Republicans Advance Anti-Abortion Amendment. Where In The World Is Dr. Oz? PA Budget Increases. No Evidence of Election Fraud in Lycoming. Here is the Playbook.
PA Weather
Johnstown | Mostly Cloudy, 82
Tioga | Partly Sunny, 82
Nazareth | Mostly Cloudy, Chance of Showers, 86
PA Sports
Phillies (44-39, 8.0 GB) | d. Washington, 5-3; FRI-MON vs. St. Louis
Pirates (33-49, 12.5 GB) | split vs. Cincinnati, 4-2 and 1-5; FRI-SUN vs. Milwaukee
Union (7-2-9, 30 pts) | FRI vs. DC United, 7:30
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News
GOP Puts Up Constitutional Amendment Against Abortion in PA. The Pennsylvania Senate Rules and Executive Nominations Committee late Thursday night added an amendment to Senate Bill 106 that states that residents of the Commonwealth no longer have a right to an abortion.
- Pennsylvania Senate GOP Advances Constitutional Amendments on Abortion, Voter ID (Associated Press)
- PA Senate Republicans Advance Constitutional Amendment Package on Abortion, Voter ID (Pennsylvania Capital-Star)
- PA Senate GOP Committee Advances Late-Night Amendment To restrict Abortion, Require Voter ID. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Perry, Others Who Allegedly Sought Pardons, Raise $18M to Date. The six Republican congressional representatives who allegedly sought pardons following the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection at the Capitol have collectively raised more than $18 million during the 2022 election cycle.
No Evidence Exists to Recount 2020 Election in Lycoming County. In a rebuke to Audit The Vote PA, Elections Director Forrest Lehman stated to the Lycoming County Board of Elections that he still sees no evidence to require a recount of the 2020 election.
PA Senate Race
Where In The World Is Dr. Oz? Mehmet Oz is trailing in polls. A key Republican has yet to endorse him since the celebrity doctor won the GOP nomination for Pennsylvania Senate more than a month ago. And Oz has gone dark on the airwaves since May 21 — even as his Democratic rival John Fetterman burnishes his brand on TV as a political outsider, and paints Oz as a carpetbagger from New Jersey. This is not the general election kickoff in a pivotal Senate race that Republicans were hoping for. (POLITICO)
GOP Senate Hopefuls Adopt a High-Risk Strategy For November. In one battleground state after another, they’re ditching general election entreaties to independent voters in favor of hard-line appeals to the base. (POLITICO)
The Pennsylvania Budget
PA’s 2022-23 Budget Package Spends, Saves Money in Record Ways. It is what some might call a Christmas in July budget. The proposed $45.2 billion spending plan that is teed up for a vote by the state Senate on Friday is one like Pennsylvania has not seen in years. It showers funding increases across almost all areas of the state budget – especially in education – while also tucking away a tidy sum to sustain the increased investments in the event of an economic downturn. (PennLive)
- Pennsylvania Budget Would Leave Billions Unspent, Boost Education Funding (AP)
- PA House Republicans Propose $45.2B Spending Plan (Meadville Tribune)
Around the Commonwealth
Democrats Hope Abortion Can Help Them Keep Hold of Suburban Voters, But Republicans Say It’s Still All About Inflation. The economy remains the driving issue in this year’s critical Pennsylvania elections. But after the Supreme Court’s ruling Democrats hope abortion can make a difference with key swing voters. (Philadelphia Inquirer)
Seven PA Lawyers Involved in Fight to Overturn The 2020 Election Face Ethics Complaints. A legal advocacy group formed in hopes of disbarring and disciplining lawyers who aided Donald Trump’s push to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election filed complaints Thursday with the Pennsylvania Supreme Court against seven lawyers in the state for their involvement in the former president’s legal efforts. (Philadelphia Inquirer)
How Fetal-Tissue Research Became The Focus of One State’s Budget Impasse. A yearslong dispute between anti-abortion activists and University of Pittsburgh researchers over fetal-tissue research made it to the highest levels of state government this year and briefly blockaded Pennsylvania’s $42-billion budget. (Chronicle of Higher Education)
Jim Kenney Was Always Going to Take Some 2023 Heat. He Just Made It So Much Hotter. Candidates for mayor in Philadelphia know one time-tested tactic: If the current mayor is term-limited, make the Democratic primary as much about attacking him as it is about defeating any challengers on the ballot. Mayor Jim Kenney just had a very bad week for saying in public what was already clear: He is anxious for his second term to end so he can leave City Hall behind. (Philadelphia Inquirer)
Police Officer Who Killed Tamir Rice Leaves Tioga Police Position Amid Controversy. The small borough of Tioga in Northcentral Pennsylvania recently hired Timothy Loehmann, the former Cleveland police officer who shot and killed 12-year-old Tamir Rice in 2014. But following criticism from residents and outcry on social media, Loehmann has withdrawn from the borough’s police force, according to reports. (TribLive)
What Is The Independent State Legislature Doctrine, And Why Does It Matter For PA? The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to consider a case that could reshape election policy across the country, including in Pennsylvania. At issue is an extreme legal doctrine that would give state legislatures unchecked power over elections and political maps — an idea at least four justices have signaled support for. (SpotlightPA)
Gov. Wolf Puts Signature On 31 New Bills. It was a day when Gov. Tom Wolf made good use of the pen at his desk. He signed 31 bills Thursday while House members spent the full day haggling over the final numbers in the 2022-23 budget. Eventually, they passed it and moved it to the Senate to review. (PennLive)
What The BA.5 Subvariant Could Mean For The United States. The most transmissible variant yet of the coronavirus is threatening a fresh wave of infections in the United States, even among those who have recovered from the virus fairly recently. (New York Times)
Regional Spotlight: North by Northwest
The Clarion News. Local Officials Laud Bridge Tolling Ruling
Sharon Herald: Chamber Looks to Increase Engagement
Titusville Herald: Dumpster Drama Dominates City Council Meeting As Fate of Downtown Park Hangs In Balance.
Erie Times-News: Erie County Sees Dip in COVID Cases But Uptick Expected
New Castle News: Boyd Backs Shapiro, Calls Mastriano An ‘Extremist’
Opinion
Lowman S. Henry. Return of the Constitution (Times Herald)
Ben Petok. The Supreme Court Set a Dangerous Precedent On Coercive Christian Prayers in School (Pennsylvania Capital-Star)
Bruce Ledewitz. Does The End of Roe Mean The End of The Anti-Abortion Movement? (Pennsylvania Capital-Star)
Donovan Schaefer. Buying Into Conspiracy Theories Can Be Exciting. That’s What Makes Them Dangerous. (PennLive)
Henry Olsen. Pro-Lifers, We’re The Minority. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Leigh Chapman and Al Schmidt. Three Ways To Make PA Elections More Secure and Accessible (Philadelphia Inquirer)
2 Responses
Independent State Legislature Doctrine should be known as the “Knucklehead Doctrine.” People have to believe in their government and saying legislatures can do as they wish with drawing districts is not a good place to go.
Where is Oz? Home in NJ, where he belongs with the rest of the sludge.