An Awakening Pt 1 – Unity Pills And A Democratic Takeover Of the PaGOP

When Jess and I co-wrote Russian Roulette PT 16: The End … Or a New Beginning?, I truly had high hopes, moving forward, of prosperity for our Party. Unfortunately, since then, inline with Jess’ prophecy, our Party has taken credit for President Trump’s win, while rejecting the tripartisan mandate of the People from across the United States, and instead doubled-down on its insatiable desire to lose elections, under the guise of “unity.” The question to be asked is simply, Why?

To understand the why, we have to go back approximately a year and review the Russian Roulette series, because therein lies the answer. We saw a complete lack of Party leadership that allowed Cumberland County Chair Lou Capozzi to remove/suspend 9 Patriot members of the Cumberland County GOP, without any legal basis in the bylaws, and then refer to them as “Antifa like” and a “cancer”. We then saw him install a new committeewoman – Cinaci-Hartman – who started out by overtly espousing her Democratic views. And that is but one example of our Party clearly being infiltrated by Democrats. We also saw our Party lie to us and the public about “unanimously” endorsing Dave McCormick, only for days later it to become known that pay-to-play politics seems to have ensured that (anything but) “unanimous” endorsement.

But even with our Party being infiltrated, my wife and I still had hope. We put together a 2 and 5 year plan to save the Party. One of the candidates for Chairman – Bill Bachenberg – ran on implementing many of these changes. Unfortunately, as these proposed changes would convert the current Bylaws from a Putin…. er… Chair-dictatorship to ensuring the proper checks and balances of a Republic on all officers and elected state committee members of the Party, the democratic operatives within our Party couldn’t have that. After all, that would require transparency and accountability, which are the antithesis to controlling the Party and ensuring that we continue to lose elections.

While there was a great amount of hope for a prosperous future for the Party leading up to the Winter Meeting on February 7th and 8th, that evaporated quickly, when both candidates and state committee members were being bribed and if they refused the inducement, then threatened. What is extremely telling is that even after I came forward to then-Chairman Tabas with information about Southwest Caucus Chair Jackie Kulback bribing and threatening state committee members – which she didn’t even dispute – and over a dozen state committee members and other statewide candidates confirmed to Chairman Tabas that the bribes and threats were in fact occurring and that they’d be happy to testify about it at a hearing, the Party took no action.

Chair-candidate Bachenberg also came forward and stated that the same was being done by National Committeeman and Southeast Chair Andy Reilly against his candidacy. This is the same Southeast Caucus Chair that forced a bloc vote during the straw polls and disenfrachised the vote of elected state committee members, in a very Putinesque manner. I now understand from multiple sources that Southeast Chair Reilly employed the same tactics against my candidacy and was likely the one behind Ms. Kulback’s actions. Perhaps Attorney General Dave Sunday will investigate these actions. Regardless, I also understand from those sources that Ms. Kulback referred to me as a “skinhead,” while knowing I am Jewish and Mr. Reilly told members that they couldn’t vote for Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Paula Patrick because “she is black.” Good to know that anti-antisemitism and racism is alive amongst these democratic operatives in the Republican Party. But I digress…

While then-candidate Rothman ran on a platform of unity and was copied on Bachenberg’s and my complaints, he didn’t even issue a public statement – or any statement for that matter – denouncing such actions, which was quite disconcerting. As one state committee member put it, Rothman’s idea of unity is to take a unity pill. And if you’re still not feeling unified after taking, take another, and another, and another…until you feel unified in Rothman’s view. At the time, I thought – or perhaps hoped – that such wasn’t or wouldn’t be the case. As another state committee member, who overhead the “unity pill” theory, later told me, “there isn’t a unity pill in this world that can save us and I swallowed every damn one they ever gave me. But not anymore.”

Regardless, to protect against election interference, to ensure election integrity, and to provide us with the ability to truly unify after a fair and free election, I drafted a bulletproof private ballot process. And of course, because it would limit the power of those influencing the election, the Party ensured that instead of preventing election interference and ensuring election integrity, a voice vote would be required of every state committee member, so that the inducements and threats could be carried out. So much for ensuring unity…

And what was the result? Jackie Kulback, Andy Reilly, and their minions were successful in having candidates be elected/endorsed, who have espoused DEI principles, incurred a debt that they didn’t intend to pay, had their license to practice law revoked in another state, and have criminal convictions, including one conviction in absentia (meaning the candidate didn’t even show for the hearing). Is this YOUR Republican Party? I know it isn’t mine…

And what about in the past week since the meeting? Still no action by the Party in relation to the verified complaints; yet, new-Chair Rothman found time to put together 67 county-specific emails and a one page, single space letter, to each of the over the 380+ state committee members, demanding that each endorsed candidate be extended a “complimentary invitation to your events” and “have the support and resources from our state committee.” Wow, how about asking politely? Not to worry, the top three signature collectors will receive a “free signed MAGA hat.” Signed by whom? Anyone’s guess… But, what is perhaps the most interesting is the difference between the letter and the email. The email included an inducement of a $500 donation to the county that obtains the most petitions and a separate $500 donation to the county that gets the most signatures. Nothing like a financial inducement to bring about unity, right? For those reading this article who don’t understand true conservative ideals (yes, for example, you Cumberland Co GOP), you cannot buy our loyalty, integrity, or willingness to support our ideals. We simply do it, without inducements, because of our ideals.

And speaking of Cumberland Co GOP, as if things couldn’t possibly get any worse, it appears from its endorsement meeting yesterday that it has now elected to bring down the Cumberland Co Sheriff’s Department. I have received word from multiple sources that in advance of the meeting, even though Sheriff Jody Smith was going to be in attendance apparently for an endorsement vote in relation to her re-election bid, Chairman Capozzi requested that the sheriff’s department have deputies attend the meeting. During the meeting, beyond Chairman Capozzi announcing that he’s been installed as part of Rothman’s “transition committee” (query, as Rothman has been on state committee and Capozzi has never been an officer of the PaGOP, what could he possibly have to offer for purposes of a transition committee?), when a young man stood up and attempted to make a motion, before he could even utter what the motion was for, contrary to Robert’s Rules, Chairman Capozzi declared “you’re out of order – sit down!,” that he was not going to have any “monkey business” and if there was, he would have the person escorted out of the meeting. I guess this is Chairman Rothman’s form of unity?

When a young woman, who had legal right to attend and vote at the meeting, rose, pursuant to Robert’s Rules, and moved, in the name of unity, to reinstate the 9 previously removed committee members from ’23, which was seconded, Chairman Capozzi, in true authoritarian fashion, directed two deputies from the Cumberland Co Sheriff’s Dept – believed to be, based on photos, Chief Deputy Ron Kerr and Deputy Greg Ickles, who identified themselves as law enforcement, but were in street clothes – to remove the woman; whereby, purporting to be under color of law, in the absence of legal authority, and in violation of 42 U.S.C. 1983, grabbed her and shoved her towards the door, while Sheriff Smith, instead of arresting her deputies for violating the law, informed the young woman that she’d be receiving a citation. As a result, Sheriff Smith and her two deputies disenfranchised this young woman, and her two proxies, from their right to vote. It is understood that Sheriff Smith later received the endorsement from the Cumberland Co GOP…

It’s good to know that Mother Russia is alive and well…

It will be interesting to see what Attorney General Dave Sunday’s investigation yields in this matter, since Cumberland County’s District Attorney’s Office will be conflicted out, and how much the county taxpayers will end up paying for this clear abuse of power. Heck, in the absence of directors and officers’ insurance coverage, the directors and officers of the Cumberland Co GOP are likely individually liable. And then there is the pesky fact that the PaGOP has known about similar conduct of disenfranchising members’ votes by the Cumberland Co GOP since at least ’23 and done nothing. Sounds like they may be on the hook as well, and they also no longer have directors and officers insurance…

When a friend recently told me that by not continuing the Russian Roulette series, I “crushed a lot of people by keeping their thoughts in captivity,” I didn’t know how to take it. Now I understand. No longer. I’M BACK to once again give a voice to the voiceless and those too fearful to utilize their voices.

As Thomas Jefferson stated – “The government you elect is the government you deserve.” For too long, we have been asleep at the wheel and resultantly, have the Pennsylvania Republican Party we deserve. We have allowed our Party to be infiltrated by those that only seek to ensure that we continue to lose. Did you know that over the past decade, state committee has only been successful 39% of the time and if you remove the Trump-factor, it is an abysmal 17%?!?! Would you retain your CEO or coach that was, even in the best light, only successful 39% of the time? How about 17% of the time?

I know what I’ve relayed may seem bleak. But you know me well enough to know that I don’t come to you simply with a problem…I also come with a solution. Over the coming weeks, I’ll introduce you to that solution.

De oppresso liber

Yours in Truth, Liberty and Justice