Is Rendell hiding something?

Of interest from the Harrisburg press corps:

Capitolwire.com’s Pete DeCoursey wrote a stinging piece yesterday accusing Gov. Rendell of stonewalling on DeCoursey’s requests for information on projects Rendell is funding as he leaves office.

Because Capitolwire is a paid service, I can’t link the whole piece. But DeCoursey says he asked for the relevant documents on Nov. 24, and was stalled by administration officials, then told to file a formal Right to Know request which would give them 35 days to respond.

DeCoursey writes: “So the questions: Which projects is he trying to hide from us? Who is getting public money that Rendell can’t defend? What are you hiding, governor, and want to keep on hiding for 35 days or more?”

Smelly things happen when powerful officials are about to clean their offices and turn out the lights. This bears watching.

The Pittsburgh Tribune Review’s Harrisburg correspondent Brad Bumsted quotes Republican legislative leaders saying they may seek to re-locate the second casino targeted for Philadelphia to another part of the state, or abandon it altogether. More here.

And on Monday Bumsted, reported on what elected officials do with their campaign funds besides running for office.

Philadelphia U.S. Rep. Bob Brady spent $11,000 on gift cards for the Capitol Grille restaurant, and made donations such as $450 to the Veteran Boxers Association and $200 to Second Baptist Church in Philadelphia.

In all, he spent $713,000 in an election year in which he was unopposed. Brady spokesman Ken Smukler said spending campaign funds on good causes are one reason he was unopposed.

Another expenditure that caught Bumsted’s eye was the $1,000 campaign fund payment for U.S. Rep. Mark Critz’s NRA membership. He’s a Johnstown Democrat. You can read all of Bumstead’s story here.