Blog: Page 9

Pennsylvania – With just 46 days to go until Election Day, Scott Wagner is receiving a steady drumbeat of criticism for his racist comments, lack of transparency, and transphobic campaign staff. Here’s a brief summary of all of the ways that he embarrassed himself, his campaign, and Pennsylvania just this week:

1. First, PennLive reported that Wagner retold a notorious story from a white nationalist site comparing immigrants to a raccoon infestation at his campaign rally in Wilkes-Barre earlier this month. Wagner refused to apologize.
2. Then, the Associated Press reported that Wagner is still refusing to release his tax returns, despite the fact that his company relies on government contracts and could pose conflicts of interest.
3. To wrap it all up, the Philadelphia Gay News reminded us that Wagner still has not taken action against his campaign consultant Ray Zaborney who recently shared a transphobic meme or his campaign manager Jason High who received the meme yet didn’t condemn Zaborney.

We’ll at least give Wagner points for his ability to come up with innovative new ways to embarrass himself. And we look forward to seeing what else he will do in the coming weeks.

 

Check out the coverage below:

PennLive: ‘We are being invaded:’ Republican Scott Wagner repeats anecdote from white nationalist site

Inquirer: Scott Wagner, Republican nominee for governor, shares story about ‘raccoon’ infestation, invasion

Tribune Review: Democrats criticize Wagner for reading InfoWars letter at campaign event

AP: Releasing tax returns an issue again – in governor’s races

Philadelphia Gay News: Wagner faces backlash for transphobic meme

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* It wasn’t a scene from the 2016 presidential race. Rather, it was from this year’s campaign for governor in Pennsylvania, where the Republican challenger who has made millions from his trash-hauling business has refused to release his tax returns.

* Wagner has said he will not divest his ownership of the $75 million waste hauling business should he win. That has raised alarms with transparency advocates about the potential for conflict because state government heavily regulates municipal waste.

* He has given varied reasons for his refusal to open his tax returns for review — saying at one point it was because they were “very complicated.” At another, he said unions would use them to promote his wealth in an attempt to organize his company’s workers.

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HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The candidate had just chided the media minutes earlier for not being tougher on his opponent when the moderator asked him what might be his least favorite campaign question: Why won’t you release your tax returns?

It wasn’t a scene from the 2016 presidential race. Rather, it was from this year’s campaign for governor in Pennsylvania, where the Republican challenger who has made millions from his trash-hauling business has refused to release his tax returns.

“How much I make or don’t make is nobody’s business, frankly,” the candidate, Scott Wagner, responded during a question-and-answer forum.

The incumbent, Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf, released his tax return in what he said was a nod to transparency. The discrepancy between the two candidates and the ongoing dispute highlights a fact that was overlooked in the controversy over then-candidate Donald Trump’s refusal to release his returns during the 2016 presidential race: The nation’s other executive branch leaders — state governors — also are not required to release their tax returns and often don’t.

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The release-or-not-to-release calculation has been on full display in Wagner’s uphill bid to unseat Wolf in Pennsylvania.

Wagner has said he will not divest his ownership of the $75 million waste hauling business should he win. That has raised alarms with transparency advocates about the potential for conflict because state government heavily regulates municipal waste.

He has given varied reasons for his refusal to open his tax returns for review — saying at one point it was because they were “very complicated.” At another, he said unions would use them to promote his wealth in an attempt to organize his company’s workers.

Wagner maintains that he has complied with state requirements to disclose sources of income, that he owes no back taxes and provides charitable contributions through his company. Democrats say his word is not enough.

In a statement, the state Democratic Party said Wagner’s “refusal to release his tax returns raises questions about what he could be hiding.”

Read the full piece here.

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