The LuLac Edition #3935, November 20th, 2018

BOBBY KENNEDY @ 93

(Photo: Newsweek)

Today Bobby Kennedy would have been 93 years old. Chris Matthews wrote a fascinating book about what America would be like had he lived. Jeff Greenfield wrote a fiction about how America changed had RFK won in 1968. The books  had a touch of wanderlust in them. Kennedy was reaching that coalition that took the current occupant to the White House. When he died, a dream was lost. But today we celebrate the birth of a short but consequential journey of 42 years on this earth. Kennedy was just 42 years old and in the midst of one of the most controversial presidential campaigns of the 20th century. President Lyndon Johnson had dropped from the race in March 1968, and Kennedy and Vice President Hubert Humphrey were heading to the Chicago convention with the nomination unsettled.
Kennedy’s assassination stunned America, coming just months after the death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis.From the National Constitution Center, 10 facts about Robert Kennedy.
1. Robert Kennedy was the seventh child of Joseph and Rose Kennedy. The Kennedys had nine children. Robert was more than eight years younger than John F. Kennedy, and more than six years older than Edward Kennedy.
2. Kennedy traveled to England when he was just 12. As the son of a U.S. ambassador, young Robert was in Great Britain just before World War II started in Europe. He also enlisted in the U.S. Naval Reserve just before his 18th birthday.
3. Kennedy played football at Harvard. The Kennedys were famous for playing touch football, but as a student, Robert played on the varsity squad at college during the 1947 season and wore number 86 until he broke his leg. Kennedy won a varsity letter when he returned briefly after his injury.
4. Kennedy connected with his brother Jack during a 1951 trip. The brothers had been separated by war, school, and other life events. But in 1951, the two brothers and their sister Patricia went on a 25,000-mile, seven-week trip to Asia, the Pacific, and the Middle East that cemented their bond.
5. Kennedy worked for the McCarthy Committee for six months. Father Joe Kennedy’s political and social connections helped Robert Kennedy land a spot on the high-profile Senate Subcommittee on Investigations, chaired by the controversial Senator Joseph McCarthy. Robert Kennedy, 27, left after he had problems with the committee, which focused on Communist threats; he also had with conflicts with counsel Roy Cohn.
6. Kennedy voted for Eisenhower in 1956. Kennedy landed a position in the presidential campaign of Democratic nominee Adlai Stevenson against President Dwight Eisenhower, where he was mostly ignored. At the end of the 1956 campaign, Kennedy voted for the Republican instead and was highly critical of the Stevenson campaign.
7. Kennedy vs. Hoffa was a prime-time feud. As the chief lawyer for a Senate committee investigating crime and labor, Kennedy famously clashed with Teamsters leader Jimmy Hoffa on live television in the 1950s. Robert Kennedy continued the fight with Hoffa when he became attorney general in 1961.
8. Kennedy served as a New York senator. Nine months after his brother’s death, Robert Kennedy ran for the U.S. Senate in the state of New York—not Massachusetts. Although he was legally qualified and the family had lived in the state for some time, his opponents called him a “carpetbagger.” Kennedy won the election as part of the Johnson landslide in 1964.
9. Kennedy had a strong connection to the civil rights movement. It was Kennedy, as attorney general, who ordered U.S. marshals to protect James Meredith, the first African-American student admitted to the University of Mississippi. He also gave a passionate speech after the murder of Dr. King to a mostly black crowd in Indianapolis, in which he said he knew of the pain of losing a family member to an assassin.
10. Kennedy’s convicted assassin is still alive. Sirhan Sirhan’s death sentence was commuted in 1972 after the California’s courts outlawed the death penalty. He is currently incarcerated in Pleasant Valley State Prison in Coalinga, California.

The LuLac Edition #3934, November 19th, 2018

BIG PARTY IN HAZLETON COME DECEMBER 

419 TRILLION SPENT ON WAR AGAINST TERROR

Just in case anyone cares, since the 9-11 attacks, America has spent 419 trillion dollars on the war against terror. Two wars that a Republican and Democratic President said would be quick, weren’t.
One has to wonder what this nation could have done with even the interest on that money if the attacks were prevented.
Safety comes at a very high price both in capital and humanity. When we gather this Thanksgiving around the tables of friends and relatives, as we are safe, we should know just that it is costing us in this century.

CARTWRIGHT ANNOUNCES FUNDING FOR WRIGHT CENTER

Congressman Matt Cartwright (Photo: LuLac archives)

U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development division awarded The Wright Center a $463,223 Distance Learning and Telemedicine grant to enable doctors to communicate with patients via electronic technology. This is part of USDA’s Rural Development’s broad portfolio of programs to improve the lives of rural Americans.
This vital USDA investment will allow The Wright Center, based in Scranton, to more effectively connect with its rural primary care partners as they integrate medication assisted treatment (MAT) for patients with OUD as part of the Pennsylvania Coordinated Medication Assisted Treatment (PAC-MAT) initiative. Funding will enable more than 300 individuals with Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) to access primary care and appropriate social supports through technology.
“The opioid epidemic has had devastating effects throughout Northeastern Pennsylvania. As a member of Congress, I will always speak up for ways to improve and expand access to treatment. I applaud The Wright Center for seizing the opportunity to remove barriers to services and training for patients and practitioners in our rural communities,” said Rep. Cartwright, a member of the House Appropriations Committee.
Medical providers are scarce in rural areas and transportation challenges are prevalent throughout the region. Telemedicine removes barriers that can hinder an individual’s path to recovery and is becoming more prevalent in the health care industry as providers and patients seek ways to deliver and receive more accessible, affordable and effective care.
“The Wright Center is honored to be a recipient of this significant USDA federal award that will advance our mission to continuously improve education and patient care in a collaborative spirit to enhance outcomes, access and affordability. The awarded resources will energize our continued efforts to serve and promote the recovery of patients and families struggling with addiction. This opportunity to intentionally integrate a thoughtful Telemedicine and Information Technology infrastructure into the distributed practices of our PAC-MAT hub across our regional and rural communities in Northeastern Pennsylvania will multiply our recovery promotion efforts and outcomes reporting,” said Linda Thomas-Hemak, MD, President and CEO of The Wright Center.
The Wright Center is a non-profit, community-based graduate medical education consortium and safety net provider of primary care services, serving Northeastern Pennsylvania for more than 40 years. Its team is focused on innovations to make primary care more efficient, effective and satisfying to patients and providers.

The LuLac Edition #3933, November 18th, 2018

SAM WALTON @ 100

As part of our series on birthday of famous people born in 1918, we continue today with Sam Walton. Now I have been in Wal-Mart maybe twice in 20 years. The first time was in the middle of the night when my late dog McKinley had a run in with a skunk in the back yard. Douche and tomato juice were the order of the day. Or night. Or early morning. It was 3AM!!!!
Most recently, in my then job as a Video E mail producer at Nestle USA, I had to get a pair of glasses with no lenses. The clerk looked at me skeptically eyeing up my Lauren specs from Engle Eyewear. I explained the glare from the recording tablet did not look good in the finished product. She sold me those glasses for a grand total of 9 bucks and I was about to get on my way.
Then I meandered down some aisles and saw one of my favorite drinks Bolthouse Berry at a way cheaper price than anywhere else. I now saw the appeal of Wal-Mart.
We have been steady users of Sam’s Club and a dear friend of mine worked there when it first started. Wal-Mart is an American Institution that has been a mixed bag for some Americans of different opinions. But it has been a consequential chunk of our Commerce and it is only right that we give you a summary of the life of the man who founded it, Sam Walton. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. grew to be the world's largest corporation by revenue as well as the biggest private employer in the world. At one point in his life, he was the richest man in America.
Samuel Moore Walton was born to Thomas Gibson Walton and Nancy Lee, in Kingfisher, Oklahoma. He lived there with his parents on their farm until 1923. However, farming did not provide enough money to raise a family, and Thomas Walton went into farm mortgaging. He worked for his brother's Walton Mortgage Company, which was an agent for Metropolitan Life Insurance, where he foreclosed on farms during the Great Depression.
Eventually the family moved to Columbia, Missouri. Growing up during the Great Depression, he did chores to help make financial ends meet for his family as was common at the time. He milked the family cow, bottled the surplus, and drove it to customers. Afterwards, he would deliver Columbia Daily Tribune newspapers on a paper route. In addition, he sold magazine subscriptions. Upon graduating from David H. Hickman High School in Columbia, he was voted "Most Versatile Boy".
After high school, Walton decided to attend college, hoping to find a better way to help support his family. He attended the University of Missouri as an ROTC cadet. During this time, he worked various odd jobs, including waiting tables in exchange for meals. Also during his time in college, Walton joined the Zeta Phi chapter of Beta Theta Pi fraternity. He was also tapped by QEBH, the well-known secret society on campus honoring the top senior men, and the national military honor society Scabbard and Blade. Additionally, Walton served as president of Burall Bible Class, a large class of students from the University of Missouri and Stephens College. Upon graduating in 1940 with a bachelor's degree in economics, he was voted "permanent president" of the class.
Walton joined J. C. Penney as a management trainee in Des Moines, Iowa, three days after graduating from college. This position paid him $75 a month. Walton spent approximately 18 months with J. C. Penney.
Walton joined the military in the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps, supervising security at aircraft plants and prisoner of war camps. In this position he served at Fort Douglas in Salt Lake City, Utah. He eventually reached the rank of captain.
In 1945, after leaving the military, Walton took over management of his first variety store at the age of 26. With the help of a $20,000 loan from his father-in-law, plus $5,000 he had saved from his time in the Army, Walton purchased a Ben Franklin variety store in Newport, Arkansas. The store was a franchise of the Butler Brothers chain.
Walton pioneered many concepts that became crucial to his success. Walton made sure the shelves were consistently stocked with a wide range of goods. His second store, the tiny "Eagle" department store, was down the street from his first Ben Franklin and next door to its main competitor in Newport.
With the sales volume growing from $80,000 to $225,000 in three years, Walton drew the attention of the landlord, P. K. Holmes, whose family had a history in retail. Admiring Sam's great success, and desiring to reclaim the store (and franchise rights) for his son, he refused to renew the lease. The lack of a renewal option, together with the prohibitively high rent of 5% of sales, were early business lessons to Walton. Despite forcing Walton out, Holmes bought the store's inventory and fixtures for $50,000, which Walton called "a fair price".
With a year left on the lease, but the store effectively sold, he, his wife Helen and his father-in-law managed to negotiate the purchase of a new location on the downtown square of Bentonville, Arkansas. Walton negotiated the purchase of a small discount store, and the title to the building, on the condition that he get a 99-year lease to expand into the shop next door. The owner of the shop next door refused six times, and Walton gave up on Bentonville when his father-in-law, without Sam's knowledge, paid the shop owner a final visit and $20,000 to secure the lease. He had just enough left from the sale of the first store to close the deal, and reimburse Helen's father. They opened for business with a one-day remodeling sale on May 9, 1950.
Before he bought the Bentonville store, it was doing $72,000 in sales and it increased to $105,000 in the first year and then $140,000 and $175,000.
With the new Bentonville "Five and Dime" opening for business, and 220 miles away, a year left on the lease in Newport, the money-strapped young Walton had to learn to delegate responsibility.
After succeeding with two stores at such a distance (and with the postwar baby boom in full effect), Sam became enthusiastic about scouting more locations and opening more Ben Franklin franchises. (Also, having spent countless hours behind the wheel, and with his close brother James "Bud" Walton having been a pilot in the war, he decided to buy a small second-hand airplane. Both he and his son John would later become accomplished pilots and log thousands of hours scouting locations and expanding the family business.)
In 1954, he opened a store with his brother Bud in a shopping center in Ruskin Heights, a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. With the help of his brother and father-in-law, Sam went on to open many new variety stores. He encouraged his managers to invest and take an equity stake in the business, often as much as $1000 in their store, or the next outlet to open. (This motivated the managers to sharpen their managerial skills and take ownership over their role in the enterprise.) By 1962, along with his brother Bud, he owned 16 stores in Arkansas, Missouri, and Kansas (fifteen Ben Franklin's and one independent, in Fayetteville).
The first true Walmart opened on July 2, 1962, in Rogers, Arkansas. Called the Wal-Mart Discount City store, it was located at 719 West Walnut Street. He launched a determined effort to market American-made products. Included in the effort was a willingness to find American manufacturers who could supply merchandise for the entire Walmart chain at a price low enough to meet the foreign competition.
As the Meijer store chain grew, it caught the attention of Walton. He acknowledges that his one-stop-shopping center format was based on Meijer’s innovative concept. Contrary to the prevailing practice of American discount store chains, Walton located stores in smaller towns, not larger cities. To make his model work, he emphasized logistics, particularly locating stores within a day's drive proximity to Walmart's regional warehouses, and distributed through its own trucking service. Buying in volume and efficient delivery permitted sale of discounted name brand merchandise. Thus, sustained growth— from 1977's 190 stores to 1985's 800— was achieved.
In 1998, Walton was included in Time's list of 100 most influential people of the 20th Century. Walton was honored for his work in retail in March 1992, when he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George H. W. Bush.
Forbes ranked Sam Walton as the richest person in the United States from 1982 to 1988, ceding the top spot to John Kluge in 1989 when the editors began to credit Walton's fortune jointly to him and his four children. (Bill Gates first headed the list in 1992, the year Walton died). Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. also runs Sam's Club warehouse stores. Walmart operates in the U.S. and in more than 15 international markets, including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, India, South Africa, Botswana, Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Kenya, Lesotho, Swaziland, Honduras, Japan, Mexico, Nicaragua and the United Kingdom.
At the University of Arkansas, the Business College (Sam M. Walton College of Business) is named in his honor. Walton was inducted into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1992. 
Sam may be gone for over a quarter of a century but his legacy of setting a good price for a decent product has lived on. (Forbes, wikipedia, LuLac)   

The LuLac Edition #3932, November 16th, 2018

CASEY FOR PRESIDENT? 

I always thought Bob Casey wanted to be Governor. My speculation was that Casey, elected in 2006 would serve two terms in the Senate and run for Governor in 2018. But Tom Wolf’s defeat of Tom Corbett threw that out the window.
Casey, re-elected by a large margin said in an NBC interview that he might be thinking about running for President saying that he would appeal to working class voters.
The comment was met with some derision. But as the character Jonesy from the old Daniels and Webster program would say, “Don’t Laugh”. Here’s why:
1. Casey is an adult with no drama. Clean as a whistle.
2. Some say he’s boring. Well America seems to have an adverse reaction to Presidents in an alternating fashion. After Nixon/Ford, America picked Jimmy Carter who said he’d never lie to us. After the George W. Bush terms, America picked President Obama. We left country for urban. Casey’s demeanor just might be the anecdote needed for America after Trump.
3. Casey is pro life. Democrats say they need to be more inclusive. How much more inclusive can that get. The last pro life on a national Democratic ticket was Sargent Shriver in 1972.
Casey does nothing by accident or gaffe. Watch him.

BETO’S BUBBLE AND THIS CONGRESSMAN TO PRESIDENT THING

Beto O'Rourke, James Garfield,20th President, Abraham Lincoln in the 1840s and George and Barbara Bush in the mid 1960s.  (Photos: wikipedia, history.com., George Bush Library, UPI) 

After Beto O’Rourke lost his race for Senate in Texas there was talk about him running for President. He is charismatic and did indeed capture the imagination of Democrats all across the United States. But in a field of more than twenty candidates, great and small, famous and unknown poised to run, talking up Beto is just an exercise in speculation at this point.
But people are making comparisons saying a Congressman can become President. True The examples being used are George H.W. Bush and Abraham Lincoln. The thought process they seem to be using is each went from Congress to the White House. It is true that both did hold a term or two in Congress but neither made a giant leap to the White House. Therefore the comparisons are flawed.
The only person who did that was James Garfield, Republican of Ohio who went from Congress to The White House in 1880. Lincoln was elected to one term in 1846 as a member of the Whig party. But it was a short run since he got on the wrong side of people who supported President Polk and opposed The Mexican American War. He lost in 1848. In the interim he practiced law and ran for the Senate in 1858 against Stephen Douglas. The two barnstormed through Illinois with the great debates. Two years later, the two faced off for the office of President and Lincoln prevailed. But Lincoln after serving one term waited 12 years to get to the White House.
The example of George H.W. Bush follows a time line just as indirect.
The elder Bush ran for Congress in 1964 and lost in the Johnson landslide. He came back in 1966 to win a seat and was quite content there until he was talked into running for the Senate in 1970 against Lloyd Bensten. These were the day when the Dems were still king in Texas. Bensten, himself a candidate for President in 1976 and then became Michael Dukakis’ running mate crushed H.W. 
Bush after being defeated served in the Nixon administration as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. He loved the job but was prevailed upon by Nixon in 1973, as the Watergate Scandal was erupting, to become chairman of the Republican National Committee. In this post, he stood by Nixon until August 1974, when he joined a growing chorus of voices calling on the President to resign.
Bush wanted to be Ford’s Veep but that was not to be. Later in 1974, Ford, who had nominated Nelson Rockefeller as his vice president, named a disappointed Bush chief of the U.S. Liaison Office in Beijing—which was then the senior U.S. representative in China, because relations between the two countries did not permit the exchange of ambassadors. He served in this capacity until he was asked to head the Central Intelligence Agency in 1976. As CIA director, Bush took steps to ensure that the agency’s activities did not exceed congressional authorization. When Jimmy Carter took office in 1977, Bush resigned and returned to Texas, where in 1979 he announced his candidacy for president.
Bush fought Ronald Reagan hard and even criticized his economics as Voodo. But Reagan picked him as his Vice President and then finally in 1988 some 28 years after leaving Congress Bush became President.
If by some miracle Beto O’Rourke does become President in 2020, he will only emulate Garfield’s path and neither those of Lincoln or George H.W. Bush.

UNGRACIOUS ACTIONS

After the election the mocking continued from President Donald Trump. Trump called out Congress people who didn’t ask him to campaign for them. His actions were unsurprising and showed a new level of low that has permeated the Trump Presidency.
He did not visit a Veteran’s cemetery in France as did Ronald Reagan and other Presidents. He mocked the French President for his comments and then pouted as World Leaders took center stage.
At least he’s consistent in his pettiness and ignorance.

FERRANCE STEPS DOWN AS LUZERNE COUNTY GOP CHAIR

Ron Ferrance has stepped down as Chair of the Luzerne County Republican party. Ferrance succeeded Bill Urbanski in 2016. Ferrance was front and center at a recent Trump rally this summer and was a booster of the local GOP.
There were issues of disagreement reported here but there was no doubt that Ferrance thought he was working in the best interests of what he believed in.
Even though we disagreed with some moves, he was always gracious and kind to us when I attended GOP events. We wish him the best.

RON FELTON TAKES REIGNS OF NAACP AGAIN

Ben Hoon, me and Ron Felton (Photo: Scott Cannon, Video Innovations, Plymouth, Pa. 2018)
This announcement came from Ronald Felton regarding the local chapter of the NAACP. Once again, I'm stepping back into the seat of NAACP Wilkes-Barre Branch #2306 as President in ‘2019. I do this with the intent of grooming someone within the next two years to serve as my replacement. I'm running unopposed.
This will be my tenth term for a total of twenty years. I do this out of my love and commitment to the NAACP mission. This is why I'm a lifetime member of the NAACP Wilkes-Barre Branch #2306. Because I believe so strongly in what the organization stands for and I have the confidence it won't let me down or stray away from its mission. This is why I encourage everyone who believes in the mission of the NAACP to become a lifetime member. This will also assist the organization in being a valuable presence in our community.
So, our goal for the next two years is to sign up fifty lifetime members. That will help sustain its presence for many decades.
Now, if you're unable to become a lifetime member become a regular member and show your support. Let the City of Wilkes-Barre know that the NAACP is a force to be reckoned with. Our goal for the next two years is to increase our membership by one hundred percent.
The City of Wilkes-Barre has roughly 40,000 residents. My goal is to have NAACP membership reflect one percent (400) of that. I need your help
I'm asking for your help so that I can better serve you. For a small branch Wilkes-Barre had become very well known throughout the State of Pennsylvania with representatives from the adult branch and youth council serving on the NAACP PA State Conference.
I will continue to serve as Eastern Sectional Director through 2019 and will then retire from the NAACP PA State Conference.
The youth are our future leaders and we need to provide them with the organizational and leadership skills to continue to move us forward.
The NAACP is and has been since its original founding in 1909 a multi-racial organization.
Attached, is a membership form. Please complete and mail to: NAACP Wilkes-Barre Branch #2306, P.O. Box 2460, Wilkes-Barre, PA 18703

MEDIA MATTERS

WALN TV

BOLD GOLD COMMUNITY FORUM

Tune in Sunday morning at 6 on 94.3 The Talker; 6:30 on 1400-The Game, NEPA's Fox .Sports Radio and 106.7 fm; and at 7:30 on 105 The River.

ECTV LIVE

ECTV Staffers David DeCosmo, Rusty Fender, and Mark Migilore will be taking a Thanksgiving break during thw eek of November 19th but the show will go on!

The local public affairs program will be presenting a Best Of" program during the week. It will air several times daily on Comcast channel 19 (61 in some areas) and will also be rebroadcast on the electric city television YouTube page!
ECTV Live can be seen on Comcast channel 19 (61 in some areas) and is aired during the Noon, 6pm and Midnight hours each day of the week. Following Monday's Live program the show will become available on Electric City Television's YouTube channel which can be viewed on your computer.

BUDDY RUMCHEK

Want to hear some great parodies on the news? Tune in to WILK Radio at 6:40 and 8:40 AM on Mondays. As Ralph Cramden used to say, “It’s a laugh riot!”

BOBBY V’S DOO WOP SOCK HOP

SUNDAY NIGHTS!

1960

Our 1960 logo

Wilt Chamberlain, of the Philadelphia Warriors, set the NBA record for number of rebounds (55) in a game, which has remained unbroken for nearly fifty years, but his team lost 132–129 to the visiting Boston Celtics, who were led by Bill Russell. Chamberlain's 55 rebounds broke Russell's record of 51, set on February 8, 1959 by Bill Russell of the Boston Celtics. Chamberlain (23,924) and Russell (21,620) remain first and second on the all time rebound list.

Clark Gable, American film star, 59, of a heart attack, a few days after completing his last film, The Misfits with Marilyn Monroe.

African-American singer and actor Sammy Davis, Jr. married white Swedish actress May Britt at a time when interracial marriage was uncommon, and, in some states, illegal. The resulting fallout would effectively end Britt's film career. The couple would have a daughter in 1961, and would adopt two sons, before separating in 1967 and divorcing in 1968. The uncensored, Penguin Books edition of Lady Chatterley's Lover went on sale in England and Wales, eight days after a London jury had concluded that it was not obscene, and became an instant bestseller.
Rumors persist that the Soviet Union covered up the deaths of cosmonauts killed in the early days of its space program. Russian journalist Yaroslav Golovanov, the Fortean Times writes, "has claimed that on 10 November 1960, a cosmonaut called Byelokonyev died on board a spaceship in orbit." No evidence has been found to corroborate Golovanov's statesmen…in Pennsylvania Danny Murtaugh is coming back as Manager of the World Champion Pirates, in Luzerne County Dan Flood gets ready to work with a new Democratic President and fifty eight years ago the number one song in LuLac land and America was “Don't Be Cruel” by Bill Black's Combo.

The LuLac Edition #3931, November 14th, 2018

WRITE ON WEDNESDAY

Our "Write On Wednesday" logo

This week’s “Write On Wednesday” comes from The Citizens’ Voice and a great story by Bob Kalinowski. With Pennsylvania not ever electing a woman Senator or Governor (things move glacially here!) it was refreshing to see two area natives stake out careers elsewhere in politics.
This is our future and we are at least proud of something politically, other than the aberration of the 2016 election. Check it out:

TWO WYOMING VALLEY NATIVES MADE HISTORY IN TUESDAY’S ELECTION.

Maria Robinson, a 2005 Bishop Hoban graduate originally from Kingston, became the first Korean American to be elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

The Democrat, a public policy expert in the clean energy industry, was elected to the 6th Middlesex District in Framingham, which is about 20 miles east of Boston.

Meanwhile, Lindsay Williams, a 2001 Wyoming Area graduate, became the first female Democrat elected to the Pennsylvania state Senate’s 38th District in Allegheny County.
Robinson, 31, won a four-way write-in contest in September’s Democratic primary in her bid to replace Rep. Chris Walsh, who died while in office. She ran unopposed in the general election.
“I’m incredibly excited to serve. Making history is just a pleasant surprise,” Robinson said.
Robinson’s parents Stephen and Denyse Duaime moved from Kingston to live with her and her husband last year. While she hasn’t lived here for years, she still has one strong connection.
“I’m increasing the knowledge people have about Northeastern Pennsylvania by keeping a cell phone with a 570 area code,” Robinson said.
Williams, 35, a Democrat, won a tight race for state Senate in Allegheny County, beating her Republican opponent by 549 votes out of a total 122,361 ballots cast.
“It was quite a nailbiter,” Williams said.
The district includes a portion of Pittsburgh and much of northern Allegheny County.
Williams, who lives in West View Borough, is a native of Wyoming Borough, where her parents, Jack and Nancy Williams, still live.
She said friends and family from Luzerne County were extremely helpful in the campaign. She even held a local fundraiser months ago.
“I had a lot of support from my hometown and it made a big difference,” Williams said.
https://www.citizensvoice.com/news/nepa-natives-make-history-in-election-1.2408348

The luLac Edition #3930, November 13th, 2018

13 QUESTIONS

Our 13 Questions logo

1. Well how did you think the election went? Are we doomed or saved?

Hah, neither. We still have a divided government. But now it is a government with checks and balances at least. Well, let’s just say checks. By the GOP losing the House it gives Dems an opportunity to forge a campaign platform.
They should just shut up about impeachment until the Mueller report comes out and if there is anything there or not. THen proceed if need be. They should pass Health care tweaks to the ACA, minimum wage and a sensible gun act. Then when the Senate blocks it, they and their candidate should run against McConnell and Trump. That would be my advice.

2. Was the Cartwright-Chrin race a surprise to you?

Yes, only in the fact that Cartwright won by so much. Apparently the new district was not buying what Chrin was selling. Plus it was a bad year to run here with Trump not being the vote draw that he barely was in ’16.

3. How many people have told you they were sick and tired of seeing you on TV all the time this election season?

About 200. Including Mrs. LuLac. So now you’re 201!

4. Do you think Scott Wagner, John Chrin and Lou Barletta will be back to run state wide?

Oh yes. Do not count them out. Pennsylvania does not mind candidates coming back. Bob Casey Senior and Junior lost races for Governor as did Arlen Specter. All three of those guys came back to prevail. A loss gives you name recognition which is a valuable currency.

5. Most effective ad campaigns this season?

Well I’m not saying it was effective since he lost but Denny Wolff’s manure ad was pretty good and got people talking.
The Barletta ad attacking Bob Casey after he took an ad that Barletta objected to was Projection at it’s finest. Barletta’s camp called the initial Casey ad despicable even though it never mentioned the Barletta grandchild. Weeks after the ad was gone the only person talking about it was Barletta, in effect politicizing to the end what he accused Casey of in the first place.

6. Do you think the votes should be counted in Florida?

You mean Flori-duh right? Well yes that’s what a recount is all about for heaven’s sake. This stuff the President put out as well as Rick Scott is the old GOP line about voter fraud. Tarone and I used to go through that tooth and nail. Count them.
But Flori-duh which has this superiority complex is the least superior of the entire 50 when it comes to getting elections right. Both parties are at fault.

7. Hey you’re a media guy, what are your thoughts on ABC’s Election night coverage and their set?

It looked ridiculous. They had like 16 analysts and reporters in a big round like T. Too hard to follow.

8. Do you think it’s a good idea for Beto O’Rourke to run for President?

No. We saw what both Obama and this guy gave us with little experience. Obama should have used his power wisely and ruthlessly instead of thinking that he was going to be loved by all. Trump is a train wreck who for some reason providence keeps smiling on as the guy takes credit for stuff he has no clue about.

9. Why do you think Property Tax Reform did not resonate in the 121st with Sue Henry and 22nd Senate with Frank Scavo?

A few reasons. The top of the ticket was weak. Plus their candidacies galvanized supporters of the incumbents to work hard for them. The 121st is the weakest district in the Luzerne county GOP. The 22nd Senate is made for a Democrat.
Here’s a big factor too. The failure of the government in Harrisburg to get property tax reform when the Casinos came about with that reform added as an incentive to get it passed, well people still remember that broken promise. Even though this was explained over and over, people were gun shy. Plus Dems of any stripe were in no mood to trust anything Republican this year.

10. What happened to the Caravan Yonki?

Ah election day happened and the fear that thousands were going to rape and pillage Shickshinny went away. GOP playbook, lies and fear.

11. Donald Trump’s calling out of people who lost in his own party?

Not surprising. He’s nothing but a big cry baby. He is fast becoming white noise to many Americans.

12. Trump’s treatment of the press, good or bad for America?

Bad. It’s actually Hitlerian when you think about it. What I would love to do is have them stop covering him. That’s oxygen to him. Just ignore him and go to Pence, the Cabinet and ask them questions.
Then you’ll see how fast this attention seeking slob comes around.

13. Do you regret anything you said on TV or radio this election cycle?

Yes. Jason Barsky on WILK asked me if I thought the Dems should pick a new Speaker and I said, “yeah maybe”. I’ve changed my mind on that. If they do, the small minded sexist bigots in the GOP as well as on FB would have won. This woman has been attacked by morons who have no clue about anything but their bobbing head acquiescence to memes and Rush talking points. I regret saying she should step aside. She has more balls than most in Congress. But that’s all I regret about TV and radio this year. Even though I was edited on Statewide TV for comments on another race.It was a clean edit and my colleagues and I were thrilled to be on state wide TV on "This Week In Pennsylvania".

The LuLac Edition #3929, November 12th, 2018

VETERAN'S DAY OBSERVED 2018