No. 2 House Republican Steve Scalise refuses to say election wasn’t stolenVideo
WASHINGTON — The House’s second-ranking Republican, Rep. Steve Scalise, repeatedly refused to say on Sunday that the 2020 election wasn’t stolen, standing by Donald Trump’s lie that Democrat Joe Biden won the White House because of mass voter fraud. More than 11 months after Americans picked their president and almost...
Western Pa. hospitals: We won’t deny organ transplants to patients who refuse covid-19 vaccine
Medical providers in Colorado and Washington state have begun denying organ transplants to patients who refuse to get vaccinated for covid-19. That’s not happening in Western Pennsylvania, the Tribune-Review has learned. Neither of the region’s two largest hospital systems and transplant providers are linking transplant eligibility to covid-19 vaccination status....
Tensions persist between legacy of Columbus, native people
Monday’s federal holiday dedicated to Christopher Columbus is highlighting the ongoing divide between those who view the explorer as a representative of Italian American history and others horrified by an annual tribute that ignores native people whose lives and culture were forever changed by colonialism. Spurred by national calls for...
Advocates, lawmakers push hospitals to help more with bills
Swamped with medical bills? The hospital that treated you may be able to help. Whether you learn about this before those bills wind up in debt collections is another matter. Medical bills often represent large, unexpected shocks that can crash personal budgets. Roughly 1 in 7 U.S. residents with a...
How U.S. states help rich foreigners shield assets
DOVER, Del. — A mention of “tax havens” typically conjures images of sun-soaked Caribbean escapes like the Cayman Islands or the buttoned-down banks of Switzerland. Not South Dakota. But a report detailing how world leaders and some of the planet’s wealthiest people hide their riches has drawn new scrutiny to...
Georgia police officer gunned down during 1st shift
ALAMO, Ga. — A Georgia police officer was gunned down outside a police station during his first shift with the department early Saturday, authorities said. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said Officer Dylan Harrison, 26, was fatally shot outside the Alamo Police Department by Damien Anthony Ferguson. Ferguson, 43, remained...
UK eyes ‘walk me home’ phone-tracker to protect lone women
A top British government official is backing a phone company’s proposal for a new tracking service to help protect women walking alone, an idea pitched amid ongoing outrage over the slayings of two young women who were targeted near their homes in London. The chief executive of Britain’s biggest phone...
Taliban say they won’t work with U.S. to contain Islamic State
The Taliban on Saturday ruled out cooperation with the United States to contain extremist groups in Afghanistan, staking out an uncompromising position on a key issue ahead of the first direct talks between the former foes since America withdrew from the country in August. Senior Taliban officials and U.S. representatives...
McConnell seizes on debt standoff to undermine Biden agenda
In the frantic bid to avert a default on the nation’s debt, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell held a position of unusual power — as the one who orchestrated both the problem and the solution. McConnell is no longer the majority leader, but he is exerting his minority status in...
Chopin portrait bought at flea market is from 19th century
A peeling portrait of Frederic Chopin purchased at a flea market in Poland hung modestly in a private house for almost three decades before an expert dated the painting to the 19th century, when the Polish piano composer lived. Now restored and in a gilded frame, the small painting resides...
Biden won’t invoke executive privilege on Trump Jan. 6 docs
The White House said Friday that President Joe Biden will not block the handover of documents sought by a House committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, setting up a showdown with former President Donald Trump, who wants to shield those White House records from investigators. The...
Alabama teen chef known for TV cooking shows dies at 17
Fuller Goldsmith knew his life’s arc well before he even began school. During hours waiting out chemotherapy treatments at Children’s of Alabama hospital, the Tuscaloosa native grew bored watching Disney Channel and cartoons, and turned instead to Food Network shows, thus setting his path. The young chef won the “Chopped...
Officials: Breakthrough covid cases increase, but vaccinations remain effective against severe illness, death
State health officials on Friday released new data that sheds some light on the frequency of covid-19 breakthrough cases as well as the related rates of hospitalization and death, though a lack of demographic data means some key questions about such cases remain unanswered. Over the past month, 135,098 people...
Boosters, employer mandates drive increase in U.S. vaccines
The number of Americans getting covid-19 vaccines has steadily increased to a three-month high as seniors and people with medical conditions seek boosters, and government and employer mandates push more workers to take their first doses. Demand is expected to spike in a few weeks if regulators authorize the Pfizer...
CCAC to offer free introductory course for court reporting
If you’re looking for a new career path, it’s hard to top an education program with a 100% placement rate. Those earning certification of a two-year associate’s degree in the Community College of Allegheny County’s court reporting program also earn an average starting salary of around $40,000, according to CCAC...
2 parents convicted in 1st trial of college bribery scandal
Two wealthy parents were convicted Friday of buying their kids’ way into school as athletic recruits in the first case to go to trial in the college admissions cheating scandal that embroiled prestigious universities across the country. Gamal Abdelaziz, a former casino executive, and John Wilson, a former Staples executive,...
Many Pa. school districts are passing up free coronavirus testing even after a rise in cases
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Even after covid-19 cases rose among children and district leaders worked to contain outbreaks among students, Pennsylvania schools have...
Bannon won’t comply with subpoena from House Jan. 6 panel
WASHINGTON — A lawyer for Steve Bannon said Friday that Bannon won’t comply with a congressional investigation into the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol because former President Donald Trump is asserting executive privilege to block demands for testimony and documents. “As such, until these issues are resolved, we are...
Biden restores Utah’s national monuments after Trump rescinded protections
President Joe Biden on Friday restored the protected Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments after former President Donald Trump dramatically slashed them in an effort to open more sensitive public lands to ranching, mining and oil drilling. The president also reestablished a marine conservation area off the New England...
Police detail cultish beliefs of mom charged in kids’ deaths
BOISE, Idaho — Newly released documents from the complex investigation of a woman accused of conspiring to kill her children and husband reveal sordid details of a cult-like belief system of “zombies” and “vibrations” plus a disintegrating marriage and an affair. Documents from the Chandler Police Department in Arizona offer...
Biden is first president to mark Indigenous Peoples’ Day
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Friday issued the first-ever presidential proclamation of Indigenous Peoples’ Day, lending the most significant boost yet to efforts to refocus the federal holiday celebrating Christopher Columbus toward an appreciation of native peoples. Biden also issued a proclamation of Columbus Day on Monday, which is...
Anti-vaccine chiropractors are rising force of misinformation
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The flashy postcard, covered with images of syringes, beckoned people to attend Vax-Con ‘21 to learn “the uncensored truth” about covid-19 vaccines. Participants traveled from around the country to a Wisconsin Dells resort for a sold-out convention that was, in fact, a sea of misinformation and conspiracy...
Former Ga. state lawmaker, regent pleads guilty to racketeering
CONYERS, Ga. — A former Georgia state lawmaker and university regent was sentenced to eight years in prison for racketeering, the state attorney general’s office announced. Dean Alford was indicted in May in Rockdale County on charges of racketeering, fraud and forgery relating to allegations that he faked contracts while...
Americans agree misinformation is a problem, poll shows
WASHINGTON — Nearly all Americans agree that the rampant spread of misinformation is a problem. Most also think social media companies, and the people that use them, bear a good deal of blame for the situation. But few are very concerned that they themselves might be responsible, according to a...
Nobel Peace Prize awarded to journalists Ressa and Muratov
MANILA, Philippines — Journalists Maria Ressa of the Philippines and Dmitry Muratov of Russia won the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for their fight for freedom of expression in countries where reporters have faced persistent attacks, harassment and even murder. “Free, independent and fact-based journalism serves to protect against...
