Friday, March 31, 2006

20th District race gets hot

ROSS TWP. - A little mischief is to be expected during a hot political campaign, but a recent incident shows just shows how heated the race for the 20th state Senatorial District seat is getting. Someone torched a Russ Bigus sign along state Route 118 in the Sweet Valley section of the township Tuesday night.

Signs are always being stolen during a campaign but this is the first time I remember someone torching one.

The debate went off with surprising little acrimony. The CV write-up emphasizedpropertyt taxes. David Madeira said Act 72 is a disaster and favors eliminating property taxes. Carl Sutton thinks raising the state income tax to 4.5 percent is the way to fund schools. Lisa Baker wants to put school district budgets to a referendum. James Haggerty wants to cut costs. Russ Bigus is in favor of Act 72 and the only Democrat in the race, Robert McNamara, agrees.

Health care costs were also discussed. Madeira felt everyone should pay for his or her own health care, but Baker felt accountability was a better option. She thinks everyone involved, including drug companies, employers, health care providers and patients, should work together to reduce costs. Haggerty believes people need more options so pricing could be more competitive, and Sutton thinks drug companies are spending too much money on advertising. He would like to see pharmaceutical ads banned from television. Bigus, if elected, would immediately order a intensive study on Blue Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania. McNamara thinks the burden is on elected officials. He believes that as leaders, they should make it their priority to find ways to cut costs.

17 comments:

LVDem said...

wow... somebody torched a sign. Congrats folks, that may be a new one.

Anonymous said...

ok i heard the tv crews showed up at about the same time the police did. Can't imagine who did it!

Anonymous said...

Signs are the most uselss parts of campaigns during the Bush campaign local hacks wanted to control signs and give them out like it gave them power, they did not underdsatnd that one hour making phone calls is worth 100 signs.
The best was when there was a meeting of The local staff, Local leaders, and the state executive directer and deputy executive dircter, a local mayor who i will not name, said that he thanks for the signs beucase he thinks it will win the elction in NEPA
I can tell you one mayor who got it
Jim Haggerty, He lent his office for phone calls, made sure all kingston GOPers did some stuff done, spent hours organizeing stuff,
Thats why part of me says the GOP owes haggerty this Nomination

Anonymous said...

Fitz - what makes you think Haggerty did this for the GOP? It was just long-range planning for his own self-interests. Surely 23 medical malpractice attorneys can't be wrong.

Anonymous said...

so theses medical malpractice attornyes were supporting Bush

Anonymous said...

I doubt it, but the Committee for Justice for All have done their part for Haggerty fundraising.

Anonymous said...

I'll say, take a look at the wording from a "Committee For Justice for All" fundraiser early last month...

>>>As many of you know, strong Democratic support and a razor-thin margin of moderate Republicans in the Senate has kept Pennsylvania from adopting draconian "tort reform" measures like caps. Jim, who is a practicing lawyer and supports out position on caps and other issues, will help us hold on to that vital Senate margin.<<<

Thats just what we need, another RINO (Republican In Name Only) in the Senate to go along with the Democrats!!!

Sorry Bill, but the only thing the Republican party owes the mayor is swift kick in the Democratic logo!

Anonymous said...

Yeah, so we should go for a better option like Baker or Madeira? LOL!

Baker is a puppet with no brains and absolutely no courage.

Madeira is a looney tuner all high on the Commonwealth Foundation talking quips.

Yeah...there's a pair. I'll give in on tort reform for all the economic development and taxes cut over the past 9 years.

Anonymous said...

Give me a good-looking puppet with personality over a wolf in sheep's clothing any day.

Just don't forget to tell the wolf to watch his tail when he's door-knocking in Noxen. Baaaaa

Anonymous said...

If you think Baker's good looking...you need to visit an eye doctor.

Anonymous said...

So you think voters connect with Haggerty's charm and effervescence without seeing right through him? The man has no social skills - that's why there are no bridges or parks bearing his name, just barstools.

Anonymous said...

Lisa Baker has a bridge or a park named after her? Did her fat husband Gary build it in the back yard with that re-re kid?

Anonymous said...

I heard Baker is both pro-Choice and pro-Gay Marriage...talk about RINO's.

Isn't former Planned Parenthood Director Shawn Murphy helping run her campaign?

Anonymous said...

Stop picking on poor Lisa, she looks so sickly these days. I think she should get some form of treatment from on of her Dr. buddies. I wonder though, why it doesn't bother them that while their insurance claims keep being paid at lower and lower rates by Blue Cross and others, a 100,000 plus job was created for her to conveniently hand out millions of dollars to programs that benefit her one day potential constituents?

Anonymous said...

Dr. Dave, don't you have voter registration forms at your office for all your medicare patients? Don't forget to tell them about the big bad blue company while there on the table.

Why, I'll bet there's even a link to your campaign website from your company site.

Anonymous said...

Speaking of signs what happened to the Welcome to Kingston sign that was on the on ramp of crossvalley coming from forty fort. NOw it's a Haggerty sign ......it's even bolted to the (old welcome) post there. Now that's a decent mayor

Anonymous said...

Russ Bigus seems to be the only one that does not have a negative side. I e-mailed each candidate about some issue I feel are important to me. Russ was the only one to respond, he even offered to meet and talk with me I would like. He had my vote from that moment on. He truly is for the people. Take a look at his web site www.bigus4senate.com