Gov Rendell at the PA Press Club (Snippets)

I spent a few hours this afternoon and evening on the phone with various tech support people trying to get the household wireless up and running again. PCN was on in the background and I caught a few snippets of Gov. Rendell's appearance at the PA Press Club, mc'ed by the inestimable John Micek of the blogosphere's Capitol Ideas, and, oh yeah, the Allentown Morning Call.

Rendell started off saying Pennsylvania ranked #1 in the country in foreign investments (foreign interests investing in PA). He credited Dennis Yablonsky at the Dept. of Community and Economic Development for this success. [Personal note, this summer Joe Hoeffel was named Deputy Secretary for the Office of International Business Development.]

At some point later in the event Rendell mentioned that he pays for his own Zocor because the state's health plan will only cover the generic and if you want the brandname you have to pay out of pocket. He chooses to do this for that particular medication.

It is clear that Rendell enjoys his job, or at least enjoys talking about it. One of the questions was from an elementary school student who asked what he should do if he wants to be governor when he grows up. Rendell suggested taking public speaking classes. He talked about how much he likes being in public service, although he doesn't earn as much money as he would in private practice. He did say the hours are long and that he and wife only get to go out to a movie together once or twice a year and he hardly ever sees the evening news because of the long hours. He also made a joke about everyone knowing his weight.