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Which AG candidate is best for you? Take our quiz.

Plus, the blueprint for a second Trump term.

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A daily newsletter by The logo of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom producing investigative journalism for Pennsylvania.
Your Postmaster: Colin Deppen



Tuesday, April 9, 2024
Today: Election quiz, Trump blueprint, swing state, government TikTok, discriminatory deeds, climate case, and Pa.'s million-dollar cities.
FIND YOUR NEXT AG
There are five Democrats and two Republicans running for Pennsylvania attorney general in the April 23 primary. But which one is right for you?

Take Spotlight PA's interactive quiz to help highlight the limited differences between the candidates and which one you best align with. 

It's an important position, one that represents the interests of the state and the public, and defends Pennsylvania’s laws in court. The job has also proven to be a stepping stone for running for higher office.
 
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NOTABLE / QUOTABLE

“Now it’s time that insurance companies step up — I believe no one should be denied access to birth control because they can’t afford it.”

—Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro urging Pennsylvania insurers to cover birth control pills without a prescription as over-the-counter sales begin
 
🗳️ ELECTION ESSENTIALS

📅 UPCOMING EVENTS

ROW RACES: Join us Thursday, April 11 from 6-7 p.m. ET on Zoom for a live guide to Pa.’s candidates for attorney general, auditor general, and treasurer and how their terms would impact you. Register here and submit your questions to events@spotlightpa.org.

BROKEN PRIMARIES: Join us Friday, April 19 from 6-7 p.m. ET on Zoom for a Spotlight PA members-only event with Nick Troiano, author of The Primary Solution, a new book on how our partisan primaries are fueling the political divide in America and what we can do about it. Become a Spotlight PA member here and you'll be automatically registered for the event.
 
📷 POST IT
Pittsburgh near the peak of yesterday's eclipse, courtesy the Postmaster's better half, Katie W. Have a Pennsylvania photo to share? Send it to us by email, use #PAGems on Instagram, or tag us @spotlightpennsylvania
darkened skyscrapers under a hazy sky.
DAILY RUNDOWN
Today's top news story in Pennsylvania.2025 VISION: far-reaching blueprint for a second Trump term was on display last week at a major conservative gathering near Harrisburg. The Heritage Foundation's Kevin Roberts told the crowd, via Capital-Star, that the Project 2025 plan, which Trump's campaign says isn't official, would erase environmental protections, delete the FBI's "liberal code," and dismantle "rotten" parts of the federal government
  • Straw poll from Pennsylvania Leadership Conference offers early look at future GOP nominees, via City & State.
Today's second top news story in Pennsylvania.SWING STATE: President Joe Biden made lots of stops in Philly this year, and Vice President Kamala Harris returned yesterday. But some Dems want the campaign to broaden its footprint here, citing 2020's margin of victory, the New York Times (paywall) reports. Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal found years-old claims of voter fraud dividing Pennsylvania Republicans at a pivotal moment for that party.Today's third top news story in Pennsylvania.
MR. TIKTOK: Gov. Shapiro is a prolific user of TikTok. He's also opposed to banning the Chinese-owned social media app on state-issued devices here. “This administration believes, that there should be no wrong door to accessing government,” a spokesperson told the AP for an article about the app's continued popularity among governors and state agencies as scrutiny mounts.

Today's fourth top news story in Pennsylvania.
RACIST DEEDS: Last year, Gov. Shapiro signed legislation into law that allows property owners to repudiate racially discriminatory deed covenants that barred people of color from occupying homes in certain neighborhoods for decades. The language is no longer enforceable but can still be found in some documents. PublicSource details the Pittsburgh-area neighborhoods where the impacts of the deeds still echo.
 
Today's fifth top news story in Pennsylvania.
CLIMATE SUIT: Bucks County is suing oil and gas companies and accusing them of "carrying out 'tobacco industry-style campaigns to deceive and mislead the public,'" Inside Climate News reports, calling it the first climate accountability lawsuit in the commonwealth. Central to the case: costs born by the county due to climate change-associated flooding, storm surges, extreme heat, drought, and saltwater intrusion.
IN OTHER NEWS
BIG BUCKS: Two Main Line communities — Gladwyne and Villanova — have the dubious honor of making a Zillow list of cities where "the typical home value is $1 million or more."

TOOLBELT GEN: The Journal (paywall) says more high school grads are going into trades as "disenchantment" with college grows. A 2023 survey of 400 Pennsylvania adults found more recommending that approach.

TURNPIKE SCAM: If you get a text message saying you owe money to the Pennsylvania Turnpike, don't click on the link: It's a phishing scam, per PennDOT.

TAX CHECK: If you, like me, plan to spend the rest of the week finishing your taxes — they're due Monday, April 15 — a friendly reminder that Pennsylvania has a free online portal for your state income tax return.

ECLIPSE PICS: You likely saw yesterday's eclipse in Pennsylvania. Here's what it looked like in other parts of the U.S. and Mexico, via Time.
 
SCRAMBLER
Unscramble and send your answer to scrambler@spotlightpa.org. We'll shout out winners here, and one each week will get some Spotlight PA swag. Answers submitted by 5:30 p.m. on issue date will be counted.
 
S O A T H W U

Yesterday's answer: Penumbra

Congrats to our daily winners: Daniel M., Robert C., David T., Craig E., Barbara F., Kimberly D., Mike B., Richard A., Elaine C., Jon W., Eric F., Beth H., Kevin M., Don H., Dan E., Connie A., Judith D., Stacy S., Lynne E., Jody A., Vicki U., Susan N., Julie J., Mike H., Alan B., Jeffrey R., Daniel S., Christina M., Karen W., Daniel A., Jeffrey F., Tom M., Mark C., Patricia M., Susan S., Gabrielle G., David I., David W., John C., Bill Z., Leslie B., and Stanley J.
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