May 5, 2022 4:14 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The oldest son of former President Donald Trump has met with the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. That’s according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private session. The interview with Donald Trump Jr. took place Tuesday. He’s one of nearly 1,000 witnesses interviewed by members of the House committee as they work to compile a record of the worst attack on the Capitol in more than two centuries. He’s the second of Trump’s children known to speak to the committee. His sister Ivanka Trump sat down with lawmakers for eight hours in early April.
May 5, 2022 4:12 am
LAS VEGAS, N.M. (AP) – Firefighters have slowed the advance of the largest wildfire in the U.S. as heavy winds relented. President Joe Biden, meanwhile, has approved a disaster declaration that brings new financial resources to remote stretches of northern New Mexico devastated by fire. Fire crews in New Mexico sought Wednesday to keep the flames from pushing any closer to the town of Las Vegas and other villages scattered along the blaze’s shifting fronts. The fire has burned hundreds of square miles, dozens of homes and triggered the evacuation of 15,500 homes. The new disaster aid includes grants for temporary housing and home repairs, and low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses.
May 5, 2022 4:10 am
LVIV, Ukraine (AP) – Ukrainian forces say they repelled Russian attacks in the east and recaptured some territory even as Moscow moved to obstruct the flow of Western weapons to Ukraine by bombarding rail stations and other supply-line targets across the country. Heavy fighting also raged at the Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol that represented the last stronghold of Ukrainian resistance in the ruined southern port city. A Russian official earlier denied that troops were storming the plant, but the commander of the main Ukrainian unit inside said Russian soldiers had pushed into the mill’s territory. Ukraine’s military says five people were killed and at least 25 more wounded in shelling of several eastern cities over the past 24 hours.
May 5, 2022 4:08 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – What could be the final primary debate between Republicans running for Pennsylvania’s open U.S. Senate seat devolved into a string of attacks. The candidates stretched for any perceived advantage in a wide-open race. In many cases, candidates blew off questions during Wednesday night’s hour-long debate. Abortion made one question, despite it dominating headlines after a leaked draft of a Supreme Court opinion suggesting the court’s conservative majority is poised to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide. The candidates applauded the overturning of Roe v. Wade, but didn’t respond directly to whether they support any exceptions for abortion. The primary is May 17.
May 4, 2022 5:39 pm
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – Primary elections in Ohio have set the stage for a more competitive phase of the midterm primary season, with closely watched races in Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia scheduled for later this month. In Ohio on Tuesday, “Hillbilly Elegy” author JD Vance, buoyed by Donald Trump’s endorsement, won the contentious Republican Senate primary. Vance’s win ends a bitter contest that, at one point, saw two candidates nearly come to blows on a debate stage. Ohio was seen as a test of Trump’s hold on his party. The former president has staked his reputation as a GOP kingmaker on his ability to pull his chosen candidates across the finish line.
May 4, 2022 5:37 pm
UNDATED (AP) – In the end for Dolly Parton, resistance was futile. The country music icon is among those being inducted into the latest class at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. She was voted in despite first saying she shouldn’t be considered because there were others more deserving in rock. She later relented after learning she had no say-so in the matter – and that the Hall accepts all genres of music. Others who are getting in prove that. This year’s inductees include Eminem, Lionel Richie, Carly Simon, Eurythmics, Duran Duran and Pat Benatar. The induction ceremony is set for Nov. 5 in Los Angeles. (Photo: AP)
May 4, 2022 4:55 pm
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Dave Chappelle (shuh-PEHL’) was attacked – but not injured – during a performance at the Hollywood Bowl last night. The comedian was finishing his set when someone ran at him and tried to tackle him. Security guards overpowered the man, dragging him off stage – and Chappelle finished his performance. The man who rushed him was taken away in an ambulance. The Los Angeles Police Department says the 23-year-old man was carrying a fake handgun with a real knife blade inside it. Police say the alleged attacker was treated for an unspecified injury and arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon. Jamie Foxx was in the wings of the Hollywood Bowl and during his curtain call, Chappelle thanked him for responding to the attack. Chris Rock was also there; he jokingly asked if the attacker was Will Smith, who slapped Rock during the Oscars.
May 4, 2022 3:54 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Federal Reserve intensified its drive to curb the worst inflation in 40 years by raising its benchmark short-term interest rate by an sizable half-percentage point. The half-point hike in the Fed’s key rate – its largest since 2000 – raised it to a range of 0.75% to 1%, the highest point since the pandemic struck two years ago. The Fed will likely follow Wednesday’s move with the fastest pace of hikes in 30 years. The Fed also announced Wednesday that it will start reducing its huge $9 trillion balance sheet, which consists mainly of Treasury and mortgage bonds. Reducing the Fed’s holdings will have the effect of further raising loan costs throughout the economy.
May 4, 2022 12:14 pm
One man is dead after a tree fell onto several cars at a Sunoco Station in Upper St. Clair Tuesday evening. The gas station is located on the corner of McMurray Road and Bethel Church Road and authorities say the cars had been stopped at a red light when the tree came down. The man was taken to an area hospital in critical condition. He later died. Power lines were down in the area and the Sunoco’s roof was ripped off. His wife and a family of six in the other car were not injured. (Photo: WPXI)
May 4, 2022 5:34 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward its eastern waters on Wednesday. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that the missile was fired from the North’s capital region and flew to the waters off its eastern coast. The Japanese Coast Guard urged vessels traveling off Japanese coasts to stay away from any possible fragments. The launch comes days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to bolster his nuclear arsenal and threatened to use them against rivals. The launch came six days before a new conservative South Korean president takes office. North Korea has a history of raising animosities with weapons tests when Seoul and Washington inaugurate new governments.
