July 16, 2025 4:50 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — President Donald Trump is touting tens of billions of dollars of energy and tech investments at a new summit focusing on energy and innovation. At the event Tuesday in Pittsburgh helmed by Republican Sen. David McCormick, Trump boasted of a “true golden age for America” in energy policy and artificial intelligence. Pennsylvania is a swing state critical to Trump’s wins in 2016 and 2024, and is at the forefront of his energy agenda. In a panel discussion, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the Trump administration won’t let the U.S. lose the artificial intelligence race. Participating companies at the conference included Blackstone, Bridgewater, SoftBank, Amazon Web Services and ExxonMobil.
July 16, 2025 4:50 am
WEST PITTSTON, Pa. (AP) — Vice President JD Vance made the Trump administration’s first big pitch to sell the public on President Donald Trump’s sweeping budget-and-policy package in the swing political turf of northeastern Pennsylvania. The vice president, whose tiebreaking vote got the bill through the Senate, touted the legislation’s tax breaks and cast Democrats as opponents of the cutting taxes because of their unanimous opposition to the legislation. Democrats who’ve decried the law’s cuts to Medicaid and food stamps are expected to try to use it against Republicans in closely contested congressional campaigns next year, including one expected to play out in the working class-area where Vance promoted the legislation.
July 16, 2025 2:07 am
The idea of a personal warehouse development has been working its way to reality for more than a year in North Strabane Township. One additional step has been accomplished. Supervisors held a public hearing about amending the ordnance that permits a personal warehouse in the C-1 commercial district with regards to parking limits. Supervisors will entertain passage of the amendment that states that parking must be provided for one car for every 400 square feet of warehouse space. That is up from the original one car per 300 square feet of warehouse space. Additionally, a parking space in front of the door of each unit will not be counted in the total parking requirement. Township Manager Andrew Walz says the purpose is to try an minimize a “sea of asphalt” that is created when the parking is not utilized. He says it creates difficulty with storm water management. Another change is that there will be a five-acre minimum lot size for any personal warehouse development. CC Realty Advisors is the developer of the personal warehose. It is proposed for the corner of Morganza and Curry Roads. Supervisors could possibly vote on the changes in their August meeting.
July 16, 2025 1:29 am
A Canon McMillan High School teacher and former varsity golf coach has been arraigned on charges of allegedly having a sexual relationship with one of his students. Forty-eight-year-old Justin Harry White is facing several charges, including 13 counts of institutional sexual assault. Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh says an investigation by North Strabane Township Police uncovered thousands of texts and emails between White and the victim, which were described as a “daily sexual, romantic and inappropriate for a student-teacher relationship.” Authorities said White and the victim, who was a senior at the time, had multiple sexual encounters, including in White’s classroom, a parking lot three miles from the high school and at the soccer fields in North Strabane Township. North Strabane Township Police say White is being held in the Washington County Jail on a 150-thousand-dollar straight bond. His preliminary hearing has been set for August 5th. (Photo: WPXI)
July 15, 2025 5:51 pm
(AP) – The Emmy nominations are in, and familiar favorites like “Hacks,” “The Bear,” and “Abbott Elementary” dominate the comedy categories. However, there were some differences, too. Kathy Bates became the oldest lead drama actress nominee at 77 for “Matlock.” Apple TV+’s “Shrinking” gained traction with seven nominations, including Harrison Ford’s first Emmy nod. Netflix’s “Adolescence” scored 13 nominations, while “The Handmaid’s Tale” earned just one as it concluded its six-season run. Meanwhile, “The Voice” missed a reality competition nod for the first time since 2012, and Kristen Bell received her first-ever Emmy nomination for “Nobody Wants This.” (Photo: AP)
July 15, 2025 1:24 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Four independent voters in Pennsylvania are asking the state Supreme Court to rule that the closed primary system violates the state constitution. They filed a lawsuit Tuesday arguing that keeping independents out of primaries effectively denies them the right to vote in many districts where primaries determine the outcome. Pennsylvania is one of 14 states with closed primaries. New Mexico passed a law this year allowing voters with no party affiliation to vote in primary elections without changing their nonpartisan status. Lawsuits are pending in Wyoming, Oregon and Maryland.
July 15, 2025 9:11 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation rose last month to its highest level in four months as the cost of gas, food, and groceries rose, reversing several months of cooling price pressures. The Labor Department said that consumer prices rose 2.7% in June from a year earlier, up from an annual increase of 2.4% in May. On a monthly basis, prices climbed 0.3% from May to June, after rising just 0.1% the previous month. Worsening inflation poses a political challenge for President Donald Trump, who promised during last year’s presidential campaign to immediately lower costs.
July 15, 2025 5:06 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has announced new measures targeting Russia over its ongoing war in Ukraine, threatening steep tariffs if a peace deal isn’t reached within 50 days. Trump also revealed plans for European allies to buy U.S. weapons and transfer them to Ukraine. Patriot air defense missiles are a top priority for the besieged country. Monday’s announcement marks a shift in Trump’s stance, as the Republican president previously criticized Ukraine’s leadership but now expresses frustration with Vladimir Putin’s continued aggression. Meanwhile, Ukraine faces intensified Russian attacks, with June recording the highest civilian casualties in three years.
July 15, 2025 5:05 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is allowing President Donald Trump to put his plan to dismantle the Education Department back on track and go through with laying off nearly 1,400 employees. With the three liberal justices in dissent, the court on Monday paused an order from U.S. District Judge Myong Joun in Boston, who issued a preliminary injunction reversing the layoffs and calling into question the broader plan. The layoffs “will likely cripple the department,” Joun wrote. A federal appeals court refused to put the order on hold while the administration appealed.
July 15, 2025 5:02 am
LONDON (AP) — U.N. health officials have estimated that more than 14 million children did not receive a single vaccine last year. The World Health Organization and UNICEF said about 89% of children under 1 year old got a first dose of the diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough in 2024, the same as in 2023. About 85% completed the three-dose series, up from 84% in 2023. The agencies released their annual estimate of global vaccine coverage Tuesday. Health leaders said the collapse of international aid, led by the U.S., threatens efforts to reduce the number of unprotected children. The U.N. estimates vaccines prevent 3.5 million to 5 million deaths a year.
