WASHINGTON — Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee Jessica Post released the following statement today after Pennsylvania Republican House Speaker Mike Turzai’s resignation announcement:
“It should be no surprise that Speaker Turzai is leaving the state legislature to serve corporate interests since he’s put them first for the entirety of his career.
“Led by Mike Turzai, the Pennsylvania House GOP has reached stunning new lows. Let’s be very clear — Speaker Turzai is announcing his resignation while plagued in scandal after not alerting his Democratic colleagues that they had been exposed to COVID-19 and leading the GOP in a series of shameless stunts designed to make light of the threat of the coronavirus.
“Speaker Turzai downplayed coronavirus deaths by noting their pre-existing health conditions as though it made them matter less, held an election in the height of a pandemic without sufficient voting alternatives, and tried to force Pennsylvania to re-open businesses in the middle of April, long before it was safe to do so. He’s led the Pennsylvania Republican Party further and further to the right and made a career out of putting special interests ahead of Pennsylvania families.
“It’s time for a leadership change in Harrisburg. With Speaker Turzai retiring and a wave of other GOP legislators heading for the exits, our path to taking back the majority in the state House is clearer than ever.”
###
