PENNSYLVANIA — Four weeks from today Pennsylvania Republicans will finally have picked their nominee in this ugly, historically crowded “Trump Primary” — and the question isn’t if Republicans will nominate a dangerous and out-of-touch conspiracy theorist to be their nominee for Governor, it’s which one.
Candidates will spend the next four weeks doing what they’ve done for months: “crafting their campaign’s in [Trump’s] image” and campaigning with insurrectionists, conspiracy theorists and “extreme anti-government groups” to prove their MAGA credentials. Here are a few key dynamics to watch:
Doug Mastriano leads the far-right field: According to multiple new polls, Doug Mastriano remains the frontrunner in Republicans’ “hot mess” of a primary, thanks to his extreme record of leading the charge to overturn the 2020 election in Pennsylvania, participating in the Jan. 6 insurrection, and using thousands of dollars in campaign funds to bus Pennsylvanians to the Capitol that day.
Candidates continue to dodge tough questions to hide their extreme agenda from Pennsylvanians: In a sure sign that many of the candidates know their agenda is too extreme for Pennsylvania, Lou Barletta, Bill McSwain, Jake Corman, and Dave White recently issued “diva-esque debate demands” to avoid “mean questions.” Barletta, McSwain, White, and Mastriano “chickened” out of yesterday’s debate, hiding from answering questions about abortion, election integrity, and infrastructure. Even the PA GOP made the unprecedented decision to hold their State Committee meeting “behind closed doors.”
The Trump factor: Pennsylvanians know how much Trump means to these candidates — this is in fact the “Trump Primary” — and the candidates know that he can destroy them with one “anti-endorsement,” which is why they’ve spent months “crafting their campaign’s in his image” and endorsing his Big Lie because “they know the big guy is watching.” While Trump’s cronies have already descended on the Commonwealth, the GOP candidates have all eyes on Trump.
Their common extreme positions: Unfortunately for Republicans, no amount of dodging questions will paper over the simple fact that they only care about Trump, and their agenda is too dangerous for our Commonwealth. While the candidates fight with each other, the reality is that they all would drag Pennsylvania backward with their dangerous plans to restrict abortion, hurt PA workers, cause instability in our democracy with their election conspiracies, and defund infrastructure and the State Police.
“While the ‘Trump Primary’ candidates continue fighting with each other and showing that they’re all wrong for Pennsylvania, working families across the state are united behind Attorney General Josh Shapiro and his plans to put money back in Pennsylvanians’ pockets,” said Pennsylvania Democratic Party spokesperson Marisa Nahem. “Republicans will spend the next four weeks wasting time and money catering to Trump instead of focusing on the issues that matter most to Pennsylvanians. No matter who wins Republicans’ ugly and divisive primary, it’ll be a far-right politician who is wrong for our Commonwealth and incapable of uniting their own party.”
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