Erik Telford
Senior Vice President of Public Affairs
Erik Telford is the Senior Vice President of Public Affairs at the Commonwealth Foundation.
Erik is a senior public affairs and communications executive with more than 15 years of diverse experience across public policy, advocacy, and public affairs institutions. Before joining the Commonwealth Foundation, Erik served as the senior vice president at Stand Together Communications, the Koch network’s marketing and communications capability. Erik has also served as the president of the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity, a state-based watchdog journalism organization. And at Americans for Prosperity, he was the executive director of RightOnline (an initiative he founded) and the director of membership and online strategy. He is currently on the board of the American Commitment Foundation.
In 2013, Campaigns & Elections Magazine honored Erik as an “Advocacy Innovator” and in 2011 as a “Rising Star in American Politics.” Politics Online named him one of the “Top 10 Who Are Changing the World of Internet and Politics.”
In Harrisburg, GOP lawmakers feeling heat from the right
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Almost $2 Billion in Welfare Waste Weeded Out
Lottery winners on welfare, millionaires on food stamps and supervisors that turn a blind eye to fraud; these are the stories that drive Pennsylvanians crazy. But the…
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Plagiarism: Union Style (Part 2)
A recent letter to the editor in reaction to my op-ed on paycheck protection starts: I live in the Malvern area, served 24 years in the military and…
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Read More: Plagiarism: Union Style (Part 2)Public Union Democracy
Why Paycheck Protection is Needed Now
On February 6th, Commissioner Mark Scott and I voted to support employee paycheck protection by passing resolution 41.14. With all the important issues facing Berks County, why have we chosen to…
Commentary
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A Public School Funding SOS
The governor has proposed $10.1 billion for public schools, slightly higher than last year, which was then a record high. So what’s all the fuss about cuts? At the same…
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House lawmakers fund separate, nearly identical print shops at taxpayers’ expense
Topics on this page United States House of Representatives…
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From the rural ‘T’, a public school funding SOS: Priya Abraham
Topics on this page Priya Abraham…
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The Berlin Wall of Philadelphia’s Public Schools
Students in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh had their hopes dashed last week when they lost out on the chance to land one of the few vacant openings in charter schools. In…
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Read More: The Berlin Wall of Philadelphia’s Public SchoolsPublic Union Democracy
Unions Pouring Big Money in Pennsylvania Elections
As we’ve pointed out in the past, unions—often using campaign contributions collected at taxpayer expense—dominate political spending and electioneering. Well, the first campaign…
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Read More: Unions Pouring Big Money in Pennsylvania ElectionsRegulation
End Special Subsidies to Lower Taxes for All
Taxpayers have spent millions on four different occasions to subsidize the infamous “Sony site” in Westmoreland County. In the 1970’s Volkswagen got $70 million in state aid under Gov.
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Myth: PA Spends Less on Education
There are many myths circulating about how much Pennsylvania spends on public education. One such myth is that the state government used to provide 50 percent of all revenue for…
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A Look at Job Growth in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania’s economy is beginning to recover from the 2007 recession, according to the latest numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since 2010, Pennsylvania has added 86,400 jobs, ranking…
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Read More: A Look at Job Growth in PennsylvaniaState Budget
Gov. Rendell Left Pennsylvania a Big Deficit
Recent headlines have former Gov. Ed Rendell challenging Gov. Tom Corbett on the issue of the deficit he left the current administration. Gov. Corbett has campaign ads stating he closed…
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Read More: Gov. Rendell Left Pennsylvania a Big DeficitRegulation
Tableleaf is Dead, Booze Bureaucracy Remains
In a long overdue move, the PLCB is discontinuing its in-house wine, Tableleaf. As a refresher, Tableleaf is the PLCB’s own government-branded wine, which it introduced in 2011. Tableleaf…
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Poll finds union households in Pa. support paycheck protection
Topics on this page Pennsylvania…
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Global Warming? Okay, but is it man’s fault?
Topics on this page Climate change…
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Media Attention for Paycheck Protection
Our new paycheck protection survey released this week has Pennsylvania talking. Why? The results show union members overwhelmingly agree that taxpayer resources shouldn’t be used for their unions’ politics. …
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Read More: Media Attention for Paycheck ProtectionPublic Union Democracy
Big Labor’s Billions Targeting PA
Unions are spending millions on politics, and drumming up issues like a minimum wage increase, solely to win some elections, the New York Times reports today. Union leaders are…
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Plagiarism: Union Style
Several letters to the editor opposing paycheck protection—ostensibly written by different teachers—have appeared in newspapers around the state. Their suspicious similarity provides a valuable lesson in a practice typically frowned…
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Read More: Plagiarism: Union StyleGovernment Accountability
Union Spokesmen Still Lying About Paycheck Protection
Yesterday, I pointed out that union leaders would use every bogeyman and slogan in their playbook rather than explain why taxpayers should collect their political money. As if on…
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