Pennsylvania
In swing state Pennsylvania, middle class struggles to get by
The giant steelworks that greets visitors to Allentown, Pennsylvania once symbolized the city’s success as an industrial hub. Today, its middle-class residents struggle to overcome the long-term impacts of post-pandemic inflation.
Purchasing power is one of the main themes of the US presidential election, and a thorn in the side of Democrats — especially in this Rust Belt battleground state, which could be one of a handful to decide who wins the White House in November.
“Inflation has come down tremendously,” said Bill Leiner, a 70-year-old nurse and volunteer for the Democratic Party, which seems to be coalescing behind Vice President Kamala Harris after Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the race.
“However, there are many people… who don’t believe that, because there’s a right-wing echo chamber pumping out disinformation,” Leiner told AFP, explaining he even has to help his own family members separate truth from fiction.
When a loved one complained about the high price of eggs, Leiner explained it was the result of a bird flu epidemic, not government policy, and advised the person to buy the store’s brand, instead of a name brand product, to save money.
“I’ve amended my habits. I keep an eye on prices. I look at what I do, at my budget,” he said.
Matthew Kayes, who was exiting a Whole Foods supermarket with his family, said he too had changed up his shopping habits, buying different products from different suppliers.
Kayes even goes straight to local farms in the region dotted with green hills, where “the prices are generally cheaper and, we find, the produce is better.”
Accountant Tamy Ferry said she watches her budget, but still buys what she likes, even if prices are higher.
“Occasionally, I stay away from certain things, or I wait until they go on sale, but I do shop at various stores,” Ferry said.
– More visitors at food pantries –
On Friday, all eyes will be on new inflation figures from the US government. May data showed that goods prices had cooled slightly — good news for both consumers and Democrats keen to overcome voter hesitation about their economic record.
In Allentown, residents are considered middle class if their households earn between $37,300 and $112,000 a year. Even then, some have had to turn to food pantries.
“For the last two years, we saw almost a doubling of the people showing up in our food pantry every single day,” said J. Marc Rittle, the executive director of New Bethany, a nonprofit that helps those facing economic and social hardship.
According to Rittle, more and more of the newcomers visiting New Bethany are middle class.
“Housing costs have skyrocketed, so people have to choose between paying their rent or buying food,” he said, explaining those coming to the pantry are looking for a “complement” to the food they can afford on their own.
“We don’t refuse anyone,” Rittle said — even those whose salaries exceed the level suggested by the federal Feeding America program.
He said he noticed that more Allentown residents started having trouble when the financial aid programs launched during the coronavirus pandemic expired.
At that same moment, the war in Ukraine sent oil prices soaring, which translated into an overall jump in the cost of daily necessities.
The annual inflation rate has certainly fallen, from a high of 9.5 percent in June 2022 to an average of 2.6 percent in recent months.
“A slowdown in inflation is still an increasing rate of the cost of living, so that doesn’t help at all. It’s just not going up as much as before,” Rittle said.
“We would have to return to a lower cost of living.”
– ‘Modest and incremental’ –
Al Jacobsen, executive director of Allentown’s 1,000-seat Miller Symphony Hall, also counts on the assistance of others to keep his budget out of the red.
He struggles to balance higher operating costs and salaries with the impossibility of raising ticket prices without seeing a hit on attendance, among patrons who face tough choices about how to spend the little disposable income they have.
He also says he has created new ticket categories and launched subscription incentives, but has been unable to book some artists whose fees have soared.
“We are not an essential service like food or shelter, so we’re limited in how much we can increase without affecting the demand,” Jacobsen said.
“Our increases have been modest and incremental.”
elm/sst/mlm
Shirley Ann Dailey, 89, of Daytona Beach, Florida (formerly of Montoursville, Pennsylvania), passed away peacefully on February 23, 2026, surrounded by her family at AdventHealth Hospital in Daytona Beach.
Born December 14, 1936, in Sayre, Pennsylvania, she was the daughter of the late John and Laura (Reinbold) White. She met the love of her life, Gordon Ell Dailey whom she shared over 60 years of marriage until his passing in 2023.
Shirley grew up in Buffalo, New York, and Dushore, Pennsylvania. She graduated from Turnpike High School in Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, and continued her education with two years of college. She went on to have a distinguished career spanning more than 40 years. Her professional journey included roles with the Social Security Administration, General Motors, Pennsylvania Department of General Services, and most notably, 30 years of dedicated service with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT). She served as an Administrative Assistant to the District Executive for PennDOT Engineering District 3-0. Shirley took great pride in her work and spoke fondly of her time at PennDOT throughout her retirement.
In her personal life, Shirley enjoyed collecting artwork, caring for her home, taking walks, bicycling, and vacationing with her family.
Surviving is a son, David (Crista) Dailey of Daytona Beach, Fla.; a grandson, Garrett Dailey, of Daytona Beach, Fla.; sisters, Regina (Drew) Bagley of Shunk, Pa., and Deborah (Ray) Thall of Mechanicsburg, Pa. She is also survived by numerous nieces and nephews.
In addition to her parents and husband, Shirley was preceded in death by a sister, Margaret Pier, and a brother, William White.
Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at McCarty-Thomas Funeral Home, 733 Broad Street, Montoursville, Pennsylvania, with Pastor David Smith officiating. Burial will follow in Twin Hills Memorial Park, Muncy. Friends may call from 9 to 10 a.m. Wednesday at the funeral home.
Expressions of sympathy may be sent to the family at mccarthythomas.com.
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The digital-first gambling support model aims to strengthen the PA online casino industry’s overall infrastructure, including the integration of care coordination and self-help tools.
Players at Pennsylvania online casinos may soon find more responsible gaming resources thanks to a new, first-of-its kind rollout of a digital platform for gambling support known as Almond Digital Health. Approved by the Pennsylvania General Assembly, it represents the first legislative-led and funded program in the United States that aims to bolster the state’s overall gambling support infrastructure. If you’re in Pennsylvania, sign up for DraftKings Casino and get 1,000 Flex Spins:
Legislators take digital-first approach to responsible gambling
Another example of lawmakers looking to modernize responsible gambling resources among legal sportsbooks and PA online casinos, the program will offer anonymous, multilingual access to responsible gambling educational materials as well as self-help tools and connections to treatment services.
Officials called it the first legislative-backed, digital-first gambling support program of its kind in the nation, with the goal of filling gaps in access to care. That certainly created some urgency for legislators as the real money online casino and licensed sports betting industries in Pennsylvania continue to expand and grow.
The Almond Digital Health platform will be integrated into mobile casino apps, along with in-person casinos and through partnerships with universities and sports betting operators.
Ultimately, officials look to create earlier intervention opportunities to address potential gambling addictions and provide more readily available responsible gambling tools and resources. Get started at BetMGM Casino now here:
New responsible gambling initiative will complement existing resources
While the program is expected to be rolled out over the next several weeks, it is not designed to replace all of the existing tools and resources offered throughout the state and via PA online casinos. Rather, the Almond platform will act more as a complement to help fill gaps in access as the legal gambling industry continues to grow.
Kath Middleton, chief product officer of Almond Digital Health, emphasized that the platform is about “scale and access,” noting that Pennsylvania is “building an approach that works both within and outside traditional care settings.”
According to a press release, online casino gaming, sports betting, in-person gambling and the lottery has generated tens of billions of dollars in annual wagering. With that growth, officials wanted to ensure that Pennsylvanians had “practical, accessible and multilingual ways” to engage early with and understand all the available options for responsible gaming.
In rolling out the Almond program, Rep. Joe McAndrew highlighted that more and more people betting on sports or playing casino games online will be exposed to responsible gambling habits and how to prevent addiction through education – in fact, earlier than traditional resources.
It’s a practical approach, Rep. Joe Prokopiak echoed, that will provide “instant impact” for individuals struggling with addiction or at risk of developing one. “It’s an evolved issue,” Prokopiak said, which the state can now address “with an evolved solution.”
Pennsylvania
Jewish Pennsylvania judge leaves Democratic Party over antisemitism | The Jerusalem Post
An elected Supreme Court justice in Pennsylvania announced Monday night that he has left the Democratic Party and registered as an independent, citing concerns about antisemitism.
In a statement, David Wecht, who is Jewish and served as Pennsylvania’s Democratic Party chair from 1998 to 2001, said he believed antisemitism has moved from the fringe of the Democratic Party to the mainstream.
“Nazi tattoos, jihadist chants, intimidation and attacks at synagogues, and other hateful anti-Jewish invective and actions are minimized, ignored, and even coddled,” he wrote. “Acquiescence to Jew-hatred is now disturbingly common among activists, leaders, and even many elected officials in the Democratic Party.”
Wecht wrote that he had long understood that antisemitism “always festered on the fringe” of the right, a fact that hit home in 2018 when a far-right shooter killed 11 people at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, where he and his wife were married in 1998.
“In the years that have followed, that same hatred has grown on the left,” he said in his statement. “It is the duty of all good people to fight this virus, and to do so before it is too late.”
Wecht previously made national headlines for his 2020 ruling against an effort to overturn President Joe Biden’s victory in Pennsylvania.
Through a spokesperson, Wecht declined to be interviewed about his exit from the Democratic Party.
Wecht’s comments come as Democrats wrestle with a range of internal tensions over antisemitism.
The ascent of Graham Platner, an oyster farmer who recently covered up a Nazi Totenkopf skull-and-crossbones tattoo, to become Maine’s Democratic candidate for Senate, and the increasing coziness between some progressive politicians and Hasan Piker, the leftist streamer who has said he favors Hamas over Israel, have particularly alarmed some members of the Jewish community.
Wecht is the son of renowned forensic pathologist Cyril Wecht, who was involved in investigating the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Wecht’s mother, translator Sigrid Ronsdal, spent the first six years of her life living under Nazi occupation in Norway.
“I know David and his legendary father, Cyril,” Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, who has clashed with his Party over Israel, tweeted following Wecht’s announcement. “As I’ve affirmed, I’m not changing my Party – but I fully understand David’s personal choice. The Democratic Party must confront its own rising antisemitism problem.”
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