Former DEP Secretary John Hanger adopted a populist message in his latest drive to regulate fracking in Pennsylvania. In a new ad featuring “gasland” residents endorsing his candidacy, Hanger asserts that their proximity to gas drilling sites means that these citizens understand the impacts, as well as the limits of government.

“They know first-hand that I understand the needs and concerns of ordinary Pennsylvanians, and I will fight for the underdog even if it means going up against a Goliath oil and gas company,” Hanger said.“The endorsement from these families means more to me than an endorsement from Bill Clinton. And I think it should mean more to the people of Pennsylvania.”

Victoria Switzer, one of John Hanger’s supporters, spoke out about why she endorsed his campaign for Governor.

“I live in Gasland. I also live in the real world,” Switzer said as she introduced herself to the assembled press.

In her statement, Switzer said that Hanger would be a “tough regulator of the gas industry” for “my Penn’s Woods”

At the end of his video, Hanger promised to accelerate the deployment of and make Pennsylvania a national leader in “solar, wind and energy efficiencies,” which he claims Tom Corbett has neglected.

The video is included below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNpC8FITrLE