Candidates for Pa. lieutenant have similar backgrounds, opposing positions

Glancing at their resumés, it is easy to confuse the two men running for Pennsylvania's lieutenant governor - State Sen. Mike Stack (D., Pa.) and Republican incumbent Jim Cawley.

Both are products of local Catholic high schools - Bishop Egan for Cawley, La Salle for Stack - with law degrees from local universities - Cawley is a Temple grad; Stack has a Villanova degree.

Both come from families steeped in Irish tradition and are members of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the Irish Catholic fraternal organization.

And both cut their teeth on Philadelphia politics.

Stack is the son of the late Mike Stack Jr., a longtime Democratic ward leader in Northeast Philadelphia, and grandson of a Democratic congressman. Cawley's first campaign was as a volunteer for Frank Rizzo's 1987 run for mayor as a Republican against Democrat W. Wilson Goode.

They part company at county and party lines.

Cawley, 45, is a Bucks County native who was inspired by his time with the Rizzo campaign to start a chapter of College Republicans at Temple. He went on to serve as aide to State Sen. Robert M. Tomlinson (R., Bucks), and then as a Bucks County commissioner from 2005 until his election as lieutenant governor four years ago.

Though he was first drawn to the Republican Party by Rizzo, Cawley came to recognize he shared the party's core tenets.

"The reliance on limited government - limited government does not mean no government," Cawley said. "The reliance on the private sector - not to turn to the government to solve all problems all the time - and reliance on fiscal responsibility, recognizing that it is not the government's money, it is the people's money."

Stack, 51, followed in his father's footsteps, taking over as Democratic leader in the 58th Ward in Northeast Philadelphia. He was elected to the state Senate 14 years ago.

"It is in my DNA," Stack said. "I believe in a strong middle class. I believe in labor unions. I believe that this country is supposed to be land of opportunity. I've always thought Republicans are out of touch with reality in this country."

On Nov. 4, Cawley and Stack will be inseparable from their running mates - in Pennsylvania, voters cast a single vote for governor and lieutenant governor, assuring the state's top executives will be from the same party.

The job pays $157,765, (Cawley, like Gov. Corbett, has given back recent cost-of-living increases), and a lieutenant governor can be called upon to run the state on short notice. Cawley did for hours when Corbett underwent back surgery; Mark Schweiker became governor from 2001 to 2003 when Gov. Tom Ridge was named U.S. director of homeland security after the 9/11 attacks.

On Wednesday, Cawley and Stack's party loyalties were on display when the two met in their only debate, hosted by WHP radio in Harrisburg.

Stack showed himself firmly a union-friendly supporter of the State Store system, unionized Philadelphia School District teachers, an increase in the minimum wage, and a tax on the extraction of natural gas in Pennsylvania.

Cawley, by contrast, favored allowing Pennsylvania workers the right to opt out of unions, selling off the State Store system, and requiring Philadelphia teachers to contribute to their health-care costs. He was against raising the minimum wage and an extraction tax on natural gas, positions espoused by Cawley and his running mate, Corbett, during their first term in office.

The debate was spirited if not surprising. Though each man was quick to challenge the other's assertions, often speaking out of turn or over each other to do so, neither strayed far from the well-scripted campaign messages they share with their ticket leaders - Corbett and his Democratic challenger, Tom Wolf.

The debate, as seen live online, highlighted the difference in the physical presence of the two men. Stack, a marathon runner and National Guard member, came across as informal and animated, his suit coat unbuttoned and his hands quick to gesticulate.

Cawley, the son of a union-leading postal worker who for 20 years directed Philadelphia's St. Patrick's Day Parade, was impeccably groomed, his back ramrod straight and hands folded neatly in front of him.

Despite his disciplined demeanor, Cawley proved quicker to ignore the debate rules and jump in when when he felt Stack was misleading, something he acknowledged with a chagrined shrug when challenged.

One issue not raised during the debate that surfaced later in an Inquirer report was Stack's interest in keeping his state Senate seat if he is elected lieutenant governor, something that is untested in the courts.

"I'm not counting it out," he said in an interview. "It will be something that needs to be discussed and addressed."

Cawley mocked Stack's presumption.

"I guess he doesn't think he will have enough to do with his time," the Republican said. "Election Day isn't even here yet, and Mike Stack is already starting a constitutional crisis."