February 14, 2020 9:26 am
MUNICH, Germany (AP) – U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper is defending his decision to divert billions of dollars from the Pentagon budget to help build President Donald Trump’s long-promised wall on the U.S.-Mexico border. The Pentagon chief said Friday the move announced Thursday is legal and should not have been a surprise. Esper was responding to a reporter’s question about criticism from members of Congress who called the diversion of money from its intended purpose a violation of Congress’ constitutional authority to determine how tax dollars are appropriated and spent. Esper spoke on the sidelines of an international security conference in Munich. Trump repeatedly promised that Mexico would pay for the wall, but Mexico refused.
February 14, 2020 4:16 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh is drawing bipartisan criticism for saying the country won’t elect openly gay Democrat Pete Buttigieg because it’s not ready for a president who ‘loves to kiss his husband on the debate stage.” Limbaugh is a Trump ally and made the remarks Wednesday on his nationally syndicated radio show. Buttigieg has finished near the top in Democrats’ first two presidential contests in Iowa and New Hampshire. Fellow Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden says Buttigieg has honor and courage. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham says he doesn’t think a candidate’s sexual orientation would hurt his or her chances.
February 14, 2020 4:14 am
BEIJING (AP) – China has reported another sharp rise in the number of people infected with a new virus, as the death toll neared 1,400. The National Health Commission said Friday that 121 more people had died and there were 5,090 new confirmed cases. The number of reported cases has been rising more quickly after the hardest hit province changed the way it is counting them Thursday. There are now 63,851 confirmed cases in mainland China, of which 1,380 have died. Hubei province is now including cases based on a physician’s diagnosis and before they have been confirmed by lab tests. Of the 5,090 new cases, 3,095 fell into that category.
February 14, 2020 4:13 am
NEW YORK (AP) – A lawyer who gained fame by representing porn star Stormy Daniels in lawsuits against President Donald Trump has been convicted of trying to extort sportswear giant Nike. The verdict against Michael Avenatti was returned Friday by a federal jury in Manhattan. It followed a three-week trial in which prosecutors claimed Avenatti made threats to use his media access to hurt Nike’s reputation and stock price unless the apparel company paid him up to $25 million. Avenatti did not testify, but his lawyers said he was following the wishes of an amateur youth basketball league director who wanted him to force Nike to fire corrupt executives and fix its culture
February 14, 2020 4:12 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Federal prosecutors have declined to charge former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, closing an investigation into whether he lied to federal officials about his involvement in a news media disclosure. That’s according to a statement from McCabe’s legal team on Friday. The decision resolves a criminal investigation that spanned more than a year and began with a referral from the Justice Department’s inspector general, which said McCabe repeatedly lied about having authorized a subordinate to share information with a newspaper reporter for a 2016 article about an FBI investigation into the Clinton Foundation. Prosecutors told McCabe’s lawyers they decided “not to pursue criminal charges” against him after careful consideration.
February 14, 2020 2:45 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – A lawyer recently sworn in as district attorney in southwestern Pennsylvania is asking the state Supreme Court to rule that county child welfare officials investigating complaints about him don’t have legal authority to compel him to take a drug test. Greene County District Attorney David Russo says mandatory drug tests and a home inspection without probable cause would violate his constitutional rights. The Children and Youth Services agency in neighboring Fayette County, brought in to handle Russo’s case, has argued that investigators looking into child abuse claims should be able to require drug tests, as can be ordered during child custody disputes. Oral argument is scheduled for March.
February 14, 2020 2:19 am
Every year the Washington County Chamber of Commerce presents its State of the Economy panel discussion. Leaders in economic development and forecast gather to look back on the previous year and try and take a peek into what may lie ahead. This year Mekael Teshome, Vice President of the Pittsburgh office of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland (pictured) offered his thoughts on what the nation and the seven county metropolitan Pittsburgh region may expect. Energy is important to Washington County and he says his outlook is not one of a boom because low prices for gas will probably keep energy development weak. Teshome addressed weaknesses in unemployment in the region particularly in manufacturing and transportation but pointed to positive areas of employment growth particularly in professional services and in the automation/robotics industry. He said that those trends reflected nationwide trends. Stefani Pasham, CEO of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development addressed business owner’s issues with brain drain and described her efforts to keep college graduates from leaving the Pittsburgh region. Washington County Commissioners pointed to over $500,000,000 dollars of business development and the creation of nearly one-thousand jobs as pointing the county in the right direction for future years.
February 13, 2020 2:49 pm
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – Two former Ohio State football players have pleaded not guilty to holding a woman against her will and raping her. Defensive backs Amir Riep and Jahsen Wint made an initial appearance Thursday in Franklin County Municipal Court in Columbus. Their attorneys entered the pleas on their behalf. Both were kicked off the team Wednesday after the charges came to light. The accuser told police that on Feb. 4th she was having consensual sex with Riep before Wint came into the room and both forced her into sex. Riep is a cornerback entering his senior season. Wint is a redshirt senior who would have been in the mix at safety.
February 13, 2020 12:37 pm
DETROIT (AP) –
A Pittsburgh-area official accused of obstructing police at a Detroit hotel has pleaded no contest to disturbing the peace and was placed on probation. The charge is a misdemeanor. Prosecutors say the case could be dismissed if Chelsa Wagner completes the six-month probation without any problems. Wagner is a Democrat and the elected controller in Allegheny County. She was accused of interfering with police as officers tried to remove her husband from the Westin Book Cadillac hotel last March. Hotel staff had called 911 to report that Mosley was unruly during a dispute over registration and a room key.
February 13, 2020 12:30 pm
(WPXI) – A toddler was in the back seat of her father’s SUV when he crashed into a Pittsburgh police vehicle and two other vehicles while drunk, authorities said. Three officers were in the police vehicle when the crash happened shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday in the area of Columbo Street and North Negley Avenue, police said. None of the officers were hurt. When two officers got out of their vehicle, they ordered the man driving the SUV to stay parked and remain inside. Instead, 43-year-old Mario Plowden drove away and nearly hit the officers, according to police. Police followed the SUV into the city’s Morningside neighborhood, where Plowden stopped on King Avenue and was arrested, officials said. Plowden, according to police, admitted he was driving under the influence, telling officers he had some drinks on Broad Street. He had to be held up by officers and was then given a breathalyzer test. Police found Plowden’s young daughter when they went to search the SUV. They said the girl was in the back seat and her car seat was not anchored down. She was not hurt, but she was taken to UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh to be evaluated before being given to her mother.
