Pence and Biden are both in Pennsylvania today | Morning Newsletter
Plus, N.J. makes masks mandatory outside.
The Morning Newsletter
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Vice President Mike Pence is visiting Pennsylvania today, with a visit to Philly on his list of stops. His visit comes a day after the Trump Administration’s regulations giving employers the ability to deny employees free coverage for birth control was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. Former Vice President Joe Biden will also be in the state today. Combined, the visits of Pence and Biden show the importance of the state in the 2020 election, my colleagues report.
— Josh Rosenblat (@joshrosenblat, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
The Trump administration regulations that allow employers to deny female workers no-cost coverage for birth control by citing religious and moral obligations were upheld by a Supreme Court decision yesterday. That means that as many as 126,000 women could lose coverage for free birth control through their workplace health plans in the first year, according to government estimates.
The case stemmed from a lawsuit brought by the attorneys general of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. And the Supreme Court’s 7-2 decision overturned decisions by federal courts in Philadelphia that blocked the Trump administration’s rules from taking effect.
Mike Pence and Joe Biden are bringing their competing visions to Pennsylvania today, where they’ll visit four starkly different areas showing why the Keystone State is such an important battleground for the 2020 election.
Combined, they’re visiting Lancaster, Chester, and Lackawanna counties, along with Philadelphia. My colleagues Julia Terruso and Jonathan Tamari explain why those areas are so important politically.
In homes across the Philadelphia region, the coronavirus sent many 18- to 22-year-old students back to their parents’ home. Other young people lost jobs and could no longer afford to live on their own. At the same time, some who still had their jobs worked remotely and fled crowded apartments and cities where cases were spiking.
After getting over an initial adjustment of living together again, those families who had the means to offer support realized how fortunate they were, my colleague Erin McCarthy reports.
What you need to know today
Gov. Phil Murphy said yesterday that New Jersey will require masks to be worn outside.
More than 750 people were arrested for curfew violations, failure to disperse, and disorderly conduct during protests against police brutality and racism in Philadelphia. Then, they were released with civil citations, not criminal charges. Last week, my colleague Samantha Melamed reported on allegations that the practice violated free speech. Yesterday, Mayor Jim Kenney announced that those code violation notices would be waived.
Penn currently does not pay property taxes in Philadelphia. More than 500 faculty and staff members have signed a petition calling on the school to make payments in place of taxes to support Philadelphia public schools.
A former Philadelphia priest pleaded guilty to molesting two altar boys in Bucks County decades ago.
Churches and other religious groups received unprecedented help from the federal Paycheck Protection Program. Why “unprecedented”? Because it gave religious organizations the chance to tap into government funds “with no separation-of-church-and-state strings attached,” my colleague Harold Brubaker reports.
New Jersey’s primary this week was anything but ordinary. You can even set aside the coronavirus-related measures. For example, the George E. Norcross III-backed South Jersey Democratic establishment was toppled by Amy Kennedy, who had backing from Gov. Murphy.
Through your eyes | #OurPhilly
Philly’s looking good these days. Thanks for sharing, @scapesbybimal.
Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we’ll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout out!
That’s interesting
⛈️A potential tropical storm brewing off the coast of South Carolina could drench the Philly region tomorrow, and bring gusty winds and flooding at the Shore.
📚Authors are canceling Philly Free Library events in solidarity with Black workers who signed an open letter to administrators that details complaints of being underpaid, facing racism routinely, and lacking adequate coronavirus protection.
💡Solomon Rosenblatt, a 91-year-old inventor, and his family are selling reusable sanitizing wipes guaranteed to last 30 days and up to 600 uses. They live in Chestnut Hill.
🛑The Ivy League sports teams won’t play any games until at least 2021. The conference is the first Division I league to make this call.
🍽️Some outdoor dining updates from my colleague Jenn Ladd include NoLibs closing 2nd Street to car traffic this weekend.
🎷The COVID-19 pandemic hit Philly’s jazz community hard this spring with the deaths of musicians and clubs closing. Joseph L. Lewis III, the new leader of Jazz Bridge, a musician-founded aid society, is stepping in to face that challenge.
Opinions
“Someone slipped Cruz a $100 bill. Others dropped off cases of water. Guys from the neighborhood, some of whom came up selling water on those same corners, stopped to offer all kinds of advice.” — writes columnist Helen Ubiñas about how Camden rallied when a 16-year-old was robbed of his profits selling water bottles.
This week’s Pro/Con debate focuses on whether sports should come back during the pandemic. John Smallwood, a former Daily News sports columnist, and Christopher Tremoglie, a senior at Penn, face off.
Columnist Maria Panaritis writes that parents can’t become pretend-public-school teachers again this fall.
What we’re reading
Philadelphia Weekly published an essay calling for a Philadelphia music museum.
You might know Michael Render better as Killer Mike, the Atlanta rapper who has “become one of the loudest and most original political voices in the country,” GQ writes.
Incarcerated people are going viral on TikTok, showing life behind bars, Wired reports.
Your Daily Dose of | Recipes
Stop grilling your peaches and start slicing them, adding sugar, cinnamon, and allspice, and bake them inside a piecrust or puff pastry, advises food editor Jamila Robinson. My colleague offers up a recipe for a summer fruit galette.