Hot Off The Wire

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted April 12 at 6:30 a.m. CT:

WASHINGTON (AP) — A new poll from the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds that more than half of U.S. adults think Joe Biden’s presidency has hurt the country on cost of living and immigration. Meanwhile, nearly half think Donald Trump’s presidency hurt the country on voting rights and election security, relations with foreign countries, abortion laws and climate change. The poll numbers also show Americans generally think that in the White House, both did more harm than good. Meanwhile, when asked which president did more to help people like them, roughly one-third say Donald Trump and about one-quarter say Joe Biden. Yet roughly 30% of adults said neither Biden nor Trump benefitted them.

BRUSSELS (AP) — Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo has announced an investigation into suspected Russian interference in Europe-wide elections in June. He says that his country’s intelligence service has confirmed the existence of a network in several European countries trying to undermine support for Ukraine. He said Friday that Moscow wants to help “elect more pro-Russian candidates to the European Parliament and to reinforce a certain pro-Russian narrative.” 

LAS VEGAS (AP) — O.J. Simpson has died. The decorated football star who was acquitted of charges he killed his former wife and her friend but wound up in prison years later in an unrelated case died Wednesday. He was 76. His family made an announcement Thursday in a statement on Simpson's X account. Simpson said last year that he was battling prostate cancer. Simpson’s gridiron legacy was forever overshadowed by the 1994 knife slayings of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. A criminal court jury found him not guilty of murder, but a separate civil trial jury found him liable. Simpson's nine-year prison stint in Nevada was for the armed robbery of two sports memorabilia dealers.

NEW YORK (AP) — A dozen Manhattan residents are soon to become the first Americans ever to sit in judgment of a former president charged with a crime. Jury selection is set to start Monday in former President Donald Trump’s hush-money trial.

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans will again try to advance a bill reauthorizing a crucial national security surveillance program. The second attempt Friday comes just days after a conservative revolt prevented similar legislation from reaching the floor. Speaker Mike Johnson is expected to bring forward a Plan B that would reform and extend a section of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act known as Section 702 for a shortened period of two years, instead of the full five-year reauthorization first proposed.

In other headlines:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.

Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn more here.

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted April 13 at 6 a.m. CT:

Each Saturday Hot off the Wire looks at a variety of stories in business, science, health and more. This week's headlines include:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.

Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted April 11 at 7:30 a.m. CT:

SLIDELL, La. (AP) — Officials in a Louisiana city are assessing the damage from a tornado spawned by a system of severe weather also blamed for a death in Mississippi and damage from Texas to the Florida panhandle. No deaths or critical injuries were reported when the suspected tornado hit Slidell, Louisiana, on Wednesday. The storm ripped off roofs and partially collapsed some buildings. The storms dumped close to 8 inches of rain on parts of the New Orleans area as the city dealt with problems with the antiquated system of pipes and pumps that drains the streets.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A joyful celebration of the end of Ramadan devolved into panic Wednesday in Philadelphia after rival groups exchanged gunfire, leaving at least three people injured. Hundreds of parents and children fled the Eid al-Fitr event in the city's Parkside neighborhood after the 2:30 p.m. shooting. Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel says about 30 shots rang out during a gunfight between rival groups. Bethel says that five people are in custody. They include a 15-year-old boy who police say had a gun and was shot in the leg and shoulder. Officials say one man was shot in the stomach and a juvenile victim suffered a wound to the hand.

BEIJING (AP) — China has announced rare sanctions against two U.S. defense companies over what it says is their support for arms sales to Taiwan. Beijing claims the self-governing island democracy as its own territory to be recovered by force if necessary. The announcement freezes the assets of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems and General Dynamics Land Systems held within China. It also bars their management from entering the country. Filings show General Dynamics operates a half-dozen Gulfstream and jet aviation services operations in China. General Atomics produces the Predator and Reaper drones used by the U.S. military. General Dynamics helps make the Abrams tank being purchased by Taiwan.

DETROIT (AP) — The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating a March crash near Philadelphia that killed two people and involved a Ford electric vehicle that may have been operating on a partially automated driving system. The agency says a Mustang Mach E sport utility vehicle hit two stationary passenger cars on Interstate 95 at 3:19 a.m. March 3. Both drivers of the stationary cars were killed. In a posting Wednesday on X, the agency said it will coordinate with the Pennsylvania State Police. The Mach E hit a parked Toyota Prius and rammed it into a Hyundai Elantra. Ford said it is researching the crash and collaborating with investigators. The crash is the second this year involving a Mach E that the NTSB is investigating. The first occurred on Feb. 24 in San Antonio, Texas.

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Canada’s emergency preparedness minister is warning the country’s wildfire season could be more explosive than last year that unprecedented smoke conditions across much of the country and into the United States. Persistent drought and months of above-average temperatures have raised the risk of a repeat of last year’s record-breaking wildfires, prompting federal ministers to wave a red warning flag about the desperate need to address climate change. Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan says they can expect that the wildfire season will start sooner, end later and potentially be more explosive. The 2023 fire season was Canada’s worst on record, burning more than 15 million hectares and forcing more than 230,000 people from their homes.

In other headlines:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.

Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn more here.

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted April 10 at 7:15 a.m. CT:

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — U.S. President Joe Biden has called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the war in Gaza a mistake. In remarks aired late Tuesday, Biden ramped up his criticism of Israel, demanding a cease-fire so that more aid be sent to Gaza. That widened a rift between the two staunch allies that has worsened as the war has dragged on. Biden has been an outspoken supporter of Israel’s war against Hamas since the militant group launched a deadly assault on Oct. 7, but in recent weeks his administration has taken a more stern line with Israel. Palestinians in Gaza marked a muted start to the Eid al-Fitr holiday with visits to the grave of sons and daughters killed in the war.

PHOENIX (AP) — A near-total ban on abortions is set to take effect in Arizona. The state Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that Arizona can enforce its long-dormant law making abortion illegal in all cases except when a mother’s life is at stake. Enforcement won't take effect for at least two weeks. The ruling examined an 1864 law that predates Arizona’s statehood. It provides no exceptions for rape or incest. The state’s high court ruling reviewed a 2022 decision by the state Court of Appeals that said doctors couldn’t be charged for performing the procedure in the first 15 weeks of pregnancy.

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Opening statements are expected in the trial of an Idaho man charged with killing his wife and new girlfriend’s two youngest children, in an unusual case involving claims about zombies. Chad Daybell is charged with murder, insurance fraud and other counts in the deaths of Tammy Daybell, 7-year-old Joshua “JJ” Vallow and JJ’s big sister, Tylee Ryan. Opening statements are scheduled for Wednesday.

LONDON (AP) — The University of Edinburgh says Nobel prize-winning physicist Peter Higgs, who proposed the existence of a sub-atomic particle that came to be known as the Higgs boson, has died at 94. Higgs predicted the existence of the particle in 1964. But it would be almost 50 years before the its existence could be confirmed at a particle collider in Switzerland called the Large Hadron Collider. Higgs’ work helps scientists understand of the most fundamental riddles of the universe: how the Big Bang created something out of nothing 13.7 billion years ago. Higgs won the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work, alongside Francois Englert of Belgium.

In other headlines:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.

Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn more here.

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted April 9 at 7:30 a.m. CT:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has escalated his pledge to invade Rafah. In a video statement Monday, he declared: “It will happen. There is a date,” without elaborating. He spoke as Israeli negotiators are in Cairo discussing international efforts to broker a cease-fire deal with the Palestinian militant group Hamas. Israel has insisted on sending troops into Rafah, saying the city on the Egyptian border is Hamas’ last stronghold. However, this has raised international alarm over the fate of the around 1.4 million Palestinians sheltering in Rafah, most of whom are displaced from other parts of the Gaza Strip. Israel’s top ally, the U.S., has said invading Rafah would be a mistake and has demanded to see a credible plan to protect civilians.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Special counsel Jack Smith’s team is urging the Supreme Court to reject former President Donald Trump’s claim that he is immune from prosecution in a case charging him with scheming to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. The brief from prosecutors was submitted just over two weeks before the justices will take up the legally untested question of whether an ex-president is shielded from criminal charges for official actions taken in the White House. The outcome of the April 25 arguments is expected to help determine whether Trump faces trial this year in a four-count indictment that accuses him of conspiring to block the peaceful transfer of power after losing the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden.

SALEM, Mass. (AP) — Police in Massachusetts say someone threw an explosive device onto the porch of The Satanic Temple at a time when no one was inside, and the device and damage it caused were not found until nearly 12 hours later. No injuries were reported. Police said in a news release Monday that state police bomb technicians ensured that the device was no longer a danger. Police dogs swept the location for other devices and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives assisted. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force is assisting with the investigation. Police did not provide details on the damage. Police have responded to the temple previously for bomb threats and hate crimes.

WASHINGTON (AP) — For the 10th consecutive month, Earth in March set a new monthly record for global heat — with both air temperatures and the world’s oceans hitting an all-time high for the month, the European Union climate agency Copernicus said. March 2024 averaged 57.9 degrees Fahrenheit, exceeding the previous record from 2016 by a tenth of a degree, according to Copernicus data.

In other headlines:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.

Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn more here.

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted April 8 at 7:30 a.m. CT:

MESQUITE, Texas (AP) — Millions of spectators in the U.S., Mexico and Canada are eagerly anticipating the total solar eclipse. It's expected to be North America's biggest eclipse crowd ever, thanks to the densely populated path. But cloud cover is threatening to spoil the view for many. Clear skies are only promised in northern New England to Canada. During the eclipse, the moon will pass in front of the sun and obscure it for up to 4 1/2 minutes. The rest of North America will see a partial eclipse, weather permitting.

NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump has declined to endorse a national abortion ban and says he believes abortion should be left to the states. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee released a video outlining his position on Monday after months of mixed messages and speculation.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is traveling to Wisconsin to announce details of a new plan to help millions of people with their student loan debt. The Democratic president will visit Madison, the capital, on Monday, a week after primary voting in the Midwest battleground state highlighted weaknesses for him and Republican challenger Donald Trump.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — The Vatican has declared that gender-affirming surgeries and surrogacy are grave violations of human dignity. A new document from the doctrine office puts them on par with abortion and euthanasia as practices that violate God’s plan for human life.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A senior Ukrainian official has denied Russian accusations that his country’s army fired drones at a nuclear reactor at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. The Kremlin’s forces have been occupying and running the plant in southern Ukraine since shortly after the war began more than two years ago.

In entertainment, Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher say they filed for divorce last year after more than 20 years as a couple. It has been 21 years since Sean Paul’s dancehall anthem “Get Busy” topped the Billboard Hot 100 and introduced new audiences to his Jamaican genres. Fans are celebrating 50 years since ABBA won a major battle with “Waterloo.” 

In other headlines:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.

Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn more here.

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted April 6 at 6 a.m. CT:

Each Saturday Hot off the Wire looks at a variety of stories in business, science, health and more. This week's headlines include:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.

Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted April 5 at 6:45 a.m. CT:

LEUVEN, Belgium (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says that measures the Israeli government has announced to expand the flow of aid into Gaza are welcome but may not be enough to meet the Biden administration’s demands for dramatic improvements in humanitarian conditions in the territory. Blinken said Friday that opening more border crossings, if fully implemented, has the potential to surge assistance to Palestinians caught in the fighting between Israel and Hamas. However, the U.S. also wants to see tangible steps to bolster the protection of civilians and aid workers. Blinken called for an independent investigation into the killing earlier this week of seven aid workers in Israeli airstrikes, which sparked international outrage.

An early spring nor'easter is hammering the Northeast with heavy snow, rain and high winds, with some northern areas expected to get up to 2 feet of snow. Hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses remained without power Thursday night from West Virginia to Maine. 

DALLAS (AP) — Clouds could obscure views of Monday's total solar eclipse in some parts of North America. There is still plenty of time for forecasts to change, but meteorologists predict that a storm front could bring clouds to many locations along the eclipse's path, including parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and Texas. 

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is expected to get a firsthand look at efforts to clear away the hulking remains of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. Cranes, ships and diving crews are working to reopen one of the nation’s main shipping lanes and prepare for eventually erecting a new bridge. Biden's planned visit Friday to the site of a tragedy that killed six bridge workers lays bare the cleanup's high political stakes. 

DETROIT (AP) — New vehicle sales in the U.S. rose 5.1% from January through March, as buyers stayed in the market despite high interest rates. But electric vehicle sales growth slowed to 3.3% during the quarter, with mainstream buyers wary of limited range and a lack of charging stations. Automakers sold nearly 3.8 million vehicles in the first quarter versus a year ago. 

In other headlines:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.

Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn more here.

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted April 4 at 7:15 a.m. CT:

President Joe Biden will have a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Thursday following an airstrike that killed seven World Central Kitchen staff members in Gaza. Israel faced growing isolation Wednesday over the deaths of six foreign aid workers and a Palestinian driver helping deliver desperately needed food to isolated and starving residents. 

HUALIEN, Taiwan (AP) — Rescuers are searching for dozens of people still missing a day after Taiwan’s strongest earthquake in a quarter century damaged buildings, caused multiple rockslides and killed 10 people.

MADRID (AP) — Spanish authorities say a cruise ship stuck in the northeastern port of Barcelona will be able to resume its route after a group of Bolivian passengers with visa problems were taken off the vessel. 

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden says a new rule making it harder to fire thousands of federal employees is a “step toward combatting corruption and partisan interference." Advocates hope the rule will head off former President Donald Trump’s promises to radically remake the federal workforce along ideological lines if the Republican wins back the White House. 

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma is preparing to execute a death row inmate for shooting and killing two people in Oklahoma City more than two decades ago. Michael Dewayne Smith is scheduled to receive a lethal injection on Thursday at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. Smith was convicted and sentenced to die for killing Janet Moore and Sharath Pulluru in separate shootings in February 2002.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Authorities say thieves stole as much $30 million in a burglary at a Los Angeles money storage facility in one of the largest cash heists in city history. A police official said Wednesday that the burglary occurred Sunday night at an unnamed facility in the Sylmar area of the San Fernando Valley. Cash from businesses across the region is handled and stored there. The official says the burglars were able to breach the building and the safe where the money was stored. The Los Angeles Times says the break-in is among the largest cash burglaries in city history.

In other headlines:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.

Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn more here.

On the version of Hot off the Wire posted April 3 at 7:15 a.m. CT:

Thousands of homes and businesses are without power as severe weather roars through several states, causing at least one death and spawning possible tornados. A strong weather system in northeastern Oklahoma with heavy rains produced three suspected tornadoes. The storms were blamed for the death of a 46-year-old homeless woman in Tulsa who died inside a drainage pipe. In Ohio, firefighters rescued two people who were trapped under a bridge when the waters of an Ohio river began rising. Meanwhile in Wisconsin, a spring snowstorm was expected to drop more than a foot of snow.

HUALIEN, Taiwan (AP) — The strongest earthquake in a quarter-century has rocked Taiwan during the morning rush hour. Wednesday's quake killed nine people, sent others scrambling out the windows of damaged buildings and halted train service throughout the island.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A new poll finds that most Americans share many core values on what it means to be an American despite the country’s deep political polarization. The poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that about 9 in 10 U.S. adults say the right to vote, the right to equal protection under the law and the right to privacy are important or very important to the U.S.’s identity as a nation.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Donald Trump is suing two co-founders of Trump Media & Technology Group, the newly public parent company of his Truth Social platform, arguing that they should forfeit their stock in the company because they set it up improperly. The former president’s lawsuit, which was filed on March 24, follows a complaint filed in February by Andy Litinsky and Wes Moss, who asked a Delaware court to block Trump from taking steps the two said would sharply reduce their 8.6% stake in Trump Media.

ISTANBUL (AP) — A deadly fire that spread through an Istanbul nightclub during renovations was likely caused by welding sparks coming into contact with combustible material, Turkish news reports say. The fire engulfed the popular Masquerade nightclub on Tuesday, trapping workers and club employees inside and killing 29 people.

In other news:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.

Lee Enterprises produces many national, regional and sports podcasts. Learn more here.