Democrat Pennsylvania State Rep. Movita Johnson-Harrell, the first Islamic woman elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, was charged by prosecutors this week for allegedly stealing over $500,000 from a non-profit for the mentally ill, perjury, and tampering with public records.
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, announced the <a href="https://www.attorneygeneral.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/2019-12-04-Movita-Johnson.pdf">charges</a> on Wednesday which came at the conclusion of an investigation into her operation of a non-profit, Motivations Education &amp; Consultation Associates (MECA).
In a statement, Shapiro said that Johnson-Harrell turned herself in on Wednesday to law enforcement officials, and &#8220;is taking responsibility for her crimes, plans to plead guilty, and has agreed to resign from the Pennsylvania House of Representatives effective December 13th.&#8221;
The statement from Shapiro&#8217;s office noted just a few of the items that Johnson-Harrell allegedly spent the stolen funds on:
<ul>
<li>$5,500 on multiple fox fur coats,</li>
<li>$16,000 on vacations to Mexico (twice), Atlanta, and Ocean City, MD,</li>
<li>$2,065.95 to cover past-due Porsche payments,</li>
<li>$6,976 for designer clothing,</li>
<li>$3,000 for an overdue IRS tax bill,</li>
<li>$3,830 in tuition for relatives,</li>
<li>$3,200 to Philadelphia Gas Works,</li>
<li>$4,741.20 for City of Philadelphia taxes, and</li>
<li>$7,979.54 to cover a restitution payment for a 2014 criminal conviction where Johnson-Harrell failed to pay unemployment compensation tax.</li>
</ul>
“While Johnson-Harrell was lining her pockets with MECA funds, MECA’s residents were living in squalor,” Shapiro <a href="https://billypenn.com/2019/12/04/with-west-philly-state-rep-60-public-officials-have-been-arrested-by-pa-attorney-general/">said</a>. “When corruption erodes the trust that is built between governmental entities and citizens, no one wins. I’ve said time and time again as Attorney General that no one is above the law, no matter their position of power. And today is no different.”
Shapiro continued by highlighting the allegations made against Johnson-Harrell: “Representative Johnson-Harrell continuously diverted Medicaid and social security disability funds from her charity to help Philadelphia’s most vulnerable communities for her own personal use. She spent almost $15,000 on clothing, including online shopping sprees at Ralph Lauren and fox fur coats. She traveled to Mexico, Orlando, Georgia and Maryland on lavish trips costing $16,000 of MECA funds. She spent $2,000 on overdue car payments on her Porsche. Another $4,000 on tuition for a relative. And, she spent almost $20,000 on overdue mortgage payments.”
Shapiro also claimed that Johnson-Harrell committed campaign fraud by &#8220;failing to accurately report her campaign’s receipts and expenditures&#8221; and claimed that she committed tax fraud when she failed to &#8220;report her MECA spending as income and didn’t count the rent she continued to pay herself from MECA accounts on properties that no longer operated.&#8221;
A news article tweeted out by Shapiro highlighted his crackdown on corruption in the state, which, with Johnson-Harrell&#8217;s arrest, now stands at 60 public officials his office has arrested for alleged corruption and other alleged crimes.
The article that Shapiro tweeted out was to a publication called BillyPenn, which reported: &#8220;Two-thirds of the 60 arrested over the past two years were police officers or other law enforcement officials, including prosecutors, probation and corrections officers. Charges against them ranged from falsifying police paperwork to soliciting prostitutes while on the job. There are also plenty of county officials who allegedly dipped into public coffers for their personal gain.&#8221;
The list of officials that Shapiro arrested also reportedly includes 20 who were brought up on charges involving child pornography.
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60 public officials who have broken the trust given to them by the people of Pennsylvania.
This # is startling, frustrating and sad. PA deserves better. We deserve good, honest leadership.
My office will keep rooting out corruption—wherever we find it. <a href="https://t.co/OZJgGORNKe">https://t.co/OZJgGORNKe</a>
&mdash; Josh Shapiro (@JoshShapiroPA) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoshShapiroPA/status/1202569757423230977?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2019</a></blockquote>
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Movita Johnson-Harrell

Democrat State Rep Charged With Stealing $500K From Non-Profit For Mentally Ill, Pennsylvania Attorney General Alleges

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania State Senator John Yudichak announced on Tuesday that he will be switching his political affiliation from Democrat to Independent due to a disconnect with an increasingly leftward-moving party.
&#8220;As an Independent, I will continue to put people above politics,&#8221; Yudichak said in a press release. &#8220;I will continue to support Democratic ideas as well as Republican ideas when it is clear that they serve the greater good and help government work for people rather than the narrow interests of partisan &#8216;purists.'&#8221;
The state lawmaker has represented Pennsylvania&#8217;s 14th senatorial district for three terms and is not up for re-election until 2022. Yudichak suggested that leaving the party is the only way he can faithfully serve his district, which covers the northeastern part of the state and includes Carbon, Luzerne, and Monroe Counties.
&#8220;From an administrative standpoint if there was an independent caucus I&#8217;d be in the independent caucus but there were only two. That&#8217;s something that I&#8217;m trying to change,&#8221; Yudichak said <a href="https://twitter.com/SenJohnYudichak/status/1197163718636982273?s=20">over Twitter</a>. &#8220;I&#8217;d like to change the conversation where we get out of this idea that it&#8217;s us vs them. I think it&#8217;s a false choice for Pennsylvanians, I think it&#8217;s a false choice for Americans.&#8221;
Pennsylvania Democrats were able to flip five State Senate seats blue during the 2018 election cycle, which reportedly pulled the party even further to the left. Yudichak&#8217;s decision to leave the party will make him the commonwealth&#8217;s sole Independent state senator and brings the minority caucus from 22 seats to 21; Republicans currently control 27 seats, with one vacant seat in a solidly red district scheduled to be filled in January through a special election.
Despite being an Independent, Yudichak has decided to caucus with the Republican Party and will likely be assigned new committee assignments going forward.
&#8220;This is unique,&#8221; Yudichak said. &#8220;I&#8217;m an Independent. I&#8217;m going to be fiercely independent. I&#8217;ve been independent by nature, now it&#8217;s going to be by party.&#8221;
During a phone call with <a href="https://www.pennlive.com/news/2019/11/pa-dems-lose-a-state-senator-john-yudichak-of-luzerne-county-declares-himself-independent-will-caucus-with-gop.html">The Patriot-News</a>, Harrisburg&#8217;s largest newspaper, Yudichak put forth that the Democratic caucus has not been supportive of issues important to the region he represents and it has therefore become increasingly difficult for him to adequately serve his constituents. Accordingly, Yudichak cited certain issues, such as passing tax credits to help the waste coal industry and helping to prevent state prisons and centers for individuals with intellectual disabilities from closing, as areas where he lacks support.
&#8220;It became clear to me that I was going to be a marginalized voice, or worse, a silent voice, if I continued in that caucus,&#8221; Yudichak told local reporters.
&#8220;Our Democratic caucus prides itself on our advocacy for working people, for fair wages, affordable and accessible health care, and access to every opportunity the Commonwealth has to offer — regardless of race, gender, or creed,&#8221; Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa said in statement. &#8220;This Democratic caucus and the Democratic Party as a whole promotes a &#8216;large tent&#8217; approach.&#8221;
&#8220;And we welcome debate and diverse opinions within our membership, and will continue to do so,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;We&#8217;re extremely disappointed to see Senator Yudichak turn his back on those values and his Senate colleagues who have supported him since his first election to this chamber in 2010.&#8221;

Close Up Of Boxing Gloves

Pennsylvania Lawmaker Leaves Increasingly &#8216;Purist&#8217; Democrat Party, Will Caucus With Republicans

Democratic Party

On Wednesday, a teacher at a Pennsylvania middle school issued a homework assignment in which students were instructed to photograph themselves packing a bag to pretend they were refugees forced to leave their homes as “President Trump is trying to take control of the United States! There are fights in the streets!” <a href="https://www.wpxi.com/news/teacher-calls-parents-to-apologize-for-controversial-homework-assignment/1006415325">according to WPXI</a>.
The homework assignment at the middle school in the Penn Cambria School District in Gallitzin, PA, reportedlyupset parents. <a href="https://www.pennlive.com/news/2019/11/pa-teachers-huge-error-involving-trump-assignment-leads-to-apologies.html">Penn Live</a> reported, “District Superintendent William Marshall says the teacher realized the ‘huge error’ and has called each parent individually to apologize.&#8221;
The assignment stated:
<blockquote>President Trump is trying to take control of the United States! There are fights in the streets! You have to pretend that you are a refugee being forced to leave your home, never to return. Please have a parent to time them for ten minutes while they packed a bag. When the time was up they were to take a picture of the contents of their backpack and then email it to me. If no picture, then draw it. You will have to present to us why you chose those items. This is due on Thursday. Worth 10 points.</blockquote>
The teacher’s actions would seem to be out of place at the school; the middle school itself adheres to conservative principles. Its <a href="https://www.pcam.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/PCMS-Student-Handbook-2019-2020.pdf">dress code</a> reads:
<blockquote>Shirts must cover the midriff at all times. Shirts must reach the waistband of pants whether sitting or standing. Halter, tube tops, spaghetti strap shirts are NOT permitted. Tops must be wide enough to cover bra straps. Pants for boys and girls must fit at the waist so that your underwear does not show when you are sitting or standing. Logos on the back of pants or shorts are not permitted. Shorts and skirts must be at least the length of student’s fingertips when hands are dropped to the side.</blockquote>
The middle school website also <a href="https://www.pcam.org/schools/middle-school/">notes</a>, “We had the privilege of having the U.S. Honor Flag Network visit the Middle School on Wednesday, October 2nd.  They held a presentation that focused on America&#8217;s Heroes, Integrity, Patriotism, and sharing the U.S. Honor Flag.”
On September 24, a Computer Applications teacher at Watson B. Duncan Middle School in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida gave students a quiz with a question in which students were asked which president, Donald Trump, Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon, or Jimmy Carter, was the “45th Pres; 2017; Republican; Real Estate businessman; Idiot.”
The teacher claimed she downloaded the quiz from Quizlet, and had not reviewed the question before making it part of the quiz, as <a href="https://www.wptv.com/news/region-n-palm-beach-county/palm-beach-gardens/palm-beach-gardens-teacher-didnt-create-controversial-quiz-question-about-president-trump-investigation-finds">WPTV reported</a>.
As <a href="https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/state/florida-teacher-didnt-create-controversial-quiz-question-about-president-trump-investigation-finds">ABC Action News</a> reported, the school&#8217;s principal sent a letter to parents that read:
<blockquote>Hello Duncan Middle School Parents, this is Principal Philip D&#8217;Amico. A question on a quiz given by your child&#8217;s Computer Applications teacher yesterday was brought to my attention this morning. The question was inappropriate and demonstrated an unacceptable lack of good judgment on the part of the teacher. An investigation is now underway, and the teacher has been reassigned during this process. Because this is an open inquiry, I am not at liberty to share any additional details with you at this point. I apologize for this incident, and for the offensive verbiage used in the question. Thank you for your patience, and your continued support of Watson B. Duncan Middle School.</blockquote>
The school district released this statement to to WPTV: &#8220;Despite the fact that the teacher didn&#8217;t write, or intentionally select the question, the District views this error as a display of unprofessional behavior. The School District of Palm Beach County holds our educators to the highest standards. The teacher has been disciplined.&#8221;
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President Donald Trump Presents The Presidential Citizens Medal At The White House

Teacher Gives Homework Where Students Pack Their Bags As Trump ‘Is Trying To Take Control Of The United States!’

Donald Trump

Teachers

On Friday, Pennsylvania state legislator Rep. Wendy Ullman (D-Bucks) attempted an &#8220;apology&#8221; for calling a woman&#8217;s miscarriage of a child &#8220;just some mess on a napkin&#8221; while opposing a pro-life law earlier in the week.
In a series of tweets, the Democrat apologized for choosing her &#8220;words poorly&#8221; and underscored her opposition to the a Republican-backed bill that seeks to have medical facilities and abortion clinics dispose of baby remains with dignity.
<a href="https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/billInfo.cfm?sYear=2019&amp;sInd=0&amp;body=H&amp;type=B&amp;bn=1890">Pennsylvania House Bill 1890</a> would require abortion clinics and health care facilities to bury or cremate such lost unborn children, as opposed to tossing out the children like routine medical waste.
&#8220;In a discussion in the committee meeting earlier this week, I chose my words poorly and for that I apologize. Many women and families find tremendous comfort and solace in ritual burial or cremation in the case of early miscarriages, but others do not,&#8221; posted Rep. Ullman. &#8220;Some would choose donation for medical research, like my family friend, who I quoted in a committee meeting, saying, &#8216;So my loss can have meaning.'&#8221;
&#8220;In the discussion, which was on a bill that would require ritual burial or cremation following any miscarriage, I was in near-tears relaying a story of my family friend,&#8221; she continued. &#8220;This issue is intensely important to me, and that’s why I struggled for words. My words were poorly chosen, and I apologize. I remain steadfast that every single step of a medical process, including the handling of remains, should be decided by a patient and her doctor.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Some would choose donation for medical research, like my family friend, who I quoted in a committee meeting, saying, “So my loss can have meaning.” 2/4
&mdash; Rep. Wendy Ullman (@RepUllman) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepUllman/status/1190360405824147460?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 1, 2019</a></blockquote>
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This issue is intensely important to me, and that’s why I struggled for words. My words were poorly chosen, and I apologize. I remain steadfast that every single step of a medical process, including the handling of remains, should be decided by a patient and her doctor. 4/4
&mdash; Rep. Wendy Ullman (@RepUllman) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepUllman/status/1190360407325773826?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 1, 2019</a></blockquote>
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Ullman&#8217;s &#8220;apology&#8221; tweets were not well received, racking up only a few dozen &#8220;likes&#8221; and thousands of replies — most all of which were in outraged opposition with the lawmaker, including some detailing personal stories of miscarriage.
&#8220;This issue is also intensely important to me. Let me try to be clear so that you can understand,&#8221; one Twitter user <a href="https://twitter.com/LisaJochim/status/1190627800459489280">replied</a> to Ullman. &#8220;That &#8216;mess&#8217; is a baby, a child, a human being. You callously disregarded human life in all its glory and the beautiful process we all go through till the end of our lives.&#8221;
Another woman <a href="https://twitter.com/HollyKurzman/status/1190685698954842120">wrote</a>, &#8220;Poorly chosen is a gross understatement. It was cruel.&#8221;
&#8220;Tell my mother, aunt, sister and sister-in-law that their miscarriages were nothing. Resign and disappear,&#8221; <a href="https://twitter.com/chrisbg99/status/1190665297478459397">read</a> another comment.
&#8220;Your words weren&#8217;t chosen poorly,&#8221; one woman <a href="https://twitter.com/StartlingtheDay/status/1190682444002930689">said</a>. &#8220;It was your principles that you chose poorly. Keep searching for the Truth. It&#8217;s there waiting for you.&#8221;
The Daily Wire&#8217;s Emily Zanotti <a href="https://twitter.com/emzanotti/status/1190668908954603522">pointed out</a> that her tweet-storm wasn&#8217;t an &#8220;apology.&#8221; &#8220;If it was,&#8221; she said, &#8220;it would have stopped after the first sentence.&#8221;
&#8220;Do I seem angry to you, [Rep. Ullman]? Good. Because women who have had miscarriages deserve respect and if I need to stand up to garbage like you, who seek to deny the humanity of our children in pursuit of your ghoulish agenda, so be it,&#8221; Zanotti <a href="https://twitter.com/emzanotti/status/1190672062991478786">added</a>. &#8220;Women deserve better than you.&#8221;
Ullman <a href="https://twitter.com/molratty/status/1190390548915478528">sparked</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Liz_Wheeler/status/1189940159443169280">backlash</a> last week after the Democrat&#8217;s remarks, which were first highlighted by <a href="https://pafamily.org">Pennsylvania Family Council</a>, received (limited) media coverage.
&#8220;[House Bill 1890] refers specifically to the product of conception after fertilization, which covers an awful lot of territory,&#8221; the Democrat said on Tuesday during the House Health Committee meeting. &#8220;I think we all understand the concept of the loss of a fetus, but we’re also talking about a woman who comes into a facility and is having cramps and — not to be, not to be, concrete — an early miscarriage is just some mess on a napkin.&#8221;
WATCH:
<iframe title="PA State Representative Wendy Ullman: &quot;Early miscarriage is just some mess on a napkin.&quot;" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9WBMbLF-ChY?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-dem-rep-wendy-ullman-calls-miscarriage-just-some-mess-on-a-napkin">WATCH: Dem Rep. Wendy Ullman Calls Miscarriage ‘Just Some Mess On A Napkin’</a>

Cavan Images//Getty Images

Dem Lawmaker&#8217;s ‘Apology’ For Calling Miscarriage ‘Just Some Mess On A Napkin’ Doesn&#8217;t Go Over Well

Abortion

On Tuesday, Pennsylvania state legislator Rep. Wendy Ullman (D-Bucks) said a miscarriage is &#8220;just a mess on a napkin.&#8221;
Rep. Ullman made the shocking statement while expressing her opposition to a Republican-sponsored bill seeking to handle the remains of the aborted and miscarried with dignity. <a href="https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/billInfo.cfm?sYear=2019&amp;sInd=0&amp;body=H&amp;type=B&amp;bn=1890">House Bill 1890</a> would require abortion clinics and healthcare facilities to bury or cremate such lost unborn children, as opposed to tossing out the children like medical waste.
&#8220;[House Bill 1890] refers specifically to the product of conception after fertilization, which covers an awful lot of territory,&#8221; said the Democratic lawmaker during a House Health Committee meeting. &#8220;I think we all understand the concept of the loss of a fetus, but we&#8217;re also talking about a woman who comes into a facility and is having cramps and — not to be, not to be, concrete — an early miscarriage is just some mess on a napkin.&#8221;
<a href="https://pafamily.org/2019/10/napkin/">Tom Shaheen</a>, Vice President for Policy for Pennsylvania Family Institute, quickly condemned Ullman&#8217;s insensitive statement. “A miscarriage, no matter how early, does not result in a ‘mess on a napkin’ but the loss of a child,” Mr. Shaheen rebuked the Democrat. “Each human life deserves respect, even when lost at an early stage in development.”
“The remains of human beings should be treated better than medical waste,&#8221; continued Shaheen. &#8220;Rep. Frank Ryan’s bill is a compassionate effort to help offer some closure to many mothers and families in Pennsylvania.&#8221;
&#8220;Every Pennsylvanian should be appalled at such a heartless comment, which devalues life and ignores the pain experienced by so many women and families in Pennsylvania,&#8221; a statement from the <a href="https://pafamily.org/2019/10/napkin/">Pennsylvania Family Institute</a> added.
Abortion radicalism and callous comments concerning the loss of the unborn have become commonplace in the Democratic Party. In January, for example, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, a Democrat later embroiled in a blackface scandal, publicly defended a form of infanticide on a radio program.
&#8220;When we talk about third-trimester abortions, these are done with the consent of the mother, with the consent of physicians, more than one physician by the way, and it’s done in cases where there may be severe deformities, there may be a fetus which is non-viable,&#8221; Northam said, as reported by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-virginia-governor-doubles-down-infanticide-ryan-saavedra">The Daily Wire</a>. &#8220;So in this particular example, if the mother is in labor, I can tell you exactly what would happen, the infant would be delivered, the infant would be kept comfortable, the infant would be resuscitated if this is what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physician and the mother.&#8221;
At the time, the Virginia Democrat was offering support for proposed legislation by Kathy Tran, a Democrat, allowing abortions to be performed up to the moment of birth.
Every Republican members of the House Health committee voted to pass Pennsylvania&#8217;s HB 1890, while every Democrat in the committee voted against it.
In May, the U.S. Supreme Court <a href="https://www.indystar.com/story/news/2019/05/28/indiana-abortion-law-supreme-court-rules-fetal-remains-law/1256953001/">upheld</a> the portion of a Republican-backed Indiana law that requires burial or cremation of unborn children lost in abortion or miscarriage, just as HB 1890 is seeking.
WATCH:
<iframe title="PA State Representative Wendy Ullman: &quot;Early miscarriage is just some mess on a napkin.&quot;" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9WBMbLF-ChY?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Posed baby

WATCH: Dem Rep. Wendy Ullman Calls Miscarriage &#8216;Just Some Mess On A Napkin&#8217;

Last Friday, the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against a group of atheists who sued the Speaker of the Pennsylvania House in federal court, claiming the Pennsylvania House violated the Establishment Clause by barring a non-religious person from offering prayer.
The court ruled 2-1 that it is constitutional for the House to restrict offering prayer in the House to people acknowledging God; Judge Thomas L. Ambro, who wrote the <a href="https://s3.amazonaws.com/becketnewsite/Document.pdf">majority opinion</a>, stated, &#8220;As a matter of traditional practice, a petition to human wisdom and the power of science does not capture the full sense of &#8216;prayer,&#8217; historically understood.&#8221;
<a href="https://www.becketlaw.org/case/speaker-v-fields/">Becket Law</a> explained the background of the case:
<blockquote>In 2016, a group of secular atheists, many of whom publicly mock prayer and religion, requested to serve as chaplains and deliver non-religious &#8220;invocations&#8221; in the Pennsylvania State House. The Pennsylvania House speaker denied their request on the grounds that their beliefs were not religious. In August 2016, the atheists sued the Speaker of the Pennsylvania House in federal court, claiming that it violated the Establishment Clause to bar a non-religious person from offering prayer … In August 2018, the district court decided in favor of the atheists, ruling that the Pennsylvania State House legislative prayer policy violates the Constitution. The Speaker of the Pennsylvania House appealed the case to the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.</blockquote>
The Third Circuit wrote in its decision:
<blockquote>For the Free Exercise, Free Speech, and Equal Protection Clauses, we hold that legislative prayer is government speech not open to attack via those channels … History supplies our method of analyzing cases involving legislative prayer. In Establishment Clause challenges like this, we ask &#8220;whether the prayer practice&#8221; in question &#8220;fits within the tradition long followed in Congress and the state legislatures.&#8221;
Twice the Supreme Court has drawn on early congressional practice to uphold legislative prayer. It emphasized that Congress approved the draft of the First Amendment in the same week it established paid congressional chaplains to provide opening prayers. Congress approved theistic religious expression in other ways as well; a day after proposing the First Amendment, it &#8220;urged President Washington to proclaim &#8216;a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts, the many and signal favours of Almighty God.'&#8221;</blockquote>
The decision also noted the recent case in which the Supreme Court <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/18pdf/17-1717_4f14.pdf">ruled</a> that the 40-foot Peace cross could remain on state property in Maryland. The decision noted:
<blockquote>Even more recently, the Supreme Court has expanded its historical framework beyond the confines of legislative prayer. In rejecting an Establishment Clause challenge to a Christian cross commemorating World War I on state property, the Court held that the memorial &#8220;must be viewed in [its] historical context.&#8221; It also announced &#8220;a presumption of constitutionality for longstanding monuments, symbols, and practices.&#8221;</blockquote>
The decision even cited left-leaning Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, writing, &#8220;The assumption that prayer must be theistic apparently persuaded then-Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg that Congress’s practice of excluding nontheists from offering opening prayers did not violate the Establishment Clause.&#8221;
The decision concluded: &#8220;The House’s policy preferring theistic over nontheistic prayers does not violate the Establishment Clause because it fits squarely within the historical tradition of legislative prayer. Next, legislative prayer is government speech, so the policy is not susceptible to an attack on free-speech, free-exercise, or equal-protection grounds.&#8221;

Close up of hands clasped on open Bible

Victory For Believers: Court Rules Atheists Cannot Offer Prayer In PA State House

Atheism

Christianity

In a surprise display of a politician departing from his party&#8217;s line, a Democratic mayor in Reading, Pennsylvania has refused to raise the LGBT rainbow pride flag over city hall, arguing that it sends a non-impartial political message.
&#8220;The flag was originally slated to fly on Monday in recognition of Reading’s Pride Celebration and stay up through the following Sunday,&#8221; reports <a href="https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/dem-mayor-refuses-to-raise-lgbt-flag-as-symbol-of-political-movement">LifeSiteNews</a>. &#8220;However, the Reading Eagle <a href="https://www.readingeagle.com/news/article/reading-mayor-blocks-raising-of-pride-flag">reports</a> that Mayor Wally Scott blocked it just minutes before it was set to go up. He objected not to the LGBT lobby’s causes, but to the prospect of flying anything representing a live political cause.&#8221;
In a statement to reporters, acting managing director Osmer Deming said that Mayor Scott simply does not wish to use government property to endorse current political movements. &#8220;The mayor’s position is that he does not support flags being up that support political movements and he views that as a political movement,&#8221; he said.
City council president Jeffrey Waltman said that he tried to change the mayor&#8217;s mind but ultimately could not persuade him from &#8220;concerns about raising the flag.&#8221; Councilwoman Donna Reed said that all plans were in place to have the flag fly until Mayor Scott shut it down at the last minute. &#8220;I contacted the managing director and was told this flag would fly through the 21st,&#8221; Reed said.
&#8220;It was obviously an administrative breakdown that showed up at the last minute. It was approved by Osmer and I guess it didn’t get relayed,&#8221; Waltman added.
LGBT activists have not accepted the news enthusiastically. One city resident, Ernie Schlegel, said he plans to file a complaint to see &#8220;if we have a stand for discrimination.&#8221;
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ReadingPa?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ReadingPa</a> was set to raise a flag to celebrate <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pride?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Pride</a> but Mayor Wally Scott said no at the last minute <a href="https://t.co/9EzRf460Ei">pic.twitter.com/9EzRf460Ei</a>
— Jeremy Long (@jeremymlong) <a href="https://twitter.com/jeremymlong/status/1150874038757220357?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 15, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Mayor Scott&#8217;s decision to not let the flag fly over city hall comes shortly after the Trump administration <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/48185/report-trump-admin-says-no-flying-pride-flags-us-paul-bois">told U.S. embassies</a> around the world to abstain from displaying the rainbow flag alongside the American flag.
&#8220;The U.S. embassies in Israel, Germany, Brazil and Latvia are among those that have requested permission from Trump&#8217;s State Department to fly the pride flag on their flagpoles and have been denied, diplomats said,&#8221; reported NBC News back in June. &#8220;Although the pride flag can and is being flown elsewhere on embassy grounds, including inside embassies and on exterior walls, the decision not to allow it on the official flagpole stands in contrast to President Donald Trump&#8217;s claim to be a leader in supporting LGBTQ rights overseas.&#8221;
In actuality, the Trump administration only barred the pride flag from being physically placed on flagpoles alongside the U.S. flag. Openly gay U.S. ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell told NBC News in a statement that the rainbow flag would be present in the U.S.&#8217;s Berlin embassy, and that it was present throughout all of Pride Month.
&#8220;The President&#8217;s recognition of Pride Month and his tweet encouraging our decriminalization campaign gives me even more pride to once again march in the Berlin Pride parade, hang a huge banner on the side of the embassy recognizing our pride, host multiple events at the Embassy and the residence, and fly the gay pride flag,&#8221; Grenell said.
In 2018, the GOP even <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/33589/gop-bill-seeks-prevent-us-embassies-raising-gay-paul-bois">introduced a bill</a> in the U.S. House seeking to bar the rainbow flag from being displayed in concert with the American flag on U.S. embassies. Contrary to initial reports, the bill did not single out LGBT flags and simply banned any flag other than Old Glory.
&#8220;The United States flag is the single greatest symbol of freedom the world has ever known, and there’s no reason for anything but Old Glory to be flying over our embassies and posts around the globe,&#8221; Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC) said at the time.

Democratic Mayor Refuses To Raise The Pride Flag

LGBT

Richard Grenell

Trump Administration

A shooting outside a nightclub in Allentown, Pennsylvania early Thursday morning left 10 people wounded in what authorities say they suspect is an incident connected to &#8220;gang violence.&#8221;
The shooting occurred outside the Deja Vu nightclub shortly before 2 a.m. Thursday morning, the <a href="https://triblive.com/news/pennsylvania/10-wounded-in-shooting-outside-pennsylvania-bar/">Associated Press</a> reports. According to police, most of the victims either had just left the club or were standing on the sidewalk when the bullets began to fly.
&#8220;There have been no arrests, and the motive for the shooting was unclear,&#8221; AP reports. &#8220;Witnesses said they saw several panicked people fleeing the scene on foot, and at least one car was spotted speeding away.&#8221;
Officials say they believe as many as three shooters may have been involved and that they suspect this is a case of gang violence.
&#8220;It appears that at least one individual was a target,&#8221; Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin said in a statement reported by <a href="https://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-nws-allentown-shooting-view-20190620-k7i7ql2ovbaevndqelu7pnf6t4-story.html">The Morning Call</a>. Though there have been no arrests, Martin said &#8220;it does not appear that the community at large is at risk from the perpetrators involved here.&#8221;
&#8220;It is more likely than not that the outcome of the investigation will reveal a connection to gang violence,&#8221; he said, noting that some witnesses have been uncooperative.
The Morning Call describes the incident as &#8220;one [of] Lehigh Valley&#8217;s worst mass shootings in recent memory.&#8221; The paper also notes that the owner of Deja Vu, Osiris &#8220;Tito&#8221; Guzman, was recently &#8220;arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, false identification to authorities and public drunkenness for his role in a weekend brawl outside another nightclub, The View.&#8221;
The police say they do not believe the brawl and the shooting are connected, however.
One witness told The Morning Call that the gunshots woke her up and she witnessed people running across the parking lot of the shopping center and a car speed away. &#8220;When everything went silent all you could hear is the screaming and panicking,&#8221; she said. &#8220;All I could think was someone is dying.&#8221;
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/48512/gunman-opens-fire-downtown-dallas-shot-dead-heres-james-barrett">Gunman Opens Fire In Downtown Dallas, Shot Dead. Here&#8217;s What You Need To Know.</a>

10 Wounded In Shooting Outside Pennsylvania Nightclub

Shooting

On Tuesday the Supreme Court <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/28/politics/supreme-court-pennsylvania-school-transgender-student-bathroom-policy/index.html">dodged the issue</a> of allowing transgender students in school to use bathrooms that don&#8217;t match their biological sex, declining to hear a case involving a Pennsylvania school district policy that permits those students to do so.
The court denied a writ of certiorari in the case of Doe v. Boyertown Area School District; the plaintiffs are students, represented by the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), who believe the school district policy violates their privacy rights and amounts to sexual harassment. If the court had heard the case and decided the students were indeed being sexually harassed by having students of the opposite sex in their bathrooms, that would constitute a violation of Title IX.
<a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/doe-v-boyertown-area-school-district/">ScotusBlog</a> summed up the case this way:
<blockquote>
Whether, given students&#8217; constitutionally protected privacy interest in their partially clothed bodies, a public school has a compelling interest in authorizing students who believe themselves to be members of the opposite sex to use locker rooms and restrooms reserved exclusively for the opposite sex, and whether such a policy is narrowly tailored; and (2) whether the Boyertown policy constructively denies access to locker room and restroom facilities under Title IX &#8220;on the basis of sex.&#8221; 
</blockquote>
ADF Senior Counsel and Vice President of Appellate Advocacy John Bursch responded to the Supreme Court&#8217;s decision not to hear the case, asserting, &#8220;Students struggling with their beliefs about gender need compassionate support, but sound reasons based on common sense have always existed for schools to separate male and female teenagers in showers, restrooms, and locker rooms.&#8221;
In May 2018, the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the district&#8217;s policy. One student who was a senior at the high school, Alexis Lightcap, said she had encountered a boy in the girl&#8217;s restroom and was frightened. <a href="https://www.adflegal.org/detailspages/blog-details/allianceedge/2019/05/28/breaking-supreme-court-rejects-student-privacy-case">ADF reports</a>, &#8220;Alexis was determined to make her voice heard. <a href="https://www.adflegal.org/detailspages/case-details/doe-v.-boyertown-area-school-district">She joined a lawsuit against Boyertown School District and later publicly identified herself as one of the plaintiffs.</a> Another student in the district had already challenged the policy in court after he realized that a biological female was standing in the boys&#8217; locker room as he changed down to his underwear. <a href="https://www.adflegal.org/detailspages/blog-details/allianceedge/2017/09/26/we-cannot-give-up-on-student-privacy-rights.-that-s-why-we-are-appealing-this-case">School administrators had brushed aside his privacy concerns, too, telling him to try and act &#8216;natural&#8217; after he raised the issue.</a>&#8221;
Lightcap <a href="https://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/commentary/boyertown-transgender-bathroom-lgbtq-gender-identiy-philadelphia-suburbs-20180524.html">wrote an op-ed</a> in which she stated:
<blockquote>
I come from a broken home. As a child, I struggled for a long time through a broken foster care system. Eventually, a good, loving family adopted me, but all those previous experiences made me a shy and quiet little girl who didn&#8217;t have a voice of my own.
<iframe data-google-container-id="b" data-load-complete="true" frameborder="0" height="1" width="1"></iframe>My adoptive parents worked hard to help me find that voice. They taught me to think for myself, and speak for myself, and that what I thought mattered. That came in handy when we moved to Boyertown, where black children like me were pretty few and far between, but racial slurs were not.
So, it&#8217;s not like I don&#8217;t know what it&#8217;s like to be different, or can&#8217;t understand someone who has a hard time speaking up for their rights. But that doesn&#8217;t make me any more comfortable having my privacy invaded or knowing the bathroom door is open to anyone who wants to come in.
</blockquote>
As <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2019/05/28/supreme-court-transgender-school-bathroom-policy-1345367">Politico</a> reported, after the SCOTUS decision on Tuesday, the ACLU, which represents Aidan DeStefano, a student at Boyertown Area Senior High who is transgender, tweeted: &#8220;Our client Aidan was accepted as the boy he is &#8212; this should be every student&#8217;s experience. This is a victory for trans students and educators nationwide.&#8221;

Supreme Court Dodges Case Involving Trans Students In Bathrooms

Supreme Court

Transgender

On Tuesday&#8217;s episode of &#8220;The Andrew Klavan Show,&#8221; the host discusses how the Democrats and their allies in the mainstream media are living in a fantasy world where every Trump supporter is a racist bigot. Video and partial transcript below.
Yesterday, I happened to be in the car listening to the radio when Donald Trump began one of his speeches, one of these rallies. He gives them in these godforsaken places where people don&#8217;t even live in New York or L.A. I didn&#8217;t even know there were people out there! But Donald Trump knows there are people out there and he goes out and he starts to give a speech and he is getting kind of more disciplined in his speeches; although he does go off in these hilarious rants sometimes. But anyway, he&#8217;s talking about the thing that he should be talking about, which is the economy. But I was listening to those figures which are largely correct. I mean obviously, Trump has that carny barker way of talking where everything is the best ever and the best ever. But you know the numbers are real; he has brought jobs back.
The growth in this country has been great. It&#8217;s obvious he&#8217;s taken off that incredible weight that Barack Obama put on the country, not just by over-regulating business, not just by being unreliable in what atmosphere he was creating for business or business couldn&#8217;t count on what was going to happen next, but also in that just a droning blame of &#8220;oh we&#8217;re not the country we&#8217;re supposed to be&#8221; you know. I mean they talk about animal spirits and big business and Obama was the greatest killer of animal spirits ever, and Trump you know pumps people up. He loves the country and everything&#8217;s going great&#8230;
It&#8217;s just like the picture of Donald Trump that comes out of the Democrat media 24/7 again that comes out all the time is just so different than real Trump. I mean first of all the stuff that he&#8217;s talking about, he&#8217;s talking about the minority numbers, the things that he has done for the minority communities in this country, if that&#8217;s what we have to call them. I don&#8217;t know why they&#8217;re not just Americans, but we were always identifying them as minorities. He&#8217;s done amazing things for those communities in terms of the economy, which kind of puts the lie to this whole &#8220;racist&#8221; thing, which is all we have heard is &#8220;racist, racist, racist.&#8221; They pushed that thing about &#8220;oh there are fine people on both sides&#8221; until finally, they had to admit, &#8220;Oh yeah we lied to you for two years. Now we just won&#8217;t mention it again. But we&#8217;ll keep saying he&#8217;s racist.&#8221;
<div class="embed video fluid-video"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DHfdT-DzDM0?start=334" width="560"></iframe></div>
Two researchers at the University of Pennsylvania, Daniel Hopkins and Samantha Washington, set out to measure the effect of Trump&#8217;s election on anti-black and anti-Hispanic prejudice, that Americans, they say, have become less inclined to express racist opinions since Donald Trump was elected. Anti-black prejudice, they found, declined by a statistically insignificant degree between 2012 and 2016&#8230; But then after 2016, when Trump was elected, it took a sharp dive. Anti-black prejudice after Trump&#8217;s election took a sharp dive that was statistically significant. Moreover, contrary to their expectations, the fall was [as] evident among Republican voters as it was among Democrats. There was also a general fall in anti-Hispanic prejudice too, although this was more evident among Democrat voters. In other words, when you don&#8217;t have a guy like Obama telling us that everything we do is wrong, that life is injustice, and we need to have a conversation about race, as if we haven&#8217;t been talking about race for the last 50 or 60 years. When you don&#8217;t have people doing that, we start to react to each other the way we&#8217;re supposed to, which is as Americans, and it&#8217;s going away. This is an effect of Donald Trump.
So that&#8217;s a fantasy. The fantasy that Trump is making racism worse, that he&#8217;s bringing out from under the rock all the evil white supremacists, the white suprematism is a growing problem, which the numbers show that it is not. That is just it. I mean, you know, you can not like Trump, you can say his policies are wrong. You can disagree with his policies, but I&#8217;m talking about fantasy, I&#8217;m talking about the difference between fantasy and reality which you cannot say is that he&#8217;s a racist or that he has acted in a racist way. You could say that Obama was a racist. He went for 20 years to a racist church, he convicted police officers without any evidence calling them racist, he tried to take over local police forces with the feds on the grounds that they were racist when the numbers showed they weren&#8217;t. You know you could have said that, and you could say we all have glitches we all have things that come out of our mouth. You can always pick and choose things. But in terms of his actions, in terms of his policies, I don&#8217;t see how it&#8217;s possible to make the legitimate argument that this is an actual racist guy.
<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/show/andrew-klavan-show&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1558621190040000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGQw4X2mFZsKe-51BiLXbS7RwwMtw" href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/show/andrew-klavan-show" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Watch more of &#8220;The Andrew Klavan Show&#8221; here</a>.
<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-andrew-klavan-show/id1045171376?mt%3D2&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1558621190040000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEMMKxGiPXMgKLL0MUgLvnUDxAvHw" href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-andrew-klavan-show/id1045171376?mt=2" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Listen to more of &#8220;The Andrew Klavan Show&#8221; on iTunes here.</a>

KLAVAN: The Media And The Democrats Are Living In A Fantasy World

Andrew Klavan

Barack Obama

Conservatism

Economy

Mike Pence

Racism

The citizens of Philadelphia have been rocked by a tax on sugary drinks like soda, although the hike was intended to improve their health.
As <a href="https://hotair.com/archives/2019/05/18/philadelphias-soda-tax-bombed-predicted/">outlined</a> by Hotair on Saturday, the &#8220;soda tax&#8221; has actually led to Philadelphia residents traveling outside the city to buy their soda (and likely other goods), decreased the city&#8217;s revenue, and led to layoffs in the local beverage industry and cut hours for employees at small markets. It did not, however, lead to an increase in healthier beverage purchases in the city.
When the soda tax was first announced, workers at Pepsi took a hit. &#8220;With sales slumping because of the new Philadelphia sweetened beverage tax, Pepsi said Wednesday that it will lay off 80 to 100 workers at three distribution plants that serve the city,&#8221; <a href="http://philly.com">philly.com</a> <a href="https://www.philly.com/philly/news/politics/Pepsi-announces-80-100-layoffs-blames-soda-tax.html">reported</a> in March of 2017.
And last month, the local outlet <a href="https://www.philly.com/opinion/acme-soda-tax-hurting-businesses-20190418.html?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIjZ6_kuaq4gIVjZyzCh23owhTEAAYAiAAEgJkwPD_BwE">reported</a> that the owner of Acme Markets, who has 16 stores in Philadelphia, had to cut employees&#8217; hours because of the tax: &#8220;The beverage tax fell on about 4,000 items. In Acme city stores, soda sales dropped as much as 80 percent. Sales of other items covered by the tax, such as juices, creamers and energy drinks, were down 30 percent, and the number of customers declined by 5 percent. Philly stores cut an average of 150 to 200 employee hours per week, resulting in lighter paychecks for employees.&#8221;
But the hit the employees took did not equate to a win for the &#8220;health&#8221; of its citizens. As noted by Hotair, Philadelphia residents were traveling outside the city to avoid the tax hike on their drinks.
A CNN report on a study from medical journal <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2733208?guestAccessKey=86610f39-a0eb-46d4-a30a-3ddef0036408&amp;utm_source=For_The_Media&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=ftm_links&amp;utm_content=tfl&amp;utm_term=051419">JAMA</a> focused in on the 51% drop in city soda purchases, but <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/15/health/philadelphia-soda-tax-sales-decrease/index.html?utm_content=2019-05-18T09:00:14&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_term=link&amp;utm_source=twCNN">admitted</a>: &#8220;While researchers found that sales of sugary beverages fell in Philadelphia after the tax, beverage sales in nearby towns and counties without the tax went up. That suggests people may have been traveling to get their soda at a reduced price.&#8221;
&#8220;People stopped buying their soda in the city (and almost undoubtedly a lot of other shopping list items) and decided to shop where prices were lower,&#8221; Hotair noted.
So was there at least an uptick in healthier beverage purchases because of the tax? Nope. &#8220;Philadelphia did not see an increase in sales of untaxed beverages such as bottled water,&#8221; CNN reported.
CNN did not discuss the revenue hit Philadelphia took, but Hotair did: &#8220;The tax on soda increased by 17%, but the sales fell by 51%. So, let&#8217;s look at this assuming one million ounces of soda was sold annually before the tax went into effect. If sales had remained the same, the city would have realized $62,400.00 in revenue instead of $54,300.00. But with the volume cut in half, they managed to slash their revenue to $31,200.00.&#8221;

BACKFIRE: Philadelphia Implemented Soda Tax, But It Didn&#8217;t Go As Planned

Taxes

Democrat State Rep. Brian Sims made waves last weekend when he live-streamed himself <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46853/watch-democrat-rep-brian-sims-tries-dox-three-pro-amanda-prestigiacomo">harassing</a> an elderly pro-life sidewalk counselor and three teenage girls praying outside a Philadelphia-based Planned Parenthood abortion clinic. Sims hurled insults at the women and girls, mocking their Christianity and their skin color, and tried to find out personal information about them, such as their addresses, so they could be harassed at home. In one of the videos, the Democrat even offers up $100 for the identities of the three teenage girls praying for unborn babies outside the clinic.
But now that pro-lifers have <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46902/daily-wires-matt-walsh-sparks-big-name-pro-life-amanda-prestigiacomo">responded</a> to Sims&#8217; harassment, such as inviting the Democrat to a pro-life rally in response to his antics, he&#8217;s nowhere to be found. The elected official has locked his Twitter account, was a no-show at the rally, has security outside of his office building, and is not allowing constituents in to engage in dialogue.
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
After harassing an elderly woman on video and offering $100 to dox three teenage girls praying outside a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic, elected official <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrianSimsPA</a> has locked his Twitter account. <a href="https://t.co/ZZYf6aVTat">pic.twitter.com/ZZYf6aVTat</a>
&#8212; Amanda Prestigiacomo (@AmandaPresto) <a href="https://twitter.com/AmandaPresto/status/1127912581170069504?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Sims&#8217; legislative account appears to still be open to the public, though it has been <a href="https://twitter.com/RepSims">inactive</a> since May 6.
Some of the latest tweets from Sims&#8217; personal account before closing it off to the public were <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46862/dem-rep-who-spent-weekend-harassing-pro-lifers-amanda-prestigiacomo">directed</a> at pro-lifers. &#8220;Bring it, Bible Bullies! You are bigots, sexists, and misogynists and I see right through your fake morals and your broken values. #BeReal,&#8221; read one message from the Democrat. Another mockingly said, &#8220;&#8216;Don&#8217;t discriminate against our discrimination. Don&#8217;t bully our bullies. Don&#8217;t hate our haters.&#8217; &#8211; P**** Grabbers and Baby Cagers.&#8221;
He also posted what was an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46910/watch-democrat-state-rep-who-harassed-pro-life-amanda-prestigiacomo">&#8220;apology&#8221; video</a> regarding his behavior, though the only apology he offered was one to Planned Parenthood, not those whom he harassed.
Also, the representative&#8217;s Instagram <a href="https://www.instagram.com/briansimspa/">account</a> has been inactive since May 1.
On Friday, when pro-lifers gathered in response to Sims outside the same Planned Parenthood abortion clinic where he harassed women and teens, the Democrat was not in attendance, though he was invited. This was expected. And when pro-life media attempted to speak with Mr. Sims at his office, the representative declined. His office building was also manned with a security guard.
<blockquote>
It&#8217;s just shameful that a publicly-elected representative, guarded by the police, is attacking the citizens of this great state and isn&#8217;t even allowing his own constituents to come to meet with him.
-Americans United for Life
</blockquote>
&#8220;We came over to Representative Sims&#8217; office; you&#8217;ll see right behind me there is a police officer guarding the building, which is a little bit ironic because we didn&#8217;t have guards for the children and the elderly woman who he harassed and threatened outside the Planned Parenthood facility, but he himself, as a public servant, is getting protected by this police officer,&#8221; reported Americans United for Life, adding: &#8220;When we tried to go in the building and go up to his office to meet with him, we found out that he is not allowing the public to go into the building; he is not allowing the public to go up to his office; we couldn&#8217;t even find out where his office was, what floor it was on. It&#8217;s just shameful that a publicly-elected representative, guarded by the police, is attacking the citizens of this great state and isn&#8217;t even allowing his own constituents to come to meet with him.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
We just tried to speak with <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrianSimsPA</a> at his Philly office and were STONEWALLED by the receptionist! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FreeSpeech?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FreeSpeech</a> <a href="https://t.co/Zt0xu09LNj">pic.twitter.com/Zt0xu09LNj</a>
&#8212; Americans United for Life (@AUL) <a href="https://twitter.com/AUL/status/1126909851211317248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/47059/matt-walsh-addresses-brian-sims-massive-pro-life-amanda-prestigiacomo">Matt Walsh Addresses Brian Sims At Massive Pro-Life Rally The Democrat Rep. Accidentally Sparked</a>
<div> </div>

Democrat State Rep. Who Offered $100 To Have Pro-Life Teens Doxxed Goes Into Hiding

Planned Parenthood

After Democrat State Rep. Brian Sims live-streamed himself harassing an elderly pro-life sidewalk counselor and teenage girls praying outside a Philadelphia-based Planned Parenthood abortion clinic over the weekend, popular pro-life advocates banded together to spread the word about a response rally outside the same clinic set for Friday.
They probably weren&#8217;t expecting over 1,000 people to show up for the last-minute rally. But that&#8217;s exactly what happened. 
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
The <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ProLifePhilly?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ProLifePhilly</a> rally featured an outstanding lineup of pro-life leaders <a href="https://twitter.com/AbbyJohnson?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AbbyJohnson</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/LilaGraceRose?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LilaGraceRose</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MattWalshBlog</a>, and many more! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ResignBrianSims?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ResignBrianSims</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrianSimsPA</a> <a href="https://t.co/S6AKwVwA0m">pic.twitter.com/S6AKwVwA0m</a>
&#8212; LifeSiteNews.com (@LifeSite) <a href="https://twitter.com/LifeSite/status/1126921005342105603?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
The Daily Wire&#8217;s Matt Walsh, one of the speaker&#8217;s at the successful gathering, said he was humbled by the turnout. &#8220;Pro aborts could never do what we did today. They&#8217;d never get such an energetic and overwhelming response and attendance on such short notice, or any notice. Just like they&#8217;ll never hold a march as big as the March For Life. The pro-abortion movement is a sad and lethargic thing,&#8221; the prominent pro-life voice posted to Twitter.
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Pro aborts could never do what we did today. They&#8217;d never get such an energetic and overwhelming response and attendance on such short notice, or any notice. Just like they&#8217;ll never hold a march as big as the March For Life. The pro-abortion movement is a sad and lethargic thing
&#8212; Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog/status/1126919517551177729?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
One of the highlights of the day was from &#8220;Unplanned&#8221; author Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood executive turned pro-life advocate. Speaking to the energetic crowd, Johnson emphasized that both the mother and the child must always be treated with dignity.
&#8220;It is time to refuse to &#8216;choose.&#8217; We will not choose between one or the other. We will respect both women and their children, and their femininity, and their reproduction, and their fertility. And we will continue to do it until clinics like this no longer exist, and every women who walks into a physician&#8217;s office is actually treated with love and respect and care,&#8221; she told the audience, mostly comprised of women.
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/AbbyJohnson?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AbbyJohnson</a> was awesome today and the whole event was powerful!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ProLifePhilly?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ProLifePhilly</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ProLife?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ProLife</a> <a href="https://t.co/Iwp5MUCGLa">pic.twitter.com/Iwp5MUCGLa</a>
&#8212; Guy Beaumont (@GuyBeaumont) <a href="https://twitter.com/GuyBeaumont/status/1126902433857376257?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Another moving moment came when prayer broke out for the unborn. As noted by Nate Madden of The Blaze, the prayer outside the clinic comes just days after Rep. Sims live-streamed himself harassing teen girls for praying outside that very clinic.
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Days after <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrianSimsPA</a> proudly posted video of himself bullying a lone woman praying these people showed up to pray at the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RallyAgainstBullying?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RallyAgainstBullying</a>.
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ProLifePhilly?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ProLifePhilly</a> <a href="https://t.co/RUIzRiUGEk">pic.twitter.com/RUIzRiUGEk</a>
&#8212; Nate Madden (@NateOnTheHill) <a href="https://twitter.com/NateOnTheHill/status/1126883914780430336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Sims was addressed directly by Walsh at the rally, too: &#8220;We are sending a message to bullies like Brian Sims. We will not be intimidated, we will not be silenced. If you try to shut us up, we are only going to get louder. If you try to shame us, we are only going to stand taller,&#8221; he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/47059/matt-walsh-addresses-brian-sims-massive-pro-life-amanda-prestigiacomo">told</a> the crowd.
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Happening now <a href="https://twitter.com/LiveAction?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LiveAction</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MattWalshBlog</a> <a href="https://t.co/ucIQLdNx2w">pic.twitter.com/ucIQLdNx2w</a>
&#8212; Alison H.Centofante (@AlisonHowardC) <a href="https://twitter.com/AlisonHowardC/status/1126871614384214017?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Though Sims was invited to attend the rally, he did not show.
Another memorable moment of the day came from Ashley Garecht, the mother of two of the teenage girls Sims bullied and attempted to dox.
&#8220;I am so grateful because we are here today to witness the tangible fruit of incredible effort. And I know, I know, that there are people who have been doing this work for decades and they are not always given the gift of seeing the tangible fruit of their work,&#8221; said Garecht.
&#8220;God is moving in incredible ways and we&#8217;re just along for the ride; we are standing on the side of angels,&#8221; she added.
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Ashley Garecht, the mother of teenage girls who Brian Sims bullied and harassed, speaks out:<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ResignBrianSims?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ResignBrianSims</a><a href="https://t.co/tlo0W9lvHr">https://t.co/tlo0W9lvHr</a><a href="https://t.co/3Npj32gD4B">pic.twitter.com/3Npj32gD4B</a>
&#8212; LifeNews.com (@LifeNewsHQ) <a href="https://twitter.com/LifeNewsHQ/status/1126873352486866944?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Garecht and her husband have helped <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/prolifephilly">raise</a> over $118,000 for the Pro-Life Union of Greater Philadelphia since Monday.
The rally also challenged a false narrative too often perpetrated by the Left and their mainstream media allies: the pro-life position is not one held by &#8220;the patriarchy&#8221;:
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Every speaker at the Pro-Life Rally today except for <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MattWalshBlog</a> is a woman. No &#8220;male-dominated&#8221; pro-life movement here!
Speakers:<a href="https://twitter.com/AbbyJohnson?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@abbyjohnson</a><a href="https://twitter.com/LilaGraceRose?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@lilagracerose</a> 
Dr. Monique Ruberu 
Richara Krajewski 
Ashley Garecht 
Tina Whittington 
Toni McFadden 
Marilyn Musgrave<a href="https://twitter.com/LaurenMuzyka?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LaurenMuzyka</a> <a href="https://t.co/ZX6kA9wMiq">pic.twitter.com/ZX6kA9wMiq</a>
&#8212; LifeNews.com (@LifeNewsHQ) <a href="https://twitter.com/LifeNewsHQ/status/1126906618124234753?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
&#8220;If this is the patriarchy, the patriarchy has a lot more estrogen than I thought. &#8230; We&#8217;re here because LIFE IS PRECIOUS.&#8221; &#8211; <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MattWalshBlog</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ProLifePhilly?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ProLifePhilly</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RallyAgainstBullying?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RallyAgainstBullying</a>
&#8212; Carly Hoilman (@carlyhoilman) <a href="https://twitter.com/carlyhoilman/status/1126873128288780289?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
The impressive gathering was made possible by the pro-life movement teaming together and by individuals getting out and putting their feet in motion for what they believe in.
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Very grateful to <a href="https://twitter.com/LilaGraceRose?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LilaGraceRose</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/LiveAction?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LiveAction</a> for taking this idea and making it a reality almost overnight. They had to get permits, coordinate with local pro-lifers and law enforcement, get equipment, put a speakers roster together etc etc in just a few days. Incredible job.
&#8212; Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog/status/1126904895313981442?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
<div> </div>

WATCH: Pro-Life Rally Garners Over 1,000 Participants In Response To Rep. Brian Sims. Here Are The Highlights.

On Friday, an estimated 1,000 pro-lifers gathered outside a Philadelphia-based Planned Parenthood in response to Democrat State Representative Brian Sims live-streaming his harassment of an elderly pro-life sidewalk counselor and teenage girls praying outside the abortion clinic over the weekend.
The Daily Wire&#8217;s Matt Walsh, who <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46902/daily-wires-matt-walsh-sparks-big-name-pro-life-amanda-prestigiacomo">called</a> for the rally in reaction to Sims&#8217; deplorable treatment of pro-lifers, gave an impassioned speech at the gathering, which of course included a direct address to &#8220;bully&#8221; Sims.
&#8220;I&#8217;m grateful that we are not merely complaining right now. No, we decided to do something, we responded. We are engaging on the issue in the real world. I hope we continue this,&#8221; Walsh told the massive crowd, <a href="https://www.faithwire.com/2019/05/10/walsh-responds-to-bully-rep-brian-sims-in-bold-speech-at-philly-pro-life-rally/">according</a> to Faithwire.
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Here&#8217;s what peaceful pro-life action looks like. This is happening, America!! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ProLifePhilly?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ProLifePhilly</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RallyAgainstBullying?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RallyAgainstBullying</a> <a href="https://t.co/7gjaW0vMWG">pic.twitter.com/7gjaW0vMWG</a>
&#8212; Carly Hoilman (@carlyhoilman) <a href="https://twitter.com/carlyhoilman/status/1126871935017734145?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
&#8220;We are saying to the pro-life activists that they are not alone and that we are with them,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We can&#8217;t just be pro-life in our minds, we have to live that truth &#8212; to bring that truth out into the real world.&#8221;
Then Walsh took on Sims directly: &#8220;We are sending a message to bullies like Brian Sims. We will not be intimidated, we will not be silenced. If you try to shut us up, we are only going to get louder. If you try to shame us, we are only going to stand taller.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MattWalshBlog</a> to <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrianSimsPA</a>: &#8220;If you try to shut us up, we&#8217;re only going to get louder&#8230;you try to intimidate because that&#8217;s all you have. You have no arguments&#8230;If you want to bully someone, I&#8217;m right here.&#8221;
&#8212; Alexandra DeSanctis (@xan_desanctis) <a href="https://twitter.com/xan_desanctis/status/1126872342855131136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
&#8220;Pick on someone your own size,&#8221; Walsh said to the Democrat. &#8220;Can you look us in the eyes and tell us why you think babies should be killed? If we cannot see the worth and value in a child, then who can we see it in?&#8221;
&#8220;We know that our cause is just. We know that we are right and we are firm in that truth. We have truth on our side and we will wield it like a sword to protect the unborn,&#8221; he added.
<blockquote>
We are sending a message to bullies like Brian Sims. We will not be intimidated, we will not be silenced. If you try to shut us up, we are only going to get louder. If you try to shame us, we are only going to stand taller.
-Matt Walsh
</blockquote>
The podcast host ended by explaining why he and fellow pro-lifers care so deeply about the issue of abortion: &#8220;Because life is precious &#8212; that&#8217;s it, that&#8217;s our entire argument. &#8230; Let the children live. Let them live!&#8221;
Sims made headlines on Saturday when he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46910/watch-democrat-state-rep-who-harassed-pro-life-amanda-prestigiacomo">live-streamed</a> himself harassing an elderly pro-life sidewalk counselor for over seven minutes. &#8220;Shame on you! Shame on you!&#8221; the Democrat continuously shouted at the woman. &#8220;What you&#8217;re doing out here is disgusting. You have no business being out here! &#8230; An old white lady telling people what&#8217;s right to do with their bodies. Shame on you. Shame! Shame!&#8221;
The Democrat also taped himself threatening to dox three teenage girls who were praying outside the abortion clinic. &#8220;What we&#8217;ve got here is a bunch of protesters, a bunch of pseudo-Christian protesters who&#8217;ve been out here shaming young girls for being here,&#8221; Sims screams at them. &#8220;So here&#8217;s the deal, I&#8217;ve got a $100 for anyone who will identify any of these three.&#8221;
Walsh personally thanked Mr. Sims on Twitter, too. &#8220;HUGE thanks to [Brian Sims] for making this happen. We couldn&#8217;t have done it without him.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
HUGE thanks to <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrianSimsPA</a> for making this happen. We couldn&#8217;t have done it without him.
&#8212; Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog/status/1126903274924388352?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
<a href="https://www.faithwire.com/2019/05/10/walsh-responds-to-bully-rep-brian-sims-in-bold-speech-at-philly-pro-life-rally/">H/t</a> Faithwire
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46965/democrat-lawmaker-who-harassed-young-girls-ends-james-barrett">Democrat Lawmaker Who Harassed Young Girls Has Unintentionally Helped Raise A Lot Of Money For Pro-Life Cause</a>
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46862/dem-rep-who-spent-weekend-harassing-pro-lifers-amanda-prestigiacomo">Dem Rep. Who Spent Weekend Harassing Pro-Lifers On Video Has Meltdown When Hit With Criticism</a>

Matt Walsh Addresses Brian Sims At Massive Pro-Life Rally The Democrat Rep. Accidentally Sparked

Protest

The &#8220;activism&#8221; of a radical-left Democratic lawmaker in Pennsylvania has ended up helping out the cause he was attempting to undermine. The mother and father of the young teen girls &#8212; who are just 13 and 15-years-old &#8212; that State Rep. Brian Sims harassed for several minutes as they prayed for unborn children outside an abortion clinic, have turned his actions against him, starting a GoFundMe account designed to &#8220;<a href="https://www.gofundme.com/prolifephilly">Show Brian the Power of the Pro-Life Movement</a>.&#8221;
Over just a couple of days, Sims has unintentionally raised over $70,000 dollars to help protect unborn children.
&#8220;State Rep. Brian Sims tried to Harass and Dox my Daughters. He Offered $100. Let&#8217;s Donate $100,000 to the Pro-Life Movement Instead,&#8221; reads the GoFundMe account set up by the young girls&#8217; parents, Joe and Ashley Garecht, on Monday.
The Garechts set a goal of $100,000. As of Wednesday evening, just two days after they set it up, they&#8217;ve raised a total of $71,276, with over 1,300 people having donated so far.
&#8220;On Holy Thursday (April 18, 2019) my wife, two teenage daughters, and their friend were peacefully praying outside of a Planned Parenthood in Center City Philadelphia when a man started yelling at them&#8230; after ranting at them for several minutes, he left, and returned with his cell phone to record the above video,&#8221; Joe Garecht explains (video below). &#8220;It turns out that the man is an elected official. Pennsylvania State Representative Brian Sims. In his video, later posted on Twitter, Rep. Sims not only attempts to shame them for praying for the unborn babies facing abortion, but offers viewers $100 if they will identify the teen girls in the video. It&#8217;s bad enough that a grown man would be trying to dox three teenage girls. It&#8217;s even worse that he is an elected official.&#8221;
<div class="embed video fluid-video"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="448" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sCdNORhurW8" width="752"></iframe></div>
Garecht then offers some comments directly to Sims: &#8220;I&#8217;ve got two responses to these despicable actions by &#8216;Representative&#8217; Sims: First, Brian, if you have a problem with my wife and daughters praying outside of an abortion clinic, I&#8217;m the one you can talk to&#8230; instead of harassing teenage girls. It seems like you like to pick on women, teenagers, and senior citizens (see him harass a senior citizen who was praying by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQRSo9ckJQo">clicking here</a>). That&#8217;s shameful, and unacceptable.&#8221;
Garecht then offers a challenge to the pro-life community: In response to Sims offering money to those who&#8217;d identify his young daughters, pro-lifers should offer money to the movement. &#8220;I00% of your donations will go to the <a href="http://www.prolifeunion.org">Pro-Life Union of Greater Philadelphia</a>,&#8221; he said, listing what the organization does to promote the movement, including:
<ul>
<li>Hosts prayer vigils and outreach campaigns outside Philadelphia&#8217;s abortion clinics (like the one in this video)</li>
<li>Provides thousands of diapers, wipes, articles of clothing for babies, and resources to mothers in need</li>
<li>Operates a home caring for pregnant mothers</li>
</ul>
As <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/brian-sims-resign-abortion-pro-life-harass">Fox News</a> reported Wednesday, the calls for Sims to resign have been mounting as more details of his various over-the-top actions targeting pro-lifers have come to light. LifeNews launched an <a href="https://www.gopetition.com/petitions/rep-brian-sims-should-resign-for-harassing-pro-life-woman.html">online petition</a> on GoPetition on Monday which has amassed nearly 20,000 signatures so far.
&#8220;Pennsylvania state Rep. Brian Sims repeatedly bullied the pro-life woman in an unhinged rant as she stood alone outside a Planned Parenthood in his district in southeastern Pennsylvania,&#8221; the petition reads. &#8220;Sims called the woman a &#8216;racist&#8217; and her sidewalk counseling &#8216;grotesque.&#8217; He followed her around, hurtling insults at her; and at one point, he got in her face with his camera and ignored her requests to leave her alone. Sims also doxxed the pro-life woman, subjecting her to potential violence. The videotaping and harassment is shameful, potentially illegal, and is conduct unbecoming a member of the state legislature. Sims should resign immediately.&#8221;
In addition to the GoFundMe and GoPetition launched in response to the lawmaker&#8217;s actions, The Daily Wire&#8217;s Matt Walsh is helping lead a pro-life rally in front of a Planned Parenthood in Philly on Friday, and Sims is invited. &#8220;The rally is planned for 11 AM on Friday at the Planned Parenthood on 1144 Locust St in Philly,&#8221; Walsh announced Tuesday. &#8220;A bunch of different pro-life groups reached out to me minutes after I sent that original tweet and this all came together quickly. We invite @BrianSimsPA to come with his camera!&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
The rally is planned for 11 AM on Friday at the Planned Parenthood on 1144 Locust St in Philly. A bunch of different pro-life groups reached out to me minutes after I sent that original tweet and this all came together quickly. We invite <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrianSimsPA</a> to come with his camera!
&#8212; Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog/status/1125733980207230976?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46902/daily-wires-matt-walsh-sparks-big-name-pro-life-amanda-prestigiacomo">Daily Wire&#8217;s Matt Walsh Sparks Big-Name Pro-Life Rally In Response To Dem. Rep. Brian Sims. Here&#8217;s Who&#8217;s Going.</a>

Democrat Lawmaker Who Harassed Young Girls Has Unintentionally Helped Raise A Lot Of Money For Pro-Life Cause

On Tuesday afternoon, Democrat State Representative Brian Sims posted a video on social media addressing his actions over the weekend, which included harassment of an elderly pro-life woman and attempting to dox three teenage girls for praying outside a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic in his district. After Sims maligns pro-life protesters and sidewalk counselors as &#8220;racist&#8221; bigots in what is apparently an apology video, he vows to &#8220;do better.&#8221; Though the Democrat is profusely apologetic to Planned Parenthood, there are notably no apologies offered to the women and girls he harassed over the weekend.
&#8220;I will fiercely protect a woman&#8217;s right to make the best choices for her health &amp; her body, unimpeded. I also know that two wrongs don&#8217;t make a right, especially on the front lines of a civil rights battle. I can do better, and I will do better, for the women of Pennsylvania,&#8221; Sims captioned the video.
&#8220;As a Planned Parenthood volunteer and as a supporter, I fully understand, respect, and appreciate the non-engagement policy that they have,&#8221; the elected official says, as <a href="https://hotair.com/archives/2019/05/07/pa-rep-brian-sims-apologizes-planned-parenthood/">transcribed</a> by Hotair. &#8220;And I would never want to do anything that interfered with the care that they are providing to their patients. As an activist and an advocate I know why pushing back against harassment and discrimination are a must even when they&#8217;re uncomfortable but last week I wasn&#8217;t a patient escort. I was a neighbor and a concerned citizen and I was aggressive.&#8221;
&#8220;I know that two wrongs don&#8217;t make a right and I can do better and I will do better for the men and women of Pennsylvania,&#8221; adds Sims.
Sims made waves on Saturday when he live-streamed himself harassing an elderly pro-life sidewalk counselor for over seven minutes. &#8220;Shame on you! Shame on you!&#8221; the Democrat <a href="https://www.liveaction.org/news/pennsylvania-verbally-harasses-pro-life-woman/">screams</a> at the woman, who is remaining silent as she&#8217;s being taped. &#8220;What you&#8217;re doing out here is disgusting. You have no business being out here! &#8230; An old white lady telling people what&#8217;s right to do with their bodies. Shame on you. Shame! Shame!&#8221;
Video later <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46853/watch-democrat-rep-brian-sims-tries-dox-three-pro-amanda-prestigiacomo">emerged</a> of Sims threatening to dox three teenage girls who were praying outside the abortion clinic. &#8220;What we&#8217;ve got here is a bunch of protesters, a bunch of pseudo-Christian protesters who&#8217;ve been out here shaming young girls for being here,&#8221; yells Sims. &#8220;So here&#8217;s the deal, I&#8217;ve got a $100 for anyone who will identify any of these three.&#8221;
Responding to reports on his behavior Sims wrote: &#8220;Bring it, Bible Bullies! You are bigots, sexists, and misogynists and I see right through your fake morals and your broken values. #BeReal.&#8221;
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Bring it, Bible Bullies! You are bigots, sexists, and misogynists and I see right through your fake morals and your broken values. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BeReal?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BeReal</a> <a href="https://t.co/kmDsrQsMmN">https://t.co/kmDsrQsMmN</a>
&#8212; Brian Sims (@BrianSimsPA) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA/status/1125167944529588225?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
The Democrat&#8217;s non-apology comes in the wake of prominent pro-lifers banding together for a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/46902/daily-wires-matt-walsh-sparks-big-name-pro-life-amanda-prestigiacomo">rally</a> scheduled on Friday in the same space Sims harassed peaceful pro-life women and girls.
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
The rally is planned for 11 AM on Friday at the Planned Parenthood on 1144 Locust St in Philly. A bunch of different pro-life groups reached out to me minutes after I sent that original tweet and this all came together quickly. We invite <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrianSimsPA</a> to come with his camera!
&#8212; Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog/status/1125733980207230976?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
WATCH:
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
I will fiercely protect a woman&#8217;s right to make the best choices for her health &amp; her body, unimpeded. I also know that two wrongs don&#8217;t make a right, especially on the front lines of a civil rights battle. I can do better, and I will do better, for the women of Pennsylvania. <a href="https://t.co/jURL1UX9qE">pic.twitter.com/jURL1UX9qE</a>
&#8212; Brian Sims (@BrianSimsPA) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA/status/1125847366362370048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>

WATCH: Democrat State Rep. Who Harassed Pro-Life Women And Girls Posts &#8216;Apology&#8217; Video — Sort Of

Pennsylvania Democratic State Representative Brian Sims <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA">describes himself</a> in his Twitter bio as an LGBTQ activist, RuPaul&#8217;s Drag Race fanatic, and Little Mermaid enthusiast. He should add &#8220;harasser of children and elderly women&#8221; to that resume.
Sims thinks pro-lifers are &#8220;<a href="https://twitter.com/BrianSimsPA/status/1123984311609380864">scum</a>,&#8221; and he certainly treats them like it. In recent weeks, the elected official has gotten into the habit of stalking around his local Planned Parenthood clinic, looking for peaceful pro-life activists to deride and intimidate. <a href="https://twitter.com/LiveAction/status/1125108775508168704">Here he is</a> berating an elderly woman on camera for several minutes. <a href="https://twitter.com/LilaGraceRose/status/1125517225757007872">Here he is</a> accosting a group of teenagers and offering 100 dollars to anyone who can identify them. He then demands that another kid provide his &#8220;name and address.&#8221; To summarize, Brian Sims is a coward and a bully. Now he&#8217;s going to be taught a lesson.
<div class="embed video fluid-video"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Tm_DDl96stU?start=130" width="560"></iframe></div>
Last night, I suggested on Twitter that we organize a massive rally at that very same Planned Parenthood in Philadelphia. I thought it would be good to show Sims and everyone else that we are not going to sit back submissively while pro-lifers are abused for speaking out in defense of the unborn. Happily, this rally is now becoming a reality. Minutes after I sent that tweet, a number of pro-life groups reached out to help organize. Several prominent conservative voices expressed their desire to be a part of the effort. Hundreds of people said they would like to attend.
So, <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog/status/1125733980207230976">at 11 AM this Friday</a>, I will be at that clinic on 1144 Locust St in Philadelphia alongside Abby Johnson, Lila Rose, Graham Allen, and many others. If Sims wants to show up with his camera again, any one of us would be more than happy to engage with him. I know he prefers to target elderly women and teenage girls, but now he&#8217;ll have the opportunity to pick on someone his own size. The lesson here is simple: If you try to intimidate us into silence, we will only get louder. Bullying tactics will achieve the exact opposite of what you intended. That&#8217;s the takeaway.
It should be noted that Brian Sims is the catalyst of the upcoming demonstration, and part of the point is to respond peacefully yet forcefully to his bullying. But it also should be noted that the fundamental and underlying purpose is to stand for life. Unborn children suffer far worse abuses than any abuses that a pro-life activist or demonstrator might experience. Our plight is nothing compared to theirs. The most we have to fear is the angry, red-faced, spittle-flecked rantings of pro-abortion fanatics. On the other hand, the unborn are poisoned, stabbed, and torn apart in massive numbers every year. We are rallying to their aid, first and foremost.
But we have Mr. Sims to thank for getting this particular ball rolling. And I am glad that we are doing more just than tweeting angrily for a change. The internet can be a fine tool &#8212; it&#8217;s what allowed us to organize this event in the span of a few hours &#8212; but it&#8217;s high time that we emerge from behind the screens and actually engage in three dimensions. Too often, the few who venture to the frontlines of these cultural battles are left to suffer the consequences alone. We are happy to tweet our support for them, and to shake our heads mournfully at the abuses heaped on them, but we remain off on the periphery, out of sight. At least for one day, on Friday, that will change. Hopefully it becomes a trend.

WALSH: A Democratic State Rep Has Been Bullying Pro-Lifers In Philadelphia. Now Hundreds Of Us Are Coming.

A syndicated cartoonist whose work appears in more than 700 newspapers across the country included an offensive swipe at President Donald Trump in his cartoon on Sunday.
Wiley Miller, the artist behind the cartoon Non Sequitur, wrote &#8220;go f&#8212; yourself&#8221; to Trump in the bottom right-hand corner of the second panel of his cartoon, which encourages readers to color it in themselves. The phrase no longer appears on the cartoon&#8217;s <a href="https://www.gocomics.com/nonsequitur/2019/02/10">Go Comics page</a>. Miller, in a tweet Sunday evening, confirmed the presence of the &#8220;Easter egg&#8221; and asked his readers if they could &#8220;find it.&#8221;
&#8220;Some of my sharp-eyed readers have spotted a little Easter egg from Leonardo Bear-Vinci. Can you find it?&#8221; he tweeted. Responses to his tweet appear to delight in the hidden message.
<div class="embed tweet">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Some of my sharp-eyed readers have spotted a little Easter egg from Leonardo Bear-Vinci. Can you find it?
Non Sequitur for February 10, 2019 | <a href="https://t.co/ITjGIYyfyN">https://t.co/ITjGIYyfyN</a> <a href="https://t.co/fDHpxSmAgo">https://t.co/fDHpxSmAgo</a> via <a href="https://twitter.com/gocomics?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GoComics</a>
&#8212; Wiley Miller (@TheWileyMiller) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheWileyMiller/status/1094630279086522369?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
</div>
Just one newspaper &#8212; the Butler Eagle, which covers Butler County, PA &#8212; has <a href="http://www.butlereagle.com/article/20190210/NEWS12/702119999?fbclid=IwAR0142CZ3dM-EP0M-ZRH9HiIaSlqQ9EcYVB1L_x8KVqGGZmMRvVK5FViic4">decided to stop running</a> Miller&#8217;s cartoon over the message.
&#8220;A reader brought to our attention that one of the syndicated comic strips which appears in the Sunday Butler Eagle may contain a hidden message which was apparently placed there by someone in the creative department of the creator of the comic strip or the syndication which controls it,&#8221; Ron Vodenichar, the Eagle&#8217;s publisher and general manager, said in a statement published on the paper&#8217;s website. &#8220;Neither the Butler Eagle nor any other newspaper that includes this strip had an opportunity to remove it even if they had discovered it before distribution.&#8221;
&#8220;We apologize that such a disgusting trick was perpetuated on the reading public. The Butler Eagle will discontinue that comic immediately,&#8221; he added.
There are several different angles to take with this story.
First, one small paper discontinuing a cartoon over an offensive phrase is hardly grounds for concern or celebration by either side of the political spectrum. Second, one could argue this means about 700 papers across the country found nothing offensive or inappropriate in the hidden message (are they all anti-Trump?). Finally, and this follows point number two, perhaps another reading of this decision is that about 700 papers across the country believe in Free Speech.
We might see some more papers drop the cartoonist now that this story has blown up, but my guess is that not many will, since it really has to do with the individual papers&#8217; leadership and readership.
This is not the first newspaper &#8212; not even the first one in Pennsylvania &#8212; to drop an anti-Trump cartoonist in the Trump era. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette <a href="https://www.post-gazette.com/local/city/2018/06/14/Post-Gazetteeditorial-cartoonist-Rob-Rogers/stories/201806140152">fired its long-time cartoonist</a>, Rob Rogers, after it refused to run some of his anti-Trump cartoons. The Post-Gazette&#8217;s editorial director, Keith Burris, who axed the anti-Trump cartoons, said the paper didn&#8217;t &#8220;suppress&#8221; Rogers&#8217; cartoons, but said the cartoonist wouldn&#8217;t &#8220;collaborate&#8221; on his work.
&#8220;We never said he should do no more Trump cartoons or do pro-Trump cartoons,&#8221; Burris said at the time. &#8220;For an in-house staff cartoonist, editing is part of it. Rob&#8217;s view was, &#8216;Take it or leave it.&#8217;&#8221;
Rogers had been with the Post-Gazette for 25 years.
The full version of the cartoon that caused the Butler Eagle to drop Miller&#8217;s cartoon can be viewed <a href="https://twitter.com/FranWarren/status/1094884821225144320">here</a> (warning: graphic language)

Syndicated Cartoonist Puts Hidden ‘Go F&#8212; Yourself” Message To Trump In Cartoon. One Newspaper Drops Him.

Media

A professor who teaches at one of America&#8217;s elite Ivy League colleges went on a Twitter rant about the Covington High School controversy, saying &#8220;the smiling face of Whiteness&#8221; is one that &#8220;always hides a knife behind its back.&#8221;
University of Pennsylvania Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, an associate professor in the Graduate School of Education, commented on 16-year-old Nick Sandmann&#8217;s demeanor when he and his classmates faced racial slurs, verbal abuse, and confrontation by adult men merely for wearing a Make America Great Again hat.
&#8220;Whiteness endlessly forgives its own transgressions,&#8221; Thomas <a href="https://twitter.com/ebonyteach/status/1087048314502156290?s=21">wrote</a>. &#8220;It rarely, if ever, gives those of us it harms and maims and kills time to process our motions [sic].&#8221;
Campus Reform <a href="https://www.campusreform.org/?ID=11786">captured the tweets</a> before the professor made her account private:
[[{&#8220;fid&#8221;:&#8221;42380&#8243;,&#8221;view_mode&#8221;:&#8221;default&#8221;,&#8221;fields&#8221;:{&#8220;format&#8221;:&#8221;default&#8221;,&#8221;field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]&#8221;:false,&#8221;field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]&#8221;:&#8221;Photo Credit: Campus Reform&#8221;},&#8221;type&#8221;:&#8221;media&#8221;,&#8221;field_deltas&#8221;:{&#8220;1&#8221;:{&#8220;format&#8221;:&#8221;default&#8221;,&#8221;field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]&#8221;:false,&#8221;field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]&#8221;:&#8221;Photo Credit: Campus Reform&#8221;}},&#8221;attributes&#8221;:{&#8220;title&#8221;:&#8221;Photo Credit: Campus Reform&#8221;,&#8221;class&#8221;:&#8221;media-element file-default&#8221;,&#8221;data-delta&#8221;:&#8221;1&#8243;}}]]
Thomas continued, saying white people need to do better.
[[{&#8220;fid&#8221;:&#8221;42381&#8243;,&#8221;view_mode&#8221;:&#8221;default&#8221;,&#8221;fields&#8221;:{&#8220;format&#8221;:&#8221;default&#8221;,&#8221;field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]&#8221;:false,&#8221;field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]&#8221;:&#8221;Photo Credit: Campus Reform&#8221;},&#8221;type&#8221;:&#8221;media&#8221;,&#8221;field_deltas&#8221;:{&#8220;2&#8221;:{&#8220;format&#8221;:&#8221;default&#8221;,&#8221;field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]&#8221;:false,&#8221;field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]&#8221;:&#8221;Photo Credit: Campus Reform&#8221;}},&#8221;attributes&#8221;:{&#8220;title&#8221;:&#8221;Photo Credit: Campus Reform&#8221;,&#8221;class&#8221;:&#8221;media-element file-default&#8221;,&#8221;data-delta&#8221;:&#8221;2&#8243;}}]]
Thomas said she would not share video between Sandmann and the Native American man who stood inches from his face beating on a drum as the group labeled by the Southern Poverty Law Center as black supremacist called them products of incest, told them to go back to Europe, and bashed them with horrific names. Her reason wasn&#8217;t out of concern for the kids but for those harassing the kids.
&#8220;BTW, not RTing the video,&#8221; she tweeted. &#8220;It&#8217;s circulated enough. Yes, it&#8217;s important that we know what happened, but out of respect for and solidarity with my Native, First Nations, and Indigenous friends, family &amp; colleagues, there&#8217;s no way I&#8217;m going to RT that visual trauma again.&#8221;
Nowhere does Thomas, who works in education to prepare teachers to instruct and nurture young people, comment on the vulnerability of the minors who were put in a hostile situation by the adults around them. She doesn&#8217;t see the individuals, the apprehension of these boys, or their particular circumstance. She only sees a collective defined by race and judges through that prism.
This is a point lost on many people in this controversy, but it is one that could have tragic consequences if it goes unchallenged in our society. When people are willing to put children at risk and even applaud those who are abusive to children in the name of a collectivist ideology, we are heading down a steep path to ruin. The black men who verbally abused the students didn&#8217;t see boys, human beings with feelings and thoughts of their own. They saw only MAGA hats and the whiteness of those wearing them.
According to the Washington, D.C., <a href="https://code.dccouncil.us/dc/council/code/sections/22-1321.html">statute against disorderly conduct</a>, these men appeared to break the law by verbally attacking the boys in a public place. Few, however, seem to care about the illegality of the incident much less the immorality of it. This Ivy League professor certainly doesn&#8217;t.
Instead, she and others who have treated these boys like they&#8217;re terrorists or &#8220;Nazis&#8221; equate whiteness with violence &#8212; the &#8220;knife&#8221; behind the back. If this is how one group perceives another simply because of the color of their skin, there can be no peace, no trust, and certainly no mutual affection that is necessary for the stability and progress of the civil society.
This ominous trend is why it is important to hold those who label others this way accountable. Such perceptions can spread like a disease through society, and indeed this is what is happening. The Covington controversy is proof of it as media, entertainers, and politicians have dehumanized and victimized a 16-year-old and his friends on the basis of race. If the welfare of children will not restrain such hostility, what will?

MCALLISTER: UPENN Professor Equates &#8216;Whiteness&#8217; With Violence

Education

Social Justice

Frank Biden, younger brother of former Vice President Joe Biden, ripped Hillary Clinton in a recent interview, saying the 2016 Democratic presidential candidate blew Pennsylvania and that many in his family didn&#8217;t even vote for her, opting to pull the lever for President Trump.
Biden said his brother would have won his home state of Pennsylvania and would never have insulted more conservative voters as &#8220;deplorables.&#8221;
&#8220;We never would have lost Pennsylvania, and all my relatives &#8212; the Finnegan family [his mom&#8217;s family] &#8212; who voted for Donald Trump because they felt slighted by Hillary and her campaign,&#8221; Biden, 65, told Florida&#8217;s <a href="https://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/20190107/joe-biden-running-for-president-his-brother-thinks-so">Palm Beach Post</a>. His brother, who is mulling his own run in 2020, is a native of Scranton.
Biden also said his brother would not have ignored Michigan, which, like Pennsylvania, voted for Trump in 2016.
&#8220;We never would have not gone to Michigan as the [Clinton] campaign decided not to do because they felt entitled to the votes of those people. Assumptive politics is losing politics. You have to work for every single vote and people have to know individually, collectively and severally that you care about them, that they&#8217;re important,&#8221; he said.
And Biden ripped Clinton for calling Trump voters &#8220;deplorables.&#8221;
&#8220;The idea of declaring a whole swath of people &#8216;deplorables&#8217; is just the most idiotic political calculation, number one, and two, the most &#8212; in the Catholic Church, they would call that the sin of pride. Who in God&#8217;s name am I to say that you have a fundamentally wrong moral position? Talk about lacking humility,&#8221; Biden said.
<blockquote>
Frank Biden said Joe Biden will make a final decision after family members huddle &#8220;very soon&#8221; to discuss the race. Frank Biden, a former executive in a company that developed charter schools, is now a non-lawyer senior adviser to the Boca Raton-based Berman Law Group. A workout enthusiast who said he advises Joe Biden on his exercise regimen, Frank Biden wore shorts and a &#8220;The Biden Team&#8221; T-shirt to meet a reporter at a coffee shop in Delray Beach&#8217;s Pineapple Grove Arts District.
&#8220;I believe Joe should run. I&#8217;m urging him to run and have been for a long, long time,&#8221; he said. But Frank Biden, who at 65 is 11 years younger than the former vice president, said his opinion carries less weight than those of sister Valerie Biden Owens, who has managed all of Joe Biden&#8217;s campaigns, and wife Jill Biden.
&#8220;You have to understand our family structure. I&#8217;m the youngest brother. My sister&#8217;s the real boss. And Jill. It&#8217;s an Irish matriarchy. They have the greatest influence,&#8221; Frank Biden said.
</blockquote>
Biden also popped up on Siriux XM&#8217;s &#8220;The Michael Smerconish Program,&#8221; saying if his brother &#8220;decides to go, he will be the most dynamic seventy-something-year-old you&#8217;ve ever met in your entire life.&#8221;
&#8220;Trump can&#8217;t even walk 18 holes; Joe benches 185 for repetition,&#8221; Biden said in a call-in interview.

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Articles tagged with Pennsylvania

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KLAVAN: The Media And The Democrats Are Living In A Fantasy World

BACKFIRE: Philadelphia Implemented Soda Tax, But It Didn’t Go As Planned

Democrat State Rep. Who Offered $100 To Have Pro-Life Teens Doxxed Goes Into Hiding

WATCH: Pro-Life Rally Garners Over 1,000 Participants In Response To Rep. Brian Sims. Here Are The Highlights.

Matt Walsh Addresses Brian Sims At Massive Pro-Life Rally The Democrat Rep. Accidentally Sparked

Democrat Lawmaker Who Harassed Young Girls Has Unintentionally Helped Raise A Lot Of Money For Pro-Life Cause

WATCH: Democrat State Rep. Who Harassed Pro-Life Women And Girls Posts ‘Apology’ Video — Sort Of

WALSH: A Democratic State Rep Has Been Bullying Pro-Lifers In Philadelphia. Now Hundreds Of Us Are Coming.

Syndicated Cartoonist Puts Hidden ‘Go F— Yourself” Message To Trump In Cartoon. One Newspaper Drops Him.

MCALLISTER: UPENN Professor Equates ‘Whiteness’ With Violence

Joe Biden’s Brother Says Family Voted For Trump