Politics

I ONCE KNEW a woman who was adamantly, stridently, proudly pro-choice. She and I met at our freshman orientation in 1979, which prompted a panicked phone call to my mother along the lines of, "Rescue me from this place!" Over the years, I followed the woman's progress as we eyed each other from opposite sides of the ideological barricade, connected only by a love of our shared alma mater. Then, through a friend of a friend, I learned that this classmate was living in Kentucky and had five kids, including one with special needs.

Harry W. Fawkes, 83, chairman of the Bucks County Republican Committee from 1972 to 2012, died Tuesday, March 12, at Arden Courts in Yardley. Mr. Fawkes began his business career by running his own one-truck garbage hauling firm at 18. It had become a $3 million-a-year operation by the time he sold it in 1987 to Waste Management Inc. But if anyone doubted that Republican politics was what made him tick, the convincer was a visit to party headquarters,...

AS CITY COUNCIL and Mayor Nutter gear up for what is sure to be one of the trickiest budget seasons in years, some City Hall observers say the politics of property-tax reform could prove to be a real mess. Council opted to delay the Actual Value Initiative last year because reassessments were not done. A year later, political angst remains as Council prepares to debate the tax rate and how to protect property owners who'll be hit with huge tax hikes under the new system, based on market values.

Adapted from a recent online discussion, and continued from Monday. Comment: If it is actually true that the gal (in Monday's column) has strongly held but extremely uninformed beliefs about politics, then be prepared for her to have strongly held but uninformed beliefs about marriage, parenting, child care, etc. And yes, I'd say that even if the political affiliations and/or genders were reversed. Answer: Such a great point and, yes, it works no matter how you shake up the specifics.

Emanuel "Manny" Ortiz, 63, a longtime advocate and political organizer in Philadelphia's Puerto Rican community, died Friday, March 8, at Pennsylvania Hospital of complications following heart surgery. For two decades, Mr. Ortiz served as executive director of the Hispanic educational organization ASPIRA Inc. of Pennsylvania. He also was a founder of Taller Puertorriqueño, a group for activists and artists. He served as deputy mayor under Mayor Ed Rendell. He was a key supporter for former City Councilman Angel Ortiz and the coalition that elected Mayor W. Wilson Goode.

WASHINGTON - Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on Sunday likened political reporters to "crack addicts" and "heroin addicts" during a tour of morning talk shows that drew repeated questions about the 2016 presidential election. Bush, capping a media-heavy week that sparked chatter about a presidential campaign for a third member of his family, tried to keep the conversation focused on his book Immigration Wars . But as Bush wrapped up a conversation with NBC's David Gregory, he likened journalists and their questions about the 2016 campaign to drug addicts.

Adapted from a recent online discussion. Question: I have a wonderful girlfriend of two years. There's only one thing that makes me worry about the future of our relationship: her political views. I'm liberal, and she's conservative. I tell myself this isn't a deal-breaker, but when we discuss politics, it usually gets pretty heated - and it's usually because I think she lacks empathy, while she thinks I'm too empathetic to people's situations (example: collecting unemployment). I want to take the relationship to the next level, but is this going to be a big problem?

LaKyisha, who will soon celebrate her 15th birthday, is polite and well-behaved, and shows caring for others. She enjoys baking and participates in an afterschool cooking club. Other favorite pastimes are singing, dancing, watching television, and listening to rap and country music. Like most teenage girls, she delights in going shopping and finding the latest fashions. In school, LaKyisha receives special-education services and benefits from the small class size and individual attention.

HARRISBURG - They can't breathe. They don't bleed. They don't digest food. But, as Mitt Romney famously blurted, corporations are people - at least under the law. In the Citizens United decision in 2010, for instance, the Supreme Court recognized that corporations have the constitutional right of free speech, something most people assumed belonged to actual carbon-based life-forms. The court struck down limits on corporate election spending, ruling them the same as banning speech.

U.S. Rep. Allyson Schwartz (D., Pa.) said Friday that she would establish a state political committee in the next few weeks, an important procedural precursor to her expected run for governor of Pennsylvania. The six-term representative from Jenkintown has been traveling around the state trying to line up support. Should she pull the trigger, Schwartz said, she would not file to run simultaneously for her House seat. "Legally, I'm allowed to, but it wouldn't be right," she said.