Harris tries to hold the line for Biden as Democrats panic over election
WASHINGTON — By the time Vice President Kamala Harris stepped into her third fundraiser since President Joe Biden’s disastrous debate last week, she had her routine down. Yes, she conceded to a few dozen donors in San Francisco, the president’s performance was “not his finest hour.” However, she said, “the...
Anti-settlement group says Israel has made largest West Bank land seizure in 3 decades
JERUSALEM — Israel has approved the largest seizure of land in the occupied West Bank in over three decades, an anti-settlement watchdog group said Wednesday, a move that could further worsen already soaring tensions linked to the ongoing war in Gaza. Peace Now said authorities recently approved the appropriation of...
Sierra Leone outlaws child marriage, and even witnesses to such weddings will be punished
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone — A bill that bans child marriage in Sierra Leone has been signed into law, President Julius Maada Bio said late Tuesday, in an effort to protect girls in the West African nation where about a third are married before adulthood. The law is being celebrated widely....
Mosaics by an artist accused of abusing women will stay on the Lourdes shrine, for now
ROME — A French bishop has put off any decision on whether to remove mosaics by an ex-Jesuit artist accused of abusing women, saying that they’ll stay for now on the Lourdes shrine but that eventually they should be removed. The mosaics will no longer be lit up each night...
Taliban and U.S. envoys have discussed the release of 2 American prisoners at third Doha meeting
ISLAMABAD — The Taliban’s delegation to the third United Nations-led Doha meeting on increasing engagement with Afghanistan met with U.S. envoys on the sidelines and discussed the two Americans imprisoned in the central Asian country. Zabihullah Mujahid told reporters in Kabul Wednesday that the meeting aimed at “finding a solution.”...
1 man hurt when home in rural Wisconsin explodes, authorities say
LAFAYETTE, Wis. — A house in southeastern Wisconsin exploded Tuesday, injuring one man who was found trapped in rubble in the basement, authorities said. Calls to 911 reported the explosion about 2:15 p.m. in Lafayette, the Walworth County Sheriff’s Office said. Deputies arrived about 15 minutes later and saw that...
Somerset County soldier 1 of 2 Civil War heroes set to posthumously receive medal-of-honor at White HouseVideo
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden will award the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry on Wednesday to two Union soldiers who stole a locomotive deep in Confederate territory during the Civil War and drove it north for 87 miles as they destroyed railroad tracks and telegraph lines. U.S. Army Pvts....
Bill taking Pennsylvania’s same-sex marriage ban off the books clears state House
A bill that would repeal Pennsylvania’s same-sex marriage ban passed the state House of Representatives Tuesday on a bipartisan vote, with proponents saying the change was necessary to protect marriage equality if federal case law was overturned. The measure passed 133-to-68 in the final vote, with all but one member...
‘Nearly fell asleep on stage’: Biden blames travel for poor debate as he looks to calm revolt
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden blamed travel plans that took him to France and Italy in the weeks ahead of his disastrous debate against Donald Trump for his poor performance on stage, seeking to explain a moment that has upended the 2024 race and imperiled his reelection prospects. “I didn’t...
Pa.’s health secretary wins Senate confirmation to the post on 2nd try
After 18 months as serving as the acting head of Pennsylvania’s Department of Health, Dr. Debra Bogen is now the state’s health secretary. Bogen, a pediatrician and former head of the Allegheny County Health Department, won Senate confirmation on Tuesday by a 42-8 bipartisan vote. “I look forward to continuing...
Virginia certifies John McGuire as primary winner over Rep. Bob Good, who says he’ll seek a recount
RICHMOND — The Virginia State Board of Elections on Tuesday certified the apparent narrow defeat of Republican Rep. Bob Good, one of America’s most conservative congressmen, to a challenger endorsed by former President Donald Trump in the state’s primaries on June 18. The board’s unanimous vote to certify the results...
Fetterman calls Abandon Biden movement dumb, defends Biden’s debate performance on Fox News
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., criticized the Abandon Biden movement as part of his fierce defense of President Joe Biden in the midst of a post-debate panic among Democrats. Abandon Biden is a group of Muslim activists and allies who previously supported Biden and want to punish him for supporting Israel...
Arkansas grocery store reopens in wake of mass shooting that left 4 dead
FORDYCE, Ark. — The sounds that filled the Mad Butcher grocery store on Tuesday — the beeping barcode scanners, the rattle of shopping carts and cash register drawers opening — were familiar ones for customers and employees of the only grocery store in the small Arkansas town of Fordyce. But...
Cleveland officer who killed Tamir Rice leaves new job in West Virginia
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The former Cleveland officer who fatally shot 12-year-old Tamir Rice in 2014 has resigned from a police force in West Virginia, the third time in six years he left a small department amid backlash shortly after he had been hired. White Sulphur Springs City officials said Timothy...
Union sues Philadelphia over requirement that city workers return to the office full time
A union that represents thousands of Philadelphia city employees asked a judge Tuesday to block Mayor Cherelle Parker’s requirement that they return to their offices full time as of July 15. The lawsuit, filed by District Council 47 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, claims the...
Many Democrats feel powerless to replace Biden as party leaders fight to contain debate fallout
WASHINGTON — Bernie Sanders describes President Joe Biden’s recent debate performance as “painful.” In an interview, he says he’s not confident that Biden can win this fall. But the progressive senator from Vermont does not want Biden to step aside. Instead, Sanders, who served as Biden’s chief rival in the...
FDA approves a 2nd Alzheimer’s drug that can modestly slow disease
WASHINGTON — U.S. officials have approved another Alzheimer’s drug that can modestly slow the disease, providing a new option for patients in the early stages of the incurable, memory-destroying ailment. The Food and Drug Administration approved Eli Lilly’s Kisunla on Tuesday for mild or early cases of dementia caused by...
The U.S. will pay Moderna $176 million to develop an mRNA pandemic flu vaccine
The U.S. government will pay the vaccine maker Moderna $176 million to accelerate development of a pandemic influenza vaccine that could be used to treat bird flu in people, as concern grows about cases in dairy cows across the country, federal officials announced Tuesday. Moderna already has a bird flu...
Supreme Court to weigh whether regulators were heavy handed with flavored e-cigarette products
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court took up an e-cigarette case Tuesday, weighing Food and Drug Administration decisions blocking the marketing of sweet flavored products amid a surge in vaping by young people. The FDA is appealing a lower court ruling siding with vape companies who argue the FDA unfairly denied...
Giuliani disbarred in New York as court finds he repeatedly lied about Trump’s 2020 election loss
NEW YORK — Rudolph Giuliani, the former New York City mayor, federal prosecutor and legal adviser to Donald Trump, was disbarred in New York on Tuesday after a court found he repeatedly made false statements about Trump’s 2020 election loss. The Manhattan appeals court ruled Giuliani, who had his New...
Trump says he can end the Russia-Ukraine war in 1 day, Russia’s UN ambassador says he can’t
UNITED NATIONS — Donald Trump has repeatedly said he could settle the war between Russia and Ukraine in one day if he’s elected president again. Russia’s United Nations ambassador says he can’t. When asked to respond to the claim from the presumptive Republican nominee, Vassily Nebenzia told reporters Monday that...
Judge delays Trump’s hush money sentencing until at least September after high court immunity ruling
Former President Donald Trump’s sentencing in his hush money case has been postponed until at least September after the judge agreed Tuesday to weigh the possible impact of a new Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity. Trump had been scheduled to face sentencing July 11 on his New York conviction...
Defense Secretary Austin says the U.S. will provide $2.3B more in military aid to Ukraine
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Tuesday that the U.S. will soon announce an additional $2.3 billion in security assistance for Ukraine, to include anti-tank weapons, interceptors and munitions for Patriot and other air defense systems. Austin’s remarks came as Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov met with him at...
U.S. gives key approval to Atlantic Shores offshore wind farm in New Jersey
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — The U.S. Interior Department approved the proposed Atlantic Shores offshore wind farm in New Jersey on Tuesday, giving a major boost to a project that would be the state’s first. The project still requires an additional federal approval of its construction and operations plan, along with...
Beryl heads toward Jamaica as a major hurricane after ripping through southeast CaribbeanVideo
ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada — Hurricane Beryl roared through open waters Tuesday as a powerful Category 4 storm heading toward Jamaica after earlier making landfall in the southeast Caribbean, killing at least six people. A hurricane warning was in effect for Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, Cayman Brac and for Haiti’s...
