Posted on 10/27/2010 9:45:22 AM PDT by Born Conservative
NANTICOKE - Former President Bill Clinton argued for re-electing U.S. Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski on Tuesday, contending the congressman helped reverse a Republican tide of red ink when he was president and delivered a flood control project that avoided major damage in the Wyoming Valley.
"I'm crazy about Paul Kanjorski," Clinton told more than 600 people gathered in the gymnasium at Greater Nanticoke Area High School in the congressman's hometown.
In a 38-minute speech, Clinton said Democrats have the nation on the path to recovery, but need more than 21 months to fix an economy that eight years of Republican rule of Washington dug into a recession. He urged voters to think through their anger and frustration.
"It should make you think before you throw out Paul Kanjorski and bring the shovel brigade back," he said. "This guy is good for this congressional district."
The president arrived to pump up local Democrats to vote next Tuesday and enhance Kanjorski's chances for a 14th term. Kanjorski, 73, is fighting for his political life in a third contest against Republican Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta. Every public poll has shown him trailing.
After Kanjorski's introduction, Clinton put his arms around the congressman and Democratic governor candidate Dan Onorato, who also spoke. Clinton praised the Allegheny County executive for producing a county unemployment rate well below state and national rates, but Kanjorski and Republicans got most of the attention.
Clinton said the GOP is exploiting the gap between when steps were taken to improve the economy and when they will take hold. The $814 billion economic stimulus package that Kanjorski voted for was "a short-term necessity" that reversed the economic slide and gave 95 percent of Americans a tax cut, he said.
"People hire Democrats to fix things" he said. "When Republicans say it was a failure, they're just wrong."
He credited Kanjorski for reforms to prevent future Wall Street meltdowns and said the Wyoming Valley Flood Control Project will prevent catastrophes on the scale of Hurricane Katrina.
Clinton scoffed that Democrats are the big spenders, recalling 12 years of Republican presidents before he took office quadrupled the national debt to $4 trillion.
People ask how he eliminated deficits and ran four budget surpluses, which helped produce more jobs than the Republican presidents before and after him combined, he said
"My answer is arithmetic," he said, a remark that induced a roar of laughter. When he lived in Arkansas, "2 and 2 was 4" and he figured it would be as president.
"And lo and behold, it turned out to be," he said, drawing more laughter.
Clinton chastised Barletta for opposing a possible 1,000-job Department of State security officer training center in Conyngham Township. Barletta has questioned whether gunfire and bomb blasts at the center would disrupt residents' lives.
Whether the center is built locally is in doubt because the site is well outside the 150-mile radius where the Department of State prefers to build.
Shawn Kelly, a spokesman for Barletta, ignored Clinton's comments on the center, and said the ex-president was most successful when Republicans controlled Congress.
"Nowadays, we see what happens when one party has all the control - and Paul Kanjorski is part of the reason why this country is moving in the wrong direction," he said.
“I’m crazy about Paul Kanjorski.”
Kanjorski should be worried about comments like this coming from a pervert rapist.
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“need more than 21 months to fix an economy that eight years of Republican rule of Washington dug into a recession”
Tell a lie often enough...
Ron Paul owned this fool on a debate on CNBC.
Isn’t this the school where parents were called and said school was canceled to accommodate this dud event. This is a scandal up there that has the Rats looking really bad.
Go Lou!
The Rats and their servile media are Crazy Liars....”more than 600 people”???? The pix in this local Rat Rag shows at most 100 stooges at the meeting. BJC draws a small crowd because they would like to have the chance to be in attendance when Big Crazy Bill finally croaks!
I’m crazy - would have been enough!!
This is widespread VOTER FRAUD, just see the R complaint PDF: http://www.pagop.org/upload/Final%20Presented%20Petition.pdf
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