Posted on 07/29/2004 5:56:46 AM PDT by Born Conservative
As the Democratic presidential campaign thrusts Scranton into a national spotlight Friday, Northeastern Pennsylvania business leaders are wary that Sen. John Kerry will try to link a slumping national economy with a region finally reversing decades of decline.
And they're concerned that references -- by Mr. Kerry or the national media -- to a spike in the unemployment rate or a "struggling former coal town" will tarnish a reputation they've fought hard to boost.
"I sure do (worry)," said Christopher J. Haran, the executive director of the Great Valley Technology Alliance, a regional economic development group. "First of all, I don't think John Kerry has spent much time here. I think we're making progress.
"He's going to say what people want to hear. I don't think he has the understanding that this area has made a lot of progress ... It would be nice, for example, if he knew how we are a great potential suburb of New York City."
Mr. Kerry is scheduled to kick off a 21-state bus tour at a rally at 2 p.m. outside the Lackawanna County Courthouse the day after accepting the Democratic nomination for president.
Over the years, local civic and business leaders have complained when national media outlets referred to a distressed regional economy or coal mining industry that disappeared more than four decades ago. The reputation makes attracting new industry more difficult, they say.
But even at 7 percent in June, the region's unemployment rate was lower than during past recessions. And Lackawanna County's 6.2 percent rate wasn't all that far off from the 5.6 percent rate statewide and nationwide, said Austin J. Burke, the president of the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce.
"You always have concerns that anyone would speak knowledgeably," Mr. Burke said. "Now, I'll be the first one to say we should have more jobs and more good jobs here. But I'd like to have the opportunity to talk about opportunities for investors and employers."
Earlier this week, Mark Nevins, the chief spokesman for the Kerry-Edwards Pennsylvania campaign, said President Bush's handling of the economy hit Scranton hard because plants closed and moved out of the country.
In 2001, nearly 1,100 workers lost their jobs in Dunmore when the Thomson Consumer Electronic plant closed and its operations moved to Mexico.
Other plants closed and jobs moved elsewhere in the United States. For example, Exide Technologies closed its battery plant in Dunmore in 2001, costing about 300 people their jobs. Some of the production moved to Louisiana.
On Wednesday, Mr. Nevins said the campaign recognizes "that there's been growth in certain sectors.
"But our platform is that Scranton and Wilkes-Barre can continue to grow and grow faster ... with better-paying jobs if we put somebody else in the White House who better understands the problems the Northeast is facing."
Across Pennsylvania, new jobs pay an average of 30 percent less than the jobs they replaced and are 25 percent less likely to provide the same benefits, Mr. Nevins said.
Mayor Chris Doherty, who has drawn praise for much of the current $200 million worth of development in downtown Scranton, could not be reached for comment in Boston, where he is attending the convention.
U.S. Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski, D-Nanticoke, also at the convention, said he expects the Democratic flag-bearer to talk positively about growth through new technologies.
"I don't worry about what he'll say because what matters is the press is going to get a chance to see Scranton and how prosperous it looks compared to other cities" and to 20 years ago, Mr. Kanjorski said. "We're on our way. We're making tremendous strides."
Glenn R. Pellino, the director of the county Council on Community and Economic Development, said the impression left depends on the national media. But trying to change a community's image takes time and what happens Friday will matter little in the long run, he said.
People deciding to settle locally or businesses seeking new locations look deeper than what they see during a political campaign, he said.
"I think the reality of what's going on, finally, is what matters most," he said.
Somebody's just not making logical connections here:
When your workforce is overpaid, the jobs go elsewhere - Louisiana, Mississippi, Mexico - and all the complaining in the world won't change the laws of economics.
If they have complaints, perhaps they should address them to their union leaders - if those souls haven't already left town.
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