Mahoning Valley stays true to Traficant

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review ^ | Sunday, July 21, 2002 | David M. Brown

[Willie Green]

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio

[Willie Green]

Traficant's congressional district has been a notorious hotbed of organized crime for decades and decades.
Youngstown exists midway between the Cleveland and Pittsburgh "territories".
Every cliche you've ever come to know through the old gangster movies is real life in Youngstown and has been ever since the old bootlegging days of Prohibition: numbers running, protection rackets, political corruption, union corruption, mob hits, etc. etc. etc.

Therre is no doubt that Traficant was "dirty" in some fashion.
There is also no doubt that he has fulfilled his role as a "useful idiot" and is now being set-up and hung out to dry by the powers-that-be.
The sad thing is, one cannot even trust the government prosecutors in this situation. The tentacles of organized crime are far-reaching and convoluted. Whoever replaces Traficant will likely be just another "useful idiot" no matter how squeaky-clean they appear on the surface.

[jimlilko]

Willie you are so right about Traficant's " ties to the Mafia some how". Traficant's Chief of Staff for some 12 odd years was Charles O'nesti. Before he died he confessed to being a member of the La Cosa Nostra out of Pittsburgh. If that doesn't shake up your Tommy Gun on Capitol Hill then nothing will. It's funny but NEVER once was this mentioned in the news media. They even have a shrine to his deceased Gun Mole wife in a catholic church not 1/4 mile from my house. Youngstown is pitiful and has been inundated wiith scum Mafia for 100 years.

[xsmommy]

jimbo ping.