Western Pennsylvania’s Republican congressmen, all ardent supporters of President Trump, are lying low in the wake of the administration’s decision to allow President-elect Joe Biden to formally begin the transition to power.

U.S. Reps. Guy Reschenthaler of Peters Township, Mike Kelly of Butler, John Joyce of Blair County and Glenn Thompson of Centre County, all regulars on the podium at Trump’s Western Pennsylvania rallies, went silent Monday.

The four lawmakers, all of whom won reelection by healthy margins, did not respond to repeated calls and emails for comment as the new administration began its transition to power.

Their silence, even as lawyers for Kelly filed suit in Commonwealth Court seeking to overturn the state’s mail-in ballot statute, stood in stark contrast to Republican U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey’s move late last week to acknowledge Biden’s victory.

On Saturday, the Lehigh Valley Republican joined a small cadre of Senate Republicans who stepped forward to congratulate Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris prior to the start of the transition.

In doing so, Toomey cited a federal court ruling that dismissed a Trump campaign court challenge to the Pennsylvania vote that Biden won by about 80,000 votes, as well as the failure of court filings in other states.

“(Biden and Harris) are both dedicated public servants, and I will be praying for them and for our country. Unsurprisingly, I have significant policy disagreements with the President-elect. However, as I have done throughout my career, I will seek to work across the aisle with him and his administration, especially on those areas where we may agree,” Toomey said in a statement Saturday night.

In particular, Toomey cited issues such as combating covid-19, expanding trade, supporting the military and “keeping guns out of the hands of violent criminals and the dangerously mentally ill.”

Joe DiSarro, chairman of the political science department at Washington & Jefferson College and a Republican State Committee member, said Toomey’s comments were “on point.”

“I thoroughly agree with the statesman-like posture of Sen. Toomey,” DiSarro said. “But it’s a different world where the representatives are concerned. I think there, it’s politics as usual.”

He said the House members could be concerned about finding themselves at odds with constituents in the deep-red districts they represent.

“They run every two years, but in reality they are up for reelection every day,” DiSarro said. “They are constantly running for reelection.”

Toomey, who served three terms in the U.S. House before being elected to the Senate in 2010, has said he will bow out at the end of his second term in 2022 and has no plans to run for governor.

What the Dems are saying

Pennsylvania Democrats celebrated the formal start of Biden’s transition to power. U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Forest Hills, was reelected Nov. 3 to his 14th term. He said he is grateful the transition has begun and chastised Trump for delaying the process.

“To finally see that we’re going to have access to intelligence briefings and that the Biden administration can start to coordinate with the covid task force … makes us all feel a lot better,” Doyle said.

“I think a lot of us want to move past this incredibly sad chapter in our history and get back to a normal governance where the parties can work together and pass legislation and get things done for the American people,” Doyle said.

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Scranton, shared a video on social media Tuesday morning of him sipping a beer to celebrate the certification of election results in Pennsylvania.

PENNSYLVANIA UPDATE 40/40: The votes are in. The count is certified. @JoeBiden has won the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (again). And that's a wrap on the 2020 election here in the Keystone State. pic.twitter.com/UPtjeL5VXE

— Bob Casey Jr. (@Bob_Casey) November 24, 2020

Casey, one of the first Democrats to come out for Biden last year, said he is pleased the federal General Services Administration has issued what he referred to as a “long overdue” ascertainment order.

“President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris are putting together a team of highly skilled, dedicated public servants who will help America ‘build back better’ as we tackle a public health and economic crisis,” Casey said.

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