Ralph Nader yesterday paid a visit to the state capital and urged the State Supreme Court to take a new look at its decision ordering his presidential campaign to pay $81,000 + in costs related to his being tossed from the 2004 presidential ballot.
Nader stressed that the current “bonusgate” scandal more than justifies his actions due to the fact that many of the actions relating to the 2004 presidential petitions were conducted illegally and during the supposed “bonusgate” time period.
The recent indictments by Attorney General Tom Corbett of former House Minority Whip Mike Veon and former Majority Leader DeWeese’s Chief of State Mike Manzo (among 10 others) for using state resources for political work that included the successful effort to remove Nader’s name off the ballot in 2004, is enough justification for having the state supreme court take another look, said Nader.
Like a moth to a light, this action shows just how time consuming the “bonusgate” scandal could become and what kind of efforts it will take to focus not on past issues but in moving forward and learning from serious mistakes. Both sides of this issue seemingly were in the wrong - Nader’s campaign petitions had faulty signatures and those signatures were reviewed by House Democrats illegally. While the press conference was used as a platform by Nader’s attorney to justify their actions to legally pursue the disputed monetary payments, Nader and others like him would be wise to follow-up on items that will make sure these types of situations never occur again. For that might be ideas that we will all hear from government reform groups in the near future - ways to validate campaign signatures and reform legislation dealing with legislative bonuses. Though these are just some ideas, we will wait and see.