October 29, 2026 8:44 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — An inflation gauge closely monitored by the Federal Reserve accelerated last month, a sign prices remain elevated less than a week from midterm elections that have focused on affordability concerns. Consumer prices rose 3.6% in September compared with a year earlier, the Commerce Department said Thursday, up from 3.4% in August. On a monthly basis, prices climbed 0.5%, up from 0.3% in August and the highest figure since May. Annual inflation has worsened since the Iran war caused spikes in oil and gas prices. U.S. oil prices still top $100 a barrel, up from less than $70 before the war.
October 29, 2026 8:46 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy grew at a healthy 3.4% annual pace from July through September, accelerating from the second quarter on strong consumer spending and investment in artificial intelligence. The expansion in third-quarter gross domestic product – the nation’s output of goods and services – was faster than the 2.2% growth registered from April through June, the Commerce Department said Thursday. Consumer spending rose at a brisk 3.8% clip in the third quarter, and business investment was up sharply, reflecting the AI boom.
October 29, 2026 4:36 am
In Hanover Township, some residents are looking to get more representation on the Board of Supervisors. This comes after months of conditional use hearings regarding a proposed data center at Starpointe Business Park. On Election Day, residents can vote to expand the Board from three to five supervisors. One resident, Katie Weber, says having additional supervisors is important to increase diversity and representation. Andy Miller is a resident and part owner of Starpointe Business Park. He says adding supervisors is a terrible idea. Resident Gary Munko explains that if supervisors are added, they would not take office until January 2028. At that time, they would be able to enforce the township’s data center ordinance. The conditional use hearing will continue November 10 at 6:00 PM at the Hanover Township Fire Department Hall.
October 28, 2026 2:12 am
Washington County 911 tells WJPA News that one person was trapped in a home at 775 Michigan Avenue in South Strabane Township after a fire broke out shortly before six o’clock on Wednesday evening. According to a post on the South Strabane Fire Department website, the individual was rescued and taken to a hospital. There’s been no word on that person’s condition or the nature of the injuries. Multiple fire departments responded and the blaze was brought under control quickly. South Strabane fire officials say the fire is under investigation.
October 29, 2026 4:44 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department is escalating a criminal investigation over an Alaska Senate candidate who shares a name with the Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan. It has issued a raft of new grand jury subpoenas, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Thursday. The subpoenas seeking grand jury testimony or documents, along with records preservation demands, were issued after The New York Times reported that Democratic candidate Mary Peltola’s campaign appeared to be involved in recruiting Dan J. Sullivan Jr. as part an alleged effort to confuse voters in the hotly contested race. Neither the recipients of the subpoenas nor the number of them were immediately clear.
October 29, 2026 4:40 am
ROCK HILL, S.C. (AP) — President Donald Trump is campaigning in South Carolina as he encourages Republicans to show up for Darline Graham in a critical Senate contest. Graham is trying to fend off a challenge from pediatrician Annie Andrews in a state that hasn’t sent a Democrat to the Senate in nearly three decades. Andrews is urging voters seeking change to “try something new for once.” Darline Graham was appointed to the Senate in July after the death of her brother Lindsey. She’s running for a six-year term. Trump was in Rock Hill on Thursday, where he called Lindsey Graham “a great politician” and said his sister has “the gene.” Trump spent part of his speech opining on other competitive contests, in North Carolina, Michigan, Texas, Minnesota and Alaska.
October 29, 2026 2:24 am
(AP) – Patrick Stewart, the classically trained stage actor who scaled the Shakespearean canon and added gravitas to a “Star Trek” franchise and the “X-Men” films, has died. He was 86. A spokesperson said Stewart died Wednesday in Los Angeles, following “a brief and poignant journey” with Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy Body Dementia. Stewart was best known as Professor Charles Xavier from the “X-Men” and Captain Jean-Luc Picard from “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” but he spent more of his career onstage than in the X-Mansion or on the USS Enterprise. (Photo: AP)
October 28, 2026 4:42 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve kept its key rate unchanged Wednesday at about 3.9% despite stubbornly high inflation, while providing little hint about its next moves. The Fed meeting took place less than a week before the midterm elections, which have focused heavily on concerns about the cost of living and affordability, but Fed Chair Kevin Warsh denied politics affected the central bank’s decision. The Fed wants to return inflation to its 2% target, which it typically does by raising its short-term interest rate. Warsh dismissed the notion that not raising rates would cause the public to lose faith in the Fed.
October 29, 2026 4:41 am
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his party have amplified claims that the country’s election was “stolen” by Arab-led parties. Final results are expected to confirm on Thursday that Netanyahu’s bloc has lost its majority in parliament. The opposition accuses Netanyahu of demonizing the Arab population after a strong showing by Arab-led parties. If the opposition teams up with those parties in a rare and politically risky move, they could form the next government. The elections committee has asked the Shin Bet intelligence service to investigate alleged election interference by unspecified “foreign entities.” Netanyahu’s Likud party targeted Arab-led parties even before the vote, despite lacking specific evidence.
October 29, 2026 5:44 pm
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — After a brief bidding war, the manuscript map that helped divide the United States into North and South, free and slave states, sold for $950,000. Lauren Brunk of Brunk Auctions in Asheville, North Carolina, said Thursday that 45 bidders battled for just under three minutes to own the hand-drawn survey of the Mason-Dixon Line, finished in 1768 by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon. Bidding started at $400,000. And while it didn’t fetch the hoped-for $1.2 million high estimate, Brunk says it was a very high price for an American map. She says the buyer asked to remain anonymous, at least for now.
