March 27, 2025 4:56 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI Director Kash Patel may not have been part of a Signal chat in which other Trump administration national security officials discussed detailed attack plans. But that didn’t spare him from being questioned by lawmakers this week about whether the nation’s premier law enforcement agency would investigate. Patel (pictured) made no such commitments during two days of Senate and House hearings, instead testifying that he had not reviewed text messages inadvertently shared with the editor-in-chief for The Atlantic. Even as President Donald Trump insisted that “it’s not really an FBI thing,” the reality is the FBI and Justice Department for decades have been responsible for enforcing Espionage Act statutes governing the mishandling of national defense information.
March 27, 2025 5:00 am
TECOLUCA, El Salvador (AP) — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has visited the high-security El Salvador prison where Venezuelans who the Trump administration alleges are members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang have been held since their removal from the U.S. Noem’s trip Wednesday to the prison where inmates are packed into cells and never allowed outside comes as the Trump administration seeks to show it is deporting people it describes as the “worst of the worst.” The Trump administration is arguing in federal court that it was justified in sending the Venezuelans to El Salvador, while activists say the prison is rife with human rights abuses.
March 27, 2025 5:01 am
SOMERVILLE, Mass. (AP) — A lawyer for a Turkish national and doctoral student at Tufts University says she has been detained by Department of Homeland Security agents without explanation. The lawyer for 30-year-old Rumeysa Ozturk says she had just left her home in Somerville, Massachusetts, on Tuesday when she was stopped by agents. Surveillance video obtained by AP appears to show six people whose faces are covered taking her phone as she yells and is handcuffed. A judge ordered that she not be moved out of Massachusetts and gave the government until Friday to respond. But as of Wednesday evening, she was listed in online records as being at processing center in southern Louisiana. The DHS confirmed Ozturk’s detention and the termination of her visa.
March 26, 2025 9:29 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Atlantic has released the entire Signal chat among Trump senior national security officials. It shows that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth provided the exact times of war plane launches, strike packages and targets — before the men and women flying those attacks against Yemen’s Houthis this month on behalf of the United States were airborne. The disclosure follows two intense days during which Trump’s senior most Cabinet members of his intelligence and defense agencies have struggled to explain how details that current and former U.S. officials have said would have been classified wound up on an unclassified Signal chat. That chat included Atlantic Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg.
March 26, 2025 4:53 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is downplaying the texting of attack plans to a group chat that included a journalist as “the only glitch in two months” of his administration. Trump told NBC News on Tuesday it “turned out not to be a serious one.” Top national security officials including Trump’s defense secretary texted plans for upcoming military strikes in Yemen to a group chat in a secure messaging app that included the editor-in-chief for The Atlantic. This was reported by the magazine Monday. The National Security Council says the text chain “appears to be authentic.” Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg says two hours after he received the details of the attack on March 15, the U.S. began launching airstrikes.
March 26, 2025 5:49 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says he is placing 25% tariffs on auto imports, a move the White House claims will foster domestic manufacturing but could also put a financial squeeze on automakers that depend on global supply chains. “This will continue to spur growth,” Trump told reporters Wednesday. “We’ll effectively be charging a 25% tariff.” The tariffs could be complicated as even U.S. automakers source their components from around the world, meaning that they could face higher costs and lower sales. Shares in General Motors fell roughly 3% in Wednesday afternoon trading. Ford’s stock was up slightly. Shares in Stellantis, the owner of Jeep and Chrysler, dropped nearly 4%.
March 26, 2025 4:43 am
The South Strabane Township Board of Supervisors approved plans that will reshape the Washington Mall area. The redevelopment, led by 79-70 Associates, will bring a mix of new retail, commercial, and service-oriented businesses to the area, including a 16,000-square-foot retail building, a warehouse club, and a recreational vehicle dealership and service center. Along with the demolition of the existing mall, the majority of the construction for the Harbor Freight store and the RV dealership will take place later this year, with work expected to begin this summer. The Warehouse Club is expected to be constructed next year.The total cost of the development is estimated to range between $20 to $30 million. According to project spokesperson Nate Phillips, the redevelopment will be fully funded through private dollars, with no need for the township to use Tax Increment Financing (TIF) or any similar funding programs. In addition to the retail buildings, the approved plan also includes a fuel station as an accessory to the proposed warehouse club, and a vehicle rental, sales, and service business, as well as a vehicle repair garage. The board has also given the go-ahead for a recreational vehicle dealership and service center as part of the overall project. In other township business, supervisors have approved an employment agreement with Marie Coffman for the Position of Finance Director and a resolution for a Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) Grant to begin the construction of a dog park at Community Park.
March 26, 2025 1:30 am
North Strabane Township voted to accept a Pennsylvania Automated Red Light Enforcement Transportation Enhancements Grant (ARLE) to upgrade safety along two township roads. According to Gibson-Thomas Engineering representative Vince Seyko, who is the engineer of record for the township, McDowell Lane and DeMar Blvd. have been identified as roads that need to have traffic calming measures implemented. Seyko says that digital signs displaying the speed of passing vehicles and rumble strips will be installed along both roads. The grant will cover the entire $116,000 cost of the project. With design and permit approval yet to take place, a projected start date for these improvements will likely be in the fall.
March 25, 2025 2:00 am
Sports Facility, LLC, owners of the Washington Wild Things announced that Wild Things Park has a new naming rights sponsor. EQT, Corporation, the natural gas production company signed a three year agreement to have the ballpark named EQT Park. Toby Rice, President and CEO of EQT, Corporation spoke of how his company is operated with partnerships and he is proud of this partnership. He said he looks forward to help the community and their families create memories at the EQT Park. Chris Blaine is the CEO of Sports Facility, LLC. She said that this is a great day for the park. Their relationship with EQT has grown over the years as EQT had been a sponsor for the team for several years. She described EQT and the Wild Things as like minded organizations built on teamwork. Both described EQT Park as a community asset, as it has hosted a myriad of events and organizations over the years. Financial terms of the agreement were not released. The ball park debuted in 2002 as Falconi Field and later became CONSOL Energy Field in 2007. The ball park has been without a name since 2017. Opening Day at EQT Park will be May 13 against the Ottawa Titans.
March 26, 2025 4:45 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democrat Dan Goughnour has won a special election in western Pennsylvania. His win Tuesday keeps majority control of the state House in his party’s hands. A second special election for a state Senate seat was close, with the Democrat poised for a possible upset in Lancaster County. Goughnour’s victory over Republican Chuck Davis means Democrats hold the House by a single vote, 102 members to 101. Holding the majority means Democrats can keep House Speaker Joanna McClinton of Philadelphia as the chamber’s presiding officer. The Senate race pits Democrat James Andrew Malone against Republican Josh Parsons.
