The problem with bluffing is that if you’re called on it, you can end up looking pretty stupid. And we’re calling out Lakewood Democrat Tom Bullock, a candidate for a House seat in state District 13, for misrepresenting news articles in a campaign mailer that attacks his opponent in the May 4 primary.
Bullock, in the mailer sent out to West side voters last week, pats himself on the back for having “stood up to the [Democratic] party bosses and called on Jimmy Dimora to resign.” To back up this claim, he cites a June 2009 Scene article (“Thanks a lot, Jimmy”), which quoted Bullock as saying, “”The realm is ill when the king is ill. How do you renew the realm? You need a new king.”
So far, so good. But the eager young Bullock didn’t trust voters to get it, so he cited the same article as the source for his claim that opponent Nickie Antonio “stands with party bosses in opposing the county government reform effort.” But the article did not quote or even mention Antonio.
“It’s a total smear job done with the assumption that people won’t dig any deeper,” says Antonio. “It’s an attack on my integrity with no cause.”
This article appears in Apr 14-20, 2010.
Are his citations embellished or are his claims embellished? Because if I have to choose between a candidate who thinks DiMora should still be in office and a candidate who printed the wrong date for a news story on his campaign literature, that’s not really a hard choice.
Or cited an article that didn’t contain what he claimed it did? Or made untrue allegations against his opponent because he’s got nothing. He hasn’t introduced even one resolution that was written correctly. He doesn’t know Robert’s Rules, he lies, he’s got nothing, air, nada.
I’m a resident of Lakewood. I have had Bullock’s people at my door and not only do they embellish they lie! It is clear that he is another dishonest politician! I feel bad for his volunteers that are believing his lies and are bringing them to our doors. He moved to Ohio a couple of years ago and all he has done is try to make himself into something on our backs!
Will he finish his term in Lakewood if this campaign is unsuccessful?
I keep hearing that he’s full of lies, but no one seems to be able to point to any. If Bullock’s biggest crime is being bad at Robert’s Rules, he could be doing a lot worse.
I don’t understand why Nickie won’t just admit that DiMora is a scumbag and ought to be tossed out of office. Then we could all be talking about jobs. Is she actually loyal to him for some reason, or does she just not get it?
lakewoodem ,Did you see the flyer he mailed? It is the lies that the Scene is pointing out! If you fabricate something isn’t that also a lie? Are you splitting hairs with morals. All I know is that I don’t trust him! It seems to me that you may be associated with Bullock. If you are good luck with that creep!
Lie #1 – Nickie Stands by the party bosses – Nickie isn’t quoted or even discussed in the article making such a claim. This is Bullock’s own assertion – nothing in the article points to this.
Lie #2 – ‘Balanced the budget for the first time in 22 years’ – Tom must not understand how Lakewood government works. The city budget is REQUIRED BY CHARTER to be balanced EVERY YEAR. Tom had nothing to do with this absurd claim.
Lie #3 – ‘Leading the reform effort’ – Tom was not a leader in the Issue 6 reform campaign and he is a mere player with any other efforts that have been organized by more sincere folks. Even his colleagues in the CC Democrats for Principled Leadership have discredited his remarks.
Nickie doesn’t need to call for anyone to step down as long as her current job and loyalties remain with the voters of Lakewood. It would be nice if she did, but she has done nothing differently than any other Democratic leader in Lakewood or beyond.
Tom Bullock is a liar and should be ashamed of himself. The voters should stay away from this liar if they want true representation.
I just got this from the Observation Deck and I believe any good Democrat would see Bullock’s tactics are from the Rove/Republican handbook. He should be ashamed of himself! This can’t happen in my city! The quote is below.
Because I work with both of them on City Council, and have had positive relationships with both of them, I have stayed neutral in this race.
But to be honest, I do think Tom’s recent mailing was a mistake. Besides some factual errors, what bothered me was the attempt to paint Councilwoman Antonio as somehow part of some corrupt cabal. That kind of accusation is unfair, untrue, and a very cheap shot. It ought to be retracted immediately, so the campaign can focus on issues that are based in reality.
I think Tom made a mistake in the heat of the campaign, and I hope the rest of the campaign- for both candidates- focuses on substance.
_________________
Ed FitzGerald
Mayor of Lakewood
Cleav: Neither candidate is perfect, obviously, but you’re right that I am leaning toward Bullock.
I’m embarrassed beyond belief every time the FBI raids another office or indicts another county stooge and I have to hear about the latest shenanigans of Public Official #1. Meanwhile, Nickie won’t call on Dimora to resign, and at the LWV event, she publicly backed Issue 5, which pretty much everyone in the county knows was a total sham. I know she’s a good person, but when there’s so much corruption going on around her, she hasn’t convinced me that she’s got the spine to stand up and push back against it.
I saw the flyer, but I guess I’ve just seen enough of them over the years to not be as surprised as everyone else seems to be when a politician takes credit for something that was actually a team effort. If both Bullock and Nickie were a part of balancing the budget, they both get points from me. I don’t expect either of them to plug the other one for their part. That’s not how primaries work.
I guess it just seems weird to me that everyone’s so bent out of shape over this thing. I didn’t give it a second thought when I first saw it, and when everyone got defensive about it, I had go digging for it to see what I had missed. After getting Nickie’s e-mail, it sounded like Bullock had drawn devil horns on her and stamped the word “corrupt” over her face. I was half-disappointed to see how bland the mailer actually was.
I get it if you guys are in the Nickie camp and don’t like it, I’m just surprised that the reaction is so strong. The “Rove/Republican handbook” involved disenfranchising blacks and rumors of bastard love children. Bullock just sent out a mailer saying she should be tougher on reform.
Tom Bullock may have made a mistake by making some generalizations and misquoting, but there are facts behind his assertions, plenty that he was cordial enough not to mention.
Most importantly, Tom has spoken out about Dimora and at least called for reform publicly. Nickie was an Issue 5 backer, which is not to say she is corrupt, but Issue 5 was a mere stalling tactic without much behind it. Nickie has accepted campaign contributions from Dimora, as recent as 2008. Although they were small, they were never returned. Meanwhile, she has cozied up to old guard officials for support. Nickie has held a job with the county and through her business secured a county contract. My belief is that Tom truly is someone with some drive and the desire to make some changes. Nickie is one who does not want to rock the boat.
What I want to know is where the two candidates stand on the corruption within the county party. It’s the most important issue our canditates should be addressing. Too many democrats either refused to condemn the party leaders when the scandal broke, or actually defended them. How is this region ever going to survive, let alone thrive, when our elected leaders refuse to bring attention to criminality and unethical behavior when it’s right in their face? At least Bullock isn’t afraid to call out the corruption that is killing the county.
Clearly lawyers and defenders of Bullock are close to his campaign. I’m just a resident that loves our community and I did some of my own research yesterday after all this started. I called both campaigns and looked on line. Tom Bullock moved here a couple of years ago and started making moves to make a name for himself. Nickie was born, raised and has chosen to live in the very district she wants to represent. She started out as a teacher and community organizer and the “county job” is fighting AIDS that she resigned from to run for office. Hardly someone that doesn’t “want to rock the boat” I still can’t get a clear picture of what Tom does or where he gets his money from. Almost all people running in our area had small donations from people that they might not be friends with and that doesn’t make them corrupt! Nobody is really asking for anyone to resign it’s all Tom Bullock’s strategy which is a Rove tactic. Create a scandal where it doesn’t exist and make your opponents look like they are part of the scandal. We have seen this all before! All I know after reading all the information I’m going to get more involved! I can’t believe Democrats are going after their own like this and Bullock’s style seems more like a Republican to me! My conclusion is that I can’t trust someone like Bullock but I do trust Antonio and will be voting for Nickie!
Just looked at both campaign sites again. Antonio has numerous endorsements including the Ohio Democratic Party! That confused me because Tom bullock’s home page says Democratic Club Edorsement but when you click on it the details say Lakewood Democratic Club. I went to their site. Guess who is the president? Yes! Tom Bullock!!! If that isn’t corrupt nothing is! It seems the mor you dig the more Bullock is corrupt! I hope the Scene does a bigger investigation.
follow me on this..while nickie antonio represents a traditional northeast ohio democrat with ties to the powers that be, she fails to address the bigger picture that tom bullock brings to the forefront. with a genuine demand for reform that this region so desperately needs, tom bullock calls out his opponent regarding her base. the underpinnings of her campaign are married to the old machine. that cheery old machine that is an incubator for corruption. and an outsider like tom bullock recognizes the fine policies that are bringing a better vision to the region. Nickie has paid her dues and has done some good work for the county, no need to discredit her accomplishments. but tom has true reform on his agenda and a lot of energy. i have to support tom after he knocked and my door and demonstrated a high level of charisma. both are qualified candidates but the vote goes to Tom Bullock
I have met tom on numerous occasions & have been impressed by his genuine desire for change. i think he made a judgement in error with his latest tactics, but i think his advisors may be strongly at fault for this. polictics aren’t pretty, paricuarly in a town like Cleveland where the old guard seems to control & destroy things on a consistent basis. I am willing to vote for a new person, because they can’t do anything worse than those who have been in power for the past umpteen years.