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Kim wins N.J.’s Third District, Sixers fall to Magic in Butler’s debut | Morning Newsletter

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Democrat Andy Kim announces that he is the projected winner of the NJ 3rd District Congressional race. The announcement was before a packed crowd at his Mt. Laurel headquarters on November 7, 2018.
Democrat Andy Kim announces that he is the projected winner of the NJ 3rd District Congressional race. The announcement was before a packed crowd at his Mt. Laurel headquarters on November 7, 2018.Read moreELIZABETH ROBERTSON / Staff Photographer

    The Morning Newsletter

    Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter

Let's get the bad news out of the way: it's wintry mix time, y'all. Grab a scarf and an umbrella as today's forecast includes a variety show of snow, sleet, and freezing rain; though your morning commute should be fine. There's more bad news for Sixers fans last night's game wasn't quite the welcome party the team wanted for Jimmy Butler. But there is good news for Democrat Andy Kim in New Jersey's Third Congressional District: he's now won that hotly contested race.

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— Aubrey Nagle (@aubsn, morningnewsletter@philly.com)

» READ MORE: Rep. Tom MacArthur concedes to Andy Kim as N.J. race is called

In a closely watched, tight race, Democrat Andy Kim was declared the winner in New Jersey's Third Congressional District Wednesday.

His opponent Rep. Tom MacArthur said Wednesday night that he had called Kim to concede. Kim will be the first Asian American elected to the House from New Jersey, and the first Korean American elected to Congress in two decades.

Come January, Democrats will have a majority in the U.S. House and a wave of new members from our region. Reporter Jonathan Tamari sat down with some of them to discuss what they're going to do with that power.

» READ MORE: Sixers fall to Magic to spoil Jimmy Butler’s debut

Jimmy Butler's highly-anticipated debut with the Sixers wasn't all that magical. The Sixers surrendered a 16-point fourth-quarter lead en route to losing to the Orlando Magic last night, 111-106.

The swingman, who was officially acquired on Monday, spent the game getting used to the team and still came away with 14 points on 6-for-12 shooting to go with two assists.

Wednesday just wasn't a great day for local basketball teams and high expectations: Villanova lost to Michigan 73-46 in a rematch of the 2018 national championship game that turned out to be no match.

» READ MORE: Will Burlington County couple face criminal charges for homeless man’s missing donations?

The Burlington County Prosecutor's Office has announced a news conference this afternoon on the investigation of the couple accused of squandering the money raised to benefit Johnny Bobbitt Jr., the homeless man whose act of kindness and appeal to help him went viral last year.

The couple, Kate McClure and Mark D'Amico, raised about $400,000 for Bobbitt via GoFundMe. Bobbitt has since accused them of using the money as their own, forcing him again to panhandle on city streets. The Burlington County Prosecutor's Office launched a criminal investigation into the dispute in September.

What you need to know today

  1. Former City Controller Alan Butkovitz is running for mayor of Philadelphia. The Democrat plans to make it official with an announcement this morning.

  2. Since being charged with a half-dozen felony corruption charges Tuesday, former City Representative Desiree Peterkin Bell's name has already been scrubbed from organizations with which she had been involved.

  3. The teachers' union in Tamaqua, Pa., has filed a lawsuit against its school district over a recently passed policy to arm school employees. The district is the first in the state to attempt to implement a program of the kind.

  4. U.S. Catholic bishops left their Baltimore conference Wednesday without acting on any sex abuse reforms. Columnist Maria Panaritis spoke with Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput at the conference and he spent their conversation venting about bad press.

  5. New details have emerged from the Southwest plane engine failure over Pennsylvania that led to a woman's death in April. A National Transportation Safety Board report includes a flight attendant's harrowing account.

  6. If you felt the deadlines to submit your absentee ballot in Pennsylvania were too tight, you should know the ACLU agrees and is suing the state over it. 

Through Your Eyes | #OurPhilly

That squirrel is really moving. Glad you caught it, @onelaneswitch.

Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we'll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout out!

That’s Interesting

  1. Now that the Metropolitan Opera house has returned, architecture critic Inga Saffron writes, its restoration is proof of what North Broad Street can, and should, be.

  2. Foodies, start your engines. The Bourse Food Hall (in the landmark Beaux Arts building across the street from Independence Hall) officially reopens today with 29 vendors in tow.

  3. The ballroom scene is making a comeback in Philly. Woody's in the Gayborhood is now hosting a monthly series of vogue nights for the community built by queer and trans people of color.

  4. An update on the Eagles' many injuries: it looks like cornerback Sidney Jones and defensive tackle Tim Jernigan could play this week against the Saints.

  5. Michelle Obama has written a highly-anticipated memoir, Becoming. Ahead of its release, columnist Elizabeth Wellington saw many headlines focusing on the former first lady's infertility — but assures readers her story is so much more than that.

  6. Southeastern Pennsylvania Medicaid recipients who also get Medicare must prepare for a big change: starting in January, they'll have to get their Medicaid coverage from one of three managed-care plans.

Opinions

"All the homes I lived in as a child are gone. All of my friends' family homes are gone. Most escaped with only the clothes they were wearing. The shopping centers are ash, the movie theater decimated. Our town is not a town at all anymore."
— Inquirer reporter Sarah Todd on the loss of her hometown, Paradise, Calif., which was destroyed by wildfires last week.
  1. Philadelphia may have lost its bid for Amazon's new headquarters but we dodged a "prosperity bomb," columnist Will Bunch writes.

  2. When four residents went rogue and cleaned up an ugly lot in their South Philly neighborhood, they were worried the lot's owner would end their makeshift park. Instead, columnist Ronnie Polaneczky writes, the landowner became a surprising ally.

What we’re reading

  1. Is Asbury Park too cool? NJ.com's story about the residents who think the tourist town's plan to rehab its image has backfired reads like a cautionary tale.

  2. The Guardian has a new report on the late artist Robert Indiana, creator of Philly's beloved LOVE statue. It claims he was exploited before his death in May.

  3. The Temple News' report on campus interpreters helping students who need American Sign Language translation is a much-needed look at the crucial resource they provide.

  4. Ballet X's move to Washington Avenue is on full display — both in WHYY's fun report from their brand-new space and via the building's big, street-facing windows.

  5. If you're looking to expand your favorite playlists, don't miss Rolling Stone's report on the Asian rappers quickly climbing the U.S. charts.

Your Daily Dose of | Pups

This weekend the National Dog Show heads to Oaks, Pa. with nearly 2,000 participating pooches available for pets — including adorably odd breeds that look like mops, lambs, and piles of wrinkles.