The Blame Game

In response to the scandals, the candidates spoke about who is to blame.

Some candidates took responsibility for the scandals while the others placed the
game elsewhere.


Last week information was released that revealed less than supportive
information about the candidates and those closest to them. After the release
of scandals last week, the candidates were given the opportunity to respond
on behalf of their campaign.
In brief, the scandals were as follows:
Gareth Bill was accused of tax fraud and evasion
Reed Normans daughter was expelled from school
Taylor Caskeys campaign manager was caught with marijuana
Liam Murphy was not registered to vote until this year
The following article will address each of the candidates responses to the
allegations. Videos of the responses are available online.

-Gareth Bill

approached his opportunity to respond to allegations

brought against him with a stern and confident attitude. He continuously
stressed that all allegations are completely false and that they are
nothing but a political maneuver to distract his supporters. He went on to
say that he had spoken with his accountant who reassured him that all his
taxes are paid and that his finances are completely in order. Bill stated; to
my knowledge, I have broken no laws. It is however important to note
that he is the only candidate to state that he will not address any questions
until the matter is resolved.

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Taylor Caskey

approached his chance to defend himself by assuring

the audience that the charges brought against his campaign manager had
been handled and that corresponding fines had been paid. He stressed that
this information is not a campaign issue, rather it is a personal
lapse in judgment by a man whos character and career in public
service I can vouch for. Caskey was also careful to note that these issues
do not reflect him as a candidate or the campaign he is running.

-Liam Murphy

was the only candidate to assume full responsibility for

the allegations. He supported his decision to not register to vote until this
year and stated his reasons were based purely on his own morals. He stated,
I do not retract my actions, as I still feel it was the most moral
and ethical option. He said his actions to withhold from voting are
common among those in social work.

-Reed Norman

addressed his daughters expulsion and blamed the

media for her actions, which caused the expulsion. He used a metaphor to
compare her altercation to the type of debates held during a campaign if a
school yard style fight is something that is to be frowned
upon, should we not have at least the same standards within our
electoral process? Norman claimed that he and the daughters mother
had spoken with her to better explain the current state of the electoral
process and his position in it.

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Its my promise, thats what I know, STRAIGHT-UP.

-Alyssa Lindbloom, the STRAIGHT-UP post
Lead Correspondent on Candidate Relations