Democratic Congressional Opportunities In Southeast Pennsylvania-- IF Steve Israel Doesn't Blow It Again

Do these protesters need to show up at Steve Israel's house?

The suburbs north of Philadelphia look promising for Democrats this year. First and foremost, Wall Street-owned New Dem Allyson Schwartz (PA-13) is leaving Congress and is likely to be replaced by the state legislature's liberal lion, Montgomery County Senator Daylin Leach. Conservative Democrats have their own ridiculous candidates, a corrupt Clinton mother-in-law whose only compelling reason for running seems to be to institute chained CPI and reduce benefits to seniors (Hoyer's candidate), and Philly-boss backed anti-Choice hack Brendan Boyle. But that's a primary and a potential pick-up for progressives, but a red-to-blue seat.

Steve Israel has failed miserably to recruit winning candidates against vulnerable Republican incumbents but Democrats had great news yesterday when Jim Gerlach announced he wouldn't be running for reelection in PA-06 (after 6 terms). The district, which has a PVI of R+2 after partisan redistricting that made it slightly safer for a Republican to hold, contains parts of 4 counties: Chester, Berks, Montgomery and Lebanon. Montgomery and Chester are friendliest to Democrats and it wouldn't be a stretch to take back that seat with the right candidate. Look at this PPP survey showing how vulnerable Gerlach was. The DCCC ignored it:

Now it looks like either Bob Casey's brother, Chris Casey, or current gubernatorial candidate Katie McGinty, may want to jump into the open-seat race. This is a great pick-up opportunity and No doubt Israel is scrambling to find a corrupt conservative to run.

East of PA-06 and sharing a around the Green Lane Reservoir and Schwenksville, we have another vulnerable Republican-held seat, PA-08, Mike Fitzpatrick's seat, that extends east through Doylestown and down into Bensalem and Levittown. Basically, though, excluding a small piece of Montgomery County, this is the Bucks County district. This one has an R+1 PVI and was recently held by Blue Dog Patrick Murphy. The DCCC ran out and recruited another of their untrustworthy empty suits, ex-CIA agent, Kevin Strouse. This district could be won but Steve Israel is likely to muck it up in his relentless jihad against grassroots candidates. As we pointed out last September, Strouse is a pro-fracking candidate and, like most voters in Bucks County, Shaughnessy Naughton, is a scientist and an anti-fracking candidate. Environmentalists abhor Strouse, of course, and have largely been endorsing Naughton, who Israel has been bad-mouthing to Democratic donors. For example, Michael Mann, author of The Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars and a Distinguished Professor at Penn State, gave Naughton the kind of fulsome backing scientists have been awarding her:

I don’t normally do this, but our country is at a crossroads and, in my view, science is under attack.

Our scientific community has been generally loath to delve into the political realm. Meanwhile we have elected officials that are science deniers; they cut funding for scientific research and seek to politicize basic facts.

I’ve seen this firsthand. In 2005, the Attorney General of Virginia opened a civil investigation against me because he didn’t agree with my scientific findings on climate change, threatening academic freedom for the sake of promoting anti-science bias.

But there is a bright spot. I recently met Shaughnessy Naughton, a chemist and businesswoman from Southeastern Pennsylvania who is running for Congress on a pro-science platform.  She understands the scientific evidence behind pressing issues like the environment and healthcare, and she promises to fight to invest in scientific research funding to promote discovery, help grow our economy, and create jobs.  And, she understands the importance of making sure that we have strong STEM education, from elementary school all the way up.

Unfortunately, some traditional campaign donors don’t understand why it is so important to restore and grow the budgets of the NIH, NSF, and other sources of federal funding for scientific research.

But, as scientists, we do. We know the difference science can make in shaping a positive future for our country, and for that reason I believe we have an obligation to support a candidate like Shaughnessy who shares our commitment to fact-driven decision making…Take a look at her science policy plan here.

Just as a report from the AP was released warning on the dangers of fracking to drinking water, Strouse reiterated his pro-fracking agenda. Earlier today, Naughton drew a firm line between her own science-based position and Strouse's corrupt vision for an end to the fracking moratorium in Bucks County. She again told voters that she wants to "permanently ban hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, on the Delaware River Basin."

She cited the newly released AP review of drilling-related complaints [linked above], which found that “Pennsylvania received 398 complaints in 2013 alleging that oil or natural gas drilling polluted or otherwise affected private water wells, compared with 499 in 2012. The Pennsylvania complaints can include allegations of short-term diminished water flow, as well as pollution from stray gas or other substances. More than 100 cases of pollution were confirmed over the past five years.”

What’s more, a new study undertaken by researchers from Princeton, Columbia, and MIT showed that in Pennsylvania the proximity to fracking sites increased the likelihood of low birth weight by more than half and doubled the chance of a low Apgar score. [Bloomberg 1/4/14]

“I’ve said it before and I’m saying it again, we need a permanent ban on fracking along the Delaware River Basin,” said Naughton, referring to the Delaware River, which runs along Bucks County. “We’re talking about potentially contaminating the source of drinking water for fifteen million people. On top of that we should be thinking about the impact on the local tourism economy. Who is going to want to stay at an inn on the historic Delaware River if it’s polluted? We’re talking about a $877.3 million industry that supports more than 11,600 jobs. This isn’t complicated. It’s common sense."

For some odd reason, the DCCC is sticking with a male CIA agent who backs fracking. Go figure!


UPDATE: Naughton Isn't Letting This Rest

This morning Shaughnessy Naughton sent out a press release demanding that the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the administration of Governor Tom Corbett provide more transparency on fracking-related water contamination in Pennsylvania, and, in particular, the Delaware River Basin.

“It’s shocking to me that the one entity in the state that’s supposed to protect our environment is fighting efforts to learn about the impact of fracking,” said Naughton. “I’m calling on the DEP and the Corbett Administration to improve their transparency. We do not know enough about the effects of fracking, and the new information we are getting does not look good. We need more information, not less. The residents of Pennsylvania deserve better from their state government.”

By contrast, Naughton’s opponent in the Democratic primary in Pennsylvania’s Eighth Congressional District, Kevin Strouse, told Midweek Wire, “I support natural gas drilling.”