Ex-township official eyes Cornell’s seat

Campaign Bits
By Tom Waring

State Rep. Sue Cornell won’t be getting a free pass in the Republican primary next year.
Thomas P. Murt, a former Upper Moreland Township commissioner, will challenge Cornell for the GOP nomination in the 152nd Legislative District.
"I think I have better, more creative ideas for serving the district," he said.
The district includes a portion of Somerton, along with Upper Moreland, Lower Moreland, Hatboro, Bryn Athyn and sections of Upper Dublin and Horsham.
Cornell easily won a special election in March 2004 to replace her dad, Roy Cornell, who died two months earlier. She defeated John Weinrich, 59 percent to 37 percent, in a three-way Republican primary last year, then took 57 percent of the vote against Democrat Ross Schriftman in the general election.
Murt, a 45-year-old married father of three, is a former member of the Upper Moreland School Board. He was elected as a township commissioner in Upper Moreland in 1993 and served until January 2003, when he resigned after being called to active duty with the U.S. Army’s 4th Infantry Division. He served for a year in Tikrit, Iraq.
Murt, who has a bachelor’s degree in economics from Penn State and a master’s in education from La Salle, has worked for Penn State-Abington for 13 years. He’s the assistant coordinator of the counseling and advising center. He formerly taught at Archbishop Ryan High School.
If elected, Murt would work on issues such as protecting open space, lowering taxes on small and medium-size businesses, improving access to vocational and higher education, streamlining the transfer of credits from community colleges to four-year colleges and lobbying for the Pennsylvania Army National Guard to perform public works projects.
As for the planned Woodhaven Road extension, he favors ending the highway at U.S. Route 1 but only if improvements are made to ease traffic on Byberry Road, Bustleton Avenue, Southampton Road and other streets.
The challenger opposed the legislative pay raise that Cornell voted for in July. After public outcry and the stunning defeat of Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Russell Nigro in a November retention vote, the legislature repealed the raise.
Murt called the original vote "insensitive" and "misguided," adding that as a legislator he would never vote for a raise nor accept one, except the automatic cost-of-living adjustment.
"I don’t think that vote was in the best interest of the district," he said.

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Patrick Murphy, a Democratic candidate in the 8th Congressional District, has released "A Soldier’s Solution," his plan for Iraq.
Murphy is a former captain in the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division and served as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The candidate is calling for National Guard and Reserve troops to come home within 90 days or no later than next summer. In addition, he would re-deploy the remaining troops out of Iraqi cities to protect the borders with Syria and Iran.
By the end of 2006, he wants another 50,000 troops home. He would leave a strategic strike force in the region made up of the Marine Corps and the 82nd Airborne to deal with emergency situations.
Murphy supports the view of Johnstown-area Democratic Rep. Jack Murtha, who called for troop withdrawal and strategic changes in Iraq.
"Jack Murtha was right; our troops have done all that they can do," he said. "It’s time to change the direction in Iraq and bring our focus back to winning the war on terror and securing the homeland. Bringing the Guard and Reserve home by summer puts us back on track to accomplish both of these goals."
Murphy is vying for the right to challenge freshman Republican Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick. He might face a challenge in the Democratic primary from former Bucks County Republican Commissioner Andy Warren.
Murphy’s plan for Iraq can be read in its entirety at www.murphy06.com/plan

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The first debate among Republican candidates for governor will take place on Jan. 25 at Widener University Law School’s Harrisburg campus.
The debate is sponsored by the Andrew Young National Center for Social Change, the Commonwealth Foundation and the Pennsylvania League of Women Voters.
State Sen. Jeff Piccola and former pro football star Lynn Swann have already agreed to appear. The other two candidates are former Lt. Gov. Bill Scranton and Jim Panyard, former president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Manufacturers Association.
The Republican State Committee will endorse a candidate on Feb. 11.

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Butler County resident Hagan Smith announced last week that he is running for governor in 2006 as the Constitution Party candidate.
Smith is calling for the elimination of property taxes, an end to eminent domain, except for government-used roads and buildings, and a focus on bringing manufacturing jobs to Pennsylvania. ••
Reporter Tom Waring can be reached at 215-354-3034 or twaring@phillynews.com