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Post-Gazette - Primary 2008/East: Bompiani wins solid contest

The victory party at the AMS Club in South Greensburg, according to Tony Bompiani, drew more than 200 guests and went on long after early returns showed he led the Democratic race for the state Senate in District 39 with more than 60 percent of the vote.

This ability to unite people behind a common cause is, according to some of his supporters, one of the main reasons for Dr. Bompiani's landslide victory in Tuesday's primary.

"We all pulled together and we knew what we had," said his wife, Renee, of the way family, friends and constituents worked to support her husband, a Youngwood chiropractor.

"We stood behind him 100 percent. Knowing him the way we know him, we knew that there was no one else better for the job."

Dale Hutchinson of Greensburg said: "He's going to strengthen the Democratic Party again, bring it back where it was -- and bring the respect back to Westmoreland County."

According to the Westmoreland County Election Bureau, Dr. Bompiani defeated Chris Huffman, 40, of Rostraver, by gaining 65 percent of the vote -- despite Mr. Huffman's endorsement from the county Democratic committee. Vote totals are unofficials.

Dr. Bompiani, 54, of Hempfield, will face incumbent Bob Regola, R-Hempfield, in the November election. Mr. Regola, who is in his first term, ran unopposed in the primary.

Mr. Huffman said he has "no regrets" regarding his race and hopes his party will come together to support Dr. Bompiani in November.

"We need to join together and make sure that we get that seat back," said Mr. Huffman, a Greensburg attorney.

Dr. Bompiani agreed that unity among Democrats was the best way to defeat Mr. Regola and said he and Mr. Huffman would meet in early May to discuss options to bring party members together.

"We need to meet with the other side of the Democratic Party and draw them together because we can't win in November without both sides together," he said. "More important, the party needs to brought together and to become as one for the future."

Thank you to EVERYONE for your SUPPORT!!!

Hi everyone. This is Anthony, Tony's son. I posted this clip today for various reasons. First, it's a great song and my father-in-law, Larry Rega's favorite. It is also the song that came on the radio as I pulled into Level-Green in Penn Township to work the poll. I worked there for most of the day and Senator Regola was there the entire day. I think the song is very fitting for the campaign.

Should the size of Pennsylvania's Legislature be reduced?

That question was posed to Dr. Bompiani and his opponent by the good people that developed the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Voter Guide. Here are the responses:

Dr. Bompiani:

Yes. Reducing the size of our Legislature is a fine idea, but it does not address the real problem of run away spending by the legislators themselves. By now, we are all familiar with bonus scandals from the 2006 legislative session. In the 2006 session House Democrats doled out $2.3 million in bonuses to staffers. House Republicans spent $919,000. In the Senate, Democrats handed out $41,000, and Republicans gave $366,000 in bonuses to staffers. The total of those bonuses is $3,626,000. Additionally, every State Senator gets a $10,000 expense account; $15,000 for their district offices; $26,500 for postage; $480 for flags for their constituents; $600 per month for car rentals; and $124 a day while in Harrisburg. This totals $82,424 if you assume that a State Senator spends 6 months out of the year in Harrisburg. Multiply that number by 50 (the number of Senators), and you get $4,121,200. This calculation does not include the base salaries. Before we focus all our attention on reducing the size of the Legislature, we need to focus on making it less expensive for the people.

His Opponent:

I am willing to look at reducing the size of the Legislature. However, we need to make sure that people will still have access to their legislator when they have an issue to discuss or a problem that they need help with. The 39th senatorial district is very large. It is about an hour drive from end to end. If this Senate district is any larger it would be hard for the people to get help when they need it. I will support any measure that reduces the Legislature so long as it does not have a major impact on the people's ability to have access to their legislator when they need help.

You can decide who you want to vote for to represent you in an overly expensive Harrisburg on Tuesday, April 22, 2008. Don't forget to vote.

Visit the PG Voters Guide by clicking here to find the candidates' stances on other issues.

Based on a true understanding of the issues....

The choice is clear for the 39th District. Dr. Bompiani and his opponent disagree on whether or not gaming revenue is the answer to reduce property taxes. Dr. Bompiani thinks gaming revenue is a Band-Aid fix to the gaping wound that is our property tax structure. His opponent thinks it's a great answer.

This is a section of an article in the Post-Gazette on April 17, 2008:

He and Mr. Bompiani disagree on the impact gambling revenue will have on the region's economy. The Youngwood chiropractor does not believe that money will lower school taxes enough for property owners. Mr. Huffman, however, said that "once casinos are up and running, property tax relief will be realized." Link

This is a section of an article in the Post-Gazette on April 16, 2008:

While the size of property tax reductions from slots revenue will vary among 500 Pennsylvania school districts, $169 is the average amount of relief statewide when school property tax bills go out in July, Michael Masch, state budget secretary, said yesterday. In Philadelphia, the slots money will go to lower the city's 4 percent wage tax rather than property taxes.

Taxpayers will not actually see the money and may not be notified directly about how much their school taxes will be reduced. The money will go directly to school districts that will reduce the homeowner's tax bill by the appropriate amount. Link

Just so we are all clear...that's $169.00 per year. That's it. And it won't even go directly to the taxpayers. This simple Band-Aid fix is frequently suggested by inexperienced candidates because the issues surrounding property tax reform are too complicated. For more information on our flawed system and ways to fix it, click here.

Definition of Smear Tactics from Wikepedia

Smear tactics differ from normal discourse or debate in that they do not bear upon the issues or arguments in question. A smear is a simple attempt to malign a group or an individual and to attempt to undermine their credibility.

Smears often consist of ad hominem attacks in the form of unverifiable rumors and are often distortions, half-truths, or even outright lies; smear campaigns are often propagated by gossip spreading.


I have an idea. Instead of distorting records with unverifiable rumors, half-truths and outright lies, lets hear about the issues and what you will bring to the table in Harrisburg for the people of the 39th District.

Jeannette joins the party!

A crowd of 375 Bompiani supporters crowded the Jeannette American Legion on Friday, April 11, 2008 for the Get Out the Vote Rally. Representative Tom Tangretti introduced Dr. Bompiani to the crowd with a heartfelt speech. Dr. Bompiani discussed property tax reform and integrity in the legislature. The theme of the event was ten days until victory.

Seen at the event were candidates, Scott Sistek, Brien Wall, and Steve O'Donnell. Also, in attendance were Tom and Sandy Tangretti, and Jim Roman, the Mayor of South Greensburg.

Thank you Jeannette/Greensburg NAACP and League of Women Voters

I want to express my sincere thanks to the Jeannette/Greensburg NAACP and League of Women Voters for setting up and moderating the debate last night. I thought it was run very well, and it was obvious that a lot of work was put into it. I know I can speak for my opponent as well when I say it was greatly appreciated.

Rizzo's Fundraiser a HUGE Success...Momentum continues to build

On Tuesday, April 8, 2008, Friends of Bompiani hosted a fundraiser at Rizzo's Malabar Inn in Crabtree. The event was very well-attended by Bompiani supporters who are gearing up for election day. Claude Petroy introduced Dr. Bompiani to the crowd of supporters. Dr. Bompiani discussed property tax reform, government reform, and education. Included in attendance were Senator Allen Kukovich, Sandy Tangretti, and candidate for the House of Representative, Bud Mertz.

Debate on Thursday?

On Thursday, April 10th at 6:30 P.M., the Greensburg/Jeannette NAACP and League of Women Voters will be sponsoring a candidates debate at the Greensburg Garden and Civic Center. Dr. Bompiani, his opponent in the primary, and the Senator are to attend to debate the issues. The only issue as of now is whether or not Dr. Bompiani's primary opponent will show as he has not yet attended a debate regarding the issues facing the Commonwealth.

Property Tax Reform...More complicated than using gaming revenue

With my 12 years of experience serving on the Hempfield School Board I have become familiar with the inherent problems in our funding of public education through our property taxes. It is much more complicated than simply using gaming revenue to offer relief. Over the past few years, we have seen a decrease in the State Government's funding of public education yet inflation at a rate of approximately 3% per year (not including the increase in the price of gasoline) has continued to raised costs for the school districts. Couple that with the fact that school districts continue to compete with each other to attract people to their district and it's easy to see how the burden of cost has been placed in the laps of the taxpayers. All that being said, my plan for property tax reform is a four-part plan which is outlined below. Keep in mind that we need to provide relief to our seniors first.

1. 50% Cost Share: The State needs to fulfill its promise of a 50% cost share for education. Twenty years ago the State contributed 50% to public education. Now, it contributes 34.4%. If the State would own up to its promise, the people of the 39th District could see a 15.6% discount in property taxes.

2. Regionalization: Regionalization of schools for business purposes will increase buying power and level the playing field of the school districts. Right now, there is too much competition between school districts. With regionalization, instead of school districts competing against each other, the regions would negotiate together. This would make public education more cost effective resulting in a discount in property taxes.

3. Eliminate Unfunded Mandates: The State needs to stop the unfunded mandates. If the State is going to mandate educational programs to the school districts, it needs to pay for them.

4. Gaming Revenue: My opponent has continued to pitch that gaming revenue will offer the relief needed with property tax reduction. Gaming revenue will offer some relief, but it is overestimated and is simply a Band-Aid fix. Specifically, with gaming revenue we will only see an approximate decrease of a few hundred dollars per year. That's not enough and there is no guarantee that the relief will continue beyond a couple years. Again, it's a Band-Aid fix. We cannot gamble our children’s education on gaming alone.

If you have any further questions or you want to offer input with regard to my plan to reduce property taxes please contact my campaign headquarters at (724) 837-3900.

Clinton, Obama pound on McCain over economy

Post-Gazette- With polls showing the economy is the biggest worry -- by far -- among Pennsylvania voters, New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton yesterday brought her presidential primary-season barnstorming tour to a tiny diner in tiny Swatara, Dauphin County.

Talk at the Capitol Diner with a pre-selected group of Harrisburg-area voters revolved around health care, the high cost of college, energy prices and other budget issues hitting middle-class America.

Sipping tea, the Democrat responded to questions with details of her tax-relief proposals, while also taking shots at President Bush and the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, Arizona Sen. John McCain.

"The best I could determine, [Mr. McCain's economic] plan would be to not have a plan," she said to laughter in the diner crowd. "If he got the 3 a.m. call on the economy, he would just let the phone ring and ring and ring."

Her competitor, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, in Lancaster, also critiqued Mr. McCain, saying his campaign was an effort to launch a third Bush term.

View the entire article here.
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It's obvious that McCain is completely outmatched by both of the Democratic Candidates, especially regarding the Nation's economy. Just check out the answer he gave during a republican debate regarding the economy and the President's working group on financial markets.