By Alex Roarty
PoliticsPA Staff Writer
roarty@politicspa.com
HARRISBURG – Newly unveiled lieutenant governor candidate Daryl Metcalfe said Wednesday he would “redefine” Pennsylvania’s No. 2 job if he won election, turning it into a position that would publicly hold the governor’s feet to the fire should he try to raise taxes or increase government spending.
The Butler County state lawmaker, who ran what he called an “under-the-radar” campaign for the office until filing petitions for the primary ballot Tuesday, also warned that state party leaders should not try to chase him away from running.
All in all, the consistently controversial lawmaker’s morning press conference in the Capitol was likely the first taste of what could become a months-long headache for GOP officials, who now must try to Sheppard their preferred lieutenant governor candidate through diverse, unpredictable a nine-person field.
Bucks County Commissioner Jim Cawley is the endorsed GOP candidate for the position. Former Auditor General candidate Chet Beiler, reform activist Russ Diamond, businessman Steve Johnson, Erie County resident Jeane Craig Pepper, reformer John Kennedy, Luzerne County Commissioner Stephen Urban, and Billy McCue are also running.
But Metcalfe stands out from the group as a well-known official in the Capitol, who in the past has labeled as “traitors” veterans promoting the importance of climate change prevention and accused domestic-violence programs of harboring a secret “homosexual agenda.”
He said he would make another controversial move if elected lieutenant governor: He promised to run against the GOP governor in the primary four years later if the Republican raises taxes or increases government spending.
“I will be the people’s accountability measure to make sure the governor cuts excessive spending, reduces taxes, and protects our liberties,” he said. “I will be there to watch every move the governor makes, and I will publicly expose him if he violates the trust of the people.
“And I will challenge him n the primary election if he does so.”
Attorney General Tom Corbett and state Rep. Sam Rohrer are running for the GOP gubernatorial nomination. Metcalfe said he has no plans to endorse either and is still trying to learn their policy platforms.
Metcalfe wasn’t present at February’s GOP endorsement meeting because the process is often rigged, he said. He added that state Republican Party Chairman Rob Gleason “and his minions” won’t be able to push his candidacy aside, even if, as Metcalfe accused they’ve done before, they threaten he and his supporters with economic consequences as retribution for going against their wishes.
The lawmaker also promised several more “blind-sides” against the party establishment in the coming weeks as he fights for the party’s nomination.
Tags: Daryl Metcalfe, Daryl Metcalfe for lieutenant governor
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