Hiatt responds to Sager

By RON HIATT

After having to read yet another partisan attack by Mr. Sager, which condemns based on assumptions rather than fact, we feel it necessary to respond. The gist of his onslaught is that legislator Binder is being “lured” from her public office and that the opposition party is ignoring “basic rules of ethical behavior” and is accused of “moral corruption.”

“Moral corruption” is a heavy charge. However, Mr. Sager’s letter offers no specific proof other than he is “confident in [his] assertions.” Mrs. Binder has talked about looking for jobs for some time now. She has done so publicly, including joking about it at legislative committee meetings. With candor we can say, as members of the majority party, her departure would favor us with the welcomed result of one more vote.

However, there is a wide gulf between her reviewing possibilities and our looking favorably on her being hired elsewhere versus actively seeking to “lure” her away by creating a job for her. We can state unequivocally that neither any of us, nor the county manager, has moved to create a job for Mrs. Binder. What has been said is that she is entitled to apply for any available job and be considered along with the rest of the applicants. That is anyone’s right.

Mr. Sager takes a rumor, assumes the worst is true and then self-righteously pronounces judgment. He defames without bothering with the inconvenience of proof.

It is understandable that in the heat of the moment, tempers can flare and people can do and say things that they later regret. However, his continued attacks contradict his supposed remorse. Even worse, personally attacking individuals and contemptuously referring to their private body parts is demeaning and divisive. It is beneath the dignity of the office he holds.

Mr. Sager tells us that he “ran for public office as a reformer, pledging to conduct myself and the business of the county, in the most straightforward and ethical way possible,” but offers as evidence only that he is confident in his assertions. Then, he asks for lie detector tests all around. In our American system of justice, a prosecutor needs to show proof before he accuses. He cannot use an accusation as a vehicle to then set about looking for proof.

Is this what Mr. Sager calls “reform”?

Likewise, he tells us that his “intemperate remarks were not meant for publication” yet he himself is the one who e-mailed his letter to a newspaper. And when that paper only paraphrased his scandalous e-mail, he sent it to the other papers to be sure it could “be seen in its entirety.”

Is this his example of the “most straightforward and ethical conduct?”

As ever, our constituents need leaders who will deal with issues responsibly, not create chaos. Ones who will coolly operate after assessing fact, not heatedly react to supposition. Just as important, they need leaders who practice what they preach.

[Ron Hiatt is Sullivan County legislator for District 8, encompassing parts of Thompson and Fallsburg, including the Village of Monticello.]