We open Friday with Dawn Stensland discussing Stanford Medicine research involving the regeneration of knee cartilage, which quickly becomes a running joke about knee replacement warranties and extended protection plans. Dawn's morning news moves into a federal investigation of suspicious letters sent to congressional and election offices, including mail addressed to Democratic senators. We then turn to the devastating shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, where three children and a teacher are killed before an armed community member stops the 16-year-old suspect. We question how school shooting statistics are compiled, how quickly authorities identify suspects, and what families need to know about school safety.
Locally, we react to Carolyn Marvin's confrontation with an automated food delivery robot near Reading Terminal Market, which ends with her arrest for disorderly conduct. The crew has plenty to say about her decision to block someone's lunch delivery, the police response, and whether this qualifies as a legitimate public protest. Dawn also reports on criminal charges against New Jersey Deputy Attorney General Brian Richard Fitzgerald, who is accused of creating and distributing child sexual abuse material, followed by the suspension of all athletics at Penn Wood High School and the guilty plea of sports gambler Shane Hennen in basketball game-fixing schemes. In sports, Phil Almquist discusses Jalen Hurts' blood clot, Tanner McKee's opportunity, a proposed expansion of the college football playoff, and the Flyers' continued struggles.
Nick delivers the Friday Big Take with his reaction to Trump's decision against broadcasting Nidal Hasan's execution and the president's public defense of Susie Wiles following reports of possible changes at the White House. Then it's prediction time. We work through the battle for the House and Senate, Pennsylvania congressional races involving Brian Fitzpatrick and Ryan Mackenzie, Josh Shapiro's reelection bid, and Senate contests involving Ken Paxton, Abdul El-Sayed, Susan Collins, and Michele Tafoya. We examine polling averages, election probabilities, and Harry Enten's argument that relatively small polling errors could dramatically change the election outcome. Nick finishes with a divided-Congress prediction and several potential surprises.
