DV Journal

The Delaware Valley’s Democratic congresswomen were divided on whether to censure U.S. Rep. Al Green, the angry, 77-year-old Texan who repeatedly violated House rules as he waved his cane and tried to shout down President Trump Tuesday night.

Green, who announced plans to file articles of impeachment just 15 days after Trump was sworn into his second term, wasn’t the only Democrat to engage in rude behavior during the presidential address. Many turned their backs on Trump as he entered the building and spent most of the speech scowling or waving signs of protest.

As a group, Democrats refused to stand and applaud for civilian special guests recognized by the president, even when a 13-year-old cancer survivor was given an honorary membership as a Secret Service agent. Some even made a display of storming out of the speech before it was over, including local Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon.

During the president’s address to a joint session of Congress, Green repeatedly broke decorum — and House rules — and was warned by Speaker of the House Mike Johnson. The Texas Congressman refused to be seated and continued to shout and wave his cane. At that point, Johnson called for the sergeant at arms to escort Green from the chamber.

In a sign of how far over the line Green’s actions were, it took less than 48 hours for lawmakers to put forward, agree on and pass the censure resolution in a 224-198 vote. Every Republican, including Bucks County Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, voted in favor of censure. GOP members were joined by 10 Democrats, including Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, who represents Chester and Berks Counties.

Scanlon and her fellow Delaware Valley progressive Rep. Madeleine Dean voted against censure.

Johnson called out the Democratic majority that voted against censure in a case that, most observers say, was a clear violation of House rules.

“198 Democrats just voted against censuring Rep. Al Green. Instead of supporting decorum, they defended his shameful and egregious behavior. What an embarrassment,” Johnson posted on social media,

If House Democrats were embarrassed by their support of Green and his antics, it didn’t show. A group of them stood and sang “We Shall Overcome” on the House floor Thursday during the censure process, ignoring the speaker’s gavel. Politico described it as “a wild scene.”

Even Houlahan, who voted for censure, took to social media to defend her actions to her Democratic constituents.

“Today’s vote to censure my fellow representative was not easy and has angered many of you,” Houlahan said, adding that she also “called Speaker Johnson out on his and his party’s hypocrisy and reminded him of the many instances in which Republicans have blatantly broken the rules of conduct without consequence.”

This isn’t the first time local Democrats voted against censure for what many considered egregious behavior. In 2023, progressive Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) was censured for using offensive language about Israel, including promoting a chant that calls for the destruction of the Jewish state (“From the river to the sea, Palestine shall be free.”)

Florida Democrat Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz pointed out that “This phrase means eradicating Israel and Jews. Period.” But Dean, Houlahan and Scanlon all voted against the Tlaib censure resolution.

Some Democrats, including Pennsylvania U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, have been critical of the behavior of Green and other members of their party during Trump’s speech, saying it turns off voters.

Despite the political animosity on the House floor, there were green shoots of bipartisanship in Trump’s speech Tuesday night.

The president recognized his wife, First Lady Melania Trump, for her work on the Take It Down Act, a bill making it illegal to knowingly publish nonconsensual AI-generated pornography with someone’s image. Social media and websites must remove that content when a victim notifies them. On CNN Thursday, Dean said she’s sponsoring that bill and she had sent Mrs. Trump a letter thanking her for her support.

As for his behavior, Green says he has no regrets.

“I would do it again,” he told reporters after the censure vote.

Congress recently passed the Laken Riley Act with bipartisan support. Laken Riley was a 22-year-old nursing student murdered on Feb. 22, 2024, by an illegal alien at the University of Georgia. The murderer had been arrested previously on other charges. but had not been detained by local authorities for possible deportation by ICE.

The Laken Riley law would require that ICE be notified of those here illegally who were arrested for other crimes. It also requires those authorities to obey ICE detainers and keep them in jail.

It also would allow state attorneys general to sue the secretary of Homeland Security for injunctive relief if immigration actions such as parole, violation of detention requirements, or other policy failures harm that state or its citizens.

The bill was championed by Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. John Fetterman with 11 other Democratic senators also voting for it. Northeast Philadelphia Democratic Congressman Brendan Boyle also voted for the bill.

However, the Philadelphia suburbs must not need the protection this bill affords, because Democratic Congresswomen Madeleine Dean, Mary Scanlon, and Chrissy Houlahan voted against it. Houlahan led the charge and wrote an op-ed for The Philadelphia Inquirer, claiming the bill was unconstitutional.

Houlahan even mentioned seeing “I’m Just a Bill” from watching Saturday “Schoolhouse Rock!” on Saturday mornings to bolster her duty to oppose the bill.

Could Houlahan’s position stem from the mushroom farms in her Chester County district rather than a children’s TV show? Those huge farms have been cited for hiring many workers who might be here illegally.

Houlahan uses the Democratic talking point that our immigration system is broken and what we need are laws like the Border Act of 2024. That law would essentially codify a surrender to former President Joe Biden’s open border policies, which set the stage for Laken Riley’s murder.

In denying that American citizens are being harmed by people who are here illegally, Houlahan attacks the cost of the law.

Tom Homan, the Trump administration’s border czar, was confronted last Sunday by ABC News reporter Martha Raddatz about the cost of deporting criminal illegal immigrants. Homan pushed back by asking how can we put a price tag on the lives of people like Laken Riley and hundreds of other Americans.

The inescapable fact is that Laken Riley would be alive today if the person who killed her had been held for deportation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement [ ICE].

Are the voters in the Delaware Valley supportive of opposition to commonsense laws like the Laken Riley Act? Or are these areas immune from all the problems caused by Biden’s open border failures? Hundreds of polls show illegal immigrant crime is right there with inflation as a problem that Americans are most concerned about. I don’t think so, and when the ICE officers target criminal illegal aliens in the Philadelphia area, it will be very interesting to see the reaction in the suburbs to how many murderers, rapists, and drug dealers ICE arrests and deports.

The ICE operation so far in cities like Chicago has underlined the human cost of so-called sanctuary city policies. Homan has pointed out that violent criminals have been living among us. And those wanted criminals will not be allowed to find sanctuary in churches and schools.

Fetterman, Boyle, and other Democrats who voted for the Laken Riley Act understand that significant numbers of Americans support the removal of criminal aliens. When will the Philadelphia suburbs support that commonsense reality?

Just days after the U.S. House passed the Laken Riley Act in response to the murder of a 22-year-old Georgia nursing student at the hands of a repeatedly-released illegal alien, Congress took up a bill specifically targeting illegals convicted of sex crimes.

Like the Laken Riley Act, a majority of Democrats opposed it, including local Reps. Madeleine Dean (D-Montgomery) and Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Delaware). But 61 Democrats joined every Republican to pass the bill with a massive 274-145 majority. Among them was Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Chester).

The Preventing Violence Against Women by Illegal Aliens Act, which now goes to the Senate, orders the deportation of illegal aliens who commit sex offenses. It also mandates that illegal aliens convicted of sex offenses or domestic violence—or those who admit to such crimes—will be deemed inadmissible to the United States.

“No family should endure the heartbreak the families of Laken Riley, Mollie Tibbetts, Karina Vetrano, and Maddie Hines have experienced,” said the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.). “Every woman and every girl deserves to feel safe in their own community. The radical left doesn’t agree with this.”

Dean, Houlahan, and Scanlon did not respond to DVJournal’s requests for comments.

Jessica M. Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, called out the Democrats who voted against this bill.

“It’s astounding that any member of Congress would vote against a bill to deport violent sex offenders and those who commit domestic violence. And it’s especially astounding that women in Congress would vote against it, when they typically champion any legislation, any federal funding, any new programs to combat violence against women.

“Sadly, we have more than enough Americans who threaten and attack women. There’s no reason to protect such criminals who are here illegally. Whatever their views on immigration, surely Americans can agree on this common-sense measure. Most would be shocked that it is not already the law.”

State Rep. Martina White (R-Philadelphia) was also disappointed.

“Democrats in Congress have lost touch with common sense and what our families want. Measures to better protect women from sexual assault have strong support of all Americans, and those who voted against this bill voted against all of us.”

Pennsylvania Congresswoman Chrissy Houlihan recently sent voters an email describing the thrilling proposed spending of close to $900 billion dollars for the National Defense Authorization Act, FY 2025. Houlihan, a Democrat representing Chester and Berks counties, delightedly ran down the list of how our taxes would be apportioned, describing it as “the government’s budget and policy blueprint for the military — and much more!”

While the NDAA presumably goes toward buying warships, 2,000-pound bombs, F-35s and, well, “much more,” Houlahan wanted to emphasize how local businesses can make a killing by becoming a contractor for the Pentagon. Houlihan details the potential jackpot, explaining, “If you are a defense contractor, sub-contractor, or looking to become one in PA-06, you can submit proposals for the NDAA too.”

But she urges speed. “We are one of 535 offices making these requests…” After all, how long can a mere $883 billion last?

In truth, no one really knows how far that budget will go, mainly because no one knows where all that money goes. A lot of it simply disappears, like the change you lose in the cushions. But instead of dollars, it’s billions. To date, we are unable to account for nearly $4 trillion in assets.

The Pentagon undergoes an annual audit to ensure the trillions of asset dollars are under control. In fact, the military has undergone seven separate financial audits.

They have also failed seven audits in a row.

Houlihan and her peers in Congress are responsible for overseeing the government’s budget, although two-thirds of that budget is, in effect, out of their control. The bulk of our spending is on social programs like Medicare and Social Security and are controlled by automatic increases tied to inflation.

Also, the growing interest payments cannot be touched, leaving discretionary spending, mostly on the military. The new DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) program is supposed to reduce waste, but only Congress can enact changes in law affecting most spending. Unsurprisingly, Houlihan and others in Congress have done almost nothing to rein in out-of-control spending.

Which brings us back to the growing cost of the military. The number is likely to reach $1 trillion over the next few years, and the chances of the next fiscal audit being failed is probably 100 percent.

Constant audit failures, lack of spending transparency, and possible fraud and waste should raise serious concerns in Congress. Instead, we get an invitation by a representative to visit her office to learn about “Decoding the National Defense Authorization Act: Tips for a successful submission to grow your business,” an invitation to get in on the action.

Mandatory spending does not mean that saving is impossible. If these multiple failures teach us anything, it is that government programs are prone to waste, and the larger the program, the greater is the potential to waste money. Audits are valuable tools, but useless if no one acts in response. Congress feels good because it oversees an audit that it doesn’t act upon.

One solution may be using a Zero-Balance budgeting system. That requires an agency to ‘zero-out’ spending and justify the next year’s budget rather than receive automatic increases.

Alternately, we could take audits seriously and insist that failed audits are addressed and fixed before approving a budget. If the Pentagon can fail a fiscal audit seven times consecutively, what chance does DOGE have to rein in spending?

Congress needs to view government spending as a fiscally important duty entrusted to it by the voters who provided the funds, rather than an opportunity to invite constituents to rake in the money falling through the Pentagon’s couch cushions.

Oh, and you know what else costs too much? Those audits use 1,700 auditors, at an annual cost of $178 million dollars.

If the success of Donald Trump and the GOP in November’s election sent a message from voters about illegal immigration, it didn’t reach the Democrats who represent the Delaware Valley in Congress.

On Tuesday, the U.S. House cast its first vote of the 119th Congress, passing the Laken Riley Act in a bipartisan 264 to 159 vote. Every Republican supported the bill, which requires the detention of illegal immigrants caught committing robbery or theft, as did 48 Democrats.

The same bill was passed by the House last March, but died in the Democrat-controlled Senate. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Bucks/Montgomery) voted for it both times, while all three Delaware Valley Democratic congresswomen –Mary Gay Scanlon, Madeleine Dean and Chrissy Houlahan— twice voted no.

The bill now goes to the Senate, which is expected to take it up on Friday. All 53 Republicans are co-sponsoring the bill, as is one Democrat: Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.).

Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student, was murdered last February by José Antonio Ibarra, a 26-year-old illegal alien from Venezuela, while she was jogging at the University of Georgia in Athens. Ibarra had been arrested in 2022 after entering the U.S. illegally. The Biden administration then allowed him to be “paroled and released for further processing,” U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said.

Ibarra was later arrested by New York City police in September 2023– less than six months before killing Riley — and charged with “acting in a manner to injure a child less than 17 and a motor vehicle license violation,” according to ICE.

Ibarra was arrested again a month later, along with his brother, for allegedly shoplifting at a Walmart in Athens. But because the crime was a misdemeanor, he was released.

Riley’s murder shocked the country. It became a cause celebre, especially among Republicans, who brought up the murder at last year’s State of the Union Address, where President Biden mispronounced her name.

Riley’s body was found Feb. 22, 2024. She was repeatedly struck in the head with a rock and suffocated. Ibarra, was convicted in November and sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole.

“Today, I voted to restore law and order at our borders and reaffirm the safety and sovereignty of our great nation,” Fitzpatrick said on X. “The Laken Riley Act delivers a clear message: those who threaten the safety of our communities will be held accountable. By mandating the immediate detention of illegal immigrants charged with crimes, this legislation puts an end to the dangerous policies that have left American families vulnerable for far too long.

“Laken’s tragic and preventable death is a sobering reminder of the price of inaction.”

Houlahan, on the other hand, attacked the legislation as “carefully written to intentionally erode constitutional protections, beginning with undocumented immigrants.”

She added, “Trump promised these kinds of dangerous changes, and the Republicans in Congress are desperately trying to satisfy him regardless of the implications of the legislation should it become law.”

Dean did not respond to requests for comment.

Scanlon said on her website, “Today, House Republicans made their first priority in the 119th Congress the passage of a bill that is best characterized as ‘legislative clickbait’ – a bill designed to generate headlines and social media clicks, rather than actually solving a problem. Unsurprisingly, H.R. 29 is a continuation of a campaign strategy of stoking fear of immigrants while doing nothing to secure the border or fix our immigration system. Instead, H.R. 29 actually creates new legal problems.”

The bill requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to detain illegal aliens who have been arrested for burglary, theft, larceny, or shoplifting. It also authorizes states to sue the federal government for decisions or alleged failures related to immigration enforcement.

To reach the Senate floor, the bill will need 60 votes in the 53-47 GOP-controlled chamber. Two Democrats, Fetterman and Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan, who is up for reelection in 2026, are already on board.

“Laken Riley’s story is a tragic reminder of what’s at stake when our systems fail to protect people. No family should have to endure the pain of losing a loved one to preventable violence,” Fetterman said in a statement.

Asked about his support for the legislation, Fetterman told Fox News, “It’s really commonsense. I’d like to remind everybody that we have hundreds and hundreds of thousands of migrants here illegally convicted of crimes. Who wants to defend them, to allow them to remain in our nation?”

Thousands of unexplained drone sightings have spooked New Jersey residents. Now, drones are appearing in Pennsylvania night skies.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Bucks) issued a statement saying the drones in the Delaware Valley and New Jersey “demand immediate and decisive federal action. As chairman of the National Intelligence Enterprise subcommittee on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, I am treating this matter with the urgency it requires and taking proactive steps to safeguard our public safely and national security.”

Fitzpatrick, a former FBI agent, is coordinating with federal agencies.

“This is not a time for complacency—it is a time for action and accountability,” Fitzpatrick said.

Rep.  Chrissy Houlahan (D-Chester) is also concerned about the drone situation. She sent a letter with Rep. Andrew Garbario (R-N.Y.) to Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries urging passage of a bipartisan law giving the federal government, along with state and local authorities, the power to address the drone issue. Johnson also sponsored the bill.

And she discussed the issue with her constituents at a town hall Friday.

Houlahan urged people to remain calm and not to “take the law into our own hands,” noting they can contact the FBI.

The FBI issued this statement: “The FBI is aware of reported sightings of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)—commonly referred to as drones—observed flying in multiple locations over the past several weeks. The FBI remains engaged with our federal, state, local, and tribal partners to share information and protect the public. UAVs that pose a danger to any aircraft or are observed operating in restricted airspace or near critical infrastructure and other sensitive sites, can be reported to the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or online.”

Several people commented on the Montco/Bucks Incident Facebook page.

Cody Rutledge said, “I think it’s funny how these drones are allowed to go over military bases, but if a civilian flew one over they’d get arrested . Tell me how this has nothing to do with the government…”

“They need to be shot down,” said Jessica Lucas. “The government is lying to us again.”

Andrew Clementi said, “Meanwhile, there’s a semi active military base in Horsham with active radar systems, and people think that we don’t know what’s going on… c’mon now, people.”

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro asked the state police to look into it. It will be “flying helicopters to try and determine where these drones are originating from and what the purpose of these drones are.”

“We’ve been told, again, by our federal partners, it does not pose any kind of national security or personal security risk. But you know, as the old saying goes, trust but verify, and Col. Christopher Paris, a native of northeastern Pennsylvania, leads our Pennsylvania State Police very ably. I know they’ll get to the bottom of it,” said Shapiro.

State Sen. Rosemary Brown (R-Lackawanna) is also taking action. She’s introduced a resolution urging the federal government to give states the authority to to respond to the drones. Sens. Carolyn Comitta (D-Chester), Lynda Schlegel Culver (R-Luzerne) and Elder Vogel (R-Beaver) are cosponsors.

Brown also rote a letter to Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Michael Whitaker, calling on the FAA to provide states with the authority to act.

“Current federal regulations tie the hands of state and local governments, preventing them from taking immediate action when drones threaten the safety and privacy of our communities,” said Brown. “This resolution is a necessary step to empower states to respond swiftly and decisively to these threats.”

President-elect Donald Trump weighed in about the drone issue at a press conference Monday at Mar-a-Lago, saying the government knows what is going on and should tell the public.

“And I think they’d be better off saying what it is,” Trump said. “Our military knows, and our president knows. And for some reason, they want to keep people in suspense.”

It was an action that President Joe Biden repeatedly pledged he would not take.

But when he broke his promise and pardoned his troubled son Hunter for crimes he’s pleaded guilty to — and those he may not have been charged with going back a decade — Biden’s fellow Democrats in the Delaware Valley had little to say about it.

Except for Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan and Chester County Democratic Chair Charlotte Valyo, a cone of silence has descended over DelVal Democratic lawmakers asked to comment about Biden’s pardon.

In a statement, Biden claimed his own Department of Justice was tainted by politics, a claim most pundits dismissed as unserious.

“It is clear that Hunter was treated differently,” Biden said. “The charges in his cases came about only after several of my political opponents in Congress instigated them to attack me and oppose my election. Then, a carefully negotiated plea deal, agreed to by the Department of Justice, unraveled in the courtroom – with a number of my political opponents in Congress taking credit for bringing political pressure on the process. Had the plea deal held, it would have been a fair, reasonable resolution of Hunter’s cases.”

In fact, the Department of Justice attempted to give Hunter Biden a favorable deal that was only derailed when the judge raised questions about what appeared to be special treatment for the president’s son.

As IRS agents Joseph Ziegler and Gary Shapley wrote in The Wall Street Journal, “President Biden’s pardon is an insult to every honest taxpaying American. He claimed that his own Justice Department unfairly targeted his son. On the contrary, we produced mountains of evidence and testified under oath about the machinations his Justice Department, including (Special Counsel David) Weiss, used to shield the Biden family from a thorough investigation of alleged corruption in Ukraine, Romania, and China.”

The timeline of the pardon, from 2014, dates from when the younger Biden joined the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma. It pardons him for any “offenses he has committed or may have committed” from Jan. 1, 2014, through Dec. 1, 2024.

Republicans have accused Joe Biden of benefiting from his son’s business deals with Ukraine and China while he was vice president under President Barack Obama.

Houlahan (D-Chester) said, “While I understand the instinct to protect one’s family and share the concern that President-Elect Trump will use his administration’s powers to punish his personal and political enemies, I am disappointed that President Biden pardoned his son Hunter. I still believe that no one should be above the law and will continue to use my voice to call out this and other examples of unwarranted immunity from our justice system.”

Valyo used the opportunity to criticize President-elect Trump.

“The pardon power exists to undo unjust prosecutions,” said Valyo. “The charges against Hunter Biden would have been dismissed or settled without a criminal verdict if the defendant were anyone except the son of  President Biden. Donald Trump pardoned Charles Kushner, his daughter’s father-in-law, even though he was convicted of much more egregious crimes and has made it clear he intends to pardon the January 6th insurrectionists.”

Reps. Madeleine Dean (D-Montgomery) and Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Delaware) declined to comment. Democratic Sens. John Fetterman and Bob Casey Jr. also refrained from commenting.

And Gov. Josh Shapiro (D), the former state attorney general, also declined to respond to DVJournal’s request for comment. He did the same when Politico asked him about the pardon.

The Democratic Party chairs for Bucks, Delaware and Montgomery Counties did not respond to requests for comment on the presidential pardon.

On the other side of the aisle, neither Republican Sen.-elect Dave McCormick nor Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Bucks) responded to requests for comment.

Ironically, Trump is one person who isn’t surprised by Biden’s actions.

In October, Trump told Fox News, “I wouldn’t do anything that would be overt in terms of Hunter. It’s a sad situation. I’ll bet you the father probably pardons him.

“But he’s a bad boy,” Trump added. “No question about it.”

U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Chester/Berks) and Republican challenger Neil Young debated Wednesday.

Reading NAACP President Stacy Taylor moderated the discussion on Berks Community TV.  The two candidates discussed war, inflation, immigration, the border, and tax policy.

Young, a high school social studies teacher, made the case that he’s the person to represent the 6th District. Higher prices, increased chaos abroad, and an education system that has traded “excellence for equity” are issues he’d handle differently than Houlahan.

Houlahan, who has represented the district since 2019, defended her record of voting for various Biden-Harris administration bills like the Inflation Reduction Act and the Chips and Science Act, which added trillions to the national debt.

Houlahan, a former Air Force officer and business owner, argued she has the experience needed to keep the country strong.

She wrote legislation to combat inflation and gun violence. A bill she authored to stop fentanyl from coming into the U.S. was signed into law, she said.

Neil Young

“I’m recognized as one of our most bipartisan legislators in Congress,” said Houlahan.

Young began the forum by introducing himself in Spanish.

He said the Biden-Harris administration has redefined Title IX and “intentionally hid critical information from parents.”

“The truth is that we could have secured our border.  The truth is there was a House bill but it wasn’t voted for by my opponent. We could have protected our girls on the sports field. We could have kept them from being drafted onto the battlefield. We could have sanctioned Iran and reduced their ability to fund terrorism. We could have passed the parents’ bill of rights.  We could have distanced ourselves from anti-police, anti-Israel colleagues, like AOC, who was on the steps of Reading High School just this past weekend. We could have been honest about what the Inflation Reduction Act actually was. And that was a backdoor Green New Deal that has driven inflation and restricted American energy,” said Young.

Asked about the three most important issues, Young cited foreign wars, inflation, and illegal immigration.

“We’ve crept precipitously close to World War III,” said Young.

“Inflation is completely out of control,” he said, adding that groceries now cost 21 percent more in Pennsylvania, and gas prices have doubled.

“We’ve got over 10 million people who have come into this country. We don’t know who they are. We don’t know if their asylum claims are correct. And we’ve lost 300,000 unaccompanied minors. We’ve got a disaster at our southern border.”

Houlahan agreed that “we are in a precarious time in terms of our peace on the global stage.

“I believe in precipitous time in terms of what’s going on in Ukraine, what’s happening in Israel, what could possibly happen in the Indo-Pacific. And as a consequence, I believe we are at an important time to have people at the table, myself included, who have deep background on this issue. I serve on the Armed Services Committee, I’ve served on the Foreign Affairs Committee, I now serve  on the Intelligence Committee.”

Houlahan said the COVID pandemic was “a big shock to our economy.”

“But luckily, we’re at a place where inflation is abating, largely because of some of the things that we did to make sure we could keep our roofs over our heads, to make sure that we could put food in our stomachs, to make sure that we kept the schools safe with things like the Inflation Reduction Act, with things like the American Rescue Plan, and things like all of the funding we did for the paycheck protection program.”

America must continue to grow its economy, she said.

“And some of the things we’re doing with the Chips and Science Act, for example, reshoring, onshoring, peer-shoring, all of the jobs we need to, the technologies that we need to aggressively seek, the things we’re also doing to make sure that we complete on the stage with the skills and jobs that will bring us into the next century.”

Asked what she would do about systemic racism, Houlahan said the federal government should make sure “we have equal access to education” and that the criminal justice system treats everyone equally. Adults need to have the skills for jobs, she added.

Young said, “Our schools are failing” –including those in Chester and Berks Counties, where most have decreased in performance.

“There’s nothing that is exasperating wealth gaps and wealth divides more than a lack of school choice,” he said.

Houlahan opposes school choice.

“I am not in favor [of sending] money to follow a child into a faith-based school. I don’t believe that is the role of the government. The government’s role is to educate all children and keep them [in] a very strong public school system.”

They also sparred on abortion.

Houlahan’s daughter was about to give birth to her granddaughter.

“And the idea that she is going to be born into a world where she has fewer rights, fewer bodily [autonomy] rights than I do, is something that’s really, really worrisome,” said Houlahan.  “This is a conversation a person should have with their family, their faith, their doctor, and our government should stay out of this.” She said 30 percent of military women do not have access to birth control.

Young agrees with the late liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg that Roe v. Wade was “on shaky legal ground.” And while he is personally pro-life, he would leave the abortion decisions to the states. Since Roe was overturned, there are now more elective abortions than ever, and most are chemical abortions in the early months of pregnancy, he said.

“I’m always going to fight that we are a family-friendly environment,” he said. “That we’re not struggling with the cost of groceries, with the cost of gas.”

The U.S. is experiencing a population decline, he said.

Young noted 10 million people have illegally crossed the border since Biden-Harris took office.

“That House bill my opponent voted against had a provision, remain in Mexico. This [provision] takes care of a whole lot -to see if your asylum claim is going to be granted. That saves us a whole lot of resources. It would have increased border patrol agents. It would have criminalized visa overstays. It would have resumed construction of a border wall.”

Houlahan said she voted against that bill because it would allow children crossing illegally to be held for a month, “which I felt was an atrocity,” but she supports a “bipartisan” bill that failed to pass in the Senate.

Young said the bill’s author said the final bill was “unrecognizable” and voted against it, as did six Democrats. It would have allowed 5,000 people a day to cross the border and permitted them to claim asylum.

“Sometimes bipartisan only serves two parties, and it doesn’t serve the American people,” said Young.

Asked to discuss the high cost of housing, the pair differed on the causes.

Young said the average cost of a house in Pennsylvania has risen from $195,000 to $300,000.

He believes that the Biden-Harris “war on fossil fuels that we use to transport 90 percent of everything we make” is the main cause. He pointed to restrictions on drilling on federal land and on exporting natural gas, along with “massive government spending.”

Also, illegal immigrants compete for rental housing in Reading and Coatesville, he said.

“Rental prices and home prices are inextricably tried,” Young said.

Houlahan disagreed, saying migrants play no role in housing costs.

She’s met with organizations like Habitat for Humanity that receive government funding to help people with affordable housing. She said Vice President Kamal Harris proposed government help with down payments.

Houlahan said the “Biden administration has done a wonderful job bringing allies in” to help with the Ukraine War.

“These are very dangerous times, and we need to be working with our allies to make sure we are as safe and secure as possible,” said Houlahan.

Young said Russian President Putin annexed Crimea when President Obama was in office. And now he’s invaded Ukraine under Biden.

“There is a penalty to weak leadership,” said Young, who brought up “the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan.” That withdrawal had “long-lasting foreign policy effects in places like Russia (and) in empowering Hamas.”

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The state Senate Monday adopted a measure urging Congress to provide lifesaving therapy to Americans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

The resolution, sponsored by Sen. Tracy Pennycuick (R-Montgomery), calls on Congress to pass the Treatment and Relief through Emerging and Accessible Therapy for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Act, also known as the TREAT PTSD Act.

It would require the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense to provide veterans suffering from PTSD with access to a lifesaving therapy known as stellate ganglion block (SGB). SGB works by applying an injection into the bundle of nerves that send signals of fight or flight to the body. The treatment relieves feelings of stress quickly for those with PTSD and provides them with a renewed chance to heal. The procedure has been used for nearly 100 years for pain conditions, including shingles and phantom limb pain.

“Our veterans who suffer from trauma deserve the best available care,” said Pennycuick, a U.S. Army combat veteran. “The battle isn’t over for them. Congress must approve the TREAT PTSD Act to provide this critical therapy and send the message that we’re not leaving any of our fighting men and women behind.”

PTSD is more common among veterans than civilians. At some point in their life, 7 out of every 100 veterans (or 7 percent) will have PTSD. In the general population, 6 out of every 100 adults (or 6 percent) will have PTSD in their lifetime. PTSD is also more common among female veterans (13 out of 100, or 13 percent) versus male veterans (6 out of 100, or 6 percent), according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Pennycuick (R-Montgomery) said she is “passionate” about finding treatments for PTSD because she’s been diagnosed with it herself.

“I’m a veteran who has PTSD,” said Pennycuick. “You never get rid of PTSD. You can get better and get stable.”

The Veterans Administration is very slow to approve treatments.

“The VA list of drugs, its formulary has not changed since the Vietnam War,” she said. So many veterans have turned to nonprofits for help.

“If veterans are suffering and if a treatment can help, why aren’t we doing it?” she asked. “If it’s a possibility for treatment, we need to look into it. We need to look at everything that’s on the table.”

The federal legislation, H.R. 3023, is before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Health.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Bucks) and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Chester) are cosponsors of the legislation.

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Neil Young, a father and social studies teacher in the Great Valley School District, believes America is headed in the wrong direction and knew he had to do something about it.

So Young, who never ran for elected office before, threw his hat into the ring for Congress to represent Chester and part of Berks Counties.

Young, a Republican, is concerned about education, the border, energy, and the economy. He is challenging incumbent Democrat Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, who portrays herself as a moderate.

“She votes with Harris-Biden 99.1 percent of the time,” said Young.

Dr. Raffi Terzian, chair of the Chester County Republican Committee, said, “Neil Young is a great husband and father, as well as a dedicated lifelong educator. His authenticity, earnestness, and strong work ethic shine through in all he does. Actively involved in his community, Neil is deeply committed to enhancing the lives of everyone in the 6th Congressional District.”

“Our current representative is not effectively serving us, as she prioritizes divisive and partisan interests over the needs of her constituents,” Terzian said. “As a member of Congress, Neil will undoubtedly work tirelessly to steer our community and nation toward a brighter future.”

The district is rated D+4, although Republican voter registration activist Scott Presler has put it on his list to flip. Presler recently announced voter registrations in Bucks County flipped to Republican and Luzerne County is close to changing.

The Young family

“I think more teachers involved in politics would offer a better solution than life-long politicians,” said Young. “A lot of teachers would make great public servants.”

In Chester County, school districts spend more than $20,000 per year per pupil,  but “less than half of them read, write, or do math at grade level. To me, that’s not a good return on anyone’s investment.” Depending on the study, U.S. students rank from 18th to 30th in the world.

“I don’t want to do away with public schools, but I think public schools can be improved if they compete [with alternatives],” he said. “I think a lot of parents could find better options that fit their child’s learning [style].”

Houlahan touts the importance of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education. However, “we have only one dedicated STEM high school in all Chester County with 300 kids a year getting in,” he said.

Regarding the borders, Young said, “Almost anybody can look around and say this is a broken system. We’re seeing an influx of illegal immigration that we’ve never seen before. And we’ve got to fix that. It’s not sustainable.”

“You know, we’re restricting our energy output,” Young said. “What the current administration did on Day One. They opened the border and restricted energy output by not renewing leases and canceling pipelines.”

Those actions are helping to fuel inflation, he said.

“It’s one of the biggest drivers of inflation and increases in the cost of living,” said Young. “It’s unsustainable, particularly for lower and middle-class people living paycheck to paycheck.”

Vice President Kamala Harris said the border is secure. “You know that is not true,” said Young.

He said Houlahan voted against House Bill 2, which could have secured the border. It would have reinstituted the remain-in-Mexico policy, among other provisions. She also voted against six other border security bills [Res 1065, HR 7511, 957, 5283, 5525 and Res. 461], Young said.

Young said Houlahan’s votes are “against American energy independence are votes against national security.”

On April 4, 2023, Houlahan voted against keeping Title IX for girls in sports [HR724]. That law protects girls in education and sports. Still, the Biden-Harris administration has changed the law to force students to use certain pronouns, affirm queer theory, and not allow sex-segregated spaces. Moms for Liberty obtained an injunction to stop the changes in schools their children attend.

Guy Ciarracchi, a political commentator, ran against Houlahan in 2022.

“Critics focus on Neil being a first-time candidate—what he doesn’t know. But what Neil Young does know as a history teacher, wrestling coach, and dad is that America is in trouble because Democrat politicians are making bad decisions. What he knows is that we might be the generation that leaves our children worse off. And, he has commonsense solutions to make things better.”

Young grew up in Coatesville and Downingtown. He went to college at West Chester University.

“Everything good in my life happened here in Chester County,” said Young.

His wife, Jill, teaches art at High Point Baptist Academy in Berkes County, where their two youngest children, 13 and 11, are students. His oldest son is 20 and attends Williamson College of Trade in Media. His second son is 19 and at Liberty University.

“My wife and I struggled for a while with infertility,” said Young. “Our first child was born through IVF [in vitro fertilization]. We adopted our second child from Ethiopia. Then our younger two came naturally, and we decided long ago that we’re going to have however many we have, and we’re going to care for them.”

Young traveled repeatedly to Afghanistan to train teachers there how to teach. More teachers were needed to teach “the large influx of girls.”

“There was tremendous progress being made,” he said. Then, the Biden-Harris administration decided to withdraw.

“We didn’t break Afghanistan,” Young said. “We didn’t go in to colonize or take over. I think that’s what makes the United States unique. We went to help people and we stuck around and poured money into the economy of Afghanistan.”

“For me, it’s more personal and more tragic to see [what happened] because of political expediency,” he said. “We put a lot of lives at risk. I think it’s important that our politicians know that.”

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