Seated from l-r: Tony Phyrillas, Michael Rellahan, Brian Lockman and Phil Heron.

"Journalists Roundtable" host Brian Lockman sits down with Mercury Editor Tony Phyrillas, Delaware County Daily Times Editor Phil Heron and West Chester Daily Local Courthouse/Politics Reporter Michael Rellahan to discuss changes to Pennsylvania’s Congressional districts, growing concern over the Sunoco Mariner East 2 pipeline and the governor’s race.
"Journalists Roundtable" is a weekly 30-minute program on the Pennsylvania Cable Network, which is carried on cable systems across Pennsylvania.
The most recent episode was taped Wednesday at The Mercury in Pottstown and will air Thursday, April 19, at 7 p.m., and again on Sunday, April 22, at 9 p.m. Check your local listing for the Pennsylvania Cable Network channel in your area.

It's looking more likely that Montgomery County Commissioner Bruce Castor will challenge incumbent Republican Gov. Tom Corbett in the 2014 GOP primary.

Castor, who served two terms as Montgomery County district attorney, and has flirted with statewide campaigns in the past, has made no secret of his disappointment with Corbett's first two years in office.

Now he plans to snipe at Corbett through a website, http://brucecastor.com/

 "Pennsylvania has yet to reach its pinnacle, and with your help we'll get there," Castor writes on the site, which also has links to Castor's Facebook page and Twitter account.

Several potential Democratic challengers to Corbett have also emerged, the most notable of which is Philadelphia-area Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz, a pro-abortion, anti-gun liberal who has served in Congress for the past 10 years.

Pennsylvania Democrats are salivating at the prospect of taking on Republican Gov. Tom Corbett in 2014, but Corbett has not done a bad job in his first two years as governor.

Considering the fiscal mess left by former Gov. Ed Rendell, a free-spending Democrat, Corbett has had his hands full trying to restore fiscal sanity to the Keystone State.

And his efforts to privatize the state lottery and liquor systems could pay off big dividends for state taxpayers.

While Rendell kicked the can down the road on two pressing issues - public pension reform and transportation - Corbett said he is willing to tackle both problems, which has made him unpopular with the core constituency of Democrats - labor unions.

Corbett's poll numbers are down and there's even talk of a primary challenge from his own party by Montgomery County Commissioner Bruce L. Castor Jr., but don't bury Corbett so quickly.

Granted, Corbett  is the victim of lousy PR by his own staff and he continuously battles anti-Republican Harrisburg press corps that fawned over Rendell for eight years, but don't write off Corbett's political future just yet.

The only reason Democrats did so well in the 2012 elections for three state row offices was having Barack Obama at the top of the ticket. They won't have that luxury in 2014.

An if Corbett continues to sign balanced budgets on time - something Rendell was unable or unwilling to do over eight years - Pennsylvania voters will be willing to take another look at a second Corbett term when 2014 rolls around. 

Pennsylvania Dems Search For Right Candidate To Challenge Vulnerable Corbett - NationalJournal.com

A liberal Washington Post columnist says Barack Obama is looking to humiliate half of his constituents instead of bargaining in good faith with Republicans.

Ruth Marcus: This is Obama's idea of compromise?

What a back-handed endorsement of ultra-liberal Sen. Bob Casey Jr. by the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, which is probably the most conservative newspaper in Pennsylvania: "Despite our policy differences with Casey, we prefer the Democrat we know to the Republican of convenience."

Apparently, the newspaper doesn't trust businessman Tom Smith because he spent most of his life as a registered Democrat before he switched to the Republican Party and defeated several better-known candidates for the right to challenge Casey.

Pretty harsh words against Smith. Wasn't Ronald Reagan a Democrat before he saw the light?

The race still comes down to far-left Casey, who has rubber-stamped the failed Obama agenda over the past four years or a "conservative Democrat" who is pushing fiscal restraint, smaller government and accountability.

The Tribune-Review editorial says Casey is a nice guy who has treated Republican Sen. Pat Toomey, a conservative idol, with respect, but the bottom line is that Tom Smith's platform is a lot closer to Toomey's than it is to Bob Casey's.

Sending Mr. Smith to Washington as part of a Republican majority in the Senate would go a long way to repairing the damage Barack Obama has done over the past four years.

The Romney Campaign today announced statewide and county campaign leadership throughout Pennsylvania.

“Pennsylvania is going to play a pivotal role in this election," said co-chairman Gov. Tom Corbett. "In 2010, the voters of Pennsylvania were tired of the status-quo and supported the candidates who stood for common sense priorities like fixing our economy and creating jobs — In 2012, Gov. Mitt Romney is that candidate. Gov. Romney has a plan and proven leadership to grow the economy and restore America as the best place in the world to find a job, start a business, and raise a family."

“As champions of fiscal responsibility, the big-spending agenda and failed economic policies of President Obama have been disheartening to Gov. Corbett, myself and millions of Americans," added co-chairman Sen. Pat Toomey.  "In the U.S. Senate, I have fought hard to restore the principles of a limited government and an American economy that is a shining example for the world. Rather than work towards economic recovery and the future of our children and grandchildren, President Obama has made his re-election his top priority, and the only way to change our nation’s course is to make President Obama’s first term, his only term.  I am proud to be part of the team that will ensure Gov. Romney’s election as President, and a return to the principles that have made America the  greatest nation on earth.” 

Here's the complete list of party leaders who will work to deliver a win for Romney/Ryan in Pennsylvania:

State Chairs                                       

Governor Tom Corbett                                 
Senator Pat Toomey

State Finance Chairs      

National Committeeman Bob Asher
National Committeewoman Christine Toretti                    

Republican Party of Pennsylvania

Chairman Rob Gleason                                                                                                                 

State Co-Chairs                                                                                                

Congressman Mike Kelly                                             
Congressman Glenn Thompson                                               
Congressman Jim  Gerlach                                                                                                           
Congressman Pat Meehan                                                                                                         
Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick                                                                                                  
Congressman Bill Shuster                                                                                                            
Congressman Tom Marino                                                                                                          
Congressman Lou Barletta                                                                                                          
Congressman Charlie Dent                                                                                                         
Congressman Joe Pitts                                                                                                 
Congressman Tim Murphy                                                                                                          
Congressman Todd Platts                                                                                                            
Lieutenant Governor Jim Cawley                                                                                                             

County Leaders

Adams                        Nadine Devine

Allegheny                   Joe Melaragno

                                    Dave Majernik

                                    Bill Kirk

Armstrong                 Jen Baker

Beaver                        Craig Holdren

Bedford                      Tonya Clark

                                    Steve Howsare

Berks                          Larry Medaglia

Blair                            Judy Ward

                                    Debbie Shuster King

Bradford                    Tina Pickett

                                    Doug McLinko

                                    Daryl Miller

Bucks                         Pat Poprik

Butler                         Michele Mustello

Cambria                     Doug Lengenfelder

Cameron                    Sarah Campbell

Carbon                       Mary Ellen Salerno

                                    Mike Sofranko

Centre                        Joyce Haas

Chester                      Ryan Costello

                                    Brian Peppel

Clarion                       Anita Lahr

Clearfield                   Susan Williams

                                    Arleen Multhauf

Clinton                       Kurtes Smith

Columbia                   Chris Young

Crawford                    Mike Forbes

Cumberland               Barb Cross

                                    Glen Grell

                                    Vic Stabile

                                    Tammy Shearer

Dauphin                     Jeff Haste

                                    Mike Pries

                                    Janis Creason

Delaware                    Andy Reilly

Elk                               Grace Jesberger

                                    Marcella “Sally” Geyer

Erie                             Bowman Root

Fayette                       Russ Rhodes

Forest                         Pam Millin

Franklin                      Dwight Weidman

Fulton                         Sam Metz

Greene                       Jim Minor

Huntingdon               Anne Layng

Indiana                       Bill Darr

Jefferson                    Maxine Zimmerman

Juniata                       Bonnie Cveikus

Lackawanna              Frank Castellano

Lancaster                   Katherine Wood-Jacobs

                                    Joe Pitts

Lawrence                   Nathan Sheafer

Lebanon                     Susan Zug

Lehigh                        Ryan Mackenzie

                                    Lisa Scheller

Luzerne                      David Baloga

Lycoming                   Gabriel Campana

McKean                      C. Russell Johnson

Mercer                        Bob Robbins

Mifflin                         Mark Colussy

Monroe                       Tom Geffers

                                    Mario Scavello

Montgomery              Joe Meo

                                    William Donnelly

Montour                     Harold Hurst

Northampton             Robert Kerr

Northumberland       Don Ely

Perry                           Don McClure

Philadelphia               John Taylor

Pike                             Mike Peifer

Potter                         Karen Cahilly

Schulkill                     Bob Ames

Snyder                        Pat Saylor

                                    Malcolm Derk

Somerset                   Bruce Hottle

                                    Rose Svonavec

Sullivan                      John Huhn

Susquehanna            Jason Legg

Tioga                          Matt Baker

                                    Don Yost

Union                          Jeff Thompson

                                    John Rowe

Venango                     Martha Breene

                                    Charles Breene

Warren                       Al Loranger

Washington               Steve Toprani

Wayne                        Liz Gregory

Westmoreland           Kim Ward

Wyoming                    Paulette Burnside

                                    Russ Gunton

                                    Will Eggleston

York                            Anne Zerbe

                                    Leroy “Tighe” King

Columnist JD Mullane on Bob Casey Jr., "The Senate’s most ineffective legislator, maybe ever. He sponsored 199 bills in the 112th Congress, and none became law. A bad year of partisan gridlock, you say? Casey’s party controls the Senate and he still can’t get anything passed."

Bob Casey Jr., the Senate's strike out king - www.phillyburbs.com: J.D. Mullane: bob casey jr., bob casey, pennsylvania, senate, patrick howley

Tom Smith and Steve Welch, two of the leading candidates seeking the Republican nomination to challenge incumbent Democratic Sen. Bob Casey Jr. are former Democrats.

Welch has admitted publicly that he voted for Barack Obama in 2008.

Another candidate, former Berks County state Rep. Sam Rohrer, has had to defend his voting record in the Legislature over 18 years, including a controversial vote in 2005 to raise the pay of state politicians.

Even though Casey is vulnerable for his support of the Obama agenda (98% support for Obama), he has plenty of money stockpiled and is favored to win re-election because of the GOP’s struggles to find an opponent who can unify the GOP base.

Pa. Republicans to pick challenger to Sen. Bob Casey Jr.

After less than one-year in office, Chester County Treasurer Ann Duke has set her sight on a bigger political office: Pennsylvania Auditor General.

From the West Chester Daily Local News:

"In these tough economic times, it is crucial that every taxpayer dollar is spent wisely. I will bring the same commonsense, fiscally conservative reforms I have implemented in the Chester County Treasurer's office to the office of auditor general. We need a principled conservative reformer in the auditor general's office, and that is why I am running."

Read the full story at the link below:

County treasurer talks about her run for state auditor - dailylocal.com

For more information about Duke's campaign, visit her website, http://anndukeforag.com/

State Sen. John Rafferty aims for dream job: Pa. attorney general (video) - pottsmerc.com

After less than one year in office, Chester County treasurer Ann Duke, a Republican, has set her sights on a much bigger office: Pennsylvania Auditor General.

Incumbent two-term Democrat Jack Wagner is prohibited by the state Constitution from seeking another term as auditor general, the state's fiscal watchdog.

Chesco treasurer to run for state auditor general - pottsmerc.com

State Sen. John Rafferty, R-44th Dist., plans to announce Wednesday he will seek the Republican nomination for Pennsylvania Attorney General.

The announcement is scheduled for 11 a.m. at the Pennsylvania State Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police, located at 2949 North Front Street, Harrisburg, PA.

Rafferty is serving his third four-year term in the state Senate representing the 44th District, which stretches across Montgomery, Chester and Berks counties.

If he wins the race for attorney general next year, a special election will be held to complete the rest of Rafferty's state Senate term, which runs to the end of 2014.

Rafferty serves as chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee and is a member of Appropriations, Banking and Insurance, Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure, and Judiciary committees.

Before running for the Senate in 2002, Rafferty was an attorney in private practice, focusing on education, real estate, zoning and business and estates law.

Before that, he served as Deputy Attorney General for Pennsylvania from 1988 to 1991, where he he was responsible for the Criminal Law Division and Grand Jury Investigations.

Rafferty is the first Republican in the race, joining three announced Democrats: Kathleen Kane of Lackawanna County, former Congressman Patrick Murphy of Bucks County and Dan McCafferty of Montgomery County.

Since the attorney general's office became an elected position in 1980, no Democrat has won the office.

The current attorney general is Republican Linda Kelly, who was nominated by Gov. Tom Corbett to complete the final two years of his term after Corbett was elected governor in 2010. Honoring a "gentleman's agreement" in the state Senate, which had to confirm Kelly's appointment, she agreed not to seek a full term as attorney general.

Conservative Sam Rohrer, who served in the Pennsylvania Legislature for 18 years and ran for the Republican nomination for Pennsylvania governor in 2010, plans to announce Monday he will run for a U.S. Senate seat from Pennsylvania in 2012.

The announcement is scheduled for 4 p.m. Monday, Nov. 21, at the Governor's Ballroom of the Radisson Penn Harris in Camp Hill, Pa.

Rohrer, a leader of the state's conservative movement and tireless proponent of the elimination of Pennsylvania's onerous property tax, challenged Tom Corbett in the Republican gubernatorial primary last year.

While Corbett won the nomination and eventually was elected governor, Rohrer made a surprisingly strong showing considering the party establishment (and money) went mostly to Corbett. (Rohrer routed Corbett in Berks County by an 80%-20% margin, and Rohrer beat Corbett in Lancaster County by a 52%-48% margin).

Rohrer, who retired from the Legislature at the end of 2010 to take the post of state director for Americans for Prosperity-Pennsylvania, will run for the Senate seat held by first-term Democrat Bob Casey Jr., one of the most liberal members of the Senate and a close ally of President Obama.

Pennsylvania's other Senate seat is held by conservative Republican Pat Toomey.

For more information on Sam Rohrer and his bid for U.S. Senate in 2012, visit www.RohrerforSenate.org

The Nov. 8 General Election in Pennsylvania could be a signal of how much trouble Obama's re-election bid is in, argues columnist John Hayward.

If Al Schmidt Wins Philly Board Seat, Obama Can Kiss Pennsylvania Goodbye - HUMAN EVENTS

PoliticsPA, a well-regarded political website, is reporting that Republican State Sen. John C. Rafferty Jr. is planning a run for Pennsylvania Attorney General in 2012.

From a story by PoliticsPA Managing Editor Keegan Gibson:

He won't face a question of experience: Rafferty served as Deputy Attorney General from 1988 to 1991. In the PA Senate, he has built a reputation as a good legislator respected on both sides of the aisle. He chairs the Transportation Committee and serves on Appropriations, Judiciary, Law & Justice, Banking and Insurance and Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure.

I've gotten to know Sen. Rafferty well over the years and he would make an outstanding Attorney General. He's a dedicated public servant who has moved up the ranks quickly in the state Senate. He's also big on constituent service, not an easy task in the expansive 44th State Senate District, which stretches across Montgomery, Chester and Berks counties.

Rafferty's likely opponent would be liberal Democrat Patrick Murphy, a one-term Congressman from Bucks County who lost his bid for re-election in 2010.

Read more about a possible Rafferty campaign at the link below:

Rafferty in for Attorney General

This week's edition of "Journalists Roundtable," the popular political commentary program on the Pennsylvania Cable Network, is coming to you from the offices of The Mercury in Pottstown.

The one-hour program airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. and again on Sundays at 5 p.m. and 11 p.m., as well as Mondays at 10 a.m.

The show is hosted by Bill Bova. This week's guests are Tony Phyrillas, City Editor/Political Columnist for The Mercury; and John Aberle of WCHE 1520 AM in West Chester.

PCN is shown on Comcast Channel 98 in Berks County, Service Electric Cable Channel 23 in Berks/Lehigh counties and Comcast Channel 186 in the Pottstown area.

Consult your cable guide for the Pennsylvania Cable Network channel in your area or check www.pcntv.com

This is a first. I've never heard of a group withdrawing its endorsement to a political candidate, but the Pennsylvania Teamsters, representing 92,000 union workers, is telling its members NOT TO VOTE for Bryan Lentz, the Democratic candidate for Pennsylvania's 7th Congressional District.

Pennsylvania Conference Won't Support Lentz

See related editorial at The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Web site.

Manan Trivedi has never held political office and it's beginning to show. Trivedi, the surprise winner in Tuesday's Democratic primary, better get up to speed if he intends to give U.S. Rep. Jim Gerlach a legitimate run for Pennsylvania's 6th Congressional District seat.

Gerlach is a seasoned pro when it comes to campaigning, having fought back tough Democratic opponents in all four of his Congressional runs.

Trivedi at least has to get his facts straight before criticizing Gerlach. Claiming Gerlach supported the Iraq War when Gerlach wasn't even in Congress when the vote was taken is an amateurish mistake.

Trivedi also needs to find out more about his opponent's voting record before recycling Democratic Party talking points that previous opponents attempted to use against the moderate Republican.

For example, linking Gerlach to George W. Bush was tried unsuccessfully by losing Democratic challengers Lois Murphy in 2004 and 2006 and Bob Roggio in 2008.

It's time for Trivedi to come up with some new material.

From the Jim Gerlach for Congress campaign:

Manan Trivedi, far-left liberal for Congress, yesterday ignored the clear facts while attacking Congressman Gerlach for voting to send U.S. troops into Iraq. The problem for Trivedi is that Jim had not even been elected to Congress on October 10, 2002 when the U.S. House of Representatives voted to authorize President Bush to use military force against Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. While Jim was not in Congress when an overwhelming majority of Republicans and Democrats, including Hillary Clinton and then-Senator Joe Biden authorized sending troops into Iraq, Gerlach has been a strong supporter of our military to ensure they have the resources, funding and equipment to complete their mission.

"It's a new year, a new face, but the same old recycled attacks from a liberal Democrat so out of touch with the families, small business owners and seniors in our district that he has to resort to distorting the truth," said Gerlach Spokesman Mark Campbell. "It's pretty clear that Mr. Trivedi is following exactly the same failed script, with the same failed attacks that voters in our district have turned their backs on time and time again. The only thing new about Mr. Trivedi is the record-time it took him to ignore the facts."

Additionally, as Mr. Trivedi predictably dragged out the tired attack lines against George Bush, as well as comments made in today's Daily Local News stating the "Jim Gerlach votes with blinders on and in lockstep with the Republican Party," Trivedi ignores the fact that Jim has a long documented record of being one of the most independent Republicans in Washington. As an example, National Journal identified Jim as one of the "centrists" in the US House of Representatives (2/27/10).

"What we didn't hear from Mr. Trivedi was any push-back on the far-left policies he has publicly supported which our campaign outlined yesterday. That's because he is in full agreement with the misguided, big government agenda of the far-left and MoveOn. No wonder he wants to talk about George Bush - once voters understand the far-left policies he supports, his campaign will collapse before it even gets started," added Campbell. "Again, Trivedi's belief that the government didn't go far enough in taking over our health care system, his support of amnesty for illegal immigrants, and pledging never to be a part of the moderate Blue Dog Democrat coalition in Congress means this tax-and-spend liberal is way out-of-step with this district and unelectable in November."