Tuesday roundup

• Politicians
  
  
  
  • Another story about Bob Brady's access to Democratic Committee funds, including notes that some of those funds were contributed by judicial candidates looking for endorsement four years ago. [Note also that a chunk of money went to the campaign chest of Carol Campbell, party secretary.] This quote summarizes my take on Brady:

    "I'm the chairman of the Democratic Party. Are you telling me I can't take money from anybody?"

    Now that's public spirit!!
    
    
  • Chaka Fattah comes out with a business tax proposal that includes offering relocating businesses the choice of paying the same tax rates as in their old location. Nutter, among others, criticize this as disadvantaging businesses already located here.
    
    
  • Dwight Evans joins the battle of the airwaves with a small TV ad campaign that's focused on the issue of crime. (More here.)
    
    
  • Tom Knox is the focus of a lengthy profile in the Daily News today, noting his business background and picking out the couple of controversies that he's been part of through the years.
    
    
  • Milton Street continues to bring the fun, this time with an arrest over unpaid New Jersey traffic tickets. (More here.) Elmer Smith hopes somebody will talk him out of the mayoral race, for everybody's good.
  
  
• Other news
  
  
  
  • Some Harrisburg legislators are contemplating calling for a constitutional convention in Pennsylvania (the first in 40 years) to reform how state government operates. Supporters are talking about such changes as shrinking the legislature, term limits, changes in how salaries are determined, nonpartisan districting, and other wonderful craziness. No idea how likely this all is to come about, but the process will start with some hearings in Pittsburgh this Thursday.
    (via Pennsyltucky Politics)
    
    
  • Apparently there was a day-long conference on youth mentoring and violence prevention, chaired by US Sens. Casey and Specter. Many ideas for improving educational support and neighborhood safety were discussed... (More here, including lots of calls for more mentors for at-risk youth.)
    
    
  • New Jersey's civil union law has taken effect, with heaps of long-term couples lining up to get their license paperwork submitted.
    
    
  • BradyDale at YPP challenges this year's candidates to come up with ways to improve the lives of Philadelphia's poorest and least prepared residents, rather than focusing solely on attracting business and other resources at the top of the economic system.
    
    
  • Marc Stier has a new piece that embraces the Committee of 70's agenda for ethics reform and suggests that we should go well beyond those initial steps.