FDA chief called to White House as Trump pushes for vaccine
WASHINGTON — The head of the agency responsible for approving any covid-19 vaccine for the U.S. was summoned to the White House Tuesday as an increasingly frustrated President Donald Trump complained approval wasn’t coming faster. White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows called in Stephen Hahn, the head of the...
Nonessential shops reopen in Belgium as virus numbers drop
BRUSSELS — Nonessential shops in Belgium reopened Tuesday in the wake of encouraging figures about declining daily coronavirus infection rates and hospital admissions. Few overcrowding incidents were reported. The government had been fearful that the change might lead to massive gatherings in the nation’s most popular shopping centers and streets....
Forecasters confirm small tornado hit Pennsylvania town
MONTGOMERYVILLE — The National Weather Service on Tuesday determined a small tornado hit a Pennsylvania town as a line of severe storms packing high winds and heavy rain moved across the Northeast. The EF-0 twister was packing 70 mph winds as it cut a 100-yard path through Montgomeryville on Monday...
Rescue efforts slowed a week after Zimbabwe mine collapse
BINDURA, Zimbabwe — Rains and flooding have slowed rescue efforts at a Zimbabwean mine where a shaft collapsed last week, trapping at least 10 artisanal miners. Hopes of finding survivors are vanishing and relatives camped at the site on Tuesday expressed their desperation for decent burials of their loved ones...
Pa. posts highest single-day covid-19 deaths since May
Pennsylvania on Tuesday reported the most covid-related deaths in a single day since May. There were 180 new deaths attributed to covid-19 — surpassing any single-day mark since 275 were posted May 14 — according to the Health Department. Hospitalizations continue to climb as well. According to the state’s covid-19...
Pa. Supreme Court hears argument in case against Bill Cosby
An attorney for actor and comedian Bill Cosby argued to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Tuesday that five women called to testify about prior bad acts by the man led to “unquantifiable prejudice” against him. During oral argument, Cosby’s attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, asked the court to find that the prior...
Arizona cites holiday reporting delays for record 10K cases
PHOENIX — Arizona on Tuesday reported over 10,000 new known coronavirus cases, but the state said the record number nearly three times the latest seven-day daily rolling average reflected not only the current surge but also delayed reporting by local health officials due to the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. “Today, the...
Detroit police fatally shoot gunman suspected in slaying
DETROIT — Police killed a gunman during a shootout early Tuesday who was suspected of fatally shooting a woman over a child-custody issue and firing shots at a Detroit police station, authorities said. Members of the department’s Special Response Team approached the 28-year-old man about 7 a.m. as he sat...
U.S. officials say mountain pine tree that feeds grizzlies is threatened
BILLINGS, Mont. — Climate change, voracious beetles and disease are imperiling the long-term survival of a high-elevation pine tree that’s a key source of food for some grizzly bears and found across the U.S. West, U.S, officials said Tuesday. A Fish and Wildlife Service proposal scheduled to be published Wednesday...
China says probe sent to retrieve lunar rocks lands on moon
BEIJING — A Chinese robot probe sent to return lunar rocks to Earth for the first time since the 1970s landed on the moon Tuesday, the government announced, adding to a string of increasingly bold space missions by Beijing. The Chang’e 5 probe “successfully landed” at its planned site, state...
Bill Cosby’s sex assault conviction gets high court review
PHILADELPHIA — Bill Cosby’s lawyers will argue Tuesday that his 2018 sex assault trial was marred by evidence and testimony that should have been excluded as they ask Pennsylvania’s highest court to throw out the conviction. Cosby, 83, has served more than two years of his three- to 10-year prison...
Operation Better Block, First Commonwealth Bank provide solutions to housing issues in Homewood
There is a reoccurring theme that plays out across America when blighted neighborhoods are gazed upon for potential economic development. Current residents — the ones who rode out the leanest of times — are rarely consulted. If they are, local residents rarely attend planning meetings, and if they do, they...
With a month until split, Brexit trade deal hangs in balance
LONDON — The British government told businesses Tuesday to make sure they are ready for big changes when the U.K. makes its final Brexit break from the European Union in exactly a month. But with negotiations on a free-trade deal with the bloc stuck, firms say they still don’t know...
European regulator to decide Dec. 29 on 1st virus vaccine
BERLIN — The European Medicines Agency will convene a meeting Dec. 29 to decide if there is enough data about the safety and efficacy of the covid-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech for it to be approved, the regulator said Tuesday. The agency also said Tuesday it could decide...
Navy will decommission warship damaged in suspected arson
SAN DIEGO— The Navy said Monday that it will decommission a warship docked off San Diego after suspected arson this summer caused extensive damage, making it too expensive to restore. Fully repairing the USS Bonhomme Richard to warfighting capabilities would cost $2.5 billion to $3 billion and take five to...
Report: Dr. Atlas formally resigns as Trump’s special adviser on the coronavirus pandemic
President Donald Trump’s special adviser to the coronavirus pandemic has formally resigned. According to a resignation letter dated for Dec. 1 and obtained by Fox News, Dr. Scott Atlas said he “worked hard with a singular focus – to save lives and help Americans through this pandemic.” BREAKING—Trump’s pandemic advisor...
Pa. counties reported no major issues with Dominion voting machines, a target of Trump and his campaign
SpotlightPA 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. This article is made possible through Votebeat, a nonpartisan reporting project covering local election integrity and voting access. HARRISBURG — In their latest attempt at sowing doubt in...
Wisconsin confirms Joe Biden as winner as a result of recount
MADISON, Wis. — Joe Biden’s victory in battleground Wisconsin was confirmed Monday following a partial recount that only added to his 20,600-vote margin over President Donald Trump, who has promised to file a lawsuit seeking to undo the results. Confirmation of the results by the Democratic chairwoman of the Wisconsin...
Dictionary companies choose same word of the year: pandemicVideo
NEW YORK — In the land of lexicography, out of the whole of the English language, 2020’s word of the year is a vocabulary of one. For the first time, two dictionary companies on Monday — Merriam-Webster and Dictionary.com — declared the same word as their tops: pandemic. A third...
Former Lehigh University student admits poisoning roommate
EASTON — A former Lehigh University student on Monday admitted poisoning his roommate’s food and drink with a heavy metal substance. Yukai Yang, 24, pleaded guilty to attempted murder. Under terms of a plea agreement, the Northampton County District Attorney’s Office will withdraw other charges in two seperate cases against...
Georgia official announces investigations, defends electionVideo
ATLANTA — Georgia’s top elections official on Monday announced investigations into potential violations of election law even as he continued to defend the integrity of the state’s election against what he said are baseless attacks. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has repeatedly said there has been no evidence of systemic...
White House Christmas decor gives nod to 1st responders
WASHINGTON — First responders and frontline workers being challenged by the deadly coronavirus pandemic are highlighted in White House Christmas decorations that also give a special nod to Melania Trump’s redesigned Rose Garden. It’s the final Christmas in the White House for the Trump family, although the president continues to...
American tourist returns ancient artifact she stole from Rome with note: ‘I feel terrible’
“I saw it delivered in the morning. A bulky package, quite heavy, carefully packed.” So begins the story in the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero. When the package was opened, staff at the National Roman Museum discovered a “large fragment of millenary marble.” A note was included with it: A woman...
Arizona certifies Biden’s narrow victory over Trump
PHOENIX —Arizona officials certified the state’s election results Monday, formalizing Democrat Joe Biden’s narrow victory over Donald Trump even as the Republican president’s attorneys continued making baseless claims of fraud in the state’s vote count. Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs certified the election results alongside Gov. Doug Ducey and...
Iowa board to certify 6-vote Republican win in U.S. House race
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Iowa officials on Monday were expected to certify a Republican candidate as the winner by six votes of an open seat in the U.S. House, in what is shaping up to be the closest congressional election in decades. Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks finished ahead of Democrat Rita...
