Rendell: Pennsylvania Too Close To Call In Presidential Race
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell has been under fire lately from members of his own party.
He made some comments about the upcoming presidential election that weren't well-received.
However, he told KDKA-TV Political Editor Jon Delano that his message is one that the American people, especially Democrats, need to hear.
Rendell is touring the state to push his book, "A Nation of Wusses."
He sat down to talk politics, knowing some of his comments have not been well-received by some national Democrats.
"They asked me a question. How's the President going to do in Pennsylvania? I said it's a toss-up. Are you saying the President won't win Pennsylvania? I said, no, but I'm saying he could lose. Well, people jumped all over me for that," Rendell said.
Rendell speaks his mind, which has gotten him in trouble before but on this one, he said he's right.
"I'm not going to lie. It's too close to call in Pennsylvania. There are a lot of things that could happen. But, number, two, as someone who wants President Obama to win, I don't want to say, 'Oh it's in the bag for the President,' because that's a terrible message for our people. I want our people to be worried and nervous so they give an all-out effort to get out the vote," Rendell said.
A successful political strategist on his own, Rendell got animated while defending himself.
"So, it wasn't even smart to jump all over me. That's the right message. As a candidate, you never ever want to say it is in the bag for me," Rendell said.
Rendell has also taken flack for criticizing some of the attack on Mitt Romney's role in Bain Capital.
"I said the President had every right to raise Bain Capital as an issue because Gov. Romney essentially made it his calling card for why he should be elected president. But, I said the ad that called Mitt Romney a vampire, that ad and that terminology had no place in politics today," Rendell said.
Rendell said, to win this state, Obama needs western Pennsylvania votes from those who understand Romney has no real jobs plan.
"He needs to come here to talk to steelworkers, and the carpenters, and the electricians, and say, 'Hey wait a second, guys, think this thing through,'" Rendell said.
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