The Last Monday of April. Thanks for reading the PoliticsPA Playbook

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Your Morning Pick-Me-Up. Manic Monday. The Bangles to start your week.

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What We’re Hearing. An internal poll from the Ed Gainey campaign is showing that the incumbent mayor of Pittsburgh has a 7-point lead over Democratic challenger Corey O’Connor among likely voters.

Top Story

1. Perry, Fellow Vulnerable Republicans Play Hard to Get During Congressional Break

“Many days over the past two weeks, no one answered the phone at any of U.S. Rep. Scott Perry’s four offices.

Perry’s team did not share details about the Republican congressman’s public appearances until they were over. Even supporters who live in Perry’s central Pennsylvania district could not remember the last time he hosted an in-person town hall.

No one opened the locked door at his district office in Mechanicsburg last week when an Associated Press reporter rang the bell. A male voice said through the intercom, “I don’t have any public appearance information that I can provide.”” (AP)

Elsewhere

Perry Threatens to Impeach and Defund Federal Judges Over Anti-Trump Rulings. “Congressman Scott Perry last week called for US House Republicans to start impeaching federal judges and defunding their courts over rulings that block President Donald Trump’s agenda.” (The Keystone)

Trump’s First 100 Days Divide Pennsylvania Supporters and Critics. “Western Pa. is not immune to the sweeping impact of rapid policy shifts.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Why the Attack on Universities May Be ‘More Dangerous’ Than McCarthyism. “When Scott Bok resigned as the chairman of the University of Pennsylvania’s board of trustees in December 2023, he didn’t know that he was about to become one of the first casualties in a broader political war over higher education in America.” (Politico)

Pennsylvania Exporters Brace For the Cost of Retaliatory Tariffs During Trump’s Trade War. “Pennsylvania companies export billions of products around the world each year. According to U.S. Census data, the largest export market is Canada, which represented 27% of all state exports in 2024 totaling $14.2 billion. That’s followed by Mexico, China, the Netherlands and Japan.” (WHYY)

State

2. For PA’s Eds & Meds, A Funding Crisis Upends Work, Healthcare and Economy

“It sounds like a modern take on a dystopian doctoral thesis: studying the physical and psychological effects of rapid, repeated and unexplained downgrading of key infrastructure on the lives of those responsible for maintaining it and those whose lives depend on it.

But for the Pennsylvanians in the health and research space experiencing the real-time effects of Trump 2.0, they’re feeling less like lab rats and more like deer in headlights.” (City & State)

Elsewhere

PA Lawmakers Differ on Support For Trump’s Call to Eliminate Funding of NPR and PBS. “The White House plans to eliminate nearly all federal funding for public media, including NPR and PBS, and is seeking to rescind $1.1 billion allocated to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, according to reporting by NPR. President Donald Trump tried unsuccessfully in his first term to kill federal funding for public media but now may be within days of succeeding in his second term.” (WHYY)

• Proposed Elimination of Public Media Funding. (WVIA)
• What It Means For Local Journalism If Congress Kills Public Media Funding. (WITF)
• Letter From Our CEO & President (WQLN)

911 Dispatcher Mishandled Call From Arson Suspect After Firebombing at Governor’s Residence. “Chief Clerk Eric Hagarty said the county learned the 911 dispatcher “did not appropriately escalate the call in accordance with County policy,” though county officials declined to provide the policy in question.” (PennLive)

PA Jewish Community Wrestles With Mixture of Feelings After Arson Attack on Governor’s Residence. ““I don’t know a single Jewish family that wasn’t talking about it on the second night Seder.”” (Penn Capital-Star)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Dueling Downtowns: How Lancaster Thrives as Harrisburg Struggles to Reinvent Itself

“Harrisburg and Lancaster are separated by less than 50 miles. But the two central Pennsylvania cities are worlds apart when it comes to their approaches to downtown redevelopment over the past quarter century.

The results have been dramatically different, too.” (PennLive)

Elsewhere

Gainey Camp Says Its Polling Demonstrates He’s Driving Pittsburgh’s Mayoral Race. “Politicos are fond of saying that the only poll that matters is the one that closes at 8 p.m. on Election Day. But Mayor Ed Gainey’s campaign is putting out results of its own polling today, making the case that — despite the findings of surveys produced by the camp of rival Corey O’Connor — it’s Gainey who is in the driver’s seat.” (WESA)

An Unresolved Residency Challenge in a Philadelphia Judicial Race Poses a Challenge For Mail Ballots. “An unresolved residency challenge filed against a Philadelphia judicial candidate in the May primary has led to a delay in mail ballots going out to voters in the city.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

In Western Pa. School Board Races, A Shift For Voters Who Have Been ‘Jolted Awake’. “The goal of many candidates: Restoring boards to moderate standpoints. The apparent shift comes after normally mundane school boards were thrown into the center of culture wars in recent years.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Lackawanna County Sent Wrong Mail-In Ballots to Scranton Republican Voters. “Lackawanna County mistakenly mailed 545 ballots from the 2024 primary election to Republican Scranton voters ahead of the May 20 primary election, county officials said Saturday. County elections director Beth Hopkins blamed the mistake on a printing company error.” (WVIA)

Editorial

4. Speak Your Mind

• DOGE, Trump Tariffs Will Right-Size Government, Put America First. (Rep. Mike Kelly)
• Failure to Grasp Antisemitism Is Crippling Pennsylvania’s Response to the World’s Oldest Hate. (Kenneth L. Marcus) 
• No More Excuses — Harrisburg Republicans Must Find a Way to Fully Fund SEPTA. (Daniel Pearson)
• Loss of US Education Department Would Spell More Budgetary Woes For Lancaster County School Districts. (LNP)
• Pennsylvania Must End Educational Inequity and Ensure All Children Attend Quality Schools. (David Lapp)
• Canada vs. Trump: How Monday’s Election Will Play Out. (Jonathan Martin)
• Trump’s First 100 Days: As Advertised. (Colin Hanna)
• Data Centers’ Power Usage Must Be Monitored and Managed. (Greensburg Tribune-Review)

1 Thing

5. Fly, Eagles, Fly to the White House

“There’s no such thing as too much celebration over the Eagles’ Super Bowl victory.

Nearly three months after the Eagles dominated the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, President Donald Trump will honor them Monday in a ceremony at the White House.

The ceremony is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. on the South Lawn of the White House, according to the president’s public calendar.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

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