November 12, 2024 2:52 am
A hearing was held Tuesday on a request for a preliminary injunction requested by Pennsylvania’s Attorney General. The hearing came after a federal district court granted a motion by the state’s attorney general, for a temporary restraining order that would put on hold, the closing of the Pyrex Glass Plant in Charleroi. The move prevents the owners, Anchor Hocking Holding and its private equity partner from removing equipment and other materials from the plant. The court agreed with the attorney general that “Immediate and irreparable injury will result” from such actions. A spokesperson for the Office of the Attorney General confirmed there was a hearing held on the matter and they expect the court to rule on the request by Thursday, November 14th, at five p.m.
November 13, 2024 4:59 am
The House Republican Caucus has re-elected local Representative Tim O’Neal as Whip for the 2025-26 Legislative session. “It is an honor to be chosen by my peers again to help lead the caucus for the next two years,” O’Neal said. “House Republicans are committed to making the Commonwealth a place where people want to live and work. We will continue to uphold fiscal responsibility, limited government and policies that promote strong communities.” As whip, He will continue to be responsible for tracking House votes and informing the other 100 Republican colleagues of upcoming issues and legislation. O’Neal was first elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives following a May 2018 special election. In January, he will begin his fourth full term. The 48th Legislative District in Washington County covers the city of Washington; Amwell, part of Carroll (Districts 3, 4 and 5), East Finley, Fallowfield, Morris, North Franklin, part of North Strabane (Districts 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5), Nottingham, Somerset, South Franklin, South Strabane, and West Finley townships; and the boroughs of Donora, East Washington and Green Hills.
November 13, 2024 4:49 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Republicans in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives have turned to a lawmaker from rural Bedford County to be their floor leader for the coming two-year session. The House Republican caucus voted behind closed doors on Tuesday for five-term Rep. Jesse Topper to head their 101-seat minority in 2025-26. Topper is currently the ranking Republican on the Education Committee. No districts flipped in last week’s election. That means the House will return to session in January with a 102-seat Democratic majority. Also Tuesday, Democratic lawmakers returned Majority Leader Matt Bradford of Montgomery County as floor leader. Speaker Joanna McClinton of Philadelphia is also in line to return as speaker.
November 13, 2024 3:29 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. John Thune has won an internal election among Republican senators to become the chamber’s next majority leader. It makes the South Dakota Republican a key partner on Capitol Hill to President-elect Donald Trump. Thune beat out two other competitors, Sens. John Cornyn and Rick Scott, by gaining majority support from GOP senators in a secret ballot vote. Republicans are replacing Sen. Mitch McConnell, the longest serving Senate party leader, as they prepare to take majority control of the Senate with the 53 seats they won in last week’s elections. Like McConnell, Thune hails from the Republican Party’s traditional wing. He has held the Republican whip position since 2019. (Photo: AP)
November 12, 2024 5:07 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Speaker Mike Johnson is beginning the hard fight to retain his gavel. The first test will come Wednesday during internal House Republican leadership elections that will establish the new power centers for a Washington dominated by President-elect Donald Trump. While Johnson has no serious challenger for the speakership, he faces dissent within his ranks, particularly from hard-right conservatives. Johnson needs just a simple majority in Wednesday’s closed-door voting to win the GOP nomination to become speaker. But he will need majority support of the full House, 218 votes, to actually take hold of the gavel on Jan. 3 when the new Congress convenes.
November 13, 2024 5:03 am
Transgender youth in the United States have been flooding crisis hotlines since the election of Donald Trump, who made anti-transgender themes central to his campaign. Many teens worry about how their lives could change once he becomes president. The Rainbow Youth Project, which serves LGBTQ+ young people, has received more than 5,500 calls to its crisis hotline in the past 10 days — nearly 2,000 more calls than it typically gets in an entire month. Trump’s administration can swiftly start work on one major change: It can exclude transgender students from Title IX protections. Those affect school policies on students’ use of pronouns, bathrooms and locker rooms.
November 13, 2024 5:02 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia has struck Kyiv with a sophisticated missile and drone attack for the first time in 73 days. The top official in the Ukrainian said Wednesday that capital defense forces destroyed several cruise and ballistic missiles and up to a dozen drones. In the past, such combined attacks aimed to overwhelm air defenses and cause maximum damage. A 48-year-old man suffered head injuries, according to emergency services.
November 13, 2024 5:40 pm
(AP) – Let the office debates begin – John Krasinski is People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive for 2024. The magazine announced the actor-writer-director as its pick Tuesday night during “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” Krasinski starred in “The Office” before launching the “Quiet Place” franchise and leading the action series “Jack Ryan.” He joked in an interview with the magazine that he’s hoping his wife, fellow actor Emily Blunt, makes good on a promise to plaster the cover as wallpaper at their home. He takes the mantle from last year’s honoree, Patrick Dempsey. Previous recipients include Brad Pitt, George Clooney, John Legend, Michael B. Jordan and Pierce Brosnan. (Photo: AP)
November 12, 2024 4:51 am
False posts circulating on social media claim that billionaire Elon Musk facilitated alleged election fraud through his internet service provider Starlink, manipulating the vote count, particularly in swing states, through election equipment such as ballot tabulators. Starlink, a subsidiary of Musk’s SpaceX company, uses satellites to offer high-speed internet, even in remote areas. These claims are unfounded. Election officials from multiple swing states told The Associated Press that their voting equipment doesn’t use Starlink and is not even connected to the internet. States across the U.S. have additional security measures to ensure that the count is accurate, according to experts. Election officials and security agencies have reported no significant issues with the 2024 race.
November 12, 2024 5:42 pm
SAN DIEGO (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump named Stephen Miller his deputy chief of staff and Tom Homan as his “border czar,” appointing a battle-tested duo to design and direct immigration policy from the White House. Their plans include mass deportations and restoring Trump-era policies that President Joe Biden dismantled. Both had critical jobs in the first Trump administration and are unapologetic defenders of its immigration policies, which included separating thousands of parents from their children at the border to deter illegal crossings. Both spent the last four years angling for this moment.
