Dean Out, Willis In

Marc Lombardi September 14, 2012 at 12:19 pm

Typical. I hope that everyone remembers this when all of the Commissioners are up for re-election. Do the commissioners have what's best for the township in mind, or do they have what's best for their own party in mind when filling these openings. I'm really disapointed that the Republicans on the board are making up for their losses in elections via this way, but we can show them with our votes in 2014 and finish the job in 2016.

Liz Barnhart September 14, 2012 at 12:20 pm

Are you kidding me? What happened to the majority of VOTERS rule?

Marc Lombardi September 14, 2012 at 12:44 pm

The majority will just have to rule in 2014 when Wachter, O'Conner, Kalinoski, Myers, Ring and DiJoseph are all up for re-election when the Even Wards are up.

Bonnie Miller September 14, 2012 at 12:46 pm

Well stated and exactly to the point. Thanks for saying this so well.

Concerned Abington Citizen September 14, 2012 at 01:12 pm

You make some interesting points but do not want to remember who started this mess. The Democrats caused this whole debacle, first with Shapiro quitting then Dean quitting. When you committ to do something do it, do not blame someone else for having to deal with what happened. Put candidates in who are committed to the present and not always looking for the next opportunity before you have finished what you committed to.
Also, if the Dems vote party line it is for the good of the Twp but when the Reps do it it is "politics." If Lomardi has sooo much to say, get involved and try to change things instead of sitting on the sidlines and throwing trash at everyone who is trying to do something positive. Everyone of those commissioners up there did so for this reason to try to make this Twp a better place. It's people like you that give government a bad rap. Get involved instead of blogging all day...

Roman Gabriel September 14, 2012 at 01:38 pm

Here is my observation: Madeline Dean is a selfish, back-stabbing, two faced lying pig. She and her enormous ego need to be clipped. Watch your back Dems, this pig will do anything to advance her political career.

Marc Lombardi September 14, 2012 at 02:04 pm

Saying things is doing things sometime, Anonymous Internet User. I at least have the conviction behind my message to not hide behind a screen name. For the record, I was involved in politcs for a few years before I left working directly with the party to instead work within the community. I volunteer with the Roslyn Events Committee and help to arrange the Pet Fair (which helps local shelters) and the Film Festival (which benefits the Roslyn Firehouse) for the past 5 years.
This is not about voting party lines. It's about the Republicans replacing commissioners who were ELECTED in Democratic-dominant wards with Republican leaders. These sham commissioners are not representative of the people. I mean, to take a guy who lost an election by 30 percentage points and put him in that role is a joke. But I expected it, because the Republican leaders know that this is their only shot to get their people in place, because the residents keep voitng them out every election. That's why the board has been swinging more and more towards democrat after each election. Montco & Abington are swinging Democrat and they know their time is running out.

John Monaghan September 14, 2012 at 02:16 pm

Marc....you won't have to hold your breath that long. The municipal elections are in "odd" years.....so the election will take place in November 2013.
Facts are hard things and the fact is that the voters kept the GOP in the majority in 2011. Could it be because our taxes are relatively lower than surrounding townships? Could it be because this township has been consistently recognized by CNN/Money magazine as one of the "100 best places to live." ? Finally, I'd suggest that you look to the leadership of your party in Abington. Ask them why some of their members cynically ran for terms that they did not expect to complete. The GOP did not ask for this. The fault lies with Mr. Benzak and Ms. Dean. So, while you count the days to November 2013, the GOP will join with the minority on the Board and the township's excellent professional staff to keep making Abington a place that people want to come to...instead of a place that they want to leave.

Tim Lewis September 14, 2012 at 02:23 pm

Liz, the VOTER majority ruled, and chose Dean. She bailed on them. And as you well know, the LAW requires the Board of Commissioners to appoint a replacement

Tim Lewis September 14, 2012 at 02:27 pm

John -- well said!

Frankie DeCat September 14, 2012 at 03:23 pm

I'm with you Roman. I didnt know that when I cast my vote for Ms. Dean to be my commisioner that she would sell out all of us who supported her. "Pig" is a little rough but, she is definately a two-faced liar and an political opportunist with a giant ego.

Marc Lombardi September 14, 2012 at 03:57 pm

John: We actually agree on a few points here. And we disagree on others.
1) Thanks for clearing that up -- you are indeed correct. The elections are in 2013 and 2015, not the even numbered years as I originally stated. 2) I do agree that the Democrats are partly to blame for this because they (we) have put up people who decided to go move to higher offices. Dean was not actually my first choice among those for Josh Shapiro's seat (frankly, I thought Lori Schreiber would have been a better choice but I'm not even sure that idea was floated amongst the committee). I don't think that Dean ran for the Commissioner's job knowing that she would run months later for Shapiro's vacated seat. If she did, then I do put this partly on her shoulders. 3) Where I really disagree is with the case of Les Benzak, who did not resign for higher office but did so because he moved to another state. I respect him for that decision in putting his family first because one cannot help his community if he cannot first be happy at home. 4) The Republicans have lost seats in the last three elections and the Democrats have gained seats. THOSE are the facts. The leadership has not changed but before these changes by attrition, the GOP held a slim 8-7 lead. Now it's 10-5. It used to be 11-4 (and 13-2 before I even moved her). Their transparent political reasoning behind these appointments is appalling and they will surely pay for it with their jobs when the voters get their say.

Jamie Maerz September 14, 2012 at 06:19 pm

This article couldn't have been written more one-sided. If the Democrat replaced Dean - who caused the whole mess when she didn't keep up her end of the bargain as Commissioner - the article would never have read that Sanchez was elected by the Board of Commissioners based on party lines. It's always ok for Democrats to vote based only on party lines, whether or not, the candidate deserves the position. The best person for the position is one that cares about the people, the township, the neighborhood, their neighbors and does not discriminate and only help those that benefit him. Matt Willis is an honorable person who will fulfill his new position to the fullest - unlike the previous Commissioner. It's funny that some people remarked that because a Democrat who had the position (and then abandoned it) should be replaced by a Democrat. And that wouldn't be voting strictly along party lines?

Roman Gabriel September 14, 2012 at 06:50 pm

Jamie, you are so correct. If it wasnt for that two faced, back stabbing , political opportunist ( and pig ) Madeleine Dean this wouldnt be an issue. Has anybody noticed how many signs bear her name at her Abington office ? What an EGO-MANIAC ! !

Regnig cares September 14, 2012 at 07:14 pm

What this world really needs to do is forget about Democrats Republicans, Independents, Conservatives, Tea Party, etc. It would stop all this petty nonsense that goes on - what we really need is to all be one - things would hopefully better themselves - this is a perfect case scenario. A bunch of adults spending their time on Republicans and Democrats. It's about time, if this world is to survive, that these politicians stop trying to out do each other and make all these promises that nine times out of ten they know they aren't going to keep. It might not be their fault - there are too many voices involved in government and its all about which party is going to win. This isn't the World Series, the Superbowl, the Stanley Cup playoffs, the Olympics, etc. This is people making decisions that will affect all our lives.
They need to consider the lives of all affected by decisions they are making. It doesn't matter if you went to a highly recommended college, the local community college or just managed to graduate high school. Maybe you didn't graduate at all and that's fine too. What the world really needs to do is: Forget Change - Bring Back Common Sense

Ronald Maerz Jr September 14, 2012 at 10:59 pm

If the shoe were on the other foot and the dem's were in the majority, they would have done the same thing and appointed a fellow democrat. The way to stop this from happening is to serve out the term and position you ran for, period!

Dale Wynn September 15, 2012 at 03:59 am

I concur more with Mr. Lombardi politically (although I am a proud INDEPENDENT), but in a way I agree procedurally with the point that Mr. Maerz is making. The nine Republican commissioners would have saved time and shown unprecedented candor if they simply verbalized what is obviously their attitude, an example of which would be "We are the majority. We want fellow Republicans in as many commissioner seats as possible, so we will ALWAYS appoint a Republican -- ANY Republican -- instead of a Democrat regardless of the applicants' qualifications, the expressed will of the residents, the electoral history of the ward, or any other factor. We do this now because we are the majority, and we will continue to do this until we are no longer the majority." Saying that would have been brutally frank, because, again, this hypothetical statement clearly corresponds to their attitude. Where I disagree is with the assumption that the Democratic commissioners would have done the same thing were the roles reversed. No, the aforementioned attitude is the product of the Republican commissioners' sense of entitlement, which comes from (1) enjoying majority status on the Board of Commissioners for almost thirty contiguous years and (2) realizing in desperation that this status will soon end due to changes in local viewpoints, vision, and demographics. I'm not saying that there are no Democrats anywhere who would appoint only fellow Democrats in a similar scenario. I am simply [CONTINUED BELOW]

Dale Wynn September 15, 2012 at 03:59 am

[CONTINUED FROM ABOVE] saying that such Democratic elected officials exist only (or at least primarily) in communities in which they enjoy a seemingly "eternal" majority similar to the one that Abington's Republican commissioners have enjoyed. Take Philadelphia as an example. However, I do not believe that Abington's Democratic commissioners -- Ms. Schreiber and Messrs. Bowman, Kline, Luker, and Spiegelman -- would automatically appoint a Democrat regardless of any other consideration (though given their recent experiences with their Republican colleagues, perhaps they would now be so inclined). I DO believe that of the Republican commissioners who will be on the ballot in 2013 -- Mmes. DiJoseph and Myers and Messrs. Kalinoski, O'Connor, Ring, Wachter, and Willis -- certainly some, likely many, and possibly all will pay a heavy electoral toll for their comportment during these two recent appointments. Moreover, I believe that their odd-ward Republican colleagues -- Mrs. Gillespie and Messrs. Gaglianese and Zappone -- will spend 2014 gaining firsthand knowledge of what it feels like to be the minority party on the Abington Township Board of Commissioners.