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.”
Health Care
Governor Rendell’s Healthcare Misdiagnosis
As healthcare costs continue to rise faster than consumers’ ability to pay, it is clear that we need to alter how we pay for healthcare. Recently, Governor Rendell unveiled a…
Commentary
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Cost of Rendell Care
Following, yesterday’s defense of RendellCare (and attack on the Commonwealth Foundation) from the Democratic Party, I though it appropriate to examine the cost of RendellCare. As you know Rendell’s…
Media
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Turnpike Commission may be nearing end of road
State Senator Jane Orie is calling for Pennsylvania to eliminate the Turpike Commission, whether or not the state engages in a lease of the turnpike, as it has been…
Media
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Health and Taxes
Commentary on Bush’s health care proposal from the Wall Street Journal; from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review; and from the Heritage Foundation. Topics on this page…
Media
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Bush’s Split Personality
Last night’s State of the Union Address showed the two faces of President Bush. On the one hand, his health care proposal, which includes tax benefits for individual…
Media
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Bush’s healthcare plan
Overview of President Bush’s healthcare proposals to be unveiled in the State of the Union address tonight. Topics on this page George W. Bush…
Media
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Illegal Health Care
Wall Street Journal article points out that employer health insurance mandates (which would include Governor Rendell’s proposal) are illegal under federal law. But we shouldn’t let something like the…
Media
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CF Responds to Democratic Party Chairman on RendellCare
TJ RooneyDemocratic State Committee300 North 2nd Street8th FloorHarrisburg, PA 17101 Dear TJ: I am writing in response to your personal letter to me (which I have…
Press Release
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Cutting the Legislature
Brian O’Neill of the Post-Gazette attempts to make the case that Pennsylvania should reduce the number of state legislators. His reasoning – we should be like the other big…
Media
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Talk of Universal Health Care Grows
Washington Post on Pennsylvania and other states’ plans for universal health insurance. Twice the article compares health insurance mandates to auto insurance: Some plans mandate that every individual…
Media
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How Pennsylvania keeps health care costs high
Wal-Mart has rolled out a program to sell prescription drugs for $4; however Pennsylvania won’t allow this. Instead, the states requires Wal-Mart to charge a minimum of $9…
Media
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Treating the Symptom Rather than the Cause
Governor Rendell wants to expand health insurance to 767,000 uninsured Pennsylvanians by increasing taxes on employers and tobacco users, to name just a few. The full costs have yet to…
Commentary
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Turnpike machinations: Head-spinning logic
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review editorial on how the Turnpike is only NOW — because of their potential abolition — interested in running itself more like a business. Topics on this…
Media
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Ode to RendellCare
Philadelphia Inquirer story on Rendell’s health care plan, it is a pretty gushy story, with the Commonwealth Foundation providing the lone voice of reason. Pat Toomey’s editorial in…
Media
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New Pa. House members get free cars
Nearly half of the new state legislators are taking taxpayer-funded cars, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports (see list of lawmakers, vehicles, and price tag here). The quandry some have…
Media
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Public Health Insurance is Not Sustainable
Fraser Institute study reports that “health insurance costs are growing faster than our ability to pay.” While this may sound like a report that would support Governor Rendell’s “…
Media
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Making the same mistakes?
John Fund in today’s Wall Street Journal on the mistakes of Gov. Schwarzenegger’s health care plan — all of the points could equally apply to Gov. Rendell’s proposal. For…
Media
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RendellCare!
AP story on Rendell’s health care proposals, including universal health care (“Cover All Pennsylvanians”). For more details, go to the Governor’s Health Care Reform site. FYI, several months…
Media
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Public-Private Partnerships: Paying for Our Paving
Pennsylvania is facing a $1.7 billion annual shortfall in funding for roads, bridges and mass transit. The only thing worse than the deficit is the proposed “solution” to this shortfall:…
Commentary
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Pork Lovers in Academe on a Diet
Chronicle of Higher Ed article (subscription) on how universities are coping without pork projects for the rest of the fiscal year. For anyone who shed tears over Harry Reid’s…
Media
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Rendell’s Pension Reform Plan?
From the Patriot News report on the state employees contract deal came this tidbit: Rising pension costs also were discussed in negotiations, but Budget Secretary Michael Masch said those…
Media
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