Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell called Republican challenger Lynn Swann a "hypocrite" Monday for politically backing legislators who supported last year's pay raise.

But any weight the incumbent Democrat's political punch might have carried was blunted even before he threw it. That's because hours earlier Rendell told reporters at a Pennsylvania Press Club luncheon in Harrisburg, "I believe it was a mistake to sign it."

It was quite a different tune from the one Fast Eddie's been singing about the pay raise for the last year.

In April, Rendell told a group of Bucks County businessmen, "If I didn't sign it, I might have been governor for the next five years but I would have gotten nothing done, literally, because I need the cooperation of the Legislature. I've had remarkable success in getting seven major initiatives enacted into law. ... So you have to kiss a little butt."

And on the day he signed the pay raise into law, July 8, 2005, Rendell called it "good legislation" and said public concerns were "outweighed by the positive and long-range benefits" of the raises, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

"I also want to respond to the criticism that our legislators do not work hard enough to justify this or any other increase," Rendell said, noting laws passed since he took office have "required a great deal of research, negotiations and just plain hard work to achieve. The General Assembly has been an equal partner in that effort."

Oh what a difference a year makes, right?

But you don't even need that much time to see Rendell's hypocrisy knows few limits.

On Dec. 29, Rendell made headlines by saying he will propose limits on contributions to state-level political campaigns, capping what a person or group can give to a single candidate as well as the cumulative amount during a campaign cycle.

He offered no specifics on the limits and no legislation to that effect has seen the light of day.

But as a candidate for governor in 2002, Rendell said he would propose limits of about $5,000 in donations by individuals and groups to a candidate and $25,000 total in a gubernatorial election year. Then, Rendell smashed state campaign finance records during that gubernatorial campaign, raising and spending more than $42 million.

So far this year, Rendell has raised $26.3 million, the Associated Press reported today. That includes $6.6 million raised June 6 to Sept. 18. Most of those contributions - $5.08 million - were for more than $250 each.

Rendell's biggest contribution came from the state's largest teachers' union, the Pennsylvania State Education Association, whose political-action committee contributed $265,000.

The second-largest contribution came from the Democratic Governors Association, which gave $200,000. Much of that money may have come from gambling interests despite a state ban against direct contributions Rendell signed into law as part of legalizing slot machines.

One of six $100,000 contributions came from Thomas W. Wolf, a sitting member of the state Department of Revenue's Business Tax Reform Commission and CEO of the The Wolf Organization of York, a building materials distributor and lumber yard.

Wolf also gave $100,000 to Rendell in 2005, $10,000 in 2003 and $52,500 in 2002, state records show.

Nothing says thank you for letting me rewrite the tax code like healthy political contributions.

Does this sound like a governor pushing for campaign finance reform?

Finally, in March, Rendell grabbed headlines again by chastizing the state House of Representatives for failing to pass any meaningful lobbying disclosure legislation and for imposing one on his administration.

However, his order carried no penalties for violations, nor did it require the lobbyists to list how much was given to individual public servants - just the total cost for gifts, entertainment, meals, transportation, lodging and receptions.

Also, lobbyists only had to register if they spent more than $2,500 per quarter in the previous two years.

Why didn't Rendell require cabinet officials being lobbied to report their gifts?

A press release from Rendell said the Governor's Code of Conduct already requires many state officials and employees of the Executive Branch to file statements of financial interest, where they have to list their personal economic interests, business interests and gifts in excess of $100.

However, when Rendell filed his own statement of financial interests this year, he claimed not to receive any gifts even though he accepted $3,420 worth of VIP passes to minor league baseball games and three football jerseys worth $720 among many other presents.

"He does not consider it gifts to him," Chuck Ardo, a spokesman for the governor, told me in June. "They were given to the governor's office and are available for use by a large number of people."

Please remember in reading this that I'm not a Republican, I'm a Democrat, nor am I supporter of Swann. As far as I'm concerned, neither man should be elected governor.