Anonymous
02/28/2020 11:16
Subject: APS - Who is running for School Board?
Anonymous wrote:I mostly agree with this, except I think the issue is all Feds, previously, have known not to even ask. They just don’t run in the first place. That’s been the interpretation, by everyone, for forever. I was surprised that her ethics counsel interpreted the issue the way they did.
While I don’t like how this went down, perhaps this is what will lead to an actually apolitical School Board? The ACDC should have no business in this whatsoever. Their caucus system for endorsement in an “apolitical” race is and always has been a bunch of BS. It has kept out both Feds and other qualified candidates who haven’t kissed the right rings or fundraised for the right people, despite being good and faithful D voters. I don’t want professional politicians on the SB. I want the people who will do right by the kids and teachers, even if it means shaking up the status quo.
+1
ACDC needs to get out of the SB race altogether.
That said, I am a fed govt attorney who sometimes advises on ethics matters. If an employee disclosed ALL of the facts of this situation to me, I never would have said it was ok to run in the Dem caucus. I would definitely have said it was ok to run as an independent. So, I think I question how much was actually disclosed to agency counsel when the original permission was given. But, if I were in Symone's shoes, I would be happy that someone kept this at my employer's level and didn't elevate it to the Office of Special Counsel. That's when the sh*t gets real. They don't play over there and, from my experience, they have very little tolerance for Hatch Act violations, especially very obvious ones like this one. There is an OSC opinion out there from the early 2000s that speaks directly to what it means to be an independent candidate and it says you can't seek the endorsement of a political party and still be considered an independent candidate.
According to a comment on the Arlington Dems FB page, Terron did elevate it to the Office of Special Counsel. SO... it looking like sh*t did get real.
Anonymous
02/28/2020 09:47
Subject: APS - Who is running for School Board?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:If I asked my ethics counsel and they said OK, I would not feel entitled. And then if someone else in the race perputally called my employer until they changed their mind, I would feel harassed.
I'm sympathetic to her position on this.
One, we don’t know any info on what actually happened and whether it constitutes harassment. Two, I would be more sympathetic if the law was on her side here. No one in this SB race has enough pull to cause a federal agency to overturn or overlook federal law. But the Hatch Act and its related guidance is pretty clear that a fed employee can run as an independent but can’t seek the endorsement of a political party. So are we more concerned that someone tattled on her rather than the fact that she was skirting the law?
Don’t you think it’s weird that no other Fed runs for SB? It’s bc feds know they can’t, at least not in the Dem caucus.
+1000
I wish the upshot of these events was for everyone to see the bigger picture:
The Arlington county democratic committee is intruding into a non partisan contest for the most local of offices, controlling the outcome by crowning a winner months in advance of the actual election, and worst of all, discouraging a large number of qualified candidates from running. Don’t go to the caucus, and don’t vote for whoever they crown. Why do they intrude? To contain and deny our schools Growing need for resources, which is clearly butting up against the party’s subsidized housing and density priorities. Whoever they nominate will just be a puppet.
Anonymous
02/28/2020 09:33
Subject: APS - Who is running for School Board?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:If I asked my ethics counsel and they said OK, I would not feel entitled. And then if someone else in the race perputally called my employer until they changed their mind, I would feel harassed.
I'm sympathetic to her position on this.
One, we don’t know any info on what actually happened and whether it constitutes harassment. Two, I would be more sympathetic if the law was on her side here. No one in this SB race has enough pull to cause a federal agency to overturn or overlook federal law. But the Hatch Act and its related guidance is pretty clear that a fed employee can run as an independent but can’t seek the endorsement of a political party. So are we more concerned that someone tattled on her rather than the fact that she was skirting the law?
Don’t you think it’s weird that no other Fed runs for SB? It’s bc feds know they can’t, at least not in the Dem caucus.
+1000
Anonymous
02/28/2020 09:26
Subject: APS - Who is running for School Board?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I just love the drama. Funny how the ACDC faithful who read everything on AEM are not chiming in to defend the integrity and importance of the caucus. They know it's dirty.
It’s never been a problem to them until now. And even now they’re all blaming the candidate that squealed on her more than the system itself.
or HER
Anonymous
02/28/2020 09:25
Subject: APS - Who is running for School Board?
Anonymous wrote:I just love the drama. Funny how the ACDC faithful who read everything on AEM are not chiming in to defend the integrity and importance of the caucus. They know it's dirty.
It’s never been a problem to them until now. And even now they’re all blaming the candidate that squealed on her more than the system itself.
Anonymous
02/28/2020 09:10
Subject: APS - Who is running for School Board?
I just love the drama. Funny how the ACDC faithful who read everything on AEM are not chiming in to defend the integrity and importance of the caucus. They know it's dirty.
Anonymous
02/28/2020 08:55
Subject: APS - Who is running for School Board?
Anonymous wrote:I mostly agree with this, except I think the issue is all Feds, previously, have known not to even ask. They just don’t run in the first place. That’s been the interpretation, by everyone, for forever. I was surprised that her ethics counsel interpreted the issue the way they did.
While I don’t like how this went down, perhaps this is what will lead to an actually apolitical School Board? The ACDC should have no business in this whatsoever. Their caucus system for endorsement in an “apolitical” race is and always has been a bunch of BS. It has kept out both Feds and other qualified candidates who haven’t kissed the right rings or fundraised for the right people, despite being good and faithful D voters. I don’t want professional politicians on the SB. I want the people who will do right by the kids and teachers, even if it means shaking up the status quo.
+1
ACDC needs to get out of the SB race altogether.
That said, I am a fed govt attorney who sometimes advises on ethics matters. If an employee disclosed ALL of the facts of this situation to me, I never would have said it was ok to run in the Dem caucus. I would definitely have said it was ok to run as an independent. So, I think I question how much was actually disclosed to agency counsel when the original permission was given. But, if I were in Symone's shoes, I would be happy that someone kept this at my employer's level and didn't elevate it to the Office of Special Counsel. That's when the sh*t gets real. They don't play over there and, from my experience, they have very little tolerance for Hatch Act violations, especially very obvious ones like this one. There is an OSC opinion out there from the early 2000s that speaks directly to what it means to be an independent candidate and it says you can't seek the endorsement of a political party and still be considered an independent candidate.
Thank you for this perspective. As an outsider observer, it seems obvious to me too. Which is why I'm wondering what explains it...
The options are:
A. Symone is not too smart and doesn't understand an obvious H Act violation
B. Symone intentionally tried to get around the H Act by not disclosing all the facts to her agency counsel
C. Symone knew this was a likely violation of the H Act and ran anyways
D. Symone is terribly sloppy and didn't do due diligence on what the H Act requires (which for a lawyer should not be hard - someone on DCUM found an on point opinion)
I mean, she's a LAWYER people! She should know better.
I can't think of a scenario where she looks good here.
Anonymous
02/28/2020 08:34
Subject: APS - Who is running for School Board?
I mostly agree with this, except I think the issue is all Feds, previously, have known not to even ask. They just don’t run in the first place. That’s been the interpretation, by everyone, for forever. I was surprised that her ethics counsel interpreted the issue the way they did.
While I don’t like how this went down, perhaps this is what will lead to an actually apolitical School Board? The ACDC should have no business in this whatsoever. Their caucus system for endorsement in an “apolitical” race is and always has been a bunch of BS. It has kept out both Feds and other qualified candidates who haven’t kissed the right rings or fundraised for the right people, despite being good and faithful D voters. I don’t want professional politicians on the SB. I want the people who will do right by the kids and teachers, even if it means shaking up the status quo.
While I don’t like how this went down, perhaps this is what will lead to an actually apolitical School Board? The ACDC should have no business in this whatsoever. Their caucus system for endorsement in an “apolitical” race is and always has been a bunch of BS. It has kept out both Feds and other qualified candidates who haven’t kissed the right rings or fundraised for the right people, despite being good and faithful D voters. I don’t want professional politicians on the SB. I want the people who will do right by the kids and teachers, even if it means shaking up the status quo.
+1
ACDC needs to get out of the SB race altogether.
That said, I am a fed govt attorney who sometimes advises on ethics matters. If an employee disclosed ALL of the facts of this situation to me, I never would have said it was ok to run in the Dem caucus. I would definitely have said it was ok to run as an independent. So, I think I question how much was actually disclosed to agency counsel when the original permission was given. But, if I were in Symone's shoes, I would be happy that someone kept this at my employer's level and didn't elevate it to the Office of Special Counsel. That's when the sh*t gets real. They don't play over there and, from my experience, they have very little tolerance for Hatch Act violations, especially very obvious ones like this one. There is an OSC opinion out there from the early 2000s that speaks directly to what it means to be an independent candidate and it says you can't seek the endorsement of a political party and still be considered an independent candidate.