Category: Bob Small

Charlie Gerow Says Wolf Policies Inspired Run

By Bob Small

Charlie Gerow is one of the nine GOP candidates running to replace Gov. Tom Wolf this November. He has been criss-crossing the state this primary season with radio and television interviews, and attending events and forums.

He finds the people at his meet and greets particularly uplifting.

“(I like) their optimism, their spirit and their spunk,” he says.

It was the policies of the Wolf administration that led Gerow to run for governor, and he was encouraged to do so by many including Congressman Glenn “G. T.”  Thompson (R-PA15).

“We are in a battle for the heart and soul of America,” he says.

He says he would repeal “in a heartbeat” ACT 77 — which legalized no-excuse mail-in voting.

He would allow trans-sexual surgery for those under 18 only with parental consent.

He would sign HB 904 that would limit access to abortion after six weeks of pregnancy.

Gerow said that it is presumptive Democrat gubernatorial nominee Josh Shapiro and his fellow party members that have the radical position abortion.

He said he supports changing the law to allow the sale of “small amounts of recreational marijuana”. He said that many of his friends in law enforcement think that “now is the time”.

Wherever possible, Gerow would work to find common ground with Democrats on various issues.  He says he’s been dubbed “the conservative happy warrior”.

He feels that Pennsylvania should use all its natural resources to work towards energy independence including coal, gas, solar power, and rather than being dependent upon people who hate us.

Though Gerow is polling rather low, he still sees a path to victory.  He’s been running a positive campaign and feels he can beat Josh Shapiro.

He mentioned his “small-business experience” as the CEO of Quantum Communications. He shared his personal story, starting life as a impoverished child in Brazil, where he was adopted by American missionaries. He is proud to have worked on the campaign staff of President Reagan and to have been involved in the arrangements for Reagan’s funeral.

Gerow is the vice chairman of Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) and the American Conservative Union. He lists Newt Gingrich and Michael Reagan as among his supporters.

Charlie Gerow Says Wolf Policies Inspired Run

Gale And Zama Are 2%ers In Pennsylvania Governor’s Race

By Bob Small

So now we turn to the Pennsylvania governors’ race, and only the Republicans are actually running a race. The Democratic race is already “fixed”, since Josh Shapiro is the only name on their primary ballot, May 17.

There are two GOP levels: front-runner and everyone else.

The “everyone else” are the three candidates who each have less than 2 percent support as per this April 15 poll by The Trafalgar group, which hasn’t changed all that much.

Each represents something, though. They are Joe Gale, Charlie Gerow, and Nche Zama.  We will discuss Gerow in our next post.

Dr. Nche Zama is a transplanted Cameroonian (as is the 76ers Joel Embid) and he would be the first Afro-American Pennsylvania governor. He is a heart surgeon, and was quoted in the Philadelphia Inquirer as saying, “I realized that Pennsylvania is dying and … it is very much in need of a cardiac surgeon for heart surgery.” 

Joe Gale is a 32-year-old Montgomery County commissioner who is an unapologetic Trumper strongly opposed to Act 77, which allows for 50 days of no-excuse mail-in voting in this state. He is running against Doug Mastriano specifically, which doesn’t seem to be working.

 His brother, Sean Gale, is running for US Senate, but  Galeforce Pa. Is only a mild breeze. Joe Gale served with Josh Shapiro in Montco and became the best of enemies.

For a long discussion, see: Capital-Star Q+A: RINO hunter Joe Gale wants to make sure …

Lastly, there is the issue of shakedowns of GOP gubernatorial candidates by some Republican committees.

Nche Zuma considers this practice “unethical”.  Joe Gale says “it’s corrupt and I believe the public knows it”. Others have also spoken against this “pay to play” practice, in which it’s alleged you can only speak to the committee if you have paid, and the number of minutes you can speak is determined by the amount you contribute.

Jeffrey Sheridan, a senior Democratic advisor, commented, “Charging candidates to speak at events is not a practice of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party.” 

Surely we can believe him, can’t we?

Gale And Zama Are 2%ers In Pennsylvania Governor’s Race

John Brown Seeks GOP Lt. Gov Nod

By Bob Small

We wrap up our coverage of the lieutenant governor primary race, with John A.  Brown, one of the nine Republicans running for lieutenant governor.  He’s the former mayor of Bangor, Pa. and a former Northhampton County executive.  He’s the only candidate without an obvious electronic presence.

Some trivia: Pennsylvania is the only state that provides an official residence for it’s lieutenant governor, State House at Fort Indiantown Gap, This became the lieutenant governors residence, when the new governor’s residence was built in 1968

The office of lieutenant governor was created by the Pennsylvania Constitution of 1873. Prior to that, from 1777 to 1790, there was a series of vice presidents of Pennsylvania.  From 1790 to 1873, there was only a governor.

Pennsylvania is one of 17 states in which the lieutenant governor is elected separately from the governor.

In 26 states, they share a ballot. 

Oscar James Dunn became the first black lieutenant governor of a State in 1868. He was a Republican and the state was Louisiana.  Over a 150 years later, Pennsylvania has still never had a black lieutenant governor.

There is the possibility of the Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor Selection Amendment coming up for a vote this November.  This would create a situation where both governor and lieutenant governor would be on the same ballot and, presumably, the same party.

Reviewing  the lieutenant governor candidates let to the thought that many of them should have opportunities to serve their state in some other capacity, as only two of them can be candidates for lieutenant governor, and, like the World Series, only one can win.

John Brown Seeks GOP Lt. Gov Nod

Saccone And Sosa Seek Lt. Gov Nod

By Bob Small

This is another in our reviews of candidates for Pennsylvania lieutenant governor.

Dr. Rick Saccone , Ph.d., a Republican, is a prolific author (10 books) and traveler (79 countries).  He was elected four times to the State House.  One of his previous jobs was as a counter-intelligence officer and special agent in the United States Air Force, based in South Korea, though he also spent some time in North Korea.

He is a member of both FOAC (Firearm Owners Against Crime) and the NRA.

His two-decade political-science teaching career at St. Vincent’s College in Latrobe, Pa came to a screeching halt on Jan. 7, 2021, after the administration at St. Vincent’s saw his Facebook posting showing his presence the previous day in Washington, DC.

He is married to Yong Saccone, whom he met in South Korea.

Saccone has been a follower of Christian evangelist David Barton. Barton is an  amateur historian and founder of  Wallbuilders.  Here is NPR’s view of his career, and here is Barton’s website.

Ray  Sosa is the third Democratic Candidate for lieutenant governor. He is seeking to become the first Hispanic lieutenant governor.  He has served as chairman of the governor’s Human Rights Commitee for a decade.  Ray supports BLM (Black Lives Matter) and the GLBT (Gay Lesbian Bisexual Trans) community.

He also says that the lieutenant governor position must remain an elected position, never an appointed one, as has been suggested.  “Anything less is an assault on our democracy.”

Ray also believes in a merit-based commutation of life sentences for prisoners “so that they can rebuild their lives”.  

There are a few other websites that mention Ray Sosa, and the current ones show his support for President Biden, which is to be expected from most Democrats.

Saccone And Sosa Seek Lt. Gov Nod

Candidates Coleman And Daniels Discussed In Lt. Gov Roundup

By Bob Small

And here are two more Republican candidates for lieutenant governor. The primary election is May 17. Previous stories can be found here and here and here.

Jeff Coleman has one of the most extensive websites of any of the candidates and a plethora of experience and recommendations. He has over 50 (!) recommendations from people including Matt Brouillette, Rep. Donna Oberlander, and Sam Rohrer. Rick Santorum said  “In a time of division, we need leaders like Jeff who can bring people together.”

Coleman is the son of missionaries who served in the Phillipines during the 1986 overthrow of Ferdinand Marcos.

During his time in the Pennsylvania House, he helped lead the fights against gambling expansion and higher taxes. In an unusual move, after only serving two terms, he decided to retire from the State House to devote more time to his family.

In 2005, Coleman and his wife Rebecca founded Churchill Strategies to help conservative candidates and causes.  He’s a graduate of Liberty University and Rebecca is a member of the Borough Council in Lemoyne. 

He is also the author of the book “With All Due Respect, Recovering the Manners and Civility of Political Content”.

Teddy Daniels wears many hats.  He’s an America Firster, combat veteran, pro-Trumper, and a retired police officer.  He’s a recipient of the Combat Infantry Badge and the Purple Heart. In 2002, he was named Law Enforcement Officer of the Year by a Maryland American Legion post.

At West Virginia University, he was a starting guard for its nationally-ranked football team.

He has been a leader in the legal marijuana market and is listed as a security advisor for Cannaspire.

In the last election, Daniels served the Trump campaign as the Northeast US Director of Vets for Trump. He has aligned himself with gubernatorial candidate Douglas Mastriano.

However, Rolling Stone Magazine has posted an article that includes accusations of domestic abuse, child support arrears, suspensions from his police job, and other offenses.   The Feb 16 article made it clear that Teddy Daniels had declined an interview request and refused to answer a series of written questions. 

There are also other articles echoing these charges,  Voters may want to review these and form their own opinions.

Candidates Coleman And Daniels Discussed In Lt. Gov Roundup

More Alternatives For Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor

By Bob Small

Returning to Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor’s race, there are two very distinct GOP female candidates, as per Politics1.com: Carrie Lewis Delrosso and Clarice Schillinger (see previous post)

State Rep. Carrie Lewis DelRosso (R-Oakmont) defeated long-time House Minority Leader Frank Dermody, who had served as a state representative for almost three decades.  She is a self-described pro-lifer and second-amendment advocate. She also supports affordable health care, fewer regulations, and time limits for the Pennsylvania legislature, and opposes higher state taxes. 

Ms. DelRosso sees expected Democrat gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro, as “an extension of the disastrous Wolf administration, pandering to liberal interest groups and further wrecking an already wounded state economy.” She runs Carrie Lewis Delrosso LLC, a company that does business consulting, marketing, and public relations. She describes herself as “a working mother of three”.  

Meanwhile, Brian Sims, the first openly gay state representative (182nd) is running to become the first openly gay lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania. He is a civil-rights lawyer who has served as the president of the Board of Directors of Equality Pennsylvania and as chairman of Gallop (Gay and Lesbian Lawyers of Philadelphia).

As a college football player and team captain, he helped lead Bloomsberg University to the 2000 Division 2 National Championship Game. He later came out as gay to the team.

This would provide at least one person in the State House who would be affected by pending legislation on the issue of gay rights.

Russ Diamond is one of the few state-wide candidates that I have actually met, which occurred when I was advocating for the The Political Party Equality Act in the 2000s.

Diamond not only met with us but also spoke at one of our rallies.

He received a Public Service Achievement Award from Common Cause of Pennsylvania, among many awards.  He is an author, musician and private pilot.  He and his wife Beth, live in his family home in Annville., built by his great-grandparents.

Though his positions and mine don’t always align, I think he deserves respect for his experience and accomplishments.  How about an openly conservative lieutenant governor?

More Alternatives For Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor

Open School Advocate Clarice Schillinger Seeks Lt. Gov. Seat

By Bob Small

Returning to the Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor Race, we have two very distinct GOP female candidates, as per Politics1.com:  Carrie Lewis DelRosso and Clarice Schillinger, both of whom are Republicans.

We will cover Carrie Lewis Delrosso in a future post.

Clarice Schillinger founded Keeping Kids in School PAC, a bipartisan grassroots group in Southeast Pennsylvania created to elect candidates to school boards who would keep the schools open, and include parents and taxpayers in their decision making.  Through her efforts 94 school board candidates got on the ballot and 98 percent of them won their elections.

The school board elections was an issue we previously covered.

After the primaries, she created Back to School Pa., a statewide initiative that has given out over $600,000 to school board candidates, and provides candidate training and providing them with statewide media access.  She was featured in a March 1, 2021 article in the New York Times.   The funding, it should be added, comes from  various sources:

Dissatisfied with remote learning, some parents start to mobilize. – The …

Big money is pouring into Pa. school board elections, proxies in wars …

https://witf.org › 2021/11/01 › big-money-is-pouring

Mega-Donor Who Backed Stacey Abrams-Linked PAC Showers Clarice …

https://nationalfile.com › mega-donor-backed-stacey-ab..

She is married to Mike Schillinger, a carpenter and they have three children.

She first became an activist working to clean up the now-shuttered Willow Grove Naval Air Station thought to be a source of cancer in Horsham, Warminster, and Warrington, due to chemicals leaking into the groundwater. 

It is now a superfund site.

However, she has made one serious enemy inSimon Campell, a transplanted Brit who has recorded a serious of four YouTube videos titled Bollocks.

In this episode, he declares her unfit to hold office.

The only previous female lieutenant governor in Pa was the indomitable Catherine Baker Knoll, who served from 2003-2008 under Gove Ed Rendell.  For a good overview of her life, including her favorite motorcycle helmets, see The Steel Woman of the Steel City.  

Open School Advocate Clarice Schillinger Seeks Lt. Gov. Seat

Afro American Lt Gov Candidates From Both Parties In Pa

By Bob Small

According to the University of Virginia Center for Politics, almost half the states elect lieutenant governors separately from governors.  This can lead to governors being from the other party than lieutenant governor though not normally in Pennsylvania.  

Politics1.com lists 13 Candidates for lieutenant governor, 11 men and two women, nine of whom are Republican along with four Democrats.  This includes the current incumbent Democrat, John Fetterman, who is also a candidate for US Senate.   About half of these candidates are current or former state representatives. 

Pennsylvania has never elected an Afro-American as lieutenant governor.

Among the Afro-American candidates who are seeking to break the color barrier at this office in 2022 are; Austin Davis, a state rep from Mon Valley whom Democrat gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro has endorsed; Republican Chris Frye who is the first Afro-American Mayor of New Castle, Pa. in it’s 200 year history and is e is pro-life, anti CRT, and believes in less government and more faith; and Republican and Hatboro resident James Jones , a Navy veteran and the founder of Silverback Commodities, who describes himself as a pro-life Christian constitutionalist and “Frederick Douglas Conservative.”

Afro American Lt Gov Candidates From Both Parties In Pa