🔥 Thursday. Have a nice evening by the fireplace
🗞️ In today’s PoliticsPA Guide. Shapiro says Harris’s accounts of him are “simply blatant lies.” Perry trails “his Democratic opponent” in fresh poll. Dozens of cities and states are raising the minimum wage in 2026, but not PA. The raccoon goes into a drunken frenzy.
🎶 Your morning pick-me-up. Green Onions. Booker T and MG. RIP Steve Cropper
Weather in Pennsylvania
🌤️Tionesta | AM Snow showers, 28
☀️ Roaring Spring | Becoming solar, 32
☀️ Hazleton | Partly shining, 31
Sports PA
🏀 Sixes (11-9) | Thu vs. Golden State
🏒 Flyers (15-8-3) | Buffalo 5-2 | Sun vs. Colorado
🏒 Penguins (13-7-5) | Thu at Tampa Bay
🥂 Society of Pennsylvania. The calendar of events for December 11-13 can be found here.
🔊 What we hear. “New York is not Pennsylvania, and Pennsylvania is not New York. “But there is a widespread need for authentic candidates with a laser focus on the affordability crisis.” – Rebecca Katz
📰 PoliticsPA Guide was developed by Steve Ulrich. To read in your browser click here. Has this email been sent to you? Subscribe for free.
The most significant story
1. A Look Behind the Curtain Shapiro Says Harris’ Reports About Him Are ‘Simply Blatant Lies’
“It’s scarce Josh Shapiro it allows outsiders to see behind the cold veneer that he has carefully crafted.
Pennsylvania’s governor chooses his words carefully and delivers them in a way that some have described Barack Obama-in style. That took him from legislative assistant to state representative to attorney general to chief executive of the Keystone State.
It’s a novelty for someone to see another side of the 52-year-old Shapiro. | PoliticsPA
Elsewhere
Smucker is focusing on fiscal discipline in his House budget chairman bid. “Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-Pa.) was a behind-the-scenes force that helped balance the demands of fiscal hawks with leaders’ desire to push through one big beautiful bill this year. Now he brings that experience and a focus on fiscal discipline as he seeks to lead Republicans on the House Budget Committee in the next Congress” | Hill
The smell on Main Street threatens the entire economy. “The economic pain of America’s small businesses is mounting rapidly, increasing the risk of a recession on Main Street despite a boom in AI-powered growth. The big picture: The economic fortunes of small businesses are diverging from those of their larger counterparts. The dynamics are not new, but the gap is getting wider and faster.” | Axles
Democrats expect pressure from the Red State, even if intra-party fighting continues. “Democrats vow to expand the midterm map into redder territory next year after strong showings Tuesday night in Tennessee, but prominent moderates warn the party must still overcome its tarnished nation brand. Former Democratic Rep. Conor Lamb of Pennsylvania, who flipped a deep red district in a 2018 special election, called the race a ‘missed opportunity.'” | POLICY
The political operatives who fueled Mamdani’s and Fetterman’s campaigns are trying to win back seats in Pennsylvania. “FIGHT, a Pennsylvania-based consulting firm, secured big wins from Erie to New York in November. Now they’re targeting two congressional races in Pa..” | Questioner from Philadelphia
Country
2. PA-10: In New Poll, Perry tracks down “his Democratic opponent.”
“Rep. Scott Perry (R-10) heard better news.
The poll of 549 voters in Pennsylvania’s 10th Congressional District shows that the incumbent president is not only trailing his unnamed “Democratic opponent,” but is currently in the red, with voters in Cumberland, Dauphin and York counties having minus 17 percent approval. | PoliticsPA
Elsewhere
Democrat Alan Bradstock hopes to challenge Reschenthaler in 2026. “At least one Democrat is willing to try to unseat U.S. Republican Guy Reschenthaler in the 14th Congressional District, where Democrats have been fighting for years.” | WESA
Congressional candidate from the Lehigh Valley endorsed by Latin American members of Congress. “Carol Obando-Derstine, one of five Democratic congressional candidates in the Lehigh Valley, received an endorsement from a group of Latino politicians on Thursday.” | Morning talk in Allentown
‘Prepared to marshal all resources’: Sen. Malone announces re-election, Dems Eye distracts AP Senate. “He won a Senate seat in a historically red state in a special election at a time when his party hopes he can keep it and win a majority in the chamber.” | Penn Capital Star
Federal judge orders Medicaid money released for Planned Parenthood in Pennsylvania, 21 other states and D.C “Governor Josh Shapiro and Planned Parenthood Keystone praised a preliminary ruling issued by a Boston federal court judge that orders the federal government to restore funding for health care centers that also provide abortions.” | LNP
Around the Republic of Poland
3. Dozens of cities and states raise minimum wages in 2026 in the face of federal inaction (but not in PA)
“A fresh report shows that next month the minimum wage for workers will raise in 19 states and 49 cities and counties, and in dozens of localities the minimum wage will reach $15 an hour.
Although the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour has not increased since 2009, many state and local governments continue to raise minimums through legislation or planned inflation-related increases. ” | Penn Capital Star
Elsewhere
Serving on the state Supreme Court: Justice David Wecht. “Recently reelected to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Judge Wecht discusses judicial elections, state constitutions, and the importance of community involvement.” | Original jurisdiction
Without discussion, York County’s 14% tax raise is set to be approved. “York County’s three elected commissioners were silent Wednesday on the proposed 2026 budget, which will be up for a final vote on Dec. 17. “Send your questions to Brett Marcy,” Presiding Commissioner Julie Wheeler told The York Dispatch after Wednesday’s commissioners’ meeting when asked about the budget.’ | Shipment from York
Federal lawsuit dismissed against Washington Co. judge. “A federal lawsuit filed by a former Washington County court employee against then-President Judge John DiSalle, alleging she was fired over whistleblower complaints, has been dismissed, although it remains active against the county.” | Observer-Reporter
Editorial
4. What do you think about it?
1 item
5. A raccoon goes berserk in a Virginia liquor store and passes out on the bathroom floor
“A masked burglar broke into a closed Virginia liquor store early Saturday and hit the bottom shelf where scotch and whiskey were stored. The gunman posed something of a nighttime menace: bottles were smashed, roof tiles collapsed, and alcohol pooled on the floor.
The suspect acted like an animal because he is actually a raccoon.
On Saturday morning, an Ashland, Virginia, liquor store employee found an unconscious garbage panda on the bathroom floor at the end of his drunken escapade. | AP
Thank you for starting your morning with us.
Be better than a raccoon. See you tomorrow.
