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FRIDAY LEFTOVERS: Another Pike endorsement, another Scranton nod & and some Dem sniping

Here’s a few items that slipped by us late in the week.

Democrat Doug Pike announced the latest of many of endorsements in his 6th District Congressional bid, this one coming from former congressman and 9/11 commission member Lee Hamilton, one of the parties preeminent voices on foreign policy.

“Doug Pike will be a voice of reason on national security and foreign policy in Washington,” Hamilton said in a campaign statement. “I’m proud to support him. He will make an outstanding congressman.”

Pike faces Reading physician Manan Trivedi in next year’s primary.

Meanwhile, Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty’s gubernatorial campaign pointed us to another honorary mention stemming from the town’s revitalization, this one courtesy of the MSN.com Real Estate guide, which rated Scranton of the “most-livable bargain markets.” Not quite as snappy as the one they got earlier in the week, but still nice.

“This reinforces what we’ve been saying all along,” Doherty said in a statement. “When you create jobs, spur new growth and investment, and move past the old politics, you create communities that people are proud to call home. That’s what we’ve done in Scranton and, as governor, that’s what I’ll do for Pennsylvania. We’re going to make Pennsylvania the best state in the country for families and we’re going to do it by following the same formula that worked in Scranton:  create jobs, generate new investment, and move past the old, failed politics.”

And finally, two of Doherty’s primary opponents, Tom Knox and Dan Onorato, are sniping over who’s more ethical. As you’ll recall, Onorato put out his big reform plan this week, a couple weeks after Knox released his. You can guess what happened next.

“Records matter,” Knox campaign manager Josh Morrow told The Post-Gazette. “Dan Onorato has had many years to end pay-to-play in Allegheny County. But instead he has taken hundreds of thousands in campaign cash and rewarded these same donors with millions of dollars in county business. I believe Pennsylvanians will view his plan with a healthy dose of skepticism.”

Onorato campaign spokesman Dan Fee shot back: “We are fully prepared to have a debate about reform with a candidate who was fined for campaign finance violations just two months ago. Dan has a record of reform and Tom Knox has a record of disobeying the law.”

Real smack-down stuff. Our friends at Early Returns have the full story.

Have a good weekend, political junkies.

November 20, 2009 at 10:45 am

--Dan Hirschhorn

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