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Last week the Inquirer reported that the campaign of U.S. Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Pennsylvania Republican Party’s federal PAC, which has been sending mailers that say his Democratic opponent - Bob Harvie – acts like a “king”. Ouch! The Fitzpatrick campaign has also been promoting ads through a group called “Fire Bob Harvie”, which has a presence on social media. It is unclear what the purpose of these ads is. It appe

While Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry’s recent trip to Greenland to “make friends” for the United States was certainly a lesson in awkward diplomacy; it has also, by contrast, highlighted the disparities between Greenland’s fully funded Health Care system and our own. When the administration in Washington announced Landry’s help in sending a hospital ship bound for Greenland to provide “humanitarian assistance for people in need of medical care”, the blowback was immediate.

Not that long ago, I participated in a group that requested that the School District of Philadelphia institute a voter registration and education policy in its district schools. We testified at school board meetings and held rallies, but after receiving lip service and token actions for close to four years, we added another approach. We asked our supporters to send an automated email – not only to school board members, but also to members of City Council – requesting that

The state senate’s leadership was critical of Governor Shapiro’s proposed 2026/27 budget in February. Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman’s (R-SD-4) response was that “Gov. Shapiro’s budget proposal spends too much money without protecting Pennsylvania’s future fiscal stability…,” while Senate Appropriations Chair Scott Martin (R SD-13) asserted that “We can and MUST do better,” and President Pro Tempore Kim Ward (R-SD-39) wrote that “Senate Republicans will be fiscally respo

By now you’ve all read how the conservative majority of the U.S. Supreme Court has disenfranchised a significant portion of our citizenry by deciding that political boundary maps are only in violation of the Voting Rights Act when there is an established motive to discriminate. The important takeaway from this decision is that Congressional maps in a number of states will most likely be redrawn to dilute the political power of communities of color. Sensitivity to racial

In Pennsylvania, the Abortion Control Act of 1982 prohibited Medicaid funding to be used to pay for abortions in Pennsylvania. In 2019, a group of seven abortion providers filed a lawsuit arguing that this restriction violates the Equal Rights Amendment in the state constitution. Although Commonwealth Court found that the providers had no standing to challenge the abortion funding ban, the Supreme Court subsequently instructed Commonwealth Court in 2024 to determine if th

Last week’s email delivered a rather discouraging picture of the state of environmental concerns in Harrisburg, even though it also presented a way forward. In recent weeks, however, there has been some reassuring news, particularly as it relates to data centers. Since the end of March, the State House has passed four bills, some with the help of Republican members. The bills are now headed for the Republican dominated state senate. Below is a short description of each

Let’s get right to it. According to U.S. News and World Report, Pennsylvania comes in 38 out of 50 states with regard to its air quality , and fortieth with regard to the quality of its drinking water . Republicans like to boast how their anti-woke environmental policies are beneficial to the economy, but once again, according to U.S. News , Pennsylvania ranks 29 th with regard to employment, 39 th on economic growth, and 37 th in terms of its business environment. U.S