To advance his own political ambitions, Speaker of the House Mike Turzai has derailed budget negotiations and ignored the input of his own members. Here’s what news outlets around Pennsylvania are saying:
Check out the coverage below:
“It’s Mike Turzai’s fault: The House Speaker, who’s supposed to announce his gubernatorial candidacy like any day now, is the sole, remaining obstacle in the budget debate. Earlier this week, the Allegheny County Republican derailed budget talks, to the befuddlement of his own House colleagues, insisting that the $32 billion spending plan that the Legislature sent to Gov. Tom Wolf back on June 30 can be balanced without raising any taxes. The problem is, the House proposals don’t generate enough to revenue to do that.” [PennLive, 7/21/17]
“Turzai has derailed bipartisan negotiations to balance the state budget, leaving even some members of his caucus confused. The Allegheny County legislator insists that the $32 billion budget passed in June can be balanced without raising taxes. But, like the repugnant Republican ideas to replace Obamacare, his proposals don’t stand up to scrutiny.” [Philadelphia Inquirer, 7/20/17]
“Turzai — who has all-but declared his candidacy to challenge Wolf’s bid for a second term in next year’s election — upended weeks of negotiations on Tuesday when he abruptly pulled the House GOP from bipartisan discussions over raising taxes to help stitch together the state government’s budget.” [AP, 7/20/17]