News & Brews October 2, 2023
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Shapiro goes to New Hampshire
PennLive reports that Gov. Shapiro’s trip to New Hampshire to address the state’s Democrat party this past weekend “appeared to be equal parts pep rally … and an opportunity to raise his own profile on the national stage.” Shapiro, not surprisingly, touted the I-95 reopening, and he emphasized a theme of “getting stuff done.” Meanwhile, in his own state, the overdue state budget is not done, and Shapiro has also not come through on multiple campaign promises. Read more on that here.
Shapiro (still) won’t say where he stands on RGGI
Gov. Josh Shapiro still isn’t telling Pennsylvanians what his position is on joining the carbon tax scheme known as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The AP reports that Shapiro “remained noncommittal” on Friday after a task force that met in secret released a report that came to no consensus.
Pa. GOP endorses McCormick for Senate
On Saturday, the Pennsylvania Republican Party unanimously endorsed David McCormick for U.S. Senate. The Post-Gazette reports, “The endorsement was an unusually early show of unity by the state GOP…. Republicans last year struggled to rally behind a single candidate in crowded primaries for both Senate and governor, and went on to lose both races.” The party also endorsed incumbent Treasurer Stacy Garrity and incumbent Auditor General Tim DeFoor for re-election. The Republican Party plans to conduct an endorsement for attorney general at a meeting to be called by the chair sometime after December 1.
Op-Ed: Philly rioting is costing Pa. millions
GOP state Senator Mike Regan (Cumberland and York counties)—who chairs the Senate Law & Justice Committee—writes in the Delaware Valley Journal that the recent looting of liquor stores [among other things] in Philadelphia, leading to the temporary closure of the stores, is “resulting in an estimated loss of $750,000 to $1,000,000 each day those stores are closed. This does not even take into account the loss of product stolen by these criminals and the cost of clean-up.” Regan “commend[s] the Philadelphia City Police, who have managed to make arrests and reel in the lawlessness each evening. But he points the finger at “District Attorney Larry Krasner, whose philosophy has added to the mayhem in Philadelphia because criminals understand his reluctance to prosecute them.”
U.S. Rep. Summer Lee draws Democrat challenger
Far left progressive U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, who has drawn criticism for her anti-Israel votes, will have a Democrat primary challenger next year. WESA reports that Bhavini Patel is launching her campaign today. Her campaign “draws heavily on Patel’s own experiences as an American success story whose mother immigrated from India to Pittsburgh.” Patel’s campaign, the story notes, “has been widely expected inside Democratic circles” and “may come as welcome news to some strong supporters of Israel.”