Running for Governor to Restore Common-Sense Leadership in Pennsylvania

0:00 Speaker 1 Well, let’s go to the great state of Pennsylvania this November. There’s a governor’s election. Well, on your Democratic side, I believe they got Josh Shapiro. On the Republican side, we got Stacy Guarantee. And Stacey we know each other for a long time. Give us the the pulse of what’s going on in Pennsylvania and how your race is going.

0:27 Speaker 2 Sure, so, John, I think it’s going great, you know, just to remind you, so this, I’m the state treasurer, and it is my first stint in public services, public office, but not my first and public service. So I spent thirty years in the Army Reserve, three deployments, all to the Middle East, and I hit my mandatory retirement date

0:49 in twenty sixteen, or I would have never ran for treasure because serving was and is the honor of my lifetime. So we have a governor more interesting any avenue than helping Pennsylvania families. And it would probably surprise your audience to know that Pennsylvania ranks thirty eighth economically, thirty ninth in education. Seven out of ten of our eighth graders

1:14 can’t read at grade level. We ranked forty first overall or a C minus and infrastructure. I could go on and on, but I won’t. I will on this note, since I am the state treasurer, that we spend five billion dollars more year than what we bring in.

1:30 Speaker 1 Well, I mean that’s a lot of money. Now, Pennsylvania has been very, very divided. I mean, Pittsburgh is one side of the state, Philadelphia is on the other side of the state. And there’s been a lot of controversy.

1:49 So tell us is there more common sense going on in Pennsylvania than before? Because I understand they wanted there was some things going on with the counting of the votes, et cetera. And you tell tell me what you’re most interested in to give Pennsylvanians if you will govern it.

2:10 Speaker 2 Well, basically, it’s to bring common sense back to Pennsylvania. And there’s no way that we should be ranking in the bottom of all these metrics, because, as you know, because we’re your neighbor, Pennsylvania is blessed with world class industries, with amazing people, and we have natural resources that are the envy of the entire world. So we’re squandering our blessing.

2:34 There is no way that we should rank in the bottom tier. Butt.

2:37 Speaker 2 It’s really not just a Pennsylvania issue. It’s a national issue because you don’t want those scale policies to come to your backyard. So right now it’s in all hands on deck missions.

2:49 Speaker 1 Now who controls the two legislative bodies in Pennsylvania now to Democrats or Republicans.

3:00 Speaker 2 State House, the Democrats have a one seat advantage, so two to one oh one. And in the State Senate, Republicans have a two seat advantage, so it is very tight. And Josh Shapiro has said that he wants to flip the entire state blue, so he wants the trifecta. And he’s also trying to flip up four Congressional seats.

3:22 Speaker 1 And how many seats are up? How many seats are up this November.

3:29 Speaker 2 In Congress? Yes, so on the Republican side, uh, there’s eight and so four are vulnerable.

3:40 Speaker 1 And how many How about the state? What do you have in Pennsylvania State Senate? In the state tell us about Pennsylvania. It’s not everybody knows.

3:50 Speaker 2 About it, right. So in the we have a very large legislature. So in the State House there’s two hundred and three and then in the State Senate there is.

4:06 Speaker 1 Fifty and right now, so it’s very close. Now, let me ask you one more important thing. There was talk about honesty and dishonesty in some of the voting patterns in Pennsylvania. Is Pennsylvania straightened out now where people when you vote that you’re going to get an honest vote.

4:28 Speaker 2 Oh, you know what, There’s always going to be some amount of fraud in Pennsylvania. That’s why we’ve been pushing for voter ID because we wanted to make it easy to vote but hard to see.

4:42 Speaker 1 And Tyls, what is the biggest difference between you and Josh Shapiro.

4:49 Speaker 2 Well, basically, I have lived my entire life in service, so service to our nation, spending thirty years in the army, and this is my first political We’ve broken every single record at Treasure. I’ve given back one point two billion dollars to back to people. We’ve reduced fees in our college and career savings program by twenty three million, and

5:13 our able program for our program for people with disabilities, we’re fifth largest in the nations. And basically we’ve broke every single record. Josh Shapiro is a career politician, and honestly, he’s more interested in Pennsylvania avenue than helping Pennsylvania family.

5:29 So his eye is off the ball, and that is why I believe that we’re you know, we’re failing as a state. And it doesn’t have to be this way. I mean, Pennsylvania has left before where the state that sparked a revolution, where the states that powered the industrial revolution.

5:46 We are the state that built the American working class. But you know what we’ve led before, we should lead again in leadership matters, accountabiliting matters, and putting Pennsylvania families first matters.

6:00 Speaker 1 And that’s the important thing. And the other thing that’s important because I live you know, we have a lot of businesses in Pennsylvania. I live in New York. The quality of life. Do people feel safe or they feel safer in Pittsburgh versus in Philadelphia?

6:20 Speaker 2 Oh my goodness. So I would say both areas are very challenging right now. So you know, parents want safe communities and they want to know that if their kids are out in the playground, they don’t have to worry about crime or being shot at. And there’s also so many drugs in Kensington in the Philadelphia area, so very

6:43 sad state of affairs.

6:46 Speaker 1 Well, thank you so much for coming on this Sunday to the Catch round table and I look to catch up with you again real soon and we want common sense to prevail in the state of Pennsyl.

7:00 Speaker 2 Thank you, we do. Thanks John, always great to talk to you.