July 23, 2024 5:14 am
WEST ALLIS, Wisconsin (AP) — A roaring crowd of battleground state voters greeted Vice President Kamala Harris in Wisconsin as she opened her Democratic political case against Republican former President Donald Trump. In her first rally since locking up the presidential nomination, she said Tuesday that in the November election against Trump, “it’s a choice between freedom and chaos.” In Washington, congressional Democratic leaders Charles Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries endorsed Vice President Harris, capping their party’s swift embrace of her 2024 candidacy. Two days after President Joe Biden dropped his reelection bid and as the Democratic Party coalesces around Harris, she traveled to Milwaukee on Tuesday. She has raised more than $100 million since Sunday afternoon.
July 23, 2024 5:03 am
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — At least 146 people were killed in mudslides in a remote part of Ethiopia that has been hit with heavy rainfall, according to local authorities. Young children and pregnant women were among the victims of the mudslides in the Kencho Shacha Gozdi district of southern Ethiopia, said Dagmawi Ayele, a local administrator. The death toll rose from 55 late Monday to 146 on Tuesday as search operations continued in the area, said Kassahun Abayneh of the Gofa Zone communications office. Gofa Zone is the administrative area in which the the mudslides happened. Landslides are common during Ethiopia’s rainy reason, which started in July and is expected to last until mid-September.
July 23, 2024 4:57 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The director of the Secret Service is stepping down from her job following the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump that unleashed intensifying outcry about how the agency tasked with protecting current and former presidents could fail in its core mission. Kimberly Cheatle had served as Secret Service director since August 2022. Cheatle announced her departure in an email she sent to staff. Cheatle had been facing growing calls to resign and several investigations into how the shooter was able to get so close to the Republican presidential nominee at an outdoor campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
July 23, 2024 4:52 am
NEVILLE TOWNSHIP, Pa. — (WPXI)- Gov. Josh Shapiro was in Pittsburgh Monday where he joined the Administrator of the U.S. EPA at Castle Builders Supply and Trucking on Neville Island. His visit was to announce the second largest federal investment in Pennsylvania history to help America’s clean energy transition as part of the Biden-Harris administration’s Investing in America tour. However, the focus of the event quickly turned to whether or not the governor will be tapped as a Vice-Presidential candidate. Shapiro says in the last 24 hours, he’s talked to both President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris but says those conversations were focused on what needs to be done to defeat former president Donald Trump in November. Despite being asked nearly a dozen times if he’ll consider joining Kamala Harris on the Democratic ticket as VP if asked, Shapiro was steadfast, saying he will not engage in speculation. “This is a deeply personal decision the Vice President will make,” Shapiro said. “She will make it on her own timetable and timeline. She needs to choose someone she’s prepared to governor with, campaign with and someone she feels most comfortable with.” CNN is also reporting that Gov. Shapiro is among a short list of Democrats who have been asked to submit information about finances, family histories and other personal details.
July 23, 2024 4:45 am
A housing development proposed under the Peters Township Conservation Residential Overlay District zoning application has been denied. Pleasant Pointe is a proposal to build 38 duplexes and 15 townhomes on a parcel of ground on E. McMurray Road across the street from the Peters Township Middle School. Property owner Andrew Zahalsky presented this plan as an alternative to an 88 townhome development that was denied earlier this year due to lack of specificity in the development plan. It was pointed out that his new plan lacked the same specificity that his previous plan lacked and was denied unanimously. Absent were a geotechnical analysis of the property, storm water and erosion management plans along with a traffic plan. Zahalsky spent more than 20 minutes trying to convince council to grant him an extension but they were not convinced since they saw no effort to answer the questions in his previous plan that apply to his new plan also. The property now reverts to a low density housing zoning district that requires half acre lots. Adjacent to the property is a proposed senior living facility that was granted special exception to be developed. That plan is still alive, according to Township Manager Paul Lauer, no development plan has been submitted but he expects one in the near future. When asked for his thoughts on council’s decision, Zahalsky had no comment.
July 23, 2024 2:27 am
A special session for the Peters Township school board has resulted in a new 5 year deal for teachers. In a unanimous vote Monday the board approved a deal that will provide salary increases, changes to health care contributions and adjustments to days off. Exact details of the contract have not yet been released but both sides agree this is a positive step for teachers and the district. The new contract will be retro-active to July 1, 2024 and will expire June 30, 2029.
July 22, 2024 4:26 pm
DETROIT (AP) — U.S. auto safety regulators are investigating complaints that some Ram pickups and Jeep Wagoneer SUVs can lose power, shift into park and apply the emergency brake. The probe announced Monday covers about 150,000 vehicles made by Stellantis from 2022. All have a 5.7-liter Hemi e-Torque mild hybrid system. The agency says the system converts energy from braking to power some electrical components. The system has a 48-volt battery pack and a motor generator that sends power to the crankshaft during gear changes. The agency says it has 80 complaints from owners that the engines can shut down, often at low speeds. Sometimes they can’t be restarted. Investigators will look into how often the problem happens and the cause of the engine stalling. Stellantis says it’s cooperating in the probe.
July 22, 2024 3:53 pm
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Cleveland-Cliffs announced Monday it will produce electrical transformers in a $150 million investment at a West Virginia facility that closed earlier this year. The company hopes to reopen the Weirton facility in early 2026 and “address the critical shortage of distribution transformers that is stifling economic growth across the United States,” it said in a statement. As many as 600 union workers who were laid off from the Weirton tin production plant will have the chance to work at the new facility. The tin plant shut down in February and 900 workers were idled after the International Trade Commission voted against imposing tariffs on tin imports. The state of West Virginia is providing a $50 million forgivable loan as part of the company’s investment.
July 22, 2024 12:44 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris has received the backing of more than half of the Democratic delegates she needs to become her party’s nominee. She has also set a new fundraising record in her first 24 hours as a presidential candidate, as top Democrats move to coalesce around her in their bid to defeat Republican Donald Trump. Aiming to put weeks of party drama over President Joe Biden’s candidacy and prospects in November behind them, prominent Democratic elected officials, party leaders and political organizations are quickly lining up behind Harris. The Democratic worries over Biden’s fitness for office have been replaced by fresh signs of party unity. Key endorsements Monday, including Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, left a vanishing list of potential rivals to Harris. Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, who had been one of the notable holdouts to Harris, initially encouraging a primary to strengthen the eventual nominee, endorsed Harris Monday. Pelosi said she was lending her “enthusiastic support” to Harris’ effort to lead the party. (Photo: AP)
July 22, 2024 9:57 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Joe Manchin says he won’t compete with Vice President Kamala Harris for the Democratic presidential nomination now that President Joe Biden has left the race. The West Virginia senator left the Democratic Party this year but had considered re-registering to vie for the nomination against Harris. But Manchin told CBS News on Monday he would not be a candidate. Additional endorsements Monday have left a dwindling list of potential rivals to Harris, who’s still the only candidate. Harris is moving swiftly to secure Democratic delegates behind her White House campaign since Biden stepped aside Sunday amid concerns from within their own party he’d be unable to defeat Republican Donald Trump.
