Corbett: I'm In

Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett has officially thrown his hat into the ring for the PA Republican Gubernatorial race. He says he wants to “restore trust to Harrisburg.” Corbett says his time in the AG’s office, including his first stint in 1995-1997 when he replaced Atty. General Ernie Preate who was later convicted of mail fraud, makes him qualified to restore that trust. He says the first thing he wants to do is to get spending under control and once that happens he can work on lowering taxes. He says state spending has been rising faster than inflation for many years and that has to stop. He says he will outline areas where money can be saved later in his campaign but topping his list are shrinking the state vehicle fleet and better use of cost saving technologies. Corbett says he will also have an energy plank in his platform. He says the state has a great wealth of coal, oil and natural gas and it needs to capitalize on those assets and grow new related industries. Corbett says he will also push for a 2-year budget cycle. The move would require a change to the state constitution. He says the budget process is expensive and disruptive and has been dysfunctional for the last 7 years. He says a two-year budget would take away some of the distractions, lower administrative costs and allow departments and agencies that get state funding to better plan for their future. He says not knowing how much money you will get from year to year is very hard on social service agencies and schools boards. He also notes that many state departments begin working on the next year’s budget as soon as they get their current year’s appropriation. Corbett says his campaign will be all about “the needs of Pennsylvanians.” He says those needs including better education, reduced spending, lower taxes and better infrastructure. The only other announced candidate for the Republican primary is Congressman Jim Gerlach of Chester County.