Due to (a) reader demand, here's a profile of current Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell.
Name: Ed Rendell
Occupation: former mayor of Philadelphia, current governor of Pennsylvania
Career Highlights: Villanova graduate and 2nd Lieutenant in the US Army Reserve. Served two terms as Philadelphia district attorney, initially campaigning as a political outsider who hadn't been around long enough to blacken his soul with corruption. Somehow received 28 delegate votes for Vice President at the 1980 DNC, even though he wasn't running and had gubernatorial ambitions in Pennsylvania. After losing the 1986 governor's race to Bob Casey Sr., Rendell ran for mayor of Philadelphia and won, forever squashing rumors that the office was claimed by whoever could eat the most cheese steaks. Rendell inherited a ton of fiscal problems, but managed to pare them down to a balanced budget and much-improved city services (including, for the first time, sanitation), although his cost-cutting pissed off local unions something fierce. Rendell's stewardship of Philadelphia has often been compared to Rudy Giuliani's effect on New York City.
Rendell ran for governor again in 2002, winning this time, and kicked things off with The Plan for a New Pennsylvania, a piece of legislation that led to a glut of local tax minutia that will bore anyone still reading this to tears. He was criticized for his support of legalized gambling and calling voters "misguided" when they voted against something he liked. He was reelected in 2006, and was an ardent supporter of Hillary Clinton in the 2008 presidential race, going so far as to compliment Fox News, of all networks, for their objectivity in their coverage of her campaign. Rendell didn't watch CNN much during that period, we take it.
Dominant Pattern(s): Organizer. Philadelphia, no matter what people may personally think of it now, is a urban utopia compared to what it was when Rendell first stepped in as mayor. Being able to improve so many varied elements of a city that big means that he was able to prioritize and execute (an uncomfortable phrasing, given his support of capital punishment). Every successful politician is a Driver, but Rendell's brain-numbing focus on city and state economic matters sets him apart.
Recommendation(s) for Improvement: Collaborator. Many of Rendell's more questionable decisions and statements are reactionary. Insisting that Janet Napolitano was a good pick for Homeland Security secretary because she had no life is but one example; he also withheld funds for the expansion of the Pennsylvania Convention Center over a spat with management appointments, and partially shut down the state government after an argument with the legislature. Taking one's ball and going home is not a ringing endorsement of one's people skills or overall managerial stamina. Some Standing and Lying-Down Blah exercises could help relieve that defensiveness and keep Gov. Rendell from acting like a pissy little kid when people stray from the path he's chosen for them.
