2010 Challengers' Townhall tomorrow

Date: Saturday, April 10, 2010
Time: 6:30pm - 8:30pm
Location: Educational Conference Center at Luzerne County Community College



2010 Challengers' Townhall (It's Not About Party)

Here is your change to meet some candidates up-close. This event will include speeches from each, with the opportunity for audience questions. See below for a list of guest speakers.

WHERE:
Educational Conference Center
Luzerne County Community College
1333 S. Prospect St, Nanticoke (Enter at Community Drive)


WHO:

Sam Rohrer - Candidate for Governor

Peg Luksik - Candidate for U.S. Senate

Lou Barletta - Candidate for U.S. Congress

Jake Towne - Candidate for U.S. Congress

Tim Mullen - Candidate for State Rep

Betsy Summers - Candidate for State Senate

Brian Bergman - Candidate for State Rep

and many more . . . . .



Find out more at:
http://www.nepaliberty.com/townhall.html

2010 Senate race

Pat Toomey was in town on Friday which was a surprise to me and many of my Republican friends. He talked with Bill O'Boyle of the Times-Leader and decried "the lurch to the left” of the federal government. His solution to the health care crises is tort reform. He also continued to hammer Senator Arlen Specter (PA-D,R,?, plaid) He said he decided long ago that he would challenge Specter – then a Republican – in the 2010 primary. “Then a poll came out and Specter decided to switch parties,” Toomey said. “I think voters are fed up with the political opportunism of Arlen Specter.”

The polls are all over the place in this race which is to be expected this early in the contest but Specter's reelect number is not good.

In an interesting twist Toomey has agreed to meet with Democratic Senate candidate Joe Sestak to hold a joint town hall on health care in Toomey's home town of Allentown. Afterward he wants to go drinking, "I'm happy to welcome Joe to the great city of Allentown and I'd extend to him an invitation to share a beer with me at one of our fine local establishments after the town hall meeting." I would like to be part of that, I'd buy them both a Yuengling. I think the country needs more beer summits.

I don't know if Republican Senate candidate Peg Lusik drinks beer but her campaign is doing a good job of keeping bloggers updated.

Where’s the Bill?

She is touring the state and when she makes it to Luzerne County I hope to talk with her and give you a report.

Joe Sestak announces he is running for Senate

FOLSOM—Congressman Joe Sestak officially entered the race for Senate Tuesday morning, ending his long march toward a primary showdown against Senator Arlen Specter next year and setting up what will be one of the most high-profile races in the country.

Sestak has toured all 67 counties in Pennsylvania drumming up support and has been exchanging barbs with Sen. Arlen Specter (PA-?) for months. My favorite was Specter's criticism of Sestak joining the Democratic Party "only" in 2006 so he could run for Congress. The irony of that statement is that Specter switched party's a few months ago because he said he couldn't win a Republican primary against Pat Toomey. Many of my Republican friends would say that he has been a Democrat at heart for a long time. Toomey welcomed him to race.

"Pennsylvania Democrats will make an important choice between Joe Sestak, a consistent liberal who really believes in his values, and Arlen Specter, a career political opportunist who believes in nothing but his own reelection."

Toomey has an op-ed in today's Inky announcing that he would vote to confirm Sonia Sotomayor's nomination to the Supreme Court. I'm sure that is going over well with the abortion hot heads and gun nuts that make up the GOP primary electorate.

Here is the welcome video from Sestak's website.





Check The Pennsylvania Progressive for video of his speech later in the day. He also has a Facebook page.

You can meet Joe Sestak in Scranton tomorrow 1:30pm at Tripp House, 1011 N Main Ave, Scranton, PA 18505

Other candidates in the race are Republicans

Peg Lusik

Larry Murphy

Robert Townsend

and Democrat

Bill Kortz

Will Specter pull a Lieberman

Or

Arlen Specter vs. Toomey, Luksik, Ridge, Sestak, Torsella, Lamb, Watkins and a cast of thousands.

About the only people I have heard that are happy about the possibility of Arlen Specter winning another term in the US Senate are the talking heads on cable TV news, the top brass of the PA Democratic Party and this guy.

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I have never have been a Specter fan but always enjoyed how he had a way of pissing off my republican friends and annoying my fellow Democrats.

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Just a few highlights from his career that have rubbed me the wrong way in addition to his voting record, there are more. He came up with the single bullet theory to explain the murder of President Kennedy when he was working for the Warren Commission in 1964. We all believe that one. He voted "Not Proved" in the Senate trial of President Clinton after he was impeached by the House of Representatives invoking Scottish Law. That was not an an option and his vote was recorded as not guilty. He should have voted to convict or acquit not invent some third way. He also wanted to stick his nose into the NFL. His treatment of Anita Hill (she's a liar) in the Supreme Court nomination hearing of Clarence Thomas inspired me to work for Lynn Yeakel. We came close in that one only losing Wayne County by 20% instead of 40% and statewide by 3%.

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Penn Patriot has the Republican take and The Pennsylvania Progressive thinks that PA Democrats can do better.

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So the question is will Arlen Specter see all this opposition from the base of both party's and try to run as an independent? He said he wouldn't but who can believe anything he says now.

The Rematch

Former Lehigh Valley Congressman Pat Toomey is again taking on Senator Arlen Specter in the Republican primary in 2010. This time it looks like Peg Luksik may also get into the fray along with a few other people . I voted for Peg a few years ago when she ran for governor. A multi-candidate GOP primary has to be good news to Arlen and is music to this blogger's ears. I hope that Specter hangs around forever because he drives my Republican friends nuts. He is an almost extinct species, a Rockefeller Republican. The question of who Rick Santorum will back in this race has the gang over at GrassrootsPA twisting in their knickers.