By Alex Roarty
PoliticsPA
roarty@politicspa.com

HARRISBURG – Dan Onorato Tuesday reiterated that he is better positioned to reform state government because, unlike his GOP opponent Tom Corbett, he is a “Harrisburg outsider” with a proven track record of changing government.

The Democratic gubernatorial nominee detailed his reform plan, which includes shrinking the General Assembly and imposing term limits on lawmakers, at a press conference in the Capitol, a week after a “Bonusgate” grand jury unexpectedly released a report recommend ding sweeping changes to a legislature it said is ripe with inefficiency and fraud.  He stood next to a poster-board size newspaper headline from The Philadelphia Inquirer that, referencing the grand jury, read “Legislators Scoff at Report.”

“I believe I am the only candidate in this race who has a proven track to make the change we need considering I am the only outside-of-Harrisburg person running in this race,” the gubernatorial candidate said.

The chief executive of Allegheny County touted his record of eliminating an array of row-office positions in his county, despite objections from fellow Democrats, as proof he has a track record of reform. The changes, though unpopular, are the same kind of hard choices he’ll push when elected governor, he said.

Onorato’s strategy appears aimed at undermining from the race’s get-go one of Corbett’s perceived biggest strengths: reform. The attorney general has indicted 25 people part of or connected to the state House during an investigation known as “Bonusgate,” a resume’ that would seem give him reform credentials.

In a year where polling shows an electorate overwhelmingly unhappy with the legislature, positioning as someone who can clean up state government is likely critical to success. And Onorato has made it clear from nearly the moment he won the party’s nomination that he doesn’t plan to cede any ground on the issue to the attorney general.

The Corbett campaign, for its part, said it’s happy to debate Onorato over reform, saying the attorney general has a proven track record on the issue that the Democratic candidate cannot match.

On Tuesday, Onorato said Corbett’s five-and-a-half-year tenure as attorney general has caused him to become financially dependent on state government because of his taxpayer-provided pension and health care, which he said the state’s chief prosecutor receives for life.

“It’s a lot easier for me to come in and make changes to that system because I’m not entitled to it,” said Onorato. “I don’t have a financial interest in that system currently the way it’s mapped out.”

The Allegheny County executive added that although he supports in principle all of the grand jury’s recommendations, the same cannot be said of Corbett. The attorney general, for example, does not think the number of lawmakers should be reduced from the 253 currently serving.

Asked if accusing Corbett of being a “Harrisburg insider” might seem silly given his public corruption investigation into the legislature, Onorato said making lawmakers unhappy doesn’t make you a true reformer.

“Just because some people in this building are mad at him does not disqualify him as an insider,” he said. “I can tell you there are as many people in this building who are mad at me, too. That’s not a definition of who’s an insider and who’s an outsider.”

Onorato’s comments drew a sharp rebuke from Brian Nutt, Corbett’s campaign manager, who said the Democrat is trying to cover up a 20-year political career in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County. The attorney general, whose only other elected office was on a township supervisor board, has a proven track record as a prosecutor who puts taxpayers, not his political interests, first, Nutt said.

“At the end of the day, you will see voters start looking at what is action and what is rhetoric,” said the campaign manager. “He’s trying reinvent himself at the 11^th hour. He’s been part of the political system in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County going on 20 years. He’s jumped from one political position to the next, running for different things.”

Nutt added that Onorato’s assertion about Corbett’s lifetime state health care is false and part of a growing trend of deception from the candidate and his campaign. He also pointed out that Onorato is going for his third public-funded pension as governor, after receiving one from Pittsburgh as a city council member and Allegheny County as its chief executive.

UPDATE: Onorato spokesman Brian Hermann tells PoliticsPA that Onorato has not collected pensions from his job on the Pittsburgh City Council and as Allegheny County chief executive.

Tags: Dan Onorato, Dan Onorato for Governor, Dan Onorato reform

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 1st, 2010 at 2:50 pm and is filed under Front Page Stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.