Matt Cartwright(D-PA8) and John Chrin (NJ) have a lot of money to spend on teevee ads.
Right out of the box Chrin was kicking Cartwright's teeth in. Sanctuary Cities, higher taxes, welfare and scary photos of the soft spoken grandmother from Sodom on the San Andreas.
That's normal for a challenger to tear down the incumbent because he really doesn't have anything to offer. Read his issue page. But he does have the endorsement of the part-time occupant of the White House and his butler.
In response the Cartwright campaign violated the first rule of political advertising. Never, ever let your candidate respond to an attack ad. Use a narrator, man in the street, etc. But they keep using the same approach.
I have a novel idea for the Cartwright campaign. Remind us why we voted for you in 2012.
Eddie Day had his annual brunch that attracted about 300 people at Genetti's. He brought in some of the heavy hitters in state and local politics like Bob Casey, Matt Cartwright, John Yudichak, Mike Carrol and Guido Sarducci.
In the warm up Yuddy sang Eddie's praises since he rarely does it himself. He recounted the many infrastructure and economic development projects he has done the hard work to make it happen. He had a nice quip about how he shows up with a piano and his own Paparazzi. Matt Cartwright also praised him and noted that he is sharing campaign space in W-B. He said "I've had worst roommates but at least he cleans up after himself." All those losing lottery tickets and empty cans end up in the trash.
Senator Bob Casey continues to impress me. He gave another fiery address about the ACA and his opposition to the Trumplican agenda.
When it came time for Eddie to speak he told us about he is working with his Republican colleagues to get help for grandparents raising grand kids. He lamented that that the Republican Party has been hijacked by extremist who want to divide us on race, sex, etc. He said they want to divide us because there are "more of us than them." He decried the money in politics and defended public schools, labor unions, Social Security and Medicare. He doesn't want to go back to the days of the coal barons and celebrated the gains made on job safety, the 8 hr.workday/ 40 hr. week because of collective bargaining. And then he went on and on and on so I had to leave because I already missed kickoff.
A literately overflow crowd was on hand for the opening of Matt Cartwright's W-B office in W-B tonight. So many people showed up that there wasn't enough room in the building to hear him speak and those who couldn't get in spilled out onto the sidewalk. I was a afraid the fire marshal would arrive but Mayor Tony George was there so that didn't happen.
Matt Cartwright (D-Moosic) started off by asking a moment of silence for John McCain. He then assured us that there are members on both sides of the aisle who want to do the right thing for our country and tries to work with them everyday. He's proud that many of the bills he has introduced have Republican co-sponsors.
He gave a full throttled defense of Social Security and Medicare and trashed the latest trickle down tax cut bill. He reminded the crowd that the full name of Obamacare is The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The protection part is making sure that people with pre-existing conditions can get coverage. A big chunk of the population has some sort of medical condition that used to allow insurers to deny them coverage. He decried the provisions of the last tax bill that gave away the store to corporations and the very rich with few benefits for the rest of us. Part of it was repealing the the individual mandate that cuts funding for the program and reduces the risk pool so premiums will soar. .
State Senator John Yudichak's end of summer picnic at the Plains PAV was another roaring success. It was a salute to labor and was attended by the working men and women in his district and beyond. The unions were out in force but so were people who don't have union representation in their workplace but wish they did. It was of course a political rally and many elected officials and candidates attended. The official program was mercifully short with Luzerne County Democratic Chair John Pekerovsky doing the introductions and Yuddy as the MC. Congressman Matt Cartwright , candidate Denny Wolff and US Senator Bob Casey offered some brief remarks. Like the event with Gov. Wolf on Tuesday you could feel the energy of the local Dems.
Governor Tom Wolf was the headliner for the Luzerne County Democratic Party event tonight and he didn't disappoint. The place was so packed that I couldn't get a count. More than 300 people , maybe more packed the ballroom. He listed his accomplishments like getting more people health insurance, balancing the budget with enough money to make a deposit to the rainy day fund. Wolf pointed out that he was able to restore funding for education working with a Republican Legislature. He didn't mention his opponent once. The local Democratic candidates also attended. State Senator John Yudichak was the MC with some good jokes. Congressman Matt Cartwright fired up the crowd and I was lucky not to get between Eddie Day and the microphone, a dangerous place. Jerry Mullery also spoke.
A special treat was seeing Cassandra Coleman. She convinced me to vote for Wolf last time.
Yes, the party that holds the White House historically loses seats in the mid term elections. We all know that a record number of women are running for office and winning primaries for Governor, Congress and State offices in record numbers. But the thing I'm seeing is the intensity of their supporters beginning with the Women's March in January of 2017 that has not abated.
All the evidence points to a big year for the Dems with bigger than normal turnouts in primary and special elections but very few Democrats have actually won special elections for Congress unless the GOP candidate is just ridiculous like Roy Moore or Rick Saccone. On the state level they have done much better.
I'm always cautious about expectations because the Republicans have some advantages. First is almost unlimited money. Millionaires and Billionaires can write checks to dark money groups because of Citizens United that go to so called social welfare groups. They then can spend that money painting Democrats as the equivilant of devil worshipers who want to take you guns, murder babies and give people health insurance.
The second is gerrymandering. Things have improved in PA but many states have carved up the districts to give the GOP a big advantage. Just look at Ohio 12. In a fairly drawn district the Democrat would have won easily.
So that leads us to our little corner of the world. The Democrats are playing defense with Governor Wolf, Senator Bob Casey, Congressman Matt Cartwright and State Rep Eddie Day Pashinski on the ballot. Their opponents have gone all in with Trump. Although we don't have women running for office the Democratic women are leading the charge to keep these men in office.
After many years of being dormant the Luzerne County Democratic Party is coming roaring back. We are being led by Polly Delaney and Wendy Cominsky. This dynamic duo have organized many events past and future and are looking for ideas from the rest of us to just get people to vote.
Mrs. G has been bugging me to get some Hillary yard signs to display because some of our neighbors have Trump signs but we haven't seen any Clinton/Kaine signs . So being a dutiful husband I dropped by the Hillary HQ in Wilkes-Barre today to pick up a few. I explained that we are being outnumbered in Plains and and a young person helpfully explained that yard signs don't vote. Gee, I didn't know that. So they asked me if I would be willing to help out and I said OK. Then I was asked to do some canvassing every weekend until the election but I couldn't commit to that. I was told if I would commit to a couple of shifts they would allow me to have 2 signs. When I objected to that they told me to go on the website to get a sign. Needless to say I walked out without a sign.
I have worked for a lot of campaigns and have never subjected a potential volunteer to such a hard sell. The condescending attitude of the person I dealt with was off putting. Without asking anything about my background I was informed of the definition of GOTV and how voter contact can make a difference. Gee, I didn't know that either.
Maybe I'm just getting cranky but if this is what they have going on in a key county of PA. God help us.
Anyway, We have a sign in the yard for a candidate we enthusiastically support.
Pope Francis started his North American tour in Cuba then flew to Washington and now he is in New York. His address to Congress has been interpreted as endorsing one political point of view or another depending on who you listen to. As far as his pronouncements about helping the poor and being tolerant of other people he hasn't said anything different than previous Pontiffs. Do good works, feed the poor, stop poisoning the planet and follow the golden rule.
He reminded us all in the Americas that most of us are immigrants.
It will all be forgotten by next week.
Congress-critters weigh in:
Matt Cartwright
“I am struck by the historical significance of His Holiness Pope
Francis’ visit to the United States, and honored to have witnessed Pope
Francis address a Joint Session of Congress this morning. “I share key public policy priorities and commitments set forward by
Pope Francis during his tenure. Specifically, I was pleased and
inspired that His Holiness discussed the caring for the marginalized and
the poor, advancing economic opportunity for all, and serving as good
stewards of the environment. “I am very much moved by the presence of the Holy Father and my hope
is that his message will stir policy makers to make the world a better
place for all of its citizens.”
Lou Barletta
“It was a singular honor for me and my wife, Mary Grace, to be
present in the House chamber when Pope Francis addressed a joint session
of Congress, the first time any pope has done so. These are very
troubling times in which we live, and the pope’s message of peace is
something that people of all faiths – or no faith at all – can benefit
from. We should be greeting the Holy Father as Americans, not as
Republicans or Democrats, and check our politics at the door as we do
so. He is the leader of one of the great religions of the world, the
successor to Saint Peter, and we should all listen to and reflect on
what he has to say. “As a Catholic, I revere the pope as the leader of my church, the
Vicar of Jesus Christ, and I am glad to have him open conversations
about secular policy, which we may consider and discuss freely. Whether
Pope Francis’s remarks confirmed your position on a certain issue, or
caused you to examine your own beliefs, his speech was a call for us to
be better caretakers of each other and our world. As matters of public
policy, members of Congress may disagree on the pathway to achieving
certain goals, but his overall message is something we can all embrace. “I agree with Pope Francis that we must be good stewards of the
environment, and appreciate his embrace of new technologies as a means
to that end. His view that prosperous nations such as ours should
welcome new citizens is well taken, as is the church’s Catechism that
those new arrivals must respect the laws of their new host countries.
Finally, he was unequivocal about the sanctity of life, and that we must
cherish and protect life in all of its stages. “When the pope speaks of caring for the poor, the sick, and the
unborn, he is speaking to what many of us believe. It is fitting that
he has visited America, because this is a nation which shares his vision
of putting people in position to be able to pursue their dreams and
enjoy the blessings of liberty. “This was an extraordinary thrill for Mary Grace and me to witness
Pope Francis’s address, as well as the canonization mass at the Basilica
of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. These are
experiences we will never forget.”
Northampton County Councilman Glenn Geissinger launched his
congressional campaign Tuesday for the PA-17th CD against U.S. Rep. Matthew Cartwright. He is the first Republican to announce and we can expect more.
His announcement via the Morning Call: "I want Matt Cartwright to understand that solutions come out of the
private sector. They come out of people like you and me going to work
every day to make America a better place. They don't come out of adding
more regulations. They don't come by scaling back on our ability to
produce jobs,"....I am going to do what it takes to win in order to bring what these people think government should be to Washington,"....
Sounds good until this;
The people of northeast Pennsylvania need someone in the nation's
capital who would go up against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
and protect blue-collar jobs and the coal industry that dominates the
northern part of the district.
The coal industry in PA is just about dead in Pennsylvania and employs less than 9000 people statewide. It seems that it is a tenet of faith for Republicans that the EPA is some sort of evil organization that people hate. The last time I checked people like clean air and water.
He also took a shot at the Democratic House Leader Geissinger painted himself as a better fit for the district than Cartwright, whom he labeled a "Nancy Pelosi Democrat."
This is so 2008. Trying to tie a local candidate to the soft spoken grandmother from Sodom on the San Andreas hasn't worked beyond the people who would never vote for a Democrat anyway.
I would argue that Pelosi was a more effective Speaker than John Boehner who can't even keep the government working because he can't deal with a bunch of anti-government anarchists.
As my long time readers know the primary focus of this blog has always been elections. Next year we choose a Governor of the Commonwealth, members of the US House and state House and half the state Senate. In the next few days I will post about these and some races around the country.
PA Gov Tom Cabot Corbett has an uphill climb according to the polls but things can change in the next year and no sitting Guv has lost reelection since they have been allowed to run for a 2nd term. So far there are 8 Dems smelling blood in the water.
The Lt. Governors race is most interesting as I have met most of the Democratic contenders. My early favorite is Brad Koplinski because he sent me a bribe.
Of the 3 local Congressman I keep an eye on only Matt Cartwright has a declared opponent so far. 2 of them in fact. A few people are teasing that they will run against Lou Barletta including Bill Vinsko, Gene Stilp and Chris Carney but I doubt any of them will run. Libetarian Betsy Summers may get into it.
A few weeks ago an old friend called to feel me out about running against Tom Marino in the Republican primary. His rational was Marino is one of the most ethically challenged people to ever hold office. I had to throw cold water on the idea because his family wasn't behind it and he would need to declare right now and raise at least $100K before the end of the year.
On the state scene Sen. John Yudichak has no declared opponent so far. Neither do Mike Carroll, Phyllis Mundy, Eddie Day Pashinski, Tarah Toohil or Gerry Mullery. I heard a rumor that Mullery may get a primary opponent.
Karen Boback however is being challenged by Laura Dickson. I haven't been this excited about a state rep race since James May took her on.
WASHINGTON -- The Senate voted Thursday to approve the Employment
Non-Discrimination Act, landmark civil rights legislation that would
make it illegal to discriminate against LGBT individuals in the
workplace.
The final vote was 64-32, with 10 Republicans joining Democrats. The
Republican senators backing the legislation were cosponsors Susan
Collins (R-Maine) and Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), along with Kelly Ayotte
(R-N.H.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Dean Heller
(R-Nev.), John McCain (R-Ariz.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Rob Portman
(R-Ohio) and Pat Toomey (R-Pa.).
Sen. Toomey tried to amend the bill at the last minute that would have weakened the protections under the guise of religious liberty but that was shot down and he voted in favor of it in the end. Nice try of Pat trying to have it both ways.
Only one Senator spoke against the measure and it now moves to the House. It is hard to speak out against ending discrimination. The Speaker says it's a jobs killer and won't bring it up for a vote. I think that may change.
Congressman Matt Cartwright sent a press release supporting the law but Lou Barletta has not stated his position.
Cartwright Statement on Senate Passage of the Employee Non-Discrimination Act
Washington – U.S. Representative Matt Cartwright released the following statement after the Senate passed
the Employee Non-Discrimination Act with a bipartisan vote of 64-32:
“Today,
the Senate took an important step forward toward protecting all
Americans from workplace and employment discrimination by passing the
Employment Non-Discrimination
Act with a strong, bipartisan vote of 64-32.
“This
legislation will make it illegal to discriminate against LGBT Americans
in hiring, provide safeguards against wrongful termination, and ensure
that LGBT employees
cannot be held back from advancement because of discrimination.
“Currently
21 states and the District of Columbia have laws prohibiting workplace
discrimination based on sexual orientation, unfortunately, Pennsylvania
is not one of those 21 states.
“I
applaud Senator Bob Casey and Senator Pat Toomey for supporting this
legislation and urge Speaker Boehner to reconsider his previous remarks
and allow the House
to take up the Senate's bipartisan Employment Non-Discrimination Act
without delay.”
Statement by the President on Senate Passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2013
For
more than two centuries, the story of our nation has been the story of
more citizens realizing the rights and freedoms that are our birthright
as Americans. Today, a
bipartisan majority in the Senate took another important step in this
journey by passing the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would
help end the injustice of our fellow Americans being denied a job or
fired just because they are lesbian, gay, bisexual
or transgender. Just as no one in the United States can lose their job
simply because of their race, gender, religion or a disability, no one
should ever lose their job simply because of who they are or who they
love.
Today’s
victory is a tribute to all those who fought for this progress ever
since a similar bill was introduced after the Stonewall riots more than
three decades ago. In
particular, I thank Majority Leader Reid, Chairman Harkin, Senators
Merkley and Collins for their leadership, and Senator Kirk for speaking
so eloquently in support of this legislation. Now it’s up to the House
of Representatives. This bill has the overwhelming
support of the American people, including a majority of Republican
voters, as well as many corporations, small businesses and faith
communities. They recognize that our country will be more just and more
prosperous when we harness the God-given talents of
every individual.
One
party in one house of Congress should not stand in the way of millions
of Americans who want to go to work each day and simply be judged by the
job they do. Now is the
time to end this kind of discrimination in the workplace, not enable
it. I urge the House Republican leadership to bring this bill to the
floor for a vote and send it to my desk so I can sign it into law. On
that day, our nation will take another historic
step toward fulfilling the founding ideals that define us as Americans.
Update from Lou Barletta's spox:
The
Congressman opposes discrimination. He has not seen the bill, however,
and wants to make sure it does not infringe on any rights of others –
religious
institutions for example.
After over 40 votes by the House to repeal Obamacare the Republicans now have shut down the government over this unreasonable demand. You would think that they would have learned the lesson from the shut downs in 90's. Albert Einstein said it best.
Shut down or not the health care exchanges start enrollment tomorrow. The real fear of Republicans is that health care reform will work. Bill Kristol warned against that in 1993.
I haven't seen the Democrats this united since Bush tried to destroy Social Security.
Describing these people as conservative is a misnomer. There is
nothing conservative in rejecting the result of the last election. It is
not conservative to disrupt the function of the government or threaten
to default on the obligations of the United States.
A big thank you to Gene Rooney and Deborah for the great service for Blogfest tonight at Rooney's Irish Pub. Gene is selling the place but we may continue at the same location in the Fall. A full report tomorrow.
WASHINGTON, DC
– The Postal Service is an American institution and must be preserved.
Comprehensive postal reform legislation must address the issue of
delivery frequency, and Congress should make such reform a priority.
Today’s
announcement by Postmaster Patrick Donahoe, regarding the loss of
Saturday delivery, will have a negative effect on both the Postal
Service and its millions of customers. The loss of Saturday delivery
will be particularly harmful to small businesses, rural
communities, the elderly, the disabled and others who depend on Saturday delivery for commerce and communication.
The
agency’s crisis is a direct result of an unsustainable congressional
mandate imposed on the Postal Service by the Postal Accountability and
Enhancement Act (PAEA). The federal law forces the Postal Service to
pre-fund healthcare benefits
for future retirees and to do so in a 10-year period. No other entity —
public or private — bears this burden. Since the PAEA took effect in
2007, the Postal Service has been required to pre-pay approximately $5.5
billion per year. Yet the same law prohibits
the Postal Service from raising postage rates to cover the cost.
The
Postal Service has already slashed mail service by closing 13,000 post
offices and drastically reducing hours of operation, shutting hundreds
of mail processing facilities, and downgrading standards for mail
delivery to America’s homes
and businesses. The effects have already been felt locally in Scranton
and today’s announcement will only place a greater burden on the 17th Congressional district.
Congress
must take a holistic approach in passing comprehensive Postal Reform
legislation addressing both the recent decline in mail volume as well as
the strain placed on the Postal Service by the mandated PAEA.
Tiffany Cloud is the hostess of Storm Politics on WYLN in Hazelton which has become one of my favorite public affairs programs on TV. She also wrote the great book Sleeping with Dog Tags . The thing about Tiffany is that she welcomes all comers and has a great discussion with people she disagrees with that doesn't turn into a talking head shouting match like you see on the cable news channels.
In the latest episode she handed out the Lightening Bolt Awards. Cloud, Storm, Lightening the weather metaphors are endless. May I suggest the Snow Job Awards for next year.
The winner is Yasue Bengali, a Japanese immigrant to the US who recently became a citizen and explains how great this county is as only an immigrant could.
The honorable mentions of other people who have appeared on her show is a mix of Democratic and Republican office holders plus those that will be elected in the future or never at all.
Some Bolts went out to Aaron Kaufer, Matt Cartwright, Tarah Toohil, Stefanie Salavantis and Lou Barletta.Young Republicans Bob Zaruta and Jen Rinehamer and Young Dem Thom Shibula along with the happiest man I know, Casey Evans.
In December of last year I was her guest on Storm Politics and David Yonki has also been on the program and we came in 9th. I think she gives us too much credit for the election results but I'll take it. To answer her question of why anyone would push the liberal agenda in these economic times is simple. Austerity doesn't work. You don't cut spending when the economy is down and if anything the government's goal should be to get the unemployment rate down to 4%. The US government is borrowing money right now at a negative interest rate when you factor in inflation. Borrow more and put people to work! She said the conservatives are being outsmarted by these 2 lovers of the left. Hah!
The highlight of this clip is at the 2 minute mark.
I found out about the shooting at Newtown, Connecticut in
the mid-morning, that Friday, when I was in a foreign policy briefing. U.S. Rep.-elect Elizabeth Esty, the excellent
new Congresswoman for the district in which Newtown is located, was sitting
next to me. She took the call on her
mobile phone. I saw the look on her
face. She was stricken.
It’s hard to know when the right time is to shift from
mournful comments about the tragic loss of lives, and the terrible toll taken
on the families. It’s hard to know when
it’s all right to start talking about how it could have been prevented or at
least how it could have been prevented from being as bad as it was. The problem is that people will feel that
it’s not right to try to score political points out of a horrible situation
like this.
I don’t want to make points about politics. I want to make a point about law.
The most important principle about making laws is that they
should promote good and avoid evil.
St. Thomas Aquinas, in his best-known work, the Summa Theologica, wrote of the natural
law, “this is the first precept of the law, that good is to be done, and
promoted, and evil is to be avoided. All
other precepts of the natural law are based on this.” He wrote that in 1274.
If ever there was a clear presentation of the contrast
between good and evil, it appeared in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14,
2012. The goodness, the innocence, of 6-
and 7-year old boys and girls, full of fun, eager to learn, and excited to be
together, would never be questioned.
Whatever it was that possessed their killer, whatever psychosis invaded
his brain, whatever mental turmoil it was that drove Adam Lanza to kill that
day, it was evil. And what he actually
did, with a Bushmaster AR-15, inside that elementary school, was pure evil. No one doubts it.
The question is, how is this kind of evil to be
avoided? Can we make laws to help avoid
this kind of unspeakable evil?
The answer is, yes, we can.
We can enact laws that restrict the purchase and sale of semi-automatic
assault rifles. We can enact laws that
restrict the purchase and sale of high-capacity ammunition magazines. We can do this, and it is legal.
It has been done before.
Between 1994 and 2004 we had an assault rifle ban in our country. Prominent members of the law enforcement
community supported the ban. The nation did not dissolve. The Constitution did not disintegrate. The sky did not fall.
It does not violate the Second Amendment to ban assault
rifles and high-capacity ammunition magazines.
For generations, the Supreme Court has made it clear that there are
limits to the declarations in the Bill of Rights. For example, the First Amendment’s right of
free speech does not extend to going into crowded cinemas and yelling
“fire!”
On July 29, 2012, nine days after another mass shooting at
an Aurora, Colorado, movie theater, Justice Antonin Scalia – possibly the most
conservative member of the Supreme Court in its entire history – told Fox News
Sunday in a discussion of the Second Amendment:
“Yes, there are some limitations that can be imposed.”
Banning assault rifles like the Bushmaster AR-15 used on the
Sandy Hook children would not cure the evil that drove Adam Lanza to kill. But it would make it more difficult for him
to kill. In killing 27 people, Lanza is
reported to have fired as many as three hundred rounds, pumping as many as 11
bullets into each victim. Lanza was using
equipment that made him an efficient child-killing machine.
This kind of firepower is not necessary for hunting, or self-defense. Our American experience has showed us example
after example of assault rifles and high capacity clips being used in mass
killings of innocent people. What we
never hear about are instances of these weapons being used in self-defense,
which is the point of the Second Amendment.
We also never hear about assault rifles being taken hunting. No self-respecting deer hunter would even consider
firing a dozen bullets at a buck.
I announced my support for an assault rifle ban in July,
after the Aurora shooting. I urge you to
contact your elected officials to express your support for bans on assault
rifles and high-capacity ammunition magazines.
How many more innocent schoolchildren have to die before we
find the courage to enact laws that will actually help us avoid this kind of
evil?
I was up late so I feel like the guy pictured above.
The President was reelected and I have been reading some apocalyptic things on right wing blogs and Facebook. Relax people. We lived through 8 years of Bush and you will survive 8 years of Obama. The late Bob Novak once said something that has stuck with me. The President doesn't run the country, the people do. The economy will improve no matter who is President, it's called the business cycle. The Republicans should have won this election but they nominated a candidate that didn't believe in anything except he wanted to be President. Romney switched so many positions in so many elections you couldn't trust him. That and the steady stream of lies from his campaign. See Mitt's Mendacity Vol I thru XLI.
Pennsylvania made history by electing the first Democrat and woman as Attorney General.I hope she digs into Tom Corbett's handling of the Sandusky investigation.
Senator Bob Casey beat back the coal guy 54%-47%. he spent a big chunk of his own money on a losing cause. Coal and Oil are not our future.
No surprises in the local races for Congress. Tom Marino won 2-1 and Matt Cartwright gathered 60% of the vote as predicted. Gene Stilp ran a fun campaign but you still need money to win. Lou Barletta will continue to defend us against theBarbarians at the Gate
The incumbent state house member were returned for another term.
The photos of Tarah Toohil probably helped her as we all have done things we are not proud of. It was dirty pool by someone who wanted to hurt her but the Democratic candidate or party had nothing to do with it.She won 67% of the vote.
Rick Arnold got a late start and it wasn't enough to beat Jerry Mullery. Mullery improved his performance from 2010 winning 61%-39%.
The 120th HD race was near and dear to my heart. Phyllis Mundy has been a friend for some time and is my xxx favorite legislator. Aaron Kaufer became a pal and ran a great campaign that gave Phyllis the run of her political career. In the end Kaufer got more votes than any other challenger over the last 20 years but came up short. He will be back. Phyllis won 56-44 improving on the 53% she got last time.
Now the speculation begins about the 2016 Presidential candidates. I predict that Hillary won't be one of them because President Obama will appoint her to the Supreme Court.
On to the 2013 local elections. Walter Griffith is running for reelection as Luzerne County Controller and Bob Morgan may take him on again. Steve Urban is also making noise about a Controller run. Some seats on the Luzerne County Council will also be up.
Sorry I have been out of the loop for the last 2 days but I had some family obligations to tend to. I'll start off with the easy ones. You can beat me up on later posts.
Mike Carrol will be reelected in the 118th HD. Terrance O'Connor is the Republican candidate but has not made much of an effort other than putting on tricorner hat and yelling into a bullhorn from the back of a pick up truck just like he did last time. Carroll has pleasantly surprised me with his desire to overhaul the
campaign finance laws (there aren't many) of Pennsylvania and reforming the
redistricting process.
Karen Boback is unopposed in the 117th HD as is Eddie Day Pashinski in the 121st HD. I told Pashinski that I'm not voting for him this time. More on that later. As a political junkie I hate unopposed races. Sorry but I have to put up James favorite Karen pic.
In the newfangled gerrymandered 17th Congressional District Matt Cartwright (D) will win in a blowout over Laureen Cummings(R). Probably 60%+. Cartwright beat incumbent Blue Dog Tim Holden in the primary in the overwhelmingly Democratic district because people wanted a real Democrat not Republican lite. It's great that both candidates have run positive campaigns discussing issues. My contact at the DCCC tells me that Cartwright is up 26% in their latest poll.
If you are still undecided here is the video from WVIA debate.
"Due to weather concerns, WVIA has cancelled the
10th congressional district debate that was to be held Tuesday, October
30. Efforts by WVIA to re-schedule the debate await Congressman Tom
Marino's availability as he attends to constituent service through the
storm."
Due
to the weather we are rescheduling the Mundy /Cartwright rally to
Friday Nov 2, 5-7pm West Wyoming Hose Company #1 Shoemaker Ave. Now you
can join us for a tailgate party before all the high school football
games! Boyer's Catering will be putting on a delicious spread, beer and
soda, the event is free. Bring a friend!
Kaufer event a go
I will be hosting an event at Marianacci's
Restaurant tonight in West Wyoming from 6-8 tonight. The event is FREE. Anybody
looking for a chance to get out of their house or enjoy some good pizza
and good company, please feel free to swing by Marianacci's, especially
if you have lost your power and are looking for a bite to eat. Be safe
everyone and hope to see you there!
Posts
