Haverford Republican Political Machine - Comments at Oct 11, 2011 Commissioners Meeting
In his 2003 book “Ruling Suburbia”, John McLarnon III, Ph.D., describes the stranglehold that the Delaware County Republican machine has had on Delaware County for over 100 years! The Republican machine has also ruled Haverford Township for decades.
The book describes the machine’s recipe for power:
Why do you care?
Because the machine exists to feed itself first. And that costs all of us more money.
Contributions and Contracts
To understand the contributions, I’ve recently re-launched the Haverford Blog at www.HaverfordBlog.com to serve as a publicly available source of campaign finance reports. The reports of Republican candidates and the Haverford Republican Party show the records of thousands of dollars in contributions from people who do business with Haverford Township. These include 3 solicitors, the Township’s insurance provider, engineering services providers, and various outside political action committees (PACs). In commissioner races, a few thousand dollars makes a big difference. I’m the only candidate in the 7th Ward race who takes no contributions from people who do business with the Township, and if elected, I never will. Mr. Wecshler has indicated he self-finances his campaign. Everyone else? Check their reports and judge for yourself. Remember that Commissioner candidates and District Judge candidates often get contributions from their local party too.
Jobs
Haverford Township voter registration is almost equally divided; I believe it’s now about 46% Republican, 45% Democrat, 9% Independent or Other. Party affiliation data is public information, though most people not involved in politics don’t know how to access it.
The biggest budget items in the Township are for staffing, but the jobs don’t match the registration split.
I preface my next remarks by saying that I’m not personally identifying any individuals, nor am I blaming any individual employee for the current status quo - that the Republican machine controls the jobs.
As listed on the Township website, the Haverford Police have about 70 officers plus admin staff. Of these, 52 are Republicans, 3 are Democrats, 4 are NP/Other, and the rest, about 23 more, are either common names where registration could not be determined or they are from outside Delaware and Montgomery Counties.
Why is this? The Civil Service Commission is all Republicans and Jim Knapp, the Haverford Republican Party Chairman, is also the Chairman of the Civil Service Commission that recommends police appointments. What kind of message does that send to an applicant? I call on Mr. Knapp to give up his seat when his term expires at the end of this year.
On the Township Admin staff, 41 are Republicans, 6 are Democrats, 1 is NP, and 7 could not be determined.
Further, if you look at the various boards, particularly the powerful Zoning Board and Planning Commission, there is an overwhelming majority of Republicans.
Obviously these lopsided numbers are no coincidence. Jobs feed the Republican machine and help them maintain control.
Services
The Republican strategy is to control the services that the residents receive. They have taught their constituents to call their Commissioner to “get things done”, especially in the 7th ward. Sometimes it’s just an extra step to get the services that taxpayers have coming to them, because they already paid for them. Other times, Commissioners work outside the system to get “free” services for favored residents. Except this stuff isn’t free - we all pay for it. Either way, Commissioners can claim credit for providing services.
I propose a centralized system where all residents are treated equally and fairly and no one gets services that they are not entitled to and the rest of us pay for.
Conclusion
It’s no coincidence that the Haverford Blog logo is a flashlight. It is my sincere hope that by shining a light on the workings of the Republican machine in Haverford Township, the residents will see what’s going on and elect representatives who serve their interests only. The machine cares most about keeping itself in power. Why do you care? Because we all pay for it with our tax dollars that feed the Haverford Republican political machine.
(As written, there may have been slight variations in delivery.)
The book describes the machine’s recipe for power:
- Contributions
- Contracts
- Jobs
- Controlling Services
Why do you care?
Because the machine exists to feed itself first. And that costs all of us more money.
To understand the contributions, I’ve recently re-launched the Haverford Blog at www.HaverfordBlog.com to serve as a publicly available source of campaign finance reports. The reports of Republican candidates and the Haverford Republican Party show the records of thousands of dollars in contributions from people who do business with Haverford Township. These include 3 solicitors, the Township’s insurance provider, engineering services providers, and various outside political action committees (PACs). In commissioner races, a few thousand dollars makes a big difference. I’m the only candidate in the 7th Ward race who takes no contributions from people who do business with the Township, and if elected, I never will. Mr. Wecshler has indicated he self-finances his campaign. Everyone else? Check their reports and judge for yourself. Remember that Commissioner candidates and District Judge candidates often get contributions from their local party too.
Jobs
Haverford Township voter registration is almost equally divided; I believe it’s now about 46% Republican, 45% Democrat, 9% Independent or Other. Party affiliation data is public information, though most people not involved in politics don’t know how to access it.
The biggest budget items in the Township are for staffing, but the jobs don’t match the registration split.
I preface my next remarks by saying that I’m not personally identifying any individuals, nor am I blaming any individual employee for the current status quo - that the Republican machine controls the jobs.
As listed on the Township website, the Haverford Police have about 70 officers plus admin staff. Of these, 52 are Republicans, 3 are Democrats, 4 are NP/Other, and the rest, about 23 more, are either common names where registration could not be determined or they are from outside Delaware and Montgomery Counties.
Why is this? The Civil Service Commission is all Republicans and Jim Knapp, the Haverford Republican Party Chairman, is also the Chairman of the Civil Service Commission that recommends police appointments. What kind of message does that send to an applicant? I call on Mr. Knapp to give up his seat when his term expires at the end of this year.
On the Township Admin staff, 41 are Republicans, 6 are Democrats, 1 is NP, and 7 could not be determined.
Further, if you look at the various boards, particularly the powerful Zoning Board and Planning Commission, there is an overwhelming majority of Republicans.
Obviously these lopsided numbers are no coincidence. Jobs feed the Republican machine and help them maintain control.
Services
The Republican strategy is to control the services that the residents receive. They have taught their constituents to call their Commissioner to “get things done”, especially in the 7th ward. Sometimes it’s just an extra step to get the services that taxpayers have coming to them, because they already paid for them. Other times, Commissioners work outside the system to get “free” services for favored residents. Except this stuff isn’t free - we all pay for it. Either way, Commissioners can claim credit for providing services.
I propose a centralized system where all residents are treated equally and fairly and no one gets services that they are not entitled to and the rest of us pay for.
Conclusion
(As written, there may have been slight variations in delivery.)
Labels: 7th ward, campaign finance, Chrzan for Change, Commissioners, Commissioners meeting, Haverford Blog, Haverford Republican political machine, Haverford Township, Jim McGarrity, Larry Chrzan
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