(Cough) Prick:
http://triblive.com/...
The Corbett administration on Tuesday sued in Commonwealth Court to stop the Montgomery County register of wills from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
Since mid-July, when Attorney General Kathleen Kane called the state's law banning gay marriage unconstitutional, Register of Wills D. Bruce Hanes has issued 34 licenses to gay couples. His deputy, Joan Nagle, said he would not comment on the lawsuit, on the advice of counsel.
Hanes has said he wanted to come down “on the right side of history and the law.”
The lawsuit seeks a court order to halt Hanes' office from issuing the licenses because he is defying a Pennsylvania law that states “marriage shall be between one man and one woman,” said lawyers for the Department of Health under Gov. Tom Corbett's jurisdiction. Pennsylvania is the only Northeastern state without same-sex marriages or civil unions.
That won't stop Jared Pascoe and his fiancé from trying to get a license from Hanes next week and returning to Pittsburgh for a ceremony, Pascoe said. “I'm hopeful,” he said. - Pittsburgh Tribune Review, 7/30/13
Corbett's administration had been calling for Montgomery County to stop issuing the marriage licenses to same-sex couples:
http://blogs.phillymag.com/...
Individual elected officials cannot pick and choose which laws to enforce. … All officials are constitutionally required to administer and enforce the laws that are enacted by the Legislature. Only the courts have the power to declare a law to be unconstitutional and to suspend its effects. - Philly Mag, 7/25/13
Even though Montgomery County officials are legally allowed to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples:
http://www.philly.com/...
Some have attacked Mr. Hanes for essentially going rogue. They say that he does not have the authority to pick and choose which laws he wants to enforce and which ones he does not. They also point out that if a law is unconstitutional, it should be a judge who makes that determination, not a county row officer. While these are reasonable points to make, they miss the true issues at stake. A more comprehensive review of relevant legal issues reveals that the actions taken by Mr. Hanes were, in fact, correct.
It is certainly true that no executive officer can unilaterally and capriciously choose what laws to enforce. But it is also true that all executives, including the Montgomery County register of wills, are legally required to take an oath of office, in which they swear to "enforce, obey and defend the Constitution of the United States," not the "Domestic Relations Code of Pennsylvania." Therefore, when a state or local law is clearly unconstitutional, Mr. Hanes has not only the right but the sworn obligation to not enforce it.
Further, there is ample Supreme Court precedent supporting the proposition that executive officials are not required, or even permitted, to enforce unconstitutional laws. The court has said that an unconstitutional law "is void for any purpose" and must be treated "as if it never passed." - Philly.com, 7/31/13
More below the fold.
Is it surprising? Of course not. I don't doubt that Tom Corbett (R. PA) is just another homophobic bigot but I think he's doing it to get in good with the homophobic GOP base and to distract voters from more important issues. Like the face that Corbett made the Citizens of Ethics list of Worst Governors in the country:
http://www.citizensforethics.org/...
Gov. Corbett turned Pennsylvania’s state government into a favor mill for campaign supporters.
Gov. Corbett and his wife accepted a trip from a major campaign donor, which he initially failed to disclose, while the state was considering allowing the donor’s company to operate a fracking waste site without a state permit. Gov. Corbett later appointed the same donor to two state economic boards.
In 2012, Gov. Corbett awarded a $75,000 contract to Drinker Biddle & Reath, a law firm whose employees made substantial contributions to the governor’s campaigns. Gov. Corbett initially denied hiring the firm to defend the governor’s office in the lawsuit regarding Pennsylvania’s voter ID law, which was later blocked due to its likely disenfranchisement of eligible voters.
Elected in 2010; eligible for reelection in 2014
Accepted gifts from campaign donors, including one whose company was seeking the state’s permission to operate a fracking waste site
Awarded, a $75,000 contract to a law firm whose employees contributed to his campaigns, which he attempted to conceal from the public
Here's Corbett's gift list:
http://thinkprogress.org/...
NHL Winter Classic hockey tickets. Robert “Bob” Kennedy is the vice president of government affairs at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) and lobbies the government on behalf of his employer. He provided Corbett with two tickets to the National Hockey League’s Winter Classic and the pre-game brunch ($472). Ten months later, Gov. Corbett reportedly backed the UPMC hospital chain in a major dispute with a top regional insurance company. Corbett also appointed Kennedy to the public safety committee for his 2011 transition team.
NFL playoff tickets. John “Jack” Barbour is CEO at Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney, one of Pennsylvania’s largest lobbying and legal firms. He twice gave Corbett tickets to see the Pittsburgh Steelers in their National Football League playoff games ($140 and $185). The firm, which receives millions in state contracts, also represents UPMC, as well as energy companies EQT and the Williams Companies, and numerous medical and pharmaceutical outfits. Barbour has long served as outside counsel to the Steelers and its owners. Corbett appointed Barbour as a co-chair of his 2011 transition team and to his committee on privatization. When asked whether this contribution violated the state’s Code of Conduct, a Corbett spokesman noted that because Barbour and Corbett are friends, the gift was not prohibited.
Private jet travel to Pittsburgh. Frank Schoeneman is CEO of Empire Education Group, a for-profit beauty-school chain. He provided private jet travel for Gov. Corbett for an event in Pittsburgh ($1406.80). Ten months later, Corbett signed a bill making it easier for cosmetology students who attend schools like Empire’s to obtain state licensure.
Rhode Island yachting vacation. John D. Moran Jr. is president and CEO of Moran Industries, a warehousing and transportation company with an oil and gas subsidiary. He provided for Gov. Corbett with private jet travel to a Rhode Island and a yachting vacation ($1,423) and private jet travel to events in Pittsburgh and Williamsport, PA ($902). He reportedly accepted this travel as state regulators were investigating whether his company was shipping waste without a necessary permit. Moran traveled with Corbett on a six-day European trade mission touting the benefits of fracking and a 10-day trade mission to South America. Corbett also appointed Moran to his committee on privatization. Corbett’s initial filings omitted the Rhode Island yachting trip, a mistake his press secretary called a clerical error. - Think Progress, 7/29/13
He also doesn't want you to even notice this:
http://pfsessiondaze.blogspot.com/...
Pennsylvania previously automatically adopted nearly all changes to its state-wide building code every three years as recommended by the International Code Council (ICC). The model codes adopted by the ICC promote safe, sustainable, and resilient structures across most of the U.S.
But Act 1 of 2011 changed all that. The new law eliminated automatic updating of the codes and required a two-thirds "super majority" vote of the Uniform Construction Code Review and Advisory Council (RAC). Gov. Corbett hand-picked industry members to serve on the RAC, many of whom hold firm to the belief that new codes are too costly and burdensome and should not be adopted.
The RAC has now become a wreck as the hundreds of changes to the building codes recommended by the 2012 ICC were all rejected. These rejected changes include safety improvements in addition to updated energy codes. Pennsylvania is now building to the 2009, not the 2012, codes. If this process doesn't change, it is unlikely any new code will be adopted in the future.
Even worse, the industry-dominated RAC is now recommending further changes that would make it even harder to update building codes and could even result in rolling back previous code adoption decisions, enabling codes to revert to much older standards -- anchoring our codes in the past in order to protect industry profits into the future.
Not adopting revised codes every three years puts Pennsylvanians at risk. Code changes respond to advancements in building products, science, and construction and demolition practices that save energy and improve safety. Codes are also updated to respond to specific disasters such as hurricanes and building collapses that help improve structural requirements going forward. - Penn Future Session Daze, 7/18/13
He also doesn't want voters to think about this:
http://www.pennlive.com/...
Gov. Tom Corbett’s failed attempt to get the federal courts to overturn the NCAA sanctions has cost taxpayers nearly $383,000.
And that's not the final tally. All the bills from Philadelphia law firm Cozen O'Connor have not yet been processed, according to the governor's Office of General Counsel.
That outside firm was hired to assist Corbett’s in-house lawyers in the anti-trust lawsuit that was filed in U.S. Middle District Court in January.
Nils Hagen-Frederiksen, a spokesman for the general counsel’s office, said the total cost for the governor's suit that the judge compared to a "Hail Mary pass" will not be known for a few more weeks. - The Patriot-News, 7/25/13
And he really wants voters to forget about this:
http://lancasteronline.com/...
Jean Young says she works hard to keep the promises she makes.
And she expects her government to do the same.
The Mount Joy resident, a retired lifelong educator, is among the roughly 100 members of the Lancaster chapter of the Pennsylvania Association of School Retirees who attended an information session on pension reform Monday at Calvary Church.
Many called the effort by Gov. Tom Corbett and the Legislature to cut pension benefits disrespectful to their profession and say it breaks a promise made to them.
"I paid my fair share into the system for 36 years just like everyone else, and if school districts and the state would have monitored their contributions more carefully this wouldn't be such a hardship to taxpayers," said Young, president of the local chapter. - Lancaster Online, 7/22/13
Corbett's latest attacks on gay couples right to marry is just a way to distract voters for his shitty record and win back Republicans who right now are afraid to even be near him:
http://www.philly.com/...
These days, some anxious Republican insiders in Pennsylvania want Gov. Corbett to pull an LBJ and withdraw from the 2014 gubernatorial race, forecasting a landslide loss for the party otherwise.
Corbett's poll numbers are on the ocean floor, national pundits call him the governor most likely to lose reelection, and he has suffered recent political setbacks.
"He's pretty well screwed," said one prominent GOP consultant. "People are definitely fishing for another candidate. It's pretty brutal."
Other Republicans acknowledge concerns but say it's too early for the panic being expressed, with time for Corbett to turn around his fortunes with better messaging and a well-played campaign.
Most interviewed last week discussed the rumblings and Corbett's electoral prospects on condition of anonymity because Corbett is known to be obsessive about news leaks, and the wrath of a sitting governor can be hazardous to one's career. - Philadelphia Inquirer, 7/22/13
And of course Democrats want nothing to do with Corbett:
http://www.ydr.com/...
Gov. Tom Corbett was extolling the virtues of bipartisanship, saying it is lacking in Washington, D.C., and that it's what Americans want to see more of. Then he made a rare acknowledgement: He wanted to do a better job of winning the votes of Democrats for his agenda and would like to have a better relationship with them.
This was late last year, after the Nov. 6 election that swept President Barack Obama back for a second term, installed Democrats into Pennsylvania's three other statewide executive-branch elected offices and narrowed the state Senate's once-gaping Republican majority.
Six months later, Corbett still emphasizes bipartisan votes, despite pushing an agenda -- and holding closed-door meetings -- that still largely excludes Democrats and relies on the Legislature's Republican majorities. So it's not surprising that Democrats still call Corbett ideologically extreme and accuse him of being rigidly partisan.
"We don't agree with most of his agenda," said House Minority Leader Frank Dermody, D-Allegheny. "We think it's bad for Pennsylvania."
Dermody acknowledges that he had had more frequent contact with Corbett's chief of staff, Steve Aichele, than he had had with Corbett's prior chief of staff, Bill Ward.
But much of Corbett's major legislative agenda this spring -- passing an on-time budget that cut business taxes, privatizing the state-controlled wine and liquor store system and overhauling the state's biggest public employee pension systems -- rubbed Democrats the wrong way.
It was also notable for a top priority of Democrats' that it did not include: An agreement to expand Medicaid eligibility to hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvania adults under the 2010 federal health care law. - AP, 7/20/13
Some argue that an extreme makeover will make voters forget about how awful Corbett is:
http://articles.mcall.com/...
For the rest of this summer, Republican operatives have a mission: An extreme political makeover of the governor.
They will try to revive Gov. Tom Corbett's chances of winning re-election following months of bad publicity, legislative and legal setbacks and record-low poll numbers, not to mention lingering resentment over his handling of the Jerry Sandusky child molestation case, a horrendous budget season and threats by donors to withhold campaign money if he didn't fix his image among large swaths of the public and General Assembly.
"We are going to start to tell his story," Corbett campaign manager Mike Barley said. "We're going out there and say he's kept taxes low and reduced the size of government and he's created 116,000 new jobs. There are some things he's done for veterans and some things on property tax reform. Whatever.
"We are going to have to get out and educate because the governor is not a politician," Barley said. "He's not out talking about his accomplishments and beating his chest. It's not his style." - The Morning Call, 7/21/13
And Corbett's also been trying to dupe voters over his record on job creation:
http://articles.mcall.com/...
The ad is confusing and inconsistent and not just because it uses stock footage from a 3-year-old commercial.
By focusing on private-sector job growth, the ad leaves out public-sector job cuts, which include the elimination of about 20,000 public-school positions under Corbett's administration.
But the ad distorts that private-sector statistic by characterizing it two different ways. The text citation is correct: it accurately reflects one month's BLS employment data. But then the commercial changes the meaning of that statistic when the narrator's voice inserts the word "new."
The BLS data in the ad comes from a survey of companies, and shows the net change in jobs gained and lost since 2011. That does not make them all "new" jobs. The measure includes new jobs and new businesses, and extra jobs at expanding businesses. But it also includes laid-off workers being recalled, and existing jobs being renamed.
Based solely on the employer survey, Pennsylvania had an estimated 4,911,700 private-sector jobs in January 2011, when Corbett became governor, and has a preliminary estimate of 5,028,100 private-sector jobs in May 2013. That's an increase of 116,400 — close to the number cited in the Corbett ad. - The Morning Call, 7/19/13
And here's a little background info on the private sector jobs created under Corbett:
http://blogs.phillymag.com/...
Of course, looking inside the numbers, you can’t help but notice that roughly 10,000 of the jobs added between June and May—half the total growth—were in the “leisure and hospitality” sector—”Do you want fries to go with that shake?” is honest work, but it’s not terribly lucrative. - Philly Post, 7/23/13
But Pennsylvania Democrats are making sure voters don't fall for the GOP's propaganda:
http://www.pennlive.com/...
The Pennsylvania Democratic Party officially launched a concerted critique of Gov. Tom Corbett Tuesday.
Though the party has eviscerated Corbett at every turn this year through a persistent email campaign to supporters and journalists, party leaders said the official effort to debunk the Republican incumbent's expected re-election campaign began this week with a web video dubbed “Promises Made, Promises Broken.”
Speaking to commonwealth reporters in a conference call, state party Chairman Jim Burn laid out plans to dissuade voters from sending the poll-weary governor back to Harrisburg for a second term.
“With nothing else to run on we know the governor is holding out hope that somehow Pennsylvanians will not recognize this record of broken promises,” Burn said.
“It's no mistake he's the most vulnerable governor in the United States,” he added, alluding to a series of national political pundits' assessment of Corbett's re-election chances. “Pennsylvanians are paying attention, and they don't like what they see; they don't like what they've heard; and they don't like what's been delivered, which is nothing.” - The Patriot-News, 7/24/13
I'll be writing about the Democratic Primary very soon. We have some great candidates and I have not been shy about my support for Congresswoman Allyson Schwatz's (D. PA-13) campaign. But I will go over the other candidates and give you my analysis soon. In the mean time, if you want to get involved with the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, you can do so here:
http://www.padems.com/