January 18, 2022 4:18 am
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – A year-old report by Washington’s Afghanistan watchdog has now been declassified and shows that it warned back in early 2021 that the Afghan air force would collapse without critical U.S. aid and training. That was months before President Joe Biden announced the end to America’s longest war. The report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction was declassified on Tuesday. It offers stark warnings about the capabilities of Afghanistan’s air force to survive in a post-U.S. Afghanistan, saying it would not be able to maintain the aircraft it possessed or train a new generation.
January 18, 2022 4:17 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Voting legislation that is a cornerstone of the Democratic agenda and átop priority for civil rights leaders is on track for defeat. President Joe Biden’s own party is poised to let the bill fail as two hold-out senators are unwilling to change the Senate rules to overcome a Republican filibuster. As the Senate opened debate Tuesday, the two Democratic senators, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Joe Manchin of West Virginia, faced stark criticism from Black leaders and civil rights organizations. Their refusal to change what civil rights leaders call the “Jim Crow filibuster” comes at a time when advocates warn states are making it more difficult to vote.
January 18, 2022 4:11 am
PEACH BOTTOM, Pa. (AP) – Authorities say two people were found dead after an early morning fire in a Pennsylvania home. State police in Lancaster County say a passerby reported the blaze in the two-story Fulton Township home just after 3:30 a.m. Monday. Chief Phil Smith of the Robert Fulton Fire Company told LNP newspaper that crews arrived to find the home engulfed in flames. State police say two people were later found dead as fire crews were clearing debris. Their names weren’t immediately released. Smith said damage was estimated at about $300,000 to the structure and its contents. The cause of the blaze is under investigation, but police said it didn’t appear suspicious.
January 18, 2022 4:10 am
McCONNELLSBURG, Pa. (AP) – An inspection of voting machines in a heavily Republican county in Pennsylvania is being stopped just as it was about to get underway. The state Supreme Court on Friday granted a request by lawyers for Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf over the Fulton County voting machine inspection. The effort was inspired by former President Donald Trump’s baseless claims about fraud in the 2020 election. The Supreme Court’s order says the request was granted on a temporary basis until the full court can consider it. A lawyer for the county says Senate Republicans want to determine whether the equipment used there was the same equipment certified by Pennsylvania for use in the 2020 election. (Photo: AP)
January 17, 2022 3:42 pm
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Funeral services were held Monday for nine children and three adults who died in a Philadelphia fire five days into the new year, the deadliest blaze in the city in more than a century. A funeral procession on the rain-soaked streets of the city Monday morning was followed by services at Temple University’s Liacouras Center. The victims were all on the third floor of a duplex north of the city center near the Philadelphia Museum of Art that caught fire Jan. 5th. (Photo: ABC)
January 17, 2022 1:50 pm
(AP) – It took nearly three months after the fatal shooting on the “Rust” set and a month after a search warrant was issued – but authorities in New Mexico now have Alec Baldwin’s cellphone. It was surrendered to authorities this past Friday. Authorities in Santa Fe have been trying to get the device as part of the investigation into the Oct. 21 on-set shooting that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. A live round from Baldwin’s prop gun hit her during a rehearsal. The warrant for the phone seeks text messages, images, videos, calls or other information related to the movie. Baldwin both stars in and co-produces Rust, which has paused production. (Photo: ABC)
January 17, 2022 4:27 am
The Washington branch of the NAACP may have celebrated the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. virtually this year, but the message of his impact and legacy was still at the forefront of the event. Members and guests logged onto Zoom Sunday afternoon dodging the snow to enjoy a program of music and dialogue that highlighted how Dr. King’s work has elevated so many lives, while also reminding those in attendance that there is still plenty of work to be done to keep his work and values going in the present day. Many notable names in the community took part in the event including key note speaker Lynn Hayes-Freeland, Reverend Debra Mason of the John Wesley United Methodist Church, Washington branch president Dr. Andrew Goudy, Mayor Scott Putnam and County Commissioner Larry Maggi.
January 17, 2022 4:11 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – South Korea’s military says North Korea fired at least one projectile into the sea in its fourth weapons launch this month. The North is apparently demonstrating its military might amid pandemic border closures and paused diplomacy with the United States. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff didn’t immediately say whether the weapon was ballistic or how far it flew Monday. Some experts say North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is going back to a tried-and-true technique of pressuring Washington and regional neighbors with missile launches and outrageous threats before offering negotiations meant to extract concessions.
January 17, 2022 4:10 am
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) – President Joe Biden will meet virtually with Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan on Friday. The meeting comes as the omicron variant of the coronavirus continues to surge. The White House said Sunday the meeting will take place to highlight the strength of the U.S.-Japan alliance. The allies are looking to deepen ties in the face of China’s growing economic and military clout in the region. Kishida was elected in November and the two leaders will be meeting for the first time.
January 17, 2022 4:09 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – One of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen, Charles McGee, who flew fighter combat missions over three wars, has died. A family member says McGee died on Sunday at age 102 at his home in Bethesda, Maryland. The Tuskegee Airmen is the nickname of the first African American unit to fly combat airplanes in World War II. McGee was among more than 900 men who trained in rural Alabama after the Army Air Corps was forced to admit Black pilots. McGee went on to fly combat missions in World War II as well as the Korean and Vietnam wars.
