November 20, 2025 5:00 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — For the second time in two days, President Donald Trump said he would like to appoint Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to chair the Federal Reserve. Despite his protestations, Bessent is widely seen as a leading potential replacement for Powell. Trump has been sharply critical of the current Fed chair, Jerome Powell, whose term ends in May, for not cutting interest rates quickly enough. Trump’s pick will almost certainly push for rapid interest rate cuts and likely institute wide-ranging changes in how the Fed operates.
November 19, 2025 4:24 pm
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — The prosecution of former FBI Director James Comey has hit another hurdle. The Justice Department acknowledged in court Wednesday a possible lapse in how the case was presented to a grand jury. The revelation that the full grand jury didn’t review a copy of the final indictment came during a hearing where Comey’s lawyers asked a judge to throw out the case on grounds the government is being vindictive. Comey has pleaded not guilty to charges accusing him of making a false statement and obstructing Congress. President Donald Trump’s Justice Department says Comey was indicted because he broke the law, not because Trump ordered it.
November 19, 2025 4:27 pm
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Federal agents have now arrested more than 250 people during an immigration crackdown in North Carolina centered around Charlotte, the state’s largest city. Those totals released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security are about double the arrest figures announced earlier this week. The operation that began over the weekend is the latest phase of Republican President Donald Trump’s aggressive mass deportation efforts. Military and immigration agents have converged on Democratic-run cities, including Chicago and Los Angeles. The push to carry out arrests in North Carolina expanded to areas around the state capital of Raleigh in just the last day.
November 19, 2025 4:25 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Labor Department said Wednesday that it will not be releasing a full jobs report for October because the 43-day federal government shutdown meant it couldn’t calculate the unemployment rate and some other key numbers. Instead, it will release some of the October jobs data — most importantly the number of jobs that employers created last month — along with the full November jobs report, now due a couple of weeks late on Dec. 16. The department’s “employment situation″ report usually comes out the first Friday of the month. But the government shutdown disrupted data collection and delayed the release of the reports. For example, the September jobs report, now coming out Thursday, was originally due Oct. 3.
November 19, 2025 4:09 am
Washington County Commissioners will be looking to authorize a measure for a letter of intention submission to the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs in an effort to have Washington County Human Services department operate drug and alcohol addiction programs under a Single County Authority designation. During the agenda setting meeting, Cheryl Andrews, Executive Director of the Washington Drug and Alcohol Commission asked that the motion be removed from the agenda or at least tabled to have further conversation. At issue is Washington County’s plan to have the County Human Services Department be the lead organization for addictions programs. In Andrew’s view, that would be pushing aside the more than 20 years of work helping those with addiction performed by the WDAC. She feels that the County taking over an addictions program would add too much bureaucracy. Commissioner Chairman Nick Sherman says that a report provided by the Hill Group supports the county becoming the Single County Authority for addictions programs. He says that centralization of human services programs is key to success. Many people that suffer other difficulties can trace those difficulties to addiction, therefore the need for centralization. Commissioner Larry Maggi disagrees with Sherman saying that he is concerned about the budget by adding approximately a dozen people to the county payroll. He also says that the WDAC has done a great job for more than 20 years and sees no reason for the county to absorb the work that they do.
November 19, 2025 2:27 am
The Shapiro Administration is highlighting $343 million in infrastructure projects in Southwestern Pennsylvania. PennDot District 12, that covers Washington, Greene, Fayette and Westmoreland counties paved 77 miles and repaired or replaced 106 bridges. In Washington County, PennDot reconstructed the intersection of Bebout Road and East McMurray Road in Peters Township. They replaced the bridge carrying Rt. 18 over Chartiers Creek in North Franklin Township. Also on Rt. 18 the bridge that carries the road over Catfish Creek in Washington was replaced. PennDot Assistant District 12 Executive for Construction Bill Beaumiriage said that “District 12 is proud of the bridge and roadway improvements completed across our region in 2025. Each project represents the commitment of our team and parters to deliver safe, reliable and lasting infrastructure for the communities we serve.”
November 19, 2025 4:31 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Energy says it’s loaning $1 billion to help finance the restart of the nuclear power plant on Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island to supply power to data centers for tech giant Microsoft. The loan announced Tuesday will lower the borrowing costs for Constellation Energy, which owns Three Mile Island’s lone functioning nuclear power reactor. The reactor had been mothballed for five years when Constellation Energy announced last year that it would spend $1.6 billion to restart it under a 20-year agreement with Microsoft to buy the power. It hopes to bring the plant back online in 2027.
November 25, 2025 1:00 am
Thanksgiving is almost here and we still need your help to provide a Thanksgiving dinner for needy families in Washington County. On Thursday, Pennsylvania American Water presented a generous check for $10,000 and the Washington Lions Club also donated $500. Range Resources staff and a multitude of students from around the area made a major contribution this year, by once again hitting the streets in downtown Washington and Canonsburg to solicit donations. This year, however, it wasn’t just your average solicitation. Range, as in the past, matched donations that day – up to $20,000 and all of the money raised is heading directly to families in Washington. This year, 2000 Turkeys also teamed up with the Washington County United Way. The agency was at both the Washington and Canonsburg locations collecting non-perishable food items. There is still time to donate and any donation amount is appreciated. You can donate directly by sending a check to: 2000 Turkeys, P.O. Box 2000, Washington, Pa. 15301.
November 19, 2025 5:55 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Both the House and Senate have acted decisively to pass a bill to force the Justice Department to publicly release its files on the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. It’s a remarkable display of approval for an effort that had struggled for months to overcome opposition from President Donald Trump and Republican leadership. Trump now says he will sign the bill. Just hours after the House passed the bill, the Senate approved a motion to pass the bill with unanimous consent once it is sent to the Senate. For survivors of Epstein’s abuse, passage of the bill was a watershed moment in a years-long quest for accountability.
November 19, 2025 2:19 am
A panel of three federal judges has blocked Texas from using a new congressional map that Republicans drew in hopes of picking up five U.S. House seats. That map had touched off a nationwide redistricting battle and is a major piece of President Donald Trump’s efforts to preserve a slim Republican majority ahead of the 2026 elections. In a 2-1 ruling Tuesday, a panel of federal judges in El Paso sided with opponents who argued that Texas’ unusual summer redrawing of congressional districts would harm Black and Hispanic residents. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott vowed a swift appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court and defended the map.
