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Five takeaways from the Republican debate with Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley

January 11, 2024 by WDNY Radio

(DES MOINES, Iowa) — Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis clashed on Wednesday night at their first one-on-one debate of the 2024 Republican primary.

The two, who both trail former President Donald Trump nationally and in early primary states, according to 538’s polling average, engaged in frequently testy exchanges on their records in government and on an array of policy stances at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, the state that will host closely watched caucuses on Monday.

Trump, meanwhile, counterprogrammed the debate, hosted by CNN, with a town hall on Fox News.

Here are five takeaways from Wednesday night’s debate:

Trump on the back burner, with some exceptions

Trump maintains double-digit leads nationally and in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina — three early voting states in the race — making him the candidate to beat. On Wednesday, he often barely got a mention except on a few key issues.

In a continuation of a monthslong trend, Haley and DeSantis, vying to be No. 2 to Trump in the polls, instead focused their fire on each other, seemingly in a bid to establish one or the other as the main alternative to Trump with just days left to persuade voters.

Both Haley and DeSantis said Trump should be at the debate. Haley specifically noted that the national debt rose during Trump’s presidency (during which time Trump implemented major tax cuts and responded to COVID-19) and swiped at Trump’s penchant for “drama” and “vengeance,” while DeSantis blamed some violence during social justice protests in 2020 on Trump since he was in the White House.

The two also touched on Trump’s controversial claim that presidents should have virtually complete legal immunity for actions taken in office — an effort to protect him from the criminal charges he now faces, which he denies. The immunity question is currently tied up in court.

“I’m not exactly sure what the outer limits are. I don’t think it’s necessarily been litigated,” DeSantis said.

Haley, meanwhile, said Trump’s claim was “absolutely ridiculous.”

She also called him out on another point — election denialism and Jan. 6.

Though she also mentioned that she believes there were “discrepancies” in the 2020 race, Haley said, “Trump lost that election. Trump lost it. [Joe] Biden won that election and the idea that he’s gone and carried this out forever, to the point that he’s going to continue to say these things to scare the American people, are wrong.”

Haley then said that she believes Trump “will have to answer” for what happened on Jan. 6.

Sharp differences on foreign policy

Haley and DeSantis staked out some of their most noticeable differences on foreign policy, including on Ukraine’s response to Russia’s invasion.

Haley has been vocal in her support for sending arms and other equipment to Ukraine as DeSantis has been more skeptical about prolonged and expansive financial support for Kyiv — a stance that Haley knocked him on.

“Nobody knows what he believes, because when President [Barack] Obama was in office, he supported foreign aid to Ukraine. Now he’s copying Trump and trying to act like he doesn’t want to support Ukraine,” Haley said.

“She supports this $106 billion that they’re trying to get through Congress,” DeSantis later said about Haley’s position, referring to a pending aid package for the country. “Where’s some of that money gone? They’ve done tens of billions of dollars to pay salaries for Ukrainian government bureaucrats. They’ve paid pensions for Ukrainian retirees with your tax dollars.”

“First of all, I have never said that we should give salaries or benefits or anything else to Ukrainians,” Haley retorted. “I did not support the aid package. I support equipment named munition going to Ukraine. I think it is incredibly important that we’re honest and say we have to focus on national security.”

The two did both voice unequivocal support for Israel as it fights against Hamas in Gaza in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 terror attack, though DeSantis said he wouldn’t criticize Israel if it decided to permanently displace Palestinians from the territory — a controversial possibility floated by some Israeli government ministers that has been widely condemned internationally.

“So, as president, I am not going to tell them to do that. I think there is a lot of issues with that. But if they make the calculation that to avert a second Holocaust, they need to do that,” DeSantis said.

Lots of sharp elbows

Haley and DeSantis frequently went after each other in personal terms on a stage featuring just the two of them.

“Ron’s lying because Ron’s losing,” Haley said during the debate. “You’re so desperate. You’re just so desperate.”

Haley also touted a new website to highlight what she said were DeSantis’ “lies.”

DeSantis, meanwhile, said “one good rule of thumb: if she says she has never said something, that definitely means she said it, and then she’ll say, ‘You’re lying, you’re lying.’ That means not only did she say it, but she is on videotape saying it.”

The debate was characterized by many such similar exchanges, with DeSantis going on the offensive in casting Haley as beholden to “Wall Street” and ready to “cave to the woke mob” — as Haley responded that he was being misleading.

Abortion: DeSantis says Haley is ‘confused,’ Haley says to not ‘demonize’

On the topic of abortion access, DeSantis contended that Haley has been “confused” and said, “I think she’s trying to speak to different groups with different things” — seemingly referring to how Haley has not embraced restrictions as he has.

Haley described herself as “unapologetically pro-life” but warned against “playing politics” with the issue.

“Our goal should be: How do we save as many babies as possible and support as many moms as possible?” she said. “We are not going to demonize this issue anymore. We are not going to play politics with this issue anymore. We’re going to treat it like the respectful issue that it is.”

Notably, after DeSantis accused Haley of invoking a “trope” when she raised the prospect of some women receiving jail time for getting an abortion, she responded that there was such legislation in South Carolina.

Haley says 20-year-olds should plan on retirement age increasing

When asked about how each of them would address Social Security’s long-term funding issues, DeSantis assured voters that he “would never raise the retirement age in the face of declining life expectancy” and that he wasn’t going to “mess with seniors’ benefits.”

Haley took a shot at DeSantis, saying that in the past he voted to raise the life expectancy for three years in a row. She was also asked if voters in their 20s should plan on having to work until they’re 70 rather than 67, the current maximum cutoff.

“They should plan on their retirement age being increased, yes,” she said. “We’re going to change it to reflect more of what life expectancy should be.”

Trump boasts of role ending Roe v. Wade but says abortion regulations need ‘concession’

January 11, 2024 by WDNY Radio

(DES MOINES, Iowa) — Donald Trump on Wednesday weighed in again on abortion access when asked to clarify his stance on the issue, saying he was for exceptions to bans and that it was important in order to win elections.

“We’re living in a time when there has to be a little bit of a concession one way or the other,” the former president and 2024 candidate said during a Fox News town hall, which he participated in instead of the latest GOP primary debate.

“You have to win elections,” Trump also said. “Otherwise, you’re going to be back where you were, and you can’t let that ever happen again. You got to win elections.”

Since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the national guarantee to abortion access in 2022, it has emerged as a major political issue in various states. A number of Republican-led states have adopted restrictions on the procedure.

At the same time, voters favor Democrats over Republicans on handling abortion and in swing states like Michigan, abortion has motivated voters to turn out in important elections, polling has shown.

Trump has sought to both tout his anti-abortion record while sounding more ambivalent about sweeping bans. He’s boasted of his role in the Supreme Court’s decision in reversing Roe, which was a key goal of conservatives for decades, given that he named three of the justices who joined that decision.

“If it weren’t for me, with Roe v. Wade, you wouldn’t even be talking about this stuff,” Trump said on Wednesday.

“For 54 years they were trying to get Roe v. Wade terminated, and I did it and I’m proud to have done it,” he said in a quote soon seized on by rival Joe Biden’s campaign.

But Trump has also suggested regulations should not be overly harsh, without committing to some specifics.

“I happen to be for the exceptions, like Ronald Reagan — with the life of the mother, rape, incest,” he said on Wednesday.

Trump then slammed 2024 challenger Ron DeSantis for the six-week abortion ban, with some exceptions, that DeSantis signed as Florida’s governor.

“If you talk five or six weeks, a lot of women don’t know if they’re pregnant … This has been tearing the country apart for 50 years, nobody’s been able to do anything,” Trump said.

“We’re going to come up with something that people want and people like,” he claimed, echoing what he told NBC News in an interview last year when he insisted that “I would sit down with both sides and I’d negotiate something.”

“I did something that nobody thought was possible, and Roe v. Wade was terminated. … Now, people, pro-lifers, have the right to negotiate for the first time,” he said then.

At the same time, Trump declined to say whether — if he were president again — he would sign federal legislation banning abortion.

“Now it’s going to work out. Now, the number of months [when a ban begins] will be determined,” he said on NBC, going on to say, “It could be state or it could be federal. I don’t frankly care.”

DOT announces $623 million in grants to support EV charging infrastructure

January 11, 2024 by WDNY Radio

DOT announces 3 million in grants to support EV charging infrastructure

(WASHINGTON) — The Department of Transportation has announced $623 million in grants to support electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure across the country.

“We’re at a moment now where the electric vehicle revolution isn’t coming, it is very much here,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told reporters.

The grants will support 47 projects in 22 states and Puerto Rico, with an emphasis on rural areas and underserved communities. The funding will also lead to the construction of about 7,500 EV charging ports.

The decision comes as the Biden administration is setting a goal of installing 500,000 chargers nationwide by 2030. Sales of EVs have been rising but at a slower rate than past years, with consumers citing high vehicle prices and poor charging infrastructure for the lukewarm response to electric vehicles.

“This charging infrastructure is making sure that everyone from the local business owner to a freight truck operator can conveniently and reliably get where they need to go,” said Shailen Bhatt, the administrator of the Federal Highway Administration.

The projects include $10 million in funding for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to build charging stations for people living in multi-family housing in disadvantaged and rural communities.

Another $15 million will go to the Maryland Clean Energy Center to build nearly 90 EV charging stations across the state at locations which may include Coppin State University, a historically Black university in Baltimore.

The County of Contra Costa in Northern California will also receive $15 million to build chargers at branches of the county’s local library system.

Energy Northwest will receive $15 million as well to install chargers across western Washington State and northern Oregon.

The Chilkoot Indian Association in the Alaskan Panhandle town of Haines will receive $1.4 million to build an EV charging station in the town. Haines, which touts thousands of visitors a year, says its one of the few in the region that is connected by road to Canada and the Alaska Highway.

“As a product of America’s industrial Midwest, I take very personally the importance of the fact that America led the world in the automotive revolution,” said Buttigieg on Wednesday. “We’re very much at the point of needing to assess whether [EVs] will, in fact, be made in America by American workers and whether the benefits will reach all Americans. President Biden’s policies are about making sure that the answer to both of those questions is yes.”

The funding for the grants comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal’s $2.5 billion discretionary grant program for charging and fueling infrastructure.

According to the Department of Transportation, since President Joe Biden took office, the number of electric vehicle models available to consumers has doubled, and by the end of the year, they expect it to double again. EV sales have quadrupled — 1.4 million were sold last year, making up about 9% of all passenger vehicle sales. More than four million EVs are on the roads.

Public charging ports have grown by about 70% and private companies have announced more than $155 billion in investments in EVs and the battery supply chain.

There are currently 170,000 chargers nationwide and the government is on track to meet Biden’s 2030 goal, Ali Zaidi, the White House national climate advisor, told reporters Wednesday.

Trump’s $370M civil fraud trial is nearing an end. What to know.

January 11, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Trump’s 0M civil fraud trial is nearing an end. What to know.

(NEW YORK) — After hearing 11 weeks of testimony, a judge on Thursday will hear closing arguments in a court case that could dismantle former President Donald Trump’s New York-based business empire.

The final decision in Trump’s civil fraud trial — which Judge Arthur Engoron is expected to issue later this month — could not only cost Trump hundreds of millions of dollars but also bar him from the New York real estate industry that propelled him to stardom and, later, the U.S. presidency.

Resting her case after presenting more than two dozen witnesses, New York Attorney General Letitia James alleged that Trump, his adult sons, and his top deputies inflated the assets listed in his annual financial statement, known as a statement of financial condition or SFC. The statements gave Trump’s lenders a false sense of confidence about doing business with him, which led them to offer Trump more favorable interest rates than he would have otherwise received, James alleged.

Based on the sale of two properties that relied on those financial statements, and on multiple loan transactions, James alleges that Trump’s overvaluations allowed him and his sons to fraudulently pocket roughly $370 million over a decade.

“The conclusion that defendants intended to defraud when preparing and certifying Trump’s SFCs is inescapable; the myriad deceptive schemes they employed to inflate asset values and conceal facts were so outrageous that they belie innocent explanation,” state attorney Kevin Wallace said in a filing last week that requested Trump be fined $370 million plus interest.

Trump’s lawyers fired back during a lengthy defense case involving a small army of experts — which together cost Trump over $2.5 million — in which they attempted to turn back the tide in a case that Engoron partially decided before the first witness was ever called.

In a partial summary judgment issued on the eve of the trial, Engoron determined, based on the inconsistencies in Trump’s financial statements and supporting documents, that the former president inflated his net worth by as much as $2.2 billion in documents he used to secure key business deals.

In the same ruling, Engoron said that the evidence and testimony presented at trial would cover six additional allegations, which relied on proving the defendants’ intent and the alleged relevance of Trump’s financial statements to lenders.

Defense lawyers have argued that the New York attorney general failed to prove Trump and his sons intended to commit fraud when they certified the former president’s financial statements, and his lenders did not consider those statements relevant when deciding to do business with Trump.

“There was no bank that brought any claims against anybody that is a defendant in this case, because there was no damage and there was no victim,” Trump’s legal spokesperson, Alina Habba, said during the trial.

Testifying as a witness during the state’s case, Trump assailed Engoron’s finding that Trump valued his Mar-a-Lago resort at roughly $18 million for tax purposes while listing it in his financial statement at more than $612 million.

“The fraud is on the Court, not on me, when you rule that Mar-a-Lago is worth $18 million. I could give you a quarter of a tennis court would be worth that,” Trump testified.

Trump has also repeatedly criticized the case as politically motivated and has argued, without evidence, that the judge overseeing the case and James are colluding to defraud him.

“He’s controlled by Tish James which is a horrible thing,” Trump said in a video statement posted to social media on Tuesday.

Trump initially planned to personally deliver part of his closing statement, but that plan was thrown into doubt after Trump’s lawyers refused to agree with the rules set by Engoron.

“He may not comment on irrelevant matters. In particular, and without limitation, he may not deliver a campaign speech, and he may not impugn myself, my staff, plaintiff, plaintiffs’ staff, or the New York State Court System, none of which is relevant to this case,” Engoron wrote in an email to Trump’s attorney that he later posted to the court’s docket.

Multiple legal experts ABC News spoke with described Trump’s attempt to deliver a closing address as unprecedented and potentially perilous for the former president.

“One of the old adages is, ‘He who represents himself has a fool for a client,'” trial attorney and Dartmouth College senior lecturer Bruce Fredrickson said. “The thinking behind that is, you lose the objectivity and impartiality that an advocate can provide on your own behalf.”

It’s unclear if Trump’s lawyers will mount a last-minute effort to have Trump to speak in court, but the overall chance of Trump’s success in the case appears increasingly unlikely. In a ruling last month, as testimony was starting to wrap up, Engoron said he was unconvinced by the major claims made by Trump’s lawyers.

“Defendants also trot out two of their standard canards, that valuations are subjective and that the law only penalizes ‘material’ deviations,” the judge wrote. “These both fall into the category of ‘Let no one be fooled.'”

“Valuations, as elucidated ad nauseum in this trial, can be based on different criteria analyzed in different ways,” Engoron said. “But a lie is still a lie.”

More severe weather to sweep US: Latest forecast and what to expect

January 11, 2024 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Tens of thousands of customers were still without power across the United States on Thursday morning in the wake of deadly winter storms and as more severe weather moves in, leaving no time for respite.

As of 6 a.m. ET, electricity was out for more than 33,000 customers in New York; 17,000 in Pennsylvania; 13,000 in North Carolina; 10,000 in New Jersey; and 9,000 in Vermont, according to data collected by PowerOutage.us.

Tuesday’s powerful storms, which saw heavy downpours of snow and rain as well as reported tornadoes, led to the deaths of at least five people nationwide — one each in Alabama, Georgia, Wisconsin, North Carolina and Wisconsin, according to authorities.

The weather also caused many waterways to rise to dangerous levels, including Connecticut’s Yantic River, which nearly broke a record of cresting at more than 14 feet on Wednesday, prompting mandatory evacuations and a threat of a dam break. Most rivers in the Northeast, including the Yantic, had started to recede by Thursday morning, but some larger ones, such as the Passaic River in New Jersey, continued to rise and was expected to crest later in the day.

Even more rain is in the forecast for the Northeast on Friday night into Saturday morning as another storm system sweeps across the country. An additional 1 to 2 inches of rainfall is expected, but local amounts of more than 2 inches is possible, which will keep already swollen rivers running high and could cause them to crest again into the major flood stage.

The new storm has already dumped a couple feet of snow on mountain ranges along the West Coast. One person was killed Wednesday in an avalanche at the Palisades Tahoe resort on the California side of Lake Tahoe, marking the first U.S. avalanche fatality of the 2023-2024 winter season, according to authorities.

As the weather system moves into the Plains on Thursday, the National Weather Service has issued winter storm warnings and watches from Nebraska to Michigan, including the major cities of Omaha, Nebraska; Des Moines, Iowa; Chicago, Illinois; and Grand Rapids, Michigan. Snowfall totals could exceed 12 inches in some areas.

Meanwhile, severe weather with the possibility of tornadoes is in the forecast on Thursday night into Friday morning for the entire South from Texas to the Carolinas, including areas just east of Dallas, Texas; into Little Rock, Arkansas; Shreveport, Louisiana; and to Jackson, Mississippi.

The storm is expected to move into the Southeast on Friday with the threat of severe weather stretching from Alabama to Florida and into the Carolinas. Major cities in the bullseye for tornadoes are Montgomery, Alabama; Macon, Georgia; Columbia, South Carolina; and just east of Charlotte, North Carolina.

Decades after earliest government warnings against smoking, officials torn on menthol ban

January 11, 2024 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Aides to President Joe Biden remain divided on a plan to ban menthol cigarette sales, according to several people familiar with the matter who say concerns of voter backlash in the election and pressure from civil rights groups are stalling the measure.

The fate of the proposal has been the subject of internal discussions in recent days among White House aides and top officials from the Department of Health and Human Services.

The internal debate, described by officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly, comes on the 60th anniversary of the landmark warning by the surgeon general urging Americans not to smoke.

If Biden wants to guarantee the rule is enacted under his watch, he would have to finalize the regulation by next week.

“This moment goes beyond public health — it is about who we are as a nation and whose lives we value. We strongly urge the administration to make the right choice, and to make it now,” said Dr. Avenel Joseph, vice president of policy at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Behind the lobbying effort to keep menthols on the market are some civil rights groups, including Al Sharpton’s National Action Network and lawyer Ben Crump.

The National Action Network has declined to comment on reports that major tobacco companies have sponsored some of the organization’s activities, but says it’s concerned about criminal prosecution of Black smokers.

“National Action Network has taken the position that, unless there are real safeguards against criminal prosecution of Black and Brown communities, the proposed menthol ban will have unintended consequences,” the organization told ABC News.

The rule would prevent the marketing and distribution of menthols. It would not make possession of a menthol tobacco product illegal.

Crump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Menthol is a flavor additive with a minty taste and aroma that health experts say masks the harsh effects of smoking. Menthol also makes smoking harder to quit, according to the Food and Drug Administration, which initiated the proposed ban.

That’s why health experts say it’s particularly troubling that menthol cigarettes have been aggressively marketed to Black communities. Nearly 85% of all non-Hispanic Black smokers use menthol cigarettes, compared to 30% of non-Hispanic white smokers, per the FDA.

An estimated 45,000 Black people die from smoking each year, according to the American Lung Association.

“By quickly finalizing and implementing rules to remove menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars from the market, the administration would be taking historic action to reduce disparities, advance health equity and prevent death and disease from tobacco use,” said Nancy Brown, CEO of the American Heart Association.

With groups like the American Heart Association and the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids pushing the administration to move ahead with the plan, the proposal was nearing its final regulatory hurdle this month with a review by the White House budget office. But sources say internal debate on whether to finalize the plan — or to wait until the election is over — stalled those efforts.

Britain’s UKMTO receives report of gunmen boarding ship in Gulf of Oman

January 11, 2024 by WDNY Radio

(LONDON) — The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said Thursday that it has received a report of several gunmen boarding a ship in the waters between Oman and Iran.

Four to five “unauthorized” individuals who were “armed” and “wearing military style black uniforms with black masks” reportedly boarded the vessel early Thursday in the Gulf of Oman in an area some 50 nautical miles east of Sohar, a port city on Oman’s northern coast, according to a notice from the UKMTO, which is part of Britain’s Royal Navy and provides warnings to sailors in the Middle East.

The UKMTO said that the ship has reportedly “altered course towards Iranian territorial waters and communications with the vessel have been lost.”

“Authorities are investigating,” the UKMTO added. “Vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity to UKMTO.”

Story developing…

Inflation expected to have risen slightly in December

January 11, 2024 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Policymakers will pay close attention to the release of price data on Thursday as the Federal Reserve weighs dialing back its inflation fight with a series of interest rate cuts.

The Fed expects to slash rates later this year, which would ease borrowing payments for everything from credit cards to mortgages.

The central bank’s ultimate approach, however, will depend on the course of inflation, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said last month. The latest data will offer a glimpse at what that path could be.

Economists expect prices to have risen 3.2% in December compared to a year ago. That figure would stand more than a percentage above the Fed’s target rate and mark a slight acceleration from the previous month.

Core inflation, a measure that leaves out volatile food and energy prices, is expected to deliver better news.

Economists expect core inflation to have climbed 3.8% in December compared to a year ago, which would amount to a slight cooldown from the previous month.

The rate decision arrives days after a jobs report for December showed hiring surpassed economist expectations, rebuking concern about a recession in the coming months.

The resilient jobs market aligns with optimism among many observers that the U.S. could avert an economic downturn, achieving a “soft landing” in which price increases return to normal levels while the economy continues to grow.

However, the robust economic performance may pose a challenge for the Federal Reserve as it tries to cool the economy and slow price increases.

Inflation stands well below last summer’s peak of over 9%, but remains well short of the Fed’s target rate of 2%.

The Fed risks a rebound of inflation if it cuts interest rates too quickly, according to some economists. An additional burst of economic activity for an already robust economy could hike demand and raise prices once again.

If the Fed maintains high interest rates for a prolonged period, however, the elevated borrowing costs could stifle business investment and consumer spending. Such an outcome could ultimately weigh on economic growth, corporate profits and employment.

Speaking at a press conference in Washington, D.C., last month, Fed Chair Jerome Powell urged caution about the outlook for the central bank’s effort to cool the economy and slow price increases.

“Inflation has eased from its highs and this has come without the significant increase in unemployment. That’s very good news,” Powell said.

“But inflation is too high, ongoing progress in bringing it down is not assured, and the path is uncertain,” he added.

Many market observers are expecting interest rate cuts as soon as a Fed meeting in March. As of last week, markets put the probability of a rate cut in March at 75%, said Ellen Zentner, chief U.S. economist and managing director at Morgan Stanley.

However, observers holding such expectations “may be in for a disappointment,” Zentner wrote last week, citing strong job gains that allow the Fed to keep rates high without fear of an imminent recession.

The cushion affords Fed policymakers “room to watch and wait,” Zentner added.

Two dead, three rescued from overturned vessel in nearly-freezing waters off Alaska coast

January 11, 2024 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Two people have died and three people have been rescued from an overturned vessel in nearly-freezing waters off the coast of Alaska, officials say.

The United States Coast Guard and their partner agencies responded to a call for help to the overturned vessel near Chichagof Island in southern Alaska early Tuesday evening at approximately 4:48 p.m. local time, according to a statement from the U.S. Coast Guard following the incident.

Initial weather on scene was reported as “8-10 knot winds, 9 ft. seas, water temperature at 44 degrees, and air temperature at 31 degrees,” authorities said.

“An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter air crew from Air Station Sitka launched to respond arrived on scene at 5:15 p.m., and recovered the three people from the water at 5:50 p.m,” authorities said. “Coast Guard Cutters Douglas Denman (WPC 1149) and Kukui (WLB 203) and an HC-130 from Air Station Kodiak also responded Tuesday night, tracked the vessel’s drift, and searched the area near the overturned vessel for the two missing people. Air Station Sitka conducted additional searches Tuesday night and Wednesday mornings.”

After not being able to find the two missing passengers, officials say that the Sitka Fire Department arrived on scene with Alaska Wildlife Troopers on early Wednesday afternoon and deployed an uncrewed underwater drone to find the two deceased individuals in the cabin of the vessel.

“It was with a heavy heart that we received news about the two people inside the cabin from our Sitka Fire Department search partners,” said Coast Guard Capt. Darwin Jensen, commander of Sector Southeast Alaska. “We send our support and strength to the family members at this time and thank our partner agencies for their assistance in this case.”

Recovery operations of the deceased people will commence once on-scene conditions improve, according to officials from the U.S. Coast Guard, and their identities have not yet been made public.

The investigation into the incident is currently ongoing.

Benny T’s Vesta Dry Hot Sauces recalled due to possible life-threatening mislabeling issue

January 11, 2024 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Spicy condiments from spreads to sauce have been dubbed a top food trend of 2024, but one brand is alerting consumers to toss out some of its products, as they could be dangerous for anyone with a wheat allergy.

Vesta Fiery Gourmet Foods, Inc. issued a voluntary recall on Monday for five of its bottled hot sauces with varying degrees of heat, as they contain “undeclared wheat.”

The Raleigh, North Carolina-based food manufacturer shared the news in a company announcement posted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration website on Tuesday.

The recall impacts 1.5-ounce glass jars of Benny T’s Vesta hot sauces, including Benny T’s Vesta Ghost, Benny T’s Vesta Hot, Benny T’s Vesta Reaper, Benny T’s Vesta Scorpion and Benny T’s Vesta Very Hot.

“On 1/4/24 the firm was notified by the North Carolina Depart of Agriculture and Consumer Services that the label does not state the flour used is a wheat flour,” the company stated in its recall announcement, noting the “people who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to wheat run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume these products.”

Each of the five hot sauces in question have a use by date of December 2024 and were distributed nationwide between Oct. 1, 2023, to Jan. 4, 2024.

Click here for the full product details and label information of the affected products.

According to Vesta, the recalled products were packaged in glass jars and sold “primarily online, in retail stores and deli cases located throughout the United States.”

As of time of publication, no illnesses have been reported.

Consumers who have may have purchased these products are urged not to consume them or to discard the product.

Consumers with questions may contact Chris Tuorto at 919-656-7688, Monday – Friday, 8AM – 9PM EST.

A representative for Vesta Fiery Gourmet Foods did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.

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