Free Republic

A new video advertisement from conservative advocacy group Let Freedom Ring features the stories of several Delphi salaried retirees, who lost their pensions at the hand of the Secretary Tim Geithner’s Department of Treasury. “I would ask President Obama why I had no rights and he had all the rights to take my pension away and never ever look back and say not only did I take it from Mary Miller, but I took it from 20,000 other people and their families,” one Delphi salaried retiree, Mary Miller, says in the ad. “It’s made life pretty rough. I’ve really struggled...

Though both sides are adept at putting the most favorable spin on their electoral prospects, strategists for the Obama and Romney campaigns largely agree on which so-called swing states are truly up for grabs and which ones clearly lean a particular way. But perhaps the most glaring exception to that broad consensus is Pennsylvania...

TUESDAY, JULY 31, 2012 GOP rips Sen. Bob Casey (D,Pa) as shadow of father A pair of speakers at a Republican victory rally Monday afternoon in Lancaster were unsparing in their contempt for Sen. Bob Casey (D.,Pa.), including the party’s nominee to replace him, businessman Tom Smith. “Bobby Casey is not Robert Casey,” said state Rep. Scott Boyd, newly elected chairman of the Lancaster County GOP, referring to the late former governor and namesake of the incumbent senator. “The nut fell far from the tree on this one,” Boyd said, to laughter and applause. In particular, he said, young Casey...

I couldn't get in. Packed at 2:15pm with cars backed out to the street. Other resturants in the immediate area (McD's, Tim Hortons, Taco Bell) were dead since lunch rush was over. Seems North Western Pennsylvanians (and a few New Yorkers - saw the plates in the parking lot) decided to Eat Mor Chikin today. Officially: I estimate about 100 standing in line, 150 seated, and 30 cars at drive-thru when I was there. Talked to an employee in the restroom while trying to get my camera ready for a few photos. Dude said it's been crazy all day, and...

Two coal companies in Pennsylvania blamed President Obama and his Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the layoffs announced last week. “[T]he escalating costs and uncertainty generated by recently advanced EPA regulations and interpretations have created a challenging business climate for the entire coal industry,” said PBS Coals Inc. President and CEO D. Lynn Shanks in a statement on Friday, as noted by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The company also cited weaker-than-normal demand for coal. Shanks’ comment on the EPA came as he announced a 28 percent work force reduction. “PBS Coals Inc. and its affiliate company, RoxCoal Inc., laid off about...

Rick Santorum will appear Saturday at an event for presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney, according to a Romney campaign official. The event, a campaign office opening outside of Pittsburgh, marks the first time Santorum will officially campaign for his former Republican primary foe...

What those reports missed was that Romney pulled off a spontaneous visit to a location lacking any staged comforts. Except for a handful of supporters who learned of the venue change, Romney was on his own: No handmade signs from devoted fans. No local elected officials to ease his transition or to crack jokes. No balloons. No perfectly timed advance movements. It was the sort of unstructured event that causes campaign staffers to prematurely gray. Despite a reputation for being awkward among regular folks, Romney proved to be capable of acting on the fly. He found a way to take...

The past month has seen the momentum of the 2012 presidential election shift significantly. The national race is now in a virtual dead heat, and most key swing states are within the margin of error. And most important, it appears that Mitt Romney has expanded the playing field to include some states previously thought to be securely in President Obama’s column—including, in my view, Pennsylvania. I base these conclusions on an analysis of surveys conducted since the beginning of June. Here’s what they show. (When there are multiple surveys, as there are in most cases, these figures represent averages.) Wisconsin...

When Mitt Romney's bus tour pulls into Pennsylvania on Saturday, it will be entering a state no Republican candidate has won since George H.W. Bush in 1988. John McCain lost the state to Barack Obama by more than 10 points in 2008, and with 1 million more voters registered Democrat than Republican, it should be enemy territory for the Romney team. But Romney will make three stops there on Saturday and this time the GOP thinks it can take the state and its 20 electoral votes. The presumptive nominee is sounding confident, telling a Philadelphia radio station this week, "We...

Poll: Obama leads Romney in Pa. June 12, 2012 President Obama holds a six-point lead over Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney in Pennsylvania, built on advantages among women and independents, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Tuesday. Mr. Obama leads Mr. Romney 46 percent to 40 percent, down from an eight-point margin a month ago in the same survey. The president leads among women 51 percent to 36 percent, and among independents 43 percent to 35 percent.

An untold story today following yesterday’s Pennsylvania primaries is what a bad, bad night it was for Planned Parenthood.In Pennsylvania’s 134th House district, they spent an eye-popping $100,000 on a TV ad campaign trying to sink the candidacy of Republican Ryan Mackenzie by linking him to ultrasound legislation that was before the legislature.As Politico noted, this was seen as a trial-balloon of sorts: Most state legislative races and ad campaigns don’t necessarily have any larger resonance, but Democrats have been working to make the ultrasound bill the kind of liability for Republicans in Pennsylvania that a related proposal became for...

Armstrong County coal entrepreneur Tom Smith broke away from a crowded field of contenders on Tuesday to win the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate and the opportunity to take on incumbent Sen. Bob Casey Jr. Smith, 64, of Plumcreek won 42 percent of the vote with 65 percent of precincts reporting, preliminary results showed. "This election will be about Sen. Casey's record. In his six years in the Senate, Casey has been President Obama's most trusted ally in massively expanding government, ballooning the debt and eroding our freedoms," Smith said. "A half-million unemployed Pennsylvanians deserve a senator with the real...

President of the United States Republican Primary Candidate Votes Percent GINGRICH, NEWT (REP) 62,556 10.6% ROMNEY, MITT (REP) 339,097 57.3% PAUL, RON (REP) 77,897 13.2% SANTORUM, RICK (REP) 112,061 18.9% Democratic Primary Candidate Votes Percent OBAMA, BARACK (DEM) 484,958 100.0% -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- United States Senator Republican Primary Candidate Votes Percent CHRISTIAN, DAVID ALAN (REP) 54,691 9.8% SCARINGI, MARC A. (REP) 40,834 7.4% WELCH, STEVEN D. (REP) 114,296 20.6% SMITH, TOM (REP) 231,013 41.6% ROHRER, SAM (REP) 115,072 20.7% Democratic Primary Candidate Votes Percent VODVARKA, JOSEPH JOHN (DEM) 108,888 20.2% CASEY, JR, BOB (DEM) 429,419 79.8%

(Newser) – Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, and Delaware hold their Republican primaries today and while many observers have already heard the fat lady sing for Newt Gingrich, there may still be a twist or two left in the race. Gingrich has been spending a lot of time in Delware and he may be able to rally conservatives and jolt Mitt Romney by snatching a surprise primary win like the one Christine O'Donnell scored in 2010, Politico finds. Gingrich—who has had more penguin bites than primary wins since taking Georgia seven weeks ago—needs five wins to get on the...

As Republican Party leaders increasingly coalesce behind Mitt Romney as their presumed nominee for President this year, a defiant Newt Gingrich fights on and insists he will continue his own campaign until the GOP national convention in Tampa this summer. Following a fighting speech and hero’s welcome at the Lancaster County Republican Party dinner Tuesday night -- in which he followed Romney to the speaker’s podium -- the former House speaker spelled out to Human Events just why he remains an active candidate. “I owe it to the conservative movement to stay in the race,” Gingrich told us, emphasizing that...

April 5, 2012 Poll Watch: Rasmussen 2012 Pennsylvania Republican Primary Survey Rasmussen has just released their first Pennsylvania poll: Rasmussen 2012 Pennsylvania Republican Primary Survey Rick Santorum 42% Mitt Romney 38% Ron Paul 7% Newt Gingrich 6% Other 2% Undecided 5% This Pennsylvania survey of 750 Likely Republican Primary Voters was conducted on April 4, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. … Eighty-three percent (83%) of Republican primary voters in Pennsylvania now believe Romney will be the party’s presidential nominee. Only 10% think Santorum will emerge...

The first half of the program has ended. Dinner is now being served to attendees. Stay tuned for more coming up around 8:15, with Newt Gingrich taking the stage around 8:30.

Former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum holds a four-point lead in his home state in Rasmussen Reports’ first look at the upcoming Pennsylvania Republican Primary. A new statewide telephone survey finds that 42% of Likely GOP Primary Voters support Santorum, while former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney picks up 38% of the vote. Texas Congressman Ron Paul earns seven percent (7%), and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is at six percent (6%). Two percent (2%) like some other candidate in the race, and five percent (5%) are undecided.

Two days after losing three more primaries, Rick Santorum appears to be in trouble in his home state: Mitt Romney’s taken the lead in PPP’s newest poll of Rick Santorum’s home state of Pennsylvania. Romney has 42% to 37% for Santorum with Ron Paul at 9% and Newt Gingrich at 6%. The numbers represent a dramatic turnaround from when PPP polled the state a month ago. Romney’s gained 17 points, going from 25% to 42%. Meanwhile Santorum’s dropped 6 points from 43% to 37%, for an overall swing of 23 points in the last four weeks.

March 14, 2012 - Favorite Son Santorum Thumps Romney In Pennsylvania, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Santorum Ties Obama In Fall Matchup Pennsylvania Republicans are going for favorite son Rick Santorum big time, giving the former U.S. Senator a 36 - 22 percent lead over former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney in the Keystone State's presidential primary, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. Texas U.S. Rep. Ron Paul has 12 percent, with 8 percent for former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. In a head-to-head matchup, Santorum tops Romney 52 - 32 percent among Republican voters, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll...