FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Barbara Thomas November 4, 2007 (51 885-9769
FINDINGS IN THE COMPLAINT OF TONY JASENSKI AND BOB GODLEWSKI AGAINST CAROLINA LAZZARI AND ANGELO SANTABARBARA COMPLAINT 2007.9 Fair Campaign Practices for the Capital Region, Inc. (FCP) held a hearing on November 3, 2007, to consider a complaint made by Tony Jasenski and Bob Godlewski against their opponents Carolina Lazzari and Angelo Santabarbara. All are candidates for the Schenectady County Legislature, District 4. Present were Hearing Panel members Joan Elliott (Chair), Jim Miller, Sam Trumbore, Barbara Thomas, and Aimee Allaud, along with Coordinator Betsey Swan. Also present was ex officio member Richard Nebolini (Independence Party). Mr. Jasenski and Mr. Godlewski appeared through their attorney Bruce Trachtenberg. Ms. Lazzari and Mr. Santabarbara appeared through their attorney James Walsh.
This complaint was originally submitted as an expedited complaint. Immediately prior to the hearing Mr. Trachtenberg submitted an emergency amended complaint, which raised additional concerns about a mailing received after the original complaint was submitted. FCP will consider the emergency complaint as a separate matter.
Mr. Jasenski and Mr. Godlewski complained that material produced by Friends of Lazzari and Friends of Angelo Santabarbara in support of their primary write-in bid for the Conservative Party line was misleading because Mr. Santabarbara implied he was an enrolled member of the Conservative Party rather than a political conservative, and because Ms Lazzari implied that she would have won the Conservative Party endorsement had she filed earlier . Ms. Lazzari advised that, as the result of her initial uncertainty about whether to seek another term in office, she had not filed the petitions necessary to obtain a place on the Conservative Party ballot. Once she decided to seek reelection, she and Mr. Santabarbara waged a write-in campaign to win the Conservative line for County Legislator in the November election. They circulated the materials in question prior to the primary, and they have not been in circulation since.
FINDING: No Finding. Although the circulated material would have violated FCP Principle 5 for failure to list the address or other contact information of the sponsor or sponsors, there is no indication that these materials have been in circulation during the general election campaign or have otherwise had any impact on it. Therefore, we decline to issue a finding in this matter. Mr. Jasenski and Mr. Godlewski also complained that on October 28, 2007 Ms. Lazzari’s campaign had sent an automated, recorded message to voters in Duanesburg, Rotterdam, and Princetown. The message was in a woman’s voice and purported to be from Carolina Lazzari, accusing Tony Jasenski of calling her names. –more-
The message contained no information about its sponsor, and no one was able to identify a sponsor. Ms. Lazzari stated she had neither sent nor had a hand in the sending of the message, and that she disavowed it and its contents. She also stated she had no idea who had sent the message. Upon completion of the hearing, she sent a letter to the editor of the Daily Gazette disavowing the message. A copy of this letter is attached.
FINDING: No Finding. Although this automated message violated FCP Principle 5 for failure to identify its sponsor, Ms. Lazzari took steps at the hearing to disavow the message. The complaint was filed on October 30, 2007, and the disavowal occurred on November 3, 2007. We believe that Ms. Lazzari should have been more prompt in her disavowal and that a prompt disavowal, as required by FCP Principle 7, requires immediate steps on the part of the candidate to disassociate herself from the offensive material. Promptness becomes increasingly important as the election nears and the media moves toward an imposed blackout period immediately prior to the election. Given that we have not previously had occasion to define promptness, we do not hold that a violation of FCP principles has occurred at this point. However, candidates are advised that, in the future, disavowal of offensive third-party campaign materials must be prompt for compliance with FCP Principle 7.
Candidates are reminded that misrepresentation of FCP findings in order to obtain political advantage constitutes an unfair campaign practice.
Fair Campaign practices for the Capital Region, Inc. is a not-for profit corporation formed by the League of Women Voters of Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady Counties and the Interfaith Alliance of the Capital Region.
"If we can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them, they must become happy."
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Barbara Thomas November 4, 2007 (51 885-9769
FINDINGS IN THE COMPLAINT OF ANGELO SANTABARBARA AGAINST ANTHONY JASENSKI & ROBERT GODLEWSKI COMPLAINT 2007.10 Fair Campaign Practices for the Capital Region, Inc. (FCP) held a hearing on October 30, 2007 to consider a complaint made by Angelo Santabarbara against Anthony Jasenski and Robert Godlewski. All are candidates for District 4, Schenectady County Legislature. Present were Hearing Panel members Joan Elliott (Chair), Jim Miller, Barbara Thomas, Sam Trumbore and Aimee Allaud, along with Coordinator Betsey Swan. Also present was ex officio member Richard Nebolini (Independence Party). Mr. Santabarbara appeared through his attorney James Walsh. Mr. Jasenski and Mr. Godlewski appeared through their attorney Bruce Trachtenberg.
Mr. Santabarbara complained about a campaign mailer distributed by the Schenectady County Democratic Committee, consisting of one side showing a picture of a pig and stating that Santabarbara took $5,000 in taxpayers (sic) money to chair the Rotterdam IDA (Industrial Development Agency) and characterizing this payment as, “Some Pork!” At the hearing Mr. Santabarbara admitted that he had been appointed to chair the Rotterdam IDA with an annual stipend of $5,000. He stated that he had met with the IDA attorneys in July or August and stated that he would serve without compensation and would not accept the $5,000 stipend. At the time of the mailing he had received no compensation for chairing the IDA, notwithstanding that the stipend traditionally had been paid on a monthly basis. Mr. Santabarbara submitted a statement of the IDA Treasurer indicating no compensation had been paid. The same mailer accused Santabarbara of having remained silent when Ms. Lazzari, his running mate on the Republican line, voted to close the Glendale Nursing Home, attempted to cut the sheriff’s road patrol in half, and voted against the sale of old Carl Company to Proctors. Mr. Santabarbara claimed these statements were inherently misleading because he was not in office at the time these actions were taken and therefore was not in a position to publicly approve or disapprove of Ms. Lazzarri’s positions. The accuracy of the SCDC’s characterization of Ms. Lazzari’s actions was ruled on in a previous hearing which found unfair campaign practices.
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FINDING: Unfair Campaign Practice. Mr. Santabarbara clearly has accepted no compensation for chairing the Rotterdam IDA, contrary to the statement in the mailer. Similarly, he was not an elected or public official at the time the Lazzari actions were taken and it was inherently misleading to imply that he was in a position to oppose the positions or speak out against them. Neither Mr. Jasenski nor Mr. Godlewski has taken any steps to disavow the actions of the misleading campaign literature issued on their behalf by the Schenectady County Democratic Committee. They therefore have violated FCP Principle 7, which requires candidates to promptly and publicly disavow campaign materials that would have been in violation of FCP Principles had they been issued by the candidates. Mr. Santabarbara also complained that by filing Complaint 2007.9, Mr. Jasenski and Mr. Godlewski abused FCP and its hearing process in order to obtain political advantage in violation of Principle 6.
FINDING: No Unfair Campaign Practice. In our Finding in Complaint 2007.9, we held that the materials in question listed no contact information for the sponsor and thus would have violated FCP Principles had they been used in or of relevance to the general campaign. In light of the fact that they were campaign materials for the primary election, we declined to make a finding on this matter. Notwithstanding the lack of a finding, it cannot be said that the bringing of a complaint about these materials was an abuse of the complaint process.
FCP’s Principle 7 states that the candidate will promptly and publicly disavow support from and the materials/actions of any individual or group whose activities violate this Statement of Principles or whose activities would violate this Statement of Principles if engaged in by the candidate or the candidate’s campaign.
Candidates are reminded that misrepresentation of FCP findings in order to obtain political advantage constitutes an unfair campaign practice.
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Fair Campaign practices for the Capital Region, Inc. is a not-for profit corporation formed by the League of Women Voters of Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady Counties and the Interfaith Alliance of the Capital Region.
"If we can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them, they must become happy."
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Barbara Thomas November 4, 2007 (51 885-9769
FINDINGS IN THE COMPLAINT OF WILLIAM T. COOKE AGAINST STEPHEN TOMMASONE COMPLAINT 2007.11 Fair Campaign Practices for the Capital Region, Inc. (FCP) held a hearing on November 3, 2007, to consider a complaint made by William Cooke, candidate for Town Supervisor in the Town of Rotterdam, against his opponent Stephen Tommasone. Present were Hearing Panel members Joan Elliott (Chair), Jim Miller, Sam Trumbore, Barbara Thomas, and Aimee Allaud, along with Coordinator Betsey Swan. Mr. Cooke and Mr. Tommasone appeared in person.
Mr. Cooke complained of a mailer sent by the New York State Republican State Committee in support of Mr. Tommasone’s candidacy and received by voters on October 29, 2007. The mailer stated, in relevant part, “Bill Cooke is lying about Tommasone’s record because he is trying to run from his.” and, “Don’t believe Bill Cooke’s Lies. . . .” FCP Principle 4 prohibits the use of any campaign material that distorts or otherwise falsifies a fact or facts about the candidate’s opponent. Principle 7 requires candidates to promptly and publicly disavow campaign third-party materials that violate FCP principles. At the hearing, Mr. Tommasone admitted that the mailer unfairly characterized Mr. Cooke as a liar and disavowed the mailer and the New York State Republican Committee tactics.
FINDING: No Finding. At issue in this hearing is how a candidate can successfully disavow materials issued by third parties immediately prior to the election. As the candidates rightfully pointed out, the editorial boards of most local newspapers impose blackout periods on letters to the editor related to the election for a period immediately prior to the election. Many also cut off reportage on elections at some time prior to election day. These practices have allowed for the proliferation of particularly virulent and misleading attack ads, often by state and local political committees, at the end of the election period. The lack of reportage deprives the public of vital information about the truth of these flyers and, by rendering them beyond the reach of reasonable public analysis, encourages their use in hotly contested campaigns. While we normally do not consider a disavowal made at a FCP hearing sufficiently public to meet the requirements of FCP Principle 7, the pending election, along with local political reporting practices as the election nears, prohibit an acceptable response to this dilemma. We therefore issue no finding in this matter. At the same time we call on both print and broadcast media to devise a solution to this problem that will discourage the use of virulent attack ads immediately prior to elections.
Candidates are reminded that misrepresentation of FCP findings in order to obtain political advantage constitutes an unfair campaign practice.
"If we can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them, they must become happy."
Based on the complete set of rulings, that I have posted in this forum, by the non-partisan League of Women Voters Fair Campaign Practices Committee regarding the complaints filed by the candidates, which party has waged campaigns of deception, misinformation, and untruths? Will these rulings impact the vote?
"If we can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them, they must become happy."
ROTTERDAM Fair Campaign panel finds dirt in mailings BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter
County Republicans plan to roll out the welcome mat for sex offenders, while their Democrat counterparts would support issuing a driver’s license to Mohammed Atta, the mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. At least, that’s the impression some voters might get from some of the literature recently appearing on doorsteps and mail boxes in District 4 of the Schenectady County Legislature. Both parties have waged dirty and misleading campaigns in the last days before today’s elections, said Barbara Thomas, president of Fair Campaign Practices for the Capital Region. “The dirty stuff almost always comes in at the end of an election,” she said. “You’ve got attack ads on both sides.” The organization issued an uncharacteristic last-minute finding in the case of two mailings sent by Republicans and a third sent by Democrats. In each case, Thomas said the literature put misleading information before voters but could not be directly tracked back to the candidates themselves. One Republican flier features Atta’s picture on a state driver’s license, with the suggestion that District 4 Democratic candidates Robert Godlewski and incumbent Tony Jasenski wouldn’t fight a directive by Gov. Eliot Spitzer that county clerks issue drivers licenses to illegal immigrants. Thomas said this assertion isn’t true, because both candidates circulated petitions urging the governor to rethink the plan. Godlewski and Jasenski are squaring off against Republicans Angelo Santabarbara and Carolina Lazzari, an incumbent, for two seats on the county Legislature. County party leaders have also sent out mailers on the Rotterdam supervisor’s race between incumbent Republican Steve Tommasone and William Cooke, a Democrat. The Fair Campaign Committee faulted a second flier Republicans circulated over the weekend, boasting about the recent findings against literature sent by the county Democrats. In this instance, they found the Republican fliers inappropriately implied criminal misconduct and wrongly pointed to the Democratic candidates themselves as responsible for the mailers. The committee also took issue with a computerized phone message received by Rotterdam residents and using much of the same language used by the county Republicans in their flier about last week’s rulings. The message was misconstrued by numerous residents as coming from the League of Women Voters. “On the same day that the message was transmitted, the League of Women Voters of New York State received numerous phone calls from Schenectady County in which individuals requested that they be taken off the League of Women Voters calling list,” the committee stated in its finding. The committee also criticized a mailer sent out by the county Democrats that portrayed Republican candidates Lazzari, Santabarbara and Tommasone as offering “a welcome mat” for sex offenders from a five-county area because they didn’t support a strict law passed in the county Legislature last summer. Both Lazzari and supervisors from around the county opposed the legislation because of their concerns over their effectiveness, the committee found. Fair Campaign Practices for the Capital Region is an organization before which candidates from Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady counties can air election grievances, and which then issues an opinion. Decisions by the committee are meant to raise public awareness about false campaign claims and are not legally binding. The findings followed three other determinations made by the fairness committee over the weekend. While the committee issued no finding with regard to complaints by Jasenski, Godlewski and Cooke, they upheld another by Santabarbara. In that complaint, Santabarbara argued the county Democrats had falsely accused him of collecting a $5,000 stipend for serving as chairman of the Rotterdam Industrial Development Agency. The committee found that the information in the mailer was incorrect and that neither Godlewski nor Jasenski made any attempt to disavow it. In response to the rulings, county Republican Chairman Tom Buchanan stood by the GOP campaign practices. He said all of the county fliers — even the one featuring Atta — were truthful and intended to bring voter attention to important issues. “We ran a very positive campaign about the issues,” he said Monday. “[The county Democrats] have run a campaign about lies, distortions and half-truths — they’ve run a scare tactic campaign.” Likewise, Chairman Brian Quail stood by the mailers sent out by the county Democrats, claiming the fair campaign committee based decisions on characterizations instead of facts. He accused the Republicans of trying to gain voter sympathy from committee decisions, while simultaneously waging their own dirty campaign. “This is a classic thing with [the county Republicans],” he said. “They complain and try to play the part of the victim on one hand, then come out with a sledge hammer in the other.” Thomas said the real losers from the dirty campaigning are the voters themselves. She cautioned voters to be aware of what organization is producing campaign literature and discouraged them from putting much faith in materials loosely attributed or not attributed at all. “Unfortunately, often the result of negative campaigning is that people say ‘they’re all crooks and they’re all liars’ and they don’t vote at all,” she said.
Thank you to the non-partisan League of Women Voters - Fair Campaign Practices Committee for hearing the complaints of the candidates and ruling in a seemingly impartial manner.
I question, however, the value of such a committee if there is no accountability by the candidates and their parties for their behavior during political campaigning and no consequences for the offenders' actions.
The residents deserve the opportunity to base their support of a candidate on the issues, not on attack ads. Unfortunately, the parties who participate in negative campaigning are often awarded with victory at the polls.
I continue to believe that there needs to be Truth in Advertising in Political Campaigns. Otherwise, our democratic form of government will be increasingly threatened by the conduct of those who place personal and party power over public service.
"If we can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them, they must become happy."
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