RockTheCapital.org

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Says issues can't wait until Aug. 18th board meeting

From the Patriot News:

If there was a theme among much of the testimony at state Rep. Bill DeWeese's preliminary hearing on public corruption charges, it was this: Everybody campaigned on state time.

Whether DeWeese, a former Democratic House speaker from Waynesburg, was responsible for overseeing illegal activity is a question a Dauphin County jury will have to answer.

After about five hours of testimony Monday, District Judge William Wenner of Linglestown held for court charges of theft, conflict of interest and conspiracy against DeWeese in the latest chapter of the state attorney general's investigation into the Legislature's use of taxpayer money and resources for campaign purposes.

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Democracy Rising Now Newsletter

Rep. Curt Schroder, R-Chester, today announced that he will introduce legislation to create the PA Public Integrity Commission (PIC). The PIC, which would incorporate the existing State Ethics Commission, would have new powers to root out public corruption among PA’s local, state and federal officials in all three branches of government. Click here for today’s story in the Harrisburg Patriot.

At a news conference in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Schroder said, “Our freedoms and liberties, guaranteed and enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, are under attack and the threat is from within. The corruption that has taken root in our system of government here in Pennsylvania is a direct threat to the social contract that establishes our government subject to the consent of the governed."

Unlike the current Ethics Commission, the new Public Integrity Commission would have a cadre of trained law enforcement personnel to “look over the shoulders” of public officials, investigate allegations of corruption and refer cases to state or local prosecutors when warranted. The PIC also would have subpoena power and the power to grant immunity in order to compel reluctant witnesses to testify in corruption cases.

Schroder began asking for co-sponsors last Wednesday and as of this writing has 28. The bill is being revised and will not have a bill number until it is formally introduced. When that happens, DR News will let you know.

Another prime sponsor is Rep. Eugene DePasquale, D-York. At the news conference, DePasquale made a telling observation.

“When lawmakers introduce a bill, the first question is always, ‘Why do we need this?’ With this legislation, no one is asking why. We all know why,” DePasquale said.

As if to underscore the point, the news conference occurred on the same day that two former House leaders were back in court. Former Speaker Bill DeWeese, D-Greene, and former Whip Mike Veon, D-Beaver, are seeking different things from the court. At a preliminary hearing, DeWeese is arguing that he should not go on trial for allegations of using tax-funded offices and personnel for partisan political campaigns. Veon, currently serving 6 to 14 years after being convicted of using millions of tax dollars for illegal campaign activity, is in court seeking a new trial on that conviction.

Click here for an early story from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette about the DeWeese hearing.

Independents and Education

Two other elements of the proposal warrant attention. The bill requires a nominating committee to select potential members of the commission. Both the nominating committee and the commission membership must include members who are neither Republicans nor Democrats. This gives the large percentage of voters who do not belong to the two major parties a seat at the table for the first time.

Another key feature of the PIC proposal is a requirement to educate public officials about legal and illegal conduct in office. This aspect gains new importance as defendants claim they didn’t know their actions were illegal.

Attorneys for DeWeese and others who await trial – former Revenue Secretary and Rep. Steve Stetler, D-York, and former Senate Whip Jane Orie, R-Allegheny – argue that the existing law is too vague for public officials to know what they can and can’t do. They also argue that their clients should be set free because “everyone else was doing it” and that whatever illegal activity might have occurred didn’t amount to much.

Click here for an Orie story from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

The PIC proposal is not perfect, and it is likely that some lawmakers will seek to strengthen it with amendments to ban gifts and gratuities for public officials (favored by 66% of PA voters), for example. All of that will take place in a public process that citizens can watch and weigh in on.

Questions:

• Has your Representative co-sponsored this proposal?
• If not, what are his or her objections?
• If so, how will your Representative work to move the proposal through the House?
   

Note:

Because we are a tax-exempt non-profit organization, Democracy Rising PA does not endorse specific legislation or lawmakers. However, we can acknowledge proposals and lawmakers who make extraordinary efforts to advance higher standards of public integrity.

This PIC proposal is the only comprehensive attempt in the past five years to change the culture of corruption in the capitol. For that alone, it deserves the close attention of citizens throughout the Commonwealth.

Statement

RocktheCapital is pleased to endorse the proposed legislation to create Pennsylvania’s Public Integrity Commission. We applaud Representatives Schroder and his co-sponsors Representatives Yudichak, Vereb, and DePasquale in their display of leadership and bipartisan cooperation to address an issue to long ignored in Pennsylvania. Government at all levels in Pennsylvanian lacks oversight and accountability.

The proposed legislation is a first step to restoring the public trust that has been a victim to the many corruption cases making headlines across the state. RocktheCapital challenges all candidates for the State Legislature this fall to stand up to the real and perceived lack of integrity by our public officials by declaring their support for this legislation or explaining their opposition. We ask that all candidates regardless of party affiliation, incumbent or challenger make their views known on what is necessary to restore the public trust. Pennsylvania must change the culture on what is acceptable behavior by our elected leaders.

For further information you may contact

RocktheCapital

Eric Eric Epstein, Coordinator
4100 Hillsdale Road
Harrisburg, PA  17112  
Phone: (717) 541-1101
E-mail: lechambon@comcast.net

From the Philadelphia Inquirer:

These days, Pennsylvania Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille says he feels betrayed by his onetime lawyer in the Family Court project.

"If I was in the Marine Corps, the guy would be stripped of his rank. He'd be drummed out," Castille said of Jeffrey B. Rotwitt, who was getting paid on both sides of the $200 million deal to build a courthouse at 15th and Arch Streets.

But that wasn't the case in April. When Castille was first asked about Rotwitt's codeveloper role, he didn't seem upset with Rotwitt at all. Instead, he was angry at being questioned about it.

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From the Philadelphia Inquirer:

Having already hired three former aides to Gov. Rendell, companies wanting to tap Pennsylvania's vast natural-gas reserves have set their sights on one of the state's best-known political figures: Tom Ridge.

The companies are looking to the former governor to help fix their tattered public image even as they try to influence lawmakers in Harrisburg on key public policy.

The Marcellus Shale Coalition, which represents more than two dozen natural-gas companies, is negotiating with Ridge's new lobbying firm, the Ridge Policy Group, to help in its plans for an aggressive public outreach campaign, coalition officials confirmed to The Inquirer last week.

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From the New York Times:

This country was rightly elated when it elected its first African-American president more than 20 months ago. That high was destined to abate, but we reached a new low last week. What does it say about America now, and where it is heading, that a racial provocateur, wielding a deceptively edited video, could not only smear an innocent woman but make every national institution that touched the story look bad? The White House, the N.A.A.C.P. and the news media were all soiled by this episode. Meanwhile, the majority of Americans, who believe in fundamental fairness for all, grapple with the poisonous residue left behind by the many powerful people of all stripes who served as accessories to a high-tech lynching.

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From the Patriot News:

A former judge in northeastern Pennsylvania pleaded guilty Friday to a racketeering conspiracy charge for his role in a kickback scheme that put juvenile defendants, many without lawyers, behind bars for sometimes minor offenses.

Michael Conahan, 58, faces up to 20 years in prison after his plea in Scranton federal court. No sentencing date was set. Court documents do not indicate if Conahan will testify against the other former Luzerne County judge charged in the case, Mark Ciavarella Jr. Conahan’s lawyer, Philip Gelso, declined to comment Friday.

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The Campaign Contributions & Lobbying Expenditures of the Natural Gas Industry in Pennsylvania

 

By Alex Kaplan and James Browning

 

May 11, 2010

 

Download PDF

From the Patriot News:

A western Pennsylvania lawmaker and one of her sisters will stand trial on charges they had the state senator’s taxpayer-funded staff do campaign work for herself and another sister, a state Supreme Court justice.

State Sen. Jane Orie and her sister, Janine, were ordered Wednesday to stand trial by Allegheny County Judge Donna Jo McDaniel after three days of testimony by former staffers to the senator. The women were charged in April with illegally using Jane Orie’s legislative staff.

Janine Orie was an aide to another sister, Joan Orie Melvin, while Melvin was on the Superior Court, when she ran unsuccessfully for the Supreme Court in 2003 and won a seat last year. Janine Orie is currently on paid suspension from her $67,000-a-year job as Melvin’s Supreme Court aide.

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