Gainey, O'Connor argue over Pittsburgh mayoral campaign donations from Trump supporters
Pittsburgh's two Democratic candidates for mayor are trading barbs over just who is funding their campaigns. Mayor Ed Gainey says mega-donors to President Trump are pouring money into Allegheny County Controller Corey O'Connor's campaign, an allegation O'Connor calls desperate.
The gloves are off in the race to become the next mayor as Gainey accuses challenger O'Connor of taking donations from major Trump supporters and being beholden to a MAGA agenda.
"As Trump tries to tear away food from children, health care from veterans and cancer patients to give his billionaire henchmen another handout, these same billionaires are meddling in our Democratic primary to force their right-wing anti-worker, anti-family, anti-union agenda down our throat," Gainey said.
KDKA-TV's Andy Sheehan said to O'Connor, "The mayor is portraying himself as the real progressive in this race and you're going to be beholden to these Republican Trumpian interests."
"Well, one, it's absolutely desperate," O'Connor replied. "I mean, if you look at my record on council, fighting [for] gun control, fighting Donald Trump, speaking out against Donald Trump. It's a mayor who can't talk about where the city's going and not talking about his vision."
The Gainey campaign says O'Connor has met with Republican operatives and is citing campaign contributions from large Trump donors like Herb Shear of the Republican Jewish Coalition and Iron City Beer owner J. Clifford Forrest, who donated $1 million to Trump's first inaugural. The mayor says he's being targeted for protecting immigrants by restricting city police from working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
"Pouring money in my opponent's campaign in the same month Trump launched an assault, an assault on our immigrant neighbors, on our trans neighbors, our union brothers and sisters," Gainey said.
"Our campaign has built a diverse range of people who want to donate because they see how much Pittsburgh is struggling," O'Connor said.
O'Connor, who holds a decisive lead in contributions, says he spoke at a meeting of business leaders that Republican consultants attended but did not meet with them, and he presented a list of Republicans who have contributed a total of $82,000 to the mayor in prior elections. He also noted it was Gainey who tried unsuccessfully to have the Republican National Convention in Pittsburgh.
"So, I ask, who's progressive? Somebody who wants to stop Donald Trump or somebody who was willing to welcome Donald Trump and the Trump Republicans to Pittsburgh for their national convention," O'Connor said.
O'Connor calls these allegations an act of desperation on the part of the mayor, who is appealing to his deep progressive base to support his re-election.
