August 10, 2022 10:33 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Donald Trump says he invoked the Fifth Amendment and wouldn’t answer questions under oath in the long-running New York civil investigation into his business dealings. Trump arrived at New York Attorney General Letitia James’ offices Wednesday morning, but sent out a statement more than an hour later saying he declined to answer the questions under the rights and privileges afforded to every citizen under the United States Constitution.” Anything he said during the deposition could have been used against him in a criminal case. While James’ investigation is civil in nature, the Manhattan district attorney is running a parallel criminal probe.
August 10, 2022 8:40 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Falling gas prices gave Americans a slight break from the pain of high inflation last month, though the surge in overall prices slowed only modestly from the four-decade high it reached in June. Consumer prices jumped 8.5% in July compared with a year earlier, the government said Wednesday, down from a 9.1% year-over-year jump in June. On a monthly basis, prices were unchanged from June to July, the smallest such rise more than two years. Still, prices are spiking across a wide range of goods and services, leaving most Americans worse off. Average paychecks are rising faster than they have in decades – but not fast enough to keep up with accelerating costs.
August 10, 2022 4:15 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The U.S. has renewed credibility on global climate issues and will be able to inspire other nations in their own efforts, experts say, after the Democrats pushed their big economic bill through the Senate on Sunday. The legislation is the single biggest investment in climate change in U.S. history, putting about $375 billion towards climate change-fighting strategies such as investments in renewable energy production and tax rebates for consumers to buy new or used electric vehicles. The impending passage of the first ever significant climate legislation in the U.S. changes the outlook internationally, including in China, India and other high-emitting nations, several experts said.
August 10, 2022 4:12 am
BEIJING (AP) – China has reaffirmed its threat to use military force to bring self-governing Taiwan under its control. The statement issued by the Cabinet’s Taiwan Affairs Office and its news department Wednesday followed almost a week of threatening Chinese military exercises near the island that have disrupted flights and shipping in a region crucial to global supply chains. The Chinese statement said Beijing seeks “peaceful unification” with Taiwan but “does not pledge to relinquish the use of military force and retains all necessary options.” China says the threatening moves were prompted by a visit to Taiwan last week by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, but Taiwan says China used that merely as a pretext to up its threats.
August 10, 2022 4:10 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden has signed veterans health care legislation that ends a long battle to expand benefits for troops who served near toxic “burn pits.” The ceremony Wednesday at the White House was a personal matter for Biden. His son Beau was a major in the Delaware Army National Guard, and he died of cancer after his service in Iraq. Burn pits were used in Iraq and Afghanistan to dispose of chemicals, cans, plastics, medical equipment and human waste. The legislation will help veterans get disability payments without having to prove their illness was the result of their service. Other health care services will be expanded as well.
August 10, 2022 4:08 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House panel investigating the U.S. Capitol insurrection interviewed former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and met briefly with Pennsylvania’s Republican nominee for governor Doug Mastriano on Tuesday as it probes Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Mastriano, who was outside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and helped organize efforts in Pennsylvania to submit alternate presidential electors beholden to Trump, cut his interview short without answering questions. He disputed the validity of the committee and the terms of the appearance, his attorney said. The committee is working through August, deepening its probe after blockbuster public hearings this summer that began to outline its investigation into Trump’s multi-pronged effort to reverse his election loss to Joe Biden and the subsequent storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
August 10, 2022 2:52 am
The manner of death for the three-month old Peters Township boy who was found unresponsive in a van in Upper Saint Clair back in June has been released. After nearly two months of investigation, the death of baby Kayden Nguyen has been ruled accidental. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office released the results of their investigation Tuesday afternoon. According to officials, Nguyen was left in the back of a van on the 300 block of Fort Couch Road back on June 16th. His father reportedly forgot his son was in the back of the vehicle for several hours. Temperatures were in the low 90s that day, making conditions inside the car extremely dangerous. The medical examiner says Nguyen died of hyperthermia. Detectives with the Allegheny County and Upper St. Clair Police were once considering charges, but none were ever filed.
August 10, 2022 2:15 am
Federal and local law officials announced Tuesday that five individuals and two local nursing homes, Brighton Rehab and Mt. Lebanon Rehab, have been indicted on health care fraud charges. The five individuals named in the indictment are 39-year-old Sam Halper, CEO and part-owner of both facilities; 35-year-old Eva Hamilton, former director of nursing; 61-year-old Susan Gilbert, former administrator of Mt. Lebanon Rehab; 46-year-old Michelle Romeo and 41-year-old Johnna Haller, co-defendants and regional-level employees. The indictment alleges that the defendants falsified staffing records and patient evaluations to the Pennsylvania Department of Health to increase Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements.
August 10, 2022 2:12 am
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – A Sesame Street-themed park has announced the implementation of diversity and inclusion training for its employees. The announcement Tuesday follows a $25 million class-action lawsuit alleging multiple incidents of discrimination after outcry sparked from a viral video of a costumed character snubbing two 6-year-old Black girls during a parade at Sesame Place in Pennsylvania. The park, which is operated by Sea World Parks, says in the statement that all employees will be mandated to participate in training created to address bias, promote inclusion and prevent discrimination by the end of September. An attorney says the family of one of the 6-year-olds is expected to meet with the SeaWorld CEO on Thursday.
August 9, 2022 4:37 pm
(AP) – Albuquerque police say they have detained the “primary suspect” in the killings of four Muslim men in New Mexico’s largest city. The city’s police chief on Tuesday announced the update on Twitter. Chief Harold Medina says officers found the vehicle that investigators believe was involved in a recent murder of a Muslim man in Albuquerque. The driver is believed to be the primary suspect in the deaths. No other information was immediately available. Police say they will provide an update on Tuesday afternoon. The victims are Naeem Hussain, Muhammad Afzaal Hussain, Aftab Hussein and Mohammad Ahmadi. The killings began in November with Ahmadi’s death.
