violating UN sanctions? Iraq firing at our military overflights is hardly sufficient provocation or justification to invade but rather the cost of a containment policy that had worked.

Another quote:

"We didn’t invite this war," he [Natter] said. "We weren't doing anything when the USS Cole was attacked. We weren’t out sticking it in somebody’s eye when somebody decided to go after us on 9/11. So those of us who might say, ‘Well, all we’ve got to do is withdraw and start minding our own business,’ in my opinion, are dead wrong."

Iraq was not involved in the attack on the Cole, either. Going after the Taliban and Bin Laden after 9/11 was a fine response. Diverting our attention and resources to Iraq before the job was done was a fatal mistake for thousands of brave soldiers and countless citizens caught in the middle.

Ironically, in all this praise for the failed Iraq policies and support for our failing Congressman Weldon, Natter declined to say anything bad about Sestak.

Speaking to a room full of veterans, Natter called Sestak a "good naval officer," but clearly supported Weldon [...] "I will say, in my opinion, because you're an admiral doesn’t make you necessarily a good congressman."

Apparently, being a 4-star admiral doesn't seem to make you a good judge of military strategy either.
I thought it interesting that while Weldon's campaign tries to trash Sestak as dishonorable, that Natter referred to Sestak as a good naval officer. As for supporting Weldon, I can see why a fan of Bush's failed Iraq policy would support Weldon.

I think this is a great strategy on Weldon's part to alienate the 65% percent of voters that oppose the war and latch onto those 35% that are still in denial. Maybe Weldon can use his campaign funds to buy "Weldon still thinks War in Iraq a good idea." pins and bumperstickers. I'd replace my Sestak stick with one of those babies.

BTW, I find it ironic that a guy like Weldon, who never served in the military, and voted against increasing Veteran's Healthcare Benefits, would hold an event at the Herbert W. Best VFW.

Was it really appropriate for Weldon to put lawn signs all over the place, too?

Curt's Cash Connections

If you've been tracking the quotes from Weldon's camp lately, it's clear that lacking any ground to stand on, they're hoping that voters will be scared to vote for a (GASP!) Democrat! (Just like they trembled as they cast their ballots for four consecutive Democratic Presidential candidates.)

When Joe Sestak was tapped by Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to give the Democrat's weekly radio address, Weldon Campaign Manager Mike Puppio's quote in the local paper was that Sestak is "owned lock, stock, and barrel by the national Democrat committee."

And when Senator Dodd made an appearance to a packed hall of 7th district voters, Puppio griped about Sestak associating with Pelosi and Dodd. After all--they aren't from the PA-7.

So, just to be clear... Weldon will not associate himself with any of the members of his party? And he's refusing all help and attention from colleagues who live outside the district? So he's returning the money from the fundraiser Dick Cheney had for him a few months ago? Or the one with Newt Gingrich as the featured speaker?

Will he be returning the $10,000 deposited in his campaign account by Republican Speaker Dennis Hastert's PAC? Or the other $10,000 from Republican Majority Leader John Boehnor? Or...wait for it... the $10,000 from Republican House Whip Roy Blunt? All in all, the receipts from Republican PAC's adds up to $208,000 through June 30, 2006. That's just this election cycle. (Source: http://www.tray.com/)

This says nothing of the $600,000 from special interest groups and corporations. We could only wish that Weldon was owned lock, stock, and barrel by the voters of the Pennsylvania 7th.

Contrast that with Joe Sestak, who raised more than 82% of his total funds from 6,000 individuals.

Weldon and Puppio seem unusually concerned that Joe Sestak gave a frank talk on the open airwaves or talked with voters and the press about real issues facing middle class families at a free event in the heart of the district.

PCN schedule for broadcast of Sestak/Dodd rally

PCN will broadcast today's event four times. It's on tonight (Monday, 8/21) at 8:45 and midnight. On Tuesday, they'll show it at 11:45 AM and 4:15 PM. Set your DVR!

Sestak in Media, PA with Senator Chris Dodd

Joe Sestak appeared in Media today with Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) on children's issues. The room was absolutely packed with an excited crowd. The event was recorded by ABC news and PCN. The camera man for PCN said that it was likely to be broadcast later tonight. Keep an eye on the schedule. It is also likely to be covered in the area papers in tomorrow's editions.

In the meantime, a litte more reportage available over at Daddy Democrat.

Sestak Example of Democrats Gaining the Edge

The Aug 19th Washington Post had an interesting article about how some Democrats are financially competitive against even incumbant Republicans. The Democrat they picked to highlight this trend was none other than our own Joe Sestak.
Washington Post: Gop's Financial Edge Shrinks

Twelve of the 27 Democratic challengers in Cook's most competitive House races raised more money in the latest quarter than their GOP opponents.

One of those 12 is former Vice Adm. Joe Sestak, a 31-year Navy veteran whose candidacy in Pennsylvania's 7th District in suburban Philadelphia is being driven in large measure by his opposition to the Iraq war. His opponent, 10-term Republican Rep. Curt Weldon, has never faced a competitive challenger, even though the Democratic presidential nominee won the district in the last three elections.

Fueled by financial success in the most recent quarter, Sestak has raised $1.1 million to Weldon's $1.4 million.

Sestak is getting support from traditional sources such as labor unions and newer ones such as the "Net roots" -- online activists who are channeling significant sums to antiwar Democrats. He has raised $230,000 online this cycle, including thousands through blogs.

"We really hit a vein," he said.

By contrast, Weldon's support is bleeding like an artery.

My own analysis, as this regards the 7th district, is quite simple...

• Sestak has a message that resonates with voters dissatified and disenfranchised by Bush and the Republican controlled Congress.
  
• Sestak now has enough financial resources to reach the voters in the 7th district with his message.
  
• Weldon has no message beyond "more of the same" failed policies he has supported these past 20 years.

In a fair fight, where voters get to hear from both sides, Weldon has as much edge as a butter-knife made of Silly Putty.

Sestak's address on national security on-line

The audio (mp3) and transcript of Sestak's Democratic response to Bush's address on national security are now on-line. This address is played nationally, and features a prominent Democratic office-holder or candidate each week.

Not everybody is by a radio on a Saturday morning, but you didn't miss your chance.

Sestak: The Democratic Response

According to MSNBC News:
"It's House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's week to choose who will give the Democratic response to President Bush's radio address, and a Pelosi aide says she has tapped House candidate Joe Sestak, a former Navy vice-admiral who is now challenging GOP Rep. Curt Weldon in Pennsylvania's 7th district. Sestak will talk about national security".

For more details, please see William Bender's report in the Delco Times. The radio address will be aired on NPR at 11:06 AM on Saturday.

It should come as no surprise to residents of the 7th District that Sestak is our Democratic response to the Bush-Weldon policies that are steering this country in the wrong direction.

This election is a referendum on the policies of George Bush and rubber-stamping cronies like Curt Weldon and Rick Santorum that have put failed ideology and self-interest over responsibility and accountability to the citizens of our county.

The 7th district is expected to be pivotal in the effort to take back Congress and put our country back on the right path.

Joe is the Democratic response this week. YOU will be the Democractic response on Nov. 7th.

Weldon's Social In-Security about his Privates Privatization

The Delco Times (08/15/06) had a piece this week about Sestak and Weldon on the issue of Social Security and Privatization.

Sestak came out unambiguously against privatization and called upon Weldon to state a position.

Weldon, who rarely misses an opportunity to spout off to reporters, was uncharacteristically shy and unavailable for even a Yea or Nay. (Maybe he was out hunting for those WMDs?)

Weldon's campaign manager "boldly" answered for our absentee congressman:
"You can't give a simple answer to whether you oppose privatization or whether you're for privatization."

Um... Actually, you can give a simple answer. "Yes" or "No" are popular choices.

I do understand why this is so difficult for Weldon to answer. He first needs a political weather report to see which way the wind is blowing. Then, he needs to cover up his past support for privatization with vague statements about how he was merely exploring the issue but hadn't committed to a specific approach. Finally, he needs a way to give a non-committal "maybe" while pretending he actually answered the question.

Curt, I've got your political forecast right here: Gloomy right through Nov 7th and the end of your rain reign.

Weldon Vote Watch: Minimum Wage Edition

Curt Weldon likes to play that he's a rare Republican who looks out for the little guy. But his record shows what he's really made of.

The American population is overwhelmingly in favor of a long-overdue increase in the minimum wage. In a July NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, respondants were asked "Do you favor or oppose raising the minimum wage from five dollars and fifteen cents an hour to seven dollars and twenty-five cents an hour?" 76% were in favor, only 20% were opposed. Other polls have shown percentages as high as 85% in favor. A CBS Poll even showed 75% of Republicans in favor of a two-year increase to $7.25/hour. (See pollingreport.com.)

Even so, Weldon voted against increasing the federal minimum wage to $7.25 over two years in a straight up-or-down vote.

Instead, he backed a shameful Republican-backed plan (HR 5970) that stretched the wage increases over three years and gave a massive estate tax break to corporations and the super-rich. According to the non-partisan Roll Call Report, the Republican bill's overall cost was projected at more than $300 billion over ten years.

[For our friends over in the PA-06 and PA-08 districts, Gerlach and Fitzpatrick voted in lockstep. While this blog supports Sestak, we definitely want to send him to Washington with Lois Murphy and Patrick Murphy.]

It's shameful that the Republican-controlled Congress could make this giveaway to the rich a national spending priority when we have a national debt totalling $8.4 trillion. And doing so while holding the most economically vulnerable members of society hostage when the number of Americans living in poverty is increasing?

Compassionate conservatism was a sham.

Joe Sestak is clearly the better choice for working families and for deficit-busting fiscal responsibility. Not only would Sestak have voted unequivocally for the minimum wage increase, he has laid out a detailed plan for strengthening the economic security of America's working families.

Weldon trying to distance himself from Bush again

Today's Philadelphia Inquirer talks more about the local unions splitting with the state AFL-CIO over Weldon. But there's an interesting touch. Just how far will Weldon and his supporters go to distance themselves from George W. Bush?

From the article:

U.S. Rep. Curt Weldon (R., Pa.) can only hope that all union members in the Seventh Congressional District hear a message similar to the one delivered Thursday by Danny "Big Dan" Kubik, president of the Delaware County Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO. The 10-term congressman "doesn't give a ... about George Bush," Kubik said while introducing Weldon to union members at a labor fund-raiser at the Springfield Country Club.
Weldon did nothing to correct that notion, describing how he stood up to the Bushes, father and son, on issues close to union men's hearts.

So Weldon votes with Bush and the GOP almost all of the time, but now that Bush's popularity is sinking, Weldon tries to distance himself? Somewhat disingenuous, I'd say!

Or maybe Weldon is worried about the trickle down effect:

FOX News/Opinion Dynamics Poll. Aug. 8-9, 2006. N=900 registered voters nationwide. MoE ± 3.

"Thinking ahead to this November's elections, if the congressional election were held today, would you vote for the Democratic candidate in your district or the Republican candidate in your district?" [7/11-7/12 results in parenthesis]

Democrat: 48 (42)
Republican: 30 (34)
Unsure: 22 (25)

Local Union leader skirts AFL-CIO endorsement with Weldon fundraiser

Lots of Sestak/Weldon news in the Delco Times today.

In the interest of being fair, (which we don't necessarily have to do,) I thought I'd mention that while Sestak was holding court near Havertown's Superfund site and getting the League of Conservation Voters endorsement, Weldon was attending a fundraiser hosted by some local union people (according to the Delco Daily Times article).

This sets up an interesting conflict between the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO, who has backed Sestak (Sources: Forbes, 7/28/2006 ,Delco Daily Times, 7/28/2006 and these local labor people, some of whom are in the AFL-CIO.

According to the Delco Daily Times:

[Danny] Kubik, who serves as president of the Delaware County AFL-CIO Central Labor Council, said he wasn’t hosting the event [for Weldon] in that capacity, but as a business representative for the operating engineers and chairman of the Delaware County Committee of Philadelphia Building Trades.

Pennsylvania AFL-CIO President William George made it clear last month that Kubik’s council is prohibited from working for Weldon because the state organization is backing Sestak.

"If the council spends one penny on behalf of Weldon, there will be a takeover of that council," George told the Daily Times.

On the other hand, also from the Times:

The Montgomery County AFL-CIO is partnering with United Food and Commercial Workers, Service Employees International Union, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and other unions for a Sestak fund-raiser later this month.

The Pennsylvania AFL-CIO had previously backed Weldon every election since 1988 but is now in Sestak's camp, a major loss for Weldon. But the heart of the matter in this local labor renegade action is that Delaware County is one of few areas where (some) labor unions support the GOP, even though the Republican agenda is so anti-labor. This is because the Delaware County Council, made up completely of (5) Republicans, controls the distribution of contracts, thereby affecting local labor use. (Don't get me started on Delaware County Council, the only county in PA with no minority party representation after the GOP rewrote the charter!)

But my favorite part of this article is a Curt Weldon comment:

"They’re part of a Democrat agenda to take back control of the House," Weldon said of the state AFL-CIO.

Yes Curt, that's true...and there are a lot of others who are part of that agenda!

More Spencer on Sestak

Today's Delco Times piece by Gil Spencer, Sestak admirers are many and fiercely loyal is part 2 of Spencer on Sestak. In the first part, Spencer uses mostly unnamed sources to knock Sestak. Today, he uses quotes from people who give their names to describe Joe Sestak in a much different light.

Things like:

...no one was more competitive (or more effective) when it came to getting a job done than Joe Sestak.

...impressed with Sestak’s cranial abilities and leadership skills

He was tough and direct, but he took a personal interest in his team.

I can’t think of a better leader

I think he’d do a great job for the people of Pennsylvania

And even Spencer himself:

The more you see, the better he looks.

Oh my...I think I have to agree with Spencer for once!

Now, what we'd really like to see is the newpapers writing about the issues in this race. What about Weldon vs. Sestak on the Iraq War, the economy, health care, education, the environment?

League of Conservation Voters endorsement to Sestak

The top Billboard song of 1983 was "Every Breath You Take."

Perhaps that phrase has a different meaning to 26,000 Havertown residents who live less than a mile from a toxic waste site has been on the EPA's National Priorities List (NPL) since 1983. In 2006, the site still isn't complete, and the EPA Superfund has been drained by a Republicans in Congress who are practically in bed with big polluters.

Curt Weldon likes to portray himself as an environmentalist. To his (limited) credit, his voting record is better than most other Republicans. But he cherry picks. PennEnvironment reports that he votes about 40% of the time for environmentally responsible legislation. Better than Santorum, no doubt, who seems to actually hate all living things. But a far cry from wearing a green mantle.

Haverford's incomparable State Rep. Greg Vitali was on hand yesterday to help announce that the League of Conservation voters has endorsed Joe Sestak. Vitali says:

When elected, Joe Sestak will fight to protect the health and well-being of the residents of this district and will work to protect our environment. He will stand with this community to work proactively to provide the necessary resources to complete the Havertown PCP Superfund project. The residents of this neighborhood and this district deserve nothing less.

Additional information can be found in the Delco Daily Times.

Sestak earns Spencer badge of courage

After taking a look through the Aug 9, 2006 Delco Times piece by Gil Spencer, I think cool that Joe Sestak has finally been Spencerized! It's kind of a badge of courage for a good progressive candidate to have Spencer take a few shots at you.

Glad to see that Spencer was none too kind to Sestak, digging up some Navy opponents to knock Joe. I'd hate to think that Gil Spencer supports the same candidate that I'm backing!

Also for a laugh or two, take a look at this post by Suburban Guerilla Susie Madrak as she Spencerizes Spencer!

Even Fox News noticing Sestak's rise and Weldon's vulnerability!

When Fox News is doing a stand-up-and-notice-Joe-Sestak piece, you gotta know that the tide has turned and Weldon is about to get swamped.
Okay, it's not like Fox News is endorsing Sestak or anything, but when Fox say Sestak is in the game and Weldon is taking notice, you know that something is happening here in PA-7 land!
From the Fox News piece of Aug 7, 2006, the intro has a pretty good writeup on Joe and his qualifications:

WASHINGTON — For Democrats in Pennsylvania's 7th Congressional District, a candidate like Joe Sestak only comes along once in 20 years.

A Harvard PhD and a retired two-star admiral who commanded an aircraft carrier battle group in Operation Enduring Freedom, Sestak has been raising money furiously, so much money that national party Democrats have taken notice. They are now saying he has a chance at beating incumbent Rep. Curt Weldon, a Republican who has been representing the district since 1986.

"Curt Weldon … at this point after 20 years in Congress, is out of touch with the needs of the people," said Jen Psaki, spokeswoman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. "I think there is no question we see the Philadelphia suburbs as a key battleground."

Countdown to Terror: Eagle Scout Edition!

X-post from Daddy Democrat:

Know who the Weldon camp fears? The eagle scout.

The Daily Times ran a pretty detailed story by Cindy Scharr about Weldon's staffers calling the police on a young Sestak supporter who had come to a public Weldon press conference. Unfortunately, delcotimes.com didn't run the story in the online edition, but you can find the PDF version here.

Some choice quotes for the download-averse:

A campaign staffer for U.S. Rep. Curt Weldon, R-7, of Thornbury, called police Friday to report protesters outside of the Republican congressman's campaign office.

When the responding officer arrived, he found 18-year-old Ross Doppelt standing there. Alone.

Doppelt, a lifelong Haverford resident and campaign volunteer for Weldon's opponent, Democrat Joe Sestak, said he had shown up for what was publicized as an endorsement announcement.

"I just wanted to hear what they had to say," said the Eagle Scout and National Merit Commended Scholar....

Unlike the Weldon staff, the officer understood the law:

Protesting is not against the law, police told Doppelt. The responding officer reminded him that as long as protesters were peaceful and not obstructing passersby, they were within their rights to be there.

But there were no protestors. Just Doppelt.

Even Weldon's usually cranky campaign chair Mike Puppio seems to know it was an inappropriate reaction:

Puppio said there was concern that someone was going to block the entrance to the chopping center.

"That wasn't the case," Puppio admitted. "The only one there was the young man in the blue shirt."

Do keep in mind that Weldon's team sends noisy protesters to almost every public appearance by Sestak.

Thin-skinned and paranoid. Yep, that's our Curt!

DCCC reserves $2.32M for PA-7 ads

The Hill's Aug 2, 2006 article says that the DCCC has reserved 2.32 million dollars in advertising to assist Joe Sestak's race against incumbent Curt Weldon. This is part of DCCC's "$51.5 million of television advertising in 32 congressional districts."

It's good to see the DCCC backing Sestak so strongly.

It's also pretty exciting to be part of this district where campaign is so critical to the efforts to take back the House!

Weldon Adopts Model of Bush, Russia and China Towards Dissent

Weldon prides himself on his supposed expertise in Russia studies. Well, this week he proved that he embraces the totalitarian concept of using the police to intimidate voters that disagree with him.

When Ross Doppelt, an 18 year old Sestak supporter and Delaware County voter, showed up for a Weldon event this week, the Weldon team called the police. Supposedly, Weldon was afraid that Ross might object to some of Weldon remarks, or (gasp!) tape them so that others can learn how out of touch Weldon is with the concerns of the voters in the 7th.

Ross Doppelt is a native Delco resident, born over at Bryn Mawr hospital in 1987. He was a class president at Haverford High School and a Student Representative on Haverford Township's School Board. Formerly a student at Tulane University, Ross was evacuated from New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina, and did volunteer work in the Ninth Ward after he returned.

Well, now I see why Weldon wanted Ross arrested. Young people with leadership skills and active in their communities are dangerous to politicians acting in their own self-interest and against the public welfare.

As many are aware, Weldon's hero, George Bush, abused the Secret Service to eject from speeches any citizens that displayed any form of dissent against Bush or his policies. I guess the political nut doesn't fall far from the neo-con tree.

At an earlier event, Weldon had actually confronted Ross, "ordering" him not to record the Congressman. At this event he questioned Ross, asking where he was from. Just like Bush, Weldon is so insulated from his constituents that he incorrectly assumes a dissenter must be from outside the district.

The irony (or rather hypocrisy) here is that Weldon not only sents protesters to Sestak events, but rude and disruptive ones that shout out false accusations that disrepect not only Sestak's 31 years of honorable military service but the honorable service of all that have worn the uniform of their country.

What types of societies arrest the intellectuals and political dissenters? (hint: the kind we used to speak out against before Bush started violating the Geneva conventions)

It seems that Weldon's campaign slogan should be:

Curt Weldon: Independent Fighter for USSR

It's not just Joe.

Disgraceful attacks have been launched against Jack Murtha for his muscular stance on the conduct of the War in Iraq, including a bogus lawsuit about his remarks on the massacre at Haditha. Joe Sestak released a statement today, noting the continuing the theme of relentless swiftboating of any ex-military Democrat who objects to any of Bush's use of our armed forces.

Congressman Jack Murtha is currently facing ruthless attacks and the deliberate distortion of his record, simply for speaking out against the status quo on the Iraq War. We should all respect Congressman Murtha for bucking the trend in Washington and advancing new ideas. As a veteran myself, I take this very seriously. I am proud to stand with fmr. Sen. Max Cleland and others and say that I am saddened by those who would abandon civil public debate and discourse over our strategy in Iraq and turn to attacking the record of a distinguished veteran.

'Nuff said.

The Pot Calling the Kettle a Plagiarist

In the latest bit of hypocrisy from the Weldon campaign, Weldon accuses Sestak of plagiarizing a health-policy position paper. Philly Inquirer

As usual, there is more to the story....

1. The Progressive Policy Institute is a Democratic Leadership Council think-tank that provides health-care and other policy information, with the hope of disemination, to candidates and anyone interested in said policies.
   
2. David Kendall, the Progressive Policy Institute's health-care expert, said Sestak contacted him in February to query him on his ideas and ask permission to incorporate them in his positions.
   
   "I told him he didn't need permission," Kendall said. Think tanks toss ideas into the public domain for exactly this purpose, he said.
   
3. Institute Senior Fellow Paul Weinstein Jr., who authored some of the work and discussed it with Sestak last winter, wasn't offended.
   
   "That's the mission of our organization, to provide policy positions to officials in both parties," he said.
   

Let's do a hypocrisy check:
Sestak talks to policy experts and they are happy that Joe incorporated their ideas into his position paper. Some wording and vocabulary was similar.

Weldon plagiarized his own tax-payer funded congressional website for use in his campaign, and was forced to re-design his campaign website. Whole pages were lifted verbatim with the only difference swapping "I" with "Curt Weldon".

Were the tax-payers happy that Weldon violated campaign and House ethics rules?

Way to go, Curt!

Notice, nowhere in Weldon's complaint do we see one word discussing the merits Sestak's position on health-care. Why? Maybe because Weldon can't win on a discussion of the issues.

For future reference, if Joe or any of his campaign staff likes what I write about Weldon's foibles and foolishness, they are free to use it in speeches, bumper-stickers, and any other media that will help enlighten voters about what a truly dismal representative Weldon has been (and continues to be).