MacLean, Siegel go toe-to-toe in debate punctuated by exchange on masked ICE agents
With less than a month to the Nov. 4 election, candidates running for Lehigh County executive went toe-to-toe on a host of issues that included funding, policing and election integrity at a forum Wednesday at Lehigh Carbon Community College.
Republican Roger MacLean, a former Allentown police chief and city council member, and Democrat Josh Siegel, a state representative from the 22nd House District, also veered into the national debate over masked U.S. Customs and Enforcement agents.
In supporting a proposed bill in Harrisburg to ban masked law enforcement, Siegel said anybody watching the news has to be “morally and ethically appalled” when they see ICE agents “rappelling from Black Hawk helicopters and kicking in the doors of apartment complexes and zip tying children, dragging them into the streets.”
His description of a recent raid in Chicago drew laughter from some in the audience.
“I don’t think it’s funny,” Siegel said, who went on to say, “I think we need a county executive who’s not afraid to call out the injustices and offenses that ICE is committing across this country.”
MacLean defended masking, saying agents need to be protected from people who have threatened them and posted their photos, names and addresses on social media. “Those officers have families that they want to get home to every night,” he said, adding a state law would be meaningless because it couldn’t be enforced on ICE.
The event was organized and hosted by Brad Osborne, a former Lehigh County commissioner who has served on the South Whitehall Board of Commissioners. The candidates were not given questions ahead of time.
To see more photos from the debate, click here.
Here is a look at key points from the forum.
On running for office:
Siegel: He said the country needs a new generation of leaders who can restore faith and credibility in the public sector. “Here in Lehigh County, I want us to be a model held up around the commonwealth and the country for how we rebuild community, create opportunity, and make sure that the next 40 years of Lehigh Valley are as prosperous as the last 20.”
MacLean: “I have a vision for the county. I think my vision is a steady one.” He said he used this philosophy during his eight years as Allentown’s police chief. At the time, he said, the force lost 54 officers in one month. “We dealt with the problems as they came up and we made it through and we made Allentown a better place.”
Priorities if elected
MacLean: He said he wants to talk to department heads and staff to learn about issues affecting them. He wants to look at the staffing shortages, including those at Lehigh County Prison. “Retention is obviously a problem. People are leaving. We’ve got to find out why.”
Siegel: He said the housing shortage is a top concern with senior citizens unable to find houses to downsize to and young married couples losing homes in bidding wars. The Lehigh Valley currently is short 9,000 housing units and is estimated to need 54,000 more by 2050. He worries the Valley is turning into a “luxury hood” of $800,000 homes and working class families are being priced out. “If we don’t solve that crisis, we run the risk of defeating the very thing that’s made us so successful, which is the fact that people want to live here.”
Funding
Siegel: He said the $1 trillion plus in cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program under the federal spending plan over the next decade will be disastrous. Cuts will be realized by removing enrollees who don’t meet stricter requirements. States will also have to pay a larger share, leaving less money for services. Siegel said the county will have to find more revenue for mandated services. He said the county could save $4 million by adopting proposals outlined by county Controller Mark Pinsley that include using reference-based pricing, which sets a maximum amount the county would pay for medical services based on a percentage above what Medicare pays. He also supports setting up a program where nonprofits such as hospitals and higher education institutions make contributions forprojects.
MacLean: He said his understanding of the Medicaid and SNAP cuts are that they are impacting “illegals and people who have not paid into the system. If those are the cuts, I’m for it. If they’re not, then we have another discussion.” (Undocumented immigrants are not eligible for Medicaid.) On county spending, he said, “The last thing I would want to do is raise property taxes.” If Pinsley has a savings plan, MacLean said, the county should adopt the idea instead of allowing it to become a political talking point. He also said it might not be easy to implement Pinsley’s idea.
Policing/mental health workers
MacLean: He said the county only funds county detectives who work for the District Attorney’s Office. “As far as funding police, I’m a hundred percent for funding police,” he said. “But there was a fine line between what I wanted as a chief and what the citizens could afford to pay for.” He opposes Siegel’s idea of having county mental health workers accompany police on mental health related calls. “They can go south real, real quick.” He touted a model used in Upper Macungie Township where officers reach out to people repeatedly involved in such calls and get them help.
Siegel: He said he would like to see the DA’s office begin a group violence reduction program that brings together social service agencies, employers and others to help people who are likely to commit crimes or be victims of them. “They connect them to opportunity long before they ever commit an offense. But should you screw up, you’re punished very heavily.” He also thinks the time has come to regionalize police and fire services. Under such a plan, Allentown would retain its own department. “When we broaden services and we pool our resources, we can provide those services at a more cost effective level,” he said, adding some communities can’t afford sufficient services because of their limited tax base.”
Election integrity
Siegel: He said he wants to expand the number of drop boxes for mail-in ballots and open satellite offices for certain voter services. He said the county executive is on the county Board of Elections and should be an advocate for democracy. “It is incumbent on the county executive to have the courage to call out attacks on our election, to call out election denialism and the folks who cast fear and dispersion on the last election results.”
MacLean: He said there should be a limited number of drop boxes to reduce the chance of fraud. (The county now has five.) He said there should also be security cameras. The county has video surveillance at the sites. He noted there were no complaints in Lehigh County about an unfair election in 2024.
