Hello, I'm Zeke and welcome to The Zekely Podcast. Let's talk Pennsylvania. The guest I have today lives in Warrington, Pennsylvania and has been an active participant in local democratic politics for the last decade. She's a social worker, was a small business owner, but now she's running to be a state senator to help flip the state Senate blue this year. Thank you so much for being here. Eileen Hartnett , Albillar

I’m Zeke, a doctor, a Pennsylvanian and unapologetic supporter of Democratic values. You might have seen me on social media working my ass off for Democrats and meeting some pretty amazing people along the way - like President Barack Obama and Governor Josh Shapiro.

For years, I’ve knocked thousands of doors all over Pennsylvania and poured my heart and soul into supporting candidates and causes that make a difference—from local school board races to national elections. The personal is political, and I take every election in Pennsylvania personally.

Where the mainstream media has failed you, I will give you truth and independence. You’ll hear from Democratic leaders, candidates, and change-makers who are working to improve the health of the Commonwealth, and it won’t be boring as hell.

No matter where you are, I’ll meet you with hope and a plan to make your community better one day at a time. Welcome to the Zekely Podcast. Let’s talk Pennsylvania.

Thank you for having me.

Eileen, I love social workers. I love them so much because I'm a physician and I work with social workers every single day and they are just integral to the entire process of seeing a patient through the hospital, through heart surgery and getting them home safely. So I have a huge amount of respect for you as a social worker.

Well, great. Well, thank you. I appreciate that social workers are trained advocates, trained listeners, and trained problem solvers. And those are the skills that I've been using over the past 30 years in my career and think that those will be great assets to me as a state legislator and assets to our community.

You took the words right out of my mouth. We need those types

entities in Harrisburg. So we're gonna learn all about you, play some games and have some fun. Are ready?

I'm ready.

All right, so Eileen, right out of the gate, why are you running for state Senate in Pennsylvania?

So I'm running for a state Senate in Pennsylvania because we are at a critical time here in the Commonwealth and in the country. And we have to step up and do the hard things and change the direction of what's happening here in the Commonwealth. It has been

a little bit more than 30 years since the state Senate has had Democrats in the majority party. And so it's time for a change. I think we need to see some changes.

And I believe that I will be a great state senator because of the work that I've done in the community. I've worked with families in the community, with organizations, I work for county governments and nonprofits, working with those folks and those populations who are marginalized who don't have a seat at the table, who don't have the time to be able to come out and visit their legislators in the office. So I think that folks who are making the decisions about policies

should know how they're impacting real families in the community. And that's what I want to bring to the state legislature.

I cannot wait, Eileen. The last time the state senate was in control by Democrats, I was 11 years old, 12 years old. I I'm gonna be 42 this year. I'm done with it. I'm done. You know, we need to get more shit done in Pennsylvania, like Governor Josh Shapiro always says, and you are part of that piece to the puzzle. So thank you so much for running. I can't wait to see you cross the finish line. I'm certainly gonna help you get there.

Eileen, after graduate school, you moved to Arizona without any job or any

ended up living there for about a decade, I think. So I want to know what drew you to the desert. What happened?

Well, so I grew up in Warminster here in Bucks County and I went to grad school and college up in Massachusetts. You know, there's a lot of similarities in the Northeast. And so when I was finished that my lease was up and it was time to make a decision about where to start my career. And I could either stay in the Northeast or come back home.

I had a relative who had moved out there for

And so she found us an apartment and I packed up my car and drove cross country over a couple of days and went out and met my roommate when I got there.

And I found a job working for a group home. It was a nonprofit working with youth who were runaway, homeless, being the counselor for them.

And ultimately, obviously, I decided to come back to Bucks County because this is the best place to work, to live, to raise a family. And so I'm grateful for that experience and really grateful to have come back here. I was there for 10 years and I've been back here for

You, I mean, miss the sticky weather, obviously. I mean, you know, who needs that dry heat and the swimming pools and, you know, waking up at four in the morning to go for a walk because what, come seven, it's like over 100 degrees out there. Yeah, I mean.

Yeah, but it's a dry heat, they say, but really true. the

thing about it is I felt like I was on vacation all the time because it's just sunny every day and there's no such thing as like a rain date or a rain delay because it just, you know, it doesn't happen. yeah, was great to be in my twenties and early thirties. It really

That's terrible.

Well, I wish you could have brought some of the weather back with you to Bucks County But I'm look I'm glad you're back Bucks County is happy to have you and gosh to be a representative someday as a senator In your area that is just the icing on the cake. So welcome back 16 years and counting and hopefully much longer than that

yeah.

Thank you.

Well, Eileen we're gonna play our first game okay, and it's called what the buck

Okay, in honor of Bucks County. So I have some trivia for you

you're gonna answer and it's gonna be like one of those what the buck moments, okay? So

Okay.

Pennsylvania just opened its first ever underground.

It's gonna, you don't know? Okay, make a guess.

I don't know, so I'm gonna make a good guess.

They just opened their first ever underground.

ice cream store.

That is a very good guess. You probably could store ice cream there. They open State Park Laurel Caverns in Fayette County. It has four miles of tunnel nearly 500 feet deep. yeah,

Josh Shapiro, I think was there for the unveiling. So Eileen, what the buck?

That sounds amazing. I can't wait to go check it out. I'm so glad to know about this. What the buck?

Yeah, that's crazy. There you go. But you gotta say, you gotta say, the buck? There you go, you got it. Okay, next one.

Which PA city school is going remote due to 700,000 visitors for the NFL draft?

That would be the Allegheny County Schools or Pittsburgh Schools.

You

got it, you got it. What the buck, Eileen? That's crazy. What the buck? Yeah, I'm not, anyone who watches or listens to my show knows I'm the least sport-forward person. I don't follow sports at all. So this always interests me, that people have so much mania over sports. But look, you gotta have something fun.

What the buck. Yeah.

Yeah,

that's lot of people coming into the city just to pick the players, not even for the game, just picking the players. That's pretty wild.

that and that it affects the schools, that's

Okay, here's another one.

Kids in Pennsylvania schools will now be mandated to learn what?

That would be quite useful, much more useful than cursive.

CPR.

Oh, cursive, right. Right. Right. What the buck? When I write in cursive, my kids ask me to translate it for them. Very, very disappointing.

Yeah, cursive. What the buck, Eileen? Yeah.

Yeah, I

do remember learning cursive and I remember hating every moment of it and I could write it better than I could read it but it's just you know, so to me it's it's

Latin it's like it's like Latin, you know, you don't have to learn that shit anymore. But yeah, what what the buck? Okay. Here's the last one

Hahaha!

The Gannon Golden Knights won their first ever NCAA Division II in what?

Basketball. Yay! What the buck?

That is correct! What the buck? What the buck? Yeah, they defeated

Lander 84-61 in Indianapolis, and it was the first men's basketball title in Gannon University history, and the city of Erie celebrated the team's return. Mayor Daria Devlin declared April 7th as Gannon University National Champions Day.

I love

it. Fantastic. Good for them. That's

Good for them, what the buck, thanks for playing, Eileen

the current Republican state senator serving in your district voted to expand concealed carry of a firearm and voted to authorize people to challenge local gun control laws that are stricter than state laws, you know, and I think this is an interesting fact about you because you are a federal firearms licensee and you used to own a gun store. So what would you do in Harrisburg to address the gun violence in Pennsylvania?

So having been on the other side, a federal firearms licensee and running a small business and selling firearms, there are things that I was able to see and experience that I want to bring. There's a lot of responsible gun owners, and it is a right that I support. And there are definitely a lot of ways to ensure that we're keeping

both gun owners and our community safe.

So red flag laws are a great way to address this.

looking at the mental health aspect and that gun violence really is a public health issue.

that needs to be addressed. Safe storage and universal background checks. No one should be able to sell a gun to a neighbor without anyone knowing it. And so closing those kinds of things to ensure that the laws are consistent across the board is something that I would support.

I mean, these are things that the current Republican state senator would not agree

And it's unfortunate because gun violence is an epidemic in this

And my kids go to school every day and I, that shouldn't have to be a worry, right? That our kids are not safe in school.

but it is kind of something we're desensitized to at this point. And so I feel like the people in charge should be doing everything they can to protect the children in this Commonwealth. And I believe that you can get those types of bills passed but only if we have the majority. And so that is why you are such an important component to this protecting our children

gun violence.

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as a social worker, you worked for many years with nonprofit and government agencies to help address the root causes of poverty. So what did you learn from that experience and how

that help you in Harrisburg?

Oh, that's a great

So families here in in Bucks County that I've worked with and families in Arizona, they want to be economically self-sufficient. They want to have access and opportunity for a livable wage job, something that I'm going to work to change here in Pennsylvania when I'm in the state Senate. People want access to quality education. They want access to transportation, whether that's public transportation or whether that's,

Uber or being able to have a car. People want access to food.

no matter where you are, there are food deserts in the population where folks are not able to access food and further not able to access fresh fruits and vegetables and produce and locally grown foods. And that's a problem as well.

Housing issues, people want to have safe housing. We all want the same things. And the families who are working two and three jobs, they want the same things as everyone else, just to be able to have those

fully funding public schools is a huge priority for me.

Without education, folks are not going to be able to get the opportunities in terms of employment that they want, whatever they decide to do. Access to housing, affordable housing is a huge issue here as well. The prices just keep going up and it's really putting a squeeze and folks are paying more than half of their income just to keep a roof over their heads.

energy costs and another thing, I used to run a weatherization program. Are you familiar with weatherization at all?

⁓ Is that just making improvements to your house to basically decrease costs? that basically what it does?

It is.

It can save people a lot of energy and that saves them money. So it's a great program all around and it created a lot of jobs as

And I'm sure you are familiar with the social determinants of health. And this is something that in my work is a high priority, ensuring that these non-medical factors are addressed because they will impact

one's health.

Because if one doesn't have their health, then what do they really have? None of these other things. They're not going to be able to go to work. They're not going be able to go to school if they don't have their health. So we need to address the social determinants of health as well as all the other issues too.

Yeah,

health as wealth. I mean, you bring up so many important points and, you know, the root causes of poverty are multifactorial and you as a state senator can touch all of them.

So, you know, what you bring to the table is huge. And obviously, as a physician, I care very much about health care. That's a huge part of my life every day. But I believe that everyone who lives in Pennsylvania, no matter who you are, deserves three square meals a day, healthy meals.

transportation if they need to, to get to doctor's appointments, to the school, to their jobs, to have a safe home where their bills aren't sky-high, and just to have a thriving lifestyle. And you, you Eileen, are going to offer that in the state Senate.

you're a big fan of the show The Pitt

It's a very cute show. I will say as a physician, I think it is one of the most realistic.

shows when it you know with the medicine and everything this sometimes they mess up a little bit but for the most part it's pretty good.

but I wanted to know who's your favorite character?

the nurse.

Oh, yeah, the charge nurse. Yeah, so Dana Evans, it's played by Catherine Lanasa. I love her accent.

Yes, the charge.

It's great, I love her so much. And she's just a hilarious character. She gets better in season two. she does, yeah. You do not.

⁓ she's great in season one. Nurse Dana, you don't mess with her. She is,

you know, she is smart. She is strong. She doesn't take any shit from anybody. I love her. She's fantastic. You know what I really loved about The Pitt was how they weave in the social aspects and they tell these stories. and I just, I just love how they do that through that, through that show.

Yeah.

yes

Yeah, a lot of

what we do as medical providers and social workers and case managers is we have to, you know, deal with aspects of health care that are not so nice and not so fun. Now people come in, they don't have health insurance, they don't have a lot of savings, and they're stuck with these huge bills and they're rationing their medications and they have mental health issues that haven't been addressed for decades and now they're having other issues with that.

And I have to say, you rationing their medications. I've sat with seniors who are making those hard decisions about do they pay the utility bill or do they buy their medication? Do they buy food or do they see if they can scrape by or get their landlord to give them a couple more weeks? These are the actual decisions that people are making. They're struggling to make those decisions. And when it comes to their life-saving medication, no one should have to make that

That's crazy. It's crazy.

choice between eating and taking medication. this is not hyperbole. This is not just on this show, the Pitt. These are real families in my community that are struggling with those things.

Yeah,

I'm a firm believer that healthcare is a human right and that it shouldn't matter what your socioeconomic status is. Everyone deserves access to healthcare it really hurts me very deeply every time I have to see a GoFundMe campaign launched to pay for someone's healthcare in the United States of America. It's just disgusting.

And I want Pennsylvania to lead, lead in a way to show that we can help people unapologetically with their health care and not destroy our state. It's just, it should be a non-issue. So I'm glad, I'm glad we share a love for the Pitt together and stay tuned for season two. It's good.

No.

Yeah.

Yeah, good. I can't wait. Maybe after the campaign, I'll be able to watch it.

Once you win, it'll be your victory binge, okay? All

right, we're gonna play a game, Eileen, called Is This an Emergency? Okay, I'm going to give you some medical diagnoses and you're going to tell me if it's an emergency or not, okay? Here's the first one, Amorosis Fugax. that's an emergency, Eileen, very much so. So it's a temporary, painless loss of vision.

Okay.

Okay.

No.

Well, okay.

in one or both of your eyes and it usually is a heralding event for a stroke. So if you start losing vision in one of your eyes, like a curtain going down, that's usually gotta get to the emergency room. So amaurose, amaurose is Fugax, is the medical term. So I couldn't make it easy for you, Eileen. No, I can't make it easy for you. Okay.

Yeah.

No, don't make it easy for me. No, I love a challenge and how I know what the symptoms were. I would have said it's an

All right. Here's another one Singultus is this an emergency sing? S-I-N-G-U-L-T-U-S Singultus you like what I was spelling be now Correct it just that stands for persistent hiccups Singultus. Yeah, that's what that means. So good. You're off to a good start there. Okay, how about this? Exploding head syndrome. Is that an emergency or not?

How do you spell that?

It is not an emergency.

Okay.

I'm

going to go with yes on this one.

It is not an emergency, actually. It is a sensory phenomenon where people hear an incredibly loud noise, like a gunshot or explosion while falling asleep or waking up. It is not dangerous and thought to be a minor glitch in the brain's sleep-wake transition. But it is called exploding head syndrome.

Okay. That's a, that's a very wild name for that,

I know.

but I really would, that would be really awful. I'm sure.

I know.

That would be, I have never experienced that, but it sounds terrible, but not

an emergency. Okay? All right, so here's the last one. Suicide left ventricle.

No.

That sounds pretty serious to me.

Yeah,

are we punching this one in? Is that an emergency? It is in fact an emergency. This is kind of near and dear to me because it involves the heart. So it's a rare but severe complication following the placement of an aortic valve. So when you place a new valve in the heart, the left ventricle.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

there are two ventricles in the heart, it collapses because there's an outflow obstruction. And usually you have to slow the heart down and give fluids and that will improve the situation. But it's called a suicide left ventricle because left untreated, the heart will eventually stop working and you would pass away from that. you don't want that. Nobody wants that after heart surgery, okay? Nobody wants that. Well, you did a pretty good job. We got half of them right. Yeah, that's good. That's good in Vegas.

And that's... No, no. Two out of four, 50%. Okay. I I'm heavy up a little bit.

Good in Vegas. Were there good casinos in Arizona, by the way? There had to have been some good ones.

Do they have casinos in Arizona? They do on the reservations, which surround the city. Yeah. So very, very close. Yeah.

Yeah, okay, gotcha. All

right, we'll take that 50 % to Arizona next time you visit, okay?

the current Republican state senator serving in your district voted twice to require a funeral for the cremation of abortion remains

and also voted to amend the PA Constitution to prevent poor people from having access to reproductive health care. Eileen, would you do any of those things if elected a state senator?

⁓

So reproductive health care and reproductive justice is my

when I was working in Arizona, I began to volunteer for the local Planned Parenthood and became involved in their political arm as well. I used to go out and do these, I was a

Speakers Bureau member. So I was trained to go out to libraries and community centers and give group talks about sexual health, sexually transmitted infections, contraceptive care, healthy relationships, the whole gamut. And that was wonderful, but I wanted to do more. And so that's when I got involved in the political end. And that's when I started to ⁓ really become active in helping to elect people who are pro-choice.

Yeah.

100%. 100%. I mean, as a physician, I firmly believe that reproductive health care is health care, and health care is a human right. And we need state senators in Pennsylvania who believe that and know that, not just believe that, know that. And, you know, I don't want people to ever forget that we should not take our democratic majority in the state house and a democratic governor for granted, because in states where reproductive health care bans are in effect, people are not living as long.

that know that.

Women are dying at higher rates, children are not living as long, and there are healthcare deserts where doctors say, if I have to choose between going to jail and practicing evidence-based medicine and breaking

my oath, I'm gonna move. I'm not gonna make that decision. So they are leaving those states and there are medical students who do not wanna go there for residency. So it is a real problem in those states. And I wanna keep Pennsylvania a safe and healthy state. And that's why we need you to get elected this November 3rd.

Mm-hmm.

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when you were township supervisor, you interfaced with the police force.

So I wanted to know in Harrisburg when you're elected, how will you help the police in Pennsylvania?

I'm a huge supporter of our local police in many ways and for many reasons. When I was a township supervisor, obviously we oversaw the township budget and a large part of that is our police force. And while I was there, one of the things I'm most proud of is that we brought on a program called the Co-Responder Program. This was started at the county level by our county commissioners. And what it is, it brings

social workers into the police department to work responders. So they're working with the police team so that other issues that don't require the police to address. So there's no criminal activity, but there might be some, you know, substance abuse or mental

some things like that, that the police can sort of hand this over once, of course, everyone is safe, that the social workers can then step in and help this family connect to resources, whether it mental health or rehab and all other kinds of things, of course, so that the police can focus on keeping the community safe.

So I'm very proud of the work that I've done with law enforcement and certainly support them across the board.

good. Yeah, I mean, look, these people go into very dangerous situations and they need to be supported, but they also don't need to be in every situation. And sometimes you don't need someone with a gun to manage a situation and they might not be qualified

So yeah, I completely agree with you. I think we need to support law enforcement to the degree that we need to make a more empathetic and understanding environment for everyone living in Pennsylvania. And by the way, do you like your new sheriff, Danny Cisler? Love Danny. Love Danny so much.

He's fantastic. He is fantastic. Yes.

⁓ He actually gave me some great tips on Bristol where he hails from and I had a great time there

Oh yeah, he's fantastic. He's in the Justice Center where I work as the Clerk of Courts as well. I guess he's very helpful. Yes, indeed.

So you got to see Danny from time to time. Well

next time you see him, tell him Zeke said hi.

I definitely will.

Eileen, why are you a Democrat and why do you choose to represent the Democratic Party?

I registered as a Democrat at 18 years old, and there was never any choice in my mind. I believe that the Democratic Party is rooted in social justice and in progress. And this is the party that has fought for

the values that I have as a human being,

now as a social worker, as a mother, all of those things really align with supporting people no matter where they are, where they live, who they are, who they love, how they want to live their lives. Giving folks an equal

what we're all about.

no, I agree. It's the values and the moral compass that we both share. I mean, I can tell you in the hospital, when people are suffering and they are faced with some of the most vulnerable periods of time in their lives, the last thing that they want is someone who does not have empathy, whether it's me as a doctor, whether it's you as a social worker, they want someone who's going to hear them and see them and get them on to the next step. And, you know, I'm not going to apologize for this. I want that in my elected officials too.

Okay, because life is pretty damn hard.

And so I want someone with your type of morals and values to be in an elected position because I know you're gonna look at everyone no matter who they are and do the best for them.

you are a self-described baseball mom and I have to ask how's that going for you? Because my kid did baseball once and it was crazy. They're just too many games, Eileen.

Hahaha!

Yeah, three teams. My son is on three teams right now.

No. Why?

Why? That sounds like torture. Just like a le- I know.

He loves it.

just eats and sleeps and you know, that's baseball all the time. So he started playing when he was little and you know, we tried, you know, let's try soccer, let's try basketball, let's try football. He tried a couple of different things. He always just came back to baseball and he's a lefty and he's a pitcher and he plays first base too and center field. So, you know, if this whole thing doesn't work out in the state legislature, he's my retirement.

There you go. you got, you got, have to, it's like your investment options. You got to spread them out, right? You got to spread them out. Well, you know, bless you for suffering, maybe in silence for him with all the baseball games and all the laundry and all the driving. But yeah, I mean, this is what we do, right? This is what we do for our kids. We just turn into, into transporters.

Exactly.

I love it. Yeah.

But I wouldn't have it any other way. I wouldn't give it up for any.

gosh, well what song does he have picked out for the major

So his

walkout song right now is Ozzy Osbourne's crazy train. That's what. ⁓ Yeah. Yes. I don't know where he got it from, but it's, it's great. So the unfortunate part is he recently had appendicitis. So, ⁓ he, yeah, he's on the sidelines, but you know, he's going to every

That's it.

my gosh.

at one of his three teams that he's on. So.

Yeah.

yeah, he can't play baseball. He

know, have gym at school and can't go to recess. So, you know, he's basically, you know, being punished miserable because anything that brings him joy, he can't do right now, but everything's temporary.

Yeah, yeah.

Yes, Well,

speedy recovery for him and you enjoy your little break, wink wink, okay, from going to all the sports activities.

Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

we're gonna play a game called fair or foul, okay? So if what I say sounds good, say fair, not good, foul, okay? ⁓ Making billionaires pay their fair share.

Okay.

Okay.

Fair.

Right, we can certainly do more in Pennsylvania to make sure that the billionaires are contributing

Yeah.

Here's

another one, protecting and supporting unions.

Fair.

Fair, yeah, mean,

I don't know why this is a partisan issue, but I don't wanna go back to a time where we didn't have regulations in workspaces, when children were working hard labor, where we didn't have paid time off, we didn't have wages that were fair. We have more to do for that in Pennsylvania, of course, but, you

Republican politicians just have no interest in protecting unions and making sure that people are protected at their jobs. So I'm glad to know that you are going to fit right in with the Democratic platform and support unions.

absolutely, absolutely. Yes. Workers deserve to have ⁓ safe working conditions and livable wages. that's just a, it's a no brainer. It's an absolute.

Yeah, it's a no-brainer. How about

this one? ⁓ Decreasing access to mental health services. Yeah, yeah.

Foul. Now we

need to increase. And I can't see stagnant either. This isn't something that we can just go along as we have been.

our kids in schools are suffering. And access to mental health resources is an issue. we need to increase the resources around that.

I agree and it's not something that Republican politicians are prioritizing. They don't want to expand mental health access. They don't want to make insurance companies cover psychiatry or psychology bills. And so we have people just stranded in very bad places mentally, but I know that Democratic politicians want to fix that. So thank you for that. All how about deregulating Pennsylvania's

conservation practices?

foul.

Foul,

That is something that you would think should be a nonpartisan issue, but unfortunately it is. So thank you very much for wanting to protect our environment. ⁓

Yeah, once

things are gone, once those trees are cut down, they're not coming

We have to do everything we can to preserve as much open space and our resources as possible. I did a lot of that when I was a supervisor. They would pass an ordinance to increase the amount of open space that had to be preserved when a development came in. that's, you

to something we had to do where as supervisors, elect officials at every level, we're negotiating for what's best for the people of Pennsylvania.

Right, right. And

it's terrible because Trump is literally gutting our National Park Services and protections for wildlife and, It's just terrible. So we need Democrats in Pennsylvania who are going to care about that and protect all of the wildlife and the forests that we have here because the federal government currently is not making that a priority.

Absolutely. Yeah, we have to

stop the bleed and start repairing what we can.

All here's the last one. Prevent the sale of unpasteurized milk.

that would be foul.

yes, yeah, it is very dangerous. RFK Jr. is very much in favor of ⁓ unpasteurized milk. But you know, I don't want to bring Listeria back. It's not something I'm really interested in. It's a bad, bad one to get. Death by diarrhea. And I think we've come a long way. So I'm pretty confident that with Democrats in control, we're not going to deregulate the milk.

No, this isn't something that you

industry. So I'm glad that you'll be foul on that.

All well thank you for playing fair or

as a social worker,

victims' rights are protected is really important to me and always has

And the criminal justice system

can be particularly rough.

for people who are marginalized, the intersectionality of poverty and criminal justice and so many other issues. So this has been something that I was really excited to learn about what the clerk of courts does and what I could do in that role.

So of course we collect all of the bail, all the costs, all the fines, all the fees for the court of common please and the restitution. And that's such an important piece to ensure that we are keeping folks accountable for paying back the money to victims of crime. It may be, you

for property that was damaged or stolen and it may be something outside of that as well. And it will never, you know, take that experience away. But if it's court ordered and that's what they are owed, then it's my job to make sure that people are found and keep paying as much as possible.

so amazing that you do provide the service for Bucks County. And are you going to miss it at all when you become state senator?

I am going to miss it. And I've said, you know, this is the best job I've ever had. mean, we work in the justice center and, know, for a lot of people, the worst day of their lives is happening right there when they're in there. But there is never a dull moment, never a dull moment in the justice center. And I have a wonderful team and wonderful staff who are so professional and courteous and great. And ⁓ I will definitely be missing this when I go to Harrisburg.

Yeah.

Well enjoy it while you can because Harrisburg's waiting for you, okay, , Eillen?

Thank you.

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we are gonna play another game and it is called Show Me the Money. Okay, and so we're gonna kind of embrace Jerry Maguire a little bit, okay? I want you to embrace and embody Tom Cruise, okay? Jerry, Jerry Maguire, okay? Because I'm gonna tell you some things and if you like it, I want you to say, show me the money, okay? I want you to get it.

Okay.

Ooh.

Thank you.

You're gonna channel? I'm gonna channel,

And if I don't...

⁓ Well, I mean, you'll probably like

Okay, all right, so here's the first one. Funding SEPTA.

Show me the money. This is the most expensive car. Show me the money.

Show me the money, Eileen, that's right. We need

it, right? Because we kind of talked about this already. It helps people get to school, get to their jobs, get to their healthcare visits. mean,

And as we've seen in Pennsylvania with the budget taking what, six months to pass, largely because of Republicans in control of the state Senate, that wasn't getting done.

Exactly.

So

yeah, I agree with you. We need SEPTA fully funded. It literally helps people's lives move forward.

Exactly. And I grew up in Warminster and in the Philadelphia area, Warminster is the end of the line for the Warminster train station for Septa It used to be called the R2. We had R numbers. So I am a proud R2 girl. And I like to tell the story that my parents were moving from D.C. up to Pennsylvania and my dad worked for the federal government. So we wanted to pick a community that had a commuter line into the city.

And so he picked Warminster. So I am a proud Bucks County girl because of the R2, because of SEPTA, because of mass transit. My dad commuted into the city for, you know, 40 years. I commuted in to take classes at Temple.

We need to find long-term sustainable revenue sources for mass transit. That's the bottom line. We can't keep kicking the can down the road. It's a safety issue. It's a work issue. It's a commuter issue. It's an economic issue.

Absolutely, I love what you're putting down R2 girl. I love it. I love it. Here's another one Medicaid related expansion

Thank

Show me the money!

Show me the money! We need it, right? We need to increase reimbursement, expand services, because what we see in DC, where they're cutting Medicaid, we need the states to step up. And so I'm glad that you would vote to expand.

Yeah.

I'm just a smith.

100 % right people are going into debt. know people are just like one minor accident away from losing everything and that is that's not that's not the American dream. That's not how we should be living. So absolutely show me the money.

Yeah.

Show me the money. Okay, I two more. And you already touched on this. This is gonna be an easy one for you. Expand home repair and energy assistance programs. Show me the money because again, we talked about the root causes of poverty and that is an avenue straight there. So yes, I know you're gonna support that. Okay, here's the last one. Increase childcare worker wages and subsidies.

Show me the money!

Absolutely.

Show me the money.

Show me the money! Yes.

When I was, when I had my two kids in daycare, I was not making more at my job than it costs for me to send them to daycare. So, you know, I had those days where I'm thinking, what am I doing? I am, you know, running

pulling my hair out to try and make everything work. And I'm not making any money.

I was walking into work yesterday and I was talking to a nurse. said, you know, I haven't seen you in a while. She said, yeah, I had to drop down to part time because we just can't afford childcare right now. Like I have to be home to watch my kid. I mean, this is crazy. We have very good healthcare providers that are cutting back and not providing care for patients because we live in a state where Republican politicians refuse to fund childcare workers to lower the costs for parents. It's like,

And everybody was in that situation.

So I know that our democratic values align and that when you get elected, you are going to help families in Pennsylvania so that the nurses I work with can come to work.

Well, thanks for playing. Show me the money, Eileen. Yeah, I'm gonna have to do this again, a game again sometime. That was

Absolutely, that was a good one.

Eileen, the minimum wage, $7.25 an hour. That's all I'm gonna say. What's your response?

the middle of the night.

It is pathetic and embarrassing that Pennsylvania has a minimum wage that has not moved in decades. It is unbelievable. We're losing so much by keeping it here. Folks are leaving. You know, I'm in Bucks County. We border New Jersey. You can just drive right over and get a job making a lot more money. So why wouldn't they? Why are we not paying workers a livable wage here in Pennsylvania?

Yeah.

It's crazy.

And I know people

will say that, well, you know, it's only, you know, kids or younger folks. No, that is not true. There are plenty of adults with families. They are working two or three minimum wage jobs just to feed themselves. And we're not talking about thriving

It is about time that we raise that minimum wage. I know the governor has proposed a plan to get that stepped up. I fully support that plan. It's going to help our local economy. We pay workers more. They're going to be healthier. They're going to be safer. They're going to be able to afford healthier food. I mean, it just goes on. It's a circular, positive spin. So we're way overdue. It's embarrassing. I can't believe it.

I can't believe that Ohio and West Virginia are beating Pennsylvania when it comes to It's just terrible, but again, know, elections have consequences and the Republicans have been in control of the state Senate for 30 plus years, and that's the holdup. That is the holdup. The democratically controlled state houses passed multiple bills to raise the minimum wage. Josh Shapiro was waiting there with his pen to sign the bill, and we need you to finish that last piece of the puzzle. So, Pennsylvania,

Isn't that yeah.

Bye.

again.

trifecta or bust, Eileen, trifecta or bust.

Yes.

I like that. Yes. Trifecta or bust

what does your family think of your run for state Senate?

so they are very supportive, thankfully,

The work that that I'm doing to flip the state Senate is so important. And it's not it's not about me or for me. It's for everyone in Pennsylvania, because.

we can do so much good if we flip this seat and we flip a couple of other seats and we have the majority in that trifecta or bust, right? That there's so much impact that we can have good impact on our communities and this Commonwealth. And it's just, it's that important. And when something's really important to you like this, you have to stand up and do something. It's not enough to say, I don't like this. You know, we have to act and you know,

Yes.

I'm doing this because I want to be a role model for my children and other other people in my life to say, it's not enough to sit on the sidelines and say, I don't like this or, you know, complain, have to act. And that might just be getting out and voting. That might be calling your legislator. That might be writing a letter to the editor. It might be running for

And so, yeah, my kids, you know, they don't love that I have to be out late sometimes and miss some things, but they do understand how important this is and how it's for, you know, everybody in the state and the community.

it is a huge sacrifice to run for office And even a bigger sacrifice when you are serving as an elected official So thank you so much for what you're doing and thank you to your family and they're gonna be so proud of you when When you get across the finish line

No, thank you. All I want to do is make them proud.

Eileen, what gives you hope?

Right now things do seem pretty dire. The silver lining here is that

The opportunities for us to get to work and get stuff done with the governor are plentiful. There's so much that we can do. And we're really at a turning point. We're at the, we're right at the edge of fine. We're so close to having a majority in the state Senate. We haven't been this close in so long. We're just three seats away. And I am so.

hopeful every single day that folks in Pennsylvania, in my district and some of the other competitive districts are going to say, it's time for a change. Let's try something different. 30 years of Republican control in the state Senate has not gotten us anywhere. I mean, we could go on and on about the examples. It's time for a change. Let's give it a shot.

Let's see what the Democrats can get done in the next session when we have a Democratic governor, state Senate and

there with you Eileen, inject it straight into my veins and honestly you give me hope. People like you who wake up every day in Pennsylvania to try and make the Commonwealth a better place, that gives me hope and you're running for office to take those values to Harrisburg. How can you not have hope when people like you exist? I know people are always saying, where are the leaders of Democratic Party? I'm looking at one. I'm talking to one right now. So thank you very much for being who you are and keep giving people hope.

What are your plans to get you through these next few years?

⁓ I thought you were going to say months.

No, no, I

mean, he's been a rough couple years. I want to know like what are your are your coping skills here?

Well, I'll tell you what, you know what? I make sure that I get a good night's sleep every single night. If I'm not well rested, nothing's going to get done. Nothing will get done.

Every day is a new opportunity to do good things, to ⁓ make progress, to fix things that are wrong, to say, I'm sorry, to put things in the right direction. Every day is something new. We're all living this day for the first time, every single one of us. We're all figuring things out as we go along. So that's how I look at

you

you know, get a good night's sleep and start tomorrow, start fresh and tackle what we can do and get going.

I tell people one day at a time whenever they ask me how I'm doing,

I'm on the same page as you, Eileen.

Eileen Hartnett Albillar, running for state senate in Pennsylvania. I need you to listen to this, okay? Josh Shapiro won your district by nine points, and it is estimated it will take about 3,000 votes to flip it blue. Now, Eileen, what is your website? Tell me your website right now.

Yes, he did.

My website is Eileenforpa.com, Eileenforpa.com. eileenforpa.com

Okay, so I'm gonna try and do this in one breath, okay? Okay. If you live in Warrington, Warwick, Wrightstown, Warminster, Ivyland, Northampton, Upper Southampton, Lower Southampton, Middletown, Langhorn, Pendle, Humeville, and Ben Salem, you need to go to Eileen's website and you need to sign up and get engaged. You need to door knock, you need to phone bank, you need to send postcards, you need to volunteer for her campaign because I don't want to hear.

Okay.

that you can't do something, that we can't get the trifecta this year. And if you listen to this show and you watch, I want it so fucking badly. I want it so badly. And Eileen Hartnett is the path to get there. And every vote matters. Every election is the most important election. So please, if you live there, and even if you don't, you can go to her website and make a donation because it is gonna be all hands on deck. And Eileen is an amazing person and she will be amazing in Harrisburg. So please.

Don't tell me your vote doesn't matter. We all have to get off the sidelines and let's get Eileen across the finish line this November 3rd.

Thank you so much Zeke for that. I appreciate it. And I can't do it without the help of my community and friends. So thank you.

Absolutely.

Well, I'm gonna be cheering you from the I can't vote for you I wish I could but I'm gonna be cheering for you all the way to November 3rd and I really hope I can call you and congratulate you because you're gonna do such great things for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

Right.

Thank you. I'm committed to turning over every stone to make sure that we flip this district.

Well, thank you so much for joining me here on The Zekely Podcast. Stay hopeful and get involved and until next time, let's keep building a stronger Pennsylvania