Seriously, The Onion files Supreme Court brief in defense of parody
WASHINGTON — The Onion has some serious things to say in defense of parody. The satirical site that manages to persuade people to believe the absurd has filed a Supreme Court brief in support of a man who was arrested and prosecuted for making fun of police on social media....
U.K.’s Truss vows to listen as she reels from policy U-turns
BIRMINGHAM, England — Liz Truss should be celebrating her first month as Britain’s prime minister. Instead, she’s fighting for her job. Truss is spending her first Conservative Party conference as leader this week scrambling to reassure financial markets spooked by her government’s see-sawing economic pledges, while trying to restore her...
Job openings sink as economy slows, cost to borrow rises
WASHINGTON — The number of available jobs in the U.S. plummeted in August compared with July as businesses grow less desperate for workers, a trend that could cool chronically high inflation. That is good news for the Federal Reserve in its efforts to bring down high prices without plunging the...
In Ian’s wake, Florida residents brave a slow wait for power
BONITA SPRINGS, Fla. — Nearly a week after Hurricane Ian smashed into Florida and carved a path of destruction that reached into the Carolinas, hundreds of thousands of Florida residents faced another day without electricity Tuesday as rescuers continued their search for those trapped inside homes inundated with lingering floodwaters....
Japan to expel Russia consul as ties worsen over Ukraine
TOKYO — Japan on Tuesday ordered the Russian consul in the northern city of Sapporo to leave the country within six days in retaliation for Moscow’s expulsion of a Japanese diplomat last month for alleged espionage. Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said his ministry declared the consul a persona non...
Russian losses evident in key liberated Ukrainian city
LYMAN, Ukraine — The bodies of Russian soldiers were lying in the streets of a key eastern Ukrainian city on Tuesday, evidence of a hasty retreat that marked a new military defeat for Moscow as it struggles to hang on to areas it illegally annexed last week. Russia’s upper house...
3 physicists share Nobel Prize for work on quantum science
STOCKHOLM — Three scientists jointly won this year’s Nobel Prize in physics on Tuesday for their work on quantum information science that has significant applications, for example in the field of encryption. Frenchman Alain Aspect, American John F. Clauser and Austrian Anton Zeilinger were cited by the Royal Swedish Academy...
Herschel Walker refutes report that says he paid for abortion in 2009
ATLANTA — Herschel Walker, who has vehemently opposed abortion rights as the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in Georgia, paid for an abortion for his girlfriend in 2009, according to a new report published late Monday. The candidate called the accusation a “flat-out lie” and said he would sue. The...
Reports: Migrant flights’ mysterious recruiter identified
SAN ANTONIO — The mysterious woman who allegedly lured dozens of migrants on Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ flights to Martha’s Vineyard from San Antonio has been identified by several media outlets as Perla H. Huerta, a former combat medic and U.S. Army counterintelligence agent living in Tampa. The New York...
North Korea fires ballistic missile that flies over Japan
North Korea on Tuesday fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile over Japan for the first time in five years, forcing Japan to issue evacuation notices and suspend trains, as the North escalates tests of weapons designed to strike regional U.S. allies. It was the most significant missile test by North Korea...
Trump files $475 million defamation lawsuit against CNN
NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump on Monday sued CNN, seeking $475 million in damages, saying the network had defamed him in an effort to short-circuit any future political campaign. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., focuses primarily on the term “The Big Lie”...
Rex Tillerson testifies at corruption trial of Trump adviser Tom Barrack
NEW YORK — Rex Tillerson, who served a turbulent term as secretary of state under former President Donald Trump, was called as a government witness Monday at the trial of a Trump ally accused of leaking intelligence to the United Arab Emirates. Tillerson testified that he barely knew the defendant,...
Mercer County angler at center of fishing cheating scandal
CLEVELAND — The county prosecutor’s office in Cleveland has opened an investigation into an apparent cheating scandal during a lucrative walleye fishing tournament on Lake Erie last week. A video posted to Twitter shows Jason Fischer, tournament director for the Lake Erie Walleye Trail, cutting open the winning catch of...
Oath Keepers trial: Jan. 6 was ‘rebellion,’ prosecutor says
WASHINGTON — The founder of the Oath Keepers extremist group and four associates planned an “armed rebellion” to keep President Donald Trump in power, a federal prosecutor contended Monday as the most serious case yet went to trial in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Stewart Rhodes...
Supreme Court welcomes the public again, and a new justice
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court began its new term Monday with a new justice on the bench, the public back in the courtroom and a spirited debate in a case that pits environmental protections against property rights. The new member of the court, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, wasted no time...
Ukraine claws back more territory Russia is trying to annex
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian forces scored more gains in their counteroffensive across a broad front Monday, advancing in the very areas Russia is trying to annex and challenging its effort to engage fresh troops and its threats to defend incorporated areas by all means, including with nuclear weapons. In their...
Let’s make Max an Animal Kingdom winner — and help fight a terrible feline disease
Everyone who works at Trib Total Media knows two facts about our President and CEO Jennifer Bertetto: she brings the snacks for every group meeting, and she is the devoted caretaker of six (yes, six) cats. One of those cats, Max, has done something amazing. Last year, he beat the...
Chronically ill patients could get easier access to new treatments if Pa. lawmakers act soon
Spotlight PA 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. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Chronically ill patients could find it easier to get their insurance companies to OK new treatments under a bill...
Biden tells Puerto Ricans he’s ‘committed to this island’
PONCE, Puerto Rico — President Joe Biden promised to “rebuild it all” while visiting Puerto Rico on Monday, as tens of thousands of people remain without power two weeks after Hurricane Fiona struck and residents worry that Washington’s dedication to their recovery could prove fleeting. “I’m committed to this island,”...
Supreme Court won’t take up MyPillow head’s defamation case
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court says it won’t intervene in a lawsuit in which Dominion Voting Systems accused MyPillow chief executive Mike Lindell of defamation for falsely accusing the company of rigging the 2020 presidential election against former President Donald Trump. As is typical, the high court did not say...
It’s flu vaccine time and seniors need revved-up shots
Doctors have a message for vaccine-weary Americans: Don’t skip your flu shot this fall — and seniors, ask for a special extra-strength kind. After flu hit historically low levels during the covid-19 pandemic, it may be poised for a comeback. The main clue: A nasty flu season just ended in...
Nobel win for Swede who unlocked secrets of Neanderthal DNA
STOCKHOLM — Swedish scientist Svante Paabo won the Nobel Prize in medicine Monday for his discoveries on human evolution that provided key insights into our immune system and what makes us unique compared with our extinct cousins, the award’s panel said. Paabo has spearheaded the development of new techniques that...
Hurricane Orlene roars toward Mexico’s Pacific coast
MAZATLAN, Mexico — Hurricane Orlene swept toward landfall on Mexico’s Pacific coast near the tourist town of Mazatlan on Monday. Orlene lost some strength after roaring over the Islas Maria, a former prison colony being developed as a tourist draw. The main island is sparsely populated, mainly by government employees,...
In Hurricane Ian’s wake, dangers persist, worsen in parts
FORT MYERS, Fla. — People kayaking down streets that were passable just a day or two earlier. Hundreds of thousands without power. National Guard helicopters flying rescue missions to residents still stranded on Florida’s barrier islands. Days after Hurricane Ian carved a path of destruction from Florida to the Carolinas,...
Bolsonaro, Lula headed to runoff after tight Brazil electionVideo
RIO DE JANEIRO — Brazil’s top two presidential candidates will face each other in a runoff vote after neither got enough support to win outright Sunday in an election to decide if the country returns a leftist to the helm of the world’s fourth-largest democracy or keeps the far-right incumbent...
