News & Brews April 8, 2022
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NEA spent twice as much on politics as on members’ needs
If spending is any indication of priorities, then the nation’s largest teachers’ union cares a lot more about advancing its political agenda than serving its members’ needs. According to data analysis by Americans for Fair Treatment, in 2020-2021, the National Education Association “spent $2 on politics for every $1 it spent on representing its members.”Read more at the Washington Examiner.
GOP voter registration ‘surge’ in PA is ‘warning sign for Democrats’
Reuters analyzed voter registration data “in six states that could see tight U.S. Senate races in November and which generally require voters to be members of a party to participate in nominating contests,” and concluded, “Nowhere is the Republican advance in voter registration more evident than in Pennsylvania, where so far this year Republicans have converted four Democrats for every Republican who has switched to the Democratic Party, according to data published by Pennsylvania’s Department of State.” Read the story here.
A look at 1st-quarter spending in the governor’s race
PennLive takes a look at how much the gubernatorial candidates raised and spent in the first quarter of 2022. For context, the figures do not include in-kind contributions and most 2021 money. By my tally, if you include 2021, when several candidates were already raising money, the total raised by all candidates still in the race, including in-kind contributions, is nearly $40 million. Democrat Josh Shapiro raised more than $18 million of this. Total spent among candidates is more than $15.8 million.
Anti-fracking groups back Shapiro for governor
No surprise here, but a slew of anti-fracking environmental groups endorsed Democrat Josh Shapiro for governor. These include Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania, the National Wildlife Foundation Action Fund, PennEnvironment, the Clean Air Action Fund, and Clean Water Action. The political director of Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania stated, “We are excited to announce this historic endorsement of Josh Shapiro, a candidate with a long and proven track record of environmental protection and an exciting platform that will power Pennsylvania into the 21st century with a sustainable green energy economy.” By the way, that platform includes eliminating thousands of jobs by backing RGGI as attorney general and targeting natural gas companies and the blue-collar jobs they create.
Ad in Dem Senate primary causes a ruckus
A super PAC supporting Democrat Conor Lamb for U.S. Senate came under fire for running an ad calling Democrat candidate John Fetterman a “self-described democratic-socialist.” Apparently, this quote was a news story’s description of Fetterman, not his own self-description. The Inquirer has more.