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By Bill O'Boyle boboyle@timesleader.com
Times Leader Staff Writer
Bill O'Boyle on Facebook   |   @TLBillOboyle on Twitter

Former U.S. Attorney Tom Marino will decide by the end of next week whether he will enter the race in the 10th Congressional District.

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Marino

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Marino, 57, of Cogan Station, near Williamsport, said Wednesday he has meetings scheduled in Washington, D.C., with Republican Party leadership to discuss his candidacy. He said he will also meet with local GOP leaders.

“I’m still giving this some very serious thought,” Marino said. “I want to be sure they want me in this race, and I want to be sure I want to do this.”

Marino said he has been in private legal practice since he resigned as in-house legal counsel for Louis DeNaples. Marino said he and DeNaples, of Dunmore, remain friends and he left his position on the best of terms.

“I wanted to be able to have the time necessary to devote to running if I decide to get in the race,” Marino said. “Louis DeNaples is still a very good friend of mine. All charges brought against Mr. DeNaples have been dropped. If some people do not want to vote for me because of my friendship with him, then so be it. He’s my friend and always will be.”

DeNaples had been charged with lying about his relationship to organized crime figures in his testimony to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board when applying for his license for the Mount Airy Casino Resort. Prosecutors withdrew perjury charges after DeNaples agreed to transfer his ownership to a trust for his daughter, Lisa DeNaples.

If Marino does enter the race, he will join Snyder County Commissioner Malcolm Derk, 31, of Freeburg, who announced on Dec. 21. David Madeira, 42, of Lehman Township, said he will announce his candidacy on Jan. 28.

Tory Mazzola, spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, said Marino would be a strong candidate because “he will fight for job creation, limited government and lower taxes.”

The successful GOP candidate will have to face off in November against two-term Democrat Chris Carney of Dimock Township.

“Carney’s record is drastically out of touch with the values of Northeastern Pennsylvanians,” Mazzola said. “If you look at the most recent election, where a Republican won the U.S. Senate seat in blue Massachusetts, the Obama-Pelosi message did not fly. If it won’t fly in Massachusetts, it will never get off the ground in Pennsylvania.”

Josh Drobnyk, spokesman for Carney, said the Democrat’s focus is on addressing the needs of working families throughout the 10th District.

“As a fiscal conservative, he remains committed to fighting for lower taxes for small businesses, particularly as we turn our economy around,” Drobnyk said. “He is proud of his independent voting record in Congress and humbled by the support he receives from Democrats, independents and Republicans alike.”