A Veterans Day Proclamation

For over 250 years, the liberties and freedoms of every American have been safeguarded by the heroic men and women who have faithfully served in the United States Armed Forces.  This Veterans Day, we honor our Nation’s cherished veterans and recommit to strengthen the support and resources they have so rightly earned.

From the battle for our independence during the Revolutionary War and the fight for the future of humanity in World War II to the ongoing battles to defend America’s security and protect her people, the countless veterans who have taken up arms have ensured that generations of Americans could enjoy the many blessings of our great Nation.  These selfless men and women have committed their lives to defending our families, our freedom, and our great American values.  We will never forget the price they have paid for our homeland.

As they sacrificed for our freedom, so too must our Nation ensure their welfare.  At my direction, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is restructuring to put veterans at the forefront of every decision.  The VA processed a record 3.1 million disability claims this year.  In my second term, we have also slashed the VA’s claims backlog by more than 70 percent and opened 47 new health care facilities, expanding access to world-class care for veterans in communities across our country.

Every American owes our veterans an eternal debt of gratitude, and no one who has worn our Nation’s uniform should ever be homeless.  That is why I will never stop fighting until every veteran has the housing and mental health support and treatment they need.  Additionally, I established the National Center for Warrior Independence last year with a goal of housing up to 6,000 homeless veterans by 2028.  Last year alone, we housed nearly 52,000 homeless veterans, the most in 7 years, and under my leadership, every veteran who served our Nation in the Armed Forces will have a place to call home.

My Administration is working tirelessly to provide our veterans with the resources and support they so dearly deserve.  As President, I have eliminated burdensome and needless red tape and ensured that every veteran receives the exceptional care they are entitled to.  With an Executive Order I signed in September, we are also accelerating veterans’ access to benefits and employment opportunities through modernized data management and sharing between the VA and the Department of War.  So long as I am President, we will continue to relentlessly expand veterans’ access to health care, education, and job opportunities and aggressively deliver this life-changing support.

Millions of brave men and women have served in the United States Armed Forces with heroic determination and sacrifice, safeguarding our security, prosperity, and sovereignty.  Today, we are united in gratitude for the courage of our Airmen, Coast Guardsmen, Marines, Sailors, Soldiers, and Guardians, and we thank the families who have stood with them in their service to our country.  Through the unmatched prowess and strength of America’s veterans, the freedoms we cherish, our glorious American way of life, and the greatest country the world has ever known will endure for centuries to come.  We will always uphold the legacy of our veterans and ensure our Nation remains safe, strong, and secure in the blessings of liberty.

In respectful recognition of the contributions our service members have made to advance peace and freedom around the world, the Congress has provided (5 U.S.C. 6103(a)) that November 11 of each year shall be set aside as a legal public holiday to honor our Nation’s veterans.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim November 11, 2026, as Veterans Day.  I encourage all Americans to reflect on the fearlessness and sacrifice of our veterans through public ceremonies and private thoughts and prayers of gratitude.  I call upon Federal, State, and local officials to display the flag of the United States and to participate in patriotic activities in their communities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this tenth day of November, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-six, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fifty-first.

                             DONALD J. TRUMP

Blogger's Note: Under the Trump administration, the VA lost 44,000 staff in 2025, 80% of whom were health care providers. Approximately 2,000 contracts for veterans and veteran facilities were canceled, and another 14,000 expired with no replacement. His administration also stopped a program designed to help 26,000 needy veterans pay their mortgages. But hey, he's willing to give them magic mushrooms even though there's no evidence they are safe. 

Gracedale is a Canary in Nursing Home Coalmine

Over the past few years, I've highlighted some of the serious issues facing Gracedale. To be sure, it is objectively the worst long-term care facility in Northampton County and the worst county-owned nursing home. But in many ways, Gracedale has been the canary in the coalmine. What is being publicized at Gracedale is a reflection of a statewide problem. 

According to the 2026 State of Pa Nursing Home Report, 37 nursing homes have closed since 2020 and a whopping 4,318 beds have been decertified. Nearly a third of nursing homes have licensed beds that go unfilled.  

There are three main reasons: 

(1) Inadequate funding - Aside for delay in Medicaid approvals that sometimes can take 36 months, the simple reality is that the reimbursement only amounts to about 70% of the cost of care. The hoime eats the rest. As one nursing home administrator puts it, “The continued lack of government support for aging services is beyond wrong. It is a true demonstration of ageism at its finest." 

(2) Staffing Shortages. - Most nursing homes have at least five open positions. About 10% of Pa. nursing homes have 20 or more open spots. 

(3) People Would Rather Age in Place. - And why not? But it's getting harder to do. As NorCo Exec Tara Zrinski noted in her latest report to NorCo Council, there were over 40 people on a waiting list for meals on wheels. It is just as difficult to find a home health care aide as it is to recruit a CNA. 

Warren's Campaign Spent $73.03 Per Vote in Pa. State House Race

A week ago today, there were a large number of upsets nationwide, with Democrats beating Republicans even in more conservative districts. I nevertheless expected that incumbent Republican Joe Emrick would defeat Democratic challenger Jeff Warren in a close race. I reached this conclusion on the unscientific basis that I saw far more Emrick campaign signs in people's yards than I did for Warren. I was unable to get Emrick's pre-election campaign finance report until yesterday but assumed that both candidates had spent roughly the same amount of money. I had around 50 mailers (yes, 50) from both candidates, and there were only slightly more from Warren. 

Unofficial results show that Warren defeated Emrick with 54.09% of the vote. Aside from general disgust with Trump and the GOP agenda, I'd say that the amount of money raised by Warren certainly helped. 

According to Warren's campaign finance reports, he raised $1,217,911.91 in actual and in-kind contributions. In contrast, Emrick only had $333,904.47 to spend. 

Warren spent $73.03 for each of the 16,677 votes he received. Emrick spent $24.14 for each of his 13,832 votes. 

Either the state Republicans thought Emrick was safe or were willing to lose him. 

An Anti-Semitic Bike Boycott in Philly

Just a few weeks ago, my grandson and I were in Philly for its annual bike ride event, a 20-mile car-free ride through all of the city's neighborhoods. No matter where we went that weekend, it was on two wheels in a very bike-friendly city. We even went to Vietnamese restaurants, Independence Hall, the Philly Art Museum, Penns Landing and an Eagles game.  After dark, we would see entire families on e-bikes or regular bikes packed with groceries and kids. The only time we had an issue was at the Eagles game. Though there are bike racks somewhere, no one knew where they were. We locked our bikes on a fence. Overall, the weekend was a blast. There was another cycling event in Philly yesterday. But unlike the Philly Bike Ride, this was an event designed to tear people apart. 

When we rode the Philly Bike ride, there were all kinds of cyclists, from kids riding alongside their parents to old-time cycles from the 1800s to unicycles. There were also a few people dressed in the striped uniforms of Auschwitz inmates

Yesterday, another kind of cycling event was conducted in the City of Brotherly Love. About 200 supposed cyclists (as opposed to the 7,000 plus who participated in the Philly Bike Ride) decided to "bike boycott six Jewish restaurants at Rittenhouse Square. This group was organized by a shadowy group called Philly Bike On Your Left. Many of those who participated wore masks. Though they claimed the focus was Palestine, these Jewish restaurants play no role in any atrocities against Palestine. They are simply Jewish.

Moreover, this event took place on the eve of the anniversary of Kristallnacht, or "The Night of Broken Glass," when Nazi-led violence devastated Jewish communities and businesses in Germany and Austria in 1938.

Fortunately, there were nearly as many counter-protestors and the event at least was peaceful.

Antisemitism is every real. It is one thing to oppose Israel, but quite another to oppose jews. 

UPDATED:Gracedale Drops to Provisional III License, NorCo Finally Seeking Management Consultant

At last night's NorCo Council meeting, an uncharacteristically somber Exec Tara Zrinski informed the Board that Gracedale's nursing home license has been downgraded from Provisional II to Provisional III as a result of deficiencies at the home on September 10 and 24. But she also indicated that she finally gets it and will seek a management consultant to help turn things around. She added that she has also shared a draft of her strategic plan for Gracedale with Council member Dave Holland. She has asked him to keep it to himself.

According to Zrinski, a nursing home with a Provisional III license can be fined at different rates. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has fined the county $16,350 for the September 10 deficiency. This is in addition to $144,328 in fines assessed since Michelle Morton has been running the facility.

Morton is resigning as Administrator, and Zrinski now concedes that "some of [her] reactions to the surveyors may have not been in our best interests. Zrinski is alluding to a previous attitude of defensiveness. "That's not what surveyors want to her," she acknowledged. They want to hear that we identify the issue, will not dismiss it and that we will ensure that it does not happen again in the future. She conceded that past practice has been to appeal deficiencies, "to no avail."

Zrinski also prepared a distributed a handout on what happens to a nursing home with a provisional license. "I'm not emailing you this information because I kind of don't want Bernie to get it," she stated. "But I know he will."

A handout at a public meeting of Northampton County Council is certainly something to which the public is entitled. But I already know what happens when a nursing home is downgraded a provisional license, which is a temporary license that lasts six months and can only be renewed three times. 

According to the Pa Code, a nursing home with a Provisional III license can operate despite serious deficiencies. It must follow a corrective plan and timetable with the state DOH. Failure to correct can result in closure or the loss of the license. But Zrinski told Council last night that the "likelihood that Gracedale will close is very low."

On the bright side, Zrinski told County Council that Gracedale recently underwent its annual survey and did well. An email from Continuum of Care Director Tom Carson said there were five deficiencies, which he said is below the state average. 

UPDATEd 2 PM - In a news release issued late this morning, the county denies Gracedale is closing (No one has suggested it is). In addition to what she told County Council last night, Zrinski states that "[c]orrecting individual findings is not enough. We must also examine the systems that allowed additional problems to occur and intend to hire a consultant to review policies, procedures, and resident care plans, strengthen our corrective actions, and help demonstrate lasting compliance. Our priority remains the safety and well-being of every resident.”

UPDATED 2:15 PM: Pa. DOH posts September 24 Deficiency - Nurse's Aide Accidentally Broke Resident's Foot. - The September 24 deficiency flagged by the state department of health has now been posted online. It is a "G" level deficiency, meaning one that resulted in actual harm to a resident. 

According to a Nurse Aide Kardex (a concise, quick-reference worksheet that summarizes each patient’s essential care information in one place) a resident at Gracedale was non ambulatory and needed assistance of two staff members when getting in and out of a wheelchair. A nurse's aide who failed to read the Kardex and who did not even know what a Kardex moved a resident from the toilet to a wheelchair, and in the process that resident's foot was fractured. This aide was supposed to have had a shadow day with another aide, but there is no evidence that happened. The resident stated that the nurse's aide let her slide down causing her leg to get twisted. She further stated that more than one staff usually assisted her; but at that time, only one staff member assisted with the transfer.

According to DOH, the facility's negligence resulted in a serious injury to a resident. 

Joe Welsh Tells NorCo Council He is Willing to Serve Jeff Warren's Unexpired Term

Yesterday, I recklessly speculated on just who might be interested in serving Jeff Warren's unexpired term as a District III Council member. Joe Welsh, a Tara Zrinski cheerleader who speaks at every meeting, is one of the names I mentioned. Joe decided to address my gossip at last night's meeting of NorCo Council and had a few choice words for his critics as well. 

"I might consider that position with the understanding that I would never run for it, and I would simply be interested in being, um, I think, as a caretaker for lack of a better word ... ."

After mentioning Joe as a possibility, several of my readers chimed in with some unflattering remarks. Joe addressed them as well.

"I did want to respond to some of the comments that were made, because it basically bled out a lot of the snakes named anonymous from under their rocks.

"The suggestion was made by multiple people that your meetings would be 12 hours long, if I were on this council. Now, as far as I know, I never got gonged by Mr. Kraft and this five minute timer. [Actually, he did, on the evening he spoke about ICE despite being concussed earlier that day]. So if I can coherently present issues to you in less than five minutes, I don't think that means that translates in any way, your meeting's been 12 minutes or 12 hours long.

"Another person suggested that I was a liberal joke, and one of them said that I would be even worse than Commissioner Warrant. If that was possible. So there you have it. I make friends wherever I go. But there used to be a saying that, I don't care what you say about me, just spell my name correctly. Unfortunately, a lot of these anonymous posters couldn't get a five letter last name right. And I think, you know, if you got a 20% error rate in spelling somebody's name, you always see because he signs his posts on that blog."

"Glad you're not trying to balance a budget."

Joe, if you think they treat you poorly, you should read what they say about me, lol, except I get it from everyone. Of course it's usually justified in my case. 

I personally would prefer someone younger, like Jerry Seyfried. 

YouTube Video of NorCo Budget Hearing Concerning 43% Tax Hike Fails to Post Online

Yesterday, NorCo Council conducted its third budget hearing concerning a 43% tax hike requested by Exec Tara Zrinski for next year. Though the meeting lasted well over two hours, the video failed to load. Instead, an error message appears. These videos are being brought to you by NorCo's outside IT department, which has demonstrated yet again why this outfit should be canned. It also follows the elections' office refusal to post campaign finance reports to the county webpage. 

Since Executive Tara Zrinski claims transparency, she will hopefully address this matter. The public should be able to watch these budget discussions.  

UPDATED: Who Will Replace Jeff Warren on NorCo Council?

Now that he's been elected to the state house, Jeff Warren will need to resign his seat on NorCo Council. He takes office in early December, so my guess is that he will resign before Exec Tara Zrinski's budget comes up for a vote. That way he can avoid being tagged with a tax hike.  My question is who will replace him?

Warren is a District, as opposed to an at-large, Council member. His District, District 3, consists of the Townships of Bethlehem Tp, Lower Nazareth, Hanover, East Allen, Allen and the Boroughs of Northampton, N Catty, Freemansburg and Nazareth. It pays $10,000 a year. Anyone appointed to replace him in his final two years would have to be a resident of that district. NorCo's Home Rule Charter imposes no requirement that the appointee be a member of the same party as the resignee, but I seriously doubt that the eight remaining Democrats on County Council would appoint a Republican.

Possible replacements include former Exec Lamont McClure, former Exec Jerry Seyfried, former Council member Jeff Corpora and Joe Welsh, who has been attending lots of meetings in recent weeks. 

I doubt very much that Lamont could get more than three votes. Jerry Seyfried would be an excellent choice, but I'm unsure he'd want it. Jeff Corpora has experience, having served two years as a court appointee. Joe Welsh is knowledgeable and amiable, but his frequent soliloquies to County Council might have hurt him if he is interested. 

I am sure there are several people already making inquiry. 

UPDATED 8:24: In the original report, I neglected to include Freemansburg as part of District 3.