Letter: Journalists, get tough on corruption, Halyburton
David Brian Wallace
St. Augustine
Publication Date: 11/19/06
Editor: Across America, we voted for change and against dishonesty/corruption, "thumping" Bush, electing Democratic majorities.
Two City Hall incumbents (Joe Boles and George Gardner) ran from issues, resembling N.Y. Congresswoman Susan Kelly, running from journalists asking about former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley (she was defeated).
After defeating Commissioners Maguire and Stern, St. Johns County voters rejected a proposal to elect county commissioners both from at-large seats and districts. Let's elect politicians by districts, as suggested by Lincolnville's Peter Romano, who nearly defeated City Manager William Harriss' machine, which allegedly pressured employees to remove Romano's yard signs.
Despite Boles' endorsements by 12 former mayors, Romano was nearly elected mayor, disgusted by what Gardner conceded to be "rampant (City Hall) corruption." In 2008, let's elect Peter Romano mayor and Ken Bryan county commissioner.
More than 1,000 people move to Florida daily, raising our consciousness, changing electoral math, rejecting public official corruption, exploitation and environmental devastation.
In 2008, Floridians will help elect a new president. No more stolen elections. Journalists must work much harder, investigating and holding officeholders accountable. Let's expose corruption and mismanagement.
Cynical right-wing Republican developer voter/candidate suppression efforts must be exposed and stopped.
In 2004, county/city officials were caught repaving Lincolnville's only polling-place parking-lot on election day when pollwatcher Peter Romano woke up Gardner and got it stopped.
We need more in-depth coverage, please, of election machinery and procedures.
Please investigate Election Supervisor Penny Halyburton. Question her self-promoting expenditures on freebies bearing her name and her attitude toward African-Americans, non-incumbents and persons with disabilities. No door-opening courtesies for seniors/blind/disabled unless requested? Once ordering a pollworker suffering a heart attack to keep working? Americans with Disabilities Act and civil rights violations?
Like Republican Katharine Harris, Republican Halyburton isn't independent (doing incumbents' bidding to exclude one St. Augustinian from ballots).
Let's retire Halyburton, replacing her with an independent professional.
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