Thomas Cusmano
Regional Director, Strategic Partnerships
Thomas (Tom) Cusmano is Regional Director, Strategic Partnerships at the Commonwealth Foundation.
Prior to joining the Commonwealth Foundation in early 2022, Tom spent twelve years at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI) and its student journalism subsidiary, the Collegiate Network (CN). Both ISI and CN educate, train, and mentor America’s most promising principled student leaders, scholars, and future journalists.
Tom has spent three decades facilitating development support for national, regional, and statewide charitable organizations. He says, “The greatest blessing of my professional life has been to assist an inspiring group of dedicated, patriotic, and generous Americans with their philanthropy. I now have the opportunity to return that inspiration for my home state of Pennsylvania through the worthy endeavors of the Commonwealth Foundation.”
Tom has been a Pennsylvania resident since 1994 and proudly proclaims another great blessing, living in Amish Country, where he, his wife, and family “found home.”
State Budget
Higher Taxes to Buy More Nintendo Wii’s?
A PA House GOP staffer dug up this little item of pork barrel spending, courtesy State Representative Jesse White: The Wii challenge came about after I helped…
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State’s steep pension liability will be felt by Pennsylvania’s next generation
Topics on this page Pennsylvania…
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Will Lawmakers Put Hollywood Before School Children?
Governor Rendell and three legislative caucuses are kicking low-income children out of their classrooms to fund handout to Big Hollywood studios. This is beyond bad policy – it’s blatant…
Media
Read More: Will Lawmakers Put Hollywood Before School Children?Education
Reform, Not More Spending, Key to College Affordability
This year's budget debate has generated several silly schemes, including a few related to higher education funding. But Gov. Rendell's proposed video poker tax and House Democrats' ploy to move university appropriations off-budget do…
Commentary
Read More: Reform, Not More Spending, Key to College AffordabilityHealth Care
More Health Care Lessons from Massachusetts
My colleague Joe Sterns sent me an article, in which Mitt Romney again declares Massachusetts health care reform a success, claiming the increase in taxpayer spending was “only” $700…
Media
Read More: More Health Care Lessons from MassachusettsGovernment Accountability
The Continuing Saga of Corruption and Patronage in Pennsylvania
Another of former Senator Fumo’s aides was indicted yesterday, for taking contracts from the Pennsylvania Senate, but doing no work – except favors to Sen. Fumo. Of course, Palermo…
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Gov. Rendell’s mixed energy agenda
Topics on this page Ed Rendell…
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Read More: Gov. Rendell’s mixed energy agendaGovernment Accountability
How did the PA Budget Process Get So Broken?
Dale Davenport had an excellent editorial in the Patriot over the weekend, noting how annual budgeting and the move to a full-time, professional legislature altereed Pennsylvania’s state budget forever: …
Media
Read More: How did the PA Budget Process Get So Broken?State Budget
Understanding the Single Sales Factor
Philly.com Blogger Ben Waxman has a post about moving Pennsylvania to a single-sales factor on corporate income taxes, calling it a “big tax break for corporations”, based on…
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Send in the sheep, put the lawmakers out to pasture
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Read More: Send in the sheep, put the lawmakers out to pastureState Budget
Stupid Quote of the Day
Sen. Jake Corman tells the Associated Press that a proposal to charge the sales tax to performing arts and museums is a “user fee”: A plan to extend…
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Read More: Stupid Quote of the DayState Budget
Historical Follies Set the Stage for Out-of-Control Debt
A new commentary in American Enterprise Institute’s journal, The American, highlights a seemingly “perfect storm” of historical events that have facilitated the out-of-control spending of…
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Read More: Historical Follies Set the Stage for Out-of-Control DebtEducation
Government Takeover: The Student Loan Industry
Last week the US House voted to prohibit private lenders from issuing government backed loans. The bill amounts to a government takeover of the student loan industry complete with…
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ACORN: State still funding organization
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Read More: ACORN: State still funding organizationGovernment Accountability
Reforming the Budget Process in Pennsylvania
In the political world, 2009 will be remembered as the year that Pennsylvania went longer than any other state without a budget. The Commonwealth went months past the June 30th…
Commentary
Read More: Reforming the Budget Process in PennsylvaniaGovernment Accountability
Scare Tactics in the Budget
John Baer writes – albeit a bit late – on how politicians use scare tactics, i.e. the “Washington Monument Ploy” to…
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Senate GOP can still protect taxpayers
Topics on this page United States Senate…
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Not-True Statements about Health Insurers
I’ve already picked on the left-wing Keystone Progress this week for absurd statements, but I got another missive from them on…
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Read More: Not-True Statements about Health InsurersHealth Care
When a Tax Isn’t a Tax
In a post this morning, I criticized PA Senate Republicans for their loose definition of “broad-based taxes” with an emphasis on “broad…
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Read More: When a Tax Isn’t a TaxTaxes & Economy
Online “Short Courses” in American Conservative Thought
The Intercollegiate Studies Institute, a non-profit committed to education in America’s founding principles, recently debuted their First Principles Web Journal, an online resource for those interested in learning…
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Region’s residents upset over proposed tax increases, new taxes
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