Pete Buttigieg, Bernie Sanders lead as Iowa releases partial resultsVideo
DES MOINES — The Iowa Democratic Party released partial results of its kickoff presidential caucus after a daylong delay late Tuesday showing a former Midwestern mayor, Pete Buttigieg, and an outspoken progressive senator from Vermont, Bernie Sanders, leading the opening contest of the party’s 2020 primary season. The results followed...
Mexican migrants send home $36 billion, remittances rise 7%
MEXICO CITY — Mexican migrants working abroad sent home a record $36 billion in remittances in 2019, the country’s central bank reported Tuesday. That was an increase of 7% in remittances from 2018, when they totaled $33.67 billion. It was the highest level of remittances on record, and is higher...
Package labeled ‘Bag Full of Drugs’ leads to Florida arrests
MIAMI — Two men charged with drug trafficking could have done a better job hiding their wares than using a package labeled “Bag Full of Drugs,” Florida authorities said. Ian Simmons and Joshua Reinhardt, both 34, were pulled over in Santa Rosa County on Saturday after a trooper clocked them...
Hong Kong reports virus death as workers strike at hospitals
BEIJING — Hong Kong hospitals cut services as thousands of medical workers went on strike for a second day Tuesday to demand the border with mainland China be shut completely. The new virus caused its first death in the semi-autonomous territory, adding to growing fears it is spreading locally. All...
Pat Toomey says he will vote against articles of impeachment
HARRISBURG — Republican Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania said Tuesday he will vote to acquit President Donald Trump on two impeachment charges, maintaining that the president didn’t commit an impeachable offense and that removing Trump would cause “societal upheaval.” Toomey sided with nearly all of his fellow Republicans in advance...
Highlights of Gov. Tom Wolf’s state budget proposal
HARRISBURG — Highlights of Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf’s spending plan for the 2020-21 budget year that starts July 1: THE BIG PICTURE — Increases spending through the state’s main bank account to $36.1 billion. Including nearly $600 million for the current fiscal year, Wolf is seeking authorization for another $2.6...
Official: 2nd student dies after truck hits Oklahoma runnersVideo
MOORE, Okla. — A second suburban Oklahoma City high school student has died after a group of cross-country runners was struck by a pickup truck that authorities say was driven by man whose son was killed in a traffic crash over the weekend, a school official said Tuesday. Sophomore Yuridia...
Girl’s fall into grease pit prompts W.Va. bill to hike fines
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — After a 5-year-old girl fell into a restaurant grease pit and was rescued, West Virginia’s Senate has passed legislation that would toughen fines for restaurants that have unsecured lids on the containers. The state Senate passed the bill Tuesday, 33-0. One member was absent. It now goes...
McConnell blasts impeachment, will vote to acquit Trump
WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday slammed House Democrats’ drive to impeach President Donald Trump as “the most rushed, least fair and least thorough” in history and confirmed that he will vote to acquit him. McConnell said the two impeachment charges against Trump — that he abused...
Trump faces accusers: What to watch during State of the Union address
WASHINGTON — Who’s clapping now? On the brink of his Senate acquittal, President Donald Trump will be unleashing “relentless optimism” during his third State of the Union address, a speech designed to pivot from his impeachment to his drive for reelection. Trump is speaking from a position of strength, with...
What went wrong: A look at tech troubles in Iowa voting
DES MOINES, Iowa — A new mobile app was supposed to help Democratic officials quickly gather information from some 1,700 caucus sites throughout Iowa. Instead, it’s being blamed for delays that left the results unknown the morning after the first-in-the nation nominating contest. Glitches with a new mobile app Monday...
At least half Iowa results expected by day’s end, Dems sayVideo
DES MOINES, Iowa — Clouded by doubts on a chaotic day-after, Democratic Party officials planned to release a majority of Iowa’s delayed presidential caucus results by late Tuesday, according to details shared with campaigns on a private conference call. The news did little to stem rising confusion and concern more...
Health Happenings: Week of Feb. 3
Blood drives • American Red Cross will host these blood drives: —1-5:30 p.m. Feb. 7, North Huntingdon Town House, 11279 Center Highway,
North Huntingdon — Noon-4:30 p.m.
Feb. 10, Excela Square Norwin, 8775 Norwin Ave., North Huntingdon — Noon-5:30 p.m. Feb. 11, Saint Vincent College, 300 Fraser Purchase Road, Unity...
Cervical cancer is almost 100% preventable. And Chicago is making a move to eradicate it
CHICAGO — “It happens when you least expect it. … It was my last semester before it was time for me to graduate. That’s when I found out.” Morgan Park, Ill., resident Angela Williams was 40 years old in 2015 when she received a diagnosis of cervical cancer following a...
Sepsis: A team response to a potential killer
Our bodies are very good at fighting infection. The immune system reacts and attacks bacteria and viruses that make us sick. But sometimes the immune reaction is so strong that it damages the body. This is called a septic reaction or sepsis, and the mortality rate associated with it can...
What you may not know about carrots
How do you know when a carrot is dehydrated? Why should we care? I found the answer plus other interesting facts about my favorite vegetable in a recent article by registered dietitian Bethany Oxender in Food & Nutrition magazine, a publication of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. I’ve highlighted...
Caucus voting underway; Iowa may clarify Democratic fieldVideo
DES MOINES — Iowa voters packed caucus sites across the state Monday night as Democrats balanced a strong preference for fundamental change with an overwhelming desire to defeat President Donald Trump in the opening contest of the 2020 presidential primary season. State party officials were counting votes amid reports of...
Lawmakers seek to end Florida’s key role in shark fin trade
TALLAHASSEE — While Florida gains notoriety as the epicenter of the shark trade in the United States, state lawmakers there advanced legislation Monday that would ban the possession of shark fins. The Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee endorsed that proposal, as well as another bill that would stiffen penalties...
Closing arguments delivered in Trump’s impeachment trialVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s lawyers and House impeachment managers issued their closing arguments Monday, with Democrats arguing the Senate has a “duty” to convict Trump and the president’s legal team saying senators would “vindicate” the right to vote by leaving the matter to voters in November. With Trump’s acquittal...
‘Othered’ in America: An old story, still playing out
CHICAGO — Activist Hoda Katebi rarely takes a break from organizing. As tensions between the U.S. and Iran escalated in recent weeks, she became even busier. On a recent Sunday afternoon, the 25-year-old Iranian American sat in her Chicago apartment shifting between monitoring her Twitter feed, taking phone calls and...
Dog sleuths sniff out crop disease hitting citrus trees
WASHINGTON — Dog detectives might be able to help save ailing citrus groves, research published Monday suggests. Scientists trained dogs to sniff out a crop disease called citrus greening that has hit orange, lemon and grapefruit orchards in Florida, California and Texas. The dogs can detect it weeks to years...
Tennessee man found dead in donation bin
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. — A Tennessee man was found dead in a donation bin outside a Walmart. Police responded Sunday afternoon to a report of a man stuck inside the bin in Clarksville. When emergency crews arrived at the scene, they found a 48-year-old man with the lower part of his...
Pennsylvania hunters killed record 4,653 black bears in 2019
HARRISBURG — Wildlife authorities say Pennsylvania hunters killed 4,653 black bears last year, setting a new record. The Pennsylvania Game Commission said Monday the total is far above last year’s total of 3,153, which was the 11th highest total recorded but was also the lowest in almost a dozen years....
Rush Limbaugh announces he’s been diagnosed with lung cancer
LOS ANGELES — Conservative radio host and Republican kingmaker Rush Limbaugh said he’s been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer. Addressing listeners on his program Monday, Limbaugh said he will take some days off for further medical tests and to determine treatment. “I have to tell you something today that I...
2 women killed, child hurt in shooting at Texas dormitory
COMMERCE, Texas — Two women were killed and a child was wounded in a shooting Monday morning at a university dormitory in Texas, officials said. A recommendation for students and employees to shelter in place was lifted early Monday afternoon at Texas A&M University-Commerce, and police said there appeared to...
