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National Interest
$40 Trillion Warning: US Is Speeding Toward Fiscal Cliff, Watchdog Says $40 Trillion Warning: US Is Speeding Toward Fiscal Cliff, Watchdog Says
$40 Trillion Warning: US Is Speeding Toward Fiscal Cliff, Watchdog Says Washington’s borrowing tab has now hit a number once difficult to imagine. The national debt climbed over $40 trillion on Tuesday, Aug. 18, according to the US Treasury’s Debt to the Penny dataset.  The milestone is arriving months earlier than previous projections indicated, The Washington Post reported. The total includes about $32.2 trillion in debt held by the public and $7.8 trillion in obligations held within the federal government. It grows when Washington borrows to cover the gap between federal spending and revenue. The Congressional Budget Office projects a $1.9 trillion fe…

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by Joe Lombardi
On Your Side
McDonald's Launches New Fall Drinks Based On Popular Treat McDonald's Launches New Fall Drinks Based On Popular Treat
McDonald's Launches New Fall Drinks Based On Popular Treat McDonald's is adding its own fall coffee flavor to challenge pumpkin-spiced competitors. The fast-food chain officially launched Caramel Apple Pie coffees on Tuesday, Aug. 18. The limited-time flavor can also be found in Frappés, hot and iced lattes, and iced coffee. The drinks blend apple and caramel flavors with McDonald's coffee. They're also topped with salted caramel-flavored whipped cream and crumbled apple pie pieces. The Caramel Apple Pie Iced Coffee features caramel apple pie-flavored syrup, salted caramel-flavored whipped topping, and apple pie crumble topping served over ice. "…

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by Chris Spiker
Breaking News
Pilot Killed, 2 Troopers Injured In Midair Collision Between PSP Helicopter And Plane (UPDATE) Pilot Killed, 2 Troopers Injured In Midair Collision Between PSP Helicopter And Plane (UPDATE)
Pilot Killed, 2 Troopers Injured In Midair Collision Between PSP Helicopter And Plane (Update) A pilot was killed, and two Pennsylvania State Police troopers were injured when a small plane struck a police helicopter during a training exercise at Carlisle Regional Airport on Wednesday evening, Aug. 19, officials said. Cpl. Bryce Corman and Trooper Jason Mills were conducting routine training exercises in a Bell 407 helicopter when a Cessna 150 approached from behind and struck the helicopter, Pennsylvania State Police Acting Commissioner Lt. Col. George Bivens said during a late-night briefing with Gov. Josh Shapiro. The pilot of the Cessna was killed in the crash. Authorities know t…

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by Jillian Pikora
Breaking News
First Victim ID'd After Double Murder, Arson Ends With Suspect Dead In PA First Victim ID'd After Double Murder, Arson Ends With Suspect Dead In PA
First Victim ID'd After Double Murder, Arson Ends With Suspect Dead In PA The first victim has been identified after two people were fatally attacked before their killer set a Dauphin County house on fire and died in the blaze, officials announced on Wednesday, Aug. 19. Dean Johnson, 55, of Lower Swatara Township, died from a traumatic brain injury complicated by smoke inhalation and thermal burns, Dauphin County Chief Deputy Coroner Vince Paese told Daily Voice. Johnson's manner of death was ruled a homicide. The coroner's office is still working to positively identify the other victim and the person investigators say killed the pair and set the house on fire. …

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by Jillian Pikora
Breaking News
NJ Man Posed As Religious Solicitor To Meet ‘13-Year-Old’ In PA: Prosecutors NJ Man Posed As Religious Solicitor To Meet ‘13-Year-Old’ In PA: Prosecutors
NJ Man Posed As Religious Solicitor To Meet ‘13-Year-Old’ In PA: Prosecutors A New Jersey man who drove to Pennsylvania dressed as a religious solicitor to meet someone he believed was a 13-year-old girl for sex has been sentenced, authorities announced on Wednesday, Aug. 19. The case began when Oscar Castillo-Peralta, 54, of Pleasantville, NJ, started chatting on a social media app with someone he believed was a 13-year-old girl on Jan. 30, 2025, authorities said. Bensalem police previously identified the app as KIK. The pair exchanged phone numbers and continued communicating by text, with the conversations becoming sexual over the following weeks, investigators s…

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by Jillian Pikora
Breaking News
13-Year-Old Girl Takes Pregnancy Test After Sex Assaults At PA Park: Prosecutors 13-Year-Old Girl Takes Pregnancy Test After Sex Assaults At PA Park: Prosecutors
13-Year-Old Girl Takes Pregnancy Test After Sex Assaults At PA Park: Prosecutors An 18-year-old accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl and giving her a pregnancy test will have his case proceed to county court, prosecutors announced on Wednesday, Aug. 19. Andrew Juan Pemberton, of East Earl Township, is accused of sexually assaulting the girl multiple times, including at New Holland Park and inside a vehicle, according to the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office. District Judge Jonathan Heisse ruled following a preliminary hearing on Monday, July 20, that the case could proceed to the Lancaster County Court of Common Pleas. Pember…

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by Jillian Pikora
National Interest
TV Executive Among 5 Americans Killed In Chopper Crash During Kenya Safari Tour TV Executive Among 5 Americans Killed In Chopper Crash During Kenya Safari Tour
TV Executive Among 5 Americans Killed In Chopper Crash During Kenya Safari Tour A sightseeing flight over one of East Africa’s most striking landscapes ended in catastrophe. Seven people died when a charter helicopter crashed in a remote area of northern Kenya on Wednesday, Aug. 19, according to multiple reports. Five of those killed were US citizens. The Eurocopter EC130 B4 went down at about 9:13 a.m. local time near Mount Ololokwe in Samburu County, the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority said. A Eurocopter EC130 B4 helicopter, similar to the one involved in the crash in Kenya. Wikipedia/Łukasz Golowanow & Maciej Hypś, Konflikty.pl The aircraft was operated …

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by Joe Lombardi
Breaking News
Pedestrian, 39, Killed In Vehicle Strike In Pennsylvania: Coroner Pedestrian, 39, Killed In Vehicle Strike In Pennsylvania: Coroner
Pedestrian, 39, Killed In Vehicle Strike In Pennsylvania: Coroner A 39-year-old pedestrian was struck by a vehicle and killed in a late-night crash in Pennsylvania, authorities announced on Wednesday, Aug. 19. Brian J. Carney was hit in the 3300 block of Hamilton Boulevard in South Whitehall Township at approximately 11:10 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 18, according to Lehigh County Coroner Daniel A. Buglio. Carney was taken to the emergency department at Lehigh Valley Hospital–Cedar Crest, where he was pronounced dead at 11:45 p.m., the coroner said. His address was unknown at the time of the release. An autopsy performed on Wednesday determined Carney died fro…

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by Jillian Pikora
Breaking News
Freak Badminton Racket Accident Killed NJ 6-Year-Old: Now, Her Family Is Suing Freak Badminton Racket Accident Killed NJ 6-Year-Old: Now, Her Family Is Suing
Freak Badminton Racket Accident Killed NJ 6-Year-Old: Now, Her Family Is Suing The New Jersey family of a 6-year-old girl killed when a metal badminton racket shaft broke free from its handle and pierced her skull has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Franklin Sports. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Lucy Morgan's family by attorneys Travis M. Brennan and Charles P. Hehmeyer of Berman & Simmons, the Maine law firm announced Wednesday, Aug. 19. Lucy was spending the final day of a family vacation at a lake house in Limerick, Maine, on Saturday, June 1, 2024, when her older siblings began playing badminton in the front yard, according to the complaint. Lucy …

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by Cecilia Levine
Breaking News
Suspect Caught At Poconos Pizzeria Year After Armed Gas Station Robbery In NY: Feds Suspect Caught At Poconos Pizzeria Year After Armed Gas Station Robbery In NY: Feds
Suspect Caught At Poconos Pizzeria Year After Armed Gas Station Robbery In NY: Feds A second suspect in an armed Westchester County gas station robbery that sparked a regional manhunt and a shootout with NYPD officers has been captured nearly a year later, federal prosecutors said.   Bronx resident Eric Boothe, 40, was arrested in Pennsylvania and charged in connection with the Aug. 29, 2025 robbery of a Mount Vernon gas station, the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced on Tuesday, Aug. 18.  Boothe allegedly committed the robbery alongside Jamaire Robertson, who was arrested within hours of the incident last year, prosecutors …

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by Ben Crnic
Breaking News
21-Year-Old Woman Killed In 3-Vehicle PA Crash Was On Her Way To Work, Family Says 21-Year-Old Woman Killed In 3-Vehicle PA Crash Was On Her Way To Work, Family Says
21-Year-Old Woman Killed In 3-Vehicle PA Crash Was On Her Way To Work, Family Says A 21-year-old woman killed in a three-vehicle crash involving a tractor-trailer in Pennsylvania is remembered as a funny, creative animal lover with a passion for cars. Hailey E. Weil, of Bath in Moore Township, was driving a 2004 Subaru Forester when it crashed with a 2021 Freightliner Cascadia and a 2025 Ford Explorer at Airport Road and Race Street in Hanover Township Lehigh County on Monday, Aug. 17, according to Pennsylvania State Police. A trooper on routine patrol came upon the crash at approximately 11:39 a.m., state police previously said. The Freightliner was driven by a 42-year-o…

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by Jillian Pikora
On Your Side
Popular Eye Drops Recalled Over Contamination Risk: What To Know Popular Eye Drops Recalled Over Contamination Risk: What To Know
Popular Eye Drops Recalled Over Contamination Risk: What To Know Nearly 40,000 bottles of eye drops distributed nationwide are being recalled because the product may not be sterile. Prestige Brands Holdings issued the voluntary recall for 39,060 bottles of Clear Eyes Maximum Itchy Eye Relief, according to a Food and Drug Administration enforcement report filed on Friday, Aug. 14. The FDA said the eye drops could be contaminated and have a "lack of assurance of sterility." The recall affects 0.5-fluid-ounce, or 15 mL, dropper bottles from lot 2552A. The eye drops have an expiration date of Thursday, Sept. 30, 2027.  The …

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by Chris Spiker