(AP Photo/Alan Diaz, File) MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gun dealers say the spike in demand for guns and ammunition driven by the coronavirus pandemic has not subsided in Wisconsin. Dealers say they are still having trouble keeping their stores stocked ten months after the first COVID-19 cases started showing up in the state. At Superior Shooters Supply in Superior, Pat…
MADISON, Wis, (AP) — A federal judge has rejected a lawsuit filed by two Republican Wisconsin lawmakers, voting rights groups, and others seeking to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Wisconsin and four other swing states. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg rejected the lawsuit Monday. He says it “rests on a fundamental and obvious misreading of the Constitution.” The…
PORT WASHINGTON, Wis. (AP) — A prosecutor says a Wisconsin pharmacist told police he tried to ruin hundreds of doses of coronavirus vaccine because he felt the shots weren’t safe. Police in Grafton, about 20 miles north of Milwaukee, arrested Advocate Aurora Health pharmacist Steven Brandenburg last week following an investigation into the 57 spoiled vials of the Moderna vaccine….
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota officials are aiming to ramp up vaccination efforts as the pace to administer doses to healthcare workers and long-term care residents and staff move slower than expected. The Minnesota Department of Health reported on Monday that providers across the state have administered 78,402 doses of their nearly 300,000 doses of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines — less…
WASHINGTON (AP) — Nancy Pelosi has been narrowly re-elected as House speaker. Her victory gives her the reins of Democrats’ slender House majority as she and President-elect Joe Biden set a challenging course of producing legislation to tackle the pandemic, revive the economy and address other party priorities. The California Democrat received 216 votes compared to 209 for California Republican…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Tony Evers is calling on the Republican-controlled Wisconsin Legislature to pass his proposed COVID-19 relief bill before any other in the session that begins Monday. Evers renewed his request to lawmakers to take up his proposed compromise, first floated on Dec. 21, saying it would be “inexplicable” to take up anything else first. The Senate…
LUDINGTON, Mich. (AP) — A coal-fired ferry that carries people and cars across Lake Michigan between Michigan and Wisconsin has been sold. The Ludington Daily News reports that Interlake Holding Co. announced Wednesday that it bought the SS Badger. The Middleburg Heights, Ohio-based company also purchased a tug-barge called the SS Spartan and the Lake Michigan Carferry and Pere Marquette…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Supreme Court has upheld the state’s revenge porn law, ruling that sharing nude images of a person without their consent is not constitutionally protected free speech. The Star Tribune reports the unanimous ruling Wednesday reverses an earlier order by the state Court of Appeals, which struck down the 2016 law which made it a crime to…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn his election loss in Wisconsin. It was his second appeal in as many days to the high court over the result in the key battleground state. Trump’s newest appeal is over the loss of a lawsuit he filed in federal court seeking to void…
HILL CITY, Minn. (AP) – Authorities say a man who died while working on a pipeline project in northern Minnesota was run over by a large forklift. The Aitkin County Sheriff’s Office has preliminarily ruled that the death of Jorge Villafuerte III at the Enbridge Energy Line 3 construction site was an accident. The accident happened in the predawn hours…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Police in Minneapolis say they will quickly release body camera video from a traffic stop that ended with a man shot dead, the city’s first police-involved death since George Floyd died while being restrained by officers in May. Police say the man was a suspect in a felony and died in an exchange of gunfire Wednesday. Chief…
GRAFTON, Wis. (AP) — Police and federal authorities are investigating after a Wisconsin health system said an employee admitted to deliberately spoiling 500 doses of coronavirus vaccine. Aurora Medical Center first reported that the doses had been spoiled on Saturday, saying they had been accidentally left out unrefrigerated overnight by an employee at Aurora Medical Center in Grafton. The health…
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed into law a $106 million plan to provide relief to businesses and fund efforts to fight the economic impact of the coronavirus. Though the plan was a collaborative effort between the governor and the legislature, Whitmer told reporters on Tuesday that the legislature strayed from the original and the $465 million…
MADISON, Wis., (AP) – Wisconsin Assembly Democrats might skip the inauguration next week because Republicans aren’t requiring masks in the chamber. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Minority Leader Gordon Hintz says he’s afraid the lack of masks could spread the coronavirus. He says having Democrats skip Monday’s ceremony is “a real possibility.” Gov. Tony Evers swore in all 38…
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s push for bigger $2,000 COVID-19 relief checks has stalled out in the Republican-led Senate. With Republican senators deeply split over new spending, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday blocked a swift vote proposed by Democrats. The GOP leader signaled an alternative approach that links Trump’s demand for aid with restrictions the president wants on…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Bemidji woman is accused of fatally shooting her brother-in-law on Christmas Day at his home, allegedly for mistreating her sister. The Star Tribune reports Janelle L. Johnson was charged Tuesday with second-degree intentional murder in connection with the death of 48-year-old Jesse Farris at his house near Bemidji. Johnson remains jailed in lieu of $500,000 bail ahead…
DENVER (AP) – The first reported U.S. case of the COVID-19 variant that’s been seen in the United Kingdom has been discovered in Colorado. Gov. Jared Polis and state health officials announced Tuesday that the case was found in a man in his 20s who’s in isolation and has no travel history. Today we discovered Colorado’s first case of the…
(Antioch Police Department via AP) MILWAUKEE (AP) — Prosecutors have charged a 17-year-old Illinois teen accused of shooting three people during a protest in southeastern Wisconsin with violating curfew. Kyle Rittenhouse was charged in Kenosha County in August with multiple counts, including homicide, endangerment, and being a minor in possession of a firearm. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that prosecutors…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The Minnesota Department of Health on Tuesday reported 36 more people have died due to COVID-19, and 988 new infections on a lower-than-normal testing volume. It was the first time since October that daily new cases fell below 1,000. Testing volume has fallen due to testing sites closing during the Christmas holiday. State health officials reported 7,742…
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has blocked Democrats’ push to immediately bring President Donald Trump’s demand for bigger $2,000 COVID-19 relief checks up for a vote. The GOP leader said the Senate would “begin a process” to address the issue. But the next steps are highly uncertain. Trump has been pushing to more than triple the $600…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Tony Evers’ administration is looking for public feedback on simplified applications for unemployment benefits. The state Department of Workforce Development announced Monday that it’s planning to simplify initial and weekly claim applications starting this spring to feature what the agency is calling “plain language” as much as possible. The department says the language is intended…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A woman died after an ATV she was riding in fell through the ice on Kabekona Lake in northern Minnesota. The Star Tribune reports 60-year-old Rose Peterson, of Brooklyn Park, died Saturday night after she and two family members traveling in an ATV fell through thin ice on the lake, about 8 miles northwest of Walker. Riding in…
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Clinicians had to discard about 500 doses of the Moderna vaccine after vials were kept unrefrigerated for too long at Aurora Medical Center in Grafton. Advocate Aurora Health officials said someone removed 50 vials from a refrigerator to access other items and failed to put them back overnight Friday. Each vial contained 10 doses of vaccine. The…
WASHINGTON (AP) — Whether most Americans will receive $2,000 COVID-19 relief checks is now in the hands of the Senate. President Donald Trump has been pushing to more than triple the $600 payments approved by Congress, reluctantly signing into law the massive relief bill that authorized the smaller checks. On Monday the House voted overwhelmingly to meet the president’s demand,…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Two pharmacy chains have launched an effort to inject tens of thousands of Wisconsin nursing home residents with a COVID-19 vaccine. Rick Abrams, president of the Wisconsin Health Care Association/Wisconsin Center for Assisted Living, says CVS Health and Walgreens began injecting residents and staff on Monday with the Moderna vaccine. Abrams says the campaign could take…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Opponents of a pipeline project that crosses three states have asked a federal court to halt construction in Minnesota on allegations that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers failed to address several environmental issues when it approved a water quality permit. Two Minnesota Ojibwe bands and two environmental groups filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Pharmacy chains CVS Health and Walgreens launched a large-scale effort on Monday to help vaccinate residents and staff of Minnesota long-term care facilities for coronavirus. CVS Health plans to vaccinate more than 63,000 residents and staff of nearly 600 skilled nursing and assisted living facilities across Minnesota during a 12-week effort that began in several states last…
WASHINGTON — Nearly 1.3 million people went through U.S. airports on Sunday, the highest level of air travel in more than nine months, despite the fear that travel will lead to more cases of COVID-19. The Transportation Security Administration said it screened 1,284,599 on Sunday, the highest total since March 15. More than 10 million people have traveled by air…
(AP) – “Full House” actor Lori Loughlin has been released from prison after spending two months behind bars for paying half a million dollars in bribes to get her two daughters into college. Loughlin was released Monday from the federal lockup in Dublin, California, where she had been serving her sentence for her role in the college admissions bribery scheme….
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Federal authorities identified on Sunday the man they say is responsible for the Christmas Day bombing and said that he died in the explosion. Investigators used DNA to link the man, identified as Anthony Quinn Warner, to the blast. They said they believe no one else was involved. Federal officials now turn to explore the monumental task…
LONDON (AP) – The head of drugmaker AstraZeneca, which is developing a coronavirus vaccine widely expected to be approved by U.K. authorities this week, says researchers believe the shot “should remain effective” against a new variant of the virus driving a rapid surge in infections in Britain. AstraZeneca chief executive Pascal Soriot told the Sunday Times that more tests are…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin health officials on Wednesday confirmed hundreds of new COVID-19 cases and deaths connected to the disease. The Department of Health Services reported 2,579 newly confirmed cases. The state has now seen 463,594 cases since the pandemic began in March. The DHS reported the disease was a factor in 69 more deaths, bringing the overall death…
DULUTH, Minn. (AP) — An off-the-grid area of northern Minnesota will soon host a new tower to bring cell service to the region, though some locals and visitors want the area to remain remote. The Cook County Board voted on Tuesday to allow AT&T to build the tower to bring cellphone service to a remote area that includes the Gunflint…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota nursing home residents began receiving doses of the newly approved Moderna vaccine this week as the state prioritizes the high-risk population in its vaccination rollout plan. Residents and staff at the St. Cloud VA Community Living Center and an assisted living facility in the Prairie Island Indian Community were among the first to receive doses of…
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell by 89,000 last week to a still-elevated 803,000, evidence that the job market remains under stress nine months after the coronavirus outbreak sent the U.S. economy into recession and caused millions of layoffs. The latest figure shows that many employers are still cutting jobs as the pandemic tightens…
WASHINGTON (AP) — Pfizer and BioNTech will supply the U.S. with an additional 100 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine under a new agreement. The drugmakers said Wednesday that they expect to deliver all the doses by July 31. Pfizer already has a contract to supply the government with 100 million doses of its vaccine. Pfizer’s vaccine was the first…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A new report shows the University of Wisconsin System paid out nearly $70 million in coronavirus-related refunds to students last year. The Legislative Audit Bureau released a report Tuesday that shows the system paid out $68.5 million in housing and food service refunds to students after campuses closed in March as the pandemic was taking hold in…
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department is suing Walmart, alleging the company unlawfully dispensed controlled substances through its pharmacies, helping to fuel the opioid crisis in America. The civil complaint being filed Tuesday points to the role Walmart’s pharmacies may have played in the crisis by filling opioid prescriptions and by unlawfully distributing controlled substances to the pharmacies during the…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Tony Evers announced Tuesday that his administration has partnered with a medical testing company to provide free at-home COVID-19 tests. The governor said his administration has struck a deal with Vault Medical Services to provide free at-home COVID-19 saliva tests. Anyone interested in a test can order one through the state Department of Health Services website starting…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Tony Evers has scheduled a special election this spring to fill outgoing Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald’s seat. Evers issued an executive order Tuesday scheduling the election for April 6 in southeastern Wisconsin’s 13th Senate District. The election will coincide with the state’s spring election. A primary for Fitzgerald’s seat will be held on Feb….
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden will speak Tuesday as the nation deals with a COVID-19 surge that’s casting a shadow over the Christmas holiday this week. Biden will deliver remarks in Wilmington, Delaware on Tuesday afternoon, where he’s expected to speak on the $900 billion coronavirus aid bill passed by Congress on Monday. It’s a package he supports…
(Scott Takushi/Pioneer Press via AP, Pool) ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Gov. Tim Walz and Department of Health officials are planning to provide an update Tuesday on how COVID-19 vaccinations are being distributed in Minnesota. Minnesota began giving the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to healthcare workers last week after it received emergency approval earlier this month. The state’s initial shipment last week…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The president of the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents is promising that students will be able to return to campuses for the spring semester. Regents President Andrew Peterson said Monday that regents expect students will be able to return at the end of January, hoping that more robust COVID-19 testing will help stave off…
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — Congress has approved a five-year extension of a program designed to deal with long-term environmental injuries to the Great Lakes. The U.S. Senate voted unanimously Sunday to continue the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, as the House did earlier this year. The bill requires President Donald Trump’s signature to take effect. It calls for gradually boosting…
(AP Photo/Jim Mone, File) HILL CITY, Minn. (AP) — A contractor working on the Enbridge Energy Line 3 pipeline project in northern Minnesota has died in a fatal accident. Enbridge Energy spokeswoman Juli Kellner said the accident happened Friday at a construction yard in Hill City. Kellner said work in the area was stopped Friday and safety standards and protocols…
LONDON (AP) — Trucks waiting to get out of Britain are backing up for miles and people are stranded at airports as many countries impose stringent travel restrictions over concerns about a new strain of the coronavirus that authorities say may spread more easily. A growing number of countries are halting air travel from the U.K., while France has banned…
WASHINGTON (AP) — A new COVID-19 relief bill shaping up in Congress includes individual payments reaching $600 for most Americans and an extra $300 a week in unemployment benefits. Votes on the bill in the House and Senate are expected Monday. The COVID bill would pump $900 billion into relief efforts. Among those getting help are hard-hit businesses, schools, health…
MADISON, Wis.-Add Wisconsin to the list of states told by the federal government that it will be receiving less COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech than initially expected. Gov. Tony Evers said on Friday that the state was told on Thursday it will be receiving 35,100 doses of the vaccine, less than expected after 49,725 arrived this week. Several states say they…
MINNEAPOLIS-Minnesota public safety officials have issued another liquor license suspension notice as more businesses are defying Gov. Tim Walz’s executive order barring indoor service at restaurants and bars to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Mission Tavern in Merrifield faces a 60-day suspension of its liquor license pending a hearing before a judge, and could have its license revoked for five…
LANSING, Mich.-Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration is lifting a prohibition on in-person instruction at Michigan high schools and says entertainment venues such as movie theaters can reopen with capacity restrictions following a decline in coronavirus cases. Universities and colleges can let students return to campus next month, with a voluntary commitment to wait until Jan. 18 to restart face-to-face classes. Indoor…
