Lowman Henry: Remembering Don Bailey

With attention riveted on the unfolding efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus, little note was made of the passing of former congressman and Pennsylvania Auditor General Don Bailey.

Bailey had been out of the spotlight for many years, but he was a major political player for much of a generation.

A decorated Vietnam War veteran, Bailey entered public life as a reformer and ended his legal career as a crusader for civil rights.

His first foray into politics came in 1978, when longtime Westmoreland County Congressman John Dent announced his retirement. A large field of candidates emerged, including such heavyweights as Jim Manderino, who at the time was the powerful majority leader in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

But Manderino and the other contenders were tied to the county’s reigning political machine, and winds of change were blowing. Bailey positioned himself as a reformer, gathering 23% of the vote, which was enough to win in the 11-candidate field. He subsequently won the general election and was reelected to Congress in 1980.

Bailey’s congressional career was derailed in 1982 when Pennsylvania lost seats due to slow population growth relative to other states and his district was combined with that of Cambria County’s John Murtha. Bailey and Murtha squared off in a primary of incumbents that Murtha won.

His time in public service cut short,

He told the media: “The system is corrupt. The Supreme Court in Pennsylvania is corrupt and everybody knows it.”

His words and others like them punctured the carefully crafted façade of the judiciary being independent of politics and free from corruption. In later years, high-profile scandals forced a number of judges — including state Supreme Court justices — from office. That did not save Bailey’s legal career, however, as a disciplinary board recommend suspension of his law license for his accusations against judges, a recommendation the courts approved.

It would be interesting to see how Bailey would fare in today’s political climate. Political correctness, particularly on the left, has confined the politically ambitious to a very narrow space. Bailey could not operate within that space even during a time when the Democratic Party tolerated a diversity of views.

Bailey operated in a political world that no longer exists. Allegations of corruption today are taken far more seriously than in the past. The relative moderation of such presidents as Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton has been replaced by rigid left-wing orthodoxy — and Bailey was never one to conform.

The passing of Don Bailey is significant not only for his contributions while in office, but also for its signaling of the passing of an entire era in Pennsylvania politics.

Lowman Henry is chairman & CEO of the Lincoln Institute in Harrisburg and host of the Lincoln Radio Journal.