Fitzpatrick’s Nuanced Voting Record. This is the PoliticsPA Playbook. 

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Top Story

1.   The Least Loyal Republican

“More than a year and a half into President Donald Trump’s second term, U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick has voted against the White House and the GOP more than any other House Republican.

Yet, he has still voted with the president and his party nearly 70% and 77% of the time, respectively, during this congressional term, according to a new Inquirer analysis.

Fitzpatrick’s nuanced voting record has become a focal point of Democrats’ campaign against the five-term GOP incumbent from purple Bucks County this fall.” | Philadelphia Inquirer

Elsewhere

McCormick Lobbies For Parnell to Lead US Army. “U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Pa., has offered his support for Sean Parnell as chatter continues that he could be a candidate to lead the U.S. Army.” | The Center Square

The House Freedom Caucus Has to Transform — It Could Preview the GOP’s Post-Trump Era. “Prominent members of the House Freedom Caucus, an influential group of conservative lawmakers, are headed for the exits. How the group evolves after they depart will be closely watched in Washington as an early-stage contest for the Republican party’s ideological future.” | NPR

TV Networks Unite Against Trump’s White House Media Ban. “The five major TV networks that rotate responsibility for pooled video coverage of President Trump issued a unified statement Monday in solidarity with the outlets he banned from White House grounds. The networks’ power is practical and cultural: They collectively manage the pooled video that puts the presidency on television, the medium that made Trump a national celebrity and that he has long closely monitored.” | Axios

State

2.   PA Lawmakers Stress Youth Engagement At Annual Anti-Abortion Rally

“Thousands of people gathered on the steps of the Pennsylvania Capitol Monday morning to call for restrictions on abortion in the state.

This year’s anti-abortion March for Life rally, the sixth since the annual gathering began in 2021, was the largest, according to the conservative Pennsylvania Family Institute, which hosted the event.

Lawmakers and veterans of the anti-abortion movement told young people at the rally that they are essential to the struggle.” | LNP

Elsewhere

How Josh Shapiro Changed His Tune On Data Centers. “The Pennsylvania governor and potential 2028 presidential candidate went from touting the benefits of data centers to touting his role protecting communities from them.” | NBC News

Chobani’s New Pennsylvania Plant Is A ‘Game-Changer,’ But Officials Need Help From Farmers. “The push for 3 billion additional pounds of milk every year promises to shake up the commonwealth’s dairy industry — hopefully, for the better.” | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

PA ACA Patients Will See Double-Digit Increase In Premium Costs For 2027. “The more than 400,000 Pennsylvanians who get coverage through Pennie, the state-run ACA health insurance exchange, will see an average premium increase of just under 16% for the coming plan year, according to the Pennsylvania Insurance Department.” | PennLive

Around The Commonwealth

3.  Could Abandoned Mines House Pennsylvania’s Unwanted Data Centers? 

“Almost nobody wants a data center for a neighbor. Residents fear noise and air pollution, excessive energy and water use and the loss of open land. In Pennsylvania, a hot spot for new data centers, researchers see an opportunity to solve some of these issues by taking advantage of a much older environmental hazard: abandoned coal mines.

Building data centers on abandoned mine lands would provide an alternative to destroying farmlands or local forests, instead making use of already unwanted acreage. Underground mine pools could cool data centers without relying on outside water sources. And companies could help shoulder cleanup costs of existing contamination.” | Inside Climate News

Elsewhere

A New PBS Documentary Offers a Gentle Message to Our Polarized Times. I Hated It. “Bucks County, USA examines our political divisions and finds very fine people on both sides.” | Slate

Gainey Administration May Have Rigged Pittsburgh’s Contract-Bidding System, Unsealed Search Warrant Says. “The nine-page affidavit, which relies heavily on statements from former City Council attorney Dan Friedson, paints a portrait of an administration that could not or would not keep tabs on how its money was being spent by grantees and subcontractors and that allegedly took advantage of loopholes to ensure the administration’s favored applicants would receive city money.” | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Four Questions About the Nov. 3 Election. “The Nov. 3 election, which is six weeks away, features meaningful contests for voters. Here are four questions that Lehigh Valley’s midterm elections will answer on Nov. 3.” | Armchair Lehigh Valley

Editorial

4.  What Do You Think?

• The Coming Republican Revolt Against Tariffs | Phil Gramm and Donald Boudreaux
• The Cruel Politics That Pit Struggling Americans Against Each Other | LZ Granderson
• Fetterman and How the Democrat Party Has Changed | Guy Ciarrocchi
• The Sudden AI Panic Has a Lot to Do With the November Midterms | Victor Davis Hanson
• Don’t Turn Back the Clock on Pennsylvania’s Electric Choice | John Hanger
• Why Do Pennsylvania Elected Officials Want to Take My Family’s Mineral Rights From Us? | Jeff Sloan
• A PUC Settlement Could Quietly End Electric Choice For 2 Million Pennsylvanians | James H. Cawley
• How Libraries in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Other PA Communities Became Vital Public Institutions | Bernadette Lear
• PA’s Closed Primaries Close Out Democracy. It’s Time to Open Them | Lauren Cristella
• The Expensive Reality of Small County Government | Seth Higgins

1 Thing

5.   Fat Bear Week Opens For Alaska’s Heavyweight Crown. Can Chunk, the 1,200-Pound Champ, Win Again?

“After a summer spent packing away sockeye salmon, Alaska’s heftiest brown bears are ready to throw their weight around.

Online voting began Tuesday for Fat Bear Week, the annual contest that pits the rotund residents of Katmai National Park and Preserve against each other for the title of most oversized ursine.

Last year’s winner, Chunk — known officially as Bear 32 — is hungry for a repeat. Chunk’s weight in 2025 was estimated at 1,200 pounds, which gave him a narrow victory. This year he’s back and facing corpulent competition like Gully — aka Bear 903 — the offspring of two-time champion Grazer.” | AP

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