Free Republic

On the third day of a union strike of municipal workers, garbage is piling up in Philadelphia, and some workers are resorting to threats and vandalism against residents who dare to break the strike. The City of Philadelphia is negotiating with members of the AFSCME District Council 33 union, who are asking for a wage increase of 8% per year. The city has offered to increase wages by 7% over three years, which led to the worker strike beginning Tuesday. Since then, residents are reporting that garbage is piling up and threatening their standard of living. "This is a nightmare,"...

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) is the party goober right now. He was part of a five-vote bloc that was against advancing the reconciliation package that cuts taxes, kicks illegals off Medicaid, and secures our border. He was willing to set fire to all of that, all of President Trump and the GOP’s top domestic action items over Ukraine war funding. I’m not kidding: He voted and then disappeared for the remainder of Wednesday night. In the end, the four other ‘no’ votes—Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Victoria Spartz (R-IN), Keith Self (R-TX), and Andrew Clyde (R-GA)–all fell in line with the...

Gov. Josh Shapiro will be joining Pennsylvania’s LGBTQ community and their supporters at Lancaster Pride Festival on Saturday. His announcement came the same day the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that parents must be allowed a provision to opt out their children from class when course material conflicts with their religious beliefs. The suit over LGBTQ book characters was the latest in a series of legal actions, state and federal legislation, presidential executive orders and funding threats targeting the rights of LGBTQ people. In Pennsylvania the major hospitals that provide gender affirming care to trans people of all ages, abruptly dropped...

An 81-year-old man in Philadelphia decided to leave his senior citizen home and march in the "No Kings" protests occurring across the country against the Trump administration's immigration policies. NBC News' Erin McLaughlin reports.

Protesters spelled out “this is not normal” and hold a “no kings!” sign for passing traffic at several overpasses along I-83 on Wednesday. Democracy advocates, along with Democratic groups, gathered at several highway overpasses on I-83 from Harrisburg to Maryland to protest the Trump administration and the use of the military and ICE enforcement raids in Los Angeles and other cities.

Law enforcement has determined that there is a high risk for a mass casualty incident, gun violence, as well as other mass attacks at the 250th US Army Birthday Celebration in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The celebration in Philly comes at the same time as an event in Washington, DC to celebrate the anniversary. According to a threat assessment from the Delaware Valley Intelligence Center (DVIC) cited by the Philadelphia Police Department, the event taking place on June at Independence Historic Park has a high risk of a mass casualty incident, gun violence, vehicle ramming attacks, illicit unmanned aircraft activities, a bombing...

Planned investment will establish multiple innovation campuses, create 1,250 jobs, and support new workforce development training programs and local community projects. Key takeaways Amazon plans to invest at least $20 billion in Pennsylvania to expand its AI infrastructure, creating 1,250 new high-skilled jobs and supporting thousands more in the AWS data center supply chain. Since 2010, Amazon has invested $26 billion in Pennsylvania, contributing more than $26 billion to the Commonwealth’s GDP and supporting 27,000 full and part-time jobs, as well as 37,100 indirect jobs across various facilities. Amazon will bring training and education programs, including data center technician programs,...

The U.S. Department of Energy has ordered another power plant, this time an oil and gas plant in Pennsylvania, to keep its turbines running through the hottest summer months as a precaution against electricity shortfalls in the 13-state mid-Atlantic grid. The department’s order to the grid operator, PJM Interconnection, regarding the Eddystone power plant just south of Philadelphia on the Delaware River, is the department’s second use of federal power under President Donald Trump to require a power plant to keep operating on the mainland United States. Constellation Energy had planned to shut down Eddystone’s units 3 and 4 on...

A prominent trans activist based in Philadelphia is currently standing trial on charges of sexually assaulting two young boys. Attorneys for Kendall Stephens, born Johnathan, are seeking access to personal documents related to the young victims in a bid to exonerate their client. Stephens, 39, identifies as transgender and was formerly a prominent LGBTQ+ advocate in Philadelphia. He was arrested on December 18, 2023, after charges involving multiple counts of child sexual abuse were filed against him by the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General. Stephens allegedly engaged in oral sex with a boy, identified in court records as Z.B.,...

Any suggestions/help on PA Republican choices, in particular for Pittsburgh and Western PA. We will be voting later today and will appreciate information from conservatives here. Thanks.

Pennsylvania voters headed to the polls Tuesday to cast their ballots in the municipal primary election. FULL PRIMARY RESULTS: STATE RACES | COUNTY RACES | MAYORS, COUNCILS | JUDGES, DAs, SHERIFF | SCHOOL DISTRICTS | SMALL GAMES OF CHANCE REFERENDUM. Results at Article Links.

The attempts on President Trump’s life were one of the most disturbing and suspicious events in modern political history, especially the one in Butler, Pa. And yet, barely anyone in the media seems interested in asking real questions. They’re not the least bit curious about what happened, and it’s starting to feel like they want us to forget it ever happened. But that’s not going to happen… Thanks to people like Joe Rogan and Elon Musk, the curtain is still being yanked back, and what’s behind it should send chills down every American’s spine. From a house scrubbed cleaner than...

As pharmacy deserts crop up across western Washington, a large chain is biting the dust. Rite Aid CEO Matthew Schroeder briefed employees Monday that all stores would either close or be sold as the company files for bankruptcy,.. The media outlet stated funding from investors fell short, and the company faced a series of economic issues, including tariffs, more expensive supply costs, pricier landlords, and what Schroeder called a “dramatic downturn in the economy.” According to the court filing, as posted on Kroll, to support Rite Aid during bankruptcy, the company secured commitments from lenders to access nearly $2 billion...

New York Magazine’s Ben Terris saved the most important part of his extensive profile of Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman for last: “I didn’t find any indication that the stroke had left him cognitively impaired,” he wrote in its concluding paragraphs. That is not the impression that a reader would have gathered from the worried former Fetterman staffers, jilted progressive activists, and anecdotes detailing the senator’s declining mental health that preceded this observation. The piece paints a portrait of a broken man, a shadow of his former self, plagued by depression and demented episodes. None of that was especially apparent to...

Sunday’s arson attack on Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is the latest in an epidemic of political violence that’s been plaguing the nation for half a decade — an epidemic driven by the left. Happily, Shapiro and his family were unharmed, while alleged would-be assassin Cody Balmer is in custody. Balmer is plainly deranged, but he declares himself a “socialist” in social media accounts expressing a range of far-left beliefs.

On Sunday evening police announced they arrested 38-year-old Cody Balmer in connection with the fire set to the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion. “Balmer will be charged with attempted murder, terrorism, aggravated arson and aggravated assault against an enumerated person,” Fox News reported. ...... Snip...... During a Sunday evening presser, Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens said Balmer hopped a fence before starting the fire. “He actively evaded troopers who were here to secure the residence,” Bivens said. “While [law enforcement] were searching is when he attacked at the residence, broke in and set the fires.” “So that was all playing...

The man who allegedly set fire to the mansion of Gov. Josh Shapiro, D-Penn., and his family turned himself in, according to the criminal complaint obtained by Fox News. Cody Balmer, 38, of Harrisburg, was first identified to police by an ex-lover after he allegedly confessed to her and "wanted her to call police to turn him in," the complaint said. It was only a short time later that Balmer turned himself in outside Pennsylvania State Police headquarters, police said. While being interviewed by troopers, "Balmer admitted to harboring hatred towards Governor Shapiro." Balmer allegedly told investigators "he removed gasoline...

New details have emerged about the suspect behind the recent arson attack on the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion, revealing a chilling intent to personally target Governor Josh Shapiro, a Jewish leader who was observing Passover with his family at the time. Authorities say the suspect, identified as 38-year-old Cody Balmer of Harrisburg, told investigators he would have beaten Shapiro with a sledgehammer had he encountered him during the break-in. According to a police affidavit, Balmer admitted to harboring hatred toward Governor Shapiro, though no motive for that hatred was specified. Balmer allegedly scaled a nearly 7-foot iron security fence around the...

MANHEIM TOWNSHIP, Pa. (WHTM) — A local contractor has pled guilty after being charged with stealing jewelry from a homeowner. The Manheim Township Police Department says that on March 13, a contractor was hired to work on a property on Fleetwood Drive. After the contractor left, the homeowner noticed a pair of custom diamond earrings in the bathroom where work was being done were missing. The earrings were previously purchased for more than $9,500 and had a Gemological Institute of America (GIA) number to help identify the diamonds. The homeowner contacted area jewelers to alert them of the earrings in...

During an interview with MSNBC host and NBC News Senior Business Analyst Stephanie Ruhle that took place on Wednesday, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) said that he supports the goal of the Trump administration’s investigations of campus antisemitism and threats to withhold funds and schools where Jewish students can’t go to class, get fair grades, or be treated fairly should be accountable, but “The way they’re going about it, like everything else, I think is chaotic and is reckless and is undermining people’s fundamental rights,” and people can say what they wish “within the bounds of the laws and the...