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For Republicans, victory in Pennsylvania will require focus, unity — and turnout

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For Republicans, victory in Pennsylvania will require focus, unity — and turnout



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Recently, I attended my grade school reunion in South Philly — St. Monica, Class of …

A classmate, greeting me after decades of not seeing each other, said: “Hey Guy, do me a favor, please. Can you tell the Republicans to focus on winning?” (Nice to see you, too, Sal!)

If Donald Trump wins Pennsylvania, Joe Biden cannot be reelected. If Dave McCormick goes to the Senate, it’s no more Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. If Republicans can pick up just one more statehouse seat, they will recapture the majority in that body.

The threat of tripling taxes on small businesses will go away. Pennsylvania’s energy reserves will be put to the use of lowering prices, creating jobs, and reducing our dependence on foreign adversaries. More parents will get choices about where they can send their children to school.

So, yes, let’s focus on winning. The good news for the GOP is that most voters agree with us on most issues. The bad news: Democrats know how to change the subject, and they know how to play the election game. They’re better at getting their voters out to vote, especially by mail.

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Because you asked, Sal, and because this is such a crucial election, here’s a roadmap to winning.

Unity. We must have unity — unity of purpose. We must agree that regardless who your most favorite or least favorite Republican is, and no matter what your number one issue is, Republicans need to focus on unity and growth. Now is not the time to focus on who doesn’t belong or who should be kicked out, taken out or ridiculed.

We must commit to stopping the harm that Democrats have caused, undoing the damage, and putting policies in place to bring down inflation and allow our children to get back to learning, in schools chosen by their parents. All are welcome, and we should reach out to everyone, especially minorities who have been ignored or taken for granted.

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Mail-In Voting. Finally, GOP leaders across Pennsylvania — with support from those who helped Gov. Glen Youngkin in Virginia and donors across the nation — are committing to mail-in voting. The mailers are arriving. The ads are starting. Now it’s up to us.

Request your mail-in ballot. Vote by mail. Convince your friends to do the same. Unless we change our habits, we will probably lose. To say it again, if we carry Pennsylvania, the Biden damage to America and our communities ends, and good things can start happening again.

Republicans tried ignoring mail-in voting and complaining about it. The result: lots of L’s.

We should be guided by three principles: easy to vote; hard to cheat; and results we can trust. But we can’t make the necessary changes until we win.

Results We Can Trust. Yes, Republicans in each county should make sure that every county that has “drop boxes” has clear, publicized hours of operation, cameras and watchers on sight, and a written chain of custody for the collection, storage, and counting of ballots. Similarly, as Philadelphia and perhaps other counties open “satellite election offices,” citizens should demand that these de facto polling places have watchers present. And GOP “minority” commissioners must fulfill their duty as not only public servants, but also as watchdogs.

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Learn from the Pros. Democrats in Philadelphia and across the state are using all the tools at their disposal — and inventing new ones — to increase turnout. More and more drop boxes. Satellite election offices. Voter registration drives run by the government in targeted communities or with targeted voters. Driving to voters’ homes to help them fix mail-in ballots that need signatures or dating to be lawfully counted.

Republicans have majority control in 54 out the state’s 67 counties. It’s time to learn the voting “game” from the Democrats while following the law. Adapt to the changing tactics. And win.

Drop Boxes. Yes, drop boxes. Many counties in Pennsylvania are large, with limited population spread out across their region. County commissioners ought to consider putting drop boxes in Amish communities, community colleges, the local Grange, farming supply centers, outside of popular churches — and yes, at gun ranges.

Satellite offices. We should have at least one satellite office in any region of a county that is not near the county courthouse.

Voter Registration Drives. Philadelphia plans to use taxpayer money to register voters in an effort to drive up votes for the Democrats. Well, two can play that game. Aside from having forms at the courthouse and library, how about the commissioners hosting a drive at an Amish Farm, at a gun range, outside an ROTC center, or at a local volunteer fire hall?

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“Curing” Ballots. If Montgomery County Democratic commissioners follow through on their stated plans and let courthouse staff drive “flawed” mail-in ballots to voters’ homes so that they can fix them, then the 54 GOP-run counties should do the same.

Yes, elections are about winning the hearts and minds of voters. But they’re also about ballots.

Biden and his allies in D.C. and Harrisburg have brought us inflation, expensive gasoline, rising utility bills, increased violent crime in our cities reaching into the suburbs, an open and unsecured border, growing dependency on enemies for energy and weakness, death, and destruction around the world.

Republicans are winning the battle for hearts and minds. Now, let’s win the battle at the ballot box. Let’s unify — and use every legal tool at our disposal so that no GOP voter fails to vote.

Do it for Sal — and for all those who still believe the American Dream is worth fighting for.

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Guy Ciarrocchi is a writer for RealClearPennsylvania and Broad+Liberty. He is also a senior fellow at the Commonwealth Foundation. The views expressed may not necessarily reflect the views of these organizations. Follow Guy at @PaSuburbsGuy.



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Affordable Housing Centers of Pennsylvania Helps Homeowners Protect Their Investment Across Generations » NCRC

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Affordable Housing Centers of Pennsylvania Helps Homeowners Protect Their Investment Across Generations » NCRC


For the past 17 years, the Affordable Housing Centers of Pennsylvania (AHCOPA) has provided a range of programs designed to build wealth within low- and moderate-income (LMI) communities. AHCOPA provides services to approximately 3,000 people each year via their pre-purchase, post-purchase and mortgage prevention counseling programs.

When Kenneth Bigos joined AHCOPA as their Executive Director in 2013, he set out to expand the organization’s offerings beyond first-time homeownership counseling services. He identified estate planning as an urgent need for the region’s LMI communities as well. 

A 2022 Consumer Reports survey found that 77% of Black and 82% of Hispanic Americans do not have a will in place, which is needed to ensure that their home investment continues to build generational wealth. Consequently, the state court steps in upon the owner’s passing to decide how assets will be distributed, with property not being able to be transferred to an heir until that lengthy process is complete. In Philadelphia alone, there are approximately 10,000 properties with titles that have not been legally settled. 

In response to this, AHCOPA launched the Will Power program in 2022 by leveraging existing relationships with pro-bono lawyers in the creation of wills and trusts for community members. The program has created an opportunity to serve a larger portion of Philadelphia’s population. 

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While the first-time homebuyer program initially attracted people in their mid-30s, Will Power participants are generally in their late 60s, prompting AHCOPA to think about what housing support looks like across an individual’s lifetime.

“Elderly households are more vulnerable,” Bigos said. “To reach these homeowners, we had to develop relationships with trusted agencies, such as senior centers, churches and other institutions that we would not typically work with in our first-time homebuyer program.”

As a result of that  work, AHCOPA marked a major milestone in October 2025: the signing of 1,000 wills. Thanks to the success of Will Power and the first-time homebuyer program, AHCOPA has solidified its reputation as the go-to financial advisor for working-class residents. 

Looking ahead, they are planning to add a new program designed to support people beyond the initial purchase of their home, which will include coaching to help owners develop their financial literacy. This would encompass how to build savings to buy a first home and avoid foreclosure in the event of a crisis.

For Bigos, NCRC membership is key to ensuring the success of these programs, especially in terms of organizing at the federal, state and local levels advocating for continued funding. 

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“Engaging with decision makers is very important and being an NCRC member has helped facilitate those relationships,” Bigos said. “Their support has been very impactful.”

 

Jesse Rhodes is a Contributing Writer.

Photo courtesy of the AHCOPA team.



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How gambling revenue helps Pennsylvania fire departments

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How gambling revenue helps Pennsylvania fire departments


It is hard to imagine that money spent and collected at casinos and in slot machines around the state can wind up being used at local volunteer fire departments throughout the commonwealth, but it’s true.

In Pennsylvania, a portion of the state’s gaming revenue is allocated to support fire departments and emergency management services to the tune of about $30 million each year.

Departments can apply for those funds through a series of state grants, and most departments say that the money from gaming is vital to help them pay for equipment, vehicles and even improvements to their buildings.

“This time we put in for a grant to finish our second floor of our facility here,” said Derry Township Fire Chief Mark Piantine.

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Piantine says that gambling revenue has purchased many things for his department in the past like swift water rescue boats as well as a new equipment washing station. Now he hopes that money can give his company a place to sleep when they are working long shifts in bad weather.

“The last storm we had, the Snowmageddon here a couple of weeks ago, we had people staying overnight,” Piantine said. “They were laying across the seats of the trucks and on the floor sleeping because our second floor is not finished.”

Piantine says every little bit helps both their department and other departments, because when it comes right down to it, running a fire department is expensive.

“When you buy a regular pair of gloves, you may pay $25 for them. We buy a pair of gloves, they’re $75 to $100,” said Piantine. “You can buy a pair of boots for $50, ours cost $600.”

Just a few miles away, in the city of Latrobe, Chief John Brasile says that while the city does a lot for them financially, gaming revenue helps a lot. It even helps them make payments on their rescue unit.

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“We have about a year’s worth of payments left on it,” Brasile said. “And we use our money for debt reductions on that truck.”

“And that’s essentially from gambling revenue?” Chris DeRose asked.

“Yes. It comes from the State Fire Commissioners’ Office,” Brasile said.

“When is that truck paid off?” DeRose asked.

“About this time next year,” Brasile replied. “And then we can use that money for other stuff then. We would like to get new rescue tools for that truck and they’re expensive.”

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The fire departments KDKA has spoken with about using state grant money from gambling revenue say that gambling money is great, but it is not a cure-all. And in fact, on Thursday night, the Latrobe Fire Department was holding yet another fundraising event to help them once again raise money for new fire equipment.



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Pennsylvania middle school employee wanted in Texas on child sex assault charges arrested

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Pennsylvania middle school employee wanted in Texas on child sex assault charges arrested



A Pennsylvania school district employee wanted in Texas on child sexual assault charges was arrested by U.S. Marshals on Thursday in Delaware County.

Michael Robinson, 43, was arrested around 7:30 a.m. Thursday in the 200 block of Windermere Avenue in Wayne, the U.S. Marshals Service said in a press release. He’s being held at the George W. Hill Correctional Facility and is awaiting extradition to Texas, according to the federal law enforcement agency.

U.S. Marshals said Robinson traveled to Tyler, Texas, in August 2024 to meet a minor under 15 years old whom he met online and allegedly sexually assaulted them over the course of a weekend.

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Robinson was indicted by the Smith County District Attorney’s Office in December 2025, the U.S. Marshals Service said.

Robinson worked as a paraprofessional at Radnor Township Middle School, the federal law enforcement agency said. CBS News Philadelphia reached out to Radnor Township School District for comment and is awaiting a response.



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