Slower mail, fewer office hours part of Postal Service plans
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy on Tuesday announced plans to slow mail delivery standards and cut hours at some post offices as part of a 10-year strategy to stabilize the struggling agency. Details of the long-awaited plan come at a time of intense scrutiny on the U.S. Postal Service over persistent...
Philadelphia cancels thousands of uninvited vaccine appointments
PHILADELPHIA — The city of Philadelphia is canceling tens of thousands of vaccination appointments for the Federal Emergency Management Agency-run vaccination clinic after links for people to get second doses were shared with others seeking first appointments. The FEMA site at the Pennsylvania Convention Center has shifted for the next...
Asian Americans seek greater political power after Atlanta shootings
WASHINGTON — Speaking on the floor of the Georgia state Senate last week, Michelle Au implored her colleagues to “stand up” to the hatred aimed at Asian Americans that’s increased during the pandemic. A day later, a gunman shook the Atlanta area by killing eight people, including six women of...
Biden urges gun control laws as another mass shooting alters his pandemic-relief tour
WASHINGTON — For the second time in a week, President Joe Biden’s campaign to broaden public awareness and support for his pandemic relief benefits has been overshadowed by a mass shooting, thrusting the fraught issue of gun control to the fore. On Tuesday, he was set to travel to Ohio,...
Officials: Gun in Colorado supermarket shooting bought 6 days earlierVideo
BOULDER, Colo. — Police on Tuesday identified a 21-year-old man as the suspect who opened fire inside a crowded Colorado supermarket, and court documents showed that he purchased an assault weapon less than a week before the attack that killed 10 people, including a police officer. Supermarket employees told investigators...
Iraq requests new round of talks with U.S. over troop presence
BAGHDAD — Iraq has sent a formal request to President Joe Biden’s administration for a date to resume strategic talks on bilateral relations and the withdrawal of remaining U.S. combat forces, Iraqi officials said Tuesday. The talks, which began in June under the Trump administration, would be the first under...
Impeachment probe into N.Y. Gov. Andrew Cuomo could take ‘months’
ALBANY, N.Y. — It could take “months” to determine whether Gov. Andrew Cuomo should be impeached after multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct and questions remain about his administration’s undercounting covid-19 deaths in nursing homes, the chair of the state Assembly’s judiciary committee said Tuesday. Chair Charles Lavine said...
Vote for your favorite Greensburg businesses decked out for Easter, spring season
The Easter Bunny will feel right at home as he hops down the streets of Greensburg. A group of city businesses is spreading the joy of spring with a window decorating contest and two chances for shoppers to win gift baskets. “We wanted there to be something positive for people...
Schumer vows vote on background checks after latest shooting
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats say they are pushing toward a vote on expanded gun control measures as the nation reels from its second mass shooting in a week. But prospects for any major reform are dim, for now, in the closely divided Congress. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer vowed Tuesday...
Explainer: Why is Biden halting federal oil and gas sales?
BILLINGS, Mont. — President Joe Biden shut down oil and gas lease sales from the nation’s vast public lands and waters in his first days in office, citing worries about climate change. Now his administration has to figure out what do with the multibillion-dollar program without crushing a significant sector...
Jury set for ex-cop’s trial in George Floyd death; starts March 29
MINNEAPOLIS — A jury has been seated for the trial of a former Minneapolis police officer in George Floyd’s death, with opening statements set for March 29. The 15th and final member of the pool was chosen Tuesday, wrapping up a process that took more than two weeks. There will...
Ticks present concern about Lyme disease as weather warms
As the weather warms and people once again take to the outdoors, state officials are reminding residents that in addition to health and safety protocols for covid-19, there is also one of the state’s most persistent pests to consider: the black-legged tick, the primary vector for Lyme disease in Pennsylvania....
Evanston, Ill., is 1st city in U.S. to offer Black residents reparations
EVANSTON, Ill. — Evanston, Ill., on Monday became the first U.S. city to make reparations available to its Black residents for past discrimination and the lingering effects of slavery. The Chicago suburb’s City Council voted 8-1 to distribute $400,000 to eligible Black households. Each qualifying household would receive $25,000 for...
Suspect ID’d in mass shooting at Colorado supermarket; victims named
BOULDER, Colo. — Police on Tuesday identified a 21-year-old man as the suspect who opened fire inside a crowded Colorado supermarket in an attack that killed 10 people, including an officer, and sent terrorized shoppers and employees scrambling for cover. Authorities said Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa was from the Denver...
U.S. health officials: AstraZeneca may have used outdated info in vaccine trialVideo
WASHINGTON — AstraZeneca may have included “outdated information” in touting the effectiveness of its covid-19 vaccine in a U.S. study, federal health officials said Tuesday in an unusual public rift that could further erode confidence in the shot. In response, AstraZeneca said that it is working on more up-to-date information...
Report: Extremist groups thrive on Facebook despite bans
A new outside report found that Facebook has allowed groups — many tied to QAnon, boogaloo and militia movements — to glorify violence during the 2020 election and in the weeks leading up to the deadly riots on the U.S. Capitol in January. Avaaz, a nonprofit advocacy group that says...
Pa. House passes bill to loosen rules on substitute teachers
Legislation to provide more flexibility when it comes to finding substitute teachers to staff classrooms won unanimous approval on Monday from the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Barb Gleim, R-Cumberland County, now goes to the Senate for consideration. It aims to help ease the problem districts...
Jerome Powell says economy recovering but Fed support still neededVideo
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says the economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic has progressed more quickly than expected, but the central bank does not intend to let up in its support efforts. In congressional testimony released Monday, Powell said that even though the recovery appears to be...
Ballot questions should be clear, but 2 written by Wolf administration don’t pass test, critics say
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. A version of this story originally appeared in our free weekly newsletter. HARRISBURG — Amending the Pennsylvania Constitution is a lengthy process that ends at the ballot...
Police: 10 people killed at Colorado supermarketVideo
BOULDER, Colo. — A shooting at a Colorado supermarket killed 10 people Monday, including a police officer, and a suspect was in custody, authorities said. Boulder police Chief Maris Herold announced the death toll at a news conference Monday night, fighting back tears. The suspect was getting medical treatment and...
D.C.’s long-simmering statehood push begins in CongressVideo
WASHINGTON — Washington, D.C.’s bid for statehood finally got a congressional hearing Monday, but Mayor Muriel Bowser’s clashes with Republicans on the panel made clear that the issue is far from settled. Republicans accused Democrats of a cynical power play, claimed statehood was never the intention of the country’s Founding...
Pa. updates mask guidance for fully vaccinated residents
The Pennsylvania Department of Health has amended its mask mandate, updating guidance for fully vaccinated residents to fall in line with federal guidelines, officials said Monday. A previous state order went into effect that loosened mask restrictions in certain circumstances. “The vaccines that are currently available across the state and...
Report: Addiction cost West Virginia estimated $11B in 2019
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Treating and addressing drug addiction cost West Virginia an estimated $11.3 billion in one year, according to a new report from the Center on Budget and Policy. The report, written by economist Jill Kriesky, says the state spent that much in 2019 on issues that stem from...
Photos of migrant detention highlight Biden’s border secrecyVideo
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s administration has tried for weeks to keep the public from seeing images like those that emerged Monday showing immigrant children in U.S. custody at the border sleeping on mats under foil blankets, separated in groups by plastic partitions. Administration officials have steadfastly refused to call...
Mysterious new system at border keeps migrants guessingVideo
BROWNSVILLE, Texas — After hearing rumors that Central American families with younger children were being allowed into the U.S., Irma Paz left Honduras with her husband and two kids on a nearly two-month journey to the banks of the Rio Grande. They waded through the cold waters, turned themselves in...
