November 11, 2020 4:02 am
ATLANTA (AP) – State officials and election experts say the 2020 election unfolded smoothly across the country and without any widespread irregularities. That’s a stark contrast to the baseless claims of fraud being leveled by President Donald Trump following his defeat. Election experts say the large increase in advance voting helped take pressure off Election Day operations. There were also no incidents of violence at the polls or voter intimidation. Trump has made numerous claims of fraud, though he has not provided evidence to back up those claims.
November 11, 2020 3:59 am
WASHINGTON, D.C. — (WPXI) -A postal worker, who acknowledged issues with Pennsylvania’s mail-in voting system, has admitted that he lied to U.S. Postal Service investigators. In an article published by The Washington Post, three officials briefed on the investigation say the postal employee, Richard Hopkins, fabricated his story. Hopkins claimed that the Erie postmaster instructed employees to backdate ballots mailed after Election Day. This claim was cited in an official letter to the Justice Department by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) as he was asking for a federal investigation into Tuesday’s election results. But, according to The Washington Post, Hopkins told the U.S. Postal Service’s inspector general that the story was not true and signed an affidavit — reversing his claims. Hopkins did post a video on YouTube saying he did not recant his statement. Erie’s postmaster has denied Hopkins’ allegations and cited the employee’s disciplinary record as a reason for his statement. According to the article, Hopkins was walked out of the post office on Monday and told not to come back until the investigation was complete.
November 11, 2020 3:56 am
As baseless allegations of voter fraud continue to circulate online, social media users are falsely claiming that people cast extra votes using the identities of dead people in the battleground states of Pennsylvania and Michigan. There’s no evidence that this happened. Experts tell The Associated Press it is common for state voter rolls to include voters with birthdates that make them appear impossibly old, but these are usually explained by human error, software quirks or voter confidentiality issues. And sometimes a person simply shares a name and birthdate with someone else.
November 11, 2020 3:50 am
North Franklin Supervisors approved a preliminary budget for 2021 bringing good news to residents. Supervisor Chairman Bob Sabot states that the budget will include a tax cut for residents. Even though the tax cut will take effect, the budget will include $480,000 in road projects and nearly double the contribution the township makes to the fire department. Sabot says the tax savings will be approximately $50 on a house assessed at $200,000. Supervisors also adopted amendments to ordinances. The first will allow Factory Authorized Dealers in the Master Overlay district. Director of Planning and Development, Erin Dinch says that the township never allowed such businesses before. A car dealership is interested in locating to the former Sears store in the Washington Crown Center. A second amendment will allow privacy fencing to be installed along the back and sides of properties. The township will advertise an ordinance adopting the Township Code. Dinch states that the code will be much more user friendly. Residents will now be able to look up ordinances and find all the information they are seeking in one spot. The code will also be available on the township webpage.
November 11, 2020 2:40 am
(WPXI) – Pennsylvania’s travel advisory list because of COVID-19 now includes 37 states. Included on the list, which was updated Nov. 6, are three neighboring states: New Jersey, Ohio and West Virginia. Non-essential travel to and from those states is highly discouraged by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. “Given the interconnected nature of Pennsylvania to neighboring states and the region and mode of transport between these states, a recommendation of quarantine for these states is not practically viable,” the Department of Health’s website says.
November 10, 2020 1:25 pm
NEW YORK (AP) – J.C. Penney is on course to emerge from bankruptcy by Thanksgiving after a U.S. bankruptcy court approved the sale of the ailing retailer to two of the nation’s largest landlords and its primary lenders. Under the deal announced earlier this fall, substantially all of J.C. Penney’s retail and operating assets will be acquired by Brookfield Asset Management and Simon Property Group. With no other valid offers in sight, Penney’s fate was hanging by the wire. Penney’s financing agreement expires on Nov. 16 and the sale had to close by Nov. 20 to avoid going out of business. Still, Penney faces an uphill challenge of attracting shoppers this holiday season.
November 10, 2020 10:27 am
PITTSBURGH – The Steelers have placed 4 additional players on the COVID-19 reserve list, including quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. The list also includes OL Jerald Hawkins, RB Jaylen Samuels, and LB Vince Williams on the Reserve/COVID-19 List. Monday, tight end Vance McDonald was officially placed on the list after his COVID-19 test came back positive. The Steelers are scheduled to host the Cincinnati Bengals this weekend, a team that already has five players on its list. These lists include players who are part of contact tracing, but haven’t necessarily tested positive. A source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that Big Ben was deemed a “high-risk, close contact.” If he passes all COVID-19 tests this week, he would be eligible to play Sunday, Schefter reports. Coach Mike Tomlin is to hold his weekly press conference at noon. You can hear it on 1450AM WJPA.
November 10, 2020 4:11 am
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – Gov. Gavin Newsom says California is seeing a sobering increase in coronavirus cases that may be partially linked to Halloween. Eleven San Francisco Bay Area health officers are meanwhile urging residents there to quarantine for two weeks if they venture outside the region. Newsom warned Monday that coronavirus case numbers, the positivity rate, hospitalizations and intensive care cases all have reached their highest level in months. The state updates counties’ progress on the state’s four-tier, color-coded system each week and as a result several are expected to move Tuesday to more restrictions on how businesses can operate.
November 10, 2020 4:11 am
Pfizer’s surprising news that its COVID-19 vaccine might offer more protection than anticipated is raising questions about exactly how the different shots will make it to market. Pfizer and the maker of the other leading U.S. vaccine candidate have been cautioning for weeks that the earliest they could seek regulatory approval for wider use of their shots would be late November. Science moves at its own pace. COVID-19 vaccines worldwide are being developed at record speeds in hope of ending the pandemic. And when they’re ready for prime time depends on a long list of research steps including how many study volunteers wind up getting the coronavirus.
November 10, 2020 4:08 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. health officials have allowed emergency use of the first antibody drug to help the immune system fight COVID-19. The Food and Drug Administration on Monday cleared the experimental drug from Eli Lilly for people 12 and older with mild or moderate COVID-19 not requiring hospitalization. Tests of it are continuing, but the drug does not seem to help patients with more serious illness. It is similar to a treatment President Donald Trump received after contracting the virus last month. The government previously reached an agreement to buy and supply much of the early production of the drug.
