Tony Bennett caucused in to the Clark Co. Council Wednesday night has stepped aside when it was determined he hadn't met the residency requirements of residing in Clark Co. for 1 year as required by Indiana law....
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In a move nobody saw coming except for possibly Jamey Noel, the Clark Co. GOP caucused in Tony Bennett as a member of the Clark Co. council wed. night. Bennett the former Ind. Superintendent of Public Instruction brings baggage of his own to the council. An Indiana internal investigation found more than 100 instances of possible wire fraud charges against Bennett during his 2012 state re-election bid , which he lost. Bennett curiously was never criminally charged, though he did pay $5000.00 for ethics violations.Bennett was caucused into Brian Lenfert's 2nd Dist. slot as predicted earlier by The BatBlog. Lenfert will slide into disgraced Mike Popplewell's at large council seat which Popplewell resigned from after theft charges were filed against him...Bennett will fill Lenfert's 2nd district position on the county council.
The Clark Co. Rep.s caucus have every right to put who ever they want in these open positions and we guess maneuver them as they see fit, but these moves have the smell of some back, smoke filled room politics. The obvious, fair and some say wise choice would have been Doug Reiter. Mr. Reiter won a primary slot by the people's vote and finished next in line on the GOP side in the general election for the at large seat...but as The BatBlog has stated before there is nothing fair and honorable or wise for that matter... in politics Clark Co. style.It appears to us Mr. Reiter and Clark Co. Rep. mainstream party voters just got screwed over by their own party caucus to put in place someone with a questionable ethics background. The more things change the more they just stay the same... (SMH)
Tony Bennett is a great choice. Clark County is very fortunate to have a person of his excellent background, extensive experience, knowledge, and ability to serve on the county council. This is a very smart move.
ReplyDeleteTrue that Bennett has extensive government experience but it appears to be somewhat tainted if one takes in account the allegations of wire fraud during his term in office...
DeleteLenfert was elected to represent district two and should have remained in that position. Can't believe the average republican voter isn't outraged by these moves.
ReplyDeleteDr. Tony Bennett is a great choice. He has a vast network in the statehouse from his time as Indiana State Superintendent, which should prove invaluable for Clark County. This was a very smart move for the Republican Party and Clark County as a whole. Hopefully, his addition, along with the current hardworking council members, will result in legislation to fix the levy issue for Clark County so the taxpayers can stop paying $300,000-$400,000 per year in legal and underwriting fees for bonds to cover the mandates.
ReplyDeleteBest of luck!
It may be a smart move...but IF I was a rank in file Republican voter I would feel somewhat betrayed. The voters choice in the GOP at large slot Doug Reiter was replaced by 2nd Dist. Brian Lenfert and someone not even on the ballot (Bennett) takes over the 2nd Dist.
DeleteLenfert has done a good job but he signed on and was elected by his constituents in the 2nd Dist. who now have a complete outsider never on a council ballot representing them. This has the smell of inside manipulated deal that the rank in file voter had no say in...This isn't how we the voters/public should be represented...
Remain Vigilant !!!
With all due respect to Doug Reiter, the voters did not vote him. The voters believed three other candidates were a better fit so why do you believe he should be appointed by default. This seems to be the liberal "everyone gets a blue ribbon for trying" mentality, which has been a major downfall of our society. Furthermore, Brian Lenfert will still represent the 2nd District despite taking the at-large position and Dr. Tony Bennett is anything but a "complete outsider".
DeleteI was not privy to the caucus, but it would seem to me that the rank in file voters did have a say when the ELECTED precinct committeemen voted for Brian Lenfert and Dr. Tony Bennett to serve the vacancies.
Just my two cents.
However, we all have a right to our thoughts/feelings and
The voters did elect Mr. Reiter in the primary and when Popplewell stepped aside, and IMO he's the next man up. Bennett while no stranger is new "outsider" to local politics.
DeletePrecinct committeemen/woman is an obscure position that can be and has been willfully manipulated by both parties here locally. Friends , coworkers, relatives and personal cronies are encouraged and stacked to manipulate the system...
Perfect example is "Toxic" John Perkins who couldn't be elected dog catcher here in Clark Co. and finished a poor dead last in his bid for Co. Commissioner but was placed into the position by party caucus after M. Moore was elected mayor.
I'm certain the general public/ voters would have in the Perkins and this case a different view. Our system was set up to select our office holders in general elections NOT in backrooms by a handful of handpicked followers...
Tony Bennett... wow. Replacing one alleged criminal with another. Good move. Clark County "government" is laughable.
ReplyDeletePretty sad really.
DeleteAward Winning
ReplyDeleteBat Blog Breaking News!
Tony Bennett is a very capable
and well respected person. Cool sources within
"the corridors" in Jeffersonville and Indianapolis
have informed the Bat Blog reporters that Mr. Bennett
may be running against Donnelly for that US Senate seat in 2018.
Donnelly is very vulnerable and is his slot is one of the ten senate
seats that President Donald J. Trump expects to pick up in 2018 to add
additional Republican margin in the senate.
Bennett for Senate! I like it !
ReplyDeleteI seriously doubt the state GOP would tab Bennett...once your even mentioned with things like fraud rightly or wrongly you become a pariah to voters. Unless your opponent has an equal or greater baggage like the recent presidential race panned out.
ReplyDeleteThat theory doesn't apply to Clark County however !
ReplyDeleteSo let me get this straight, Miss Perkins gets arrested and convicted and everyone says we should look the other way.
ReplyDeletethere are allegations made against Mr. Bennet with no proof presented, no criminal charges filed and everyone wants to call him a criminal. How is that fair?
As for all of the mandates, how can Clark Co. use them as a permanent means of circumventing the tax levy, when the tax court and state legislatures has refused to allow them to up the levy. Is this even legal???
Never said Bennett was a "criminal" ...the allegations are out there everyone can make up their own minds. There was an investigation though and he did pay out money for ethics violations after hiring a supposedly "high priced" legal team.
DeleteI guess innocent or guilty is determined on how you look at it...but the The BatBlog NEVER said ANYTHING about Mr. Bennett being a "criminal" those are your words not mine.
There are also allegations of Mr. Bennett's trying to manipulate ratings of a charter school while he was Superintendent of Public Instruction
(More on that tomorrow...)
As far as Mr. Bennett goes you should do a little research on the issues that got him in a little hot water while in office. And as far as Perkins goes her criminal A$$ should be gone too. Some Clark County voters seem to like criminals running things and get all bent out of shape when they are exposed ????? Perkins,Popplewell,Bennett, same old stories different names.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, wrong is wrong regardless of who you are or party affiliation you claim.
ReplyDeleteLook forward to batblog updates on this story
While I understand people's reservations towards Bennett, Lenferft has proven to be an honorable public servant and I would proudly voted for "at-large".
ReplyDeleteThis is like the Dailey Machine in Chicago. Who is next on the list?
ReplyDeleteWill not be serving due to residence status.
ReplyDeleteGood news, the whole situation stinks of crooked politics and politicians.
ReplyDeleteThis can't be true. Noel said that Bennett was great with budgets. Democrats tell lies. Republicans only tell "alternative facts". And daily I might add.
ReplyDeleteI feel bad for Bennett... who was advising the Republicans or did they even get any advice?
ReplyDeleteAccording to the News/Tribune story Larry Wilder was advising both Bennett and the Republican party...
DeleteAward Winning Bat Blog Exclusive!
ReplyDeleteBreaking News
"I'm told State and National Republican leaders are trying to convince Jeffersonville mayor Mike Moore to seek the office of United States Senator now held by Joe Donnelly. A private gathering at a prominent local Jeffersonville business owners home last week took place discussing the matter. I'm told three nationally known republican officials flew in for the event. This race is reported to be targeted as one of the top 10 senate elections in the country. When pressed for information the mayor declined to comment at this early time."
You mean the man in the can was wrong with the legal advice say it ain't so say it ain't so :-)
ReplyDeleteThe same filthy corruption that rotted the Democratic party until it fell under its weight has infected the Republican party. Or maybe the rats just know which ship to jump on?
ReplyDeletePower corrupts.
Absolute power, like when you have a sheriff in charge of a party, absolutely corrupts.
Exactly !!!!!!!
DeleteHoosier Taxpayer, maybe use a full story on the possible run by Mayor Moore for Senate. The story will explode the heads of some of the jealous local polticos!
ReplyDeleteBat Blog reporters say that it was a very good meeting.
I like this Susan lady.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.newsandtribune.com/opinion/columns/duncan-clark-county-council-shuffle-deals-residents-a-bad-hand/article_22cccd12-ea3b-11e6-a7a1-67da4c0d865e.html
How do you screw this up that bad???
ReplyDeleteHT, What's going on with the Chatter? And I'm not talking about the Chrome issue - it seems to be frozen on my iPhone or iPad - there hasn't been any fresh content for almost a week.
ReplyDelete