WPTF News Archives - Page 9 of 91

Former North Carolina labor commissioner becomes hospital group’s CEO

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 12, 2024, 12:22 pm

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s labor commissioner for nearly the past four years is the next president and CEO of the chief advocacy group for the state’s hospitals. The North Carolina Healthcare Association announced on Tuesday that it has hired Josh Dobson after a nationwide search to lead the group. Dobson succeeds Stephen Lawler, who is retiring. Dobson decided not to seek a second term leading the Labor Department in 2024. He resigned from the job the day after Republican Luke Farley won the statewide election for commissioner last week. Dobson’s political career includes leading state House health and budget committees in the General Assembly.… Read More

My Little Pony finally hits the Toy Hall of Fame, alongside Phase 10 and Transformers

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 12, 2024, 11:59 am

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — The National Toy Hall of Fame in Rochester, New York, has enshrined a new class of honorees. My Little Pony, the Phase 10 card game and Transformers action figures were inducted on Tuesday. Experts voted them in from among 12 finalists that included balloons, Hess Toy Trucks, the trampoline and remote-controlled vehicles. Anyone can nominate a toy, but to make it in, toys have to inspire creative play and enjoy popularity over time. This year’s finalists also included the party game Apples to Apples, “Choose Your Own Adventure” gamebooks, the Pokémon Trading Card Game, Sequence and the stick horse.… Read More

Congress returns to unfinished business and a new Trump era

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 12, 2024, 11:01 am

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Mike Johnson says Republicans are “ready to deliver” on President-elect Donald Trump’s mandate, ensuring they are more prepared for a second-term agenda. Standing on the steps of the U.S. Capitol with the House GOP leadership team Tuesday, the Republican speaker said there would be no time wasted on Trump’s “America First” agenda of securing the southern border and other priorities in what he expects will be unified government, even though House control is still too early to call. “We are ready to deliver on America’s mandate,” said Johnson.… Read More

Judge delays ruling on whether to scrap Trump’s conviction in hush money case

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 12, 2024, 10:28 am

NEW YORK (AP) — A judge is postponing a decision on whether to undo President-elect Donald Trump’s conviction in his hush money case because of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity. New York Judge Juan M. Merchan had been set to rule Tuesday. Instead, he told Trump’s lawyers Tuesday he’d delay the ruling until Nov. 19. According to emails filed in court, Trump’s lawyers asked for the delay over the weekend, arguing there are “strong reasons for the requested stay, and eventually dismissal of the case in the interests of justice.” A jury convicted Trump in May of falsifying business records related to a $130,000 hush money payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels in 2016. Trump denies any wrongdoing.… Read More

Haiti swears in a new prime minister as gangs open fire at a flight landing in the main airport

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 11, 2024, 5:41 pm

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Haiti’s international airport has shut down temporarily after gangs opened fire at a Spirit Airlines flight landing in Port-Au-Prince, the U.S. State Department and the airline said. The latest violence came as a new prime minister was sworn in. In other parts of Haiti’s capital, firefights between gangs and police broke out. Rounds of gunfire echoed through the streets as heavily armed officers ducking behind walls and civilians ran in terror. In other upper class areas, gangs set fire to homes. Schools closed as panic spread in a number of areas. The country’s slate of gangs have long capitalized on political turmoil to make power grabs.… Read More

Biden’s White House invitation to Trump continues a tradition Trump shunned in 2020

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 11, 2024, 4:49 pm

WASHINGTON (AP) — Before he comes back for good on Inauguration Day, Donald Trump will return to the White House briefly at the invitation of President Joe Biden. That may make for an awkward encounter, especially given that, after Biden defeated Trump in 2020, the then-president offered no such White House invitation. He even left Washington before the inauguration, becoming the first president to do so since 1869. Biden has vowed to ensure a smooth transition. The meeting is set for Wednesday morning. It’ll be the first time since 1992 that an outgoing president sits down with an incoming one whom he competed against in a campaign.… Read More

Stock market today: Wall Street rolls higher as bitcoin bursts above $87,000

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 11, 2024, 4:25 pm

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are rising and adding to the gains made during their best week of the year. The S&P 500 added 0.2% in Monday morning trading, coming off last week’s spurt spurred by Donald Trump’s presidential victory and the Federal Reserve’s cut to interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 400 points, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.1%. Elon Musk’s Tesla was the strongest single force pushing the S&P 500 higher. Bank stocks and other popular Trump trades also led the market, helping to offset drops for Nvidia and AbbVie. Bitcoin’s price topped $86,000 for the first time.… Read More

Trump names Lee Zeldin to lead EPA, Stephen Miller to be deputy chief of policy

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 11, 2024, 4:22 pm

NEW YORK (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump has named former Rep. Lee Zeldin to lead the Environmental Protection Agency as he continues to build out his future administration with loyal supporters. Trump says Zeldin, who mounted a failed bid for governor of New York in 2022, would “ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards.” The announcement comes after Trump selected longtime adviser Stephen Miller to be the deputy chief of policy and named Rep. Elise Stefanik as his nominee or U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.… Read More

Trump chooses New York Rep. Elise Stefanik as ambassador to the United Nations

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 11, 2024, 1:59 pm

NEW YORK (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Rep. Elise Stefanik to serve as his ambassador to the United Nations. “Elise is an incredibly strong, tough, and smart America First fighter,” Trump said in a statement Monday announcing his pick. Stefanik serves as House Republican Conference Chair and has long been one of Trump’s most loyal allies in the House. She was among those discussed as a potential vice presidential choice.… Read More

Bryce Young beginning to show signs of confidence, growth in leading Panthers to back-to-back wins

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 11, 2024, 1:55 pm

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — After he broke the pocket and weaved his way up the field for a 24-yard gain, Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young briefly posed as he signaled for a first down in a rare display of confidence for the second-year quarterback. Young wasn’t great on Sunday, completing 15 of 25 passes for 126 yards with one touchdown, but he played mostly mistake-free while leading the Panthers to a 20-17 win over the New York Giants in Germany. While coach Dave Canales wouldn’t say who’ll start on Nov. 24 when the Panthers return from the bye week to host the two-time defending Super Bowl champion and unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs, but it would seem likely he’ll stick with Young.… Read More

Gunshots at Tuskegee University sent terrified students running for their lives

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 11, 2024, 1:08 pm

TUSKEGEE, Ala. (AP) — A Tuskegee University student says he hid under a car when heard the gunshots that ripped across his Alabama campus. Sid Guynn said Monday that he ran back to his dorm terrified by what sounded to him like a machine gun. The shooting early Sunday left one man dead and injured at least 16 other people Sunday. A dozen of them were injured by gunfire. Many of the injured were students. Authorities say 25-year-old Jaquez Myrick, of Montgomery, was arrested hours later. Officials say he had a handgun with a machine gun conversion device but have not accused him of the shooting.… Read More

A record 13 women will be governors next year after New Hampshire elected Kelly Ayotte

Author: The Associated Press | Date: November 11, 2024, 12:37 pm

A record 13 women will serve as governor next year after the election of New Hampshire Republican Kelly Ayotte, breaking the record set in 2023. Ayotte, a former U.S. senator, defeated the Democratic nominee Joyce Craig, former mayor of New Hampshire’s largest city. Experts say women holding top public offices normalizes their presence and opens the door for more women to seek executive positions. Eighteen states have never had a woman in the governor’s office. Kelly Dittmar of the Rutgers Center for American Women and Politics says 13 out of 50 is still underrepresentation for women.… Read More