RALEIGH, N.C. (WPTF) – Governor Roy Cooper announced a $4 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to expand the state’s apprenticeship program in high-demand fields. NC Career Launch will create a statewide youth apprenticeship system for high school students in key fields like advanced manufacturing, clean energy, healthcare, and IT.… Continue Reading
Tropical Storm Ernesto churned away from Bermuda and headed further out in the northeastern Atlantic, but it still sent powerful swells toward the U.S. East Coast. Rip currents were associated with at least one death and prompted many rescues. The National Weather Service posted a coastal flood advisory and warned of a high risk for rip currents along the Atlantic Coast through Monday evening, saying they “can sweep even the best swimmers away from shore into deeper water.” A warning extended from Florida to the Boston area and portions of Maine. Officials in Manasquan Inlet in New Jersey said a fisherman was washed off the north jetty Saturday but was quickly rescued.… Continue Reading
RALEIGH, N.C. (WPTF) – State Transportation Secretary Joey Hopkins was the guest on this week’s edition of Carolina Newsmakers with Don Curtis. Hopkins said toll roads, once a controversial idea, are becoming more acceptable in North Carolina. “Interestingly enough, we’ve had a lot of communities come to us and ask, ‘Hey, what would it look like if we asked you to toll this?’” Hopkins said.… Continue Reading
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Tim Walz played up his Nebraska roots in his first trip back to his home state since becoming the Democratic vice presidential nominee, and then drew sharp contrasts between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. Supporters are hoping Walz’s rural roots can help Democrats appeal to wide swaths of Republican strongholds where they’ve rarely been competitive in recent elections. His appearance in Omaha on Saturday also reinforced the campaign’s interest in securing the one electoral vote that comes along with winning the swing congressional district that went for Joe Biden in 2020 and Barack Obama in 2008. Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance is expected to visit Omaha next week for a private fundraiser.… Continue Reading
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump has repeatedly swerved from a message focused on the economy into non-sequiturs and personal attacks, including thrice declaring that he was better looking than Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump, on Saturday, wound back and forth between hitting his points on economic policy and delivering a smattering of insults and impressions of President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron at a rally in northeastern Pennsylvania. Trump’s rally was in a swath of the pivotal battleground state where he hopes conservative, white working-class voters near Biden’s hometown will boost the Republican’s chances of winning back the White House.… Continue Reading
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris has announced a sweeping set of economic proposals meant to cut taxes and lower the cost of groceries, housing and other essentials for many Americans. She’s aiming to address the financial concerns that are at the top of the minds of voters and that Republican Donald Trump is attempting to blame on her. During a speech Friday in the battleground state of North Carolina, Harris said that “building up the middle class will be a defining goal of my presidency.” She endorsed a proposal for a federal ban on price gouging by food producers and grocers, and proposed $25,000 in down payment assistance for certain first-time homebuyers.… Continue Reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — Taxpayers are expected to save billions after the Biden administration inked deals with pharmaceutical companies to knock down the list prices for 10 of Medicare’s costliest drugs. But how much older Americans can expect to save when they fill a prescription at their local pharmacy remains unclear, since the list cost isn’t the final price people pay. The list prices of drugs including blood thinners, diabetes drugs and blood cancer medications will be reduced by hundreds — in some cases, thousands — of dollars for 30-day supplies. White House officials say they expect taxpayers to save $6 billion and older adults could save about $1.5 billion in total. The new prices won’t go into effect until 2026.… Continue Reading
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Ernesto is barreling toward Bermuda after leaving hundreds of thousands of people in Puerto Rico without power or water as sweltering heat envelop the U.S. territory, raising concerns about people’s health. A hurricane warning is in effect for Bermuda on Thursday, with Ernesto expected to pass near or over the island on Saturday. Ernesto is forecast to become a major Category 3 hurricane on Friday and drop between four to eight inches of rain in Bermuda with up to 12 inches in isolated areas… Continue Reading
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Ohio Sen. JD Vance have agreed to debate each other on Oct. 1, setting up a matchup of potential vice presidents as early voting in some states gets underway for the general election. CBS News on Wednesday posted on its X feed that the network had invited both Vance and Walz to debate in New York City, presenting four possible dates in September and October as options. Walz accepted later on Wednesday and Vance responded Thursday that he would attend on Oct. 1. He also challenged Walz to meet on Sept. 18 on CNN.… Continue Reading
KANNAPOLIS, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina officials say a prisoner serving a life sentence for murder who escaped from a transport van this week has been captured at a hotel. The corrections department says 30-year-old Ramone Alston escaped from the van on Tuesday as it arrived at the UNC Gastroenterology hospital in Hillsborough, North Carolina, where he was being taken for a medical appointment. He freed himself from his leg restraints and fled into the woods with handcuffs on. The department says Alston was taken into custody at about 2 a.m. Friday at a hotel in Kannapolis, about 110 miles southwest of Hillsborough, and no one was injured during the arrest.… Continue Reading