Talking point of the day: Drawing a paycheck from the government they hate
Submitted by BlueNC on Thu, 01/12/2012 - 10:49am
If you're a voter who wants to see public institutions destroyed through gross incompetence, law-breaking and sleaze, vote for Republican leaders. They hate government, and it shows.
A state agriculture official leaked information about a raid on a Butterball turkey farm in Hoke County last month to company officials six days before the raid, according to a search warrant released Wednesday. [snip] ... the animal rights group Mercy for Animals provided authorities with video of employees kicking and stomping birds, dragging them by their wings and necks and throwing turkeys around.
Who's worse: Agriculture Commissioner Troxler or Labor Commissioner Berry? Neither seems to have any interest in accountability or competence.
This boils my blood on so many levels
It's bad enough that people claiming to be human would commit the kind of cruelty I saw in the video, but for an official to tip off the company when they've been caught is unforgivable. Troxler and Berry's heads both need to roll for this.
http://thurmanhubbard.com
"I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority." ~ Elwyn Brooks White
I'd like to know if this corruption is systematic
I hear ya, Thurman. We've been working on this story for a couple of days at Progress NC and intend to keep pushing it until the public gets some answers. To interfere with a law enforcement investigation is inexcusable -- and if they've been tipping off people under the Dept. of Ag's jurisdiction for years, they've pretty much made a mockery of their department. We also found that BUTTERBALL POLITICAL ACTION, 501 NORTH OAK FOREST ROAD, GOLDSBORO, NC 27534 gave Troxler a check for $1000.00 as reported in his September 2008 campaign finance reports.
The woman who tipped them off has NOT been disciplined in in any way. Here is an updated WRAL story on it:
http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/10588456/
Here is our press release on it:
Does Steve Troxler Respect Law Enforcement?
Serious questions remain
RALEIGH - Statement from Gerrick Brenner, Executive Director of Progress North Carolina, regarding the Agriculture Commissioner's behavior during the recent investigation of a Butterball turkey farm in Hoke County.
"It is absolutely inappropriate for any public official to tamper with a law enforcement investigation, much less, tip off an offender about a upcoming raid. Commissioner Troxler has some serious questions to answer about his agency's attitude towards the rule of law.
Questions Commissioner Troxler must answer:
1) Did Commissioner Troxler instruct Dr. Sarah Mason to tip-off Butterball or did he have any prior knowledge of her actions?
2) Was any disciplinary action taken against Dr. Mason or any other Department of Agriculture employee that was involved in the tip-off?
3) Is the Dep. of Agriculture too friendly to big business at the expense of the rule of law?
4) Does Commissioner Troxler believe in the rule of law?
Unfortunately, this situation appears to be more than just an isolated incident for the Dep. of Agriculture. Two weeks ago reports of a state audit indicated the Department failed to fine repeat violators of safety standards for propane tanks. The Dep. of Agriculture found 7,466 violations, yet imposed only $4,000 in fines when it could have imposed fines of up to $2.5 million!
Public officials are required to carry out the laws of our state. Serious questions abound about Commissioner Troxler's commitment to law enforcement."
Katy Munger,
Progress North Carolina
www.progressnc.org
Lead, follow or get out of the way....