September 6, 2020 8:07 am
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Hundreds of people gathered for rallies and marches against police violence and racial injustice Saturday night in Portland, Oregon, as often violent nightly demonstrations that have happened for 100 days since George Floyd was killed showed no signs of ceasing. Molotov cocktails thrown in the street during a march sparked a large fire and prompted police to declare a riot. Video posted online appeared to show tear gas being deployed to clear protesters from what police said was an unpermitted demonstration. Arrests were made, but it wasn’t immediately clear how many. At least one community member was injured, police said. A person’s shoes caught fire after flames broke out in the street, video showed. People were “engaging in tumultuous and violent conduct thereby intentionally or recklessly creating a grave risk of causing public alarm,” the department tweeted. “Fire bombs were thrown at officers.”
September 6, 2020 8:05 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — In the shadow of Pennsylvania’s status as a battleground state in the presidential election, Democrats will fight to defend their gains in Congress two years ago and, possibly, add another seat or two as the state’s suburbs continue to turn against President Donald Trump. Meanwhile, Republicans are trying to defend their survivors in more evenly divided districts, while hoping to knock off some of the Democrats’ freshmen and one veteran congressman who keeps winning a district where Trump is popular. Elections in 2018 were fruitful for Democrats: Aided by redrawn districts and anti-Trump fervor, they picked up four seats in Pennsylvania, evening the state’s partisan balance in the U.S. House and helping the party recapture the House majority overall. There may be room for more districts to flip. Two incumbent Republicans won by fewer than 3 percentage points in 2018, while Democrats represent two districts that Trump won in 2016.
September 6, 2020 7:58 am
WASHINGTON, Pa. — Another notable local event will not be taking place this year due to COVID-19. Organizers for the annual Washington County Senior Expo at the Washington Crown Center announced Saturday that this year’s will not take place out of an abundance of caution to ensure the safety of those involved. Organizers say due to the nature and setting of this event, it has been determined that if held, it would not be possible to ensure compliance with the guidelines and protocols established by the Centers for Disease Control and the Pennsylvania Departments of Health and Aging for social gatherings. The event was supposed to be held Thursday, September 17th. The committee plans on hosting the event in 2021.
September 6, 2020 7:50 am
PETERS TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Peters Lake Park was closed for a time Saturday after a kayak was found floating unattended in the middle of the water. According to the Peters Township Fire Department, they were called around 7 a.m. by the police department after a blue kayak was found partially submerged in the water with personal belongings inside. The park was closed down to allow crews to search the area. The search involved people on foot, in vehicles, in two boats on the water and a drone was used to fly over the area. Peters Township Fire Chief Mike Mclaughlin said there was “no significant findings.” Mclaughlin said they did not dive under the water and that there was no evidence of anyone in the lake. If you have any information, you’re asked to call 911.
September 5, 2020 4:21 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump has directed the Office of Management and Budget to crack down on federal agencies’ anti-racism training sessions, calling them “divisive, anti-American propaganda.” OMB director Russell Vought, in a letter to executive branch agencies, has directed them to identify spending related to any training on “critical race theory,” “white privilege” or any other material that teaches or suggests that the United States or any race or ethnicity is “inherently racist or evil.” The memo comes as the nation has faced a reckoning this summer over racial injustice in policing and other spheres of American life.
September 5, 2020 4:19 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The tensions in the United States over racism and policing are likely targets for efforts to interfere in the 2016 election. That’s according to lawmakers and experts, who say there are signs that Russia is seeking to exploit the divide. Facebook, Instagram and Twitter have pulled down dozens of fake accounts with names like “Blacks Facts Untold” that were created by an organization with links to Russia’s Internet Research Agency. It’s a pattern that was seen in 2016, when the Internet Research Agency overwhelmingly focused on race and the Black Lives Matter Movement when targeting American social media.
September 5, 2020 4:18 am
BEIJING (AP) – President Xi Jinping has pledged to open China’s service industries wider to foreign competitors as its first in-person trade fair since the coronavirus outbreak opened under intensive anti-disease controls. Xi gave no details, but Chinese leaders are emphasizing tourism, retailing and other services. They are part of plans to nurture self-sustaining economic growth supported by consumer spending instead of trade and investment. Most exhibitors from abroad at the China International Fair for Trade in Services are due to participate via internet because Beijing has yet to relax curbs that bar most foreign visitors from the country.
September 5, 2020 4:16 am
NEW YORK (AP) – On the campaign trail, it’s like two different worlds out there. With President Donald Trump, the pandemic is largely over, the economy is roaring back, and murderous mobs are infiltrating America’s suburbs. With Democrat Joe Biden, the pandemic is raging, the economy isn’t working for the working-class, and systemic racism threatens Black lives across America. The first week of the fall sprint to Election Day has crystallized dramatically different versions of reality as the Republican incumbent and his Democratic challenger trekked from Washington and Delaware to Wisconsin and Pennsylvania and back. The candidates are fighting to navigate one of the most turbulent election seasons in modern history.
September 5, 2020 4:14 am
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Demonstrators were out on the streets again Friday night in Portland, Oregon, as the city this weekend reaches 100 straight nights of protests marked by vandalism and violence. The demonstrations started in late May after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. A slaying of a right-wing Trump supporter shot and killed after he came downtown last weekend with a pro-Trump caravan of pickup trucks further roiled things in the liberal city. The prime suspect in the shooting, self-described anti-fascist, was killed Thursday night by law enforcement. On Friday, demonstrators marched to a police building where they were met with officers donning riot gear.
September 5, 2020 4:13 am
NEW DELHI (AP) – India’s coronavirus cases have crossed 4 million, leading the world in new infections and deepening misery in the country’s vast hinterlands where surges have crippled the underfunded health care system. Initially, the virus ravaged India’s sprawling and densely populated cities. It has since stretched to almost every state, spreading through villages. With a population of nearly 1.4 billion people, India’s massive caseload isn’t surprising experts. The country’s delayed response to the virus forced the government to implement a harsh lockdown in late March. For over two months, the economy remained shuttered, buying time for health workers to prepare for the worst. With the cost of the restrictions also rising, authorities saw no choice but to reopen activities.
