In the world of
politics, the Chester County Democratic Committee is hardly a juggernaut.
At the end of 2014, it had just $3,194.99 in its coffers
and, despite its efforts, has managed to elect only one Democrat to state
office - Andrew Dinniman, a state senator.
So how did this small-potatoes political committee end up
in a federal racketeering lawsuit filed against the Carpenters union by the
Convention Center, seeking the court's protection "against multiple
violent and intimidating acts"?
The answer lies in how both sides will leave no stone, or
pebble, unturned, in their battle over who will call the shots at one of the
city's largest drivers of economic development.
A year ago, amid customer complaints about costs and
hassles of doing business at the Convention Center, management maneuvered the
union, the Metropolitan Regional Council of Carpenters, out of the center.
Protests, picketing, and plenty of legal actions ensued
as the union tried to regain its work in the building.
Meanwhile, the Convention Center, a public agency run by
a politically appointed board, continued to host conventions and the carpenters
continued to build buildings - and contribute to politicians and their
committees, $8.9 million since 2005.
Carpenters Political Action of Philadelphia and Vicinity
donations in 2014 - the year the union lost work in the center - more than
doubled to $1.3 million, with the biggest donations to fund Tom Wolf's gubernatorial
campaign.
In the courts, the 25-page racketeering lawsuit, filed
May 7, lays out the center's complaints. Union pickets often blocked traffic
around the center and, the suit contended, frightened staff by
"ostentatiously" videotaping them.
The situation escalated, the suit said, during February's
Philadelphia Auto Show, when the carpenters allegedly intimidated socialites
attending a charity function and then allegedly "infiltrated the
Convention Center and seized and disrupted the Auto Show through a variety of
violent and obstructive means," vandalizing the cars and stuffing leaflets
everywhere.
The lawsuit goes on to say that a letter-writing campaign
urging Democratic leaders to boycott the Convention Center during the 2016
Democratic presidential convention in Philadelphia "already had its
desired effect of inflicting economic damage . . . in the form of lost
bookings."
How? Because Chester County's Democrats had vowed not to
host events at the Convention Center, paragraph 79 noted.
"As Labor so often stands with us during election
time, we are honored to stand with you in your dispute with the Convention
Center," said an e-mail.
"I don't mean to be a smart guy," said the
committee's solicitor, Paul Drucker, "but with all due respect, we're not
large enough to consider holding an event there."
Speaking for the Carpenters union, Martin O'Rourke said,
"Choosing the . . . committee as an example of lost business is frivolous
and silly and it epitomizes how frivolous and silly the lawsuit is."
But if the Chester County Democrats can't afford to hold
an event there, why did chairman Brian McGinnis send the e-mail?
The center's CEO, John McNichol, described it as "an
empty gesture."
And Drucker? "Solidarity," he explained,
pointing out that the Carpenters union helps with legwork during campaigns.
The union hasn't particularly helped with money, until
recently. "No connection," the carpenters' O'Rourke said.
Of the $1.3 million donated in 2014, $1,000 went to the
Chester County Democratic Committee - the only donation to it in a decade,
despite many requests, a former party official said.
McGinnis referred questions to Drucker. "That e-mail
was not purchased for $1,000," Drucker said. "I guarantee that
Brian's e-mail had nothing to do with it."
And, on Dec. 4, Dinniman, the county party's most
influential leader, received $2,000. The next day he got an additional $15,000.
While the Carpenters union has regularly donated to Dinniman, the $17,000 was
more than three times the highest previous donation. Dinniman could not be
reached for comment.
Source: Philly.com
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