Diamond endorses Rohrer for guv

It’s usually a given that candidates for Lieutenant Governor will do whatever they can to suck up to their party’s likely top-ticket gubernatorial nominee. But reform advocate Russ Diamond is taking another tack: he’s with underdog Sam Rohrer.

Diamond, one of nine Republicans running for Lt. Gov., endorsed the conservative state Representative over front-runner Tom Corbett in a statement on Thursday.

“Sam Rohrer is one of the most sincere, principled individuals I’ve ever met,” Diamond…

May 13, 2010 at 5:16 pm | Comments (2)

Diamond’s latest challenge hits Beiler on 2008 vote totals

Russ Diamond is sure getting comfortable lobbing campaign bombs from behind the wheel of his car. The reform advocate and Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor issued the latest of his campaign video challenges this week, going after primary rival Chet Beiler and his losing performance in the 2008 race for Auditor General.

In the video, Diamond noted that the Republican ticket needs to be able attract votes from Democrats and independents in the fall, and…

May 13, 2010 at 1:37 pm | Comments (3)

Behind the wheel, Diamond hits Metcalfe over pension

Republican Russ Diamond is keeping up his YouTube-driven campaign for Lieutenant Governor, using his latest missive to hit opponent Daryl Metcalfe over the state pension he receives with the rest of his colleagues.

The new clip from Diamond, who founded the reform group PACleanSweep, amounts to a “video challenge” in which Diamond cites a state Constitution stipulation that members of the General Assembly shall receive “salary and mileage” and “no other compensation whatever.”

“So Daryl,”…

May 11, 2010 at 1:04 pm | Comments (7)

Diamond wants letter-writing campaign for Veon sentence

Reform guru and Republican Lieutenant Governor hopeful Russ Diamond wants former state Representative Mike Veon to get a stiff sentence for his conviction in the so-called “Bonsugate” corruption case—and he’s calling for help in making it happen.

Diamond, who founded PACleanSweep in the wake of the infamous 2005 legislative pay raise, asked Tuesday for people to write letters Common Pleas Court Judge Richard A. Lewis to make sure Veon gets the punishment he deserves, citing…

May 4, 2010 at 3:58 pm | Comments (4)

Of the lawyers, by the lawyers, and for the lawyers

I don’t hate lawyers. In fact, I know quite a few lawyers and all are genuinely decent people. This is not a rant about the “evil lawyers.” Rather, this is a question of what Republicans in Pennsylvania really will be deciding for the future of state government on May 18.

The state Supreme Court supervises the practice of law in Pennsylvania. Some even opine that the Court lords over attorneys with an iron fist. This…

May 3, 2010 at 9:45 am | Comments (2)

LEFTOVERS: Dog lovers for Wagner, black clergy for Specter, RLC for Diamond, Murphy’s money

There were a few statewide endorsements that slipped by us recently.

Auditor Jack Wagner’s gubernatorial candidacy was backed by the Pennsylvania League of Humane Voters. The endorsement, announced Monday, was apparently given during a news conference Saturday in Lancaster. “The Pennsylvania chapter’s endorsement is based on Jack Wagner’s love for animals and his respect for our work,” the group said in a statement. “We also appreciate his support for several of our key issues, including…

April 19, 2010 at 11:45 pm | Comments (0)

Russ Diamond goes MTV (or maybe VH1)

If the race for Lieutenant Governor was a music video contest, Republican Russ Diamond would win by default—and with some style, too.

Diamond, the longtime government reform advocate, released a five-minute campaign music video Tuesday, six weeks before the May primary that pits him against a crowded field of eight other Republicans.

The video—titled “We are Free” and complete with clips of him at a campaign rally and shots of a singing, disembodied head—combines headlines…

April 6, 2010 at 11:37 am | Comments (16)

Pennsylvania needs a new car

Have you ever had to drive a junker? I have over the years. Lots of them. I’d keep them running through knuckle-busting self-repairs and the wonders of duct tape and wire ties, milking each one for every mile I could squeeze out of it. Money was always tight, and the price of a new vehicle was the determining factor in keeping me in junkers. But each would eventually leave me on the side of the…

March 24, 2010 at 3:54 pm | Comments (6)

Beiler’s staying in Lt. Gov. race

Chet Beiler is staying put.

The former Lancaster GOP chairman told pa2010.com on Saturday that he’ll continue to run for Lieutenant Governor, despite not winning the state party’s endorsement earlier this month. His most immediate focus is getting on the ballot, a challenge compounded by the likelihood that Republican leaders will look for ballot signatures to challenge. Candidates need 1,000 signatures to get on the ballot, but some election lawyers recommend getting at least three…

February 20, 2010 at 7:58 pm | Comments (12)

Johnson, Sellers fare well in BerksCo

Republican insiders from Berks County sent a decidedly anti-establishment message this week, when their non-binding straw poll vote showed strong support for Lieutenant Governor candidate Steve Johnson and 6th District congressional candidate Patrick Sellers.

The votes did not reflect a formal endorsement, but were nonetheless indicative of at least some unrest among rank-and-file party insiders. A Johnson campaign insider said the York County businessman won 56 votes, compared to 17 for reform leader Russ Diamond…

February 19, 2010 at 3:40 pm | Comments (5)