☀️ Good Monday Morning. Welcome back from a long weekend. We attended a pool party, saw 7 Pirates’ home runs, the Flight 93 Memorial, and enjoyed time with friends and family.

PA Weather
🌤️ McCandless | Increasing Clouds, 92
☀️ Mill Hall | Mostly Sunny, 94
☀️ Manheim | Mostly Sunny, 95

PA Sports
⚾ Phillies (58-32) | Atlanta 1-5 | Tue-Thu vs. LA Dodgers
⚾ Pirates (42-47) | NY Mets 2-3 | Mon vs. NY Mets
⚽ Union (4-9-8) | NY Red Bulls 0-0 | Sat vs. Toronto

🗓️ What’s Happening Today. The State House convenes at noon, while the Senate gavels in at 4 PM.

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Top Story

1. ‘Four More Years’ Chants From Supporters Greet Biden Visit to Harrisburg

“President Joe Biden addressed a packed house of Democratic supporters, including state representatives, during a stop Sunday afternoon at the AFSCME Council 13 building in Harrisburg.

Biden was met with frequent chants of “four more years” from an enthusiastic crowd who got the chance to shake hands and speak with the president after he made remarks, which lasted a little more than 5 minutes.” (PennLive)

Related

While Biden Campaigns In Pennsylvania, Some Democratic Leaders In The House Say He Should Step Aside. “President Joe Biden urged his supporters to stay unified during a series of stops in critical Pennsylvania on Sunday, even as some leading congressional Democrats privately suggested it was time for him to abandon his reelection bid because of intensifying questions about whether he’s fit for another term.” (AP)

U.S. Rep. Susan Wild Issues Concerns About Biden’s Electability For a 2nd Term. “While Wild didn’t expressly call on President Joe Biden to get out of the race as some lawmakers did, she did express doubts about his ability to help down-ballot candidates, according to the reports. Wild is the ranking Democrat on the House Ethics Committee.” (LehighValleyNews.com)

In Desperate Need Of A Boost, President Biden Went To A Philly Church To ‘Feel The Love’. “The pastor called it divine intervention. President Joe Biden, in the midst of mounting pressure from Democrats to drop out of the presidential race, went to church in West Oak Lane on Sunday, after a previously scheduled speaking event at a teacher’s union gathering was canceled.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Biden, Shapiro Talk It Over At City Coffee Shop After Stressful Campaign Day. “As the number of Democratic elected officials calling for President Joe Biden to end his run for a second term continues to slowly grow, one key swing-state governor sometimes named as part of a potential replacement ticket – Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro – stayed in the beleaguered incumbent’s corner Sunday.” (PennLive)

Trump to Campaign in Butler County. “Donald Trump will hold a Saturday rally at the Butler Farm Show grounds just days before the Republican National Convention as he tries to rally support in western Pennsylvania.” (New Castle News)

State

2. PA Capitol Evacuated Over Emailed Bomb Threat

“The State Capitol Complex was evacuated Saturday after more than 250 people, including all Republican and Democratic members of the Pennsylvania House and Senate, received an email threatening to detonate “highly lethal” devices there until President Joe Biden publicly denounces Israel.

The email, sent around 5:45 p.m. with the subject line “My manifesto,” said lead azide devices were hidden in and around the Pennsylvania State Capitol and Pennsylvania Judicial Center “In the name of Palestine.”” (PennLive)

Related

PA Budget Talks Continue Into The Weekend. “The June 30 deadline for Pennsylvania’s 2025 budget has come and gone without a funding deal, again. But despite staying mostly mum on details, all sides — the governor’s office, Senate Republicans and House Democrats — have expressed optimism that a deal is coming. Soon.” (Penn Capital-Star)

David McCormick Claims He Created ‘Hundreds Of Jobs’ In Pennsylvania. Records Say Otherwise. “The Republican nominee for Pa.’s U.S. Senate seat has touted his business leadership. Corporate filings show his job creation claims are inflated.” (WHYY)

Podcast: Cat McParland. “We welcome back Cat McParland, top Democratic fundraiser. With her unique perspective, she provides an overview of the money fueling the hottest Congressional races in the Commonwealth.” (Kitchen Table Politics)

Time Is Running Out To Get Sexual Abuse Amendment On PA’s November Ballot. “ A long-awaited constitutional amendment that would give survivors of childhood sexual abuse a chance to sue their abusers will not be on the November ballot unless lawmakers advance it in the next month.” (Spotlight PA)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Why Haven’t Provisional Ballots Been Counted in Cabell/Walsh Race?

“As it stands based on court appeals, a dozen unopened provisional ballots could decide whether incumbent Michael Cabell or challenger Jamie Walsh wins the Republican nomination for state representative in the 117th District.

Because more than two months has passed since these 12 ballots were last publicly addressed, some may be unaware why they were not counted with other April 23 primary election ballots and where the voters reside.” (Times Leader)

Related

Debate Didn’t Make Things Easier For Pittsburgh’s Black and Latino Voters. “In the aftermath of the debate, those voters locally are grappling with how they’re going to vote in November’s election — or whether to participate at all, which increasingly worries local community leaders.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Dougherty’s Day of Judgment. “John Dougherty, 64, faces sentencing Thursday on bribery and embezzlement charges — nearly eight years after the investigation by federal authorities into his leadership at Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers burst into public view with a series of 2016 FBI raids.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

‘No Better Story:’ Former State Senator Starts His Role as New LCCC President. “John Yudichak, who spent 24 years in Harrisburg — 12 years as a state representative and 12 as a state senator — became Luzerne County Community College’s eighth president on Monday.” (WVIA)

Editorial

4. What’s On Your Mind

• Conservatives Say Liberals Took Religion Out Of Schools. Truth Is, It Was Never There To Begin With. (Jonathan Zimmerman)
• Trump’s New Big Lie That He Doesn’t Know About Project 2025 Might Take Him Down. (Will Bunch)
• I Voted For Trump In 2016. His Disrespect For Veterans Will Make Me Vote For A Democrat. (Matthew Paul McCaffery)
• Innamorato’s Honesty On County Finances Is Refreshing. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• Skill Games Are A Menace To Community Well Being. (Rep. Amen Brown)
• We Need A Better Model For University Funding. (Sen. Ryan Aument)
• The Number One Black Job in America. (Ashley McBride)
• Who’s Running Our Government? (Guy Ciarrocchi)
• Choose Democracy. (Roxanne Patel Shepelavy)
• Hispanic Population Growth Can Build Pennsylvania Political Power. (Tribune-Review)
• Hiring of Partisan Election Lawyers Raises Question: Whose Interests Are Lancaster County Commissioners Advancing? (LNP)

1 Thing

5. The Company That Has a Monopoly on Ice Cream Truck Music

“In 1973, an electrical engineer named Bob Nichols was watching the film The Sting when a song on the soundtrack — Scott Joplin’s 1902 ragtime hit, “The Entertainer” — caught his ear.

The right clip of that song, Bob realized, would make for an irresistible ice cream truck jingle.

And he was uniquely poised to make it happen: as the founder of Nichols Electronics, a tiny Minnesota-based company, Bob supplied the music boxes — preloaded with dozens of jingles — for the vast majority of the country’s ice cream trucks.” (The Hustle)

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