Letters: Vote yes on judge retention; Firing Franklin was ‘outrageous blunder’
Vote yes on judge retention
On Nov. 4, Pennsylvania voters will have the opportunity to vote yes to retain our outstanding Supreme Court Justices, our Superior Court Justice and our Commonwealth Justice.
The Pennsylvania Bar Association has recommended that these justices, who have all served Pennsylvania admirably for the last decade and been widely credited for “restoring competence, honor, and ethics to our courts,” be retained.
So why on earth would anyone want to prevent the retention of judges with so much legal expertise, experience and integrity?
Radical Republicans are currently working to deny the retention of these justices in order to run extreme MAGA candidates for those seats in 2026, giving them the opportunity to gerrymander congressional districts and sway future elections. To accomplish this, they are running a nasty smear campaign filled with disinformation and funded by billionaires and dark money PACs.
Roy Cohn, the mafia lawyer who mentored Donald Trump and his contempt for the rule of law, once said, “Don’t tell me the law; tell me who the judge is.” Clearly, these ultra-conservative operatives seeking to stack our courts with extreme partisan judges are working from Cohn’s corrupt playbook.
Justices Christine Donahue, Kevin Dougherty, David Wecht, Alice Beck Dubow and Michael Wojcik have all displayed the judicial independence, judgment, and integrity very deserving of a yes vote for their retention.
All Pennsylvanians who value our constitution, the rule of law, and free and fair elections need to turn out on Nov. 4 and vote yes to retain these exemplary public servants.
George Polycranos, Port Matilda
Firing Franklin was ‘outrageous blunder’
Penn State’s decision to fire head football coach James Franklin on Oct. 12 is an outrageous blunder that defies logic. Franklin’s record is stellar: over 12 seasons, he amassed a 104-45 record, ranking him as the program’s second-winningest coach. From 2021–2024, his 37 wins in 45 games (82.2% winning percentage) placed him among the top four coaches nationally, trailing only Kirby Smart, Dabo Swinney and Nick Saban (retired). He delivered the 2016 Big Ten title and a 2024 College Football Playoff semifinal berth, falling just 3 points short of the national title game. Three weeks before his firing, Penn State was one possession from the No. 1 AP ranking.
Sacking Franklin over a three-game skid is absurdly shortsighted. Those losses, though painful, don’t erase his 36-game streak against unranked teams or a No. 2 preseason ranking in 2025. Firing a coach 276 days after a semifinal appearance is a betrayal of Penn State’s legacy.
This move is even more indefensible as the university closes campuses. The $49 million buyout, though covered by the athletic department, projects fiscal recklessness, alienating fans and donors who value stability. This rash decision jeopardizes the program’s future and deters top coaching talent. Penn State must reject such impulsive leadership to preserve its football tradition.
Chris Muraccoc, Alexandria, Virginia
A chance to balance the SCASD board
The election is coming up. Historically this is a low turnout event. In this case it is a chance to burst a bubble in State College School District. As I once again paid an additional $144.69 “referendum tax” due to the excessive expense of the high school, we need a board that understands fiscal responsibility. With another school looming we cannot allow another referendum. Additionally, the board had a great opportunity to illustrate the power of DEI with the recent vacant seat. Given 100% Democrats on the board, they could have recognized that it was an opportunity to diversify the board with a Republican, more equitable to the community’s ratio of Republicans to Democrats, and the very definition of being inclusive. What a powerful statement that would have been. Instead, they voted in Jesse Barlow. This is an individual that supported a group that defaced our municipal building and streets with obscenities and advocated defunding the police. Barlow, as borough president, voted against the 2021 budget that funded 60 police officers after being in support of reallocating police department funds for a civilian response team. To be clear, this man deserves our respect for the years he has volunteered to serve the community, but his ultra-liberal views have now proven to be a very corrosive mix that is destroying the Democratic Party with over 2 million that have left the party. This is a chance to start balancing the board with a mix of Republican and Democrats on the board.
Chris Potalivo, Boalsburg
Oliver is a judge for all of us
As I think many readers know, this year’s election ballot will ask voters to decide if judges whose terms are ending should be retained in their positions. One of these judges is Centre County Common Pleas Judge Katie Oliver. I write this letter to express my support for Judge Oliver and encourage voters to cast a ballot to retain her on the bench.
Katie and I worked together as lawyers at the McQuaide Blasko law firm for 20 years. As a lawyer, she was hard-working, smart and fair. She has continued to exhibit all those traits as a judge since she was first elected in 2015.
It’s unfortunate that this year’s retention election has been portrayed in some circles as a partisan political event. All judges take an oath to apply the law fairly and faithfully, without regard to politics. Katie Oliver applies that oath in her courtroom every day, to everyone who appears in front of her. She is not a Democrat judge or a Republican judge. She is a judge for all of us, which is exactly what a judge should be. Please vote on Nov. 4 to retain Judge Oliver on the Centre County bench.
Janine Gismondi, State College