Northeast
Freshman Focus: Republican Rob Bresnahan, who ousted six-term House Democrat, reveals how he did it
Voters in Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District gave six-term incumbent Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-Pa., the boot last month in favor of a young, energetic and successful businessman who says he’s ready to defend their interests in the nation’s capital.
Republican Rep.-elect Rob Bresnahan, 34, tells Fox News Digital in an interview that “kitchen table issues” helped him connect with northeastern Pennsylvanians and oust Cartwright, a progressive who had served in Congress for more than a decade.
“When we were knocking on doors and talking to people every single day over a period of 13 months, the first thing anyone had to say was, ‘I can’t afford my bills. I can’t afford rent. I can’t afford my mortgage. I can’t afford school property taxes. I can’t afford groceries,’” Bresnahan said.
Rising prices for food and gas have made living costs unaffordable for Pennsylvanians, he explained. And as voters have watched illegal immigrants overrun the southern border and be provided free food, housing and benefits, while billions in foreign aid flows out from the U.S. to other countries, they felt that foreigners were being treated better than Americans by their government, said Bresnahan.
PENNSYLVANIA DEMOCRAT REP. MATT CARTWRIGHT CONCEDES RACE TO GOP CHALLENGER
Democratic Pennsylvania Rep. Matt Cartwright and Republican Pennsylvania House candidate Rob Bresnahan. (Getty Images/Rob for PA)
“We’re looking around at our neighbors saying, ‘hey, what about us here?’ And they couldn’t help but feel that they have been put second for a long time.”
Bresnahan was a success story before he won election to the House of Representatives. A fifth-generation native of Luzerne County, at just 19 years old he was entrusted to be CFO of his grandfather’s construction company, which builds electrical infrastructure for municipalities and highways throughout Pennsylvania.
He spent his college years at the University of Scranton dashing back and forth between the office and class as he worked to help the business recover from the global financial crisis. His hard work paid off, the business grew and Bresnahan became CEO after graduating in 2013.
“I was still living at home with my parents and I was in and out of a dorm room and running a company with 58 employees even though I couldn’t legally drink a Coors Light yet,” he told the Citizen’s Voice in 2021. “The combination was a heavy workload but it was a sacrifice that I would make again in a second.”
But as the years passed, Bresnahan, like many Americans, felt the country was headed on the wrong track. The decisions coming from Washington, D.C., were bad for his business, his employees and the people they serve. And so, he decided to enter politics to make a difference.
“I felt that the country was not heading in the right trajectory with what is happening on our southern border. We had life essentially unaffordable for the average person. And I’ve always been a person to roll up my sleeves and throw myself into fire,” Bresnahan said.
PA DEM IN DISTRICT THAT VOTED FOR TRUMP SAYS HE’S A MODERATE, BUT VOTING RECORD TELLS ANOTHER STORY
Rob Bresnahan, Republican nominee for Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District, takes the stage during a Trump campaign rally at Riverfront Sports on Oct. 9, 2024 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. (Getty Images)
His winning congressional campaign focused on securing the border, cutting taxes and trimming government spending, creating “family-sustaining jobs” in the Keystone State and supporting law enforcement. In April, Bresnahan received an endorsement from President-elect Donald Trump.
“A successful Businessman, Rob has worked hard to Create Jobs and Grow the Economy, unlike his opponent, Matt Cartwright, who is completely beholden to Nancy Pelosi and the Radical Left,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
With the campaign behind him, Bresnahan says he and the other members of the incoming Republican majority in Congress are ready to hit the ground running with a pro-growth agenda in January.
“Securing the border. That needs to be done day one, Jan. 3 at 12:01 p.m., the day after we are all sworn in,” he told Fox News Digital. “I think there’s going to be a big playbook, but that is a tangible win right off the bat.”
SINGLE HOUSE RACE STANDS BETWEEN REPUBLICANS AND 1-SEAT MAJORITY
A view of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 4, 2024, ahead of the 2024 presidential election. (Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
On inflation, Bresnahan says Congress and the Trump administration can tackle unaffordable prices by lowering energy costs. “Talking about just Pennsylvania alone, 52% of homes are heated from natural gas. $45 billion a year are generated from the natural gas industry, and $76 billion in GDP comes out of the fracking and natural gas industry,” he said, insisting that policymakers must stop “vilifying natural resources.”
The rising national debt, at $36 trillion, is another burden on the economy Bresnahan says Congress must address. “We’re spending more on debt servicing – just our national debt and the interest – than we are on our national defense budget.”
The young lawmaker said there will be “tough votes” on discretionary spending when Congress convenes in January. But two of the largest contributors to the federal debt and deficit will remain untouched.
“Obviously, we can’t cut Medicare. We can’t cut Social Security. We have to preserve that for our current generation, and we have to find ways to preserve it for our generation and the next generation. But I don’t believe that there’s a one-size-fits-all policy on any circumstance, let alone the national debt and the expenditures of the federal government,” Bresnahan said.
However, he added that illegal immigrants should not benefit from programs that Americans have paid in to, including Social Security and Medicare.
REPUBLICANS PROJECTED TO KEEP CONTROL OF HOUSE AS TRUMP PREPARES TO IMPLEMENT AGENDA
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., is expected to keep his job after Republicans held on to their House majority. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Republicans are expected to extend the 2017 tax cuts that became law during Trump’s first term in office. Bresnahan says he supports those tax cuts and insists that economic growth spurred by deregulation and investments in infrastructure and American jobs can make up for any potential revenue losses.
“We have to get people back to work,” he said. “We have to create economic climates that are conducive to the American people to incentivize them to go to work.”
Part of that is to support jobs that don’t require a college degree, such as carpenters, plumbers or electricians. “These are great, family-sustaining careers with annuities starting on day one, with health insurance for your family, and you’re earning while you learn.”
Turning to foreign policy, Bresnahan said the United States must remain a global superpower and pursue “peace through strength.”
“But we have to be strong as the United States,” he added. Asked about growing GOP opposition to foreign aid, including to Ukraine, Bresnahan emphasized that he supports efforts to push back against Russian aggression – but he wants to do so responsibly.
YOUNGEST HOUSE REPUBLICAN-ELECT REVEALS HOW GOP WON BACK AMERICA’S YOUTH
“Putin is a war criminal and needs to be stopped,” he said. “I am all supportive of providing weapons, missiles, rockets – actually, there’s a big manufacturing facility inside of my district. But where I do want accountability is the raw, hard dollars that have been sent. I want audits done on those to ensure they’re going to the right causes.”
Echoing Trump’s beliefs about putting America first, Bresnahan said there is a point where “enough is enough” and that Europe has to match U.S. contributions to foreign aid.
“Again, I’m looking at, you know, 25% of my bridges are structurally deficient. We have aging infrastructure levees that protect over $1 trillion of property here in the United States. You’re talking about power distribution grids that haven’t been re-invested in since the 1950s with 50 years of usable life. And, you know, we were without power for multiple days now, going on which could possibly be a week (Editor’s note: A blizzard in Breshanan’s district had postponed this interview). Europe didn’t come and send over trucks to help us rebuild our grids.”
“Ukraine obviously has a lot going on, but we need to take care of our own people. We have to take care of our own Americans. And I believe Donald Trump had that narrative and that’s why he just won an election in a landslide, because it’s about us,” he added.
Bresnahan hopes to bring “common sense” solutions to the complex problems facing Americans. He has pledged to work with whomever has a good idea, Republican or Democrat, and has earned endorsements from both No Labels and the moderate Problem Solvers Caucus. Though he calls himself a “fiscal conservative,” he rejects political labels because “I don’t think confirmation bias is the right way to solve any issue.”
“I believe most challenges can be overcome through healthy and solid debate,” he added.
And what about those issues that inflame passions on both sides? Before this interview, Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., made national headlines after she put forward a resolution that would bar Rep. Sarah McBride, D-Del., a transgender lawmaker who is biologically male, from using the women’s bathrooms in the capitol.
Bresnahan said that while he believes biological men should not play in women’s sports or use their facilities, the flare up between Mace and McBride distracts from other important issues facing Americans – like crumbling infrastructure and expensive living costs.
“I don’t want the 119th Congress to be hijacked by what bathrooms we should be using when we have been elected to provide real solutions for the real American people. And that’s what I’m going down to Washington, D.C. to do.”
Fox News Digital’s Emma Colton contributed to this report.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
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Northeast
Lead Daniel Penny prosecutor secured light sentence for thug who killed 87-year-old in ATM robbery
Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Dafna Yoran, who urged jurors at Daniel Penny’s subway chokehold trial to convict him of manslaughter on Tuesday, once sought reduced punishment for a Manhattan mugger who killed an 87-year-old over $300 in 2019 under the concept of “restorative justice.”
Matthew Lee, 57, snuck up on the victim, a former Lehman College professor named Dr. Young Kun Kim, from behind at a Citibank ATM on Broadway on May 13, 2018, video shows. The fatal blow, a punch to the head from behind, appears to have occurred off-camera.
Kim was hospitalized and later died from his injuries. Police eventually identified Lee as the suspect and arrested him within a week.
DANIEL PENNY JURORS BEGIN DELIBERATIONS IN JORDAN NEELY SUBWAY CHOKEHOLD TRIAL
Prosecutor Dafna Yoran is shown at the Manhattan Supreme Criminal Court building in New York City on Dec. 2, 2024. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)
Kim survived the Japanese occupation of Korea and the Korean War, the New York Post reported in 2019. His son forgave the killer at sentencing in a Manhattan courthouse.
Under a 2020 policy introduced by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s predecessor, Cyrus Vance Jr., Yoran “saw an opportunity for a transformative outcome,” according to Gothamist, a New York City news site. It was the first use of the program in a homicide case.
“It is just a continuance of the soft-on-crime policies that have permeated our big cities,” said Louis Gelormino, a Staten Island defense attorney who has said the case against Penny should never have been filed.
Kim’s son and daughter-in-law, Jinsoo and Julia Kim, agreed to meet with Lee, his sister and a social worker for 90 minutes, according to contemporary reports. The couple could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday.
TRAIN HERO ALEK SKARLATOS ON DANIEL PENNY TRIAL: ‘THIS COULD HAPPEN TO YOU’
Daniel Penny arrives at Manhattan Supreme Court in New York City on Dec. 3, 2024. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)
“I can’t choose how much I hurt, but I can choose how much I hate, and I choose to not hate you anymore,” Jinsoo Kim told Lee in his victim’s impact statement, preserved online in the Post report. “I forgive you, not just for your sake but for mine as well. There is no healing where there is hate.”
After the meeting, Lee was charged with manslaughter instead of felony murder, reducing his potential sentence from 25 years to life to 10 years.
Felony murder charges are usually filed when someone dies as the result of another felony committed by the suspect. Manslaughter charges involve reckless behavior that results in death.
Lee is currently being held in a medium-security state prison in Otisville, New York, and is eligible for parole in 2026.
DANIEL PENNY PROSECUTOR DANGLES RACE CARD AGAIN OVER DEFENSE OBJECTION DESPITE NO HATE CRIME CHARGES
Jordan Neely is pictured in 2009. (Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
Penny, 26, faces a maximum of 15 years in prison if convicted of the top charge he faces, manslaughter.
Jurors began deliberations on Tuesday.
“The defense here has blamed the system, the police response, everyone is responsible for Jordan Neely’s death except the defendant,” Yoran told the jury as her closing arguments wound down. “The only thing you need to determine here is that the evidence has proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant had killed Jordan Neely.”
Read the full article from Here
A Boston city councilor reportedly subject to a federal investigation declined to comment on the matter in a statement Wednesday, but thanked her supporters and committed to staying in office.
“My job is show up and to fight for you. And I will continue to do just that; the people’s work,” District 7 Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson wrote in a post on Instagram.
The statement, addressing what Fernandes Anderson called “the news yesterday,” followed a Boston Globe report that federal authorities were investigating the councilor and had sent subpoenas to City Hall.
- Read more: Boston City Councilor Fernandes Anderson investigated by feds, reports say
Citing anonymous sources, the Globe reported that the nature of the investigation was unclear. No criminal charges had been filed.
Fernandes Anderson, who represents Roxbury, Dorchester and the South End, said she had received “a tremendous amount of prayers, support, and well wishes” since the story was published.
“Unfortunately, I am not able to comment on this matter at this time,” she said Wednesday. “As soon as I can I will be sure to share with you.”
It is not Fernandes Anderson‘s first brush with scrutiny.
In July 2023, the Massachusetts Ethics Commission cited Fernandes Anderson for hiring her sister and son to full-time staff positions after she took office in 2022.
Fernandes Anderson appointed her sister as director of constituent services with an initial salary of $65,000, later increasing her salary to $70,000 with a $7,000 bonus in June 2022.
Her son was appointed office manager around the same time, with an initial salary of $52,000. Eleven days later, Fernandes Anderson increased his pay to $70,000.
The commission required her to pay a $5,000 civil penalty.
More recently, other state authorities levied fines against Fernandes Anderson last month for multiple campaign finance violations.
The state Office of Campaign and Political Finance said the city councilor had not promptly disclosed $32,900 of the $34,500 that was deposited into her campaign account from Nov. 2023 to Sept. 2024.
The office ordered her to pay a $1,750 fine. She was also forced to return $100 in excess contributions from another candidate’s committee.
Fernandes Anderson is in her second term and is the first Muslim, first formerly undocumented immigrant and first African immigrant to serve on the council.
She won reelection in 2023 with more than 70% of the vote in her district.
Pittsburg, PA
How to get Pittsburgh Steelers tickets for revenge game vs. Browns in Week 14: Prices, options
The Pittsburgh Steelers get another shot at the Cleveland Browns in Week 14 of the NFL season, this time in a Sunday afternoon kick on their home field. The teams are scheduled for a 1 p.m. ET kickoff Sunday at Acrisure Stadium with tickets still available to watch the game live.
How to get Steelers vs. Browns tickets: Seats are still available for the Steelers-Browns game on secondary sites Vivid Seats, StubHub, SeatGeek and Viagogo. As of Dec. 4, starting prices for seats were as follows:
- Vivid Seats starting at $123
- StubHub starting at $120
- SeatGeek starting at $128
- Viagogo starting at $127
Cleveland Browns (3-9) at Pittsburgh Steelers (9-3)
NFL Week 14 matchup at a glance
- When: Sunday, Dec. 8 at 1 p.m. ET
- Venue: Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pa.
- Tickets: Vivid Seats | StubHub | SeatGeek
- Flights/hotels: Expedia | Travelocity | Booking.com | Hotels.com
- TV channel: CBS
- Live streams: FuboTV (free trial) | DirecTV Stream (free trial) | Sling (low intro rate)
The Steelers took another big postseason step in Week 13 by defeating the Cincinnati Bengals on the road (44-38) in perhaps their best offensive performance of the 2024 season. Pittsburgh rode the right arm of veteran quarterback Russell Wilson and his 414 yards with three touchdowns and one interception to a season-high 44 points to hold off Joe Burrow and the Bengals. Seven Steelers were targeted by Wilson at least three times, and he threw touchdown passes to George Pickens, Pat Freiermuth and Calvin Austin III to continue his comeback season in The ‘Burgh.
The Steelers are 6.5-point favorites to beat the Browns in the second round of their AFC North season series, but Cleveland grabbed the first one at home in Week 12 by a 24-19 final score. Nick Chubb ran for the go-ahead touchdown late in snowy conditions in Cleveland as the Browns once again were a much more competitive team with quarterback Jameis Winston calling the shots. The team is in the midst of a forgettable season, but rivalry wins over the Steelers and Ravens (29-24) have helped ease that pain.
PITTSBURGH STEELERS (9-3)
2024 NFL SCHEDULE
Here’s a look at the Pittsburgh Steelers’ full 2024 schedule and results with TV and time info (where applicable), ticket prices, and live stream links:
Week 1: Steelers 18, Falcons 10
Week 2: Steelers 13, Broncos 6
Week 3: Steelers 20, Chargers 10
Week 4: Colts 27, Steelers 24
Week 5: Cowboys 20, Steelers 17
Week 6: Steelers 32, Raiders 13
Week 7: Steelers 37, Jets 15
Week 8: Steelers 26, Giants 18
Week 9: BYE WEEK
Week 10: Steelers 28, Commanders 27
Week 11: Steelers 18, Ravens 16
Week 12: Browns 24, Steelers 19
Week 13: Steelers 44, Bengals 38
Week 14: Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers
- When: Sunday, Dec. 8 at 1 p.m. ET
- Venue: Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pa.
- Tickets: Vivid Seats | StubHub | SeatGeek
- Flights/hotels: Expedia | Travelocity | Booking.com | Hotels.com
- TV channel: CBS
- Live streams: FuboTV (free trial) | DirecTV Stream (free trial) | Sling (low intro rate)
Week 15: Pittsburgh Steelers at Philadelphia Eagles
- When: Sunday, Dec. 15 at 4:25 p.m. ET
- Venue: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pa.
- Tickets: Vivid Seats | StubHub | SeatGeek
- Flights/hotels: Expedia | Travelocity | Booking.com | Hotels.com
- TV channel: FOX
- Live streams: FuboTV (free trial) | DirecTV Stream (free trial) | Sling (low intro rate)
Week 16: Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens
- When: Saturday, Dec. 21 at 4:30 p.m. ET
- Venue: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, Md.
- Tickets: Vivid Seats | StubHub | SeatGeek
- Flights/hotels: Expedia | Travelocity | Booking.com | Hotels.com
- TV channel: FOX
- Live streams: FuboTV (free trial) | DirecTV Stream (free trial) | Sling (low intro rate)
Week 17: Kansas City Chiefs at Pittsburgh Steelers
- When: Wednesday, Dec. 25 at 1 p.m. ET
- Venue: Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pa.
- Tickets: Vivid Seats | StubHub | SeatGeek
- Flights/hotels: Expedia | Travelocity | Booking.com | Hotels.com
- TV channel: N/A
- Live streams: Netflix exclusive
Week 18: Cincinnati Bengals at Pittsburgh Steelers
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