Lehigh Valley Rally, April 15, 2019

Monday, Monday. Back at it on Tax Day.

PA Weather


Butler | Sunny, 68


Burnt Cabins | Sunny, 75


Green Lane | Sunny, 75

PA Sports


Sixers (47-35) | Orlando 125-113 | Brooklyn 107-86 | Wed vs. Miami


Flyers (38-32-11) | New Jersey 1-0 | Tue vs. Washington


Penguins (37-31-12) | Boston 4-6 | Mon vs. Nashville


Pirates (11-5) | Philadelphia 9-2 | Mon-Wed vs. NY Mets


Phillies (8-8) | Pittsburgh 2-9 | Mon-Wed vs. Colorado


Union (3-4-0) | Atlanta 2-2 | April 27 vs. Real Salt Lake

What’s Happening Today. The PA House is in session.

Today’s Springsteen Lyrics. “Everybody’s got a hunger, a hunger they can’t resist, There’s so much that you want, you deserve much more than this.” – Prove It All Night

Happy Birthday. Cake and candles for Rep. Donna Oberlander

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Top Story

1. Defiant Trump Riffs On Criminal Trial Gag Order, Biden In Lehigh Valley Rally

“An adoring crowd braved strong winds and dipping temperatures to cheer on former President Donald Trump at a rally Saturday night outside the Schnecksville Fire Hall.

Trump spoke for over an hour with a mix of bluster and insults.

He blasted President Joe Biden over rising inflation, his support of alternative energy and the spiking number of illegal crossings at the Southern border.” (LehighValleyNews.com)

Related

McCormick Gets Trump’s Endorsement In Pennsylvania’s Senate Race Despite Awkward History. “Trump’s endorsement came two years after he successfully helped sink McCormick in Pennsylvania’s Senate GOP primary, creating an awkward dynamic between the two men who will share the ticket in a state that is critical to control of the White House and Senate.” (AP)

Bob Casey Knows You Think He’s Boring. That’s Why He Thinks You Should Reelect Him. “While other senators seek the limelight, the Pennsylvania Democrat is pitching himself as quietly hard at work over the last 18 years. His Republican challenger, Dave McCormick, says he’s too passive.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Biden Cancels Student Loan Debt For 10,800 More Pennsylvanians. “The Biden administration on Friday announced its cancellation of an additional $7.4 billion in student debt for 277,000 borrowers, including 10,800 more people in Pennsylvania.” (The Keystone)

State

2. Patel Stands Between Lee and a Second Term In Pittsburgh Congressional Race

“It has all the el­e­ments of a high-pro­file con­gres­sio­nal race in No­vem­ber: pro­voc­a­tive ads, mil­lions of dol­lars in fund­rais­ing and cam­paign spend­ing, and two can­di­dates — a fa­vored in­cum­bent and de­ter­mined chal­lenger — who have ex­changed ver­bal blows over na­tional hot-but­ton is­sues, in­clud­ing the Is­rael-​Ha­mas war, dark money and sup­port for Pres­i­dent Joe Biden.

Ex­cept it’s the Demo­cratic pri­mary in April.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Related

PA-12: Democratic Primary For Pittsburgh’s Congress Seat Flooded By Money From Afar, Including Conservative Yass. “The biggest political spender in the Democratic primary for Pittsburgh’s congressional seat is a Libertarian from the Philadelphia suburbs. Meanwhile the vast bulk of the money raised by the incumbent comes from other states.” (Public Source)

• A Pittsburgh Congressional Race Could Test Democrats Who Have Criticized Israel’s Handling Of War. (AP)

PA-10: O’Brien Has Highest Q1 Fundraising Total; Stelson Has Most In Hand. “As the contest for the Democratic nomination in PA-10 heads into the home stretch, it looks increasingly likely that two candidates have separated themselves from the other four.” (PoliticsPA)

10th District Democrats Test Their Mettle With Wary Muslim Voters. “Half the primary field in the race for the Democratic nomination in Pennsylvania’s 10th Congressional District said unequivocally Sunday that they would not support a pending military aid bill for Israel based on its execution of its war against Hamas to date.” (PennLive)

Congressional Primary Preview: PA-14. “A pair of Democrats square off for the right to take on Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, the House Majority Deputy Whip, in November. Both candidates are veterans, both support a woman’s right to choose, and both agree that aligning with former President Trump and his policies are dangerous for the country.” (PoliticsPA)

Big Hike In Minimum Wage Sought by Pennsylvania Democrats. “Sen. Christina Tartaglione is introducing legislation to bump the minimum wage to $20. It would also set tipped wages at 70% of the minimum wage. Currently, tipped employees earn $2.83 per hour.” (WESA)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Elections 101: How PA Secures Mail Ballots, Prevents Fraud, And More

“You may be one of the hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians who plan to vote by mail during the 2024 election. Or maybe it’s an option you’ve considered but haven’t pursued because you distrust the process or have concerns about fraud.

Pennsylvania election officials have safeguards in place to verify the identity of people who request and cast mail ballots. Many counties also follow guidance from the Department of State to secure ballots and track who handles them.” (Votebeat)

Related

Philly-Area Jewish Communities Prepare For A Primary Election That Conflicts With Passover. “State lawmakers tried to move Pennsylvania’s primary to avoid the overlap. After those efforts failed, outreach work began.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Among PA Attorney General Candidates, Philadelphia Crime Woes Are a Springboard For Exploring Issues. “Among the hundreds of politicians clamoring for public attention in Pennsylvania are eight who are caught up in an intensifying debate over Pennsylvanians’ personal and economic safety, because each wants to be the state’s next attorney general.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

How the Mifepristone Case Before SCOTUS Could Affect Abortion in Pennsylvania. “Medication abortion includes mifepristone as the first drug and misoprostol as the second. The two-drug regimen accounted for about 63% of abortions within the United States in 2023.” (Penn Capital-Star)

Kitchen Table Politics: Brendan Boyle. “Ari Mittelman speaks with Congressman Brendan Boyle about the federal budget, prospects for Democrats flipping the House, the President’s reelection campaign and more.” (Broad + Liberty)

Editorial

4. What’s On Your Mind

• Donald Trump Has Cheated His Way Through Life. Will This Election Be Any Different? (Philadelphia Inquirer)
• ‘Trumpstock’ Brings Peace, Unity And A Ton Of Disinformation To Schnecksville. (Will Bunch)
• A Bill In The Pennsylvania House Would Stifle Free Speech With Paperwork. (Tiffany Donnelly)
• Being a Democrat Means Never Having To Say You’re Sorry. (Guy Ciarrocchi)
• Despite What Happened In Arizona, Medicine And Law Can’t Roll Backward. (Lori Falce)

1 Thing

5. Pennsylvania’s Sweetest Festival To Be Held In Meyersdale

“The 77th Pennsylvania Maple Festival will showcase the sweetness of Somerset County maple syrup.

Billed as Pennsylvania’s sweetest festival, the event will be held April 20 and 21 and April 24 through 28 at sites around Meyersdale.

Those who tour the festival’s sugar camp will learn how to tap a tree, boil sap into syrup, observe a sugar-off, make sugar cakes and twirl spotza, a clear taffy formed when maple syrup boiled down to a soft stage is poured over crushed ice.” (Tribune-Democrat)

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