EPA fires employees who publicly criticized agency policies under Trump
WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday fired at least eight employees who signed a letter criticizing the agency’s leadership under Administrator Lee Zeldin and President Donald Trump. “Following a thorough internal investigation, EPA supervisors made decisions on an individualized basis,” an EPA spokeswoman said Friday in a statement....
Florida man in Batman pajamas helps police catch burglar
A Florida man wearing Batman pajamas helped Cape Coral cops catch an early morning burglar. Officers at the Cape Coral Police Department were responding to a burglary in progress about 2 a.m. Wednesday when they located their suspect, who was already being detained by a local man dressed as the...
Missouri is next to answer Trump’s call for redrawn map that boosts GOP in 2026
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo — Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe said Friday that he is calling Missouri lawmakers into a special session to redraw the state’s U.S. House districts as part of a growing national battle between Republicans and Democrats seeking an edge in next year’s congressional elections. Kehoe made the announcement...
Appeals court finds Trump’s sweeping tariffs unconstitutional but leaves them in place for now
WASHINGTON — A federal appeals court ruled Friday that President Donald Trump had no legal right to impose sweeping tariffs but left in place for now his effort to build a protectionist wall around the American economy. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled Trump wasn’t legally...
South Side woman to host Penn Township fundraiser for Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
As an engineering manager for QAI Aerospace, Ashley Sieber isn’t short on stories from flight paramedics whose aircraft receive services from the White Oak-based aviation company. Cystic fibrosis — a genetic disease that impacts the lungs, pancreas and other organs — is sometimes a part of those stories. That’s why...
Appeals court blocks Trump administration from ending legal protections for 600,000 Venezuelans
SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court Friday blocked President Donald Trump’s plans to end protections for 600,000 people from Venezuela who have had permission to live and work in the United States, saying plaintiffs are likely to win their claim the Republican administration’s actions were unlawful. A three-judge panel...
Sunblock, charcoal … and Powerball? Holiday weekend lottery drawing worth $1 billion
DETROIT — This could buy a lot of Labor Day weekend sunblock: Saturday’s Powerball jackpot is estimated at $1 billion, the sixth-largest prize in the game’s history. Powerball, which costs $2 per ticket, is played in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The...
AI Apocalypse? Why language surrounding tech is sounding increasingly religious
TORONTO — At 77 years old, Geoffrey Hinton has a new calling in life. Like a modern-day prophet, the Nobel Prize winner is raising alarms about the dangers of uncontrolled and unregulated artificial intelligence. Frequently dubbed the “Godfather of AI,” Hinton is known for his pioneering work on deep learning...
Trump revokes Secret Service protection for former VP Harris, AP sources say
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has revoked Secret Service protection for former Vice President Kamala Harris, according to a senior White House official on Friday. Former vice presidents typically get federal government protection for six months after leaving office, while ex-presidents do so for life. But another person familiar with...
Death toll from Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in New York City rises to 7 and infections hit 114
NEW YORK — New York City health officials have discovered a seventh death linked to a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in Central Harlem, where more than 100 people have been diagnosed with the ailment. The latest death was announced Thursday. Officials said they had concluded the death of a person with...
What to know about the U.S. warships sent to South America and the reaction in Venezuela
WASHINGTON — The United States is boosting its maritime force in the waters off Venezuela to combat threats from Latin American drug cartels with the expected arrival of more vessels next week, an action that will undoubtedly fuel more speculation among Venezuelans, their government and its political opposition. The U.S....
U.S. offers military funeral honors to Capitol rioter Ashli Babbitt
WASHINGTON — The U.S. government is offering military funeral honors for Ashli Babbitt, the rioter who was killed at 35 by an officer in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Babbitt was a U.S. Air Force veteran from California who was shot dead wearing a Trump campaign flag...
Mystery surrounds $1.2 billion Army contract to build huge detention tent camp in Texas desert
WASHINGTON — When President Donald Trump’s administration last month awarded a contract worth up to $1.2 billion to build and operate what it says will become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex, it didn’t turn to a large government contractor or even a firm that specializes in private prisons. Instead,...
Trump suggests more U.S. cities need National Guard but crime stats tell a different story
President Donald Trump has threatened to deploy the National Guard to Chicago, New York, Seattle, Baltimore, San Francisco and Portland, Oregon, to fight what he says is runaway crime. Yet data shows most violent crime in those places and around the country has declined in recent years. Homicides through the...
Israel declares Gaza’s largest city a combat zone as the bodies of 2 hostages are recovered
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israel on Friday declared Gaza’s largest city a dangerous combat zone and said it was in the ″initial stages″ of a planned offensive that has drawn international condemnation. Israel’s military said it suspended mid-day pauses to fighting, which had allowed food and aid supplies to...
Fire departments concerned about cancer risks are buying gear that is free of forever chemicals
EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Every time he rushed out on a fire call, East Providence Lt. Thomas Votta knew he put himself at risk for cancer. There are potential carcinogens in the smoke billowing out of a house fire, but also risks from wearing his chemically-treated gear. Last month, the...
Father of 8-year-old boy killed in Minneapolis church shooting wants him remembered for his love
MINNEAPOLIS — As the families of the two Catholic school students fatally shot while celebrating Mass at a Minneapolis church continue to wrestle with their grief, the father of the 8-year-old boy killed tearfully urged the community to remember his son for his love of family, fishing and cooking. “Please...
WCCC sees enrollment increase after years of decline
After 14 years of declining enrollment, Westmoreland County Community College may be starting to reverse the trend. As of the first day of classes, enrollment is up nearly 1.9%, or 42 students, compared to the first day of the 2024-25 academic year. And that doesn’t account for students taking late-start...
Penn Township takes over local recreation as commission dissolves
After nearly a quarter-century in operation, the Penn-Trafford Area Recreation Commission will close its doors. The nonprofit’s five governing bodies — Penn Township, Penn Borough, Penn-Trafford School District, Manor and Trafford — voted in recent weeks to dissolve the organization, with Penn Township commissioners casting the final approval last week....
D.C. man seen throwing sandwich at agent charged with misdemeanor after grand jury declines indictment
WASHINGTON — A man captured on camera hurling a sandwich at a federal agent in D.C. has been charged with a misdemeanor offense after prosecutors failed to convince a grand jury to return a more serious felony indictment, according to court papers filed Thursday. The move is a blow to...
Trump proposed getting rid of FEMA, but his review council seems focused on reforming the agency
Four days after starting his second administration, President Donald Trump floated the idea of “getting rid of” the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which manages federal disaster response. But at a Thursday meeting, the 12-person review council he appointed to propose changes to FEMA seemed more focused on reforms than total...
Fed official sues Trump over attempt to fire her, challenging his power over independent agency
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook has sued the Trump administration in an effort to overturn the president’s attempt to fire her, launching an unprecedented legal battle that could significantly reshape the Fed’s longstanding political independence. The lawsuit seeks an emergency injunction to block her firing and “confirm her...
European nations move to impose a ‘snapback’ of Iran nuclear sanctions at UN
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — France, Germany and the United Kingdom moved Thursday to reimpose United Nations sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program, further isolating Tehran after its atomic sites were repeatedly bombed during a 12-day war with Israel. The process, termed a “snapback” by the diplomats who negotiated...
U.S. applications for jobless benefits fell last week as layoffs remain low
WASHINGTON — Fewer Americans sought unemployment benefits last week as employers appear to be holding onto their workers even as the economy has slowed. Applications for unemployment benefits for the week ending Aug. 23 dropped 5,000 to 229,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Measures of the job market are being...
Authorities are looking for a motive for the shooter who killed 2 kids at a Minneapolis church
RICHFIELD, Minn. — Investigators were examining the videos, writings and movements of the shooter who fired through the windows of a Catholic church in Minneapolis, killing two children and wounding 17 people, for connections to the church and its school to understand the motivation for the attack. Armed with a...
