See ya, Vinny - thanks for... nothing

I was heartened to hear yesterday that Pennsylvania State Senator Vincent J. Fumo is ending his re-election bid for Philadelphia's First District.

He will not be missed.

In Philadelphia's corrupt political system, Fumo is part of the problem, not part of the solution. I won't even get into all of his alleged improprieties - I don't feel like wasting the time by listing all of them here.

Recently, his health has been in decline - two back surgeries and a heart attack have taken their toll - but yesterday, he claimed that his health had nothing to do with his decision to retire from the Pennsylvania State Senate. He cited his 139-count federal indictment as his reason for stepping down.

Whatever the reason, I'm happy that he has decided to call it a day in the Senate. Now, Philadelphians who live in the First District (I am one) have another product of the city's political machine to oppose - electrical workers union boss Johnny "Doc" Dougherty.

In short, forget it. No way will I support another thuggish character from South Philadelphia. This morning, I read one of the most poignant editorials I've read in a long time in today's Philadelphia Inquirer. It is nothing short of a spot-on assessment of Dougherty and his corrupt, thuggish brand of politics; the kind of politics that may have been effective or at least desirable in this city 20 or 30 years ago, but those days have long passed in Philadelphia (I hope). The editorial from the Inky:

An old pol for a new day

State. Sen. Vincent J. Fumo's decision to not seek reelection leaves union boss John Dougherty as the clear front-runner.

That's good for Dougherty, but troubling for reform-minded voters. In some respects, Dougherty is a junior version of Fumo - though without the Mensa membership.

Both are brash, colorful, South Philadelphia characters.

In fact, Dougherty was once a Fumo acolyte. Like Fumo, he can be pugnacious and charming. Dougherty also does lots of good work, but he and his union buddies at times have acted like thugs.

Also like Fumo, federal prosecutors have a thick file on Dougherty. But unlike Fumo, Dougherty hasn't been accused of any wrongdoing. Dougherty's attorney said yesterday that prosecutors had told him that the union boss wasn't the target of any investigation.

In launching his bid for state Senate last week, Dougherty scoffed at the hint of any federal investigations into his dealings.

"I've been subpoenaed for 15 years, being a labor leader," he said. "It's a tough environment when you're aggressive and take on business."

Right. Just ask Jimmy Hoffa.

Johnny Doc's union tough-guy shtick might sell well with Johnny Friendly, the character Lee J. Cobb played in On the Waterfront. But that act is old.

Dougherty is a throwback in a town trying to move forward. He argues he gets things done. Fine. But it's also how things get done.

Mayor Nutter's election demonstrated that Philadelphians are fed up with the old-style politics of pay-to-play, cronyism and nepotism. Even lawmakers in Harrisburg are dragging themselves out of the Dark Ages.

Dougherty was a big supporter of former Mayor John Street, whose administration was marred in a broad corruption scandal. He also backed former City Councilman Rick Mariano, now in prison after being convicted of bribery.

Dougherty was never linked to either of those probes, but his choice of political allies is worth noting.

For example, his good friend Donald "Gus" Dougherty was indicted last summer on 100 counts of fraud and tax evasion. Gus is accused of making illegal payments to John by selling him a house at the Jersey Shore below market value and of doing $115,000 worth of work for free on Johnny Doc's Philly home.

John Dougherty denies any wrongdoing and says he wouldn't be running for public office if he faced legal trouble. He says all the poking around by the feds has been a good vetting process.

Yes, but that the feds are always hovering is disturbing.

For the record: Dougherty wants to replace Fumo, who is under indictment. In 1978, Fumo replaced Buddy Cianfrani, who was also indicted - and convicted.

Voters don't need a three-peat.

Amen to that. Normally, I don't have much love for the Philadelphia Inquirer these days, especially considering who runs it - the über-partisan, Republican hack Brian Tierney - but I certainly agree with the Inky's assessment of Dougherty. I was bummed about this editorial for one reason, though - it didn't mention Dougherty's opponent in the Democratic Primary, which is about five weeks away.

It's awfully tough to overcome labor politics in this city, but we are sure going to try. By "we" I mean supporters of Anne Dicker, (right) who is vying to knock off Dougherty in the April 22 Democratic primary.

Last night, we attended a fund raiser for Dicker at Johnny Brenda's. More on Dicker in a minute in a separate post.