D.C. court sets expedited schedule for Trump defamation question in E. Jean Carroll case
WASHINGTON — An appellate court set an expedited schedule to consider whether Donald Trump was acting in his official duties as president in 2019 when he denied a claim by a woman that he sexually assaulted her in a department store dressing room decades ago. The District of Columbia Court...
Penn State the latest university to grapple with controversial speech
After violent protests erupted Monday night on Penn State’s main campus, the university became the latest to allow a controversial event and bet wrongly that civil discourse would trump unrest. The situation at Penn State unraveled quickly before a scheduled appearance by Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes, with police —...
Retiring Senate leader Jake Corman urges colleagues to ‘keep the faith’ in farewell remarks
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, known for wearing his heart on his sleeve, fought back tears as he delivered his farewell speech Tuesday on the Senate floor. He urged his fellow senators to respect the institution they serve and to remember when they walk into the...
Amid covid, heart attack deaths jump sharply among young adults
As the number of covid-19 infection surged during the pandemic, deaths from heart attacks rose sharply as well, with adults ages 25-44 experiencing the most significant increases, according to new research from scientists at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. “The dramatic rise in heart attacks during the pandemic has...
Justices to sort out if mail-in ballot envelopes need dates
HARRISBURG — Senior Pennsylvania elections officials argued in a new court filing Tuesday that handwritten dates on the envelopes that many state voters use to mail in ballots should not be deemed mandatory, in part because of a half-century-old legislative ruling deemphasizing their importance. The filing, made under a compressed...
Ash Carter, defense chief who opened combat to women, dies at 68
WASHINGTON — Former Defense Secretary Ash Carter, who opened combat jobs to women and ended a ban on transgender people serving in the military, has died at age 68. Carter died Monday evening after suffering a heart attack in Boston, his family said in a statement Tuesday. Known as a...
Progressives retract Ukraine letter to Biden after uproar
WASHINGTON — A group of progressive Democrats in Congress said Tuesday it had retracted a letter to the White House urging President Joe Biden to engage in direct diplomatic talks with Russia after it triggered an uproar among Democrats and raised questions about the strength of the party’s support for...
As Election Day approaches, Wolf and Pa. lawmakers look to push through massive tax incentives for natural gas
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 — Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf and top state lawmakers are hurriedly negotiating a massive economic development package that would encourage...
Police: 6 who died in Wisconsin apartment fire had been shot
HARTLAND, Wis. — The six people found dead after an apartment fire in a southern Wisconsin village last week had been shot in an apparent case of murder-suicide, according to police. The bodies of a couple and their four children were found early Friday after firefighters were called to their...
American consumer confidence takes a hit in October
WASHINGTON — U.S. consumer confidence waned this month as concerns about inflation took hold after receding somewhat in recent months. The Conference Board reported Tuesday that its consumer confidence index fell to 102.5 in October, from 107.8 in September. Consumers had grown more confident in the two previous months as...
Russian court rejects appeal of jailed U.S. basketball star Griner
MOSCOW — A Russian court on Tuesday rejected an appeal by U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner of her nine-year prison sentence for drug possession, a step that could move her closer to a possible high-stakes prisoner swap between Moscow and Washington. The eight-time all-star center with the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury...
Biden to get updated covid booster shot, promote vaccine
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden was scheduled to get his updated covid-19 booster shot on Tuesday and urge the public to get theirs to ensure a healthy holiday season. Biden was to appear at the White House with the doctors who are leading administration efforts against the spread of the...
Ukraine nuclear agency thickens plot over alleged dirty bomb
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s nuclear energy operator said Tuesday that Russian forces were performing secret work at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, activity that could shed light on Russia’s claims that Kyiv’s forces are preparing a “provocation” involving a radioactive device. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu made an unsubstantiated allegation...
Adidas ends partnership with Ye over antisemitic remarks
LONDON — Adidas ended a partnership that helped make the artist formerly known as Kanye West a billionaire and lent the German sportswear an edgy appeal, but ultimately couldn’t survive a mounting outcry over the rapper’s offensive and antisemitic remarks. The split will leave Adidas searching for another transcendent celebrity...
No Powerball winner — jackpot climbs to $700M
With no one matching all six numbers in Monday night’s Powerball drawing, the jackpot has climbed to $700 million. That would make it the fifth largest Powerball pot of all time and the eighth-largest lottery jackpot ever. Before Monday’s drawing, the jackpot had grown to $625 million, but no one...
Egypt: 10 killed in truck-minibus collision in Nile Delta
CAIRO — A truck slammed into a minibus in Egypt’s fertile Nile Delta region early on Tuesday, killing at least 10 people, authorities said. Officials blamed speeding for the crash; local media said women and children were among those killed. The collision in the province of Dakahlia, around 93 miles...
Rishi Sunak becomes British prime minister
LONDON — Rishi Sunak became Britain’s third prime minister of the year on Tuesday and now must turn his attention to taming an economic crisis that has left the country’s finances in a precarious state and millions of Britons struggling to afford food and energy bills. Sunak, the U.K.’s first...
2 right-wing operatives accused in hoax robocall scheme plead guilty
CLEVELAND — Two right-wing operatives pleaded guilty on Monday in Cleveland to single felony counts of telecommunications fraud for having placed thousands of false robocalls in Ohio that told people they could be arrested or be forced to receive vaccinations based on information they submitted in votes by mail. Jacob...
Penn State protests lead to last-minute cancellation of Proud Boys founder’s appearance
Penn State University officials canceled a Monday evening appearance by Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes as protests gained steam outside of the event. “Due to the threat of escalating violence associated with tonight’s event, Penn State University Police determined that it was necessary to cancel the speaking event in the...
USPS honoring late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg with stamp
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Postal Service is honoring the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg as “an icon of American culture” with a stamp in the new year. The design, unveiled on Monday, is a painted portrait based on a photo of Ginsburg in a black robe with an...
Jake Wagner, Ohio shooter of 5 family members, said he ‘had no choice’Video
WAVERLY, Ohio — An Ohio man convicted of shooting five of eight family members killed in a 2016 massacre testified Monday he had no choice but to kill the mother of his child. Jake Wagner pleaded guilty last year to shooting the five victims, an attack that investigators said resulted...
How to watch Pa.’s highly anticipated Senate debate between Fetterman, Oz
Pennsylvania’s hotly contested U.S. Senate race will have its only televised debate Tuesday in a highly anticipated event that could play an important role in deciding the outcome. Democrat John Fetterman and Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz will square off for an hour starting at 8 p.m. in a live debate...
Justice Thomas issues temporary order shielding Sen. Lindsey Graham from testifying in Georgia election case
WASHINGTON — Justice Clarence Thomas issued an order Monday that temporarily shields Sen. Lindsey Graham from testifying about his phone calls to Georgia election officials after President Donald Trump’s narrow loss there in November 2020. Thomas oversees appeals coming from the 11th Circuit Court based in Atlanta. Late last week,...
What’s behind worrying RSV surge in U.S. children’s hospitals?
Children’s hospitals in parts of the U.S. are seeing a surge in a common respiratory illness that can cause severe breathing problems for babies. RSV cases fell dramatically two years ago as the pandemic shut down schools, day cares and businesses. With restrictions easing in the summer of 2021, doctors...
Chinese officers charged in plot to obstruct U.S. Huawei probeVideo
WASHINGTON — Two men suspected of being Chinese intelligence officers have been charged with attempting to obstruct the U.S. criminal investigation and prosecution of Chinese tech giant Huawei, according to court documents unsealed Monday. The cases were announced at a news conference that featured the heads of both the FBI...
