🗞️ Not Another Manic Monday. We have great news to start your week.

PA Weather
☁️ Erie | Cloudy, 37
🌥️ State College | Decreasing Clouds, 38
🌤️ Wilkes-Barre | Partly Sunny, 40

PA Sports
🏈 Steelers (10-7) | Baltimore 17-10 | Sun vs. Buffalo
🏈 Eagles (11-6) | NY Giants 10-27 | Mon vs. Tampa Bay
🏀 Sixers (23-12) | Utah 109-120 | Wed vs. Atlanta
🏒 Flyers (20-13-6) | Calgary 3-2 | Mon vs. Pittsburgh
🏒 Penguins (19-15-4) | Buffalo 1-3 | Mon vs. Philadelphia

What We’re Hearing
Laurie MacDonald, president and CEO of Center for Victims, will announce her candidacy for the Democratic nomination in PA-12 on Tuesday afternoon.

Start Your Week Smart
The PoliticsPA Playbook gives you all today’s PA political headlines in an easy-to-read format. All by 8 AM. And it’s free. Subscribe now.

Top Story

1. PoliticsPA, Broad + Liberty Announce New Strategic Partnership For 2024

Pennsylvania will be at the center of the political world in 2024, and today two PA-based digital news outlets announced a partnership that will keep readers close to every statewide twist and turn.

Beginning today, Broad + Liberty and PoliticsPA will operate together in a strategic partnership. The relationship will expand Broad + Liberty’s growing impact in Harrisburg and statewide, and strengthen PoliticsPA’s capacity for nonpartisan campaign coverage. All staff from both outlets will continue in their current roles, including PoliticsPA Managing Editor Steve Ulrich and Broad + Liberty Chief Investigative Reporter Todd Shepherd. Working together with the current owners of PoliticsPA, Broad + Liberty’s current publisher and Chief Executive Officer, Terry Tracy, will oversee day-to-day operations.

PoliticsPA is the longest-running website devoted to Pennsylvania political news. It launched in 2001 as a clearinghouse for Harrisburg gossip and made the transition to hard news in 2007 when it came under its current ownership. Throughout its existence, PoliticsPA kept its focus on topics that matter to political insiders.

Founded in 2019, Broad + Liberty is known for its hard-hitting investigative journalism and coverage of the political landscape in southeastern PA. In 2023, it began to expand its coverage into Harrisburg and other key markets around the commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Related

President Biden Laments Trump’s ‘Assault On Democracy,’ In Fiery Speech After Valley Forge Visit. “President Joe Biden framed his reelection bid as a “sacred cause,” to save democracy, striking one of the most urgent notes of his 2024 campaign as he compared his position to General George Washington ushering troops through the winter at Valley Forge in their battle for freedom nearly 250 years ago.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Casey On Jan. 6: Protecting Democracy Will Be ‘Significant Issue’ In Reelection Campaign. “On the third anniversary of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, U.S. Sen Bob Casey told the Capital-Star that safeguarding democracy will be a key issue in 2024. ” (Penn Capital-Star)

Former Cop Attacked On Jan 6th Calls On Scott Perry To Oppose ‘Big Lie Bill’. “Former Washington DC police officer Michael Fanone is featured in a searing six-figure television ad campaign demanding Congressman Scott Perry oppose a strict federal voter suppression bill that’s been dubbed the “Big Lie Bill.” (The Keystone)

Stefanik Preemptively Declines To Commit To Accepting 2024 Election Results. “Rep. Elise Stefanik on Sunday declined to commit to certifying the results of the 2024 election and accused Democrats of trying “to steal the election,” and illegally gerrymander congressional districts in their favor. “Well, I voted not to certify the state of Pennsylvania because, as we saw in Pennsylvania and other states across the country, that there was unconstitutional acts circumventing the state legislature and unilaterally changing election law.” (POLITICO)

State

2. McCormick Raises $5.4 Million in 4th Quarter

“Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Dave McCormick has announced that his campaign raised $5.4 million in the final quarter of 2023.

The former CEO of the Bridgewater Associates investment firm also contributed $1 million of his own money to boost his bid to oust three-term incumbent Sen. Bob Casey.

Quarterly fundraising reports for the fourth quarter are due to the Federal Election Commission in mid-January, but some candidates — such as McCormick, who began his campaign in September — announce their fundraising figures ahead of time, especially when they’re pleased with their numbers. (Axios)”

Related

Cartwright Re-Introduces Bill To Make Political Activity More Transparent. “U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright this week reintroduced the Openness in Political Expenditures Now (OPEN) Act — legislation that would protect the integrity of U.S. elections by requiring corporations to be more transparent with their shareholders about political activities and prohibit organizations from abusing their tax-exempt status.” (Times Leader)

Democrats Attack Incumbent GOP State Treasurer For Questioning 2020 Election Integrity. “A Democratic running for state treasurer challenged Republican incumbent Stacy Garrity’s character and patriotism over her participation in pro-Trump rally in Harrisburg on the eve of the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.” (PennLive)

PA Elected Officials Celebrate Agriculture At 108th PA Farm Show Opening Ceremony. “As snow flurries began to fall from the sky, lawmakers and leaders in the agriculture community stood side-by-side on Saturday morning to celebrate the importance of agriculture in the Keystone State at the opening ceremony for the 108th Pennsylvania Farm Show.” (Penn Capital-Star)

School Funding, Permitting At Top Of PA Legislature’s 2024 Agenda. “In the new year, Pennsylvania lawmakers plan to put a lot of their energy into changing permitting processes, getting a long-sought constitutional amendment over the finish line, and figuring out how to overhaul the commonwealth’s education funding system.” (Spotlight PA)

Pennsylvania Case At Center Of Challenge To Police Use Of Google Search Data. “Civil liberties advocates are mounting a new challenge to the use by police of Google search data for help in solving criminal cases, as the practice draws greater scrutiny nationwide.” (Bloomberg)

Around The Commonwealth

3. Why and Where the Working Class Turned Right

“A new book documents the lost (and pro-Democratic) world of Pennsylvania steelworkers and how it became Republican.

At a pace that can only be described as glacial, the Democratic Party seems finally to have realized that the decline in union membership has cost it the allegiance of much of the nation’s working class (the white working class in particular), and with it, any number of elections.” (The American Prospect)

Related

What Ballots And Voter Counts Suggest About Bucks County’s Blue Wave. “Democrats swept the 2023 elections for school, municipal and county offices across Bucks County in November, but some of those key blue wave victories appear to have had some help from Republican voters.” (Bucks County Courier Times)

‘You Can’t Do This Alone:’ Cherelle Parker Reflects On Her First Week As Philly’s Mayor. “From building new cubicles in staff offices to making appointments to the many city agencies whose leaders are to-be-determined, the Parker administration is still very much under construction.” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Two Years In, Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey’s Administration Is Showing Signs Of Progress, Observers Say. “As the mayor enters his third year, there are signs that progress is being made. A police recruit class is in training; federal, state and local money is being directed to bridge repairs; crime has started to come down.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

New Dauphin County Commissioner Moves From Activist To Insider. “Sitting in his new downtown Harrisburg office, sporting a dark blue “Dauphin County Commissioner” jacket and alternating bites of a missed lunch with first-week duties like signing a resolution honoring a retiring employee, Justin Douglas certainly looks the part of an elected official.” (PennLive)

Editorial

4. What’s On Your Mind

• Menendez, Perry, And Mastriano Follow A Trumpian Example In The Face Of Political Scandals. (Philadelphia Inquirer)
• Innamorato Era Will Shape County Government For Years To Come. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• Gov. Shapiro Should Seize The Chance To Help SEPTA In Its Time Of Need. (Philadelphia Daily News)
• Joe Biden and Bob Casey Fail the Israel Test. (Dave McCormick)
• MAGA Republicans Would Rather Pour Gasoline On The Immigration Fire Than Put It Out. (Mark S. Singel)
• Confronting The Stain Of An Insurrection On American Democracy. (Greta Bedekovics)
• It’s Time For America To Get Smarter About Civics And History. (Observer-Reporter)
• Jan. 9 Is Law Enforcement Appreciation Day: Let’s Thank Them For Their Service. (James E. Ott)
• Unexplained Firing Of ‘Courthouse Employee Of The Year’ Isn’t Going To Improve Morale In Lancaster County Government. (LNP)

1 Thing

5. Teddy Bear Toss Sets Record

“The Hershey Bears have once again established a new hockey record, collecting 74,599 stuffed toys during Sunday’s annual Teddy Bear Toss.

This surpasses the club’s previous hockey world record of 67,309 collected in 2023.

The toys will be donated to more than 35 local charities as part of the club’s Hershey Bears Cares program, which showcases the philanthropic activities and volunteer efforts of Bears players and staff members throughout the community. In addition, the Sweigart Family Foundation has donated $55,000 to Children’s Miracle Network Hershey in recognition of the generosity shown by Bears fans. (TheAHL.com)

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