March 2, 2021 6:23 am
Volvo says it will make only electric vehicles by 2030. But if you want one, you’ll have to buy it online. The Swedish automaker said Tuesday that it is phasing out the production of all cars with internal combustion engines – including hybrids. Volvo’s announcement follows General Motors’ pledge earlier this year to make only battery-powered vehicles by 2035. As part of the announcement Tuesday, Volvo will unveil its second fully electric car, a follow-up to last year’s XC40 Recharge. Automakers around the world are ramping up production of electric vehicles as charging technology improves and governments impose stricter pollution regulations.
March 2, 2021 4:15 am
UNITED NATIONS (AP) – Saudi Arabia’s U.N. ambassador is disputing the U.S. intelligence report which concluded that the Saudi crown prince approved an operation to kill or capture dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Abdallah Al-Mouallimi said in a tweet Monday: “Let us all move forward to tackle the serious business of world issues!!” The Saudi envoy said the newly declassified report “is based on could’ve, should’ve and would’ve and does not rise to anywhere close to proving the accusation beyond reasonable doubt.” Al-Mouallimi said in a series of tweets, “the Prince courageously accepted moral responsibility … and pledged to reform the intelligence organizations. Case closed!”
March 2, 2021 4:14 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Drugmaker Merck & Co. will help produce rival Johnson & Johnson’s newly approved coronavirus vaccine in an effort to expand supply more quickly. That’s according to the White House, which said President Joe Biden would address the partnership in a speech Tuesday afternoon. Officials have said J&J faced unexpected production issues with its vaccine and produced only 3.9 million doses ahead of its receiving emergency use authorization on Saturday. The company is on pace to deliver 100 million doses by the end of June. The assistance from Merck was expected to help J&J meet its production commitments and expand supply even further.
March 2, 2021 4:12 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Calls for New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to resign are intensifying now that a third woman has accused him of offensive behavior. Anna Ruch told The New York Times on Monday that Cuomo touched her back and face and asked if he could kiss her moments after they met at a wedding in 2019. Her account prompted tweets of support from two former Cuomo aides who say he sexually harassed them. The governor has denied wrongdoing and said his actions were misinterpreted. The state’s attorney general is hiring a law firm to investigate his conduct.
March 2, 2021 4:11 am
El CENTRO, Calif. (AP) – Authorities say a semi truck has crashed into an SUV carrying 25 people on a Southern California highway, killing 13 people. The head of the California Highway Patrol says 12 people died at the scene Tuesday and another died after arriving at the hospital. Hospital officials earlier reported there were 15 killed and more people in the SUV. Multiple people from the SUV were flown or sent to hospitals for injuries that included fractures and head trauma. Authorities say it’s unclear if the SUV had stopped at a stop sign before crossing into the path of the semi truck, which hit the vehicle. (Photo: Yahoo)
March 2, 2021 4:10 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Democrats’ hopes of including a minimum wage increase in their huge COVID-19 relief bill seem all but dead. That’s become clear as Senate leaders prepare to bring their own version of the House-passed aid package to the chamber’s floor as early as Wednesday. Aides say top Democrats have abandoned a potential amendment threatening tax increases on big companies that don’t boost workers’ pay to certain levels. Last week the Senate parliamentarian said the chamber’s rules forbade inclusion of a straight-out minimum wage increase in the relief measure. For now, Democrats seem to have exhausted their most realistic options for quickly salvaging the pay hike.
March 2, 2021 4:08 am
No injuries are reported following an overnight fire in Scenery Hill. Washington County 911 dispatchers say it broke out just before 2:30 a.m. along Hickory Road. The fire began in a garage. Dispatchers say a man was taken out of the home but was not injured. According to reports, firefighters from several departments responded to the blaze. The State Police fire marshall was called to the scene to determine the cause of the fire. No other details have been released.
March 2, 2021 2:27 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Pennsylvania’s Republican Party has expressed its disapproval of U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey over his vote to convict Donald Trump during the former president’s second impeachment trial. But the state party stopped short of issuing a more serious, albeit still symbolic, censure. Vote-counting wrapped up late Monday night, 128-124, with 13 abstaining, to approve a statement expressing disappointment with Toomey. Toomey’s vote and his earlier assessment that Trump had committed “impeachable offenses” in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol set off a wave of pro-Trump county party condemnations of Toomey. Toomey announced in October that he won’t run again for office.
March 2, 2021 2:22 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Authorities in western Pennsylvania have charged a woman with with homicide in the death of her estranged husband, whose body was found wrapped in plastic near the front porch of their Pittsburgh duplex. Fifty-year-old Janet Winbush is charged in Allegheny County with criminal homicide and abuse of a corpse in the death of 53-year-old Deric Davis, who had been reported missing. His body was found three days before Christmas stuffed in garbage bags wrapped with duct tape and covered with a deflated air mattress near the home’s front steps. Winbush told authorities she stabbed him in self-defense. Court documents don’t list an attorney.
March 1, 2021 3:39 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Senate Judiciary Committee voted on Monday to advance the nomination of Merrick Garland, President Joe Biden’s nominee for attorney general. The committee voted 15 to seven at a meeting. Garland is a federal appeals court judge who was snubbed by Republicans for a seat on the Supreme Court in 2016. He’s among Biden’s most widely supported nominees. The committee’s vote puts him on track for a quick confirmation, potentially within days. The committee’s chairman, Sen. Dick Durbin, praised Garland as a highly qualified and honorable jurist who is uniquely qualified to lead the Justice Department after a tumultuous four years under former President Donald Trump.
