Tom Fontaine stories, Page 3
Shapiro calls for ‘universal condemnation’ of political violence during Pittsburgh summit
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and former Gov. Tom Corbett, politicians from different political parties and parts of the state, appeared together at Tuesday’s Eradicate Hate Global Summit in Downtown Pittsburgh to condemn political violence less than a week after the assassination of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk. “Political violence is particularly...
Shapiro to speak about political violence at Pittsburgh summit
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is scheduled to speak about political violence at Tuesday’s Eradicate Hate Global Summit in Downtown Pittsburgh, less than a week after a gunman assassinated conservative influencer Charlie Kirk. Shapiro, a Jewish Democrat, survived a violent attack in April. He and his family had been sleeping inside...
Experts warn of ‘spiral’ if U.S. doesn’t address worst political violence in over a half-century
Several leading authorities on political violence say they are concerned about what happens next in America following the assassination of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk. The experts say this latest era of political violence is the nation’s worst since the turbulent 1960s. Without a unified, full-throated repudiation of the violence from...
PRT weighs whether to use money for transit projects to plug budget hole
Pittsburgh Regional Transit said Monday it hasn’t decided whether it will request permission from the state to temporarily shift money intended for capital improvements to help cover operating expenses. Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration approved a request from the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority to use up to $394 million earmarked for...
Shapiro approves $394M funding shift to prevent SEPTA cuts
Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration has approved a request from the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority to use up to $394 million earmarked for capital improvements to help the deficit-plagued transit agency cover operating costs. Shapiro’s office said in a news release Monday that the move would prevent service cuts at the...
White House pans Shapiro for questioning National Guard deployments
The White House dismissed Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s opposition to President Trump potentially deploying National Guard troops to Philadelphia to fight crime, touting the results of the deployments elsewhere. “Another wannabe presidential candidate is desperate to get into the news cycle by attacking the president’s highly successful operations to drive...
Shapiro says Pa. prepared should Trump decide to send National Guard to Philadelphia
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said the state has been preparing for the possibility that President Donald Trump could deploy the National Guard to Philadelphia ever since the White House sent troops to Los Angeles in June — a move that a federal judge ruled Tuesday was illegal. “Ever since the...
Fetterman, McCormick call on Pa. universities to combat antisemitism
Pennsylvania’s two U.S. senators are calling on five of the state’s universities, including the University of Pittsburgh, to ensure that Jewish organizations on their campuses are “equipped to protect the students they serve.” U.S. Sens. John Fetterman, D-Braddock, and Dave McCormick, R-Pittsburgh, said their request comes on the heels of...
Pa. Dems celebrate Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s engagement — then ask for donations
What do Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court have in common? Not much. But that isn’t stopping the Pennsylvania Democratic Party from trying to capitalize on the celebrity engagement of Swift and Kelce, announced Tuesday, to solicit campaign donations. “We’re sure you’ve already heard the news, but...
No funding deal in sight as transit cuts take effect in Philadelphia region
Many commuters and students in the Philadelphia region woke earlier than usual Monday and scrambled to avoid being late as they navigated newly imposed service cuts by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority. It remains unknown how long the pain might continue in Pennsylvania’s southeastern corner, as lawmakers remain apart on...
Justice Department releases first batch of Epstein files to House committee
The Justice Department on Friday afternoon released the first batch of files related to the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking investigation to the House Oversight Committee. The Republican-controlled Oversight Committee subpoenaed the Justice Department for the files early this month. The move to do so was initiated by U.S. Rep. Summer...
Debate swirls around Trump’s call to end unrestricted mail-in voting
Nearly one in five Pennsylvanians who voted for Donald Trump in last year’s presidential election cast their ballots by mail, and the GOP spent millions to promote mail-in voting in the run-up to the election. Now, President Trump says he wants to end the practice of allowing people to vote...
Oklahoma to screen would-be teachers from N.Y., Calif. to keep ‘leftist propaganda’ out of schools
For now, Pennsylvanians looking to land a teaching job in Oklahoma won’t have to take a test designed to weed out “woke indoctrinators” seeking classroom work in the conservative Sooner State. Oklahoma soon will begin administering what Ryan Walters, the state’s elected superintendent of public instruction, calls the “America First”...
Pa. Senate leaders look to skill games tax as transit funding debate continues
The highest-ranking Republican in the state Senate described the looming service cuts and fare hikes at Pennsylvania’s largest transit agency as a “manufactured crisis” that doesn’t need to happen. “This is (the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority) wanting exactly what they want and holding everyone hostage,” said Senate President Pro Tempore...
GOP plans to address budget impasse, transit shot down in Democratic-led House committees
A pair of committees in the Democrat-led state House on Wednesday shot down proposals from the GOP-controlled state Senate to end Pennsylvania’s budget impasse and address funding problems at the state’s transit agencies. Now, with the budget impasse standing at 44 days and Pennsylvania’s largest transit agency preparing to begin...
GOP-controlled Pa. Senate advances budget, transit plans
The Republican-controlled Pennsylvania Senate advanced proposals Tuesday to end the state’s budget impasse and address funding problems at transit agencies for the next two years. Both proposals passed along party lines, with all of the chamber’s 27 Republicans voting in favor and the 22 Democrats present opposing. For the measures...
Pa. House passes transit funding bill, but critics give it little chance of advancing in Senate
The Democratic-controlled state House voted Monday to pass a transit funding bill, with support from several Republicans, that the legislation’s prime sponsor said could help stave off sweeping service cuts and fare hikes at Pennsylvania’s two largest transit agencies. “If they become reality, these service cuts will hurt real people,...
New set of tariffs on U.S. imports take effect
President Donald Trump’s new set of adjusted tariffs on goods shipped from dozens of countries and the European Union took effect Thursday. The new tariffs range from 10% to 50%. Brazil is facing the stiffest import taxes. In addition to a 10% reciprocal tariff, Trump announced a separate 40% tariff...
Pa. budget impasse reaches 36 days, with sides still at odds on several key issues
As Pennsylvania’s budget impasse reached 36 days Tuesday, the highest-ranking Republican in the state Senate said lawmakers should consider adopting a six-month spending plan that maintains last year’s funding levels for many essential services while negotiations continue on thornier budgetary issues. “If we can’t come to agreement (on an overall...
Trump’s treason claim further erodes political discourse, experts say
President Donald Trump doubled down this week on an accusation that former President Barack Obama and members of his administration committed treason by misleading the public about Russian meddling in the 2016 election. While even Trump acknowledged that such a prosecution is unlikely, political analysts say the president’s explosive rhetoric...
Campaign cash already flowing in Pa. ahead of pivotal 2026 midterms
Republican incumbents in Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation outraised their Democratic counterparts by nearly a 2-to-1 margin, on average, during the first half of the year, according to federal election filings. Chris Borick, a political science professor at Allentown’s Muhlenberg College, said the fundraising gap is less of a reflection of any...
Pittsburgh ‘uniquely positioned’ to lead in physical AI, organizers of upcoming summit say
Pittsburgh will again find itself in the AI economy spotlight in September when it hosts the two-day AI Horizons summit in the East End’s Bakery Square. The summit, in its second year, will focus this year on physical AI — in which artificial intelligence is integrated into physical systems like...
Congressional proposal would target spotted lanternfly
Spotted lanternflies, targeted by stomping feet wherever they’re found, have a new enemy: Congress. U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Butler, and three of his colleagues have introduced legislation that would authorize the nation’s agriculture chief to make grants available for lanternfly research aimed at stopping the spread of the invasive insect....
Summer Lee leads push to subpoena Epstein files
U.S. Rep. Summer Lee led an effort Wednesday to subpoena files related to the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking investigation — hours before the House was scheduled to go on break until September. In an 8-2 vote with bipartisan support, a House Oversight subcommittee passed a motion by Lee to subpoena...
New report lauds Pittsburgh region for AI talent, innovation
A new report appears to support what many political and business leaders asserted at Tuesday’s Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit: The state is well-positioned to be a key player in the growing artificial intelligence economy. The Brookings Institution report, released Wednesday, rated Pittsburgh as one of 14 “emerging centers” in...
