Category Archives: WPTF News
Trump and Whatley double down on the administration's record in North Carolina Senate contest
By BILL BARROW, ERIK VERDUZCO and MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press GASTONIA, North Carolina (AP) - President Donald Trump tested his midterm campaign appeal Wednesday in North Carolina as he tries t...
Sep 17, 2026 GASTONIA, NORTH CAROLINA - SEPTEMBER 16: U.S. President Donald Trump (R) as North Carolina Republican Senate candidate and former RNC Chairman Michael Whatley (L) speaks during a campaign rally at Gastonia Municipal Airport on September 16, 2026 in Gastonia, North Carolina. Whatley, currently trailing in the polls, will face off against Democratic Senate candidate and former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper in the midterm elections on November 3. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Fencing goes up around the main Kennedy Center building after Trump-aligned board votes to close it
By MATTHEW DALY and NATHAN ELLGREN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) - Fencing went up Wednesday around the main Kennedy Center building, a day after the Trump-aligned board voted to close most of the ...
Sep 16, 2026 WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 16: Newly installed fencing is shown outside the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts on September 16, 2026 in Washington, DC. The new fencing composed of “bike rack” and barricade material was installed a day after the Kennedy Center Board voted to close the venue for repairs. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
The body of the last victim of Hurricane Helene in Tennessee has been found, 2 years later
By TRAVIS LOLLER Associated Press The remains of the final missing Tennessee victim from Hurricane Helene were found two years after the storm devastated Appalachian mountain towns with floods that wi...
Sep 16, 2026
Clemson will be lone ACC team in '27 with 8 football games in 9-game model amid odd number of teams
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - The Atlantic Coast Conference's transition to a nine-game scheduling model leaves Clemson as the lone team playing eight games next year, a quirk of being the only power confere...
Sep 16, 2026 Shutterstock
Dr. Nicole Saphier, Trump's 3rd surgeon general pick, faces Senate questions over her vaccine stance
By FATIMA HUSSEIN and ALI SWENSON Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) - Dr. Nicole Saphier, President Donald Trump's third surgeon general nominee, was grilled at her Senate confirmation hearing Wednesda...
Sep 16, 2026 Dr. Nicole Saphier, surgeon general nominee, testifies before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions during a confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
THE CLOSING BELL: US stocks slip after the Fed hikes interest rates and hints more increases may be on the way
By STAN CHOE AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) - U.S. stocks slipped Wednesday after the Federal Reserve hiked its main interest rate for the first time in three years and suggested more may be ahead a...
Sep 16, 2026
Charlotte to host major women's tennis events, become sports HQ
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (NCN News) - Charlotte is going big on women's tennis, with the Queen City hosting major events and becoming the new home of the Women's Tennis Association. Charlotte will host the 202...
Sep 16, 2026 (courtesy Women's Tennis Association)
Trump to campaign in North Carolina rally with his handpicked Senate nominee Michael Whatley
By BILL BARROW Associated Press President Donald Trump will travel to North Carolina on Wednesday to campaign with Republican Senate nominee Michael Whatley as the former national party chairman tries...
Sep 16, 2026 FORT BRAGG, NORTH CAROLINA - FEBRUARY 13: U.S. President Donald Trump listens as Michael Whatley, former Republican National Committee Chairman and current candidate for US Senate in North Carolina, speaks during a visit to the Fort Bragg U.S. Army base on February 13, 2026 in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Trump visited the base to honor special forces involved in the military operation in Venezuela in early 2026. (Photo by Nathan Howard/Getty Images)
3 people killed when NBC and Telemundo news helicopter crashes while covering LA bus collision
By ASHLEY DUONG and HALLIE GOLDEN Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) - A news helicopter crashed in a Los Angeles neighborhood on Tuesday and burst into flames, killing at least three people while repo...
Sep 16, 2026 First responders work the scene after a helicopter crashed near a bus crash in Chatsworth, a neighborhood in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
BEFORE THE BELL: US futures climb ahead of Fed interest rate call and the latest retail sales numbers
`U.S. futures rose Wednesday ahead of the Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates with high expectations that they will move higher in what would be the central bank's first hike in more than thr...
Sep 16, 2026 A person walks past an electronic board showing Japan's Nikkei index and U.S. dollar and Japanese yen exchange rate at a securities firm in Tokyo Monday, Aug. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)