Tropical Storm Otis strengthens to hurricane ahead of expected landfall near Mexico’s AcapulcoVideo
MEXICO CITY — Tropical Storm Otis strengthened to a hurricane Tuesday as it approached Mexico’s southern Pacific coast where it was forecast to make landfall near the resort of Acapulco late Tuesday or early Wednesday. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said that Otis was about 145 miles south-southeast of Acapulco...
$43M CCAC facility to focus on robotics, other advancing technologies
Justin Starr spent years working in Pittsburgh’s robotics industry and saw first-hand the disconnect between the skills students often leave colleges with and those his industry desperately sought. “We always had great success on the engineering end, but when it came to getting technicians to do things like actually build...
Republicans nominate Mike Johnson for House speaker after Emmer’s withdrawal, desperate to end chaos
WASHINGTON — Republicans chose Rep. Mike Johnson as their latest nominee for House speaker late Tuesday, hours after an earlier pick, Rep. Tom Emmer, abruptly withdrew in the face of opposition from Donald Trump and hardline GOP lawmakers. Johnson of Louisiana, a lower-ranked member of the House GOP leadership team,...
Israel’s increased strikes across Gaza kill more than 700 people in the past day, Palestinians sayVideo
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Rapidly expanding Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip killed more than 700 people in the past day as medical facilities across the territory were forced to close because of bombing damage and a lack of power, health officials said Tuesday. The soaring death toll from Israel’s...
In court faceoff, Michael Cohen testifies against Trump in fraud trial. Trump shrugs: ‘Proven liar’
NEW YORK — In a courtroom showdown five years in the making, Donald Trump’s fixer-turned-foe Michael Cohen testified Tuesday that he worked to boost the supposed value of the former president’s assets to “whatever number Trump told us to.” Trump’s lawyers — and outside court, Trump himself — by turn...
There’s a long list of candidates for House speaker as Republicans try voting again on a new leader
WASHINGTON — Three weeks now since the ouster of Kevin McCarthy, House Republicans are meeting privately Tuesday to try nominating a new House speaker to accomplish the seemingly impossible job of uniting a broken, bitter GOP majority and returning to the work of governing in Congress. Having dispatched their speaker...
Strikes trim profit at GM in an otherwise strong quarter; more losses likely if picketing spreads
DETROIT — A strike by auto workers against General Motors is expected to cut pretax earnings by $800 million this year, and another $200 million per week after that, the company’s chief financial officer said. And those figures include only factories that are on strike now with less than a...
UAW strikes at General Motors SUV plant in Texas as union begins to target automakers’ cash cows
DETROIT — The United Auto Workers union has turned up the heat on General Motors as 5,000 workers walked off their jobs Tuesday at a highly profitable SUV factory in Arlington, Texas. The walkout comes just a day after the union went on strike at Stellantis ’ huge pickup truck...
A man fatally shot by police on Wisconsin school roof failed to enter the building, officials say
A man killed by Wisconsin police was acting erratically at a car repair shop and in the parking lot of a suburban Milwaukee school and unsuccessfully tried to enter the building before climbing on its roof and exchanging gunfire with officers, authorities said Tuesday. Dozens of students were in the...
Jenna Ellis becomes latest Trump lawyer to plead guilty over efforts to overturn Georgia’s electionVideo
ATLANTA — Attorney and prominent conservative media figure Jenna Ellis pleaded guilty Tuesday to a felony charge over efforts to overturn Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss in Georgia, tearfully telling the judge she looks back on that time with “deep remorse.” Ellis, the fourth defendant in the case to enter...
At least 50 people kidnapped over 2 days in northern Cameroon by unknown gunmen
YAOUNDE, Cameroon — At least 50 people were kidnapped in two separate incidents over two days in northern Cameroon, local authorities said Tuesday. The kidnappings occurred Sunday and Monday afternoons by an unknown armed group near the border with Chad, the mayor of Touboro town, Celestin Yandal, told the Associated...
2 cargo ships collide off German coast; at least 1 sailor dead, 4 missing
BERLIN — Two cargo ships collided in the North Sea off the coast of Germany on Tuesday and one of them sank, German authorities said. At least one sailor died and rescuers were trying to find another four. The vessels collided shortly before 5 a.m. about 14 miles southwest of...
Is Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system ironclad?
JERUSALEM — Since Israel activated the Iron Dome in 2011, the cutting-edge rocket-defense system has intercepted thousands of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip. The system has given residents a sense of security, and Israelis can often be seen watching the projectiles flying through the skies and destroying their targets...
Trump’s lawyers file challenges to Washington election subversion case, calling it unconstitutional
WASHINGTON — Lawyers for Donald Trump are raising new challenges to the federal election subversion case against him, telling a judge that the indictment should be dismissed because it violates the former president’s free speech rights and represents a vindictive prosecution. The motions filed late Monday in the case charging...
Few transplant surgeons are Black. Giving medical students a rare peek at organ donation may help
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — It’s long after midnight when the bustling operating room suddenly falls quiet — a moment of silence to honor the man lying on the table. This is no ordinary surgery. Detrick Witherspoon died before ever being wheeled in, and now two wide-eyed medical students are about to...
U.S. state Senator Jeff Wilson arrested in Hong Kong for gun possession; granted bail
HONG KONG — A Washington state senator was arrested in Hong Kong for carrying a gun that was not registered in the semi-autonomous Chinese city, his website and local media reported. He was released on bail Monday. Jeff Wilson, a Republican from Longview, was arrested after landing at the Hong...
Theft of 2 million dimes off truckload from U.S. Mint leaves 4 facing federal charges
PHILADELPHIA — Federal authorities have released more details and unsealed charges in the theft of more than 2 million dimes earlier this year from a tractor-trailer that had picked up the coins from the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia. The truck driver was bound for Miami when he pulled into a...
‘Superfog’ near New Orleans blamed for highway crashes that killed at least 7Video
NEW ORLEANS — At least seven people were killed Monday after a “superfog” of smoke from marsh fires and dense morning fog caused a series of wrecks on Interstate 55 near New Orleans that left a long stretch of mangled and scorched cars, trucks and tractor-trailers. An estimated 158 vehicles...
Panera Bread sued after Pa. student dies from ‘charged lemonade’
Panera Bread has been sued after the death of a University of Pennsylvania student. The student — who had a heart condition — had reportedly drank one of the chain’s “charged lemonades” prior to passing away. NBC News reports how the lawsuit was filed Monday in the Philadelphia Court of...
Sen. Bob Menendez enters not guilty plea to a new conspiracy charge
NEW YORK — U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez returned to Manhattan federal court Monday to challenge a new criminal charge alleging that he conspired to act as an agent of the Egyptian government when he chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “Not guilty,” Menendez, 69, said when Judge Sidney H. Stein...
Bad tech, staffing shortages hinder Pa. as it reassesses health care coverage for thousands
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. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania is struggling with faulty technology, persistent staffing shortages, and flawed procedures as it reassesses health care coverage for hundreds of thousands of...
3rd person dies after tanker truck with jet fuel hits 2 cars on Pennsylvania Turnpike, police say
WORCESTER — Authorities say a third person has died as a result of a weekend crash on the Pennsylvania Turnpike involving a tanker truck carrying jet fuel and a pair of stopped cars. State police said the crash occurred in the northbound lanes of I-476 on the turnpike’s Northeast Extension...
Detroit police say they’ve identified several people of interest in synagogue president’s killing
DETROIT — Investigators have identified several people of interest in the fatal stabbing of a Detroit synagogue president but would not talk about their connections to the woman during a press conference Monday. Authorities found 40-year-old Samantha Woll’s body outside her home early Saturday after a caller told police about...
Pilots on Horizon Air jet say 3rd pilot in the cockpit tried to shut down engines
PORTLAND, Ore. — An off-duty pilot riding in the extra seat in the cockpit of a Horizon Air passenger jet tried to shut down the engines in midflight and had to be subdued by the crew, according to a pilot flying the plane. Authorities in Oregon identified the man as...
It’s Day 20 with no House speaker, and lower-level names are starting to reach for the gavel
WASHINGTON — On Day 20 without a House speaker, Republicans found themselves starting over Monday — bumbling ahead with few ideas about who will lead, what they are fighting over and when they will get Congress working again. Republicans gathered late in the evening to hear quick speeches from the...
