Ed Rendell
Edward Gene Rendell is an American politician, author, and former prosecutor who served as the 45th governor of Pennsylvania from 2003 to 2011. He previously served as chair of the national Democratic Party from 1999 to 2001, as mayor of Philadelphia from 1992 to 2000, and as District Attorney of Philadelphia from 1978 to 1986.
Born in New York City to a Jewish family from Russia, Rendell moved to Philadelphia for college, completing his B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and J.D. from Villanova University School of Law. He was elected District Attorney of Philadelphia for two terms from 1978 to 1986. He developed a reputation for being tough on crime, fueling a run for governor of Pennsylvania in 1986, which Rendell lost in the primary.
Elected mayor of Philadelphia in 1991, he inherited a $250 million deficit and the lowest credit rating of any major city in the country. As mayor, he balanced Philadelphia's budget and generated a budget surplus while cutting business and wage taxes and dramatically improving services to Philadelphia neighborhoods. The New York Times stated that Philadelphia under Rendell "has made one of the most stunning turnarounds in recent urban history." Nicknamed "America's Mayor" by Al Gore, Rendell served as chairman of the Democratic National Committee during the 2000 presidential election.
In 2002, Rendell was elected governor of Pennsylvania. He was a member of the Democratic Governors Association Executive Committee and served as the chairman of the National Governors Association. He was reelected in a landslide in 2006. He left office in 2011 due to term limits, and released a book, A Nation of Wusses: How America's Leaders Lost the Guts to Make Us Great, the following year. A Philadelphia Eagles fan, Rendell is also a football analyst on NBC Sports Philadelphia's Eagles Postgame Live, hosted by Michael Barkann.
Early life
Ed Rendell was born on January 5, 1944, in New York City, the son of Emma and Jesse T. Rendell. His parents were Jewish, and all four of his grandparents were immigrants from Russia. He attended Riverdale Country School before the University of Pennsylvania, where he joined the Pi Lambda Phi fraternity in 1962 and earned a B.A. degree in 1965. In 1968, he earned a J.D. at Villanova University School of Law. He served as a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Reserve from 1968 to 1974.District attorney
Rendell was elected district attorney of Philadelphia in 1977, becoming the youngest DA in history, after he defeated the incumbent Democratic district attorney, Emmett Fitzpatrick, in the primary election. Rendell ran a campaign that emphasized that he was new to politics and so was not tainted by its corruption.As district attorney, Rendell reportedly had a mean temper while doing his job. Once, he yelled in the governor's face for releasing a certain prisoner. It has been said that Rendell would even punch walls or throw furniture when he became upset. In 1980, Rendell received 28 delegate votes for vice president at the Democratic National Convention, although he was not a candidate. He served two terms as DA before leaving in 1986 to run for governor of Pennsylvania. He was defeated in the Democratic gubernatorial primary by Bob Casey Sr.
In 1982, during his second term, Rendell presided over the controversial prosecution of Mumia Abu-Jamal, resulting in a death sentence that was overturned in 2011. The 1985 bombing of the Black communal organization MOVE by the Philadelphia police also occurred during Rendell's tenure and killed 6 adults plus 5 children and caused a fire that left hundreds of neighbors homeless.
Mayor of Philadelphia (1992–2000)
In 1987, Rendell ran for the Democratic nomination against the incumbent mayor, Wilson Goode and lost. Rendell ran successfully four years later, in 1991. His opponent was to be Democrat-turned-Republican former Philadelphia Mayor, Frank Rizzo. Rizzo, however, died in the summer of 1991; in November 1991, Rendell won by more than a 2–1 margin against Joseph M. Egan, Jr., Rizzo's replacement on the Republican ticket.As mayor, Rendell inherited massive fiscal problems. The state legislature established a fiscal oversight board to monitor the City of Philadelphia's fiscal issues. During his career as mayor, Rendell cut a $250 million deficit, balanced Philadelphia's budget and oversaw five consecutive years of budget surpluses, reduced business and wage taxes for four consecutive years, implemented new revenue-generating initiatives, and dramatically improved services to Philadelphia neighborhoods. He was given the nickname "Philadelphia's Renaissance or Revival" because of how well he did with the budget. He also appointed Philadelphia's first ever Latino deputy mayors, Benjamin Ramos and Manuel Ortiz. Rendell's cost-cutting policies brought him strong opposition from labor unions; however, he was re-elected in 1995, defeating Republican Joe Rocks with 80% of the vote.
Rendell's first term as mayor was chronicled in a best-selling book A Prayer for the City by journalist Buzz Bissinger. The author was given practically unlimited access to the mayor during that term. The New York Times called Rendell's job as mayor "the most stunning turnaround in recent urban history" due to his determination, inspiration, ambition, and his energy.
In 1996, Rendell signed an executive order, , which allowed same-sex couples of Philadelphia health benefits.
To date, Rendell is the last Philadelphia Mayor to not have previously served as member of Philadelphia City Council.
2002 gubernatorial campaign
When he announced his intent to seek the Democratic nomination for governor of Pennsylvania, he did so without the backing of the state party. The Pennsylvania Democratic Party threw their support behind Bob Casey Jr., son of recently deceased former Governor Bob Casey Sr., whom the party saw as a more electable candidate against the liberal Rendell. In a bitter primary, Rendell won the nomination by winning only 10 out of 67 counties: Philadelphia; its suburbs: Bucks, Chester, Montgomery, and Delaware; its exurbs: Berks, Lancaster, Lehigh, and Northampton; and Centre County, the home of Penn State University. In the November 2002 gubernatorial election, he defeated Republican State Attorney General Mike Fisher, garnering 53 percent of the vote to Fisher's 44 percent. Rendell won not only Philadelphia County, which is heavily Democratic, but also traditionally Republican suburbs of Philadelphia, largely due to his popularity as mayor of Philadelphia. These traditionally Republican voters who backed Rendell were called Rendellicans in other parts of the state and were a key part of the success of his campaign.In a 2002 PoliticsPA feature story designating politicians with yearbook superlatives, he was named the "Most Likely to Succeed." His campaign website was described as having "cutting edge in design for a political site."
Governor of Pennsylvania (2003–2011)
First term (2003–2007)
The first piece of legislation Rendell initiated was The Plan for a New Pennsylvania. The plan proposed using slot machine revenue to reduce taxes by $1 billion and included $687 million in increased education funding. The plan was to be paid for with a proposed income tax increase from 2.80 percent to 3.75 percent plus increased taxes on utilities and beer. The governor's plan passed but with a smaller tax increase to only 3.07 percent and increased education funding of $224 million. The final budget deal included additional taxes on cigarettes and utilities. Later that year, the Rendell administration passed a prescription drug plan that covered older Pennsylvanians. In his first year, Rendell created the Office of Management and Productivity with the goal of cutting $1 billion in administrative expenses by the end of his first term. One of the most widely touted successes from Rendell's productivity initiative was strategic sourcing in which he overhauled the Commonwealth's antiquated procurement system, leading to $180 million in annual savings and a quadrupling of Pennsylvania's minority- and women- owned business participation rate.Rendell proposed that the 8 cents per gallon tax on beer be raised to 25 cents per gallon. Brewery D.G. Yuengling & Son spokesman, David Casinelli, was a critic of the tax. Casinelli expressed his view on the tax increase proposal by saying, "it seems like every time the state needs money, they come to alcohol or tobacco, and, frankly, it's not fair."
In 2004, Rendell persuaded the Pennsylvania General Assembly to pass measures to legalize and tax slot machine parlors, with the revenues from these measures to be used to reduce property taxes. Prior to this legislation, the only legal forms of gambling in Pennsylvania were horse racing and the state-run lottery. Rendell has been criticized by many opponents of legalized gambling.
In a compromise with the legislature, Rendell accepted a provision requiring that tax reductions only occur in areas where local school boards voted to accept the funding. Act 72 funding, as it came to be known, was accepted by only one fifth of Pennsylvania's school districts.
Following Act 72, Rendell and the Pennsylvania legislature looked at other proposals to reduce property taxes, a key component of his 2002 campaign. The governor said he was willing to consider legislation that changes Act 72, and legislative proposals were made to force school districts to accept the money. Other proposed legislation would have required the issue to be voted on in each district as a ballot question, rather than decided by school boards. Property tax relief and Act 72 were issues of great controversy and have been subject to political gridlock, and it was unclear when changes would be made.
In April 2004, Rendell confirmed reports that his state trooper chauffeurs regularly exceeded posted speed limits, and he claimed to be surprised to learn that they sometimes drove him at speeds in excess of 100 mph. He said that he initiated an investigation into the matter. Subsequently, in August 2004, the State Police announced a new policy that state troopers would no longer be allowed to exceed the speed limit, except in emergencies. However, in 2007, following news that Governor Corzine of New Jersey was in an accident in a state trooper-driven vehicle that was traveling in excess of 90 mph, Rendell was quoted as saying "I've told my troopers that I don't want them exceeding 80 unless they need to pass or unless there's some real exigent circumstance." At the time, the highest speed limit in Pennsylvania was 65 mph, and the current 70 mph limit was instituted in 2014 through legislation signed by Rendell's successor.
In early 2005, Rendell made statements that seemed to support President George W. Bush's Social Security privatization proposal. Rendell addressed this issue in later speeches, saying that he opposes social security privatization, and that his previous comments were meant to show admiration for President Bush for taking on a politically risky subject. Nevertheless, Rendell's initial statements cost him support among Democrats who are against Social Security privatization.
In the early morning hours of July 7, 2005, Ed Rendell signed a bill into law that increased pay for state lawmakers, judges, and top executive-branch officials. The vote took place at 2 am without public review or commentary. On November 16, 2005, Rendell signed a repeal of the pay raise after a near unanimous vote for repeal.