Pittsburgh Technical College in ‘imminent danger’ of closing, agency says
The accrediting agency for Pittsburgh Technical College says the 80-year-old school “is in danger of imminent closure” and ordered its leaders to “demonstrate by June 28 why its accreditation should not be withdrawn.” The Middle States Commission on Higher Education on Friday released a summary of board actions taken Thursday...
Putin says he sees no current threat to Russia that would warrant the use of nuclear arms
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia — President Vladimir Putin said Friday that he sees no current threat to Russia’s sovereignty that would warrant the use of nuclear weapons but again warned Moscow could send weapons to states or others to strike Western targets. Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin...
3 Americans implicated in coup attempt in Congo go on trial before military court
KINSHASA, Congo — Three Americans accused of being involved in last month’s coup attempt in Congo appeared in a military court in the country’s capital, Kinshasa, on Friday, along with dozens of other defendants who were lined up on plastic chairs before the judge on the first day of the...
Defense begins calling witnesses in Hunter Biden’s federal gun trial after prosecution rests case
WILMINGTON, Del. — Federal prosecutors wrapped up their gun case against Hunter Biden on Friday with two final witnesses in their effort to prove that the president’s son lied on a mandatory gun-purchase form when he said he was not illegally using or addicted to drugs. Prosecutors called an FBI...
No tuition increase for CCAC students
Tuition and most fees will not increase for students attending Community College of Allegheny County during the upcoming academic year. The Board of Trustees on Thursday approved a budget of almost $115 million for 2024-25. It keeps tuition for Allegheny County residents at $126 per credit, or $1,890 per full-time...
U.S. employers added a robust 272,000 jobs in May in a sign of sustained economic health
WASHINGTON — America’s employers added a strong 272,000 jobs in May, accelerating from April and a sign that companies are still confident enough in the economy to keep hiring despite persistently high interest rates. Last month’s sizable job gain suggests that the economy is still growing steadily, propelled by consumer...
A new account rekindles allegations that Trump disrespected Black people on ‘The Apprentice’
Gene Folkes had just been jettisoned as a contestant on “The Apprentice” and was commiserating with a crew member at a bar inside the lobby of Trump Tower. He was indignant — and not just at having been kicked off the reality show after its star, Donald Trump, had delivered...
Like Reagan before him, Biden looks to capture magic of Pointe du Hoc story
PARIS — President Joe Biden will return to Normandy for a second day during his trip to France as he tries to rally Americans in defense of democracy from Pointe du Hoc, a legendary spot along the coast where Army Rangers scaled cliffs during the D-Day invasion. The site’s prominence...
At D-Day ceremony, American veteran hugs Ukraine’s Zelenskyy and calls him a savior
OMAHA BEACH, France — An American veteran and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shared an emotional moment at a ceremony to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion to liberate France in World War II, each praising the other as a hero. Retired Staff Sgt. Melvin Hurwitz, 99, and other...
Biden apologizes to Ukraine’s Zelenskyy for monthslong holdup to weapons that let Russia make gains
PARIS — President Joe Biden on Friday for the first time publicly apologized to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for a monthslong holdup in American military assistance that let Russia make gains on the battlefield. Speaking in Paris, where they both attended ceremonies marking the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings,...
Russian warships, including nuclear sub, missile frigate, will arrive next week in Cuba
Three Russian Navy ships and a nuclear-powered submarine will arrive at the Port of Havana for an official visit next week, the Cuban armed forces said in a statement Thursday, confirming the military exercises first disclosed by U.S. officials. The Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces said the Russian missile frigate Admiral...
Some Republicans booed, walked out as Pa. House recognized Jan. 6 Capitol police officers
HARRISBURG — A visit to the Pennsylvania House floor by two former police officers who helped protect the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot of 2021 drew boos and walkouts by some Republican legislators this week. Witnesses said the appearance Wednesday by former U.S. Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn...
Texas sheriff says 7 suspects arrested, 11 migrants hospitalized after sting near San Antonio
AUSTIN — Eleven people were hospitalized and seven smuggling suspects were arrested Thursday when authorities found more than two dozen migrants who had been driven from the border packed in a secret compartment of a trailer with little water and in sweltering heat. Acting on a tip about a smuggling...
Ex-NASCAR driver Tighe Scott and 3 other Pennsylvania men face charges stemming from Capitol riot
Retired NASCAR driver Tighe Scott, his adult son and two other Pennsylvania men are facing felony charges stemming from confrontations with police during the Jan. 6, 2021, siege on the U.S. Capitol. Scott, 75, of Pen Argyl, and three Saylorsburg residents — Jarret Scott, 48; Scott Slater Sr., 56, and...
Paid family leave draws bipartisan support as good for the economy, but some oppose cost, lost control
This story first appeared in How We Care, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA featuring original reporting and perspectives on how we care for one another at all stages of life. Alana Griffin was employed and on maternity leave when she and her infant son moved into a Tampa, Florida,...
Point Park University extends offer to students as Philadelphia college closes
The urgent calls and emails to Point Park University started within hours of the abrupt announcement that a venerable arts campus in Philadelphia would close within a week, leaving hundreds of students suddenly without fall college plans. University of the Arts, dating to the 1870s, had become the latest small...
Records expunged for St. Louis couple who waved guns at protesters. They want their guns back
ST. LOUIS — A judge has expunged the misdemeanor convictions of a St. Louis couple who waved guns at racial injustice protesters outside their mansion in 2020. Now they want their guns back. Attorneys Mark and Patricia McCloskey filed a request in January to have the convictions wiped away. Judge...
A 102-year-old World War II veteran dies en route to D-Day commemorations in Europe
A World War II Navy veteran was being mourned Thursday following his death while en route to France to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day, a trip friends said he’d talked excitedly about making. Robert “Al” Persichitti of Fairport, N.Y., fell ill during a stop in Germany last week and...
Biden calls for solidarity with Ukraine at D-Day anniversary ceremony near the beaches of Normandy
COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER, France — President Joe Biden marked the 80th anniversary of D-Day on Thursday by pledging “we will not walk away” from Ukraine, drawing a direct line from the fight to liberate Europe from Nazi domination to today’s war against Russian aggression. “To surrender to bullies, to bow down to...
Kentucky Democratic governor pushes back against Trump-led attacks on electric vehicles
FRANKFORT, Ky. — Electric vehicles have built up enough momentum from job growth and investments to steer past any roadblocks from Donald Trump and other critics, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said Thursday. The Democratic governor said the thousands of EV-related jobs springing up across the country, including in rural GOP...
Widow of Beau Biden tells jurors in Hunter Biden’s gun trial that she threw firearm in a trash can
WILMINGTON, Del. — The widow of Hunter Biden’s brother told jurors in his federal gun trial Thursday about the moment she found the revolver in his truck, describing how she put it into a leather pouch, stuffed it into a shopping bag and tossed it in a trash can outside...
Panama community pushed from Caribbean island by rising sea levels moves into new houses
ISBERYALA, Panama — Hammocks began appearing this week in the doorways of 300 new houses built in what was previously a yucca field along Panama’s Caribbean coast for families from the country’s first low-lying island evacuated due to rising sea levels. Indigenous Guna families from the island of Gardi Sugdub...
Trump ally Steve Bannon must surrender to prison by July 1 to start contempt sentence, judge says
WASHINGTON — Steve Bannon, a longtime ally of former President Donald Trump, must report to prison by July 1 to serve his four-month sentence for defying a subpoena from the House committee that investigated the U.S. Capitol insurrection, a federal judge ruled Thursday. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols in Washington...
Photo gallery: Here are some historic D-Day images
Today is the 80th anniversary of D-Day. On June 6, 1944, nearly 160,000 Allied troops landed in Normandy during “Operation Overlord” to try and take away Nazi control of western France. More than 2,500 American troops were killed during battle and a total of 4,414 Allied troops died. More than...
Hour by hour: A brief timeline of the Allies’ June 6, 1944, D-Day invasion of occupied France
OMAHA BEACH, France — A brief timeline of events on D-Day, June 6, 1944. Shortly after midnight: More than 2,200 Allied aircraft begin bombing German defenses and other targets in Normandy. They are followed by 1,200 aircraft carrying more than 23,000 American, British and Canadian airborne troops. British forces landing...
