Both Shahzad and Ocasio may well be filing discrimination suits. On the back burner is a discrimination investigation championed by Zucal.
The rumor mill has Zucal considering a run for mayor come election time. I've come to believe that any current candidate has to have some Hispanic flavor, only if it's just a hint of Cuban coffee, as in Tuerk's case.
Shown above courtesy of the floor, at a recent city council meeting.
It's no secret the Matt is seen as very weak and the vultures are starting to circle. Once Matt is perceived as finished the vultures will fight over the carcass, that's when it will get really interesting.
ReplyDeleteMike this guy has been and will continue to play with the insider trading club of Allentown pa. Just like many of his mentors that got him voted in as mayor he works with the spin doctors trying to sell everything as a positive when facts remain in the negative and getting further further into the red with each passing day.
ReplyDeleteJust wondering is he receiving any unaccounted campain contributions as gifts from the spin doctor club as allentown goes down the toilet?
As a Tuerk supporter in the last election, I'll agree that his performance has been subpar. Hiring Shahzad was a major blunder, the proposed 7% tax hike was a stupid idea and I really detest his public persona of white male guilt. That said, I still support him, he is a good person/positive public persona for Allentown, brings a lot of good skills to the table and has avoided making a total mess of the City (yes..i set the bar pretty low at this point). Since the other possible candidates will make a total mess out of Allentown, I'd way rather keep Tuerk for another 4 year term.
ReplyDeleteWhat Allentown needs, and does not have is any way to recall elected officials through "no confidence" votes.
ReplyDeleteIf an official has a loss of confidence, they should be made to stand for a special election the next scheduled election date to determine if they can finish their term or be replaced temporarily by someone else to finish their term.
Voters elect them, and it should be the voters who can choose to replace or retain them in office after a no confidence vote.
This could work for both school board members as well as city officials.
At 8:06 - so you’re saying that Tuerk should stay because you have adjusted your bar to the lowest level possible to accommodate Matt’s inept leadership and management? That makes a lot of sense. My vote will definitely cancel yours.
ReplyDeleteYou got someone better in mind??? Given the election is decided during the Democratic Party primary, I'm terrified every 4 years of who might win. You might not like him, but he's no Roy Afflerbach, Ed Pawlowski or even worse future candidates who might run.
DeleteI'd rather have Pawlowski back, crooked and all rather than this incompetent leftist who is more interested in wokeness and dividing all of Allentown up into separate ethnic groups
DeleteAt least Pawlowski knew how to run the city and be a mayor.
When I hear residents say, Ed knew how to run the city I want to scream. I blame the Morning Call for such ignorance. Ed did not know how to run the city for Allentown's betterment, Ed knew how to run the city for his betterment and that is exactly what he did until the FBI put a stop to it and a jury threw him in jail where he remains. Everything thing he did, every decision he made was based on what was best for him and his political ambition. In this regard he fired anyone and everyone in city hall who had enough integrity to question what he was doing. He replaced them with out of town hacks. Every bureau, every department, every board and commission was repopulated with Ed yes men and women. He did the same with council and hand picked and financed the campaigns of city controllers. This in itself is a gross violation of political ethics that the media chose to ignore. In order not to raise taxes he sold the water works. That was his most selfish act, the water works provided revenue to the city and low water rates to city residents. But Ed could proclaim, he solved the city's fiscal problems, wouldn't raise taxes, and immediately announced he was running for some higher office. I could go on. Long story short, that is how Ed ran the city, by screwing us!
DeleteGreat post...you'll likely never see Tuerk's spouse bragging on Facebook about their new mancave built and paid for by city contractors or you'll likely never hear of Tuerk getting comped free meals at Johnny Mananas!
Deleteanon@7:12: I have never heard any credible integrity accusations against Tuerk. I have received anonymous comments "suggesting" the possibility. Such comments are not published.
DeleteThere is no room for niceness in Politics. As far as I can tell Matt believed he could lead by being so. The predators and self servers who populate our city government see niceness and related characteristics as weaknesses to be exploited. This is obvious to anyone who has served in public office. Matt is learning this lesson now. Let's see if he can ajust.
ReplyDeleteAnon 1:40 said: “At least Pawlowski knew how to run the city and be a mayor.”
ReplyDeleteYou mean by selling his office for campaign contributions and shaking down city businesses for freebies? You can’t be serious.
Pawlowski politicized neighborhood and youth groups, and destroyed those who wouldn’t do his bidding. He raised city taxes across the board and implemented new ones. Under his watch, the city became the largest recipient of municipal welfare (the NIZ) in the state.
He was every bit as inept as Tuerk, but without an ethical bone in his body. The only reason you didn’t find out who he was earlier is because he bought off the struggling newspaper that was supposed to be a watchdog for city residents.
There’s a reason why the “local newspaper” no longer has an office (anywhere) and is published out-of-state, and it’s the same reason that Pawlowski continues to rot in a prison cell. If you ask me, they both got what they deserved.
If Pawlowski were here and still Mayor you’d have the same failed programs that Tuerk has implemented. There is little rational thought behind the policies that all democrat politicians have put in place across the country, and even less care as to whether they work. The purpose of these policies is to buy and hold political power (using our money, of course), and that is the only measure that matters to those who implement them.
If Tuerk was truly making decisions this could be a conversation. He is being pulled and puppeted from several directions. JB Reilly, "Pastor" Greg Edwards, "Dr" Hassan Batts just a few of those pulling the strings. He continues to scream " I'm a real boy" but Pinocchios nose keeps growing and the City is suffering. His chickens will come home to roost soon and he will save himself by outting his puppeteers! Allentown needs something, not sure what that something is but definitely needs something.
ReplyDeleteJust look at the picture from council shared above. No real person in leadership or in a position of power would turn there back on conflict. As tension arose he sat with his back turned making no attempt to deescalate the situation. He is too worried about his appearance and less concerned with leading the City in a better direction.
ReplyDeleteThe folks of Allentown should feel discriminated. Rumor has it 95% of the people and 100% of department heads don't live in the city. His cabinet lives in Freemonsburg, Whitehall, Bethlehem, Macungie, and Emmaus. Does he not believe in the people of Allentown.
ReplyDelete“His cabinet lives in Freemonsburg, Whitehall, Bethlehem, Macungie, and Emmaus.”
DeleteNow there’s some real diversity that he’s giving us!
What would be accomplished by making City employees live in Allentown? I'll bet some of the worst employees ever were City residents. If you think hiring good employees is important, you would be crazy to tell them they have to move to Allentown. What would be gained by such a policy? The City ought to be seeking out the most qualified and competent employees.
DeleteAs a city employee stated to me "you have to be nuts to live in Allentown"... and there ya go!!! Enough said.
Deleteanon@4:16: although the Morning Call promoted the NIZ, and its building was inappropriately included in the zone map, their physical departure from Allentown was a corporate decision out of local control.
ReplyDeleteanon@5:50: I don't believe that residency requirements would help the employment pool for Allentown, on the contrary.
I believe that city employees who live in the city would be more invested in the outcomes of quality of life in our city. In addition, I don’t like that my tax dollars are paying salaries and pensions. And don’t get me started on pensions. They are a thing of the past a drain on our city. Government workers should be involved in 401(k) contributions with matches from the employer. Not a straight out handout. I talked to one former city employee now we’re tired, he told me he left a higher paying job for the pension.
ReplyDeleteI disagree about city employees being "more invested in the quality of the city", if they live there. That's nonsense. I'd prefer dedicated, qualified and hard working employees regardless of where they live. I know of a local government where the worst, most self-serving employees were all residents. I believe Marge Szulborski was a resident employee at Lower Macungie Township and we saw how that turned out. A residency requirement would only serve to limit the city's chances of actually getting dedicated, qualified and hard working employees. Nearly all local governments have moved away from defined benefit pensions for administrative employees in favor of 401 K type retirement plans, so you are correct that they are a thing of the past.
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