News & Brews October 16, 2024
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Pa. ‘likeliest culprit’ for ‘mail-ballot panic’
Well, here’s a distinction we don’t want. The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board has identified Pennsylvania as the “likeliest culprit” for a “nightmare” mail-in ballot “scenario” that could “wind up at the Supreme Court.” Why Pa? Well, “in part because the divided government in Harrisburg hasn’t substantially updated its voting laws.” (Gov. Shapiro’s claim that he “gets sh** done” notwithstanding.) The Journal’s preference is to “pull back on … lax voting rules.” But another option would be to follow the law as written instead of filing 472 lawsuits (give or take) to try to get the courts to rewrite it. And if the law should be changed, the legislature, not the courts, should do it—per, oh, the constitution. What a thought.
Dems worried about Harris’ Pa. operation
POLITICO reports that “[t]op Democrats in Pennsylvania are worried Vice President Kamala Harris’ operation is being poorly run in the nation’s biggest battleground state.” For example, “They say some Harris aides lack relationships with key party figures, particularly in Philadelphia and its suburbs.” And some are concerned that Harris’ Pa. campaign manager, “lacks deep knowledge of Philadelphia, where the vice president must drive up voter turnout in order to win.” Of course, Pa. is viewed by both Harris and Trump as a must-win, and we’ve seen more than $500 million in TV ad spending and reservations here—more than any other state in the country.
Shapiro gets ‘D’ on fiscal policy report card
The Cato Institute has released its 17th biennial fiscal report card on America’s governors. The report card “uses statistical data to grade the governors on their tax and spending records: Governors who restrained taxes and spending receive higher grades, while governors who substantially increased taxes and spending receive lower grades.” The ratings also take into account actions governors take in relation to their state legislatures, as governors alone don’t control fiscal policy. Gov. Josh Shapiro earned a “D” rating on the report. Cato notes that while he has taken some pro-taxpayer positions, Shapiro has also “favored some tax hikes.” For example, “He supports cap-and-trade plans to raise hundreds of millions of dollars a year from utilities.” He also “proposed a new tax on electronic gaming machines to raise $150 million a year” and “called for legalizing recreational marijuana and imposing a 20 percent tax on the wholesale price, which would raise about $200 million a year.”
Court denies revenue secretary’s attempt to avoid testifying before Pa. Senate
Yesterday, the Commonwealth Court rejected attempts by Pa. Revenue Secretary Pat Browne (and Senate Democrats) to avoid testifying before the Senate “to explain his refusal to produce tax records for an Allentown revitalization program,” PennLive reports. Senate Republicans had passed a resolution ordering the Sergeant at Arms to bring Browne to testify before the chamber or possibly be held in contempt and sent to the Dauphin County Prison until Nov. 30 or until he produced the requested records. At issue are tax records related to the Allentown Neighborhood Improvement Zone, which was“established by a 2009 state law that applies only to Allentown.” Browne, who represented Allentown as a state senator at the time, was the architect of the program.
5 Pa. congressional seats that could tip U.S. House
Democrats need to pick up four congressional seats to win the U.S. House majority. And not surprisingly, Pennsylvania could play a key role in which party controls the chamber. The AP looks at five congressional seats across the state that could determine partisan control of the House, with Dems aiming to flip two while holding onto another three that Republicans are targeting. Meanwhile, the Delaware Valley Journal reports that the Dems are getting some help in their effort from the uber-liberal Soros family.
‘How leftwing donors are taking over local journalism’ (including in Pa.)
RealClear Investigations has a long-form story examining how left-wing funders have been funneling money into local news outlets, including so-called “news” sites that are little more than liberal propaganda machines. Not surprisingly, Pa. sites including the “Keystone Newsroom” (run by Courier Newsroom) make the list. Not mentioned is the Pennsylvania Capital-Star, which began under the umbrella of States Newsroom, which IS mentioned in the piece as having “received funding from controversial Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss, who has spent nearly half a billion dollars on American left-wing causes.” The Capital-Star has since broken off to become its own entity, but it maintains its left-wing slant.