Corbett campaign addresses work done by staff

July 22nd, 2008, posted by RobHop

Attorney General Tom Corbett is the guy who had 10 state employees arrested, accusing them of doing campaign work on the public dime.

He’s also a politician seeking re-election, and some of his aides have worn two hats to help him win.

Corbett’s staffers insist they’re doing political work on their own time and their own dime. Reimbursement comes later from his campaign coffers, not from tax dollars.

Spending tax dollars on campaigns — the heart of the Bonusgate case — is illegal.

What Corbett is doing is commonplace, but it’s drawing extra attention because of his Bonusgate role. His campaign spent Monday explaining its process in response to a news account on his staffers’ dual roles.

Brian Nutt, Corbett’s campaign manager, said aides who did campaign work abided by a standing order from the boss that any political work was to be done off the public clock. They then were reimbursed from Corbett’s campaign accounts.
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Glass houses

On July 22nd, 2008 Anonymous said:

You can be sure there are Corbett staffers out there who have crossed the line and they will surely be outted between now and November. Corbett will be hoisted by his own petard.

Corbett and staff are just as corrupt

On July 22nd, 2008 Anonymous said:

“Activist Eric Epstein of RocktheCapital.org said Nutt’s leave of absence for the campaign underscores the need for an assessment of staffing levels across state government to determine how many positions aren’t needed, Epstein said.

“If you can take a leave from your job for six months, how much value do you bring to the job in the first place?” Epstein said.”

“Meanwhile, Nutt and other Corbett aides were helping their boss at political functions from time to time, records show.

Some attorney general staff traveled to political events and were reimbursed for lodging and meals. Some bought stamps or office supplies for the campaign.”

Seriously – they should not be allowed to hold up those positions and be able to return for their pensions and benefits. You leave the job – someone else should get that job. So corrupt.

So when do we hear of indictments of Republicans in Harrisburg – we know there are many there who have broken laws. I guess I shouldn’t hold my breath.

This is going to bite Corbett

On July 22nd, 2008 Anonymous said:

Not only are reporters like Micek now on the hunt for instances where Corbett and/or his staff did the same things they accussed Dems of doing, but l Morganelli’s campaign operatives will be, too. This is going to get very nasty.

Morganelli has already lost

On July 22nd, 2008 Anonymous said:

Corbett is smarter than that. If anyone knows where the line is and how to stay on the legal side, it is he and his employees.

It sounds like the power that would be (and their minions) are upset that someone has finally decided to take a real stand against corruption. Kudos to Corbett and his staff. I hope he cleans the rest of the scum out too.

So Far, So Good...

On July 22nd, 2008 thegentlemanfro... said:

So far, it seems as if Corbett “gets it”. There is no evidence that Corbett or his staff engaged in anything close to the illegal activity that Veon and his compatriots did. In fact, there is no evidence of wrongdoing whatsoever. It appears that his staff operated (and will operate this year) by the book. Pd is right that Morganelli and the press will inspect Corbett’s office with a toothbrush for any hint of wrongdoing. When you rock the political boat like Corbett did with the Veon indictments, perhaps this is to be expected. Corbett certainly isn’t above the law, and he seems to realize it. Perhaps our legislative “leaders” should begin taking their cues from him.

Will they find anything?

On July 22nd, 2008 Greg Palmer said:

I tend to agree that Corbett has probably kept his office squeaky clean, but nobody is that clean. Whether Morganelli finds it or Micek finds it, I’m thinking that something is out there. Will it make a difference though? I tend to consider Morganelli to be a little goofy and quite vindictive. I’d be surprised if he presents a credible challenge to Corbett.

Morganelli

On July 23rd, 2008 phillydem said:

I tend to agree about Morganelli plus he’s a DINO, imo. But, if he is vindictive, that tells me he and his staff will work hard to dig up dirt on Corbett. Reporters will like the “gotcha” and hypocrisy angle which is why they’ll be keep digging.

As for finding campaign staff irregularities, I think in a normal election year, it wouldn’t make much difference (see Habay, Jeff; Murphy, Tim). Unfortunately Corbett has made the bonus investigation a centerpiece of his campaign and if he or his staff are found to have engaged in similar activities, then I think it will cost him the election probably. For ex, I could easity see Nutt becoming radioactive.