DSSCC News Headlines

Another GOP bastion falls

Tue, 08 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EST

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Another section has toppled in the once-solid Republican wall of suburban counties surrounding Philadelphia. Bucks County has joined Montgomery County in going Democratic.
For the first time in 30 years, more voters are registered as Democrats in Bucks as Republicans.

As of Sunday, 185,413 of Bucks County's 427,962 registered voters were on the rolls as Democrats, compared with 181,941 for the GOP, according to figures released by the state yesterday. The remainder - about 14 percent of the total - are registered either nonpartisan or with other parties.

Statistically, the Democrats' advantage in Bucks is minuscule, a fraction of a percent.

But psychologically, it could be huge. Not since 1978 have Bucks Democrats held a lead of any size.

That dominance peaked in 1996, when Republicans built a 48,000-voter advantage, but has been eroding each year since.

"I think 3,000 voters is huge, given where we have been," said Democratic County Commissioner Diane Marseglia. "The bells have been going off in my head all day."

Andrew Warren, a former Republican county commissioner who switched parties in 2005, said it remained to be seen how many are simply Republicans or nonpartisans who wanted a voice in the unusually important April 22 Democratic presidential primary. He said he suspects some of the gains will fall away.

"I don't think we'll see too many Republicans jumping off the Burlington-Bristol Bridge," Warren said of the registration shift. "But it is a feather in the Democrats' hat, and tonight they can dance."

The news comes on the heels of figures showing that in Montgomery County, where Republicans once held a 2-1 advantage, Democrats now hold the upper hand. The state's latest figures show Democrats with an 8,000-voter registration lead.

The GOP retains solid leads in Chester and Delaware Counties.

In Bucks, the number of registered voters has now surpassed the record of 424,888 set in 2004, the last presidential election year. More than 11,000 new county voters have registered since October.

Statewide, registration stands at more than 8.3 million - fewer than 50,000 behind the record set in 2004. Democrats have marked an 8 percent increase since fall, and now have one million more registered voters than do the Republicans.

Such figures are "the most concrete indicator of the interest and intent to participate on April 22," said Rebecca Halton, deputy press secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of State, which includes the elections board. "It is a very exciting election year, and we are seeing some record-setting numbers."

Whether it is a harbinger of local electoral control is another matter. While Bucks and Montgomery have gone Democratic in recent national elections, county-level offices are still dominated by Republicans.

"One has to wonder how much of it is long-lasting," Warren said of the Democrats' registration surge. "I don't know if you could say it was as much a race between the two parties for registrations as it was an intra-squad match between Democrats for Obama or Clinton."

Conservative radio hosts, among others, have urged Republicans to switch parties and vote for Hillary Rodham Clinton in the remaining primaries, hoping to preserve the Democratic infighting for as long as possible.

"Bucks County is privileged to have people of superior intelligence, and they don't listen to Rush Limbaugh," Marseglia retorted. She said that if newly registered Democrats "feel they have a voice in this election, they will stick around."

Casimir discusses his candidacy

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EST

The Daily and Sunday Review

MONROETON - After kicking off his campaign locally this weekend in the Valley, 23rd District state Senate candidate Louis Trey Casimir appeared at a Bradford County Concerned Citizens (BCCC) forum Sunday.

About 15 people attended the event at the Monroeton Fire Hall Sunday afternoon as the Democrat shared his background and answered questions from BCCC Chairman Vic Lawson and others. He had been unable to make it to a BCCC forum in Troy earlier this year due to a commitment, so the BCCC scheduled the session for him Sunday.

A Lewisburg Borough councilman, Casimir, who is married with three sons, told the audience he has a certain reputation. "I show up when I say I will; I do what I'll say I'll do," he said. "And I've been popular and successful in doing that."

Casimir, who works as an acupuncturist, said he has a natural talent for understanding people's problems. "I can get inside their situation and understand what's going on," he said. He said he's more than a new face, and is interested in solving problems. "I have been trained to look at things in a different way, to try to come to a positive outcome by using different means." He said he wouldn't be the type of politician who would be stuck with "stupid old ideas" or fall for "stupid new ideas," but would go to work to get the job done.

Sylvia Ellis with BCCC asked him about energy. "How are you on solar and wind? What is your spin on that?"

"I think it's our future, or at least it's our next step," he said. "I think especially since we already have turbine manufacturing companies in this area, solar cell manufacturing companies in this area ... you get two for the price of one. You do something about spiraling energy costs. You also encourage local industry to provide manufacturing jobs, design jobs ... I think that it's an enormous opportunity for central Pennsylvania."

Lawson then read some e-mailed questions. One query asked if he favored eliminating school property taxes or what he favored in this regard. "Whether we make it all a sales tax, whether we increase the income tax, I think that the only fair thing to do is to try to find some combination of sources of revenue for our school systems and general fund," Casimir said.

Lawson read him a question asking his position on unfunded mandates. "It would depend on the specific thing that's being referred to as an unfunded mandate," Casimir said. As an example, he noted the controversial Chesapeake Bay clean-up initiative. The plan is aimed at reducing total nitrogen and phosphorous entering the bay. But local municipalities are concerned about the cost of the effort.

"I think it's an important issue ... I think the Chesapeake Bay is an important enough economic driver, environmental treasure that it's worth working together to try to figure out how to preserve it," he said. While unfair and unreasonable to expect local municipalities and ratepayers to shoulder the whole burden of the costs, he noted, the money for the plan has to come from somewhere. "It's still going to be coming out of our pockets," he said.

Education was another topic. Lawson asked if he favored eliminating teacher strikes. Casimir said that would create more problems than it would solve. "The problem with eliminating strikes is that usually, in return, you have to agree to binding arbitration," he said. "And lots of times those arbitration deals end up being more costly than dealing directly with the teachers. ..."

He supported merit pay for teachers. "I would be in favor of finding ways to assess how successful their students are not just by their scores on a test, but by graduation rates, by getting into their college of first choice, by special circumstances. We all know stories of some teacher that saved some kid's life. That one art teacher, that one history teacher took a special interest in somebody and really made a difference. And I think that those people deserve to be rewarded and deserve to be acknowledged by the school district, by their communities."

On another subject, Casimir spoke of the state's "Law of Capture," which comes into play with drilling.

"That means they have this new drilling technology for natural gas - they can drill horizontally now and get into places they couldn't before," he said. "And the Law of Capture says, unless you're in a specially protected area ... then somebody can lease a pad site from your neighbor, and they can drill there, they can drill there, they can drill there ... and they can keep whatever they get ... even if you own the mineral rights underneath your property, they're still allowed to drill underneath it and keep what they get," he said.

"That law seems nuts to me, that seems like it was drawn up by the natural gas and oil industries," he said. "I'm not against any industry making a profit, but that's stealing. Law of Capture - that's like something on the high seas."

Casimir's comments resonated with Ellis, who expressed her concerns about the environment. She spoke about some pits in the Franklindale area on Barclay Mountain that she said were caused by coal mining shafts that collapsed.

"There's a scar on our environment they never thought about 100 years ago that's now a potential hazard. ..."

"It's all about the money," she said.

Bradford County Democratic Chair Joan Gustin liked Casimir's stances on the issues. She said about 25 people attended his kick-off Saturday in Sayre.

Pollster predicts Dem victory in fall

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EST

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Terry Madonna, the political pundit and academic who produces an influential poll of Pennsylvania voters, told an audience Tuesday in Westmoreland County that Sen. Barack Obama has "an outside chance" of capturing the state's Democratic primary on April 22.

An Obama victory in Pennsylvania would force Sen. Hillary Clinton from the race, said Madonna, director of the Center for Politics and Public Affairs at Franklin and Marshall University in Lancaster.

At the same time, Madonna said that in the absence of a knockout blow by Obama, he disagrees with those who say that Clinton should get out of the race now or any time in the near future.

"I don't know why some Democrats are trying to push Sen. Clinton out of the race," said Madonna, who spoke at the Westmoreland County Community College lecture series.

He called a proposal to convene a meeting of Democratic Party superdelegates prior to the party's national convention in late August a "dumb idea."

"Democrats have no effective way out of the dilemma" they find themselves in, with both Obama and Clinton frustrated in their attempts to win a majority of pledged convention delegates, Madonna said.

While Clinton holds "a substantial lead" in Pennsylvania, Obama should be able to close the gap. If the Illinois senator comes within "3 to 4 points" of victory, the pressure on Clinton to retire from the race might very well prove irresistible, Madonna said.

Madonna, who founded the Keystone Poll in 1992 while teaching at Millersville University, said the political trend lines all point to a Democratic victory in November. The economy and the war in Iraq are going badly for the GOP, he argued, nothing in history suggests a switch in party control of the White House as surely as a faltering economy and an unpopular war.

Madonna said Republicans do have an ace in the hole, and that is the party's presumptive nominee, John McCain, whose life story, including the time he spent as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War, is compelling and could even the playing field.

Pennsylvania, a battleground state in the past two presidential elections, should be closely contested again this fall, Madonna predicted.

Madonna, who has provided analysis for the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal, said of the 50 states, only 12 will be in play between McCain and the eventual Democratic nominee in the fall.

"We are truly a 50-50 country," he said.

Chiefly because of its length and cost, Madonna called the presidential primary system "looney" and said it "needs to be revised."

He did not offer a prescription as to how that might be accomplished.

Dauphin County leads state's increase in Democrat voters

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EST

The Patriot-News

Pennsylvania could be the key battleground for Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama in the Democratic primary, experts have said.

But new numbers show that no place in the state has seen more dramatic change than central Pennsylvania.

Dauphin County leads the state in growth among voters registered as Democrats.

Across the state, the Democratic Party grew by more than 11 percent since the last presidential primary, compared with 1 percent for the GOP, according to unofficial voter registration data released by the state Monday.

The figures show the effect the primary battle between Clinton and Obama is having on the state.

Total registration for the April 22 primary hit 8,270,119, of which 4.1 million are Democrats, a record, according to the Pennsylvania Department of State's Bureau of Elections.

More than 156,000 registered voters changed parties, most becoming Democrats. Republican and independent voters might switch back after the primary.

The change was felt strongly in Dauphin County, which saw the largest increase in Democratic voters, 36 percent, of any county when compared with 2004 registration figures. Nearly 21,000 new voters in Dauphin County joined the Democrats, compared with 2,160 for the GOP. The change means the county is almost evenly split between the two parties in terms of voter numbers.

Steve Chiavetta, director of Elections and Voter Registration in Dauphin County, said he could not remember when the margin between the parties was this close.

"It doesn't surprise me, now that ... [Pennsylvania] is so significant to the outcome," he said.

Pa. Dems Set Enrollment Record

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EST

Philadelphia Inquirer

HARRISBURG, Pa. - Democratic Party enrollment surged past the 4 million mark Monday, setting a state record on the last day Pennsylvanians had to register to vote in next month's presidential primary.

The figures, which showed modest declines in the ranks of Republicans and independents, reflected intense interest in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination and recruitment efforts by both candidates, Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois.

Since last year's election, which featured races for judicial and municipal offices, the number of Democrats increased by more than 161,000, or more than 4 percent, to at least 4,044,952. No political party in the state had previously reached the 4 million threshold.

Registration in the GOP declined by about 1 percent, to 3,215,478 statewide.

The figures, released by state elections officials, did not include the final hours of voter registration in the state's 67 counties or mailed-in applications, which will count as long as they are postmarked Monday.

The largest percentage gains were concentrated in the Philadelphia suburbs and the state's central region, mostly in counties where Republicans still outnumber Democrats.

Of the more than 8.2 million Pennsylvania voters, more than 120,000 are people who were not previously registered to vote.

With four weeks remaining until the April 22 primary, Clinton retains a strong lead over Obama in Pennsylvania. A Quinnipiac University poll earlier this month showed Clinton favored by 53 percent of likely Democratic voters, and Obama by 41 percent.

The business of registering Pennsylvanians to vote was brisker than ever in many counties on the last day to sign up.

"We had people at the counter long before we opened up" Monday morning, said Joseph Passarella, director of voter services in Montgomery County, which is among the suburban Philadelphia counties that have seen large increases in Democratic enrollment as the nomination battle continues.

Only registered Democrats and Republicans can vote in the primary, which also includes candidates for nominations for the statewide row offices, Congress and the state Legislature.

At the Luzerne County elections office in Wilkes-Barre, Director Leonard Piazza III said the pace Monday was "very brisk," including hundreds of fresh applications dropped off by the Clinton and Obama campaigns.

"This is more like what we see in November" for general elections, he said.

O'Pake will seek 10th Senate term

Sat, 23 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST

Reading Eagle

Reading, PA - Growing up in public housing in Glenside taught state Sen. Michael A. O'Pake the importance of remembering his roots and how it feels to need government help.

"I still live three blocks away from where I grew up," the Democrat said. "I visit there regularly to remind myself why I got into politics.

"When you grow up in the project, you see all kinds of problems, and you realize that you've got to work extra hard to get ahead.

"That's the reason why I stay in politics. I love my job. I love helping people. I want to offer hope and opportunity to people, so they can get good paying jobs, benefit from quality education and give back to the community."

O'Pake is seeking a 10th term in the 11th Senatorial District. He is unopposed in the April 22 primary election.

Having been in the Senate for more than 35 years, O'Pake has a long list of accomplishments.

Among them are the law he wrote to protect abused and neglected children; funding for the Weed and Seed crime-fighting program in Reading; and preservation of more than 53,500 acres of farmland in Berks County.

O'Pake created the aging program that led to property tax and rent rebates and prescription assistance for low-income senior citizens.

More than $140 million in funding he fought for over the last several years is paying for community revitalization and economic development projects such as the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts in Reading and expansion projects at East Penn Manufacturing Co. Inc. near Lyons and Quaker Maid Meats in Reading.

O'Pake said he wants to do more of the same to help Berks Countians, and his ranking as the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate would enable him to live up to that promise.

He is determined to get school property taxes eliminated. He also plans to continue his efforts to convince legislators to adopt his proposal for a graduated income tax to replace the school tax because he believes that would be the fairest way to do it.

Forging partnerships between government and private industry and providing affordable health care for all residents also would remain top priorities, O'Pake said.

"The most important key to the future of our county is having someone who has seniority and leadership to get results for people," he said. "I will continue to be the kind of results-oriented, dedicated public servant that the people of this area expect."

Wozniak to seek re-election to fourth term

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST

The Lock Haven Express

JOHNSTOWN - State Sen. John Wozniak, D-Johnstown, has announced he will seek re-election to a fourth term in the Pennsylvania Senate.

"I have always been honored and privileged to serve the citizens of my district," Wozniak said. "While plenty has been accomplished, I recognize there is more yet to do and that is why I am asking the voters to support me for another term.

"From working on lowering energy and health care costs to assuring that homeowners begin receiving property tax relief this year, there are many challenges ahead of us that require continued hard work, innovation and initiative."

Wozniak has been active on issues ranging from fiscal help for both growing and ailing public schools to promoting comprehensive tax reform. He recently pushed for legislative examination of municipal service consolidation as a means to save taxpayer dollars.

Wozniak spearheaded legislative action on many tough issues during his tenure in Harrisburg. Recently, he served as the Democratic chairman of the Special Session committee that studied tax reform. His work on that issue helped to produce the expansion of the state's Property Tax and Rent Rebate program last year. The measure will also provide all Pennsylvania homeowners with property tax cuts this year.

Currently, Wozniak serves as Minority Chair of the Senate Finance Committee and is a member of the Community and Economic Development, Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Communications and Technology, Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure and Appropriations committees. He also serves on numerous legislative boards and commissions.

Beyond his legislative efforts in Harrisburg, Wozniak has worked closely with local officials to obtain state dollars for area projects. For example, he helped to secure $2 million in state funds for the Highlands Community College.

"I will continue to aggressively seek state funding to support key projects like the Highland Community College as well as other economic development projects in Centre, Clinton, Clearfield and Somerset Counties," he said.

Wozniak helped obtain state dollars to fund revitalization assistance in Phillipsburg and said he is committed to seeking additional developers and investors to recharge Johnstown's downtown.

"Education, environmental protection and economic development will continue to be the focus of my ongoing efforts to improve the lives of those in the district," Wozniak said.

He said reducing consumer energy and health care costs are two of the biggest looming legislative challenges.

The Special Senate Committee on Energy Policies recently approved legislation he authored that would provide tax credits for weatherization projects. The Cambria County lawmaker said he would push for a full Senate vote on the measure this year.

"A sound way to minimize the spike in fuel costs is through better, more cost effective conservation efforts," Wozniak said. "Weatherization saves consumers energy and dollars. We can, and should, find creative ways to spend energy dollars more wisely."

With nearly 800,000 Pennsylvanians unable to afford health insurance, Wozniak said the legislature needs to do more work on making basic health care available and affordable to working families.

"We've taken some steps to address health care," Wozniak said, in pointing to the recent passage of infection control measures and an expansion in health care scope of practice. Building on this success, it is now time to enact real health care reform that expands access to health care for all."

Wozniak is a graduate of Johnstown High School. He received his bachelor's degree from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown in economics. He was a member of the state House of Representatives from 1980-86 before being elected to the state Senate. He is married with two children.

The 35th District includes Cambria, Somerset, Clearfield, Centre and Clinton counties.

Schuylkill prothonotary seeks to unseat Rhoades

Fri, 08 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST

Allentown Morning Call

A Schuylkill County row officer aims to knock state Sen. James J. Rhoades from the seat he's held for decades.

Prothonotary Peter J. Symons, a Democrat, announced Friday he will seek his party's nomination for the 29th District in the May primary.

Rhoades, a Republican, announced last week that he will seek an eighth term.

''We need a new state senator who has a fire in the belly to challenge the Harrisburg establishment that Senator Rhoades helped to build over the last 30 years,'' Symons said in his announcement.

Symons said he would work to ''help make health care more affordable and to promote new programs aimed at revitalizing the district's aging communities.''

He also would ''work to pass Gov. Ed Rendell's plans to create alternative sources of energy to lower energy costs and to provide health insurance for all Pennsylvanians.''

''It's time to shake up the old Harrisburg establishment and fight for change,'' Symons said. ''As prothonotary, I have seen, firsthand, hardworking people struggling to keep their houses and filing for bankruptcy.''

Rhoades shrugged off the challenge.

''I'll look forward to the competition,'' he said.

Purvis seeks Dem nod for state Senate seat

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST

Erie Times-News

Erie resident Cindy Purvis wants to see health care reform and is pursuing a seat in the state Senate to push for it.

Purvis is seeking the Democratic nomination for the 49th District seat now held by Republican Jane Earll, who is expected to seek re-election to a fourth term.

Purvis, 56, of the 100 block of West 34th Street, said health care is "in crisis," affecting businesses, employees and others.

"Health care touches so many issues," she said. "By addressing this, we are really going to take care of a lot of things."

She is supporting passage of the Family and Business Health Security Act, which is now in the state Legislature.

The proposed legislation calls for a single-payer system, which would provide Pennsylvania residents with unlimited, comprehensive health care coverage, she said. It would replace private insurance and government programs except for Medicare and Veterans Affairs. There would be no co-pays or deductibles.

The plan would be financed with a 10 percent employer-paid tax on payrolls and a 3 percent tax on personal income.

She said the plan would result in savings because it would eliminate the "middle man" -- the insurance industry.

"It's time for a real solution," she said. "It's cheaper to make sure everybody has health care."

Purvis is co-chairwoman of HealthCare4All Pa, a statewide organization that spearheaded the proposed the Family and Business Health Security Act.

She is also a founding member of the Lake Erie Alliance for Democracy, a nonpartisan group that is seeking to protect Social Security benefits, reform health care and is opposed to the war in Iraq.

A graduate of North East High School, she has lived in Erie for 36 years.

She is the office manager of Hills Family Campground in McKean Township and had owned and operated Soup Du Jour from 1995 to 2000 and was general manager of the Lake Erie Ballet from 1982 to 1992.

She and her husband, John, have three children and two grandchildren.

High Enthusiasm Propels Democrats

Tue, 29 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST

New York Times

WASHINGTON - The race for the Democratic presidential nomination may have its divisive moments, but it is generating intense interest and enthusiasm among the party's rank and file: significantly greater, by several measures, than the Republican contest, political experts say.

In the first four contests in which both parties have competed, the Democrats have set records for turnout and substantially exceeded the Republican showing, according to state parties and state election tallies.

In South Carolina on Saturday, for example, more than 530,000 Democrats voted, nearly twice the Democratic turnout of 2004, and nearly 20 percent higher than the Republican vote the week before.

Other indicators of an enthusiasm gap show up in polls, with more Democrats than Republicans reporting excitement about voting this year and a strong commitment to their candidate, according to recent New York Times/CBS News polls. Democratic presidential candidates have also regularly out-raised the Republicans in campaign cash.

"The Democrats are having an extraordinary year in terms of raising money," said Anthony J. Corrado Jr., a professor of government at Colby College in Waterville, Me., and an expert on campaign finance.

The meaning of all this for the November election, however, is a matter of dispute.

Democratic leaders argue that it points to a united, enthusiastic party that can expand the map of Democratic victories. Scott Brennan, chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party, said that three times as many Iowans shifted their registration to the Democratic Party on caucus day as shifted to the Republicans.

"It says people are very tired of Bush administration policies," Mr. Brennan said. "And the Democratic candidates really energize people. People were excited to get out to the caucuses."

Some Republicans dismiss that Democratic energy as typical for a party out of power for eight years, and argue that it augurs little for the general election.

Richard N. Bond, former chairman of the Republican National Committee and a lobbyist, said there was no reason for his party to "hit the panic button." A nominee will emerge in his party, Mr. Bond said, and present a clear enough contrast to the Democratic nominee that "it will reinvigorate the entire Republican operation."

Alluding to the possibility of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton as the Democratic nominee, Mr. Bond added, "No one has the capacity to put the band back together again as much as she has."

Republican Party analysts also note that both Ronald Reagan and the senior George Bush were elected after Republican primaries in which turnout was lower than in the Democratic primaries.

"Democrats seem to frequently ignore the lessons of history, and they do so in 2008 at their own peril," said Alex Conant, a spokesman for the Republican National Committee.

The sheer intensity of the Democratic primary battle could be problematic over the long haul. Outside analysts say that the sharp disputes and deepening divisions between Senator Barack Obama and Mrs. Clinton could, if not resolved, leave some voters disenchanted if their candidate did not prevail.

"That's a real question: Will the Democrats come away with a more divided, less upbeat set of constituents following the struggle between Obama and Hillary Clinton" said Andrew Kohut, head of the Pew Research Center.

Geoffrey Garin, a Democratic pollster, said, "There's obviously a heated battle going on in the Democratic Party, but this is not a party at war with itself. It's not just a slogan to say there's a lot more that unites Democrats than divides them, and that's not clear at all with the Republicans."

In a New York Times/CBS News poll after the New Hampshire primary, but before the debates of recent days, there was no significant difference between Mr. Obama's supporters and Mrs. Clinton's in terms of their commitment. About 6 in 10 of each candidate's supporters said their minds were made up. In a separate question, about 7 in 10 of the supporters of each candidate said they 'strongly favored' their candidate.

For now, Democrats say they are elated at the overall energy among their voters. Democratic turnout set a record in the Iowa caucuses of about 239,000, twice the Republican turnout, and nearly twice the Democratic turnout four years ago. In New Hampshire, nearly 290,000 people voted in the Democratic primary, well above the Republican's and the Democrat's own turnout four years ago.

In Nevada, more than 117,000 voted in the Democratic caucuses - compared with 9,000 who participated in 2004 - and more than 44,000 voted in the Republican caucuses.

And in South Carolina, Democratic turnout was so high that some Democrats said the state might be in play in November. That is an extremely optimistic idea, given that the last time a Democrat carried South Carolina was 32 years ago, when Jimmy Carter won it.

Analysts offer a variety of explanations for the Democratic excitement. Both of the front-runners offer the prospect of a historic first, breaking the line of either color or sex. Disenchantment with President Bush and the direction of the country remains high, and change is a priority with Democrats and many independents, polls show.

Whatever the reason, a recent Pew survey found that 4 in 10 Americans said they found the Democratic contest "very interesting," nearly double the percentage (21 percent) who described the Republican race as "very interesting." Young people were unusually interested, the poll found. Within the parties, 57 percent of the Democrats said the Democratic campaign was "very interesting," while only 32 percent of the Republicans found their party's contest that engaging.

"I think it's real," said Gary C. Jacobson, a political scientist at the University of California, San Diego, of the energy gap. "Turnout and various poll data suggest Democrats are more eager to vote and happier with their choice set than Republicans. I think it reflects an eagerness to get the Bush administration behind them."

In fact, the biggest applause line at Obama and Clinton events is often a reminder that Mr. Bush's days in office are dwindling.

Editorial: Pa. Health Care

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST

Philadelphia Inquirer

Out in the cold

Finding a way to provide affordable health insurance for everyone is a problem that has eluded politicians and business leaders for decades.
It's an issue that impacts everyone (including those with insurance) and isn't going away. Health care is a hot topic among the leading presidential candidates.

But while many in Washington are talking about health care, Gov. Rendell has put forth a smart and workable plan to provide health-care coverage for nearly 800,000 uninsured Pennsylvanians.

Rendell's plan would build on health-system reforms designed to keep patients safer, while reducing the relentless growth in medical costs and premiums for people with health insurance.

Even better, the plan seems fiscally sound, and is financed in a way that won't kill taxpayers. Unless you smoke. In that case, here's another reason to quit.

Rendell's plan would raise taxes on cigarettes by 10 cents a pack and enact the state's first-ever tax on chewing tobacco and cigars. Pennsylvania is the only state that doesn't tax smokeless tobacco.

Since smokers drive up health costs for the state and businesses, taxing them is an equitable solution. Not to mention that it's good health policy since the higher costs help drive down usage.

Additional money would come from the surplus in the fund Rendell set up to subsidize doctors' malpractice insurance costs. This is the perfect, no-new-tax piece of the insurance puzzle.

The plan would also help small businesses that currently provide insurance but have to compete against companies that don't pay for employees' health care. Currently, companies and employees that purchase health insurance underwrite the uninsured in Pennsylvania to the tune of about $1.4 billion a year, says Rendell's Office of Health Care Reform headed by former banker Rosemarie B. Greco.

So what's the holdup on Rendell's plan?

Talk to your legislators. Especially the ones with the Rs after their name.

Rendell's plan has been blasted by GOP lawmakers as unsustainable despite its substantial financial footing.

Then there's the dubious contention that Rendell's effort to get the plan approved by Valentine's Day is a rush job. That's a smokescreen. Lawmakers have had more than a year to consider the signature piece of Rendell's sweeping "Prescription for Pennsylvania" plan.

"We must really proceed cautiously, not with some artificial deadline," says Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi (R., Delaware and Chester).

OK. Does anyone have a better plan? If so, let's see it. If not, voters should lobby their lawmakers for Rendell's plan. It's a winner for the uninsured, the insured, businesses and hospitals.

And it only costs smokers a dime.

Democrats look for definition, success

Sat, 26 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST

Daily Local

WESTTOWN The chairwoman of the county Democrats had this message for the committeepeople who came to the party's nominating convention Saturday: we're here, we're growing, and this year we can win.

Chester County offers us the opportunity to turn the state House permanently Democratic, said Chairwoman Michele Vaughn, speaking from a podium in the Stetson Middle School auditorium. We have 220 committeepeople here today, we've gotten 68 new committeepeople in the last 18 months and we?re stronger than ever.

This sentiment was echoed by the 16 candidates who showed up to the convention to seek the party's endorsement for state and federal seats.

The candidates also spoke about the need for the county party to define itself and convince voters its candidates are sensible people who will work across the aisle.

Congressman Joe Sestak, R-7th of Edgmont, after entering the auditorium to a standing ovation and salutes from the military men in the committee (he is a retired admiral), said it is the job of Democrats to break down the partisan atmosphere that lately has had governing officials caring more about party than policy.

State Sen. Andy Dinniman, D-19th, of West Whiteland, delivered an emotional speech, without the help of a microphone, in which he urged Democrats not to let themselves be defined by the opposition.

Among his pieces of advice: Don't let the other party tell you you are not fiscal conservatives. When you look at what the Republicans are doing in Washington, you will see that we are the fiscal conservatives.

The Democrats endorsed a nearly-full slate of candidates. Three representative seats lack candidates.

For the 6th Congressional District seat, now held by Republican Jim Gerlach, the committee overwhelmingly endorsed Bob Roggio, a former business executive from Charlestown. He got 88 votes of the 111 cast by the district?s committeepeople. Mike Liebowitz, a developer from Lower Merion, got 19 votes and Rich Phillips and Rob Rovner each got two votes.

The 6th District is split among Chester, Montgomery and Berks counties, and contains a tiny portion of Lehigh County.

Representative Barbara McIlvaine Smith, D-156th, of West Chester, announced she would run for re-election. She gained the unanimous endorsement to run in the district, which covers the West Chester area.

Dinniman also received a unanimous endorsement to run for re-election to his 19th District seat, which includes northeastern Chester County and parts of Montgomery County. He will run against Republican Steve Kantorwitz, a retired admiral from Malvern.

The only state House district in which more than one Democrat wished to run was the 157th, which includes Tredyffrin, Schuylkill, Phoenixville and several precincts in Montgomery County.

Paul Drucker, a former Tredyffrin supervisor, got the endorsement after receiving 33 of 41 votes. Phoenixville Councilwoman Tish Jones got the other eight.

The district's incumbent, Republican Carole Rubley, isn't running for re-election, and leaders from both parties expect this race to be competitive.

On the Republican side, Guy Ciarrocchi, an aide to Congressman Gerlach, got the 157th District endorsement. But Drucker may not necessarily end up running against Ciarrocchi, since Republican Judy DiFilippo, a Tredyffrin supervisor, may primary.

The 13th state House district, which includes southern Chester County, is the only other district from which the incumbent will retire. Republican Art Hershey is stepping down, and Tom Houghton, a London Grove supervisor, received the Democrats unanimous endorsement to run.

In 2006, Houghton ran against Hershey in the district and lost by several hundred votes. Some said it was a narrow victory, given the district's heavy Republican majority.

Houghton will take on Republican Curtis Mason, a supervisor from Penn Township, who got his party's overwhelming endorsement.

For the 16th Congressional District seat, now held by Republican Joe Pitts, the committee unanimously endorsed Bruce Slater.

Slater, a home restoration contractor from Salsbury, Lancaster County, already has a campaign slogan. His signs say he is A different kind of Democrat.

Sestak also got the committee's unanimous endorsement to run for the 7th District congressional seat, which includes mid-eastern Chester County and a large section of Delaware County.

Sestak will go up against Republican W. Craig Williams, a prosecutor from Delaware County.

The following candidates got the committee?s unanimous endorsement to run against Republican incumbents:

John Linder, a Delaware County Community College professor, got the endorsement to run for the 9th District state senate seat, now held by Republican Dominic Pileggi, of Chester. The 9th District includes large sections of Delaware County and southern Chester County.

Carol Palmaccio, a retired business executive from Willistown, got the endorsement to run for the 167th District seat now held by Republican Duane Milne, of Willistown. The 167th District includes the Malvern area.

Fern Kaufman got the endorsement to run for the 26th District seat now held by Republican Timothy Hennessey, of North Coventry. The 26th District includes the Coatesville area.

Ian Thomas got the endorsement to run for the 168th District seat now held by Republican Thomas Killian, of Middletown. The 168th District includes Westtown and a stretch of Delaware County municipalities running from Edgmont to Media.

At the moment, the Democrats are fielding no candidates in the 155th, 158th and 160th districts, but Vaughn said she is still looking for people who wish to run.

Several candidates for statewide races showed up to seek the Democratic endorsement.

Of them, only the race for treasurer had two candidates interested.

Rob McCord, a Chester County businessman, got 174 votes, beating John Cordisco of Bucks County, who got 41 votes.

Incumbent Auditor General Jack Wagner got the unanimous endorsement, and John Morganelli, the Northampton County district attorney, got the unanimous endorsement to run for attorney general.

Lewisburg acupuncturist running for state Senate seat

Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST

The Daily Item

Louis "Trey" Casimir is announcing that he is seeking the Democratic nomination for the State Senate from the 23 rd District, which includes Lycoming, Bradford and Sullivan counties as well as parts of Union and Susquehanna counties.

Trey is a member of the Lewisburg Borough Council, is secretary of the Lewisburg Area Recreation Authority board and is past secretary of the Lewisburg Business and Professional Association. He helped found the Central Susquehanna Citizens Coalition in 2005 and was chosen by the Center for Progressive Leadership in 2007 to participate in their emerging political leaders program.

Trey grew up on the banks of the Susquehanna River in Lewisburg and graduated from Lewisburg Area High School in 1978. He was an avid sport fisherman as a youth, but now only fishes for what he will eat. He dreams of someday catching a shad at the shad dam in Lewisburg.

He is married to Amy Janel Casimir and is the father of Carter, Cole and Teddy. Like all parents, Trey hopes his children don't have to move away if they don't want to, so he is determined to do what he can to see that they have a thriving Pennsylvania to grow in.

Trey is a licensed acupuncturist with a private practice on Market Street in Lewisburg and is running on a theme of "A New Prescription for Pennsylvania."

Trey entered the race because he is concerned that the treatments being tried in Harrisburg aren't curing the ills that affect Pennsylvania. He thinks state government is too expensive, frequently ineffective and sometimes dangerous. Trey hopes his fresh perspective can help preserve the health of the environment, prevent the disintegration of our traditional communities, protect against over-dependence on foreign oil, and return our ailing economy to robust health. He thinks it is a sin that anyone in the great commonwealth of Pennsylvania must go without needed medical care.

He will be traveling extensively throughout the district, beginning with a series of petition-signing parties on Jan. 26. His scheduled appearances on that day will be as follows: 8:30-9:30 a.m. at the Weigh Station Cafe in Towanda, 10:00-10:30 a.m. at The Vale Restaurant in Muncy Valley, 11-11:45 a.m. at the Holiday Inn in Williamsport, and 12:15-1:00 p.m. at the Brookpark Station Cafe in Lewisburg. Later in the spring and summer, Trey intends to tour the watersheds of the district by canoe with his family to emphasize the natural connections that bind us together and transcend our man-made political barriers.

For more information or to volunteer, contact Trey@Trey4PA.com or Jim@Trey4PA.com.