Sorry We Bored You, Pancake Joe

I was curious to find out about the debate between Lois Herr and Joe Pitts at the Farm & Home Center in Manheim Township on Wednesday.

Well, the Lois Herr For Congress site communicates the following…

Pitts appeared disinterested during much of the debate. In his opening remarks he said, "It is not the job of Government to help people. It is the purpose of Government to create an atmosphere for people to meet their own needs."

I don’t know what that means, and somehow I don’t think Pitts does either.

I’ll tell you what, Joe; try giving this a read. It’s the text of a speech by columnist and Marine veteran Mark Shields on the importance of government in this country. I don’t know if it will “ring any bells” with you, but try anyway, OK?

Here’s more…

When Pitts was asked about the fiasco following Katrina in New Orleans by an audience member, he blamed the slow progress and failures of the Bush Administration on the corruption of Louisiana politicians.

There’s an element of truth there, but basically it’s a lazy cop out by Pitts. It’s kind of hard to “create an atmosphere for people to meet their own needs” when their homes are getting washed away, their cars are in trees and they’re drowning all over the Ninth Ward.

Also, concerning stem cell research…

Pitts had trouble staying on point. He answered a question on embryonic stem cell research by touting the benefits of adult stem cell research. When the moderator pointed out to him that the American Medical Association had questioned the legitimacy of the research he quoted, Mr. Pitts was not able to address the issue competently.

Non-embryonic stem cell research is “pie in the sky” at this point, but of course this all sounds very familiar to residents of the 8th Congressional district, since Pitts and Mikey are reading from the exact same playbook on this one.

And Lois recently received a boost from Democratic Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, as noted on her site.

To help Lois in the final days of the campaign and send Joe Pitts packing for good, click here.