Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Tuesday, July 09, 2013
Gallup: TV Tops Web, Print As News Source
Some depressing news for people who still think newspapers matter. From a new Gallup poll: Some 55% of Americans turn to TV first to get the news, according to Gallup. The Internet was the second-most popular news source at 21%, followed by newspapers (9%) and radio (6%).
Gallup: TV Tops Web, Print As News Source
Gallup: TV Tops Web, Print As News Source
Help Available for Pennsylvania Job-Seekers
Governor Corbett Unveils JobGateway(SM) , State-of-the-Art Job-Matching Website (via PR Newswire)
HERSHEY, Pa., July 9, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Governor Tom Corbett, along with Department of Labor & Industry Secretary Julia Hearthway, today announced the latest release of JobGateway.pa.gov, a website created to better connect people looking…
HERSHEY, Pa., July 9, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Governor Tom Corbett, along with Department of Labor & Industry Secretary Julia Hearthway, today announced the latest release of JobGateway.pa.gov, a website created to better connect people looking…
Monday, July 08, 2013
WHP 580's Bob Durgin to retire after 24 years on-the-air
I had the pleasure of being a guest on Mr. Durgin's radio program a few years back. A true gentleman. He will be missed on the airwaves.
WHP 580's Bob Durgin to retire after 24 years on-the-air
WHP 580's Bob Durgin to retire after 24 years on-the-air
Lawmakers in Pa. collecting pensions before retirement
There's a lot of double-dipping and some triple-dipping by career politicians in Pennsylvania.
State lawmakers collecting pensions before retirement - abc27 WHTM
State lawmakers collecting pensions before retirement - abc27 WHTM
Guest Column: No Tax Should Have The Power To Leave You Homeless
By
Pa. State Senator David G. Argall (R-29), Pa. State Senator Mike Folmer
(R-48), Pa. State Senator Judy Schwank (D-11), Pa. State Senator John
Yudichak (D-14)
Despite renewed special interest attacks at the capitol
in Harrisburg, the fight for eliminating the unfair school property tax begun
by 79 grassroots taxpayer groups across the state is making some real progress.
Across the 11 counties we represent, the number one
question we hear at our town hall meetings is: When will the legislature
eliminate school property taxes?
Last year, we introduced a similar proposal drafted by the
Pennsylvania Coalition of Taxpayer Associations. The Senate Finance Committee
held a public hearing on this proposal and we asked for a nonpartisan analysis
of the bill to provide detailed funding projections. The Independent Fiscal
Office (IFO) identified several problems in the original proposal. Special
interest groups have used the report as a weapon against our efforts but we
view it as a roadmap to achieve true property tax reform and we have moved
quickly to amend the bill.
Last year's proposal garnered 13 co-sponsors, or 26
percent of the total state Senate. This year’s proposal, Senate Bill 76, corrects the defects in the
original bill, as detailed in the 80-page analysis provided by the IFO.
Even more importantly, as a result of the grassroots efforts of the
Pennsylvania Coalition of Taxpayer Associations this year, 22 Senators have now
co-sponsored the bill – 12 Republicans and 10 Democrats – an increase of 9
Senators from last year. We continue to forge new coalitions and pick up
support from all corners of the state. Groups like the Western Pennsylvania
Coalition of Taxpayers, the Wilkes-Barre City Taxpayers Association, and the
South Eastern Tax Reform Coalition are leading the charge to eliminate this
tax.
The Senate and House Finance Committees have asked the
IFO to complete an updated analysis of Senate Bill 76 in the next few months.
The issue of funding public schools is a $13 billion problem and we welcome
their nonpartisan, professional analysis to ensure we provide a
dollar-for-dollar match for basic education.
In the last few months, because of growing grassroots
efforts across the state, support for the bill has grown from 13 to 22 State
Senators. The number we need to achieve in the Senate is 26 votes for passage,
and then it heads over to the House of Representatives, where we need 102
votes. Representatives Jim Cox and Mark Gillen have discussed this proposal
with the Governor, and he is on the record with them stating he would sign the
bill when it reaches his desk.
We look forward to continuing our bipartisan fight to
advance this issue. In our local newspapers, we frequently read about the
thousands of sheriff’s sales that occur each year across the state. We hear
this fundamental principle every day, from Marietta all the way to West
Pittston: No tax should have the power to leave you homeless.
Newspaper: Legislature fails to act on issues important to Pa.
The Pottstown Mercury gives the Pennsylvania Legislature an 'F' for the recently concluded session in which career politicians failed to take action on any of the major issues facing the state.
Legislature fails to act on issues important to Pa.
Legislature fails to act on issues important to Pa.
Saturday, July 06, 2013
Will Tom Corbett be sunk by his own party?
The first-term Republican offered an ambitious reform agenda this year as he gears for a re-election bid in 2014, but the permanent political class in Harrisburg is only interested in maintaining the status quo, not making the lives of Pennsylvania residents any easier.
No pension reform, no liquor privatization, no transportation funding, no property tax reform. That's what Pennsylvania taxpayers got from their $300 million legislature, which adjourned for a three-month summer vacation without action on any of the priorities pushed by Corbett or the perennial issue of school property tax elimination.
Corbett came to the governor's mansion after two terms as Pennsylvania attorney general, but many political observers doubted Corbett's political acumen. He simply doesn't know how to wheel-and-deal with legislators and hasn't figured out that public relations is a big part of being governor. Corbett's job approval numbers have been low from the start and he has done little to improve his image with Pennsylvania voters. (Liberal media bias among the Harrisburg press corps does have something to do with Corbett's inability to get his message across, but he deserves some of the blame because there are many avenues to reach the public besides the Harrisburg press corps.)
Corbett needs to emulate his predecessor, Democrat Ed Rendell (aka "Fast Eddie"), who managed to get most of his agenda passed in the Legislature even though Republicans controlled both chambers for most of Rendel's eight years in office. Remember the legalization of casino gambling and passage of the second largest income tax hike in state history? Rendell made enough deals with Republicans to get both bills passed. Corbett doesn't want to play politics, so he's suffering for it.
Rendell was a master at PR and enjoyed high approval numbers despite a checkered record, which included leaving office with a $4 billion deficit. Rendell also had the dubious distinction of eight consecutive late budgets. On the other hand, Corbett has delivered three straight balanced budgets on time without a tax increase.
Corbett can't or won't cajole members of his own party to get his agenda moving in the legislature. He doesn't seem to grasp that legislative leaders are entrenched in gerrymandered districts and will remain in Harrisburg long after Corbett's tenure is up. They control the agenda, not the governor. He needs them. They don't need him. And time is running out for Corbett. There's already a half-dozen Democrats lining up to challenge him next year.
Read more about the governor's inability to get any major initiatives passed in the Republican-controlled state legislature at PA Independent.
Friday, July 05, 2013
Some Lawmakers Unhappy Pa. Legislature Won't Return Until Sept. 23
Who wouldn't want a part-time job that pays $83,802 a year, with top-of-the-line benefits and 3 months of vacation every summer? $300 million Pa. Legislature in session for less than 80 days each year.
Local Lawmakers Unhappy Pa. Legislature Won’t Return Until Sept. 23 « CBS Pittsburgh
Local Lawmakers Unhappy Pa. Legislature Won’t Return Until Sept. 23 « CBS Pittsburgh
The real unemployment rate is 14.3%
James Pethokoukis of the American Enterprise Institute on Obama's
inability to deal with unemployment: There are 28 million part-time
workers in U.S. vs. 25 million before Great Recession. There are 116
million full-time workers in U.S. vs. 122 million before Great
Recession. The U-6 rate (unemployed, discouraged, underemployed) surges to 14.3% from 13.8% in June.
June Jobs: An employment report only a central banker could love
June Jobs: An employment report only a central banker could love
Thursday, July 04, 2013
Wednesday, July 03, 2013
Pennsylvania Democratic Congressional Delegation at All-Time Low
Despite the popularity of Barack Obama at the top of the Democratic
ticket in 2012, Pennsylvania voters tossed out most of the Democrats
representing the state in the U.S. House of Representatives. Republicans
hold 13 of the state's 18 Congressional seats and most political
pundits say there is little chance of Democrats taking back any of the
13 GOP seats in 2014.
The Historically Undersized Pennsylvania Democratic US House Delegation
The Historically Undersized Pennsylvania Democratic US House Delegation
Pennsylvania state highway system ranked 39th in the nation
Reason.com takes a look at the terrible shape of Pennsylvania roads,
something anyone who has driven through the state can attest to:
Pennsylvania's state highway system is ranked 39th in the nation in overall highway performance and efficiency in the latest Annual Highway Report by Reason Foundation. It is a slight decline from the previous two reports, where it ranked 38th. Pennsylvania ranks last, 50th, in rural lanes that are too narrow, 48th in deficient bridges, 27th in fatality rate, 27th in urban interstate congestion, 32nd in rural interstate pavement condition, and 20th in urban interstate pavement condition. With 43,612 miles under the state highway control, it is the 4th largest highway system in the country. The state spent $149,813 per mile in 2009.20th Annual Highway Report on the Performance of State Highway Systems
Military Leaders Oppose Samantha Power for U.N. Ambassador
And you thought Susan Rice was bad? Nearly 50 military leaders, national security officials urge Senate in letter to reject the nomination of Samantha Power as UN ambassador.
Military Leaders Oppose Samantha Power for U.N. Ambassador
Military Leaders Oppose Samantha Power for U.N. Ambassador
Monday, July 01, 2013
Government workers can't spell
The sign is supposed to say: Ephrata. Didn't anybody look at it before it went up?
PennDOT makes misnakes, two
PennDOT makes misnakes, two
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