February 1, 2020 9:51 am
MINSK, Belarus (AP) – U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the United States can provide Belarus with 100% of its oil and gas, a slap at Russia which recently cut off supplies. Pompeo was in Belarus on Saturday seeking to improve ties with the former Soviet republic as its relations with Russia become further strained. Belarus fears Russia is trying to absorb it, using energy as leverage, and Pompeo said “all you have to do is call” for the U.S. to fill the vacuum. He’s the first secretary of state to visit Belarus in 26 years and pressed the country’s authoritarian president to do more to promote human rights and democracy if he wants normalized ties with the U.S.
February 1, 2020 9:49 am
BEIJING (AP) – China’s death toll from a new virus has risen to 259 and a World Health Organization official says other governments need to prepare for”domestic outbreak control” if the disease spreads. Beijing criticized Washington’s order barring entry to most foreigners who visited China in the past two weeks. Australia announced similar measures. Meanwhile, South Korea and India flew hundreds of their citizens out of Wuhan, the city at the center of an area where some 50 million people are barred from leaving in a sweeping anti-virus effort. Indonesia also sent a plane. The number of confirmed cases in China rose to 11,791, surpassing the number in the 2002-03 outbreak of SARS. Japan, Vietnam and Australia have reported one more case each.
February 1, 2020 9:46 am
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa presidential campaign has kicked into high gear at the start of weekend. Democratic candidates are launching a final, frenetic weekend of campaigning ahead of the Iowa caucuses, kick-starting the battle to take on President Donald Trump in November. The Senate pushed back voting on Trump’s impeachment trial until Wednesday, which allowed the senators who had been stuck in Washington to begin returning to the campaign trail. Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren flew to Iowa late Friday night and headed straight to a Des Moines brewery.
February 1, 2020 9:43 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – After a dramatic night, the Senate voted quickly to block Democratic calls for new witnesses and documents at President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial. The 51-49 vote Friday all but ensures Trump’s acquittal when senators answer the final roll call on impeachment sometime next week. While the vote was decisive, the result was expected after retiring GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee said Thursday night he would oppose a call for new witnesses. Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, the lone holdout, announced her “no” vote Friday as senators convened. A final vote on acquittal is expected Wednesday.
February 1, 2020 3:39 am
(WPXI)-Pennsylvania State Police confirmed a woman was killed in the northbound crash that happened minutes before a crash in the other direction on I-79. A portion of Interstate 79 southbound and northbound were both shut down for more than an hour after two crashes just minutes apart Friday afternoon. PennDOT confirmed the first crash happened around 3:30 p.m. on I-79 north near Exit 78 (PA 228) – which is just past Cranberry. According to police, a vehicle rolled over multiple times and landed in the median. At least one person was reportedly trapped in the vehicle and a medical helicopter was placed on standby. State police later confirmed the woman who was driving that car died in the crash. She was identified as Cristi Reibert, 41. Reibert was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. The second crash was just two minutes later, officials said, on I-79 south between Exits 85 and 78. Crews blocked both lanes heading south as they worked to clear the area. Parts of the northbound side were temporarily shut down as well. Both sides were opened back up by 6:15 p.m.
February 1, 2020 3:32 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Gov. Tom Wolf says Pennsylvania won’t apply for a Medicaid block grant proposed by President Donald Trump’s administration that would include a limit on how much the federal government contributes. Wolf said Thursday’s Trump administration proposal could lead to cuts in Pennsylvania’s Medicaid enrollment or increase its costs, and force states to restrict the number of people and services they cover. In exchange for operating under a fixed federal allocation, states would be able to limit what prescription drugs and benefits will be covered under the program, within certain guidelines. Its scope would be restricted to coverage for “able-bodied” adults under 65.
February 1, 2020 3:29 am
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – A longtime church official is set to be retried in a landmark church abuse case in Philadelphia, but it’s not clear if the key accuser will testify. Monsignor William Lynn is the first Roman Catholic church official ever charged with child endangerment over his handling of priest-abuse complaints. His 2012 conviction has twice been overturned, and his retrial is now set for March 16. Prosecutors this month say they’re not sure they’ll call a young man who said he was abused by two priests and a teacher. They argue that Lynn endangered children simply by transferring problem priests without warning. The defense insists the accuser must testify.
February 1, 2020 3:27 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – A Pennsylvania judge is putting a freeze on a new state police policy regarding sales of partially manufactured gun frames that can be made into working firearms. Commonwealth Court Judge Kevin Brobson issued a preliminary injunction Friday. State police provided guidance to gun dealers about three weeks ago regarding how to perform background checks for sales of what are often called 80% receivers or unassembled “ghost guns.” Brobson says the businesses that manufacture gun frames have raised a legitimate question about whether the state police policy is too vague. He says he’s open to revisiting the scope of his injunction, depending on what state police does in response.
January 31, 2020 2:53 pm
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The mother of a man convicted in the shooting death of a Pennsylvania police officer has been convicted of helping him elude police in the days after after the 2017 shooting. Sherry Holt was found guilty Thursday of hindering apprehension following a nonjury trial. The 49-year-old Pittsburgh resident faces up to seven years in prison when she’s sentenced April 23. Her son, Rahmael Sal Holt, was sentenced to death last year after he was convicted of first-degree murder in the slaying of New Kensington officer Brian Shaw. He was fatally shot after an attempted traffic stop on Nov. 17, 2017.
January 31, 2020 1:54 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Outdoorsy Pennsylvanians can soon keep their fishing license in a pocket rather than having to attach it to an outer garment. The regulation amendment approved this week by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission board adjusts a long-standing rule on license display. The new policy goes into effect once it is published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin. The executive director of the commission said the change will make things more convenient for anglers and decrease the number of lost licenses and the cost of replacing them. The change also aligns fishing display regulations with those of hunting licenses.
