I take the office of state attorney general, very seriously, having lived in Texas under two radical Republican AGs. After spending some time listening to Eugene DePasquale I decided he stood out from a crowd of very qualified Democrat candidates in the April 23 primary election.
I GENERALLY WOULD not consider traipsing through the rain on a chilly Sunday afternoon to listen to a political candidate. But it was a lousy afternoon, football season was over so I traipsed to a friend’s house to mingle and listen to Eugene DePasquale tell people why he should be Pennsylvania’s attorney general.
I have to admit my curiosity was piqued by an invitation that noted our county Democrat party had not endorsed DePasquale, going instead for Jack Stollsteimer, the district attorney in neighboring Delaware County.
I am not a fan of this practice of a party endorsing in a primary. My belief always has been that the job of a local party is to find and develop candidates. I think the practice of endorsing in a primary works contrary to that. Consider this. Joe Candidate is young, never sought office before but he decides to jump into a local race. But, before a vote is cast, the party endorses a candidate not named Joe. That effectively means the party now is campaigning for the endorsed candidate. In most cases that means Joe is going to lose.
It’s my feeling that if Joe wants to run, he should be able to run on a level playing field that lets the voters decide. As a first-time candidate, Joe probably would be philosophical about it if, at the end of election day, he lost. Maybe he’d consider it a learning experience and try again. But when the playing field is tilted by his own party? That would discourage the hell out of me and maybe make me think twice about trying again.
So, the contrarian in me was aroused. I also was aroused by the fact that, having lived in Texas, I take the office of attorney general very, very seriously. I don’t think most voters do. It’s one of those state offices that if you are voting a party ticket, you just vote for either the Republican or Democrat. But I’ve come to believe it’s the most important state office voters never have taken seriously.
I was able to witness first-hand what a state attorney general can do. The attorney general, then governor, of Texas during much of my time there was, is, Gregg Abbott. When he was attorney general he made the comment that “I get up every morning, go into the office and sue Barack Obama.” If Obama said “hello,” Abbott would file a suit. This has continued under current AG Ken Paxton, one of the most corrupt people to ever hold an office.
IN STATES WITH Republican attorney generals (united by the Republican Attorney Generals Association), the office has replaced traditional duties with advancing political and social agendas. There’s not a reason not to assume that should a Republican win this Fall’s Pennsylvania general election that person would join the GOP club that uses law, sometimes loosely defined, to harass anyone, any group, any government agency that even smells a bit moderate or, God forbid, liberal.
| As provided by the Commonwealth Attorneys Act, the fundamental duties of the Attorney General are: 1. To be the Commonwealth’s chief law enforcement officer charged with the responsibility for the prosecution of organized crime and public corruption. This law enforcement effort includes a criminal investigation unit and a drug law enforcement program as well as direction of statewide and multi-county investigating grand juries and a Medicaid Fraud Control Section 2. To collect, by suit or otherwise, all debts, taxes and accounts due the Commonwealth which shall be referred to and placed with the Attorney General 3. To represent the Commonwealth and all Commonwealth agencies and upon request the Auditor General, State Treasurer and Public Utility Commission in any action brought by or against the Commonwealth or its Agencies 4. To administer the provision relating to consumer protection laws 5. To represent the Commonwealth and its citizens in any action brought about for violation of the antitrust laws of the United States. |
So, there I was on a rainy Sunday afternoon. I came away more impressed with DePasquale than I thought I would be. The man has an interesting background that gives him a sensitivity to people that is unique. For starters, he owns the fact that his father spent time in prison and he ties that back to guns, though not in the way you might expect.
He pointed out his father’s experience with guns came in the Vietnam War where he was shot and seriously wounded. When he came home he brought with him, as did so many, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, but also pain that led him to drugs and eventually dealing and prison. DePasquale talks opening about the pain and hardship that created for his family.
I am not going to recount his resume here, but I will include a Wikipedia link at the bottom.
I did not spend a lot of time talking to him – the house was packed – but I did spend a lot of time listening as he talked to the group, and individuals, about everything from street crime to guns to white collar crime, a woman’s right to choose. It resonated with me enough that I left with my mind made up to vote for him.
This is not a slam against any of the Democrats seeking the office. I will happily vote in the general election for whoever wins the primary election on Tuesday, April 23. It is a strong field.
But there’s one more thing that swayed me toward DePasquale. Looking ahead to November, DePasquale’s resume includes two terms as the PA Auditor General. He has won statewide races. Name recognition is critical, experience at the state-wide level is critical and he has it.
I didn’t expect much more than some mingling with friends when I popped open the umbrella and walked down the street that Sunday afternoon, but I got a pleasant surprise.
Link to Wiki Bio:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_DePasquale
Rich Heiland, has been a reporter, editor, publisher/general manager at daily papers in Texas, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio and New Hampshire. He was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team at the Xenia Daily (OH) Daily Gazette, a National Newspaper Association Columnist of the Year, and a recipient of the Molly Ivins First Amendment Award from the Walker County (TX) Democrat Club. He taught journalism at Western Illinois University and leadership and community development at Woodbury College in Vermont. Since 1995 he has operated an international consulting, public speaking and training business specializing in customer service, general management, leadership and staff development with major corporations, organizations, and government. Semi-retired, he and his wife live in West Chester, PA. He can be reached at heilandrich1@gmail.com.