February 8, 2024 12:51 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — Arguments have ended at the Supreme Court, and the justices seem broadly skeptical of efforts to kick former President Donald Trump off the 2024 ballot. In more than two hours of arguments Thursday, both conservative and liberal justices raised questions of whether Trump can be disqualified from being president again because of his efforts to undo his loss in the 2020 election, ending with the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Concerns included whether Congress must act before states can invoke a constitutional provision that was adopted after the Civil War to prevent former officeholders who “engaged in insurrection” from holding office again. There were questions about whether the president is covered by the provision.
February 8, 2024 12:44 pm
Details are sketchy, but police in North Strabane Township asked motorists to avoid the 200 block of Linden Creek Road Thursday morning. The road was closed due to a commercial vehicle crash involving a dump truck that landed on its side, spilling its load of dirt. There is no word on how the accident happened or whether there were any injuries. (Photo: North Strabane Township Police Facebook Page)
February 8, 2024 5:26 am
CALIFORNIA, Pa. — (WPXI) – A parent of a charter school student in the California Area School District was arrested on campus on Wednesday morning. The parent showed up at the school for a scheduled parent-teacher conference at 10:45 a.m., the district said, but blatantly disregarded directions to the conference room. The parent then allegedly walked to the cafeteria “to have lunch” with their son. According to the district, further directives from the principal and school police officer were challenged. The parent was escorted out of the building and arrested. A release posted on Facebook said the parent will be issued a “no trespass” order on behalf of the district.
February 8, 2024 5:00 am
BAGHDAD (AP) — The U.S. military says a U.S. drone strike blew up a car in the Iraqi capital Wednesday night, killing a high-ranking commander of the powerful Kataib Hezbollah militia who is responsible for “directly planning and participating in attacks” on American troops in the region. The precision blast hit a main thoroughfare in the Mashtal neighborhood in eastern Baghdad. It came amid roiling tensions in the region, and will likely further anger Iraqi government leaders. U.S. officials say Baghdad was not notified in advance of the strike.
February 8, 2024 4:59 am
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has left the Middle East with public divisions between the United States and Israel at perhaps their worst level since Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza began in October. Wrapping up a four-nation Mideast trip — his fifth to the region since the conflict erupted — Blinken was returning to Washington after getting a virtual slap in the face from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over a proposed cease-fire plan, Netanyahu said the war would continue until Israel is completely victorious and appeared to reject outright a response from Hamas to the cease-fire proposal. Yet Blinken and other U.S. officials said they remained optimistic that progress could be made.
February 8, 2024 4:56 am
PennDot has announced that all westbound lanes of Interstate 70 between Exit 15 (Route 40/Chestnut St) and Exit 11 (Route 221/Taylorstown) are now reopened. An earlier lane restriction was in place due to a tractor trailer crash. One person was flown to a Pittsburgh hospital in critical condition after a crash involving a tanker tractor trailer and a car in North Franklin Township early Thursday morning. It happened just after 2 a.m. at mile-marker 13. State Police say 48-year-old Eric Joseph of Florida lost control of the truck while traveling in the left lane of Interstate 70 eastbound and crossed the grass median and struck the car head-on in the westbound lanes. Forty-four-year old Lewis Stiltner of Belle Vernon was injured and was flown to UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh. Because of a leak HAZMAT was called to the scene.
February 8, 2024 4:50 am
EAST LANSDOWNE, Pa. (AP) — Six members of a family are feared dead from a fire at a house in suburban Philadelphia that went up in flames as two police officers who responded to the scene were shot. Among those feared dead are three children. Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer told reporters Thursday that a human torso and a rifle were recovered from the home in East Lansdowne. He’s cautioning the probe is in its early stages as investigators sought clues to the fire and a shooting there on Wednesday afternoon that also wounded two responding police officers.
February 8, 2024 4:44 am
One person was flown to a Pittsburgh hospital in critical condition after a crash involving a tanker tractor trailer and a car in North Franklin Township early Thursday morning. It happened just after 2 a.m. at mile-marker 13. State Police say 48-year-old Eric Joseph of Florida lost control of the truck while traveling in the left lane of Interstate 70 eastbound and crossed the grass median and struck the car head-on in the westbound lanes. Forty-four-year old Lewis Stiltner of Belle Vernon was injured and was flown to UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh. Because of a leak HAZMAT was called to the scene. PennDOT says a single-lane restriction will be in place through Friday between Exit 15 (Route 40/Chestnut Street) and Exit 11 (Route 221/Taylorstown) so crews can clean the wreckage site.
February 7, 2024 4:15 pm
(AP) – Paxlovid can prevent hospitalization and death from COVID-19, but experts say it’s being underused. The pills’ high price and doctors’ hesitation to prescribe them are creating obstacles to getting the drug to everyone who would benefit. The people most likely to benefit from Paxlovid were the least likely to get it in 2022. The study by Harvard researchers found that Paxlovid was disproportionately given to patients with lower risk of severe infection. If it had been properly utilized, the authors concluded, more than 16,000 COVID-19 deaths could have been prevented.
February 7, 2024 3:58 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans have blocked a bipartisan border package, scuttling months of negotiations between the two parties on legislation intended to cut down record numbers of illegal border crossings. Many Republicans said the election-year compromise wasn’t enough, even as supporters of the bill insisted it was the best that could be gotten in divided government. The vote on taking up the bill came as most Republicans said they would vote against the actual legislation, which also includes $60 billion in wartime aid to Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel. GOP lawmakers had insisted that the money for conflicts abroad be paired with help for the U.S. border.
