The LuLac Edition #5, 587, February 28th, 2026

 

 

ROBERT J. MORRIS

CONSEQUENTIAL TYCOON

 AND PAUPER

 

Robert Morris Jr.  was a British-born American merchant, investor, and politician, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Morris served in the Pennsylvania legislature, the Second Continental Congress, and the United States Senate. 

He was one of only two individuals (along with Roger Sherman) to sign the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the U.S. Constitution. From 1781 to 1784, he held the post of Superintendent of Finance of the United States, a role that earned him the title "Financier of the Revolution". Alongside Alexander Hamilton and Albert Gallatin, Morris is often regarded as a founder of the financial system of the United States.

Born in Liverpool, Morris was brought to North America by his father when he was 13 years old, quickly becoming a partner in a successful shipping firm based in Philadelphia. In the aftermath of the French and Indian War, Morris joined with other merchants in opposing British tax policies such as the 1765 Stamp Act. By 1775 he was the richest man in America.After the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, he helped procure arms and ammunition for the revolutionary cause, and in late 1775 he was chosen as a delegate to the Second Continental Congress. As a member of Congress, he served on the Secret Committee of Trade, which handled the procurement of supplies, the Committee of Correspondence, which handled foreign affairs, and the Marine Committee, which oversaw the Continental Navy. Morris was a leading member of Congress until he resigned in 1778.

Out of office, Morris refocused on his merchant career and won election to the Pennsylvania Assembly, where he became a leader of the "Republican" faction that sought alterations to the Pennsylvania Constitution.

Facing a difficult financial situation in the ongoing Revolutionary War, in 1781 Congress established the position of Superintendent of Finance to oversee financial matters. Morris accepted appointment as Superintendent of Finance and also served as Agent of Marine, from which he controlled the Continental Navy. He helped provide supplies to the Continental Army under General George Washington, enabling, with the help of frequent collaborator Haym Salomon, the decisive victory in the Battle of Yorktown. Morris also reformed government contracting and established the Bank of North America, the first congressionally chartered national bank to operate in the United States. Morris believed that the national government would be unable to achieve financial stability without the power to levy taxes and tariffs, but he was unable to convince all thirteen states to agree to an amendment to the Articles of Confederation. Frustrated by the weakness of the national government, Morris resigned as Superintendent of Finance in 1784. Morris was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1786.

In 1787, Morris was selected as a delegate to the Philadelphia Convention, which wrote and proposed a new constitution for the United States. Morris rarely spoke during the convention, but the constitution produced by the convention reflected many of his ideas. Morris and his allies helped ensure that Pennsylvania ratified the new constitution, and the document was ratified by the requisite number of states by the end of 1788. The Pennsylvania legislature subsequently elected Morris as one of its two inaugural representatives in the United States Senate. Morris declined Washington's offer to serve as the nation's first Treasury Secretary, instead suggesting Alexander Hamilton for the position. In the Senate, Morris supported Hamilton's economic program and aligned with the Federalist Party. During and after his service in the Senate, Morris went deeply into debt through speculating on land, leading into the Panic of 1796–1797. Unable to pay his creditors, he was confined in the Prune Street debtors' apartment adjacent to Walnut Street Prison from 1798 to 1801. After being released from prison, he lived a quiet, private life in a modest home in Philadelphia until his death in 1806.

Morris like all of the Founding Fathers was a complex, imperfect man. But his service to the Revolutionary cause and subsequent work on forming the new nation was crucial to the success of both. His decisions helped form the new country’s strength and make up. (Wikipedia, LuLac)

The LuLac Edition #5, 586, February 26th, 2026

 

GIVE LULAC A NOD 

 Hello folks:

 

    LULAC recently was nominated by readers, fans, friends, enemies, etc. as the best of the best in the SOCIAL MEDIA category in the Times Leader's annual poll.

    LULAC is the final entry on the bottom.

    We've been around for nearly 20 years, average 1550 visits a day and are on line 6 days a week covering politics and pop culture.

When you reach the  link, click MEDIA. After that you will see categories of media types. LuLac is under Social Media and as stated earlier LuLac is the last entry.

https://www.timesleader.com/bestofthebest#/gallery?group=533422

 

TRUMP STATE OF THE UNION: ANOTHER “C” ADDED

CONFRONTATIONAL, CHAOTIC, CRAZY. CRUEL

        I never thought I’d live to see the day when the State of the Union address became a combination pep rally, game show, self-aggrandizement, carnival barking, lie fest two hour marathon that was confrontational, chaotic, crazy and cruel. To be sure Trump is a showman but there are people in this country tiring of the show.

        But the show is the front for a very sobering thought I had. The screeching Trump was bad enough but when his partisan crowd started cheering non stop for over three minutes my mind went to the black and white newsreel films back tro the 30s of ‘Dolph and the German people.

        The lies though were what nailed it for me.

THE ECONOMY

Trump often says the U.S. is now "the hottest country anywhere in the world" after years as a "dead country." The U.S. economy was hardly "dead'' when Trump returned to office last year. But in his second term, it's generally performed strongly — after getting off to a bumpy start.

In 2024, the last year of Biden's presidency, U.S. gross domestic product grew 2.8%, adjusted for inflation, faster than any wealthy country in the world except Spain. It also expanded at a healthy rate from 2021 through 2023.

THE INVESTMENTS

Trump has repeatedly claimed that the U.S. has secured up to $18 trillion in investments, but has presented no evidence of such a high number. The figure appears to be exaggerated, highly speculative or both.

The White House website offers a far lower number, $9.6 trillion, and that figure appears to include some investment commitments made during the Biden administration.

IMMIGRATION

Trump has repeatedly claimed that an influx of immigrants has led to a massive increase in crime. While FBI statistics do not separate out crimes by the immigration status of the assailant, there is no evidence of a spike in crime perpetrated by migrants, either along the U.S.-Mexico border or in cities seeing the greatest influx of migrants, like New York. Studies have found that people living in the U.S. illegally are less likely than native-born Americans to have been arrested for violent, drug and property crimes.

ELECTIONS

In the lead-up to the 2026 midterms, Trump has taken to repeating the claim that he won the 2020 presidential election.

This is a blatant falsehood that has been disproven many times over — the 2020 election was not stolen.

Biden's win has been affirmed through recounts, audits and reviews in the battleground states where Trump disputed his 2020 loss. He and his allies lost dozens of court challenges related to the election, and his own attorney general at the time said there was no widespread fraud that would have altered the results.

Biden earned 306 electoral votes to Trump's 232. He also won over 7 million more popular votes than Trump.

GDP

In 2024, the last year of Biden's presidency, U.S. gross domestic product grew 2.8%, adjusted for inflation, faster than any wealthy country in the world except Spain. It also expanded at a healthy rate from 2021 through 2023.

GDP shrank for the first time in three years during the first quarter of 2025. Growth rebounded in the second half of the year, but slowed again in the fourth quarter. Annual GDP growth in 2025 was 2.2%.

 

SOCIAL SECURITY AND NO TAXES

People I know on Social Security are still paying taxes.

        To some it was a euphoric rhapsody of hero worship. To some others it was a pile full of lies. To the blissfully ignorant, it was a very restful night.

 

KASH PATEL’S BIG ADVENTURE

Kash Patel took a government plane and used taxpayer dollars to do this.

The guy looks demented.

 

FACEBOOK PRESIDENTIAL BIRTHDAYS?

You might see a picture of a President or a political leader on your Facebook page saying Today is Bill Clinton's birthday or Today is Ronald Reagan’s birthday. Then you’ll see responses by gullible people who will in fact wish the pictured above a happy birthday. BUT IT’S NOT THEIR BIRTHDAY. I don’t know if it’s a scam or not but it is damn annoying.

 

JUST EXACTLY WHAT IS A GOOD DEMOCRAT OR A GOOD REPUBLICAN?

 

It’s a shame that they aren’t content enough to go to war after each other in LuLac land but insist on going after each other. A few cases in point. State Representative candidate Fern Leard was sanctioned by the Democratic Executive committee for having a photo taken with a law enforcement officer who happened to be a Democrat.

Then there is the issue regarding a Republican race for State Representative. Jamie Walsh’s opponent Bill Jones is having photos of himself with guys like Governor Wolf and other Democrats of stature when he was  CEO of the United Way f Wyoming Valley. THIS WAS HIS JOB. Walsh who won by three votes is beating Jones up as not a real Republican. Well I guess we’ll have to remind Jamie who Bils’ dad was.

Or was Red Jones the wrong kind of Republican?

The legacy of the MAGA movement is that it has made both parties pick sides of  each coin of a Democrat or Republican. People of all philosophies run and the voters decide which AMERICAN meets their needs.

A good Democrat (no matter what mechanism) and a good Republican (no matter MAGA or Rhino equals a GOOD AMERICAN.

IF ONLY!

CLARIFICATION ON

INDEPENDENT

DEM LAUNCH

AN INTRODUCTION

We received this bit of information on the Independent Dem organization,

Introducing the Independent Democratic Coalition of Northeastern Pennsylvania (IDC),- a political action committee created by friends and neighbors united for a common cause and purpose. Unlike traditional political organizations, the IDC is not controlled from the top down. In the major political  parties, power flows upward from local committee members to districts, counties, the state, and then national leadership, leaving local voices with little to say. Even many groups that claim to be independent are still tied to larger national organizations.

The IDC is different. We take a bottom-up approach, keeping decision-making in the hands of local people. While we are a Democratic organization and primarily support Democratic candidates, we are not bound by any political party’s dogma. Every endorsement we make is based on research and interviews with candidates to determine how closely they align with our mission. This is for Democrats, and may at times include an Independent or a candidate from another political party. We may also choose not to endorse any candidate for a given office. All decisions are made democratically by our members within the PAC, not by outside political groups or politicians.

If you are interested in participating in this kind of political organization, we invite you to attend a meeting and witness the IDC in action for yourself. There is no cost to attend, no membership fee, and no pressure to join.

Our next meeting will be March 6, 2026, from 5–7 PM at Keeley’s Alehouse and Grill, 199 Division Street, Kingston, PA.

For questions or to support our work, you can email us at info@idcofnepa.org or write to us at:

Independent Democratic Coalition

P.O. Box 52

Dallas, PA 18612  They are also a Political Action Committee serving NEPA. 

 

UPCOMING PETITION EVENTS

HAZLETON TONIGHT

When you get your petition to sign tomorrow night, the name Davis will appear o them.  Signage does not reflect that.

WILKES BARRE

:PETITION SIGNING 

March 3rd RODANO'S

1 to 4pm  

 

BRESNAHAN, PA ATTORNEY GENERAL HOST PUBLIC SAFETY ROUNDTABLE, ANNOUNCE $500,000 FOR SCRANTON POLICE

 

Rep. Bresnahan and Attorney General Sunday were joined by Brian Gallagher, Lackawanna County District Attorney; Stephen Polishan, Pennsylvania State Trooper Association President; Michael Kozma, Pennsylvania State Trooper Association; Tom Shuster, Scranton City Council Chair; Guy Salerno, Lackawanna Chiefs of Police Chair (Blakely Borough Chief); Andy Kerecman, NEPA Chiefs of Police Association President (Throop Borough Chief); Justin Butler, EB Jermyn FOP Lodge 2 President Justin Butler; and Nate Gerace, Senator McCormick Northeast Regional Director.

U.S. Representative Rob Bresnahan, Jr. (PA-08) was joined by Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday, law enforcement officials, and community partners for a roundtable on public safety initiatives and the importance of local law enforcement.

During the roundtable, Rep. Bresnahan announced $500,000 in federal funding for technology and equipment upgrades for the Scranton Police Department. The funding was secured through the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations process and will be used for upgrading equipment and modernizing technology to increase officer safety and the effectiveness of law enforcement operations in the City of Scranton. 

“Public safety is not a talking point, it is a real concern for families in Scranton and our region,” said Rep. Bresnahan. “Securing $500,000 for the Scranton Police Department is about making sure our officers have the equipment and support they need to keep our communities safe. I will always stand with our law enforcement officers and fight to make sure they have real backing from Washington, not empty promises.”

“This is an exciting opportunity for the City of Scranton. When communities aren’t safe, nothing else matters, and this investment will make a meaningful impact for the city and surrounding neighborhoods,” said Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday. “I appreciated the chance to join elected officials and law enforcement partners to emphasize the important of collaboration in keeping Pennsylvanians safe.”

 

AGRICULTURE SECRETARY TOURS RICE FRUIT COMPANY TO SEE HOW SHAPIRO ADMINISTRATION AGRICULTURAL INNOVATION GRANTS ARE HELPING BUSINESSES 'GET STUFF DONE'

Gardners, PA. Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding toured Adams County family-owned Rice Fruit Company, where robotic equipment was purchased with $130,000 in support from the nations first Agricultural Innovation Grant Program. The new, state-of-the-art system has helped modernize operations for the 112-year-old business, increasing speed and efficiency and lowering costs for one of Pennsylvania’s leading apple producers.

Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding toured Adams County family-owned Rice Fruit Company, where robotic equipment was purchased with $130,000 in support from the nation's first Agricultural Innovation Grant Program. The new, state-of-the-art system has helped modernize operations for the 112-year-old business, increasing speed and efficiency and lowering costs for one of Pennsylvania's leading apple producers.

"Rice Fruit Company is one of the reasons Pennsylvania continues to be a national leader, known for producing the finest apples anywhere," said Sec. Redding. "Helping families like the Rices compete and grow their businesses is the reason the Shapiro Administration launched Ag Innovation Grants. This investment is working across Pennsylvania improving lives and helping family businesses get stuff done."

In its first year, the Agricultural Innovation Grant Program received an overwhelming response with more than $68 million in funding requests for an available $10 million in grants. Eighty-eight projects funded in the first round include technologies that are working across the state to improve on-farm and processing efficiency, generate renewable energy while reducing nutrient waste, and support crops and practices that store carbon or replace non-renewable resources. 

 

MEDIA MATTERS

WVIA NEWS

WALN

BOLD GOLD COMMUNITY FORUM

You'll hear the program Sunday at 6 on 94.3 The Talker; 6:30 on 1400 am The Mothership and 7:30 am on 105 The River.

 

THE LAURIE CADDEN SHOW

Tune in every Saturday morning at 9am for The Laurie Cadden Show on WILK FM 103.1 and AM 980 and 910. Laurie’s program has been a northeastern Pennsylvania mainstay every Saturday. Tune in to hear her insights and take on local issues as well as entertaining and informative interviews.

 

BOBBY V’S DOO WOP SUNDAY NIGHT SOCK HOP

 

BEATLE EDD’S FAB FOUR MUSIC HOUR

Tune in every week to the Home of Rock and Roll for a jam packed, unpredictable hour starting at 9am Sundays. Host Edd Raineri gives you facts and great music from the immortal Fab Four on ROCK 107.

 

THE LULAC TIME MACHINE

A-BOMB-INABLE.E MISTAKE

March 1958

A U.S. B-47 bomber accidentally dropped an unarmed Mk-6 atomic bomb on a farm at Mars Bluff, South Carolina, five miles (8 km) east of the city of Florence. Although there was no danger of a nuclear explosion, the conventional TNT explosives within the bomb were inadvertently detonated on impact, hurting six people. The United Press news service commented that "It was the first time an atomic bomb was known to have been dropped in the United States outside nuclear testing grounds."The explosion demolished the home of the farm owner, Walter Gregg, and injured him, his wife and three children, and a niece. The blast left a crater 75 feet (23 m) in diameter and 35 feet (11 m) deep in his yard. The Strategic Air Command issued a statement afterward that "Mechanical malfunction of the plane's bomb lock caused the four-jet B-47 to let go of the bomb.” and this week in 1958 the number one song in LuLac land was “ Get A Job" by The Silhouettes.

 

The LuLac Edition #5, 585, February 25th, 2026

 

WRITE ON WEDNESDAY

Our “Write on Wednesday” logo.

This week we put up a letter from Alec Frank who amplifies what we wrote in Edition # last week’s site. The writer says that the feckless and fearful council couldn’t even take a stand on a resolution that for a Democratic majority there should have been a no brainer.

COUNTY COUNCIL’S DISCUSSION ON ICE EXEMPLIFIES THE CURRENT POLITICAL CLIMATE

 

As reported by the Times Leader, a theme seemed to emerge during County Council’s debate regarding a proposed ICE resolution. Don’t get involved. Don’t rock the boat. There appears to be agreement among many members of County Council that our federal government is both punitive and vindictive. The message seems clear that in today’s political climate, it is best to “play along in order to get along.”

Chris Belles expressed his concern that the federal government might withhold funding in retaliation for the possible ratification of the resolution. Vice Chairwoman Brittany Stephens expressed concerns that the resolution would “essentially” put a target on Luzerne County’s back. Others simply dismissed the resolution as “grandstanding.” Finally, some felt that it was inappropriate for a county to “insert” itself in national politics, as if to say that we, the people of Luzerne County, are insulated from what happens outside of our county.

The debate spoke volumes, not so much about the merits or lack thereof of Denise Williams’ proposal, but about the state of American politics. We have a government that is feared for its capacity for revenge and retribution. The message is clear: don’t speak up. Don’t take a position at odds with this administration.

But, it is exactly these small announcements that create change. One artist says, “No.” One governor says, “No.” One athlete says, “No.” These are the courageous acts that keep our democracy strong and vibrant. Not the cowering and pandering to power. Ideally, in a democracy, we hold the powerful accountable.

 

Alec Frank

Wilkes-Barre, Pa.