3/30 Playbook: GOP’s Political Reality Sinking In

March 30, 2026 | 8:08 AM EDT

Steve Ulrich

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????️ Headlines. One Month Into Iran, the GOP’s Political Reality Sinks In. What Is ‘Redboxing’? The Primaries That Will Shape the General Assembly. Kangaroo On the Lam.

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Top Story

1. One Month Into Iran, the GOP’s Political Reality Sinks In

“In Nevada, a gallon of gas is approaching $5. In Pennsylvania, farmers are fretting about the prices of fertilizer. And in Michigan, supply chain woes are throwing a wrench into the manufacturing and auto industry operations.

One month into the war in Iran, a new political reality is sinking in for Republicans in these and other battlegrounds: The war may not end as quickly as they initially hoped, and the literal and figurative costs keep rising.” | POLITICO

Elsewhere

Campaign Ads and the Return of Gas Pump Stickers: How PA Democrats Are Using Affordability to Hammer Trump On Iran War. “Four weeks into the Iran war, Democrats see the resulting economic impacts as a key message and a way of marrying a campaign-year focus on affordability with their opposition to the war.” | Philadelphia Inquirer

Trump Is ‘Very Unimpressed With Shapiro’. “Since he entered politics, President Trump has given other politicians nicknames. Think “Little Marco,” “Pocahontas,” or “Pencil Neck.” Now Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro has his own Trumpian appellation: “a stiff.”” | Broad + Liberty

PA Republicans Try New Playbook In 2026 Governor’s Race After ‘Jumbled Mess’ In 2022. “Rather than a fractured field, Republicans have rallied early around state Treasurer Stacy Garrity, effectively clearing the primary field and sidelining talk of another run by Sen. Doug Mastriano.” | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

PA-03: Cephas Drops Out Of Congressional Primary. “It’s the end of the line of the congressional campaign for Rep. Morgan Cephas. The state representative from the 192nd Legislative District in Philadelphia ended her campaign to succeed Rep. Dwight Evans in the 3rd Congressional District on Friday.” | PoliticsPA

Candidate Crib Sheet: The Race to Replace Dwight Evans. “The 3rd Congressional District has a highly competitive primary for the first time in 35 years. From the son of a former mayor to a famous doctor to a high-profile state representative, here’s what you need to know before you head to the polls.” | Philadelphia Magazine

State

2. What Is ‘Redboxing’ and Why Has A Complaint Been Filed Against Ryan Crosswell?

“If you are involved with politics, you are familiar with the term, “redboxing.”

To the rest of us, it sounds more like the old-fashioned way of renting DVD or Blu-Ray videos outside your neighborhood CVS or convenience store than anything having to with money, messaging, or influence.” | PoliticsPA

Elsewhere

‘Soul Crushing’: Seven Former Dispatchers Describe Toxic Work Environment at PA Game Commission. “The Pennsylvania Game Commission has launched an investigation and suspended one employee for the duration after Broad + Liberty presented new allegations of a toxic work environment in the commission’s dispatch center.” | Broad + Liberty

Will PA Supreme Court Decision On Felony Murder Be Applied Retroactively? “Legal experts and observers say it’s likely those already sentenced to life in prison for second-degree murder will be affected.” | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A Nonprofit Linked to a Combative PR Firm Is Opposing a Minimum Wage Hike In Pennsylvania. “Almost as soon as the state House passed a bill which would raise Pennsylvania’s minimum wage to $15 an hour, an organization called the Employment Policies Institute began reaching out to members of the media in Pennsylvania to share its view.” | Penn Capital-Star

How a Tiny Farm County Fought a Data Center Complex and Won. “Talen Energy tried to get 800 acres of Pennsylvania farmland rezoned so it could develop the center with Amazon. A grassroots effort defeated the plan.” | Civil Eats

Around The Commonwealth

3. The 2026 Primaries Likely To Shape the Pennsylvania House and Senate

“This spring, Pennsylvanians will vote in primary elections that will have huge ramifications for the way the state House and Senate look next year.

Serious primary challenges to incumbents often elicit a mix of frustration and dread in Harrisburg. Victories against sitting officials can embolden interest groups and make lawmakers think twice before making deals on tough issues. A primary loss for an established legislator can also help competitive seats flip from one party to another in the general election.” | Spotlight PA

Elsewhere

In This Pennsylvania Town, Differing Views On The War, Even Among Trump Voters. “Most voters here see the conflict driving up the cost of everything, even if they agree Iran has to be stopped.” | Globe and Mail

PA-14: Bradstock Details Why He’s Running For Congress For ‘No Kings’ Indiana Rallyers. “Alan Bradstock recapped a life spent in the public sector and in the private sector, on a desert in the Middle East and as a financial advisor in Pennsylvania, as an investigator of drug activity in the Southwest and in post-9/11 work in Canada. “I’m running because I’m worried about our kids’ future,” Bradstock said.” | Indiana Gazette

PA-01: Meet Bob Harvie, Democrats’ Best Chance at Defeating Brian Fitzpatrick and Helping Win Back the House. “For the past decade, Democrats in Bucks County have tried — and consistently failed — to do one thing: beat U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick. But Bucks County Commissioner Bob Harvie, 54, who has received local Democratic committees’ backing in the May primary against Lucia Simonelli, a grassroots candidate, to face Fitzpatrick in the fall, thinks he can crack the code to winning the 1st Congressional District.” | Philadelphia Inquirer

‘Not Looking To Raise Taxes’: Gov. Josh Shapiro Gives Tepid Response To Mayor Parker’s Budget Plans. “Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s $7 billion city budget proposal includes two tax-raising measures that will require state approval, meaning she will have to win over Harrisburg Republicans who control the State Senate to make her plan a reality. It turns out Parker will also need to convince at least one notable Democrat in Harrisburg: Gov. Josh Shapiro.” | Philadelphia Inquirer

Editorial

4. What Do You Think?

Shapiro’s Brand Is High Gloss and High Cost | Christopher Nicholas
Why Won’t the Democrats Agree With the American People? | Peter Kalis
The Arsonist Tries to Put Out His Fires | Mark S. Singel
Are We Headed for Federal Control of College Sports? | Allysia Finley
America’s Unfinished Moral Duty On Slavery | Philadelphia Tribune
The Affordability Crisis PA Families Can’t Ignore | Felicity A. Williams

1 Thing

5. Chesney the Kangaroo Scales Tall Fence and Flees Petting Zoo For Three Days On The Lam

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“How does a kangaroo escape a petting zoo?

It’s not the opening line to a dad joke. If you’re Chesney the kangaroo, you scale an eight-foot (2 1/2 meter) fence and go on the lam for three days, giving your keeper sleepless nights and sending residents of a small Wisconsin town on a search that would end happily on Saturday.

They chased reports of sightings and even rented heat-seeking drones, which proved effective in narrowing down the wanderings of the high-jumping adventurer.” | AP

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Let’s make this one a great one, shall we?

Steve Ulrich

Ulrich has worked as managing editor of PoliticsPA since January 2022 after spending two years as the Director of Elections in York (Pa.) County. Prior to that, he spent 35 years as a college athletics administrator. Send email to [email protected]