Free Republic

Swann asks Rendell to switch jobs By Michael Miller LEADER TIMES Friday, July 7, 2006 Lynn Swann wants to trade jobs with Gov. Ed Rendell. Swann, who worked for ABC sports for 28 years, told a crowd of supporters in Kittanning yesterday that he's looking to become the next governor, and that the governor can become a full-time broadcaster. Rendell has a side gig as a commentator for a cable network covering the Philadelphia Eagles. "Come November, vote for me for governor, and make him the broadcaster full-time," Swann said. The Republican candidate for governor spoke to a small crowd...

Does race really matter in American politics? And if so, to whom? For some time there has been a disconnect between the party that wins most of the black votes (the Democrats) and the party that promotes black individuals into powerful positions (the Republicans). Who are the most influential African Americans today? Clarence Thomas and Condoleeza Rice are the first names that spring to mind. Of course, that is partly because there is currently a Republican administration. But, in eight years, did Bill Clinton make cabinet appointments of the stature of Rice or Colin Powell? Where are the next generation...

Bush may help Swann raise funds By David M. Brown TRIBUNE-REVIEW Tuesday, June 20, 2006 Lynn Swann is down in the polls, but his bid to unseat Gov. Ed Rendell is getting a boost from national GOP groups and a prospective presidential visit.

LANCASTER COUNTY, PA - When it comes to opinion polls and raising money in the race for governor, Republican Lynn Swann is suffering a pretty decisive shellacking at the hands of Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell. And now the White House wants to turn the tide. President Bush has agreed to appear with the Republican NFL Hall of Famer at an Aug. 16 fundraising reception in Lancaster County, a Swann campaign official told the New Era. “It is confirmed that we are going to get the president,” Joel Mack, the regional political director for Swann and running mate Jim Matthews, told...

Lynn Swann is widely known as a former Pittsburgh Steeler superstar, an impressive motivational speaker, and a popular network sports commentator. It's a persona he clearly revels in. But now a gubernatorial aspirant, Swann may be poised to become even better known as the "former next governor" of Pennsylvania. It's an unflattering sobriquet he is unlikely to relish nearly as much. How Swann has gone from cause celebre to looming lost cause is the question de jure in Pennsylvania politics His descent has been swift. Only months ago, anointed as the nominee of the Republican Party, Swann, seemed ready to...

In fundraising, Rendell piles it on as Swann plays catch-up By David M. Brown TRIBUNE-REVIEW Friday, June 16, 2006 Lynn Swann was fleet on the gridiron, but the former Steelers star is eating Gov. Ed Rendell's dust in the dash to raise campaign cash.

Same old Pa GOP: Issue the tomahawks Tuesday, June 6, 2006 What is it that the Republican State Committee of Pennsylvania and powerful state legislative GOPers don't understand about being Republicans or conservatives? Just about everything.

Ridge urges GOP to unite behind Swann By Mike Wereschagin TRIBUNE-REVIEW Wednesday, May 31, 2006 Former Gov. Tom Ridge urged Republicans to put aside their misgivings about Lynn Swann and unite behind him in his bid to unseat Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell.

A sliver of hope for the Swann campaign? By Salena Zito TRIBUNE-REVIEW Sunday, May 28, 2006 The opposing team is befuddled. The media are bored. The electorate is disengaged. And the campaign team? Bush (with a small "b") league.

Swann alleges Rendell camp thwarts would-be donors By The Associated Press Friday, May 26, 2006 PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Republican gubernatorial hopeful Lynn Swann said Friday that some of his supporters are not contributing to his campaign because people in the Rendell administration or the governor's campaign have indicated it could jeopardize their state contracts or grants. "His party machinery is out there putting the squeeze on people, saying 'don't contribute to Swann's campaign,"' Swann told The Associated Press in his first extended interview with a Pennsylvania news organization.

Ridge to join Swann's campaign By David M. Brown TRIBUNE-REVIEW Republican gubernatorial candidate Lynn Swann hopes to get a boost by adding former Gov. Tom Ridge, a heavy hitter in Pennsylvania politics, to his campaign team.

Hope springs eternal when black Republicans seek higher office, yet often the first question that hits them is what are they doing in the GOP. This election year, a man named Steele in Maryland and a former football star named Swann in Pennsylvania are among a small but determined number of black candidates trying to win one for the Republicans despite the Democratic Party's near lock on the black vote. Republican Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, a former seminarian with a law degree from Georgetown University, is seeking the open Senate seat in November. He is looking to translate one accomplishment...

HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Nearly 22,000 Pennsylvania Republicans who voted for Lynn Swann as the GOP nominee for governor withheld their support from U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum in Tuesday's primary. Both candidates were unopposed. Mr. Swann, the former Steelers star, received 574,276 votes, while Mr. Santorum, who is seeking a third term in the Senate, drew 552,559, according to unofficial totals compiled by the Pennsylvania Department of State that were 99 percent complete today. In the Nov. 7 general election, Mr. Swann will face Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell while Santorum is running against state Treasurer Bob Casey. Less than six months...

Analysis: GOP results bode poorly for November vote Republicans' anger could drag down Santorum, Swann Thursday, May 18, 2006 By James O'Toole and Tom Barnes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Incumbents of both parties were targeted by state pay raise opponents in the months leading to Tuesday's primary, but the day's victims were disproportionately Republican. Champions and casualties of that upheaval agreed that it would have consequences in November in and beyond the legislative races. In particular, several experts suggested, the evidence of disaffection among core Republican voters presents challenges for U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum and gubernatorial nominee Lynn Swann in promoting the...

Yesterday was the first election for which I was old enought to cast a ballot. I was the fifth voter of the morning at my rural polling place and proudly voted for Lynn Swann for the GOP nomination for Governor. Thanks to the unfunded mandate of the Help America Vote Act everyone had to get used to the touch screen Sequoia machines. I noticed that these machines have been programmed to make "undervoting" extremely cumbersome. You have to hit "confirm" two time, rather than the normal one time, if you have deliberately decided not to dilute your vote by spreading...

'Earthquake in Pennsylvania' By Brad Bumsted and Debra Erdley TRIBUNE-REVIEW Wednesday, May 17, 2006 Angry taxpayers on Tuesday tossed out the two Republican Senate leaders who helped engineer last year's legislative pay raise, an issue that apparently cost 13 House members their jobs, too.

Rendell widens lead over Swann Friday, May 12, 2006 By Tom Barnes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette HARRISBURG -- Things keep getting better for Gov. Ed Rendell. Three different polls in the past two weeks have put him up over Republican challenger Lynn Swann by 1 percentage point, 8 points and 14 points. But today, according to a new poll, the incumbent Democrat is ahead by a whopping 22 points -- 55 percent to 33 percent for Mr. Swann. That's according to a poll from Quinnipiac University in Connecticut. The poll was taken of 1,487 registered Pennsylvania voters from May 2 to 8,...

Gov. Ed Rendell has gained ground on Republican challenger Lynn Swann, according to a poll released Thursday, three months after the same researcher found the football legend nipping at the governor's heels. The statewide poll also found Democrat Bob Casey's lead over incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum (news, bio, voting record) had shrunk from double digits in February to 6 percentage points. Rendell led Swann 49 percent to 35 percent in the latest Keystone Poll, conducted by the Center for Opinion Research at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster. The telephone survey of 578 registered voters had an error...

Santorum closes gap, Rendell widens lead By Brad Bumsted and David M. Brown TRIBUNE-REVIEW Thursday, May 4, 2006 HARRISBURG -- Aided by a $1-million-plus TV advertising blitz, Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell has opened a 14-point lead in his re-election campaign against Republican challenger Lynn Swann, according to the latest Pittsburgh Tribune-Review/WTAE-Channel 4 Keystone poll. The statewide poll of 578 registered voters released today also showed U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Penn Hills, has pulled within six points of his likely Democratic challenger, state Treasurer Robert P. Casey Jr., of Scranton.

Seemingly unrelated events, aren't By Eric Heyl TRIBUNE-REVIEW Sunday, April 30, 2006 Can it be done? Can a seemingly random collection of items be seamlessly woven together into a column that informs and enlightens you? Let's give it a try. Let's somehow link Gov. Ed Rendell, the Pirates, the Penguins, former President Bill Clinton, political grandstander Jesse Jackson, the Democratic National Committee, the nation's largest cable TV provider and speculation on why the governor is intervening in what should be a private business transaction.