Rep. Benninghoff's complaint about HD84 is bogus.
During his remarks on the Preliminary House Plan, Leader Benninghoff presented the outline of District 84 as evidence of extreme partisan gerrymandering. His assertion is nonsense. HD84 is a deep red district whose odd shape accommodates a neighboring red district, allowing the Williamsport community to remain whole. HD84 and its environs are a Republican stronghold where the district boundaries make little partisan difference. If Rep. Benninghoff would prefer to divide the region differently, perhaps he should propose an alternative. I am certain Leader McClinton would accept his suggestion, as the change would not affect her caucus at all. While Rep. Benninghoff has raised some valid concerns about the House map, his context-free use of HD84 was a disingenuous attempt to manipulate the media. This ploy seems to have worked, as an image of him presenting the misleading silhouette has accompanied much coverage of the December 16th hearing. I hope the Commission will find an appropriate way to correct the public record, and censure Mr. Benninghoff's abuse of the platform the hearing provided him.