DC WATCH CALLS COUNCILWOMAN CHEH PETTY & REPREHENSIBLE

[Psycho]

DC WATCH CALLS COUNCILWOMAN CHEH

PETTY & REPREHENSIBLE

 

 

"Sometimes, they just write themselves," Dorothy said.

 

 

In the last issue (themail, July 22), I wrote about Councilmember Mary Cheh's suggestion that Jonathan Rees should have to pay the government's costs of investigating his complaint against her campaign, since the Office of Campaign Finance found that the campaign did not violate election law.

 

 

Jeremy Faust of Councilmember Cheh's office sent us her response to our request for a comment, printed below, and I agree with Dorothy's reaction to it.

 

 

This stuff just writes itself. Councilmember Cheh's E-mail is personal, petty, bitter, and unworthy of a councilmember. It is further proof of how bad her idea is that any citizen should be punished for making a complaint about anyone's election campaign, even if that complaint is not ultimately upheld.

 

 

Citizens should not have to live under the fear that politicians motivated by the kind of animus exhibited by Councilmember Cheh will try to ruin them financially if they dare to challenge them.

 

 

Cheh calls Rees "loopy," someone "who it would be generous to call a fringe candidate," and says, "He simply cannot be taken seriously."

 

 

On the contrary, it is the duty of elected officials, even Councilmember Cheh, to take all their constituents and all citizens seriously, and not to dismiss them contemptuously. The idea that politicians should be able to judge which citizens are responsible enough to make complaints about them -- and then to risk their fortunes if they make any complaints -- is reprehensible.

 

 

Cheh still doesn't see that. Do her colleagues?

 

 

Meanwhile, Joseph Sternlieb called to say that the Office of Campaign Finance made several errors in its investigation and in its report about the investigation.

 

 

Sternlieb declined to write anything for themail about these errors, but he said that he was going to write to OCF and that he would send a copy of that letter to me. If and when he does, I'll post his letter on DCWatch and report on it here.

 

 

Sternlieb also denied that he supported Adrian Fenty for mayor prior to the primary election last year. He said that while his wife, Linda Singer, hosted a fundraiser for Fenty, he himself did not support Fenty and didn't even vote for him in the primary. Given Fenty's tendency to retaliate against those who didn't support him, that's a brave admission for a developer who seeks the city government's favors to make.

 

 

In the last issue of TheMail, I inadvertently omitted a link to the Washington Post article about the Office of Campaign Finance's report (though I have added that link to the online version of the E-mail). The OCF report is now posted on DC Watch.

 

 

Gary Imhoff

DC Watch