From Inquirer reporter Joseph A. Gambardello:
In the waning hours of the campaign, candidates John J. Dougherty and Anne Dicker are ganging up on Larry Farnese in the First District state Senate race.
Johnny Doc’s people are charging that allies of incumbent Sen. Vince Fumo are intimidating insiders and others who are supporting Doc and State Rep. Bill Keller in his race against Christian DiCicco, son of Fumocrat City Councilmember Frank DiCicco. Fumo, you may recall, has been supporting Farnese’s bid behind the scenes.
Dicker for her part is offering a history lesson. Here’s what she is saying in an email to supporters:
“In 1978, State Sen. Buddy Cianfrani was convicted of federal charges of racketeering, mail fraud, and obstruction of justice and was forced to give up his state Senate seat for a seat in jail. Buddy Cianfrani engineered that his protege and first-cousin, 35-year-old Vincent Fumo, replace him in a special election. It is widely understood that Cianfrani pulled the strings of the young Fumo from his jail cell.
“Now facing a 139-count indictment for mail fraud and obstruction of justice himself, Vincent Fumo has stepped down and is supporting Larry Farnese for state Senate. Although not a direct relative, Farnese's grandfather is closely linked with Vince Fumo. Many believe that the strings are firmly tied to the 39-year-old Farnese.”
The Dougherty campaign has been hammering the same theme for weeks now.
Brian Abernathy, a spokesman for Farnese, of course calls Doc’s charges false and rejects Dicker’s assertion. After all, Abernathy has noted, Farnese entered the race when Fumo was still in it and, by all indication, the front runner despite his legal troubles.
Abernathy also sees the two-front attack as a good, all things considered.
“I’m glad we’re being noticed,” he said.
Translation: The other guys must be worried about something.
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