Mayor Explains ‘Scumbag' Remark

Harrisburg Mayor Linda Thompson says her words were taken out of context by news reports on a derogatory remark about the rural neighboring county.
 
Thompson was talking about local trash collection at a news conference Wednesday when she turned to the chronic problem of out-of-towners illegally dumping bulky items in the Pennsylvania capital.
 
She said city officials won't tolerate such behavior by, in her words, "some scumbag" from Perry County.
 
Several elected local officials in Perry County demanded an apology, but Thompson points out that the remark was one of a number of hypothetical scenarios she offered and that she wasn't laying blame on anyone specifically.
 
Thompson also says she asked Perry County commissioners to watch the new conference video from start to finish.