January 28, 2025 5:01 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has signed a flurry of executive orders focused on the military. One directs Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to revise the Pentagon’s policy on transgender troops, likely setting in motion a future ban on their military service. Other orders would roll back diversity programs, create a space-based missile defense system and reinstate troops booted for refusing COVID-19 vaccines. The orders come just after Hegseth began his first day on the job Monday. A transgender ban had been widely expected, and lawyers for transgender troops have already pledged to fight it.
January 28, 2025 4:54 am
North Strabane Township officials offered a preview of their new Public Safety Building located on Route 19. Public Safety Director Mark Grimm and Township Manager Andrew Walz directed the tour of the building that will house police, fire and emergency medical services crews. Grimm said the building was needed because the previous building was outdated due to bigger fire apparatuses and a much larger fire and police crew. Walz called the building a “Game Changer” in the sense that its location will allow emergency crews to reach any part of the township quickly. Grimm detailed many of the upgrades that both fire and police will see. The police department will have 5 holding cells, interview rooms and a dedicated investigation area. Fire crews will be afforded some of the best cancer prevention strategies available. Diesel fuel fumes will be properly exhausted and personnel will be able to fully decontaminate their gear and themselves from any cancer causing agents encountered during a fire. Grimm took a moment to express his gratitude to the Peters Township Fire Department for their mutual aid efforts during the construction. He thanked them for their close relationship over the years. The building has been under construction for approximately two years. It is anticipated to be in use in mid to late March.
January 28, 2025 4:52 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump plans to sign the Laken Riley Act into law as his administration’s first piece of legislation. Trump will sign the immigrant detention measure on Wednesday. It mandates the detention and potential deportation of people in the U.S. illegally who are accused of theft and violent crimes before they have actually been convicted. The Laken Riley Act was named for a Georgia nursing student who was killed in 2024 while out for a run by a Venezuelan national in the U.S. illegally. The measure swiftly passed the Republican-controlled Congress with some Democratic support. Immigrant advocates say it could trigger mass roundups over offenses as minor as shoplifting.
January 28, 2025 4:47 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge has temporarily blocked a push from President Donald Trump to pause federal funding while his administration conducts an across-the-board ideological review to uproot progressive initiatives. The order Tuesday capped the most chaotic day for the U.S. government since Trump returned to office, with uncertainty over a crucial financial lifeline causing panic and confusion among states, schools and organizations that rely on trillions of dollars from Washington. U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan blocked the funding freeze only minutes before it was scheduled to take effect. The administrative stay, prompted by a lawsuit brought by nonprofit groups that receive federal money, lasts until Monday afternoon.
January 27, 2025 3:48 pm
NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street’s superstars are tumbling as a competitor from China threatens to upend the artificial-intelligence frenzy they’ve been feasting on. The S&P 500 fell 1.9% Monday. Big Tech stocks took some of the heaviest losses, with Nvidia down 18%, and they dragged the Nasdaq composite down 3.7%. Besides chip companies, utilities hoping to electrify power-hungry AI datacenters also tumbled. Stocks outside of AI-related industries held up much better, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 243 points. A Chinese company called DeepSeek said it had developed a large language model that can compete with U.S. giants at perhaps a fraction of the cost.
January 27, 2025 3:31 pm
OSWIECIM, Poland (AP) — Auschwitz survivors have warned of the rising antisemitism and hatred in the modern world as they gathered with world leaders and European royalty on the 80th anniversary of the death camp’s liberation. In all, 56 survivors gathered under a huge tent on Monday set up over a gate and railway tracks at the site of the former camp. Many participants believe it will be the last major observance with any notable number of survivors. The numbers have dwindled sharply over the years; 200 attended the 75th anniversary. (Photo: AP)
January 27, 2025 1:43 pm
(WPXI) – The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has announced the one-year-only site for the Three Rivers Arts Festival. The beloved annual celebration of the arts will be in a different format and location in 2025 due to construction at the 8th Street Block Civic Space and other downtown renovation projects. So, this year, the event, which runs June 5-8, will be held at the 15th Street Plaza along Waterfront Place in the Strip District. The Festival will remain near its namesake three rivers, not far from its future long-term home in the Cultural District. A map of the festival grounds will be released in the spring, along with the lineup of free performing and visual art attractions.
January 27, 2025 12:35 pm
(WPXI) – Two people were flown to area hospitals after a crash in Ligonier Monday morning. According to Westmoreland County 911, around 8:10 a.m. crews were called to the 3000 block of PA-711 for a vehicle crash with reported entrapment. First responders tell Channel 11 that seven people were hurt in the crash, including five juveniles. One adult and one child were flown to area hospitals. Everyone else was transported in ambulances. We’ve learned a Porsche and Chevy Trailblazer crashed head-on. All of the juveniles were in the Trailblazer. PA-711 closed while crews were on scene investigating the crash.
January 27, 2025 7:51 am
The Trump administration has announced a sweeping freeze on all federal grants – those funds already approved by Congress. The administration says it is a temporary pause – but it could have major consequences. This directive may be the most far-reaching executive action this White House has taken yet. It could potentially halt hundreds of billions of dollars in federal spending on everything from assistance to farmers to head start programs to disaster relief and public transportation. In a memo describing this that was obtained by ABC News – the White House budget office has ordered all federal agencies to cease any financial assistance if they believe the program might conflict with President Trump’s executive orders.
January 27, 2025 5:29 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The first report on last month’s Jeju Air crash in South Korea has confirmed traces of bird strikes in the plane’s engines, though officials haven’t determined the cause of the accident that killed all but two of the 181 people on board. The preliminary accident report released Monday said feathers and bird blood stains were found in both engines. It says a DNA analysis determined they belonged to migratory ducks. The report also says the plane’s black boxes stopped recording about 4 minutes before the crash.
