Latest news with #Keefer
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pennsylvania lawmaker uses flamethrower on Shapiro's 'fantasy budget' after arson attack
(WHTM) — Pennsylvania State Senator Dawn Keefer (R-Cumberland/York) is drawing criticism after using a flamethrower to burn a sign with Governor Josh Shapiro's name on it, a month after an arsonist set fire to Shapiro's home. Keefer posted a one-minute video to social media on May 8 saying Shapiro's $51 billion 'fantasy budget' would lead to a 52% income tax increase. 'But just like the farmers in the Whiskey Rebellion,' Keefer wrote, 'we say ENOUGH.' The Whiskey Rebellion of 1794 was an 'uprising of farmers and distillers in western Pennsylvania in protest of a whiskey tax enacted by the federal government,' according to HISTORY. Protests led to violence on a government official who was tarred and feathered, the fatal attack on a tax collector's Allegheny County home known as the Attack on Bower Hill, and the eventual discharging of a militia by George Washington to restore order in the region. 'Over 230 years ago, Pennsylvanians held the line against taxation,' Keefer says in her video, before using a flamethrower to burn a sign that says 'Shapiro's $51.5B Fantasy Budget.' Commenters on Keefer's video noted her use of a flamethrower on a sign with Shapiro's name came less than a month after State Police say a man threw Molotov Cocktails inside the Governor's Residence, burning the dining room. 'Your theatrics, torching a budget, only weeks after someone tried to assassinate the Governor is despicable,' said a commenter under Keefer's video. 'You don't take a flamethrower to a Governor's budget when the Governor's home was just torched,' said State Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa (D-43). 'It was insensitive, uncalled for, and really has gotten to a point where disappointed this type of rhetoric continues to move forward. We have to tone this all down.' Keefer believes the bigger concern should be the state burning through taxpayer cash, saying last year there was 'out of control' spending in last year's budget. She declined to speak specifically to the flamethrower video. The Governor and Senate Republican leaders declined to comment on the video, best described as incendiary. The state budget is due in less than seven weeks on June 30. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Pennsylvania Rep. aims to remove fluoride from drinking water with new bill
PENNSYLVANIA (WTAJ) — Did you know that there is fluoride in Pennsylvania drinking water? A Senator is now looking to change that with a new bill. In the Commonwealth, there is a reported 2.0 mg/L of fluoride in drinking water. While the University of Pittsburgh argues that fluoridation is an effective way to fight against tooth decay, Sen. Dawn Keefer (R-Cumberland, York) argues that recent studies and 'public sentiment' have raised questions about its safety and necessity. It is important to note that while there is fluoride in some public drinking water across Pennsylvania, not all water systems are fluoridated. Keefer noted in her newest bill, known as the Fluoride Choice Act, that a 2024 JAMA Pediatrics report 'linked higher fluoride exposure to lower IQ scores in children.' The study referenced in the legislation conducted 74 studies in the following countries: China Canada Denmark India Iran Mexico New Zealand Pakistan Spain Taiwan JAMA Pediatrics also noted in the study that there was limited data and 'uncertainty in the dose-response association between fluoride exposure and children's IQ when exposure was estimated by drinking water alone at concentrations less than 1.5 mg/L.' The full study can be found here. Get the latest news, weather forecasts and sports stories delivered straight to your inbox! Sign up for our newsletters. The Fluoride Choice Act aims to prohibit any individual, entity or political subdivision from adding fluoride to public water systems or water intended for public consumption. It would also require the safe disposal of fluoride chemicals. Keefer added that her bill is modeled after a Utah bill that aimed to promote individual choice by supporting access to fluoride through supplements or topical applications. She ended her bill by asking her peers to 'protect our constituents' rights, respond to emerging science, and align with a growing national movement.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WTAJ -
Reuters
06-05-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Korn Ferry Tour regular John Keefer gets invite to PGA Championship
May 6 - In late May of 2024, John Keefer capped a brilliant fifth-year campaign and posted a highly respectable 11th-place finish at the NCAA Championship, representing Baylor. Since then, all the Korn Ferry Tour member has done is post 17 rounds of 64 or better in PGA Tour-sanctioned play. After posting three top-five finishes in 2025, Keefer shot a 30-under par total of 254 (63-61-66-64) to capture his first professional title, the Veritex Bank Championship in Arlington, Texas two weekends ago. He vaulted to No. 92 in the Official World Golf Ranking (now 93), but had no idea the significance of that ranking. On Monday, the 24-year-old received an email inviting him to the 107th PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, N.C. Keefer will tee off on Thursday, May 15 as Xander Schauffele attempts to defend his major title. Keefer was unaware that his Top 100 ranking essentially ensured him an invitation to the second of golf's four majors in 2025. The late-blooming Keefer needed every saved stroke of that 11th-place finish at the NCAA Championship to earn the final PGA Tour Americas card. He headed to Canada last summer, produced eight top-10 finishes and won the Fortinet Cup as the No. 1 finisher in the points race. That earned him a promotion to the Korn Ferry Tour, where he has continued his dominant play. Keefer ranks sixth on the tour in scrambling, ninth in total driving, 22nd in greens hit in regulation 26th in putting average. Unsurprisingly, Keefer does not lack in confidence. "I just watched Scottie (Scheffler) shoot 31 under on a pretty good course," Keefer told Golf Channel. "I know what No. 1 in the world looks like. I know what Rory (McIlroy) looks like when he's on. But it doesn't really scare me. ... On any level, Korn Ferry, Americas, PGA Tour, signature events, major championships, good golf is going to play really well. I'm really excited to test myself against them and against a major championship course because obviously I've never played in one. "Just go out there, try and have some fun, try and shoot some low numbers, and hopefully have a really late tee time on the weekend." --Field Level Media
NBC Sports
06-05-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Johnny Keefer is one of the hottest players on the planet – and he just got into PGA Championship
For a split second, Johnny Keefer didn't think it was real. The email, which popped in his inbox at 12:49 p.m. CT Monday, contained the subject line: John Keefer, you are invited to compete in the 107th PGA Championship. He nearly deleted it. 'It almost looked like something that could've been spam,' Keefer said Monday afternoon from his home in San Antonio. 'But then I saw the top header and was like, 'Whoa!'' It wasn't until last Wednesday that Keefer was even made aware of the possibility that he could be teeing it up in his first major championship next week at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina. He shared a pro-am group with someone affiliated with the PGA of America at last week's Tulum Championship, the annual Korn Ferry Tour stop in Mexico, and was asked by the man, 'See you at Quail Hollow?' Keefer, confused, thought to himself, What's at Quail Hollow? He then was enlightened by the fact that the PGA Championship field is traditionally filled with players ranked inside and just outside the top 100 in the Official World Golf Ranking. At No. 92 in last week's world ranking (No. 93 now), Keefer, unbeknownst to him, was essentially a lock to receive an invite. Other players around the top-100 bubble who aren't yet in the field include Keith Mitchell (90), Gary Woodland (94), Beau Hossler (98), Justin Lower (100), Sami Valimaki (106) and David Puig (107), the latter of whom announced on social media that he'd received his PGA invite. Amateur Luke Clanton is No. 103 in the world, though the PGA historically does not invite amateurs based on world rank. It's rare that full-time KFT players earn their way into the PGA, though Tim Widing did so just last season. Keefer's college coach at Baylor, the legendary Mike McGraw, told Keefer last year that when Keefer qualified for his first major, to save him a ticket because he wouldn't miss it. 'I just didn't think it'd happen this quickly,' McGraw said. Neither did Keefer. Not even 12 months ago, he found himself on the outside looking into the top 25 on the PGA Tour University rankings with only the NCAA Championship to play. But a T-11 finish at Omni La Costa, Keefer moved to No. 25 on the nose, earning himself the final PGA Tour Americas card. 'If I finished one shot worse, I could've theoretically been playing APTs (All Pro Tour events) right now,' Keefer said. Instead, Keefer headed to Canada for the summer without a clue, or as Keefer described it, 'in shambles.' And yet, he put together one of the most impressive seasons north of the border in recent memory – one win, four seconds and four more top-6 finishes in 10 starts – to easily win the points title and graduate to the KFT, where this year he's posted four top-6 showings, including a win two weeks ago at the Veritex Bank Championship in Dallas. If he's lost any momentum since last June, it's because he contracted a stomach virus in Tulum and was forced to withdraw on the fourth tee box on Saturday because he was violently puking. 'It feels like just yesterday I was in Canada, and now it's major time,' Keefer added. 'I can't really describe it. … I don't think I could've expected anything like this.' Keefer, who was born in Baltimore but grew up in Texas, admittedly knows little about Quail Hollow, which annually hosts the PGA Tour's Truist Championship and last hosted the PGA in 2017. But his longtime instructor, Bryan Gathright, recently told Keefer, 'You'll love this place. It's right in your wheelhouse.' Keefer's game took off his fifth year in Waco. Opting to double major in business management instead of getting his MBA in accounting, Keefer had more time to devote to golf. He invested in a launch monitor and dialed in his yardages, especially with his wedges. Before that, it wasn't uncommon for Keefer to aim 30 feet from a flag from 130 yards out. These days, Keefer has improved in just about every facet. He's ninth on the KFT in total driving, No. 22 in greens hit in regulation, sixth in scrambling and No. 26 in putting average. It all adds up to Keefer sitting second in points, behind only Hank Lebioda, though he'll have to miss next week's tournament in Kansas City to play the PGA. Only 20 guys earn PGA Tour cards via the KFT this year, so Keefer has less of a margin for error than previous years. But it's also a good problem to have, especially considering Keefer believes he can play well. After all, since turning pro, Keefer has fired a whopping 17 rounds of 64 or better in PGA Tour-sanctioned competition. To compare, Scottie Scheffler has 11, Ludvig Åberg eight and Rory McIlroy three. 'I just watched Scottie shoot 31 under on a pretty good course,' Keefer said. 'I know what No. 1 in the world looks like. I know what Rory looks like when he's on. But it doesn't really scare me. … On any level, Korn Ferry, Americas, PGA Tour, signature events, major championships, good golf is going to play really well. I'm really excited to test myself against them and against a major championship course because obviously I've never played in one. 'Just go out there, try and have some fun, try and shoot some low numbers, and hopefully have a really late tee time on the weekend.'
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
77 veterans receive patriotic welcome-home following honor flight
PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — Dozens of veterans received a warm welcome after returning from Tuesday's honor flight. For Vietnam veterans like Edwin Keith, it meant everything. 'When I came home, the welcome was not like this,' he explained. But on Tuesday, Keith and 76 other veterans went on a day-long honor flight to Washington, D.C., to visit war memorials built in their honor. This time, they received a proper welcome home. 'I've been crying off and on all the way through, and I'm just now starting to get my composure back a little bit,' said Keith. 'And I'll probably lose it again when I get out of here.' Charles 'Chuck' Keefer also cried as he went down the hallway, and said this was the welcome home he never experienced. 'This is much much different from when I came home,' he explained. 'I had three boys.' 'My wife told the boys not to tell anybody who their father was,' Keefer continued. 'Seriously.' News Channel 8 reporter Nicole Rogers asked Keefer, 'To go from that to this welcome today, what does that mean to you?' 'It's amazing,' he cried. 'I couldn't believe it.' Now, Keith and other Vietnam veterans work hard to ensure anyone returning home from serving our great nation receives the honor and respect they deserve. 'We made sure they were welcome home and not called baby killers and names like that,' he explained. 'I'm grateful to have served our country, and I wish a lot of young men would follow and serve their country the way former vets have because we need them.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
