June 29, 2022 5:45 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – A new poll shows an overwhelming and growing majority of Americans say the U.S. is heading in the wrong direction, including nearly 8 in 10 Democrats. The poll, by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, finds that deep pessimism about the economy continues to plague President Joe Biden. Eighty-five percent of U.S. adults polled say the country is on the wrong track. Seventy-nine percent describe the economy as poor. The findings suggest Biden faces fundamental challenges as he tries to motivate voters to cast ballots for Democrats in November’s midterm elections. The poll shows only 39% of Americans approve of Biden’s leadership overall, while 60% disapprove.
June 29, 2022 4:18 am
NEW YORK (AP) – R. Kelly has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for using his R&B superstardom to subject young fans to systematic sexual abuse. The singer and songwriter was convicted of racketeering and sex trafficking last year at a trial that gave voice to accusers who had once wondered if their stories were ignored because they were Black women. U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly imposed the sentence at a courthouse in Brooklyn. The sentence caps a slow-motion fall for Kelly, who is 55. He remained adored by legions of fans even after allegations about his abuse of young girls began circulating publicly in the 1990s.
June 29, 2022 4:15 am
MADRID (AP) – NATO leaders are meeting in Madrid amid what Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg calls “the most serious security crisis we have faced since the Second World War.” Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has shattered Europe’s peace and driven NATO to pour troops and weapons into eastern Europe on a scale not seen since the Cold War. The alliance is holding a summit to turn an urgent sense of purpose triggered by Russia’s invasion into action. The leaders also want to patch up any emerging cracks in their unity over money and mission. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is due to address the gathering by video link.
June 29, 2022 4:14 am
SAN ANTONIO (AP) – A Mexican immigration official says that in the chaotic minutes after dozens of migrants were found dead inside a tractor-trailer sweltering in the Texas heat, the driver tried to slip away by pretending to be one of the survivors. The driver and two other men from Mexico remained in custody Wednesday as the investigation continued into the tragedy that killed 53 people in the nation’s deadliest smuggling episode on the U.S.-Mexico border. The head of Mexico’s National Immigration Institute says at least 27 of the victims were from Mexico, 14 were from Honduras, seven were from Guatemala and two were from El Salvador.
June 29, 2022 4:13 am
DENVER (AP) – Colorado Republicans have rejected two prominent election deniers in primaries Tuesday night. It’s a setback for the movement to install backers of former President Donald Trump’s election lies in positions with power over voting. Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters lost the Republican primary for secretary of state to Pam Anderson, a former clerk in suburban Denver. Peters was indicted for her role in a break-in of her county’s election system. An ally, State Rep. Ron Hanks, lost his bid for the GOP Senate nomination. Hanks attended the Jan. 6 protests. He was beaten by businessman Joe O’Dea, a rare GOP backer of some abortion rights.
June 29, 2022 4:12 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The latest testimony about the events surrounding the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has Donald Trump rebuffing his own security’s warnings about armed protesters in the crowd gathering for a rally near the White House. A former White House aide also tells the House committee investigating the attack that Trump desperately attempted to join his supporters as they marched to the Capitol. In her testimony Tuesday, Cassidy Hutchinson described an angry, defiant president who grabbed at the steering wheel of the presidential SUV when the Secret Service refused to allow him go to the Capitol. Trump has dismissed her as “a total phony.”
June 29, 2022 4:02 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI) – Giant Eagle is joining other companies and vowing to cover travel costs for employees that need access to abortions in different states. This decision comes days after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, giving individual states the power to make abortions illegal. Giant Eagle has grocery stores in Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Maryland. Ohio currently has a ban on abortions after a heartbeat has been detected, which is around the 6-week mark during pregnancy. West Virginia’s only abortion clinic stopped performing abortions last Friday. Maryland was mentioned as one of the states likely to keep abortion legal after the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
June 29, 2022 3:57 am
North Strabane Township Supervisors on Tuesday approved five contracts to construct their new public safety building that will be built on Rt. 19. Bids in the amount of $11.2 million were awarded to four companies that will begin construction once demolition of the old fire station is complete. Spartan Construction Services will be the general contractor and plumbing contractor. Allegheny City Electric, Inc. will supply electrical needs, Interstate Fire Protection Co. will supply fire protection and East-West Manufacturing and Supply will be the mechanical contractor. Once construction begins, Spartan estimates that the project will be complete in 406 days. Township Manager Andrew Walz states that it will be great to have the police and fire departments together in one building on Rt. 19 so they both can respond together from the same location. Supervisors had to add an emergency agenda item. Late Tuesday the township and the North Strabane Township Municipal Authority were informed by JND Properties that they will no longer fund a sewage remedy in place for two properties on Vista Drive. The township declared a state of emergency regarding this notice. Officials had no comment as this is a late development and details of the notice need to be reviewed.
June 29, 2022 3:55 am
The former Treasurer of the Cecil Township Volunteer Fire Department Number 2 was sentenced on Tuesday for her role in a series unauthorized charges to the department’s debit card and checks being written to herself. Toni Zombeck, 68 of Muse entered an open plea of guilty to a felony charge of theft by failure to make required deposits. Her sentence was lenient in that she will serve seven years probation with the first six months on house arrest on electronic home monitoring. She will also be required to make $32,279 in restitution to the Utica Insurance Company. In her allocution statement Zombeck spoke of mental and physical health issues that she has been experiencing since the death of her husband several years ago. She blamed her addiction to gambling on lottery tickets as the reason that she used the fire department funds to make personal payments to herself. Zombeck apologized to the court, fire department and community at large. Zombeck could have been sentenced to three to twelve months in jail. The judge took into account her remorse and clean criminal record remarking that she does not even have evidence of a traffic ticket during the sentencing. Both, the defense attorney and district attorney described the sentence as fair.
June 29, 2022 2:39 am
(WPXI) – Ahead of this 4th of July weekend, two popular rides at Kennywood Park are closed for repairs. Kennywood General Manager Mark Pauls provided a statement confirming the Steel Curtain coaster is closed and they’re working to reopen it as soon as possible — although no timeline was given. Pauls said the record-setting ride is the first of its kind, and requires additional maintenance to best ensure guest and team member safety, which is their top priority. The Thunderbolt is also closed, but Pauls said they have a goal of opening in time for the holiday weekend.
