🤠 Working for the Weekend. The Olympic Games begin today in Paris. And Sunday is 100 days until the election for those who celebrate.

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☀️ Braddock | Sunny, 84
☀️ Elizabethtown | Sunny, 84
☀️ Olney | Mostly Sunny, 86

PA Sports
⚾ Phillies (64-38) | Fri-Sun vs. Cleveland
⚾ Pirates (52-50) | Fri-Sun vs. Arizona

✅ Reader Poll. Who Will Kamala Harris Select as Her Running Mate? (PoliticsPA)

👂 What We’re Hearing. House Democrats are eyeing Reps. Madeleine Dean and Chrissy Houlahan as possible panelists for the newly created task force to investigate the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.

🎂 Happy Birthday. Cake and candles for Rep. Russ Diamond, Peter Schweyer (Fri.), and Perry Warren (Sun.)

🗞️ Pennsylvania Headlines >> Your Inbox. Where can you find all the latest news on what’s happening in Keystone State politics? Sign up for the PoliticsPA Playbook. We’ll deliver all the latest headlines in an easy-to-read format every weekday at 8 AM. And it’s free. Add your name to the list and subscribe now.

Top Story

1. Trump to Return to Pennsylvania For Rally in Harrisburg

“Former President Donald Trump will hold a campaign rally in Harrisburg next week, his first appearance in Pennsylvania since he was injured in a July 13 assassination attempt in Butler.

The GOP candidate for president will appear Wednesday at the New Holland Arena, part of the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex & Expo Center, the campaign said in a news release. This will be Trump’s first visit to Pennsylvania as the official GOP nominee, and the first since President Joe Biden bowed out of his bid for reelection.” (Penn Capital-Star)

Related

The “13 Keys to the White House”: A Conversation With Allan Lichtman. “Voices of Reason spoke with Lichtman about his background, how the system came about, why the ascension of Vice President Kamala Harris salvaged one of the keys for Democrats, and discussed prediction modeling and polls.” (Voices of Reason)

• Barack and Michelle Obama Endorse Kamala Harris, Giving Her Expected But Crucial Support. (AP)
• This Third Party Is Getting Behind Kamala Harris in PA, Plans to Knock 2 Million Doors. (The Keystone)

Republicans See Gov. Josh Shapiro as Harris’ ‘Super Strong’ VP Contender. “These Republicans say that Shapiro, a first-term governor of a critical swing state, is someone who could help broaden Harris’ appeal with independent voters and traditional Democrats who are drifting away from the party and help win over his home state — the most pivotal battleground on the presidential map, in their view.” (NBC News)

• Would Josh Shapiro’s Stances on Israel Help or Hurt Kamala Harris’ Ticket? (Philadelphia Inquirer)
• Anti-Shapiro Activists Launch ‘No Genocide Josh’ Website. (DV Journal)
• Govs. Josh Shapiro and Gretchen Whitmer Will Campaign For Kamala Harris in Montco Next Week. (Philadelphia Inquirer)
• McClinton and Giffords Discuss Gun Violence at Harris Campaign Event in Philadelphia. (Penn Capital-Star)

Trump Won’t Commit To Debate Until Harris Formally Nominated. “Donald Trump’s campaign refused to commit to a debate with Kamala Harris after the Democratic candidate challenged the Republican nominee to show up to a previously scheduled face-off.” (Bloomberg)

State

2. Some Public Education Advocates Are Pushing Against Josh Shapiro as Harris’ VP Pick Because He Supports School Vouchers

“A network of more than two dozen public education advocacy groups from across the country published a letter Wednesday night urging Vice President Kamala Harris not to select Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro as her running mate because of his support for private school vouchers.

Shapiro has said he supports vouchers, with the caveat that it must be paired with increases in public education funding so that money is not being diverted away from public schools.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Related

Inside Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s Support For Private School Vouchers. “Shapiro is being eyed as a potential Democratic vice presidential nominee, but with that attention has come intense scrutiny of his support for a traditionally conservative idea: taxpayer-funded private school vouchers.” (Spotlight PA)

Emerson: Trump 48, Harris 46; Casey 48, McCormick 44. “Polls are just a snapshot in time. But it seems that the Democratic Party has stemmed the tide of Republican momentum with the ascension of Vice President Kamala Harris to the top of the presidential ticket.” (PoliticsPA)

Kamala Harris Has She Said Wants to Ban Fracking. PA Republicans Are Ready to Attack. “One of the first political footballs Harris will have to handle is key to Western Pennsylvania. Republicans quickly began painting Harris as a radical who is hostile to fracking for natural gas, a key industry in Western Pennsylvania.” (WESA Politics)

Trump Rally Shooting Puts PA Gun Laws In Sights. “Thomas Crooks was 20 when he bought, from his father, the gun reportedly used to shoot at Donald Trump. It was a legal sale. Should it be?” (Public Source)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Barr Personally Involved in Drafting Misleading Statement on PA Mail Ballot Investigation, DOJ Watchdog Finds

“Former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr personally urged a top federal prosecutor in Pennsylvania to issue a misleading public statement amid the 2020 presidential election that was later pounced upon by former President Donald Trump to spread false claims of vote-rigging in the state, an investigation by the Justice Department’s watchdog agency concluded Thursday.

The statement — an unusual news release revealing details of an ongoing FBI investigation into several ballots for Trump that had been found discarded in a Luzerne County dumpster — was issued that September by the office of David Freed, then-the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Related

‘He Told Me to Get Past It’: Biden’s Close Friend and Philly’s Dem Party Leader Turns His Operation to Harris. “Bob Brady, Biden’s longtime friend, runs one of the most important local Democratic parties in politics. His members are glad he’s come around to Harris. Now, he has to figure out how to usher in a historic turnout.” (NOTUS)

PA-07: Mackenzie, Wild Begin Debate Over Debates. “In the 7th Congressional District in the Lehigh Valley, Democratic incumbent Rep. Susan Wild and Republican challenger Ryan Mackenzie can agree on one thing – they are willing to debate. Now comes the next step.” (PoliticsPA)

State Supreme Court Declines to Hear Cabell Appeal About Write-In Votes in the 117th District Republican Primary. “Cabell had petitioned the state’s highest court to overturn lower court rulings and grant his request to count write-in votes cast in the primary, even those cast for a candidate whose name appears on the ballot.” (Citizens Voice)

Lancaster Mayor Danene Sorace Will Not Seek a Third Term in Office. “Sorace, a Democrat, announced her decision through a video on social media Thursday, saying it’s time for a new leader to step up to the plate. The mayor’s four-year term ends in January 2026.” (LNP)

Editorial

4. What’s On Your Mind

• The Most Important 42 Miles in American Politics. (Salena Zito)
• Is America Hopelessly Sexist? Harris vs. Trump Will Answer That Question. (Will Bunch)
• ‘Absurd Argument’: Three Columnists React as Comments About Kamala Harris’ Childless Status Go Viral. (Jenice Armstrong, Jennifer Stefano, and Helen Ubiñas)
• JD Vance Compromises His Principles. (David Mills)
• Kamala Harris’s Manifest Weaknesses. (Bret Stephens)
• What the Kamala Harris Doubters Don’t Understand. (Xochitl Gonzalez)
• A Major Leadership Change is Underway in the United States. (H. James Hulton)
• Presidential Race 2024: Still More Twists and Turns on the Horizon? (Colin Hanna)
• Shapiro Failed On School Choice — Again. There’s Hope Despite Him. (Charles Mitchell)
• Freedom in Pennsylvania Means Cannabis Legalization. (Rob Greene)

1 Thing

5. Oh, Ohio! Chicken Wings Advertised As ‘Boneless’ Can Have Bones

“Consumers cannot expect boneless chicken wings to actually be free of bones, a divided Ohio Supreme Court ruled Thursday, rejecting claims by a restaurant patron who suffered serious medical complications from getting a bone stuck in his throat.

Michael Berkheimer sued the restaurant, Wings on Brookwood, saying the restaurant failed to warn him that so-called “boneless wings” — which are, of course, nuggets of boneless, skinless breast meat — could contain bones.

In a 4-3 ruling, the Supreme Court said Thursday that “boneless wings” refers to a cooking style, and that Berkheimer should’ve been on guard against bones since it’s common knowledge that chickens have bones.” (AP)

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