Do You Live Within 50 Miles of a Nuclear Plant?

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey wants to make sure Pennsylvanians living within 50 miles of a nuclear plant know what to do if there's an emergency.

With 80 percent of Pennsylvanians living within 50 miles of a nuclear plant, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) is calling on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to study how residents living more than ten miles from a nuclear power plant would react in the case of an emergency and to ensure that the best procedures are in place to keep all Pennsylvanians safe. Most Lehigh Valley residents live within 50 miles of the Limerick nuclear plant in Montgomery County. Folks in towns such as Macungie, Emmaus and Coopersburg are only about 25 miles from that plant. “More than 10 million Pennsylvanians, which is 80 percent of our population, live within 50 miles of a nuclear power plant,” wrote Senator Casey. “We need to ensure that appropriate plans…

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Presidential Election

Pennsylvania Election Results 2012

The Keystone State helped Barack Obama win re-election in what was a good night for Democrats across Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania helped President Barack Obama win re-election as U.S. Sen. Bob Casey fended off a feisty challenge from Republican coal magnate Tom Smith in what turned out to be a big night for Democrats in the Keystone State. Democrats held the lead in three state row office races as of 2:30 a.m. Wednesday with close to 98 percent of the vote in, according to unofficial results. Kathleen Kane, a former assistant district attorney from Lackawanna County, made history by becoming the first Democrat and first woman to be elected as the state's attorney general. The Republican candidate, David Freed, is a two-term district attorney in Cumberland County. Democrat Eugene DePasquale of York leads Republican John Maher of Allegheny in the auditor …

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Pa. Senate Race: Did Casey Help Smith with 'Tea Party' Ads?

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, left, may have helped Republican Tom Smith gain needed name recognition, resulting in a more competitive race

By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG — U.S. Sen. Bob Casey suddenly has a real race on his hands — and his own ads might be partially to blame. Until the past few weeks, the race between Casey, a first-term Democratic senator, and Republican challenger Tom Smith was considered a non-event. Casey was coasting toward re-election, and Smith, who won a five-way primary among a group of unknowns in April, was hardly considered a top-tier candidate for the Republicans. A farmer and coal executive from Armstrong County, Smith had plenty of money to make the race competitive, but as a political novice, he was miles behind Casey when it comes to name recognition. Then, he got a gift from Casey that may have contributed to Smith’s climb in the …

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Casey-Smith Senate Race Tightens

Polls show the race between U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and challenger Tom Smith has tightened

By Melissa Daniels/Pa. Independent HARRISBURG — Polls show the U.S. Senate race in Pennsylvania has tightened considerably, and finance reports released Monday from the two campaigns show Republican challenger Tom Smith might be in position for a final advertising push. Incumbent Democrat U.S. Sen. Bob Casey once held a commanding lead in polls, but that has narrowed considerably as Smith, a former coal executive from Armstrong County, is making gains. A poll from Muhlenberg College and The Morning Call released Monday shows Casey leading with 41 percent, and Smith close behind with 39 percent. The poll was conducted via telephone with 438 likely voters, with a margin of error of 5 percent. The poll shows Smith’s favorability rating has …

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State Candidates Could Dominate Airwaves in Pa.

State races could take center stage as far as TV commercials as presidential candidates pull spending in Pennsylvania

By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG – With both major presidential campaigns pulling ads from Pennsylvania airwaves recently, some political observers and operatives see at least a limited opportunity for other races to grab the spotlight. And while residents might be glad to know they won’t be barraged with anti-Obama and anti-Romney ads in the last seven weeks before Election Day, they might have to get ready for lots of ads touting U.S. Senate candidates Bob Casey andTom Smith, or attorney general candidates Dave Freed and Kathleen Kane.   Without presidential campaigns to compete with, state races running on smaller budgets have a chance to make a splash in Pennsylvania. “It’s a much better market right now for the lower level …

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Election Preview: U.S. Senate

Democratic incumbent Bob Casey Jr. faces a challenge from coal executive and Tea Party founder Tom Smith for the U.S. Senate seat.

  Incumbent Democrat Bob Casey Jr. of Scranton, Lackawanna County, faces a well-funded challenge from Republican Tom Smith of Shelocta, Armstrong County, in the race for one of Pennsylvania's two U.S. Senate seats. After a relatively slow start, the race gained momentum, with competing television ads from the candidates.   Smith also made news in an appearance before the Pennsylvania Press Club with remarks about abortion in which he likened a pregnancy resulting from rape to that of a pregnancy in which a child is born out of wedlock. Casey, one of eight children of the late Gov. Robert Casey, is a former teacher and attorney. He won the seat in 2006 after defeating former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, a conservative Republican. Prior to …

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Staberdearth

6:48 pm on Monday, November 5, 2012

You may not scare easily most likely because useful idiots do not scare easily, they tend to be too stupid to react to such concepts. Casey is a reluctant namesake puppet of the DNC, nothing more.   more ›

Smith Slams Casey on Economic Record

Republican Tom Smith is challenging U.S. Sen. Bob Casey on federal spending and Casey's voting record. Smith opposes abortion even in rape cases.

By Melissa Daniels | PA Independent HARRISBURG — GOP U.S. Senate hopeful Tom Smith grew up on an Armstrong Countyfarm and spent two decades running a coal mining business, both of which he used to illustrate his political agenda. When business is bad, “you downsize.” And if elected, that’s what he’d do to federal agencies, he said, determining which programs could be cut, if not eliminated. Smith shared a farm analogy of a leaking tractor fuel tank to discuss how he’d treat the federal deficit. “Do you continue to keep putting fuel in it? No. Fix the leaks,” Smith said to the media Monday during a Pennsylvania Press Club event at the Harrisburg Hilton.  But his series of fumbling comments regarding his pro-life stance, in which he appeared…

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Frank

10:52 am on Tuesday, September 4, 2012

You are absolutely correct, NM. I think we all are guilty of getting out of hand with our emotions when we're discussing politics. Hey, I just read this article and thought you may be interested in reading it. It's a great success story. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/03/dawn-halfaker-halfaker-associates_n_1818214.html?icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-main-bb%7Cdl1%7Csec3_lnk2%26pLid%3D200616   more ›