Pittsburgh was a political playground Friday, with the Democratic and Republican parties rallying only hours apart.
(R-Upper St. Clair), former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal stopped by Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall in Oakland to show their support for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. All three spoke mainly about jobs and the economy.
Pawlenty and Jindal, both Republican vice presidential hopefuls, are touring Pennsylvania and Ohio on the tail of President Barack Obama's “Betting on America” bus tour, which stopped just blocks away on Friday at Carnegie Mellon University in Oakland.
During the rally, Murphy spoke out about the importance of this upcoming election. The congressman’s speech pushed for job creation in Pennsylvania, something that he feels Obama has not improved during his presidency since, Murphy says, 25 million Americans are still unemployed or underemployed.
“This is where Democrats and Republicans come together because we’re all concerned about the future of our families,” Murphy said. “And you can’t feed the family and you can’t clothe the family and you can’t pay for the car or for the mortgage if you’re worried about your next paycheck and if there’s going to be one.”
This is exactly why David Show of Uniontown, a prominent member of the Fayette County Tea Party, attended the event today. He considers this to be the most important election in his lifetime.
“If we continue down the path of federalizing the country as we are, it’s not going to be the same country my grandchildren get that I get,” Show said.
Murphy suggested the future of southwestern Pennsylvania’s job growth was in the energy industry—with companies like and those involved with —and the medical industry, two things that he said Obama threatened with excess energy regulations and the , also known as “Obamacare.”
This is something Show says he’s seen first hand, citing coal as Fayette County’s main industry, which he claims is hurting due to government regulations.
“Instead of working to promote our own energy, we’re working completely against it,” Show said.
Jindal also commented on the health care act.
“We just need to appeal this bad law,” Jindal said rousing cheers from the crowd of Romney supporters.
He also brought up what he considered to be the president’s broken promises for the economy, saying that instead the president has racked up a debt of $15 trillion.
“My little girl brought a note home from school the other day. It said ‘Please don’t tell the president what comes after a trillion,’” Jindal joked to the crowd.
Pawlenty was concerned about the future of the nation’s children, with what he said was half of all high school and college graduates experiencing unemployment or underemployment.
According to Pawlenty, Romney has proposals to lower taxes, encourage business and create jobs. He also said Romney wants stick with consumer-based health care and crack down on federal spending.
“That’s the kind of direction America needs,” Pawlenty said.
One attendee, Jan Kiefer of Westmoreland County didn’t think either side was offering him a direction he needed. Kiefer, who also attended the Obama rally, considers himself a true independent and disagrees with both sides. He’s against the coal industry and believes that both Republicans and Democrats are not creating a healthcare system he can agree with.
“I want the people who are frustrated with the two party system to keep getting involved ... and actually come and see it because you can’t complain unless you sit here and talk to the people,” Kiefer said.
His only solution to the political debate: a third party.
Do you agree with the Republicans' stand on energy, health care, job creation, taxes and the debt? Let us know why or why not in the comments section.
Fact - Romney talks like he knows how to create jobs, yet Massachusetts dropped to 47th out of 50 states in job creation when he was governor. Vote for him if you're impressed by this actual performance, not his rhetoric. There are some instances of Bain stepping in and actually helping a company survive. Many more instances of Bain coming in and dismantling a company, selling off it's parts and walking away with a huge profit. Nothing wrong with making a profit, but do you want the president of our country to be someone who has made millions this way, then stashed some of it in offshore bank accounts so he doesn't have to pay taxes on it? Wow, he must really love America. This has nothing to do with job creation, it has to do with Bain's bottom line and Romney was very good at it. I ask again, are these the skills that we need in a president. A couple posters mentioned that Obama never ran a business and doesn't know how to make money. Since when is it the government's job to make money?
Bush's Republican policies took a booming economy and destroyed it, Romney sunk his state into the bottom 5 of job producers at a time when the nation's economy was doing well. I don't understand some people just completely ignoring reality.
unemployment rate when Bush took office - 5.7 when Bush left office - 7.8 when Obama took office - 7.8 now - 8.2 Not good either way, but who's done better? You seriously wanted to bring up the Dow? Dow when Bush took office - 8600 Bush left office - 8200 when Obama took office - 8200 now (6/29) - 12,000 I would argue that the Dow isn't a good indicator of how the actual people of the country are doing, but since you brought it up.
I hope and pray every night that obama is voted out of office in November.
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As you can see by the chart, the net loss has been in the public sector, which all Republicans want to cut to the bone. He and most Republican governors are only doing what the right wing wants done anyways. Bush increased public sector jobs, something I would assume you'd be against. Private sector jobs have increased since Obama took office.
Bill Clinton left George W with a surplus. How soon we forget? You have a lot to learn. Especially about the big banks and corporations who run this country. A president doesn't "create" jobs. A lot more goes into it. People who are in the middle class, as you seem to be, are voting against themselves voting Republican. You've sipped too much of their kool-aid. Also, so many use any and every far-fetched reason to be anti-Obama, except the real one - he's black.
If you want to open your arms and wallet to the Socialist utopia Obama is trying to sell, then go right ahead. That doesn't make those of us who want to live in a Capitalist society racist.
Once again, it turns out that the Obama ad touting your "FACTS" aren't really factual. Oh, there's a surprise. Apparently, the so called FACTS exclude self employed people. How bout that. Let me give you the real facts. The Massachusetts unemployment rate FELL, yes, you read correctly, FELL steadily during Romney's term. http://articles.boston.com/2012-07-10/opinion/32605367_1_romney-years-romney-record-job-creation And as for the offshore accounts. Once again, your so called FACTS, or should I say NOT FACTS are wrong. The offshore accounts are legal and all taxes have been paid. Since Obama's record sucks, big time, the dems have to imply Romney's a tax cheat when he isn't. http://www.nydailynews.com/news/election-2012/romney-blind-trust-holds-offshore-accounts-hiding-article-1.1111143 Why don't you read about Pelois's offshore accounts, that extoll the virtues of outsourcing . . go figure. http://hotair.com/headlines/archives/2012/07/11/offshoring-pelosi-made-millions-on-investments-in-asia/ And then there's Debbie Wasserman Schultz, another DEM, who happens to have offshore accounts too, and apparently her parents are tax evaders, who actually went to jail. http://www.examiner.com/article/is-dnc-s-debbie-wasserman-schultz-being-hypocritical-on-romney-s-tax-returns?cid=CommunityPacific
Lets play the race card, as I wouldn't care if his skin color is purple, blue, green, pink, that has nothing to do with it. It was the white people that put him in office don't forget that. Why didn't Clinton do anything about their being an attack on American Soil? He knew a year before he was out of office what Bin Ladden was planning but chose to ignore it? Obama has not done anything for us other than create 322,000 jobs. How many jobs did we lose since obamacare been voted in? obamacare is just going to add more taxes onto people and what is going to happen when your forced to pay for insurance and the companies raise it and you can't afford the payments. You going to quit feeding your family, or not pay for your utilites, or your rent to pay for his health care? I know your one of the ones on welfare that collect foodstamps and free medical now. IT IS YOU DEMOCRATS THAT DRANK TO MUCH KOOL-AID AND ARE BRAINED WASHED BY OBAMACARE
If you want to ride on Obama's train to a Socialist utopia go right ahead, don't forget your pocketbook. And fyi, this is for both you and Paula M, yes Clinton did leave the economy in good condition when he left office, however, both of you conveniently forget that the last 6 years of Clinton's term the Congress was run by Republicians, both the house and senate. That's right. In fact, the only reason Clinton won a second term is because he was forced to move to the right during the end of his first term. Can we say Clinton's Welfare reform. The Dem controlled congress, both the house and senate, during last 2 years of Bush's term and the first two years of Obama's term. You can't have it both ways, praising Clinton when the Republicans controlled Congress, then blame the Republicians when they have only held the house for the last 1-1/2 years during Obama's term. But, that is so typical of you Libs that are following Obama to his Socialist utopia. This is Obama's economy, not the Republicians.
The Fox News website has an interesting article about this here: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/07/11/if-romney-vetted-himself-his-tax-returns-would-ko-shot-at-white-house/
THat is why our nation is going to hell in a handbag.
Don't let facts get in the way. By the way, you have entirely too much time on your hands