POLS ON THE STREET: SRC Blows Guv’s Race Off Stage

BY JOE SHAHEELI/ School Reform Commission Chairman Bill Green’s decision suddenly to cancel the contract with the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers has disrupted both the worlds of education and politics in this city. It has blindsided school union leaders, parent organizations, and other groups associated with pushing to improve the quality of education in city schools.

SHERIFF Jewell Williams welcomes Democratic gubernatorial nominee Tom Wolf to marching line of annual Puerto Rican Day parade as Inspector Jennifer Algarin, highest-ranking Latino American in Office of Sheriff of Philadelphia.

As we see it, the decision could have tremendous political implications for the race to become the City’s next Mayor.

Chairman Bill Green, a former City Councilman, has made no secret over the years he might seek the Democratic nomination for Mayor. Vaulted to the head of the SRC, a hot seat if there ever was one, Green and his board have been subject to ridicule and abuse from many Philadelphians over their inability to get Gov. Tom Corbett to increase funding to this School District.

Whether he and his Commission members ran out of patience, or whether the red phone rang from Corbett’s office issuing the order, or whether Green saw the opportunity had come to challenge tPFT, he did what earlier SRC boards had seen as a last-ditch stand – but refused to do.

But looking at this from a jaundiced political eye, we see it as a Bill Green move toward winning the City’s top job. Throwing down the gauntlet, literally forcing teachers to work without a contract, Chairman Green could be seen by the Philadelphia voter as making a “positive move”, if it leads to union concessions. His name could climb to the top of potential mayoral Democratic candidates if that scenario works out.

PFT has its work cut out to get out the word its members had agreed to a host of concessions late this summer. But it was the SRC, not the union, that turned a deaf ear to those dollar-saving proposals.

No matter what now happens, the political consequences will generate through the next primary for Mayor.

WOLF MUST BE TAKING THIS PAPER’S ADVICE

In campaigning, an axiom is “Go where the cherries are”; they’re easy to harvest. This is politically translated to where your potential voters live in heavy numbers.

So Tom Wolf, despite a commanding lead, has been spending as much time as possible in Philadelphia, hoping to whip up voter enthusiasm.

MEETING of Asian American and ethnic-group leaders in Phila. at Democratic City Committee HQ brought national Democratic figures together. From left were Jack Hanna, Nebil Baraka, Marwan Kreidie, DNC Exec. Dir. Amy Dacey and Arab American leader Jim Zogby.

He joined Council President Darrell Clarke and a coalition of unions and nonprofits at a major voter outreach at Miller Memorial Baptist Church, 1518 N. 22nd Street, to intensify voter interest. Joining Clarke and Wolf was Gabe Morgan of 32BJ SEIU, and Bishop Dwayne Royster of the newly formed PA Working Families.

The rally comes in the wake of a new Census survey reconfirming Philadelphia’s status as the number-one big city in the nation for deep poverty. Nearly 40% of the state’s registered voters live in Philadelphia and the surrounding counties, underscoring the importance of local voters and issues in the 2014 election.

Also in town to generate enthusiasm is Democrat Presidential favorite Hillary Clinton. She needs to be careful her journey around town doesn’t disrupt traffic, angering voters.

Wolf is ahead in the polls by 17 points.

WILL A PENNSYLVANIATRADITION END NOV. 6?

In Pennsylvania there has existed the tradition one party holds the Pennsylvania governorship for eight years and then loses the office to the other party. This has been so going back to end of World War II, with few exceptions.

STATE REP. Keith Gillespie, chairman of House Urban Affairs Committee, and other members of his committee followed tour guide State Rep. Bill Keller, as they checked out neighborhood blight-remediation project sponsored by S. Phila. Area Revitalization Corp. SPARC purchased tax-delinquent properties, teamed with local builders to rejuvenate affected neighborhood. In photo from left are Carmen “Butchy” D’Amato. SPARC; Keller; Gillespie, State Rep. Tom Sankey; and Victor Folgosa, SPARC.

While this gubernatorial election is almost here, the polls are making it more evident every week Gov. Tom Corbett will become one of the rare one-termers. Voters have been calling Wolf, a York Co. businessman, “Governor.” He spent personal money early to run an effective media campaign and annihilated three established Democratic political figures to become his party’s nominee.

Unfortunately for Wolf, the same polls show a tendency growing toward Republicans’ retaining control of both House and Senate chambers of the General Assembly. That also points to State Rep. John Taylor (R-Northeast) as the most-important Philadelphian in that body; after all, he’s this city’s only Republican lawmaker.

KANE PROVIDES TOM WOLF WITH ‘CAMPAIGN INSURANCE’

In this gubernatorial race, other statewide line offices have played a major role, owing to the fact the incumbent Governor is a Republican, while all those other offices are held by Democrats.

Leading the effort to unseat Corbett is Attorney General Kathleen Kane, who has proven herself to be a feisty fighter since her election in 2012. Last week she dropped a bombshell on the Corbett campaign, in the form of leaked pornographic emails sent and received by some of Corbett’s old colleagues when he too was Attorney General – most of whom followed him into high-level positions in his administration. These emails drew a ton of spectacular media attention – five weeks out from election day – and forced the resignation of several players on Team Corbett.

Although the Governor reacted swiftly and firmly to these disclosures, this scandal inevitably casts a further pall over his image, hurting him worst, perhaps, with low-information voters; sex sells, after all.

Ironically, Kane’s move, whether politically motivated or not, recalls similar accusations leveled against Corbett when he was AG. He then led well-publicized investigations against General Assembly leaders, most of them Democrats, that led to their convictions – as well as, quite likely, the turnover of the House to Republicans. In all fairness, though, he did pursue and convict one Republican leader as well: House Speaker John Perzel of Northeast Philadelphia.

It will be interesting to see how many Democratic porn emails turn up in Kane’s current probe.

MOTION PICTURES CAPTURE 12TH WARD ELECTION RALLY

Leave it to Greg Paulmier to take to the Youtube screen to immortalize his Democratic 12th Ward’s activities. Doing the camerawork was Committeeman Brian Rudnick, who posted the ward’s endorsement of Arthur Haywood as the Democratic nominee to succeed retiring State Sen. LeAnna Washington (D-Northwest) on Youtube. He caught our publisher trying to line up a picture.

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