Ed Rendell Has A Lot Of (Soccer) Balls

Artist's rendering of the proposed stadium in Chester. CHESTER!

Apparently, Pennsylvania's idiot governor, "Fast" Ed Rendell is touting a proposed soccer stadium in Chester.

Yeah, you heard me: Chester.

For those of you who are not familiar with southeast Pennsylvania, Chester is like Compton without the good weather. It's like Newark, New Jersey without the mob ties. It's like Mogadishu without the white, sandy beaches. In a word, it's a war zone.

The proposed 20,000-seat, $115 million soccer stadium on Chester's riverfront would generate jobs and give a big assist to a city trying to score its own economic comeback, investors and city and Delaware County officials promised yesterday.

But the clock is ticking when it comes to realizing that goal, Gov. Rendell warned.

Of course it is, Eddie. And when the clock is ticking, that can mean only one thing: the taxpayers are going to get shafted.

Investors and Delaware County officials showed off renderings of a sleek-looking stadium and outlined terms of the county's $30 million commitment during a news conference in Media yesterday.

This step, first reported Saturday, is only one in a series that must be taken before a Major League Soccer franchise is awarded to the Philadelphia region. For starters, the $155 million project, including about $30 million in MLS franchise fees, hinges on crucial state aid.

And there it is. For those of you not familiar with Rendell-speak, "crucial state aid" means that Rendell (D - PA) is going to tax us back to the Stone Age.

Yesterday, Rendell said it was up to the state Senate, which is considering his request for a $500 million statewide capital-redevelopment assistance program. Passing it will require raising the debt limit, and it is unclear that the Senate will act on that this year.

"Without that, the project will fall," he said in response to questions following a Harleysville event he attended. (H/T - The Philadelphia Inquirer)

Did you see Eddie's new Rendell-speak here? "Capital-redevelopment assistance program," or, C.R.A.P. And that's exactly the acronym that should be used here. How do you think that Fast Eddie will find the money to pay for this Spruce Goose? It's simple: once again, a Democrat is about to raise your taxes. And he's not going to do it to fix the roads, improve the schools, or hire more police officers. He's going to do it to build a soccer stadium in one of the most crime-ridden cities in the state.

Rendell believes that if the State Senate refuses to allocate the funds, the project will die. To quote Ivan Drago from Rocky IV: "If it dies, it dies."