Gov. Corbett, Tom Wolf meet for heated debate

Wednesday, October 1, 2014
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Things got headed during a Wednesday morning debate between Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett and his Democratic challenger Tom Wolf.

The candidates tussled over budget deficits, school financing, and more.

They met face-to-face during rush hour on all-news radio station KYW. Wolf and Corbett were happy to mix it up in lively exchanges over education funding.

"You have not been a friend of education," Wolf said.

"I would disagree with you. We've been very good for education," said Corbett.



"27,000 educators have lost their jobs," Wolf continued.

"I've not been a friend of the unions," Corbett countered.

"Property taxes have gone through the roof under your administration," Wolf said.

Throughout the campaign, the incumbent governor and his challenger have battled over taxation.

"In our compilation of all the promises you've made - and I'd love to be able to make all those promises too, if we had the money - you want $1.2 billion....," Corbett started to say, with Wolf interjecting:



"Wait, you did make promises. You said you wouldn't increase taxes, and yet property taxes went up, the gasoline tax went up, the cost of borrowing is going to go up."

"The gasoline tax did not go up. You keep misleading people on that," Corbett responded.

The contenders promised to create strong laws against anti-gay violence. They sparred over drill extraction taxes and job creation here in Pennsylvania.

"When you became governor we were 9th in the nation in job creation, we are now 47th," Wolf said. "We're only ahead of Arkansas, New Mexico and Alaska. All the surrounding states in this area are ahead of us in job creation."

"We have 250,000 job openings. What we have to do is find the people to go in that." said Corbett. "You know doggone well that study said you're using the numbers incorrectly."



The last scheduled debate is Oct. 8 at a Pittsburgh TV station. Last week, the men met at a Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry dinner in Hershey.

Corbett is Pennsylvania's former two-term attorney general from Pittsburgh. Wolf ran his family's York-based building products supply business for nearly three decades. Both are 65.

Election day is Tuesday, November 4th.
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