Amy Ruffo
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amyrulocal.bsky.social
Amy Ruffo
@amyrulocal.bsky.social
650 followers 880 following 1.1K posts
focused on state and local news and politics. I repost as a filing method, which means - a lot.
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amyrulocal.bsky.social
I wish @johnfetterman.com would understand this...and there is no way the GOP will compromise at a later date to vote on a stand alone ACA bill to extend the subsides. They are lying.
I've called his office, I've sent an email. I am never able to speak to a person.
November 10, 2025 at 4:42 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Printed version at @lancasteronline.bsky.social
November 9, 2025 at 3:25 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Good article summarizing judge elections in PA. Disappointing to describe the GOP vote no campaign as “grassroots”. Yass-roots maybe.

share.inquirer.com/czGxdd
The GOP ouster campaign against the judges was unsuccessful, but it still worked. In 41 counties, ‘No’ won While the justices were ultimately retained, the Republican Party’s “vote no” campaign to oust them got through to most GOP-majority counties across the state.
November 9, 2025 at 3:21 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
and this clap back was nice to read:
Libresco Sargeant: I think some of what you’re describing is not exclusively feminine, and it’s strange to characterize it so strongly in that direction. It’s a product of human beings being bad at group dynamics in a variety of ways, that men can fail at and women can fail at.
November 6, 2025 at 3:07 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Douthat: So, Leah, are women the problem with wokeness? Libresco Sargeant: No, I don’t think so. I think America is a country of repeated religious revival, and this was one of them. It swept up both men and women and came out of a fundamental sense of: What’s wrong with us? — the fundamental question people are always asking: What’s wrong with us, and what can we do about it? I think wokeness was deeply interested in questions about guilt but had thin answers for how guilt can be expiated and where it’s located. But I see this as less of a significant deviation from other parts of American history.
November 6, 2025 at 3:07 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
@raygunsite.com doing great work.
October 31, 2025 at 9:21 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Have they even looked up what an ACA plan cost? It's not hard. Right there on the page it tells you what the tax credit is - which is what will go away if Congress doesn't act.
October 29, 2025 at 7:38 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Yep! Anyone who has an employer-sponsored plan should check out how much it could cost them if they didn't.
I thought I’d find out what someone making $50,000 with a family of three would be offered through Pennie (aka the ACA or Obamacare) in 2025. I looked for a plan with coverage that was similar to what I get through my employer. PPO Gold plan (not including copays, which range from $35-$725) Deductible $1500/$3000 OOP Max $16,600/$33,200 Monthly premium: $1133.91 (after $1989 tax credit) Monthly premium without tax credit: $3122.91 Increasing the deductible to $7,600 brings it down to $740 per month. The lowest monthly cost I could find was $188 with a $14,800 deductible. Since I selected 2025 plans, all of them include a $1989 tax credit. The lowest one, without the tax credit, would be over $2000 a month with a $14,800 deductible. In that situation, there would be no way a family of three making $50,000 could afford even bare-bones health insurance. $50,000 a year is about $3,000 a month, after taxes.
October 29, 2025 at 3:17 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Quite good from 2024.
@polphilpod.bsky.social and @radiofreetom.bsky.social should chat.
October 22, 2025 at 12:46 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
My grandfather didn’t do that but he drank his coffee from delicate china teacups — with equally delicate decorations.
Teacup and saucer Decorated with the Old Country Roses signature motif of burgundy, pink and yellow roses
October 22, 2025 at 11:37 AM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Kinda dense, but some good stuff...https://www.crisesnotes.com/what-the-hell-is-a-government-shutdown-anyway/
month ago Bloomberg Government reported that Representative Mike Simpson of Idaho- a senior member of the appropriations committee- credited concerns about cooperating with an appropriations bill given the aggressive impoundment from the Trump administration: He echoed concerns by Democratic appropriators that it’s useless to strike a compromise funding deal if one side can retroactively block the funds they oppose. “I don’t think the Democrats want to shut down either,” Simpson said in an exclusive roundtable interview with Bloomberg Government. “Their concern right now, and it’s a legitimate concern, is that, how can we agree to any deal when our OMB director will just impound the funds and say we’re not going to spend them there?” Days before the shutdown began Politico reported this statement: “If you’re a Democrat — even just like a mainstream Democrat — your predisposition might be to help negotiate with Republicans on a funding mechanism,” said Rep. Steve Womack, a senior GOP appropriator. “Why would you do that if you know that whatever you negotiate is going to be subject to the knife pulled out by Russ Vought?” As I was finalizing this piece last night Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska made a similar statement, as reported by NBC News: “If you’re a Democrat, you’re looking at it and you say: why? Why are you going to try to be helpful if Mr. Vought is just going to do a backdoor move and rescind what we’ve been working on?” Murkowski said.
October 16, 2025 at 6:44 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
www.politico.com/news/magazin...

The Obama administration deported a large number of people, but generally, a very high percentage of them were people who either just crossed the border or people with a serious criminal history.
When you’re at ICE, of course you can run down to a Home Depot parking lot. Any administration could have done this: round the Home Depot parking lot, stop a bunch of day laborers and ID them. In car washes, in places where low-wage workers work, places like that. The reason that historically hasn’t been done, is you just don’t find criminals there. Once in a blue moon you find someone, and we see that the administration highlights when they get someone who has some criminal history. But by and large, your really serious criminal threats don’t do shifts at the local car wash for minimum wage. They’re out making their money, making a living as a criminal. 
October 16, 2025 at 4:02 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Messages for No Kings 101825
Post it notes with messages about No Kings protests. Yes constitution, No Kings No Kings. Life & Liberty No Kings. Don’t tread on me No Kings. Money out of politics No Kings. Gift ban now.
October 13, 2025 at 6:09 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Thanks @thebulwark.com and Jacob Soboroff with @msnbc.com for speaking and reporting truth.
www.thebulwark.com/p/jacob-sobo...
Do you know how long she'd been here? Or like, did Samantha tell you about her story? 30 years. She came in 1995 and she has an entire family here. Exactly. Right. It's like, you can't make this shit up. You can't make this shit up. She has been here for 30 years, has an entire family here. And what was her crime? She committed to, walking down the street to get food for dinner. Um, I understand the comments that will come in. People will say, no, the crime is that she's illegal. Well, first of all, no human is illegal. She's undocumented. And she came here all those years ago, looking for a better life for her family. That's a civil offense, not a criminal offense. And as far as I know, she doesn't have a criminal record. She's lived here and been an upstanding citizen for all of those 30 years and raised a wonderful family that people have seen her daughter, Samantha on the air. Um, and they take off the streets. Is that the worst of the worst? You know, if they go around, they send out these press releases, I'm sure you'd get them to saying, here's all the horrible people that we took off the street. Why don't they send the press release out about everybody else? Because I guarantee you, it's much longer than the one about the violent criminals that they're grabbing. Yeah. The other thing is, You know, there are other remediations for various crimes, right? It's like, it's just, you know, if somebody steals a loaf of bread now, we're not cutting off their hand still. You know what I mean? Like, and there are plenty of things that, you know, even if you're somebody who's a strong law and order person and feels like there should be, you know, somebody like that, that, you know, could... There should be a fine or a public service or warning. Like, you know, you could say, I would not be for this, but at least it would be humane to say, hey, you have a deportation order now. You have six months to get your fares in order, right? Like, and, you know, we'll send somebo…
October 13, 2025 at 2:36 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
@lancasteronline.bsky.social thanks for you ongoing local reporting.

Next time you talk with Beiler, ask him how he squares supporting vote by mail (early vote in goo speak) and is a vote No on PASupCt retention elections? The Court protected our right to vote by mail from GOP party leaders?
October 12, 2025 at 2:44 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
That book and this one from 2008, such insight …
Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning
October 9, 2025 at 12:07 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Here is a bathroom in Scotland. A building with two stalls. One for men and one for women. Side by side in the same space. The horror!
October 3, 2025 at 2:26 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Wait for it… By pushing admin of “work requirement”
A” to states, the GOP will blame D Govs for the cuts and harm.
October 1, 2025 at 11:31 AM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
I was just in Scotland. Encountered several bathrooms that were a room with many stalls (full walls) and the entire room was any gender. I was in one stall while a guy was in other. It was totally normal and no one was freaking out.

Here is one in Shetland : one building, one room, two stalls.
September 30, 2025 at 10:25 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
with the course in question
September 10, 2025 at 5:32 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
Evidently, and here is a screenshot of the course catalog. none of the courses seem to provide syllabi. However, what is available to students may be different? not sure.
September 10, 2025 at 5:31 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
screen shot of course catalog availble to any users. The catalog available to students may have more info, unclear on that.
September 10, 2025 at 5:30 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
This is the second “response” from Sen. McCormick. The response is complete unhelpful. It clearly doesn’t address whatever I contacted him about. And I’ve written him several times.
Thank you for contacting me and sharing your thoughts on issues important to you. Your feedback is important to me as we work together to shape policies that benefit Pennsylvania and our country. As the 54th U.S. Senator elected from Pennsylvania, I am honored to represent more than 13 million of our fellow citizens. I am committed to working with my Senate colleagues to reduce the cost of living, secure the border, unleash our nation’s energy resources, restore American strength on the global stage, and protect the American Dream for future generations. To do my job, I rely on input from constituents. Since I was sworn in, I have worked diligently to respond to all the letters and calls from my constituents. In addition, I host regular telephone town halls, where constituents can hear directly from me and ask questions. My next tele-town halls is scheduled for September 17 at 7:00 PM. You can click here to reserve your spot and receive dial-in information. Whenever the Senate is not in session, I prioritize being in Pennsylvania to meet with community leaders, tour small businesses, and engage with constituents. My team is also out in the field every day talking to Pennsylvanians. To visit or connect with one of my seven Pennsylvania-based offices or to stay updated on future town halls, please visit my website at www.mccormick.senate.gov. It is a privilege to serve our great Commonwealth in the United States Senate. I appreciate having the benefit of your comments.
September 7, 2025 at 7:31 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
I don’t have access to this full interview—only this screenshot. FT asked a good question 👏🏼. The follow up: what are solutions to the gap in wealth? 🤷🏼‍♀️

www.ft.com/content/d130...
September 6, 2025 at 2:41 PM
amyrulocal.bsky.social
In PA lots of talk from certain parts of the state about how their tax $ shouldn’t pay for SEPTA/public transit. Meanwhile…
September 3, 2025 at 11:55 AM