December 22, 2020 4:15 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump continues to focus on futile efforts to overturn the results of the Nov. 3 election, playing host Monday to the most conservative flank of his Republican supporters in the House. Trump met with the lawmakers to discuss their strategy for the key date of Jan. 6. That’s the day when Congress takes the final step in reaffirming Joe Biden’s presidential victory. An Alabama Republican, congressman Mo Brooks, says he organized the session with about a dozen House Republicans willing to challenge the results in several key states. Despite their efforts, Biden will be sworn in as president on Jan. 20.
December 22, 2020 4:14 am
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – California is desperately searching for nurses, doctors and other medical staff, perhaps from as far away as Australia, as the coronavirus surge pushes hospitals to the breaking point. With many of the state’s hospitals running out of capacity to treat the severest cases, the state has brought in and deployed more than 500 temporary medical staff members, but it needs a total of 3,000. The staffing shortage in California comes as a surge of COVID-19 cases across the U.S. has led to a nationwide demand for contracted medical workers, particularly nurses with critical care expertise.
December 22, 2020 4:12 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Dozens of email accounts at the Treasury Department were compromised in the massive breach of U.S. government agencies being blamed on Russia. That’s according to an Oregon Democrat, Sen. Ron Wyden, who says hackers broke into systems used by the department’s highest-ranking officials. Wyden issued a statement Monday after he and other members of the Senate Finance Committee were briefed by the IRS and the Treasury Department. Wyden says that though there is no indication that taxpayer data was compromised, the hack “appears to be significant.”
December 22, 2020 4:11 am
NEW YORK (AP) – This is the deadliest year in U.S. history, with deaths topping 3 million for the first time. It’s due mainly to the coronavirus pandemic that has killed nearly 320,000 Americans, and counting. Final mortality data for this year will not be available for months. But preliminary data suggest that the United States is on track to see more than 3.2 million deaths this year, or at least 400,000 more than in 2019. The increase would be about 15%, and possibly more. As a percentage increase, that would mark the largest single-year jump since 1918.
December 22, 2020 4:10 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Congress has easily passed a $900 billion pandemic relief package. It promises to deliver long-sought cash to businesses and individuals and resources to vaccinate a nation confronting a frightening surge in COVID-19 cases and deaths. Lawmakers tacked on a $1.4 trillion catchall spending bill and thousands of pages of other end-of-session business to create a massive bundle of bipartisan legislation. The bill passed both the House and Senate in rapid succession Monday night and has been sent to President Donald Trump for his signature, expected in the coming days.
December 22, 2020 4:03 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate fell for a seventh straight month in November, dipping below the national rate, as payrolls continued to rebound from pandemic-driven shutdowns. That’s according to state figures released Friday. Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was 6.6% in November, down eight-tenths of a percentage point. The national rate was 6.7% in November. In a survey of households, the state’s labor force shrank by an estimated 40,000 in November, closer to 6.3 million. Payrolls in Pennsylvania grew in November, by a projected 21,000. Pennsylvania has now regained about 57% of the 1.1 million jobs lost since mid-March, according to state figures.
December 22, 2020 3:28 am
A “Rights For Restaurants” rally was held on Monday afternoon. Rod Ambrogi, owner of Al’s Cafe in Bethel Park hosted the event. He said that there were probably 100 people in attendance. Attendees included state and local governmental officials including commissioners from Washington County. Ambrogi says that he would like Governor Wolf to listen to what they have to say. Ambrogi states that restaurants understand the dangers of the coronavirus but they are doing their best to comply with CDC guidelines with regard to sanitization, social distancing and mask wearing. Ambrogi wants restaurants to unify against Wolf’s mandate that closes restaurants to indoor dining. Ambrogi says that he was visited by board of health officials and was told to close down but he refused. He wants to try and keep his employees working.
December 22, 2020 2:23 am
WJPA received an update from the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s office with regards to the fatal pedestrian accident on rt. 40 back on December 9. That accident involved a Washington County detective. That detective’s name was never revealed. The Washington County District Attorney turned the investigation over to the attorney general immediately. WJPA reached out to the attorney general’s office and in an email response they stated that the investigation is still ongoing.
December 22, 2020 2:19 am
A Fayette County man was sentenced to a state correctional facility for his guilty plea on one felony count of drug delivery resulting in death. Jeffery Horabik, 34 of Redstone Twp. admitted to selling heroin laced with fentanyl to James Dunn of South Strabane Twp. back in October 2018. Judge Gary Gilman sentenced Horabik to 5-10 years in state prison.
December 21, 2020 6:54 am
The Washington Health System expects to receive some two-thousand doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine this week. President and CEO Brook Ward says they will vaccinate any health care worker that wants to receive it. Ward says they will be following all CDC distribution guidelines including those that live at nursing home and in long-term care facilities. In a video posted on Facebook, Ward says it is unclear when the vaccine will become available to the general public. He is also advising residents to avoid any gatherings outside of immediate households during the holidays. According to Ward, “We all want to get together like we have for decades with our family, friends and loved ones but one meal, one gathering, one social event is not worth risking the lives of your friends and family. So, I encourage you to avoid doing that this December”.
