July 2, 2019 4:10 am
NEW YORK (AP) – President Donald Trump has accused New York’s Democratic governor and attorney general of going after him in a “political Witch Hunt.” In several tweets Monday, Trump accused Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Attorney General Letitia James of “harassing all of my New York businesses in search of anything at all they can find to make me look as bad as possible.”
He said Cuomo “uses his Attorney General as a bludgeoning tool.” James is suing the Trump Foundation, saying it was improperly involved in the president’s political campaign and private business affairs. She is also investigating whether Trump gave misleading information to banks. James responded on Twitter that “no one is above the law.” Cuomo told reporters Trump is letting “his paranoia” get the better of him.
July 2, 2019 4:09 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – At least two Army tanks have arrived in Washington ahead of a Fourth of July celebration that President Donald Trump says will include military hardware. An Associated Press photographer says the two M1A1 Abrams tanks are with four other military vehicles on a freight train in a railyard at the southeastern edge of Washington. The vehicles are being guarded by military police but are visible to passersby on nearby paths. A military official earlier told the AP that the tanks were transported north from Fort Stewart in Georgia. Trump told reporters Monday that the tanks will be stationed outside the Fourth of July celebration but has not given details on how they will be used.
July 2, 2019 4:08 am
VIENNA (AP) – Iran’s foreign minister is expressing his exasperation over a White House statement on his country’s nuclear program. Mohammad Javad Zarif simply wrote early Tuesday on Twitter: “Seriously?” That was in response to a White House statement late Monday claiming: “There is little doubt that even before the deal’s existence, Iran was violating its terms.” The White House did not elaborate on how Iran could break the terms of the deal that had yet to be implemented. Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers saw it limit its enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the U.S. from the accord last year. On Monday, officials acknowledged Iran broke through the limit the deal placed on its stockpile of low-enriched uranium.
July 2, 2019 4:02 am
ERIE, Pa. (AP) – State environmental regulators are moving to shut down a coke plant in northwestern Pennsylvania, citing “years of numerous repetitive environmental violations.” The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection said Monday it has denied Erie Coke Corporation’s application to renew its operating permit and filed a complaint in Erie County Court to shut down the plant. The department said it had received “persistent complaints” from the community for more than a decade, but although Erie Coke had been given many opportunities to address the violations, the “frequency and severity” of the violations had only increased. Ed Nesselbeck, Erie Coke Environmental Director, told the Erie Times-News that the company was reviewing the department’s statement. He told WICU-TV last week that environmental compliance “though challenging, will be doable” and asked for “cooperation and patience.”
July 2, 2019 4:00 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Pennsylvania is broadening a college tuition benefit for National Guard members who sign up for another six-year enlistment. Gov. Tom Wolf on Monday signed legislation he calls the nation’s most extensive higher education benefit for a state Guard unit . Since 1996, National Guard members who sign up for a six-year enlistment get 10 semesters, or five years, of tuition credits equal to the annual tuition rate charged by Pennsylvania’s state system universities. The new reenlistment benefit is identical, but can also be used by spouses or children.
The institution must be approved by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency. The benefit starts immediately for Guard members. Family members can start claiming the benefit next summer. The new benefit is projected to cost about $12 million annually by 2024.
July 2, 2019 3:58 am
A run of the mill Supervisors meeting in Cecil Township turned out to be anything but that on Monday night. After all of the agenda items listed had been voted on, Supervisor Frank Egizio called for the immediate reorganization of the board. In a 3-2 vote, Chairman Eric Sivavec was voted out and Vice Chair Cindy Fisher was voted the new Chairperson. The main issue causing the vote was a lawsuit filed by Supervisor Tom Casciola against the other supervisors. Casciola maintains that the Sunshine Act was violated by what he describes as the firing of environmental attorneys working with the township on the purchase of the 87 acre ABB property in Muse. Egizio is upset that he and his colleagues must defend this suit and felt the board needed to go in a different direction. In her first order of business, Fisher presided over an audience comment period that lasted over 90 minutes. The comments came from more than 60 residents of the Windsor Woods community. They are concerned about the health risks and road destruction that could come about if Range Resources is allowed to develop the Augustine well pad. Diane DiDinardi, spokesperson for the residents of Windsor Woods was quite clear in her comments letting supervisors know that they do not want fracking taking place only 1000 feet from their homes. Supervisors were not able to comment as one resident is already suing the township over this issue and the solicitor advised them that they could not say anything as the issue proceeds through the courts.
July 1, 2019 5:27 pm
ELLENTON, Fla. (AP) – A Pennsylvania man says his 77-year-old mother contracted flesh-eating bacteria and died nearly two weeks after she fell and scraped her leg while walking on a Florida beach. Wade Fleming told The Associated Press on Monday that Lynn Fleming, who retired to Florida’s Gulf Coast, stumbled and fell into the water on Coquina Beach while her family was visiting from Pittsburgh. The wound swelled up and continued to bleed, leading her to urgent care where she was prescribed antibiotics and given a tetanus shot. The next day friends found her semi-conscious in her home and rushed her to a hospital. She was diagnosed with the flesh-eating disease and died Thursday after suffering two strokes and organ failure, almost two weeks after her injury. Coquina Beach is south of Tampa.
July 1, 2019 5:18 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump has signed a $4.6 billion aid package to help the federal government cope with the surge of Central American immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. Many Democratic lawmakers were hoping for more. They wanted stronger protections for how migrants are treated at holding facilities and to make it easier for lawmakers to make snap visits. The White House had threatened to veto the legislation on grounds that it would hamstring border security efforts. Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was forced to accept the Republican-controlled Senate’s version of the aid package, frustrating the more liberal members of her caucus. The bill bolsters care for tens of thousands of arrivals taken into custody monthly and sets guidelines for how the Trump administration must handle them.
July 1, 2019 3:37 pm
WHEELING, W.Va. (AP) – A charter bus weighing well over the weight limit crossed a West Virginia suspension bridge causing it to temporarily close. News outlets report a charter bus weighing more than the bridge’s 2-ton (1.8-metric ton) limit crossed the Wheeling Suspension Bridge on Saturday leading to the bridge’s closure. Wheeling Police Department spokesman Philip Stahl says the driver of the bus was cited for the overweight vehicle and failing to obey a traffic control device. The bridge remained closed Monday morning until an inspector can ensure it’s structurally sound.
July 1, 2019 1:46 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Legislation to help Pennsylvania’s counties afford new voting machines before next year’s election is wrapped up in the politics of voting and election laws. Gov. Tom Wolf said Monday that he’ll decide later in the week whether to sign or veto a bill that was opposed by the vast majority of his fellow Democrats in the state Legislature. The bill passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature authorizes borrowing $90 million to help counties underwrite a total voting-machine replacement cost that could exceed $100 million. Hours before it passed, Republicans added that provision to legislation that also eliminates the single ballot option for voters to select a straight-party ticket in elections. Democrats say that’ll benefit Republicans in down-ballot legislative elections. Republicans say it’ll encourage voters to vote for candidates, not parties.
