🥶 20 Degrees Has Never Felt Better. Am I right?

🗞️  The PoliticsPA Playbook is compiled by Steve Ulrich. To read in your browser, click here. Was this email forwarded to you? Subscribe for free.

PA Weather
🌥️ Tionesta | Increasing Clouds, 24
☀️ Cashtown | Sunny, 28
🌥️ Orwigsburg | Gradual Clearing, 25

PA Sports
🏈 Eagles (16-3) | Sun vs. Washington
🏒 Penguins (20-21-8) | Thu vs. Anaheim
🏒 Flyers (22-20-6) | Thu vs. NY Rangers
🏀 Sixers (15-27) | Fri vs. Cleveland

🔊 What We’re Hearing. “After a 4.9 percent increase in spending for the 2024–25 budget, lawmakers are looking at a $3.6 billion deficit by the end of FY 2024–25 which will grow to $6.7 billion by FY 2029–30,” says the Commonwealth Foundation.

🔊 What We’re Hearing II. “As part of the new multi-million dollar “Hands Off Medicaid” campaign, Protect Our Care is releasing new ads across 10 key House districts, including PA-07 (Ryan Mackenzie) and PA-08 (Rob Bresnahan) to sound the alarm on Republican threats to Medicaid.

🎂  Happy Birthday. Cake and candles for U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker.

📱  Social Media. PoliticsPA has a number of social media outlets for you to get the latest political news from around the Commonwealth: Twitter | Bluesky | Facebook | LinkedIn

Top Story

1. How Donald Trump Changed Pennsylvania’s Electorate

“Pennsylvania analyst Nick Field (and PoliticsPA alum) has tracked the Keystone State’s voter registration patterns for years, and we asked him to look at the overall changes in the state over the course of Donald Trump’s time in presidential politics.

While Democrats retain an overall voter registration edge in Pennsylvania, Republicans have made great strides in the state over the past decade, as Nick explains in his detailed, county-by-county assessment.

Registration by party can sometimes be a lagging indicator of political reality but, as Nick writes, the changes can tell us something about political trends and turnout that other indicators may miss.” (UVA Center For Politics)

Elsewhere

McCormick To Head Senate Subcommittee on Middle East Affairs. “Sen. Dave McCormick will be named chair for the influential Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism.” (PoliticsPA)

Pennsylvania’s Political Violence Problem. “Amidst an alarming rise in violence tied to elections and politics, local leaders are amping up efforts to mitigate tensions.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

This Pennsylvania Cyber Charter Proposal Would Replace Teachers With AI-based Lessons. “The Texas founders of an unconventional AI-based learning model want to expand into Pennsylvania, pitching a plan for a cyber charter school that would replace teachers with software and squeeze traditional academics into 2 hours of daily instruction.” (USA Today Network)

State

2. Commonwealth Foundation Releases “Better Pennsylvania Agenda” to Address Challenges in State

“The Commonwealth Foundation released a policy roadmap to help Pennsylvania lawmakers deliver prosperity and opportunity to voters frustrated with leadership failures in Harrisburg and Washington, DC.

The Better Pennsylvania Agenda offers 30 popular, bipartisan solutions and reforms to address the economic, education, energy, and budgetary challenges that lead many Pennsylvanians to flee the state.

“Having sent a clear message in the 2024 elections, a majority of voters feel that Pennsylvania has ‘pretty seriously gotten off on the wrong track’” Commonwealth Foundation Senior Vice President Erik Telford said.” (PoliticsPA)

Elsewhere

More Governors Back Shapiro’s Energy Complaint. “As skyrocketing utility prices loom on the horizon, four more state leaders stand behind Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s complaint about PJM’s management of the power grid.” (The Center Square)

Can Pennsylvania Craft the Perfect Cannabis Law? “Lawmakers, public polling and even the governor support legalizing recreational cannabis. But legislation has proven complex.” (Penn Capital-Star)

The Legal Weed Debate Is Starting Up Again In PA. Here’s What’s on the Table. “No one in the Pennsylvania Capitol is prepared to say if this is the year the state will legalize marijuana. But that hasn’t stopped supporters from beginning to lay out their visions.” (Spotlight PA)

McCormick Announces Inaugural Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit. “Senator Dave McCormick announced that he will host the Inaugural Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit in Pittsburgh, Pa., in the first half of this year. The Summit will bring together the top leaders in energy and AI.” (PoliticsPA)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Penn State’s Current Campus Ecosystem Is ‘Not Sustainable,’ Commonwealth Chancellor Says

“Penn State’s current campus ecosystem is not sustainable, Penn State commonwealth campus executive chancellor Margo Dellicarpini told faculty senators during a Tuesday meeting.

Her comments come as most of the university’s 19 commonwealth campuses — and many other smaller, regional institutions across the Northeast — face financial woes and enrollment challenges that could worsen as the region’s youth population drops.

Throughout an hours-long meeting on Zoom, faculty senators repeatedly questioned whether some branch campuses could soon shutter. Others made comments under the assumption that campus closures are inevitable, without being corrected by university administrators.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Elsewhere

Philly DA Larry Krasner Says He Won’t Break the Law For Trump’s Immigration Crackdown. “Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said that his office would not comply with any immigration orders from President Donald Trump’s administration that might cause his staff to break the law — and that his stance would not be swayed by a Justice Department memo threatening consequences.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Commissioners Appoint Cartwright to Railroad Authority as Progress On Scranton-to-NYC Train Project Continues. “As a member of Congress, former U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright served as a chief elected advocate for the long-sought restoration of passenger rail service between Scranton and New York City.” (Scranton Times-Tribune)

Somerset County District Attorney Announces Campaign For Judge Seat. “District Attorney Molly Metzgar announced Wednesday that she is running for Somerset County Court of Common Pleas judge, making her the first candidate to launch a campaign for the open judgeship.” (Johnstown Tribune-Democrat)

Erie Mayor Joe Schember, Facing Primary Challenge, Kicks Off Re-Election Campaign. “Fellow Democrat Daria Devlin, 47, Hamot Health Foundation’s director of social impact and an Erie School Board member, is challenging Schember in May’s municipal primary.” (Erie Times-News)

Editorial

4. What’s On Your Mind

• Fetterman a Test Case For Bipartisanship in a New Government. (Scranton Times-Tribune)
• This is the Year Allegheny County Must Reassess Property Values. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• Gainey Overplayed His Hand With Highmark Announcement. (Greensburg Tribune-Review)
• 5 Early Questions for Trump’s ‘Golden Age of America.’ (John Baer)
• Judges Should Not Be Writing Election Law. (John E. Jones III)
• Unleashing Pennsylvania’s Abundant Resources. (Emily Greene)
• Philadelphia Benefits When Both Parties Pay Attention to It. (Kyle Sammin)

1 Thing

5. ‘Revenge Quitting’: 28% Of Employees Expect It At Work In 2025

“According to Gallup, U.S. employee engagement has sunk to a 10-year low. And the “Revenge quitting” trend is all the rage as workers fight back against big business. It stems from an employee’s pent-up resentment over feeling trapped in a job.

What are the four indicators that an employee could be on the verge of “revenge quitting”? (Forbes)

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