Sen. Casey announces he will not run for President next year, while a GOP state Senator states his plans to resign. Here is the Playbook.

January 18th Ups & Downs: The Governor was sworn-in for a second term this week, the FBI raids the Scranton Mayor’s home and Scranton City Hall, and a Pennsylvania Congressman announces his resignation. All of that and more are in this week’s Ups and Downs.

Harrisburg & DC
AP: Republican state senator to leave seat in middle of term
AP: Casey ends consideration of a presidential run in 2020
AP: Pennsylvania jobless rate stable as payrolls hit record high
AP: Prosecutor, 73, found guilty of obstruction in ex’s cases
AP: New attorneys general to continue investigating clergy abuse
Inquirer: Thousands of absentee ballots were rejected as record turnout encountered Pa.’s tight deadlines
Inquirer: As Biden mulls 2020 run, his Scranton hometown asks: ‘Can his family go through all this?’
Billy Penn: Food stamp use is down in PA, but not by much
Philadelphia Business Journal: Pennsylvania in top 10 most affected states by government shutdown   
Harrisburg Patriot News: Karen Coates, top House staffer, hailed by governors and lawmakers after her death   
PLSReporter: Alloway retiring in February   
PLSReporter: Tweets of the Week – January 14, 2018   
PLSReporter: 3 under 3!
Harrisburg Patriot News: Memorial service announced for House staffer Karen Coates   
York Dispatch: Toomey, Casey split over Trump’s DACA deal to end shutdown
Morning Call: What have Pennsylvania’s federal lawmakers been doing during the shutdown?

Philadelphia
Philly Clout:  Replacing a sullied West Philly state representative sparks Dem infighting
Inquirer: Blondell Reynolds Brown leaving Philadelphia City Council after two decades  
Inquirer: Thousands flood the Parkway for Women’s March on Philadelphia in third annual rebuke of Trump
Inquirer: Why so few of Philly’s homeless Latinos use shelters, get city services
Philadelphia Magazine: Philly Restaurants, Co-ops, and Food Pantries Step Up to Support
PLSReporter: Philadelphia Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown not running in 2019
WHYY Newsworks: As temperatures drop, Philly water department steps up
Billy Penn: New Philly mandate: Fight opioid crisis with medication-assisted treatment
KYW Newsradio: MLK Day ceremony at Liberty Bell won’t happen this year due to shutdown   
KYW Newsradio: Little Sisters of the Poor join legal challenge to Philly federal judge’s birth control ruling  
KYW Newsradio: Philly’s school board spends millions to hire nonprofit to coach teachers on literacy  
KYW Newsradio: Philadelphia School District renews marketing deal to attract new teachers  
KYW Newsradio: Student: Mandatory metal detector use treats kids ‘like criminals’  
KYW Newsradio: Needle disposal units in public places? Officials say it protects employees
Philadelphia Business Journal: Rizzo home still on the market. Take a peek inside.
Philly Voice: Dwight Evans, local organizations team up to give food to government employees  

SEPA
Daily Local News: Rep. Shusterman named deputy whip for Pa. House Democrats
Daily Local News: Oxford school directors vote to limit tax increase
Daily Local News: Government shutdown pinching workers in region
Daily Local News: Chester County DA’s office donates to Safe Harbor
Bucks Local News: Greater Newtown Republican Club to host ‘Call for Candidates’ night
Inquirer: ‘This is Lower South. I know everything there is to know’: Corrupt Bucks County judge pleads guilty
KYW Newsradio: Sunoco pipeline drainage failure causes sinkhole in Chester County, officials say
Delco Daily Times: Delco high school students head to D.C. for 46th annual March For Life
Delco Daily Times: Dem Keffer makes her bid for Upper Darby mayor
Delco Daily Times: Action by council ends decades of standoff on Third Street Dam issue
Bucks County Courier Times: Four candidates emerge for seats on county bench  
Bucks County Courier Times: Yardley area candidates announce runs for district judge  
Bucks County Courier Times: Former Lower Southampton district judge admits to extortion, money laundering

Pittsburgh
WESA: Shutdown Protest At Airport: ‘You May Need Border Security, But We Need A Paycheck.’
WESA: How A Steel Border Wall – And The Shutdown It Caused – Impacts The Steel Industry
WESA: County Council At-Large Race, Long Uncontested, May Give Local Democrats A Choice
WESA: Antwon Rose’s Mother, Activists And Politicians All Expected To Speak At Weekend’s Women’s March
AP: TSA agents rally at Pittsburgh airport, urge end to shutdown
KDKA: Mercer Co. DA Found Guilty Of Obstruction In Ex-Girlfriend’s Cases
Pittsburgh Business Times: City approves first registered community organizations
Post-Gazette: Women’s March faces concerns over anti-Semitism   
Post-Gazette: Pitt campus union organizers petition state labor board for an election
Post-Gazette: Hundreds take to streets of Downtown Pittsburgh in Women’s March Washington-Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette: Obituary: Anthony L. Colaizzo / ‘Mr. Canonsburg’ was former mayor, state legislator
Post-Gazette: New chief operations officer is last piece of Port Authority administrative team
Post-Gazette: Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office offering two-week amnesty for bench warrants
Tribune Review: Former Valley News Dispatch reporter nvestigates stories of heroism for Carnegie commission
Tribune Review: Officials see better financial days for the beleaguered Penn Hills School District

SWPA
Beaver County Times: Tony Amadio, Dennis Nichols team up to seek Democratic county commissioner nomination
Beaver County Times: Investigations continue as minimum wage checks received by Ellwood City Medical Center workers
Beaver County Times: TSA agent: Government shutdown taking a human toll
Observer-Reporter: Commissioners give green light to advertise for new voting machines  
Observer-Reporter: CHJA to vote on planned rate hikes
Altoona Mirror: Local marchers support women   
Altoona Mirror: Local congressmen renew push to ease forest drilling  
Altoona Mirror: Bedford commissioner to retire  
Johnstown Tribune-Democrat: WATCH VIDEO | Cambria judge who led grand jury knew impact of diocese abuse reports ‘would be huge’   
Johnstown Tribune-Democrat: State Rep. Jim Rigby assigned to serve on four House committees

NEPA
Citizens Voice: Crowd at local Women’s March eager for change
Citizens Voice: Firing a government employee can be expensive for taxpayers
Times-Tribune: Federal and state probes in Scranton evoke deja vu
Inquirer: As Biden mulls 2020 run, his Scranton hometown asks: ‘Can his family go through all this?’
The Times Leader: County notebook: Field of council contenders has leveled off since 2011
The Times Leader: Crestwood solicitor: Transportation contract still an open matter
The Times Leader: PA House Democrats want to make sure ‘Your Vote Counts’
The Times Leader: Pa. GOP boss: Republican Party has to get back to its roots
The Times Leader: Fate of WB Area Purchasing Director in limbo; solicitor can’t offer details
The Times Leader: UPDATE: Casey nixes 2020 run; discusses shutdown in Dunmore visit
The Times Leader: Luzerne County $5 vehicle registration fee takes effect

South Central   
Harrisburg Patriot News: State Sen. Rich Alloway plans to resign
Harrisburg Patriot News: Hundreds turn to Central Pa. food bank due to federal government shutdown
Harrisburg Patriot News: Karen Coates, top House staffer, hailed by governors and lawmakers after her death
Harrisburg Patriot News: Memorial service announced for House staffer Karen Coates
Carlisle Sentinel: Derek Clepper announces run for Cumberland County judge
Carlisle Sentinel: A push for social justice as Women’s Rally draws crowd to Square in Carlisle
Carlisle Sentinel: Shutdown: Perry, Toomey, Casey, Joyce grapple with shutdown debate
Carlisle Sentinel: A look at the partial government shutdown’s impact on Cumberland County
York Daily Record: York fire Chief David Michaels, who led department through some tough times, is retiring  
York Dispatch: Toomey, Casey split over Trump’s DACA deal to end shutdown   
York Dispatch: York County commissioners approve third 911 Center audit in two years

Lehigh Valley
Morning Call: Allentown Mayor Ray O’Connell talks taxes in his first State of the City address
Morning Call: Women’s March in Bethlehem: About 200 rally for equality, gun control, immigration reform, LGBT rights
Morning Call: Northampton County Council to review plans for $21 million trail through 14 municipalities
Morning Call: Lehigh Valley attendees talk about why they were at the March for Life rally
Reading Eagle: The Rundown: How to contact Berks County’s Congressional lawmakers
Reading Eagle: Women march for unity and community in Reading
Reading Eagle: Schwank to propose license fees, fines for drug abuse treatment providers
Express Times: Where to have coffee with a cop, elected official

North by Northwest
Erie Times-News: Schember: First year as Erie mayor was ‘about learning’
Erie Times-News: Erie City Councilman Kwitowski considers run for treasurer
Erie Times-News: Roll Call: How local legislators voted on key issues last week  
Erie Times-News: Erie bayfront hotel falls short in LERTA tax appeal
Williamsport Sun-Gazette: City’s MLK Dream Week begins with Peace Walk
Williamsport Sun-Gazette: Centre County man aims to fill Marino vacancy
Williamsport Sun-Gazette: Retired probation officer seeks nod for commissioner
Johnstown Tribune-Democrat: Parkland survivor Hogg greeted by gun rights rally at Penn State

Opinion
Post-Gazette Editorial Board: John Fetterman’s bigger stage
Post-Gazette Editorial Board: Tilting at windmills: City’s bills won’t yield enforceable gun control
Post-Gazette Editorial Board: DNA sweeps are wrong: Due process can be cumbersome, but it is essential
Post-Gazette Editorial Board: Back to the moon?: U.S. should feel inspired by Chinese achievement
Post-Gazette Editorial Board: The other Pittsburgh
Inquirer Editorial Board: Government shutdown isn’t just inconvenient — it’s traumatic
Keith C. Burris: The shutdown: What would the Founders say?
Patrick Harker: Philly’s future lies in our ability to leverage local talents to build a better city
Jonathan Nagler, Joshua A. Tucker and Andy Guess: Fake news FAQ: What it is, how to spot it, and what can be done
Angelia N. Levy: After 16 years as a federal employee, the government shutdown persuaded me to change careers
La’Tasha Mayes: Decades after `Roe,’ black women are still denied reproductive justice
Tom Stevens: It’s time to give back rights to very young humans
Trudy Rubin: A Syrian Kurdish leader explains why sudden U.S. troop withdrawal could bring slaughter and ISIS return
Signe Espinoza and Jennifer Brank: Reflections on `Roe v. Wade’: Two Philly women on why abortion was the right choice for them
Will Bunch: The huge problem with Mueller’s Trump-Russia probe that no one talks about
Erin Arvedlund and Bob Fernandez: AG Josh Shapiro’s legal fight vs Navient, for-profit colleges heats up in Pa.
David M. Shribman: Finding common cause with Nixon in the new age
Tony Norman: The Mother’s Crusade
John A. Tures: Martin Luther King Jr.’s strategy isn’t just nice, it’s also effective
Charlie Gerow: While other mutual fund founders made billions, John Bogle made a difference