08/27/2026
“This afternoon County Executive Mark Poloncarz abused his office to exert influence on the convention center to cancel a previously scheduled career fair for the US Department of Homeland Security. Decades of decision making like his has left this region far behind the rest of the nation economically, and he has the audacity to think he can decide for you where you may want to work? This is wrong. Erie County is home to over 9000 federal employees, working in good paying jobs across several departments and agencies. A DHS career fair would have highlighted jobs for our citizens in the Coast Guard, FEMA, TSA, Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction, ICE, Science and Technology, Intelligence, Secret Service, Customs and Border Protection and others. It is not the job of elected officials to decide the industries the people they represent and SERVE should work. That is a major step too far. It is completely inappropriate, and shame on the Visitors Bureau for joining in on this lunacy. This region deserves good paying jobs and better representation at the top. I completely disagree with this decision and the constant creep of politicians trying to control your lives.”