NEW YORK (AP) —A big increase in the tax on university endowments is adding to financial uncertainty for the wealthiest colleges in the U.S., leading several already to lay off staff or implement hiring freezes.

Spending more endowment money on taxes could also lead colleges to reduce financial aid, cutting off access to elite institutions for lower-income students, colleges and industry experts have warned. President Donald Trump signed the tax increase into law last month as part of his signature&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/what-is-republican-trump-tax-bill-f65be44e1050431a601320197322551b">spending bill</a>.

The new tax rates take effect in 2026, but colleges such as Harvard, Yale and Stanford already are citing the tax as one of many reasons for making cuts across their universities. Each will be on the hook to pay hundreds of millions more in taxes, while also navigating&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nsf-funding-lawsuit-trump-stem-1429bf2a2413506e58cca95c55196889">reductions in research grants</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-settlement-ivy-league-harvard-columbia-brown-8441ce30057c684084994ae53c0a2b92">other threats to funding</a>&nbsp;by the Trump administration.

A&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/college-endowment-tax-congress-harvard-republicans-f2d67dca253b65aa21ba3e2363b076fa">tax on college endowments</a>&nbsp;was introduced during Trump's first administration, collecting 1.4% of wealthy universities' investment earnings. The law signed by Trump last month creates a new tiered system that taxes the richest schools at the highest rates.

The new tax will charge an 8% rate at schools with $2 million or more in assets for each enrolled student. Schools with $750,000 to $2 million will be charged 4%, and schools with $500,000 to $750,000 will continue to be charged the 1.4% rate.

The tax applies only to private colleges and universities with at least 3,000 students, up from the previous cutoff of 500 students.

“The tax now will really solely apply to private research universities,” said Steven Bloom, assistant vice president of government relations for the American Council on Education. “It’s going to mean that these schools are going to have to spend more money under the tax, taking it away from what they primarily use their endowment assets for — financial aid.”

This small group of wealthy colleges faces a tax increase

The law will increase the endowment tax for about a dozen universities, according to an Associated Press&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nacubo.org/Research/2024/NACUBO-Commonfund-Study-of-Endowments">analysis of data</a>&nbsp;from the National Association of College and University Business Officers.

Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Princeton and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are expected to pay the 8% rate next year. The schools facing the 4% rate include Notre Dame, Dartmouth College, Rice University, University of Pennsylvania, Washington University in St. Louis and Vanderbilt University.

Some universities are on the edge of the law's parameters. Both Duke and Emory, for instance, were shy of the $750,000-per-student endowment threshold based on last fiscal year.

Endowments are made up of donations to the college, which are invested to maintain the money over time. Colleges often spend about 5% of their investment earnings every year to put toward their budgets. Much of it goes toward scholarships for students, along with costs such as research or endowed faculty positions.

Despite the colleges' wealth, the tax will drastically impact their budgets, said Phillip Levine, an economist and professor at Wellesley College.

“They’re looking for savings wherever possible,” Levine said, which could impact financial aid. “One of the most important things they do with their endowment is lower the cost of education for lower- and middle-income students. The institutions paying the highest tax are also the ones charging these students the least amount of money to attend.”

For example, at Rice University in Houston, officials anticipate the college will need to pay $6.4 million more in taxes. That equates to more than 100 student financial aid packages, the university said, but Rice officials will explore all other options to avoid cutting that support.

How colleges are adjusting to financial pressures

In the meantime, some universities are going forward with staff cuts.

Yale University says it will have to pay an estimated $280 million in total endowment taxes, citing the tax in a campus message implementing a hiring freeze. Stanford University announced plans to&nbsp;<a href="https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2025/06/update-2025-2026-budget">reduce its operating budget</a>&nbsp;by $140 million this upcoming school year, which included 363 layoffs and an ongoing&nbsp;<a href="https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2025/02/staff-hiring">hiring freeze</a>. The university spent months trying to determine where to reduce its budget, but said it would continue to support undergraduate financial aid and funding for Ph.D. students.

Research universities are under increasing financial pressure from reductions in funding from the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-national-institutes-of-health-research-cuts-6b69c254bc245f0ec1c7ddf1af74281f">National Institutes of Health</a>, the National Science Foundation and other federal agencies.

No university knows this pressure better than Harvard, the country's wealthiest college. Its $53 billion endowment puts it at the top of the list for the new tax, but it's also seeing massive portions of research funding under threat in its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/harvard-trump-administration-federal-cuts-037c3f5b259a7577358c5979e701c7c7">ongoing battle with the White House</a>.

The federal government has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/harvard-trump-funding-cuts-court-0e9100198461e1df52b5a5a4d11837ed">frozen $2.6 billion in Harvard's research grants</a>&nbsp;in connection with civil rights investigations focused on antisemitism and Harvard's efforts to promote diversity on campus. But the impact of other administration policies on the university could approach $1 billion annually, Harvard said in a statement.

“It’s not like Harvard is going to go from one of the best institutions in the world to just a mediocre institution. That’s probably not going to happen," Levine said. “But that doesn’t mean it’s not going to be a bad thing — that there won't be pain and that students won't suffer.”

Mumphrey reported from Phoenix. Associated Press writer Sharon Lurye in Philadelphia contributed to this report.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/8/1692625074181.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>NEW YORK (AP) —A big increase in the tax on university endowments is adding to financial uncertainty for the wealthiest colleges in the U.S., leading several already to lay off staff or implement hiring freezes.Spending more endowment money on taxes could also lead colleges to reduce financial aid, cutting off access to elite institutions for lower-income students, colleges and industry experts have warned. President Donald Trump signed the tax increase into law last month as part of his signature&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/what-is-republican-trump-tax-bill-f65be44e1050431a601320197322551b">spending bill</a>.The new tax rates take effect in 2026, but colleges such as Harvard, Yale and Stanford already are citing the tax as one of many reasons for making cuts across their universities. Each will be on the hook to pay hundreds of millions more in taxes, while also navigating&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nsf-funding-lawsuit-trump-stem-1429bf2a2413506e58cca95c55196889">reductions in research grants</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-settlement-ivy-league-harvard-columbia-brown-8441ce30057c684084994ae53c0a2b92">other threats to funding</a>&nbsp;by the Trump administration.A&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/college-endowment-tax-congress-harvard-republicans-f2d67dca253b65aa21ba3e2363b076fa">tax on college endowments</a>&nbsp;was introduced during Trump's first administration, collecting 1.4% of wealthy universities' investment earnings. The law signed by Trump last month creates a new tiered system that taxes the richest schools at the highest rates.The new tax will charge an 8% rate at schools with $2 million or more in assets for each enrolled student. Schools with $750,000 to $2 million will be charged 4%, and schools with $500,000 to $750,000 will continue to be charged the 1.4% rate.The tax applies only to private colleges and universities with at least 3,000 students, up from the previous cutoff of 500 students.“The tax now will really solely apply to private research universities,” said Steven Bloom, assistant vice president of government relations for the American Council on Education. “It’s going to mean that these schools are going to have to spend more money under the tax, taking it away from what they primarily use their endowment assets for — financial aid.”<h2>This small group of wealthy colleges faces a tax increase</h2>The law will increase the endowment tax for about a dozen universities, according to an Associated Press&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nacubo.org/Research/2024/NACUBO-Commonfund-Study-of-Endowments">analysis of data</a>&nbsp;from the National Association of College and University Business Officers.Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Princeton and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are expected to pay the 8% rate next year. The schools facing the 4% rate include Notre Dame, Dartmouth College, Rice University, University of Pennsylvania, Washington University in St. Louis and Vanderbilt University.Some universities are on the edge of the law's parameters. Both Duke and Emory, for instance, were shy of the $750,000-per-student endowment threshold based on last fiscal year.Endowments are made up of donations to the college, which are invested to maintain the money over time. Colleges often spend about 5% of their investment earnings every year to put toward their budgets. Much of it goes toward scholarships for students, along with costs such as research or endowed faculty positions.Despite the colleges' wealth, the tax will drastically impact their budgets, said Phillip Levine, an economist and professor at Wellesley College.“They’re looking for savings wherever possible,” Levine said, which could impact financial aid. “One of the most important things they do with their endowment is lower the cost of education for lower- and middle-income students. The institutions paying the highest tax are also the ones charging these students the least amount of money to attend.”For example, at Rice University in Houston, officials anticipate the college will need to pay $6.4 million more in taxes. That equates to more than 100 student financial aid packages, the university said, but Rice officials will explore all other options to avoid cutting that support.<h2>How colleges are adjusting to financial pressures</h2>In the meantime, some universities are going forward with staff cuts.Yale University says it will have to pay an estimated $280 million in total endowment taxes, citing the tax in a campus message implementing a hiring freeze. Stanford University announced plans to&nbsp;<a href="https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2025/06/update-2025-2026-budget">reduce its operating budget</a>&nbsp;by $140 million this upcoming school year, which included 363 layoffs and an ongoing&nbsp;<a href="https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2025/02/staff-hiring">hiring freeze</a>. The university spent months trying to determine where to reduce its budget, but said it would continue to support undergraduate financial aid and funding for Ph.D. students.Research universities are under increasing financial pressure from reductions in funding from the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-national-institutes-of-health-research-cuts-6b69c254bc245f0ec1c7ddf1af74281f">National Institutes of Health</a>, the National Science Foundation and other federal agencies.No university knows this pressure better than Harvard, the country's wealthiest college. Its $53 billion endowment puts it at the top of the list for the new tax, but it's also seeing massive portions of research funding under threat in its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/harvard-trump-administration-federal-cuts-037c3f5b259a7577358c5979e701c7c7">ongoing battle with the White House</a>.The federal government has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/harvard-trump-funding-cuts-court-0e9100198461e1df52b5a5a4d11837ed">frozen $2.6 billion in Harvard's research grants</a>&nbsp;in connection with civil rights investigations focused on antisemitism and Harvard's efforts to promote diversity on campus. But the impact of other administration policies on the university could approach $1 billion annually, Harvard said in a statement.“It’s not like Harvard is going to go from one of the best institutions in the world to just a mediocre institution. That’s probably not going to happen," Levine said. “But that doesn’t mean it’s not going to be a bad thing — that there won't be pain and that students won't suffer.”___Mumphrey reported from Phoenix. Associated Press writer Sharon Lurye in Philadelphia contributed to this report.___

College endowment tax is leading to hiring freezes, cuts in financial aid

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/author/shauneen-miranda/">Shauneen Miranda</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/author/jacob-fischler/">Jacob Fischler</a>&nbsp; <a href="https://stateline.org/">Stateline</a>

WASHINGTON — Fueled by President Donald Trump’s aims to bolster the U.S. House’s razor-thin GOP majority in the 2026 midterm elections, a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/04/texas-redistricting-democrats-quorum-break-what-need-know/" target="_blank">rare mid-decade redistricting fight</a>&nbsp;in Texas grew increasingly bitter in recent days and engulfed other states.

As Democratic legislators in the Lone Star State fled to block a new congressional map, a handful of both blue and red states eyed their own redistricting plans, lawsuits cropped up and members of Congress pledged bills to curb redistricting wars.

While Texas is the only state that has so far taken formal action to redraw its U.S. House lines, a full-blown arms race could be imminent.

Here’s a breakdown on the redistricting battle as the drama unfolds:

How did all of this interest in redistricting kick off?

Republicans in Texas drew a new congressional map at the urging of Trump that could give the GOP five crucial new congressional seats in 2026.

Midterm elections typically lead to the loss of congressional seats for a president’s party.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, the GOP&nbsp;<a href="https://pressgallery.house.gov/member-data/party-breakdown" target="_blank">currently holds</a>&nbsp;219 seats in the House, while Democrats hold 212 spots, with four vacancies. That extremely narrow majority has created immense challenges for U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, as he tries to enact Trump’s sweeping agenda and cater to the president’s demands as well as factions in the GOP conference.

Though congressional districts are typically redrawn every decade following each U.S. Census, the move, particularly in Texas, is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/texas-redistricting-history-partisan-apportionment-democrats-legislature/" target="_blank">not unprecedented</a>&nbsp;and is allowed.

Texas Republicans&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/30/texas-redistricting-congressional-maps-house-republicans/" target="_blank">unveiled a draft</a>&nbsp;of the new congressional map in late July, which looks to reshape and flip major metro areas’ districts held by Democrats.

According to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/01/texas-congressional-redistricting-doj-coalition-districts/?_bhlid=7f2627553c4e88985dcc13d559313ade1585940b" target="_blank">The Texas Tribune</a>, the Department of Justice sent Texas’ leaders a letter in early July that said four of its districts violate the U.S. Constitution. The proposed map would dismantle those districts, per the Tribune.

More than 50 of Texas’ Democratic legislators left the state to try to block the legislature from adopting the new map, according to the Tribune.

This move has drawn the ire of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/05/texas-democrats-ken-paxton-court-vacate-seats-quorum-break/" target="_blank">Texas Gov. Greg Abbott</a>, who went so far as to&nbsp;<a href="https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-files-lawsuit-seeking-removal-of-texas-democrat-caucus-chair-representative-wu" target="_blank">file a lawsuit</a>&nbsp;asking to remove the Texas House Democratic Caucus chair, state Rep. Gene Wu, after Wu left the state.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton also&nbsp;<a href="https://texasattorneygeneral.gov/news/releases/attorney-general-ken-paxton-will-seek-judicial-orders-declaring-runaway-democrats-who-abandon-their" target="_blank">said Tuesday</a>&nbsp;that he will pursue a court ruling that declares the seats vacant for the House Democrats who do not return by Friday.

Texas GOP U.S. Sen. John Cornyn has also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cornyn.senate.gov/news/cornyn-urges-fbi-to-investigate-hold-fleeing-texas-legislators-accountable/" target="_blank">called on the FBI</a>&nbsp;“to take any appropriate steps to aid in Texas state law enforcement efforts to locate or arrest potential lawbreakers who have fled the state.” Trump on Tuesday, asked by a reporter if the FBI should “get involved,” said, “Well, they may have to.”

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been among the most vocal Democratic governors in suggesting retaliating against Texas Republicans by redrawing his populous blue state’s own lines before the 2026 elections.

State laws in California and other Democratic states make mid-decade redistricting tougher than it is in Texas.

While pro-democracy groups have praised California’s nonpartisan commission as the “gold standard” of independent redistricting, Newsom has indicated he would ask state lawmakers to temporarily scrap it to join the arms race he says Trump started in Texas.

At a Monday press conference, Newsom justified his exploration of mid-decade redistricting in the Golden State by describing Trump’s recent and historic record as anti-democratic.

“These folks don’t play by the rules,” Newsom said. “If they can’t win playing the game with the existing set of rules, they’ll change the rules. That’s what Donald Trump has done … Here is someone who tried to break this country, tried to light democracy on fire on Jan. 6. He recognizes he’s going to lose in the midterms.”

What other states are looking at potentially redistricting?

Vice President JD Vance is slated to visit Indiana Thursday in an attempt to push redistricting, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/08/05/vice-president-heads-to-indiana-to-push-redistricting-but-legalities-remain-unclear/" target="_blank">Indiana Capital Chronicle</a>.

Indiana GOP Gov. Mike Braun said that as of now, no commitments have been made, when asked about redistricting efforts in the Hoosier State, per the Capital Chronicle.

Leaders of large Democratic states, in addition to California, are considering their own redistricting in response to Texas.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul wrote in an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outlook/article/texas-redistricting-new-york-kathy-hochul-20802629.php?emci=f5933625-3c72-f011-8dc9-6045bda9d96b&amp;emdi=85ee365f-d072-f011-8dc9-6045bda9d96b&amp;ceid=37942749" target="_blank">op-ed published in the Houston Chronicle</a>&nbsp;Tuesday that she would “not sit on the sidelines” and watch “Republicans dismantle democracy.”

“What Texas is doing isn’t a clever strategy, it’s political arson — torching our democracy to cling to power,” Hochul wrote. “The only viable recourse is to fight fire with fire.”

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker appeared alongside Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin and a group of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/texas-dems-flee-illinois-block-redistricting-vote" target="_blank">exiled Texas Democratic lawmakers</a>&nbsp;at a news conference Tuesday. Pritzker said it was “possible” the state would pursue redistricting,&nbsp;<a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/illinois-governor/2025/08/05/jb-pritzker-illinois-remap-texas-democrats-greg-abbott" target="_blank">according to the Chicago Sun-Times</a>.

Other Democratic governors — even including Laura Kelly of ruby-red Kansas — raised the prospect during a Democratic Governors Association&nbsp;<a href="https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2025/08/01/democratic-governors-endorse-mid-decade-redistricting-in-response-to-gop-efforts/" target="_blank">meeting in Wisconsin last week</a>&nbsp;of pursuing mid-decade redistricting if Texas follows through.

Republican states are also considering jumping in the fray.

Missouri Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O’Laughlin, a Republican, told a news radio station last week that it was&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/08/02/missouri-senate-leader-says-special-session-is-likely-to-redraw-congressional-map/" target="_blank">“likely”</a>&nbsp;lawmakers would convene in a special session to redraw district lines after&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/07/25/trump-white-house-pressing-missouri-republicans-to-redraw-congressional-map/" target="_blank">pressure from Trump</a>.

And Rep. Don Bacon, a Republican who holds the most competitive of Nebraska’s three U.S. House seats but plans to step down,&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/08/06/nebraska-might-join-national-wildfire-of-mid-decade-redistricting/" target="_blank">told the Nebraska Examiner</a>&nbsp;that Republicans in the state were having conversations about potential redistricting.

An arms race to shorten the cycle for redrawing congressional lines could come at a cost for efforts to overhaul the redistricting process.

Common Cause, a national pro-democracy group that advocates for election reforms including nonpartisan redistricting, urged Democrats not to respond to Texas.

A redistricting arms race would only result in “rigged elections across America,” Emily Eby French, the policy director for Common Cause Texas,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/good-government-group-urges-blue-states-back-away-redistricting-arms-race" target="_blank">said on a press call last week</a>. It was wrong for Republicans to put “a thumb on the scale” through redistricting, she said, but also wrong for Democrats to do the same.

“The real solution is for Democrats to help us lift the Republican thumb off of the Texas scale and every other scale in America until we reach free and fair elections for everyone.”

Trump, whose urging appeared to prompt Texas Republicans to action, has consistently pushed lawmakers in that state to reinforce the GOP advantage there.

Tuesday, he said on CNBC that Republicans were “entitled” to five more House seats in Texas.

Martin, the DNC chair, responded in Illinois.

“No party is entitled to any district,” he said. “We have to go out and earn the votes.”

Still, Martin advised Democrats in blue states to do the opposite by responding in kind to Texas Republicans.

In&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/gun-knife-fight-democrats-chief-pledges-more-pugnacious-party-more-states" target="_blank">an interview with States Newsroom last week</a>, Martin suggested Democratic states drop any commitment to nonpartisan redistricting in response to Texas.

“We’re not here to tie one of our hands behind our back,” he said. “We can’t be the only party that’s playing by the rules.”

At least two GOP House lawmakers — representing blue states looking at retaliatory redistricting efforts against Trump — are taking it upon themselves to introduce bills in Congress that bar these initiatives.

GOP Rep. Kevin Kiley of California&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/RepKiley/status/1952851943912817083" target="_blank">introduced a bill</a>&nbsp;in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/4889/text" target="_blank">House</a>&nbsp;this week that would ban mid-decade redistricting across the country.

Kiley said Newsom “is trying to subvert the will of voters and do lasting damage to democracy in California,” in a&nbsp;<a href="https://kiley.house.gov/posts/rep-kiley-to-introduce-redistricting-legislation" target="_blank">statement</a>&nbsp;earlier this week.

“Fortunately, Congress has the ability to protect California voters using its authority under the Elections Clause of the U.S. Constitution,” he said. “This will also stop a damaging redistricting war from breaking out across the country.”

Rep. Mike Lawler, a New York Republican, also said he&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/RepMikeLawler/status/1952871627852833110" target="_blank">plans to introduce legislation</a>&nbsp;to prohibit “partisan gerrymandering and mid-decade redistricting.”

The New York Republican told CNN on Tuesday that “this is fundamentally why Congress is broken,” adding that “you do not have competitive districts and so, most members are focused on primaries and not actually engaging in a general election.”&nbsp;

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/author/shauneen-miranda/">Shauneen Miranda</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/author/jacob-fischler/">Jacob Fischler</a>&nbsp; <a href="https://stateline.org/">Stateline</a>WASHINGTON — Fueled by President Donald Trump’s aims to bolster the U.S. House’s razor-thin GOP majority in the 2026 midterm elections, a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/04/texas-redistricting-democrats-quorum-break-what-need-know/" target="_blank">rare mid-decade redistricting fight</a>&nbsp;in Texas grew increasingly bitter in recent days and engulfed other states.As Democratic legislators in the Lone Star State fled to block a new congressional map, a handful of both blue and red states eyed their own redistricting plans, lawsuits cropped up and members of Congress pledged bills to curb redistricting wars.While Texas is the only state that has so far taken formal action to redraw its U.S. House lines, a full-blown arms race could be imminent.Here’s a breakdown on the redistricting battle as the drama unfolds:<h2>How did all of this interest in redistricting kick off?</h2>Republicans in Texas drew a new congressional map at the urging of Trump that could give the GOP five crucial new congressional seats in 2026.Midterm elections typically lead to the loss of congressional seats for a president’s party.&nbsp;Meanwhile, the GOP&nbsp;<a href="https://pressgallery.house.gov/member-data/party-breakdown" target="_blank">currently holds</a>&nbsp;219 seats in the House, while Democrats hold 212 spots, with four vacancies. That extremely narrow majority has created immense challenges for U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, as he tries to enact Trump’s sweeping agenda and cater to the president’s demands as well as factions in the GOP conference.Though congressional districts are typically redrawn every decade following each U.S. Census, the move, particularly in Texas, is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/texas-redistricting-history-partisan-apportionment-democrats-legislature/" target="_blank">not unprecedented</a>&nbsp;and is allowed.<h2>What’s going on in Texas?</h2>Texas Republicans&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/30/texas-redistricting-congressional-maps-house-republicans/" target="_blank">unveiled a draft</a>&nbsp;of the new congressional map in late July, which looks to reshape and flip major metro areas’ districts held by Democrats.According to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/01/texas-congressional-redistricting-doj-coalition-districts/?_bhlid=7f2627553c4e88985dcc13d559313ade1585940b" target="_blank">The Texas Tribune</a>, the Department of Justice sent Texas’ leaders a letter in early July that said four of its districts violate the U.S. Constitution. The proposed map would dismantle those districts, per the Tribune.More than 50 of Texas’ Democratic legislators left the state to try to block the legislature from adopting the new map, according to the Tribune.This move has drawn the ire of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/05/texas-democrats-ken-paxton-court-vacate-seats-quorum-break/" target="_blank">Texas Gov. Greg Abbott</a>, who went so far as to&nbsp;<a href="https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-files-lawsuit-seeking-removal-of-texas-democrat-caucus-chair-representative-wu" target="_blank">file a lawsuit</a>&nbsp;asking to remove the Texas House Democratic Caucus chair, state Rep. Gene Wu, after Wu left the state.Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton also&nbsp;<a href="https://texasattorneygeneral.gov/news/releases/attorney-general-ken-paxton-will-seek-judicial-orders-declaring-runaway-democrats-who-abandon-their" target="_blank">said Tuesday</a>&nbsp;that he will pursue a court ruling that declares the seats vacant for the House Democrats who do not return by Friday.Texas GOP U.S. Sen. John Cornyn has also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cornyn.senate.gov/news/cornyn-urges-fbi-to-investigate-hold-fleeing-texas-legislators-accountable/" target="_blank">called on the FBI</a>&nbsp;“to take any appropriate steps to aid in Texas state law enforcement efforts to locate or arrest potential lawbreakers who have fled the state.” Trump on Tuesday, asked by a reporter if the FBI should “get involved,” said, “Well, they may have to.”<h2>How is California reacting?</h2>California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been among the most vocal Democratic governors in suggesting retaliating against Texas Republicans by redrawing his populous blue state’s own lines before the 2026 elections.State laws in California and other Democratic states make mid-decade redistricting tougher than it is in Texas.While pro-democracy groups have praised California’s nonpartisan commission as the “gold standard” of independent redistricting, Newsom has indicated he would ask state lawmakers to temporarily scrap it to join the arms race he says Trump started in Texas.At a Monday press conference, Newsom justified his exploration of mid-decade redistricting in the Golden State by describing Trump’s recent and historic record as anti-democratic.“These folks don’t play by the rules,” Newsom said. “If they can’t win playing the game with the existing set of rules, they’ll change the rules. That’s what Donald Trump has done … Here is someone who tried to break this country, tried to light democracy on fire on Jan. 6. He recognizes he’s going to lose in the midterms.”<h2>What other states are looking at potentially redistricting?</h2>Vice President JD Vance is slated to visit Indiana Thursday in an attempt to push redistricting, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/08/05/vice-president-heads-to-indiana-to-push-redistricting-but-legalities-remain-unclear/" target="_blank">Indiana Capital Chronicle</a>.Indiana GOP Gov. Mike Braun said that as of now, no commitments have been made, when asked about redistricting efforts in the Hoosier State, per the Capital Chronicle.Leaders of large Democratic states, in addition to California, are considering their own redistricting in response to Texas.New York Gov. Kathy Hochul wrote in an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outlook/article/texas-redistricting-new-york-kathy-hochul-20802629.php?emci=f5933625-3c72-f011-8dc9-6045bda9d96b&amp;emdi=85ee365f-d072-f011-8dc9-6045bda9d96b&amp;ceid=37942749" target="_blank">op-ed published in the Houston Chronicle</a>&nbsp;Tuesday that she would “not sit on the sidelines” and watch “Republicans dismantle democracy.”“What Texas is doing isn’t a clever strategy, it’s political arson — torching our democracy to cling to power,” Hochul wrote. “The only viable recourse is to fight fire with fire.”Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker appeared alongside Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin and a group of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/texas-dems-flee-illinois-block-redistricting-vote" target="_blank">exiled Texas Democratic lawmakers</a>&nbsp;at a news conference Tuesday. Pritzker said it was “possible” the state would pursue redistricting,&nbsp;<a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/illinois-governor/2025/08/05/jb-pritzker-illinois-remap-texas-democrats-greg-abbott" target="_blank">according to the Chicago Sun-Times</a>.Other Democratic governors — even including Laura Kelly of ruby-red Kansas — raised the prospect during a Democratic Governors Association&nbsp;<a href="https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2025/08/01/democratic-governors-endorse-mid-decade-redistricting-in-response-to-gop-efforts/" target="_blank">meeting in Wisconsin last week</a>&nbsp;of pursuing mid-decade redistricting if Texas follows through.Republican states are also considering jumping in the fray.Missouri Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O’Laughlin, a Republican, told a news radio station last week that it was&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/08/02/missouri-senate-leader-says-special-session-is-likely-to-redraw-congressional-map/" target="_blank">“likely”</a>&nbsp;lawmakers would convene in a special session to redraw district lines after&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/07/25/trump-white-house-pressing-missouri-republicans-to-redraw-congressional-map/" target="_blank">pressure from Trump</a>.And Rep. Don Bacon, a Republican who holds the most competitive of Nebraska’s three U.S. House seats but plans to step down,&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/08/06/nebraska-might-join-national-wildfire-of-mid-decade-redistricting/" target="_blank">told the Nebraska Examiner</a>&nbsp;that Republicans in the state were having conversations about potential redistricting.<h2>What downside do some see?</h2>An arms race to shorten the cycle for redrawing congressional lines could come at a cost for efforts to overhaul the redistricting process.Common Cause, a national pro-democracy group that advocates for election reforms including nonpartisan redistricting, urged Democrats not to respond to Texas.A redistricting arms race would only result in “rigged elections across America,” Emily Eby French, the policy director for Common Cause Texas,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/good-government-group-urges-blue-states-back-away-redistricting-arms-race" target="_blank">said on a press call last week</a>. It was wrong for Republicans to put “a thumb on the scale” through redistricting, she said, but also wrong for Democrats to do the same.“The real solution is for Democrats to help us lift the Republican thumb off of the Texas scale and every other scale in America until we reach free and fair elections for everyone.”<h2>Are party leaders egging this on?</h2>Trump, whose urging appeared to prompt Texas Republicans to action, has consistently pushed lawmakers in that state to reinforce the GOP advantage there.Tuesday, he said on CNBC that Republicans were “entitled” to five more House seats in Texas.Martin, the DNC chair, responded in Illinois.“No party is entitled to any district,” he said. “We have to go out and earn the votes.”Still, Martin advised Democrats in blue states to do the opposite by responding in kind to Texas Republicans.In&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/gun-knife-fight-democrats-chief-pledges-more-pugnacious-party-more-states" target="_blank">an interview with States Newsroom last week</a>, Martin suggested Democratic states drop any commitment to nonpartisan redistricting in response to Texas.“We’re not here to tie one of our hands behind our back,” he said. “We can’t be the only party that’s playing by the rules.”<h2>How is Congress reacting?</h2>At least two GOP House lawmakers — representing blue states looking at retaliatory redistricting efforts against Trump — are taking it upon themselves to introduce bills in Congress that bar these initiatives.GOP Rep. Kevin Kiley of California&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/RepKiley/status/1952851943912817083" target="_blank">introduced a bill</a>&nbsp;in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/4889/text" target="_blank">House</a>&nbsp;this week that would ban mid-decade redistricting across the country.Kiley said Newsom “is trying to subvert the will of voters and do lasting damage to democracy in California,” in a&nbsp;<a href="https://kiley.house.gov/posts/rep-kiley-to-introduce-redistricting-legislation" target="_blank">statement</a>&nbsp;earlier this week.“Fortunately, Congress has the ability to protect California voters using its authority under the Elections Clause of the U.S. Constitution,” he said. “This will also stop a damaging redistricting war from breaking out across the country.”Rep. Mike Lawler, a New York Republican, also said he&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/RepMikeLawler/status/1952871627852833110" target="_blank">plans to introduce legislation</a>&nbsp;to prohibit “partisan gerrymandering and mid-decade redistricting.”The New York Republican told CNN on Tuesday that “this is fundamentally why Congress is broken,” adding that “you do not have competitive districts and so, most members are focused on primaries and not actually engaging in a general election.”&nbsp;

Why congressional redistricting is blowing up across the US this summer

TOPEKA —A federal judge in the District of Kansas sentenced defendant Kaaba Majeed, 51, to 10 years in prison and three years of supervised release for forced labor and forced labor conspiracy. The court sentenced co-defendants Yunus Rassoul, 39, to five years of probation; James Staton, 63, to five years in prison and one year of supervised release; Randolph Rodney Hadley, 50, to five years in prison and one year of supervised release; Daniel Aubrey Jenkins, 44, to four years in prison and one year of supervised release; and Dana Peach, 60, to four years in prison and one year of supervised release for forced labor conspiracy.

In September 2024, after a 26-day trial, a jury convicted all six defendants of forced labor conspiracy and convicted Majeed of five additional counts of forced labor. Two other co-defendants, Etenia Kinard, 49, and Jacelyn Greenwell, 46 who previously pleaded guilty to the forced labor conspiracy, are scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 22.

“Labor trafficking of children is an egregious crime,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “These sentences reflect our relentless pursuit of perpetrators and our determination to seek justice for survivors of human trafficking.”

“The defendants were entrusted to care for and nurture vulnerable children but instead chose to exploit and abuse them,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser for the District of Kansas. “Although these crimes were committed many years ago and the children are now adults, the sentences handed down today reflect how the passage of time did not diminish the Department of Justice’s resolve to hold these human traffickers accountable and seek justice for their victims.”

“The FBI works closely with numerous local, state, and federal law enforcement partners, as well as non-governmental agencies and other nonprofits on the front lines to combat human trafficking,” said Special Agent in Charge Stephen Cyrus of the FBI Kansas City Field Office. “This case highlights the value of those partnerships. The Kansas City FBI will continue to prioritize the safety of our community and thanks the Department of Labor and the New York State Department of Labor for their invaluable assistance.”

As established at trial, all six defendants were former high-ranking members of the United Nation of Islam (UNOI) who assisted UNOI’s late founder Royall Jenkins in managing UNOI operations. Defendant Peach was also one of Jenkins’s wives. Jenkins represented himself as Allah, contrary to principles of the Islamic faith, and demanded compliance with strict UNOI rules. UNOI operated multiple businesses including restaurants, bakeries, gas stations, a laboratory, and a clothing factory.

For over 12 years from October 2000 through November 2012, the defendants conspired to enforce rules that required UNOI members to perform unpaid labor, using beatings, threats, punishments, isolation, and coercion to compel the unpaid labor of over a dozen victims, including multiple minors, some as young as eight years old. The defendants required the victims to work up to 16 hours a day performing unpaid labor in UNOI-owned and operated businesses in Kansas City, Kansas; New York, New York; Newark, New Jersey; Cincinnati, Ohio; Dayton, Ohio; Atlanta, Georgia, and elsewhere. The defendants also required the victims to perform unpaid childcare and domestic service in the defendants’ homes. The evidence showed that the defendants lived comfortably while housing the victims in overcrowded, unsanitary conditions along with restricting their food and water.

As proven at trial, the defendants used false promises of education, life skills training, and job training to induce parents to send their children to Kansas. After isolating the victims from their families and making them wholly dependent on UNOI, the defendants required the victims to attend UNOI’s unlicensed, unaccredited school and used strict rules, isolation, punishments, humiliation, threats, and coercion to compel the victims’ unpaid labor. This included restricting and monitoring the victims’ communications with others along with their whereabouts. &nbsp;&nbsp;

The FBI Kansas City Field Office investigated the case with the assistance of the Department of Labor and the New York State Department of Labor.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Huschka for the District of Kansas and Trial Attorneys Kate Alexander, Maryam Zhuravitsky, and Francisco Zornosa of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit prosecuted the case

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/10/1635365692259.png" alt="All six defendants were former high-ranking members of the United Nation of Islam (UNOI) who assisted UNOI’s late founder Royall Jenkins in managing UNOI operations. Royall Jenkins-image from the organization's Youtube page" />
 <figcaption>All six defendants were former high-ranking members of the United Nation of Islam (UNOI) who assisted UNOI’s late founder Royall Jenkins in managing UNOI operations. Royall Jenkins-image from the organization's Youtube page</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA —A federal judge in the District of Kansas sentenced defendant Kaaba Majeed, 51, to 10 years in prison and three years of supervised release for forced labor and forced labor conspiracy. The court sentenced co-defendants Yunus Rassoul, 39, to five years of probation; James Staton, 63, to five years in prison and one year of supervised release; Randolph Rodney Hadley, 50, to five years in prison and one year of supervised release; Daniel Aubrey Jenkins, 44, to four years in prison and one year of supervised release; and Dana Peach, 60, to four years in prison and one year of supervised release for forced labor conspiracy.In September 2024, after a 26-day trial, a jury convicted all six defendants of forced labor conspiracy and convicted Majeed of five additional counts of forced labor. Two other co-defendants, Etenia Kinard, 49, and Jacelyn Greenwell, 46 who previously pleaded guilty to the forced labor conspiracy, are scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 22.“Labor trafficking of children is an egregious crime,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “These sentences reflect our relentless pursuit of perpetrators and our determination to seek justice for survivors of human trafficking.”“The defendants were entrusted to care for and nurture vulnerable children but instead chose to exploit and abuse them,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser for the District of Kansas. “Although these crimes were committed many years ago and the children are now adults, the sentences handed down today reflect how the passage of time did not diminish the Department of Justice’s resolve to hold these human traffickers accountable and seek justice for their victims.”“The FBI works closely with numerous local, state, and federal law enforcement partners, as well as non-governmental agencies and other nonprofits on the front lines to combat human trafficking,” said Special Agent in Charge Stephen Cyrus of the FBI Kansas City Field Office. “This case highlights the value of those partnerships. The Kansas City FBI will continue to prioritize the safety of our community and thanks the Department of Labor and the New York State Department of Labor for their invaluable assistance.”As established at trial, all six defendants were former high-ranking members of the United Nation of Islam (UNOI) who assisted UNOI’s late founder Royall Jenkins in managing UNOI operations. Defendant Peach was also one of Jenkins’s wives. Jenkins represented himself as Allah, contrary to principles of the Islamic faith, and demanded compliance with strict UNOI rules. UNOI operated multiple businesses including restaurants, bakeries, gas stations, a laboratory, and a clothing factory.For over 12 years from October 2000 through November 2012, the defendants conspired to enforce rules that required UNOI members to perform unpaid labor, using beatings, threats, punishments, isolation, and coercion to compel the unpaid labor of over a dozen victims, including multiple minors, some as young as eight years old. The defendants required the victims to work up to 16 hours a day performing unpaid labor in UNOI-owned and operated businesses in Kansas City, Kansas; New York, New York; Newark, New Jersey; Cincinnati, Ohio; Dayton, Ohio; Atlanta, Georgia, and elsewhere. The defendants also required the victims to perform unpaid childcare and domestic service in the defendants’ homes. The evidence showed that the defendants lived comfortably while housing the victims in overcrowded, unsanitary conditions along with restricting their food and water.As proven at trial, the defendants used false promises of education, life skills training, and job training to induce parents to send their children to Kansas. After isolating the victims from their families and making them wholly dependent on UNOI, the defendants required the victims to attend UNOI’s unlicensed, unaccredited school and used strict rules, isolation, punishments, humiliation, threats, and coercion to compel the victims’ unpaid labor. This included restricting and monitoring the victims’ communications with others along with their whereabouts. &nbsp;&nbsp;The FBI Kansas City Field Office investigated the case with the assistance of the Department of Labor and the New York State Department of Labor.Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Huschka for the District of Kansas and Trial Attorneys Kate Alexander, Maryam Zhuravitsky, and Francisco Zornosa of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit prosecuted the case

Child abuse: Prison for members of religious group tied to Kansas

SALINE COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect&nbsp; on multiple allegations involving a woman in Salina.

Just before 5p.m. August 7, a 27-year-old Salina woman reported that a subject she knew, later identified as Dustin Tyler, age 41, of Wichita had been stalking her, according to a media release from the Saline County Sheriff's office.

The victim reported Tyler, who she had previously told to stay away from her, had begun following her around Salina as she drove. The victim drove to a friend’s residence in the 900 block of Seneca. Upon arrival at the friend’s residence, Tyler exited his vehicle and approached the victim.

 Tyler then threatened to kill the victim and her daughter. Tyler also pushed the victim. There was a witness to the incident. Tyler then left the area. At approximately 2:00a.m. Friday, an officer observed a vehicle driving in the area of Broadway and N. 13th without any headlights. The officer conducted a traffic stop and made contact with the driver identified as Tyler. Tyler was taken into custody without incident and booked into the Saline County Jail on requested charges of Criminal Threat, Stalking, and Domestic Battery.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754660157390.jpeg" alt="Tyler -photo Saline County Sheriff's Office" />
 <figcaption>Tyler -photo Saline County Sheriff's Office</figcaption>
 </figure>SALINE COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect&nbsp; on multiple allegations involving a woman in Salina.Just before 5p.m. August 7, a 27-year-old Salina woman reported that a subject she knew, later identified as Dustin Tyler, age 41, of Wichita had been stalking her, according to a media release from the Saline County Sheriff's office.The victim reported Tyler, who she had previously told to stay away from her, had begun following her around Salina as she drove. The victim drove to a friend’s residence in the 900 block of Seneca. Upon arrival at the friend’s residence, Tyler exited his vehicle and approached the victim. Tyler then threatened to kill the victim and her daughter. Tyler also pushed the victim. There was a witness to the incident. Tyler then left the area. At approximately 2:00a.m. Friday, an officer observed a vehicle driving in the area of Broadway and N. 13th without any headlights. The officer conducted a traffic stop and made contact with the driver identified as Tyler. Tyler was taken into custody without incident and booked into the Saline County Jail on requested charges of Criminal Threat, Stalking, and Domestic Battery.

Kansas man accused of stalking, threatening to kill woman and her child

&nbsp;JACKSON COUNTY, Kan. —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on drug allegations.&nbsp;

Just after&nbsp;10:30 p.m., August 5, a Jackson County Sheriff’s Deputy conducted a traffic stop on a 2009 Hyundai Sonata for an alleged traffic infraction, according to Sheriff Tim Morse.

 The driver was identified as 36-year-old Starkesha Sabrina Palmer, of Topeka.  Palmer was arrested and booked into the Jackson County Jail on requested charges of possession of methamphetamine, possession of THC, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving while suspended.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754403061745.png" alt="Palmer photo Jackson County" />
 <figcaption>Palmer photo Jackson County</figcaption>
 </figure>&nbsp;JACKSON COUNTY, Kan. —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on drug allegations.&nbsp;Just after&nbsp;10:30 p.m., August 5, a Jackson County Sheriff’s Deputy conducted a traffic stop on a 2009 Hyundai Sonata for an alleged traffic infraction, according to Sheriff Tim Morse. The driver was identified as 36-year-old Starkesha Sabrina Palmer, of Topeka. Palmer was arrested and booked into the Jackson County Jail on requested charges of possession of methamphetamine, possession of THC, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving while suspended.

Sheriff: Kansas woman caught transporting meth, THC

SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on multiple allegations after an encounter with a deputy.&nbsp;

Just after 11a.m. August 6,&nbsp;a sheriff's deputy made contact with two individuals with a red 2003 Dodge Ram pickup truck backed into the bushes of a business in the 2600 block of SW Rochester Road in rural Shawnee County, according to Shawnee County Deputy Abigail Christian.

During the investigation, it was determined that the man had a felony warrant for his arrest and illegal narcotics were located.

Todd A. Lohness, 59, of Topeka, was arrested and booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requeste charges of Possession of an opiate, opium, narcotic or certain stimulant, Possession of marijuana, and Use/possess with intent to use drug paraphernalia.

Lohness also had a felony warrant out of the county for a probation violation.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754665135292.png" alt="Lohness photo Shawnee County" />
 <figcaption>Lohness photo Shawnee County</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on multiple allegations after an encounter with a deputy.&nbsp;Just after 11a.m. August 6,&nbsp;a sheriff's deputy made contact with two individuals with a red 2003 Dodge Ram pickup truck backed into the bushes of a business in the 2600 block of SW Rochester Road in rural Shawnee County, according to Shawnee County Deputy Abigail Christian.During the investigation, it was determined that the man had a felony warrant for his arrest and illegal narcotics were located.Todd A. Lohness, 59, of Topeka, was arrested and booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requeste charges of Possession of an opiate, opium, narcotic or certain stimulant, Possession of marijuana, and Use/possess with intent to use drug paraphernalia.Lohness also had a felony warrant out of the county for a probation violation.

Wanted suspect was hiding in bushes of rural Kan. business

By&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/rob-gillies">ROB GILLIES</a>

TORONTO (AP) — U.S. President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;raised the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tariffs-trump-economy-imports-inflation-62d52742c0bb0a5b8304755c6ee9af4d">tariffs on Canadian goods</a>&nbsp;to 35% last week, but a key exemption for Canada and Mexico shields the vast majority of goods from the punishing duties.

Goods that comply with the 2020 United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement that Trump negotiated during his first term are excluded from the tariffs.

Here’s a look at Trump’s tariffs on the two countries and their exemptions:

Most Canadian exports reaching the US duty free

Canada’s central bank says 100% of energy exports and 95% of other exports are compliant with the trade pact, known as USMCA. The Royal Bank estimated that almost 90% of Canadian exports appear to have accessed the U.S. market duty free in April.

Canadian&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/video/canadian-pm-carney-hopes-for-a-constructive-deal-over-trumps-tariff-increase-6f12152d5917413b8ed6cff562949e2f">Prime Minister Mark Carney</a>&nbsp;said the commitment of the U.S. to the core of USMCA, reaffirmed again last week, means the U.S. average tariff rate on Canadian goods remains one of its lowest, and over 85% of Canada-U.S. trade continues to be tariff free.

“Canada is better off than any of the trading partners right now because the Americans appear to be relying as a default on USMCA,” said Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association. “That gives them the tough tariff headline but also allows them the access to the stuff they need from us. Because of that we’re in a relative better position.”

Canadian and Mexican companies can claim preferential treatment under the USMCA based on where the products are made.

“The headline news is 35% tariffs but it’s somewhat targeted,” said John Manley, Canada’s former industry minister, finance minister, foreign affairs minister and deputy prime minister.

Manley said Canada is doing okay despite the economic uncertainty.

“There is a lot of resilience I’d say. The Canadian economy has done relatively well, better than most of us expected, and remember that there is no tariffs on any of our energy exports,” he said.

25% tariffs on Mexican goods target a small slice of trade

Trump said last week he would enter into a 90-day negotiating period with Mexico, also one of America’s largest trading partners. The current&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-tariffs-mexico-canada-b19e004dddb579c373b247037e04424b">25% tariff rates are staying in place</a>, down from the 30% he had threatened earlier.

But that 25% only applies to the fraction of Mexico’s trade with the U.S. that isn’t covered by the USMCA. Shortly after speaking with Trump on Thursday,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/claudia-sheinbaum">President Claudia Sheinbaum</a>&nbsp;said that within the “new commercial world order,” Mexico was still the best positioned nation because of the free trade agreement.

“What’s within (USMCA) has no tariff, with the exception of what we already know: autos, steel and aluminum; and what is outside the treaty has 25%,” Sheinbaum said.

But Economy Secretary Marcelo Ebrard pointed out that under the USMCA no tariffs were paid on more than 84% of Mexico’s trade with the United States.

Most imports from Canada and Mexico are still protected by the USMCA, but the deal is up for review next year. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said last month: “I think the president is absolutely going to renegotiate USMCA.”

Preserving the free trade pact will be critical for Canada and Mexico.

“It would be an incredible disruption to lose it especially if you lost it to the levels of tariffs Trump is imposing, 30%, 25% or even 20%. You can absorb a single digit tariff level across the board but you can’t adjust that kind of increase,” Manley said.

More than 75% of Canada’s exports go to the U.S. while more than 80% of Mexico’s exports go there.

Manley said that depending on how the trade war plays out the risk to the USMCA is very high. “Uncertainty in business is the enemy of decision making,” he said.

Carney said in a series of recent agreements with other countries that America is, in effect, charging for access to its economy.

Manley said the investment thesis for Canada is pretty straightforward as Canada is rich in natural resources, has a skilled labor force, is open to immigration and has unfettered access to the U.S. market, the largest economy in the world.

“If that latter point is no longer the case, we’ve still got all the others, but we’ve got to really redevelop the investment thesis for attracting investment to Canada,” Manley said.

Trump has some sector specific tariffs, known as 232 tariffs, that are having an impact. There is a 50% tariff on steel and aluminum imports and a 25% tariff on auto imports, though there is a carve-out for Canadian and Mexican made cars.

“Despite our advantages, certain major Canadian industries are being severely impacted by U.S. trade actions. These strategic sectors include autos, steel, aluminum, copper, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, and of course, softwood lumber,” Carney said on Tuesday as he announced an aid package for the lumber industry as the U.S, ratches up duties.

“It is clear we cannot count or fully rely on what has been our most valued trading relationship for our prosperity,” he added.

Associated Press writer Fabiola Sánchez in Mexico City contributed to this report.

By&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/rob-gillies">ROB GILLIES</a>TORONTO (AP) — U.S. President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;raised the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tariffs-trump-economy-imports-inflation-62d52742c0bb0a5b8304755c6ee9af4d">tariffs on Canadian goods</a>&nbsp;to 35% last week, but a key exemption for Canada and Mexico shields the vast majority of goods from the punishing duties.Goods that comply with the 2020 United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement that Trump negotiated during his first term are excluded from the tariffs.Here’s a look at Trump’s tariffs on the two countries and their exemptions:<h2>Most Canadian exports reaching the US duty free</h2>Canada’s central bank says 100% of energy exports and 95% of other exports are compliant with the trade pact, known as USMCA. The Royal Bank estimated that almost 90% of Canadian exports appear to have accessed the U.S. market duty free in April.Canadian&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/video/canadian-pm-carney-hopes-for-a-constructive-deal-over-trumps-tariff-increase-6f12152d5917413b8ed6cff562949e2f">Prime Minister Mark Carney</a>&nbsp;said the commitment of the U.S. to the core of USMCA, reaffirmed again last week, means the U.S. average tariff rate on Canadian goods remains one of its lowest, and over 85% of Canada-U.S. trade continues to be tariff free.“Canada is better off than any of the trading partners right now because the Americans appear to be relying as a default on USMCA,” said Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association. “That gives them the tough tariff headline but also allows them the access to the stuff they need from us. Because of that we’re in a relative better position.”Canadian and Mexican companies can claim preferential treatment under the USMCA based on where the products are made.“The headline news is 35% tariffs but it’s somewhat targeted,” said John Manley, Canada’s former industry minister, finance minister, foreign affairs minister and deputy prime minister.Manley said Canada is doing okay despite the economic uncertainty.“There is a lot of resilience I’d say. The Canadian economy has done relatively well, better than most of us expected, and remember that there is no tariffs on any of our energy exports,” he said.<h2>25% tariffs on Mexican goods target a small slice of trade</h2>Trump said last week he would enter into a 90-day negotiating period with Mexico, also one of America’s largest trading partners. The current&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-tariffs-mexico-canada-b19e004dddb579c373b247037e04424b">25% tariff rates are staying in place</a>, down from the 30% he had threatened earlier.But that 25% only applies to the fraction of Mexico’s trade with the U.S. that isn’t covered by the USMCA. Shortly after speaking with Trump on Thursday,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/claudia-sheinbaum">President Claudia Sheinbaum</a>&nbsp;said that within the “new commercial world order,” Mexico was still the best positioned nation because of the free trade agreement.“What’s within (USMCA) has no tariff, with the exception of what we already know: autos, steel and aluminum; and what is outside the treaty has 25%,” Sheinbaum said.But Economy Secretary Marcelo Ebrard pointed out that under the USMCA no tariffs were paid on more than 84% of Mexico’s trade with the United States.Most imports from Canada and Mexico are still protected by the USMCA, but the deal is up for review next year. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said last month: “I think the president is absolutely going to renegotiate USMCA.”Preserving the free trade pact will be critical for Canada and Mexico.“It would be an incredible disruption to lose it especially if you lost it to the levels of tariffs Trump is imposing, 30%, 25% or even 20%. You can absorb a single digit tariff level across the board but you can’t adjust that kind of increase,” Manley said.More than 75% of Canada’s exports go to the U.S. while more than 80% of Mexico’s exports go there.Manley said that depending on how the trade war plays out the risk to the USMCA is very high. “Uncertainty in business is the enemy of decision making,” he said.<h2>Charging for access</h2>Carney said in a series of recent agreements with other countries that America is, in effect, charging for access to its economy.Manley said the investment thesis for Canada is pretty straightforward as Canada is rich in natural resources, has a skilled labor force, is open to immigration and has unfettered access to the U.S. market, the largest economy in the world.“If that latter point is no longer the case, we’ve still got all the others, but we’ve got to really redevelop the investment thesis for attracting investment to Canada,” Manley said.Trump has some sector specific tariffs, known as 232 tariffs, that are having an impact. There is a 50% tariff on steel and aluminum imports and a 25% tariff on auto imports, though there is a carve-out for Canadian and Mexican made cars.“Despite our advantages, certain major Canadian industries are being severely impacted by U.S. trade actions. These strategic sectors include autos, steel, aluminum, copper, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, and of course, softwood lumber,” Carney said on Tuesday as he announced an aid package for the lumber industry as the U.S, ratches up duties.“It is clear we cannot count or fully rely on what has been our most valued trading relationship for our prosperity,” he added.___Associated Press writer Fabiola Sánchez in Mexico City contributed to this report.

Exemption allows majority of Canadian and Mexican goods to be shipped to US without tariffs

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday terminated a $7 billion grant program that was intended to help pay for residential solar projects for more than 900,000 lower-income U.S. households.

It’s the latest Trump administration move hindering the nation’s shift to cleaner energy.

The funding, part of Democratic President Joe Biden’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-earth-day-solar-grants-epa-climate-5bece7e419e9141241287575abb0fefc">Solar for All program</a>, was awarded to 60 recipients including states, tribes and regions for investments such as rooftop solar and community solar gardens.

Solar, a renewable energy, is widely regarded as a way to introduce cleaner power onto the electrical grid and lower energy bills for American consumers.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a statement on social media that authority for the program was eliminated under the tax-and-spending bill signed last month by Republican President Donald Trump. The law eliminated the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/green-bank-biden-epa-clean-energy-solar-317513a5d6eae45e6e4cc0239dd0c89c">Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund</a>&nbsp;that was approved under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. The fund set aside&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/epa-billions-clean-green-energy-community-grants-8f6c76cb41783a5e838ac4f7f7cce086">$20 billion in “green bank”</a>&nbsp;money for community development projects to boost renewable energy, and an additional $7 billion for the solar program.

“The bottom line is this: EPA no longer has the statutory authority to administer the program or the appropriated funds to keep this boondoggle alive,″ Zeldin said. “Today, the Trump EPA is announcing that we are ending Solar for All for good, saving US taxpayers ANOTHER $7 BILLION!”

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, who introduced the Solar for All program to slash electric bills for working families, called Zeldin’s action illegal.

“Solar for All means lower utility bills, many thousands of good-paying jobs and real action to address the existential threat of climate change,″ Sanders said in a statement. ”At a time when working families are getting crushed by skyrocketing energy costs and the planet is literally burning, sabotaging this program isn’t just wrong — it’s absolutely insane. We will fight back to preserve this enormously important program.”

The Trump administration has already targeted the “green bank” funds, first&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/green-bank-epa-zeldin-climate-clean-energy-191b394cda251ef772867369f61f07b7">freezing the grants</a>, then&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/epa-green-bank-zeldin-climate-trump-5168d11b7f63aeaf72001b50221c3c19">terminating the agreements altogether</a>. Zeldin called them “a clear cut case of waste and abuse” and a “gold bar” scheme earlier this year.

The EPA&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/epa-green-bank-trump-big-beautiful-bill-9678b82c1b5cfac53e5c956ede69a92b">has argued</a>&nbsp;that the tax and policy bill law repealed the green bank and allows the agency to rescind the money it has already obligated. The recipients of that money disagree. They say the bulk of the money had already been disbursed and isn’t affected by the law.

Grant recipients have filed lawsuits challenging the administration’s actions, and a judge&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/epa-green-bank-grants-clean-energy-projects-1bcc9dd5c92f8dfb4304add043711278">ruled in April the EPA cannot freeze</a>&nbsp;the contracts.

Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the top Democrat on the Senate Environment Committee, called Zeldin’s elimination of the solar program a betrayal “that will further hike electricity costs and make our power grid less reliable.”

“Trump is — yet again — putting his fossil fuel megadonors first,” he added.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/5/1683731181866.jpg" alt="photo Pixaby" />
 <figcaption>photo Pixaby</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday terminated a $7 billion grant program that was intended to help pay for residential solar projects for more than 900,000 lower-income U.S. households.It’s the latest Trump administration move hindering the nation’s shift to cleaner energy.The funding, part of Democratic President Joe Biden’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-earth-day-solar-grants-epa-climate-5bece7e419e9141241287575abb0fefc">Solar for All program</a>, was awarded to 60 recipients including states, tribes and regions for investments such as rooftop solar and community solar gardens.Solar, a renewable energy, is widely regarded as a way to introduce cleaner power onto the electrical grid and lower energy bills for American consumers.EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a statement on social media that authority for the program was eliminated under the tax-and-spending bill signed last month by Republican President Donald Trump. The law eliminated the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/green-bank-biden-epa-clean-energy-solar-317513a5d6eae45e6e4cc0239dd0c89c">Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund</a>&nbsp;that was approved under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. The fund set aside&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/epa-billions-clean-green-energy-community-grants-8f6c76cb41783a5e838ac4f7f7cce086">$20 billion in “green bank”</a>&nbsp;money for community development projects to boost renewable energy, and an additional $7 billion for the solar program.“The bottom line is this: EPA no longer has the statutory authority to administer the program or the appropriated funds to keep this boondoggle alive,″ Zeldin said. “Today, the Trump EPA is announcing that we are ending Solar for All for good, saving US taxpayers ANOTHER $7 BILLION!”Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, who introduced the Solar for All program to slash electric bills for working families, called Zeldin’s action illegal.“Solar for All means lower utility bills, many thousands of good-paying jobs and real action to address the existential threat of climate change,″ Sanders said in a statement. ”At a time when working families are getting crushed by skyrocketing energy costs and the planet is literally burning, sabotaging this program isn’t just wrong — it’s absolutely insane. We will fight back to preserve this enormously important program.”The Trump administration has already targeted the “green bank” funds, first&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/green-bank-epa-zeldin-climate-clean-energy-191b394cda251ef772867369f61f07b7">freezing the grants</a>, then&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/epa-green-bank-zeldin-climate-trump-5168d11b7f63aeaf72001b50221c3c19">terminating the agreements altogether</a>. Zeldin called them “a clear cut case of waste and abuse” and a “gold bar” scheme earlier this year.The EPA&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/epa-green-bank-trump-big-beautiful-bill-9678b82c1b5cfac53e5c956ede69a92b">has argued</a>&nbsp;that the tax and policy bill law repealed the green bank and allows the agency to rescind the money it has already obligated. The recipients of that money disagree. They say the bulk of the money had already been disbursed and isn’t affected by the law.Grant recipients have filed lawsuits challenging the administration’s actions, and a judge&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/epa-green-bank-grants-clean-energy-projects-1bcc9dd5c92f8dfb4304add043711278">ruled in April the EPA cannot freeze</a>&nbsp;the contracts.Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the top Democrat on the Senate Environment Committee, called Zeldin’s elimination of the solar program a betrayal “that will further hike electricity costs and make our power grid less reliable.”“Trump is — yet again — putting his fossil fuel megadonors first,” he added.

EPA cancels $7 billion Biden-era grant program to boost solar energy

ALLEN COUNTY — A Kansas man was hospitalized after a grain bin accident in rural Allen County.

Just before 8p.m. Thursday emergency crews responded to the Bernsten Farms, 3061 Utah Road near La Harpe, according to a statement from The&nbsp;Allen County Sheriff’s Office.

The farmer was working inside the 10,000 bushel bin when the corn shifted and he was trapped. After four hours, emergency crews were able to extricate him through the roof. He was transported to the Allen County Hospital

Crews from La Harpe, Iola, Colony and Anderson County assisted in the rescue.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754702271561.png" alt="Photos Allen County Sheriff'f office" />
 <figcaption>Photos Allen County Sheriff'f office</figcaption>
 </figure>ALLEN COUNTY — A Kansas man was hospitalized after a grain bin accident in rural Allen County.Just before 8p.m. Thursday emergency crews responded to the Bernsten Farms, 3061 Utah Road near La Harpe, according to a statement from The&nbsp;Allen County Sheriff’s Office.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754743823489.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>The farmer was working inside the 10,000 bushel bin when the corn shifted and he was trapped. After four hours, emergency crews were able to extricate him through the roof. He was transported to the Allen County HospitalCrews from La Harpe, Iola, Colony and Anderson County assisted in the rescue.&nbsp;

Kansas man rescued after trapped for hours in grain bin

WASHINGTON (AP) — The leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan shook hands Friday at a White House peace summit before signing an agreement aimed at ending decades of conflict.

President Donald Trump was in the middle as Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan flanked him on either side. As the two extended their arms in front of Trump to shake hands, the U.S. leader reached up and clasped his hands around theirs.

The two countries in the South Caucasus signed agreements with each other and the U.S. that will reopen key transportation routes while allowing the U.S. to seize on Russia’s declining influence in the region. The deal includes an agreement that will create a major transit corridor to be named the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, the White House said.

Trump said at the White House on Friday that naming the route after him was “a great honor for me” but “I didn’t ask for this.” A senior administration official, on a call before the event with reporters, said it was the Armenians who suggested the name.

Trump has sought to be known as a peacemaker and made no secret of the fact that he covets a Nobel Peace Prize. Friday’s signing adds to a series of peace and economic agreements brokered by the U.S. this year.

Both leaders said the breakthrough was made possible by Trump and his team.

“We are laying a foundation to write a better story than the one we had in the past,” Pashinyan said, calling the agreement a “significant milestone.”

“President Trump in six months did a miracle,” Aliyev said.

Trump remarked on how long the conflict went on between the two countries. “Thirty-five years they fought, and now they’re friends and they’re going to be friends a long time,” he said.

That route will connect Azerbaijan and its autonomous Nakhchivan exclave, which are separated by a 32-kilometer-wide (20-mile-wide) patch of Armenian territory. The demand from Azerbaijan had held up peace talks in the past.

For Azerbaijan, a major producer of oil and gas, the route also provides a more direct link to Turkey and onward to Europe.

Trump indicated he'd like to visit the route, saying, “We're going to have to get over there."

Asked how he feels about lasting peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Trump said “very confident."

Aliyev and Pashinyan on Friday joined a growing list of foreign leaders and other officials who have said Trump should receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in helping ease long-running conflicts across the globe.

The peace deal between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda helped end the decadeslong&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congo-rwanda-drc-peace-deal-m23-trump-5e5b52100729ad6587a6f267c6c79ae0">conflict in eastern Congo</a>, and the U.S.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-india-pakistan-kashmir-trade-e3cedcad801ce78c85194fcbf3b917f0">mediated a ceasefire</a>&nbsp;between India and Pakistan, while&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/thailand-cambodia-border-clash-ceasefire-36da6c2ba1a1c33a16ca6ddf1cb82bda">Trump intervened in clashes between Cambodia and Thailand</a>&nbsp;by threatening to withhold trade agreements with both countries if their fighting continued. Yet peace deals in Gaza and Ukraine have been elusive.

US takes advantage of Russia's waning influence

The signing of a deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan, both former Soviet republics, also strikes a geopolitical blow to their former imperial master, Russia. Throughout the nearly four-decade conflict, Moscow played mediator to expand its clout in the strategic South Caucasus region, but its influence waned quickly after it launched the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-europe-russia-moscow-kyiv-626a8c5ec22217bacb24ece60fac4fe1">full-scale invasion of Ukraine</a>&nbsp;in February 2022. The Trump-brokered deal would allow the U.S. to deepen its reach in the region as Moscow retreats, senior U.S. administration officials said.

The Trump administration began engaging with Armenia and Azerbaijan in earnest earlier this year, when Trump’s key diplomatic envoy, Steve Witkoff, met with Aliyev in Baku and started to discuss what a senior administration official called a “regional reset.”

Negotiations over who will develop the Trump Route — which will eventually include a rail line, oil and gas pipelines, and fiber optic lines — will likely begin next week, and at least nine developers have expressed interest already, according to the senior administration official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity.

Separate from the joint agreement, both&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/armenia">Armenia</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/azerbaijan">Azerbaijan</a>&nbsp;signed deals with the United States meant to bolster cooperation in energy, technology and the economy, the White House said.

Trump previewed much of Friday’s plan in a social media post Thursday evening, in which he said the agreements would “fully unlock the potential" of the South Caucasus region.

“Many Leaders have tried to end the War, with no success, until now, thanks to ‘TRUMP,’” Trump said on his Truth Social site.

The Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict has lasted for decades

The two nations were locked&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/armenia-azerbaijan-aliyev-pashinyan-abu-dhabi-72cf31b11dd3dfe2e47fafce6f325251">in conflict for nearly four decades</a>&nbsp;as they fought for control of the Karabakh region, known internationally as Nagorno-Karabakh.

The area was largely populated by Armenians during the Soviet era but is located within Azerbaijan. The two nations battled for control of the region through multiple violent clashes that left tens of thousands of people dead over the decades, all while international mediation efforts failed.

Most recently,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/azerbaijan-armenia-explosions-nagornokarabakh-73df9b8b03c3748868e2e358b67bd018">Azerbaijan reclaimed all of Karabakh in 2023</a>&nbsp;and had been in talks with Armenia to normalize ties. Azerbaijan’s insistence on a land bridge to Nakhchivan had been a major sticking point, because while Azerbaijan did not trust Armenia to control the so-called Zangezur corridor, Armenia resisted control by a third party because it viewed it as a breach of sovereignty.

But the prospect of closer ties with the United States, as well as being able to move in and out of the landlocked nation more freely without having to access Georgia or Iran, helped entice Armenia on the broader agreement, according to U.S. officials.

Meanwhile, Russia stood back when Azerbaijan reclaimed control of Karabakh in the September 2023 offensive, angering Armenia, which has moved to shed Russian influence and turn westward. Azerbaijan, emboldened by its victory in Karabakh, also has become increasingly defiant in its relations with Moscow.

Associated Press writers Meg Kinnard and Will Weissert contributed to this report.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754688307887.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan shook hands Friday at a White House peace summit before signing an agreement aimed at ending decades of conflict.President Donald Trump was in the middle as Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan flanked him on either side. As the two extended their arms in front of Trump to shake hands, the U.S. leader reached up and clasped his hands around theirs.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">President Donald J. Trump, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan sign peace and economic agreements at the White House <a href="https://t.co/yUvKZf0g0r">pic.twitter.com/yUvKZf0g0r</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1953914524081201264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev <a href="https://twitter.com/presidentaz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@presidentaz</a>: We will turn the page of standoff, confrontation, and bloodshed ... I am very happy because today, we are writing a great new history. Mr. President, thank you for what you are doing for us, for our region, and for the whole world. <a href="https://t.co/5FPTM0afwf">pic.twitter.com/5FPTM0afwf</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1953913464629735696?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Armenian Prime Minister <a href="https://twitter.com/NikolPashinyan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NikolPashinyan</a>: &quot;I think President Trump deserves to have the Nobel Peace Prize... we will promote for that... Today&#39;s event I think is a very bright expression of that.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/p7nzMswU8l">https://t.co/p7nzMswU8l</a> <a href="https://t.co/pk0AqmaMYd">pic.twitter.com/pk0AqmaMYd</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1953915878287851540?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/presidentaz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@presidentaz</a>: &quot;Maybe we agree with Prime Minister Pashinyan to send a joint appeal to the Nobel committee to award President Trump with the Nobel Peace Prize... This is a tangible result of President Trump&#39;s leadership and no one could&#39;ve achieved that.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/CVE1GkXL5X">pic.twitter.com/CVE1GkXL5X</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1953916600542757100?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The two countries in the South Caucasus signed agreements with each other and the U.S. that will reopen key transportation routes while allowing the U.S. to seize on Russia’s declining influence in the region. The deal includes an agreement that will create a major transit corridor to be named the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, the White House said.Trump said at the White House on Friday that naming the route after him was “a great honor for me” but “I didn’t ask for this.” A senior administration official, on a call before the event with reporters, said it was the Armenians who suggested the name.Trump has sought to be known as a peacemaker and made no secret of the fact that he covets a Nobel Peace Prize. Friday’s signing adds to a series of peace and economic agreements brokered by the U.S. this year.Both leaders said the breakthrough was made possible by Trump and his team.“We are laying a foundation to write a better story than the one we had in the past,” Pashinyan said, calling the agreement a “significant milestone.”“President Trump in six months did a miracle,” Aliyev said.Trump remarked on how long the conflict went on between the two countries. “Thirty-five years they fought, and now they’re friends and they’re going to be friends a long time,” he said.That route will connect Azerbaijan and its autonomous Nakhchivan exclave, which are separated by a 32-kilometer-wide (20-mile-wide) patch of Armenian territory. The demand from Azerbaijan had held up peace talks in the past.For Azerbaijan, a major producer of oil and gas, the route also provides a more direct link to Turkey and onward to Europe.Trump indicated he'd like to visit the route, saying, “We're going to have to get over there."Asked how he feels about lasting peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Trump said “very confident."Aliyev and Pashinyan on Friday joined a growing list of foreign leaders and other officials who have said Trump should receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in helping ease long-running conflicts across the globe.The peace deal between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda helped end the decadeslong&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congo-rwanda-drc-peace-deal-m23-trump-5e5b52100729ad6587a6f267c6c79ae0">conflict in eastern Congo</a>, and the U.S.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-india-pakistan-kashmir-trade-e3cedcad801ce78c85194fcbf3b917f0">mediated a ceasefire</a>&nbsp;between India and Pakistan, while&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/thailand-cambodia-border-clash-ceasefire-36da6c2ba1a1c33a16ca6ddf1cb82bda">Trump intervened in clashes between Cambodia and Thailand</a>&nbsp;by threatening to withhold trade agreements with both countries if their fighting continued. Yet peace deals in Gaza and Ukraine have been elusive.<h2>US takes advantage of Russia's waning influence</h2>The signing of a deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan, both former Soviet republics, also strikes a geopolitical blow to their former imperial master, Russia. Throughout the nearly four-decade conflict, Moscow played mediator to expand its clout in the strategic South Caucasus region, but its influence waned quickly after it launched the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-europe-russia-moscow-kyiv-626a8c5ec22217bacb24ece60fac4fe1">full-scale invasion of Ukraine</a>&nbsp;in February 2022. The Trump-brokered deal would allow the U.S. to deepen its reach in the region as Moscow retreats, senior U.S. administration officials said.The Trump administration began engaging with Armenia and Azerbaijan in earnest earlier this year, when Trump’s key diplomatic envoy, Steve Witkoff, met with Aliyev in Baku and started to discuss what a senior administration official called a “regional reset.”Negotiations over who will develop the Trump Route — which will eventually include a rail line, oil and gas pipelines, and fiber optic lines — will likely begin next week, and at least nine developers have expressed interest already, according to the senior administration official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity.Separate from the joint agreement, both&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/armenia">Armenia</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/azerbaijan">Azerbaijan</a>&nbsp;signed deals with the United States meant to bolster cooperation in energy, technology and the economy, the White House said.Trump previewed much of Friday’s plan in a social media post Thursday evening, in which he said the agreements would “fully unlock the potential" of the South Caucasus region.“Many Leaders have tried to end the War, with no success, until now, thanks to ‘TRUMP,’” Trump said on his Truth Social site.<h2>The Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict has lasted for decades</h2>The two nations were locked&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/armenia-azerbaijan-aliyev-pashinyan-abu-dhabi-72cf31b11dd3dfe2e47fafce6f325251">in conflict for nearly four decades</a>&nbsp;as they fought for control of the Karabakh region, known internationally as Nagorno-Karabakh.The area was largely populated by Armenians during the Soviet era but is located within Azerbaijan. The two nations battled for control of the region through multiple violent clashes that left tens of thousands of people dead over the decades, all while international mediation efforts failed.Most recently,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/azerbaijan-armenia-explosions-nagornokarabakh-73df9b8b03c3748868e2e358b67bd018">Azerbaijan reclaimed all of Karabakh in 2023</a>&nbsp;and had been in talks with Armenia to normalize ties. Azerbaijan’s insistence on a land bridge to Nakhchivan had been a major sticking point, because while Azerbaijan did not trust Armenia to control the so-called Zangezur corridor, Armenia resisted control by a third party because it viewed it as a breach of sovereignty.But the prospect of closer ties with the United States, as well as being able to move in and out of the landlocked nation more freely without having to access Georgia or Iran, helped entice Armenia on the broader agreement, according to U.S. officials.Meanwhile, Russia stood back when Azerbaijan reclaimed control of Karabakh in the September 2023 offensive, angering Armenia, which has moved to shed Russian influence and turn westward. Azerbaijan, emboldened by its victory in Karabakh, also has become increasingly defiant in its relations with Moscow.___Associated Press writers Meg Kinnard and Will Weissert contributed to this report.

Trump seals peace deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan

CLAY COUNTY, Mo. —Investigators have positively identified the individual whose body was located in the Missouri River on Wednesday evening as&nbsp;32-year-old Dusenge Y. Mukiza of Kansas City, Kansas, according to a statement from the Clay County, Missouri Sheriff’s Office.

&nbsp;An autopsy revealed no evidence of trauma or foul play.

Just after 8:30p.m. a couple who were fishing called 911 and reported seeing a body in the water near 210 Highway and Edwards Road. 

When deputies arrived, they found Mukiz'a body of the man on the north side of the river. The Missouri State Highway Patrol's Water Patrol Division assisted with recovering the body.

CLAY COUNTY, Mo. —Investigators have positively identified the individual whose body was located in the Missouri River on Wednesday evening as&nbsp;32-year-old Dusenge Y. Mukiza of Kansas City, Kansas, according to a statement from the Clay County, Missouri Sheriff’s Office.&nbsp;An autopsy revealed no evidence of trauma or foul play.Just after 8:30p.m. a couple who were fishing called 911 and reported seeing a body in the water near 210 Highway and Edwards Road. When deputies arrived, they found Mukiz'a body of the man on the north side of the river. The Missouri State Highway Patrol's Water Patrol Division assisted with recovering the body.

Body found by couple fishing in river identified as Kansas man

Merit-based selection adherents keen to keep status quo, reformists want direct elections

By&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/02/24/gov-laura-kelly-skeptical-kansas-houses-anti-tenure-legislation-will-reach-her-desk/">Kansas Reflector</a>

LAWRENCE — Campaigns for and against a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution allowing direct election of justices to the Kansas Supreme Court have begun the one-year charge to the August 2026 primary election where the issue will be decided.

While Attorney General Kris Kobach lauded the potential switch to statewide elections at an Americans for Prosperity-Kansas dinner in Wichita, a panel of skeptics brought together by Kansas Appleseed outlined Wednesday for an audience on the University of Kansas campus the reasons it would be a mistake to abandon the existing merit-based selection process.

Retired Kansas Supreme Court Justice Carol Beier, who served on the high court from 2003 to 2020, said opening the process up to expensive popular elections financed by special interests was contrary to the idea of an independent judiciary. Vague language of the amendment in terms of the process for electing justices to had yet to be clarified by the Legislature, she said.

“It is exceedingly vague,” she said. “It will be decided by the Legislature. Do you trust them?”

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 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754657223916.png" alt=" From left, Mark Tallman of the Kansas Association of School Boards, Teresa Woody, litigation director of Kansas Appleseed, and retired Kansas Supreme Court Justice Carol Beier participate in a panel discussion Wednesday at the University of Kansas on a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution to allow direct election of Supreme Court justices. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption> From left, Mark Tallman of the Kansas Association of School Boards, Teresa Woody, litigation director of Kansas Appleseed, and retired Kansas Supreme Court Justice Carol Beier participate in a panel discussion Wednesday at the University of Kansas on a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution to allow direct election of Supreme Court justices. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Merit-based selection adherents keen to keep status quo, reformists want direct elections</h2>By&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/02/24/gov-laura-kelly-skeptical-kansas-houses-anti-tenure-legislation-will-reach-her-desk/">Kansas Reflector</a>LAWRENCE — Campaigns for and against a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution allowing direct election of justices to the Kansas Supreme Court have begun the one-year charge to the August 2026 primary election where the issue will be decided.While Attorney General Kris Kobach lauded the potential switch to statewide elections at an Americans for Prosperity-Kansas dinner in Wichita, a panel of skeptics brought together by Kansas Appleseed outlined Wednesday for an audience on the University of Kansas campus the reasons it would be a mistake to abandon the existing merit-based selection process.Retired Kansas Supreme Court Justice Carol Beier, who served on the high court from 2003 to 2020, said opening the process up to expensive popular elections financed by special interests was contrary to the idea of an independent judiciary. Vague language of the amendment in terms of the process for electing justices to had yet to be clarified by the Legislature, she said.“It is exceedingly vague,” she said. “It will be decided by the Legislature. Do you trust them?”Mark Tallman, who lobbied for three decades at the Capitol and continues to work with the Kansas Association of School Boards, said the state Constitution mandated the Legislature make suitable provision for the financing of public education. Four major lawsuits over the past 60 years delved into constitutionality of school aid and the Supreme Court weighed into each of those disputes, he said.He said the current school funding formula for K-12 public schools was due to expire in 2027 and substantive changes could trigger more lawsuits likely to work their way to the Supreme Court.“Those who have been active in our association fundamentally believe that the system works and we shouldn’t risk change,” Tallman said.Teresa Woody, litigation director of the advocacy organization Kansas Appleseed, said it would be impossible for elections of Supreme Court justices to be anything other than partisan brawls. She said the current system properly relied on candidates submitting applications, the selection of three finalists by an independent commission and appointment of new justices by a Kansas governor.“It will work much better than the best iteration of a (proposed) constitutional amendment in really protecting Kansans’ rights,” Woody said. “Judges are there to interpret the law, not to make the law.”Conventional wisdom says the amendment on next year’s ballot was the creation of conservative politicians frustrated with Supreme Court decisions leading to increases in state funding of K-12 public schools and declaring women had a constitutional right to abortion.Steady reshuffling of the Supreme Court at the ballot box could influence judicial review of those poignant issues, but the Supreme Court also could assume a transformative role in voting rights and capital punishment cases.“The Legislature appears to believe that partisan judges are likely to side with them on certain issues regardless of the rule of law,” Woody said. “They’re trying to change the rules of the game to be more favorable to those special interests and not to the general citizens of Kansas.”Meanwhile, Kobach said he was pleased to be with AFP-Kansas to kick off of the campaign to gain voter approval for the judicial selection amendment. The amendment was endorsed by two-thirds majorities of the House and Senate. To be added to the state constitution, a simple majority of people casting votes on the August 2026 issue would resolve whether the amendment was added or discarded.“People, not only lawyers in smoke-filled back rooms, should have a voice in selecting Kansas Supreme Court justices,” Kobach said.In the past, Kobach said, adoption of the constitutional amendment would enable Kansans to reclaim the right to vote for justices.“Polling shows that Kansans overwhelmingly prefer voting on Supreme Court justices to the status quo,” Kobach said. “Seventy-four percent support the direct election of Supreme Court justices, while only 20% like the current attorney-controlled system.”In Kansas, the merit-based selection process used to fill the seven seats on the Supreme Court relied on work of a nominating commission. It has nine members, with five elected by attorneys who passed the state bar exam. The four nonlawyers are appointed by the governor.Commission interviews with candidates and the voting by commission members are open to the public and livestreamed on the internet. On Thursday, Gov. Laura Kelly selected a new justice to the Supreme Court by choosing from among three finalists nominated by the commission. She could have rejected all three nominees, which would have returned it to the nominating commission for a redo.“It’s an ultra-rigorous vetting process. I’ve been through it myself,” said Beier, who was appointed to the Kansas Court of Appeals by Republican Gov. Bill Graves and to the Supreme Court by Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius.Appellate judges and justices in Kansas must stand every six years for retention elections by Kansas voters.In 2013, GOP Gov. Sam Brownback and the Legislature agreed to alter state law to replace the merit-based process for vacancies on the Court of Appeals with a system of appointment by the governor subject to confirmation by the Kansas Senate. Kelly has voluntarily made use of merit selection as she submitted Court of Appeals nominees to the Senate.Brownback couldn’t use statute to amend the selection method for the Supreme Court because the structure was embedded in the Constitution.Woody said rural voters ought to be wary of the proposed constitutional amendment because a majority vote would be applied to candidates for the Supreme Court. Kelly won reelection as governor in 2022 by winning fewer than 10 of the state’s 105 counties. That outcome suggested a cluster of urban centers — perhaps Johnson, Douglas, Wyandotte, Sedgwick and Riley counties — could dictate who sat on the Supreme Court.Beier said legislative and executive branch politicians by their nature were expected to declare policy preferences and allow voters to hold accountable to their personal pledges and the platforms of political parties.She said judges and justices should operate in a manner that concentrated on facts in evidence, weighed issues raised by participants and took into account laws enacted by government.“Nowhere in that did you hear judges should worry about their popularity,” Beier said.