Politics

Budget talks are going on in Washington. Local Congressman, Mike Fitzpatrick says three very different visions have been laid out.

“The House budget that passed, comes to balance in ten years. The Senate budget, which was passed subsequent to ours, increases taxes by about a trillion dollars. It doesn’t reform any of the spending programs of the Federal Government and never balances. President Obama’s budget raises taxes and increases spending. It adds over eight trillion dollars to the debt and never balances.”

The Republican Rep. voted for the House Budget and says he hopes the final spending plan looks more like that than the other two.

State Judges are currently required to retire at the age of 70. Montgomery County State Rep.
Kate Harper believes its an unfair and unwise requirement.

"I see no evidence and I'am a lawyer, that judges suddenly become incompetent on their 70th birthday. More importantly, you want wisdom in a judge and life experience helps with wisdom."

Harper hopes to amend the Pennsylvania State Constitution to allow judges to stay on the bench until age 75 through House Bill 79, which she introduced on Monday

According to Montgomery County’s Salary Board Listing, the Voter Services Director was let go. Joseph Passarella served in the position for several years. The Montgomery County Republican Committee is criticizing the move, saying that Passarella had a clean record and carried out his responsibilities with the highest form of integrity. However, during his tenure in the post, Passarella was accused of not properly registering voters. Passarella earned nearly 72-thousand dollars as the director. There’s no word on a replacement. 

Heritage Action For America, a Washington, D.C. group opposed to legislation on extensive background checks for gun purchases is lauding a vote ob the issue. Federal lawmakers defeated a measure on the issue Wednesday. It was a bi-partisan measure by Pennsylvania Republican senator Pat Toomey and West Virginia Democrat, Joe Manchin. Heritage Action For America spokesman Dan Holler believes two important factors led to the 54-46 vote that defeated the amendment.

“We don’t want to make criminals out of law abiding citizens, we want to go after the criminals. So that’s number one. Number two, there needs to be a real effort at the state and local level, particularly between communities and families to try to head off stuff likes this. You can’t have folks in Washington behind closed doors put some words on a piece of a paper and expect it to solve all the problems.”

Holler was a guest on WNPV’S New AM-Edition this morning with Darryl Berger