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  • Tom Ridge endorses David Oh

    Standing shoulder to shoulder, former Governor Tom Ridge and David Oh greeted well-wishers and energetic donors at a special fundraiser on May 2nd, for David’s history making campaign for a City Council At-Large seat.

    “David has great faith in his community, great belief in his ability to make a difference,” said Gov. Ridge, addressing the crowd at the Union League, “With that he brings an enthusiasm, an intellect, an energy and commitment to service.”

    If you spread the good word about David Oh and get voters to the polls on election day, Gov. Ridge said, “you will be well served.”

    As the country’s first Secretary of Homeland Security, Gov. Ridge shared his thoughts about the death of Osama Bin Laden, saying, “It’s a gratifying time in American history, but also a sobering time.”

    But why would a major player in national politics offer his full support to just one local candidate? When that one candidate is David Oh, the call was an easy one to make.

    Yes, David Oh has numerous endorsements ranging from the Fire Fighters, the Teamsters, the Philadelphia Inquirer and also received the strongest recommendation from the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce.

    Yes, David beat great odds when GOP ward leaders rejected a longtime incumbent and chose instead to rally around David Oh and his message of ethical leadership and making vital changes, like real tax reform, to bring jobs back to Philadelphia.

    Yes, David Oh is constantly praised by media and other organizations for “knowing each issue piece-by-piece, inside and out.” (Philadelphia Weekly, April 12, 2011)

    But for Gov. Ridge, this endorsement is personal.

    “His endorsement by the Republican meeting certainly got me here but my friendship with him would have gotten me here anyhow,” Gov. Ridge said of David, whom he described as, “a friend, and now my brother.”

    Gov. Ridge and David Oh both served their country in the U.S. Army and they clearly share a bond there. But their most intimate bond may come from something closer to home.

    “The icon that helped shape him and form him and developed that value system was his dad. I felt a kinship with David, like we were talking about the same father,” said Gov. Ridge about how their friendship grew. Over the years, these two friends have worked hard on several projects, including an ambitious trade mission to South Korea to lure business opportunities back for Philadelphia families, a top priority for Oh.

    David’s a fighter and won’t quit if he thinks it’s the right thing to do, said Gov. Ridge. As evidence he pointed to this, David’s third campaign for a stronger Philadelphia, saying it “speaks to not only a resilience, but a commitment and will to serve.”

    “By the way,” Gov. Ridge added, “someone once told me Abraham Lincoln lost six or seven elections before his won his first one.”

    “I’m not announcing a candidate for the presidency…” he said as the assembled crowd laughed. Turning to David, he smiled, “You still have a couple more to get through.”

    Watch these videos from the event:

  • Philadelphia Weekly: David on Top of Every Issue

    Philadelphia Weekly’s PHILLYNOW covered a candidates debate last week and reported that David was on top of every issue “inside and out.” Congratulations, David! And special thanks to Philadelphia Weekly for getting the word out. From the article:

    “David Oh: If there was one candidate who came out knowing each issue piece-by-piece, inside and out, it was Oh. The Center City lawyer focused his talks on tax reform, cuts and making Philly more of a “big fish” city. In that, he believes Philadelphia should be using technological advances already out there to attract the big fish—multinational corporations, etc., which would then make Philadelphia more of a competitor for business with New York City. It makes no sense, he said, that Philadelphia doesn’t have a 24-hour district. “Where’s the Soho art district [of Philly]?” he rhetorically asked.

    Regarding the school system, he’s in favor of across the board vouchers—not just for the most underserved youth. While he says he was in favor of the School Reform Commission in 2007, it should have been temporary.

    He said he’d cut programs the same way he’d hand out vouchers—across the board. City pensions are too easy to get now, he said. Instead of working for a certain amount of time and then getting an automatic pension in retirement, he’d require city workers other than police and firefighters to collect a pension directly related to how long s/he worked. “For instance,” he said, “if you worked 40 years, you’re going to collect a bigger retirement pension than someone who only worked ten years,” and so on.”

    Read the full Philadelphia Weekly article.

  • Northeast Times: David Oh hopes to be GOP’s man for Council seat

    By Tom Waring

    David Oh is back for another run at a City Council at-large seat.

    Oh last week announced at the National Constitution Center that he is seeking the Republican nomination in the May 17 primary.

    An attorney from Southwest Philadelphia, he lost bids in 2003 and ’07.

    Oh, 50, is hoping to be endorsed by the Republican City Committee. A ward leader who has a base of support and is coming off a near-win four years ago, he would seem like a natural to be endorsed.

    However, party bosses Vito Canuso and Mike Meehan are warring with reformers, and the GOP City Committee might go with its most loyal followers.

    Each of the two major parties gets to nominate five candidates in the primary, and the top seven finishers in the fall are elected. Democrats typically win five of the seven seats based on their astronomical voter registration advantage. The city charter reserves two at-large seats for the minority party.

    In 2007, Councilman Frank Rizzo was the leading Republican vote getter. Councilman Jack Kelly edged Oh by 122 votes for the second seat, a surprisingly close call considering Kelly’s incumbency, Northeast ties and union and party support. Kelly will not run again.

    Besides Rizzo and Oh, other possible candidates include Elmer Money, Al Taubenberger, Marie DeLany, Joe McColgan, Michael Untermeyer, Tim Gerard, John Giordano and state Rep. Dennis O’Brien.

    Oh expects a bruising election season.

    “It’s a contact sport,” he said of campaigns.

    If elected, Oh would work with district Council representatives on issues such as public schools, unemployment, corruption, zoning and taxes. He believes Philadelphia has the potential to increase its population from about 1.5 million to more than 2 million.

    “We have to curb our expenses and better manage things,” he said.

    Among those who attended the Jan. 11 campaign announcement were a half-dozen ward leaders, mayoral candidate John Featherman, city elections commissioner candidate Al Schmidt, 1st Councilmanic District hopeful Lou Lanni, Fraternal Order of Housing Police president Rodney Little and Anne O’Callaghan, executive director of the Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians.

    Oh said afterward that Councilman Brian O’Neill (R-10th dist.) supports his campaign.

    Glenn Devitt, a Wissinoming resident and president of United Northeast Neighbors, is the campaign treasurer. He described Oh, a former assistant district attorney, as someone who has integrity, morals and values and a love for the city.

    Devitt recalls when Oh offered to conduct free self-defense classes for women in Northeast and Southwest Philadelphia.

    “He’s an unconditional giver,” Devitt said.

    Bill Gault, president of International Association of Fire Fighters Local 22, and the Rev. Leonard Goins, head of the local Pentecostal clergy political network, both questioned Oh’s close loss four years ago. He had led by seven votes before absentee ballots were counted, and Gault said, “The man got robbed last election.”

    Gault said Oh would be a welcome addition in Council.

    “We need some new blood in there,” he said.

    Goins said Council members who have signed up for the Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP) but still run for re-election “need to be kicked out.” Rizzo and Kelly are enrolled in DROP.

    Sister Mary Joan Jacobs, principal at Nazareth Academy High School, said Oh is a valuable member of the school’s board of directors.

    “I know he has a passion for education,” she said.

    Dan Bosak, a retired Teamsters leader, described Oh as the “hardest-working guy that I ever met.”

  • David announced his candidacy for Philadelphia City Council At-Large