June 19, 2020 9:13 am
LONDON (AP) – Twitter has slapped another label on a tweet by President Donald Trump, this time warning that a video he shared was manipulated. The move escalates the social media company’s crackdown on one of its most widely followed users. Twitter took the rare step of adding a warning that the video was “manipulated media” and linked to a page that said multiple journalists confirmed the clip was edited to make it look like a CNN broadcast. The doctored clip used footage from a video that went viral last year of two toddlers, one black, one white, which CNN used for a story it did on the boys’ friendship.
June 19, 2020 7:53 am
The operator of the Meadows Racetrack and Casino is preparing to furlough as many as 180 employees at the North Strabane Township facility. Penn National Gaming, Inc. has informed the state Department of Labor and Industry of the planned furloughs effective August 15. It was reported through the federal ‘Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act’ that requires employers with 100 or more employees to provide 60 calendar days of notice of any closing or mass layoffs. Those furloughs are among more than 26,000 employees that Penn National had to furlough during the coronavirus pandemic. Despite the reopening, the company says they “will not be able to resume normal operations for the foreseeable future.” Penn National operates more than forty gaming and racing facilities. Officials say they have informed team members that their furloughs “may be converted to a permanent layoff”. However, they also say it does not necessarily mean that all of those team members will be laid off.
June 19, 2020 4:11 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Washington Post reported that a State Department official resigned Thursday over President Donald Trump’s response to racial tensions sweeping the country over the killings of black people by police. Mary Elizabeth Taylor, the assistant secretary of state for legislative affairs, said in her resignation letter that Trump’s actions “cut sharply against my core values and convictions.” At 30, Taylor was the youngest person to hold her position, and she was also the first black woman in the job, according to the Post. Taylor’s resignation follows weeks of turmoil sweeping the United States following the killing of George Floyd by a white police officer in Minneapolis.
June 19, 2020 4:08 am
CHICAGO (AP) – Amy Klobuchar is dropping out of vice presidential contention and urging Democrat Joe Biden to select a woman of color instead. The Minnesota senator said Thursday night on MSNBC that she called the presumptive presidential nominee Wednesday night and made the suggestion. She says it would be a step Biden could take to help “heal this nation.” It comes as the senator’s home state has been roiled by the killing of George Floyd by a white Minneapolis police officer. Klobuchar herself came under fire for her handling of a murder case when she was a prosecutor that sent a black teen to prison for life.
June 19, 2020 4:05 am
LONDON (AP) – The emergencies chief of the World Health Organization confirmed the U.N. agency has received genetic sequences from China regarding Beijing’s latest outbreak and said it appears the virus came from Europe. At a press briefing on Friday, Dr. Michael Ryan noted that “strains and viruses have moved around the world” throughout the pandemic. Ryan noted that analysis of the genetic sequences so far suggests that the virus had been spread person-to-person and not from animals to humans. Meanwhile, WHO’s director-general says the pandemic is “accelerating.” He said more than 150,000 cases were reported to the U.N. health agency on Thursday, the biggest single-day total so far.
June 19, 2020 4:02 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) – The nation’s largest movie theater chain changed its position on mask-wearing less than a day after the company became a target on social media for saying it would defer to local governments on the issue. AMC Theaters CEO Adam Aron said Friday that its theaters will require patrons to wear masks upon reopening, which will begin in July. AMC Theaters wasn’t the first to say it would defer to officials on the mask issue but it hit a nerve for many on Thursday and #boycottAMC quickly became a trending topic on Twitter.
June 19, 2020 3:59 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – A state court will hear the Pennsylvania Health Department’s request to shut down an auto show that began Wednesday because of coronavirus concerns. Commonwealth Court set a Thursday hearing in Harrisburg regarding the Spring Carlisle event that runs through Saturday. The lawsuit calls the show dangerous and says it needs to be stopped. Carlisle Events’ lawyers say the legal filing is invalid and they will fight to keep the show open. The organizer has put in place COVID-19 prevention measures and doesn’t expect its typical crowd this year.
June 19, 2020 3:58 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Authorities have charged a Port Authority bus driver with involuntary manslaughter months after she struck and killed a University of Pittsburgh student. Pittsburgh police on Wednesday also charged 33-year-old Shavonne James with reckless driving, failure to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks and operating an improperly equipped vehicle. It could not be determined if James has a lawyer. James was behind the wheel on Jan. 18 when she turned and hit 20-year-old Barbara Como of Chester Springs. The college senior studied anthropology and psychology. School officials said she was on track to graduate this year.
June 19, 2020 3:54 am
The Trinity School District School Board met Thursday and passed a $61 million budget with no tax increase to school district residents. Superintendent Dr. Michael Lucas was pleased that the school board was able to craft a budget with no tax increase in light of the current economic conditions. The board approved an appropriation of $150,000 to purchase 600 Chromebook computers to allow all students access to online learning should that need arise again. Those will be paid for from the capital reserve fund. Lucas says the custodial staff has been working diligently since March disinfecting buildings for the new school year. Any additional costs due to the increase in disinfectants and sanitizers are being reimbursed through the federal CARES Act. School is scheduled to start on August 31.
June 18, 2020 1:38 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Supreme Court has rejected President Donald Trump’s effort to end legal protections for 650,000 young immigrants, a stunning rebuke to the president in the midst of his reelection campaign. For now, those immigrants retain their protection from deportation and their authorization to work in the United States. The outcome seems certain to elevate the issue in Trump’s campaign for reelection, given the anti-immigrant rhetoric of his first presidential run in 2016 and immigration restrictions his administration has imposed since then. It’s Trump’s second rebuke from the court in a week after Monday’s ruling that it’s illegal to fire people because they’re gay or transgender. (Photo: CNN)
