The corruptive influence of Jon Russell on the Zandamela-Cortes election.

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So, the latest thing about Paul Zandamela is that he's lied about taking campaign donations.

Fact one:  The Columbian wrote the following on August 3:

However, Zandamela's comments once I put the pen down stuck with me. He made sure I knew he did not care if other council members invited him over for dinner, and that he wasn't taking donations for his reelection bid against challenger Adrian Cortes.

"Wasn't taking donations."

"Wasn't taking donations."

HHhmmmmm.

So, here we are, 6 weeks later.

And as it turns out, guess what?

He lied.

Zandamela responded that he has not solicited any donations. Madore approached him with a donation, Zandamela said.

As if.

As if that made any difference at all, of any kind.

Zandamela made the claim that he WASN'T TAKING CAMPAIGN DONATIONS.

Not that he "wasn't taking campaign donations unless somebody offered."

So, he's a liar.

Where have we seen this before?

Jon Russell.

Regular readers of this blog and Jon Russell Watch are well apprised of Russell's penchant, both for lying generally and lying about his education specifically, which even after all of this, he STILL does.

When I busted him for lying about his education during the last election cycle, here was his excuse:

Russell maintains that he never said he actually had the degree. “I’ve always said I’ve earned my degree,” he told The Columbian. “I’ve never said I obtained my degree.”

I popped Russell for lying back in July of 2010.  He actually at least mislead in the article in question, by saying that he:

Russell says he has earned more than the 60 credit hours required for an AA degree. He told The Columbian he has sent for his transcript to prove it.

Russell, who to that point, had not graduated, obviously was being just the tiniest bit disingenuous when he claimed he had earned a degree because he had exceeded the 60 credit hour requirement.

You see, anyone who has actually earned a degree knows that it not only takes a total number of credits to graduate, but a requirement that those credits be in certain classes.

Also, Russell's claims to have earned a degree the school he was attending did not offer (AA in Political Science) has never been explained.

Russell has, finally... 15 months later... received an AA degree.  In Criminal Justice.

Which really didn't have all that much to do with Political Science.. does it?

The mindset that would require the average person to parse words to figure out what they really mean is obviously shared by the both Russell and Zandamela... thus Russell's corruptive influence on this race.

Zandamela lies about campaign donations... Russell lies about his education (Among many other things, including HIS donations and his wife being a "physician.") 

When confronted, Zandamela  parses words over his lie, justifying his dishonesty by saying, in effect, "Well, gee, Madore OFFERED.  I HAD to take the money!"

When confronted, Russell use the Clintonian "it all depends on what your definition of 'is,' is," response, that falsely claimed to have "earned a degree" (another lie) just that he hadn't "obtained" the degree.

That Russell is both running Zandamela's campaign and has been Madore's fair-haired boy is no secret.  It is, in fact, a sign of Madore's massive political naivete that he'll even remain in the same room with Russell, let along listen to him for anything, or shill for him or cover for him when he acts like a democrat fleebagger.

Is Adrian Cortes perfect?  Of course not.  But he's not a liar, either.

And that's precisely what Zandamela appears to be.

Cross posted at Jon Russell Watch.