Why are Bucks County Dems asking court to order CBSD campaign signs be removed?
The Bucks County Democratic Committee is seeking an injunction to remove a number of political signs that popped up around the Central Bucks School District, court documents filed Wednesday show.
The signs — which feature slogans against Democrat candidates running for five school board seats — “clearly violate state law” for failing to disclose who authorized the signs, committee chair Sen. Steve Santarsiero said in a news release.
“Hey Democrats! Groom Dogs not Kids! Schools teach Academics not porn,” reads one of the 13 slogans that appeared on signs included in the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas filing Wednesday afternoon.
Some of the signs include a sticker with to a website, www.LetsGoBrandon.com, but the committee claims that sticker leading to a “decentralized meme cryptocurrency” is a “false disclaimer.”
“It’s clear that whoever made these signs and put them up in our community knew that they were maliciously defaming our candidates and wanted to avoid being sued, so they decided not to identify themselves,” Santarsiero said.
The committee is asking the courts to order the removal of the signs.
What do the signs say?
The signs run the gamut of recent and ongoing controversies that Central Bucks has become mired in over the past two years.
A library policy targeting “sexually explicit” material, a collective action lawsuit alleging the district underpays women teachers, and a federal LGBTQ discrimination complaint filed by the ACLU with the U.S. Department of Education last October appears to be the most common talking points across the various signs.
A few of the signs are general statements about the Democratic Party, such as “Democrats Cancel Free Speech” and the aforementioned “grooming” sign.
Several signs specifically target Rick Haring, who is running against Republican Aarati Martino in Central Bucks Region 6.
Multiple signs against Haring claim he has multiple lawsuits against Central Bucks that could cost the district $120 million, a figure that appears to be referring to a recent settlement offer in the unequal pay collective action lawsuit that started last year.
Rick Haring isn't a plaintiff in any current lawsuit that the sign appears to be referring to.
Rebecca Cartee-Haring, his wife and a district employee, does have multiple discrimination lawsuits against the district, including her own unequal pay filing that is similar but separate from the collective action lawsuit referenced in the signs.
Hundreds join unequal pay lawsuit: With over 300 claims in equal pay lawsuit, Central Bucks could face $30M in back pay
Two signs also make claims about Heather Reynolds, who is running against Republican incumbent Dana Hunter in Region 2, wanting to “defund the police” and include references to “Marxism.”
Another attacks incumbent Karen Smith, running against Republican Dr. Stephen Mass in Region 1.
That sign alleges that Smith “secretly filed false federal complaint” and say “her lies covered up bullying and cost $1M.”
More about Smith's email: Does letter refute allegations CBSD board member instigated discrimination investigation?
Smith did send an email to the education department’s Office of Civil Rights in July 2022 expressing concerns of a “hostile environment” toward LGBTQ students.
That email was included in a report made by Duane Morris LLP, the Philadelphia law firm the district hired to defend against several discrimination complaints made against Central Bucks late last year.
The OCR has not provided the district with details on the seven investigations, but the report blamed Smith’s email for starting at least one of those complaints.
In May 2023, however, the OCR informed Smith that it had never received her email. When the OCR said it was taking initial steps to lodge it as a new complaint, Smith said her initial email was never intended to be a request for an investigation.
Another sign goes after Region 3 Democrat Dana Foley, running against Republican Glenn Schloeffel, saying she will “put porn back in school and won’t protect girls' sports and bathrooms.”
CBSD athletics policy gets first vote: Transgender athlete policy passes first vote in Central Bucks. Here are the changes
The latter half of that message seems to allude to a new athletics policy the board majority is poised to pass next month.
The signs appear to leave out the Region 8 Democrat Susan Gibson, who is running against Republican Tony Arjona.
This news organization recently reported that Region 8 has a substantial lead on Democrat voters compared to Republican voters.
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Central Bucks political signs called 'illegal' by county Dems
