Chairman Criticized for County-Funded Mailings
posted 8:35 pm Mon October 15, 2007 - MANASSAS, Va.
Some Prince William County residents and officials are upset that the Board of Supervisors Chairman has used taxpayer money to mail out postcards advertising a meeting on a resolution to crack down on illegal immigrants. [It] "didn't feel like a public announcement," said Prince William County resident Nancy Escue. "It felt like a political statement."
Corey Stewart sent the postcard to encourage residents to voice their opinions on the resolution, which has polarized the northern Virginia community.
He invited residents to speak up about it before and after the board's meeting Tuesday, when board members will vote on funding and decide what services the county will try to cut off to illegal immigrants.
County documents indicate that Stewart used more than $30,000 from his discretionary fund to pay for the mailings. They say they're from Stewart and not the other board members.
The problem, for some, is that Stewart is running for re-election next month, and has made illegal immigration his signature issue.
"When I realized that the mailer was taxpayer dollars, I thought maybe $30,000 was too much," said Escue. "That money could have been better used for something more productive."
"We sent it to every single person, every single household in the county," said Stewart. "And I did that because I believe that it is the most important vote the county has taken in several years."
Still, even members from Stewart's party disagreed with his using taxpayer funds to publicize a vote that will impact the chairman's re-election.
Some residents thought that Stewart's own campaign money, and not county money, should have been used.
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