Barletta, 0-2, back on deck
Published: May 30, 2009
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share thisAs a baseball player, Lou Barletta never could hit a curveball, and he's 0 for 2 when the pitcher is U.S. Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski.
No matter. With no one else as formidable, Republicans are pressuring the Hazleton mayor to run against the longtime Democratic congressman next year.
Mr. Barletta, who was thought to be more interested in running for lieutenant governor next year, says he's thinking about Congress again.
"Lieutenant governor came up as well" when he was asked, Mr. Barletta said. "I said I'd give it some thought. I'm testing the waters. But I'm actually leaning against it (running for lieutenant governor). ... I'm not thinking more about running for Congress, just thinking less about lieutenant governor."
The National Republican Congressional Committee, which aids Republican congressional candidates, is giving him the right of first refusal.
Mr. Barletta is promising an earlier decision this time, perhaps later this year. Last year, he didn't make his run public until February.
Despite a private poll that showed his name recognition higher than other lieutenant governor candidates, Mr. Barletta said the seat interests him less because the list of other candidates is so long and Republicans' possible preference for a governor/lieutenant governor ticket that reflects a southwest/southeast Pennsylvania pairing.
So, for example, if state Attorney General Tom Corbett is the nominee, the thinking goes, his lieutenant governor running mate should come from the southeast - say, U.S. Rep. Jim Gerlach, a suburban Philadelphia congressman, or former U.S. Attorney Pat Meehan, who is actually still running for governor. That way the two biggest voting blocs are represented.
"Politically, there's better geographic balance than (with someone from) the northeast," Mr. Barletta said. "But it hasn't made me think any more about Congress than before."
Any reluctance is understandable. A third loss to Mr. Kanjorski would probably hurt his chances of winning the seat if the congressman does ever retire.
Other than that they have nobody else, it's a little hard to understand why Republicans would want a third go-round with a two-time loser.
Their thinking boils down to this: Mr. Kanjorski won last time because a Democratic wave that propelled Barack Obama to the presidency lifted him as well. They think a lot of voters went straight Democratic, handing Mr. Kanjorski a lot of votes he might not otherwise have received.
"Barack Obama didn't pull Paul Kanjorski across the finish line," said Ed Mitchell, Mr. Kanjorski's media consultant. "Paul did very well in Monroe and Lackawanna based on his performance. ... Barletta blew a 13-point lead (in Mr. Kanjorski's early polling). He should remember that before considering running for Congress again."
No doubt Mr. Barletta blew a big lead, at least partly because he couldn't raise enough money.
It's also true that the last week of the campaign, with Mr. Barletta and Mr. Kanjorski tied, according to their polls, Mr. Mitchell noticed polling data that showed Mr. Obama's popularity. He fashioned a television commercial picturing Mr. Kanjorski with Mr. Obama at the Schott Technologies plant in Duryea.
It worked. Mr. Kanjorski won by 3.3 percentage points.
Which wasn't nearly as large a margin as Mr. Obama, who won the district by 15 points, another reason Republicans still see Mr. Kanjorski as vulnerable.
Good luck with that. Twice, Mr. Kanjorski seemed like an easy mark for Mr. Barletta, and twice Mr. Barletta lost.
For his part, Mr. Barletta sounds in no hurry. He's got plenty to do as mayor, he said.
He's noticed Mr. Kanjorski is getting a lot of attention nationwide dealing with the financial crisis because of his House Financial Services subcommittee chairmanship.
"He's getting a lot of positive press and national attention, which he hasn't gotten in Washington before. It's certainly raised his profile. Whether that will benefit him depends on the economy," Mr. Barletta said. "If the economy continues to tank, that could backfire."
He isn't hoping the economic troubles continue so he has a better chance of winning if he runs, he said.
"I think whoever runs against Kanjorski, I think nobody can predict or know what will happen with the economy or things that will affect this election," he said. "The pressure (to run is) not going to change my mind. Nobody's going to talk me into it."
BORYS KRAWCZENIUK, Times-Tribune politics reporter, writes Random Notes. The column has appeared every Saturday since 1895.
5 posted comments
Sacred Scripture gives absolute definitive affirmation.
(1 Timothy 6:10) The love of money is the root of all evils.
(Proverbs 14:31) He who oppresses the poor insults his Maker.
(Matthew 6:24) Christ exhorts, No one can serve two masters.
You cannot serve both God and money.
(Matthew 13:22)-(Mark 4:19) Christ exhorts, The deceitfulness of riches choke the word of God.
(1 John 2:15-16) Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world--the cravings of sinful man, the lust of the eyes and the boasting of what he has and does--comes not from the Father but from the world.
Remember less than eight percent of the people own more than ninety percent of the money in America. Let us be realistic--who should pay the majority of taxes?
Remember--(Psalm 24:1)--(1 Cor. 10:26) The earth is the Lord's and everything in it.
Both the Democratic and Republican Parties both have issues.
The Democrat Party supports supports abominable acts of reprobacy and degeneracy. The Republican Party supports unbridled capitalism that violates the dignity of the human being. No medical coverage for 45 to 50 million working Americans in the richest country in the world is abominable and violates human dignity.
Lou Barletta must take an independent stance.