Every week, PoliticsPA will give you a taste of the buzz, rumors and gossip floating around Pennsylvania’s political wags. This week’s edition focuses Sestak’s fundraising, a new House GOP appropriations chair, and Tom Knox’s sudden exit from the gubernatorial race.
Speculation among Pennsylvania’s chattering class has set a low bar for Joe Sestak’s fourth quarter fundraising numbers. The former admiral raised about $750,000 during last year’s third fiscal quarter, a disappointment, and the number is expected to be lower for the fourth.
Of course, just because that’s the rumor among gossiping Pennsylvania politicos doesn’t mean it’s necessarily factual. And according to one Democratic strategist familiar with statewide campaign, Sestak doesn’t need much more than $8 million to beat incumbent U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, anyway. (He has about $4.7 million on hand now.)
The Democrat, who isn’t connected to either Senate campaign, said Sestak needs to spend about $8 million on TV advertisements — $3 million defending himself from Specter’s attacks and about $5 million to help “get the voters’ pitchforks out” against the incumbent.
The source said Sestak remains an underdog but thought the race will still be competitive.
“I would be shocked it’s not a dead heat by mid-April,” the Democrat said.
State Rep. Bill Adolph (R-Delaware) was elected minority appropriations chairman Tuesday by his House Republican colleagues, but not until the caucus engaged in a heated debate over the southeast lawmaker’s past support of tax increases and pay-raise votes. But with Minority Leader Sam Smith’s (R-Jefferson) support, Adolph defeated colleagues Stan Saylor (R-York) and Dough Reichley (R-Lehigh) on a second-ballot vote.
House Republican sources said Adolph made a rousing speech after winning the election that preached unity within the caucus, with one reporting that he received at least two standing ovations. But he might still face scrutiny from some fellow Republicans during what many expect to be another difficult budget negotiation, with one lawmaker saying Adolph was on something of a nine-month trout” now until new leadership elections late this year.
Democrat Doug Pike’s campaign in the 6th Congressional District continues to prepare for a primary battle against Manan Trivedi, and the former Philadelphia Inquirer editorial writer issued a memo to supporters this week touting his support among local committee members. In Chester County, the memo said, the campaign has the pledged support of 27 committee members, which is twice as many as any other Democratic candidate.
Pike has about $1.1 million on hand, according to the campaign.
How sudden and unexpected was Tom Knox’s exit from the Democratic gubernatorial primary last week? Just hours before news first broke the Philadelphia businessman was ending his effort, a campaign source, unaware his boss was just about to quit, told PoliticsPA that Knox was likely going to start airing TV spots in the coming weeks. The ads were expected to be the beginning of a massive TV campaign that drew its money from Knox’s personal fortune.
The former candidate told reporters he had discussed the decision only with his wife the weekend before reaching out to Dan Onorato, whom he later endorsed.
Finally, Governor Ed Rendell had strong words for Democrats and health care reform during a Wednesday press conference. The former DNC chairman said the election of Mass. U.S. Senator Scott Brown was not a referendum on the public’s attitude toward health care reform or President Obama but a result of a terrible campaign from Martha Coakley and an unmotivated Democratic base.
The governor “absolutely believes” Democrats should continue pushing health care reform, he said. Rendell thinks approving the bill will help them politically, but if it doesn’t, at least the party has accomplished something, he said.
“If we’re going to lose, we ought to lose fighting for something we believe in.”
Tags: Arlen Specter, Bill Adolph, Ed Rendell, Joe Sestak, On Background, Tom Knox
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How will Joe Hoeffel’s entry into the PA guv dem fray affect Sestak’s candidacy? Two progressives fighting it out in addition to Mr. Specter has to make the fundraising bleed more acute this spring.