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1. Greetings From Minnesota

By Andy Bloom
 

Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party’s anointed nominee, selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate. There are concrete reasons why she selected Walz and declined to choose Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro. First is the power struggle within the Democratic Party. More importantly, as Harris says in her stump speech, is the future – or her vision for it.
 

I was confident Harris would pick Shapiro. It was the politically expedient choice, and Democrats have demonstrated defeating the “orange menace” is more important than principles.
 

However, the far-left wing of the Democratic Party vehemently protested Shapiro. Their biggest objection was Shapiro’s unabashed support of Israel. Members of the party established a website, “No Genocide Josh.” 

Why It Matters.  If you want a glimpse into the future with a Harris-Walz administration and a Democratic Congress, look what Walz signed into law when he won a second term. The Democratic Party (the DFL – Democratic Farm Labor Party – in Minnesota) also controlled the Minnesota State House and Senate.
 

In 2023, Walz signed over 50 bills into law, vetoing only one (providing a higher wage to Uber and Lyft drivers).

Minnesota became an example of leftist dreams come true.

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2. Will Shapiro step up after being turned down?

By Beth Ann Rosica
 

Speculations abound as to the reason Shapiro was not selected to run with Kamala Harris as Vice President. We will likely never learn the real reasons, though the reality is probably some combination of the issues, ranging from his religion and stance on Israel to the perception that he is overly ambitious and might upstage Harris to his failure to address the sexual harassment allegations in his own office to breaking his commitment to enact school choice options for students in failing schools.

While the rest of the country has moved on and off Shapiro, we in Pennsylvania are left wondering whether he learned anything as a result of this process. Will we see a different governing style in the aftermath of his experience in the limelight?

Assuming his political aspirations have not changed and he still plans a presidential run in 2028 or later, Shapiro now has an opportunity to address the issues that may have resulted in being passed over for the VP spot.

Why It Matters. Shapiro still has the opportunity to fulfill his campaign promise and work with both sides to get the Lifeline Scholarships passed. He can stop pandering to the teachers’ unions who financially supported his election. He can stop talking out of both sides of his mouth with the statement, “every child of God deserves a quality education,” despite vetoing the scholarship program last year.

Now is the time for Shapiro to stand up to the special interest groups and do what is right for Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable children.

He should — but will he?

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3. Lightning Round

• Shapiro claims he didn’t know of sexual misconduct allegations against his staffer until months later

• Parent takes on Department of Education over confidentiality clash

• Thom Nickels: A trip to the top of the world

• Thomas C. Mandracchia: The exception to the Supreme Court’s originalism — Trump

• Guy Ciarrocchi: Yes, it really is fake news

• Hanna Bechtel: High gas prices threaten Pennsylvania’s economy

• David Reel: Whom can we trust now?

4. What we're reading

The Democrats have anointed Kamala Harris as their nominee, but is anyone allowed to talk to her? David Harsanyi of The Federalist asks the important question, and one that should keep getting louder: where’s Kamala? “The Democrats’ new presidential candidate, who’s never won a single primary vote, might have been crowned but hasn’t given a real interview or even an extemporaneous political statement since Democrat bigwigs pushed Biden aside.” As they did with Biden, the mainstream media will ignore this problem for as long as they can.