Common Sense Weekly

Welcome to Common Sense Weekly! This is the Commonwealth Foundation's weekly news roundup of policy issues being debated in Harrisburg and across Pennsylvania.

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Pennsylvanians Shouldn't Worry About the Education Department

The U.S. Department of Education might be going away – and it’s the right move – one that returns control to the states. Closing the department provides a massive opportunity for Gov. Josh Shapiro and his fellow lawmakers to fix our education system.

But will they take it? Here's what you need to know about how the closing of the department would impact Pennsylvania and what lawmakers should do to improve our state's education system.

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Gov. Shapiro's Appearance on 'Real Time with Bill Maher' Smacked of Unreality

Appearing on the HBO show, Gov. Josh Shapiro gave an unreal performance — literally. Indeed, the governor unwittingly showcased his detachment from reality.

“I live in the real world in Pennsylvania, where we have to balance budgets,” the Democrat boldly claimed.

Yet, since becoming governor, he has failed to deliver a truly balanced budget, using state surpluses to meet constitutional requirements.

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Texts Show Delco Dems' Strategic Concerns During 2024 Voting

Text messages show the all-Democratic council in Delaware County "at ease mingling their official jobs with their more partisan selves, blurring the ethical lines of a duty to administer the election in a nonpartisan way.​​​​​​"

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Penn State Faculty Will Get More Than They Bargain for With SEIU

Higher education’s future seems bleak. The national decline in enrollment has forced countless colleges and universities to tighten belts and make hard choices. Penn State—where enrollment is down 30% since 2010—recently announced plans to close several of its 20 campuses across the commonwealth. Naturally, Penn State faculty feel vulnerable.

But their desperation may push them into the wrong hands.

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VOTE: Shapiro's Self-Promotion Madness

It's the FINAL round of Shapiro's Self-Promotion Madness!

Did you know that Gov. Shapiro has a taxpayer-funded, million-dollar team responsible for his online image?

You're paying for it, including his cringeworthy TikTok videos. To bring more attention to this waste of taxpayers dollars, we are running a series of polls on X to help us crown the cringiest of Shapiro's videos.

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