Craig Snyder

Craig Snyder, the odds-on favorite to be the Republican city controller candidate, has quit the race. "I've just decided it's not the right thing for me to do at this time," he said yesterday, but declined to elaborate. Snyder's withdrawal leaves Barry Zern, a Mount Airy civic activist, and Joe Watkins, an associate minister at Mount Carmel Baptist Church in West Philadelphia and a Virginia resident, as the two most likely contenders. However, when ward leaders huddle with party boss Billy Meehan tonight, they could pick someone entirely different.

Republican challenger Craig Snyder says he wants to know why U.S. Rep. Tom Foglietta, D-Pa., is afraid of him. So does Foglietta. Snyder complains that Foglietta won't debate him. Foglietta says that as soon as his congressional schedule lightens up in a few weeks, he'll trade barbs with Snyder. Snyder is standing at 12th and Vine, in eyeshot of his billboard challenging the congressman to a duel.

Republican Sam Katz, the municipal finance expert who lost the mayoral primary bid to Frank Rizzo in 1991, announced yesterday the formation of a committee to test the waters for next year's governor's race - which he has been doing for several months. His policy director, Craig Snyder, said the announcement came now because the campaign had "reached critical mass in terms of fund-raising support. " Katz's active interest and money-raising efforts have been public for months.

Craig Snyder, the Republican candidate in an uphill race for Congress, said he plans to distribute more than 50,000 campaign leaflets comparing his opponent, U.S. Rep. Thomas Foglietta, to a gun-carrying street thug. The leaflets feature a staged photograph of a bearded, pony-tailed, snarling "street thug," holding what appears to be a 9mm semiautomatic pistol, juxtaposed with a candid snapshot of the congressman. In bold print, the headline reads: "What do these two men have in common?"

About 70 Center City residents showed up last night to hear State Rep. Babette Josephs and her Republican opponent, Craig Snyder, talk about crime. What they heard was a lot about abortion. Snyder said he'd been asked not to talk about the subject, and did so only after his views were requested. Josephs, however, said even before she addressed the meeting that abortion would be her main focus. In sum, Snyder said he was pro-choice, and supports public funding for poor women's abortions.

The road back for Gary Hart will begin in Philadelphia. On the evening of Sept. 10, the former Democratic presidential front-runner is scheduled to speak to the World Affairs Council on the subject of "New U.S.-Soviet Relationships. " The speech at the Franklin Plaza Hotel will be Hart's first major public appearance since May 8, when he withdrew from the contest for the 1988 Democratic nomination in the wake of articles about his relationship with a young Florida woman, Donna Rice.

There's this how-to-kill-the-incumbent kit and Craig Snyder was the first candidate on the block to get it. He's attacking popular U.S. Rep. Thomas Foglietta, D-Pa., on every level he can, hitting the same themes as a hundred other challengers around the country in a political year strong on "throw the bums out" sentiment. And Republican Snyder is getting attention - about $100,000 worth of television and radio coverage, he figures. But the numbers say only a miracle will land a Republican newcomer in a House seat in a district that's got almost 200,000 Democrats to about 91,000 Republicans.

Craig Snyder has the fire in his belly. He talks passionately about how the Republican Party needs to pay attention to urban issues. Larry Hollin is quieter than Snyder but just as determined. He believes he can unseat a black Democrat in a congressional district that is mostly black and mostly Democratic. And Charlie Dougherty, an unassuming ex-congressman, is energizing the Republican Party faithful into believing they can win this one. They're the three Republican congressional candidates in Philadelphia, and each one is tilting at windmills - running against moneyed, entrenched and dominant Democrats.

Drexel above reproach The reputation of a university is its most important asset. Your Page One headline ("N.J. probe may touch Drexel's reputation," March 24) unfairly imputes a Drexel association with this matter. Simply stated, the facts of the article do not support the headline and your newspaper has improperly impugned Drexel's reputation. The situation at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey is not a Drexel story. It is not related to any actions at Drexel by James Archibald, senior vice president for health sciences, or any of the former UMDNJ employees hired.

Like any thriving newborn, Lincoln Snyder was a wiggly bundle of hunger when he woke up in the morning. So on Aug. 23, NiCole Robinson and Craig Snyder noticed the difference in their 34-day-old son. He was listless. His breathing was rapid and shallow. The changes seemed innocuous, but Snyder's mind raced: It can't be. It must be. God, I hope it's not. Doctors had told the couple that they could safely have children, even though Snyder and his first wife had lost two newborns to an incredibly rare, untreatable congenital lung disorder.

Like any thriving newborn, Lincoln Snyder was a wiggly bundle of hunger when he woke up in the morning. So on Aug. 23, NiCole Robinson and Craig Snyder noticed the difference in their 34-day-old son. He was listless. His breathing was rapid and shallow. The changes seemed innocuous, but Snyder's mind raced: It can't be. It must be. God, I hope it's not. Doctors had told the couple that they could safely have children, even though Snyder and his first wife had lost two newborns to an incredibly rare, untreatable congenital lung disorder.

Drexel above reproach The reputation of a university is its most important asset. Your Page One headline ("N.J. probe may touch Drexel's reputation," March 24) unfairly imputes a Drexel association with this matter. Simply stated, the facts of the article do not support the headline and your newspaper has improperly impugned Drexel's reputation. The situation at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey is not a Drexel story. It is not related to any actions at Drexel by James Archibald, senior vice president for health sciences, or any of the former UMDNJ employees hired.

Republican Sam Katz, the municipal finance expert who lost the mayoral primary bid to Frank Rizzo in 1991, announced yesterday the formation of a committee to test the waters for next year's governor's race - which he has been doing for several months. His policy director, Craig Snyder, said the announcement came now because the campaign had "reached critical mass in terms of fund-raising support. " Katz's active interest and money-raising efforts have been public for months.

Craig Snyder, the odds-on favorite to be the Republican city controller candidate, has quit the race. "I've just decided it's not the right thing for me to do at this time," he said yesterday, but declined to elaborate. Snyder's withdrawal leaves Barry Zern, a Mount Airy civic activist, and Joe Watkins, an associate minister at Mount Carmel Baptist Church in West Philadelphia and a Virginia resident, as the two most likely contenders. However, when ward leaders huddle with party boss Billy Meehan tonight, they could pick someone entirely different.

Craig Snyder, the Republican candidate in an uphill race for Congress, said he plans to distribute more than 50,000 campaign leaflets comparing his opponent, U.S. Rep. Thomas Foglietta, to a gun-carrying street thug. The leaflets feature a staged photograph of a bearded, pony-tailed, snarling "street thug," holding what appears to be a 9mm semiautomatic pistol, juxtaposed with a candid snapshot of the congressman. In bold print, the headline reads: "What do these two men have in common?"

There's this how-to-kill-the-incumbent kit and Craig Snyder was the first candidate on the block to get it. He's attacking popular U.S. Rep. Thomas Foglietta, D-Pa., on every level he can, hitting the same themes as a hundred other challengers around the country in a political year strong on "throw the bums out" sentiment. And Republican Snyder is getting attention - about $100,000 worth of television and radio coverage, he figures. But the numbers say only a miracle will land a Republican newcomer in a House seat in a district that's got almost 200,000 Democrats to about 91,000 Republicans.

Charles Dougherty did not mention his name during a debate last week. You won't see him in Larry Hollin's brochures. Craig Snyder says he wishes someone else was at the top of the ticket. In the uphill campaigns of these self-described independent Republicans running for Congress in Philadelphia, President Bush is virtually an invisible man. In a city where Democrats outnumber Republicans, 3-1, and where Bush is expected to lose in a landslide, these candidates are trying to distance themselves.

Republican challenger Craig Snyder says he wants to know why U.S. Rep. Tom Foglietta, D-Pa., is afraid of him. So does Foglietta. Snyder complains that Foglietta won't debate him. Foglietta says that as soon as his congressional schedule lightens up in a few weeks, he'll trade barbs with Snyder. Snyder is standing at 12th and Vine, in eyeshot of his billboard challenging the congressman to a duel.

Craig Snyder has the fire in his belly. He talks passionately about how the Republican Party needs to pay attention to urban issues. Larry Hollin is quieter than Snyder but just as determined. He believes he can unseat a black Democrat in a congressional district that is mostly black and mostly Democratic. And Charlie Dougherty, an unassuming ex-congressman, is energizing the Republican Party faithful into believing they can win this one. They're the three Republican congressional candidates in Philadelphia, and each one is tilting at windmills - running against moneyed, entrenched and dominant Democrats.

Along Waverly, Naudain and Cypress, the narrow residential streets of Center City, the "for sale" signs are like trees - seemingly permanent, weathering the seasons as recession sets in and the city's dire fiscal condition makes buyers scarce. Along Delancey Place, where the sycamores are beginning to shed, on trash day some residents use clear plastic bags with a little notice to scavengers: "No valuables in trash" - a sign of an unhappy change in even the most fundamental chores of life in Center City.