Confrontation with Rep. Heffley

The Carbon County Labor Chapter invited the two Democratic candidates for State House of Representatives, Ron Rabenold and Jerry Strubinger, to come to our Monday meeting at Lengyel’s in Nesquehoning to discuss labor issues.  Rep. Heffley was also invited. 

Ron Rabenold was very good, discussing how labor is under attack.  Jerry Strubinger was not so good--his proposal to limit the number of legislators will increase the proportion of Republicans.  As districts get bigger, it will cost more to run, and more Republicans will win.  His other proposal to give each county in Pennsylvania one senator each is unconstitutional under the Supreme Court decisions in Baker v. Carr and Reynolds v. Sims.

Rep. Heffley was tremendously irritating.  He stood there with a straight face and claimed that the Corbett administration had increased funding for education.  Linda explained to me later how the Republicans do the math.  They increased allocations to  the pension fund because of a court order, and they are counting that as money toward education.  So even though they have cut elementary, secondary, and higher education drastically, they add in the pension money as their education spending.  I would say this is weaselly, but I don’t want to insult weasels.

I asked Rep. Heffley a non-labor question about why we needed picture ID to vote.  He went into the usual spiel about fraud, so I asked him why college students needed an expiration date on their picture ID.  He said they did need an expiration date.  I knew that; he didn’t answer the question; and I lost my temper and raised my voice.

Then Heffley said it is not hard to get an ID, and you need one everywhere.  He noted he had to show a picture ID when he got an MRI.  I am not sure what getting an MRI has to do with voting.  I also know that I will work very hard indeed to elect Ron Rabenold.