Greenleaf’s Campaign Fliers

As a former counterintelligence officer, I find campaign ads professionally fascinating and Stuart Greenleaf, Jr’s recent flier is worthy of note for its manipulative approach.

It appears to be an attempt to obfuscate his identity and reputation associating both with the name recognition of his father, a legislator with a long and distinguished career. Greenleaf dropped “Jr” from his name and identified himself as “The Honest Leader We’ve Trusted for Years.” Misdirections of this type are not accidental.

Mr. Greenleaf makes another argument worthy of examination. He states that he will forgo a state pension. This issue is worthy of debate on its merits – do Pennsylvania legislators receive excessive pensions? If so, one candidate forgoing a pension will not solve a systemic problem. I question whether a candidate who has the personal wealth to opt out of a pension can adequately represent the interests working people in his district.

In addition, Mr. Greenleaf made distorted claims regarding his opponent. A simple google search reveals the information to be false. The advertisements were paid for by the party, not a PAC or unaffiliated organization, indicating Mr. Greenleaf’s willingness to compromise his ethics in order to win an election.

I am seeking a candidate who values transparency, honest discussion of issues, and has personal experience with the day-to-day challenges faced by families in Pennsylvania’s 12th State Senate district. We need a fresh perspective that can only happen by electing candidates who independent of party-driven loyalties, back-room deal-making, and opaque practices.

Anne Montgomery

Lansdale, PA