Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg says cancer has returned, but won’t retireVideo
WASHINGTON — Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said Friday she is receiving chemotherapy for a recurrence of cancer, but has no plans to retire from the Supreme Court. The 87-year-old Ginsburg, who spent time in the hospital this week for a possible infection, said her treatment so far has succeeded in...
June jobless rate slid down in Pennsylvania, payrolls jumped
Pennsylvania’s unemployment slid a bit down in June after hitting a pandemic peak in April, but it was well above the national rate even as payrolls rebounded by more 230,000, the state reported Friday. Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was 13% in June, down four-tenths of a percentage point from May’s adjusted...
Pennsylvania covid-19 cases jump by 1,032; 19 new deaths reported
Pennsylvania reported its highest number of coronavirus cases in two months as it approaches the 100,000 mark. The 1,032 new cases announced Friday are the most the state has reported since May 10 and bring the total to 99,478. The state’s department of health reported 19 more deaths, bringing the...
3M files lawsuits for price gouging of N95 masksVideo
MAPLEWOOD, Minn. — The leading manufacturer of N95 masks in the United States says it has investigated 4,000 reports of fraud, counterfeiting and price gouging in connection with the product and has filed 18 lawsuits. 3M, based in Maplewood, is among the largest global producers of the N95 mask, which...
France delays retirement reform that caused mass strikes
PARIS — France’s government is delaying a divisive overhaul of the country’s retirement system until at least the end of the year because of the economic crisis unleashed by the pandemic. Prime Minister Jean Castex announced after meeting with unions Friday that the pension reform “will be maintained.” But he...
Princess Beatrice marries in private ceremony at Windsor
LONDON — Buckingham Palace says that Princess Beatrice has got married in a private ceremony, with her grandmother Queen Elizabeth II in attendance. Beatrice married Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi Friday morning at The Royal Chapel of All Saints at Royal Lodge, Windsor. The monarch, the Duke of Edinburgh and other close...
Report: Democratic officials tell party officials to not attend the 2020 DNC
Democratic officials have told politicians and party delegates to steer clear of Milwaukee next month, the New York Times reported late Thursday. Milwaukee is the site of the Democratic National Convention that’s scheduled in August, but because of the coronavirus pandemic, plans have been shelved. NEW: Democratic National Convention organizers...
U.S. official visits Portland, calls protesters ‘anarchists’Video
PORTLAND, Ore. — The head of the Department of Homeland Security visited Portland, Oregon, on Thursday, just hours after issuing a scathing statement that called the protesters who have taken to the streets every night for nearly two months “violent anarchists” and a “violent mob” that have kept the liberal...
Texas coronavirus deaths hit triple digits for second day in a rowVideo
AUSTIN — The death toll from the coronavirus continued to rise Thursday as Texas health officials reported a record 129 new fatalities. It was a daily high for the second consecutive day, after Texas recorded 110 deaths on Wednesday, and marked the third time the daily death count has reached...
CDC extends U.S. ban on cruise ships through September
WASHINGTON — Federal health officials are extending the U.S. ban on cruise ships through the end of September as coronavirus infections rise in most U.S. states, including Florida. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Thursday that it was extending a no-sail order that had been scheduled to expire...
Gov. Wolf yanks virus funding from rebellious Lebanon County
HARRISBURG — Gov. Tom Wolf followed through on his threat to yank covid-19 funding from a county that defied his shutdown orders, while his administration targeted bars, restaurants and large gatherings statewide Thursday in an effort to prevent a wider resurgence of the virus that officials say could jeopardize students’...
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp sues to end cities’ defiance on mask rulesVideo
ATLANTA — Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is suing Atlanta’s mayor and city council to block the city from enforcing its mandate to wear a mask in public and other rules related to the covid-19 pandemic. Kemp and Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr, in a suit filed in state court late...
Another study shows no hydroxychloroquine benefit in covid-19 fight
MINNEAPOLIS — An anti-malaria drug that doctors hoped would work against covid-19, and that President Donald Trump championed and said he took himself, has failed to show any benefit in a second University of Minnesota trial. Researchers compared outcomes of people with early symptoms of covid-19 — with one group...
Pennsylvania casino revenues down 18%, hammered by pandemic
HARRISBURG — Pandemic-related shutdowns in Pennsylvania, the nation’s No. 2 commercial gambling state, helped knock casino revenue down by 18%, state regulators reported Thursday, and it would have been much worse without the advent of online gambling and sports betting. Revenue from regulated gambling in Pennsylvania shrank to $2.7 billion...
Baseless Wayfair child-trafficking theory spreads online
CHICAGO — The baseless conspiracy theory took off after an anonymous user posed a bizarre question in an internet chatroom: What if retail giant Wayfair is using pricey storage cabinets to traffic children? Self-proclaimed internet sleuths quickly responded by matching up the names of Wayfair products to those of missing...
U.S. counts 342 child inflammatory syndrome cases
ATLANTA — An official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the most recent count shows 342 U.S. children and teens have developed a serious inflammatory condition linked to covid-19 infections. Dr. Ermias Belay presented the data Thursday during a CDC online call for physicians. Belay says that...
Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission post on International Snake Day draws viewers to post more snakes
In celebrating International Snake Day on Thursday, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission posted a photo of a Northern ring-neck snake, which caused readers to post their own photos of timber rattlesnakes and more. Wishing everyone “Happy World Snake Day,” the Fish and Boat Commission issued multiple posts on the...
Columbus statue to remain on Ohio Statehouse grounds for at least 5 more years
COLUMBUS, Ohio — A statue of Christopher Columbus will not be removed from in front of the Ohio Statehouse until at least 2025, officials said Thursday. The 9-foot-tall, copper statue of Columbus will remain erected in front of the Statehouse in the largest city that bears the explorer’s name until...
U.K., U.S., Canada accuse Russia of hacking coronavirus vaccine trialsVideo
LONDON — Britain, the United States and Canada accused Russian hackers on Thursday of trying to steal information from researchers seeking a coronavirus vaccine, warning scientists and pharmaceutical companies to be alert for suspicious activity. Intelligence agencies in the three nations alleged that the hacking group APT29, also known as...
Experts say Twitter breach troubling, undermines trust
HONG KONG — A breach in Twitter’s security that allowed hackers to break into the accounts of leaders and technology moguls is one of the worst attacks in recent years and may shake trust in a platform politicians and CEOs use to communicate with the public, experts said Thursday. The...
Nonprofit has recruited 31,000 volunteers willing to undergo human challenge covid-19 vaccination trial
A grassroots group of scientists and researchers has brought together more than 31,000 volunteers worldwide — including from Western Pennsylvania — who are willing to take part in a human challenge trial to test potential covid-19 vaccines. A human challenge trial in this case would involve participants being administered a...
USA Today: Peter Navarro’s anti-Fauci column didn’t meet standards
NEW YORK — USA Today says that a column that the newspaper solicited and published from presidential trade adviser Peter Navarro criticizing Dr. Anthony Fauci was misleading and did not meet fact-checking standards. The newspaper explained the decision in a note by Bill Sternberg, editorial page editor, attached to the...
From masks to buses to recess, Pa. unveils guidance for schools finalizing reopening plans
State officials released a slew of recommendations Thursday regarding how Pennsylvania schools can safely reopen in the fall, addressing everything from lunch and recess to busing and extracurricular activities. Whether in-person classes resume will be left to each individual school district, all of which have been charged with creating a...
Trump’s grand GOP convention plans shrink as virus surgesVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s plans for a grand convention keep shrinking. The Republican National Committee announced Thursday that it is sharply restricting attendance on three of the four nights of its convention in Jacksonville, Fla., next month. As the GOP looks for ways to move forward while coronavirus cases...
Brazil nears 2 million coronavirus cases, with 75,000 dead
SAO PAULO — A thousand deaths a day. Since late May, three months after Brazil’s first reported case of the coronavirus, it has recorded more than 1,000 daily deaths on average in a gruesome plateau that has yet to tilt downward. The country hit at least 75,000 confirmed deaths Wednesday...
