Skeletons in the GOP operative's closet

The Pinellas Reagan Day dinner headlined by Giuliani Friday was a big success, despite revelations that local party leaders had tapped as the lead organizer a man convicted dealing in stolen state computers and once charged with extorting a student of his to watch porn and masturbate. That charge was dropped at the request of the accuser. Barry S. Edwards, 45, stepped down aschairman of the dinner after the Miami Herald reported his record.

Edwards did not return calls, but Pinellas GOP chairman Tony DiMatteo, who said he's known Edwards for years, said he stepped down to avoid becoming a distraction. Edwards' clients include state Rep. Peter Nehr, R-Tarpon Springs, who said he knew of the 1999 conviction and would keep working with him because everybody deserves forgiveness.

Comments

First Cappelli, then Schorsch, now Edwards. Didn't they all work together?

We have our political issues in Hillsborough, but Pinellas is just f*cked up

[Peter]

Wow, it's going to be a busy day on the blogs, isn't it. How did I get roped in with Cappeli?

And about Barry, not that my defense of him will matter here, but why on earth is this news. What he did happened ten years ago. The entire world has moved on; is he not suppose to be involved in public life ever again. Is there anyone involved in local politics that didn't already know about this already? TEN YEARS AGO. I bet if we look through ANYONE'S LIFE over the last ten years we will find a skeleton or two. God knows we learned that lesson that hard way this weekend. Shame on anyone who attacks someone for what occurred ten years ago!

[endofourtime]

Maybe Nehr can forgive Couey, and get him real cheap from prison work release.

got a question for a serious, well-informed psychologist/psychiatrist:

isnt it true, that in repeated 'tests', folks who protest homosexuality most vigoriously , are likewise the folks who seem to show the most arrousal/interest when shown homosexual literature, fotos, movies, tec., etc.

what are we to make of that?

a less formal question:

what is with these repiglicans and their sexual inappropriatness?

can any one of them be trusted with anything or are they all corrupt to the core????

Nehr is in an unsafe seat....not a good decision.

[Peter]

Endofourtime: Are you attempting to compare a one-time grand theft charge with the murder of a young girl? Do you realize that what you are doing is not insulting Edwards or Nehr, or even yourself, but the memory of an innocent child. Poor form. Poor form.

[endofourtime]

Peter, It seems to be a job requirement for the Republicans to have a ten year old skeleton in their closets. One must either have a history of sexual perversion, or be an accomplished thief.
Perhaps we should wait twenty years, or at least since the hiree last got caught.

[Avery]

Without Edwards, I think Zimmermann can beat Nehr.

[Demanding Answers]

I heard last week the Pinellas County party has another thief on staff.. I want answers! Who is he/she? Who is MG and what is this MG scandal?

Somebody better pipe up or iIll never give another dime to the party or any candidate.

Chairman Domatheo what are you hiding? Get your head out of your martini glass and tell us.

This is disgusting, all the way from craig, foley,bob allen to jim smith, John Byran and all the corrupt commissioners, to our local party..What the hell is going on? Must you be a thief and pervert to work for the law and order GOP?

Who else are you protecting Dimattheo?

I wonder what Tony “The Meatball” DiMatteo has to say about John Bryan, a St. Pete Republican and right hand man to Tricky Rick Baker?

I suppose Bryan molested his foster children… then killed himself to “… avoid becoming a distraction.”… aye Tony?

Anything for the Party I guess… hypocritical freaks.

[endofourtime]

10:02, The Republican party has been a happy co-conspirator since the turn of the century in what amounts to neo-con treason. And speaking of the memory of a little girl, think about all the women at the Republican convention who were pictured sporting band-aids with purple hearts emblazoned upon them. Why not denigrate all those wounded and killed patriots who kept America free so it could be stolen, again, in the 2004 elections?

[endofourtime]

Demanding Answers, What, a Republican staffer stole Di Matteo's MG?

10:18 - try to put together a thought that doesn't start around the invention of the lightbulb and end with some weak allegation about 2004.

oh, and please don't use your faux "we support the troops" crap when your side hates everything the military stands for - duty, honor, and most of all country.

[PCREC Member]

Please stop this...Demanding answers, whoever you are, you need to let the past stay in the past and quit bringing up old issues.

Most of us know about MG as you say, and what happened, and we have moved on, you should too, for the good of the party. Tony knew everything and made a decision to rehire her, so lets leave it to his judgement. Nothing was ever proven. Just like Paul made his decison to ask her to leave, this was tony's decison to bring her back. This is not a republican scandal like the ones you have listed

There are systems in place now, to prevent anything happening again.

The only person employed at the party is Marilyn. So what are you saying "Demanding Answers?"

This is incredible. Does the local republican party have a scandal magnet?

[EK]

Stop this immediately! She is a long time loyal employee and this is wrong!

Everybody makes mistakes.

Everything was paid back, and nothing was proven.

So-Called Liberal Media is at it Again
Ever notice how, when a Republican gets into trouble, the corporate-owned media almost always avoids using the word ... ah ... um ... "Republican" in their reporting?

When Republicans molest House pages, it is "a congressman." When Republicans are busted taking bribes from defense contractors, it is "representative." When a Republican's home is raided by the FBI, it is the "Senator from Alaska." When a Republican's name is found on a DC prostitute's phone list and another prostitute in Louisiana identifies the same guy as being one of her customers, it is "Mister Vitter." When a Republican is caught tapping for a BJ in a busy airport bathroom, it is "Larry Craig, Idaho Senator." It is true ... the corporate-owned media, that supposedly "liberal media," refuses to use the word "Republican" in their criminal reporting.

Let's see ... in the past year or two there must have been at least 10 Washington DC Republicans and literally hundreds of national low-level Republicans, who have been caught up in criminal investigations. Remember the Mayor in Washington State, who claimed to hate gays ... while he was trying to pick up boys on the internet? More recently, John McCain's Campaign Co-Chair in Florida, another gay-hating gay Republican, was caught trying to buy a little "love" from a cop. Oh, and Rudy Giuliani's South Carolina Campaign Chairman was caught-up in distributing cocaine. But, since ALL these people were Republicans ... the word "Republican" was hardly ever used in the corporate-owned media coverage.

Okay, so there have been a small city's worth of Republicans caught-up in illegal behavior ... and in each-and-every incident the corporate-owned media avoided identifying the perpetrators as being from the GOP, right? Then there is Democratic Representative Jefferson from Louisiana. Democratic Jefferson hid $90,000 dollars in a freezer at his home. The Democratic Congressman, William Jefferson, remains under investigation by the FBI. See the difference?

More recently there was a guy by the name of Hsu, who gave some money to Hillary Clinton. Nearly every headline screamed, "Democratic Fundraiser Sought on Warrant," and "Democratic Fundraiser Turns Himself In," and "Democratic Fundraiser Fails to Appear for Hearing," and "Fugitive Democratic Fundraiser Arrested in Colorado." He wasn't just a political fundraiser, or just a wealthy businessman involved in political fundraising activity, and he wasn't just a millionaire businessman on the run from the law ... nope! He was, is and will forever be, "Democratic fundraiser," Norman Hsu. Funny how the corporate-owned media does that, isn't it? It is almost as though they want the American people to link Mister Hsu to EVERY Democrat, right?

Don't take this the wrong way. Hillary Clinton deserves to get her political nose rubbed in any and every mess that she finds herself involved. If not, she is going to be the Democratic Party's presidential candidate and the Republican Party will use her to get their base whipped into a frenzy, which will result in the GOP keeping the White House and continuing their march toward the Emperor Presidency. Besides, Hillary on the ticket isn't going to do anything to help Congressional Democrats retain their slim majorities.

As it turns out Mister Norman Hsu, apparel businessman -- a guy on the run from the law since the early '90s -- was just another one of those wealthy fundraiser/lobbyist-types that Hillary Clinton insisted, "whether you like it or not," represents "real Americans." Yeah, Mister Hsu was representing the CBA (i.e. the Criminal Businessman's Association) ... just another "real" American.

Anyway, can't miss a chance to hold the mirror up to Old Hil's face, but it certainly is interesting that the corporate-owned media didn't skip a beat. Hsu wasn't a wealthy apparel businessman and political fundraiser ... he was, "Democratic Fundraiser Norman Hsu." If Hsu had been a big-time GOP donor, the corporate-owned media would never have went with the headline, "Republican Fundraiser Norman Hsu... ."

It just NEVER would have happened ... just like Congressman Foley, House page stalker, was hardly every identified as "Republican" Representative Foley. Just like Senator Craig, married gay-hating gay man, wasn't referred to as "Republican" Senator Craig. Just like Senator Stevens, Alaska's King of Corruption and target of an FBI investigation, has hardly ever been referred to as "Republican" Senator Stevens.

Guess, that so-called liberal media is at it again, huh?

[peggy]

WAITING TO EXHALE

Yes, that is what we will call the avalanche of scandals, making their way to a liberal news media near you!

You havent got hit with the "boulders" yet, folks! That is the second Bay County SHeriff McKeithen scandal, another boy killed two weeks after the Martin Anderson Boot Camp death (video FDLE Tunnell was emailing that he would make sure no one saw). Seems an Earl Colvin had the goods on the Sheriff. Once again, Dr Deibert gave a bogus cause of death. And photos from the family showed Earl was BEAT to death, not drowned.

The Sunshine Law Florida Statutes 119 and 286 says we get record court reports, but Atty from Alabama John Caylor was ARRESTED asking for the truth. He was thrown in jail, almost two days no phone call, and denied his nitroglycerin for his heart problems. Ask Jeb and Charlie if they knew about that..

Also, the three DEAD Strategum Group associates, that did national Republican campaigns were murdered two weeks ago. Since they were being interviewed by the FBI over Feeney's and Yang Enterprises connections (Feeney was a 2002 campaign client) they are dead.

The blogs are trying to say it was a GAY love triangle, but all the ex-wives and girlfriends the men were moving in with said it is a lie. Now, Todd Schnick was the Republican County 2000 director and did lawsuits , with Feeney in the State Congress swearing to refuse a certification if Gore won. It would be real sick of these scandals were a sad dream Jeb and Charlie couldnt cover up. "Luke 8:16"

[endofourtime]

10:25, thanks for the anonymous comment. And speaking of "My Side", the Democrats in Congress have among them two Medal of Honor winners and at least a dozen Silver Star winners. Meanwhile, how many Republicans in Congress have even worn an American uniform? Five? And that's counting those who were in the National Guard only. The Republicans talk big about national security, but all they do is pour our money into the pockets of their contributors who build Star Wars boondoggles that don't work, and then wait for years before they are forced to buy body armor for our troops. The lie that Republicans are stronger on national security needs to be stacked with the rest of the right wing lies.

[endofourtime]

11:47: The MSM bias is obvious. Fox News had the temerity to identify Foley as a Democrat. The big media is owned by the same people who are paying Cheney. Everybody knows you have to go to the internet to get real news, because the Main Stream Media (MSM, for the two of you out there who don't know) is a neo-con cabal. They leave a few people like Olbermann and the Comedy Channel Champions out there so they can say they are "balanced", but anyone with a smidgen of judgement can see that Murdoch's Fox News, Disney's ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC are all the servants of the big money who control our airwaves. And all the daily newspapers are with them too, including the Times.

[God help us all!]

“Everything was paid back, and nothing was proven.”

That has got to be the most amazing comment I’ve read so far. Good Lord, how moronic are you people.

12:09 - you clearly have no clue - they would be livid and offended at your assertion that they are "winners" of the MOH and other decorations.

again, your complete ignorance of the military shows your true treasonous agenda when you claim to prop them up at the same time you undercut them and their military leadership.

oh and finally - as for your weak attack on my anonymity - I'm sure that "endofourtime" is not on your birth certificate, driver's license or credit cards - so get lost.

[Gene Smith]

10:25 and 2:32 - you are right about one thing only - people who wear the MOH (or choose not to wear it, despite being authorized), do so because they were awarded it, not because they "won" it.

Now, about "our side" not knowing anything about the military, or being treasonous because we do not agree with you - that is what is so wrong with the political debate in this country today. The fact that my views differ from yours does not make me a traitor. Quite the contrary, it takes a true patriot to stand in protest when the protest is unpopular, but the cause is just.

And yes, you will find something close to Gene Smith on my birth certificate.

i will continue to assert that "your side" is treasonous when it stops claiming that Gen. Petraeus will "Betray Us" as Moveon did with a full page ad in today's NYT.

"Your side" gets all bent out of shape when you are called out for the treasonous anti-americans you are, but it's ok for "your side" to paint a highly decorated general who is making real progress in what was almost a hopeless war. you just better thank God above there is a general out there like petraeus who is protecting your right to free speech - and that the speech is in English!

You're right. Moveon speaks for every Democrat. And Ann Coulter speaks for every Republican. That makes it so simple, doesn't it.

Mean Gene, well said. Thank you.

Nehr is a dork.

Nobody likes him