Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., and the House Republican leadership meet with reporters following a closed-door Republican strategy session as Johnson pushes towards separate votes on aid for Israel and Ukraine, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, April 16, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Mike Johnson is forging ahead toward a vote later this week on a package of Ukraine funding that also includes Israel and Taiwan. But he is also facing a choice between potentially losing his job and advancing the aid for Ukraine. After agonizing over how to proceed for days, the Republican speaker texted GOP lawmakers that he will start a days-long push to hold votes on funding packages for Ukraine, Israel and allies in the Indo-Pacific, as well as several other foreign policy proposals. The decision to support Ukraine at all has angered conservatives in the House and given energy to a threat to remove him from the speaker’s office.

FILE – A Smartmatic representative demonstrates his company’s system, which has scanners and touch screens with printout options, at a meeting of the Secure, Accessible & Fair Elections Commission, Aug. 30, 2018, in Grovetown, Ga. The voting technology company targeted by bogus fraud claims related to the 2020 presidential election settled a defamation lawsuit Tuesday, April 16, 2024, against a conservative news outlet. (Bob Andres/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A voting technology company targeted by bogus fraud claims related to the 2020 presidential election has settled a defamation lawsuit against a conservative news outlet. The settlement reached Tuesday between Florida-based Smartmatic and One America News Network is the latest development in a larger legal pushback by voting equipment companies that became ensnared in wild conspiracy theories falsely claiming they had flipped votes and cost former President Donald Trump reelection. The news outlet said it does not typically comment on legal issues and declined to respond further. Smartmatic technology was used only in Los Angeles County, a Democratic stronghold in a state that was not a presidential battleground.

Former President Donald Trump awaits the start of proceedings on the second day of jury selection at Manhattan criminal court, Tuesday, April 16, 2024, in New York. Trump returned to the courtroom Tuesday as a judge works to find a panel of jurors who will decide whether the former president is guilty of criminal charges alleging he falsified business records to cover up a sex scandal during the 2016 campaign. (Michael M. Santiago/Pool Photo via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) — The first seven jurors for Donald Trump’s New York hush money trial have been chosen after lawyers grilled members of the jury pool about their social media posts, political views and personal lives. The questioning Tuesday was designed to help decide whether they can sit in fair judgment of the Republican former president. The panelists selected are an information technology worker, an English teacher, an oncology nurse, a sales professional, a software engineer and two lawyers. Eleven more still need to be picked before opening statements begin as early as next week. The case accuses Trump of falsifying business records to cover up a sex scandal during his 2016 campaign. Trump denies wrongdoing.

Pittsburgh, PA – PennDOT District 11 is announcing single-lane restrictions on Route 65 (Ohio River Boulevard) in the City of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County will occur Wednesday through Friday, April 17-19 weather permitting.

Single-lane restrictions will occur in each direction on the Route 65 bridge over the closed portion of Verner Avenue between Millerton Avenue and the McKees Rocks Bridge from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day.  Crews from the Larson Design Group will conduct the inspection activities.

HARRISBURG, April 16 – The PA House today adopted state Rep. Rob Matzie’s resolution recognizing April 2024 as “Limb Loss Awareness Month” in Pennsylvania.

Matzie, D-Beaver, said he introduced H.R. 299 both to highlight the challenges and triumphs of Pennsylvanians living without a limb and also to raise awareness about prevention.

“More than 2 million Americans live with limb loss, and it’s estimated that every single day, more than 300 people in the United States lose a limb. We see many of them navigate the world around them with tenacity and success, but what we don’t see are all the challenges – physical and emotional – they face and overcome every day.

“I introduced this resolution to honor the courage and achievements of all Pennsylvanians living without a limb – whether the limb loss resulted from congenital causes, trauma or disease. But I’m also offering this resolution to raise awareness that the No. 1 cause of surgical amputations – vascular diseases such as diabetes and peripheral artery disease – is at least partially within our power to control.

“While we can’t control risk factors like age and family history, other risks – including high cholesterol, high blood pressure, smoking, inactivity and excess weight – can be changed or treated.

“By learning the risk factors, talking to their doctors and making lifestyle changes, folks can reduce their risk before amputation becomes unavoidable.”

Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published April 17, 2024 1:31 P.M.

(Aliquippa, Pa) Saturday is cleanup day in Aliquippa. Residents are to register between 8 am and 3 pm by calling the city office 724-375-5188. Supplies can be picked up at the street department on Kennedy Boulevard once you register.

ALIQUIPPA, PA –ANCOR, the leading voice in Washington for community-based disability services providers, has announced that John Palmer, a direct support professional employed at Beaver County Rehabilitation Center (BCRC), has been named the recipient of the 2024 Pennsylvania DSP of the Year Award. Palmer joins 54 other honorees nationwide in the 2024 edition of ANCOR’s annual Direct Support Professional of the Year Awards program. This year’s awards garnered a record-breaking 492 nominations.

 

“BCRC is so incredibly proud of John. We are thrilled to celebrate his award, which both recognizes him as well as highlights the significance of the Direct Support Professional (DSP) role in the Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD) community. John promotes true community inclusion for the people we support daily and his commitment to those he serves is unwavering” said Lesley Hallas, Executive Director. “John clearly demonstrates the transformative power of community-based supports, and we’re so grateful that ANCOR has recognized John with this national honor.”

 

Since 2007, ANCOR’s annual DSP of the Year awards recognize outstanding DSPs who deliver long-term services and support to people in the I/DD community. The awards celebrate the important role DSPs play in ensuring people with I/DD have what they need to thrive and be included in the community. These awards also seek to raise awareness about a direct support workforce in crisis. Inadequate investments in this essential workforce have led to a decades-long severe shortage of DSPs, which has only been amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic and has accelerated into a crisis that threatens access to critically needed services.

 

“Each year, we are seeing more nominations, and more compelling nominations, for ANCOR’s DSP of the Year Awards,” said Diane Beastrom, president of ANCOR’s Board of Directors and vice president of transition for Ohio-based I Am Boundless. “But John’s nomination just blew us away. I cannot think of a more deserving professional to honor, as they truly exemplify what it means to see, appreciate, and value the people we are fortunate enough to support.”

 

Barbara Merrill, chief executive officer for ANCOR, added: “DSPs really and truly do it all, and it’s no exaggeration to say that this year’s class of honorees deliver transformative and 

sometimes lifesaving supports to the people who accept their services. People like John and all 55 of the 2024 honorees are perfect reminders of why ANCOR works tirelessly to advocate on behalf of the direct support workforce and the incredible work our DSPs do to support people in community.”

 

The awards ceremony where John and the other 2024 honorees that were recognized took place in Santa Fe, N.M., on Wednesday, April 10th during ANCOR Connect ’24, the association’s annual conference. 

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of Ambridge, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand  jury in Pittsburgh for violating federal firearms law, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan  announced today. 

The one-count Indictment named Nasean Hunt, 18, as the sole defendant. 

According to the Indictment, on or about July 9, 2023, in the Western District of  Pennsylvania, Hunt illegally possessed a machinegun—a 9mm Glock handgun affixed with a gold  “automatic conversion switch.” Federal law prohibits the possession of a machinegun as well as any  part, such as a switch, that is designed for use in converting a weapon into a machine. 

The law provides for a maximum total sentence of up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to  $250,000, or both. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be  based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant. 

Assistant United States Attorney DeMarr W. Moulton is prosecuting this case on behalf of  the government. 

The Beaver County Detective Bureau and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and  Explosives conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment in this case. 

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels  of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to  make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent  crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and  legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent  violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and  measuring the results. 

An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven  guilty.