AD WATCH

AD WATCH: When Dan Attacks...

On the heels of a less than impressive debate appearance and in the face of continued lagging poll numbers Dan Onorato has reverted to his go-to campaign tactic... mud-slinging and false attacks against Tom Corbett. Below is the truth behind Onorato's negative attacks.

• Onorato cites the Sunday News, 4/11/04 as evidence that Tom supported policies that cost jobs. This article contains no support for any policy of any kind whatsoever. The additional CNN source is unclear and untraceable. The truth is Tom Corbett will make job creation his first priority as Governor. Tom’s own policies focus on tax reform, regulatory reform, and legal reforms to ensure business will come to PA, stay in PA and grow jobs.
• Onorato is claiming to have created jobs. However, after December 2003 the number of unemployed workers in Allegheny County decreased by thousands. The ad also fails to mention that during the same timeframe, the number of unemployed Pennsylvanians in Allegheny County has increased by more than 21,000 people.
• Onorato calls it an abuse to assign vehicles to law enforcement personnel conducting investigations of drug dealers and child predators. The majority of state cars increased during Tom Corbett's time as Attorney General are used by agents doing work for the Philadelphia Gun Violence Task Force and the Child Predator Unit, while 75% of the cars used in the Attorney General’s office overall are used by law enforcement agents.
• The headline Onorato runs which says "Tom Corbett is against property tax reform" is a letter to the editor and blog entry by State Rep. Tom Houghton. Onorato is relying upon a letter from a democratic member of the House as a source for his TV ad.
• Onorato also cited the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 3/26/05 in support of his complaint about Tom’s budget requests. The budget request in the article Onorato is using is the budget that created the Child Predator Unit. Is Onorato saying that Tom should not have created the Child Predator Unit?
• Onorato claims that he downsized his payroll. But between 2004 (his first year as county executive) and 2009, the county payroll increased full time employees by 343 people, according to the County Controller’s annual report. On top of that, an investigative report found that in 2008 the county payroll was hiked by $2.6 million, with many employees receiving double digit raises. In the same year the payroll was hiked by $2.6 million, the number of unemployed people in his county increased by more than 8,000 people, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.