😎  It’s Friday. LFG

PA Weather
New Castle | Partly Sunny, 72
Newport | Partly Sunny, chance of showers, 72
New Hope | Partly Sunny, 74

PA Sports
Phillies (30-32) | Detroit 3-2 | F-Sun vs. LA Dodgers
Pirates (32-29) | F-Sun vs. NY Mets
Union (9-4-3) | Sat vs. San Jose

What We’re Hearing
“The Deep State, Democrats, and Mainstream Media have relentlessly attacked President Trump for the past seven years in a disgraceful effort to stonewall his America First agenda and stop him from making America great. This time is no different.” – Rep. Guy Reschenthaler

Get The PoliticsPA Playbook In Your Inbox
Sign up for your free subscription to the PoliticsPA Playbook and we’ll email you every weekday morning. Yes, it’s free. And everyone likes free.

Top Story

1. Trump Says He Was Indicted

“Donald Trump said Thursday that he was indicted for mishandling classified documents at his Florida estate, a remarkable development that makes him the first former president in U.S. history to face criminal charges by the federal government that he once oversaw.

The indictment carries unmistakably grave legal consequences, including the possibility of prison if he’s convicted.

But it also has enormous political implications, potentially upending a Republican presidential primary that Mr. Trump had been dominating and testing anew the willingness of GOP voters and party leaders to stick with a now twice-indicted candidate who could face still more charges. And it sets the stage for a sensational trial centered on claims that a man once entrusted to safeguard the nation’s most closely guarded secrets willfully, and illegally, hoarded sensitive national security information.” (AP)

• Cheat Sheet: What To Know About The Classified Documents Case. (POLITICO)

Related

Supreme Court Unexpectedly Upholds Provision Prohibiting Racial Gerrymandering. “The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday stepped back from the brink of totally gutting the landmark 1965 Voting Rights Act.” (NPR)

• SCOTUS Backs Black Voters. (Al Día News)
• Here’s What The U.S. Supreme Court’s Redistricting Decision Means For PA. (Pennsylvania Capital-Star)

The Republican Party Tries To Embrace Mail Ballots For 2024 After Four Years Of Vilifying Them. “The Republican National Committee launched a persuasion campaign this week to convince the party’s voters to use mail ballots in 2024, after four years of GOP candidates — including a president — falsely claiming that route inevitably leads to election fraud.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

• Republicans Set To Push Mail Ballots, Voting Methods They Previously Blasted As Recipes For Fraud. (AP)

House GOP Leaders Work To Tamp Down Rule Fracas. “Pennsylvania Republican Scott Perry, chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, whose members drove the revolt, emerged from (Kevin) McCarthy’s office while deflecting questions about the nature of the conflict or the issues yet to be settled.” (Roll Call)

State

2. Senate Republicans Launch Pro-Gun Second Amendment Caucus

“Republicans in the state Senate have launched what’s being billed as a pro-gun caucus that its chairman says will work to counteract gun misinformation in the state government.

The Second Amendment Caucus will give its members “more opportunities to become actively involved in protecting and strengthening lawful firearms ownership,” Sen. Chris Dush said in a press release announcing the association.” (DV Journal)

Related

Gun Rights Rally At PA Capitol Set for Monday Featuring “That Gun Talk” Founder. “The annual Right to Keep and Bear Arms rally which draws gun owners from across Pennsylvania will take place at the state Capitol at 11 a.m. Monday.” (PennLive)

Virginia Wants To Break Up With RGGI But In PA, It’s Complicated. “Two developments this week – one in Virginia, another in Pennsylvania – are fueling the debate over a key climate program, Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.” (Washington Post)

I Spy, With My Little Eye, A Spotted Lanternfly. Let’s Get Rid Of Them, Lawmakers Cry. “U.S. Sens. Bob Casey and John Fetterman and U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly are among the lead sponsors of bipartisan legislation to make research into the spotted lanternfly a top priority of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Eric Olshan Confirmed As U.S. Attorney In Pittsburgh. “The U.S. Senate Thursday confirmed Eric Olshan as the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania. The Western District covers 25 counties and has courthouses in Pittsburgh, Johnstown and Erie.” (Pittsburgh Union Progress)

Paid Family Leave Tax Plan Passes First Hurdle. “Long a priority for Democratic lawmakers, a plan to create a paid family leave tax cleared its first legislative hurdle this week.” (The Center Square)

PA Reports Audit Affirms Accuracy Of 2023 Primary Count Outcome. “Acting Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt announced a statewide audit of the May 16, 2023, Democratic primary for Pennsylvania Supreme Court found no discrepancies between the original and audited unofficial results.” (PennWatch)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Rockey Garners Backing From Labor Unions For Allegheny County Executive

“Republican candidate for Allegheny County Executive Joe Rockey picked up an endorsement from a group that seldom backs GOP candidates on Thursday.

The Pennsylvania District Council of the Laborers International Union of North America threw its support behind the 58-year-old former PNC executive over Democratic candidate Sara Innamorato. The group represents 24,000 members statewide, while Laborers Union 1058 and Monroeville-based Local 373, which represent a combined 7,000 workers, also jointly endorsed Rockey.” (PoliticsPA)

Related

GOP’s Rockey Receives Union Backing In ACE Race. “Joe Rockey, the Republican candidate for Allegheny County Executive, has picked up the endorsement of one of the region’s more potent labor groups: the Pennsylvania District Council of the Laborers International Union of North America.” (WESA)

Meet The Pollster Behind Wins By Pittsburgh Progressives. “Considering their central role in modern politics, campaign pollsters get very little attention. Campaigns understandably want the spotlight trained on their candidate, and that suits the pollsters I’ve met just fine, due to varying combinations of professional reticence, personal shyness, and Gollum-like unnaturally large eyes that are especially sensitive to sunlight.” (WESA)

Philly’s Wage And Business Taxes Will Be Cut Amid A Big Cash Surplus For The City. “Philadelphia City Council members gave initial approval Thursday to a more than $6.2 billion budget deal in which lawmakers approved tax cuts for businesses and workers amid an unusual cash surplus.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Delco Rejected Mail-In Voters’ Flawed Mail Ballots. Then It Refused To Count Their In-Person Votes. “Delaware County disenfranchised a handful of eligible voters in the May primary by rejecting their provisional ballots, based on an allegedly incorrect interpretation of state law, the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania argued in a new lawsuit.” (VoteBeat) 

Editorial

4. What They’re Saying

• The Four Hurdles To Overcome For A Trump Conviction. (Norman Eisen, Andrew Weissman, Joyce Vance)
• An Indictment Unlike Any Other. (Ruth Marcus)
• Racial Gerrymandering By Supreme Court Order. (Wall Street Journal)
• Establish Better Funding Streams For 911 Services. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• How The Republican Party Must Change. (Adriana E. Ramírez)
• Supreme Court Is Poised To Dismantle An Integral Part Of LBJ’s Great Society – Affirmative Action. (Travis Knoll)
  PA’s Food Assistance Programs Need Legislative Support. (Sheila Christopher)
• The World Needs PA’s Energy And Philly Is Poised To Deliver It. (Mike Butler)
• Canned Cocktails Are Like Beer And Wine – They Should Be Sold In The Same Stores. (Sen. Mike Regan)

1 Thing

5. Free At Last

Following up on yesterday’s story …

“A whitetail deer, seen for weeks by Fox Chapel area residents sporting a large, white, plastic feeder around its neck, was freed Thursday morning, thanks to the persistent efforts of Pennsylvania Game Commission officials.

Commission officials spotted the deer early Thursday in the Orchard Hill/Driftwood area of O’Hara and were able to successfully tranquilize and free it from the feeder.” (Tribune-Review)

Thanks for starting your day with us.
What did you think of today’s newsletter?
Please invite your colleagues
to subscribe to the PoliticsPA Playbook