The details are likely to remain elusive well into the weekend, but on Wednesday evidence was accumulating that the Philadelphia region could become a winter wonderland for the remainder of January.
“We’re definitely going to get some snow,” said Alex Staarmann, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Mount Holly, which probably won’t make a first accumulation guess until Thursday afternoon. Snow could begin as early as Saturday night and continue into Monday.
The weather service Thursday posted a winter-storm watch for the entire region — for all of Delaware and most of Pennsylvania and New Jersey — in effect from 7 p.m. Saturday until 1 p.m. Monday.
At the weather office, “It’s all hands on deck,” said agency hydrologist Ray Kruzdlo Thursday. The “outside chance” that the region would be spared a major storm “is leaving us.”
AccuWeather Inc. is calling for 6 to 10 inches for Philly, very much subject to change, said senior meteorologist Bob Larsen.
Several inches of snow would be all but certain, the weather service said. Philadelphia could have a 75% chance of a foot or more, based on analysis of a blend of computer models, and a 50-50 shot of 18 inches or more. However, the individual models are having their usual squabbles, with the American being the snowiest.
Risk of a big winter storm continues to grow, tho uncertainty remains on how much snow falls, & any poss. mixing with ice &/or rain. Consider your plan of action regarding a large snow storm. Travel may be very difficult Sunday, even Monday. Further clarity as we get it. pic.twitter.com/6FWtwqzoDu
In any event, Staarmann said: “It could be a significant storm for most of the region.”
And that applies to the rest of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast. AccuWeather Inc. estimated that snow and ice during the weekend could affect half the nation’s population.
Said Stephen Morgan, a meteorologist with Fox Weather: “It’s one of the most sprawling systems we’ve seen in several years.”
Predictably, computer models have been using the map as a Ouija board, moving around the zones of the expected heaviest snows.
Earlier in the week, it appeared that the region would be near the northern edge of the snowfall; on Wednesday, however, the models bumped the snow north, increasing the chances that snow could mix with sleet and freezing rain in Delaware and South Jersey.
The snow could mix with sleet at the height of the storm even in the Philly region, the weather service said. That would hold down accumulations: Sleet is slow to accumulate. Conversely, since it is pure ice, it is slower to melt.
Should any rain get mixed in, it would freeze on contact: The upper air may be warmer, but temperatures at the surface are forecast to be mostly in the teens Sunday.
The amounts of snow and mixing would depend on the track of a storm that is forecast to develop off the Texas Gulf Coast and track through the Tennessee Valley and off the Mid-Atlantic coast on Sunday. That track ultimately will be determined by other moving parts in the atmosphere.
As the storm intensifies, its onshore winds would import warmer air into the upper atmosphere, changing the snow to sleet and/or freezing rain, but the surface layers would remain quite cold, Larsen said.
Despite the potential mixing, it is at least possible that Philly will get its first double-digit snowfall since Jan. 22, 2018, said Paul Dorian, a meteorologist with Arcfield Weather, based in Valley Forge.
In the short term, Thursday may be a day to savor. It’s heading into the mid-40s, with nothing falling from the skies. The cold begins to filter in Friday, and highs will be in the teens Saturday.
After the precipitation shuts off Sunday night or Monday, whatever has fallen won’t be in a hurry to disappear, Staarmann said.
Temperatures might not get above freezing for several days after the snow stops, he said. Wind chills are expected to be in the single digits Monday morning, and below zero Tuesday.
“This overall very cold weather pattern is likely to continue into next weekend, potentially beyond,” the weather service said.
A video of a former WHYY intern yelling expletives and pepper-spraying a local influencer on a SEPTA bus is going viral on conservative media.
During the encounter on Monday afternoon, 22-year-old Paulina Reyes called 22-year-old Francis Scales a “fascist” and “racist.” Reposts of the video capturing the incident have since garnered millions of views on social media.
The video depicts Reyes accusing Scales of insulting Muslim people, Black people, and Latino people in posts on his website. Reyes then proceeds to pepper-spray him in the face while Scales’ friend and colleague films.
Scales runs a website called Surge Philly on which he posts videos of himself interviewing people at protests. He became known for provoking District Attorney Larry Krasner at a town hall and organizing a protest against him.
Social media accounts, including I Meme Therefore I Am, which has more than 842,000 followers on X, and Libs of TikTok, which has 4.5 million X followers, launched the video and its two subjects into the national spotlight in the days following the encounter. Both social media accounts are known for posting and reposting content geared toward conservative audiences.
“BREAKING: Antifa agitator attacked two conservative independent journalists on a Philly bus, pepper spraying them, punching them, and trying to grab their phone. She needs to be identified and arrested!” I Meme Therefore I Am posted on X alongside the video on Monday night.
By Wednesday afternoon the post had 2.3 million views and 8,600 reposts.
Billionaire Elon Musk got involved, commenting “She has violence issues” on Surge Philly’s X post containing the video of the incident. His comment attracted 222,000 views.
Soon, the social media posts were linking Reyes to WHYY. Reyes interned there over the summer but neglected to update her LinkedIn profile to reflect that her internship had ended months ago. The lapse led people on social media to post about her as if she were still employed there and led to criticism of the public radio station.
“Hi @WHYYNews, why are your reporters pepper spraying independent journalists on the bus??” Libs of TikTok posted Tuesday morning.
Scales has capitalized on the attention, reposting several tweets from popular social media accounts containing the video and messages supporting him and condemning Reyes.
Meanwhile, Reyes said she has received “nonstop” phone calls from strangers around the country and has gotten private messages from people threatening to rape or kill her.
Reyes and Scales were peers at Community College of Philadelphia, where Reyes is still a full-time student studying communications and media. Scales was studying biology and got partway through his degree before leaving school and transitioning to full-time content creation, he said. He plans to go back and finish his degree eventually.
The two had crossed paths a few times at school and were familiar with each other at the time of the encounteron the Route 7 bus, they both said.
Reyes said she had an overall positive impression of Scales on their first few meetings, and felt he was trying to do right by the students in his capacity as student government president.
But her attitude changed during his tenure as president. She said she observed him condescend tostudents and staff of color and carried that behavior over to the content on his Surge Philly website once he left school.
When she saw him on the bus in South Philly, her initial intention was to have a civil conversation, she said. She planned on asking him why his videos do not offer multiple viewpoints on the issues discussed.
“I did not want to pepper-spray someone on a public bus,” she said. “This is not something I wanted to do.”
Scales soon started filming the confrontation “for my own safety,” he said, because “she was attacking me.”
Reyes said she asked him to stop filming and felt the anger building as he kept the camera rolling. Especially as it started to dawn on her that he would likely post this video online.
“I got mad and I wanted to defend myself because he wasn’t listening,” Reyes said. “I did what I thought was the safest thing to protect myself. I pepper-sprayed him in the face.”
Scales said he managed to dodge the first spray. Reyes then got off the bus.
Knowing this video was likely to reach Scales’ followers, Reyes returned to the bus and came at Scales again with insults about his videos.
“I wanted to make a message that the content he was making was harmful and it was hurting people,” Reyes said. “It was hurting communities that are trying to feel safe right now.”
She concluded her tirade by pepper-spraying him again, this time getting him in the eyes.
SEPTA is investigating the incident, which took place at 23rd Street and Washington Avenue, according to agency spokesperson Andrew Busch.
Philadelphia police did not respond to a request for comment. Nor did Community College of Philadelphia.
Scales said he posted the video online partly because it was such a shocking incident, but also, in part, because it felt aligned with the rest of the content on his website.
“I thought it was relevant,” Scales said. “She was calling me a racist and a fascist and then she committed violence because of what she thought I was.”
This was not Scales’ first time getting attacked for his interviews and posts, he said. He attributes the attacks to the lines of questioning he often pursues when interviewing people at protests. The protesters seem to sense he’s not “in their circle,” he said.
Some of Scales’ recent videos consist of him interviewing people at protests and on the street. He typically homes in on one question, such as “Do you think people have a right to disrupt ICE operations?” or “Do you believe in the concept of having a border?”
“They react aggressively and violently to anybody who they feel may not have their same worldview,” he said. “I think it’s a sign that what I’m doing is good and that I need to stay on this path.”
As for Reyes’ journalistic aspirations, she said she is nervous.
“My entire life has been feeling like it’s falling down now,” she said. “I’m just worried about how this would affect my future as a journalist.”
WHYY spokesperson Gary Bramnick responded to the incident with a statement clarifying Reyes “has no current affiliation, employment, or contractual relationship with our organization.”
Reyes said she has undergone years of treatment for borderline personality disorder and depression. She has been working on managing her emotions better, she said, but, in this moment, they got the best of her.
“I’m not a perfect person and I’m learning how to self-regulate better,” she said.
For Scales’ part, he said he does not feel safe returning to campus until the college makes a public statement in an effort to “denounce political violence.”
Dana Edwards was sworn in as mayor of Narberth earlier this month.
Narberth’s new mayor may have only lived in the 4,500-person borough for five years, but he’s already got a vision for it.
Dana Edwards, 53, was sworn into office earlier this month after securing the backing of Narberth’s Democratic committee and running unopposed in both the primary and general elections.
Now the Puerto Rico native who’s lived in several other parts of the U.S. before settling in Narberth is focused on sustainable growth while maintaining the borough’s “hometown feel,” The Inquirer’s Denali Sagner reports.
When the late Kobe Bryant came to Lower Merion, he helped shape a rivalry with Chester that endured.
Decades may have passed, but a longtime rivalry between two high school basketball teams, begun in part by legend Kobe Bryant, still lives on today.
When Bryant joined the Lower Merion Aces his freshman year, the school wasn’t a basketball powerhouse. But as the program improved, it soon built a rivalry with the much-more-stacked Chester High School, so much so that their matchups would often sell out venues.
Saks Fifth Avenue’s parent company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last week, leaving some questions about the future of its stores. For the time being, the Saks on City Avenue in Bala Cynwyd will remain open while the company restructures. Here’s what we know so far.
Women’s apparel and accessories store Francesca’s, which has a location at Suburban Square in Ardmore, is reportedly closing its remaining stores after years of financial turmoil. Francesca’s filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in late 2020. (Fox Business)
Villanova University is among a handful of Pennsylvania colleges that are now paying some of its athletes directly. The move comes after a federal class-action lawsuit last year regarding student athlete compensation. Villanova said it will primarily pay athletes on its basketball teams.
Coulter Place, an apartment community at Suburban Square, is now open. The 131-unit, five-story building has a fitness center, clubroom, game room, pool, coworking spaces, and pet-care spaces with rents ranging from about $3,030 to $7,035 per month.
A handful of Philadelphia Police Department employees live in and around Lower Merion, according to a new Inquirer analysis. An increasing number of Philadelphia police employees — about a third of full-time staff — live outside the city, with four who reside in Bala Cynwyd, three in Bryn Mawr, and two each in Ardmore, Narberth, Villanova, and Wynnewood. See a map of where employees live here.
Bala Cynwyd resident Jenny Sved has been named the new executive director of Teach PA, the statewide affiliate of Jewish education advocacy organization Teach Coalition, which represents Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy and Perelman Jewish Day School.
A new pet boutique, Mila’s Pup Tienda, is coming to Ardmore, taking over the space at 18 E. Lancaster Ave.
6abc recently caught up with Carolyn Vachani, the owner of Plant 4 Good in Ardmore. When the former nurse was ready to retire, she decided to open the shop at 100 Cricket Ave. to help connect others to plants and gardening. See the segment here.
Wynnewood’s English Village recently marked a milestone, turning 100 last year, and a century later still remains a coveted, if under-the-radar spot for homebuyers. The village sits between Cherry Lane and Wister Road and spans 29 Tudor-style homes. (Main Line Today)
🏫 Schools Briefing
The district is hosting its third strategic plan community input meeting on Wednesday from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Lower Merion High School cafeteria. There, members of the community can share their thoughts on the district’s strategic plan for 2026 to 2031.
Tonight is Welsh Valley’s winter choral concert. The school board will meet from 7 to 9 p.m. on Monday, and there will be tours of Harriton High for eighth grade students and their families on Wednesday, which is also course selection night. See the district’s full calendar here.
Lower Merion High School’s wrestling team recently took home third place overall in the Central League Championship Tournament, held at Harriton High School. It was the team’s best overall performance. Senior Sam Soeffing also took home first place in his competition.
🍽️ On our Plate
With a more than 700-person waitlist, a Gladwyne restaurant is surprisingly tough to get into, but it’s the best meal The Inquirer’s Kiki Aranita has eaten on the Main Line. Why’s it so difficult to score a table? Partly because Carlton Commons is in senior-living community Waverly Heights and requires residency. For those with friends or relatives there, it’s worth tagging along for the osso buco, butternut squash risotto, rigatoni alla vodka, or the signature tomato aspic.
Bikini Burger, a new eatery at 44 Rittenhouse Place in Ardmore, is hosting a ribbon cutting today at 11:30 a.m. to mark its official opening. Its menu includes burgers, milkshakes, and fries.
Looking for a non-alcoholic cocktail? Char & Stave in Ardmore has a barrel-aged “Old Fashioned,” which Philadelphia Magazine says is among the best alcohol-free sips on area menus currently, noting its barrel-aged espresso base gives it “a bourbon-like, oaky smoothness.”
🎳 Things to Do
🎶 The Music of Beyoncé and More for Kids: This kid-friendly show will feature music from the iconic artist. ⏰ Sunday, Jan. 25, 11:45 a.m. 💵 $20.44 📍 Ardmore Music Hall
🎥 The Awful Truth: Catch a screening of this Cary Grant and Irene Dunne screwball comedy. ⏰ Wednesday, Jan. 28, 7:15 p.m. 💵 $11.75-$16.25 📍 Bryn Mawr Film Institute
The stone Colonial was built in 1925 and spans over 4,000 square feet.
Built in 1925, this spacious Wynnewood stone Colonial has a classic exterior and a contemporary updated interior. The home’s first floor features a living room with a fireplace, and a dining room that opens onto the kitchen, which has a waterfall peninsula with a breakfast bar. There are four bedrooms and three full bathrooms on the second floor, and a “bonus room” on the third floor. The home also has a finished basement with a half bathroom.
By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.
This suburban content is produced with support from the Leslie Miller and Richard Worley Foundation and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. Editorial content is created independently of the project donors. Gifts to support The Inquirer’s high-impact journalism can be made at inquirer.com/donate. A list of Lenfest Institute donors can be found at lenfestinstitute.org/supporters.
Swarthmore’s new mayor expects his background in emergency services management to be an asset in guiding the borough. Here’s why. Also this week, the former Crozer-Chester Medical Center has a new owner, a new bookstore specializing in rare and used books has opened in Swarthmore, plus an inclusive cafe that will employ individuals with disabilities is opening in Glen Mills. We’re also gearing up for a (potentially big) snowstorm this weekend. Follow along here for the latest forecast.
Conlen Booth was sworn in as mayor of Swarthmore earlier this month.
“If not me, then who?”
That was a phrase that kept running through Conlen Booth’s mind when contemplating whether he should run for mayor of Swarthmore. Despite initial reluctance, the Strath Haven High School grad felt he could do well in the role, thanks in part to his 25 years with the borough’s fire department, most recently as its chief.
The 42-year-old expects that experience to be valuable as Swarthmore and the surrounding communities continue to deal with the fallout from Crozer-Chester Medical Center’s closure last year. (Keep reading for more news out of Crozer-Chester.)
The former site of Crozer-Chester Medical Center has a new owner. Chariot Equities completed its $10 million purchase of the shuttered hospital yesterday and is hoping to have an agreement with a health system in the next six months to operate both a “right-sized” hospital and an emergency department there, with the first phase opening in the next two years.
Riddle Hospital got an additional $1 million in state funding this week, bringing its total to $4 million, funds that will allow for the hiring of more staff. The Media hospital, part of Main Line Health, has been allocated extra funding to help it handle an increase in patients after Crozer Health’s closure last year.
Media’s new mayor, Joi Washington, wrote a note to borough residents as she kicks off her term, highlighting her passion for walkability, community, and local businesses. As Washington settles into office, she also recently chatted with Philadelphia Magazine about how she ended up in the borough over a decade ago, its small-town feel, and her hopes for increasing pedestrian safety.
A new bookshop has opened in Swarthmore. Dirt Farm Books has taken over the space at 413 Dartmouth Ave., selling rare and used books. The shop, owned by borough resident John McIntyre, opened last week and specializes in 20th century literature, African American literature, and economics, with rare books making up about half its inventory. It also stocks an array of classics, manuscripts, and letters, and buys classic and rare booksfrom customers. The shop is currently open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. It’s the second bookstore to open in the borough in recent months. Celia Bookshop opened at 102 Park Ave. in October.
More than a dozen Philadelphia Police Department employees live in Media’s 19063 zip code, according to a new Inquirer analysis. An increasing number of Philadelphia police employees — about a third of full-time staff — live outside the city, with 13 in Media, four in Wallingford, six in Swarthmore, and 18 in Springfield. See a map of where employees live here.
Renovations on the Swarthmore Veterans Memorial at the corner of Park and Dartmouth Avenues is scheduled to begin Monday. Plans call for restoring the memorial’s bronze plaques, adding ADA-accessible walkways and seating, updating benches, pavers, and landscaping, and adding a memorial garden. (The Swarthmorean)
Women’s apparel and accessories store Francesca’s, which has a location at Glen Eagle Square in Glen Mills, is reportedly closing its remaining stores after years of financial turmoil. Francesca’s filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in late 2020. (Fox Business)
Ever have a question about the area you can’t answer? Submit it to Curious Greater Media, and one of our reporters might track down the answer.
🏫 Schools Briefing
There are early dismissals tomorrow for two Rose Tree Media schools ahead of dances: Penncrest High will let out at 11 a.m. and kick off its freshman/sophomore dance at 7 p.m., and Springton Lake Middle School will finish classes at 11:50 a.m. and have its seventh and eighth grade winter semi-formal dance starting at 6:30 p.m. Penncrest will have a course selection night next Thursday from 6:30 to 9 p.m. See the district’s full calendar here.
Wallingford-Swarthmore has a school board meeting Monday at 7 p.m. and back-to-school night next Thursday. See the district’s full calendar here.
🍽️ On our Plate
A new cafe is coming to the Concordville Town Centre in Glen Mills. Ryan’s Rise Up Cafe is slated to open in March at 4 Evergreen Dr., where it will employ individuals with disabilities, as well as provide them with training and support. The cafe is the brainchild of Jim Vail, who wanted to create an inclusive space in the community for people like his 20-year-old son Ryan, who has Down syndrome. (CBS Philadelphia)
🎳 Things to Do
😂 Chris Nee Comedy Night: The local comedian will perform a Philly-forward set and film his comedy special A Trip Down Academy Lane. ⏰ Friday, Jan. 23, 7 p.m. 💵 $25 📍The Media Theatre
🛍️ Woman-Owned Business Pop-Up Market: More than two dozen women-owned businesses will gather this weekend for a pop-up market where you can shop, make a floral bouquet, or learn more about holistic wellness. ⏰ Saturday, Jan. 24, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. 💵 Pay as you go 📍Media Town Mall vestibule and Glimmer Gifts + Goods, Media
🧊 Ice on State: Browse works of art from Ice Sculpture Philly artists, watch live demonstrations, and listen to music at this family-friendly event. ⏰ Saturday, Jan. 24-Sunday, Jan. 25, noon-5 p.m. 💵 Free 📍State Street, Media
🎺 Tri-State Jazz Society Concert: Jazz cornet and trumpet player Danny Tobias will headline this month’s concert. ⏰ Sunday, Jan. 25, 2-4:30 p.m. 💵 $10 for members, $20 for non-members 📍Community Arts Center, Wallingford
🌻 Native Plants and Pollinators of Pennsylvania: Stoneleigh naturalist Samantha Nestory will discuss the importance of lesser-known native pollinators and the plants that help support them during this lecture. ⏰ Monday, Jan. 26, 7:30 p.m. (snow date: Feb. 2) 💵 $10 for Gardners of Rose Valley members, $15 at the door📍 The Old Mill, Rose Valley
The living room has a brick fireplace and original hardwood floors.
Built in 1900, this Craftsman bungalow pays homage to its historic roots while incorporating modern upgrades. The first floor features a family room, a dining room, a living room with a brick fireplace, and a kitchen with a Viking range and green cabinetry. There are three bedrooms on the second floor, while the third floor contains the primary suite, which has a whirlpool tub and a skylight. The home also has a detached one-car garage and a fenced backyard. There’s an open house Saturday from noon to 2 p.m.
By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.
This suburban content is produced with support from the Leslie Miller and Richard Worley Foundation and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. Editorial content is created independently of the project donors. Gifts to support The Inquirer’s high-impact journalism can be made at inquirer.com/donate. A list of Lenfest Institute donors can be found at lenfestinstitute.org/supporters.
As Joshua Weikert shared ground rules for quizzes in his early morning international relations class, he sought to put his students at ease.
“I don’t want you stressing out about these,” he said Tuesday, as the new semester got underway at Immaculata University in Chester County.“I myself was a terrible student.”
Weikert, 47, of Collegeville, may not have been a star student, but he sure knows a lot.
The politics and public policy professor will compete onJeopardy! 2026 Tournament of Championsat 7 p.m. Friday on ABC, having won six games when he was on the show in March.
Joshua Weikert teaches a class in international relations at Immaculata University.
Over a couple weeks, Jeopardy! shows will feature him vying against 20 other champions, including Allegra Kuney, a doctoral student at Rutgers University’s New Brunswick campus, and Matt Massie, a Philadelphia lawyer who moved to the area in 2024, who also will appear on Friday’s show.
Friday’s match is a quarter-final, and if Weikert wins, he’ll advance to the semifinals. (Kuney won her quarter-final Tuesday.)
Weikert won about $103,000 when he competed last year, 10% of which he donated to a memorial scholarship fund named for his late friend, Jarrad Weikel, a Phoenixville man who died unexpectedly at age 40 in 2022. The winner of the champions tournament —which will conclude sometime in early February — will take home a grand prize of a quarter million.
Weikert will watch the show Friday among family and friends — including his fellow contestant Massie — at Troubles End Brewing in Collegeville, which named one of its beers after him. It’s an English Bitter, one of Weikert’s favorites, called “Who is Josh?”
At Immaculata, a Catholic college where Weikert has taught since 2016, students and staff are stoked. A campus watch party is planned, President Barbara Lettiere said.
His appearance last year, she said, has put a welcome spotlight on the school and brought an outpouring of enthusiasm from alumni. On tours, some prospective students and their parents who spot Weikert have recognized him, she said.
“I never knew that this show was as watched as it appears to be,” she said. “Win or lose, Immaculata wins.”
Student Ben Divens talks about his Jeopardy-star professor Joshua Weikert.
Ben Divens, 19, said it’s “jaw-dropping” and “surreal” to know his teacher will compete in the Jeopardy! champion tournament.
“I knew from the first time I met him he was a super, super smart person,” said Divens, a prelaw major from Souderton.
“He’s guided us so much in our major already,” added Bailey Kassis, 18, a political science major from Fort Washington.
“He’s guided us so much in our major already,” student Bailey Kassis said about her professor Joshua Weikert.
An early gamer
Weikert said he has watched Jeopardy! ever since he can remember, probably since 1984 when he was 6, and it came back on the air with Alex Trebek as host. He grew up just outside of Gettysburg in a family that loved to play games, he said.
“We took them very seriously, which is to say that they didn’t just let the kids win,” he said of his parents, both of whom had accounting degrees. “We were destroyed routinely in the games we played.”
About his performance as a student, he said he often skipped his homework.
“Just give me an exam,” he said, describing his attitude at the time. “I’ll pass it.”
He got his bachelor’s degree in international relations from West Chester University, master’s degrees from Villanova and Immaculata, and his doctorate from Temple. He also attended the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center, where he studied modern standard Arabic while serving in the U.S. Army.
Joshua Weikert sets expectations for students as a new semester gets underway at Immaculata University.
In addition to teaching, he also works as a policy adviser to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives under state Rep. Joe Webster, a Democrat serving part of Montgomery County. He vets legislators’ ideas and offers ideas of his own.
“The only thing they’ve ever told me no on was [when] I tried to abolish the Pennsylvania Senate,” he said.
So many bills pass one body, then die in the other, he explained. If there were one legislative body where all House and Senate members served, that might be different, he said.
Weikert’s office walls are lined with framed newspaper front pages highlighting major events: “Nixon Resigns,” “Nazis Surrender,” “Man Walks on Moon,” “Kennedy Shot to Death.”
“Every once in a while, I just get up and read one of the stories,” he said.
He got them from his mother-in-law’s basement and put them up after his wife told him his office needed some decor.
Weikert’s status as a Jeopardy! champion makes clear he’s a fast thinker. He’s also a fast talker.
“I don’t really drink caffeine. I just talk this fast,” he told his students.
His wife, he told the class, tells him to slow down.
“Keep up,” he tells her, he said.
The road to Jeopardy
Since his mid-20s, Weikert has been trying to get on Jeopardy!. Years ago, he got a call from the game show, but he put the caller on hold to get to a quiet place. They hung up.
“I was like, well, I guess I missed that opportunity,” he said.
But he kept trying and started taking the online tests, which typically draw 200,000 participants annually. In 2024, he got an email, inviting him to take the test again — and then again under Zoom surveillance.
Next came a virtual audition and practice game in August 2024. That earned him a place in a pool of about 3,000 people, of whom a few hundred eventually became contestants.
Weikert got the call last January and was invited to fly to California the next month to compete.
In reality, his varied interests and life path had already prepared him for the show. He reads a lot. He’s a fan of historical fiction, pop culture, and movies. His work as a public policy scholar helps, too.
But to try and up his game, he read plots of Shakespeare plays and a book on great operas. He flipped through lists of presidents and vice presidents. His wife, Barbara, a Norristown School District middle school music teacher, read questions to him from old Jeopardy! shows. He knew about 80% of the answers, he said.
That, however, didn’t stop him from having panic dreams of being on stage and knowing nothing.
The toughest category for him, he said, is popular music. Movies, history, and politics are his strongest.
But the hardest questions, he said, are the ones with four or five strong possible answers.
“Getting a Jeopardy! answer right is more about knowing what it’s not than what it is,” he said.
Ultimately, he said, it’s impossible to really study for the game show.
“The odds that something you study would come up is almost zero,” he said.
It was an intense experience on stage last March, but the staff put contestants at ease, he said. Host Ken Jennings, formerly one of the show’s most successful contestants, told them, according to Weikert: “I promise you something today is going to be a win for you, so just relax and have fun.”
He has a hard time remembering his winning answers. He readily recalls his dumbest, he said.
The answer was “sacred cow.” He uttered “holy cow.”
“Even as it was coming out of my mouth, I knew it was wrong,” he said.
He’s proud that he only froze on one answer involving lyrics from the B-52’s “Love Shack,” he said.
There was less pressure competing in the championship match last month, given he was already a winner, he said. But it was harder in that the contestants were the best of the best.
“During the regular season, it’s a little under a quarter of a second between when you can start to buzz in and when the buzz actually comes,” he said. “In the tournament of champions, that drops to 0.08 seconds.”
This time, he also prepped by reading children’s books on topics such as basic cell biology, a tip he got from another contestant.
“It’s the simplest language they can use to convey the information,” he said.
He also read the book, Timelines of Everything: From Woolly Mammoths to World Wars.
He most enjoyed the camaraderie among contestants, he said. When filming was over, they hung out in a bar and — watched Jeopardy!.
To hear the Parker administration officials tell it, moving the Rocky statue from the bottom of the Philadelphia Art Museum steps to the top is a victory for the underdog.
The new location, which received a green light from the Art Commission on Jan. 14, will certainly create a dramatic, Instagrammable moment for tourists, and further elevate the Rocky brand (and value).
But it’s no victory for Philadelphia residents, who remain the true underdog in this saga. Allowing the old movie prop to dominate the Parkway’s iconic vista is simply the latest in a series of decisions that have privatized the Art Museum’s gorgeous, landscaped grounds.
If you walk to the back of the museum, you’ll find the most egregious example of Philadelphia’s zeal for monetizing public space: the sprawling Cescaphe banquet operation at the Fairmount Water Works.
While the main Engine House had been used as a restaurant in the past, the city allowed Cescaphe to take over the entire complex in 2021. Today, the Water Works is surrounded with a cordon of server stations, portable restrooms, and covered walkways.
Since 2021, the historic Fairmount Water Works has been surrounded by a cordon of server stations and covered walkways. A glass party room prevents the public from enjoying the Mill House Deck, a pier overlooking the Schuylkill.
Cescaphe’s presence has drastically limited the public’s access to this historic landmark, a scenic spot where generations have come to stroll and take in views of the Schuylkill. Although visitors are permitted to wander though the Water Works’ classically inspired temples and colonnades when no events are going on, who would know that, given the messaging conveyed by Cescaphe’s formidable barricades?
Preparations for evening events often start in the afternoon, further limiting access. Every spring, Cescaphe installs an enormous glass party room on the pier known as the Mill House Deck. It remains in place until late fall, which means the public gets to use the overlook only during the coldest months of the year.
Rocky already has a good spot
Moving the Rocky statue to the top of the steps might seem like a modest imposition by comparison, but the new location will interfere considerably with the public’s enjoyment of the space.
Since people with mobility limitations will have trouble climbing the 72 steps to the top of the museum’s grand staircase, they’ll need transportation. The Philadelphia Visitor Center — the initial advocate for the new location — has offered to run a shuttle bus around the museum apron every 15 minutes. Better watch out when you’re taking that selfie!
During the recent Art Commission hearings, the city’s two top cultural officials, Valerie V. Gay and Marguerite Anglin, argued that the Rocky statue deserves a higher profile perch because it’s a unique tourist attraction. They noted that the statue has been the subject of books and podcasts and will soon be the focus of a major Art Museum exhibition, “Rising Up: Rocky and the Making of Monuments,” curated by Monument Lab’s Paul Farber.
Yet, given the added complications, it’s hard to understand what the city gains by changing the statue’s location.
Rocky’s current home — a shady grove at the bottom of the steps — has been a huge success. The statue was installed there in 2006, after years of shuttling around Philadelphia, from the museum to the sports complex and back. In a typical year, 4 million people make the pilgrimage to see Rocky, the same number who visit the Statue of Liberty annually.
The Rocky statue, currently at the base of the Art Museum steps, is easily accessible to visitors and tour groups.
Because the grove is so close to the street, there are no accessibility issues. Tour buses and cars can pull up to the curb, allowing people to jump out for a quick selfie. Sometimes there’s a line for photos, but the mood is always festive, with visitors and locals mingling along the sidewalk. Anyone who wants to reenact the fictional boxer’s run up the museum stairs can do that, too.
Yes, this site occupies a piece of the museum’s grounds. But the intrusion is relatively discreet. Considering how well this location works, why change it? It’s not like there was a huge public clamor to give Rocky more prominence. When Inquirer columnist Stephanie Farr polled readers in September, most respondents said they were happy to keep the statue in its current location — or get rid of it entirely.
Only a single person testified at the Art Commission’s Jan. 14 hearing — and he argued against the move. Several civic organizations, including the Design Advocacy Group (DAG), sent written statements urging the city to reject the proposal.
“All we’re doing is glorifying Sylvester Stallone, who sells merchandise at bottom of the steps,” complained David Brownlee, a member of the DAG board and a renowned University of Pennsylvania art historian who has written a history of the Art Museum.
Those Stallone-licensed souvenirs are sold in the “Rocky Shop,” a metal shipping container that was allowed to encroach on the plaza at the base of the museum steps in 2023. Although the metal structure doesn’t take up as much public land as Cescaphe’s banquet operation, it clunks up the approach to the museum’s elegant stone staircase.
The Parkway Visitor Center & Rocky Shop at the base of the Philadelphia Art Museum steps Jan. 20, 2026. In 2023, the city allowed Sylvestor Stallone to set up the metal shipping container at the base of the Philadelphia Art Museum steps.
Initial reports said the Visitor Center, which pushed for the shop, would get a cut of the sales. Yet when I asked how much money that partnership had yielded, a spokesperson for the independent tourism agency declined to answer. The Visitor Center is now run by Kathryn Ott Lovell, who was parks commissioner when the department signed off on Cescaphe’s 2021 expansion at the Water Works.
The exorbitant cost of moving
What jumped out at me during the Art Commission hearing was the cost of moving the bronze sculpture and setting it up on a new base.
Creative Philadelphia, the city department overseeing the move, originally estimated the job would run about $150,000. Now it says the price could rise to $250,000. Those figures don’t include the cost of operating the shuttle, which will be borne by the Visitor Center.
To put those numbers in context, consider the basepayment the city receives from Cescaphe annually for operating a banquet hall at the Water Works: $290,000.
When Cescaphe was given permission to occupy the Water Works complex in 2021, the city said the arrangement was necessary because the parks department could no longer afford to adequately maintain the property. In addition to rent, the agreement generated about $187,000 annually in concession fees between 2015 and 2022 for the city.
That income isn’t peanuts, but is it really worth severely limiting public access to such an iconic Philadelphia landmark? What’s the point of monetizing our parks if the businesses prevent us from enjoying them?
Except for a few months during the winter, the Mill House Deck pier at the Fairmount Water Works is covered with Cescaphe’s glass party room, making it impossible for Philadelphians to enjoy the space.
The privatization of such beloved sites is the direct result of city government’s unwillingness to properly fund its parks. For years, Philadelphia has spent far less than peer cities on green space. Maintenance declined to the point where some parks became unusable.
Rather than devote more money to this basic public amenity, the city has increasingly outsourced its parks to private managers. Enormously popular destinations, such as Dilworth Park and Franklin Square, are run by independent groups.
Cescaphe, a banquet company, has surrounded the Fairmount Water Works with a cordon of arcades, server stations and portable restrooms since it began holding events there in 2021.
But there’s a crucial difference between those private managers and the likes of Cescaphe. First, they’re nonprofits, not businesses. They exist to serve the public. While it’s frustrating when they close their parks for private fundraising events, all the money they raise goes back into improving the parks for the public’s use.
With the Cescaphe deal, the city has crossed a line. Cescaphe is a money-making business that runs the Water Works for its own benefit. In theory, the rent and concession fees are supposed to be invested in the maintenance of the complex, which was considered one of the wonders of the world when it opened in 1815. But it’s Cescaphe, not the public, that benefits from the improvements.
It’s not even clear that Cescaphe is doing the promised maintenance. The Engine House suffered a serious fire in November, and the company still has several outstanding building code violations.
When asked about the citations, a spokesperson for Parks & Recreation described the infractions as minor. “Cescaphe has been a great partner,” Commissioner Sue Slawson said in a statement.
To be clear, there is a big difference between leasing a public building to a restaurant concession and privatizing public space for the sole use of a single business. Restaurants are open to everyone. They also provide services, such as restrooms, that the public can use. It’s a win-win: The city makes a little money on the deal, and the public gets a nice amenity.
The city had the right idea when it leased the Water Works’ Engine House to a restaurateur in the early 2000s. But instead of finding a replacement when that restaurant shut down in 2015, the city turned the complex over to Cescaphe. This April the banquet company’s lease will come up for renewal. It’s time to go back to the original model.
Wouldn’t it be great to grab a sandwich at a Water Works cafe after a long walk or bike ride along the Schuylkill River Trail? The trail, which just completed a spectacular extension, does not have a single cafe between its new Grays Ferry terminus and the museum, apart from a small snack bar at Lloyd Hall. Philadelphia has plenty of great restaurateurs who would jump at the chance to operate in a prime spot like the Water Works.
People have framed the Rocky discussion as a clash between elites, who object to the glorification of a movie prop as art, and the mass of fans who believe the statue embodies their aspirations.
The reality is, there’s nothing less democratic than turning over the public’s land to private companies driven by their own gain.
An earlier version of this column listed FDR Park as one of several city parks that are run by private managers. The Philadelphia Department of Parks & Recreation operates the park and provides workers to staff it.
This story has been updated to remove the Schuylkill River Trail from a list of private managers because the Schuylkill River Development Corp. has a different type of contractual agreement with Philadelphia’s Department of Parks & Recreation and does not lease the land it oversees.
When it opened in 1815 to provide the growing city with a reliable supply of drinking water, the Fairmount Water Works was a major engineering advance and was considered one of the wonders of the world.
Philadelphia City Council’s first meeting of 2026 on Thursday comes as tensions rise over President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown and as Mayor Cherelle L. Parker continues to sidestep that conversation while focusing on advancing her signature housing initiative.
They will also tackle the city’s waste-disposal practices, a long-standing law requiring Council members to resign before campaigning for higher office, and the city budget.
Meanwhile, events largely outside Council’s control, including potential school closings and Philly’s role in the nation’s 250th birthday, are also expected to prompt responses from lawmakers.
Here’s what you need to know about Council’s 2026 agenda.
‘Stop Trashing Our Air’ bill up for vote
The first meeting of a new Council session rarely features high-profile votes, but this year could be different.
Currently, the city government sends about a third of the trash it collects to the Reworld trash incinerator in Chester, with the rest going to landfills. Those waste-disposal contracts expire June 30, and Gauthier is hoping to take incineration off the table when new deals are reached.
The Reworld incinerator in Chester, Pa., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025.
“Burning Philadelphia’s trash is making Chester, Philadelphia, and other communities around our region sick,” Gauthier has said, pointing to elevated rates of asthma and other ailments and a legacy of “environmental racism” in Chester. The low-income and majority-Black city downriver from Philly has been home to numerous heavy industrial facilities.
Reworld has said its waste-to-energy facility, which produces some electricity from burning trash, is a “more sustainable alternative to landfilling.”
At a hearing last year, Parker administration officials said the city is including language in its request for proposals for the next contracts that will allow the city to consider environmental impacts. But they asked lawmakers not to vote for a blanket ban on incineration to allow the city to study the issue further.
Parker waiting for Council to reapprove $800 million in bonds for her H.O.M.E. plan
The biggest agenda item left hanging last month when lawmakers adjourned for the winter break was a bill to authorize the Parker administration to issue $800 million in city bonds to fund her H.O.M.E. initiative.
Parker had hoped to sell the bonds last fall, and Council in June initially authorized the administration to take out new debt. But lawmakers made significant changes to the initiative’s first-year budget, especially by lowering income thresholds for some programs funded by the H.O.M.E. bonds to prioritize the lowest-income residents.
Mayor Cherelle L. Parker speaks to the crowd at The Church of Christian Compassion in the Cobbs Creek neighborhood of West Philadelphia on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. Parker visited 10 churches in Philadelphia on Sunday to share details about her H.O.M.E. housing plan.
“Council members have always been supportive of the H.O.M.E. initiative,” Johnson said. “H.O.M.E. advances City Council’s goals to expand access to affordable homeownership for Philadelphians … and to ensure that city housing investments deliver long-term benefits for families and neighborhoods alike.”
Currently, Council members and other city employees are required to quit their jobs to run for higher office. Lawmakers have tried several times over the last 20 years to repeal the law, but they have been unsuccessful. Changing the rule requires amending the city’s Home Rule Charter, which a majority of voters would have to approve through a ballot question.
Council President Kenyatta Johnson talks with Councilmember Isaiah Thomas at City Hall on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024 in Philadelphia.
The latest attempt, spearheaded by Councilmember Isaiah Thomas, would not entirely repeal the resign-to-run law, but instead would narrow it to allow elected officials to keep their seats only if they are seeking state or federal office, such as in Congress or the state General Assembly. Council members who want to run for mayor would still have to resign.
Thomas, a Democrat who represents the city at-large and is rumored to have ambitions of running for higher office, plans to make minor amendments to the legislation this spring, a spokesperson said, before calling it up for a final vote. The goal, Thomas has said, is to pass the legislation in time for a question to appear on the May primary election ballot.
The mayor, however, cannot control what other local elected officials say about national politics, and Trump’s immigration crackdown appears to be stirring stronger local reaction heading into his second year in office.
Meanwhile, progressive Councilmembers Rue Landau and Kendra Brooks this year are expected to introduce legislation aimed at constricting ICE operations in Philadelphia.
Demonstrators from No ICE Philly gathered to protests outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, office at 8th and Cherry Street, Philadelphia, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026.
It is not yet clear what the lawmakers will propose. But Brooks, who has called on Parker to take a firmer stand against Trump, recently criticized the Philadelphia courts for allowing agents to seize suspects leaving the Criminal Justice Center. She said officials who in her view have failed to stand up to ICE are engaged in “complicity disguised as strategic silence,” and she vowed to force those who “cooperate with ICE in any way” to testify in Council.
“Cities across the country are stepping up and looking at every available option they have to get ICE out,” Brooks said at a news conference earlier this month. “In the coming days, you will hear about what my office is doing about city policy. These demands must be met or face the consequences in Council.”
Landau added Philly cannot allow “some masked, unnamed hooligans from out of town [to] come in here and attack Philadelphians.”
“We are saying, ‘ICE out of Philadelphia,’” she said.
Parker has said her administration has made no changes to the city’s immigrant-friendly policies, but she continues to be tight-lipped about the issue.
The Pennsylvania Office of Open Records last week ruled in favor of an Inquirer appeal seeking to force Parker’s administration to disclose a September letter it sent the U.S. Department of Justice regarding local policies related to immigration.
The administration still has not released the document. It has three more weeks to respond or appeal the decision in court.
South Philly arena proposal still in the works
After the 76ers abandoned their plan to build a new arena in Center City a year ago, the team announced it would partner with Comcast Spectacor, which owns the Flyers, to build a new home for both teams in the South Philadelphia stadium complex.
The teams announced last fall they have selected an architect for the new arena, which is scheduled to replace the Spectacor-owned Xfinity Mobile Arena, formerly the Wells Fargo Center, in 2031.
If the teams are still planning to open the new arena on their previously announced timeline, legislation to green-light the project could surface as soon as this spring. But so far, there has been no sign of movement on that front.
“There is currently no timeline for introducing legislation to build a new Sixers arena in South Philadelphia,” said Johnson, whose 2nd District includes the stadium complex. “At the appropriate time, my legislative team and I will actively collaborate with Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s administration on drafting any legislation related to the Sixers arena before it is introduced in City Council.”
School closings and 2026 celebrations also on the horizon
In addition to its legislative agenda, Council this year will likely be drawn into discussions over school closings and the high-profile gatherings expected to bring international attention to Philly this summer.
Johnson said his agenda includes “making sure Philadelphia has a very successful celebration of America’s 250th Birthday that results in short and long-term benefits for Philadelphia.”
Staff writers Jake Blumgart, Jeff Gammage, and Kristen A. Graham contributed to this article.
If you see a persistent pothole on your street or a raccoon in your attic, who are you going to call? In 2025, for over half a million requests, the answer was 311.
“311 is your connection to city services,” said Daniel Ramos, who works in community engagement and outreach for the call center. Philly311 helps city residents with non-emergencies by answering questions and transferring inquiries to the appropriate city department or community partner.
But there are some cases where 311 might not be the best number to call. Test your knowledge of whether you can 311 that or not.
Your neighbor is being unbearably loud.
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
You can first try going over and asking them to keep it down, but if that doesn’t stop the awful din, Daniel Ramos says to call 911. Even if you do call 311 first, “noise complaints from an individual or a residential source would be transferred to 911,” he said.
Despite this, 311 received over 1,600 noise complaints in 2025. The Philadelphia Police Department, on the other hand, heard 10 times the number of grievances over loud music.
You just saw someone leave their dog’s poop in front of your stoop.
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
You would hope this never happens, but in 2025, 311 received 66 information requests about dog waste on the curb.
That said, the Animal Care and Control team is the department to contact. ACCT handles local animal ordinance violations. According to a city ordinance on animal control enforcement, the dog’s owner is required to clean up after their pet. An ACCT control officer can follow up with an investigation as long as a location of the animal is included in the complaint.
You accidentally started a small fire in your kitchen.
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
If it is a small stovetop fire and you decide to fight it, the National Fire Protection Agency recommends sliding a lid over the pan and turning off the burner, waiting until the pan has completely cooled before uncovering it.
Otherwise, get out, close the door behind you if you can to contain the fire, and call 911 from outside your home. Even a small fire can spread quickly.
Your smoke alarm needs replacing.
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
You can request a new smoke alarm through 311.
In 2025, 311 processed 3,096 smoke detector requests, so if you live in a one- or two-family home that you own and want a free smoke alarm replacement, submit a request to 311 and the Philadelphia Fire Department can help you. Just know that it might take up to 90 days until PFD does the installation.
On the other hand, if you rent, your landlord is responsible for placing fire alarms on every level of the building. If they’ve failed to do that, you can also file a report with 311 as well.
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On your drive home, you get stuck behind a parked car on a single-lane road.
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A parked car blocking traffic is considered an immediate hazard. “We don’t dispatch,” said Daniel Ramos, so he recommends residents call 911 instead.
311 can help you report other nonemergency parking violations like double-parking or parking on a sidewalk to the Philadelphia Parking Authority or the Philadelphia Police Department. You can also use Laser Vision – an app developed by Philly Bike Action – to send a parking violation report directly to the PPA.
There’s a car on your block that’s been in the same parking spot for months and trash is starting to build up under and around it.
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
311 can help, but it might take some time before you see the car moved. “Up to 120 business days,” said Daniela Ramos (no relation to Daniel Ramos), the city’s 311 contact center manager. “And that doesn't include holidays or weekends.”
In 2025, the center received nearly 28,000 abandoned vehicle complaints – the third most common service request – and over 3,400 questions about abandoned vehicles. According to state legislation, a car is considered abandoned if it has been sitting empty on public property for over 48 hours.
To process the request, Daniela Ramos said residents need to provide details such as the abandoned car’s make, model, color, tag number, and location in their 311 report. The Philadelphia Police Department will then determine if that car is in fact abandoned.
Your trash can went missing after pickup.
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
If the missing trash can was a city-issued and city-owned Philacan, 311 can connect you with the Department of Sanitation to get you a new one.
Even if you start some beef with your neighbor by accusing them of stealing your trash can, 311 can offer resources. “We have the Philadelphia Human Relations Commission,” said Ramos, referencing the city’s free conflict resolution services. “If it's a neighbor dispute, we will give them the contact information for that organization.”
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If you want to submit a 311 request, you can use the Philly311 app or website, or send an email to philly311@phila.gov. If you want to call them instead, their call center operates between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Monday through Friday.
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Design, development, data, and reporting: Charmaine Runes
Editing: Sam Morris
Illustration: Brian “Box” Brown
Copy Editing: Brian Leighton
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Scowling under a wool cap and a hood, Robert DeJesus stood in the bitter wind outside the Sunrise Diner in Allentown last week and confessed his “big mistake”: voting for President Donald Trump in 2024.
“The guy makes ‘cookie promises,’” said DeJesus, 57, a retired construction worker and independent voter from Allentown in Lehigh County. “They’re easy made and easy broken.”
Trump’s biggest gains in the state in 2024 were concentrated in the Lehigh Valley and in Northeastern Pennsylvania. But a year into his second presidency, there are signs that his winning coalition is splintering.In interviews across five counties in the region, some voters shared their disappointment with rising grocery prices and what they see as Trump’s failure to keep his commitments.
Even while hailing some of Trump’s policies, several Republicans interviewed said they were put off by his manner as well as his stance on key issues. That disillusionment could spell trouble for Pennsylvania Republicans as they look to hold onto two key swing congressional seatsin this region in November.
Robert DeJesus of Allentown voted for President Donald Trump in 2024, but he now regrets that decision.
Explaining his problems with Trump, DeJesus said the president pledged “but didn’t deliver” lower grocery prices. And at the same time DeJesus and his family are contending with “insane” supermarket costs, he said, Trump cut taxes for billionaires with the sweeping domestic policy package he signed last year. It has made DeJesus feel overlooked and overwhelmed.
“He left nothing for the working man,” DeJesus said. “People say it’s good the price of gas went down under Trump. But how we have to live, with high food and high rent, makes no sense.”
Diana Kird, 58, a Republican who also pulled the lever for Trump, is experiencing buyer’s remorse much like DeJesus.
“I don’t know what we’re doing in Venezuela,” said the nurse from Lehighton in Carbon County as she stood outside a Giant supermarket in town.
“We need to stop getting into foreign wars,” a promise Trump made and “ignored,” Kird added.
Kird said she has not seen Trump come through on his commitments. “He’s wash-rinse-repeat for me,” she said, “saying the same things over again,” such as promising cheaper groceries, “yet doing nothing.”
Trump’s “refusal to release all the Epstein files” after saying he would was another disappointment that makes her wish she had not supported the president, she added.
Republican U.S. Reps. Ryan Mackenzie (left) and Rob Bresnahan (right)
Mackenzie and fellow freshman U.S. Rep. Rob Bresnahan, a Republican who won his neighboring Northeastern Pennsylvania district by less than a point, are among the top targets for Democrats in November as the party hopes it can win back the House with a focus on affordability.
In a statement Wednesday, Mackenzie blamed the Biden administration for high prices and described Trump as “a vital partner” in efforts to improve the cost of living.
“We have made real progress,” he said, “reducing gas prices to their lowest level since COVID, keeping inflation below 3%, and delivering real tax relief for every American.”
Bresnahan’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Both Trump and Vice President JD Vance barnstormed throughthe regionlast month, seeking to counteract Democrats’ affordability message, which Trump has bemoaned as a “hoax.”
But recent moves by Mackenzie and Bresnahan show the two Republicans are giving the issue more weight and seeking to distance themselves from Trump on the high cost of living ahead of tough contests in November.
“The break with the president on healthcare wasn’t surprising. Both men are feeling the heat from constituents,” said Chris Borick, director of the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion.
Borick noted that Trump’s 2024 win in the state was due in large part to his gains with voters of color, younger voters, and independents. Those same voters could be crucial to determining how Pennsylvania votes in the next election.
“But now they’re disappointed.”
Trump is ‘fearless’ and ‘honest’
There were warm feelings for Trump at the Coop, a popular diner in Coopersburg, a town just outside Allentown in Lehigh County.
“Trump’s a confident and honest man who knows business, and made a lot of money. I so admire him. And we need him,” saidTiffany Osmun, 27, who works as a host at the restaurant.
“He’s fearless, and not afraid of what he has to do,” Osmun said.
She plans to vote for Mackenzie in November, she said, adding, “I won’t be voting for any Democrat in the midterms.”
And if Trump ever popped up in another election, Osmun said, “I’d vote for him again.” In his Pennsylvania speech last month, Trump referenced running for a third term, despite constitutional barriers.
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Other Trump voters, however, acknowledged frustrations withthe first year of his second presidency — even if they are pleased with most of Trump’s policies.
“I don’t like his personality,” saidBud Hackett, 72, a semiretired construction business owner who lives in Bethlehem.
Hackett praised Trump’s moves to curtail immigration and shrink the size of the federal workforce, but he bristled at other actions.
“I’d say over the last year, he’s done maybe 100 things, 70 of which will result in people’s lives being better off. The other 30 have to do with stuff like building a huge ballroom [after tearing down the East Wing of the White House] for his giant, weird ego that I can’t buy into.”
Trump may have generated a few problems on the home front, conceded soft-drink merchandiser Bobby Remer, a 31-year-old resident of Palmerton in Carbon County. But the president more than compensates by reminding the world just how powerful the United States can be, he said.
Remer supports the president’s attacks on boats allegedly carrying drugs from Venezuela, as well as Trump’s capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
“He’s done great militarily, throwing our swag around,” Remer said. “It’ll show China, which floods America with fentanyl to wipe out our military-aged men with addiction, that we have a hammer that we’ll use against any nation trying to destroy us.”
But pocketbook issues could matter more in November to other voters — especially after Trump made attacking Democrats on inflation a major theme of his 2024 campaign.
An October pollfrom Franklin and Marshall College asked voters in the Lehigh Valley and Northeastern Pennsylvania how they would compare their financial status with a year ago. Around 29% of Republicans said they were better off, while 34% said they were worse off, with 37% saying they were in the same position.
Among voters listed as independents “or something else” (such as a third party), 14% said they were better off, 32% said they were worse off, and 55% said they remained the same. Nearly half of Democrats said they were worse off, with 9% saying things were better and 43% saying they were the same.
“Things definitely got bad under Trump. He’s heading us toward dictatorship,” said Malinda Brodt, 65, a Democrat who lives in Saylorsburg in Monroe County, which had the biggest shift to Trump in the state in 2024.
Several Trump voters who were interviewed heaped praise on the president for lowering prices — despite mixed results — and a few quoted Trump’s speech in Mount Pocono that referred to affordability as a hoax.
“He’s gotten down the cost of living, that’s for sure,” said Carol Solt, 80, retired from working in a bait-and-tackle shop in Lehighton. “He keeps his promises.”
While gas and egg prices have decreased in the last year, the cost of food overall rose 3.1% last month compared with December 2024. Increased prices for beef (1%), coffee (1.9%), and fruits and vegetables (0.5%) led the way, according to consumer price index data released earlier this month.
Ultimately, Kird, the Lehighton voter, concluded before she entered her Giant supermarket that the good times the president assured Americans they would see have yet to materialize.
“Life is just more expensive under Trump,” she said.
Incoming state-appointed Camden school superintendent Alfonso Q. Llano Jr. got a head start Wednesday on his new position running the troubled school system.
Llano met with Camden Mayor Victor Carstarphen and other key stakeholders at City Hall for a congenial discussion ahead of taking over the district March 1. .
During a round-table discussion, Llano said his immediate priority will be to provide stability to the district. Camden has been without a permanent superintendent since June 30.
The incoming district leader said it was too early to comment on the district’s budget outlook for the 2026-2027 school year. Last year, the district had a $91 million budget deficit and made cuts affecting nearly 300 positions.
Llano said he was made aware of recent rumors about possible school closures. He said he had not received data about it and declined further comment.
In response to another question, he said he would support immigrant families who have grown increasingly afraid to send their children to school because they fear they may be targeted by ICE. About 56% of Camden’s traditional public school students are Hispanic.
“Schools are a safe place and we want to maintain them as a safe place,” Llano said.
He delicately side-stepped a question about the changing educational landscape in Camden. Thousands of students have left the city’s traditional public schools for Renaissance and charter schools, which are publicly funded but privately run.
Enrollment in the Renaissance and charter schools exceeds the traditional public schools. The district has said payments to those schools have increased from $54.9 million in 2013 to $198 million.
“School choice is important to families. Camden is unique” Llano said. “We want to make sure the public school system is stabilized and innovative in a way that families feel comfortable keeping their children in the public school system.”
Camden’s new state-appointed school Superintendent Alfonso Q. Llano Jr. listens as Mayor Victor Carstarphen speaks while Llano makes his rounds Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026 at City Hall, meeting with other city, county and state officials. Currently the Vineland schools chief, he doesn’t officially begin in Camden until March.
Llano said he would focus on listening and learning from educators and the community as his introduction to Camden.
“What does the reality look like? What is every day in the classroom?” he said.
Llano has been making his rounds in Camden. He was in the city Monday and joined Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service activities.
Llano said he was proud to become the first Hispanic tapped to lead the district. He is among only a handful of outsiders to become the city’s schools chief.
Camden’s new state-appointed school Superintendent Alfonso Q. Llano Jr. (left) talks with Davida Coe-Brockington, current acting state superintendent, as he makes his rounds Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026 at City Hall, meeting with city, county and state officials. Llano, currently the Vineland schools chief, doesn’t officially begin in Camden until March.
Llano will receive an annual salary of $260,000 under a three-year contract, making him among the highest paid superintendents in Burlington, Camden and Gloucester Counties.
Coe-Brockington, who will continue as interim chief until Llano arrives, said she was “honored to hold it down” until a permanent superintendent was named. She thanked Llano “for saying yes to Camden.”
Carstarphen and a group of city leaders cleared the path for the state to appoint a new superintendent. Katrina McComb’s contract was not renewed last year after The group said Camden schools needed “a new vision for leadership.”
