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** 1. Delaware County Councilwoman: ‘We’re looking at a sizable tax increase…for next year’ ([link removed])
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By Todd Shepherd

“Delaware County Councilwoman Christine Reuther said last week the county was already eyeing a “sizable” new tax increase to meet the demands of an ever-expanding budget that now includes inflation-fueled pay raises, running a prison, and managing a health department that’s only two years old.

Reuther’s remarks at Wednesday’s personnel board meeting comes less than four months after council voted to approve a five percent tax increase ([link removed]) on county residents — the first county-wide tax increase since 2014 and the first tax increase since Democrats took over the majority of the council after the 2019 elections.”

Why It Matters. “After Democrats won control of the county council in the wake of the 2019 elections, enacting many of the reforms they promised such as the creation of a county health department and de-privatizing the prison have put constant pressure on the budget. Some of that budgetary pressure was temporarily papered over by funds received from the federal government to help with the 2020 pandemic. But now, four years later, most of that pandemic money is gone.”

Quotable. ““Excessive compensation costs can severely damage a government’s financial position.”

“After the grant funding ends, the County will be left with the entire cost of the program, especially compensation increases. That is the situation we see here in a few of the agenda items,” said Delaware County Controller Joanne Phillips.

C ([link removed]) ontinue Reading ([link removed])


** 2. Jewish voters should lead the exodus from the Democratic Party ([link removed])
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By Andy Bloom

“Since the October 7 Hamas attacks, many members of the Democrat Party have abandoned or gone weak-kneed in their support of Israel. The Biden administration says it supports Israel but then wants to direct Israel’s prosecution against Hamas. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who worries about election interference in the United States, thinks nothing of calling for regime change in Israel.

Meanwhile, progressives are full-throated in support of Palestinians. They are willing to overlook Hamas’s atrocities and lies. Sympathizers believe the Palestinians in Gaza are victims rather than complicit in Hamas’s barbarism.”

Why It Matters. “Leftist organizations, including MoveOn and Amnesty International, have demanded a ceasefire in Gaza. Then, Democrat-supporting unions piled on. They include the United Auto Workers (UAW) and the NEA (National Education Association) – the nation’s largest teachers union. In fact, 200 unions and labor organizations have formed the National Labor Network for Ceasefire (NLNC).

These groups and their demands on Israel and not Hamas are representative of the new Democratic coalition. CNN reported on a Quinnipiac University Poll last November. Far more Democrats under 35 sympathize with the Palestinians (74 percent) versus 16 percent who sympathize more with the Israelis. The trend developed even before Israel began its current fight in Gaza. In March 2023, a Gallup poll found that among Democrats, 49 percent were more sympathetic to Palestinians (49 percent) than Israelis (38 percent).”

Quotable. “There’s been a lot said about a “political realignment” recently. Specifically, the polls suggest that record numbers of Blacks and Hispanics could vote for Donald Trump. Further, Joe Biden’s poll numbers with younger voters are sagging.

These groups have traditionally voted in overwhelming numbers for Democrats. Time will tell if they will cast votes for Trump, let alone shift their allegiance to Republicans over multiple elections. If so, it would upset election calculus as pollsters and pundits have known them for the past 50+ years.”

Continue Reading ([link removed])


** 3. Podcasts!
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* Kitchen Table Politics: Malcolm Kenyatta ([link removed])


** 4. Lightning Round
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* Delaware County FOP President criticizes Senator Casey’s appearance with anti-police group, praises Dave McCormick ([link removed])
* State House members will use discharge resolution process to advance Voter ID Amendment ([link removed])
* Andrew Yang returns to Pennsylvania with third-party candidates for statewide office ([link removed])
* Thom Nickels: It’s like pulling teeth ([link removed])
* Two of Shapiro’s clean energy sources in new power plan unlikely to arrive by 2035 deadline ([link removed])

What We’re Reading...
As the plagiarism scandals continue to roil American colleges, Walter Russell Mead asks: Is this the beginning of the end for impeccably credentialed but utterly mediocre elites? ([link removed]) Writing in Tablet this week, Mead examines the history of American academia and wonders whether another major change is coming.

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— The Editors at Broad + Liberty
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