StopLouBarletta.com

An article in the Scranton Times today talks about how Mayor Lou Barletta has rolled out two ads criticizing his opponent, Representative Paul Kanjorski, on various issues. Barletta’s ads slam Kanjorski for helping to get Federal funding for a local business (owned by his family), funding for a public parking garage (to be named after him), and for comments he made about Democratic promises to bring American troops home. Considering Barletta’s record (which is filled with possible illegal bank loans and connections to drug dealers), Barletta would be well served to keep his mouth shut.

Consider this: Lou Barletta has accepted campaign donations from convicted cocaine dealers. Worse, he went on to actually defend these drug dealers as “honorable people”. He has also accepted campaign contributions from Senator Ted Stevens, who has been indicted by a Federal grand jury for accepting bribes from oil lobbyists. There is also controversy surrounding a “loan” made to Barletta by a local bank back in 2002 for $65,000. Barletta has yet to pay back ANY of the “loan”.

Let’s also consider Barletta’s record as mayor of Hazleton. One of his first acts as mayor was to slash the police force in half, then blame the resulting increase in crime on a made-up “illegal immigrant crime wave.” To add insult to injury, Barletta then attempted to defend his extremist “Illegal Immigration Relief Act” in Federal Court. To do so, he used millions of dollars of Hazleton tax dollars…without actually receiving authorization from the Hazleton city council. Hazleton is now strapped with debt and has gained a reputation as one of the most ethnically-intolerant cities in America.

Despite all of this, however, Barletta still has the nerve to launch attacks on his opponent’s reputation. Obviously, Lou Barletta can’t run on his own reputation because, quite honestly, his reputation smells worse than week-old garbage. Barletta is a liar and readily accepts money from convicted cocaine dealers. He is clearly in no position to talk poorly of anyone else.

Lou Barletta is an embarrassment to his city, to Pennsylvania, and to all honest Americans. The fact that this creep is trying to run for Congress is sickening. Mayor Barletta, if elected to the United States Congress, would only continue shame his community and disappoint his constituents. Lou Barletta should not be elected to Congress.

-Dan Cheek
www.StopLouBarletta.com
StopLouBarletta@gmail.com

The following video, which was brought to my attention by one of the readers of this website, is part of a series of YouTube videos produced by “LoserLou2008.”  To see all of LoserLou2008′s videos, click HERE.

Note: StopLouBarletta.com is not, in any way, associated with LoserLou2008  However, I do think the videos are all very good.  And much better than any of Lou Barletta’s YouTube stuff.

-Dan Cheek
www.StopLouBarletta.com
StopLouBarletta@gmail.com

To learn about Mayor Lou Barletta’s fundraising troubles, click HERE.

What do you do if you’re a Congressional candidate and honest, law abiding citizens won’t give you any money to help fund your campaign?  Take it from dirty, sleazy criminals and former criminals!  That’s exactly what Lou Barletta is doing.  In addition to accepting $2,000 from two men who were involved in a cocaine distribution ring, Mayor Barletta has also accepted campaign donations from Senator Ted Stevens (R – Alaska).

Senator Stevens, for those that don’t know, was recently indicted by a Federal Grand Jury for accepting gifts and kickbacks from lobbyists.  Stevens is the first US Senator to be indicted, for anything, since 1993.  Senator Stevens is accused of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in gifts from oil lobbyists.  He is also under investigation for sponsoring fishing legislation that may have been used to help his son, who is also a lobbyist.

To quote CBS News…

“From May 1999 to August 2007, prosecutors said, the 84-year-old senator concealed “his continuing receipt of hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of things of value from a private corporation.”

The indictment unsealed Tuesday says the items included: home improvements to his vacation home in Alaska, including a new first floor, garage, wraparound deck, plumbing, electrical wiring; as well as a Viking gas grill, furniture and tools. He also was accused of failing to report swapping an old Ford for a new Land Rover to be driven by one of his children.

Prosecutors said Stevens received more than $250,000 in gifts and services from VECO Corp., a powerful oil services contractor, and its executives.”

Mayor Lou Barletta has accepted $1000 from the Northern Lights Political Action Committee (PAC), a PAC that is run by Senator Ted Stevens.  Naturally, Representative Paul Kanjorski, Barletta’s opponent, has called on Barletta to give the money back.  And, predictably, the Barletta camp has so far refused.  Just like they’ve refused to give back the $2,000 that they’ve accepted from the DiAngelo brothers, who were both involved, extensively, with the Empire Drug Ring.

And why won’t Mayor Barletta give this dirty money back?  Well, I think it comes down to two reasons.  First, Lou Barletta is perfectly comfortable with accepting money from criminals.  Otherwise, you know, he would give the money back.  But he hasn’t.  Second, Mayor Barletta can’t afford to give the money back.  His campaign is hurting for money and he needs every single penny he can get his hands on.  Desperate people will do desperate things, I suppose.

All of this leads to one conclusion: Lou Barletta has no business being elected to the United States Congress.  He has shown a total disregard for anything resembling ethical behavior and his campaign is already tainted with dirty money from people who have been indicted, and in some cases, convicted of major criminal offenses.  With all of his ties to criminals, Lou Barletta should not be elected to the United States Congress.

-Dan Cheek
www.StopLouBarletta.com
StopLouBarletta@gmail.com

Recently, Mayor Lou Barletta threw a temper tantrum because he claimed a poll being conducted by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) was full of “false statements” and was being used to give people the wrong impression about him.  According to Barletta, this poll was a dirty political trick and was based on lies and not fact.  Um….not really.

Barletta claims that the questions being asked in this poll, which was conducted over the telephone and administered to several people, asked questions that implied unflattering things about Barletta.  According to Mayor Barletta’s Campaign…

“The campaign blames the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee for a “push poll” that attacks Barletta’s Italian heritage, Hazleton business owners and economic development leaders, and insults the city police department.”

Vince Galko, Mayor Barletta’s campaign manager, went on to explain…

“The poll included questions that implied Barletta has ties to organized crime, half of Hazleton’s storefronts are empty and the city went through a crime wave because the mayor laid off police officers — none of which is true, he said.”

The part of that quote that I’d like to focus on is the part where Mr. Galko says, “..none of which is true.”  Obviously, Vince Galko is in the dark about a few things.  That, or he’s just a bold faced liar.  Allow me to explain.

First, let’s take the “accusation” that Barletta has ties to organized crime.  No, Mayor Barletta has never been convicted of anything and he’s probably not smart enough to be the leader of some secret crime syndicate.  However, some of Barletta’s friends and campaign supporters do have ties to organized crime.

• Paul DeAngelo was, in 1994, sentenced to 18 months in prison for being a part of the Empire Drug Ring, a New York City based drug ring that was distributing cocaine all accross Luzerne County.  Paul DeAngelo, along with his brother, bought Lou Barletta’s line painting business in 2000.  He also just recently donated $1000 to Lou Barletta’s Congressional Campaign.  Barletta is refusing to give the money back and has defended Mr. DeAngelo.
• Neal DeAngelo was also involved in the Empire Drug Ring, however, unlike his brother, he was able to avoid jail time because he snitched on other members of the ring.  He also just recently gave $1000 to Lou Barletta’s Congressional Campaign.
• Francis Scarcella was, for a long time, a close political ally of Lou Barletta.  In 2006, he was indicted, and later convicted, of being involved in a stolen travelers check scheme.  Scarcella served in various positions in Lou Barletta’s administration and also served as a Hazleton School Board member.

So, as you can see, the “accusation” that Mayor Lou Barletta has ties to organized crime has nothing to do with his “Italian heritage”, but rather, the fact that several of his friends were, at one time, directly involved with organized crime.  So the statement that “Lou Barletta has ties to organized crime” is actually spot on and very much accurate.

Next, let’s consider the “accusation” that Mayor Lou Barletta’s cuts in the police force had nothing to do with crime in Hazleton exploding.  Here are the facts: One of Mayor Barletta’s first acts as mayor was to cut the Hazleton police force in half.  Shortly after, crime in Hazleton began to rise.  To say that reducing, by half, the number of Hazleton police officers had nothing to do with the increase in crime is just stupid.  It did.

Finally, let’s look at the “accusation” that businesses in Hazleton are leaving.  Um, they are.  Are all businesses closing?  No, but several businesses, especially smaller family owned businesses, are on the decline.  For proof of this, just drive around Hazleton.  You can see all the empty store fronts.  So, again, this “accusation” is less of an accusation and more of a fact.

Mayor Lou Barletta would like you to believe that the DCCC has no idea what they are talking about and all of the “accusations” they brought up were nothing more than desperate fantasies.  However, as I just pointed out, all of these accusations are at least backed by more than a few facts.  As a candidate for the United States Congress, Lou Barletta needs to come clean on all of these issues and stop hiding from them.  For all of these reasons and more, Lou Barletta does not deserve to be elected to the United States Congress.

-Dan Cheek
www.StopLouBarletta.com
StopLouBarletta@gmail.com

Mayor Lou Barletta, who is running for Congress against Representative Paul Kanjorski, has accepted $2,000 is campaign donations from two men who were once involved with a Luzerne County cocaine ring.  According to FEC campaign donation records, and as reported by the Citizens Voice, the Barletta campaign has accepted $1,000 each from Paul and Neal DeAngelo.  Worse, Barletta says he has no intention of giving the money back.

As reported by the Citizens Voice…

“The list of contributors to Republican congressional candidate Lou Barletta includes two brothers who were once entangled in a southern Luzerne County cocaine-distribution ring but are now prominent businessmen there.

Paul and Neal DeAngelo, the owners of DBiServices Inc., each gave Barletta $1,000 on March 28.

In 1994, Paul DeAngelo was sentenced to 18 months in jail for his role in the Empire drug ring, which operated in the late 1980s. He was released in 1995.

As a government witness in the trial of another ring member, Neal DeAngelo, who was not charged, testified that Luzerne County Judge Michael T. Conahan called him in 1986 to say Paul DeAngelo was doing business with a cocaine dealer who was being investigated. The judge, according to the testimony, offered to put them in touch with a Florida dealer, Neal DeAngelo testified.”

Despite all of this, Mayor Lou Barletta says he has no plans on giving any of the money back.  In fact, showing flashes of his famous temper, Barletta blasted his opponent, Paul Kanjorski, for “shopping the story around to reporters.”  He then went on to defend these two men, saying…

“These two guys (the DeAngelos) made a mistake,” Barletta said. “They paid their dues and through honest, hard work they built a business that is one of the biggest in Hazleton.

Paul Kanjorski wants to drag these guys through the mud,” Barletta said. “Paul Kanjorski should be trying to get more companies like DBi to our area.”

So, in addition to slashing the Hazleton Police Force in half, resulting in a massive surge in crime, Mayor Lou Barletta is also accepting campaign donations from men who have been involved with cocaine distribution.  And when confronted with this information, he then defends these men and their character and refuses to give any of the money back.  Oh, and how dare Paul Kanjorski even bring this up?

Lou Barletta is a career liar.  He has run Hazleton into the ground.  His police force cuts have resulted in massive crime spikes.  Businesses are closing, on a regular basis, in Hazleton.  Many former storefronts are now sitting empty.  The city is being squeezed by legal bills incurred as a result of Mayor Barletta’s failed attempt to defend his extremist immigration policy in court.  And on top of it all, he is taking money from men who admitted to being involved with a drug trafficking operation.

This is why I am sickened to see Lou Barletta represent the Republican Party in this election.  Barletta is a disgrace of a man, an embarrassment to both Hazleton and the Republican Party, and a joke of a congressional candidate.  Clearly, Lou Barletta should not be elected to the United States Congress.

See also: For $250,000, Lou Barletta Might Run for Congress and Barletta Struggling to Raise Funds

-Dan Cheek
www.StopLouBarletta.com
StopLouBarletta@gmail.com