OK, PATRICK MURPHY, LET’S TALK ABOUT THAT APOLOGY
The Free Press, October 9, 2003

I can be a stand-up guy. If I’m wrong, I will do mea-culpas. So when Patrick Murphy demanded an apology for what I said about him in my September 18th column, I gave it some thought. Was he “lynched”? Maybe I should go back and re-examine the evidence in more depth.

Murphy feels wronged and defamed because he was removed from his volunteer position as Richland Township Emergency Management Coordinator. He claims that he never expressed a refusal to respond to a potential emergency at the irradiator in Milford. He believes that the local emergency management team supports him. And he seeks the protection of Governor Rendell.

So, taking it from the top, what did he really say at the Milford meeting? Without an actual voice recording, it is his word against the people who complained to three local fire chiefs. But - we have a twist! One of Murphy’s supporters has come forward to The Free Press with what he says is a tape of the meeting.

Last week, John Norvaisas of Richlandtown called The Free Press regional manager and identified himself as a friend of Murphy. Norvaisas claimed to have an audio tape which proves that Murphy did not refuse to respond to an emergency in Milford. According to Norvaisas, Murphy only said that he “would be reluctant to respond”. With friends like this, Murphy does not need enemies. Faced with an emergency situation, the EMC can not be personally “reluctant” about anything. Apology still on hold.

Then what about Pat’s former buds in local emergency management, who he claims support him? If they do, then certainly an apology is necessary, maybe even a reinstatement. I tried to give Murphy every possible chance, so I spoke personally with the eight top men in our area: Fire Department Chief Doug Wilhelm, Deputy Chief Fred Guenst, Battallion Chief Allen Pfaff, and V.P. Ray Stever of Quakertown; Chief Bob Heitz and Captain Greg Reese of Richland; and Chief Todd Fox and Deputy Chief Floyd Bless of Richlandtown.

All said the same thing: Patrick Murphy has never had the authority to speak for any of them. They do not endorse anything he has said. They do not support him, or his reinstatement. And they do not believe an apology is necessary. If Murphy has a single supporter in local leadership, I sure couldn’t find him.

Actually, these guys don’t even want to talk about Patrick Murphy. They would like to totally disassociate him from their work. To a man, they want to stress the positive - that all local emergency organizations are strong in support of mutual aid, and would respond anywhere necessary to the level of their training. Murphy might be “reluctant” to deal with an emergency, but they are not.

What disturbed these leaders most is that Murphy actually said anything at all, in Milford or elsewhere. They all emphasized that the EMC is not a decision-maker, just a coordinator, relaying information given him by the chiefs. He has no power to decide where and when to respond, and should never have given anyone the impression that he had any authority at all.

Add to all of this the fact that when Murphy called Bucks County Emergency Management headquarters before Hurricane Isabel, the director, John Dougherty, refused to speak with him. Dougherty instead called Larry Cerami, the interim EMC, to coordinate plans.

It’s not looking good for Pat, or his apology. But we do have one last hope here, Governor Rendell. He signed the form letter appointing Murphy. Will he back up his own appointee? Apparently not, and definitely not. I will explain....

The “apparently not” is easy. The Free Press put in three calls to his office more than a month ago asking for his comments. He has yet to respond.

The “definitely not” is the reason why he has not responded. Big Ed is as politically savvy as they come. Always has been, and he is excellent at it. He knows when to hold ‘em, when to fold ‘em, and how to pick his battles. Murphy would like to believe that his personal troubles are of grave concern in Harrisburg. But when Rendell looks at his to-do list every morning, the name Patrick Murphy is not even on the notepad.

Murphy is not trusted by the township supervisors, Bucks County emergency management, and the local emergency management leaders. If the Guv was to be foolish enough to somehow force Murphy onto all of these people, he would just be setting himself up for his own emergency. The moment anything went wrong - again - all fingers would point to Rendell, saying “you made us take him, it’s your fault”. Potential political disaster. Murphygate. Ed knows it.

This is a tempest-in-a-township that has no upside for Rendell, and a huge downside. He won’t be involving himself in this lifetime. So, is there an apology needed here? I would say so, but it should be coming to all of us FROM Patrick Murphy.