BY&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/akaminski/">ANNA KAMINSKI</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/12/29/kansan-returns-to-the-catholic-church-as-the-states-first-woman-priest/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — Kansas lawmakers could transform elections with a series of bills that squeeze advanced voting timelines, stamp out rare instances of noncitizen voting and tinker with some candidate filing and advocacy rules.

One bill sought to eradicate elections exclusively conducted by mail.

Many of the changes largely were driven by the House Elections Committee chair, Rep. Pat Proctor, a Leavenworth Republican who is running for secretary of state, and co-chair, Rep. Paul Waggoner, a Hutchinson Republican.

During debate this week, the duo propped up bills that would require driver’s licenses to indicate citizenship status, shrink the voter registration and advanced voting windows ahead of elections, and prohibit government employees from using public assets to advocate for or against constitutional amendments and ballot questions.

Twenty Republicans sponsored&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/HB2503/" target="_blank">House Bill 2503</a>, which would repeal the state’s Mail Ballot Election Act, removing the possibility for local entities to carry out elections solely with mail-in ballots. It passed the House on Thursday in a 72-50 vote.

Another bill would require the names, addresses and other personal identification information of people without U.S. citizenship who receive public benefits to be regularly shared with the Kansas Secretary of State’s Office under Proctor’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/hb2491/" target="_blank">House Bill 2491</a>.

The National Voter Registration Act created an automatic voter registration option for people obtaining driver’s licenses, signing up for Medicaid or qualifying for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Proctor said the law has turned Kansas into “a welfare voter state.”

The bill mirrors one passed last year that now requires the Kansas Department of Revenue, which oversees driver’s license administration, to send personal data to the Secretary of State’s Office, where it is compared side-by-side with statewide voter rolls.

“Every time we have one of these bills, we hear the same thing,” Proctor said. “We used to hear, ‘This never happens. Noncitizens never vote.’ ”

Now, he said, he hears that voting among people without U.S. citizenship “seldom happens. It’s infrequent.” It’s a shift he attributed to two voter fraud-related indictments in Kansas. Clay Barker, general counsel to the Secretary of State’s Office, confirmed at a Jan. 29 committee hearing that two people have been indicted for fraudulent voting-related crimes, a third indictment is on the way and 10 people are being examined.

“One is too many,” Proctor said, because he believes every vote cast by someone without U.S. citizenship cancels out a citizen’s valid vote.

It has been explicitly illegal for immigrants to vote in federal elections since 1996, and no state allows people to vote in statewide elections if they are not citizens. Election offices monitor for fraudulent votes, and people can face stiff penalties and potential deportation if they cast ballots illegally.

&nbsp;Voting rights advocates have maintained that illegal voting is extremely rare and often the result of administrative error.

“Am I up here saying that there’s a vast conspiracy to let noncitizens vote?” Proctor said. “No.”

He said he believes people without citizenship end up on voter rolls unintentionally.

“But we owe it to Kansans to be able to tell them with confidence, ‘No, noncitizens are not voting, and we know because we have all these different ways of scrubbing the voter rolls to make sure they never get on the voter rolls in the first place,’ ” he said.

No evidence suggests that instances of noncitizen voting affects the outcomes of elections in the U.S., according to&nbsp;<a href="https://bipartisanpolicy.org/article/four-things-to-know-about-noncitizen-voting/" target="_blank">an analysis from the Bipartisan Policy Center</a>, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank founded by four former U.S. Senate majority leaders, including the late U.S. Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas.

The analysis examined the Heritage Foundation’s  <a href="https://www.heritage.org/voterfraud/search?combine=citizen&amp;state=All&amp;year=&amp;case_type=All&amp;fraud_type=All" target="_blank">Election Fraud Cases</a>&nbsp;database, which found 77 instances of people without citizenship voting between 1999 and 2023, and a Brennan Center for Justice study that inspected 23.5 million votes cast in the 2016 general election across 42 jurisdictions, which found approximately 30 instances of people without citizenship voting.

HB 2491 passed the House on Wednesday in an 87-37 vote, with Republican Reps. Mark Schreiber of Emporia and Lauren Bohi of Olathe joining Democrats in voting against the bill and Democratic Rep. Wanda Brownlee Paige of Kansas City voting with Republicans in favor.

Rep. Kirk Haskins, a Topeka Democrat and the ranking minority member on the House Elections Committee, spurned the bill, pointing out it had three proponents and 12 opponents at a committee hearing. He highlighted the rare instances of votes cast by people without citizenship.&nbsp;

“I don’t know why we keep emphasizing we have an issue when it’s been proven we don’t time and time again,” he said.

<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/hb2448/" target="_blank">House Bill 2448</a>, a Proctor-sponsored measure that would require citizenship status to appear on driver’s licenses, passed the House on Feb. 12 in a 77-41 vote.

People without citizenship can obtain a temporary driver’s license, but providing documented proof of citizenship is not currently a prerequisite to getting a driver’s license.

A previous Kansas law, backed by then-Secretary of State and current Attorney General Kris Kobach, that required proof of citizenship to vote was struck down in court. The litigation revealed the law&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/12/24/as-more-states-pass-proof-of-citizenship-laws-report-points-to-kansas-as-cautionary-tale/">prevented more than 30,000 Kansans from voting</a>&nbsp;and raised concerns of violating civil rights during the three years it was in effect. Kansans are still required to show photo ID upon voting.

As the Legislature barrels toward self-imposed deadlines to move bills from chamber to chamber and then on to committees, the House passed the elections-related legislation this week at a rapid clip.

<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/hb2453/" target="_blank">House Bill 2453</a>&nbsp;would modify three components of advanced voting. It would shift the mail-in ballot deadline by a week, moving it from the Tuesday preceding Election Day to two weeks before Election Day, and clerks would have to send ballots 22 days before an election. It also would shrink the deadline for in-person advance voting, requiring ballots be submitted by the Friday before Election Day instead of noon the day before, as is the current practice. The bill gives county clerks the option to extend the deadline to noon on the Sunday preceding election day, but it could be costly to staff election offices on the weekend, when government buildings are typically closed.

The bill also would forbid county election officers from accepting voter registrations after the 25th day before an election, and it would eliminate the procedures for canvassing and challenging advance mail-in ballots after polls close on Election Day.

It was sponsored by Rep. Sandy Pickert, a Wichita Republican, but Proctor advocated in favor of it on the House floor Tuesday. Pickert was the only person to speak in support of the bill during its hearing in early February.

While the Secretary of State’s Office said it could use existing resources to update training information for local elections officials, the Kansas Association of Counties indicated HB 2453 would increase costs for counties to hire additional staff.

Haskins criticized the bill’s supporters on Tuesday for prioritizing legislation that could potentially drain county revenue at a time when voters are increasingly frustrated with high property taxes — often the main source of counties’ operating budgets.

“But yet, we’re not going to give them any money. We’re not going to reduce property tax,” he said. “We’re not going to address the fact that county election offices, they don’t even know how much it’s going to cost. But we do need more people. This is called by definition an unfunded mandate.”

The House passed the bill in a 86-38 vote on Wednesday, and Republicans Schreiber and Rep. Samantha Poetter Parshall of Paola joined Democrats in voting against it.

<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/hb2733/" target="_blank">House Bill 2733</a>&nbsp;would require elected officials who hold statewide and local offices to be residents of the state of Kansas and the districts they represent upon election and throughout the duration of their terms. The bill from Rep. Bill Sutton, a Gardner Republican, passed the House on Tuesday without opposition.

Legislators are already required under state law to be voters in the district they represent and a resident of Kansas, with their primary residence located in their district, so they were not included in the bill’s proposed changes.

<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/hb2451/" target="_blank">House Bill 2451</a>, sponsored by Waggoner, would bar government employees from&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2026/01/27/house-republicans-bill-takes-aim-at-kansas-school-employees-who-support-bond-issues/">advocating for or against</a>&nbsp;proposed constitutional amendments or ballot questions. The House voted on Wednesday to pass the bill in an 88-36 vote with Schreiber joining Democrats voting against it and Democrats Brownlee Paige and Rep. Angela Martinez of Wichita voting in favor with Republicans.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771885032491.png" alt=" Rep. Pat Proctor, a Leavenworth Republican who is running for Secretary of State, is promoting a slew of election-related legislation. He appears here on the House floor on Feb. 12, 2026, in Topeka. (Photo by Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption> Rep. Pat Proctor, a Leavenworth Republican who is running for Secretary of State, is promoting a slew of election-related legislation. He appears here on the House floor on Feb. 12, 2026, in Topeka. (Photo by Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>BY&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/akaminski/">ANNA KAMINSKI</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/12/29/kansan-returns-to-the-catholic-church-as-the-states-first-woman-priest/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — Kansas lawmakers could transform elections with a series of bills that squeeze advanced voting timelines, stamp out rare instances of noncitizen voting and tinker with some candidate filing and advocacy rules.One bill sought to eradicate elections exclusively conducted by mail.Many of the changes largely were driven by the House Elections Committee chair, Rep. Pat Proctor, a Leavenworth Republican who is running for secretary of state, and co-chair, Rep. Paul Waggoner, a Hutchinson Republican.During debate this week, the duo propped up bills that would require driver’s licenses to indicate citizenship status, shrink the voter registration and advanced voting windows ahead of elections, and prohibit government employees from using public assets to advocate for or against constitutional amendments and ballot questions.Twenty Republicans sponsored&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/HB2503/" target="_blank">House Bill 2503</a>, which would repeal the state’s Mail Ballot Election Act, removing the possibility for local entities to carry out elections solely with mail-in ballots. It passed the House on Thursday in a 72-50 vote.Another bill would require the names, addresses and other personal identification information of people without U.S. citizenship who receive public benefits to be regularly shared with the Kansas Secretary of State’s Office under Proctor’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/hb2491/" target="_blank">House Bill 2491</a>.The National Voter Registration Act created an automatic voter registration option for people obtaining driver’s licenses, signing up for Medicaid or qualifying for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.Proctor said the law has turned Kansas into “a welfare voter state.”The bill mirrors one passed last year that now requires the Kansas Department of Revenue, which oversees driver’s license administration, to send personal data to the Secretary of State’s Office, where it is compared side-by-side with statewide voter rolls.“Every time we have one of these bills, we hear the same thing,” Proctor said. “We used to hear, ‘This never happens. Noncitizens never vote.’ ”Now, he said, he hears that voting among people without U.S. citizenship “seldom happens. It’s infrequent.” It’s a shift he attributed to two voter fraud-related indictments in Kansas. Clay Barker, general counsel to the Secretary of State’s Office, confirmed at a Jan. 29 committee hearing that two people have been indicted for fraudulent voting-related crimes, a third indictment is on the way and 10 people are being examined.“One is too many,” Proctor said, because he believes every vote cast by someone without U.S. citizenship cancels out a citizen’s valid vote.<h2>No ‘vast conspiracy’</h2>It has been explicitly illegal for immigrants to vote in federal elections since 1996, and no state allows people to vote in statewide elections if they are not citizens. Election offices monitor for fraudulent votes, and people can face stiff penalties and potential deportation if they cast ballots illegally.&nbsp;Voting rights advocates have maintained that illegal voting is extremely rare and often the result of administrative error.“Am I up here saying that there’s a vast conspiracy to let noncitizens vote?” Proctor said. “No.”He said he believes people without citizenship end up on voter rolls unintentionally.“But we owe it to Kansans to be able to tell them with confidence, ‘No, noncitizens are not voting, and we know because we have all these different ways of scrubbing the voter rolls to make sure they never get on the voter rolls in the first place,’ ” he said.No evidence suggests that instances of noncitizen voting affects the outcomes of elections in the U.S., according to&nbsp;<a href="https://bipartisanpolicy.org/article/four-things-to-know-about-noncitizen-voting/" target="_blank">an analysis from the Bipartisan Policy Center</a>, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank founded by four former U.S. Senate majority leaders, including the late U.S. Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas.The analysis examined the Heritage Foundation’s  <a href="https://www.heritage.org/voterfraud/search?combine=citizen&amp;state=All&amp;year=&amp;case_type=All&amp;fraud_type=All" target="_blank">Election Fraud Cases</a>&nbsp;database, which found 77 instances of people without citizenship voting between 1999 and 2023, and a Brennan Center for Justice study that inspected 23.5 million votes cast in the 2016 general election across 42 jurisdictions, which found approximately 30 instances of people without citizenship voting.HB 2491 passed the House on Wednesday in an 87-37 vote, with Republican Reps. Mark Schreiber of Emporia and Lauren Bohi of Olathe joining Democrats in voting against the bill and Democratic Rep. Wanda Brownlee Paige of Kansas City voting with Republicans in favor.Rep. Kirk Haskins, a Topeka Democrat and the ranking minority member on the House Elections Committee, spurned the bill, pointing out it had three proponents and 12 opponents at a committee hearing. He highlighted the rare instances of votes cast by people without citizenship.&nbsp;“I don’t know why we keep emphasizing we have an issue when it’s been proven we don’t time and time again,” he said.<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/hb2448/" target="_blank">House Bill 2448</a>, a Proctor-sponsored measure that would require citizenship status to appear on driver’s licenses, passed the House on Feb. 12 in a 77-41 vote.People without citizenship can obtain a temporary driver’s license, but providing documented proof of citizenship is not currently a prerequisite to getting a driver’s license.A previous Kansas law, backed by then-Secretary of State and current Attorney General Kris Kobach, that required proof of citizenship to vote was struck down in court. The litigation revealed the law&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/12/24/as-more-states-pass-proof-of-citizenship-laws-report-points-to-kansas-as-cautionary-tale/">prevented more than 30,000 Kansans from voting</a>&nbsp;and raised concerns of violating civil rights during the three years it was in effect. Kansans are still required to show photo ID upon voting.<h2>‘Unfunded mandate’</h2>As the Legislature barrels toward self-imposed deadlines to move bills from chamber to chamber and then on to committees, the House passed the elections-related legislation this week at a rapid clip.<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/hb2453/" target="_blank">House Bill 2453</a>&nbsp;would modify three components of advanced voting. It would shift the mail-in ballot deadline by a week, moving it from the Tuesday preceding Election Day to two weeks before Election Day, and clerks would have to send ballots 22 days before an election. It also would shrink the deadline for in-person advance voting, requiring ballots be submitted by the Friday before Election Day instead of noon the day before, as is the current practice. The bill gives county clerks the option to extend the deadline to noon on the Sunday preceding election day, but it could be costly to staff election offices on the weekend, when government buildings are typically closed.The bill also would forbid county election officers from accepting voter registrations after the 25th day before an election, and it would eliminate the procedures for canvassing and challenging advance mail-in ballots after polls close on Election Day.It was sponsored by Rep. Sandy Pickert, a Wichita Republican, but Proctor advocated in favor of it on the House floor Tuesday. Pickert was the only person to speak in support of the bill during its hearing in early February.While the Secretary of State’s Office said it could use existing resources to update training information for local elections officials, the Kansas Association of Counties indicated HB 2453 would increase costs for counties to hire additional staff.Haskins criticized the bill’s supporters on Tuesday for prioritizing legislation that could potentially drain county revenue at a time when voters are increasingly frustrated with high property taxes — often the main source of counties’ operating budgets.“But yet, we’re not going to give them any money. We’re not going to reduce property tax,” he said. “We’re not going to address the fact that county election offices, they don’t even know how much it’s going to cost. But we do need more people. This is called by definition an unfunded mandate.”The House passed the bill in a 86-38 vote on Wednesday, and Republicans Schreiber and Rep. Samantha Poetter Parshall of Paola joined Democrats in voting against it.<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/hb2733/" target="_blank">House Bill 2733</a>&nbsp;would require elected officials who hold statewide and local offices to be residents of the state of Kansas and the districts they represent upon election and throughout the duration of their terms. The bill from Rep. Bill Sutton, a Gardner Republican, passed the House on Tuesday without opposition.Legislators are already required under state law to be voters in the district they represent and a resident of Kansas, with their primary residence located in their district, so they were not included in the bill’s proposed changes.<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/hb2451/" target="_blank">House Bill 2451</a>, sponsored by Waggoner, would bar government employees from&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2026/01/27/house-republicans-bill-takes-aim-at-kansas-school-employees-who-support-bond-issues/">advocating for or against</a>&nbsp;proposed constitutional amendments or ballot questions. The House voted on Wednesday to pass the bill in an 88-36 vote with Schreiber joining Democrats voting against it and Democrats Brownlee Paige and Rep. Angela Martinez of Wichita voting in favor with Republicans.

Kansas House passes election bills targeting noncitizens, advanced voting

LYON COUNTY— A pilot and passenger avoided injury after an emergency plane landing just before 10a.m. Monday in Lyon County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1977&nbsp;Grumman American fixed wing single-engine aircraft piloted by 41-year-old Joseph Ira&nbsp;Glover of&nbsp;Defuniak Springs, Flordia made the emergency landing when the propeller on the aircraft stoped working.

The plane came down in a corn field at 3951 N K-99 just southwest of the&nbsp;Road 400 intersection.&nbsp; &nbsp;

Glover and a passenger were not injured. The FAA and NTSB will investigate.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771877769811.png" alt="google map" />
 <figcaption>google map</figcaption>
 </figure>LYON COUNTY— A pilot and passenger avoided injury after an emergency plane landing just before 10a.m. Monday in Lyon County.The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1977&nbsp;Grumman American fixed wing single-engine aircraft piloted by 41-year-old Joseph Ira&nbsp;Glover of&nbsp;Defuniak Springs, Flordia made the emergency landing when the propeller on the aircraft stoped working.The plane came down in a corn field at 3951 N K-99 just southwest of the&nbsp;Road 400 intersection.&nbsp; &nbsp;Glover and a passenger were not injured. The FAA and NTSB will investigate.

Small plane makes emergency landing in Kan. cornfield

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks slumped Monday after President Donald Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-tariff-truth-social-872c8f04112a8991d8aa6ae5005767b6">ramped up his newest tariffs</a>, while investors continued to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-fed-jobs-profit-45f8d8df807d4b7ed9127afc4b5809c9">punish companies</a>&nbsp;that could be losers in the artificial-intelligence revolution.

The S&amp;P 500 fell 1% after Trump said on Saturday that he would place&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-tariff-truth-social-872c8f04112a8991d8aa6ae5005767b6">temporary 15% tariffs</a>&nbsp;on other countries. That’s up from the 10% rate he announced Friday following&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-tariffs-trump-0485fcda30a7310501123e4931dba3f9">a Supreme Court ruling</a>&nbsp;that struck down his sweeping “reciprocal” taxes on imports from around the world.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 821 points, or 1.7%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.1%.

Trump’s quick move toward more aggressive tariffs shows&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-tariff-trump-supreme-court-596a1adfee90975c018ca292f7e918f8">how much uncertainty still hangs</a>&nbsp;over the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tariffs-china-trump-trade-supreme-court-fb8d38ae3664e845199d13113d03b471">global economy</a>, even after the Supreme Court said the president lacked the legal authority to institute his sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs.

Beyond a 15% tariff that could last for up to 150 days, unless Congress extends it further, Trump is moving forward on other avenues to place more permanent tariffs on countries and industries. That has trading partners uneasy. South Korea’s trade minister, Kim Jung-kwan, said Monday that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tariffs-trump-china-eu-court-bessent-36c6951422ccd24f475429d4683e7e15">uncertainty may worsen</a>&nbsp;if the Trump administration continues imposing new tariffs under alternative laws.

To be sure, Monday’s moves for markets weren’t close to as bad as&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-rates-tariffs-52dbb020a4c41122e31669c2da236d67">the panic that swept the world in April,</a>&nbsp;when Trump initially announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs. U.S. stocks were modestly higher for a brief moment during the morning.

The U.S. dollar’s value edged lower against other currencies. Bitcoin briefly fell below $64,000 but remained above its low point reached earlier this month. Gold continued to rise thanks to its reputation as something safer to own during uncertain times.

Investors may be sensing it will take a long time, as well as more court battles, before more clarity comes about how global trade will look.

“Stocks got a boost Friday from the Supreme Court’s tariff ruling, but it quickly became clear that the decision was simply going to open a new chapter in the trade saga, not end it,” according to Chris Larkin, managing director, trading and investing, at E-Trade from Morgan Stanley.

On Wall Street, big losses hit companies under suspicion of getting undercut by AI-powered rivals. Investors have been sharply and suddenly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-fed-jobs-profit-45f8d8df807d4b7ed9127afc4b5809c9">punishing stocks of such companies</a>&nbsp;recently.

CrowdStrike fell 9.8% to widen its loss for the young year so far to 25.3%. A new tool from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/anthropic-claude-380b-valuation-openai-rivalry-ipo-65c08aa4fab90cde952f37d32625394a">Anthropic</a>&nbsp;that scans codebases for security vulnerabilities and suggests targeted software patches for human review has been hitting stocks across the cybersecurity industry.

AppLovin sank 9.1% and took its loss for the year to date to 43.5%. It’s among the software companies hurt by worries that AI competition will steal customers and fundamentally reset their industries.

Companies that have lent money to software companies whose revenues may be under threat also continued falling, and Blue Owl Capital fell 3.4% to bring its loss for the year so far to 30.1%.

More big moves may still be ahead for Wall Street this week, particularly with a profit report from Nvidia coming on Wednesday.

Worries are rising that companies like Alphabet and Amazon may be spending so much on Nvidia’s chips that they’ll never be able to recoup their investments through higher productivity and future profits.

Elsewhere on Wall Street, stocks of airlines fell after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/winter-storm-flight-cancellations-us-travel-54feed6ca0fb8e05c3b59326bd7ff24c">heavy snow and high winds canceled thousands of flights</a>&nbsp;across the busy Northeast.

United Airlines lost 5.2%, American Airlines fell 4.9% and Delta Air Lines sank 3.7%.

Novo Nordisk’s stock that trades in the United States tumbled 16.4% after the Danish drugmaker said a trial for its CagriSema drug showed people lost a smaller percentage of their weight after 84 weeks than with a similar one made by rival Eli Lilly. Eli Lilly rose 4.9%.

All told, the S&amp;P 500 fell 71.76 points to 6,837.75. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 821.91 to 48,804.06, and the Nasdaq composite sank 258.80 to 22,627.27.

In stock markets abroad, indexes mostly fell in Europe. They had risen on Friday after the Supreme Court’s ruling.

In Asia, where markets got their first chance to react to the court’s ruling, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 2.5%, while South Korea’s Kospi rose a more modest 0.6%. Markets in Japan and mainland China were closed for holidays.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.03% from 4.08% late Friday.

A top official at the Federal Reserve said Monday&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/waller-inflation-interest-rates-728aa0b00b5d3291169cb807472332d6">that it’s a “coin flip”</a>&nbsp;on whether the Fed will cut its main interest rate at its next meeting in March or stand pat again.

The comments from Fed. Gov. Christopher Waller were a notable shift from January, when he was one of the two Fed governors to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-trump-powell-inflation-c13913c9e007981f075fb3b22d4a4cec">dissent against</a>&nbsp;the central bank’s decision to hold its key rate steady after three rate cuts at the end of last year.

Lower rates would give the economy a boost, and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-trump-subpoena-bf4fc6c690fa248fbc531bc9bc7f1758">Trump has been</a>&nbsp;lobbying angrily for them. But they also could risk worsening inflation.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771881917415.png" alt="President Trump during his post Supreme Court tariff ruling press conference-image courtesy White House video" />
 <figcaption>President Trump during his post Supreme Court tariff ruling press conference-image courtesy White House video</figcaption>
 </figure>NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks slumped Monday after President Donald Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-tariff-truth-social-872c8f04112a8991d8aa6ae5005767b6">ramped up his newest tariffs</a>, while investors continued to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-fed-jobs-profit-45f8d8df807d4b7ed9127afc4b5809c9">punish companies</a>&nbsp;that could be losers in the artificial-intelligence revolution.The S&amp;P 500 fell 1% after Trump said on Saturday that he would place&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-tariff-truth-social-872c8f04112a8991d8aa6ae5005767b6">temporary 15% tariffs</a>&nbsp;on other countries. That’s up from the 10% rate he announced Friday following&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-tariffs-trump-0485fcda30a7310501123e4931dba3f9">a Supreme Court ruling</a>&nbsp;that struck down his sweeping “reciprocal” taxes on imports from around the world.The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 821 points, or 1.7%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.1%.Trump’s quick move toward more aggressive tariffs shows&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-tariff-trump-supreme-court-596a1adfee90975c018ca292f7e918f8">how much uncertainty still hangs</a>&nbsp;over the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tariffs-china-trump-trade-supreme-court-fb8d38ae3664e845199d13113d03b471">global economy</a>, even after the Supreme Court said the president lacked the legal authority to institute his sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs.Beyond a 15% tariff that could last for up to 150 days, unless Congress extends it further, Trump is moving forward on other avenues to place more permanent tariffs on countries and industries. That has trading partners uneasy. South Korea’s trade minister, Kim Jung-kwan, said Monday that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tariffs-trump-china-eu-court-bessent-36c6951422ccd24f475429d4683e7e15">uncertainty may worsen</a>&nbsp;if the Trump administration continues imposing new tariffs under alternative laws.To be sure, Monday’s moves for markets weren’t close to as bad as&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-rates-tariffs-52dbb020a4c41122e31669c2da236d67">the panic that swept the world in April,</a>&nbsp;when Trump initially announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs. U.S. stocks were modestly higher for a brief moment during the morning.The U.S. dollar’s value edged lower against other currencies. Bitcoin briefly fell below $64,000 but remained above its low point reached earlier this month. Gold continued to rise thanks to its reputation as something safer to own during uncertain times.Investors may be sensing it will take a long time, as well as more court battles, before more clarity comes about how global trade will look.“Stocks got a boost Friday from the Supreme Court’s tariff ruling, but it quickly became clear that the decision was simply going to open a new chapter in the trade saga, not end it,” according to Chris Larkin, managing director, trading and investing, at E-Trade from Morgan Stanley.On Wall Street, big losses hit companies under suspicion of getting undercut by AI-powered rivals. Investors have been sharply and suddenly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-fed-jobs-profit-45f8d8df807d4b7ed9127afc4b5809c9">punishing stocks of such companies</a>&nbsp;recently.CrowdStrike fell 9.8% to widen its loss for the young year so far to 25.3%. A new tool from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/anthropic-claude-380b-valuation-openai-rivalry-ipo-65c08aa4fab90cde952f37d32625394a">Anthropic</a>&nbsp;that scans codebases for security vulnerabilities and suggests targeted software patches for human review has been hitting stocks across the cybersecurity industry.AppLovin sank 9.1% and took its loss for the year to date to 43.5%. It’s among the software companies hurt by worries that AI competition will steal customers and fundamentally reset their industries.Companies that have lent money to software companies whose revenues may be under threat also continued falling, and Blue Owl Capital fell 3.4% to bring its loss for the year so far to 30.1%.More big moves may still be ahead for Wall Street this week, particularly with a profit report from Nvidia coming on Wednesday.Worries are rising that companies like Alphabet and Amazon may be spending so much on Nvidia’s chips that they’ll never be able to recoup their investments through higher productivity and future profits.Elsewhere on Wall Street, stocks of airlines fell after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/winter-storm-flight-cancellations-us-travel-54feed6ca0fb8e05c3b59326bd7ff24c">heavy snow and high winds canceled thousands of flights</a>&nbsp;across the busy Northeast.United Airlines lost 5.2%, American Airlines fell 4.9% and Delta Air Lines sank 3.7%.Novo Nordisk’s stock that trades in the United States tumbled 16.4% after the Danish drugmaker said a trial for its CagriSema drug showed people lost a smaller percentage of their weight after 84 weeks than with a similar one made by rival Eli Lilly. Eli Lilly rose 4.9%.All told, the S&amp;P 500 fell 71.76 points to 6,837.75. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 821.91 to 48,804.06, and the Nasdaq composite sank 258.80 to 22,627.27.In stock markets abroad, indexes mostly fell in Europe. They had risen on Friday after the Supreme Court’s ruling.In Asia, where markets got their first chance to react to the court’s ruling, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 2.5%, while South Korea’s Kospi rose a more modest 0.6%. Markets in Japan and mainland China were closed for holidays.In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.03% from 4.08% late Friday.A top official at the Federal Reserve said Monday&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/waller-inflation-interest-rates-728aa0b00b5d3291169cb807472332d6">that it’s a “coin flip”</a>&nbsp;on whether the Fed will cut its main interest rate at its next meeting in March or stand pat again.The comments from Fed. Gov. Christopher Waller were a notable shift from January, when he was one of the two Fed governors to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-trump-powell-inflation-c13913c9e007981f075fb3b22d4a4cec">dissent against</a>&nbsp;the central bank’s decision to hold its key rate steady after three rate cuts at the end of last year.Lower rates would give the economy a boost, and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-trump-subpoena-bf4fc6c690fa248fbc531bc9bc7f1758">Trump has been</a>&nbsp;lobbying angrily for them. But they also could risk worsening inflation.___

US stocks drop after Trump ramps up new tariffs

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States has ordered nonessential diplomats and their family members at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut to leave Lebanon, a State Department official said Monday, as tensions over Iran rise with&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-russia-drill-nuclear-talks-aircraft-carrier-0456903e0d7a24cfcdc33d53732dee2f">the threat of a potentially imminent military strike</a>.

he official said a continuous assessment of the regional security environment determined it was “prudent” to draw down the U.S. Embassy’s footprint so that only essential personnel remain at their posts.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been formally announced, said that it is a temporary measure and that the embassy will remain operational.

Lebanon has been the site of numerous Iran-related retaliatory attacks against U.S. facilities, interests and personnel for decades given Tehran's support for and influence with the Hezbollah militant group, which is held responsible for the deadly bombings of the Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983 and an embassy annex in 1984.

As such, changes in the staffing status of the embassy in Beirut have often been seen as a bellwether for potential U.S. or Israeli military action in the region, particularly against Iran. A similar ordered departure was imposed for Beirut and other embassies in the region, including in Iraq, shortly before President Donald Trump ordered&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-iran-war-nuclear-talks-geneva-news-06-21-2025-a7b0cdaba28b5817467ccf712d214579">military strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities</a>&nbsp;last June.

It was unclear if other American embassies in the Middle East would implement similar orders.

Tensions have escalated between the U.S. and Iran as Trump has built up&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-military-middle-east-iran-protests-b7a56659d708f2f11f66a18135f44c40">the largest military presence in the Middle East in decades</a>&nbsp;and repeatedly threatened action if Tehran does not negotiate a deal to constrain its nuclear program.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-iran-aircraft-carrier-military-8db3fab10476949acda8b973be416204">A second aircraft carrier</a>&nbsp;is heading to the region to join a surge of other American warships and aircraft, offering the Republican president several options for a potential strike even as talks may continue.

Oman’s foreign minister, Badr al-Busaidi, said the U.S. and Iran plan to hold&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/iran-protests-khamenei-universities-tehran-trump-military-dd81a3d1e464975c56f02b729e742014">their next round of nuclear talks</a>&nbsp;Thursday in Geneva.

Iran’s top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, told CBS on Sunday that he expected to meet U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff then and said a “good chance” remained for a diplomatic solution on the nuclear issue.

Araghchi has said a proposed deal would be ready to share within days, and he told CBS that Iran was still working on it.

Asked Friday whether the U.S. could take limited military action as&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-nuclear-talks-iaea-dbed41b78ce2ddabc8a04349e72abeba">the countries negotiate</a>, Trump said, “I guess I can say I am considering that.” He also told reporters later that Iran “better negotiate a fair deal.”

Indirect talks between the longtime adversaries in recent weeks have made little visible progress. Beyond the nuclear program, Iran has refused to discuss wider U.S. and Israeli&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-iran-trump-netanyahu-nuclear-talks-fa5be8069deb4b1b01cdf30d3e3525e7">demands that it scale back its missile program</a>&nbsp;and sever ties to armed groups.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States has ordered nonessential diplomats and their family members at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut to leave Lebanon, a State Department official said Monday, as tensions over Iran rise with&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-russia-drill-nuclear-talks-aircraft-carrier-0456903e0d7a24cfcdc33d53732dee2f">the threat of a potentially imminent military strike</a>.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Lebanon: On February 23, 2026 the Department of State ordered the departure from Lebanon of non-emergency U.S. government personnel and family members of government personnel due to the security situation in Beirut. The Travel Advisory for Lebanon remains at Level 4 – Do Not… <a href="https://t.co/wtl2HmtiI3">pic.twitter.com/wtl2HmtiI3</a>&mdash; TravelGov (@TravelGov) <a href="https://twitter.com/TravelGov/status/2025989249284309215?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 23, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>he official said a continuous assessment of the regional security environment determined it was “prudent” to draw down the U.S. Embassy’s footprint so that only essential personnel remain at their posts.The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been formally announced, said that it is a temporary measure and that the embassy will remain operational.Lebanon has been the site of numerous Iran-related retaliatory attacks against U.S. facilities, interests and personnel for decades given Tehran's support for and influence with the Hezbollah militant group, which is held responsible for the deadly bombings of the Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983 and an embassy annex in 1984.As such, changes in the staffing status of the embassy in Beirut have often been seen as a bellwether for potential U.S. or Israeli military action in the region, particularly against Iran. A similar ordered departure was imposed for Beirut and other embassies in the region, including in Iraq, shortly before President Donald Trump ordered&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-iran-war-nuclear-talks-geneva-news-06-21-2025-a7b0cdaba28b5817467ccf712d214579">military strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities</a>&nbsp;last June.It was unclear if other American embassies in the Middle East would implement similar orders.Tensions have escalated between the U.S. and Iran as Trump has built up&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-military-middle-east-iran-protests-b7a56659d708f2f11f66a18135f44c40">the largest military presence in the Middle East in decades</a>&nbsp;and repeatedly threatened action if Tehran does not negotiate a deal to constrain its nuclear program.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-iran-aircraft-carrier-military-8db3fab10476949acda8b973be416204">A second aircraft carrier</a>&nbsp;is heading to the region to join a surge of other American warships and aircraft, offering the Republican president several options for a potential strike even as talks may continue.Oman’s foreign minister, Badr al-Busaidi, said the U.S. and Iran plan to hold&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/iran-protests-khamenei-universities-tehran-trump-military-dd81a3d1e464975c56f02b729e742014">their next round of nuclear talks</a>&nbsp;Thursday in Geneva.Iran’s top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, told CBS on Sunday that he expected to meet U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff then and said a “good chance” remained for a diplomatic solution on the nuclear issue.Araghchi has said a proposed deal would be ready to share within days, and he told CBS that Iran was still working on it.Asked Friday whether the U.S. could take limited military action as&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-nuclear-talks-iaea-dbed41b78ce2ddabc8a04349e72abeba">the countries negotiate</a>, Trump said, “I guess I can say I am considering that.” He also told reporters later that Iran “better negotiate a fair deal.”Indirect talks between the longtime adversaries in recent weeks have made little visible progress. Beyond the nuclear program, Iran has refused to discuss wider U.S. and Israeli&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-iran-trump-netanyahu-nuclear-talks-fa5be8069deb4b1b01cdf30d3e3525e7">demands that it scale back its missile program</a>&nbsp;and sever ties to armed groups.

Tensions with Iran soar: U.S. orders some diplomats to leave Lebanon

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">The Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;said Monday that it will hear from oil and gas companies trying to block lawsuits seeking to hold the industry liable for billions of dollars in damage linked to climate change.

The conservative-majority court agreed to take up a case from Boulder, Colorado, among&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-climate-change-oil-gas-companies-7548dbfe5cb38a9174330602cbef42c2">a series of lawsuits</a>&nbsp;alleging the companies deceived the public about how fossil fuels contribute to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/climate-and-environment">climate change</a>.

Governments around the country have sought damages totaling billions of dollars, arguing it's necessary to help pay for rebuilding after wildfires, rising sea levels and severe storms worsened by climate change. The lawsuits come amid&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/youth-climate-change-lawsuit-montana-7c4b6261f610d504995743f7320533e8">a wave of legal actions</a>&nbsp;in states including California, Hawaii and New Jersey&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/5534fe18ac5352ba43c74c9a64d6a20a">and worldwide</a>&nbsp;seeking to leverage action through the courts.

Suncor Energy and ExxonMobil appealed to the Supreme Court after Colorado’s highest court let the Boulder case proceed. The companies argue emissions are a national issue that should be heard in federal court, where similar suits have been tossed out.

“The use of state law to address global climate change represents a serious threat to one of our Nation’s most critical sectors,” attorneys wrote.

President Donald Trump's administration weighed in to support the companies and urge the justices to reverse the Colorado Supreme Court decision, saying it would mean “every locality in the country could sue essentially anyone in the world for contributing to global climate change.”

Trump, a Republican, has criticized the lawsuits in an executive order, and the Justice Department has sought to head some off in court.

Attorneys for Boulder had agued that the litigation is still in early stages and should stay in state court. “There is no constitutional bar to states addressing in-state harms caused by out-of-state conduct, be it the negligent design of an automobile or sale of asbestos,” they wrote.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771858682801.png" alt="Post photo" />
 <figcaption>Post photo</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">The Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;said Monday that it will hear from oil and gas companies trying to block lawsuits seeking to hold the industry liable for billions of dollars in damage linked to climate change.The conservative-majority court agreed to take up a case from Boulder, Colorado, among&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-climate-change-oil-gas-companies-7548dbfe5cb38a9174330602cbef42c2">a series of lawsuits</a>&nbsp;alleging the companies deceived the public about how fossil fuels contribute to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/climate-and-environment">climate change</a>.Governments around the country have sought damages totaling billions of dollars, arguing it's necessary to help pay for rebuilding after wildfires, rising sea levels and severe storms worsened by climate change. The lawsuits come amid&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/youth-climate-change-lawsuit-montana-7c4b6261f610d504995743f7320533e8">a wave of legal actions</a>&nbsp;in states including California, Hawaii and New Jersey&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/5534fe18ac5352ba43c74c9a64d6a20a">and worldwide</a>&nbsp;seeking to leverage action through the courts.Suncor Energy and ExxonMobil appealed to the Supreme Court after Colorado’s highest court let the Boulder case proceed. The companies argue emissions are a national issue that should be heard in federal court, where similar suits have been tossed out.“The use of state law to address global climate change represents a serious threat to one of our Nation’s most critical sectors,” attorneys wrote.President Donald Trump's administration weighed in to support the companies and urge the justices to reverse the Colorado Supreme Court decision, saying it would mean “every locality in the country could sue essentially anyone in the world for contributing to global climate change.”Trump, a Republican, has criticized the lawsuits in an executive order, and the Justice Department has sought to head some off in court.Attorneys for Boulder had agued that the litigation is still in early stages and should stay in state court. “There is no constitutional bar to states addressing in-state harms caused by out-of-state conduct, be it the negligent design of an automobile or sale of asbestos,” they wrote.

Supreme Court to hear oil companies' plea to end climate change lawsuits

RILEY COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on multiple allegations after an arrest.

Just after 9a.m.&nbsp; February 20, police arrested 27-year-old Tyrea Stewart of Junction City in the 100 block of Courthouse Plaza in Manhattan, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report. 

Stewart is being without bond for two Riley County District Court warrants for probation violation. The arrest stems from original charges of endangering a child, driving under the influence, improper child passenger safety restraint and transportation of liquor in an open container.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763659813284.jpeg" alt="Tyrea Stewart photo from a previous arrest in Geary County" />
 <figcaption>Tyrea Stewart photo from a previous arrest in Geary County</figcaption>
 </figure>RILEY COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on multiple allegations after an arrest.Just after 9a.m.&nbsp; February 20, police arrested 27-year-old Tyrea Stewart of Junction City in the 100 block of Courthouse Plaza in Manhattan, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report. Stewart is being without bond for two Riley County District Court warrants for probation violation. The arrest stems from original charges of endangering a child, driving under the influence, improper child passenger safety restraint and transportation of liquor in an open container.&nbsp;

Police: Kan. man accused of DUI with child in the car

HARVEY COUNTY —The Harvey County Sheriff’s Office has released the name of the man who died in a farming accident in Harvey County over the weekend.

Mark Klaassen, 37, of Newton, was shifting soybeans Saturday inside a grain bin on a farm in the 2100 block of South Spencer Road, according to a media release from the sheriff's office. The contents suddenly shifted, trapping and injuring Klaassen.

Emergency responders were dispatched to the incident at 2:30 p.m. Klaassen was pronounced dead at the scene. Two other men were working alongside Klaassen. They did not request medical treatment. The death was ruled accidental.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771861613107.png" alt="View of where the accident occurred-photo courtesy KWCH" />
 <figcaption>View of where the accident occurred-photo courtesy KWCH</figcaption>
 </figure>HARVEY COUNTY —The Harvey County Sheriff’s Office has released the name of the man who died in a farming accident in Harvey County over the weekend.Mark Klaassen, 37, of Newton, was shifting soybeans Saturday inside a grain bin on a farm in the 2100 block of South Spencer Road, according to a media release from the sheriff's office. The contents suddenly shifted, trapping and injuring Klaassen.Emergency responders were dispatched to the incident at 2:30 p.m. Klaassen was pronounced dead at the scene. Two other men were working alongside Klaassen. They did not request medical treatment. The death was ruled accidental.

Sheriff IDs Kansas man who died in grain bin accident

SHAWNEE COUNTY —A man wanted in connection with the November shooting death of a 16-year-old Kansas boy is in custody. Just before 9p.m. Sunday, police booked 20-year-old&nbsp; Nassir Tiriq Gill into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections, according to online jail records.&nbsp; Police have not released details on the circumstances of his arrest.

On Friday, police asked the public for help to locate him in connection with the November killing of 16-year-old Kingston Scott.

Just before 1a.m. November 22, 2025,&nbsp; police responded to several reports of gunshots around SE 37th Street and SE Adams Street in Topeka. While officers were investigating that area, they received information on a subject arriving at a local hospital by private vehicle with apparent gunshot wounds. The victim later identified as Kingston Scott of Topeka was pronounced deceased.&nbsp;

As a result of the investigation police have already arrested two 16-year-old boys from Topeka on&nbsp;&nbsp;charges including murder, Criminal discharge of firearm; Occupied vehicle with great bodily harm and Aggravated Assault; Use of a deadly weapon.

&nbsp;Gill is being held on requested charges of&nbsp; Murder in the 1st degree; Intentional and premeditated, Murder in the 1st degree; In the commission of a felony. Murder in the 1st degree; Intentional and premeditated, Criminal discharge of firearm; Occupied vehicle w great bodily harm, Criminal discharge of firearm; Recklessly at occupied dwelling and Criminal damage to property; Without consent value &lt; $1000, according to online jail records.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1764973228137.png" alt="Kingston Scott photo GoFundMe" />
 <figcaption>Kingston Scott photo GoFundMe</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —A man wanted in connection with the November shooting death of a 16-year-old Kansas boy is in custody. Just before 9p.m. Sunday, police booked 20-year-old&nbsp; Nassir Tiriq Gill into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections, according to online jail records.&nbsp; Police have not released details on the circumstances of his arrest.On Friday, police asked the public for help to locate him in connection with the November killing of 16-year-old Kingston Scott.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771847664741.png" alt="Gill photo Shawnee&nbsp; County" />
 <figcaption>Gill photo Shawnee&nbsp; County</figcaption>
 </figure>Just before 1a.m. November 22, 2025,&nbsp; police responded to several reports of gunshots around SE 37th Street and SE Adams Street in Topeka. While officers were investigating that area, they received information on a subject arriving at a local hospital by private vehicle with apparent gunshot wounds. The victim later identified as Kingston Scott of Topeka was pronounced deceased.&nbsp;As a result of the investigation police have already arrested two 16-year-old boys from Topeka on&nbsp;&nbsp;charges including murder, Criminal discharge of firearm; Occupied vehicle with great bodily harm and Aggravated Assault; Use of a deadly weapon.&nbsp;Gill is being held on requested charges of&nbsp; Murder in the 1st degree; Intentional and premeditated, Murder in the 1st degree; In the commission of a felony. Murder in the 1st degree; Intentional and premeditated, Criminal discharge of firearm; Occupied vehicle w great bodily harm, Criminal discharge of firearm; Recklessly at occupied dwelling and Criminal damage to property; Without consent value &lt; $1000, according to online jail records.

Suspect in murder of 16-year-old Kan. boy is in custody

SOCORRO, Texas (AP) — In a Texas town at the edge of the Rio Grande and a tall metal border wall, rumors swirled that federal&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/immigration">immigration</a>&nbsp;officials wanted to purchase three hulking warehouses to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigrant-detention-warehouses-ice-trump-51ad28e6b1e1c3fa60a38029d932aeeb">transform into a detention center.</a>

As&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigrant-detention-warehouses-ice-trump-a4a71226409cd9fedc9aa5de5ec90654">local officials scrambled</a>&nbsp;to find out what was happening, a deed was filed showing the Department of Homeland Security had already inked a $122.8 million deal for the 826,000-square-foot (76,738-square-meter) warehouses in Socorro, a bedroom community of 40,000 people outside El Paso.

“Nobody from the federal government bothered to pick up the phone or even send us any type of correspondence letting us know what’s about to take place,” said Rudy Cruz Jr., the mayor of the predominantly Hispanic town of low-slung ranch homes and trailer parks, where orchards and irrigation ditches share the landscape with strip malls, truck stops, recycling plants and distribution warehouses.

Socorro is among at least 20 communities with large warehouses across the U.S. that have become stealth targets for Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s $45-billion&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-detention-louisiana-trump-3db72b138d1a6ee8a7bb5388669a1666">expansion of detention centers</a>.

As&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-immigration-ice-minneapolis-deportation-42aff472ccf1ecd7b92ba0c90469c9e7">public support</a>&nbsp;for the agency and President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-republicans-minnesota-immigration-homeland-ice-5fe9c40236203703751c6274f8da435f">sags,</a>&nbsp;communities are objecting to mass detentions and raising concerns that the facilities could strain water supplies and other services while reducing local tax revenue. In many cases, mayors, county commissioners, governors and members of Congress learned about ICE’s ambitions only after the agency bought or leased space for detainees, leading to shock and frustration even in areas that have backed Trump.

“I just feel,” said Cruz, whose wife was born in Mexico, “that they do these things in silence so that they don’t get opposition.”

ICE, which is part of DHS, has purchased at least seven warehouses in Arizona, Georgia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Texas, signed deeds show. Other deals have been announced but not yet finalized, though buyers scuttled sales in eight locations.

DHS objected to calling the sites warehouses, stressing in a statement that they would be “very well structured detention facilities meeting our regular detention standards.”

The process has been chaotic at times. ICE this past week acknowledged it made a “mistake” when it announced warehouse purchases in Chester, New York, and Roxbury, New Jersey. Roxbury then announced Friday that the sale there had closed.

DHS has confirmed it is looking for more detention space but hasn’t disclosed individual sites ahead of acquisitions. Some cities learned that ICE was scouting warehouses through reporters. Others were tipped off by a spreadsheet circulating online among activists whose source is unclear.

It wasn’t until Feb. 13 that the scope of the warehouse project was confirmed, when the governor’s office in New Hampshire, where there is backlash to a planned 500-bed processing center, released a document from ICE showing the agency plans to spend $38.3 billion&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ice-detention-facilities-expansion-warehouses-c61c3e23c4246e94a760b4d979cb9c48">to boost detention capacity to 92,000 beds</a>.

Since Trump took office, the number of people detained by ICE has increased to 75,000 from 40,000, spread across more than 225 sites.

ICE could use the warehouses to consolidate and to increase capacity. The document describes a project that includes eight large-scale detention centers, capable of housing 7,000 to 10,000 detainees each, and 16 smaller regional processing centers. The document also refers to the acquisition of 10 existing “turnkey” facilities.

The project is funded through&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-sign-tax-cut-bill-july-4-3804df732e461a626fd8c2b43413c3f0">the big tax and spending cuts bill</a>&nbsp;passed by Congress last year that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-immigration-ice-deportation-budget-be983b14f60a5cdfc17af7cf0307f1c9">nearly doubled DHS’ budget.</a>&nbsp;To build the detention centers, the Trump administration is using military contracts.

Those contracts allow a lot of secrecy and for DHS to move quickly without following the usual processes and safeguards, said Charles Tiefer, a professor emeritus of law at the University of Baltimore Law School.

Socorro facility could be among the largest

In Socorro, the ICE-owned warehouses are so large that 4 1/2 Walmart Supercenters could fit inside, standing in contrast to the remnants of the austere Spanish colonial and mission architecture that defines the town.

At a recent City Council meeting, public comments stretched for hours. “I think a lot of innocent people are getting caught up in their dragnet,” said Jorge Mendoza, an El Paso County retiree whose grandparents immigrated from Mexico.

Many speakers invoked concerns about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ice-immigration-detention-death-texas-f04b5cb76f175255e58b947f0e14bc12">three recent deaths</a>&nbsp;at an ICE detention facility at the nearby Fort Bliss Army base.

Even communities that backed Trump in 2024 have been caught off guard by ICE’s plans and have raised concerns.

In rural Pennsylvania’s Berks County, commissioner Christian Leinbach called the district attorney, the sheriff, the jail warden and the county’s head of emergency services when he first heard ICE might buy a warehouse in Upper Bern Township, 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) from his home.

A few days later, a local official in charge of land records informed him that ICE had bought the building —&nbsp;<a href="https://www.loopnet.com/viewer/pdf?file=https%3a%2f%2fimages1.loopnet.com%2fd2%2f7i2RZgAWTM0ps1PuIY386PsUTrc8NDygNcAeBSipteA%2fMarketing%2520BrochureFlyer.pdf" target="_blank">promoted</a>&nbsp;by developers as a “state-of-the art logistics center” — for $87.4 million.

“There was absolutely no warning,” Leinbach said during a meeting in which he raised concerns that turning the warehouse into a federal facility means a loss of more than $800,000 in local tax dollars.

ICE has touted the income taxes its workers would pay, though the facilities themselves will be exempt from property taxes.

A Georgia detention center could house twice the population of the city where it’s located

In Social Circle, Georgia, which also strongly supported Trump in 2024, officials were stunned by ICE’s plans for a facility that could hold 7,500 to 10,000 people after first learning about it through a reporter.

The city, which has a population of just 5,000 and worries about the infrastructure needs for such a detention center, only heard from DHS after the $128.6 million sale of a 1 million-square-foot (92,900-square-meter) warehouse was completed. Like Socorro and Berks County, Social Circle questioned whether the water and sewage system could keep up.

ICE has said it did due diligence to ensure the sites don’t overwhelm city utilities. But Social Circle said the agency’s analysis relied on a yet-to-be built sewer treatment plant.

“To be clear, the City has repeatedly communicated that it does not have the capacity or resources to accommodate this demand, and no proposal presented to date has demonstrated otherwise,” the city said in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.socialcirclega.gov/Home/Components/News/News/241/16" target="_blank">a statement</a>.

And in the Phoenix suburb of Surprise, officials sent a scathing letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem after ICE without warning bought a massive warehouse in a residential area about a mile from a high school. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, a Democrat, raised the prospect of going to court to have the site declared a public nuisance.

Back in Socorro, people waiting to speak against the ICE facility spilled out of the City Council chambers, some standing beside murals paying tribute to the World War II-era Braceros Program that allowed Mexican farmworkers to be guest workers in the U.S. The program stoked Socorro’s economy and population before President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s administration&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-deportations-immigration-gop-147d96fd00aa4c56e2cbe6074eceb874">in the 1950s</a>&nbsp;began mass deportations aimed at people who had crossed the border illegally.

Eduardo Castillo, formerly an attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice, told city officials it is intimidating but “not impossible” to challenge the federal government.

“If you don’t at least try,” he said, “you will end up with another inhumane detention facility built in your jurisdiction and under your watch.”

Hollingsworth reported from Kansas City, Missouri. Holly Ramer in Concord, New Hampshire, and Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, also contributed.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770144789440.jpeg" alt="File An ICE agent stands outside a warehouse as federal officials tour the facility to consider repurposing it as an ICE detention facility, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)" />
 <figcaption>File An ICE agent stands outside a warehouse as federal officials tour the facility to consider repurposing it as an ICE detention facility, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)</figcaption>
 </figure>By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH and MORGAN LEESOCORRO, Texas (AP) — In a Texas town at the edge of the Rio Grande and a tall metal border wall, rumors swirled that federal&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/immigration">immigration</a>&nbsp;officials wanted to purchase three hulking warehouses to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigrant-detention-warehouses-ice-trump-51ad28e6b1e1c3fa60a38029d932aeeb">transform into a detention center.</a>As&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigrant-detention-warehouses-ice-trump-a4a71226409cd9fedc9aa5de5ec90654">local officials scrambled</a>&nbsp;to find out what was happening, a deed was filed showing the Department of Homeland Security had already inked a $122.8 million deal for the 826,000-square-foot (76,738-square-meter) warehouses in Socorro, a bedroom community of 40,000 people outside El Paso.“Nobody from the federal government bothered to pick up the phone or even send us any type of correspondence letting us know what’s about to take place,” said Rudy Cruz Jr., the mayor of the predominantly Hispanic town of low-slung ranch homes and trailer parks, where orchards and irrigation ditches share the landscape with strip malls, truck stops, recycling plants and distribution warehouses.Socorro is among at least 20 communities with large warehouses across the U.S. that have become stealth targets for Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s $45-billion&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-detention-louisiana-trump-3db72b138d1a6ee8a7bb5388669a1666">expansion of detention centers</a>.As&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-immigration-ice-minneapolis-deportation-42aff472ccf1ecd7b92ba0c90469c9e7">public support</a>&nbsp;for the agency and President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-republicans-minnesota-immigration-homeland-ice-5fe9c40236203703751c6274f8da435f">sags,</a>&nbsp;communities are objecting to mass detentions and raising concerns that the facilities could strain water supplies and other services while reducing local tax revenue. In many cases, mayors, county commissioners, governors and members of Congress learned about ICE’s ambitions only after the agency bought or leased space for detainees, leading to shock and frustration even in areas that have backed Trump.“I just feel,” said Cruz, whose wife was born in Mexico, “that they do these things in silence so that they don’t get opposition.”<h2>Communities scramble for information</h2>ICE, which is part of DHS, has purchased at least seven warehouses in Arizona, Georgia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Texas, signed deeds show. Other deals have been announced but not yet finalized, though buyers scuttled sales in eight locations.DHS objected to calling the sites warehouses, stressing in a statement that they would be “very well structured detention facilities meeting our regular detention standards.”The process has been chaotic at times. ICE this past week acknowledged it made a “mistake” when it announced warehouse purchases in Chester, New York, and Roxbury, New Jersey. Roxbury then announced Friday that the sale there had closed.DHS has confirmed it is looking for more detention space but hasn’t disclosed individual sites ahead of acquisitions. Some cities learned that ICE was scouting warehouses through reporters. Others were tipped off by a spreadsheet circulating online among activists whose source is unclear.It wasn’t until Feb. 13 that the scope of the warehouse project was confirmed, when the governor’s office in New Hampshire, where there is backlash to a planned 500-bed processing center, released a document from ICE showing the agency plans to spend $38.3 billion&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ice-detention-facilities-expansion-warehouses-c61c3e23c4246e94a760b4d979cb9c48">to boost detention capacity to 92,000 beds</a>.Since Trump took office, the number of people detained by ICE has increased to 75,000 from 40,000, spread across more than 225 sites.ICE could use the warehouses to consolidate and to increase capacity. The document describes a project that includes eight large-scale detention centers, capable of housing 7,000 to 10,000 detainees each, and 16 smaller regional processing centers. The document also refers to the acquisition of 10 existing “turnkey” facilities.The project is funded through&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-sign-tax-cut-bill-july-4-3804df732e461a626fd8c2b43413c3f0">the big tax and spending cuts bill</a>&nbsp;passed by Congress last year that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-immigration-ice-deportation-budget-be983b14f60a5cdfc17af7cf0307f1c9">nearly doubled DHS’ budget.</a>&nbsp;To build the detention centers, the Trump administration is using military contracts.Those contracts allow a lot of secrecy and for DHS to move quickly without following the usual processes and safeguards, said Charles Tiefer, a professor emeritus of law at the University of Baltimore Law School.<h2>Socorro facility could be among the largest</h2>In Socorro, the ICE-owned warehouses are so large that 4 1/2 Walmart Supercenters could fit inside, standing in contrast to the remnants of the austere Spanish colonial and mission architecture that defines the town.At a recent City Council meeting, public comments stretched for hours. “I think a lot of innocent people are getting caught up in their dragnet,” said Jorge Mendoza, an El Paso County retiree whose grandparents immigrated from Mexico.Many speakers invoked concerns about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ice-immigration-detention-death-texas-f04b5cb76f175255e58b947f0e14bc12">three recent deaths</a>&nbsp;at an ICE detention facility at the nearby Fort Bliss Army base.<h2>Communities fear a financial hit</h2>Even communities that backed Trump in 2024 have been caught off guard by ICE’s plans and have raised concerns.In rural Pennsylvania’s Berks County, commissioner Christian Leinbach called the district attorney, the sheriff, the jail warden and the county’s head of emergency services when he first heard ICE might buy a warehouse in Upper Bern Township, 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) from his home.No one knew anything.A few days later, a local official in charge of land records informed him that ICE had bought the building —&nbsp;<a href="https://www.loopnet.com/viewer/pdf?file=https%3a%2f%2fimages1.loopnet.com%2fd2%2f7i2RZgAWTM0ps1PuIY386PsUTrc8NDygNcAeBSipteA%2fMarketing%2520BrochureFlyer.pdf" target="_blank">promoted</a>&nbsp;by developers as a “state-of-the art logistics center” — for $87.4 million.“There was absolutely no warning,” Leinbach said during a meeting in which he raised concerns that turning the warehouse into a federal facility means a loss of more than $800,000 in local tax dollars.ICE has touted the income taxes its workers would pay, though the facilities themselves will be exempt from property taxes.<h2>A Georgia detention center could house twice the population of the city where it’s located</h2>In Social Circle, Georgia, which also strongly supported Trump in 2024, officials were stunned by ICE’s plans for a facility that could hold 7,500 to 10,000 people after first learning about it through a reporter.The city, which has a population of just 5,000 and worries about the infrastructure needs for such a detention center, only heard from DHS after the $128.6 million sale of a 1 million-square-foot (92,900-square-meter) warehouse was completed. Like Socorro and Berks County, Social Circle questioned whether the water and sewage system could keep up.ICE has said it did due diligence to ensure the sites don’t overwhelm city utilities. But Social Circle said the agency’s analysis relied on a yet-to-be built sewer treatment plant.“To be clear, the City has repeatedly communicated that it does not have the capacity or resources to accommodate this demand, and no proposal presented to date has demonstrated otherwise,” the city said in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.socialcirclega.gov/Home/Components/News/News/241/16" target="_blank">a statement</a>.And in the Phoenix suburb of Surprise, officials sent a scathing letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem after ICE without warning bought a massive warehouse in a residential area about a mile from a high school. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, a Democrat, raised the prospect of going to court to have the site declared a public nuisance.<h2>Crowds wait to speak in Socorro</h2>Back in Socorro, people waiting to speak against the ICE facility spilled out of the City Council chambers, some standing beside murals paying tribute to the World War II-era Braceros Program that allowed Mexican farmworkers to be guest workers in the U.S. The program stoked Socorro’s economy and population before President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s administration&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-deportations-immigration-gop-147d96fd00aa4c56e2cbe6074eceb874">in the 1950s</a>&nbsp;began mass deportations aimed at people who had crossed the border illegally.Eduardo Castillo, formerly an attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice, told city officials it is intimidating but “not impossible” to challenge the federal government.“If you don’t at least try,” he said, “you will end up with another inhumane detention facility built in your jurisdiction and under your watch.”___Hollingsworth reported from Kansas City, Missouri. Holly Ramer in Concord, New Hampshire, and Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, also contributed.

ICE quietly buying warehouses for detention centers and leaving local officials out of the loop

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement continue investigating and searching for a suspect in a fatal shooting that occurred October 23 at Dr. Glen Dey Park, located at 2801 N. Grove in Wichita.&nbsp; Crime Stoppers is offering a $10,000 reward in the case.  Police indicated they have only received very few tips on the investigation since the crime occurred.

At approximately 7:03 p.m. an off-duty WPD detective working secondary employment at&nbsp; the park heard multiple gunshots from another area of the park. The detective immediately ran toward the scene and found 32-year-old Travon Stewart suffering from gunshot wounds.

The detective called for backup and emergency medical services, then began life-saving measures until EMS arrived. Stewart was transported to a local hospital in extremely critical condition and later died from his injuries.

Preliminary findings indicate that around 200 to 300 people were in attendance at the football games. Stewart was at the park selling concessions as a fundraiser for a football team not affiliated with the Wichita Junior Football League.

Homicide investigators responded to the scene and interviewed witnesses who remained in the area. Detectives believe this was a targeted shooting and not connected to the youth football games.

Anyone who attended the games or may have information is urged to contact the Wichita Police Department Investigations Section at 316-268-4407.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/10/1761331970728.png" alt="Police on the scene of the investigation -photo courtesy KWCH" />
 <figcaption>Police on the scene of the investigation -photo courtesy KWCH</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement continue investigating and searching for a suspect in a fatal shooting that occurred October 23 at Dr. Glen Dey Park, located at 2801 N. Grove in Wichita.&nbsp; Crime Stoppers is offering a $10,000 reward in the case. Police indicated they have only received very few tips on the investigation since the crime occurred.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762985053767.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>\<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">CRIME STOPPERS APPROVES $10,000 REWARD ***PRESS RELEASE*** WICHITA, Kan. – Crime Stoppers of Wichita/Sedgwick County has approved an increased reward of $10,000 for information leading to the arrest of the suspect responsible for the homicide of Trayvon Stewart. <a href="https://t.co/sgNgtHlJHj">pic.twitter.com/sgNgtHlJHj</a>&mdash; Crime Stoppers ICT (@crimestoppers) <a href="https://twitter.com/crimestoppers/status/1988667731865211043?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 12, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>At approximately 7:03 p.m. an off-duty WPD detective working secondary employment at&nbsp; the park heard multiple gunshots from another area of the park. The detective immediately ran toward the scene and found 32-year-old Travon Stewart suffering from gunshot wounds.The detective called for backup and emergency medical services, then began life-saving measures until EMS arrived. Stewart was transported to a local hospital in extremely critical condition and later died from his injuries.Preliminary findings indicate that around 200 to 300 people were in attendance at the football games. Stewart was at the park selling concessions as a fundraiser for a football team not affiliated with the Wichita Junior Football League.Homicide investigators responded to the scene and interviewed witnesses who remained in the area. Detectives believe this was a targeted shooting and not connected to the youth football games.Anyone who attended the games or may have information is urged to contact the Wichita Police Department Investigations Section at 316-268-4407.&nbsp;

After 4 months, no arrest in deadly Kan. youth football game shooting

The security alert continues across Mexico. Kansas U.S. Senator Jerry Moran reminded Kansans his office is available to help.

On social media Moran wrote. "U.S. citizens in many cities in Mexico are being directed by the State Department to shelter in place due to cartel violence. If you’re a Kansan in Mexico in need of assistance, please reach out to my office&nbsp;by calling&nbsp;202-224-6521&nbsp;or emailing casework@moran.senate.gov "

The&nbsp;State Department also offers the Smart Travel Enrollment Program – a free service that allows U.S. citizens to enroll their trip abroad so the department can accurately and quickly contact them in case of emergency.
&nbsp;
Learn more:&nbsp;<a href="https://t.co/oKOmlXDWSO" target="_blank">https://mx.usembassy.gov/security-alert-update-ongoing-security-operations-u-s-mission-mexico-february-22-2026/</a>

According to the alert from the U.S. State Deparatment, Broad areas, including the state of Jalisco (including Puerto Vallarta, Chapala, and Guadalajara), the state of Baja California (including Tijuana, Tecate, and Ensenada), the state of Quintana Roo (including Cancún, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, and Tulum), the state of Nayarit (including the Nuevo Nayarit/Nuevo Vallarta area near Puerto Vallarta), Sinaloa (including Mazatlán), and areas of the states of Colima, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Estado de México, Michoacán, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, and Zacatecas.

Event: Due to ongoing security operations and resulting road blockages and criminal activity, U.S. citizens located in various locations across Mexico are advised to shelter in place. U.S. government personnel in Guadalajara (Jalisco), Puerto Vallarta (Jalisco/Nayarit), Ciudad Guzmán (Jalisco), Cancún (Quintana Roo), Playa del Carmen (Quintana Roo), Cozumel (Quintana Roo), Reynosa (Tamaulipas), Tijuana (Baja California), and Michoacán will shelter in place and work remotely on Monday, February 23, and U.S. citizens should do the same.



All U.S. government personnel at the U.S. Consulate General in Monterrey have been instructed to remain within the Monterrey metropolitan area, and U.S. government personnel have been ordered not to travel to Mazatlán until Wednesday, February 25.

Although no airports have been closed, road blockages have impacted airline operations, and the majority of domestic and international flights have been canceled in both Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta. 

All transportation services in Puerto Vallarta have been suspended. Some businesses have suspended operations.

Mexican authorities announced on the afternoon of February 22 that toll highway operations in Puebla, Guerrero, Tamaulipas, Nayarit, San Luis Potosí, Tijuana, Querétaro, Veracruz, and Mazatlán will be temporarily restricted due to blockages affecting motorists.

Actions to take: 
- Seek shelter and minimize unnecessary travel. 
- Avoid areas near police activity. 
- Check <a href="https://x.com/CAPUFE">@CAPUFE</a> on X for updates on road closures. 
- Monitor local media for updated information. 
- Follow the instructions of local authorities and, in case of emergency, call 911. 
- Keep family and friends informed of your location and well-being through phone calls, text messages, and social media.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771845758680.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>The security alert continues across Mexico. Kansas U.S. Senator Jerry Moran reminded Kansans his office is available to help.On social media Moran wrote. "U.S. citizens in many cities in Mexico are being directed by the State Department to shelter in place due to cartel violence. If you’re a Kansan in Mexico in need of assistance, please reach out to my office&nbsp;by calling&nbsp;202-224-6521&nbsp;or emailing casework@moran.senate.gov "<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">The U.S. Mission to Mexico has no higher priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens. If you are an American in Mexico who needs consular assistance, you can call the Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs at +1-202-501-4444 from outside the United States or… <a href="https://t.co/mKJ2CpwZc2">pic.twitter.com/mKJ2CpwZc2</a>&mdash; Embajada de EE.UU. en México (@USEmbassyMEX) <a href="https://twitter.com/USEmbassyMEX/status/2025766046855008269?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 23, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
The&nbsp;State Department also offers the Smart Travel Enrollment Program – a free service that allows U.S. citizens to enroll their trip abroad so the department can accurately and quickly contact them in case of emergency.
&nbsp;
Learn more:&nbsp;<a href="https://t.co/oKOmlXDWSO" target="_blank">https://mx.usembassy.gov/security-alert-update-ongoing-security-operations-u-s-mission-mexico-february-22-2026/</a>According to the alert from the U.S. State Deparatment, Broad areas, including the state of Jalisco (including Puerto Vallarta, Chapala, and Guadalajara), the state of Baja California (including Tijuana, Tecate, and Ensenada), the state of Quintana Roo (including Cancún, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, and Tulum), the state of Nayarit (including the Nuevo Nayarit/Nuevo Vallarta area near Puerto Vallarta), Sinaloa (including Mazatlán), and areas of the states of Colima, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Estado de México, Michoacán, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, and Zacatecas.

Event: Due to ongoing security operations and resulting road blockages and criminal activity, U.S. citizens located in various locations across Mexico are advised to shelter in place. U.S. government personnel in Guadalajara (Jalisco), Puerto Vallarta (Jalisco/Nayarit), Ciudad Guzmán (Jalisco), Cancún (Quintana Roo), Playa del Carmen (Quintana Roo), Cozumel (Quintana Roo), Reynosa (Tamaulipas), Tijuana (Baja California), and Michoacán will shelter in place and work remotely on Monday, February 23, and U.S. citizens should do the same.

All U.S. government personnel at the U.S. Consulate General in Monterrey have been instructed to remain within the Monterrey metropolitan area, and U.S. government personnel have been ordered not to travel to Mazatlán until Wednesday, February 25.

Although no airports have been closed, road blockages have impacted airline operations, and the majority of domestic and international flights have been canceled in both Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta. All transportation services in Puerto Vallarta have been suspended. Some businesses have suspended operations.

Mexican authorities announced on the afternoon of February 22 that toll highway operations in Puebla, Guerrero, Tamaulipas, Nayarit, San Luis Potosí, Tijuana, Querétaro, Veracruz, and Mazatlán will be temporarily restricted due to blockages affecting motorists.

Actions to take: 
- Seek shelter and minimize unnecessary travel. 
- Avoid areas near police activity. 
- Check <a href="https://x.com/CAPUFE">@CAPUFE</a> on X for updates on road closures. 
- Monitor local media for updated information. 
- Follow the instructions of local authorities and, in case of emergency, call 911. 
- Keep family and friends informed of your location and well-being through phone calls, text messages, and social media.

Cartel violence: Senator Moran's office assisting Kansans in Mexico

KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement are investigating a weekend homicide in Kansas City, Missouri.

&nbsp;just before 10:15p.m. Saturday, police were dispatched to a shooting in the 4900 block of College Avenue, according to KCPD Officer&nbsp;Alayna Gonzalez.

When officers arrived, they located a juvenile male victim later identified as 17-year-old Santino Gonzalez suffering from apparent gunshot trauma and unresponsive. 

Officers performed life-saving measures until EMS could respond and transport the boy to an area hospital for treatment. Officers on scene were advised that he had been pronounced deceased. 

Three additional victims, one adult female and two juvenile teens, were located at the scene all suffering from varying gunshot trauma. An additional two victims, one adult female and one juvenile teen, arrived at area hospitals by private conveyance all suffering from gunshot wounds.

Preliminary investigation indicates there was a gathering occurring at a residence in the 4900 block of College when an altercation between unknown individuals transpired inside of the residence. That altercation escalated into shots being fired, and resulted in two adult females, two juvenile teen males, and two juvenile teen females being struck. At this time, we do not have a person of interest identified and we do not have anyone in custody.

Homicide detectives and crime scene personnel responded to the scene to begin collecting evidence and gathering witness statements.

This incident is being investigated as a homicide. Police have not released suspect details or the name of the victim.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771801790391.png" alt="Police near the crime scene-photo Sheriff Daryl Forte'" />
 <figcaption>Police near the crime scene-photo Sheriff Daryl Forte'</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement are investigating a weekend homicide in Kansas City, Missouri.&nbsp;just before 10:15p.m. Saturday, police were dispatched to a shooting in the 4900 block of College Avenue, according to KCPD Officer&nbsp;Alayna Gonzalez.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771801754925.png" alt="Photo Sheriff Daryl Forte'" />
 <figcaption>Photo Sheriff Daryl Forte'</figcaption>
 </figure>When officers arrived, they located a juvenile male victim later identified as 17-year-old Santino Gonzalez suffering from apparent gunshot trauma and unresponsive. Officers performed life-saving measures until EMS could respond and transport the boy to an area hospital for treatment. Officers on scene were advised that he had been pronounced deceased. Three additional victims, one adult female and two juvenile teens, were located at the scene all suffering from varying gunshot trauma. An additional two victims, one adult female and one juvenile teen, arrived at area hospitals by private conveyance all suffering from gunshot wounds.Preliminary investigation indicates there was a gathering occurring at a residence in the 4900 block of College when an altercation between unknown individuals transpired inside of the residence. That altercation escalated into shots being fired, and resulted in two adult females, two juvenile teen males, and two juvenile teen females being struck. At this time, we do not have a person of interest identified and we do not have anyone in custody.Homicide detectives and crime scene personnel responded to the scene to begin collecting evidence and gathering witness statements.This incident is being investigated as a homicide. Police have not released suspect details or the name of the victim.

Mass Shooting: Teen killed, 5 others injured at Kansas City home

WASHINGTON —The Mexican army killed the leader of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mexico-jalisco-cartel-us-sanctions-8e40e7da8ce88c4feb45e61f3a2e00a3">Jalisco New Generation Cartel</a>, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, "El Mencho," on Sunday, decapitating what had become Mexico's&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/el-mencho-justice-department-drug-cartels-cjng-73b539b8029c793fbd995a357b57f25f">most powerful drug cartel</a>&nbsp;and thrusting swaths of the nation into chaos.

According to a social media report late Sunday from White House spokesperson Karaoline Leavitt, " The United States provided intelligence support to the Mexican government in order to assist with an operation in Talpalpa, Jalisco, Mexico, in which Nemesio ‘El Mencho’ Oseguera Cervantes, an infamous drug lord and leader within the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, was eliminated. 

‘El Mencho’ was a was a top target for the Mexican and United States government as one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into our homeland. Last year, President Trump rightfully designated the Jalisco New Generation Cartel as a Foreign Terrorist Organization — because that’s exactly what it is. In this operation, three additional cartel members were killed, three were wounded, and two were arrested.

"President Trump has been very clear — the United States will ensure narcoterrorists sending deadly drugs to our homeland are forced to face the wrath of justice they have long deserved."

"The Trump Administration also commends and thanks the Mexican military for their cooperation and successful execution of this operation."

The drug lord was the Mexican government's biggest prize yet to show the Trump administration in its efforts to crack down on the cartels, and his death was met with a forceful reaction from the cartel, known by its Spanish initials CJNG.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771795992010.png" alt="Image U.S. Dept. of Justice" />
 <figcaption>Image U.S. Dept. of Justice</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON —The Mexican army killed the leader of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mexico-jalisco-cartel-us-sanctions-8e40e7da8ce88c4feb45e61f3a2e00a3">Jalisco New Generation Cartel</a>, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, "El Mencho," on Sunday, decapitating what had become Mexico's&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/el-mencho-justice-department-drug-cartels-cjng-73b539b8029c793fbd995a357b57f25f">most powerful drug cartel</a>&nbsp;and thrusting swaths of the nation into chaos.According to a social media report late Sunday from White House spokesperson Karaoline Leavitt, " The United States provided intelligence support to the Mexican government in order to assist with an operation in Talpalpa, Jalisco, Mexico, in which Nemesio ‘El Mencho’ Oseguera Cervantes, an infamous drug lord and leader within the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, was eliminated. ‘El Mencho’ was a was a top target for the Mexican and United States government as one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into our homeland. Last year, President Trump rightfully designated the Jalisco New Generation Cartel as a Foreign Terrorist Organization — because that’s exactly what it is. In this operation, three additional cartel members were killed, three were wounded, and two were arrested."President Trump has been very clear — the United States will ensure narcoterrorists sending deadly drugs to our homeland are forced to face the wrath of justice they have long deserved."<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Mexico: UPDATE - Due to ongoing, widespread security operations and related road blockages and criminal activity in many areas of Mexico, U.S. citizens should shelter in place until further notice. Roadblocks have impacted airline operations, with some domestic &amp; int’l flights… <a href="https://t.co/SIxMGKwGny">pic.twitter.com/SIxMGKwGny</a>&mdash; TravelGov (@TravelGov) <a href="https://twitter.com/TravelGov/status/2025690556953714887?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 22, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>"The Trump Administration also commends and thanks the Mexican military for their cooperation and successful execution of this operation."The drug lord was the Mexican government's biggest prize yet to show the Trump administration in its efforts to crack down on the cartels, and his death was met with a forceful reaction from the cartel, known by its Spanish initials CJNG.

White House: U.S. helped Mexican army kill powerful drug lord

OSAGE COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating two suspects on multiple allegations after

Just after 6a.m. January 18, a sheriff's deputy conducted a narcotic search warrant in the 1100 block of Laing Street in Osage City., according to Sheriff Chris Wells.

As a result, two subjects were taken into custody and transported to the Osage County Jail Facility.&nbsp; Gabriel A. Kennedy, 37, of Osage City is being held on requested charges of&nbsp;Possession of methamphetamine, Possession of marijuana, Possession of drug paraphernalia and Interference with law enforcement

Christopher W. Hibbs, 39, of Osage City is being held on requested charges of&nbsp; Violation of the registered offender act, 2nd offense and Aggravated violation of the registered offender act. He has been listed as a registered sex offender since a conviction in 2006 for attempted aggravated indecent liberties w/ child; Intercourse w child 14-16 years of age, according to the KBI Offender Registry.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771522214051.png" alt="Kennedy photo Osage County" />
 <figcaption>Kennedy photo Osage County</figcaption>
 </figure>OSAGE COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating two suspects on multiple allegations after<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771522175586.png" alt="Hibbs photo Osage County" />
 <figcaption>Hibbs photo Osage County</figcaption>
 </figure>Just after 6a.m. January 18, a sheriff's deputy conducted a narcotic search warrant in the 1100 block of Laing Street in Osage City., according to Sheriff Chris Wells.As a result, two subjects were taken into custody and transported to the Osage County Jail Facility.&nbsp; Gabriel A. Kennedy, 37, of Osage City is being held on requested charges of&nbsp;Possession of methamphetamine, Possession of marijuana, Possession of drug paraphernalia and Interference with law enforcementChristopher W. Hibbs, 39, of Osage City is being held on requested charges of&nbsp; Violation of the registered offender act, 2nd offense and Aggravated violation of the registered offender act. He has been listed as a registered sex offender since a conviction in 2006 for attempted aggravated indecent liberties w/ child; Intercourse w child 14-16 years of age, according to the KBI Offender Registry.

Wanted Kan. sex offender caught during drug bust

WASHINGTON (AP) — An armed man drove into the secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump's resort in Palm Beach, Florida, before being shot and killed early Sunday morning, according to a spokesman for the U.S. Secret Service.

Although Trump often spends weekends at his resort, he was at the White House when the breach occurred around 1:30 a.m.

The man had a gas can and a shotgun, authorities said. Investigators identified him as 21-year-old Austin Tucker Martin of North Carolina, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to discuss it publicly, and authorities said his family had recently reported him missing.

He’s believed to have purchased his shotgun while driving south, Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said, and a box for the weapon was later discovered in the man’s vehicle.

Investigators have not identified a motive. However, Trump has faced threats to his life before, including two assassination attempts during the 2024 campaign.

The man entered the north gate of the property as another vehicle was exiting and was confronted by two Secret Service agents and a Palm Beach County sheriff's deputy, according to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw.

“He was ordered to drop those two pieces of equipment that he had with him. At which time he put down the gas can, raised the shotgun to a shooting position,” Bradshaw said at a brief press conference. The two agents and the deputy “fired their weapons to neutralize the threat.”

The Moore County Sheriff’s Department in North Carolina said a relative of Martin’s reported him missing early Sunday morning.

Investigators are working to compile a psychological profile. Asked whether the man was previously known to law enforcement, Bradshaw said “not right now.”

The FBI encouraged residents who live near Mar-a-Lago to check any security cameras they may have for footage that could help investigators.

In a post on X, FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau would be “dedicating all necessary resources” to the investigation.

Martin was described by family as quiet and averse to guns

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1771803623092.png" alt="Suspect had gas can and a shotgun- image from Palm Beach Co. Sheriff" />
 <figcaption>Suspect had gas can and a shotgun- image from Palm Beach Co. Sheriff</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — An armed man drove into the secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump's resort in Palm Beach, Florida, before being shot and killed early Sunday morning, according to a spokesman for the U.S. Secret Service.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=315&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Freel%2F901846472775014%2F&show_text=false&width=560&t=0" width="560" height="315" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>Although Trump often spends weekends at his resort, he was at the White House when the breach occurred around 1:30 a.m.The man had a gas can and a shotgun, authorities said. Investigators identified him as 21-year-old Austin Tucker Martin of North Carolina, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to discuss it publicly, and authorities said his family had recently reported him missing.He’s believed to have purchased his shotgun while driving south, Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said, and a box for the weapon was later discovered in the man’s vehicle.Investigators have not identified a motive. However, Trump has faced threats to his life before, including two assassination attempts during the 2024 campaign.<h2>The investigation is ongoing</h2>The man entered the north gate of the property as another vehicle was exiting and was confronted by two Secret Service agents and a Palm Beach County sheriff's deputy, according to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw.“He was ordered to drop those two pieces of equipment that he had with him. At which time he put down the gas can, raised the shotgun to a shooting position,” Bradshaw said at a brief press conference. The two agents and the deputy “fired their weapons to neutralize the threat.”The Moore County Sheriff’s Department in North Carolina said a relative of Martin’s reported him missing early Sunday morning.Investigators are working to compile a psychological profile. Asked whether the man was previously known to law enforcement, Bradshaw said “not right now.”The FBI encouraged residents who live near Mar-a-Lago to check any security cameras they may have for footage that could help investigators.In a post on X, FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau would be “dedicating all necessary resources” to the investigation.<h2>Martin was described by family as quiet and averse to guns</h2>On Sunday afternoon, vehicles blocked the entrance to a property listed in public records as an address for Martin at the end of a private road in Cameron, North Carolina.Braeden Fields, Martin’s cousin, reacted with disbelief. He described Martin as quiet, afraid of guns and from a family of avid Trump supporters.“He’s a good kid,” Fields, 19, said. He said they grew up together. “I wouldn’t believe he would do something like this. It’s mind-blowing,” Fields said.He said Martin worked at a local golf course and would send money from each paycheck to charity.“He wouldn’t even hurt an ant. He doesn’t even know how to use a gun,” Fields said.He said his cousin didn’t discuss politics.“We are big Trump supporters, all of us. Everybody,” Fields said, but his cousin was “real quiet, never really talked about anything.”<h2>Trump faced two assassination attempts during his last campaign</h2>Sunday's incursion at Mar-a-Lago took place a few miles from Trump's West Palm Beach club where a man tried to assassinate him while he played golf during the 2024 campaign.A Secret Service agent spotted that man, Ryan Routh, aiming a rifle through the shrubbery before Trump came into view. Officials said Routh aimed his rifle at the agent, who opened fire and caused Routh to drop his weapon.Routh was found guilty last year and sentenced this month to life in prison.Trump also survived an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-butler-assassination-attempt-anniversary-crooks-d18804b0e1382003bbb91449638c721c">assassination attempt at a campaign rally</a>&nbsp;in Butler, Pennsylvania. That gunman fired eight shots before being killed by a Secret Service counter sniper. One rally attendee was killed by the gunman.<h2>White House brings in shutdown politics</h2>White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X that “the United States Secret Service acted quickly and decisively to neutralize a crazy person, armed with a gun and a gas canister, who intruded President Trump’s home.”Leavitt used her post to blame Democratic lawmakers in Congress for the partial government shutdown&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/homeland-security-shutdown-ice-funding-7bf62bc50ca0a6a6013a714bee2ffdb4">affecting the Homeland Security Department</a>, which began Feb. 14 after Democrats demanded changes to the president's deportation campaign.The Secret Service is among the agencies where the vast majority of employees are continuing their work but missing a paycheck.“Federal law enforcement are working 24/7 to keep our country safe and protect all Americans,” Leavitt said. “It’s shameful and reckless that Democrats have chosen to shut down their Department.”The White House referred all questions to the Secret Service and FBI. Both Trump and his wife posted statements on social media after the incident, but they were unrelated to the shooting.<h2>Numerous recent acts of politically motivated violence</h2>In the past year, there was the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk; the assassination of the Democratic leader in the Minnesota state House and her husband and the shooting of another lawmaker and his wife; and an arson attack at the official residence of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.Five days ago,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/capitol-arrest-shotgun-congress-e4c2233b957ca6ab4ae780006cd75081">a Georgia man armed with a shotgun</a>&nbsp;was arrested as he sprinted toward the west side of the U.S. Capitol. Trump is scheduled to deliver his State of the Union address there on Tuesday night.———WASHINGTON (AP) — An armed man drove into the secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump's resort in Palm Beach, Florida, before being shot and killed early Sunday morning, according to a spokesman for the U.S. Secret Service. Trump was not there but was at the White House in Washington.The man, who was in his early 20s and from North Carolina, had a gas can and a shotgun, according to Anthony Guglielmi, the spokesman. He had been reported missing by his family a few days ago, and investigators believe he headed south and picked up the shotgun along the way.Guglielmi said a box for the weapon was discovered in the man's vehicle after the incident, which took place around 1:30 a.m.The man killed was identified by investigators as 21-year-old Austin Tucker Martin, according to a person familiar with the matter. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss details of the investigation.Trump has faced threats to his life before, including two assassination attempts during the 2024 campaign. Although the president often spends weekends at his resort, he and first lady Melania Trump were at the White House when the breach at Mar-a-Lago occurred.The man entered the north gate of the property as another vehicle was exiting and was confronted by two Secret Service agents and a Palm Beach County sheriff's deputy, according to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw.“He was ordered to drop those two pieces of equipment that he had with them. At which time he put down the gas can, raised the shotgun to a shooting position,” Bradshaw said at a brief press conference. The two agents and the deputy “fired their weapons to neutralize the threat.”The FBI asked residents who live near Mar-a-Lago to check any security cameras they may have for footage that could help investigators.In a post on X, FBI Director Kash Patel said that the bureau would be “dedicating all necessary resources” to the investigation.Investigators are working to compile a psychological profile and a motive is still under investigation. Asked whether the individual was known to law enforcement, Bradshaw said “not right now.”On Sunday afternoon, vehicles blocked the entrance to a property listed in public records as an address for Martin at the end of a private road in Cameron, North Carolina.Braeden Fields, Martin’s cousin, reacted with disbelief. He described Martin as quiet, afraid of guns and from a family of avid Trump supporters.“He’s a good kid,” Fields, 19, said. He said they grew up together. “I wouldn’t believe he would do something like this. It’s mind-blowing,” Fields said.He said Martin worked at a local golf course and would send money from each paycheck to charity.“He wouldn’t even hurt an ant. He doesn’t even know how to use a gun,” Fields said.He said his cousin didn’t discuss politics.“We are big Trump supporters, all of us. Everybody,” Fields said, but his cousin was “real quiet, never really talked about anything.”The incident comes as the United States has been rocked by spasms political violence.The incursion at Mar-a-Lago took place a few miles from Trump's West Palm Beach club where a man tried to assassinate him while he played golf during the 2024 campaign.A Secret Service agent spotted that man, Ryan Routh, aiming a rifle through the shrubbery before Trump came into view. Officials said Routh aimed his rifle at the agent, who opened fire and caused Routh to drop his weapon.Routh was found guilty last year and sentenced this month to life in prison.Trump also survived an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-butler-assassination-attempt-anniversary-crooks-d18804b0e1382003bbb91449638c721c">assassination attempt at a Butler, Pennsylvania</a>&nbsp;campaign rally. That gunman fired eight shots before being killed by a Secret Service counter sniper. One rally attendee was killed by the gunman.White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X that “the United States Secret Service acted quickly and decisively to neutralize a crazy person, armed with a gun and a gas canister, who intruded President Trump’s home.”Leavitt used her post to blame Democratic lawmakers in Congress&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/homeland-security-shutdown-ice-funding-7bf62bc50ca0a6a6013a714bee2ffdb4">for the partial government shutdown affecting the Homeland Security department</a>&nbsp;that began Feb. 14 after Democrats demanded changes to the president's deportation campaign.The Secret Service is among the agencies where the vast majority of employees are continuing their work but missing a paycheck.“Federal law enforcement are working 24/7 to keep our country safe and protect all Americans,” Leavitt said. “It’s shameful and reckless that Democrats have chosen to shut down their Department.”The White House referred all questions to the Secret Service and FBI. Both Trump and his wife posted statements on social media after the incident, but they were unrelated to the shooting.There have been other recent incidents of political violence as well.In the last year, there was the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk; the assassination of the Democratic leader in the Minnesota state House and her husband and the shooting of another lawmaker and his wife; and an arson attack at the official residence of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.Five days ago,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/capitol-arrest-shotgun-congress-e4c2233b957ca6ab4ae780006cd75081">a Georgia man armed with a shotgun</a>&nbsp;was arrested as he sprinted towards the west side of the U.S. Capitol.WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Secret Service announced Sunday that an armed man was shot and killed after entering the secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump’s resort in Palm Beach, Fla.Although Trump often spends weekends at his resort, he was at the White House during this incident. First lady Melania Trump was also with the president at the White House on Saturday night.The name of the person who was shot has not been released. According to the Secret Service, he was “observed by the north gate of the Mar-a-Lago property carrying what appeared to be a shotgun and a fuel can.”He was shot by Secret Service agents and a Palm Beach County sheriff deputy, the agency said.Trump has faced threats to his life before. He was wounded during an assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Butler, Pa., on July 13, 2024.Then on Sept. 15, 2024, a man with a rifle was captured after waiting near Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach while the president played a round. He was sentenced to life in prison earlier this month.