Editor\u2019s note: We are publishing a series of fact-checks of advertisements in the Pennsylvania 8th Congressional District race between incumbent Republican Congressman Rob Bresnahan of Dallas Twp. and Democratic challenger, Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti. The election is key for both major parties\u2019 hopes of holding a House majority the next two years.<\/p>\n
This 30-second ad was paid for by The Safety & Affordability PAC, a super PAC formed in September that is affiliated with President Donald Trump\u2019s MAGA Inc. PAC. It receives its funding largely through multimillion-dollar transfers from MAGA Inc. The ad was not authorized by any candidate or candidate\u2019s committee.<\/p>\n
The ad kicks off with footage of a ribbon-cutting ceremony in which Cognetti, wielding a pair of oversized scissors, cuts triumphantly through a string of yellow caution tape.<\/p>\n
The ad\u2019s narrator doesn\u2019t wait for the tape to fall to the ground before criticizing Scranton\u2019s mayor for helping \u201cbig bank executives\u201d obtain $5 million in taxpayer funds to renovate a new headquarters in the city. The narrator went on to say those executives \u201ctouted swanky new offices Cognetti helped fund.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those same \u201cbigwigs,\u201d the narrator explained, later \u201cbankrolled\u201d Cognetti\u2019s campaign, and a graphic indicating she received $14,600 in campaign contributions from board members appeared on the screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe rich got richer, Cognetti got paid and taxpayers got screwed,\u201d the narrator said, asking whether this was all coincidence, or better described as \u201ccorruption.\u201d Cognetti, the narrator concluded, is \u201canother dirty politician.\u201d<\/p>\n
Key claim<\/p>\n
\u201cPaige Cognetti helped send your money to the big bank, and their bigwigs returned the favor.\u201d<\/p>\n
Is it factual?<\/p>\n
In April 2022, Dunmore-based Fidelity Bank announced its $2.6 million purchase of the Scranton Electric Building, with plans to use the building as its future corporate headquarters<\/a>.\u00a0It is a fact that, in 2024, Cognetti helped Fidelity Bank secure a $5 million state grant<\/a> to help Fidelity restore and renovate the historic building on Linden Street.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re getting things done \u2014 lots of things done \u2014 and that\u2019s because of our Governor, our delegation, and our county commissioners. We\u2019re especially grateful to Fidelity for sticking with this project,\u201d Cognetti said in a statement released by Gov. Josh Shapiro\u2019s office announcing the grant. \u201cWe started working on these (Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program) grants within my first two weeks in office, and today\u2019s commitment ensures this project will happen. The Scranton Electric Building is truly the linchpin. We see incredible investment and ribbon-cuttings with our small businesses, but culturally and emotionally, Scranton isn\u2019t quite where it could be without this building\u2019s revitalization. With this project, we are truly on the right track.\u201d<\/p>\n In total, Fidelity received $9 million in matching grants from the state to complete the project. There is no evidence that bank executives specifically touted \u201cswanky new offices,\u201d but when the bank officially opened the Electric Building as its headquarters for 170 employees in September<\/a>, it was praised as a solid investment in the city.<\/p>\n \u201cThis money is going into a building that is worth millions of dollars more than it was before,\u201d state Sen. Marty Flynn, D-22, Dunmore, said during the ribbon-cutting. \u201cThis is a good investment for taxpayers.\u201d<\/p>\n The ad\u2019s claim that bank \u201cbigwigs\u201d \u201cbankrolled\u201d Cognetti\u2019s campaign after that 2022 purchase of the Scranton Electric Building is open for scrutiny and\u00a0it\u2019s certainly true members of Fidelity\u2019s board of directors made private contributions to her efforts to seek a seat in Congress.<\/p>\n A February report from Politico said Cognetti received $14,600 in campaign contributions from the bank\u2019s board members<\/a>, just a few months before she encouraged the city to buy a Fidelity Bank building next door to City Hall<\/a> on North Washington Avenue in 2025 for a municipal annex. That number represents less than 1% of the total money Cognetti\u2019s campaign brought in since 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n