Fantasy politics

Today's story comes from the Scranton(PA) Times-Tribune regarding a little indiscretion committed by members of the Green Party, and potentially the Republican party, as hopefuls approach the hotly-contested US Senate Seat up for grabs in Pennsylvania's election this fall. The two prime candidates are Senator Rick Santorum, the #3 ranking GOP member, and state Treasurer Bob Casey Jr., son of the former state governor.

Dems sue to drop Senate hopeful
BY MICHAEL RACE, HARRISBURG BUREAU CHIEF
08/09/2006

HARRISBURG — U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum’s efforts to fend off an election challenge by state Treasurer Bob Casey could be influenced by a legal skirmish involving another Northeastern Pennsylvania politico.
Mickey Mouse, Robert Redford and Jesus Christ might play a role, too.
State Democrats filed a lawsuit Tuesday to have Green Party candidate Carl Romanelli, of Wilkes-Barre, tossed off the U.S. Senate ballot for allegedly having tens of thousands of invalid signatures on his nomination petitions. The questionable signatures include the three names mentioned above, along with others such as Terry Schiavo, Woody Allen, Mona Lisa, Steve Martin and Lee H. Oswald.
The Democrats blame the alleged petition fraud on Santorum supporters, whom they say helped Mr. Romanelli land a ballot spot.“There is no doubt that Rick Santorum and the Republican Party did their best to take votes away from Casey through this silly charade,” said Democratic Party Chairman T.J. Rooney, who had called Mr. Romanelli a “puppet” of the GOP.
Some Democrats fear Mr. Romanelli’s support of abortion rights could draw votes away from Mr. Casey, who shares Mr. Santorum’s opposition to legalized abortion.
Mr. Romanelli acknowledges his Senate bid has been aided by Republicans who have given money to the Greens and helped gather signatures to get him on the ballot. Still, he said, the Democratic Party is acting like a “bully” in its efforts to limit voters’ choices.
“I haven’t backed down from a bully before, and I’m not going to start now,” Mr. Romanelli said Tuesday. “We’re prepared to defend against anything that the Democrats might throw at us.”
The Green Party submitted about 94,500 signatures to the state to have Mr. Romanelli placed on the ballot, well above the legally required minimum of 67,070 signatures. Democrats allege up to 69,672 of those signatures are invalid for a variety of reasons, ranging from fraud to improperly completed paperwork. If they can convince the court to strike about 27,500 of those signatures, Mr. Romanelli would be off the ballot.
“Phony names, fake signatures and a tremendous amount of illegal and deceptive practices were uncovered during our thorough and aggressive analysis (of the Green petitions),” Mr. Rooney said.
Santorum campaign spokesman Vince Galko likened the legal challenge to the Democratic Party’s efforts to silence Mr. Casey’s father, former Gov. Robert Casey, because of his opposition to abortion. “Isn’t it ironic that ... Casey Jr. is trying to silence a candidate who, too, has an interest in expressing opposing views?” Mr. Galko said in a statement.
If the effort to oust Mr. Romanelli from the race is successful, it also would claim the candidacies of Green Party gubernatorial candidate Marakay Rogers and her running mate, Christina Valente. That’s because the Greens relied on the same set of signatures to put all three candidates on the ballot.
“If one of us doesn’t make it, none of us does,” Ms. Rogers said last week.
Unlike Mr. Romanelli, Ms. Rogers’ potential impact on the gubernatorial race is harder to gauge. Her presence could pull some liberal voters away from Democratic incumbent Gov. Ed Rendell, but it also could pull anti-incumbent voters away from Republican challenger Lynn Swann.

Bogus voters? State Democrats allege petitions of Green Party candidate Carl Romanelli contain scores of bogus voter signatures. Among those in question:
Mickey Mouse
George Bush
Gerald Ford
John Kerry
Woody Allen
Robert Redford
Steve Martin
Lee H. Oswald
Terry Schiavo
Jesus Christ
Mona Lisa

Wow. Quite a list of supporters there, Mr. Romanelli! Kind of like playing fantasy football, only at the state capital, eh?

Not to mention the fact that Romanelli looks like Christopher Lloyd in "Back to the Future." "It's your petition, Marty! We've got to do something about your petition!!!"