June 2, 2026 5:17 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to face a litany of questions about the Trump administration’s fragile and stalling diplomatic efforts around the world when he appears for back-to-back hearings on Capitol Hill for the first time since the Iran war began. The former Republican senator will sit before House and Senate committees on Tuesday to make the State Department’s annual budget request. But the focus is likely to shift quickly to the already unsteady ceasefire between Washington and Tehran, which has been further tested in recent days by back-and-forth attacks.
June 1, 2026 5:18 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans are meeting to discuss next steps in a standoff with the White House. The discussion comes after the Justice Department said it would comply with a court order pausing the implementation of a $1.776 billion settlement fund designed to compensate President Donald Trump’s political allies. GOP senators revolted against the settlement before leaving for a Memorial Day recess two weeks ago. They are still unsatisfied and want more information from the Trump administration about the future of the fund. They worry the money could go to Trump supporters who beat police and attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
June 2, 2026 5:22 am
NEW YORK (AP) — The Defense Department has declared its press office a classified space, barring journalists from entry. It was yet another move restricting journalists’ access to Pentagon officials. Acting Pentagon press secretary Joel Valdez confirmed the move on X, stating it was due to speechwriters handling classified material in the space. Valdez emphasized there was “nothing controversial” about the decision. This change comes amid rising tensions between the U.S. media and the second Trump administration. Last October, many reporters turned in access badges over new restrictions. The New York Times has sued the Defense Department twice, arguing these restrictions violate the First Amendment.
June 2, 2026 5:15 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian forces have launched a massive aerial attack on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, killing at least 14 civilians and wounding over 100. The assault, which began at night and continued into the day, involved hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles. Authorities report that some people were trapped under rubble, including a 3-year-old child killed in Dnipro. Kyiv residents had been on edge after Russia warned of the attack. President Putin has intensified Moscow’s aerial campaign, exploiting Ukraine’s shortage of air defense missiles. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is urging more support from the U.S. and Europe.
June 2, 2026 5:20 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — California’s governor race is lacking star power this year. Big names like Kamala Harris and Alex Padilla have opted out, leaving a crowded field of about 60 candidates. Democrats are looking to Iowa for one of their best chances to pick up a governor’s seat in a state that has repeatedly disappointed them. Republicans, meanwhile, are grappling with a congressman whose unexplained absence could put their already slim majority at risk. And Los Angeles is deciding who will lead the nation’s second-largest city as it prepares to host the Olympics. Here’s what to know as voters cast ballots on Tuesday.
June 1, 2026 4:24 pm
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah judge has declined a request from the man accused of killing Charlie Kirk to restrict access to parts of his July preliminary hearing. Tyler Robinson’s defense hoped to bar reporters and the public from parts of July 6-10 proceedings. They will feature the most significant presentation of evidence so far. Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty if Robinson is convicted. He is charged with crimes including aggravated murder in the Sept. 10 assassination of Kirk on a Utah college campus. Robinson has not yet entered a plea. Prosecutors argued that the preliminary hearing should remain open.
June 1, 2026 4:22 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump says Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to dial back fighting after he held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and communicated with the Lebanon-militant group through mediators. Trump announced the development Monday in a social media post following a call with Netanyahu. Israeli forces recently made their deepest incursion into Lebanon in more than a quarter-century. Trump’s comments emerged after Israel’s government ordered strikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut and as Hezbollah fired rockets at northern Israel, including the outskirts of the coastal city of Haifa.
June 1, 2026 4:19 pm
A divided panel of federal appeal court judges has ruled that a Trump administration policy illegally banned transgender troops from military service. A March 2025 ruling concluded President Donald Trump’s executive order to exclude transgender troops from military service likely violates their constitutional rights. Meanwhile, the energy price spike triggered by the Iran war has seeped into the price of bonds that help fund the U.S. government. That’s caused interest rates to climb, hampering economic growth and creating a new risk for Republicans in November’s midterm elections. A nominal ceasefire between Iran and the U.S. has been repeatedly tested with such back-and-forth attacks, even as officials from both countries try to negotiate an end to the war.
June 1, 2026 5:05 am
The Washington County Coroners Office has announced that a Hickory man was killed in a one-vehicle crash Sunday night in Peters Township. According to the coroner, 37 year old Alexander Lauterbach lost control of his vehicle while traveling north along Washington Road. The vehicle rolled over and came to rest in the parking lot in the Waterdam Centre Shopping Plaza around 8:30 p.m. He was transported to Canonsburg Hospital were he was pronounced dead a short time later. A passenger in the vehicle was also transported to the hospital but there is no word on their identity or condition. The coroners office and Peters Township Police continue to investigate.
June 1, 2026 5:14 am
Community advocate Jodi Borello has officially announced her candidacy for the Pennsylvania State Senate in the 46th District. She is running as an independent candidate and will face incumbent Republican Camera Bartolotta and Democrat Evan Snyder. Borello says her platform centers on ‘economic accountability, public health and revitalizing local small businesses’. In a release, Borello says she ‘aims to break through traditional party lines and take on the corruption in both political parties to provide direct, unbossed representation for the residents of Washington, Beaver and Greene Counties’. She admits to facing ‘a steep institutional hurdle’ running outside the traditional two-party system.
