Congressional candidate Marc Friedenberg/Media

US capitol from senate side.jpg

What to look for on Smart Talk Monday April 30, 2018:

Pennsylvania’s primary election is scheduled for May 15.  A mid-term election is important because voters are deciding on candidates for the U.S House of Representatives and in Pennsylvania — a U.S. Senate seat.  Pennsylvanians are also voting for governor as well as state house and half the state senate.

Smart Talk has invited almost three dozen candidates to appear on the program so that voters can hear where they stand on the issues.  The candidates invited include those with opponents in the primary for governor, the U.S. House and U.S. Senate.

About two-thirds have accepted our invitation.

Two Congressional candidates appear on Monday’s Smart Talk.

Marc Friedenberg, is a Democrat, running for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 12th Congressional District.  The 12th District includes Perry, Juniata, Mifflin, Snyder, and Union Counties and parts of Northumberland and Montour Counties in the WITF listening area.

Marc Friednberg.png

Marc Friedenberg

Laura Ellsworth, Republican running for governor/Stephen Bloom, Congressional candidate

voting.png

What to look for on Smart Talk Friday, April 27, 2018:

Smart Talk is questioning the candidates in contested races before the May 15 primary election.  That includes those running for governor of Pennsylvania, the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives.  There are about 30 of those candidates in the WITF listening area.  More than two-thirds have been or will be interviewed on Smart Talk.

Our goal is to provide voters with information on where the candidates stand on the issues most important to them.

Appearing on Friday’s program is Laura Ellsworth, a Republican running for governor.  Ms. Ellsworth is vying for votes with two other Republicans — Scott Wagner and Paul Mango.  Wagner and Mango have gotten most of the attention due to a series of TV commercials attacking one another.  Ellsworth thinks the negative campaigns being run by her opponents will help her with voters.

Also, we’re joined by Stephen Bloom, a Republican running for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 13th Congressional District.  The 13th district includes Adams and Franklin Counties and the western portion of Cumberland County.

Stephen Bloom.png

Stephen Bloom

Democratic Congressional candidates Judy Herschel and Laura Quick

Congressional-Map-600x340-PA-Supreme-CT.png

What to look for on Smart Talk Thursday, April 26, 2018:

Pennsylvania’s primary election is scheduled for May 15.  A mid-term election is important because voters are deciding on candidates for the U.S House of Representatives and in Pennsylvania — a U.S. Senate seat.  Pennsylvanians are also voting for governor as well as state house and half the state senate.

Smart Talk has invited almost three dozen candidates to appear on the program so that voters can hear where they stand on the issues.  The candidates invited include those with opponents in the primary for governor, the U.S. House and U.S. Senate.

About two-thirds have accepted our invitation.

On Thursday’s Smart Talk, we’re joined by two Democrats running for seperate Congressional seats.

Judy Herschel is vying for the 12th district nomination.  The 12th district includes Perry, Juniata, Mifflin, Snyder, Union Counties and parts of Northumberland and Montour Counties in the WITF listening area.

Laura Quick is competing with one other candidate in the 9th district.

The 9th district is made up of Lebanon, Schuylkill, Columbia and parts of Berks, Carbon, Northumberland, Luzerne, and Montour Counties.

Untitled design.jpg

Candidates Judy Herschel (left) & Laura Quick (right)

Dreamland author details how opioid crisis grew/10th District candidate Alan Howe

Dreamland cover 600 x 340.jpg

What to look for on Smart Talk Wednesday, April 25, 2018:

More than 42,000 people died of opioid overdoses in 2016 — the last year statistics are available.  That’s five times more than in 1999, according to the Centers for Disease Control.  The opioid crisis or epidemic was fueled by prescribed painkillers that often led to heroin addictions.  Even the most high-income idyllic neighborhoods have been touched by opioids.

Awarding winning journalist and author Sam Quinones detailed a seminal history of the opioid crisis in his 2015 book Dream Land: The True Tale of America’s Opiate Epidemic.  The book is WITF’s Summer Read for 2018.

In the book, Quinones describes how a doctor in Boston wrote a letter in 1979 to the New England Journal of Health that said of 12,000 hospital patients he treated with opiates, only four became addicted.  Even though the one-paragraph letter didn’t say what dosage the patients got and for how long, that letter was cited for decades by the medical profession and a drug manufacturer that opioids weren’t addictive.

Quinones also writes about black tar heroin that flooded the United States from a small county in Mexico that helped hook thousands of white Americans in smaller cities and rural areas of the country.

Quinones appears on Wednesday’s Smart Talk

Quinones also will speak at the Pullo Center in York Monday, April 30th at 5:30pm and will feature a Keynote presentation by Quinones followed by a Local Leader Panel Discussion.  Learn more at the Pullo Center’s website.

Also, Smart Talk discusses issues with another candidate before the May 15th primary on Wednesday’s program.  Alan Howe is a Democrat, who is running for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 10th Congressional District.  The 10th District encompasses Dauphin County, northern York County and eastern Cumberland County.

Alan Howe.png

Alan Howe

Central PA has some of worst air pollution in U.S./9th Congressional District candidate Gary Wegman

older man coughing 600 x 340.jpg

What to look for on Smart Talk Tuesday, April 24, 2018:

With the exception of Harrisburg, Lancaster, York, Reading and Lebanon, South Central Pennsylvania is mostly rural.  In most of the region, one is more likely to see farmland and woods than a building over four stories tall.  That’s why many are astonished to learn the area has some of the worst air pollution in the country.

That’s according to the American Lung Association’s 2018 “State-of-the-Air” report

The report found that Lancaster County is tied with Pittsburgh for the worst air particle pollution east of California and eighth worst in the entire country.

The Harrisburg-York-Lebanon metropolitan area has the 15th worst particle air pollution nationally.  More than 170 other metros have better air when measured for particles.

According to the Lung Association, the health of people with asthma or other respiratory conditions can be impacted by the air they breathe.

Kevin Stewart, Director of Environmental Health, American Lung Association of the Mid-Atlantic appears on Tuesday’s Smart Talk to discuss the report’s findings and what can be done about it.

Kevin Stewart.png

Kevin Stewart

Smart Talk continues our conversations with candidates before the May 15th primary Tuesday.  We’re joined by Gary Wegman, a Democrat running for U.S. House of Representatives in the 9th Congressional District.

The new 9th Congressional District is made up of Lebanon, Schuylkill, Columbia and parts of Berks, Carbon, Northumberland, Luzerne, and Montour Counties.

Gary Wegman.png

Dr. Gary Wegman

9th Congressional District candidate\Voting Equipment Directive

Voters with vote flag showing 600 x 340.jpg

What to look for on Smart Talk Monday, April 23, 2018:

On May 15, Pennsylvania voters will go to the polls to vote in the state’s primary election. When they do, voters will expect reliable and accurate voting systems.

County officials say that is what voters will find on election day as officials continue working toward replacing equipment that is more than 12 years old.

An April 12 directive from the Department of State Acting Secretary Robert Torres expedites the replacement timeline and requires counties deploy new equipment by the April 2020 primary elections.

The County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP) says funding the system upgrades is the biggest impediment to meeting the directive. Total statewide equipment replacement costs are estimated at $125 million.

Appearing on Monday’s Smart Talk is Doug Hill, the Executive Director of the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania to discuss CCAP’s reaction to the directive.

Also joining us is Jerry Feaser, Dauphin County’s Elections and Voter Registration Director.

Untitled design (39).png

Jerry Feaser, Doug Hill

Smart Talk continues candidate conversations Monday with Scott Uehlinger, a Republican running for U.S. House of Representatives in the 9th Congressional District.  The new 9th Congrssional District is made up of Lebanon, Schuylkill, Columbia and parts of Berks, Carbon, Northumberland, Luzerne, and Montour Counties.

Scott Uehlinger.png

Scott Uehlinger

Philly soda tax / Capitol roundup

When Philadelphia wanted to combat obesity and reduce its impact on health care early last year, it turned to a controversial measure: the soda tax.

Since then, the 1.5 cent-per-ounce tax has inspired equally passionate support and opposition.

Detractors of additional food, beverage and container taxes say they result in job loss, harm communities and adversely impact lower income families.

Proponents, meanwhile, cite health benefits, and say the additional tax revenue is an investment in neighborhoods and public education.

More than a year after its implementation, Philadelphia’s tax is now coming back to the fore in Harrisburg, as a number of lawmakers move to kill it, plus prevent any new levies on food, beverages and food containers. Allegheny County Republican Mark Mustio, the lead sponsor of that legislation, joins Smart Talk to explain why he thinks the tax is such a bad idea.

And representing the other point of view is Donna Cooper, Executive Director of Public Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY), a Greater Philadelphia child advocacy organization. Cooper believes the tax is doing a world of good for the Philly community and the programs that serve it.

In other news, this week was a busy one in the state Capitol. With WITF State Capitol Bureau Chief Katie Meyer hosting, Capitolwire Bureau Chief Chris Comisac stops by to discuss the major events: including the House passing contentious bills on abortion and Medicaid work requirements, new rules for medical marijuana, some inter-legislator tension, and much more.

Chris Comisac.png

Chris Comisac

 

Increasing size of PA legislature?/PA businesses optimistic

Capitol in wintertime 600 x 340.jpg

What to look for on Smart Talk Thursday, April 19, 2018:

As a bill that would shrink the size of Pennsylvania’s legislature makes its way through the General Assembly, there are those who say the number of lawmakers should actually be increased.  Growing the nation’s largest full-time legislature is not something that has been proposed in legislative form, but would it lead to better representation for Pennsylvanians?

Pennsylvania’s businesses are optimistic about the national and state economies and the prospects for their own businesses.  That’s according to the PNC  Economic Outlook Survey of Small and Middle Market Business Owners.

A bill now being considered would reduce the House of Representatives from 203 to 151 and maintain the status quo of 50 Senators.  An amended version would also cut the number of senators too.  A hearing is scheduled before the Senate State Government Committee on reducing the size of the legislature.

The idea to shrink the legislature is to make it more responsive to constituents and efficient.  It’s estimated it would save $10 to $15 million. 

Franklin and Marshall College pollster and political science professor Berwood Yost argues a smaller legislature would actually be less responsive and maybe not save that much money.  Longtime Philadelphia Daily News columnist John Baer has often been critical of how the General Assembly operates.  Both Yost and Baer appear on Thursday’s Smart Talk.

Berwood Yost.png

Prof. Berwood Yost

Pennsylvania’s businesses are optimistic about the national and state economies and the prospects for their own businesses.  That’s according to the PNC Economic Outlook Survey of Small and Middle Market Business Owners.

PNC Senior Vice President and Chief Economist Gus Faucher is on Thursday’s Smart Talk with details and analysis.

Eating and exercising to be healthy/Congressional candidate Eric Ding

healthy food and exercise 600 x 340.jpg

What to look for on Smart Talk Wednesday, April 18, 2018:

More than a third of Americans are considered obese, which can lead to heart disease, stroke, type two diabetes and some forms of cancer.

Diet and exercise are key components of a healthy lifestyle.

Nutrition experts say to prevent disease we should focus on avoiding foods that cause chronic inflammation.

Inflammation is the body’s response to injury and necessary for healing. So, when does inflammation become chronic and why is it dangerous?

Chronic inflammation is characterized by a prolonged inflammatory response, like the body is in a constant state of emergency. This chronic state can lead to irreversible damage, and may play a role in almost every major disease, like arthritis, heart disease and cancer.

Diet is one way to control inflammation.  Regular physical activity is, as well. 

Appearing on Wednesday’s Smart Talk is Tamara Rhodes, RD, LDN, Outpatient Clinical Dietitian with UPMC Pinnacle. She will discuss dietary management of chronic inflammation.  

Tamara Rhodes.png

Tamara Rhodes

Also joining the discussion is Dr. Janet Fulton, PhD., the chief of the Physical Activity and Health Branch of the Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity at the Center for Disease Control.

Smart Talk conversations with the candidates continue Wednesday with Democrat Eric Ding, who is running for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 10th Congressional District. 

The 10th District covers Dauphin County, eastern Cumberland County and the northern portion of York County. 

There are four Democrats competing in the May 15th primary.  The winner faces Republican incumbent Congressman Scott Perry.

Dr. Eric Ding.png

Dr. Eric Ding

Humane Society: Horses not being adopted/U.S. Senate candidate Jim Christiana

unhealthy horse 600 x 340.jpg

What to look for on Smart Talk Tuesday, April 17, 2018:

Neglected Horses

Many people were shocked when they learned that two dozen horses were found dead on a farm in Maryland last month.  The horses were starving and had resorted to eating insulation from a building.  In 2013, the Humane Society of the Harrisburg Area rescued nearly 30 horses that also had been neglected from a farm near Palmyra.  Five years later, those horses and several others still haven’t been adopted and it’s cost about hald a million dollars to keep and feed them

GUEST:

Amy Kaunus, executive director at the Humane Society of Harrisburg Area.

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Jim Christiana 600x340.png

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Jim Christiana

Election 2018

Over the next month before Pennsylvania’s May 15th primary, candidates for statewide and federal office will be appearing on Smart Talk.  The candidates we speak with will each be on the show for close to a half hour unless they opt for less time, and we’ll be discussing the issues important to voters.  Joining us today is Jim Christiana – a Republican running for the U.S. Senate.

GUEST:

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Jim Christiana