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What We’re Hearing
“On the left, you have the people on the far-left. On the right, you have the far-right. They are holding out for their priority and there is no way in heck they are doing somebody else’s priority until they get theirs.” – Rep. Frank Burns

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Top Story

1. Judge Orders Perry To Disclose 1,600 Messages To Federal Prosecutors

“A federal judge ruled Tuesday that Rep. Scott Perry must disclose to federal prosecutors more than 1,600 emails, text messages and other communications related to the investigation into Donald Trump and his allies’ bid to subvert the 2020 election.

Chief U.S. District Judge James Boasberg concluded that the vast majority of the messages Perry exchanged — some with other members of Congress, some with members of the Trump administration and some with allies outside of government — could not be shielded from prosecutors by Perry’s constitutional protections as a member of Congress.

Rather, Boasberg concluded, the 1,659 exchanges had little to do with Perry’s job as a legislator and therefore were not subject to the Constitution’s “speech or debate” clause, which prohibits prosecutors and courts from prying into the official business of Congress.” (POLITICO)

Related

Donald Trump Banned From Colorado Ballot In Historic Ruling By State’s Supreme Court. “A divided Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday declared former President Donald Trump ineligible for the White House under the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause and removed him from the state’s presidential primary ballot, setting up a likely showdown in the nation’s highest court to decide whether the front-runner for the GOP nomination can remain in the race.” (AP)

• From August: Lawsuit Seeking to Prevent Trump From Appearing On 2024 PA Ballot Filed in Commonwealth Court. (PoliticsPA)

Muhlenberg Poll: Biden, Trump In Statistical Dead Heat. “In a telephone survey of 421 registered voters in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania between November 20 and December 13, 2023, the respondents have President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in a statistical dead heat in the 2024 presidential race.” (PoliticsPA)

Pennsylvania Senators, Congressman Urge Federal Committee To Block Foreign Sale Of U.S. Steel. “In a Tuesday letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Senators Bob Casey and John Fetterman and U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio said the planned $14.9 billion sale would be “a step backwards in our commitment to supply chain integrity and economic security.” (Tribune-Review)

• Steelworkers President Calls U.S. Steel-Nippon Steel Deal Void For Violating Collective Bargaining Agreement. (CBS Pittsburgh)

Election Roads Go Through Bethlehem(s). “While Bethlehem is best known as the birthplace of Jesus and the focal point of the Christmas story, a handful of Bethlehems around the country help tell the story of the election cycle. Located just east of Allentown in Northampton and Lehigh counties and at the heart of the 7th District, Bethlehem, Pa. (population 76,000) is the largest and one of the most consequential Bethlehems in the United States.” (Roll Call)

State

2. ‘Like A Train Going Down The Tracks’: Inside Harrisburg’s Year-End Legislative Frenzy

“A contentious and disjointed 2023 for the Pennsylvania General Assembly ended in a legislative frenzy last Wednesday, as lawmakers pushed through high-profile, disputed, and previously stalled items in their busiest voting day of the year.

A review of session records shows the combined 82 roll call votes taken in the House and Senate were by far the highest total of the year, with 32 conducted after 7 p.m. The next-highest daily figure was 57, on June 22.

“When government wheels start turning, it is like a train going down the tracks,” said Rep. Mary Isaacson.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Related

Pennsylvania Shrinks By 10,000 People In 2023. “Another population update from the U.S. Census Bureau confirms a long-running trend: Pennsylvania continues to shrink. Losing residents can mean more problems for those who stay. Treasurer Stacy Garrity has warned of a potential $18 billion fiscal shortfall due to a  “silver tsunami” where Pennsylvania’s older population grows as its working-age population shrinks.” (The Center Square)

PA Motorists Will See Savings At The Pump As State Gas Tax Falls. “Motorists will begin to see a little relief at the gas pump, starting on Jan. 1. Pennsylvania’s gas tax rate is going down from this year’s 61.1 cents per gallon to 57.6 cents a gallon, according to the state Department of Revenue.” (PennLive)

Economy, Inflation And Health Care Are Top Concerns Among Latino Voters In PA. “Latino civil rights and advocacy organization UnidosUS, and Mi Familia Vota, a national civic engagement organization, surveyed 3,037 eligible Latino voters in eight battleground states.” (Penn Capital-Star)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Saegertown: This Is What Political Division Looks Like In The U.S. Right Now

“What causes a long-time friendly rural community around Saegertown, in Western Pennsylvania, to break up into bitter factions over banning books in school libraries and dictating what teachers can discuss about the history of race in America?

We weren’t able to speak with the School Board member pushing to scrub books in that community. But one parent, Teresa Barickman, pointed to “political rhetoric that we have heard on the national level has empowered people, and let them feel like it’s okay to say these not-so-nice things about people.” (PBS)

Related

Administrative Election Errors Rise As PA Counties Struggle To Keep Voting Officials. “Counties in Pennsylvania have been steadily reporting more election administration errors impacting voters’ ballots with each election since 2019, an analysis by Votebeat and Spotlight PA of data collected by the news organizations and the Open Source Election Technology Institute has found.” (Votebeat)

• Why Do Some Pennsylvania Counties’ Elections Run Smoother Than Others? (WITF)

Mayor-Elect Cherelle Parker Names Top Financial Advisers And Will Retain Longtime Director Rob Dubow. “Dubow was among a trio of finance and budget department appointees Parker’s transition committee announced Tuesday, two weeks before she’ll be sworn in as mayor.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Pittsburgh’s People of the Year 2023: Politics. “Allegheny County Executive-elect Sara Innamorato didn’t originally plan to run for office. As she shifted from a business career to nonprofit work and consulting, Innamorato found herself both intrigued by local policymaking and dismayed by the lack of women in Harrisburg.” (Pittsburgh City Paper)

Audit of Allentown NIZ Approved by Pennsylvania Senate. “The state Senate passed a resolution last week to authorize a performance audit of Allentown’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone.” (Morning Call)

Beaver County Now Has More Registered Republicans Than Democrats. “Pennsylvania Department of State data shows that among Beaver County’s 111,725 registered voters, 48,170 are registered Republicans and 48,079 are registered Democrats – a difference of 91 registrations. That’s 43.1% Republican voters, 43% Democratic voters and 13.9% third party or unaffiliated voters.” (Beaver County Times)

Editorial

4. What They’re Saying

• Loss of U.S. Steel Stings, But Nippon May Be Just The Right Suitor. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• U.S. Steel-NSC Merger A Good Deal For Workers, Consumers And PA. (Ryan Costello)
• Why 14th Amendment Bars Trump From Office: A Constitutional Law Scholar Explains. (Mark A. Graber)
• Using Some Of US Rep. Lloyd’s Smucker’s Own Words, Let’s Play ‘Spot The Hypocrisy’ (LNP)
• Hope For School Choice in Pennsylvania. (Wall Street Journal)
• It All Depends On What Your Definition Of ‘Context’ Is. (Andy Bloom)
• Accountability in Higher Education. (Rep. Seth Grove)

1 Thing

5. Get Ready Pennsylvania!

If population trends continue, Pennsylvania will lose one representative in Congress in 2030. Lawyers, start your engines.

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