Revenue Department Apologizes to Browne, Pinsley

State Senator Pat Browne is seeking re-election. Last week, he sent a flyer accusing his opponent, Mark Pinsley, of having a state tax lien. We all know now this was untrue. The state Department of Revenue has apologized to both candidates.

C. Daniel Hansell, the Secretary of Revenue, sent them both a letter yesterday:

"I am aware that this issue has now become a matter of public controversy. I deeply regret the inaccurate information provided by my Department with regard to this matter, and apologize to you both for the confusion it has caused." 

Pinsley Predicts Double Digit Win

State senatorial candidate Mark Pinsley, who is running against incumbent Pat Browne, is predicting a double digit victory. His basis for this boast is a push poll conducted by SEA.

Pinsley's campaign manager, Hillary Kleinz, claims the poll is proof "[v]oters want a Senator who reflects their values and will hold extremists in Harrisburg accountable. Pinsley is ready to take on the special interests and has refused to accept corporate PAC funding. Legislators like Pat Browne have pushed an agenda that only benefits lobbyists and special interests, raising taxes on the rest of us to pay for it.”

Pat Browne chairs the powerful Appropriations Committee and is widely known as a moderate.

My experience with polling is that they are proprietary. Candidates are reluctant to share them. Push polls are used for political purposes, as Pinsley has done.

The Pinsley-Brown Senate Race

John Micek, who is with the Patriot News of late, has listed the race between incumbent Pat Browne and challenger Mark Pinsley as one of eight state senate contests to which we need to pay attention. Browne has been either a State Representative or State Senator since 1994, and has been a State Senator since 2005. He chairs the Appropriations Committee, making him one of the most powerful persons in the state. Browne is both an attorney and a CPA. Pinsley, a South Whitehall Township Commissioner who was just elected last year, has an MBA from Indiana University and is involved in several businesses.

Though he concedes that Pinsley will have the hardest time of any of the Democratic challengers, Micek points out that Hillary Clinton won Brown's district in 2016 with 50.68% of the vote, and that the Democratic edge is 45-37 per cent.

You can expect Browne, who's had a hand in nearly every major economic development project in the Valley for the last decade, to run heavily on his record and his experience.

He's emerged as a forceful advocate for early childhood education funding; the co-sponsor of an LGBTQ anti-discrimination bill, and the chairman of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee. The latter gives him a serious say in the annual debate over the state budget.

On his website, Pinsley describes himself as an advocate "for the people, not the powerful." He supports "healthcare for all;" a $15 minimum wage; "100 percent clean energy," and a proposal he calls "the Anti-Corruption Act."

I expect Browne to kick Pinsley's ass. First, nobody knows who the hell Pinsley is. Second, those who do are turned off by him. This is a guy who announced his challenge before he was even sworn into office. Pinsley also did himself no favors when he attempted to make political hay over the unfortunate shooting death of Joseph Santos by a South Whitehall police officer.