The Larry Kane Report

It came up during several forums with KYW Newsradio Middle East Bureay Chief Jay Bushinsky this past week. The issue made me think, and sometimes, made me angry.

American governments have always been very sensitive about touting their support for Israel even though the whole world knows that Israel is a key ally for our nation.

So when Bushinsky brought up a rather sensitive point, it brought some people to wonder what the hell our leaders have been thinking

Jay says that since the Iraq war began , Israel has made a standing offer to accept Americans wounded in Iraq at any one its hospitals that are know for amazing care, and especially emergency care for those wounded in bomb explosions and in combat.

The U.S. government has never taken Israel up on its offer, even though it could save the lives of our men and women by enabling American hospital planes to land in Israel, saving almost four hours in travel time for seriously wounded forces.

Can you image how many lives and limbs could have seen saved if wounded Americans could have spared the long trip to hospitals in Germany?

Of course our nation’s leaders would never want to make it appear that we are doing business with Israel, even at the same time we do business with the devil by quietly negotiating with terrorist militias in Iraq.

I know it is a complicated time, but if we can save American lives by shortening flights for emergency surgery, we must do it.

The hypocrisy of our actions and inactions sometimes drives me crazy.

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SINCE THIS REPORT FIRST APPEARED, I HAVE HAD CALLS FROM POLITICAL SOURCES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE AISLE WHO CLAIM THAT THERE IS MORE TO COME ON THIS STORY. THEY ASSUME THAT THE SOURCE OF THE LEAKS WILL BE MADE APPARENT. I DON’T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THIS MEANS, BUT THE AMOUNT OF PHONE CALLS AND THE INTRIGUING CONVERSATIONS LEAD ME TO BELIEVE THAT MORE NEWS IS ABOUT TO BREAK.

WHERE THIS STORY IS GOING IS A MYSTERY, BUT THERE IS A LOT OF BUZZ THAT SOME REPUBLICAN LEADERS IN WASHINGTON WERE NOT UNHAPPY WITH THE LEAKS. AGAIN, I DON’T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THIS MEANS. BUT I DO KNOW THAT THE LOCAL POLITICAL COMMUNITY IS OVERFLOWING WITH RUMORS AND THEORIES.

THE FOLLOWING IS MY ORIGINAL REPORT FROM SOURCES:
The strange case of the suddenly exposed investigation of events surrounding Pa. Congressman Curt Weldon could wind up in a political backlash in what is turning out to be a very close election.

FBI agents siezed records at locations in Pennsylvania and Florida involving business dealings between Weldon’s daughter and his close friend. Although there is no confirmation of what this investigation is about, news reports claim that investigators want to know if the 10 term Congressman used his influence to secure lucrative contracts for his daughter and a close friend.

Terry Madonna, the respected pollster tells me, “There’s an outside chance that this leak could work in reverse and be viewed as an unfair targeting of a candidate in the middle of an election cycle. While this all could hurt the candidate, it might help him.”

You may remember that in the 2003 Mayors Race in Philadelphia, discovery of a wiretap bug in the Mayor’s office propelled John Street to a second term victory over Republican Sam Katz. The Democratic vote was energized by a view that the Republican controlled Justice Department was targeting Street during an election cycle. As the ensuing investigation showed, Street was not the target. Rather, it was people peddling influence in and around his administration.

In this case, doubters speculate that the Justice Department would never try to hurt a Republican Congressman during a tough election drive. But that is not the way it works. The newspaper leaks had to come from reliable sources. After all, the leaks forced the FBI to scramble to collect evidence. So the investigation is apparently for real.

The issue that some voters will face is whether investigators could have waited till after the election to do their thing. An investigation doesn’t neccesarily mean an indictment. But leaks of such an investigation might stir some voters to think that somebody is playing with the law in the middle of an election.

And that could cause an angry backlash.

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Maybe they are just whistling in the dark, setting themselves up to expect the worst, but Republican party leaders in the suburbs of Philadelphia, who prefer to remain anonymous for obvious reasons, are beyond the panic zone as they face election day less than three weeks away.

Three weeks ago. most of the county leaders were optimistic that they could hold on to their suburban congressional bases, but a combination of events has led to a grim reassessment of what might happen on November 7th. These factors include: an even more gloomy outlook in Iraq, the Congressman Foley sex scandal, and the suspected investigation of the daughter and friend of long time Congressman Curt Weldon. Add to that the overwhelming lead of Governor Ed Rendell in his re-election bad and the difficulties of Senator Rick Santorum to close the gap against Democrat Bob Casey, and they see a momentum that is difficult to stop.

At highest risk: Congressman Weldon and Congressman Jim Gerlach. On the low risk end: Congressman Mike Fitpatrick of Bucks County facing a political newcomer in Iraq war veteran Patrick Murphy. Murphy is considered an underdog, but the fear is that the anti-Republican and anti incumbent mood is so strong that there could even be an upset in Bucks County!

I should point out that it is common for anxious politicians to forecast the worst and underestimate chances, which makes them look good if the news is good on election day. But this is a fear factor from a party that has had its way in Bucks, Delaware and Chester Counties for a long time. I sense a genuine concern that the party may be over.

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A sequence of events:

Two “sources” tell the Associated Press over the weekend that the FBI is investigating Congressman Curt Weldon, his daughter and a long time friend over possible influence in obtaining employment or work contracts.

Monday (yesterday) the FBI raids six locations to collect documents.

The raids are obviously designed to collect documents before they could be destroyed. An assumption is made that the leaks forced the FBI to move fast.

Quesion: Who are the leakers? They couldn’t be part of the Justice Department because that would hurt a case while it is being studied.  Are they lawyers for someone else?
And why does all this happen during the middle of an election campaign?

I have as much information as you do. But the sequence of events is fascinating, to say the least.

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The radio interview that I moderated on KYW Newsradio yesterday between Bob Casey and Rick Santorum included the largest audience in this nationally watched contest — an estimated one million drive time radio listeners in Philadelphia and in Pittsburgh on KDKA Radio.

Unlike last week’s near scream out between Santorum and Casey, this was a much more civilized conversation, and in my opinion, one that contained more substantial discussion of the issues. This was not a result of my work or the great questions of KYW Bureau Chiefs Mike Dunn and Tony Romeo, but rather a more subdued approach by both candidates in handling the topics.

The candidates arrived early: Santorum first at 7:15 . In an office near the conference room studio that we used, the Senator did some reading and met with aides for the better part of forty minutes. He wore a sport jacket and sweater. Casey arrived at 7:30 with his wife and staff and outside of a men’s room stop remained in the room preparing strategy.

In the broadcast room. the two sat a few feet apart and greeted each other in a cordial manner, both of them looking more relaxed than in the Pittsburgh debate that resembled a political street brawl. It is obvious to me that beyond the courtesy, the men do not like each other. Often in political campaigns, candidates spar but they have respect for the opposition. Even with a pool camera on the candidates at all times, there appeared to be looks of scorn and grimaces of disdain.

As far as the content: Santorum was strongest when he spoke about his passion on opposing use of the morning after pill. Casey kept up his theme of connecting Santorum with the Bush White House. Casey called Santorum’s visit to the nursing home of the dying Terry Schiavo grandstanding, and Santorum once again prodded Casey on his job attendance record.

Through it all you saw the clearest differences: Casey opposes the Bush tax cuts. Santorum is opposed to any fast withdrawal from Iraq. Santorum portrays Casey as soft on illegal immigrants. And Casey portrays Santorum as a tool of the right.

Although the two men are pro-life, there are sharp differences on many issues, reflecting the current Democratic-Republican split in Washington.

You can listen to the debate anytime at kyw1060.com.

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