President Trump's State of the Union Reveals a House Divided

President Donald Trump delivered his first State of the Union address of his second term last night. He laid out an ambitious agenda in a lengthy speech and touted his achievements since taking office, claiming to have accomplished more in 43 days than Democrats did in the last four years. What's more, "we are just getting started."

That worries me. A lot. In just 43 days, he has embraced our enemies and has savaged our closest allies with the help of his Vice President. He has gleefully imposed tariffs on Mexico and Canada. He has allowed an unelected oligarch to run rampant over our social security and other sensitive records. He has threatened to annex the Panama Canal, Gaza, Greenland and even Canada. I will say that he is an effective communicator, managing to speak in a plain and unvarnished style as he touts what he calls his "common sense" revolution. It lacks polish, but I think his supporters like his bluntness. even when it is used to embellish or stretch things. His big problem, and one that was evident during his speech is that, contrary to what he said, he really has no mandate.  

Trump did win the popular vote. He won the swing states. He has a majority in the House, Senate and even the Supreme Court. But it's a slim majority. He lacks the mandate of the people that Ronald Reagan or FDR had. I saw no Democrats greet Trump on his entrance, and he pretty much ignored them. There's mutual disdain. Whatever does get passed will be by the slimmest of margins. 

His reversal on foreign policy is what bothers me most. He has embraced thugs like Putin, who murders his political opponents. At the same time, he castigates Zelensky, who stood up to the thug when everyone was sure that Ukraine would be wiped off the face of earth in a matter of three days. Except for his steadfast commitment to Israel, he is actually making the United States less secure now than it ever has been. His gold dome proposal is probably a good idea because at the rate he's going, we're going to need it. It is no help when JD Vance taunts Britain and France (without specifically naming them) as random countries that have not fought in a war for 30 years. Will they have our back if we need them? 

His presidency is still in its infancy, so it's unfair to blame him for rising prices on consumer products and groceries. But his recent imposition of tariffs, and his intention to impose more of them on April 2, is going to eventually be a tax on those of us who can least afford to pay for them.

His desire to cut government waste with the creation of a new agency headed by the world's richest man is actually a good one. I think we all could get on board with that. But the problem is that Elon Musk has been using a buzzsaw instead of a scalpel and has hurt our national security by firing nuclear workers and then scrambling to unfire them. 

The pendulum did swing in Trump's favor in 2024. But that's the thing about the pendulum. It's always swinging. 

10:15 Update: A transcript of the SOTU speech is here. 

Online Payment of Property Tax Bill Finally Comes to NorCo

From Northampton County: Beginning Tuesday, March 4, Northampton County is pleased to announce the launch of online payment options for all current tax bills. This new system aims to provide residents with a convenient and efficient way to manage their tax payments from the comfort of their homes. 

Residents can choose to pay their taxes via credit card, which incurs a 3.5% fee charged by the payment vendor. Please note that this fee is not collected by the county and goes directly to the vendor. Additionally, an e-check option is available, with a flat fee of $4.00 for payments under $29,999.00. For amounts exceeding $30,000, a fee of $15.00 will apply for e-check payments.

 

We encourage residents to take advantage of the discounted tax rate available through March 31, 2025. To benefit from this discount, please ensure your payments are submitted before this date.

 

For more information on how to make an online payment, please visit https://www.norcopa.gov or contact the Northampton County Revenue Office at 610-829-6186.

Thank you for your continued support as we work to improve service delivery for our residents.

Blogger's Note: I find it simply astonishing that NorCo property owners had no online payment option until now, especially since the county will get it more quickly this way. Most medium-sized municipalities have offered this for decades. 

Blogger's Note #2: I received this message from Fiscal Affairs Director Steve Barron: "Bernie we did have online payments until the 2023 tax year base period ended for current year taxes. We did not have online payment in 2024 for taxes due to our current system end of life and the system from Tyler being completed. We now will be able to take online payments on taxes up until a property is subject to sale. We are only doing current taxes right now to assure that all fees, penalties and interest are applied online consistent with PA law. Once that is done we will allow online payments for past due taxes as well. "

I do recall having a conversation with sSteve about this last year, but was under the mistaken impression that online payments had never been possible.

NorCo's Communications Should Be About the County, Not McClure

When he was first elected county executive in 2017, Lamont McClure decided to use one of his assistant administrators to act as a communications director. Some of you thought this was just an opportunity for the Exec to publicize himself, and I'll agree it's good politics. But it's also good government. The public is kept apprised of what is happening at a county level. It's transparent and informative at a time when the dailies no longer have the staff to cover local government. But I received a news release yesterday that crosses the line from good government to pure politics. 

The release is below:

[Northampton County, PA] – Northampton County is proud to announce that County Executive Lamont G. McClure has been selected as the Grand Marshal for the 2025 Parade of Shamrocks. This festive event, organized by the Celtic Cultural Alliance (CCA), will take place in the streets of Historic Downtown Bethlehem on Saturday, March 15, 2025, at 1:00 PM.

 

County Executive McClure, a lifelong resident of Pennsylvania, has dedicated much of his career to making a positive impact in his community. He takes great pride in his Irish heritage and has consistently supported the mission of the CCA. In regard to this honor, he stated, “I am truly honored to have been chosen as the Grand Marshal of the Parade of Shamrocks. I can’t wait to celebrate with all of you.”

 

The Parade of Shamrocks is a significant cultural event that highlights the rich traditions of the Celtic community.

Join us in celebrating this vibrant event and honoring County Executive Lamont G. McClure as the Grand Marshal. We look forward to seeing everyone in Downtown Bethlehem for a day of fun, culture, and community spirit!

 

For all media inquiries related to this announcement, please contact Jessica Berger, Deputy Director of Administration at 610-829-6250 or JBerger@norcopa.gov.

Amazingly, this "news" release asks us to join in "honoring County Executive Lamont G. McClure as the Grand Marshal." A county news release should never be used to fawn over a county exec who has incidentally just announced he's running for Congress. This was a misuse of county resources. 

The Trump-Vance-Zelensky Shouting Match - My Take

I prefer sticking to local topics but occasionally will ramble into other areas. Friday's shouting match involving Donald Trump, JD Vance and Volodymyr Zelenskyy is something I've thought about all weekend. I actually watched the entire blow-up in its entirety three times. I thought I'd give you my own analysis. for what it's worth. 

1) The meeting started pleasantly, with Trump saying he worked well with Zelenskyy and has known him a long time and that it was "an honor.". He said the minerals deal, which will allow American companies to harvest Ukraine's rare earths, is a "big commitment" by the US. - I'd disagree because the US has frozen Russian assets and could use those to recoup the money spent to finance Ukraine. The minerals deal smacks as colonialism and, quite frankly, would take many years before any profit was realized. Nevertheless, Zelenskyy went along with it. 

2) "If I were President, this war would never have happened." Trump made this statement during the get-together and made it many times on the campaign trail as well. He may be right. When Russia first invaded Ukraine in 2014 and seized both Crimea and portions of the country, former President Obama did very little. Moreover, Biden botched a withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. This undoubtedly emboldened Putin. Trump failed to mention that he is the one who negotiated that deal with the Taliban. He failed to bring in the Afghan government, just as he has failed to bring in Ukraine or Europe in talks with Russians. 

3) Trump complimented Ukraine's military as "unbelievably brave." He complimented Zelenskyy as well for his stiff resistance to Russia's invasion. 

4) When Trump invited Zelenskyy to speak, the very first thing he did was thank him. He made clear at the onset that he viewed the minerals deal as the first real step to security agreements for Ukraine. (We'll come back to that). Zelensky said they are fighting to "save our country, our values. our freedom, our democracy and, of course, no compromises with a killer about our territories. ... ." He added that Russians have kidnapped 20,000 children, changed their names and even changed their families. He also showed photos of what Russians have done to Ukrainian POWS and clerics, which Trump acknowledged is "tough stuff." He even had photos of children. "We want to get that ended," said Trump. 

6) Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine has the best drone production in the world and is willing to share its licenses with the US but needs air defense, at which the US excels.

7) The assembled press bothered me. Trump, who has become increasingly authoritarian in his first few weeks as President, banned both Reuters and AP, which are highly respected media outlets. He replaced them with fawning correspondents like Marjorie Taylor Greene's boyfriend, who wondered whether Trump will go down in history as the Peacemaker. He also dismissively asked Zelenskyy why he does not wear a suit and whether he can afford one (Zelensky dresses as his soldiers dress) Another reporter fawned about whether Trump should be compared to famous historical figures. After joking about it, Trump to his credit said he doesn't compare himself to anyone and is just "here to do a job." A third reporter asked Trump what gave him his "moral courage and conviction."

8) Trump said the US would continue to provide military support. "Hopefully, I won't have to send very much." Zelenskyy said the US has been on Ukraine's side from the beginning. Trump would later say he is on nobody's side and just wants to solve the problem. In response to a question, he said he remains committed to Poland and to NATO.

9) Trump said that any peace arrangement will require compromise.

10) The mineral agreement provides for Liquid Gas terminals for Ukraine, which Zelenskyy said would enable Ukraine to provide heat to Europe.

11) About halfway into the news conference, the topic of security agreements was brought up again. Zelenskyy claimed they are essential because Putin has a history of ignoring agreements. He broke ceasefire agreements 25 times. As they were speaking at the White House about peace, Zelenskyy noted that Putin was firing ballistic missiles into Ukraine. He said that without security agreements, "Putin will never stop." Trump said security agreements are only about 2% of the overall deal.

12) Zelenskyy insisted that Ukraine would have to be involved in any peace talks. "This is not a war between Russia and the United States This is a war of Russia against Ukraine and Ukrainian people." 

13) Zelenskyy corrected Trump when he said much of Ukraine has been destroyed. "You have to come and to look," said Zelenskyy. He said most cities are very much alive with people working and children going to school. "Ukraine is fighting and Ukraine lives."

14) A reporter suggested Europe is arresting Americans for exercising free speech and thought crimes. 

15) After 40 minutes, VP JD Vance decided to blow things up. He asserted that diplomacy would solve this dispute. Zelensky countered that he signed a ceasefire agreement with Putin in 2019. He broke the ceasefire and refused to exchange prisoners despite promising to do so. "What kind of diplomacy are you talking about, JD, what do you mean?" Vance responded that diplomacy would end the destruction of Ukraine and then accused Zelensky of being disrespectful. He added that Ukraine is using conscripts. Zelensky asked if Vance has ever been to Ukraine, and Vance responded that he has watched what is happening. 

16) Vance then accused Zelensky of attacking the administration that is trying to help his country. This is absurd. There was no attack by Zelensky. The conversation up to this point was frank, bbut polite and respectful. 

From this point on, we all know what followed. 

My view is that until Vance's attack, Trump was actually enjoying the exchange. I also think he ws sincerely interested in negotiating an end to the war, but Vance has a bug up his ass about Ukraine and Europe and would prefer to just let them all rot away. 

I Stand With Ukraine

NorCo Exec Lamont McClure to Run For Pa.7 Congressional Seat

It's official. Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure announced late yesterday afternoon that he's seeking the Democratic nomination to Congress' Pa. 7th District, currently held by Republican Ryan Mackenzie. He did so in an after-hours announcement from the courthouse rotunda before a crowd of at least 100 supporters, including a Who's Who of local Democratic leaders, county staffers and an alphabet soup of trade union leaders. 

Up until this point, McClure has served in county government both as a Council member and as Executive.  He was initially appointed to a County Council vacancy in 2006 and thereafter won and held the seat for two terms. He was elected County Executive in 2017 and is in the final year of his second term. He previously announced he would not be seeking a third term. Now we know why.

As Executive, McClure steered the county through a pandemic and a statewide shutdown. He insisted that county offices remain open and found a way to funnel $25 million to small businesses in the county that were hanging by a thread. He's never proposed a tax increase and actually cut taxes in 2022 while simultaneously reducing the size of county government by nearly a third. He restored medical benefits to employees after they had been cut by the pervious Executive. 

As a member of county council, he was at the forefront of the battle to save the county's nursing home, which he has always called "a moral obligation." As Executive, he made sure it is now also county operated instead of through a private administrator. He has also persuaded Council to start a daycare at the nursing home for the children of employees.

He has had failures, too. Most notably, there were problems in the 2019 and 2023 elections. Though the county purchased the best voting machine available - the ExpressVote XL- the vendor failed to align about a third of the machines before the 2019 election and botched the coding of the machines prior to the 2023 election.  He has also had to deal with a County Council that, unlike many legislative bodies, has been flexing its biceps in a much-needed demonstration that there are actually three, and not one, branch of government. Most of them were no-shows at yesterday's announcement. 

Before Mackenzie's 1% victory last year, the seat had been held by Susan Wild. Whether she herself is running is unclear, but I'm told that she has been beating the bushes to find a woman with a STEM background to take on Mackenzie. She was MIA at yesterday's announcement.

Susan Lawless, who chairs Hanover Township's Board of Supervisors and was one of the introductory speakers, cited McClure's accomplishments but said there was one overriding reason to support him. "He can win," she declared. 

McClure condemned "the chaos that Trump and Elon Musk are causing in Washington, D.C. today. It's completely unnecessary." He said he was able to cut taxes and reduce the growth of county government by 31% over 7 years "without creating chaos. We don't need a bully like Elon Musk to come into the courthouse and fire people. We did this in a sensible manner. And not only did we do it in a sensible manner, we did it without cutting core services. In fact, we expanded core services."

He also discussed what he called Ryan Mackenzie's "values." "Mackenzie has shown us a little bit about what he values ... Let's take his focus on Medicare repeal. That's a value, right? Let's take his vote on Medicaid repeal. That's a value. He's showing his values. His assault on Americans' health care, he's demonstrating his values."

"What has he said to condemn the pardon of the January 6 insurrectionists?" McClure asked. "He's always lecturing me about support of law enforcement. By the way, I support law enforcement. Since I've been county executive, we have funded the police and fire and EMS to the tune of $2 million despite the fact that that is not part of our core responsibilities. So we support law enforcement, but Ryan Mackenzie did not criticize President Trump when he pardoned those insurrectionists. That demonstrates his values.

He also asked why Mackenzie has failed to criticize "Putin's aggressive invasion of Ukraine. I have not. Have you heard him say 'I stand with Ukraine' onto victory. I have not. But I stand with Ukraine onto victory. These are my core values."

McClure said he learned his values from his late father, a former director of Carbon County Housing Authority, "who lives on in my heart every day." From his father, he learned that "one of the most dignifying things in life was to be able to provide a roof over your family's head."  

It's on. 

$80,000 in Overtime Abuse By Top Clerical Staff Suspected in NorCo DA's office.

Three of Northampton County DA Steve Baratta's top clerical staff are currently on paid administrative leave. Human Resources is investigating whether the $80,000 in overtime they claimed over the last year was inflated in what amounts to possible theft by deception. If this is substantiated, the Attorney General will be notified. All because of a simple right-to-know request. 

Early this year, one of the local dailies filed a right-to-know request, seeking the salaries of every county employee. It's a good space filler. In the past, I've been critical of LehighValleyLive, which likes to publish what local government workers are paid, by name and wages. I've argued that just because you can file a right-to-know for this kind of information does not mean you should. Sure, I'd support publication of the highest salaries paid but consider publication of how little money is paid to most public employees is a bit intrusive. I was wrong. It is precisely because of such an inquiry that county officials discovered that top clerical officials in the NorCo DA's office may have been receiving overtime to which they had no right. 

One of these top clerks authorized the OT paid to two others. Her own overtime must be approved by the DA or First Assistant, but she may have disguised what she was seeking. The amount paid to her in 2024 was nearly as much as her own salary. 

She also claimed about $8,000 in OT in 2023, but administration officials concluded this extra work might have been necessary as the result of a transition from former DA Terry Houck to current DA Steve Baratta. 

I happen to know and respect all three of these clerks. If these allegations are true, it is very disappointing, especially in an office charged with the responsibility of enforcing criminal law. 

Because this is a personnel matter, there is no point in asking Executive Lamont McClure or District Attorney Steve Baratta exactly what is happening. But I've substantiated this story from current and former employees whose names must remain confidential. 

It is important to note that these are county employees but are under the direct supervision and control of the District Attorney, an independently elected office.