News & Brews September 21, 2026
Get News & Brews in your inbox each day: Subscribe here!
This Pa. Senate race could make or break a trifecta
Spotlight PA reports on a state Senate race that could determine so much more than who represents Lancaster County post-election. That race is between incumbent Democrat state Sen. James Malone, who won a special election last year, and Republican Tom Jones (whom we are backing). The district is one in which registered Republicans outnumber Democrats by 41,000. Yet, low turnout in the special election helped propel Malone to a surprising victory. Observers and insiders alike say the race is key to helping Democrats gain control of the state Senate for the first time in more than 30 years—and with it, a governing trifecta, which means control of the state House, state Senate, and governor’s office. Republicans are equally focused on the race as key to stopping a Democrat trifecta.
Guess who’s a Republican now?
Rounding out the saga of former Philly union leader John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty—who directed tens of millions of dollars in political contributions to Democrat candidates, was convicted of bribery and embezzlement, went to jail, and recently had his sentence commuted by President Trump—it appears Johnny Doc has now switched his party registration from Democrat to Republican, Why? That’s anyone’s guess (although I’m guessing that commutation helped). Still, as one Republican leader put it, “I hope he stays out of trouble.”
ActBlue has some serious problems
ActBlue, the Democrats’ fundraising juggernaut that’s directed billions of dollars to Democrat candidates (including Gov. Shapiro), is facing some serious problems. A joint congressional report released last week “shows possible whistleblower retaliation and a pattern of approving contributions despite foreign indicators.” (Foreign contributions to U.S. federal campaigns are illegal.)
My favorite parts of the report are screenshots showing ActBlue’s IT director immediately deleting messages from an ActBlue lawyer, including a message that said, “Please stop deleting my requests. You are violating the laws and policies of our company.” Also entertaining was ActBlue’s passport verification system, which didn’t verify anything and deemed passport numbers valid simply because they contained the correct number of characters. BTW, my passport # is 123456789. Go ahead, check it.
Fetterman’s great ‘sins’
Commonwealth Foundation Senior Fellow Guy Ciarrocchi writes that up until a decade ago “nearly every single Democrat” supported “defending Israel, protecting our border, condemning Socialism, and working with Republicans on shared goals.” But today, these same positions held by U.S. Sen. John Fetterman are his greatest sins in the eyes of fellow Democrats. And while many Dems claim they feel betrayed by Fetterman, in reality, “Democrats keep yelling about Fetterman ‘changing’ – probably because they don’t want us to notice how they’re radically changing.”
Pa. March for Life happening today
The sixth annual Pennsylvania March for Life at the state Capitol kicked off this morning at 10:00 a.m. and will continue into the early afternoon. Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum is keynoting the event, which is hosted by the Pennsylvania Family Institute. Additional speakers include state lawmakers and others. The event regularly draws thousands of pro-life advocates to Harrisburg.
