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Onorato camp greets GOPAC attendees

PITTSBURGH—Throughout his campaign to capture the Democratic nomination for governor, Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato constantly held up the story of his home county’s economic revitalization as a key qualification for office. On Thursday, the Onorato campaign was making that familiar pitch, but to an unfamiliar crowd—the Republican activists who came here for the GOPAC conference.

A small cadre of Onorato campaign staffers held court in front of the Renaissance Hotel here, handing out pieces of campaign literature to Republicans as they filed. They were in town to attend the political training group’s annual conference. The campaign literature mentioned the usual host of accolades that Pittsburgh has received during Onorato’s tenure as county executive, while also quoted GOPAC chairman Frank Donatelli, who in a recent interview with The Tribune-Review held up Pittsburgh as an example of a city diversifying its economy.

For the Onorato campaign, it was one more in a string of recent opportunities to tell its story on a big stage. Last year, President Obama hyped Pittsburgh’s economic revival when he chose it as host for the G-20 summit.

“We would like to like to thank GOPAC for the opportunity to highlight the significant transformation the Pittsburgh region has made under Dan Onorato’s leadership,” Onorato spokesman Brian Herman said in a statement. “As Allegheny County Executive, Dan has encouraged the creation of good, family sustaining jobs, and GOPAC will have a great opportunity to see firsthand the progress the city has made and the value of strong and experienced leadership in turning around an economy.”

In an interview with pa2010.com later, Herman added: “Both Republicans and Democrats recognize the economic turnaround that Dan has helped to create. Obviously we appreciate the attention.”

June 17, 2010 at 5:54 pm

--John Manganaro

Tags: Dan Onorato

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