News & Brews June 9, 2023
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Trio of labor unions backs Republican for Allegheny County exec.
Republican Joe Rockey picked up the endorsements of three labor unions in his campaign for Allegheny County executive against socialist Sara Innamorato. They include Pennsylvania District Council of the Laborers International Union of North America (LiUNA), Laborers Union 1058 in Pittsburgh, and Laborers Local 373 in Monroeville. The Tribune-Review reports, “LiUNA has been more friendly to Republicans than other labor unions over the years, and has bristled at supporting progressive politicians in the past — particularly ones who oppose natural gas drilling.”
Virginia votes to exit RGGI
This week, Virginia’s Air Pollution Control Board voted to pull the state out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. GOP Gov. Glenn Youngkin called the vote a “commonsense decision” that “protects Virginians from the failed program that is not only a regressive tax on families and businesses across the commonwealth but also does nothing to reduce pollution.” Meanwhile, Pa. Democrats continue to push the $663 million energy tax here.
Delco facing lawsuit over ballot counting
Spotlight PA reports that the American Civil Liberties Union is suing Delaware County over a decision “not to accept provisional ballots cast in person by voters who had already been told their mail ballots were rejected due to technical defects.” It seems the issue is a discrepancy “between Pennsylvania’s vote-by-mail law and the state’s statute governing provisional voting.”
‘Enormous political implications’ of Trump’s indictment?
We can’t ignore this morning’s national story that former President Trump has become “the first former president in U.S. history to face criminal charges by the federal government that he once oversaw.” The AP reports that Trump’s federal indictment over classified documents “has enormous political implications.” It could “potentially [upend] a Republican presidential primary.” And it could test whether Republican voters will “stick with” Trump now that he’s been “twice-indicted” and “could face still more charges.” As more reactions come from Pennsylvania politicos and/or voters, I’ll share them.