News & Brews July 20, 2026
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Shapiro’s ‘GSD’ mantra hides less successful record
Spotlight PA has a long piece looking at Gov. Josh Shapiro’s actual record of accomplishments (and lack thereof) as he chases the national limelight. One thing that struck me was Spotlight’s note that in “contrast to his solicitous approach to national [media] outlets,” Shapiro “has not responded to our requests for interviews over the years, including for this piece, and, in general, local Capitol reporters rarely get a chance to ask him more than a few questions in a press gaggle.” Beyond this, though, the story outlines Shapiro’s betrayal on school choice, the Vereb sexual harassment scandal, and the fact that “some of Shapiro’s policy accomplishments simply built off [former Gov.] Wolf’s work.”
Podcast: The future of Pa. politics?
RealClearPennsylvania Editor Charles McElwee—who is a walking encyclopedia of Pennsylvania political history and current affairs—joined the RealClearPolitics podcast “to talk about the future of Pennsylvania politics, Gov. Josh Shapiro’s chances in 2028, and why the Keystone State is going to be more purple than ever.” The interview is worth the listen.
NEA endorses Fitzpatrick
The National Education Association (and its state affiliate, the Pennsylvania State Education Association) has endorsed incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick for re-election—the only Republican congressional candidate in Pa. to get the union’s backing. Fitzpatrick has, of course, sided with government unions before, and this isn’t the first time he’s received the NEA/PSEA endorsement. The unions are known for vehemently opposing school choice, among other maladies.
Lawmakers propose IT spending change
PennLive reports that Democrat state Reps. Paul Friel (Chester County) and Joe Ciresi (Montgomery County) have announced that “they will introduce a bill to require the four legislative caucuses to unify their IT spending.” The announcement comes after a PennLive report “that state lawmakers spend 21% of their total budget on IT services, which are spread across at least six different departments and separate Wi-Fi networks. Over two and a half years, the redundant spending inflated the cost to taxpayers to roughly $34 million.”
Former U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy passes away
Former Republican Congressman Tim Murphy, who represented a western Pennsylvania congressional district for 15 years, has passed away at the age of 73. Murphy was a psychologist and also authored books on mental health. WESA recounts that his “political career was cut short amid revelations that he’d had an extramarital affair. Court records suggested that during a pregnancy scare, he had urged the woman he was involved with to have an abortion, though Murphy himself had opposed abortion … in Congress.”
