Who's running for Governor?

Reading the tea leaves of  PoliticsPA reporting of the Pennsylvania Society meetup in New York this past weekend it looks like about 37 people are floating the the idea of running for Governor of Pennsylvania. Montgomery County Commissioner Bruce Castor said he was thinking of primary challenge to Tom Corbett. He is the only Republican name thrown out there so far other than the usual cranks.

Democrat John Hanger has already declared that he is the race .Bob Casey and Allyson Schwartz are not. Former Congresswoman Kathy Dahlkemper and  PA State Senator Mike Stack said they are looking at the race. PA Treasurer Rob McCord will will be a candidate and possibly Joe Sestak and Patrick Murphy. More to come.

A couple events caught my eye.

On Saturday :

Congressman Lou Barletta’s Holiday Reception
2:00pm – 5:00pm
O’Neill’s Irish Bar
729 3rd Avenue
RSVP Required

I wasn't invited and that makes me sad. I'm the biggest non supporter of Lou in these parts who actually likes the guy. I'll buy him dinner at Dominick's Cafe.


The rumor is that the Mean Old Man  and Professor Milburn Cleaver, OPA made it to this gathering.

  5th Annual Bolshevik Dinner
7:00pm
The Russian Vodka Room
By invitation only

The best roundup of the PA Society weekend came from my 2nd favorite state legislator (Phyllis is still in the lead) Daylin Leach.

PA Society Chronicles – 2012

 

= I’m running for Governor, but not of Pennsylvania.
= I’m running for Congress.
= I’m running for the Bundestag.
= Pat Toomey has asked me to be his Vice-Senator.
= Governor Corbett calls me his ‘little minx’”.
= I once shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die.
= My CIA nick-name is “Danger Hunk”.

 

PA Attorney General race news

No candidate was able to muster the two thirds vote necessary to get the Pennsylvania Democratic Party endorsement last weekend,The Next Stage gives the play by play. Since then Dan McCaffery decided he didn't have enough support and dropped out of the race. That leaves former Congressman Patrick Murphy and Lackawanna County Assistant District Attorney Kathleen Kane vieing for the Democratic nomination. The winner will take on Republican David Freed.

Murphy is a King's College Wilkes-Barre grad and friend of the blog who keeps racking up endorsements. The latest is from Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter:

“We need a tough Attorney General who is smart on crime, who understands that consumers need to be protected, that seniors need to be protected, that all of us need the protection of a strong, independent Attorney General. He has been a great champion for this city, this region, and of course, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” said Mayor Nutter. “His military career and his service to the nation as a military officer and as a lawyer in the military again demonstrate his true commitment to public service. What I really like about Patrick, my friend, is that he will defend our rights while at the same time make sure we are all safe.”

Add this to the list. A bunch of Allegheny County politicos and labor leaders signed on and my 2nd favorite member of Congress Allyson Schwatrz, who should run for the Senate, backed him earlier.

The Luzerne County Democratic Party endorsed him .

The list of pols local and otherwise that is on his side

Murphy for PA Endorsements

Elected Officials

Ed Rendell, Pennsylvania Governor
Tim Holden, U.S. Rep.
Allyson Schwartz,
U.S. RepRon Klink, Former U.S. Rep.
Paul Kanjorski, Former U.S. Rep.
Harris Wofford, Former U.S. Senator
Dan Onorato, Former Allegheny County Executive
Seth Williams, Philadelphia District Attorney
John Hanger, Former Secretary of PA Department of Environmental Protection
.
Dwight Evans, State Rep.
Mike Carroll, State. Rep.
Phillys Mundy, State Rep.
Eddie Day Pashinski, State Rep.
Jennifer Mann, State Rep.
TJ Rooney, Former Chair, PA Dems
Chair
Kathy Kane, Luzerne County


Issue Advocacy Groups

The Human Rights Campaign

VoteVets

The dead zone

This is always the slow time for blogging about politics because we are between the primary and general elections but things could change any day. I'm sure more people will be indicted in the ongoing FBI investigation of the way business has been conducted around here for as long as I can remember and that will keep us busy. But the local elections will take a break for the summer and then heat up in late August.

.
In the mean time we can speculate about who will be running against Kanjo or Carney in 2010. I'm really not ready to cover the upcoming race for Governor as none of the prospective candidates excite me. As far as the 2010 Senate race goes I will apply the Easter Bunny Test. I will vote for anybody but Arlen Specter in the Democratic Primary and if Joe Sestak is the only serious candidate he has my support although I would rather see Patrick Murphy or Allyson Schwartz make the run.

.

So that leaves us with Baseball. The Phillies should have swept the Dodgers over the weekend but came out with a spilt. They should have also swept the phargon Yankees a few weeks ago. There is nothing more demoralizing for a baseball team than going into the bottom of the 9th with a lead and losing the game. Brad Lidge was a perfect 41 saves in 41 opportunities last year but he has blown 6 saves so far this year. I think it's time to give Ryan Madson a chance to close the game.

Patrick Murphy for Senate

According to a story in Roll Call Bucks County Rep. Patrick Murphy (PA-8) is looking at taking on Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) in 2010. His top aide said "he’s looking at it very strongly right now.”

Murphy is an Iraq war vet who easily won a 2nd term in Congress taking 57% of the vote in November. He is a proven fundraiser raking in almost $4 million this cycle and would probably need at least $20 million for a Senate bid. He has some local ties being a graduate of Kings College and his brother JJ Murphy is the Wilkes-Barre City Administrator. JJ is an Air Force Reserve officer who was recently called up to active duty and deployed to the Horn of Africa. Another local connection is that he once told me that he reads my blog.

The buzz about Chris Matthews running for the seat took a hit when Politico reported he has signed a long-term contract with MSNBC to keep hosting Hardball. Some other reports say he is house shopping in Philadelphia and the latest Rasmussen poll has him trailing by just three percentage points, 46% to 43%. Other polls have him way down. The crew over at PAWaterCooler have had a collective tingle going up their legs at the possibility and will be very disappointed if he doesn't make the race. We will see. The Rain Man pointed out something I didn't even think of. Imagine Tweety at a confirmation hearing grilling a nominee and telling the guy "you don't know what you're talking about." Pat Toomey came close to knocking off Specter in the 2004 Republican primary ( he may try again) and Tweety made mince meat of him on an appearance his show. What a great debate that would be!

.

If Matthews decides not to make the Senate primary a circus another serious candidate is Allyson Schwartz.

Allyson for Senate?

Republican challenger Marina Kats is talking up the possibility that U.S. Rep. Allyson Schwartz (PA-13) will take on Arlen Specter in the 2010 Senate race. Allyson ran for Senate in the 2000 primary for Rick Santorum's seat but Ron Kink won the nod and the people of Pennsylvania got klunked and we were stuck with the Senator from Virginia for another 6 years. In 2000 the clear choice was Allyson Schwartz She would have made her differences with Santorum clear instead of saying "me too" and would have excited the Democratic base. In the end Gore won the state and Klink lost by 5% after being outspent 7:1. If we had a real Democrat that talked about important issues instead of the hot button nonsense things may have been different.

She has a prized seat on the Ways and Means Committee so it would be a tough decision to give that up.

.

Update: I asked Allyson's spokeperson about this, her reply

.

"Allyson loves her job in Congress. She's got a great seat on the most powerful Committee in Congress - Ways and Means - where she will have a real role in pushing for healthcare reform next Congress in a Democratic Administration."

Carney taking fire from both sides

Washington, D.C.--Congressman Christopher Carney received word this week that he has been promoted from Lieutenant Commander to the rank of Commander in the United States Navy Reserve. One of only two Members of Congress serving in uniform in the reserves, Congressman Carney has been in the Navy Reserves since 1995 when he was commissioned as an Ensign. Carney was activated for Operations Southern Watch, Noble Eagle, and Enduring Freedom.

.

I hope the Navy provided him with a flack jacket because he needs one.

.

The Chris Hackett camp sent out a release today pointing out that he is having a big-dollar fundraising breakfast hosted by a Washington, DC lobbying firm whose major clients include the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, which has fought for placing tolls on Interstate I-80. The implication is that Carney is for tolling I-80 even though he is on the record as being opposed to it.

.

On the same day that David Urban, the former chief of staff to Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), is hosting the fundraiser for Rep. Chris Carney the GOP is having a shindig that includes Chris Hackett. The event is part of the Republican scheme called Regain Our Majority Program (ROMP) and TPM points out that Hackett is one of only two challengers that is listed on the program. I haven't seen the guest list for this event but I'm willing to wager a box of donuts that 5, 10, 50 or a few hundred lobbyist will be in attendance.

.

Carney and Rep. Paul Kanjorski have been the target of robo calls and radio ads from an outfit called Freedom Watch which distorts the energy issue. They think we can just drill our way out of this mess. Another outfit called Freedom Works is planning to attend Carney's next town hall meeting:

.

Representative Carney from PA will be making a Town Hall appearance on July 14. Also in attendance is local Freedom Works members from PA. They will be critiquing Carney on his support of the Mortgage Bailout Bill. Carney claims to be a Blue Dog Democrat, who espouse fiscal responsibility. Yet this bill raises the Federal deficit by $22 billion dollars. They will ask him what the deal is.

.

Does every Republican front have Freedom in it's name?

.

July 14, 2008 @ 10:00 am

WHERE: Middle Creek Community Center
67 Elm St .
Beaver Springs , PA

.

On the other side Blue America PAC is still going after Carney over the FISA issue but this time strips any reference to my favorite cable company, Comcast. Who's trimming their sails now Howie? The last round of ads fell on deaf ears and was a big waste of money. If you want to meddle in Pennsylvania politics maybe you could put the money where it would do more good like shoring up Patrick Murphy, Joe Sestak or Allyson Schwartz.

.

I've suggested a campaign song for Carney:

.

Stealers Wheel - Stuck In The Middle With You

Update:

Washington, D.C. Congressman Christopher P. Carney has issued the following statement opposing tolls for Interstate 80 in Pennsylvania.

"I oppose tolling I-80. While Pennsylvania roads and bridges are in need of repair, tolling places an undue burden on families, small businesses and local manufacturers. As we grow Pennsylvania's economy, we must do so in away that does not undercut our local economic base."

"There is clearly a critical need to rebuild the infrastructure in Pennsylvania, our roads and bridges are in dire need of repair. I look forward to working with our Governor to make sure that Pennsylvania transportation needs are being met."

S-CHIP

The State Children’s Health Insurance Program is in the news. To me it's a reasonable program to help people who are not poor enough to qualify for Medicaid but don't have insurance from their employer and just can't afford it on their own. The shameless attacks by some conservative bloggers on the families that dared to tell how the program helped their situation is another story covered elsewhere.

Congressmen Kanjorski and Carney voted for the bill. Isn't that a surprise, Chris Carney voted like a Democrat as he always does on economic issues. We have our differences on the Iraq mess but Chris is a much better Congressman than the last automaton. He comes out swinging on this one and rips the Bush veto:


“We cannot lose health coverage for 10 million children without a fight”


“This was an unconscionable act by the President. Since it was created in 1997, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) has always received strong bipartisan support.

Over the last ten years, the children’s health program has proven to be a popular, successful program – with 6 million children now enrolled in the program.

“It costs less than $3.50 a day to cover a child through the Children’s Health Insurance program. Insuring kids is also cost-effective for taxpayers who pick up the tab for indigent care in emergency rooms – the most expensive way to care for a child’s health – as well as because a healthy child is more likely to succeed in education and life.


“The President’s unconscionable veto of this bipartisan, fiscally responsible legislation –supported by strong majorities in the House and Senate, 43 governors, industry groups and the American people –demonstrates a complete lack of compassion for some of the most vulnerable members of our society.


“Mr. President, you sent our troops to Iraq without a plan, you’re drive up our debt so that our grandchildren will be paying it off, but you can’t sign bipartisan legislation to provide health care to children? This is truly an unacceptable act, and I cannot support it.”




I've asked the Republican 10th CD candidates for a comment on this issue but I don't have all of their email addresses. Help me out people.

Update: I've emailed Hackett, Meuser, Ely and Swiderski asking for their thoughts. No response from any of them yet. I'm still looking for an email address for John Scott.

And there is this from Allyson Schwartz (PA-13) She asks What Has President Bush Done for Healthcare for America’s Kids? I hope you watch it because it is so powerful because because of what she doesn't say. If this speech was given anywhere but Congress it would have brought the house down.

Friday Live Blogging at the Pennsylvania Progressive

Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz's Communications Director Rachel Magnuson will guest blog at The Pennsylvania Progressive today at 1 pm. The Congresswoman's pet issues are CHIP, Iraq, and energy. She will answer questions our readers have about Congress, the Thirteenth District, and upcoming legislation.



Thanks to Jane for the reminder.