Yesterday, the state senate passed Pat Browne's proposal to demolish the state hospital by a 49 to 0 vote. This is in spite of a local petition effort to save the historic campus of buildings.
Although the original portion of the plan to sell the property to a Doylestown developer has been set aside, which developer ends up with the cleared parcel remains to be seen. Considering Browne's influence, it may well be the Doylestown guy, or some proxy for him.
Although different locals are offended by almost every element of this screenplay, my attention is focused on the power of Pat Browne. He is the same senator who created the J.B. Reilly empire called the NIZ.
But as amazing as Browne's power is, we must also marvel at the ineptitude of state government in Pennsylvania. Since the reformer governor Wolf was elected, we haven't seen one reform in this state. We still have the highest gas tax. We still have the largest number of representatives in a state house. We still have dozens of overpaid commissions who do nothing but collect a salary.
I snickered at the news about exploring doing away with school taxes. They have been saying that since 1975. First it was going to be the lottery, You gotta play to win. Then it was the casinos.
What we have in Harrisburg is nothing but a club of mutual back scratchers. How else could anybody explain a 49 to 0 vote.
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I couldn't agree more with what you had written here Mike. Harrisburg is cesspool of self service, corruption, and slovenliness.
ReplyDeleteI can't help but think that this is some sort of payback for Jenn Mann's last minute endorsement of Browne in his last election.
ReplyDeleteI hope it was all worth it to Pat, because this type of cronyism is precisely why so many people didn't vote for him last election.
Maybe he doesn't plan to run again.
If he does, I can only hope that someone challenges him next primary. If he's not removed in the primary, I will vote democrat in the General. I'm a life-long Republican but I will vote for whatever candidate the democrats put forth, no matter how offensive they are.
There has to be a price for these types of sleazy backroom deals. While the democrats might not hold their politicians accountable for such actions, I am hopeful that Republicans will.
This only proves the only time politicians are bipartisan is when it comes to corruption.
ReplyDeleteDuring the Rendell era there was a remediation company in there doing core samples of everything. Doors, walls, floors, etc. Then all of sudden they just stopped. To even step foot in there the minimum charge would be $60 million. The hospital had its own incinerator. The ash along with patient's old medicine and who knows what else were routinely dumped in a pit out back.
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