Top Stories category, Page 50
A ghost in the Oval Office: How Reagan looms over Trump presidency
WASHINGTON — Since February, a large, smiling portrait of Ronald Reagan has loomed over the Oval Office, watching Donald Trump each time he settles behind the Resolute Desk long used by U.S. presidents. The painting - provided by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute and prominently installed by Trump...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: If the Penguins want development, a kid line is the answer
Winning when it’s not expected and when you’re supposed to be rebuilding comes with an unusual set of challenges. You’ve got to keep trying to win, but development can’t be put on the backburner. That’s the circumstance the Penguins find themselves in after a whirlwind 6-2 start that sees them...
Analysis: Bulldozer and ballroom: Trump puts permanent stamp on the White House
WASHINGTON — When President Donald Trump met with donors for his new ballroom at the White House earlier this month, he relayed a story that thrilled his real estate mogul heart. “I said, ‘How long will it take me?’ ‘Sir, you can start tonight, you have no approvals,’” Trump said...
U.S. corn crop could be the biggest ever. That’s terrible news for America’s farmers.
FREDERICKSBURG, Iowa — Kyle Wendland stepped away from his engineering degree two decades ago to follow his father - not just into farming corn, but into a world of debt, grit, and stubborn faith he could wrest a living from Iowa’s soil. He calls his place Comeback Farms, after his...
Social Security checks to rise 2.8% in 2026
More than 75 million Americans receiving Social Security and Supplemental Security Income benefits will see their monthly payments rise 2.8% in 2026, accelerating from the prior year’s increase for the first time in three years. The Social Security Administration announced the annual cost-of-living adjustment to benefits on Friday, less than...
Scouting the Packers: Steelers opponent hasn’t won in Pittsburgh since 1970
SCOUTING THE PACKERS Last meeting Steelers beat Packers, 23-19, on Nov. 12, 2023, in Pittsburgh Key matchup Steelers front seven vs. Packers RB Josh Jacobs While Micah Parsons gets all the attention as a come-from-anywhere Green Bay pass rusher who must be accounted for, the player on offense who elicits...
Alle-Kiski Valley small businesses step up as time runs out for SNAP benefits
Craig Rearic knows what it’s like to struggle. “Before I started my own business, I was on food stamps and struggling,” said Rearic, co-owner of Paint Pros in South Buffalo. “I know how important it is, especially for people on a fixed income. As a child, I grew up in...
WPIAL clinched: Field of automatic qualifiers set for 2025 football playoffs
Here’s a look at teams that have automatically qualified for the WPIAL football playoffs. The WPIAL football committee will choose wild card qualifiers Saturday. The playoffs begin next Friday. Watch the Trib HSSN playoff pairings show at 3 p.m. Saturday. Class 6A (4 qualifiers) 1. Central Catholic, 2. North Allegheny,...
Pentagon accepts anonymous $130 million donation from Trump ‘friend’ to pay military
WASHINGTON ‒ The Pentagon said it has accepted an anonymous $130 million donation from an ally of President Donald Trump that it plans to use to pay military members during the government shutdown. The move marks a dramatic break from the government’s process to fund the military, which relies on...
Athletes, influencers navigate fine line as sports betting booms
Livvy Dunne has parlayed her successful stint as a collegiate gymnast at LSU into a career as a social media influencer and model. She can be seen in ads for Fanatics, including one where she appears shrouded in bubbles in a bathtub in the middle of a football field. “Fanatics...
Judge nixes request for AI lawyer in pending New Kensington murder case
A Washington County man charged with the 2022 murder of a New Kensington man told a Westmoreland County judge Friday he wants to represent himself at his upcoming trial with the help of an artificial intelligence lawyer. Larry Osborn Nix II, 42, of West Brownsville is awaiting trial for criminal...
Westmoreland Intermediate Unit looks to borrow millions, warns of possible layoffs during budget impasses
The Westmoreland Intermediate Unit wants to borrow $2 million to keep services and programs operating during the ongoing state budget crisis, the organization’s leader said. If the Intermediate Unit board of directors approves borrowing the money through a revenue anticipation loan, it can avoid disruptions through the remainder of the...
Southwest Greensburg man charged in flagpole altercations at ‘No Kings’ protest
Charges were filed Friday against a Southwest Greensburg man who police said was involved in an incident that injured a woman at the No Kings protest outside the Westmoreland County courthouse. Jeffrey C. Greece, 58, is facing two misdemeanors, disorderly conduct and criminal mischief, and a summary offense of harassment....
USDA memo says it will not use emergency funds for November food benefits
The U.S. Department of Agriculture will not use agency contingency funds to pay for food aid benefits set to lapse in November during the federal government shutdown, according to a memo seen by Reuters. More than 41 million people are set to lose Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, also known...
Argument leads to shooting in Point Breeze, school lockdown
A man was hospitalized Friday following a midday shooting that prompted a nearby school to go into lockdown. Police said officers were dispatched around 11:30 a.m. to the 200 block of East End Avenue in the city’s Point Breeze neighborhood. A call came in about an argument followed by gunshots....
U.S. expects more flight delays as controllers soon to miss paychecks
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Friday said he expects more flights to be delayed, with air traffic controllers set to miss their first paycheck as a federal government shutdown enters its 24th day. Some 13,000 air traffic controllers and about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers must work without pay...
Tip about Mt. Oliver killing led to arrest in Georgia with case now heading to trial
An anonymous tip this spring from a 412 “burner phone” helped detectives crack open a cold case: the Mt. Oliver home invasion that ended in the fatal shooting of Damon Lincoln. On Friday afternoon, the case took another step forward when a judge bound suspected gunman David Barlow, now 28,...
Holiday tours at Hartwood Acres canceled as Pa. budget impasse continues
Holiday tours of the mansion at Hartwood Acres will be canceled this year because of the state budget impasse, Allegheny County spokeswoman Abigail Gardner told TribLive. The cancellation, announced Friday, is part of a spending freeze because the county is dealing with a $100 million shortfall because the state has...
Sports betting is a booming business. The FBI’s NBA probe is putting it in the spotlight
NEW YORK — The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people, including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures, on charges of illegal sports betting has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of professional sports gambling across the U.S. Since widespread legalization,...
Family-owned Hillcrest Volkswagen to close at the end of the month
The only foreign car dealership in the Alle-Kiski Valley, Hillcrest Volkswagen in Lower Burrell will close at the end of the month. Owner Bob Bordonaro said Hillcrest made a mutual decision to sell back the franchise to Volkswagen. “After 40-plus years, we made a decision that it was time to...
Staring at life without a paycheck, federal workers rally in Pittsburgh against shutdown
Saturday should be payday for local Internal Revenue Service workers like Elizabeth McPeak. But because of a federal government shutdown, she’s one of about 250 local IRS workers and about 1.4 million federal workers nationwide who won’t receive a paycheck this weekend. “Tomorrow is payday but there won’t be a...
U.S. military to deploy aircraft carrier to South America amid soaring tensions with Venezuela
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump dramatically escalated a U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean on Friday by deploying the Gerald Ford aircraft carrier group to Latin America, a show of force that far exceeds any past counter-narcotics need and represents Washington’s most muscular move yet in the Latin America region....
NFL and Pittsburgh leaders discuss massive 2026 Draft preparations
Acrisure Stadium will be the focal point of the NFL Draft fan experience, officials announced Friday, as the region begins ramping up preparations for the April event. Robert Morris University hosted a panel to discuss logistics for the upcoming NFL Draft, featuring NFL Director of Event Operations Steve Farago and...
United Steelworkers elects its 1st woman president
The United Steelworkers union, a Pittsburgh-based giant of organized labor, has selected its next leader. International Vice President Roxanne Brown secured the presidency in a unionwide election, the United Steelworkers announced Friday. Brown, a Black woman, is the 10th person to hold the top job — and the first who’s...
Uniontown man convicted of 1st-degree murder in wife’s 2023 death
A Fayette County man was convicted of first-degree murder Thursday for killing his wife, according to Fayette County District Attorney Mike Aubele. Arthur E. Guty, 57, of Uniontown was immediately sentenced to a term of life imprisonment in connection with the December 2023 death of Nicole Zambrano, 26, Aubele said....
