ACLU of Pennsylvania sues ICE for information on efforts to ‘unmask’ anonymous online critics
PHILADELPHIA — The Pennsylvania arm of the American Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit to obtain information from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on the agency’s efforts to unmask anonymous social media critics. ICE has issued administrative subpoenas to tech companies to obtain information about accounts that track...
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer leaves Trump’s Cabinet after abuse of power allegations
WASHINGTON — Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer is out of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet, the White House said Monday, after multiple allegations of abusing her position’s power, including having an affair with a subordinate and drinking alcohol on the job. Chavez-DeRemer is the third Trump Cabinet member to leave her post...
Businesses begin claiming refunds for Trump tariffs struck down by Supreme Court
NEW YORK — A refund system for businesses that paid tariffs which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled President Donald Trump imposed without the constitutional authority to do so launched Monday. Importers and their brokers could begin claiming refunds through an online portal beginning at 8 a.m., according to U.S. Customs...
Vermont seeks feedback from residents on possible restoration of Bennington Battle Monument
Last year, Vermong officials went to the Legislature with a problem: The 306-foot Bennington Battle Monument — an obelisk commemorating the 1777 Battle of Bennington — was saturated with 66,000 gallons of water. At the time, the cost to restore the monument was estimated at $40 million. The high price...
Pennsylvania court overturns limits on Medicaid coverage for abortions
A Pennsylvania court on Monday said that the state’s constitution guarantees a right to abortion while striking down a decades-long law banning the use of state Medicaid funds to cover abortion costs. The ruling by a divided seven-judge panel of the appellate-level Commonwealth Court is a major victory for Planned...
Pennsylvania judges say blocking Medicaid for abortion violates state constitution
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s ban on state Medicaid dollars paying for low-income people’s abortion care is unconstitutional, a state appellate...
Migrants rush to apply under Spain’s new mass legalization program
MADRID — Migrants in Spain began applying to legalize their status Monday after the Southern European nation launched a mass legalization measure that could affect hundreds of thousands of foreigners living and working in the country without authorization. The amnesty program was announced in January and finalized this month. It...
FBI Director Kash Patel sues The Atlantic for article that alleged excessive drinking
FBI Director Kash Patel hit The Atlantic magazine with a $250 million defamation lawsuit on Monday, claiming an article that talked about mismanagement at the agency and his alleged excessive drinking was false and a “malicious hit piece.” The Atlantic said it stood by its reporting and would vigorously defend...
Planned fight between young people escalates to shooting that kills 2 at North Carolina park
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — A planned fight among young people escalated into a mass shooting at a North Carolina park Monday morning that left two people dead, authorities said. The shooting happened around 10 a.m. at Leinbach Park, which is near Jefferson Middle School, Winston-Salem police said in a social media...
Chance of severe weather during NFL Draft is ‘quite low,’ meteorologist saysVideo
Weather conditions over the past couple of days have seemed more reminiscent of late in the football season than late April, with low temperatures plunging into the 30s. But highs are expected to climb back into the 70s in time for this week’s NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, potentially reaching the...
EU hosts Palestinian peace conference as it seeks greater sway in the Middle East
BRUSSELS — Europe turned its attention to the Palestinians on Monday as the election defeat of Israel ally Victor Orban in Hungary gives new momentum to efforts addressing Gaza and the occupied West Bank. More than 60 nations sent representatives to Brussels for talks with Palestinian representatives on stability, security...
Wildfire survivors who lost their homes could face another blow from taxes on settlement payouts
Thousands of survivors of the 2025 Eaton Fire in Altadena, California, have elected to accept an upfront settlement from the utility accused of causing it, forgoing future litigation for a faster payment that could help them rebuild or relocate. But unless a bill moving through Congress becomes law, that money...
Mother and 6 children killed in explosion and fire at central Pennsylvania home
MILL HALL — An Amish woman and her six children ranging in age from 3 to 11 were killed in a swift-moving house fire after an explosion that shook nearby houses in rural northcentral Pennsylvania, authorities said. Firefighters responding to a report of an explosion and fire at a home...
County governments group pushes for funding during Pa. budget impasses
Pennsylvania’s budget is due each year on June 30. But that doesn’t always mean it will get done on time. If lawmakers can’t agree on a spending plan, it can leave counties, school districts, and nonprofit organizations that provide services for the state in the lurch. That’s what happened last...
Powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake strikes off Japan, tsunami alert issued
TOKYO — A powerful earthquake struck off the northern Japanese coast, and the Japan Meteorological Agency issued a tsunami alert in the region, sending residents to rush over to safer grounds. So far, no major injuries or damages have been reported. The quake registering a preliminary magnitude of 7.5 occurred...
Trump offers mixed messages about path ahead for U.S. war against Iran
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump offered mixed messages on Monday about the path ahead for the U.S. war against Iran, declaring that he was in no rush to end the conflict while also expressing confidence that further negotiations with Tehran will soon take place in Pakistan. With the 14-day ceasefire...
U.S. military strike on alleged drug boat kills 3 in Caribbean Sea
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military said it launched another strike on a boat accused of ferrying drugs in the Caribbean Sea, killing three people Sunday. The Trump administration’s campaign of blowing up alleged drug-trafficking vessels in Latin American waters has persisted since early September and killed at least 181 people...
The center-left coalition of former President Radev will win Bulgaria’s election, exit poll suggests
SOFIA, Bulgaria — A center-left coalition led by Bulgaria ‘s former President Rumen Radev will win the parliamentary election, an exit poll suggested hours after polls closed on Sunday. The list is unlikely to garner enough votes to rule alone, which could prolong a yearslong political deadlock in the European...
Trump’s Department of Justice demands Wayne County, Michigan, 2024 ballots
LANSING, Mich. — President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice is attempting to obtain all ballots submitted for the 2024 election in Wayne County, Michigan, a Democratic stronghold that’s long been a focus of the Republican leader’s unproven claims of voter fraud. Harmeet Dhillon, an assistant attorney general, sent a letter...
Wisconsin authorities put total arrests from clashes at beagle breeding facility at about 25
MADISON, Wis. — Around 25 protesters were arrested as around 1,000 animal welfare activists tried to gain entry to a beagle breeding and research facility in Wisconsin and were met by officers firing pepper spray and rubber bullets, authorities said Sunday. Saturday’s protest was the second attempt in as many...
Shapiro wants to eliminate 3 ‘niche’ tax credits; supporters say they should be expanded
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — For the second year in a row, Gov. Josh Shapiro is asking Pennsylvania lawmakers to scrap three...
Louisiana man kills 8 children and shoots his wife and another woman in Shreveport
SHREVEPORT, La. — A Louisiana man fatally shot eight children, including seven of his own, in an attack on his family that stretched across two houses in a Shreveport, Louisiana, neighborhood left shaken by one of the nation’s deadliest mass shootings in recent years, police said. The gunman’s wife, who...
Businesses can claim refunds for Trump tariffs ruled unconstitutional starting Monday
NEW YORK — A refund system for businesses that paid tariffs which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled President Donald Trump imposed without the constitutional authority to do so is scheduled to launch Monday. Importers and their brokers will be able to begin claiming refunds through an online portal beginning at...
Canada’s prime minister says economic ties with U.S. are a weakness that must be corrected
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a video address released Sunday that Canada’s strong economic ties to the United States were once a strength but are now a weakness that must be corrected. In the 10-minute address, Carney spoke about his government’s efforts to strengthen...
3 students, 2 others shot along nightlife district near the University of Iowa, authorities say
IOWA CITY, Iowa — A shooting during a fight in a nightlife district near the University of Iowa campus wounded five people early Sunday, including three students, police and university officials said. Multiple victims were transported to hospitals for gunshot wounds, according to Iowa City police. One person was in...
