Clout: You don't want to mess with Darth Vader's mentor
CLOUT LOVES movies almost as much as politics. And we can face the facts - we're big-time "Star Wars" nerds. Sometimes these interests merge in odd ways.
CLOUT LOVES movies almost as much as politics. And we can face the facts -
we're big-time "Star Wars" nerds. Sometimes these interests merge in odd ways.
Consider powerhouse Philadelphia attorney Dick Sprague.
There is something about Sprague that has always reminded us of the Emperor, aka Sen. Palpatine, in that space saga. They're both diminutive, hunched, wrinkled. And offending them can lead to your ruin. Heck, the Emperor taught Darth Vader how to choke people without ever laying a finger on the offending party.
We thought of that Tuesday, when Sprague faced a state Senate-House hearing on gaming issues, which raised questions about a casino trade group that he formed in 2007. Sprague, an investor in the SugarHouse casino under construction in Fishtown, accused the legislators of running a "Mickey Mouse" hearing instead of focusing on more-important issues.
State Rep. Curt Schroder, an Exton Republican, was offended by what he called Sprague's "mockery" of the hearing. It was clear that he was about to give
Sprague a stern talking-to.
But then Schroder stopped, his face flushing red, his words choking in his throat as he scrambled for water. The hearing swiftly moved on to the next speaker.
While Schroder and others were critical, some legislators in the hearing spoke glowingly of Sprague's legendary legal power.
So, Clout just had to ask
Sprague after the hearing: Does he have the power to choke a chiding legislator from across the room?
Sprague clapped his hand on our shoulder and laughed.
"Absolutely," he said.
A very Brady Tea Party
Pia Varma sings common refrains from the Tea Party hymnal, overwrought at times in a fashion that makes us think of Fox News personality Glenn Beck.
After all, the 27-year-old, who lives in Blue Bell but is moving to Northern Liberties, has written two stories for Beck's "Fusion" magazine. And she tinkered briefly in the gold business, and Beck's radio show is sponsored by a company that sells gold.
But mostly we get the Beck vibe from Varma when she talks politics. You may be hearing more of that, since Varma is challenging U.S. Rep. Bob Brady this year.
Varma's pitch is big on the people versus the government. Her experience comes from a Kensington building project smacked down by the city's Zoning Board of Adjustment, and trouble she had getting a business started through Delaware County bureaucracy.
Varma is reaching out to Republican leaders in the city and state, and has been called a longshot. But she thinks that it's important to talk about issues that concern her.
We pressed a bit on her rhetoric about a need for a new revolution to fight for rights being stripped from citizens by an overzealous government. She waffled for a while and finally struck a populist chord on health care, saying that government should stay out of the business of medicine.
"At the end of the day, I may not be the best qualified but I'm not running on a resumé," Varma told us. "Agree with me or don't agree with me. I just want to have the discussion."
Speaking of that resumé, we wondered if someone with a bunch of YouTube clips and a Web site that proclaims herself the "Liberty Belle" might be running for Congress to raise her profile.
"It's not really a resumé-builder to me," Varma said of the race. "I don't really care about my resumé that much."
Fancy meeting you here
There has been a strong political buzz around the state that Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty is thinking about dropping out of the Democratic primary election for governor to run instead for lieutenant governor while endorsing Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato for the top of the ticket. So imagine the chance that both men would lunch Thursday at the Capital Grille, just down Broad Street from City Hall.
Small world, it turns out. Both campaigns said that the two candidates' bumping into each other was pure happenstance.
Stand by your friends
Jonathan Saidel, the former city controller, announced last week while surrounded by political allies in City Hall that he was running for lieutenant governor.
Saidel's campaign Web site - Saidel2010.com - offers clues as to why the city's pols are so loyal to him. It's a two-way street.
Featured prominently in the site's photo gallery are three shots of former state Sen. Vince Fumo and one of former North Philly ward leader Carlos Matos. Fumo is serving a federal prison term. Matos just got out.
Quotable:
"I am?"
- Former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Stephen Zappala, when a state legislator noted during a gaming-oversight hearing Tuesday that he is chairman of the Pennsylvania Casino Association. [He is.]
Staff writer Bob Warner contributed to this report.
Have tips or suggestions? Call Chris Brennan at 215-854-5973 or e-mail
Check out the Clout blog at: