Since 1977, DeWeese has represented the 50th House District, now comprised of parts of Fayette, Greene and Washington counties.

“I have a group of folks back home who have circulated petitions over the last three weeks, all of the time when I have been in very challenging circumstances,” DeWeese told KDKA Political Editor Jon Delano.

DeWeese needed only 300 signatures – he got 1,300.

“There are a lot of folks in my home area that feel that — notwithstanding my strong and high regard for the judicial system and the judge and jury — that Mr. Corbett made a very selective prosecution,” insists DeWeese.

But can a convicted felon run for office in Pennsylvania?

“I believe he is allowed to run for public office even after you’re sentenced. I believe you can run even if you’re in jail,” says Bill Costopoulos, DeWeese’s attorney.

Costopoulos says nothing bars him from running but warns, “That doesn’t mean you can serve, if elected. And that’s the Catch 22.”

Waynesburg councilman Mark Fischer, a Republican, says voters are tired of DeWeese.

“I’ve talked to a lot of folks who would like to see a change. Some of it has to do with the legal situation, some of it doesn’t.”

But DeWeese thinks his constituents will re-elect him.

“I could potentially be exonerated in a matter of months,” says DeWeese, “and, therefore, having my name on the ballot would be advantageous.”

Costopoulos will push for an expedited appeal of the verdict.

“He’s got to win the race. I’ve got to win the case.”

DeWeese will be sentenced on April 24th, which, is ironically, election day, the same day he could be re-nominated by his fellow Democrats.

With just 24 hours left to file petitions, no Democrat has filed against him.

But on Monday, a Greene County resident asked the court to toss out DeWeese’s petition, saying he’s ineligible to run.

No court action yet on that.

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The annual fee would be based on the assessed value of property.

There was not vote by the South Side Improvement Company; however, the group is a proponent of imposing the fee to do things the city is incapable of doing because of financial strain, such as improved parking, litter cleanup and more security.

“It’s always scary to think about paying more for things, but realistically speaking, the city isn’t going to be able to do anything more for South Side,” Susie Puskar, a spokesperson for the group, said. “South Side’s achieved a level of success and at this point, if people want to see more services, they need to be able to have that control themselves.”

Most of the people who showed up at the meeting spoke out against the additional fee saying they pay enough taxes already.

Homeowner Rob Frank says a new tax is not the way to go. He agrees there were problems on the South Side especially on weekends when young people show up at the bars on East Carson Street.

“We don’t need people to clean my street – I clean it,” Don Troesch, a homeowner, said. “I don’t need people to watch my neighborhood – I watch it.”

Before a new tax is imposed, City Council must meet on it and there must be public hearings.

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What caused the mistrial was a document presented by the defense that the prosecution says was forged. And since then, both face additional charges.

On Tuesday, Judge Jeffrey Manning ruled that the new charges make it such that the case against one could influence the case against the other, so he is separating the trials.

“If we had had the severance before the first trial, we wouldn’t be here right now quite frankly,” James DePasquale, Janine Orie’s attorney, said. “I don’t think there’s any doubt that Janine Orie would have been found not guilty or wouldn’t have been tried at all.”

But looming large over these proceedings are reports that Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Joan Orie Melvin is a target of a grand jury probe.

The supervising judge of the Allegheny County grand jury held a hearing Tuesday afternoon during which prosecutors, the spokesman for the DA’s office and an Associated Press reporter were subpoenaed to testify if necessary.

The defense wanted a special prosecutor to look into the alleged leaks, claiming prosecutors were responsible.

But Judge Joseph James ruled there was no need. He ruled against appointing a prosecutor or holding a hearing on the claims.

“I think that the judge was very clear that there was absolutely no basis upon the record that he could have done what the defense had asked and that is to appoint a special prosecutor to look into alleged grand jury leaks,” Lawrence Claus, a prosecutor, said.

“I have no intention at this time of seeking any appellate recourse,” William Costopoulos, Jane Orie’s attorney, said. “I’m accepting the order at this time and am going to prepare for trial.”

Jury selection for State Sen. Jane Orie’s re-trial is scheduled for the end of February. Janine Orie’s case may not be tried until the fall.

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The topics ranged from the Occupy Wall Street movement to the value of labor in America.

Click the link below to listen to the full interview:

You can also listen to Chris Moore every Sunday 4pm to 9pm.

The president says religiously-operated institutions, like Catholic hospitals and universities, will not be required to pay for birth control when insurance mandates kick in later this year.

“Religious liberty will be protected,” said the president “and a law that requires free preventive care will not discriminate against women.”

Under the new plan, women who work at Catholic institutions will still get free birth control, but it won’t be paid for by the Church.

“These employers will not have to pay for or provide contraceptive services, but women who work at these institutions will have access to free contraceptive services just like other women,” he said.

But Catholic Bishop David Zubik told KDKA Political Editor Jon Delano the move by the President does not go far enough.

“That’s a smoke and mirrors. The fact is it has to be paid for by some place, and that may result in premiums increasing,” Bishop Zubik said.

And the bishop says new policy still violates Catholic holdings against birth control for anyone.

“The concern for me still is that religious institutions or anybody for that matter being forced to do something that goes against their conscience,” the Bishop said.

But the president says in a pluralistic society all women should have insurance coverage of birth control.

“No woman’s health should depend on who she is, or where she works, or how much money she makes. Every woman should be in control of the decisions that affect her own health. Period,” Obama said.

That’s the basic dilemma.

Is a woman entitled to birth control no matter where she works, or can religious institutions — even if they don’t pay for it — deny their employees access?

The administration says preventing unwanted pregnancies actually saves insurance companies money.

The president insists the nation can balance religious liberty with women’s health needs.

“If a woman’s employer is a charity or a hospital that has a religious objection to providing contraceptive services as part of their health plan, the insurance — not the hospital, not the charity — will be required to reach out and offer the woman contraceptive services free of charge without copays and without hassles,” Obama said.

But Bishop Zubik says those employees still cannot be provided contraceptives without violating Catholic religious views.

“We couldn’t do that. We could not provide that insurance because it goes against what we believe to be true,” Zubik said.

Even if they don’t pay for it, Catholic bishops say they don’t want health insurance covering contraceptives, but women’s health groups say that is an essential part of women’s health services.

“The employee should have the right to access the health care they think they need,” said Rick Baird, president & CEO of Adagio Health Services, a women’s health provider. “To me, family planning is a public health issue. It’s not a morality issue, and it should not be directed by a theological institution.”

But Zubik insists that by mandating all insurance plans include free contraceptives, which the Affordable Care Act does beginning August 1st, insurance covering Catholic institutions violate Catholic beliefs.

“My concern is that somehow when you take a look at health services the impression that is being given is that pregnancy is a disease and that life is something that can be easily done away with,” said Zubik.

Zubik wants the mandate for contraceptives repealed, while Obama insists all women should be treated equally.

“Under the rule, women will still have access to free preventive care that includes contraceptive services no matter where they work,” Obama said.

Following his announcement, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops called the compromise a step in the right direction, but reserved further judgment.

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Gov. Corbett told Larry Richert and John Shumway on the KDKA Morning News on NewsRadio 1020 KDKA that the cut to Pitt sounds dramatic until you put it in perspective.

“When you look at it from dollar contributions from the state, it’s significant moneys, but when you look at it from their operating budget, for Pitt it’s 2.1 percent of their operating budget,” said Gov. Corbett. “And we don’t have the money we have to pare back.”

In response through a statement, Pitt Chancellor Mark Nordenberg said the governor’s math is deceptive because he’s including $800 million that the university receives in research and grant money.

Nordenberg points out that money, “can only be spent on the projects for which they were awarded and are not a source of revenue that can be used for more general purposes or to reduce tuition levels.”

As for the “workable solution” to the transit crisis the governor mentioned on Tuesday, today he told KDKA: “We’re not going to go into those right now; we have to sit down and see if there is the will within the legislature to do something with this this year.”

While the will of the legislature is measured, the clock is ticking towards the Port Authority cutting almost half of its routes this fall. Gov. Corbett says it’s an election year and it’s hard to get the legislature to tackle tough issues.

John Shumway: “Well, can you tell the person that is looking at their bus being canceled in September that that is not going to happen?”

Gov. Corbett: “No, I can’t tell them that. I can’t lie to anyone like that. I don’t know that right now.”

Click the link below to listen to the full interview:

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Gov. Tom Corbett Defends His Budget (2/8/12)
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California’s ban on Gay marriage has been ruled unconstitutional and Presidential Candidate Gary Johnson believes the ruling is correct.

Johnson says, “Gun rights and gay rights are constitutionally protected.”

You can hear the whole interview here now!

Also you can listen to Mike Pintek weekdays Noon to 3pm.

It did not take long for critics and pundits to begin poking holes in it.

KDKA-AM’s Larry Richert and John Shumway talk to Gov. Corbett about what is in the budget and how it may affect you.

He covered several topics including transportation, education and welfare programs.

On the topic of transportation, Gov. Corbett addressed local concerns about the Port Authority. He said he cannot say that route cuts won’t be made, but says they are “working on some solutions.”

“But the thing I noted yesterday was this problem has been growing for decades,” he said. “One of the major issues in the problem, particularly when it comes to mass transit, is the issue of legacy costs and you can read that as pensions and the amount of money that goes into pensions. It is part of the problem with the state budget, the amount of money that we have to continue to add to pensions from decisions that were made 10, 15, 20 years ago. All of these are coming together all at one time.”

Click the link below to listen to the full interview:

However, despite all the hard work he’s putting in in those states, he found the time to talk to KDKA-AM’s Larry and John for about the wins.

Santorum made national headlines by sweeping the three primaries Tuesday night. Now, he and the campaign are feeling even better about the future.

“We felt very good about Minnesota and Missouri and I can tell you being out there yesterday in Colorado, it just felt so good on the ground. There seemed to be a lot of energy and enthusiasm and the most recent poll had us 14 points down the day before the election,” Santorum said.

”Really, with exception of the Denver area, we beat Gov. [Mitt Romney] just about everywhere else in the state he got 61 percent of the vote against John McCain and Mike Huckabee four years ago. So, we feel pretty good even though we were outspent there and Gov. Romney has been working Colorado for a long time. We feel very, very good that we have the ideas and the momentum.”

Listen to the full interview here:

Now, the question for Santorum is how to capitalize on this momentum boost going forward.

“We’ve been believing in this for weeks now even in spite of – when people saw our weak showings in Florida and Nevada. The money online and over the mail – this has really been a grassroots campaign – has been pouring in at rates that we just couldn’t believe. We just believe that our message is resonating out there in America,” Santorum said.

“We saw the Rasmussen Poll last week that showed us leading Obama in a head-to-head with the other candidates trailing. We just got a sense that something is going on across the country. Just in the last 24 hours, we’ve raised about $400,000 just online alone. So, we feel very good that this race is coming our way and we’re going to have the resources to go out and compete,” Santorum said.

The next Republican primary will be held on Saturday in Maine.

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Getting a college degree is more difficult than ever. In his 2012-13 state budget address, Governor Tom Corbett says state schools face a 20 percent cut in funding.

Three universities face a 30 percent cut – Penn State, Temple and the University of Pittsburgh.

“In terms of proportionality, perhaps nothing is more telling than the proposed general fund budget’s bottom line,” Pitt Chancellor Mark Nordenberg said in a statement. “Overall state funding would be reduced by less than one-tenth of one percent or $22.456 million. The cuts proposed just for Pitt are more than double that amount.”

Word of this did not go over well with some of the students who anticipate a tuition hike with the cuts.

Curran Dougherty, a freshman from Philadelphia, told Brenda Waters he did not work this year, but he will probably get a job because his parents cannot afford to pay his tuition by themselves.

Charles Weisz, a freshman from New Castle says if tuition does go up because of the funding cuts, tuition will amount to more money that he doesn’t have.

The news was somewhat better for public education. Dr. Dan Castagna, the superintendent of the West Mifflin School District listened to the governor’s address with staff members.

He was encouraged in hearing that there would be a slight increase in basic funding but told KDKA’s Brenda Waters last year’s $860 million cut in public education left his district and others learning how to operate with less.

West Mifflin laid off 45 staff members including 24 full-time teachers.

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You can listen to the interview here.

Listen to Mike Pintek weekdays from noon to 3 on News Radio 1020 KDKA!

For the second straight year, his budget keeps that promise, but it is not without some pain.

Making cuts are the hard reality of the Commonwealth’s current condition. The governor’s $27.1 billion dollar proposed budget does not increase taxes.

However, shrinking tax revenue means cuts will be made again.

“Reform means understanding this simple truth. When you don’t have enough to spend, you spend less. Reform also means knowing the difference between ‘make work project’ and a ‘save jobs project.’ It’s the difference between merely propping something up and building on its real value,” Gov. Corbett said.

The state budget proposed by Gov. Corbett seeks to cut $330 million, or 20 percent, from 14 state-owned universities.

Aid to Penn State, the University of Pittsburgh and Temple University could be reduced by as much as 30 percent.

Corbett said reform for education is absolutely necessary and schools need to do what the state asks of them and do it for every student of every background in all parts of the state.

“What Harrisburg can do for education is to set standards both for our schools and our government. We need to put things in the proper order when it comes to our priorities. Student, family, teacher in that order,” Gov. Corbett said.

PennDOT is cut by 20 percent, but when it comes to social services, the Republican governor said Pennsylvania cannot maintain what it has been doing for 40, 50 or 60 years when it hasn’t improved the lives of the poor.

“The budget I bring you is built to transform the public welfare system, not to eliminate it, but to right-size it. It modifies programs to give incentives to those who are able to transition from the welfare line to the unemployment line while it gives real relief to the poor,” Gov. Corbett said.

The budget must be approved by the Legislature before going into effect on July 1.

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The Allegheny County Sheriff’s Department said it plans to enforce the court order, but is not saying exactly when.

Protestors turned the area into People’s Park on Oct. 15, but now BNY Mellon is saying it is time to go.

They’re closing the park for the winter.

“We have not received any notice from BNY Mellon that they’re closing the green,” Marina Antic, with Occupy Pittsburgh, said. “So we’re going to stay here. We’re trying to communicate the message that this is about free speech.”

On Monday, protestors were taking down tents and packing their belongings. Police supervised as outside crews put up fencing, but the people refused to go.

Since Pittsburgh is part of a national initiative, some have plans to move on to other cities.

“Heading up to Boston in the next couple weeks to try and start another camp up there,” a man who identified himself as “Fluffy” said.

The Pittsburgh group plans to set up in the Mellon Green again in the spring.

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Hoff called himself “Blue Thunder” claiming to be a Native American on Thanksgiving Day, giving his blessing to the Occupy Pittsburgh movement.

He also labeled himself as group spokesman.

“I’m against the fact that these big corporations that we stand in the midst of control our government, our media,” he said.

Within three weeks of that statement, he was under arrest – the second arrest in less than a year for Megan’s Law violations.

Police confirm the man’s real name is James Francis Hoff.

According to records, Hoff was convicted in 1999 for involuntary deviate sexual intercourse. He is in jail right now awaiting formal arraignment for failing to register as a sex offender.

Current Occupy Pittsburgh spokesman Jeff Cech calls the situation with Hoff unfortunate but says no one knew of his criminal history.

“Look Marty, obviously no one here had any idea of his past,” Cech said. “When it became aware, he left.”

Sources say a homeless man who was concerned about Hoff’s behavior grabbed a piece of his mail, saw his real name, called police and they came and arrested Hoff.

RELATED STORIES
Occupy Pittsburgh Stages Final Rally
KDKA Investigation: Unoccupied Pittsburgh?

A Dauphin County jury found him guilty of theft, conspiracy and conflict of interest on Monday after a two-week public corruption trial.

Click here to hear the interview in its entirety.

Listen to Robert Mangino every week night from 6 p.m.-10 p.m. on NewsRadio 1020 KDKA!

The ceremony was held at the base in Findlay Township as Col. Anthony J. Carrelli took over as the new commander. Several military dignitaries attended the ceremony.

“Very excited to be here, and it’s a great privilege to be a part of the team,” said Col. Carrelli. “It was named the best unit in the guard. They just recently received an outstanding Air Force Unit Award. And I’m not new to the Pennsylvania Guard; so, I’ve known about the 171st for quite some time, and they’ve always been a top unit.”

Col. Carrelli had been serving as the Wing Commander of the 111th Fighter Wing near Philadelphia.

However, during the ceremony, the talk quickly turned to the plans to close the 911th Airlift Wing and to make cuts to the 171st Refueling Wing.

Everyone at the ceremony vowed to fight the budget cuts.

For the men and women who put themselves in harm’s way, there can never be enough backup. So, when civilians call for budget cuts, the military almost always resists.

“The assumption going in is that there’s less need for all this capability,” said Maj. Gen. Wesley Craig, the Pa. Adjutant General. “As a military person you find that you always need more. You always want to have some redundancy.”

At stake are more than 300 jobs at the 911th Airlift Wing, and a 25 percent cutback for the 171st Refueling Wing. The congressman for that area says the cuts don’t make sense.

“When they talk about reducing the number of planes for the number one ranked air guard refueling wing unit in the nation, it just doesn’t make sense,” said U.S. Congressman Tim Murphy.

The military folks say it’s cheaper to use National Guard and Reserve units at the 911th and the 171st than using a full-time military.

“In constrained times why would you not increase the size of the Guard and Reserve and decrease the size of the active component?” said Murphy.

The proposed military budget cuts may require Congressional approval.

RELATED LINKS:
Air Force Plans To Close 911th Airlift Wing In Moon (2/3/12)
Community Concerned About Future Of 911th Airlift Wing (2/3/12)
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On six different nights, investigator Marty Griffin visited the tent encampment on the Mellon Green downtown and found all 60 tents where you would expect protestors to be sleeping — empty.

In fact Marty says he found more rats than people in the encampment, which wasn’t surprising, since the camp was full of garbage and half eaten food.

The first night Marty encountered a homeless man who claimed to be part of the Occupy movement, but admitted he lived under a tree in the park before the occupiers took it over.

The second night Marty was accompanied by Moon Run Fire Captain Nate Kashmer who used a thermal imaging camera to see if any people were sleeping in the tents.

“If I’m pointing it and there’s somebody there, it will pick up their heat signature,” explained Kashmer.

After walking through the entire encampment with the camera, Kashmer and Marty found no one in any of the tents.

While he checked the camp on six nights, Kevin Joyce, owner of the Carleton Restaurant in nearby One Mellon Center, says he walks through the camp every morning and evening, close to 100 times since the camp was established.

“These tents are really empty,” Joyce told Marty. “It’s really unoccupied Pittsburgh because the tents are really empty.”

Joyce says the camp has affected business at his restaurant because patrons don’t want to walk through the tents and trash to get to him.

Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, who watched Marty’s video, says it’s time for the camp to go. But he’s also heard what Marty has been told – that hundreds of reinforcements may be called in from Washington, D.C. to repopulate the camp.

“Obviously, this tape shows it, nobody’s been there for a long period of time,” Ravenstahl said. “If a large number of people all of a sudden show up, I think it really shows you what the Occupy folks are all about. And at that point we have no choice but to engage and to really enforce the judge’s order,” Ravenstahl said.

It says the protestors must vacate the camp by 12:30 p.m. on Monday.

Organizers are non-committal about whether they will leave peacefully, and dodged Marty’s questions about why they’re not occupying full time.

“Is it an occupation when you have one person here? Is that an occupation by definition,” asked Marty.

“What’s the point of an occupation Marty? It’s not to stand around. It’s not to sleep in the grass,” answered John Chech.

“Then why have the tents if they’re not going to sleep here?” countered Marty.

“Because we’re maintaining the space as a public forum,” said Chech.

There is no word from the Sheriff’s Department on whether they will enforce the camp eviction order Monday.

Most other cities have already evicted their Occupy camps. They report that all of their occupiers had a core group of protestors who stayed in the camp 24/7.

Friday night, protestors at the encampment spoke to KDKA’s Kym Gable.

“I’m here every night, I have a pretty nice setup,” Tim McDonald, a protestor, said. “It’s comfy, it’s cozy. We have movie nights. To say that nobody’s here on any given night is a bold-faced lie.”

“Not everyone can be camping here all the time,” Zsuzsi Matolcsy, a protestor, said. “Some people work, some people have other obligations, family obligations, but a lot of people will come down here and spend a few days to camp to support the movement.”

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Deliberations began at 10:20 a.m. Thursday on four charges of theft, conspiracy and conflict of interest – charges brought by then Attorney General Tom Corbett against the senior Democratic official in the state House of Representatives.

Corbett charged DeWeese with using legislative staff for campaign purposes, essentially stealing $125,000 by using public resources for politics.

DeWeese contended that he insisted staff use leave time like unused vacation days and comp time when they campaigned for him during office hours.

On Wednesday, the Greene County Democrat became the first sitting lawmaker to take the stand in his own defense.

DeWeese told jurors he never ordered anyone to work on state time, a claim his lawyer William Costopoulos reiterated.

DeWeese acknowledged that the practice of staff doing campaign work is common and decades old.

Twice this afternoon the jury has asked the judge for information; first for written definitions of the charges and then for the definition of conspirator and accomplice.

The jury also asked for the leave slips that DeWeese’s staff submitted when they left the office.

The judge denied one request – a copy of DeWeese’s grand jury testimony.

Unless the jury acquits DeWeese of all four counts, DeWeese could lose his job in the state House and his pension.

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They discussed the advantages and disadvantages of heavier trucks on the road.

Runk talks about what Congress wants to do by giving trucks the opportunity to be cleaner as well as more fuel and storing efficient. Congress would like to move the weight limit on trucks from 80,000 pounds to 97,000 pounds.

Runk talks with Pintek about the advantages and disadvantages he sees with the idea and how it could affect western Pennsylvania.

You can listen to the interview here now.

You can also listen to Mike Pintek weekdays Noon to 3pm.

The runner-up, Newt Gingrich, claimed it is now a two-person contest for the nomination.

But Rick Santorum, who placed a distant third, had a different take.

After his 14-point loss to Romney, Gingrich tried, again, to elbow Santorum out of the presidential race.

“It is now clear that this will be a two-person race between the conservative leader Newt Gingrich and the Massachusetts moderate,” Gingrich told supporters.

Santorum, who campaigned in Colorado and Nevada after finishing well-behind in Florida, was having nothing of that claim.

“In Florida, Newt Gingrich had his opportunity,” Santorum told supporters last night.

Santorum says Gingrich failed to stop Romney.

“He said, ‘I’m going to be the conservative alternative. I’m going to be the anti-Mitt,’ and it didn’t work. He became the issue. We can’t allow our nominee to be the issue in the campaign.”

The former Pennsylvania senator says it’s his turn now.

“If you want a strong principled conservative who is not the issue of this campaign — who will make Barack Obama the issue in this campaign — please vote for me and help us out.”

Santorum has several chances to demonstrate he — not Gingrich — is the better conservative to take on Romney and ultimately the President.

Nevada holds its caucus this Saturday, February 3, followed by contests in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri (non-binding) on February 7.

Then there’s a Maine caucus from February 4 through the 11th, followed by the Arizona and Michigan primaries on February 28, a Washington caucus on March 3.

Ten states vote on Super Tuesday on March 6th.

At his Faith-Family-Freedom town hall meeting in Colorado, Santorum repeated his claim.

“Who is the best one to stand up, number one for the values that you believe in, and number two, to be able to take on Barack Obama, and make Barack Obama the issue, not the Republican candidate.”

Despite Romney’s solid victory last night, a majority of Republicans — 56 percent — did vote against him.

Santorum and Gingrich each would like a one on one against Romney.

Here’s another reason this contest is continuing.

It takes 1,144 delegates to win the GOP nomination.

Romney has just 71 delegates.

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United States Department of Commerce Secretary John Bryson said he’s excited about the economic growth happening right here in Pittsburgh.

An example of that growth is Aquion Energy in Lawrenceville. It’s a company centered on battery technology.

“We’ve had a number of high profile guests come through this facility in the last year,” said Jay Whitacre, of Aquion Energy. “Every time it happens, it reminds me of how much on the radar not only is Pittsburgh but also energy technology, and how something that starts really small can make a difference.”

Secretary Bryson spent about an hour checking out the facility, touring and talking about the need for trained, skilled manufacturers.

“It just drives home to me that we really need – as a country and as an educational process in this country – to have more… to encourage manufacturing and the importance of manufacturing,” Whitacre said.

After the stop in Lawrenceville, the secretary traveled to Carnegie Mellon University, and met with community and business leaders in the Gates Center for Computer Science.

“I’ve come to Pittsburgh many times over the last 20 years for various reasons, and I love being here and I love what I find here,” said Bryson.

The focus of the discussion was job creation, something the secretary says Pittsburgh is on top of. Bryson says this area’s unemployment numbers continue to improve.

“We break the norm and find ways to get to new places, new technology, new things to be done, and that is a special quality of leadership,” said Bryson.

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The plea comes exactly one week before Corbett issues his annual budget and six months after a commission named by the governor recommended $2 billion in additional revenue for transportation.

The local lawmakers met reporters Tuesday near the Greenfield Bridge which spans the Parkway East near the Squirrel Hill Tunnel.

The bridge has had problems with crumbling concrete for years and is scheduled to be replaced.

Lawmakers say the bridge underscores the importance of the governor coming up with more transportation funding sooner, rather than later.

“In Allegheny County alone we have nearly 1,200 structurally deficient bridges – 1,200 bridges that are either closed, have various levels of traffic that can operate on those bridges and are deemed to be structurally deficient,” State Senator Jay Costa said.

“The economic progress this community has been successful in promoting and transforming the city of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, it is all in jeopardy and at risk unless we deal with this issue and it has to be dealt with on a comprehensive basis,” State Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Squirrel Hill, said.

The lawmakers say it’s time for the governor to follow through on his commitment to help solve the commonwealth’s transportation problems.

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That means almost 3,000 spaces – more than a fifth of the system’s 13,000 spaces – will be gone.

“That’s gonna hurt a lot of commuters from especially the suburban areas in the county,” Jim Ritchie, a spokesman for the Port Authority, said.

It will affect traffic as well because every car parked in the Park-N-Ride is one fewer car on the road.

At the Park-N-Ride on University Boulevard in Moon Township there are 600 spaces – the largest of the 18 the Port Authority is talking about closing. Every day it’s about three-quarters full.

In addition to University Boulevard, Alpine Village in Monroeville, Holiday Park Fire Department in Plum, Ambridge, and North Fayette VFD are among those on the list to close come September if the Port Authority fails to get funding assistance.

• PDF List Of Park-N-Ride Closures

“Right now we’re facing a $64 million deficit for the coming fiscal year,” Ritchie said.

He says now is when people need to speak up.

“To let the people who fund Port Authority know that this is an important matter,” he added.

The governor is expected to propose some solutions in his budget address next week, but ultimately it will be up to the legislature to step in.

Monday night, volunteers from several community organizations passed out fliers to Port Authority riders, urging them to call and email the governor, asking him to fully fund the Port Authority.

“What I can do about it – I don’t know, but I know it affects me because to get to work I have to take a bus,” Nicole Conte said. “If I can’t get to work, I can’t live in a livable city.”

A public hearing is scheduled for February 29. Fare hikes are set to take place in July.

RELATED LINKS
PDF List Of Park-N-Ride Closures
Port Authority of Allegheny County
More Reports By John Shumway

Trying to become one of the few is former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum.

Santorum recently sat down with KDKA-TV’s Stacy Smith for an exclusive interview to talk about the campaign.

Smith: Running for the presidency of the United States, did you ever think you’d be doing this?

Santorum: No, I can really honestly say it’s – a kid, every time you say, you know, ‘I want to be president.’ I’m sure I said it once or twice in my life. But look Stacy, if you go back I never really wanted to run for federal office of any kind. I wasn’t that interested in it.

However, in 1990 he did become interested when he became “frustrated” with the congressman in his district. So, he ran against him and won in upset fashion.

In 1994, he ran for the Senate and defeated the incumbent Democratic senator.

He won re-election in 2000 and soon after that, others began to talk with him about running for president.

“I remember it would have been eight years ago and having a conversation with someone. They sat down with me, this is someone you know, pretty big deal, of a person, who said you should think about running for president,” Santorum said. “I said, ‘Are you crazy? I’m not going to run for president.’”

Santorum was defeated in his 2006 re-election bid and said he was content to work in the private sector.

That is until the 2008 election and with changes in Washington, D.C., he said he could no longer sit on the sidelines.

“It was not something my wife and kids, with one exception, wanted me to do. It was not something that I really planned to do. It was just something that I felt I had to walk the path and just see if this was something I was called to do, and here I am,” Santorum said.

Santorum is currently running third in most national polls.

Santorum’s brother, Dan, thinks he will win the nomination and the presidency, because of his roots.

“I mean there are no harder working people I know than in western Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio. I mean, it’s just that area of this country is just, they’re special people. I think when he went to Iowa, his western Pennsylvania roots really came out and the people of Iowa embraced it. That’s why he won,” Dan Santorum said.

Santorum’s 93-year-old mother, Kay, has another reason her son has done well in politics.

“He knows what he is talking about and he sticks to his guns whenever he has anything to say,” she said.

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