"Hey, everybody, let's hear it for the boss!"
An "internal memo" obtained by the Harrisburg Patriot-News, and written by Gov. Tom Corbett's deputy chief of staff, portrays Luke Bernstein's boss as nearly super-human in terms of governance. The memo was to Tom Corbett and compares Corbett's first year in office with other governors past and present. It places the silver-haired Republican's first year in office as politically utopian.
Not only has Corbett done better than Democrats in the recent past - one could expect that in such a memo - but he has eclipsed even other Republican Pennsylvania governors, the revered Tom Ridge and Richard Thornburgh. There were passages in which it appeared Bernstein was writing sound bites for some imaginary primary campaign against them.
Bernstein even took on sitting governors - Republican, no less - in other states, citing missteps by Scott Walker of Wisconsin and John Kasich of Ohio in their efforts to tinker with collective bargaining laws in their states.
While Corbett's staff may nominate his first-year performance for the dean's list, it is doubtful some people not on the governor's payroll come up with the same assessment.
For instance, the Warren County School District, which had to cut programs and teachers because of significant cuts in state education subsidies, might have questioned Bernstein's citation of the governor's "achievements in education."
In a passage somewhat reminiscent of "The Emperor's New Clothes," the memo labels Corbett Year One as "One of the most productive in the country."
We disagree.
We give him a passing grade, but nothing higher than a C.