Joe Hoeffel: Stabbed in the back

In the end, it was the enemy within who finished off Joe Hoeffel.

It wasn't the ignorant Republicans lobbing mudpies in the comments section of the Times Herald, or the lumbering, heavy-handed Bruce Castor whining about the latest effront to the giant Castor ego, or the right-wing barrage from a "newspaper" that long ago lost the right to call itself unbiased, or even the trumped-up investigation launched by a DA's office that still operates as the sock puppet for its former boss.

It was none of those. I still believe that Joe could have overcome all of that.

But the thing Joe Hoeffel could not overcome was the cowardice and political malice that blindsided him from within his own party.

Anyone who knows Joe Hoeffel knows he is an honorable man, probably too good for the political slime he's had to swim through for the past four years. Here's what one commenter at the Times Herald had to say once the news broke today:

"Elected officials who are in the public, give up their personal freedom to serve the electorate and are subject to allegations by opponents that usually have no root in fact...Joe Hoeffel is such a public servant. I have known him and his service for three decades and know 1st hand of his high ethical standards, desire to maximize the efficiency of county government and leave its people better than when he initially attained office. Many attacks against Hoeffel and Matthews have been initiated by office seekers and party hacks who view bipartisanship as un-American and therefore suspect."

So true, so true.

Joe was shockingly effective as the lone Democrat on the county commission. From a position that should have yielded absolutely no leverage for his voice to be heard, he was able to form a coalition and at least have some impact.

Could he reform the county single-handedly from its century and a half of Republican business as usual? Of course not. And of course, the Repub cabal knew exactly what to dredge up and use against him, because it was all familiar territory to them - in effect, they were able to take their own corrupt practices and accuse Hoeffel of somehow being the first to go there.

And not once did anyone in the county Democratic establishment step up to support him against these smears. Not once.

I really do wish Josh Shapiro and whats-her-name the best in November. But whichever of them ends up the minority commissioner, I hope they'll frame the bloody knife pulled from Joe Hoeffel's back to remind them of how they earned their office.

Joe Hoeffel's Rendezvous with Destiny...and Marcel

On Dec. 2, a date which should live in Montgomery County Democratic infamy, party leader Marcel Groen launched a surprise attack against the county’s longest serving and most respected Democratic elected official, Joe Hoeffel:

"I have a great deal of admiration for Joe Hoeffel,” Groen said to Inquirer reporter Jeremy Roebuck, presumably while donning his silk scarf and aviator goggles and preparing to drop a bomb down Hoeffel’s smokestack. “But we have some young people who can really capture the imagination and sweep us in."

Or, in other words, “Banzai!!!”

Marcel Groen has declared war on his own party.

Of course, that was just the opening salvo of what promises to be a long, bitter and divisive battle for the future of the county’s majority political party. Like any good general, Groen followed his initial sneak attack with another blast that appeared in today’s Inquirer:

"Joe Hoeffel's had a long career. I have great respect for him. But people are tired of this. You don't elect a child to run your government. He certainly acts very childish."

People who know Marcel and are familiar with how he’s run his county Democratic fiefdom surely had a few “look who’s talking” comments when they read that one.


For whatever reason – and I’ll go into some of the speculation shortly – Marcel Groen has decided that he wants to publicly slime the man he practically begged to come to the party’s rescue four years ago. And he wants to do it in a way that is going to leave blood on the floor and the party in tatters before it’s over.

Marcel could have done this quietly and behind the scenes. He’s a powerful guy and he usually gets what he wants when it comes to Montco Democratic politics. He could have found a way for Joe to step aside gracefully once his commissioner’s term was done.

But that wasn’t the way he wanted it to go down. It is clear that what Marcel Groen wants is nothing less than the political scalp of Joe Hoeffel to hang on his wall – he wants Hoeffel destroyed, and he doesn’t care if he has to burn down his own party to make that happen.

This certainly isn't the first time that Groen has put his personal agenda ahead of what was best for the party. There is a laundry list of such episodes, the worst of which include:

- Groen's efforts in 2007 to make sure that Philadelphia judge Seamus McCaffery got his ticket punched for the state Supreme Court in the Democratic primary over vastly more-qualified opponent Darnell Jones.

- His opposition to Howard Dean's leadership of the Democratic National Committee, which energized Democrats to wins in 2006 and 2008. Groen told Montco Dem committee members that Dean was a “failure” and a “disaster.”

- In 2008, he took every opportunity in the weeks leading up to the PA Presidential primary to talk about what a weak and undeserving candidate Barack Obama was.

- And earlier this year, he was on the executive committee of Republican Arlen Specter’s bid to be the Democratic Senate candidate and engineered the county Democratic endorsement meeting away from an endorsement of Joe Sestak, who won the primary anyway.

And now this.

Why would the leader of Montgomery County Democrats want to launch such a high profile campaign against the Democratic public official that county voters most recognize and admire? There are a couple of possible reasons, neither of them very compelling.

Here’s one: the Dems seem bound to follow a mandate of their own making that their two candidates for county commissioner consist of one male and one female candidate. Unfortunately, there are two highly visible, highly electable Democratic males ready to run – one, of course, is Hoeffel, the current Democratic commissioner. The other is state representative Josh Shapiro, a rising star who is ready to move up to bigger things. And Groen is most definitely in Shapiro’s corner. The only way for Shapiro to leapfrog over an incumbent Hoeffel is if Hoeffel becomes political roadkill, if he can be painted as corrupt and unpopular – regardless of how untrue those charges might be – so that Shapiro can play the White Knight savior in next spring’s county primary.

And here’s another possible reason: for the past four years, Joe Hoeffel has engineered something truly amazing – a bipartisan marriage of convenience that has frozen out the worst of the Republican power structure – namely commissioner Bruce Castor – by cozying up to the lesser of the evils, Republican commissioner Jim Matthews. But rumors say that Groen is not happy with Hoeffel’s handling of the arrangement. According to the grapevine, Groen thinks Hoeffel should have steered more county business toward Democratic interests, and this inability to deliver the goods has turned Groen into an enemy.

Regardless of the reason why, it’s obvious now that Marcel Groen is again putting his own skewed vision of the Democratic Party ahead of party unity, ahead of party success and ahead of what’s best for Montgomery County.

Marcel “Tojo” Groen sent two torpedoes into the S.S. Joe Hoeffel this month with the sole intention of sinking him before the primary season even gets started. It’ll be interesting to see how Hoeffel and his allies respond to the sneak attack.

Joe Hoeffel has had a long and well-respected career serving the people of Montgomery County. I’m sure he never thought he’d have to battle his own party’s county leader to continue that service.

Maybe this time Montco Democrats will wake up and see who the real problem is. Maybe they’ll figure out that what they really need is a change at the top.

Joe Hoeffel isn’t the problem.

Marcel Groen is.

"A gutless Republican worm"

Strong but fitting words, used by CNN's Jack Cafferty to describe Arlen Specter. Take a look:

"In the end, Senator Specter has turned out to be yet another gutless Republican worm cowering in the face of pressure from the administration and fellow Republicans. There are not going to be any hearings. Americans won’t find out if their privacy is being illegally invaded.

"You know what the Senate Judiciary Committee settled for instead? Senator Orrin Hatch said he has won assurances from Vice President Dick Cheney that the White House will review proposed changes to the law that would restrict certain aspects of the NSA program.

"Dick Cheney is going to decide if it’s OK to spy on American citizens without a warrant. And this worthless bunch of senators has agreed to let him do it. It’s a disgrace."

-- Jack Cafferty, CNN

The Free Agent

He had overstayed his welcome at his first home. They were tired of his self-centered act. He was not a dependable member of the team. While the team goal was winning, his priority always seemed to be making sure that the spotlight followed him whereever he went, even if that was not in the same direction the team was heading.

But when he came to town and joined our team, there were cheers everywhere. He was what we needed to push us over the top. He was the last component on a team that had already tasted victory but just needed a little push to get to the ultimate goal. He was going to be the missing piece.

And for awhile, it looked like that might be true. He was a team player, maybe even the best team player. Fans adored him. They sang songs about him. And the team piled up wins. All was bright and beautiful and it was the best of times.

But at the peak of the season, when his team needed him the most, he disappeared. Some small nagging injuries popped up, then something bigger. The team still won, but it wasn't the same. When he tried to come back in the final game, it looked like the team was out of sync. Nothing was working. The team lost.

The next season, he started off saying he wanted more money, a revised contract because he had been so good the past season. He started talking about his teammates, blaming the team's failure at the end of last season on them. He started skipping practice. He was suspended. And a few months later, he was gone for good, taking his show to another town.

That story was about a football free agent.

There are free agents in politics, too. One of them is now a US Senator from Pennsylvania who is running in the Democratic Primary this May. For 30 years he was a Republican until he saw that the Republicans would probably not vote for him in their primary. So he ran to the Democrats and was embraced.

If you want to draw parallels, be my guest.

She's baaaaa-ack

Old racists never die, they just find a different Journal Register rag to write for.

Looks like Lisa Mossie will be allowed to foul more Montgomery County newsprint, at least until the next time she decides to crawl down into the bigoted slime she loves to wade through.

In case anyone missed it, here is the column that got her fired from the Times Herald back last spring.

And, just in case it gets killed by the new "Comments Czarina" at the Mercury, here's my take on Mossie's re-hiring by the Times Herald's dumber, uglier cousin:

So let's see if I've got this straight: Lisa Mossie gets properly fired at the Times Herald for her racist rants, waits a little while, then with no apology and no explanation, gets hired to continue her vicious, kooky, right-wing fringe assaults in the pages of the Mercury. This, in a newspaper that already employs one over-the-top wingnut, Tony Phyrillas.

Do any sane people still work for this company?

The Fire Next Time?

The inferno pictured here didn't happen in the United States - it took place last February in Podyelsk, Russia, when a nursing home went up in flames and killed 23 residents.

Thank goodness things like that can't happen here, right?

Sadly, that's not right. It can happen here -- right here in Montgomery County, PA -- especially when you have accidents waiting to happen like the high-rise Shannondell monstrosity in Audubon, Lower Providence Twp.

Shannondell features buildings as tall as seven stories, filled with aging retirees in various stages of ability and mobility. Some with canes, some with walkers, some with wheelchairs, all of whom would need to get out in a hurry in case a fire breaks out.

Of course, in the event of an emergency, the first thing that happens is that the elevators automatically shut down. Now picture these senior residents trying to make their way down seven flights of stairs in a dark, smoky building. It's not a pretty picture, and it suggests that what happened in Russia earlier this year could pale in comparison to what might take place in a worst-case scenario at Shannondell.

But that could never happen, I've heard Shannondell supporters argue. Those buildings have sprinklers and are fire-resistant, they say.

And in answer, I refer you to last fall's report from Medicare, which inspected Shannondell's nursing home component for, among other things, its fire safety level.

They found the facility had three times the fire-safety deficiences of the average US nursing home. Triple the average number of potential fire hazards. That's just plain scary.

Among the serious problems they uncovered were improperly maintained smoke detectors, sprinklers that were not in working order, obstructed exits and no record of fire drills being conducted.

It's a disgrace, and a horrific disaster waiting to happen. The county should have shut the place down based on that report alone.

The sad truth is that these high-rise mistakes should never have been built. But now that they are there, there has to be a minimum level of preparedness, starting with monthly inspections to make sure that all systems and equipment are in proper working order.

There should also be a complete disaster plan in place that includes fire evacuation drills under "like-real" (e.g.,no elevators) conditions, a floor-by-floor plan for getting every resident safely out of the building via the stairway, and reassigning living space for anyone who cannot be evacuated from an upper floor without an elevator.

That is the bare minimum that's needed, and I have my doubts whether anything close to that has happened thus far.

Sprinklers and elevators are great for advertising brochures. But if disaster ever strikes -- which, according to federal inspectors is three times more likely at Shannondell than at your average facility -- it won't mean much to the elderly residents admiring the smoky view from their toasty seventh-floor firetrap.

Arlen Specter's Miserable Voting Record

Does this sound like a Democratic voting record?:

Aid to Less Advantaged People, at Home & Abroad: 38%
Education, Humanities, & the Arts: 25%
Environment: 36%
Fair Taxation: 5.6%
Family Planning: 60%
Government Checks on Corporate Power: 37%
Health Care: 38.5%
Housing: 25%
Human Rights & Civil Liberties: 30%
Justice for All: Civil and Criminal: 21.6%
Labor Rights: 45%
Making Government Work for Everyone, Not Just Rich/Powerful: 26%
War & Peace: 23%

Source: ProgressivePunch.org

If Arlen Specter wanted to be a Democrat, he should have voted like one.

Specter, Groen and "residual goodwill"

I spent last summer getting over my anger with Montgomery County Democratic Chairman Marcel Groen, who smirked his way through the Pennsylvania Democratic Primary, telling people what a weak candidate Barack Obama was. Groen's behavior was not just bad form, it was bad politics and simply wrongheaded. He created wounds that still haven't fully healed.

But in spite of how our county leader behaved, the Democratic Party rode Obama's wave to a huge victory in November and we solidified our spot as the majority political force in Montgomery County. Of course, Marcel couldn't help but tell us how much he lovvvvved Obama then.

While I didn't necessarily forgive or forget, the anger faded after a while.

Then last week, the Inquirer carried a story that got me madder than ever at Marcel. At least when he supported Hillary, he was backing another Democrat. But now, he's trying to shove a Republican down our throats.

I think it's time to shove back.

Marcel -- along with Montgomery County Democratic State Representative Mike Gerber -- has joined Arlen Specter's "Advisory Committee" to push this turncoat Republican octogenarian as the Democratic candidate in next year's US Senate race. It makes me ill to even think about it.

"There's a lot of residual goodwill," said Montgomery County party chairman Marcel Groen. "Most folks think he's now the incumbent Democratic senator, and we should coalesce around him."

I'm not sure where Marcel is getting his polling data, but I know that "most folks" surely does not include me, or most other Montgomery County Democrats that I talk to.

I can assure you there is no "residual goodwill" here.

Next year, assuming that Joe Sestak follows through on his intention to challenge this fake Democrat, I will do everything I possibly can to support Joe's candidacy. And I believe the "most folks" will coalesce around Joe, not Republican Arlen Specter, in the Democratic primary.

And after we send a message by naming Joe Sestak as the Democratic candidate, it will be time to send another message by finding new leadership for our Montgomery County Democratic organization.

We need to find someone who backs real Democrats instead of propping up frail, aging Republicans who don't support anything our party stands for.

Trick or Tweet?

OK, I'm Twittering.

I just wish they had named it something else. "Twittering" does not sound like something that heterosexual males should be doing.

Anyway, I have no idea how active I'll get, but if you want to follow, it's the same as here, but with no spaces: Montcopadem

Song of the Blastocyst

This goes out to Lisa "Trixie" Mossie, defender of laboratory-Americans:



The BLA Anthem

I ain't got no body
Nobody cares for me, nobody, nobody cares for me
I'm so sad and lonely
Sad and lonely, sad and lonely
Won't some sweet mama come and take a chance with me
Cuz I ain't so bad
Sad and lonesome all the time
Even on the beat, on the, on the beat
I ain't got no body
Nobody cares for me, nobody, nobody

Really ain't got nobody, sad and lonesome
Baby need love

Tea as in Turkey

As in "stick a fork in it." The right-wing lunatic fringe has tried mightily to mount some sort of vast uprising against Obama's stimulus and budget plans. This weekend showed just how completely the wingnuts have failed.

Across the nation, foaming-at-the-mouth Limbaugh Loonies blogged their call to arms for all who were offended by the President's middle-class tax cuts, expanded health-care coverage, education funding and the creation of new jobs -- all things that the right apparently hates -- to protest in grassroots "Tea Parties." Here's how local zealot Lisa Mossie breathlessly spread the word on her bizarrely named far-right blog, Bluftooni:

All you folks in SE PA not going to CPAC, there's a Tea Party protest at Independence Mall on Saturday, 2/28 at noon.

Over? Did you say "over"? Nothing is over until we decide it is! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no! And it ain't over now. 'Cause when the goin' gets tough...

...the tough get goin'!

Who's with me?

Sign up here

Well, apparently Blutarsky charged out pretty much alone this time. Here's how the huge protest looked at its height on Saturday:



I count at most about 50 people.

Now take a look at this same area when Obama held his primary-ending rally here last April:



Something tells me we don't have much to be worried about.

Tsunami Alert

From Newsweek:

The country seems poised for another "wave" election, where the close seats fall in one direction. "We've not had a leader elected in this kind of environment in our lifetime," said Greenberg. You have to go back to 1930 and 1932 to see two wave elections in a row. At the National Press Club, New York Sen. Chuck Schumer was asked what would happen if the Democrats "only" picked up seven seats, and fell short of the nine they would need for a filibuster-proof Senate. (The Dems currently have 49 seats plus two independents that caucus with them). "Only seven seats!" Schumer exclaimed. "We haven't had that many seats since 1979!"

Now..(ahem)..allow me to humbly review comments made by an astute local observer last May 16:

I just don't get the doom and gloom about November. Because it's getting clearer and clearer that whoever the Democratic candidate is, they are going to win an overwhelming victory...

And again on June 1:

It's going to take a tidal wave of epic proportions to wash away the stench of the past eight years, but that's exactly what's coming: A great big Democratic wave.

"A great big Democratic wave"...Coming your way in just over a week.

Who's "Palin" around with terrorists?

From the Sept. 3 L.A.Times:

[Sarah Palin] has cheered the work of a tiny party that long has pushed for a statewide vote on whether Alaska should secede from those same United States. And her husband, Todd, was a member of the party for seven years.

"Keep up the good work," Sarah Palin told members of the Alaskan Independence Party in a videotaped speech to their convention six months ago in Fairbanks. She wished the party luck on what she called its "inspiring convention."

Great story from Abington

Barack Obama visited Montgomery County today, and thousands showed up to greet him and be inspired by him as we kick the campaign into high gear for the last month leading up to Election Day on Nov. 4th.

This story from today's rally, posted by Kelly of PA on DailyKos, really moved me, as I hope it will you, too:

This picture is of my Pop-Pop. He was born in raised in the segregated south, and served in a segregated Army. Pop is a veteran of the Korean War and Vietnam, in which he lost a leg and suffered near-fatal injuries. In the past few years, Pop has suffered heart attacks and a stroke, fell down a flight of steps and broke his neck, and has lost his remaining slivers of eyesight. Life has become quite difficult for Pop-Pop, and following the campaign of Barack Obama provides him with much needed hope and joy.

Today, we took Pop-pop to Senator Obama’s rally. We wheeled him to the front of the section designated for handicapped individuals, and he patiently waited for two hours in his wheelchair to hear Barack Obama speak. After his speech, Senator Obama came down the steps and walked over to Pop-pop. He gestured towards the Purple Heart and Silver Stars that were pinned to his cap, and thanked Pop for his service and for taking the time to come to the event. I could see the tears welling up in Pop’s eyes as Barack spoke. Obama spent a few moments with my Pop-Pop, shook his hand, hugged him, and then moved along to greet other supporters.

As we made our way towards the parking lot, tears continuously slid down Pop-Pop’s face. He was very emotional. He could barely speak. "I just touched the next President of the United States" was all he could say; he repeated that phrase over and over again. The entire encounter between the two of them lasted no more than thirty seconds, but to a man who’s lived through segregation and racism, being able to meet the first viable African American candidate for POTUS was the experience of a lifetime. The joy that Pop felt meant more to my family and I than words can explain.

What if McCain quits the race?

I know he doesn't sound like he's even thinking of it.

But it's clear that his campaign is in a shambles. He's got a VP who is woefully unqualified, and he must know that by now. He has a staff that has come up with only one strategy -- lying. His reputation has been shredded. And he is on his way to losing by huge, overwhelming margins in states that were once solidly Republican.

I don't see McCain as the 'Happy Warrior' type guy who'll just take one for the team, he's never been much of a team player. He's not Bob Dole.

I'd say there's a chance that he could simply announce that his health will not permit him to continue.

Slim chance, I'll grant you, but it could happen.

Somebody saw it coming

This is from last July. I believe Tom Tomorrow is psychic.

"He can't use a keyboard"

Somebody please, tell me this is just a very bad dream or an incredibly over-the-top farce. This cannot be a real, "your-future-is-on-the-line" Presidential race, can it?

First, the Obama campaign puts out an ad that points out -- correctly, I'd say -- that any Presidential candidate who can't be bothered to learn how to use a computer or send his own email is...how to put this politely?...a complete dumbass illiterate loser. In case you're wondering, this was in reference to the admited fact from the McCain camp that John McCain does not know thing one about using a computer.

Then, once this hits, we find a report (via a link on Drudge, naturally) that poor old Mr. "Lived in a Box for Five and a Half Years" can't use a computer because...(wait for it, you've never heard this excuse before)...he was a POW. From a 2000 Boston Globe article:

...McCain's severe war injuries prevent him from combing his hair, typing on a keyboard, or tying his shoes...

I'm sorry, call me insensitive, but I'm not buying that. Not even a little bit.

And the reason why is the guy pictured above, a man who suffers far more than John McCain from the nerve deadening effects of Lou Gehrig's disease: world-famous physicist Stephen Hawking.

Somehow, even though he has no control at all over his arms, his hands, or his entire body from the neck down, Hawking has figured out not only how to use a computer, but how to write emails, write entire books and, in short, be a fully functioning citizen of the 21st Century.

I don't know about you, but I'm looking for a President who doesn't use his disabilities as an excuse; I'm looking for one who has found a way to overcome his obstacles and move ahead.

Say, a candidate who started off dirt-poor, lived in a one-parent home where Food Stamps were needed to make meals. Somehow made it into an Ivy League school and then the top Law School in the country, where he became the first person of his race to be President of the Law Review.

And yes, somewhere along the line, he also learned how to use a computer.

That's the guy I want calling the shots next year. Not the one whining because it's too hard.

The Choice

Here are words I never thought I'd say:

The McCain campaign really does offer us a clear choice.

You can choose to side with John McCain, who is showing all you need to know about who he is by running the dirtiest, most dishonest and lie-filled campaign of any Presidential candidate in modern American history.

Or you can choose Barack Obama, who has continued to address issues, talk directly to the voting public about the important differences between himself and Sen. McCain, and has refused to get down into the mud and go negative in the same way that McCain has done.

Here's what one Republican campaign observer had to say about McCain's mudslinging (click here for the full article on MSNBC.com):

Mr. Sipple, the Republican strategist, voiced concern that Mr. McCain’s approach could backfire. “Any campaign that is taking liberty with the truth and does it in a serial manner will end up paying for it in the end,” he said. “But it’s very unbecoming to a political figure like John McCain whose flag was planted long ago in ground that was about ‘straight talk’ and integrity.”

It's a simple choice, really - you either support McCain and his campaign that's based on lies and attacks, or you realize that Obama is the only candidate acting like a grown-up you can trust to run the country.

And in the end, I really don't think too many adults are going to choose the McCain mudslinging over Obama's high standards.

Most of us quit playing in the mud once we got out of grade school. Too bad John McCain hasn't learned that lesson.

Let's get it on

Good Lord, I know I'm going to regret this.

This blog is now open for business. Duck & cover.



-- MPD