Walker Aims To Pivot Focus Back To Dems In Tight Ga. Race

July 23, 2022 9:45 am

ALTO, Georgia (AP) – After a bruising opening to his general election campaign for the U.S. Senate, Georgia Republican Herschel Walker is trying to deflect attention back onto Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock. He’s trying to saddle the incumbent with the weight of high inflation and President Joe Biden’s poor standing with Georgia voters. Republicans in Washington and Georgia quietly admit it’s the best – if not the only – way Walker, a former University of Georgia football star and political novice, can win in a newfound battleground state that the GOP insists still leans its way.

In Uvalde, Closeness Complicates Accountability For Shooting

July 23, 2022 9:42 am

UVALDE, Texas (AP) – In the aftermath of the massacre at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, families of victims and many residents are navigating mixed emotions as they channel their grief and fury into demands for change. In the close-knit community, accountability can mean calling for the job of your friend, neighbor or employer. There are signs of political mobilization. The school board is considering firing police Chief Pete Arredondo over the slow law enforcement response to the killing of 21 people. The mere possibility of firing Arredondo after months of resistance from local officials stands as a demonstration of the victims’ families’ rising political clout.

Russia Hits Ukraine’s Black Sea Port Despite Grain Deal

July 23, 2022 9:39 am

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) – Russian missiles have struck Ukraine’s Black Sea port of Odesa just hours after Moscow and Kyiv signed deals to allow grain exports to resume from there. A Ukrainian spokesperson described Saturday’s attack as “spit in the face” of Turkey and the United Nations, which brokered the deal. The Ukrainian military says two Russian cruise missiles hit the port’s infrastructure and Ukrainian air defenses brought down two others. The Foreign Ministry said Russia would bear full responsibility if the war in Ukraine results in a global food crisis. Elsewhere, Russia fired missiles Saturday at an airfield and a railway in central Ukraine, killing at least three people, while Ukraine launched rocket strikes on river crossings in a Russian-occupied southern region.

Three Arrested In Greene County 911 Snafu

July 23, 2022 3:53 am

(AP) – Authorities have filed charges against three more people in the case of a Pennsylvania 911 operator accused of failing to send an ambulance to the rural home of a woman who died of internal bleeding about a day later. Greg Leathers, Richard Policz and Robert Rhodes are charged with tampering with public records, tampering with or fabricating evidence and obstruction. They are or were managers for Greene County’s emergency management system. Prosecutors allege they failed to provide policy memo binders that detail standard operating procedures. Earlier this month, authorities charged 911 operator Leon Price with involuntary manslaughter in the July 2020 death of DianIa Kronk. The charges were based on Price’s failure to dispatch help without getting more assurance that Kronk would go to the hospital. All three men have surrendered to authorities and are free on twenty-five-thousand-dollars bond

Woman Charged In Chartiers Twp Shooting

July 23, 2022 3:53 am

CHARTIERS TOWNSHIP, Pa.  – Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh says multiple charges have been filed against a Greene County woman in a shooting late Wednesday night in Chartiers Township.  Walsh says 27-year-old Michaela Marie Hildreth of Nineveh faces charges of attempted homicide, aggravated assault and simple assault, for shooting 39-year-old Amy Mruk following an altercation in the area of 290 Moon Road.  Authorities say Mruk was shot in the chest and was taken to Washington Hospital for treatment.  Police say when they responded to the call they found a Black Chevrolet Tahoe in the middle of Moon Road, where the confrontation allegedly took place.  In the car was John Thomas Mruk Jr. who told police that the victim was his ex-wife and she had been shot by Hildreth, his girlfriend.  Police say they recovered the weapon they believe was used in the shooting, a Glock Model 43x 9mm gun.

Steve Bannon Found Guilty Of Contempt Of Congress

July 22, 2022 3:24 pm

WASHINGTON (AP) – Steve Bannon, a longtime ally of former President Donald Trump has been convicted of contempt charges for defying a congressional subpoena from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. The verdict was handed down on Friday after a trial in federal court in Washington. He was charged in a two-count indictment. One count was for refusing to appear for a deposition and the other was for refusing to provide documents in response to the committee’s subpoena. The 68-year-old Bannon faces up to two years in federal prison when he’s sentenced. Each count carries a minimum sentence of 30 days in jail.

Monkeypox Could Become Entrenched As New STD

July 22, 2022 4:20 am

NEW YORK (AP) – The spread of monkeypox in the U.S. could represent the dawn of a new sexually transmitted disease, though some health officials say the virus that causes pimple-like bumps might yet be contained before it gets firmly established. Experts don’t agree on the likely path of the virus. Some fear that it’s becoming so widespread that it’s on the verge of becoming an entrenched STD – like gonorrhea, herpes and HIV. But no one’s really sure, and some say testing and vaccines can still stop the outbreak from taking root. So far, more than 2,400 U.S. cases have been reported as part of an international outbreak that emerged two months ago.

Hearing Dominates Top TV Networks-Except One

July 22, 2022 4:16 am

NEW YORK (AP) – America’s top television networks turned prime time over to a gripping account of former President Donald Trump’s actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol – with one prominent exception. Fox News Channel did not show the hearing, electing to stay with its regular lineup of commentators, who either ridiculed or ignored the proceedings. Sean Hannity denounced it as a “show trial,” even as he was featured on all the other networks as the committee discussed his tweets to Trump administration officials. Fox News Channel has aired the hearings during the daytime, but not when its largest audience is available in the evening.

Candidate For NY Governor Assaulted At Rally

July 22, 2022 4:15 am

NEW YORK (AP) – U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin, the Republican candidate for New York governor, was assaulted by a man who apparently tried to stab him at an upstate event. The head of the state Republican party chair said the congressman got a small scrape but wasn’t seriously injured. Zeldin said in a statement he was able to grab the attacker’s wrist and stop him for a few moments until others tackled him. Zeldin’s campaign said the attacker was taken into custody and the congressman continued his speech. He is challenging incumbent Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul this November.

Officials Try To Make Biden’s COVID A ‘Teachable Moment’

July 22, 2022 4:12 am

WASHINGTON (AP) – For more than a year, President Joe Biden’s ability to avoid the coronavirus seemed to defy the odds. When Biden finally did test positive, the White House was ready. It set out to turn the diagnosis into a “teachable moment” and dispel any notion of a crisis. The White House offered repeated assurances Thursday that the president was hard at work while isolating in the residential areas of the White House with “very mild symptoms” of a runny nose, dry cough and fatigue. It was all part of an administration effort to offer Biden as the personification of the idea that any American can get COVID and recover without too much suffering if they’ve gotten their shots and taken other important steps.