LETTER: Selectmen Vote a 'Slap in the Face' to Taxpayers

The following is a letter to the editor. To submit your own, email michael.ryan@patch.com

By Tony Massahos 

The recent 3-2 vote by our Windham Board of Selectmen to waive the billing for President Barack Obama’s campaign stop visit was a slap in the face to hard working taxpayers. During an election year, more consideration should have been given to the quite obvious fact that Mr. Obama was here to promote his political agenda. Voting to waive the extra cost has set a precedent for future politicians wishing to campaign here.

The way I view town politics here in Windham is quite clear. Kathleen DiFruscia, a professed democrat and Ross McLeod, a recently retired prosecutor employed by DiFruscia, are hooked at the hip and Roger Hohenberger – I still love you. DiFruscia played the partisan, McLeod argued it went against the State's role in the presidential selection process and Hohenberger lacked intestinal fortitude for wanting to send a nice letter asking the Obama campaign to reimburse us.

The only two selectmen voting correctly were LoChiatto and Breton who both represented the taxpayers correctly in voting to bill the Obama campaign for his purely political visit. The issue here is DiFruscia’s power trip and her personal drive to dictate her misguided beliefs on the honest, hardworking taxpayers of Windham. If she had any concern for all taxpayers she would have supported the billing.

Taxpayers should not be responsible to pay for anyone’s, Republican, Democrat or other, expenses relating to elections. By waiving the billing we have been forced to pay for a political agenda that we may not agree with. It is wrong and we should all remember this the next time we vote. To the three that pulled off this power play, shame on you! Do what we elected you to do and spend our money wisely.

Tony Massahos