I guess when you are Len Bernardo, and are up against a guy that delivered more reform in 2 years than the previous 26 combined (HV Business Magazine), you have to make up things to try and get traction...and not surprisingly the Daily Disappointment fell for it hook line and sinker.
The latest line, happened at the chamber of commerce debate, get ready for this one and try not to laugh, Mike Hein was responsible for the jail fiasco.....
Any reasonable person that has been following what has been going on in Ulster County even a little bit closely, knows that Mr. Hein blew the whistle on the jail fiasco when he was deputy treasure of Ulster County, only to be told by Pete Savago and the GOP leadership to sit down and shut up.
Well Mike Did not.
And, the next year when the Dems swept the legislature, Mike Hein was promoted to County Administrator and presented the first county budget that CUT SPENDING. If it were not for the 6 million that has to be paid in debt services each year because of the jail fiasco, residents would have witnessed a tax decrease as well.
Was Mike Hein responsible for the jail fiasco, I think not.
17 comments:
Classic attack on the whistleblower. It's all the media's fault that Palin is shown to be certifiably insane. It's the stockholders and homeowners that caused the Quigleyites to pocket billions and leave investors worldwide holding the bag. The gravy train is over.
Bernardo was a bad and nervous speaker at the Chamber breakfast. He said that Kingston was south of New York City.
Everyone should watch the debate webcast. All Len has going for him is attacking and smearing one of the hardest working public servants in the county.
Hein's home heating summit is being used by other counties in the upcoming heating season. He reorganized and streamlined six county offices, save 4 million in employee health care costs, helped to implement the department of the environment--which is a cost-saving model program and is seeking ways for municipalities to work better together.
Most importantly, he did revamp the county's contracting process so that another disaster like the jail cannot happen again.
Len Bernardo can only take potshots at Hein's record because he has done nothing himself. Let me guess, Len developed the Blackberry. :)
The irony in Len pointing the finger at Mike is that it was LEN's party (republican party) who brought the jail mess to the people of Ulster County. It is Len's party that is using taxpayers like an ATM. He can't separate himself from those who brought him to the dance.
Is it true that Lenny stood up the Ulster County Bar Association dinner?
Len used taxpayer money as an ATM for his "tourist attraction."
The Freeman has once again has given a lackluster candidate such as Bernardo more credibility than he deserves.
11:26. Are you saying the local paper isn't supposed to report on the platform of one of the two guys running for county executive? You really are an idiot.
I believe that Len is an independent and not a republican. He is just endorsed by the republican party.
Is their a way to prove that Hein cut spending in the budget?? I mean the taxes have gone up like 50% and it did not go up just because of the jail debt that Ulster County has to pay off. I am sure their is more then that.
Taxes have NOT gone up by 50% since Mike has been County Administrator...that is just not true.
3:25 Nice try. He has the political and economic support of the GOP. He has to dance with the ugly girl who brought him to the dance. She has some warts.
He can call himself whatever he wants.
O.k.Jeremy.maybe taxes haven't gone up by 50%,but how about telling the readers of blog just how much they have gone up.
Those that keep informed on the goings on at the UC Legislature know that 5 yrs prior to Mike Hein becoming Co. Adm. there were double didget property tax increases from 12%, 19% etc. the last budget offered by the Republican appointed administrator was 40% plus. The republican majority came in with around 39%. The very first year of Mike Hein's administration he was were able to bring those double didget increases down to 7% and the next year around 3%. There would certainly have been a decrease in property taxes if the Democratic Majority didn't inherit a financial mess created by the 30 year rule of the Republicans. It has cost the County millions of dollars to pay of Contrators that were susing us for payment. Mike Hein has worked overtime to straiten out the mess county government was in and he needs to be our County Administrator to finish the job.
"IT PAYS TO ATTEND" Department.
Paragraph one: Had the Democrats kept official minutes of Heinsight's 2008 budget presentation, October, 2007, in Surrogates' chambers, 3rd floor Glass Menagerie, anyone could read that it was "Chef" HEIN who CLAIMED, "I have delivered more reform in 2 years than (others in)the previous 26 combined."
I was there, J. Ask TH-R's Paul Brooks, with whom I spoke in the corridor right afterwards.Paul asked me, "You mean you're going to ask 100 families to face for the first time EVERY SINGLE tax, fee, surcharge they pay?" "That's right, Paul. That'll be PROOF that I've CUT everyone's TOTAL TAXES at least 5 percent."
Then, in his State of the County Report early this year, Dave Donaldson made that same falacious CLAIM.
Which demonstrates the effort to which the HVB reporter (You sa originated the claim) made to fact-check!
The only people who know the following to be true are our county legislators. Neither hopeful braggart, Chef Hein, nor newcomer, Len Bernardo, was THERE.....ever.....until they decided Ulster County owed it to them and that as a candidate they'd BETTER show up.
Beginning October, 1998, when I arrived in Kingston, and up to the present, I (Allan Wikman) have attended (to the bitter END) ninety percent of all monthly Legislative meetings.
A few years ago, when the Charter Commission turned over to the Legislature its document, I attended ALL comittee meetings, made, in writing, endless suggestions, none of which was acknowledged, until the document
was presented back to and approved by the whole legislature.
I (not the legislature - "We don't have money")) commissioned a professional INDEX to the Charter. Cost me over one-hundred dollars.
I tape recorded every word in the harter, had it professionally reproduced and sold it at cost to several libraries around the county.
I created, produced a 4 + minute video which illustrates in gory detail the many recent messes we've had to clean up, just to help sell the Charter to the electorate. You may watch this ideo on either You Tube or My Space:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-mIuq1Q0HI
http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=3489784
I then created an easel presentation, got notices in the papers and bicycled it and myself around the county to facilitate Q & A sessions.
NEVER SAW hide nor hair of the other two candidates. Where were these "dedicated public servants" then? Where were the legislators, except for Gary Bischoff, Brian Shapiro, Don Gregorious, Hector Rodriguez?
How in God's name can James Quigley face the voters knowing he, personally, spent thousands upon thousands of dollars trying to defeat the Charter? Will he try to do the same in office?
"CAREFUL WHO YOU BLAME," Department.
J, you would be well advised, to tuck your head into your torso whenever you go abroad onto the byways and highways of Ulster. What proof...evidence...that Pete Savago threatened Mike Hein to keep quiet? Sounds to me like a boldface lie.
If not, it speaks pretty poorly about Heinsight, who, as a matter of fact, should have begun long ago LOBBYING our state government in Albany instead of hiding in his 6th floor aerie, blaming others.
Was he FORCED to shut up? How will he handle even tougher tasks as County leader? Is he too nice? Or too chicken to confront real power? Watch out taxpayers, voters.
"BOY SCOUT" Department
So, Bernardo, said "Kingston is South of New York City?" Depending upon how you look at it, it may be. Or did he say in "Southern New York?"
And, Chris Columbus figured he was going to the East. So what? Look at the result.
Big deal.
3:25 - I, Allan Wikman (and Hugh Reynolds will tell you so) am the ONLY pure i ndependent who ever declared for the office of County Executive. Don't let Len's commercials fool you.
He'll have THREE bosses. If he gets in, we'll never know whether a decision (any decision) is HIS, or one of his three bosses: Republican, Conservative or INDEPENDENCE. He's anything BUT "independent." He's indebted and will be indebted to three political parties, each of which will PULL AT HIM in different directions.
As for Chef Mike, he'll have AT LEAST TWO bosses: Democrat and Working Family chairs.
Even flipping a coin wouldn't help...not enough sides.
Hey, now go to my website to read it and weep. But...I'll be back.
www.campaignwindow.com/allanwikman/
Allan Wikman
845 + 802-0403
I want that Wikman is smoking!
Ken Keysey
To all those who keep complaining about the jail cost overruns and trying to fix blame . . .
Perhaps if our officials had simply paid off the right people at the beginning of the process, we would have saved tens of millions of dollars.
Instead, our officials overestimated their own ability to navigate through a moronic and antiquated government construction process.
Our officials were manipulated and taken advantage of by more experienced, more savvy experts who have become rich by manipualting contract laws and sucking millions of dollars from government entities.
This was not as much corruption on the part of our elected officials as it was stupidity.
Finally, with regard to all those who claim that this wouldn't happen on their watch, until they recognize their own limited expertise and knowledge, they will be ripe for the same sort of taking the next time a big project comes along.
If the community wants to avoid a replay, don't rely on the county attorney or the local legislator who has a backround in plumbing ot telephone repair.
Make sure that we are willing to pay the fee upfront to the company and/or law firm that has the experience and expertise to get the project done.
When you try to save money upfront, you usually pay double at the back end.
I find it amazing that the Freeman would back the candidacy of a man who believes he can turn Ulster County into Disneyland.
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