RALEIGH, N.C. (WPTF) – Carolina roads and airports are about to get busy—AAA says a record 2.3 million North Carolinians are expected to travel during a nine-day Fourth of July window, with most opting to hit the road. Motor club spokesperson Tiffany Wright says drivers should plan ahead, avoid peak travel times between noon and 5 p.m., and allow plenty of time to reach their destination as traffic is expected to surge across the state and beyond.… Continue Reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — A divided Supreme Court is allowing states to cut off Medicaid money for Planned Parenthood amid a wider Republican-backed push to defund the organization, the country’s largest abortion provider. The 6-3 ruling was handed down Thursday. The case centers on funding for other health care services Planned Parenthood provides in South Carolina, but the ruling could have broader implications for Medicaid patients. South Carolina argued no public money should go to the high-profile abortion provider, even if it it’s not paying for abortions. Planned Parenthood says patients go there for things like contraception and cancer screenings, in part because it can be hard to find a doctor who takes the publicly funded insurance.… Continue Reading
NEW YORK (AP) — Cooper Flagg is headed to the Dallas Mavericks, who may have found their next franchise superstar less than five months after trading one away. The Mavericks took the Duke forward with the No. 1 pick in the draft Wednesday night, selecting the 18-year-old who was the college player of the year in his lone season. Mavericks fans were furious when Dallas traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 1, some immediately threatening to end their support of the team. But the ones who stuck around may quickly love Flagg, who averaged 19.2 points and 7.5 rebounds while leading Duke to the Final Four. Rutgers freshman Dylan Harper was taken by San Antonio with the No. 2 pick.… Continue Reading
NEW YORK (AP) — Weather forecasters are predicting wild temperature swings across the eastern U.S. Wednesday was expected to be another scorcher before temperatures plunge as much as 30 degrees. On Tuesday, at least 50 heat records were broken and 21 places hit triple-digit temperatures. About 127 million Americans are under some kind of National Weather Service heat advisory, down from more than 150 million Tuesday. The sizzling temperatures sent utilities scrambling to keep the air conditioning and lights on because of the massive power demand.… Continue Reading
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks hung near their all-time high as financial markets caught a breath following two big days bolstered by hopes that the Israel-Iran war will not disrupt the global flow of crude oil. The S&P 500 barely budged on Wednesday and is sitting just 0.8% below its all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.3%. Oil prices stabilized after plunging by roughly $10 per barrel in the prior two days. Stock indexes fell modestly in Europe after rising in Asia, and Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market.… Continue Reading
NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs has praised the judge at his sex trafficking trial as he confirmed he won’t be testifying. Combs told Judge Arun Subramanian that he’s doing an “excellent job” after the judge asked him Tuesday if he planned to testify. The question was posed after the government rested after calling 34 witnesses, capping a more than six-week-long presentation of evidence against the hip-hop maven. Later, the defense rested. Prosecutors have cited “freak offs” described by two ex-girlfriends of Combs’ as proof of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy. Defense lawyers say they were consensual sexual encounters consistent with the swingers lifestyle. Combs has pleaded not guilty.… Continue Reading
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A federal judge has ordered a dozen NASCAR teams to provide 11 years of financial data to the stock car series as part of an ongoing legal fight but sharply limited what they need to share. U.S. District Judge Kenneth Bell says the information will allow NASCAR to have “much of the arguably relevant substance of the requested information” while still protecting private details. The teams will provide only top-line data — total revenue, total costs, and net profits and losses — dating to 2014.… Continue Reading
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina trial judges have issued a mixed ruling for Democratic Gov. Josh Stein and Republican legislative leaders in litigation over recent law changes that eroded gubernatorial powers. A three-judge panel on Tuesday unanimously struck down as unconstitutional a law that placed some limits on whom the governor could choose to fill vacancies on appellate courts. But the judges let stand provisions that take away some of Stein’s appointments to the state Utilities Commission and Building Code Council. The order can be appealed. Stein and predecessor Roy Cooper have sued many times over state laws that have shifted authority away from the governor.… Continue Reading
NEW YORK (AP) — Cooper Flagg lived up to every expectation during one season at Duke and has the potential for NBA superstardom. That’s why Mavericks fans can’t wait to get him to Dallas. The Mavericks are expected to take Flagg with the No. 1 pick in the draft on Wednesday night, quickly adding another franchise-altering player after trading one away last season. The Mavericks fell into the lottery after dealing Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in February, though they had only a 1.8% chance of winning it. When they did, it gave them the opportunity to add an 18-year-old who was college basketball’s best player in 2024-25.… Continue Reading
NEW YORK (AP) — An intense and nearly historic weather pattern is cooking much of America in a dangerous heat dome this week with triple-digit heat that hasn’t been seen in some places in more than a decade. This heat wave is especially threatening because it’s hitting cities like Boston, New York and Philadelphia with near-record temperatures and doing so early in the summer when people haven’t gotten their bodies adapted to the broiling conditions. Coming originally from the Pacific, a dome of high pressure is parking over the Eastern United States with hot air from the Southwest that already made an uncomfortable rest stop in the Midwest.… Continue Reading