Hits & Misses
Politics
June 7, 2025
We applaud Mon Valley U.S. Army veterans Troy Reinke of Charleroi and Corre Griffith of McKeesport for coming together to form S.U.M., Soldiers Under Maintenance, a local safe space for their brothers...
News, Politics
June 6, 2025
THE D-DAY GENERATION, smaller in number than ever, is back on the beaches of France where so much blood was spilled 81 years ago today. World War II veterans, now mostly centenarians, have returned wi...
The judicial rebellion
Politics
June 6, 2025
Leonard Leo is a conservative activist who helped Donald Trump create the most lasting legacy of his first term: the appointment of 226 federal judges, including three to the Supreme Court. As the lon...
Politics
‘Emission’ impossible
June 5, 2025
To the Editor: The Frequent Letter Writer (FLW) is at it again (“Deja Vu,” MVI 5.16.25), this time with another Republican sneak attack on Social Security. He complains “the usual Democrat suspects co...
‘Original sin’: It’s worse than the authors know
Politics
June 5, 2025
The new Joe Biden book, “Original Sin,” detailing the Democrats’ conspiracy to deceive Americans about the carcass of a man sitting in the Oval Office, brought back warm memories. I really enjoyed tha...
Politics
June 5, 2025
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP has been adamant in voicing support for coal mining. From his first campaign, he has talked a lot about the importance of the industry as a domestic energy source. There’s also ...
Politics
To the point
June 4, 2025
To the Editor: Time for another update on America’s slide toward fascism under Trump the failure. In a publicly televised interview, Trump stated he was “unsure” if he had to uphold the Constitution. ...
How Trump led the GOP from 2012 despair to 2024 triumph
Politics
June 4, 2025
he Republican Party was in desperate Tstraits in the weeks following the 2012 presidential election. There were several reasons. One, its losing nominee, Mitt Romney, was a poor candidate whom a signi...
Politics
June 4, 2025
SCHOOLS ARE ONE OF THOSE ubiquitous structures that are familiar in every community. Whenever you have kids, you have schools. The evolution of the buildings can be seen in one-room relics, massive br...
Democrats and their DEI albatrosses
Politics
June 3, 2025
Afew Democratic officeholders, activists, and pundits are finally coming to their senses that their brand is toxic to a majority of the American people. The Biden administration killed what was left o...
Guest Op/Ed: Take the EDGE off price hikes for PA’s working families
Politics
GUEST OP/ED
June 3, 2025
By SEN. JAY COSTA AND SEN. NICK PISCIOTTANO After months of uncertainty from Washington D.C., a yoyo stock market responding to on-again, off-again tariffs that are triggering inflation, and economic ...
Politics
June 3, 2025
PENNSYLVANIA SENATE PRESIDENT Pro Tempore Kim Ward sounded adamant. “We’re certainly not going to raises taxes,” she said. The Hempfield Republican was speaking at the Westmoreland County Chamber of C...
Politics
June 2, 2025
PENNSYLVANIA HAS A LOT of senior citizens. According to federal records, the state has 2.5 million residents over 65 years old. That’s 19.6% of the state’s population. Only California, Florida, New Yo...
Trump’s inexplicable assailment on Europe
Politics
June 2, 2025
HAARLEM, the Netherlands — These were the people we liberated during World War II, who enlisted in the Cold War, who agreed to welcome our bases, who embraced our movies and television shows, and who ...
Politics
GUEST OP/ED
By By JUSTIN LADNER Pennsylvania American Water 
May 31, 2025
Newly released grades from the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) 2025 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure, a comprehensive assessment of the nation’s 18 major infrastructure categories, ...
Politics
May 31, 2025
To the Editor: Donald Trump is “in the driver’s seat: what a scary thought.” Of course, we are all aware that he has not actually driven for many years. He also has no clue about governing our nation....
Baby boom, baby bust and the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’
Politics
May 31, 2025
As the Senate takes up the “One Big Beautiful Bill” (Donald Trump’s name for it) passed by the House last week, there’s finally some discussion of the national debt. That’s because the bill is estimat...
Hits & Misses
Politics
May 31, 2025
We started this week off with solemn celebrations remembering the commitment and sacrifice of fallen soldiers. Memorial Day was commemorated with several parades, with services and with a blizzard of ...
Politics
May 30, 2025
The editorial department of the Mon Valley Independent encourages letters to the editor. Letters must be no more than 500 words, must be in good taste and must include the author’s name, town of resid...
Indoctrination, not education
Politics
May 30, 2025
At a town hall meeting in the Pentagon last February, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said, “I think the single dumbest phrase in military history is ‘our diversity is our strength.’” Talk about dumb. ...