Toomey: No on the jobs bill

Democrats asked, he answered—eventually.

Republican Senate candidate Pat Toomey said Thursday that he would not have voted for a jobs bill that recently passed the Senate, arguing that it will “do little to create new jobs.”

He took a stance after Democrats spent a couple days hammering him for not doing so. A couple hours before Toomey made his statement, the state Democratic Party had unveiled a so-called “Toomey Ticker” to measure the…

March 11, 2010 at 6:32 pm | Comments (10)

Dems blast Toomey’s silence on jobs bill

Republican Senate candidate Pat Toomey hasn’t yet taken a position on the jobs bill that passed the Senate a couple weeks ago—and Democrats think it’s about time to do so.

Both Senator Arlen Specter and the state Democratic Party criticized Toomey this week for his apparent silence. Specter wrote to Toomey, urging him to “stand up for Pennsylvania’s working families and support this legislation, or explain why you won’t help our economy…

March 11, 2010 at 9:29 am | Comments (17)

Rep. asking questions about Sestak’s job-offer claim

Democrat Joe Sestak’s claim that the White House offered him a job to dissuade him from running against Arlen Specter has apparently drawn the scrutiny of the ranking Republican on the House Oversight and Government Reform committee.

Politico reports that Congressman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) wrote to the White House Wednesday, saying that if Sestak is telling the truth, the administration might be in violation of federal law prohibiting officials from using government power…

March 10, 2010 at 5:13 pm | Comments (10)

Labor endorsements for Sestak, Specter

The Democratic candidate for Senate spent Monday rolling out dueling labor endorsements, with Arlen Specter winning the backing of autoworkers and a major western Pennsylvania union council, while Joe Sestak announced support from a powerful food workers’ union.

Specter’s endorsement from the Allegheny County Labor Council was particularly notable, since the support of the council, which represents about 100,000 workers in the state, is effectively a recommendation to the statewide AFL-CIO. As he’s racked up union support in recent weeks, Specter has continued to court the state’s largest umbrella labor group, which has backed him in the past.

March 8, 2010 at 6:52 pm | Comments (38)

Sestak endorsed by women’s group

The National Organization for Women’s political action committee endorsed Democrat Joe Sestak’s Senate bid Friday, calling him “a leader in the struggle to achieve full equality for women and girls.”

The endorsement gave Sestak his most significant organizational support in his primary bid against Senator Arlen Specter. It was delivered at Sestak’s campaign office in Pittsburgh.

“The National Organization for Women Political Action Committee is proud and excited to endorse such a strong candidate for…

March 5, 2010 at 2:30 pm | Comments (43)

New York congressman endorses Sestak

Congressman Joe Sestak (D-7) got a second House colleague to endorse his Senate bid Tuesday, and like the first, that support came from outside Pennsylvania.

Congressman Eric Massa (D-NY) backed Sestak at the end of a five-city tour across Pennsylvania, during which Sestak focused on veterans’ issues. Like Sestak, Massa is a former Navy officer.

“I served with Joe Sestak in the United States Navy and I know that he’s the real deal,” Massa said…

March 2, 2010 at 3:19 pm | Comments (46)

Lackawanna Dems back Wagner, Specter (Updated)

Auditor General Jack Wagner continues to rack up Democratic Party support ahead of the May gubernatorial primary, with the latest endorsement coming from the Lackawanna County Democratic Committee.

The local party formally backed Wagner at its meeting Monday night. The party also endorsed Senator Arlen Specter’s reelection bid.

“Jack possesses the integrity, leadership and accountability that is needed in the Governor’s office,” John O’Boyle, a member of the county party’s executive committee, said in a…

March 2, 2010 at 12:14 pm | Comments (7)

Specter takes a lead over Toomey in new poll

Senator Arlen Specter is enjoying his first statistically significant lead over Republican Pat Toomey in months, according to a new poll of the high-profile Senate race.

The Quinnipiac University survey released Tuesday showed Specter garnering 49 percent of the general election vote, compared to 42 percent for Toomey. Only eight percent of voters are undecided. Most polls have shown Toomey either tied or ahead of Specter going back to last the fall, even while the…

March 2, 2010 at 9:51 am | Comments (24)

SENATE UNDERDOG UPDATE: A new Dem candidate, a GOPer goes indie

It turns out that the Democratic primary for Senate is still a three-person race.

Yes, political junkies, there’s a candidate out there who no one’s talking about. His name is Joseph VodVarka. He lives in McKees Rocks in Allegheny County, and owns a small business making springs for, among other customers, weapons manufacturers. And even though we hadn’t heard about him until recently, he actually filed a statement of organization all the…

March 1, 2010 at 2:30 pm | Comments (9)