Politically, there are snakes in the garden here in south central Pennsylvania

The recent primary election is in the rearview mirror now and we are only about 180 days from the most consequential election in our history. I’m serious, folks. On Nov. 5, we will literally decide between a continued slide downward with Biden, or a national recovery with Donald Trump.

For those who follow the polls, things are looking better each day for Trump, with the Rasmussen poll showing Trump up 12 … yes that’s 12 points. It’s important for Republicans to remember not to pay much attention to polls, since mysterious things are known to happen in some heavily Democrat precincts after dark, and as one of the frequent guests on the FOX News late night show Gutfeld always says, “Republicans don’t know how to play with a lead.” Remember, Joe Biden got tens of millions of votes in 2020, and those voters are still out there, and they are still clueless, and even the dead ones, if they are Democrats, will likely be voting again on Nov. 5.

Not only are the polls bad for the Dems, but their attempts to keep Trump out of office through lawfare seem to be crumbling, from the farcical New York “hush money” trial to Special Counsel Jack Smith’s classified documents prosecution, which will crash and burn under the Supreme Court's immunity rulings.

Of course, remember the biggest handicap the Democrats have. His name is Joe Biden.

The one big advantage the Democrats have is that they are cunning, devious and couldn’t care less about the rules, and most Republicans are just the opposite, constantly worrying about fairness and following the rules. On top of that, we have some Republicans who still think playing nice with the Democrats is possible, plus there are still a bunch of “never-Trumper” Republicans hiding in the weeds.

We have a few of those self-identified Republicans here in South Central Pa., and we became aware of them as the result of the 90th District Republican primary race to replace Rep. Paul Schemel, who is retiring.

More: Dwight Weidman 90th District Republican voters need to be careful who they vote for

In that race, one of the candidates, a former Democrat, is actively involved in a Biden Administration initiative to curb “targeted violence” in South Central Pennsylvania through a nonprofit called Urban Rural Action.

What kind of “targeted violence” is this group focused on? Well, this statement sums it up: “The Jan. 6 takeover of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of Donald Trump was an act of targeted violence, according to Urban Rural Action.” In other words, it targets MAGA Republicans.

An Oct. 6, 2022 article in the Chambersburg Public Opinion goes into more detail, stating that “The rise in political violence is behind the organization's push in Pennsylvania. The state is home to more Jan. 6 arrestees (62 people) than any other state except Montana, said Urban Rural Action representative Joseph Bubman, citing a Philadelphia Inquirer story," and "During our needs assessment, conversations with highly engaged community members in Adams and Franklin counties indicated widespread concern about targeted violence, particularly around potential triggers such as the upcoming midterm and presidential elections," Bubman said.

So, who are these “highly engaged community members in Adams and Franklin counties?"

Well, they include members or former members of the county Republican Committee, at least one staffer of a Republican legislator, who also is employee of a local media outlet that covers this person’s boss. One individual so involved approached me registering dissatisfaction with my exposing the involvement of so-called conservatives with Urban Rural Action, stating they were just there “to keep an eye on them” (I’m sure Urban Rural Action will be pleased to hear that). Maybe that’s true, but why would it take so many of them to spy on one organization?

I don’t know if any of these folks are getting paid by Urban Rural Action, but I know some of their organizations on their Facebook page were advertising “$1,000 stipends for volunteers,” and another chapter was advertising for a county coordinator at $35 per hour. Makes sense, since $791,000 of your tax dollars, the cost of this program, isn’t all going to buy coffee and donuts for their little sessions.

Coffman re-elected as council president: Chambersburg Town Council re-elects Allen Coffman as Council President

Whatever the self-expressed motivation of the Republicans working with this anti-MAGA program is, it just doesn’t work for me. I’m reminded of Paul’s warning about the “unequal yoke” in 2 Corinthians, where he says “For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?”

Where I come from, we have a simpler way of saying it, which is, “If you hang around with pigs, you’re going to stink.”

Dwight Weidman is a resident of Greene Township and is a graduate of Shepherd University. He is retired from the United States Department of Defense, where his career included assignments In Europe, Asia, and Central America. He has been in leadership roles for the Republican Party in two states, most recently serving two terms as Chairman of the Franklin County Republican Party. He has been an Amateur Radio Operator since 1988, getting his first license in Germany, a past volunteer with both Navy and Army MARS, Military Auxiliary Radio Service, and is also an NRA-certified firearms instructor. In his spare time, he dabbles in genealogy and learning new languages.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: There are snakes in the garden here in south central Pennsylvania