09-07-2007, 07:34 AM
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Cannoli GURU!
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Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Roxborough (down in the valley)
Posts: 2,895
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Cambell vs Jones - The Rematch!
http://www.philly.com/dailynews/loca...ad_loser_.html
Quote:
IS CITY Councilwoman Carol Campbell poisoning the well of the man who beat her in the May Democratic primary?
Or does Curtis Jones have a closet so full of skeletons that voters in the 4th Council District are getting a bad case of buyer's remorse?
"I've never seen so many people deny voting for someone in my life," says Campbell.
Well, somebody nominated Jones, who beat Campbell by 446 votes in a three-way race with lawyer Matt McClure in which each got roughly one-third of the votes cast. The district stretches from West Philly to East Falls, Manayunk and Roxborough.
It's what happened next that makes it seem like the campaign never ended:
* In May, Jones was caught on camera by Channel 6 screaming at a little old lady in a dispute about the condition of anti-crime-surveillance cameras installed by the Philadelphia Commercial Development Corp., which Jones headed before his Council run.
* Later that month, the Daily News reported that the feds had liens against Jones for nonpayment of taxes and that he'd abandoned two horses at a Fairmount Park equestrian stable.
* In June, the Daily News reported that Jones had falsified his educational background in his official biography.
* In July, a man was shot and killed outside a Chinese restaurant at 54th and Arlington in full view of a PCDC surveillance camera that wasn't working.
* In August, the Daily News revealed that city Inspector General Seth Williams was probing whether Jones improperly used a PCDC car. And on Page 14 today, another story says Williams is also probing a $60,000 severance payment to Jones from PCDC.
Whew! That's a lot of heat for a guy who hasn't even been sworn in.
Jones' supporters grumble that the steady stream of bad news is being orchestrated by Campbell. She has, they say, told allies that she will be back in the seat within two years.
Campbell, meanwhile, says that far from being an instigator, she's been a victim.
An unabashed advocate for the city's Democratic machine, Campbell says the news media were so intent on knocking her off, they did no hard digging on Jones until after the election.
"People came to me with all kinds of information about him, but I didn't do anything with it and neither did the media," she said. "I think it's sad. The people in this district deserve better."
Jones declined to cite a source for his troubles in a statement released yesterday. He also predicted that he'd be cleared by the inspector general.
"Due to the anonymous nature of the supposed allegations, I do not believe that it is appropriate, or useful to speculate about the specific origin of those allegations, except to acknowledge that following a very contentious and spirited three-way primary, there is always likely to be heightened attention upon whomever the victor is, especially when I ran on an earned reputation as in independent thinker and a reform-minded leader," the statement read.
"I believe that this whole affair will turn out to be an unfortunate and poor but obligatory use of time for the inspector general and his staff, not to mention those who would make these allegations," the statement added. "I believe that the facts will illustrate the baseless nature of the allegations."
In other words, whether or not Campbell has brought this plague of locusts upon him, he just wants it to stop.
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Geez. These are our representatives, current and future? Why, Matt, Why? 
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4 out of 5 Baptist divorcees want gays to stop undermining the sanctity of marriage!
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