New PA-04 District Draws Good Candidates (Goodman and Daley)

The ink is barely dry on the new PA Congressional district map and the newly drawn PA-04, most of Montgomery County and a small piece of Berks County, is drawing good Democratic candidates.  Unless Congressman Brendan Boyle (representing the current 13th district, part of Philadelphia and part of Montco) decides to run in the 4th, this new district wouldn't have an incumbent. 

Two people have announced their candidacies:

Shira Goodman (www.voteshiragoodman.com), currently the executive director of CeaseFirePA.  Here is a short bio from her press release:

Shira Goodman is a life-long resident of Montgomery County, growing up in Abington and graduating from Abington High School. After attending college at the University of Michigan and law school at Yale, Shira returned to Montgomery County and is now raising her sons with her husband Alan Woronoff. Their eldest, Jason, is a senior at Upper Dublin High School and Brandon is a freshman. Alan is a radiologist working at Abington Hospital, Jefferson Health System. The Goodman family have been longtime members of Congregation Adath Jeshurun in Elkins Park, and Shira's family is now also actively involved with Temple Sinai in Dresher. Shira is currently the Executive Director of CeaseFirePA, Pennsylvania's largest gun violence prevention organization. 

Mary Jo Daley,  currently serving as a PA State Representative.  Her state rep campaign site is www.maryjodaley.com.  Here is a short bio from her press release:

Rep. Mary Jo Daley was first elected to represent Montgomery County’s 148th Legislative District in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2012. She was first elected to the Narberth Borough Council in 1992 where she went on to serve 10 years as council president. She lives with her husband Bob Winkelman in Narberth and her daughter, stepdaughter and grandchildren live across southeastern Pennsylvania.

It is likely that other Democrats will also file as candidates, and since the county has also been represented by Republicans, perhaps there will be a real race, with good candidates on both sides. 

Let the games begin!

J R Rowan in 184th State House Race

from the inbox:

South Philly native Jonathan “JR” Rowan today announced his candidacy for the 184^th state house district following the retirement of Representative Bill Keller.

“Representative Keller has been a reliable advocate for South Philadelphia neighborhoods for 25 years,” said Rowan. “Our communities would not have grown and thrived without his leadership in Harrisburg and I thank Representative Keller for his public service.”

JR is a lifelong resident of South Philadelphia and has served our community for 20 years in the district offices of two state senators. He has also been involved locally as a coach at EOM Athletic Association, youth sports organizer, board member of Victims Witness Services of South Philadelphia, honorary board member of the South Philadelphia Civic Association, and Democratic Executive Committee Representative.

“South Philly needs a fighter with deep ties to the community to fill this seat and hit the ground running,” Rowan continued. “I understand our neighborhoods, and I have decades of experience working to deliver services for South Philly students, working families, and seniors.”

Rowan will have more details on his campaign and platform in the coming weeks, along with a more formal press event to discuss his candidacy.

Leon Angelichio Runs in 53 State House Race

from the inbox:

Leon Angelichio, Democratic candidate for Pennsylvania State Representative in the 53rd Legislative District, is inspired by the energy and support he is already seeing among his family, friends, and supporters. “People are fired up this year – I’ve never seen anything like it. We already have more volunteers than we had 2 years ago, and we have several upcoming fundraisers and meet-and-greets. I look forward to meeting many new people in the district!”
 

Angelichio is running on a platform that includes responsible, sustainable budgeting, as well as supporting education as the foundation of our future workforce, allowing women to make their own health care choices, and protecting the environment. “Did you know that only half of our fishing streams are actually fishable? That’s shameful, and it’s one of the many things I want to address in Harrisburg.”
 

Leon is proud to be a blue-collar candidate. “I’m one of the guys who take showers after work, not before work. I believe people are looking for someone who understands what it’s like to work hard, get your hands dirty, and make an honest living.” He has been an HVAC Licensed Master Technician for 24 years and an owner of Angie Mechanical for 8 years.
                                                                                                                    

Angelichio is currently serving his second term on Lansdale Borough Council and is a member of the Administration & Finance Committee and the Public Works Committee. He is active in the Democratic Party, and is married with 2 children.
 

Refer to the campaign website at www.VoteLeon.com for additional information. The 53rd Legislative District includes Lansdale Borough, Hatfield Township and Borough, Franconia Township, Souderton Borough, Telford Borough (Montgomery County portion only), and Salford Township.

Book Review: Mayor, by Michael Nutter

Book Review:  Mayor:  The Best Job in Politics, by Michael A. Nutter.  (Philadelphia, PA:  University of Pennsylvania Press, 2018)

This is a really nice book.  It’s easy to read and interesting enough to keep the reader’s attention.  Nutter’s personality, wonky and sincere, comes through.  He dedicates the book to “the incredible citizens of Philadelphia who cared about me and gave me a chance to lead our great city, …” and his teachers, his council staff, and mayoral administration.

Like most autobiographies he starts off with his childhood.  He gives a quick overview of Philadelphia culture, the middle class city neighborhood he grew up in, and the importance of which city high school you attend.  He had intended to be a doctor but changed course after not doing well in Chemistry 101.  And, yes, he discusses his work as a DJ, which actually allowed him to meet a lot of politically connected people.  He talks frankly about his growing interest in politics and his introduction to running for office (and losing) and working within the system as it is.  His description of Philadelphia political players and the campaigns he worked on (John C Anderson), and other political influences (Marian Tasco and Bill Gray) is interesting and informative.  Patience is a virtue when in office and Nutter discusses the issues he was concerned about as a city councilman, and the years it could take to pass legislation, as well as the relationships needed to get the requisite votes.  Nutter can get way out into the weeds in these sections but it is still interesting.

From there he writes about his city council and mayoral campaigns (with a bow to the commercial with his daughter).  The second part of the books is devoted to his years as mayor.  In the introduction he describes being mayor as lonely, but also as a position that allows you to “accomplish tangible things” (kindle loc 90).  In a discussion of politics he says:  “My attitude was that if you do your job, more times than not, you’ll get reelected.  But if you get to the point where you think your job is keeping your job, rather than thinking your job is to do your job, then that’s a sad place to be.” (p. 44)

One of my favorite quotes on campaigning is “When you watch a campaign, it is a window into the soul of how that candidate will govern.” (p. 61).  He governed with similar values.  He writes of having the Chief Integrity Officer’s office right next to his (p. 78)

The recession overshadowed his term as mayor.  He writes often about trying to be as transparent as possible with the people of Philadelphia.  Many of the things he wanted to do were sacrificed just to keep the city afloat.  However, he notes “we were one of the only big cities in American to have our bond rating upgraded” (p. 105) during difficult fiscal times.

He discusses not only his successes but his failures (the idea to close libraries, for example) and how proud he was to have been sued by the NRA.  He writes about spending time with the families of fallen police officers, and his speech chiding parents who don’t take care of their children.  He writes about snowstorms and earthquakes, the Occupy movement, helping people keep their homes when their neighborhoods gentrified, and the potential sale of PGW.

So there are lengthy discussions of policy, a little gossip about John Street, and a great overview of how the city works (or doesn’t).

I enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. 

Eagles Mural

On the train home tonight I was chatting with the woman sitting next to me.  She showed me a photo on her phone of a painting with an eagle carrying a football player.  The woman wasn't sure if the eagle was carrying a Philadelphia player to victory or carrying off a Patriots player.  I pulled up my phone and checked my Jane mail.  Low and behold there was an email about the same mural.  Turns out the eagle is carrying off Tom Brady. 

The mural was painted by artists at the Meg Seligman studio.  It is currently located at the studio, 829 Bainbridge St.  The studio is raising funds to create a larger mural.  If you want to see what it looks like now and what it could look like check out:  https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/eagles-victory-mural-sports-art#/

It was nice talking with my seatmate.

Paul Perry Writes About Campaigning

Paul Perry, one time candidate for Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district, has written an essay describing his experience campaigning.  Read "What it's like to be rolodexed," in The Intercept (1/31//2018) .