LEFTOVERS: Onorato on the shale, a cancellation in the 3rd, Critz on Simpson

Another day, another news conference for Democrat Dan Onorato to hammer gubernatorial rival Tom Corbett.

This time Onorato was in Harrisburg talking up his plan for getting all that natural gas out of the Marcellus Shale—and talking down Corbett’s plan. The main difference between the two? Onorato supports a severance tax on the drilling companies, Corbett doesn’t. Corbett’s support for what’s been called “voluntary” drilling standards; his opposition to limiting new drilling in state forests;…

September 1, 2010 at 11:07 pm | Comments (2)

Rasmussen: Corbett leads by 13

Republican Tom Corbett has opened up a 13-point advantage in the race to be Pennsylvania’s next governor, according to a new poll.

The Rasmussen survey released Wednesday showed Corbett winning exactly half the vote, besting Democrat Dan Onorato 50 percent to 37 percent. Ten percent of voters are still undecided and three percent prefer another candidate.

It matches the largest lead Corbett has held recently, though most polls for weeks have shown the GOP nominee…

September 1, 2010 at 4:45 pm | Comments (12)

New Corbett ad touts no-tax pledge

A new TV ad from Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Corbett talks up the attorney general’s pledge not to raise taxes—and waves off the bipartisan skepticism that he can keep the pledge.

The ad, unveiled by Corbett’s campaign in an e-mail to supporters Tuesday morning, is his first new TV spot since he cruised to his party’s nomination in the May primary. The size of the first ad buy was not immediately clear, but Corbett started…

August 31, 2010 at 11:15 am | Comments (4)

LEFTOVERS: More F&M numbers, CQ forecasts, Onorato on revenue

The Franklin & Marshall College poll released Thursday didn’t just show Republicans leading in both of Pennsylvania’s statewide races. The survey also contained a litany of troubling data points for Democrats a couple months before Election Day.

Among the troublesome signs for Democrats:

•Almost 60 percent of Pennsylvanians say the state is heading in the wrong direction, while the 30 percent of residents who say things are moving in the right…

August 26, 2010 at 4:56 pm | Comments (4)

Corbett up 11 among likely voters, poll says

Republican gubernatorial hopeful Tom Corbett continues to enjoy a double-digit lead among those Pennsylvanians most likely to go to the polls in November, according to a new survey.

The Franklin & Marshall College poll released Thursday found Corbett, the state attorney general, leading Democratic nominee Dan Onorato by 11 points among likely voters, 38 percent to 27 percent. Almost a third of voters remain undecided, according to the poll.

Corbett’s edge is much smaller among…

August 26, 2010 at 9:31 am | Comments (0)

LEFTOVERS: Corbett hits back, CQ on Kanjo cash, endorsements & jobs in the 6th

The nonstop tax attacks from Democrat Dan Onorato must finally be getting under gubernatorial rival Tom Corbett’s skin, because his campaign, which ordinarily doesn’t seem so concerned with winning the daily news cycle, is starting to throw a couple punches back here or there.

After Onorato spent a second consecutive day hitting Corbett on the subject of taxes, Corbett’s campaign e-mailed reporters a list Wednesday of all…

August 25, 2010 at 9:12 pm | Comments (0)

Onorato sees a flip-flop in Corbett’s tax pledge

Democrat Dan Onorato on Wednesday aggressively called into question his GOP rival’s pledge not to raise taxes as governor, pointing out contradictory statements given by Tom Corbett’s campaign about the specifics of the pledge.

During a conference call with reporters, Onorato noted that Corbett’s campaign told Capitolwire (subscription only) this week that raising certain fees would not violate the pledge he and many other GOP candidates have signed from the group Americans for Tax Reform.…

August 25, 2010 at 2:18 pm | Comments (1)

LEFTOVERS: Toomey & privatization, mocking indie cred, a poll, a 22-year-old tax

Democrats were scoffing Tuesday at a comment made by Republican Senate candidate Pat Toomey the day before: Speaking before the Pennsylvania Press Club in Harrisburg, Toomey asserted that “I’ve never said I favored privatizing Social Security.”

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, already knee deep in Toomey-related opposition research, had an easier job this time around, considering that Toomey has long been a leading advocate for policies that are widely considered to constitute privatization, or at…

August 24, 2010 at 11:20 pm | Comments (6)

Williams’ voucher donors staying on the sidelines

The millionaire investors from suburban Philadelphia who largely funded Democrat Anthony Williams’ brief campaign for governor earlier this year are unlikely to deploy any more significant campaign cash into the gubernatorial race, according to people close to the business partners.

The founders of Susquehanna Investment Group—Jeffrey Yass, Arthur Dantchik, and Joel Greenberg—do not intend to write substantial checks to Dan Onorato’s campaign despite the Democratic nominee’s newly announced full story

August 20, 2010 at 12:30 pm | Comments (2)

LEFTOVERS: A Senate poll, Onorato’s cash, small biz for Fitz, CQ on Dent

The public polls say Republican Pat Toomey is up by nine points in the Senate race. Democrats say “not so fast.”

A Democratic operative somewhere must have been peeved by all the coverage these polls get, because MSNBC got its hands on an internal poll. The results? Toomey’s leading Joe Sestak by two points, 46 percent to 44 percent. We weren’t able to get our hands on…

August 19, 2010 at 9:20 pm | Comments (21)