Sen. Rand Paul performed Heimlich maneuver on choking Sen. Joni Ernst during GOP lunch
WASHINGTON — Sen. Joni Ernst, a Republican from Iowa, was choking on food during a luncheon Thursday when fellow Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky performed the Heimlich maneuver on her. The incident occurred during a closed-door Republican lunch in the Capitol. Shortly after, Ernst posted on X, the platform...
Congressmen ask DOJ to investigate water utility hack, warning it could happen anywhere
HARRISBURG — Three members of Congress have asked the U.S. Justice Department to investigate how foreign hackers breached a water authority near Pittsburgh, prompting the nation’s top cyberdefense agency to warn other water and sewage-treatment utilities that they may be vulnerable. In a letter released Thursday, U.S. Sens. John Fetterman...
Henry Kissinger’s visits to Pittsburgh pointed to sharply different opinions of the former U.S diplomat
Over the years, Henry Kissinger’s trips to Pittsburgh — like his visits elsewhere — reinforced his status as both a global celebrity and polarizing figure, seen by many as a brilliant diplomat and by others as a war criminal. Either way, he commanded attention. That was true in 1990 when...
GOP Rep. George Santos refuses to resign, warns his expulsion from Congress would set a precedent
WASHINGTON — In his closing arguments for remaining a member of the House, a defiant Rep. George Santos depicted himself as a victim of a smear campaign by some of his colleagues and made clear that he would not resign before a vote Friday on whether he should be expelled....
Florida’s GOP chairman a subject in a rape investigation
TALLAHASSEE — The chairman of Florida’s Republican Party is the subject of a rape investigation, though no charges have been filed and his lawyer said he will be exonerated. Still, the investigation into Christian Ziegler comes at a critical time for the Republican Party of Florida: Two Florida Republicans —...
Squirrel Hill native prepares to go to war alongside Israel Defense Forces
As a temporary cease-fire between Israel and Hamas entered its seventh day Thursday, Isaac Nadoff waited. The fourth-generation Pittsburgher said Wednesday he was prepared to march with the Israel Defense Forces into the war-torn Gaza Strip whenever the cease-fire ended. “I’m just in a steady state of readiness,” said Nadoff,...
Cities must replace harmful lead pipes within 10 years under new Biden administration plan
WASHINGTON — Most U.S. cities would have to replace lead water pipes within 10 years under strict new rules proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency as the Biden administration moves to reduce lead in drinking water and prevent public health crises like the ones in Flint, Michigan and Washington, D.C....
Unsealed ruling details U.S. Rep. Scott Perry’s tireless work for Trump’s 2020 cause
There may have been another Congressman who worked harder than U.S. Rep. Scott Perry to try to help former President Donald J. Trump’s efforts to cling to power despite his 2020 electoral defeat by Democratic nominee Joe Biden. But we’d like to see the proof. Because a freshly-unsealed opinion from...
Drivers would pay $15 to enter busiest part of NYC under plan to raise funds for mass transit
NEW YORK — Most drivers would pay $15 to enter Manhattan’s central business district under a plan released by New York officials Thursday. The congestion pricing plan, which neighboring New Jersey has filed a lawsuit over, will be the first such program in the United States if it is approved...
Appeals court reinstates gag order that barred Trump from maligning court staff in NY fraud trial
NEW YORK — A New York appeals court Thursday reinstated a gag order that barred Donald Trump from commenting about court personnel after the former president repeatedly disparaged a law clerk in his New York civil fraud trial. The one-sentence decision came two weeks after an individual appellate judge put...
Global leaders pay tribute to Henry Kissinger, but his record also draws criticism
TOKYO — Global leaders paid tribute to former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger on Thursday, but there was also sharp criticism of the man who remained an influential figure decades after his official service as one of the most powerful diplomats in American history. Kissinger, who died Wednesday at...
With generous benefits, Pa. lawmakers could be second best compensated in nation
The base salary of Pennsylvania’s 253 state legislators is the third highest in the nation behind New York and California, but when benefits are added, it likely pushes them into second place. Legislators are eligible for lifetime medical benefits and retirement benefits unlike their counterparts in California but still trail...
GOP Rep. George Santos warns his expulsion from Congress before conviction would set a precedentVideo
WASHINGTON — A defiant Rep. George Santos is refusing to resign and warned on Thursday that his expulsion from Congress before being convicted in a court of law would establish a precedent that “is going to be the undoing of a lot of members of this body.” The first-term Republican...
Biden administration proposes biggest changes to lead pipe rules in more than 3 decades
Most U.S. cities would have to replace lead water pipes within 10 years under strict new rules proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency as the Biden administration moves to reduce lead in drinking water and prevent public health crises like the ones in Flint, Michigan and Washington, D.C. Millions of...
DeSantis and Newsom will face off in a Fox News event featuring 2 governors with White House hopes
WASHINGTON — California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis are meeting in a nationally televised event on Thursday night that will feature two young, high-profile leaders with presidential aspirations who may have to wait for future cycles to realize them. Newsom, 56, has talked about eventually...
Study says U.S. is ill-prepared to ensure housing for growing number of older people
PHOENIX — Michael Genaldi’s road to homelessness began early this year when a car slammed into the rear of his motorcycle, crushed three of his ribs, and left him in a coma for over a month. The 58-year-old lost his job as a machine operator, then his home, and he...
Haley and DeSantis are relying more on outside campaign groups with time running out to stop Trump
DES MOINES, Iowa — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley are increasingly outsourcing central parts of their campaigns, drawing on the growing urgency of Donald Trump opponents to find a single alternative to the former president. Struggling to energize his campaign, DeSantis this week privately...
Israeli military confirms release of 8 more Israeli hostages from captivity in Gaza Strip
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Hamas freed eight Israeli hostages Thursday in exchange for the release of more Palestinian prisoners under a last-minute deal to extend their cease-fire in Gaza by another day. But any further renewal of the truce, now in its seventh day, could prove more daunting since...
Holiday celebration slated to ‘start the season’ in Scottdale with house tour, vendors, parade
Scottdale’s holiday celebration will take on a new meaning this weekend as the borough continues to mark its 150th anniversary. Start the Season day, slated for Saturday, will feature a vintage house tour, vendor markets and a parade, said Tom Zwierzelewski, president of the Scottdale Historical Society. “We’re working on...
With GOP ‘failing’ to win over Pa. voters on mail-in ballots, conservative group launches ambitious plan
Frustrated by state and national Republican efforts to tout mail-in voting, a conservative Pennsylvania group is launching an initiative to personally reach half a million likely GOP voters in 2024. Citizens Alliance of Pennsylvania CEO Cliff Maloney, a Delaware County native and national Republican operative, on Wednesday announced the Pennsylvania...
Henry Kissinger, secretary of state under Presidents Nixon and Ford, dies at 100Video
WASHINGTON — Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, the diplomat with the thick glasses and gravelly voice who dominated foreign policy as the United States extricated itself from Vietnam and broke down barriers with China, died Wednesday, his consulting firm said. He was 100. With his gruff yet commanding presence...
Faculty union files labor complaint against Pitt, alleging it is stalling contract talks
Still without a contract two years after forming, the union representing 3,000 faculty members at the University of Pittsburgh has filed an unfair labor practice complaint, accusing Pitt of prolonging the contract talks. The United Steelworkers asserts in a filing before the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board that Pitt is engaging...
Charges dismissed against 3 emergency management supervisors in 2020 death
WAYNESBURG — A judge has dismissed all charges against three Western Pennsylvania emergency management supervisors who had been accused of obstructing an investigation into an emergency dispatcher accused of failing to send an ambulance to the rural home of a woman who died of internal bleeding about a day later....
GOP considers holding formal vote to authorize Biden impeachment as White House questions legitimacyVideo
WASHINGTON — Republicans are considering holding an official House vote next month to authorize their impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden as the party looks to formalize a process that has yet to yield any direct evidence of wrongdoing by the president. GOP leaders floated the possibility of a vote during...
Man charged with shooting 3 Palestinian college students accused of harassing ex-girlfriend in 2019
The man charged with shooting three college students of Palestinian descent in Vermont last weekend was accused several years ago of harassing an ex-girlfriend in New York state, but no charges were ever filed, according to a police report. Jason J. Eaton’s ex called police in Dewitt, N.Y., a town...
