President Obama Comes to Philly

President Obama and GOP candidate Mitt Romney in Town. Get ready to sit in traffic. President Obama is in town for a Democratic National Committee fundraiser hosted by the Comcast regime’s David L. Cohen. Meanwhile, Romney is in Philly to punch holes in Obama’s policies and take in the Phils-Sox Business Person’s Special. The Scoop says, “thanks fah comin’ out,” but hopes Romney brought his broom with him as the Phils prep to finish their series sweep of Boston. [FOX 29]

Mayor Nutter and Most of City Council Refuse Cost-of-Living Hike. Philly’s Mayor and City Council were eligible for a cost-of-living pay increase, but as of yesterday’s deadline, Mayor Nutter had refused the added income, with 10 council members either following the Mayor’s example, or accepting the pay bump but pledging to donate it to charity. Mayor Nutter also cut his annual salary by 10 percent and will take a two-week furlough. [Inquirer]

Why Did Philadelphia Housing Authority Pay Jonathan Saidel $150,000?. Saidel, the former city controller, was paid $150,000 as a consultant to the PHA in 2008. But, he received the funds indirectly, his name doesn’t show up on any PHA contract and his Drew Rosenhaus routine (next question) leaves questions unanswered. [Inquirer]

Philadelphia Will Be Redistricted. Remember Rick Mariano and the whole bribe-taking debacle of ’01? Well, that happened while City Council was on a five-month pay freeze because they couldn’t agree on a plan to slice up the city on deadline. Now, it’s time to go through the process again and, this time, it doesn’t look so easy. [City Paper]

NJ Turnpike Changes Complicate E-ZPass Billing. Who assigns your E-ZPass? Different agencies give discounts for different routes, drivers, cars and frequencies. Now, with the New Jersey Turnpike Authority ditching discounts for all non-NJ issued E-ZPasses and the hike in Philly-area bridge tolls tomorrow, it seems as though some drivers will be paying significantly more than others. [Inquirer]

Flyers Mulling Offer to Stamkos. After trading away oh-Captain-my-captain Richards and Jeff Carter last week to free up some serious cap space, the Flyers inked goalie Ilya Bryzgalov to a nine-year deal. But, speculations are that the Flyers aren’t done yet. Reports are that the team is considering sending an offer of $115 million over 12 years to Tampa Bay’s restricted free-agent Steven Stamkos. The Inquirer and the Daily News are at odds on the issue—only intensifying speculation. [Crossing Broad]