Search
Close this search box.

National Group to Target PA Senate GOP Moderates

LRC State Senate SEPA
Southeast Pa. Senate districts

America’s Future Fund spent $1.67 million to boost Mitt Romney in Pennsylvania in 2012. The group says it will work against state Senators who supported the transportation funding bill and Medicaid expansion.

The group is an Iowa-based 501(c)(4) organization based around, “a conservative and free market viewpoint.” It has ties to the Koch brothers, well known financial supporters of conservative candidates and causes.

“Pennsylvania is a target-rich environment, unfortunately,” said AFF president Nick Ryan. ”We would rather see the free market promoted instead of publicly calling people out, but we can’t stand by idly. If you vote to expand Obamacare, fail to implement a basic conservative idea like privatization of the liquor industry and you raise taxes, then why even pretend to be a conservative?”

Transportation funding and a bill to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, passed with wide bipartisan margins in the state Senate this year.

AFF’s previous political activity typically has been related to federal campaigns. The announcement billed their Pa. efforts as a beta test that could be applied to other states.

The website Keystone Report first reported the fact that AFF was preparing a plan of action in Pa.

So far details are thin, but some specific planned activities include: polling, with an oversample in targeted districts; building a database of financial and political AFF supporters; and later buying digital advertising related to the project.

The group declined to specify the amount it plans to spend, “they expect to be high profile and figure prominently into the public policy conversation.”

They have a willing partner in at least one Pa.-based conservative organization: the Citizens Alliance for Pennsylvania.

CAP has repeatedly criticized and even aired television ads against Republican state Senators it deems insufficiently conservative.

“We have been raising money nationally and reaching out to national conservative groups to join the fight to rid the Pennsylvania Republican party and it’s politicians of it’s left-wing union domination and we are thrilled to see our efforts are paying off,” said one source close to CAP. “In fact, there will be a lot of resources targeting those RINOs who voted for the Rendell-Obama agenda over the past years and continue to do the bidding for the unions at expense of taxpayers.”

But AFF efforts in the 2014 primary could backfire in the general election.

Democrats made historic inroads in the state Senate in 2012, gaining 3 seats. Republicans now hold a 27 to 23 majority, and several incumbents in southeast Pa. districts will face voters in 2014. Those Senators are largely responsible for the Senate’s moderate bend, and the districts they represent have trended in favor of Democrats in recent years.

Redistricting and a retirement mean Senate Rs must compete for two open seats where strong Democratic candidates would stand a legitimate chance.

“It seems like a colossal waste of money to spend against Republicans,” cautioned Ray Zaborney, a Republican consultant who works with the Senate GOP’s campaign committee.

“I think potentially nominating a candidate who doesn’t fit the district is a strategy that hasn’t worked in Washington. I don’t think it will work in Pennsylvania.”

He said the state Senate has a record conservatives will support, including education reform measures and a balanced the budget and spending cuts over the past three years.

9 Responses

  1. I am sick and tired of groups like the AFF, CAP and the Tea Party “astroturf” groups funded by the Koch brothers being referred to as “conservative”, they are not conservative, they are regressive and reactionary. The don’t believe in government, government regulation or taxes. The are really libertarian and I wish the news media would start labeling them and defining them as that. The American public is being hoodwinked by these groups and manipulated into voting and supporting candidates and parties that work against their own self interest in a divide and conquer strategy. Conservatives keep things as they are, not reverse things to an earlier era, and let the robber baron’s do what ever they want to. Stop calling these right wingers conservatives, because they are not, they are extremist’s that are out to destroy our democracy and only have the 1% rule.

  2. The Path to Victory: A Campaign Centered on the Constitution.

    Constitutional Republicanism is centered on Constitutional limited government of enumerated powers, checks, balances and the separation of powers including 10th amendment federalism, Rule of Law, economic freedom and the divine rights of the individual, the value and importance of every individual, as explicated in the Hebrew Scriptures.
    The Exceptional American Constitutional Republic is unlike any in the world or any in history.
    A campaign centered on the Constitution and economic freedom and personal values is one that grows and strengthens our nation and can win elections.
    We have an opportunity to re-invigorate our Constitution Republic which we have, unearned, inherited from geniuses. American born citizens won a geographic lottery. Immigrants, legal and illegal, have chosen, and continue to choose America because it is Exceptional. Our Constitutional Republic is an unearned inheritance. It is up us to honor our American ancestors and keep it.
    *
    The 10th Amendment is a key to the balance and separation of powers that prevents the concentration of control in the central government.

  3. I agree – a bunch of right-wing money being wasted. I actually like some of these moderates, unfortunately they vote for nut-job leadership. So right-wing $= Democratic victories, nice

  4. Zaborney calls it a waste of money??

    The biggest waste of money was giving 2012 failed Senate candidates that Zaborney was responsible for i.e. Janet Anderson and John McNally millions of dollars, Senate Leadership spending millions to have smear merchant Mike Long trash Raja (and cost the GOP the seat) and putting millions behind Jimmy Lee’s completely worthless polling data that resulted in losing those seats and not beating Wozniak.

    And if they want to waste more money they can give Zaborney and Long candidates more $$$ to crash and burn.

    But they will get rich so all is good in the Burg.

  5. Tea party idiots pushing out moderates.

    Seems like a sure fire way to elect Democrats in winnable districts by giving them an extremist to contrast against. 🙂

Email:
  • Do you agree that ByteDance should be forced to divest TikTok?


    • Yes. It's a national security risk. (60%)
    • No. It's an app used by millions and poses no threat. (40%)
    • What's ByteDance? (0%)

    Total Voters: 30

    Loading ... Loading ...
Continue to Browser

PoliticsPA

To install tap and choose
Add to Home Screen