SOMETIMES YOU JUST HAVE TO OWN IT

During this primary season, Supervisor Dan Davis has been running hard......away from his record. During his campaign speeches, he has fabricated accomplishments, attempted to rationalize shortfalls, and brazenly lied about tax burdens he has inflicted upon the citizens of BC. If it weren't for pesky little details like County records and County Council minutes, possibly no one would have been the wiser. Unfortunately for his reelection efforts, he is finding there is no way to avoid these facts. He has established a record over the last 3 1/2 years as BC Supervisor and now he is forced to own it.

The issue that has drawn the most attention this election cycle is the infamous 29% of the proceeds from the Local Option Sales Tax that Mr. Davis pilfered from property tax relief. This seems to have become a very sore subject with the voters. It's funny how testy folks can get when you make a formal deal with them and then break your word. It appears Mr. Davis is learning this lesson in spades.

At a debate sponsored by the Lion's Club, Mr. Davis was confronted by his challenger, Henry Brown, about the taking of the 29%. Mr. Davis made every attempt to justify the taking of the tax relief but it was obvious the audience wasn't buying any of it. (NOTE: When basically the entire gathering displays a negative head shake, you've lost your point. ) A casual poll after the event indicated little support for Mr. Davis' positions. At a candidate forum held by Trident hospital, the results for Mr. Davis were pretty much the same.

At the Supervisor's debate sponsored by the BCRP, Mr. Davis was met with major criticism of many of his policies. Again, Mr. Henry Brown addressed the issue of the 29%. Mr. Brown asked Mr. Davis how he could justify taking the property tax relief, especially from senior citizens who may have to forgo purchases of food or medicine in order to pay the additional taxes. Mr. Davis had no reply. Seriously, he didn't open his mouth to respond.

Later at this same event, Mr. Davis claimed he was not responsible for the inclusion of the 29% in the budget. He falsely placed the responsibility for this decision squarely at the doorstep of County Council. But, when Mr. Brown pointed out that it was he, Mr. Davis, who cast the tie-breaking vote to include the tax relief in the budget, Mr. Davis had no comment. Really, he didn't deny that he cast the vote. He didn't dispute anything Mr. Brown said. He just sat there. Once again, those pesky County Council minutes proved problematic for Mr. Davis.

During this campaign, Mr. Davis has falsely claimed to have balanced the budget for the first time in 18 years. (16 years if you read his mail-out) In fact, a balanced budget is mandatory. He has falsely claimed to have lowered taxes. In fact, he has taken 29% of our property tax relief, raised the millage by one mill, raised water rates by 30%, and initiated ANOTHER one cent Local Option Sales Tax, all resulting in higher taxpayer obligations. He has falsely claimed he has lowered debt. In fact he has floated a $150 MILLION bond issue for the 17-A project, floated a $10 MILLION general obligation bond, borrowed $10 MILLION from BCW&SA, and took $4 MILLION from the BC School System. He has done all this while depleting the fund balance to below 4%. On these issues, County records let the cat out of the bag.

Mr. Davis' M O is very interesting. He makes whatever statements, true or not, that serve his purposes. If no one notices a falsehood, fantastic. If someone does notice, he just ignores it and goes on to the next subject.

It is time for the voters of BC to admit that a mistake was made when Supervisor Dan Davis was elected 3 1/2 years ago. It has turned out, as many contended at the time, that Mr. Davis' resume did not indicate the expertise required to lead BC successfully. Ultimately, he was not qualified for the job. Additionally, his actions since election have not reflected the level of integrity and good character the voters expected.

A large majority of the voters in BC are to blame for this blunder. There are 111,177 eligible voters in BC. There are only 75,000 registered voters. In the 2006 BC Republican Primary, of the 75,000 registered voters, only 12,000 (17%) turned out to the polls. Of those, only 6,096 or 8% of the total, voted for Mr. Davis. Think about that statistic. 8% of the registered voters made the decision to hire Mr. Davis to run our County. (Source: BC Election Commission) Considering these facts, is it not possible that we got exactly the kind of wake-up call we deserved?

One of the greatest things about our form of government is that no election, however disastrous, is the last one. There will always be another chance to correct a bad decision. For a couple of years, our County government has been hogtied by an inept Supervisor leading a coalition of tax and spend Democrats and RINOs. Next Tuesday we will all have the opportunity to correct our mistakes. GE&P urges every registered voter to go to the polls and have his/her voice heard.

Support the folks who have fought to save our tax dollars by voting to reelect DENNIS FISH, DISTRICT 5 AND CATHY DAVIS, DISTRICT 4

Vote to REPLACE a RINO with a TRUE CONSERVATIVE by electing TERRY HARDESTY, DISTRICT 6

GUARANTEE EXPERIENCE, HONESTY and INTEGRITY in OUR LEADERSHIP by electing HENRY BROWN, SUPERVISOR.

RECOGNIZE a QUALIFIED, COMPASSIONATE PROFESSIONAL by electing SHARON SHULER, CORONER.

BERKELEY COUNTY DESERVES ELECTED OFFICIALS WHO HAVE EARNED OUR ADMIRATION AND RESPECT. CHARACTER DOES MATTER.