News & Brews May 8, 2025
Get News & Brews in your inbox each day: Subscribe here!
House Dems pick marijuana over rescuing kids
Yesterday, the Pa. House voted on party lines to pass legislation legalizing recreational marijuana and having state-run liquor stores manage its sales. It’s telling that as the Pa. state Senate worked to protect women’s sports and free kids from crummy schools this week, House Dems prioritized making it easier for Pennsylvanians to use drugs. House Republican Leader Jesse Topper (Bedford and Fulton counties) criticized the process behind the legislation, stating, ”The bill … was introduced at the end of the day Sunday and then rushed through a committee vote on Monday afternoon, a move that stifled debate and potential amendments. That flawed process led to a seriously flawed piece of legislation….” Spotlight PA reports that the bill will be “dead on arrival” in the state Senate.
Fetterman story grows
It seems the uproar over Sen. John Fetterman spurred by the May 2 NY Magazine story isn’t going away anytime soon. The Inquirer has picked up the mantle of questioning Fetterman’s behavior, reporting that during a May 1 meeting with teachers’ unions, he “grew frustrated and his tone shifted, according to two sources familiar with the May 1 conversation. Fetterman, a 6-foot-8 former college offensive tackle, started yelling at the group of five union representatives, asking what they wanted from him as he banged his fists on the table.” For his part, Fetterman called the meeting “spirited.”
Mehaffie sides with Dems & Shapiro — again
Republican state Rep. Tom Mehaffie—the Dauphin County House member who handed Dems the House majority and blocked voter ID—is sidling up to Democrats and Gov. Shapiro yet again. This time, it’s through joining eight other Democrats (and zero Republicans) in proposing a government subsidy bill that’s part of Gov. Shapiro’s so-called “Lightning Plan.” As the Commonwealth Foundation explained, this plan “would increase energy costs, reduce production, and subsidize special interest groups and political donors.” The Pa. House Finance Committee advanced the bill yesterday. No Republican on the committee voted in favor of it. (Mehaffie is not a member of that committee.)
School spending v. school salaries
Education spending across the country is up dramatically. But this hasn’t always translated into increased teacher pay. How big is the gap? The 74 has published a searchable, interactive graph for 8,900 school districts across the country comparing revenue growth with overall school salary growth. “The biggest factor” affecting the data “is the number and type of staff. Schools employ a lot more people than they used to, meaning they have to divide their budgets across more workers. While student enrollment rose 4% from 2002 to 2022, the number of full-time equivalent staff rose three times as fast, led by particularly large increases in instructional coordinators, classroom aides and district administrative staff.”
Pa. is already the center of the 2028 universe
As Democrats begin silently jockeying for presidential positioning for 2028, Pennsylvania is once again ground zero. Democrat U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona, whose name appears among speculations for 2028, is heading to Bucks County for a “town hall meeting” (i.e. quasi campaign event) this Saturday. Likely ruffling Gov. Shapiro’s feathers, Gallego also has an op-ed in the Inquirerexplaining his trip. “The Keystone State, like Arizona, is a battleground where the voices of hardworking families must be heard and their concerns taken seriously.”