December 21, 2021 4:16 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Omicron has raced ahead of other variants and is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the U.S. Federal health officials said Monday that omicron accounted for an estimated 73% of new infections last week. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers show nearly a six-fold increase in the proportion of infections in only one week. Since the end of June, the delta variant has been the main version causing U.S. infections. Scientists in Africa first sounded the alarm about omicron less than a month ago.
December 21, 2021 4:14 am
Christmas came early to Peters Township as State Representative Natalie Mihalek (R-40) stopped by the final council meeting for 2021. In her hand was a grant from the Redevelopment Capital Assistance Program that is worth $2 million. The express use of this grant will be for the development of the aquatic facility that is proposed for Rolling Hills Park. Mihalek states that she has been working on obtaining this grant for the last 18 months. Council Chairman Dave Ball indicates that it is not a blank check, but a reimbursement grant that will take a lot of work to make sure all monies spent can be reimbursed up to that $2 million mark. Council voted unanimously to accept the grant. The aquatic center has not been approved. That step will be taken by the next council that will be sworn in on January 3, 2022. In other council action, a sharpshooter program was narrowly approved by a 4-3 margin. This is part of a deer culling program that will help with the deer population that is causing nearly 100 car accidents annually on state roads in the township. Some of the state roads that will be in the program are E. McMurray Rd., Valleybrook Rd. and Route 19. This is a one year pilot to see if the program will be successful in significantly decreasing the deer population along those roads.
December 21, 2021 2:59 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Former President Donald Trump has revealed he received a booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine, drawing boos from a crowd in Dallas. Trump made the disclosure Sunday night during the final stop of “The History Tour,” a live interview show he has been doing with former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly. A clip of the response was shared online by O’Reilly’s “No Spin News.” While Trump has expressed opposition to vaccine mandates, he has long taken credit for the vaccines developed on his watch. But while other world leaders have received their doses publicly, Trump chose to receive his privately. The vaccine is unpopular with large swaths of his base.
December 21, 2021 2:51 am
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board released gaming numbers from November. Total revenue numbers were $432,916,762, a 52 percent increase over the same period last year. The Hollywood Casino at the Meadows generated more than $26,700,000 in November, a nearly 42% gain over the same period last year. Slot machines generated nearly $12,000,000. Sports wagering generated $12,000,000
December 21, 2021 2:24 am
The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission is announcing that additional ramps to Turnpike 576, otherwise known as the Southern Beltway will be opening in Cecil Township and South Fayette Township. Ramps will open December 21 with drivers being able to access Turnpike 576 and travel westbound from Morganza Road in Cecil. Traffic traveling westbound on Turnpike 576 will be able to exit and travel northbound on Interstate 79 in South Fayette. Ramps should be open by 5:00 PM. Motorists are advised that these new ramps are in an active work zone and the speed limit is 45 miles per hour. That speed limit is strictly enforced.
December 20, 2021 5:44 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – In a major step to fight climate change, the Biden administration is raising vehicle mileage standards to significantly reduce emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases. A final rule being issued Monday would raise mileage standards starting in the 2023 model year, reaching a projected industry-wide target of 40 miles per gallon by 2026. The mileage rules are the most ambitious tailpipe pollution standards ever set for passenger cars and light trucks. Mileage goals set by the Trump administration would achieve only 32 miles-per-gallon in 2026. The move comes a day after Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin delivered a potentially fatal blow to Biden’s $2 trillion social and environmental policy bill, jeopardizing Democrats’ agenda and infuriating the White House.
December 20, 2021 5:41 pm
NEW YORK (AP) – The sex trafficking trial of Ghislaine Maxwell is speeding to a conclusion with closing arguments. A prosecutor told jurors Monday that the 59-year-old Maxwell is a dangerous predator who helped Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse teenage girls. A defense lawyer told the Manhattan federal court jury that Maxwell is an innocent woman wrongfully accused of crimes she did not commit. Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan federal jail cell in August 2019 as he awaited a sex trafficking trial. Maxwell has been held without bail since she was arrested in July 2020.
December 20, 2021 5:39 pm
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The jury has begun deliberating in the manslaughter trial of the suburban Minneapolis police officer who killed Black motorist Daunte Wright after she says she mistook her gun for her Taser. Kim Potter’s case went to the mostly white jury on Monday following closing arguments. Potter, who is white and who resigned from the Brooklyn Center police force after killing Wright, shot the 20-year-old as she and other officers were trying to arrest him on an outstanding warrant during an April traffic stop. The prosecutor told jurors during closing arguments that the shooting was “entirely preventable.” Potter’s attorney said she made a mistake and it wasn’t a crime.
December 20, 2021 4:57 pm
NEW YORK (AP) – Former President Donald Trump sued New York Attorney General Letitia James on Monday, seeking to end her civil investigation into his business practices. The lawsuit was filed two weeks after James requested that Trump sit for a deposition next month. Trump alleges the Democratic attorney general’s investigation has violated his constitutional rights. He’s seeking a permanent injunction barring her from investigating him. Messages seeking comment were left with James’ office and Trump’s lawyers. News of the lawsuit filed in federal court in Albany was first reported by The New York Times.
December 20, 2021 3:50 pm
PITTSBURGH-(WPXI) — During a virtual press conference to unveil his transition team on Monday, Pittsburgh Mayor-elect Ed Gainey announced that he had tested positive for COVID-19, after being exposed over the weekend. Gainey said he learned he was potentially exposed on Saturday and the test was taken during his regular routine and showed “slightly positive.” He is now awaiting the results of a PCR test. While no plans for the inauguration were announced, he did say they would be making those decisions in the coming days, based on his test results and if current COVID-19 numbers spike.
