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🗞️ Headlines. A month in Iran, the political reality of the GOP is becoming more and more memorable. What is “redboxing”? Primary elections that will shape the General Assembly. Kangaroo on Llama.
🎶 Your morning, pick me up. Monday (every time I turn around). Bottle rockets
Weather in Pennsylvania
☁️ Marion Center | Mostly murky, 62
🌤️ Emporium | Partly sunlit, 63
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Sports PA
⚾ Phillies (1-2) | Texas 4-5, 3-8 | Monday-Wednesday vs. Washington
⚾ Pirates (1-2) | NY Mets 2-4, 4-3 | Monday-Wednesday in Cincinnati
🏀 Sixes (41-33) | Apple pie 118-114 | Monday in Miami
🏒 Leaflets (37-24-12) | Detroit 5-3 | Dallas 2-1 (OT) | Tuesday in Washington
🏒 Penguins (36-21-16) | Dallas 3-6 | Monday at the NY Islanders
🔈 What are we listening to?. In the latest episode of the PoliticsPA podcast, Voices of Reason, we talk to Representative Jesse Topper AND Amy Widestrom League of Women Voters regarding SAVE America Act.
💰 What we are reading. According to NOTUS, Senator Dave McCormick net worth is north of $190 million. Senator John Fetterman is $1.58 million.
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The most critical story
1. After a month in Iran, the political reality of the GOP is becoming more and more apparent
“In Nevada, a gallon of gas costs about $5. In Pennsylvania, farmers are worried about fertilizer prices. In Michigan, supply chain problems are hampering the manufacturing and auto industries.
A month after the start of the Iran war, Republicans on these and other battlefields are beginning to feel a fresh political reality: the war may not end as quickly as they initially expected, and the costs, literal and figurative, continue to mount.” | POLICY
Elsewhere
Campaign ads and the return of gas pump stickers: How AP Democrats are using affordability to stick Trump in the Iran war. “After four weeks of war in Iran, Democrats see the resulting economic fallout as a key message and a way to reconcile their campaign year focus on affordability with their opposition to the war.” | Questioner from Philadelphia
Trump ‘not impressed with Shapiro’. “Since Trump entered politics, he has nicknamed other politicians. Think ‘Little Marco,’ ‘Pocahontas,’ or ‘Pencil.’ Now Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro has his own Trumpian term: “stiff.” | Wide + Freedom
AP Republicans try fresh playbook in 2026 governor’s race after ‘mixed mess’ in 2022. “Instead of dividing the battlefield, Republicans rallied around state Treasurer Stacy Garrity early on, effectively clearing the primary field and sidelining talk of another led by Sen. Doug Mastriano.” | Pittsburgh Postal Newspaper
PA-03: Cephas drops primary school in Congress. “This is the end of the congressional campaign for Rep. Morgan Cephas. The state representative from the 192nd Legislative District in Philadelphia ended her campaign to replace Rep. Dwight Evans in the 3rd Congressional District on Friday. ” | PoliticsPA
Candidate Crib Sheet: The Race to Replace Dwight Evans. “For the first time in 35 years, the 3rd Congressional District has a highly competitive primary. From the former mayor’s son, to a famous doctor, to a famous state representative – here’s what you need to know before you head to the polls. ” | Philadelphia Magazine
Country
2. What is “redboxing” and why was a complaint filed against Ryan Crosswell?
“If you work in politics, you know the term redboxing.
For the rest of us, it sounds more like the old-fashioned way of renting DVDs or Blu-Rays outside the local CVS or grocery store than anything involving money, news or influence.” | PoliticsPA
Elsewhere
‘Soul crushing’: Seven former dispatchers describe toxic work environment at PA Gaming Commission. “The Pennsylvania Gaming Commission has launched an investigation and suspended one employee after Broad + Liberty came forward with new allegations about a toxic work environment at the commission’s dispatch center.” | Wide + Freedom
Will AP Supreme Court’s murder case decision be applied retroactively? “Legal experts and observers say it will likely have an impact on people already sentenced to life in prison for second-degree murder.” | Pittsburgh Postal Newspaper
A nonprofit affiliated with a combative PR firm opposes a minimum wage raise in Pennsylvania. “Almost immediately after the state House passed the bill raising Pennsylvania’s minimum wage to $15 an hour, an organization called the Employment Policy Institute began contacting members of the Pennsylvania media to share its views.” | Penn Capital Star
How Tiny Farm County fought a data center convoluted and won. “Talen Energy tried to rezone 800 acres of farmland in Pennsylvania so it could develop the center with Amazon. The grassroots effort failed.” | Civilian food
Around the Republic of Poland
3. The 2026 Primary Elections That Will Likely Shape the Pennsylvania House and Senate
“This spring, Pennsylvanians will vote in primary elections that will have enormous implications for what the House and Senate will look like next year.
Serious primary challenges to incumbents often create a mix of frustration and fear in Harrisburg. Victories over incumbents can embolden interest groups and make lawmakers think twice before striking deals on complex issues. A primary loss of an established legislator could also facilitate shift competitive seats from one party to another in a general election.” | PA reflector
Elsewhere
Views on the war vary in this Pennsylvania town, even among Trump voters. “Most voters here see that conflict raises the cost of everything, even if they agree Iran must be contained.” | Globe and mail
PA-14: Bradstock details why he’s running for Congress for the Indiana No Kings racers.. “Alan Bradstock reflected on a life spent in the public and private sectors, in the desert of the Middle East, as a financial advisor in Pennsylvania, as a drug investigator in the Southwest and in Canada after 9/11. ‘I do office work because I worry about the future of our children,’ Bradstock said.” | Indiana newspaper
PA-01: Meet Bob Harvie, Democrats’ Best Chance to Defeat Brian Fitzpatrick and Help Retake the House. “For the past decade, Democrats in Bucks County have tried – and consistently failed – to do one thing: defeat U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick. But Bucks County Commissioner Bob Harvie, 54, who was endorsed by local Democratic committees in the May primary against Lucia Simonelli, a grassroots candidate who will face Fitzpatrick in the fall, thinks he can crack the code to victory in the 1st Congressional District.” | Questioner from Philadelphia
‘I’m not going to raise taxes’: Governor Josh Shapiro reacts indifferently to Mayor Parker’s budget plans. “Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s $7 billion city budget proposal includes two tax-raising measures that will require state approval, which means she will have to win over Harrisburg Republicans who control the state Senate to make her plan a reality. It turns out Parker will also have to convince at least one prominent Democrat in Harrisburg: Gov. Josh Shapiro. ” | Questioner from Philadelphia
Editorial
4. What do you think about it?
1 item
5. Chesney the kangaroo climbs a high fence and escapes from the petting zoo for three days
“How does a kangaroo escape from a petting zoo?
This is not the beginning of a dad joke. If you’re Chesney the kangaroo, you climb an eight-foot fence and wander around for three days, giving your caretaker sleepless nights and sending the inhabitants of a diminutive Wisconsin town on a search that ends happily on Saturday.
They monitored reports of sightings and even rented heat-seeking drones, which proved effective in narrowing down the wanderings of the high-jumping adventurer.” | AP
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