Activist aims to boot entire Legislature. Now that's a headline that catches my attention! I be upfront and honest here.... I hope this happens. If you are fed up with the garbage that goes on in Harrisburg don't just complain, boot these folks out of office.
It sounds impossible, maybe even ridiculous, but Lebanon County businessman and political activist Russ Diamond insists he's serious. He'll try to persuade his fellow Pennsylvanians to make a "clean sweep" of state legislators, throwing out all incumbent House members and half of the Senate in the 2006 elections.
Diamond, who lives in Annville, 20 miles east of Harrisburg, debuted a Web site called http://www.pacleansweep.com/ as a way for other Pennsylvanians who are as upset as he is over the pay raises legislators approved for themselves to keep in contact.
He has set a wildly ambitious goal -- to look for challengers and political neophytes willing to run against the 203 incumbent House members and 25 senators in either the May 2006 primary or the November 2006 general election. Half of the 50 senators will be up for re-election next year.
He said the Web site "will list non-incumbent candidates who sign a declaration affirming their willingness, once elected, to repeal the raise [and] subject future raises to voter referendum."
Repealing the raises is virtually impossible. General Assembly leaders pushed strongly for the higher pay for themselves and the rank and file, using choice committee assignments to attract subordinates' votes and saying, correctly, that voters haven't punished legislators over a pay raise in decades. (Well a change is gonna come!)
Without any debate, state House members voted 119-79 for the pay raises at about 1 a.m. on July 7 just before adjourning for the summer. The Senate voted 27-23 an hour later, also without debate, and left the Capitol.
Pennsylvania legislators, at their new base salary of $81,050 a year, have surpassed New York and Michigan -- at $79,500 and $79,650 respectively -- and now trail only California -- at $99,000, soon to rise to $111,000. Pennsylvania also has the most full-time legislators of any state, 253. The only state with more legislators is New Hampshire, but those 424 legislators get only $100 a year for a limited number of session days per year.
I'm calling on every PA resident who reads this to support this effort! Way to go Russ! We will continue to track this right up to election day. Please pass the word.
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