send to a friend | print | comment

Eachus aide keeps it diplomatic with Lentz

A day after state Representative Bryan Lentz (D-Delaware) called for the removal of Todd Eachus, the House Majority Leader’s spokesman wasn’t swiping back at Lentz.

“Representative Eachus did receive Representative Lentz’s letter, and he will respond to him in the near future,” Eachus spokesman Brett Marcy said Tuesday. “Representative Eachus and the entire leadership team try to be inclusive and responsive to all members in the diverse Democratic Caucus. That means we’re going to continue to focus on the important legislation that we’ll be moving forward this year.”

While it places him in the reform wing of the party ahead of next year’s race for Congress in the 7th District, Lentz’s early call for Eachus’ ouster is not without political risk. After state Representative Josh Shapiro (D-Montgomery) emerged as an early reform advocate, served as Deputy Speaker and was one of the first in the caucus to call for former Majority Leader Bill DeWeese to resign last year, he later found some of his legislative initiatives stymied by Harrisburg infighting. Whether and how Lentz’s relationship with Eachus—who has been implicated in the Bonusgate corruption probe but not charged—is effected remains to be seen.

“Representative Eachus respects the members of the House Democratic Caucus and he strives to represent the will of the majority of the caucus,” Marcy said. “That’s not going to change.

“The bottom line here,” he added, “is that the focus of the House Democratic Caucus is not on the internal politics that may or may not go on. It’s on the business of trying to move Pennsylvania forward.”

December 29, 2009 at 3:17 pm

--Dan Hirschhorn

Tags: Bonusgate, Bryan Lentz, PA-7, Todd Eachus

comments

comments [1] | post a comment