December 18, 2019 3:43 am
MILAN (AP) – Fiat Chrysler and PSA Peugeot have signed a deal for a 50-50 merger, creating 4th largest automaker with annual sales of 8.7 million cars. The companies announced the binding terms for the merger that was announced in October in a joint statement Wednesday. The companies say the new group will be led by PSA’s cost-cutting CEO Carlo Tavares, with Fiat Chrysler’s chairman John Elkann as chairman of the merged company. The joint statement says the merger would position the new company to “successfully capitalize on the opportunities presented in the new era of sustainable mobility.”
December 18, 2019 3:42 am
RENO, Nev. (AP) – Nevada says the U.S. Energy Department is engaged in a “secret plutonium smuggling operation” that threatens Nevada’s health, safety and environment. It’s again asking a federal judge to order the removal of weapons-grade material that the government shipped to a security site near Las Vegas over the state’s objections. The state’s latest filing this week in Reno is part of a yearlong legal battle. It urges a judge to reject the government’s motion to dismiss Nevada’s lawsuit challenging the shipments. The Energy Department says the issue is moot because it’s already promised no more plutonium will come to Nevada.
December 18, 2019 3:41 am
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – A federal bankruptcy judge has approved two Pacific Gas & Electric settlements totaling $24.5 billion to help pay for the losses suffered by homeowners, businesses and insurers in a series of catastrophic Northern California wildfires. Those fires led the company into a financial morass and Tuesday’s decision bolsters PG&E’s chances of following its preferred path for getting out of bankruptcy by a June 30 deadline. Even so, the utility still must sway California Gov. Gavin Newsom from his recent recent conclusion that PG&E’s plan doesn’t comply with state law to prevent the settlements from unraveling.
December 18, 2019 3:39 am
NEW YORK (AP) – A new survey shows about 1 out of 5 high school students in the U.S. áhave vaped marijuana in the past year. The report out Wednesday found marijuana vaping has been growing faster than nicotine vaping. The annual University of Michigan survey asked middle school and high school students about smoking, drinking and drugs. Vaping nicotine is still more popular: about 1 in 4 high schoolers said they had done it at least once in the previous year. Overall, marijuana use – in all its forms – is holding steady among teens.
December 18, 2019 3:38 am
WASHINGTON (AP)– A judge has ruled that former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden violated secrecy agreements with the U.S. government that allow it to claim proceeds from a memoir he published. Federal Judge Liam O’Grady ruled that Snowden is liable for breach of contract with the government because he published “Permanent Record,” without submitting it for a pre-publication review. In the book, Snowden explains how he viewed himself as a whistleblower by revealing details about the government’s mass collection of information in the name of national security. Snowden was charged under the U.S. Espionage Act. He now lives in Russia in order to avoid arrest.
December 18, 2019 3:33 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The U.S. House voted to impeach President Donald Trump in a historic nighttime vote that split lawmakers along party lines. In a long day of debate, Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi declared that lawmakers were rising to “defend democracy.” But Trump insisted they were actually perpetrating “an assault on America.” Trump would be just the third American president to be impeached, a lasting dark mark on his tenure. Now that they have been approved, the two charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress will be sent to the Senate for a trial in January. Republican supporters say the Democrats are just trying to remove a president they couldn’t defeat.
December 18, 2019 3:22 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – The Pennsylvania House is advancing changes to the state’s parole system for lower-level, less violent offenders and revamping the process by which inmates get into drug treatment. Representatives voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to send the amended legislation back to the Senate. It would set up a system of more automated parole, a change designed to make it more consistent and efficient. The bill also provides a “quick dip,” short-term detention for parole violations that aren’t considered serious enough to return them to prison, and authorizes a Corrections Department review team to examine homicides by parolees.
December 18, 2019 3:20 am
PITTSBURGH, Pa. (WPXI) — The Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium announced that its northern elephant seal, Coolio, died Tuesday morning. “Our animals are like family and today we lost a unique member,” says Dr. Barbara Baker, president and CEO. “Coolio was an amazing animal who touched not only our lives but our visitors as well. He will be missed dearly.” Zoo officials said Coolio passed away during a veterinary procedure and gross necropsy results indicated the seal suffered from congenital abnormalities, including blood vessel abnormalities, likely resulting in severe hypertension. Coolio was found severely injured and near death when he was just three months old along the California coast. The zoo said it’s not unusual for northern elephant seals to accidentally beach themselves at young ages as they learn to hunt for food and navigate the oceans. Coolio was rescued by the Northern Marine Mammal Center and nursed back to health, but the damage he suffered to his eyes left him blind. The NMMC reached out to the Pittsburgh Zoo after they determined he could not be released back into the wild. “He was always eager to learn and despite his disability, he made great progress,” says Paul Moylett, curator of Aquatic Life. When the zoo rescued a second northern elephant seal, Ellie Mae, keepers wondered how Coolio would react. “He was cautious at first,” said Moylett. “But he adapted quickly. He and Ellie Mae got along very well.”
December 18, 2019 3:19 am
WASHINGTON, Pa. — About 100 Washington County residents gathered on Main Street near the courthouse to rally support for the impeachment of President Donald Trump. The event was called “Impeach and Remove, Nobody is Above the Law” and its purpose was to send a message to Washington D.C. and especially Republican officeholders that actions performed by President Trump are worthy of impeachment and removal. Activist Sharon Laffey organized the event and was extremely pleased with the turnout. Supporters were very vocal and cheered as drivers passed by and honked their horns. One protester, Matt Cairone feels that Trump’s living outside the boundary of the law must come to an end. Protesters wanted to make sure that Representative Guy Reschenthaler and Senator Pat Toomey both knew that this group wants to see Trump impeached and removed from office. This was just one rally of many held nationwide on Tuesday night, right before the House Of Representatives vote to impeach on Wednesday. When asked about senators that already have their minds made up about the senate trial, many believe that those senators are breaching their oath of office, having their minds made up before even one word is spoken in testimony. Other events like this were held in Mt. Lebanon and in the City of Pittsburgh.
December 18, 2019 3:14 am
NORTH STRABANE, Pa. — Tax news was good coming from North Strabane Township Supervisors. Property taxes will not be going up to support a 30 million dollar budget approved by Supervisors on Tuesday night. The vote to hold the line on taxes was unanimous, but the budget spending plan had one dissent. Harold Close voted not to adopt the budget. He states that he felt more could be done to reign in spending to avoid future tax increases. Chairman Rob Balogh pointed to several building projects around town that will be funded this year. Two items are the new fire department substation being built in Eighty Four and the new Public Safety building. Supervisors tabled their decision to grant a conditional use application to Traditions of America. Prior to the Legislative meeting, Supervisors reopened a public hearing regarding that application. Traditions of America is proposing a 245 unit development between Mansfield Road and Brehm Road. The reopening was a request by resident Marti Caskey. She wanted to put in public record her concerns about the development as far as traffic and road conditions are concerned. She states that the roads in that area do not meet current township standards and they never will. Caskey feels an additional 1200 cars per day will over burden those roads. Supervisors will make a final decision on the conditional use application on December 23.
