December 4, 2020 4:16 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Outgoing National Intelligence Director John Ratcliffe says China poses the greatest threat to America and the rest of the free world since World War II. He said in an op-ed published by The Wall Street Journal on Thursday that intelligence shows that Beijing intends to dominate the U.S. and the rest of the planet economically, militarily and technologically. Trump administration officials have been stepping up their anti-China rhetoric for months. President Donald Trump used the campaign trail to warn that Biden would be soft on China, although the president-elect agrees that China is not abiding by international trade rules, is giving unfair subsidies to Chinese companies and stealing American innovation.
December 4, 2020 4:13 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Powerful winds have pushed flames through Southern California canyons as an out-of-control wildfire burns near homes, forcing residents to flee. The blaze in Orange County’s Silverado Canyon began late Wednesday as a house fire that quickly spread to tinder-dry brush. It exploded in size early Thursday. Firefighters are struggling in steep terrain amid unpredictable Santa Ana winds that have raised fire danger for much of the region. The blaze broke out as Southern California utilities cut the power to tens of thousands of customers to avoid the threat of wildfires during the windy weather.
December 4, 2020 4:12 am
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) – Americans couldn’t resist the urge to gather for Thanksgiving. That’s according to data from roadways and airports provided to The Associated Press. Americans drove only slightly less than a year ago and largely ignored the pleas of public health experts, who begged them to forgo holiday travel to help contain the coronavirus pandemic. The nation’s unwillingness to tamp down on travel offered a warning in advance of Christmas and New Year’s as virus deaths and hospitalizations hit new highs. U.S. deaths from the outbreak eclipsed 3,100 on Thursday, obliterating the single-day record set last spring.
December 4, 2020 4:10 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Optimism about delivering long-sought COVID-19 relief is building on Capitol Hill after additional rank-and-file lawmakers voiced support for a bipartisan, middle-of-the-road plan taking shape in the Senate. Also, top congressional leaders connected on the topic for the first time in months. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell – frequent rivals but proven dealmakers – spoke on the phone Thursday. Their conversation came the day after Pelosi signaled a willingness to make major concessions in search of a COVID rescue package in the $1 trillion range. Some conservatives, including Republicans from COVID hotspots like North Dakota and Iowa, said they were comfortable with an aid package carrying the almost $1 trillion price tag.
December 4, 2020 4:09 am
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – A bankrupt coal company is seeking permission to liquidate its assets instead of reorganizing them. The Herald-Dispatch reports a hearing in the Blackjewel coal company case is set for Dec. 17 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of West Virginia. The company filed for Chapter 11 reorganization bankruptcy in July 2019 and all but completely shut down operations, which put about 600 employees in Wyoming and 1,100 in Appalachia out of work. The motion filed on Nov. 25 said the company doesn’t have the money to continue the Chapter 11 process, noting that virtually all assets and operations have been sold.
December 4, 2020 4:08 am
In his quest to cling to power, President Donald Trump has managed to lose not just once to Democrat Joe Biden but over and over again in courts across the country. Seemingly incapable of accepting the reality of his defeat, Trump and his allies continue to mount new cases recycling the same baseless claims, even after Trump’s own attorney general said the Justice Department uncovered no widespread fraud. Another legal blow came Thursday, a day after Trump posted a 46-minute speech to Facebook filled with falsehoods. In Wisconsin, the state Supreme Court refused to hear Trump’s lawsuit seeking to disqualify more than 221,000 ballots in its two biggest Democratic counties.
December 4, 2020 3:04 am
A Canonsburg man facing resentencing for several crimes and a plea agreement for new charges had all of his hearings continued. Judge Valarie Costanzo continued the cases against Brady Hugh Paul, 20 of Canonsburg. Paul was already serving a sentence in the Intermediate Punishment Program for DUI and operating a vehicle with a suspended license. He later pleaded guilty to an unauthorized use of a vehicle charge when he took a car from a woman who was staying at his home. He was to be resentenced on those convictions and was to possibly enter a plea for rape, statutory sexual assault and strangulation charges for an incident in December of 2019 where he allegedly supplied a sixteen year old girl with marijuana and raped her. The hearing was held totally by video conferencing and Paul was unclear about what was happening due to a change in his representation at the public defender office. Costanzo continued all hearings until January. Paul remains in the Washington County Jail on $500,000 bond.
December 4, 2020 2:56 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – The Capitol complex in Harrisburg is closing to the public until further notice because of a statewide surge in coronavirus infections. The Department of General Services said the closure order takes effect Monday and will impact rallies, tours, choir performances, receptions and other public gatherings. The agency says the governor’s office and General Assembly will continue to operate, with access limited to employees and others with credentials. The Capitol is closing amid sharp increases in infections, hospitalizations and deaths statewide and across the nation.
December 4, 2020 2:42 am
Hospital beds are filling up and medical staffs are being stretched to the limit as Pennsylvania’s health care system copes with a growing number of seriously ill COVID-19 patients. Nearly half of all hospitals in the south-central region of the state, and a third of those in the southwest, anticipate staffing shortages within a week. That’s according to the state Department of Health. Nurses in the Philadelphia area say they’re overloaded with COVID patients, impacting the quality of care they can provide. And Pennsylvania’s top health official said Thursday she’s worried about modeling that shows the state will run out of intensive care beds this month.
December 3, 2020 4:45 pm
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Powerful winds have pushed flames through Southern California canyons as an out-of-control wildfire burns near homes, forcing residents to flee. The blaze in Orange County’s Silverado Canyon began late Wednesday as a house fire that quickly spread to tinder-dry brush. It exploded in size early Thursday. Firefighters are struggling in steep terrain amid unpredictable Santa Ana winds that have raised fire danger for much of the region. The blaze broke out as Southern California utilities cut the power to tens of thousands of customers to avoid the threat of wildfires during the windy weather.
