I got texts about last night’s BOCS meeting. No, I didnt see it. I got up at the crack of dawn and watched it and I was disgusted–totally disgusted. Was I disgusted at Corey? Oh hell no. I sent him a congratulatory text. NO, I didnt think he was vulgar. I thought he was forceful and at the end of his rope with the whining and interrupting.
What did not fall on deaf ears was the fact that Pete Candland admitted that he was bullying (my words, not his) Supervisors Jenkins and Principi because he felt like he was being bullied with FOIA requests by the Democratic school board chairman and the chairman of the Democratic party. Well, that makes perfect sense in the world of two wrongs make a right. Except two wrongs don’t make a right. Two wrongs are still wrong, by people with standards of decency.
What the hell did Jenkins or Principi do to Candland? Nothing. They are Democrats. That’s their sin. Candland and crew have squandered thousands of county man-hours on meting out his revenge. According to Mrs. Caddigan, Mac Haddow was signing off on these FOIA requests. Was that to keep Candland’s hands squeaky clean?
What Candland is overlooking or refusing to admit is that it is his close affiliation with the attack blog, The Sheriff of Nottingham blog that has brought all this about. Throw in his mentor, Mac Haddow, who is seen by many Prince William residents as a bully and as having far too much influence in the Gainesville District. It appears that he is calling the shots, through Candland.
Pete tried to bleat out that Mrs. Haddow was attacked. By whom? I have heard no one attack Mrs. Haddow. I saw that her salary was discussed. That was not an attack on her personally. I feel certain that Mrs. Haddow wasn’t given the luxury of setting her own salary. Besides, I hardly think she was getting wealthy from working in Candland’s office. (nor is her son-in-law who took her place)
Perhaps the problem here is that the Gainesville Magisterial District office is simply too close to a family that is wielding too much power through Pete. That is what needs to stop.
Pete, spin it any way you want. The real issue is the attacks on others emanating from that blog, the former blog that was run by Haddow and the disruption in other areas (committees, etc). Both my blog and its former co-partner, Elena were attacked by the Gainesville Truth Squad. What kind of impression do you think we have? That is just a blip on the radar of those who have been attacked. Many others have also suffered with the half-truths and the vitriol. When do you think people are going to get mad and fight back?
When Pete was running for office the first time, I put up a cartoon with Corey as puppet master, dangling a Petey puppet. I was wrong. Corey wasn’t the puppet master. Today, if I ran that same cartoon, I would commission my cartoonist to draw a different puppet master. 3 guesses who it might be.
Pete, knock it off. Chose less contentious people to mentor you and stop picking at and bullying your colleagues. You embarrass the Gainesville District. Call off your attack dog.
This piece on Moon-howlings is simply my opinion based on personal experience and what I have just viewed. I have no “birdies” or other gossips chirping in my ear.
If anyone calls me from Candland’s office, don’t. It’s happened before and I don’t want it to happen again.
http://pwcgov.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=23&clip_id=2191&meta_id=51100
The link is working sporadically. If you need to go to the county website, the “show” begins at 3:17 into the meeting and ends around 4:02
Muckraker really called out the “cabal.”
Moon didn’t go after them hard enough. I think she enjoyed the smack down.
Haddow and Candland are showing themselves for what they are. With a little patience, research and opportunism we will get the chance to nail them and their crew. Help them hang themselves.
I watched it and couldn’t stop laughing! After so many years of ongoing, underhanded, unscrupulous attacks and actual fabricated lies against county staffers, spouses of supervisors, political opponents, other private citizens and anyone else who refuses to kiss his ring (or that of his Godfather Haddow), someone is finally giving Candland a taste of his own nasty medicine and he is unraveling. The big challenge is that the other side is actually using documented facts (vs. made up rumors from made up “birdies”) – so now he has to do some work and look for facts too – and God forbid he might have to pay for it like everyone else! I love that Pete took it upon himself to reveal that his closest associate is a convicted felon – he must not have been getting his regular text messages from Mac advising him while he’s on the dais. I’m sure Mac really appreciated that publicity. The funniest part is when Pete objects to Corey’s language as “disgusting”. No one has added more “disgusting” words or deeds to the ongoing BOCS soap opera than Candland and Haddow. What a classless bunch.
Isn’t his whole platform government waste?? That whole wasteful discussion last night was courtesy of Pete Candland. He brought all this drama to us. Once again, he slammed staff by asking the CXO to train staff on what’s acceptable. Does he think they don’t know? Anyone want to volunteer calling Candland to tell him he did something wrong? And end up on the SON blog as another victim? Oh yeah, right.
Lawson has about two more meetings to cut the cord before I toss her out with Candland and the nice civic minded felon who tried to take over a kids basketball league and bribed victims of PanAm 103. Really Pete?
The public admission of revenge was just astounding. He has Jenkins and Principi targeted to get even, just because they are Democrats?
That is exactly what he said. He apparently didn’t care how much it cost, how many people didn’t get their “real jobs” done, how many people had to work late, spend time away from their families, etc. It was an annoyance FOIA.
He owes the taxpayers an apology.
He is very ill-advised at the moment.
You can’t make this stuff up-what a “show”! One point-I respectfully disagree with Taxpayer that the staff knows what’s acceptable; otherwise the alleged misspent funds for lunches, personal training courses, etc. would have been caught and reimbursement should have been made to the county. Perhaps it is time for the Commonwealth Attorney to appoint a special prosecutor to review the spending of all members of the BOCS. If there are cases of funds being spent inappropriately, then reimbursement should be demanded and if the act was egregious enough, perhaps charges of misappropriation of taxpayer monies should be made.
I felt sorry for John Jenkins who seemed to be unable to understand that his salary for being a BOCS member was his to spend as he chose. Was he just joking around or is he a couple of bricks shy of a load? Could it be early signs of CRS?
I thought Maureen Caddigan did an excellent job and that Marty Nohe’s suggestion that all this should be done when tempers have cooled down was a good idea.
P.S. Sadly, I suspect Pete and Jeanine Lawson will get reelected-wait and see.
@George S. Harris
Sorry George, you’re wrong. Flat out dead wrong. There have been times when staff pushed back on Supervisors. Heads rolled.
I think it’s hysterical that Pete is now sooooo upset he is being attacked by a blog when he supported Mac for all those years with his blog. How can he sit up there and defend that? I will have to say at one point he sounded like he was going to cry. How sad.
He who lives by the sword, dies by the sword.
OK, I have bitten my tongue long enough. Let’s be clear, I have no sympathy for any of the members of the BOCS when it comes to FOIA. Upon taking office they are thoroughly briefed on the liberal FOIA statutes of the Commonwealth and quite pointedly instructed to not put anything into writing be it an email or a letter that they do not wish to have read back to them from the dais, cited in court or published in the media.
FOIA is and always has been a tool and like most tools, can be used as a weapon. It doesn’t particularly matter who started this FOIA war but all should realize that it is part of the price of holding their respective offices. It is one of the few checks available to the public (or elected officials) on the behavior of elected officials. Screwing around with County policies regarding FOIA responses is probably the surest way I know to end up before a Circuit Court judge. There are certain individuals in this county, myself being one, who will likely test those policies just for giggles.
The hook from the theme song to Beretta comes to mind “Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time” or in this case “Don’t spend the dime if it may be a crime”.
I think using foia as a weapon is simply dead wrong. It is time consuming and takes up valuable resources.
The outcome was good. Now the supervisors have to pay for the foia just like you or I would have to do, some of this nuisance FOIA-ing should stop.
Infiantile – typical. How odd that some of the most anti government folks think this is of value. Even worse are the outspoken anti government types MAKING THEIR ENTIRE LIVING off the government while condemning it loudly.
Sheesh – that type is so self absorbed in being righteous they think the rest us us are too dumb to see through it.
@Lyssa
Many of those who make their entire living off of the government are able to do so because the competency level of many government agencies, particularly at the Federal level, is so low that private industry requires assistance in navigating the red tape and overcoming the incompetence. Curiously it is generally those that complain most about those who make “their entire living” of the the government who are the principal creators of those opportunities. Arrogant, obstructionist and vindictive, they create the opportunity for those not regulated by agencies to intercede without fear of retribution on behalf of those that are regulated by the agencies. Not my opinion, a fact backed up with thirty years of personal experience. You don’t have to like it but you do have to accept it. BTW, I have used FOIA at the Federal Level to have SES and GS-15 employees terminated, forced into retirement and/or prosecuted so don’t diminish its value.
@Mom
Ah, just because you can…. Now that’s ethical. I’m not dismissing FOIA action – only those for giggles.
@Lyssa
It is a little more complicated than that. PWC both county government and the schools, enjoy the worst reputation in the Commonwealth when it comes to FOIA fulfillment. Thus, every change must be tested to determine the new “normal” or perhaps “abnormal”.
What is that “worst” label based on?
@MoonHowler
The number of complaints and comments received by the FOIA Council in Richmond, in addition to the number of writs filed against both entities.
Ahhhh. So why do you think PWC is the worst?
@MoonHowler
Shear volume of issues from multiple individuals and long discussions about the problem with the FOIA Council, State Representatives, Legislative Staff and Staff Attorneys.
So, Pete and his buddy run a blog (several, actually) that trashes non elected folks and then they complain about a blog that publishes the names of Pete’s staffers? What? Pete’s buddy Mac is the King of personal attacks against individuals. Any one that has had to interact with him will tell you that.