February 23, 2020 7:59 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s national security adviser said he’s seen no intelligence to show that Russia is interfering in the U.S. presidential campaign in hopes of reelecting President Donald Trump. Robert O’Brien’s comments come after conflicting accounts emerged from a recent closed-door briefing by intelligence officials, who spoke to lawmakers about Russian interference in the 2020 campaign. One intelligence official said that lawmakers were not told that Russia was working to directly aid Trump. But other people familiar with the meeting said they were told the Kremlin was looking to help Trump’s candidacy. The people spoke on condition of anonymity to discussed the classified briefing.
February 23, 2020 7:57 am
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Bernie Sanders scored a commanding victory in Nevada’s presidential caucuses, cementing his status as the Democrats’ national front-runner but escalating tensions over whether he’s too liberal to defeat President Donald Trump. As Sanders celebrated Saturday night, Joe Biden was in second place with votes still being counted. Pete Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren trailed further behind. They were all seeking any possible momentum heading into next-up South Carolina and then Super Tuesday on March 3. Nevada’s caucuses were the first chance for White House hopefuls to demonstrate appeal to a diverse group of voters in a state far more representative of the country as a whole than Iowa and New Hampshire. Sanders, a 78-year Vermont senator and self-described democratic socialist, won by rallying his fiercely loyal base and tapping into support from Nevada’s large Latino community.
February 23, 2020 7:53 am
PITTSBURGH (WPXI) — Students at the University of Pittsburgh are fighting to protect the planet. All night long Friday, members of the campus’ Fossil Free Pitt Coalition stayed up calling on the school to not invest in fossil fuels. They occupied the main floor of the famous Cathedral of Learning. The school’s board of trustees is set to meet on Feb. 28 to vote on this issue. “It is heavily toxic, it damages communities (and) it poisons our water and soil – not just all over the world but especially right her in Southwestern Pennsylvania,” said Anais Peterson, the organizer of this event. According to the group, Pitt hasn’t been transparent regarding its multi-billion endowment, and organizers cite an investigative report from The Guardian – which accused the university of investing millions into the fossil fuel industry.
February 23, 2020 7:51 am
ASPINWALL, Pa. (WPXI)— Six people were taken to the hospital after a crash involving a Port Authority bus in Aspinwall. Emergency responders said the crash happened on the on-ramp of the Highland Park Bridge from Freeport Road around 3 p.m. Saturday. Police, firefighters and medics all were called to the crash. PAT officials confirmed a PAT bus and another car collided. It’s unclear what caused the crash, but officials said six people were taken via ambulance to the hospital. Their conditions were not released.
February 23, 2020 7:44 am
APOLLO, Pa. (WPXI) — Crews rushed to a Westmoreland County park after reports that a raft overturned, sending several people into the water Saturday afternoon. Emergency officials pulled two teens out of the semi-frozen lake after their inflatable raft tipped over. The boys were in the water for about a half hour before they could be pulled out. Rescuers were unsure of what caused the boat to lose air and it was unclear if the ice on the water was to blame. The water was estimated to be about 30 degrees and 15 feet deep where the boys were. The incident occurred at the lake at Northmoreland Park. The lake is 17 acres and stocked every by the fish and boat commission. Canoeing and kayaking is only allowed between May and October. Park officials said no watercraft is allowed on the water at this time of year. The two teens were taken to an area hospital to be treated for cold-water exposure.
February 23, 2020 4:02 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – A federal judge is starting the process of figuring out how the Harrisburg Roman Catholic Diocese will remain functioning and able to pay its bills while its 2-day-old bankruptcy filing inches ahead. The judge heard from lawyers for the diocese and the bankruptcy trustee about the church’s intertwined financial operations, including the widespread use of its federal employer identification number by schools, parishes and other entities. An attorney for the diocese says it’s located 79 bank accounts for such diverse uses as a high school cafeteria and a basketball boosters’ club. The exact balances in those accounts haven’t yet been established.
February 22, 2020 4:14 am
NEW YORK (AP) – The jury deliberating in Harvey Weinstein’s rape trial has indicated that it is deadlocked on the most serious charges. Jurors asked Friday if they could be hung on two counts of predatory sexual assault while reaching a unanimous verdict on other charges. After consulting with prosecutors and Weinstein’s lawyers, Judge James Burke told the jury of seven men and five women to keep working toward a unanimous verdict on all charges. Weinstein’s lawyers said they would accept a partial verdict, but prosecutors said no and Burke refused to allow it. Weinstein is facing charges stemming from allegations that he raped two women and sexually assaulted a third. Weinstein has maintained any sexual encounters were consensual.
February 22, 2020 4:13 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. officials and experts say that hopes for ending America’s longest war hinge on maintaining a weeklong fragile truce in Afghanistan that will be difficult to assess and fraught with pitfalls. In a country that has been wracked by violence for more than 18 years, determining if the agreement has been violated will be a tough task. And there are a number of other groups and elements in the country that would love to see the deal fall through. The weeklong “reduction in violence” agreement began at midnight Friday local time. If successful, it will be followed by the signing of a peace accord on Feb. 29.
February 22, 2020 4:11 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Just weeks into the 2020 election cycle, intelligence officials have concluded that Russia already is actively interfering in the U.S. presidential campaign. Intelligence experts say Russia is not only hoping to help President Donald Trump, as in 2016, but also to help the candidacy of Sen. Bernie Sanders in the Democratic race. The intelligence experts say the Russians have a deeper motive than just reelecting Trump. They want to undermine public confidence in the integrity of the U.S. elections and stir general chaos in American politics. Lawmakers were told in a classified briefing last week that Russia is taking steps aimed at helping Trump, and Sanders acknowledged Friday that he was briefed last month.
February 22, 2020 4:10 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – South Korea has reported a six-fold jump in viral infections in four days to 346, most of them linked to a church and a hospital in and around the fourth-largest city where health workers scrambled to screen more than 9,000 worshipers. There’s concern that the death toll, currently at two, could grow. The vice health minister says virus patients with signs of pneumonia or other serious condition from the Cheongdo hospital were transferred to other facilities, 17 of them critical. He says the outbreak entered a serious new phase, but still expressed hope it can be contained to the southeastern Daegu region. In some positive news, China’s daily count fell to 397 cases, though another 109 people died of the disease.
