Friday Politics Roundup | ”Nail-biting” budget battle; lots of climate crisis news; U.S. falls from happy country list; WaPo profiles Christian nationalist Palisades SB member; Beacon Fest!

Just about a month from the PA primaries. Climate crisis in the headlines. Federal chaos and local right-wing movements. Yes, it's an election year. We're back to talk about the good, the bad, and the ugly in state and national politics.

Imagine that. Another “nail-biting’ vote to prevent a government shutdown before tonight’s midnight deadline. This is the dramatic sit-com version of politics that the Republicans want to keep renewing.

Lots of not so good news on the climate crisis front. 

• Republicans wage war on electric vehicles
• Big Oil and Gas industry lobbyists successfully gutted new building codes that called for making new construction electric ready. Oh, and look, John Fetterman says he might vote with the Republicans. 
• SIxteen States are suing Biden Administration over their move to halt new exports for Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) in order to study the effects on climate, national security, and the economy.
• Record-setting heat hits Rio de Janeiro - a heat index of 143 degrees.
• Scientists can’t account for the continued record-setting ocean temperatures
• And so much more. 

The United States falls out of the top 20 happiest countries for the first time since the annual World Happiness Report began in 2012 by the United Nations. Gee. I wonder why. And young people are leading the unhappiness charge. 

Several new strike votes in higher education.

The Washington Post runs the bio of new Palisades School District School Board Member, Linda Wenhold. How does a local school board member get a full profile in the Washington Post? Well, apparently it helps if you take and teach classes with the Christian Nationalist Patriot Academy, advocate for your school district to teach that America’s true history is a Christian nation, and argue that attempts to make schools welcoming and accessible for all kids are secret plots to Marxists and secular leftists to destroy America. 

Bucks County Beacon announces it’s first annual Beacon Fest to support the work of the Beacon and bring trouble-makers of all sorts together! The event will be on June 1 @ Snipes Farm in Morrisville, PA.

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