Heads roll in Harrisburg; one remains

There’s still one guy left to fire in the Pennsylvania governor’s office

by Bill Keisling

While many are away on summer vacation, heads are rolling in the Pennsylvania governor’s office in Harrisburg.

Gov. Tom Corbett’s chief spokesman has been replaced, followed out the door by key members of the governor’s legislative staff.

These staff replacements come on the heels of the recent sacking of the governor’s chief of staff, who was replaced by a high-profile Washington DC political operative.

A quick check of my notes, however, suggests there’s a staffer in the governor’s office who is responsible for a lot of the problems, but who remains on the job.

This particular staffer appears to be at the center, time and again, of crucial problems in the governor’s office.

This staffer, it turns out, worked in the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office for years while that office refused to investigate Jerry Sandusky. Instead of throwing Jerry Sandusky behind bars, this AG office staffer focused on elective politics.

This same staffer, now in the governor’s office, was instrumental in the firing of Penn State coach Joe Paterno, without so much as a hearing.

This same staff member, against better advice, insisted that the son-in-law of disgraced Hershey Trust CEO LeRoy Zimmerman be the GOP’s nominee for attorney general, paving the way for the landslide victory of unknown Democrat Kathleen Kane.

This same staffer then cobbled together an ill-advised deal to sell the Pennsylvania lottery to a British firm, without legislative approval. Newly elected AG Kane quashed that deal, further eroding the political capital of the governor’s office.

This staffer advocated slashing state education spending, while instead focusing on helping liquor salesmen and casinos.

This same staffer, throwing caution to the wind, publicly infuriated women (“Close your eyes,”); Latinos (can’t find one to work in Harrisburg); and Pennsylvania workers (They’re all on drugs.)

As if all this wasn’t bad enough, this same staffer insisted on going to war with Pennsylvania voters, demanding that even elderly GOP voters be turned away from the polls without the proper papers.

Believe it or not, this same governor’s office staffer now is backing a $50 million bailout of Harrisburg, designed to pay off irresponsible Dauphin County commissioners and bond insurers.

While the GOP county commissioners and the bond insurers now are in line to get their $50 million in state money, Harrisburg schools face stiff layoffs and employ a single librarian for thousands of students, and Philadelphia city schools may not open properly this fall because the district is lacking $50 million of state funds.

What is the name of this governor’s office staffer who remains on the job after all these flubs?

According to my notes, the name of this governor’s office staffer is Tom Corbett.