This is Your Rep: Charlie Dent Edition

This one goes out to all you left leaning independents living in Middletown, Hershey, and Derry Township. 

Charlie Dent wants to be seen as a moderate Republican. A pragmatist surrounded by loons. It might even look that way unless you are paying close attention.

Dent represents PA's 15th congressional district. A sweeping district from the Lehigh Valley out Hershey and Middletown in our county.

He has made headlines since the beginning of the government shutdown trying to come off as a moderate, calling for a "clean" continuing resolution to fund the government. He was quoted on September 28th saying

"Let's see what the Senate sends back," said Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.) "If they send back another clean CR, I suspect -- again, I'm not making a decision on what's going to be on the floor -- a clean CR would likely to be on the floor at some point."

"I'm prepared to vote for a clean CR," he said. "I don't want the government to shut down." 

He definitely wanted to be seen as leading House Republicans back to sanity. Here is Vickers from the 15th.

A deal to end to the federal government shutdown may be in the offing, U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent said Tuesday. 

During an appearance on MSNBC's “Daily Rundown” this morning, the Allentown Republican said a GOP House conference deal to end the shutdown could be sent to the Senate today. 

The proposal would delay implementation of the medical device tax in the Affordable Care Act for two years, prevent members of Congress, all the White House staff from participating in the act's health care exchanges, and remove Senate language on a reinsurance tax.

We all know of course how this became an obvious dead end, but it also shows Dent's bad faith.

With the shutdown having gone on for weeks, Dent, while brandishing a claim to moderation, was no more active on the matter than anyone else in the House Republican Caucus; he was acting clearly in bad faith.

If Dent truly was concerned with the shutdown and its effects he would have signed the discharge petition when it was proposed. He didn't and the shutdown went on for 16 useless days. Geeting explains it best.

Charlie Dent is in lockstep with House Republicans on the goal of defunding Obamacare, repealing Obamacare, and replacing it with hand-waiving at capping damages in medical malpractice lawsuits and similarly ineffectual policies. 

He’s been called a moderate in the press recently because he publicly disagreed with a tactic – shutting down the government – House Republicans wanted to use to try to defund Obamacare. He correctly predicted that wouldn’t work to defund Obamacare. But he’s still for defunding Obamacare and replacing it with nothing even closely approximating universal insurance coverage. One wonders what he would’ve done had he judged the shutdown to be an effective tactical move.

Also, how can we forget that time he voted for H.R. 3 which redefined rape? 

Dem's Moratorium Vote Pushes The Conversation/Policy Left

At the PA Democratic Party's summer state committee meeting, a resolution passed calling for a moratorium on fracking until health risks are known. This week Robert Vickers writes in his Patriot-News column about the divisions that move has caused in the party. 

If fracking supporters do that [make the case that fracking is safe scientifically and openly]- possibly as soon as Sept. 27 when the state committee next meets - he says moratorium forces would be willing to change their position. 

And that would make the 2014 election cycle much smoother for Democratic candidates wary of a natural gas industry knockout campaign contribution to their opponents.

The post, draws the conclusion that the division may lead to negative outcomes for Dems in 14'. I think understates the value that the divisions have.

Yes, Vickers is right that the move might make the energy industry uneasy about supporting candidates with a D next to their name after the resolution, but for the most part those party leaders are few and far between.

State Senator Jim Ferlo (D-Allegheny) has pushed for such a moratorium but it has minimal support in the legislature. None of the major Gubernatorial candidates support stopping of natural gas drilling. So what is the value of, as Vickers says a "toothless statements of intent"?

It serves to show that regular rank and file members of the party are not comfortable with the practice of fracking regardless of what their party leaders say and making that clear can have policy repercussions. 

Governor Corbett has largely let frackers run wild and minimized state authority over them, de juris and de facto. A new Democratic governor with abundant industry funding available to them may have to think twice now before acting.

The moratorium resolution has merit if nothing else, by telling party leaders that they better be listening to their base. A moratorium coming to pass is a highly unlikely outcome but by demanding it at the party level, the conversation inside the ascendant power shifts further to the left.

This should not be understated. Even though the Schwartz campaign others have taken pains to make their positions on fracking clear, "frack safetly and responsibly," there will continue to be room to the left of that. Fracking that is more safe (greater state and federal oversight) and more responsible (a substantial severance tax to help cover the practice's true cost). 

Some might argue that a push left may harm statewide prospects come election day, but given the actions of the candidates and the party's targets I am fairly skeptical. As I said before the Gubernatorial candidates have made their stance on fracking fairly clear and are already accepting donations. The Dem's wont take the house so then the focus is on the Senate. Arlen Platt in a comment to the the PA Independent told us what they see as in play.

“The game is in the southeast,” said Aren Platt, executive director for the Senate Democratic Campaign Committee. 

Even with a Republican-drawn redistricting plan working against Democrats, Platt said the demographic trends in the southeast — Montgomery County becoming steadily more Democratic, for example — were good signs for his candidates.

I'm betting that in the Southeast fracking is not a live or die issue.

It is important to remember that even Democratic politicians would not necessarily come to inhabit that space of the conversation on their own. Only a leftward push like this can take them there.