The LuLac Edition #3451, March 18th, 2017

HILLARY CLINTON RETURNS TO THE LAC

Hillary Clinton bounds into her speaking venue in Scranton last night before her first speech since her election night loss. (Photo: Karel Zubris)

Another photo of Clinton arriving with Virginia Doherty McGregor who introduced her last night. (Photo: Karel Zubris)

During the last Presidential campaign, surprisingly or maybe not so, Hillary Clinton was viciously attacked by our genius citizens for pumping up her roots here in Scranton. Look, when your father is buried in a local cemetery, that’s a bit more than being here for a short time as her opponents falsely implied. It was heartening to see the former Senator and Secretary of State return here for her first public speech since the election.
Home to her roots. Again I don’t believe I have to write this over and over but when your father came here, these are roots.
Clinton arrived looking fit and well rested. The speech she gave consisted of memories of her childhood as well as the attributes of the Scranton area. It should come as no surprise that she did not attack the individual who defeated her but she did make this comment according to published reports. “I’m ready to come out of the woods”. This was something I did not expect to read and I’m told this brought the crowd to their feet. My personal feeling is that if Clinton had lost to any other GOP nominee, she would go on with her life and stay away. But the person who defeated her has made it imperative that all Democrats, not only the former Secretary never stay in those woods.
“I ask you all tonight — what can we do to find that common ground — a higher ground — where we can make a difference? I’m not sure it can come out of Washington yet, but I do think it can come out of Scranton, “she said. Clinton urged the assembled multitude of more than 600 to use the lessons of the knowledge passed on by their parents and grandparents as a base to make things better than they were yesterday.
A side note here, some of those grandparents were the children of……………immigrants.
Clinton was a hit but then again she was speaking to a choir that consisted of smart, compassionate, dedicated people who knew a good thing when it literally hit them over the head during last year’s Presidential race. But these people still have their work cut out for them. The comments in the newspaper stories on this were still pretty ugly and personal. No surprise given the ignorant cowards that are among us.
But her speech gives me a mixed bag of emotions. The first, being that we missed a great opportunity in 2016. That’s the bad part. The good part is that America still has people who can still critically think.
The latter is not only good but down right great.

OBSERVATIONS

Much thanks to our good friend Karel Zubris for the wonderful photos you see here…..

Krel Zubris with Jennifer Newland, Legal Assistant to the Pa. House of Representatives. WBRE TV's photo journalist Tony I. is in the background. (Photo: Karel Zubris)

The intrepid Zubris caught up with Shannon Roche Cusick, media volunteer with the Society of Irish Women. Shannon is also a Producer at WNEP TV. (Photo: Karel Zubris)

I understand former Pennsylvania First Lady Ellen Casey was in attendance. It is good to hear that she is out and about. When her husband’s tenure ended in 1995 she modestly said in an interview that her role as First Lady was to support her husband. But she also was heavily involved in promoting literacy and educating women about the early detection of breast cancer. Ironic that those two areas she promoted are now under fire by the individual who defeated Hillary Clinton…..

(Photo: Times Tribune) 

and finally a word about our friend Evie Refalko McNulty. She will most likely brain me for writing this but I’m going to do it anyway. McNulty has been a driving force in area politics. She has gotten things DONE. Yet she had been PASSED over twice for jobs at the state level and most recently the county level. Now the State position, I have no issue with because Governor Wolf inherited a bit of a financial shortfall in terms of hiring.
But that County job that was ripped right under from her so that the boy who thinks he’s in charge and hired a triple dipper is quite another thing. While that guy was up in Dickson City yucking it up with all the male cronies, Evie was getting it done accomplishing the biggest “get” there could be for the St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in the area this year.
That’s a Scranton Democratic woman for you. Like the main speaker she refused to hide and cower in the protective shelter of those woods where only the truly righteous and dedicated always emerge to do good.

THE LESSONS OF PAUL KANJORSKI

Your blog editor, then WYLN TV 35 anchor L.A. Tarone and Paul Kanjorski on a rainy Friday night at Riverfest in Wilkes Barre a few years back. (Photo: LuLac archives)

We don’t hear too much about former 11th District Congressman Paul Kanjorski these days. Since his defeat by Lou Barletta a few years back Kanjorski has pretty much kept a low profile. He was kind enough to participate in an interview with WYLN TV during a River fest remote broadcast a few years ago.
Through the years though Kanjorski brought clarity to complex issues. I remember clearly Kanjorski saying that every time you cut federal spending on programs, someone will have to pay anyway. And that somebody will be local and state taxpayers. I thought about this earlier today when heard that Republican Governors John Kasich of Ohio, Rick Snyder of Michigan, Brian Sandoval of Nevada, and Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas said this n a recent letter to congressional leaders. They wrote:  “The House approach provides almost no new flexibility for states, does not ensure the resources necessary to make sure no one is left out, and shifts significant new costs to states.”
A lesson from Kanjorski, it’s nice to hear that federal taxes will be cut (well with this crew maybe) but there is still a piper and that entity will still have to be paid. We'll be the ones too.