Down River – Sept. 17, 2015
A Forewarning?
State Rep. Mike Hanna (D-Lock Haven) and 5th district US Congressman Glenn Thompson (R-Howard) go back aways together.
It was about a decade or so ago that the incumbent Hanna twice vanquished Thompson when the Centre County Republican attempted to defeat Hanna in the race for the 76th district House seat which encompasses all of Clinton County and a chunk of eastern Centre County. There is some irony in that while Thompson couldn’t take out the Democratic incumbent in two tries and while Hanna continues to easily retain his Harrisburg seat, Thompson has gone on to the larger national arena, decisively winning several terms in Washington.
These two legislative veterans were part of the local political party picnic apparatus last Sunday, Hanna speaking to fellow Democrats at the Castanea Fire Company social grounds, Thompson doing likewise to fellow GOP-ers at Riverside Park in Woodward Township.
They both talked straight party line with a straight face, Hanna decrying the Republican-dominated state Supreme Court for gerrymandering legislative districts to the detriment of Democrats and Thompson rattling off the sins of Obamacare and the Obama administration’s deal with Iran.
If you listened to the both of them, you’d have no idea that more and more folks from both sides of the aisle are upset in their growing belief that nothing much is getting done in Harrisburg and Washington. But you also had the sense Thompson and Hanna may not be aware (or choose not to acknowledge) that an increasing number of voters may very well be viewing them both as part of the problem.
There is little doubt both would contest the public perception that not much positive is flowing from Harrisburg and DC but for a barometer all one has to do is look at the polling results as the 2016 presidential sweepstakes heat up a bit as fall of 2015 approaches. Donald Trump was a semi-amusing aberration when he first surfaced as a GOP candidate a few months back. And Dr. Ben Carson was first viewed as an afterthought as he became part of a crowded Republican field.
But as summer heads towards fall the polls show Trump remains atop the Republican field and Carson is closing fast. What do they have in common? They are outsiders, not beholden to the special interests, not “part of the problem” in Washington, not politicians in the traditional sense.
Same thing on the Democratic side. Analysts had all but conceded the Democratic nomination to former New York senator Hillary Clinton but she has taken an unrelenting pounding over her handling of her email accounts and Bernie Sanders has come on like gangbusters. Sanders, the Vermont senator, is a part of “the system” but he has been able to distance himself as a stubborn independent from New England. And that “persona” (as the Donald would say) has helped him in the polls in this time of public disenchantment with the unproductive meanderings in DC.
The Trump, Carson and Sanders showings embody the public thirst for change. Jeb Bush, Hillary Clinton and, by extension, Mike Hanna and Glenn Thompson do not. Based on what we’re seeing in poll after poll from across the country, more and more people are more and more unhappy.
It’s been something of a truism for some time that you can’t beat an incumbent, that once we send these people to Harrisburg and Washington, they’re there for life, beholden to the special interests, part of a system that slogs along and accomplishes not enough for the folks back home.
Trump, Carson and Sanders may or may not make it to the 2016 finish line, but they’ve hit upon a common cord with millions of people. Maybe, just maybe enough people are sufficiently upset to throw out the longtime incumbents and start from scratch
Could it be a forewarning for Mike and G-T? We’ll see.
Speaking of No Productivity:
Pennsylvania’s new fiscal year kicked in July 1 and here we are on September 17 and not much closer to a state budget than better than two and a half months ago.
It’s time again for a Down River update on the status of the effort of the Republican legislature and the Democratic governor to bridge their differences and agree on a budget. If you had to pick a word on substantive progress since July 1, you’d likely settle on “nope.”
This week brought word of Senate Republican efforts to enact to a stop-gap budget to get funding restored in select areas such as schools and non-profits. But Gov. Tom Wolf said he’d only sign such a plan if there is a general budget accord with the GOP. Republicans want pension reform, Wolf wants more money for education. They just can’t seem to find a way to reconcile their differences. Here’s another word for the situation: “embarrassing.”
A couple final thoughts:
Wolf as a first-term governor won’t cave now without some concessions from the other side; otherwise, he’ll never be able to negotiate in the future.
And keep in mind that money will soon be drying up for legislative staffers. Both parties keep millions of payroll dollars salted away in their legislative accounts. As those dollars dwindle down to a precious few, there should be increased pressure from within both sides of the legislative aisle to find some common ground.
Can someone end this morass or do we have to find a couple hundred new legislators next year?
And a Pop Culture Note:
It took Stephen Colbert a week to find his stride as the host of his new late show. I have all the confidence in the world that Eagles quarterback Sam Bradford will be lights out when the hated Dallas Cowboys come to the Linc on Sunday.
