Trump to return to White House early from Florida vacation
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Donald Trump is cutting short his Florida holiday vacation and returning to Washington on Thursday, one day earlier than expected for reasons the White House didn’t explain. The White House announced the abrupt change in the president’s schedule late Wednesday, hours after Sen. Josh...
Heavy snow expected in Texas; storm could spawn tornadoesVideo
AUSTIN, Texas — A winter storm moving across southwestern Texas on Wednesday could dump more than a foot of snow before moving eastward and possibly spawning tornadoes in parts of Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi on New Year’s Eve, according to weather forecasters. Jeremy Grams, a forecaster with the National Weather...
Baltimore police detective charged with assaulting a shopper who refused to wear a mask
BALTIMORE — A Baltimore Police detective has been charged with misdemeanor assault and misconduct in office for allegedly slamming to the ground a man who refused to wear a face covering inside a West Baltimore grocery store last April. Detective Andre Pringle, 45, faces a maximum of 10 years in...
New York gets new train hub, in transformed postal buildingVideo
NEW YORK — Gov. Andrew Cuomo and transit officials cut the ribbon Wednesday on a gleaming new train hub that will give travelers an alternative to cramped, dingy Penn Station across the street. The Moynihan Train Hall takes up 255,000 square feet of what formerly served as a mail sorting...
California has nation’s 2nd confirmed case of coronavirus variantVideo
California on Wednesday announced the nation’s second confirmed case of the new and apparently more contagious variant of the coronavirus, offering a strong indication that the infection is spreading more widely in the United States. Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the infection found in Southern California during an online conversation with...
New Hampshire governor cancels inaugural, citing mask protests at his home
CONCORD, N.H. — New Hampshire’s Republican governor said Wednesday that he is canceling his outdoor inauguration ceremony next month because of public safety concerns — namely, armed protesters who have been gathering outside his home in the weeks since he issued a mask order. “My first responsibility is ensuring the...
Indiana AG: No charges recommended in fetal remains case
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana’s attorney general recommended no criminal charges or licensing actions Wednesday after concluding an investigation into more than 2,000 sets of fetal remains found last year at the suburban Chicago garage of a late prolific abortion doctor. Attorney General Curtis Hill said his office’s investigation determined the fetal...
Florida seniors begin swarming covid-19 vaccination sitesVideo
TALLAHASSEE — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis begged for patience from anxious seniors waiting their turn to get inoculated against covid-19, as confusion and frustration arose over the availability of the life-saving vaccine among some of the state’s most vulnerable. At vaccination sites across the state, seniors formed long lines —...
Census Bureau to miss deadline, jeopardizing Trump plan
The Census Bureau plans to announce it will miss a year-end deadline for handing in numbers used for divvying up congressional seats, a delay that could undermine President Donald Trump’s efforts to exclude people in the country illegally from the count if the figures aren’t turned in before President-elect Joe...
As runoff nears, Trump complicates GOP case by demanding that Gov. Brian Kemp resignVideo
ATLANTA — President Donald Trump demanded that Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp resign because he refused his demand to illegally overturn election results, his harshest rebuke yet of his fellow Republican days before crucial Georgia runoff votes for control of the U.S. Senate. The president’s attack on Kemp, calling him an...
Quake aftershocks keep people out of homes in CroatiaVideo
PETRINJA, Croatia — A series of aftershocks jolted central Croatia on Wednesday, a day after a 6.3-magnitude earthquake killed at least seven people, injured dozens and left several towns and villages in ruins. Authorities warned that the coronavirus could spread in crowded shelters. Many people are in tents, their cars...
California governor offers plans to reopen in-person schools
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday encouraged schools to resume in-person education next year, starting with the youngest students, and promised $2 billion in state aid to promote coronavirus testing, increased ventilation of classrooms and personal protective equipment. The recommendation was driven by increasing evidence that there...
After a year like this, expect a strange New Year’s Eve
NEW YORK — If ever a year’s end seemed like cause for celebration, 2020 might be it. Yet the coronavirus scourge that dominated the year is also looming over New Year’s festivities and forcing officials worldwide to tone them down. From New York’s Times Square to Sydney Harbor, big public...
Well-preserved Ice Age woolly rhino found in Siberia
MOSCOW — A well-preserved Ice Age woolly rhino with many of its internal organs still intact has been recovered from permafrost in Russia’s extreme north. Russian media reported Wednesday that the carcass was revealed by melting permafrost in Yakutia in August. Scientists are waiting for ice roads in the Arctic...
U.K. is 1st to authorize easy-to-handle AstraZeneca vaccine
LONDON — Britain became the first country to authorize AstraZeneca’s inexpensive, easy-to-handle covid-19 vaccine Wednesday, gaining another weapon against the virus amid a resurgence so severe that the government extended lockdowns to three-quarters of England’s population. The country also changed course by deciding to dispense the first dose of its...
What Pittsburgh region needs to know about U.K. coronavirus strain
A new and seemingly more contagious strain of the coronavirus was diagnosed this week in a Colorado National Guardsman, bringing about a slew of questions regarding its severity and lethality. Dr. Amesh Adalja, a Pittsburgh-based infectious disease and critical care physician, offered his insights into what this new variant of...
Gov. Wolf: New Pa. covid restrictions to end Monday
Come Monday, it won’t just be a new year. It may be a new start for the beleaguered restaurant and bar industries that have borne the brunt of coronavirus restrictions in 2020. “It will be good to get people back to work,” Bill Fuller, corporate chef and president of Big...
Canada to require negative test for people entering country
TORONTO — The Canadian government said Wednesday that travelers must have a negative covid-19 test taken within three days before they arrive in the country. Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc said the measure will be implemented in the next few days. Canada already requires those entering the country to self-isolate...
GOP-led Senate rejects vote on Trump’s push for $2K checksVideo
WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell shut the door Wednesday on President Donald Trump’s push for $2,000 covid-19 relief checks, declaring Congress has provided enough pandemic aid as he blocked another attempt by Democrats to force a vote. The GOP leader made clear he is unwilling to budge, despite...
U.S. bomber mission over Persian Gulf aimed at cautioning Iran
WASHINGTON — The U.S. flew strategic bombers over the Persian Gulf on Wednesday for the second time this month, a show of force meant to deter Iran from attacking American or allied targets in the Middle East. One senior U.S. military officer said the flight by two Air Force B-52...
Pelosi says Iowa Republican in contested race will be seated
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Majority Democrats in the U.S. House will allow an Iowa Republican to take office while they review her opponent’s contest claiming the six-vote race was wrongly decided, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday. Pelosi said “yes” when asked at a news conference whether Mariannette Miller-Meeks will be...
Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley to contest Biden’s Electoral College winVideo
WASHINGTON — Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said Wednesday he will raise objections next week when Congress meets to affirm President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the election, forcing House and Senate votes that are likely to delay — but in no way alter — the final certification of Biden’s win. President...
U.S. sanctions Venezuelan judge for conviction of oil managers
MIAMI — The Trump administration has imposed sanctions on the Venezuelan judge and prosecutor behind the conviction on corruption charges of six American oil executives. The six employees of Houston-based Citgo were lured to Caracas just before Thanksgiving in 2017 on the pretense of attending a business meeting. Once there,...
Hunter charged with homicide in fatal shooting at Pa. state park
BEDMINSTER — A hunter who fatally shot a man he apparently mistook for an animal at a state park has been charged with homicide and weapons counts, authorities said. Kenneth Troy Heller, 52, of Warminster made his initial court appearance Wednesday and was jailed after the judge denied him bail....
U.K. puts millions more under tight restrictions as cases soar
LONDON — The British government on Wednesday extended its toughest coronavirus restrictions to more than three-quarters of England’s population, saying a fast-spreading new variant of the virus has reached most of the country. Health Secretary Matt Hancock said that at midnight the government’s top infection-warning level, Tier 4, would be...
