Monday, April 8, 2013
Multiple media outlets reporting Schwartz has filed to run in 2014 on Monday.
We've been hearing the rumors for months, but it is finally official. U.S. Rep. Alyson Schwartz filed paperwork today to run for governor in 2014. According to philly.com, Schwartz said she hopes to beat out current Gov. Tom Corbett and his “failed leadership” that "has crippled the Pennsylvania economy in a competitive world." “He’s just missing in action most of the time,” Schwartz, of Montgomery County, said in an interview with philly.com. Schwartz told the online news source the state’s unemployment rate "has been well above the national average during Corbett’s term." “What I’m hearing from people around the state is that they know we need a fresh perspective about the economy and growth,” she said. According to The Hill, Schwartz "…
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Part four of a four-part series on the impacts of Sequestration in Montgomery County. National historic parks, such as the one at Valley Forge, will see an impact should sequester not be stopped by midnight Thursday.
If heading to Valley Forge National Historic Park is on your to-do list this summer, you might need to double check the schedule. Due to sequestration, parks like Valley Forge may have staffing and hours on the "chopping block." “Every park in the system would be affected, including treasured places like Gettysburg, Independence Hall and Valley Forge, and the local economies that depend on visitor spending would also suffer,” said Cinda Waldbuesser, senior Pennsylvania program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association in a recent release. “National parks are economic drivers for local communities. Over the last two years, Pennsylvania’s national parks have welcomed more than eight million visitors, generating $325,000,000 in …
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Part Three of a Four-Part Series: How budget cuts may impact the housing authority.
As Democrats point fingers to the Republicans and Republicans point fingers at the Democrats, the one thing not happening in Congress is the stoppage of sequester. As it stands, the impact of the changes will begin as early as midnight on Thursday. But how will this change impact those in Montgomery County? Another hard-hit department may be that of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Joel Johnson, executive director of the Montgomery County Housing Authority knows this fact all too well. Funded through the U.S. Department HUD, his department’s funding is in jeopardy with the fiscal year only half over. “We receive four monies from four pots,” said Johnson. “Depending on Congressional allocation, the amounts vary.” Two types of funding, …
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Part Two of a Four-Part Series: How budget cuts may impact local senior citizens.
Another 24 hours is lost, and Congress has yet to agree on a plan that would stop sequestration. The automated budget cuts will deliver a hit to Montgomery County programs, including those designed to assist area senior citizens. In a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, House Speaker John Boehner said the cuts would be a product of Obama's "failed leadership." "Most Americans are just hearing about this Washington creation for the first time: the sequester," Boehner writes in his column. "What they might not realize from Mr. Obama's statements is that it is a product of the president's own failed leadership. There is nothing wrong with cutting spending that much -- we should be cutting even more -- but the sequester is an ugly and dangerous …
Monday, February 25, 2013
The First in a Four-Part Series:
Many of the county's programs will be hit by the federal government's potential budget cuts.
Congress is on the clock. If changes are not made by Thursday at midnight, those across the nation will be affected by sequestration. The automated budget cuts will deliver a hit to Montgomery County programs, affecting many in the area. "Unless Congress acts by March 1, a series of automatic cuts — called the sequester — will take effect that threaten hundreds of thousands of middle class jobs, and cut vital services for children, seniors, people with mental illness and our men and women in uniform," said a release from the White House. The president has laid out his own plan for cutting the budget, but said that he is challenged in Congress. "Unfortunately, many Republicans in Congress refuse to ask the wealthy to pay a little more by …
Friday, February 22, 2013
Rough weather ahead for Montco.
It might be a good Friday night to stay in. According to the National Weather Service (NWS), at approximately 3:38 p.m. Friday, there is a Freezing Rain Advisory in affect for Montgomery County and surrounding areas. From 10 p.m. Friday evening to 8 a.m. Saturday morning, area residents are warned for icy and freezing conditions. A previously issued "Winter Weather Advisory" was cancelled. The advisory warns of trace ice accumulations as a mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain or rain may become all freezing rain overnight. "Icing wil create hazardous conditions on roadways and sidewalks overnight into Saturday morning," said the advisory. Temperatures are slated to stay in the low 30s through the evening. The NWS warns that the weather …
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Two politicians from the county may face-off in a race for the state's seat.
Of course, nothing is set in stone just yet, but with phrases like "80 percent sure" and "pragmatism and practicality" being floated around, it is possible that Montgomery County may be home to a hot race in the 2014 Pennsylvania governor's race. Montgomery County Commissioner Bruce Castor has not put a percentage on his desire to enter the race, but has said he is keeping a close eye on the current governor, Tom Corbett's actions in the second half of his term. "I'm not going to run just to make a splash. I want Pennsylvania to go down the right path," Castor said in an interview with Pennsylvania Cable Network, covered by Patch in January. "I want Pennsylvania to be a conservative state, but with pragmatism and practicality. I don't see …
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
With nearly all precincts reporting, incumbent Democrat Daylin Leach defeated GOP challenger Charles Gehret.
With nearly all of the precincts reporting, incumbent Democratic state Sen. Daylin Leach has defeated GOP challenger Charles Gehret handily in the 17th District, with more than 65% of the vote. Leach is a ten-year veteran of state politics, having been elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2002 and the State Senate in 2009. Before throwing his hat in the ring in the 17th, Gehret was chief fiscal officer and top aide for Pennsylvania's Lieutenant Governor Jim Cawley. Leach accepted the win late this evening. "Well, it appears that I have been re-elected," Leach wrote in a post on his campaign's Facebook page. "I want to thank everyone for all of their help and support. Truly, I am humbled. And I am hardly ever humbled." …
Sunday, October 7, 2012
The steroids have caused at least five deaths by infecting patients with a rare form of fungal meningitis. They've been shipped to 23 known states.
- BUSINESS
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Sunday, October 7, 2012
Pennsylvania patients seeking relief for back pain, may have gotten more than they bargained for in their steroid injections. According to many health news sites, those that have recently took steroid injections may be at risk for a rare form of fungal meningitis. As of Sunday, the illness had taken at least five lives in the U.S. after the patients were given a contaminated steroid medication. Three have died in Tennessee, one in Maryland and one in Virginia according to reports. Four more now have the illness in Tennessee, bringing a national total to 39 in six different states as of Oct. 5. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the steroids have been shipped to 23 states, including Pennsylvania, causing concern that…
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Judge Robert Simpson ruled Tuesday that implementation of Pennsylvania's new Voter ID law be put on hold until after the Nov. 6 general election.
- ELECTIONS
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Tuesday, October 2, 2012
A judge ruled today that Pennsylvania's tough new Voter ID Law should be put on hold until after the Nov. 6 general election, according to an Associated Press report. The ruling can be appealed to the state Supreme Court, which said it would expedite any further action in the case since Election Day is just five weeks away. Do you agree with the ruling? Tell us in the comments section below. Commonwealth Court Judge Robert Simpson heard two days of testimony last week, as directed by the Supreme Court, to determine whether the state has made it easy enough to get a photo ID in order to vote. Opponents say the law, and the process to get an ID, disenfranchises voters. Supporters say the law will prevent voter fraud - but that justification …
Kathy Adlam
7:57 pm on Monday, April 29, 2013
Randy... Truth hurts, doesn't it? I'm with Pat on this one. more ›