• Poll: 72% Say Taxpayers Not Getting Their Money’s Worth from Public Schools
  TONY PHYRILLAS
  So much for throwing more money at the problem, which is what Democrats and their Big Labor allies always suggest as way to fix the broken public education system in the United States. The vast majori...
• Pennsylvania prisons are a revolving door
  TONY PHYRILLAS
  The Pew Center on the States says in a recent report that the recidivism rate for prisoners released between 2004 and 2007 was 40 percent in Pennsylvania.Podcast: Pennsylvania prisons are a revolving...
• A Triad Q and A: Kevin Shivers, NFIB
  The Triadvocate
  This week, our TSN interview series continued as Tony May sat down for a chat with Kevin Shivers, the Pennsylvania State Director for the National Federation of Independent Business. Shivers talked ab...
• Understanding Real vs. "Sticker Price" Tuition
  PolicyBlog
  A common misconception in debating higher education funding is that the posted rate of tuition, or "sticker price," is what students actually pay. This is exemplified in a commentary by State Sen. Jak...
• Casey hires Sestak campaign spokeswoman
  Pennsylvania Ave.
  Reporters who covered Joe Sestaks Senate race will remember a late edition to the campaign team -- a veteran in communications who worked as a press secretary in the Clinton White House and before tha...
• Toomey on Trump, defends Club for Growth
  Pennsylvania Ave.
  Sen. Pat Toomey didnt have much to say about Donald Trump but he made it pretty clear whose side hes on in the Club for Growths attack on the real estate mogul turned reality star turned possible GOP...
• Scarnati: Release Funds from Legislative Surplus
  Pawatercooler.com
  via Micek… Senator Scarnati has introduced a bill to release most of the legislative surplus into the general fund. What’s the legislative surplus, you might ask?  Each year the legislature appro...
• Profile In Courage: Mel Gibson
  Pawatercooler.com
  In making The Passion, Gibson faced an onslaught of criticism from a small number of loud-mouthed whiners who wanted to see their names in the papers. So, incredibly, they attacked Mel for not rewrit...
• Getting Tougher on Abortion Clinics
  PA Family Institute Blog
  HB 574 Would Regulate Abortion Clinics like Surgical Centers PFC Applauds Committee Passage For Immediate Release April 11, 2011 Contact: Michael Geer or Thomas Shaheen (717) 545-0600 (Harrisburg, PA)...
• Medical Marijuana in Michigan: “Out of Control”
  PA Family Institute Blog
  “Medical Marijuana” has been proposed in legislation in the PA Senate. This Lansing State Journal story shows that pot use for medical purposes is “out of control,” and that there is a small n...
• May 2011 primary candidates
  Capitol Punmanship
  You can also find a list here. * Note: Addresses for some candidates, mostly those for law enforcement and judicial positions, were not provided by the elections office. They do not appear on the map.
• Scarnati Unveils Drilling Impact Fee Proposal: Says Budget Won't Pass Without It.
  Capitol Ideas with John L. Micek
  State Senate President Joe Scarnati ... ... this morning unveiled a proposed impact fee on Marcellus shale natural gas drillers thats projected to raise $45 million in its first year, rising to $172...
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• Who Won the Straw Poll at #plc11
  Pawatercooler.com
  The announced winner of the PA Leadership Conference straw poll was Herman Cain.  But that result came from combining first choice and second choice votes.  If we look at only the first choice ballo...
• Senate candidate rallies ACTION
  LancasterOnline -
  Defeating President Obama and Sen. Bob Casey Jr. in 2012 was the rallying cry from Marc Scaringi to members of ACTION, Americans for Christian Traditions in Our Nation, at its quarterly breakfast meet...
• Among The Conservatives, Part I.
  Capitol Ideas with John L. Micek
  About 800 Movement Conservatives ... ... packed into a hotel ballroom in suburban Harrisburg tonight for the annual Pennsylvania Leadership Conference. Participants from all parts of the state spent...
• The Taxman Cometh
  The Triadvocate
  Despite Governor Tom Corbett’s firm pledge, there will be an extraction tax levied on Marcellus Shale drillers in Pennsylvania. The question has really become more of a “when,” not an “if.”...
• Who's Creating Jobs in Pennsylvania?
  PolicyBlog
  It's clear the Marcellus Shale is revitalizing rural economies across the commonwealth by increasing local revenue and paying landowners billions of dollars in leases and royalties, but the natural ga...
• Toomey's balanced budget amendment tops GOP agenda
  Pennsylvania Ave.
  Senate Republicans plan to band together to support a balanced budget amendment authored by Pennsylvanias own Pat Toomey. Toomeys office shopped a Congressional Quarterly story this morning that q...
• No Mammograms Available at Planned Parenthood
  PA Family Institute Blog
  Planned Parenthood CEO, Cecile Richards, has been going from talk show to talk show claiming that if federal funding stops for Planned Parenthood, then thousands of women will lose access to vital hea...
• Memo: County GOP chairman announces resignation
  Capitol Punmanship
  The chairman of the Lancaster County Republican Committee is resigning after only nine months to take a job in Gov. Tom Corbett’s administration. Greg Sahd notified the party today that he has acce...
• Lancaster County GOP calls special meeting for May 2
  Capitol Punmanship
  The Republican Committee of Lancaster County announced this afternoon that a special meeting will be held Monday evening, May 2, to elect a new chairman. As you read here previously, former GOP Chairm...
• House Republicans Unveil Welfare Reform Proposal.
  Capitol Ideas with John L. Micek
  Public Benefit Recipients ... ... would be required to undergo random drug and alcohol testing, face stricter penalties for fraud and undergo a more thorough screening of their eligibility for benef...
• Thursday Morning Coffee: House Advances Tort Reform Bill.
  Capitol Ideas with John L. Micek
  Good Thursday Morning, Fellow Seekers. We're running seriously late and behind the eight ball, courtesy of a choral performance by Little Miss Capitol Ideas' kindergarten class, so we're keeping thi...
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• We're No. 1
  TONY PHYRILLAS
  Pennsylvania is No. 1 in the nation - when it comes to teacher strikes. Teachers in a Montgomery County school district will walk off the job next week. Read more about it in The Mercury.Perk Valley a...
• Uh-Oh, Food/Gas Up 3.2% in Last 12 weeks
  Thomas Jefferson Club Blog
  Funny how the government’s numbers don’t reflect this. As reported last month, AsAMom.org has members gathering price information on groceries during their weekly trip to the store. They’ve been...
• PLCB's Scheme to Preserve Power
  PolicyBlog
  This week, we received the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board's semi-secret alternative to liquor store privatization given to legislators-a scheme to preserve its power. This proposal goes beyond the...
• Toomey's subcommittees fit him well
  Pennsylvania Ave.
    Hat tip to Philadelphia Inquirers Tom Fitzgerald who first revealed Sen. Pat Toomeys seven subcommittee assignments, many of which draw on Toomeys expertise in a variety of areas. As Fitzgerald no...
• Brubaker trying to boost support for regional food banks
  Capitol Punmanship
  State Sen. Mike Brubaker has introduced legislation that would encourage businesses to contribute to regional food banks.  Senate Bill 634 would require the Department of Community and Economic Dev...
• How conservative is Joe Pitts?
  Capitol Punmanship
  Very conservative, according to the National Journal’s analysis of votes in 2010. U.S. Rep. Joe Pitts, a Republican who represents Lancaster County in the 16th Congressional District, ranks 41st mos...
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• Understanding the Support for Liquor Store Privatization
  PolicyBlog
  On Valentines Day, the Senate Law and Justice Committee heard testimonies on liquor store privatization, including comments from CF's Nathan Benefield and Duquesne University professor Antony Davies...
• School Vouchers vs Public School Reserves
  PolicyBlog
  One of the most popular criticisms of school choice is that it would drain funds from public school.  But consider this: Critics of SB 1 say that vouchers will take $50 million from school districts...
• Pennsylvania Republicans, meet Marc Scaringi
  Pennsylvania Ave.
  At the state Republicans winter committee dinner last Friday, nearly everyone who spoke made declarations about unseating U.S. Sen. Bob Casey in 2012, but there was very little mention of what seriou...
• Quinnipiac poll: Casey and Toomey nearly same approval
  Pennsylvania Ave.
  Bob Casey has been a U.S. Senator for four years and has decades-long recognition from his father, the former governor of the same name. Pat Toomey has been a U.S. Senator for less than two months and...
• Corbett Fires State Employees Over Abortuary “Oversight”
  Pawatercooler.com
  Well done. “It happened because people weren’t doing their jobs, plain and simple,” Corbett said. Corbett said that four attorneys and two supervisors at the departments of Health and State were...
• Casey Still The Invisible Senator
  Pawatercooler.com
  Senator Casey’s job approval numbers in the latest Quinnipiac poll are better than the December figures, but not tremendously or surprisingly so given the relatively benign environment (at least com...
• Strict? Maybe, but only in comparison.
  PA Family Institute Blog
  Earlier this week, Governor Tom Corbett announced strict new regulations on abortion clinics in Pennsylvania, and the firings of a number of Pennsylvania department of health and department of state...
• 2 endorsed for MT board of commissioners
  LancasterOnline -
  A businessman who specializes in corporate finance and a retired land surveyor have received the endorsement of the Manheim Township Republican Committee for two open seats on the township's board of...
• Democrats hint at contest for county commissioner … in the primary
  Capitol Punmanship
  As we told you yesterday, Craig Lehman will have company on this year’s election ballot for county commissioner: Jonathan Paul Fox, a 10-year employee of the now-defunct county Human Relations Commi...
• A Wisconsin Replay In PA?
  Capitol Ideas with John L. Micek
  Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker ... ... has a (Republican) friend in Pennsylvania. GOP lawmakers who control the 203-member state House agree with the actions in Wisconsin, Steve Miskin, a spokesman for...
• Legislative Leaders Named To Redistricting Commission.
  Capitol Ideas with John L. Micek
  Its Almost That Magical Time. The weather is getting warmer. Pitchers and catchers have reported to spring training. And House Speaker Sam Smith and Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati, both R...
• Mitch Daniels CPAC Speech
  Thomas Jefferson Club Blog
  If you didn’t see Mitch Daniels, Gov. of Indiana, CPAC Speech, it’s worth watching – or reading. Here’s a link to a transcript of his speech: http://www.teapartynation.com/profiles/blogs/gov-...
• Meehan Sleeping In Office
  Pawatercooler.com
  Lamest complaint ever. A citizen’s watchdog group has requested an investigation into more than 30 members of Congress allegedly sleeping in their Washington, D.C., offices instead of finding lodgin...
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• Stabile, Covey Win Judicial Endorsements From State GOP.
  Capitol Ideas with John L. Micek
  In Other Business Today ... ... Pennsylvania Republicans endorsed Victor Stabile of Cumberland County for an open seat on the Superior Court, which primarily hears criminal cases. Stabile is a form...
• Hanger: Gas Fracking is Safe
  PolicyBlog
  John Hanger, who just departed with Gov. Ed Rendell as his Secretary of Environmental Protection, recently gave an exit interview to the anti-natural gas, Herb Marion Sandler-fueled ProPublica. Pr...
• Friday Morning Coffee: Guv's Office Will Review Obama Admin. Plan On State Unemployment Debt.
  Capitol Ideas with John L. Micek
  The Corbett Administration ... ... wants to review an emerging White House proposal that could potentially save Pennsylvania money on billions it borrowed from Washington to pay unemployment benefit...
• Five Reasons Corbett Should Stop Implementing Obamacare
  PolicyBlog
  Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett has indicated the state will continue to implement federal health care mandates, such as an an insurance exchange, at least for the time being. Here are five reasons to r...
• Podcast: Talking Transparency
  PolicyBlog
  In the latest The BOX podcast, Senior Fellow Jeff Coleman sits down with Representative Jim Christiana after the unanimous passage of his transparency legislation in the State House. Under PennWATCH...
• Rep. Sam Rohrer: Budget Out of Balance and Unconstitutional
  The Conservative Reform Network Blog
  Real Deal Sam Rohrer makes the case that the State Budget is Out of Balance  and ,therefore, Unconstitutional Not only is this budget illegal, it makes no fiscal sense. Expenditures exceeding revenu...
• Wine Boutiques are Latest Effort to Stall Liquor Store Privatization
  PolicyBlog
  Last year, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) initiated a program that established "wine boutiques." These boutiques allow a small PLCB-controlled liquor store to sell wine in conjunction w...
• Which Taxpayer-Funded Video Studio Tells More Lies?
  PolicyBlog
  Yesterday, Bob Caton, spokesman for the Pennsylvania House Democrats, and Steve Miskin, spokesman for the House Republican, engaged in a Twitter argument over which caucus' TV shows were more unrealis...
• Sestak/Toomey debate scheduled
  Pennsylvania Ave.
  Republican Pat Toomey and Democrat Joe Sestak have been invited to meet face-to-face Sept. 27 in Hershey for an afternoon debate sponsored by the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry. The deb...
• Dumb and dumber
  pa2012.com
  Somebody needs to check Pennsylvania’s water supply. Perhaps it’s something those guys are drinking, or maybe smoking, that explains the faux pas outbreak spreading in the Keystone State. Either w...
• Sestak looks to keep Green Party candidate off ballot
  pa2012.com
  For the second time this cycle, Joe Sestak is trying to keep a potential spoiler candidate out of the electoral picture.The Democratic Senate candidate on Monday filed a ballot challenge against Mel P...
• Clinton still hoping to land ‘Joe Says Tax’ a job
  pa2012.com
  With news that former President Bill Clinton will be campaigning on behalf of Democratic Senate candidate Joe Sestak this week, I couldn’t help but comment. As you certainly know, the two made headl...
• Health care bill hides a 'paperwork nightmare'
  LancasterOnline -
  If a little-known provision in the new federal health care bill goes into effect, a local coin dealer said he likely would close his business.Tom Schell, owner of Security Rare Coins on Lititz Pike fo...
• Is this letter to the editor a joke?
  Capitol Punmanship
  I’m suspicious. From the York Daily Record this week: “On July 7, I was at Hollywood Casino playing the slots. While I was there I dropped my Access card (food stamps) on the floor. Later, I real...
• Obama Bumper Sticker Removal Kit (feat. Brad Stine)
  TONY PHYRILLAS
• Are There WAMs in the PA Budget?
  PolicyBlog
  A reader called our office today, following a conversation with his local lawmakers, who denied there were any WAMs in the budget, and claimed there had not been in many years. Our reader wanted to k...
• Fulfilling the Promise of Transparency
  Pennsylvania Conservative Council
  Paul Crovo Philadelphia Bulletin June 29, 2010 One of my favorite authors and personalities of the 19th century, Mark Twain, was once quoted as saying “To a man with a hammer, everything looks like...
• Message to Chester County School Boards… “The Well Is Dry!”
  Pennsylvania Conservative Council
  July 12, 2010 Vince Scriboni Recently, the West Chester Area School Board (WCASD) approved the 2010-2011 budget, which will increase property taxes by 2.83 %; about an average of $98.00 per taxpayer.�...
• Towne's square: Independent says he's got signatures to get on 15th District ballot
  Pennsylvania Ave.
  Jake Towne and his supporters have been working hard to gather the 3,629 signatures needed to get the Nazareth chemical engineer on the ballot in the Lehigh Valleys 15th Congressional District. Now...
• Taxpayer Funded Abortions in Pennsylvania
  PA Family Institute Blog
  Headline: Obama Administration sending $160 million to PA for healthcare coverage that includes abortion. What do Sen. Casey and other “pro-life” Democrat members of Congress who voted for Obama...
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