News & Brews July 22, 2026
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Dems worry about GOP cash in midterms, but…
POLITICO reports that while individual Democrat candidates in key U.S. Senate and House races have outraised their Republican counterparts, national Republican committees and PACs are more than making up the candidate deficit. “The three main GOP party committees and their two caucus-aligned super PACs reported $657 million cash on hand at the end of June…. That’s nearly double the $334 million held by their Democratic rivals.” Beyond this, Trump’s super PAC has more than $400 million. That said, these national PACs have a tendency to focus on federal races, while Democrats have a strategy of pouring national money into down ballot races, such as for state legislatures. The story also misses the Left’s vast network of non-profit organizations it uses for partisan ends.
Trump denied Johnny Doc’s early release request
Well here’s something I didn’t know was even going on. In addition to trying to get a judge to let him out of jail early, former Philly union boss John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty was also trying to get Trump to intervene. (It seems even Johnny Doc’s attorney didn’t know about this.) The Inquirer reports that Trump “earlier this month denied Dougherty’s request for a commutation, according to the Office of the Pardon Attorney’s website.” Dougherty is serving a six year sentence for bribery and embezzlement.
Deadline on murder sentences change imminent
Back in March, the state Supreme Court ruled that mandatory life sentences without parole for second-degree murder violate the state constitution, And the state legislature had 120 days from the ruling “to figure out how to handle the charge going forward, and what to do about the 1,100 people sitting in prison on now-unconstitutional life sentences.” Well, that 120 days runs out this Friday, and the legislature still hasn’t figured it out.
‘Clock ticking on skill games’
And speaking of deadlines, the Center Square reports, “Lawmakers have less than three months to take some sort of action concerning the estimated 70,000 ‘skill games’ in the state before a stayed Supreme Court decision stirs up a potential political hornet’s nest.” The decision—that skill games are gambling and subject to regulation—means lawmakers have to figure out how to proceed. But it looks like they’re more focused right now on the murder sentence reform deadline in the story above than on this one.
Government makes life unaffordable
Commonwealth Foundation Chief Policy Officer Nathan Benefield writes in PennLive that if you’re looking for why costs are rising, look at government. “In reality, government intervention drives up costs,” and “industries with the most government involvement—healthcare, higher education, housing, and childcare—have become far more expensive over the past 25 years. Meanwhile, goods with a more open market and consumer choice—televisions, toys, clothing, household furnishings, and cell phones—have become more affordable.” Benefield concludes, “Americans are unhappy with rising prices and policies that suggest a rigged economy. But the solution isn’t socialism—complete government control of the economy—but a return to free enterprise.”
