Congresswoman Majorie Taylor Greene holds up a plaque given to her by the Franklin County Republicans in recognition of her speaking at the Franklin County Republican Committee 2023 Lincoln Dinner held at the Fayetteville Fire Hall on March 30. (Jeremy Long - WITF)
Congresswoman Majorie Taylor Greene holds up a plaque given to her by the Franklin County Republicans in recognition of her speaking at the Franklin County Republican Committee 2023 Lincoln Dinner held at the Fayetteville Fire Hall on March 30. (Jeremy Long - WITF)
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Pennsylvania Senator Doug Mastriano were the special guests at the annual Lincoln Dinner hosted by the Franklin County Republican Committee on Thursday. Close to 400 central Pennsylvania voters attended to show their support for the politicians.
Joel George, a semi-retired electrical contractor from Letterkenny Township, said he gets most of his news from Breitbart, Steve Bannon, and other personalities on Rumble, the ‘free speech’ video streaming platform that rose in popularity with right-wing circles in response to YouTube’s content guidelines.
George supports Mastriano’s scrutiny of Pennsylvania’s election code, which he claims mandates mail-in ballots be counted by county officials, rather than by workers at the polls.
“Now, mail-in ballots? Fine. But all the mail-in ballots have to [be counted at] precincts. Right now, they’re counting at the county’s level, and I trust our county because I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t,” George said. “But I don’t trust any other county after I saw what happened.”
Joel and Joan George at the Franklin County Republican Committee 2023 Lincoln Dinner held at the Fayetteville Fire Hall on March 30. (Jeremy Long – WITF)
Meanwhile, Mike Neafsey, a substitute teacher in Fayetteville and an Army veteran, believes that the United States should be energy-independent and minimize its reliance on foreign energy imports.
“That’s Mastriano’s issues at the same time. I agree with him 100%: Get all the pipelines open, get us back to work, get everybody back to work. The gasoline prices are going to–-they’re going to make a recession.”
In contrast, Governor Shapiro has called for more regulations on fracking in Pennsylvania, including an expansion of “no-drill” zones, requiring fracking chemicals to be disclosed before they are onsite, and more closely monitoring the health conditions of those living near fracking sites.
Neafsey said the best way to affect change on a local level is to support down-ballot candidates.
“Local government is the most important thing in our lives and the thing that seems to be least cared about. People, you have to get out there and you have to vote and know what you’re voting for,” he said. “I’m a big fan of knowing how judges rule, and what their values are.”
Mike Neafsey at the Franklin County Republican Committee 2023 Lincoln Dinner held at the Fayetteville Fire Hall on March 30. (Jeremy Long – WITF)
The Lincoln Dinner hosted by the Franklin County Republican Committee served as a platform for supporters to express their concerns and show their support for politicians such as Mastriano and Greene.
It was also an opportunity for voters to get to know Republicans running for local offices that will be on the ballot during this November’s elections. They include county coroner, county commissioner, sheriff, three openings for appellate court judges, and one open seat on the Pa. Supreme Court following the death of Democratic Justice Max Baer in September, among other offices.
Also in attendance were U.S. Congressman John Joyce, Pa. Reps. Rich Irvin and Rob Kauffman, and Commonwealth Court Judge Patricia McCullough who’s running for Pa. Supreme Court.
In 2020, McCullough ordered state officials to stop certifying election results in response to a lawsuit challenging some mail-in ballots. Her order was later overturned after a higher court ruled the lawsuit in question would unfairly disqualify millions of voters.
She has also called for Pa. laws to more closely reflect “the divine law of God.”
“Any law that doesn’t comport with those laws is not a valid law,” she said last summer.
Pennsylvania is scheduled to hold primaries for municipal elections on May 16 with the general elections scheduled for Nov. 7.
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