Just a quick note to mention that we got a press release tonight from Russ Diamond declaring his candidacy for State House in the 101st district. Here’s what he had to say:
“The people of Lebanon County deserve a representative in Harrisburg who
actually supports, obeys and defends our state constitution,” said Diamond.
“My candidacy is a natural extension of the PACleanSweep mission – replacing career politicians with energetic, effective leaders who can deliver change instead of just talking about it.”
We won’t hold our breath, but knowing Diamond, he’ll make the race interesting!
cleansweep
Cleansweep is dead and Diamond is once again showing that his only interest in cleansweep was to position him to run for office.
LV
Cleansweep
That is what always troubled me about Russ. It does appear that his efforts at reform were meant to propel him into office. We expect this sort of petty ambition from the pols, not the reformers. It appears that in PA, “reform” is just another way to grasp power.
Diamond
It seems that almost any one seeking to “serve the public” is only trying to serve themselves these days. Diamond is exhibiting that behavior today – who’s to say it won’t happen IF (I strongly emphasizes the largenss of that word) elected?
genuinejake
IF (I too would like to
IF (I too would like to emphasizes the immensity of this word) Russ were able to cleary get across his political philosophy, position on pressing issues, and strongly center himself on the Reform issue, as opposed to leveraging it for his own personal gain, he still would need a miracle.
I say this because I doubt his ability to successfully deal with the competing interests that find themselves squabling over a limit amount of state resources. Conficts can almost always be interupted in a negaitve light – necessary confidentiality becomes goverment secrecy. How will Russ’s strongest supporters (those who strongly subscribe to the political philosophy of liberalism) react when transparency seems to come into question?
JM
So what?
PACleanSweep did play a vital role in fighting the unconstitutional pay raise. If Russ Diamond used PACleanSweep to enhance his political profile and propel himself into office, then so what? I honestly don’t see anything wrong with that. Who says that public office has to be 100% selfless. I view rational egoism as a virtue not a vice; as long as it’s in line with the best interest of the public. The public obviously will decide what their best interests are at the voting booth. As long as Russ Diamond stands firmly behind his principles, then I see no problem. It’s easy for Pennsylvanian’s to criticize Russ Diamond for being an “opportunist”, but I don’t see many other Pennsylvanian’s stepping forward and fighting for positive change. Don’t criticize the man unless your willing to step into to political ring and throw some jabs.
jeremiah.luttrell@gmail.com
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