Reps seek to stop ‘insurrection’ candidates
A state senator is calling for officials to throw “insurrectionists” off the ballot, in the latest effort by Democratic lawmakers to target candidates tied to anti-government activity.
In a memo to Senate colleagues this week, Sen. Art Haywood, D-Philadelphia, said he’ll propose a resolution calling for the Secretary of the Commonwealth to remove insurrectionists from election ballots. While Haywood didn’t specify the terms to apply, he said officials should disqualify “any candidate who has broken an oath to support the Constitution or has engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the United States.”
That’s an apparent reference to the Jan. 6, 2021, siege of the U.S. Capitol, which saw a crowd of then-president Donald Trump’s supporters push through police lines and seize control of the nation’s legislative seat.
“There is much talk about election integrity in Pennsylvania on the voter side of the equation,” Haywood said. “But what has been lacking in this discussion and debate is the necessity of excluding constitutionally and legally ineligible candidates from the ballot.”
Among those charged in the Capitol attack are elected officials from across the country, who in some cases could face removal or impeachment for their alleged involvement. Last month, a judge removed a New Mexico county commissioner from office for his Jan. 6, 2021 role – the first such case reported in the country.
Haywood isn’t alone in pushing for accused anti-government figures to be disqualified.
This summer, Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta and Rep. Christopher Rabb, both Democrats of Philadelphia, proposed a constitutional amendment to bar those convicted of seditious conspiracy from any elected office in the state.
“In the recent past, our democracy was threatened by a group of armed individuals,” the lawmakers said when they proposed the package. “It continues to be threatened by individuals who share misinformation and create distrust, fear and ignorance within our communities.”
This month, Rep. Jared Solomon, D-Philadelphia, said he’ll propose a special committee to investigate attempts by elected officials to overturn the 2020 election results.
While all these bills address the threat in broad terms, some comments seem to be aimed at rival Pennsylvania politicians who were present at the Capitol incident.
Most prominently, state Sen. Doug Mastriano – the GOP candidate for governor – was present at the Washington rally. Mastriano does not face any charges, and has maintained he followed police instructions during the event.
Democratic efforts to change the law haven’t progressed in a GOP-controlled state Capitol.
Cannabis order raises Pennsylvania hopes
With President Joe Biden’s order this month to pardon thousands convicted under federal marijuana laws and potentially revise the drug’s classification, marijuana advocates are eyeing more reforms at the state level.
Many Pennsylvania politicians – including Gov. Tom Wolf and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Lt. Gov. John Fetterman – have called for recreational marijuana to be legalized. While Biden’s order doesn’t directly aid that process, a federal change to its medical status could help make the reform more palatable in Harrisburg.
“One year ago today, Pennsylvania’s prison population reached its 20-year low,” Wolf tweeted shortly after Biden’s order. “This is an important milestone as we work to remedy over-incarceration, historical racism and the damage caused by the war on drugs”.
Attorney General Josh Shapiro, the state’s top prosecutor and the Democratic candidate for governor, has expressed support for legalization; his opponent, Mastriano, forcefully opposes it.
“All it’s done is destroy their society,” Mastriano once said of states that legalized the drug, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Medical marijuana is already legal and regulated in Pennsylvania, and local governments have set a patchwork on rules enforcing casual recreational consumption. But stronger efforts to legalize the drug have so far stalled in the Legislature.
The latest bill to get any attention is Senate Bill 749, backed by GOP lawmakers including Sen. Gene Yaw, R-Bradford, Sen. Camera Bartolotta, R-Washington, Sen. Pat Stefano, R-Fayette, and Sen. Judy Ward, R-Blair.
The bill, currently awaiting attention in the Senate, would change rules for workers who use medical marijuana.
Marijuana advocates and the American Civil Liberties Union criticized an earlier version of the bill for giving employers free rein to discipline workers who legally use the drug.
Other reform efforts, including sweeping efforts to legalize recreational use, haven’t progressed. Senate Bill 473, a year-old bipartisan plan to allow broad adult use, never got a committee vote.
Most of Pennsylvania’s neighboring states have either legalized marijuana or decriminalized its possession.
Ryan Brown covers statewide politics for Ogden Newspapers. He can be reached at rbrown@altoonamirror.com.