Man to plead guilty in plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer
DETROIT — One of six men charged in an alleged plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiracy, admitting that the group discussed an incredible scheme to snatch her at her lakeside vacation home and destroy a bridge to slow down police. Ty Garbin’s guilty plea...
Hikers told to forgo entire Appalachian Trail due to virus
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Hikers are being told by the agency that oversees the Appalachian Trail to postpone plans to cover the nearly 2,200-mile (3,540 kilometer) distance this year due to COVID-19. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy made the suggestion because it feels the pandemic makes long-distance hikes unsafe, the Asheville Citizen...
Killer winter tornado stuns storm-savvy Alabama town
FULTONDALE, Ala. — James Scott has never lived anywhere other than a two-story house on hilly Darlene Drive north of Birmingham. Home will never be the same after a tornado smashed the structure into pieces, killed another teen and left the community devastated in the middle of the night. Standing...
Capitol Police chief, sergeant-at-arms acknowledge failures in Jan. 6 siegeVideo
WASHINGTON — Acting Capitol Police Chief Yogananda D. Pittman on Tuesday apologized to Congress and acknowledged her department’s failure to adequately act on intelligence before a violent mob of pro-Trump insurrectionists infiltrated the Capitol on Jan. 6. Pittman, who took over the force when former Chief Steven Sund resigned Jan....
Lawyer says Pelosi laptop hasn’t been recovered from Pennsylvania suspect
HARRISBURG — A laptop stolen from the offices of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during the U.S. Capitol attack has not been recovered from the home or car of a Pennsylvania woman accused of helping steal it, the woman’s lawyer said Tuesday. Public defender A.J. Kramer told a federal judge that...
Biden names Baldwin native Susan Orsega as acting surgeon general
President Joe Biden is expected to name Baldwin native Susan Orsega as the nation’s acting surgeon general, according to a report from the Washington Post. Rear Adm. Orsega will hold down the position until Biden’s nominee, Dr. Vivek Murthy, can be confirmed by the Senate. Murthy served in the role...
Feds: Former Air Force captain threatened family of congressman, journalist
NEW YORK — A California man disgruntled about the presidential election result was arrested Tuesday on charges alleging he threatened family members of a New York congressman and a journalist in text messages sent during the attack on the Capitol, authorities said. Robert Lemke, 35, was arrested in Bay Point,...
Department of Justice rescinds ‘zero tolerance’ immigration rule
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department on Tuesday rescinded a Trump-era memo that established a “zero tolerance” enforcement policy for migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally, which resulted in thousands of family separations. Acting Attorney General Monty Wilkinson issued the new memo to federal prosecutors across the nation, saying the department...
Florida ‘Paramedic of the Year’ accused of helping to steal vaccine
BARTOW, Fla. — A Florida man who had been recently named “Paramedic of the Year” helped a supervisor steal covid-19 vaccines meant for first responders, sheriff’s officials said. Joshua Colon, 31, forged the vaccine screening and consent forms to help cover up the theft of three vials containing 10 doses...
U.S. boosting vaccine deliveries amid complaints of shortagesVideo
Answering growing frustration over vaccine shortages, President Joe Biden announced Tuesday that the U.S. is ramping up deliveries to hard-pressed states over the next three weeks and expects to provide enough doses to vaccinate 300 million Americans by the end of the summer or early fall. Biden, calling the push...
CDC study: Schools mostly safe to open with proper precautions
Schools operating in person have experienced scant transmission of coronavirus, particularly when proper precautions are employed, according to a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report released Tuesday. The CDC researchers, who wrote in the Journal of the American Medical Association, said indoor athletics have led to infections and...
Senate rejects GOP motion to dismiss Trump impeachment trialVideo
WASHINGTON — The Senate has rejected a Republican attempt to dismiss Donald Trump’s historic second impeachment trial, a vote that allows the case on “incitement of insurrection” to move forward but also foreshadows that there may not be enough votes to convict him. The 55-45 procedural vote to set aside...
Pa. overdose deaths likely to increase because of pandemic disruption
Overdose deaths in Pennsylvania will likely tick upward for the first time in several years when 2020 reports are finalized, according to state officials, showing the effects of a year marked by isolation and a cutoff of group and in-person services. Overdose drug deaths were higher month over month for...
Vatican clears retired U.S. bishop of multiple abuse claims
ROME — The Vatican has cleared a retired U.S. bishop of multiple allegations he sexually abused minors and teenagers, rejecting lay experts’ determination that a half-dozen claims were credible and instead slapping him on the wrist for what it called “flagrant” imprudent behavior. The Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of...
Covid hospitalizations in Pa. have dropped for almost a week
The number of covid-19 patients hospitalized in Pennsylvania has decreased every day over the past six days, according to state Department of Health data. There were 3,790 covid-19 patients hospitalized in the state on Tuesday, dropping by almost 100 from 3,887 on Monday. The biggest drop came Jan. 22, when...
Trump agreements seek to tie Biden’s hands on immigration
SAN DIEGO — During the Trump administration’s final weeks, the Department of Homeland Security quietly signed agreements with at least four states that threaten to temporarily derail President Joe Biden’s efforts to undo his predecessor’s immigration policies. The agreements say Arizona, Indiana, Louisiana and Texas are entitled to a 180-day...
Widespread internet outages hit northeast U.S.
Internet users across the northeast U.S. experienced widespread outages for several hours Tuesday, interrupting work and school because of an unspecified Verizon network issue. “An internet issue impacting the quality of our Fios service throughout the Northeast has been resolved,” said spokesman Rich Young in an emailed statement Tuesday afternoon....
1st private space crew paying $55M each to fly to station
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The first private space station crew was introduced Tuesday: Three men who are each paying $55 million to fly on a SpaceX rocket. They’ll be led by a former NASA astronaut now working for Axiom Space, the Houston company that arranged the trip for next January....
Feds seek to boost pandemic student nutrition card benefits by 15%
The federal government plans to issue Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer cards to eligible schools and students beginning in early spring, following President Joe Biden’s executive order last week boosting those benefits by 15%. Through P-EBT, eligible students receive temporary emergency nutrition benefits loaded on EBT cards used to purchase food....
President Biden to pause oil drilling on public lands
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden is set to announce a wide-ranging moratorium on new oil and gas leasing on U.S. lands, as his administration moves quickly to reverse Trump administration policies on energy and the environment and address climate change. Two people with knowledge of Biden’s plans outlined the proposed...
Angry farmers storm India’s Red Fort in huge tractor rally
NEW DELHI — Tens of thousands of protesting farmers drove long lines of tractors into India’s capital on Tuesday, breaking through police barricades, defying tear gas and storming the historic Red Fort as the nation celebrated Republic Day. They waved farm union and religious flags from the ramparts of the...
1 dead, at least 30 injured after tornado rips Alabama townVideo
FULTONDALE, Ala. — A teenager sheltering in his basement was killed and several family members were critically injured when a tornado blew a tree onto their Alabama home, police said Tuesday. Many others narrowly escaped with their lives. At least 30 people were injured as the twister carved a 10-mile...
Wisconsin lawmakers to vote on repealing governor’s mask mandate
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin Senate planned to vote Tuesday on repealing Gov. Tony Evers’ statewide mask mandate, while it remained unclear whether the Assembly would follow suit as required to undo the order. A joint resolution cosponsored by 29 Republicans in the Legislature was up for approval in...
Foot of snow blankets parts of Midwest, disrupts travel
OMAHA, Neb. — A major winter storm dropped more than a foot of snow on parts of Nebraska and Iowa, disrupting traffic and shuttering some schools, while blanketing other parts of the middle of the country with snow that continued to fall Tuesday. There were early closures of several coronavirus...
U.K. eyes quarantine hotels for travelers to curb variants
LONDON — Britain appears ready to order some travelers arriving from abroad to isolate in hotels at their own expense in an attempt to stop the import of new virus variants. Vaccines Minister Nadhim Zahawi said there would be an announcement Tuesday on plans for tighter border measures. The BBC...
