Category Archives: WPTF News

Gains for tech stocks push Nasdaq to another record

Gains for tech stocks push Nasdaq to another record

A rally in big tech stocks led Wall Street to a higher close, lifting the Nasdaq to another all-time high. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.9%. Nvidia became the first public company to top $4 trillion in value. Merck rose after announcing it would buy Verona Pharma, a U.K. company that focuses on respiratory diseases. Copper prices eased after spiking a day earlier as President Donald Trump said he would impose 50% tariffs on imports of the metal. Treasury yields slipped in the bond market.… Continue Reading

Biden’s former doctor refuses to answer questions in House Republican probe

Biden’s former doctor refuses to answer questions in House Republican probe

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s White House physician is refusing to answer questions as part of the House Republican investigation into Biden’s health in office. Dr. Kevin O’Connor invoked doctor-patient privilege and his rights under the Fifth Amendment during an appearance Wednesday before the House Oversight Committee. Oversight Chair Rep. James Comer of Kentucky says O’Connor’s decision not to testify makes it “clear there was a conspiracy.” Republicans are probing Biden’s actions in office and questioning whether the Democrat’s use of an autopen may have been invalid. Biden has called the claims “ridiculous and false.” The Oversight committee’s top Democrat, Rep. Robert Garcia of California, calls the Republican investigation a waste of time.… Continue Reading

More than 160 people are still missing after deadly Texas floods, governor says

More than 160 people are still missing after deadly Texas floods, governor says

HUNT, Texas (AP) — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says more than 160 people are believed to be still missing days after flash floods killed more than 100 people across central Texas. Abbott says many of those who are not accounted for were staying in the state’s Hill Country but did not register at a camp or hotel. The big jump in the number of missing came after authorities set up a hotline for families to call. Abbott says search crews will not stop working until everyone is located. He says the 161 missing were believed to be in Kerr County. That’s where most of the victims have been recovered.… Continue Reading

Latest ‘Tiger King’ twist finds ‘Doc’ Antle sentenced to 1 year in prison for animal trafficking

Latest ‘Tiger King’ twist finds ‘Doc’ Antle sentenced to 1 year in prison for animal trafficking

Bhagavan “Doc” Antle from the Netflix series “Tiger King” could be sent to prison as he is sentenced in a federal courtroom in South Carolina. Antle pleaded guilty in November 2023 to charges of exotic animal trafficking and money laundering. Prosecutors say he illegally traded animals like lions and cheetahs and laundered over $500,000, allegedly tied to human smuggling. Antle ran Myrtle Beach Safari and gained fame for offering pricey animal encounters. His sentencing marks the final legal chapter of the “Tiger King” saga that captivated audiences during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown. Joe Exotic and other figures from the series are also serving prison sentences for various crimes.… Continue Reading

Wall Street is mixed amid Trump’s new tariff deadlines

Wall Street is mixed amid Trump’s new tariff deadlines

Wall Street ended mixed a day after a broad sell-off in response to the Trump administration setting new tariffs on more than a dozen nations. The S&P 500 slipped 0.1% Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite was little changed. The sluggish trading came a day after the S&P 500 had is biggest drop since June as President Donald Trump announced a 25% tax on imports from Japan and South Korea and new tariff rates on other nations scheduled to go into effect Aug. 1. The S&P 500 remains near the record it set last week.… Continue Reading

3 potential storm deaths in North Carolina after Chantal, officials say

3 potential storm deaths in North Carolina after Chantal, officials say

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Officials in North Carolina say there were three potential storm-related deaths amid flooding from the remnants of Tropical Storm Chantal. North Carolina Emergency Management spokesperson Justin Graney says state health officials are working on confirmation of the deaths in Chatham, Orange and Alamance counties. During a visit to Mebane in Alamance County on Tuesday, Gov. Josh Stein said the storm destroyed homes and impaired businesses and lives were lost. He says officials are still assessing the scale of the damage and working on a final number of deaths. Officials say crews are working to restore power, utilities and road access.… Continue Reading

Family of 4, including 2 children, killed in North Carolina plane crash

Family of 4, including 2 children, killed in North Carolina plane crash

SANFORD, N.C. (AP) — A family of four from North Carolina has died in a small plane crash as they flew back from Florida. Officials say the crash happened Monday afternoon, just miles from the plane’s base in Sanford, which is southwest of Raleigh. The victims were 35-year-old Travis and Candace Buchanan as well as their children, 10-year-old Aubrey Buchanan and 9-year-old Walker Buchanan. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash. Local community members say the family owned a farm in Sanford and an employee says the family was heading back from the beach.… Continue Reading

Swain County sheriff steps down after sexual misconduct charges

Swain County sheriff steps down after sexual misconduct charges

BRYSON CITY, N.C. (AP) — The longtime sheriff of a western North Carolina county who was suspended following allegations of sexual misconduct has retired. Swain County Sheriff Curtis Cochran was first elected in 2006. He stepped down effective July 1. He faces multiple state charges, including sexual battery and felonious restraint, as well as tribal charges from the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Two women say Cochran made unwanted sexual advances toward them last month. The local district attorney filed papers seeking to have him permanently removed from office.… Continue Reading

Hope of finding Texas flood survivors dims as search efforts go on

Hope of finding Texas flood survivors dims as search efforts go on

KERRVILLE, Texas (AP) — Hope of finding survivors of the catastrophic flooding in Texas is dimming a day after the death toll surpassed 100. But crews have kept up the search for people missing in the aftermath. The search efforts benefited Tuesday from improving weather. The storms that battered the Hill Country for the past four days began to lighten up, although isolated pockets of heavy rain were still possible. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott planned to make another visit Tuesday to Camp Mystic, the century-old all-girls Christian summer camp where at least 27 campers and counselors died during the flash floods. Officials said Monday that 10 campers and one counselor have still not been found.… Continue Reading

Travelers may no longer be required to remove shoes before boarding a plane

Travelers may no longer be required to remove shoes before boarding a plane

For the first time in almost 20 years, travelers may no longer have to take off their shoes during security screenings at certain U.S. airports. The Transportation Security Administration is looking to abandon the requirement, according to media reports. If implemented, it would put an end to a security screening mandate put in place almost 20 years ago, several years after “shoe bomber” Richard Reid’s attempt to take down a flight from Paris to Miami in late 2001. Travel newsletter Gate Access was first to report that the security screening change is coming, with ABC News citing an internal memo sent to TSA officers last week that states the new policy lets travelers keep their shoes on during screenings at many U.S. airports beginning on Sunday.… Continue Reading

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