KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A former Kansas City, Mo., police officer who ran an anti-crime charity has been convicted in federal court of a scheme in which he spent more than $200,000 in donations for his own personal expenses.

Aaron Wayne McKie, 47, was found guilty on Thursday, Feb. 20, of nine counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. McKie worked as a police officer for the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department for 24 years, assigned as a police officer to the Crime Free Multi-Housing section from 2002 through 2023.

McKie served from 2009 to 2023 as president of Mid-America Crime Free, Inc. (MACF), a non-profit organization that claimed to provide training to persons in the rental housing industry and promote anti-crime programs. He was an officer of the charity for three years prior, from 2006 to 2009.

Evidence produced during the trial indicated that McKie devised a scheme to defraud MACF and its donors that began in July 2009 and lasted until October 2023. Individuals and businesses contributed $387,620 to MACF, not including in-kind donations. McKie spent at least $200,060 for his own personal purposes.

The biggest source of MACF funds was an annual golf tournament, “Fairways 4 Fuzz Golf Tournament.” Individuals and businesses donated both money and in-kind donations, such as food and beverages, to MACF via the golf tournament. At least 121 donors have been identified.

From 2009 to 2023, the flyers soliciting donations and players for the tournament claimed the funds raised would enable MACF to provide free seminars to owners of rental properties and train police officers. In reality, those claims were false. The Kansas City Police Department paid the salaries and expenses of Crime Free Multi-Housing unit officers who may have provided training to landlords; McKie used the majority of MACF funds for personal spending; and the IRS had revoked the organization’s tax-exempt status in 2010.

Under federal statutes, McKie is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole on each of the 10 counts on which he was convicted. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for nine hours before returning guilty verdicts to U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips, ending a trial that began Monday, Feb. 10.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathleen D. Mahoney and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Hanson. It was investigated by the FBI and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/4/1714219569463.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A former Kansas City, Mo., police officer who ran an anti-crime charity has been convicted in federal court of a scheme in which he spent more than $200,000 in donations for his own personal expenses.Aaron Wayne McKie, 47, was found guilty on Thursday, Feb. 20, of nine counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. McKie worked as a police officer for the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department for 24 years, assigned as a police officer to the Crime Free Multi-Housing section from 2002 through 2023.McKie served from 2009 to 2023 as president of Mid-America Crime Free, Inc. (MACF), a non-profit organization that claimed to provide training to persons in the rental housing industry and promote anti-crime programs. He was an officer of the charity for three years prior, from 2006 to 2009.Evidence produced during the trial indicated that McKie devised a scheme to defraud MACF and its donors that began in July 2009 and lasted until October 2023. Individuals and businesses contributed $387,620 to MACF, not including in-kind donations. McKie spent at least $200,060 for his own personal purposes.The biggest source of MACF funds was an annual golf tournament, “Fairways 4 Fuzz Golf Tournament.” Individuals and businesses donated both money and in-kind donations, such as food and beverages, to MACF via the golf tournament. At least 121 donors have been identified.From 2009 to 2023, the flyers soliciting donations and players for the tournament claimed the funds raised would enable MACF to provide free seminars to owners of rental properties and train police officers. In reality, those claims were false. The Kansas City Police Department paid the salaries and expenses of Crime Free Multi-Housing unit officers who may have provided training to landlords; McKie used the majority of MACF funds for personal spending; and the IRS had revoked the organization’s tax-exempt status in 2010.Under federal statutes, McKie is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole on each of the 10 counts on which he was convicted. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for nine hours before returning guilty verdicts to U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips, ending a trial that began Monday, Feb. 10.This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathleen D. Mahoney and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Hanson. It was investigated by the FBI and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.

Jury: Former KCPD officer guilty in $200K charity fraud scheme

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump abruptly fired Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr. as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Friday, sidelining a history-making fighter pilot and respected officer as part of a campaign led by his defense secretary to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-trump-diversity-pentagon-list-602477b6e80641b53f4f9b640a14f4ce">rid the military of leaders who support diversity</a>&nbsp;and equity in the ranks.

The ouster of Brown, only the second Black general to serve as chairman, is sure to send shock waves through the Pentagon. His 16 months in the job had been consumed with the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine">war in Ukraine</a>&nbsp;and the expanded&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">conflict in the Middle East</a>.

“I want to thank General Charles ‘CQ’ Brown for his over 40 years of service to our country, including as our current Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He is a fine gentleman and an outstanding leader, and I wish a great future for him and his family,” Trump posted on social media.

Brown’s public support of Black Lives Matter after the police killing of George Floyd had made him fodder for the administration's wars against “wokeism” in the military. His ouster is the latest upheaval at the Pentagon, which plans to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pentagon-job-cuts-trump-doge-31e3ed62f5f35a5e5a4a07fd8708232f">cut 5,400 civilian probationary workers</a>&nbsp;starting next week and identify $50 billion in programs that could be cut next year to redirect those savings to fund Trump’s priorities.

Trump said he's nominating retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine to be the next chairman. Caine is a career F-16 pilot who served on active duty and in the National Guard, and was most recently the associate director for military affairs at the CIA, according to his military biography.

Caine’s military service includes combat roles in Iraq, special operations postings and positions inside some of the Pentagon’s most classified special access programs.

However, he has not had key assignments identified in law as prerequisites for the job, including serving as either the vice chairman, a combatant commander or a service chief. That requirement could be waived if the “president determines such action is necessary in the national interest.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in a statement praising both Caine and Brown, announced the firings of two additional senior officers: Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti and Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Jim Slife.

Franchetti becomes the second top female military officer to be fired by the Trump administration. Trump fired&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-united-states-alejandro-mayorkas-us-coast-guard-government-and-politics-8b589577fa03f04f3ce096e2bbf98928">Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan</a>&nbsp;just a day after he was sworn in.

A surface warfare officer, Franchetti has commanded at all levels, heading U.S. 6th Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Korea. She was the second woman ever to be promoted to four-star admiral, and she did multiple deployments, including as commander of a naval destroyer and two stints as aircraft carrier strike group commander.

Slife led Air Force Special Operations Command prior to becoming the service's vice chief of staff and had deployed to the Middle East and Afghanistan.

Trump has asserted his executive authority in a much stronger way in his second term, removing most officials from the Biden administration even though many of those positions are meant to carry over from one administration to the next.

The chairman role was established in 1949 as an adviser to the president and secretary of defense, as a way to filter all of the views of the service chiefs and more readily provide that information to the White House without the president having to reach out to each individual military branch, according to an Atlantic Council briefing written by retired Maj. Gen. Arnold Punaro. The role has no actual command authority.

Trump acted despite support for Brown among key members of Congress and a seemingly friendly meeting with him in mid-December, when the two were seated next to each other for a time at the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-army-navy-football-penny-hegseth-desantis-85da138b3ac130b211afc414bf43514a">Army-Navy football game</a>.

The firing follows days of speculation after a list of officers, including Brown, to be fired was circulated on Capitol Hill — but notably was not sent via any formal notification to either of the Republican chairmen of the House or Senate armed services committees.

Sen. Roger Wicker, GOP chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, didn't mention Caine's name in a statement Friday.

“I thank Chairman Brown for his decades of honorable service to our nation,” Wicker said. “I am confident Secretary Hegseth and President Trump will select a qualified and capable successor for the critical position of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.”

Congressional Democratic leaders called out the firings as a direct attempt to politicize the military.

“A professional, apolitical military that is subordinate to the civilian government and supportive of the Constitution rather than a political party is essential to the survival of our democracy," Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement late Friday. “For the sake of our troops and the well-being of every American, elected leaders — especially Senate Republicans — must defend that enduring principle against corrosive attempts to remake the military into a partisan force.”

Brown’s future was called into question during the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-hearing-senate-defense-pentagon-trump-37d0961eb63d824cae8d4478cb12e412">confirmation hearing for Hegseth</a>&nbsp;last month. Asked if he would fire Brown, Hegseth responded, “Every single senior officer will be reviewed based on meritocracy, standards, lethality and commitment to lawful orders they will be given.”

Hegseth had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pete-hegseth-background-defense-secretary-confirmation-hearing-e160e10c86385a8beff110d9190fb34e">previously taken aim at Brown</a>. “First of all, you gotta fire, you know, you gotta fire the chairman of Joint Chiefs,” he said flatly in a podcast in November. And in one of his books, he questioned whether Brown got the job because he was Black.

“Was it because of his skin color? Or his skill? We’ll never know, but always doubt — which on its face seems unfair to CQ. But since he has made the race card one of his biggest calling cards, it doesn’t really much matter,” Hegseth wrote.

As he walked into the Pentagon&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pentagon-hegseth-priorities-border-budget-3227111b703be8a90ad93da289784932">on his first day as defense chief</a>&nbsp;on Jan. 27, Hegseth was asked directly if he planned to fire Brown.

“I’m standing with him right now,” said Hegseth, patting Brown on the back. “Look forward to working with him.”

Brown, who spent Friday visiting troops at the U.S.-Mexico border, drew attention to himself for speaking out about the death of George Floyd in 2020. While he knew it was risky, he said, discussions with his wife and sons about the killing convinced him he needed to say something.

As protests roiled the nation, Brown posted a video message to the Air Force titled, “Here’s What I’m Thinking About.” He described the pressures that came with being one of the few Black men in his unit. He recalled pushing himself “to perform error-free” as a pilot and officer his whole life, but still facing bias. He said he’d been questioned about his credentials, even when he wore the same flight suit and wings as every other pilot.

Brown’s path to the chairmanship was troubled — he was among the more than 260 senior military officers&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-military-promotion-tuberville-alabama-8269bbc6a8a7bbb0eabbbba6f1a27787">whose nominations were stalled for months</a>&nbsp;by Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama. But when the Senate vote was finally taken in September 2023, Brown easily was confirmed by a vote of 89-8.

It had been 30 years since Colin Powell became the first Black chairman, serving from 1989 to 1993. But while African Americans made up 17.2% of the 1.3 million active-duty service members, only 9% of officers were Black, according to a 2021 Defense Department report.

Brown’s service as chairman made history in that this was the first time that both the defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, and the Joint Chiefs chairman were Black.

However, he has not had key assignments identified in law as prerequisites for the job, including serving as either the vice chairman, as a combatant commander or a service chief. That requirement could be waived if the “president determines such action is necessary in the national interest.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/1/1738070098080.png" alt="File photo-Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr. joined Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on his first day of work at the Pentagon.-courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>File photo-Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr. joined Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on his first day of work at the Pentagon.-courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump abruptly fired Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr. as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Friday, sidelining a history-making fighter pilot and respected officer as part of a campaign led by his defense secretary to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-trump-diversity-pentagon-list-602477b6e80641b53f4f9b640a14f4ce">rid the military of leaders who support diversity</a>&nbsp;and equity in the ranks.The ouster of Brown, only the second Black general to serve as chairman, is sure to send shock waves through the Pentagon. His 16 months in the job had been consumed with the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine">war in Ukraine</a>&nbsp;and the expanded&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">conflict in the Middle East</a>.“I want to thank General Charles ‘CQ’ Brown for his over 40 years of service to our country, including as our current Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He is a fine gentleman and an outstanding leader, and I wish a great future for him and his family,” Trump posted on social media.Brown’s public support of Black Lives Matter after the police killing of George Floyd had made him fodder for the administration's wars against “wokeism” in the military. His ouster is the latest upheaval at the Pentagon, which plans to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pentagon-job-cuts-trump-doge-31e3ed62f5f35a5e5a4a07fd8708232f">cut 5,400 civilian probationary workers</a>&nbsp;starting next week and identify $50 billion in programs that could be cut next year to redirect those savings to fund Trump’s priorities.Trump said he's nominating retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine to be the next chairman. Caine is a career F-16 pilot who served on active duty and in the National Guard, and was most recently the associate director for military affairs at the CIA, according to his military biography.Caine’s military service includes combat roles in Iraq, special operations postings and positions inside some of the Pentagon’s most classified special access programs.However, he has not had key assignments identified in law as prerequisites for the job, including serving as either the vice chairman, a combatant commander or a service chief. That requirement could be waived if the “president determines such action is necessary in the national interest.”<h2>More Pentagon firings</h2>Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in a statement praising both Caine and Brown, announced the firings of two additional senior officers: Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti and Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Jim Slife.Franchetti becomes the second top female military officer to be fired by the Trump administration. Trump fired&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-united-states-alejandro-mayorkas-us-coast-guard-government-and-politics-8b589577fa03f04f3ce096e2bbf98928">Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan</a>&nbsp;just a day after he was sworn in.A surface warfare officer, Franchetti has commanded at all levels, heading U.S. 6th Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Korea. She was the second woman ever to be promoted to four-star admiral, and she did multiple deployments, including as commander of a naval destroyer and two stints as aircraft carrier strike group commander.Slife led Air Force Special Operations Command prior to becoming the service's vice chief of staff and had deployed to the Middle East and Afghanistan.Trump has asserted his executive authority in a much stronger way in his second term, removing most officials from the Biden administration even though many of those positions are meant to carry over from one administration to the next.The chairman role was established in 1949 as an adviser to the president and secretary of defense, as a way to filter all of the views of the service chiefs and more readily provide that information to the White House without the president having to reach out to each individual military branch, according to an Atlantic Council briefing written by retired Maj. Gen. Arnold Punaro. The role has no actual command authority.Trump acted despite support for Brown among key members of Congress and a seemingly friendly meeting with him in mid-December, when the two were seated next to each other for a time at the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-army-navy-football-penny-hegseth-desantis-85da138b3ac130b211afc414bf43514a">Army-Navy football game</a>.The firing follows days of speculation after a list of officers, including Brown, to be fired was circulated on Capitol Hill — but notably was not sent via any formal notification to either of the Republican chairmen of the House or Senate armed services committees.Sen. Roger Wicker, GOP chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, didn't mention Caine's name in a statement Friday.“I thank Chairman Brown for his decades of honorable service to our nation,” Wicker said. “I am confident Secretary Hegseth and President Trump will select a qualified and capable successor for the critical position of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.”Congressional Democratic leaders called out the firings as a direct attempt to politicize the military.“A professional, apolitical military that is subordinate to the civilian government and supportive of the Constitution rather than a political party is essential to the survival of our democracy," Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement late Friday. “For the sake of our troops and the well-being of every American, elected leaders — especially Senate Republicans — must defend that enduring principle against corrosive attempts to remake the military into a partisan force.”<h2>Brown risked discussing race</h2>Brown’s future was called into question during the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-hearing-senate-defense-pentagon-trump-37d0961eb63d824cae8d4478cb12e412">confirmation hearing for Hegseth</a>&nbsp;last month. Asked if he would fire Brown, Hegseth responded, “Every single senior officer will be reviewed based on meritocracy, standards, lethality and commitment to lawful orders they will be given.”Hegseth had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pete-hegseth-background-defense-secretary-confirmation-hearing-e160e10c86385a8beff110d9190fb34e">previously taken aim at Brown</a>. “First of all, you gotta fire, you know, you gotta fire the chairman of Joint Chiefs,” he said flatly in a podcast in November. And in one of his books, he questioned whether Brown got the job because he was Black.“Was it because of his skin color? Or his skill? We’ll never know, but always doubt — which on its face seems unfair to CQ. But since he has made the race card one of his biggest calling cards, it doesn’t really much matter,” Hegseth wrote.As he walked into the Pentagon&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pentagon-hegseth-priorities-border-budget-3227111b703be8a90ad93da289784932">on his first day as defense chief</a>&nbsp;on Jan. 27, Hegseth was asked directly if he planned to fire Brown.“I’m standing with him right now,” said Hegseth, patting Brown on the back. “Look forward to working with him.”Brown, who spent Friday visiting troops at the U.S.-Mexico border, drew attention to himself for speaking out about the death of George Floyd in 2020. While he knew it was risky, he said, discussions with his wife and sons about the killing convinced him he needed to say something.As protests roiled the nation, Brown posted a video message to the Air Force titled, “Here’s What I’m Thinking About.” He described the pressures that came with being one of the few Black men in his unit. He recalled pushing himself “to perform error-free” as a pilot and officer his whole life, but still facing bias. He said he’d been questioned about his credentials, even when he wore the same flight suit and wings as every other pilot.Brown’s path to the chairmanship was troubled — he was among the more than 260 senior military officers&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-military-promotion-tuberville-alabama-8269bbc6a8a7bbb0eabbbba6f1a27787">whose nominations were stalled for months</a>&nbsp;by Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama. But when the Senate vote was finally taken in September 2023, Brown easily was confirmed by a vote of 89-8.It had been 30 years since Colin Powell became the first Black chairman, serving from 1989 to 1993. But while African Americans made up 17.2% of the 1.3 million active-duty service members, only 9% of officers were Black, according to a 2021 Defense Department report.Brown’s service as chairman made history in that this was the first time that both the defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, and the Joint Chiefs chairman were Black.--------------WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump abruptly fired Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr. as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Friday, sidelining a history-making fighter pilot and respected officer as part of a campaign led by his defense secretary to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-trump-diversity-pentagon-list-602477b6e80641b53f4f9b640a14f4ce">rid the military of leaders who support diversity</a>&nbsp;and equity in the ranks.The ouster of Brown, only the second Black general to serve as chairman, is sure to send shock waves through the Pentagon. His 16 months in the job had been consumed with the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine">war in Ukraine</a>&nbsp;and the expanded&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">conflict in the Middle East</a>.“I want to thank General Charles ‘CQ’ Brown for his over 40 years of service to our country, including as our current Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He is a fine gentleman and an outstanding leader, and I wish a great future for him and his family,” Trump posted on social media.Brown’s public support of Black Lives Matter after the police killing of George Floyd had made him fodder for the administration's wars against “wokeism” in the military. His ouster is the latest upheaval at the Pentagon, which plans to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pentagon-job-cuts-trump-doge-31e3ed62f5f35a5e5a4a07fd8708232f">cut 5,400 civilian probationary workers</a>&nbsp;starting next week and identify $50 billion in programs that could be cut next year to redirect those savings to fund Trump’s priorities.Trump said he's nominating retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine to be the next chairman. Caine is a career F-16 pilot who served on active duty and in the National Guard, and was most recently the associate director for military affairs at the CIA, according to his military biography.Caine’s military service includes combat roles in Iraq, special operations postings and positions inside some of the Pentagon’s most classified special access programs.However, he has not had key assignments identified in law as prerequisites for the job, including serving as either the vice chairman, as a combatant commander or a service chief. That requirement could be waived if the “president determines such action is necessary in the national interest.”Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in a statement praising both Caine and Brown, announced the firings of two additional senior officers: Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti and Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Jim Slife.Franchetti becomes the second top female military officer to be fired by the Trump administration. Trump fired&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-united-states-alejandro-mayorkas-us-coast-guard-government-and-politics-8b589577fa03f04f3ce096e2bbf98928">Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan</a>&nbsp;just a day after he was sworn in.A surface warfare officer, Franchetti has commanded at all levels, heading U.S. 6th Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Korea. She was the second woman ever to be promoted to four-star admiral, and she did multiple deployments, including as commander of a naval destroyer and two stints as aircraft carrier strike group commander.Slife led Air Force Special Operations Command prior to becoming the service's vice chief of staff and had deployed to the Middle East and Afghanistan.Trump has asserted his executive authority in a much stronger way in his second term, removing most officials from the Biden administration even though many of those positions are meant to carry over from one administration to the next.The chairman role was established in 1949 as an adviser to the president and secretary of defense, as a way to filter all of the views of the service chiefs and more readily provide that information to the White House without the president having to reach out to each individual military branch, according to an Atlantic Council briefing written by retired Maj. Gen. Arnold Punaro. The role has no actual command authority.Trump acted despite support for Brown among key members of Congress and a seemingly friendly meeting with him in mid-December, when the two were seated next to each other for a time at the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-army-navy-football-penny-hegseth-desantis-85da138b3ac130b211afc414bf43514a">Army-Navy football game</a>.Sen. Roger Wicker, GOP chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, didn't mention Caine's name in a statement Friday.“I thank Chairman Brown for his decades of honorable service to our nation,” Wicker said. “I am confident Secretary Hegseth and President Trump will select a qualified and capable successor for the critical position of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.”Brown’s future was called into question during the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-hearing-senate-defense-pentagon-trump-37d0961eb63d824cae8d4478cb12e412">confirmation hearing for Hegseth</a>&nbsp;last month. Asked if he would fire Brown, Hegseth responded, “Every single senior officer will be reviewed based on meritocracy, standards, lethality and commitment to lawful orders they will be given.”Hegseth had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pete-hegseth-background-defense-secretary-confirmation-hearing-e160e10c86385a8beff110d9190fb34e">previously taken aim at Brown</a>. “First of all, you gotta fire, you know, you gotta fire the chairman of Joint Chiefs,” he said flatly in a podcast in November. And in one of his books, he questioned whether Brown got the job because he was Black.“Was it because of his skin color? Or his skill? We’ll never know, but always doubt — which on its face seems unfair to CQ. But since he has made the race card one of his biggest calling cards, it doesn’t really much matter,” Hegseth wrote.As he walked into the Pentagon&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pentagon-hegseth-priorities-border-budget-3227111b703be8a90ad93da289784932">on his first day as defense chief</a>&nbsp;on Jan. 27, Hegseth was asked directly if he planned to fire Brown.“I’m standing with him right now,” said Hegseth, patting Brown on the back. “Look forward to working with him.”Brown, who spent Friday visiting troops at the U.S.-Mexico border, drew attention to himself for speaking out about the death of George Floyd in 2020. While he knew it was risky, he said, discussions with his wife and sons about the killing convinced him he needed to say something.As protests roiled the nation, Brown posted a video message to the Air Force titled, “Here’s What I’m Thinking About.” He described the pressures that came with being one of the few Black men in his unit. He recalled pushing himself “to perform error-free” as a pilot and officer his whole life, but still facing bias. He said he’d been questioned about his credentials, even when he wore the same flight suit and wings as every other pilot.Brown’s path to the chairmanship was troubled — he was among the more than 260 senior military officers&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-military-promotion-tuberville-alabama-8269bbc6a8a7bbb0eabbbba6f1a27787">whose nominations were stalled for months</a>&nbsp;by Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama. But when the Senate vote was finally taken in September 2023, Brown easily was confirmed by a vote of 89-8.It had been 30 years since Colin Powell became the first Black chairman, serving from 1989 to 1993. But while African Americans made up 17.2% of the 1.3 million active-duty service members, only 9% of officers were Black, according to a 2021 Defense Department report.Brown’s service as chairman made history in that this was the first time that both the defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, and the Joint Chiefs chairman were Black.

Trump fires chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and two other military officers

SILVERTON, Colo. (AP) — A snowboarder was killed in an avalanche in the mountains of southwestern Colorado on Thursday, the fourth person to die in an avalanche in the U.S. West this week after a string of winter storms.

The snowboarder was caught in the debris of the avalanche in the backcountry near Silverton but a man who was skiing with the snowboarder escaped the snow slide, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center said. Staff from a nearby backcountry hut noticed the avalanche, alerted rescuers and helped the skier dig the victim out of the debris, it said.

Three people died in avalanches Monday — one person near Lake Tahoe in California and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/avalanche-bend-oregon-cascades-snowmobile-backcountry-skiers-1ac75611c4efd8e68d50d2551d129fb2">two backcountry skiers</a>&nbsp;in Oregon's Cascade Mountains.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/2/1740194627568.png" alt="Photo DeAnne Gallegos/Silverton Medical Rescue" />
 <figcaption>Photo DeAnne Gallegos/Silverton Medical Rescue</figcaption>
 </figure>SILVERTON, Colo. (AP) — A snowboarder was killed in an avalanche in the mountains of southwestern Colorado on Thursday, the fourth person to die in an avalanche in the U.S. West this week after a string of winter storms.The snowboarder was caught in the debris of the avalanche in the backcountry near Silverton but a man who was skiing with the snowboarder escaped the snow slide, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center said. Staff from a nearby backcountry hut noticed the avalanche, alerted rescuers and helped the skier dig the victim out of the debris, it said.Three people died in avalanches Monday — one person near Lake Tahoe in California and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/avalanche-bend-oregon-cascades-snowmobile-backcountry-skiers-1ac75611c4efd8e68d50d2551d129fb2">two backcountry skiers</a>&nbsp;in Oregon's Cascade Mountains.

Snowboarder killed in Co. avalanche in 4th slide death in West this week

SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas man is going to prison for the death of a man who body was found in the truck of a car in August.

Judge Jeffrey Goering sentenced 24-year-old Daitrez Birch to 272 months for killing&nbsp;Kyce Barnes, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

On Christmas Eve, Birch pleaded guilty to&nbsp;second-degree murder, aggravated battery and desecration of remains.

Just after 8a.m. August 21, police responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle in a vacant lot located in the 8200 block of West Irving Street in Wichita, according to police spokesman Andrew Ford.

Officers were directed to a white four door Mercedes and discovered a victim later identified as Barnes in the trunk of the vehicle wrapped in blood-stained bedding with multiple gunshot wounds to his upper and lower body. His remains were transported to the Sedgwick County Medical Examiner's Office for further examination.

During the investigation, detectives identified the Deluxe Motel at 8401 W. Kellogg Drive as the original crime scene.&nbsp;

Barnes had a long history of crime. He spent time in the Kansas Department of Corrections for drug convictions in Cowley County. He was released from prison in 2020.&nbsp; On August 20, police booked Barnes into the Sedgwick County Jail on requested charges that included possession of stolen property and drug possession, according to jail booking records. He was released from the Sedgwick County jail just after 3p.m. August 21.

Police in Wichita also arrested him in 2022 on requested charges of theft, violation of a protection order, domestic battery and failure to appear.&nbsp;

Officers responded the morning of August 21 to the report of a suspicious vehicle in a vacant lot near Kellogg and Tyler. Police were then directed to a white four-door Mercedes.

According to police, Barnes&nbsp;was found wrapped in blood-stained bedding with multiple gunshot wounds to his upper and lower body. Investigators later identified the&nbsp;Delux Inn at 8401 West Kellogg Drive as the crime scene.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.kake.com/home/3rd-suspect-charged-in-case-of-wichita-man-found-dead-in-trunk-of-car/article_bef5449e-7688-11ef-b73b-4f86f2c2ec24.html" target="_blank">Two other people</a>, Taryn Bowman and Demetrius Hill, were charged with&nbsp;concealing, altering or destroying evidence. Hill's case is scheduled for a preliminary hearing in April, court records show. Bowman pleaded guilty last week and was sentenced to a year of probation.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/8/1724266152157.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 —A Kansas man is going to prison for the death of a man who body was found in the truck of a car in August.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/8/1724854691982.png" alt="Birch-photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Birch-photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>Judge Jeffrey Goering sentenced 24-year-old Daitrez Birch to 272 months for killing&nbsp;Kyce Barnes, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.On Christmas Eve, Birch pleaded guilty to&nbsp;second-degree murder, aggravated battery and desecration of remains.Just after 8a.m. August 21, police responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle in a vacant lot located in the 8200 block of West Irving Street in Wichita, according to police spokesman Andrew Ford.Officers were directed to a white four door Mercedes and discovered a victim later identified as Barnes in the trunk of the vehicle wrapped in blood-stained bedding with multiple gunshot wounds to his upper and lower body. His remains were transported to the Sedgwick County Medical Examiner's Office for further examination.During the investigation, detectives identified the Deluxe Motel at 8401 W. Kellogg Drive as the original crime scene.&nbsp;Barnes had a long history of crime. He spent time in the Kansas Department of Corrections for drug convictions in Cowley County. He was released from prison in 2020.&nbsp; On August 20, police booked Barnes into the Sedgwick County Jail on requested charges that included possession of stolen property and drug possession, according to jail booking records. He was released from the Sedgwick County jail just after 3p.m. August 21.Police in Wichita also arrested him in 2022 on requested charges of theft, violation of a protection order, domestic battery and failure to appear.&nbsp;Officers responded the morning of August 21 to the report of a suspicious vehicle in a vacant lot near Kellogg and Tyler. Police were then directed to a white four-door Mercedes.According to police, Barnes&nbsp;was found wrapped in blood-stained bedding with multiple gunshot wounds to his upper and lower body. Investigators later identified the&nbsp;Delux Inn at 8401 West Kellogg Drive as the crime scene.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kake.com/home/3rd-suspect-charged-in-case-of-wichita-man-found-dead-in-trunk-of-car/article_bef5449e-7688-11ef-b73b-4f86f2c2ec24.html" target="_blank">Two other people</a>, Taryn Bowman and Demetrius Hill, were charged with&nbsp;concealing, altering or destroying evidence. Hill's case is scheduled for a preliminary hearing in April, court records show. Bowman pleaded guilty last week and was sentenced to a year of probation.&nbsp;

Prison after Kansas man's body found in trunk of a Mercedes 

WASHINGTON (AP) —President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;sparred with Maine’s Democratic governor during a meeting of governors at the White House on Friday, with Gov.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/janet-mills">Janet Mills</a>&nbsp;telling the Republican president, “We’ll see you in court,” over his push to deny federal funding to the state over transgender athletes.

Trump told the governor he looked forward to it, and predicted the end of her political career for opposing his order.

The confrontation came after Mills and Trump had traded barbs over the last 24 hours regarding&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-transgender-athletes-3606411fc12efffec95a893351624e1b">his push to bar transgender athletes</a>&nbsp;from playing in girls’ and women’s sports. The confrontation in the State Dining Room was an unusual breach of the typically courteous interactions that lawmakers, even of opposing parties, have historically shared at the White House.

The back-and-forth came in the middle of the president’s remarks welcoming the nation’s governors to the White House. As he was speaking about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-transgender-athletes-3606411fc12efffec95a893351624e1b">an executive order he signed</a>&nbsp;earlier this month on transgender athletes, he sought out Mills in the room after singling her out a day earlier in remarks to the Republican Governors Association.

“Are you not going to comply with it?” he asked.

“I’m complying with state and federal laws,” Mills replied.

Trump responded, “We are the federal law.” He again threatened the state’s federal funding and said Maine may be a Democratic state but its residents largely agree with him on this issue.

“We’re going to follow the law,” she said.

“You’d better comply,” Trump warned. “Otherwise, you’re not getting any federal funding.”

“We’ll see you in court,” the governor replied.

“Good, I’ll see you in court. I look forward to that. That should be a real easy one,” Trump said. “And enjoy your life after governor because I don’t think you’ll be in elected politics.”

Trump made a similar threat Thursday night as he spoke to a group of Republican governors. He said that he “heard men are still playing in Maine” and that he would pull funding because of it.

“So we’re not going to give them any federal funding. None whatsoever, until they clean that up,” Trump said.

The Maine Principals’ Association, which governs high school sports in the state, said earlier this month that it would continue to allow transgender female athletes to compete. The association’s executive director, Mike Burnham, said it would follow the Maine Human Rights Act, which bars discrimination based on gender identity.

Mills and Maine’s Democratic attorney general responded Friday morning to Trump’s comments the night before, issuing statements declaring they’d push back.

Mills said the state “will not be intimidated” by Trump’s threats.

“If the president attempts to unilaterally deprive Maine school children of the benefit of Federal funding, my administration and the attorney general will take all appropriate and necessary legal action to restore that funding and the academic opportunity it provides,” Mills said in a statement before the confrontation with Trump.

Aaron Frey, Maine’s attorney general, said he would “defend Maine’s laws and block efforts by the president to bully and threaten us.”

The order Trump signed earlier this month gives federal agencies wide latitude to make sure entities that receive federal funding abide by Title IX in alignment with the Trump administration’s view, which interprets “sex” as the gender someone was assigned at birth.

WASHINGTON (AP) —President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;sparred with Maine’s Democratic governor during a meeting of governors at the White House on Friday, with Gov.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/janet-mills">Janet Mills</a>&nbsp;telling the Republican president, “We’ll see you in court,” over his push to deny federal funding to the state over transgender athletes.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">Heated exchange between President Trump and Gov. Janet Mills (D-ME) over executive order banning transgender women in sports President Trump: &quot;Are you not going to comply with that?&quot;<a href="https://twitter.com/GovJanetMills?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GovJanetMills</a>: &quot;I&#39;m complying with state and federal laws.&quot; Trump: &quot;We are the federal law.… <a href="https://t.co/O7my5uN45W">pic.twitter.com/O7my5uN45W</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1893017453925384617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Trump told the governor he looked forward to it, and predicted the end of her political career for opposing his order.The confrontation came after Mills and Trump had traded barbs over the last 24 hours regarding&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-transgender-athletes-3606411fc12efffec95a893351624e1b">his push to bar transgender athletes</a>&nbsp;from playing in girls’ and women’s sports. The confrontation in the State Dining Room was an unusual breach of the typically courteous interactions that lawmakers, even of opposing parties, have historically shared at the White House.The back-and-forth came in the middle of the president’s remarks welcoming the nation’s governors to the White House. As he was speaking about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-transgender-athletes-3606411fc12efffec95a893351624e1b">an executive order he signed</a>&nbsp;earlier this month on transgender athletes, he sought out Mills in the room after singling her out a day earlier in remarks to the Republican Governors Association.“I’m here,” she replied.“Are you not going to comply with it?” he asked.“I’m complying with state and federal laws,” Mills replied.Trump responded, “We are the federal law.” He again threatened the state’s federal funding and said Maine may be a Democratic state but its residents largely agree with him on this issue.“We’re going to follow the law,” she said.“You’d better comply,” Trump warned. “Otherwise, you’re not getting any federal funding.”“We’ll see you in court,” the governor replied.“Good, I’ll see you in court. I look forward to that. That should be a real easy one,” Trump said. “And enjoy your life after governor because I don’t think you’ll be in elected politics.”Trump made a similar threat Thursday night as he spoke to a group of Republican governors. He said that he “heard men are still playing in Maine” and that he would pull funding because of it.ADVERTISEMENT“So we’re not going to give them any federal funding. None whatsoever, until they clean that up,” Trump said.The Maine Principals’ Association, which governs high school sports in the state, said earlier this month that it would continue to allow transgender female athletes to compete. The association’s executive director, Mike Burnham, said it would follow the Maine Human Rights Act, which bars discrimination based on gender identity.Mills and Maine’s Democratic attorney general responded Friday morning to Trump’s comments the night before, issuing statements declaring they’d push back.Mills said the state “will not be intimidated” by Trump’s threats.“If the president attempts to unilaterally deprive Maine school children of the benefit of Federal funding, my administration and the attorney general will take all appropriate and necessary legal action to restore that funding and the academic opportunity it provides,” Mills said in a statement before the confrontation with Trump.Aaron Frey, Maine’s attorney general, said he would “defend Maine’s laws and block efforts by the president to bully and threaten us.”The order Trump signed earlier this month gives federal agencies wide latitude to make sure entities that receive federal funding abide by Title IX in alignment with the Trump administration’s view, which interprets “sex” as the gender someone was assigned at birth.

🎥Trump spars with Maine’s governor over transgender athletes

NEW YORK (AP) — Jerry Butler, a premier soul singer of the 1960s and after whose rich, intimate baritone graced such hits as “For Your Precious Love,” “Only the Strong Survive” and “Make It Easy On Yourself,” has died at age 85.

Butler’s niece, Yolanda Goff, told the Chicago Sun-Times that Butler died Thursday at his home in Chicago. Butler was a former Cook County board commissioner who would still perform on weekends and identify himself as Jerry “Iceman” Butler, a show business nickname given for his understated style.

A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and a three-time Grammy Award nominee, Butler was a voice for two major soul music hubs: Chicago and Philadelphia. Along with childhood friend Curtis Mayfield, he helped found the Chicago-based Impressions and sang lead on the breakthrough hit “For Your Precious Love,” a deeply emotional, gospel-influenced ballad that made Butler a star before the age of 20. A decade later, in the late ‘60s, he joined the Philadelphia-based production team of Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, who worked with him on “Only the Strong Survive,” “Hey Western Union Man” and other hits. His albums “Ice on Ice” and “The Iceman Cometh” are regarded as early models for the danceable, string-powered productions that became the classic “Sound of Philadelphia.”

Butler was an inspired songwriter who collaborated with Otis Redding on “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long,” a signature ballad for Redding; and with Gamble and Huff on “Only the Strong Survive,” later covered by Elvis Presley among others. His credits also included “For Your Precious Love,” “Never Give You Up” (with Gamble and Huff) and “He Will Break Your Heart,” which Butler helped write after he began thinking about the boyfriends of the groupies he met on the road.

“You go into a town; you’re only going to be there for one night; you want some company; you find a girl; you blow her mind,” Butler told Rolling Stone in 1969. “Now you know that girl hasn’t been sitting in town waiting for you to come in. She probably has another fellow and the other fellow’s probably in love with her; they’re probably planning to go through the whole thing, right? But you never take that into consideration on that particular night.”

Butler was the son of Mississippi sharecroppers who moved north to Chicago when Butler was 3, part of the era’s “Great Migration” of Black people out of the South. He loved all kinds of music as a child and was a good enough singer that a friend suggested he come to a local place of worship, the Traveling Souls Spiritualist Church, presided over by the Rev. A.B. Mayfield. Her grandson, Curtis Mayfield, soon became a close friend. (Mayfield died in 1999).

In 1958, Mayfield and Butler along with Sam Gooden and brothers Arthur and Richard Brooks recorded “For Your Precious Love” for Vee-Jay Records. The group called itself the Impressions, but Vee-Jay, anxious to promote an individual star, advertised the song as by Jerry Butler and the Impressions, leading to estrangement between Butler and the other performers and to an unexpected solo career.

“Fame didn’t change me as much as it changed the people around me,” Butler wrote in his memoir “Only the Strong Survive,” published in 2000.

One of his early solo performances was a 1961 cover of “Moon River,” the theme to “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” Butler was the first performer to hit the charts with what became a pop standard, but “Moon River” would be associated with Andy Williams after the singer was chosen to perform it at the Academy Awards, a snub Butler long resented. His other solo hits, some recorded with Mayfield, included “He Will Break Your Heart”, “Find Another Girl” and “I’m A-Telling You.” By 1967, his formal style seemed out of fashion, but Butler was impressed by the new music coming out of Philadelphia and received permission from his record label (Mercury) to work with Gamble and Huff. The chemistry, Butler recalled, was so “fierce” they wrote hits such as “Only the Strong Survive” in less than an hour.

“Things just seem to fall into place,” Butler told Ebony magazine in 1969. “We lock ourselves in a room, create stories about lovers, compose the music, then write the lyrics to match the music.”

By the 1980s, Butler’s career had faded and he was becoming increasingly interested in politics. Encouraged by the 1983 election of Harold Washington, Chicago’s first Black mayor, he ran successfully for the Cook County Board in 1985 and was re-elected repeatedly, even after supporting a controversial sales tax increase in 2009. He retired from the board in 2018.

Butler was married for 60 years to Annette Smith, who died in 2019, and with her had twin sons. Many of his generational peers had struggled financially and he worked to help them. He chaired the Rhythm &amp; Blues Foundation, which provides a wide range of assistance to musicians, and pushed the industry to provide medical and retirement benefits. Butler considered himself relatively lucky, even if he did pass on the chance to own a part of Gamble and Huff’s Philadelphia International recording company.

“You know, I have lived well. My wife probably would say I could’ve lived better,” Butler told the Chicago Reader in 2011. “Did I make 40, 50 million dollars? No. Did I keep one or two? Yes. The old guys on the street used to say, ‘It’s not how much you make. It’s how much you keep.’”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/2/1740161363501.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>NEW YORK (AP) — Jerry Butler, a premier soul singer of the 1960s and after whose rich, intimate baritone graced such hits as “For Your Precious Love,” “Only the Strong Survive” and “Make It Easy On Yourself,” has died at age 85.Butler’s niece, Yolanda Goff, told the Chicago Sun-Times that Butler died Thursday at his home in Chicago. Butler was a former Cook County board commissioner who would still perform on weekends and identify himself as Jerry “Iceman” Butler, a show business nickname given for his understated style.A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and a three-time Grammy Award nominee, Butler was a voice for two major soul music hubs: Chicago and Philadelphia. Along with childhood friend Curtis Mayfield, he helped found the Chicago-based Impressions and sang lead on the breakthrough hit “For Your Precious Love,” a deeply emotional, gospel-influenced ballad that made Butler a star before the age of 20. A decade later, in the late ‘60s, he joined the Philadelphia-based production team of Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, who worked with him on “Only the Strong Survive,” “Hey Western Union Man” and other hits. His albums “Ice on Ice” and “The Iceman Cometh” are regarded as early models for the danceable, string-powered productions that became the classic “Sound of Philadelphia.”Butler was an inspired songwriter who collaborated with Otis Redding on “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long,” a signature ballad for Redding; and with Gamble and Huff on “Only the Strong Survive,” later covered by Elvis Presley among others. His credits also included “For Your Precious Love,” “Never Give You Up” (with Gamble and Huff) and “He Will Break Your Heart,” which Butler helped write after he began thinking about the boyfriends of the groupies he met on the road.“You go into a town; you’re only going to be there for one night; you want some company; you find a girl; you blow her mind,” Butler told Rolling Stone in 1969. “Now you know that girl hasn’t been sitting in town waiting for you to come in. She probably has another fellow and the other fellow’s probably in love with her; they’re probably planning to go through the whole thing, right? But you never take that into consideration on that particular night.”Butler was the son of Mississippi sharecroppers who moved north to Chicago when Butler was 3, part of the era’s “Great Migration” of Black people out of the South. He loved all kinds of music as a child and was a good enough singer that a friend suggested he come to a local place of worship, the Traveling Souls Spiritualist Church, presided over by the Rev. A.B. Mayfield. Her grandson, Curtis Mayfield, soon became a close friend. (Mayfield died in 1999).ADVERTISEMENTIn 1958, Mayfield and Butler along with Sam Gooden and brothers Arthur and Richard Brooks recorded “For Your Precious Love” for Vee-Jay Records. The group called itself the Impressions, but Vee-Jay, anxious to promote an individual star, advertised the song as by Jerry Butler and the Impressions, leading to estrangement between Butler and the other performers and to an unexpected solo career.“Fame didn’t change me as much as it changed the people around me,” Butler wrote in his memoir “Only the Strong Survive,” published in 2000.One of his early solo performances was a 1961 cover of “Moon River,” the theme to “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” Butler was the first performer to hit the charts with what became a pop standard, but “Moon River” would be associated with Andy Williams after the singer was chosen to perform it at the Academy Awards, a snub Butler long resented. His other solo hits, some recorded with Mayfield, included “He Will Break Your Heart”, “Find Another Girl” and “I’m A-Telling You.” By 1967, his formal style seemed out of fashion, but Butler was impressed by the new music coming out of Philadelphia and received permission from his record label (Mercury) to work with Gamble and Huff. The chemistry, Butler recalled, was so “fierce” they wrote hits such as “Only the Strong Survive” in less than an hour.ADVERTISEMENT“Things just seem to fall into place,” Butler told Ebony magazine in 1969. “We lock ourselves in a room, create stories about lovers, compose the music, then write the lyrics to match the music.”By the 1980s, Butler’s career had faded and he was becoming increasingly interested in politics. Encouraged by the 1983 election of Harold Washington, Chicago’s first Black mayor, he ran successfully for the Cook County Board in 1985 and was re-elected repeatedly, even after supporting a controversial sales tax increase in 2009. He retired from the board in 2018.Butler was married for 60 years to Annette Smith, who died in 2019, and with her had twin sons. Many of his generational peers had struggled financially and he worked to help them. He chaired the Rhythm &amp; Blues Foundation, which provides a wide range of assistance to musicians, and pushed the industry to provide medical and retirement benefits. Butler considered himself relatively lucky, even if he did pass on the chance to own a part of Gamble and Huff’s Philadelphia International recording company.“You know, I have lived well. My wife probably would say I could’ve lived better,” Butler told the Chicago Reader in 2011. “Did I make 40, 50 million dollars? No. Did I keep one or two? Yes. The old guys on the street used to say, ‘It’s not how much you make. It’s how much you keep.’”

Soul singer Jerry Butler, whose hits included ‘Only the Strong Survive,’ dies at 85

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/akaminski/">ANNA KAMINSKI</a>&nbsp; <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/01/03/kansas-state-garden-city-cc-striving-to-shrink-bachelors-degree-educational-desert/?emci=8e6f56cf-3bca-ef11-88d0-0022482a9b45&amp;emdi=a9416bb1-82ca-ef11-88d0-0022482a9b45&amp;ceid=115039">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — A Senate Democrat unsuccessfully attempted to insert “medicinal cannabis” among treatments allowed under a bill meant to broaden Kansans’ access to experimental drugs.

Democratic Sen. Cindy Holscher, who introduced Wednesday the amendment that would have legalized medicinal cannabis for terminally ill patients, later emphasized her intention was not to create a public medical marijuana program.

“I think most of you realize I would not bring something of that magnitude to an important bill like SB 250,” said Holscher, of Overland Park, Wednesday evening. “That amendment, rather, was to mirror what was approved by President Trump in the&nbsp;<a href="https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/president-donald-j-trump-sign-right-try-legislation-fulfilling-promise-made-expand-healthcare-options-terminal-americans/" target="_blank">Right to Try Act</a>, which is a very defined, narrow scope only for terminally ill patients.”

<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/sb250/" target="_blank">Senate Bill 250</a>, introduced and carried on the Senate floor by Eudora Republican Sen. Beverly Gossage, would create the Right to Try for Individualized Investigative Treatments Act. Investigational treatments can also be referred to as experimental drugs, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The bill would permit people who are unable to find relief from rare, life-threatening or debilitating conditions to access individualized, genetics-based medical treatment. The drug trial evaluation system in the U.S. is designed to evaluate medications meant to help larger populations leaving behind drugs that can be individually tailored to a patient’s unique genetic makeup, Gossage said.&nbsp;

“Individualized treatments are being pioneered in the U.S. and abroad, but often patients in the U.S. travel thousands of miles,” she said.

The bill passed the Senate and is awaiting approval in the House.

Holscher supported the bill as a whole but voiced concerns.

“I don’t want to give people false hope,” she said, “yet I certainly would not stand in the way of a parent or individual trying to get medical help for a family member.”

Her amendment added medicinal cannabis to the list of treatments allowed under the definition of individualized investigative treatment.

Cannabis “has been found to have proven benefits for those with life-threatening or debilitating diseases,” Holscher said.&nbsp;

During floor debate on the amendment, Sen. Mike Thompson, a Shawnee Republican who sat on the two-day 2024 interim committee that evaluated the possibility of medical marijuana in Kansas, said adding legislation opens a door to unintended consequences.

“We’ve examined medical cannabis for quite some time,” Thompson said, “and the term medical cannabis is nothing but a marketing ploy.”

Medical marijuana is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ncsl.org/health/state-medical-cannabis-laws" target="_blank">legal</a>&nbsp;in 39 states and Washington, D.C., and recreational use is legal in 24 states and Washington, D.C. Recreational use of marijuana is legal in 24 states and the District of Columbia. Kansas and Idaho are the only states without any form of marijuana legalization. In 2023, of the four proposed bills in&nbsp;<a href="https://klrd.gov/2024/12/18/medical-marijuana-update-2025/" target="_blank">Kansas</a>&nbsp;related to medical marijuana, one received a hearing and died in committee. In 2024, two were introduced and both died in committee.&nbsp;

Gossage admonished Holscher’s amendment after nine Democrats voted in favor and all 31 Republicans voted against it.&nbsp;

“I just think it’s tragic that we would turn a discussion on a right to try for individualized treatment for patients with ultra-rare, life-threatening, debilitating diseases that could be life-saving to a debate on so-called medical marijuana,” she said. “That should be a completely separate bill.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/2/1740152824434.png" alt=" Sen. Cindy Holscher, an Overland Park Democrat on Dec. 2, 2024. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption> Sen. Cindy Holscher, an Overland Park Democrat on Dec. 2, 2024. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/akaminski/">ANNA KAMINSKI</a>&nbsp; <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/01/03/kansas-state-garden-city-cc-striving-to-shrink-bachelors-degree-educational-desert/?emci=8e6f56cf-3bca-ef11-88d0-0022482a9b45&amp;emdi=a9416bb1-82ca-ef11-88d0-0022482a9b45&amp;ceid=115039">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — A Senate Democrat unsuccessfully attempted to insert “medicinal cannabis” among treatments allowed under a bill meant to broaden Kansans’ access to experimental drugs.Democratic Sen. Cindy Holscher, who introduced Wednesday the amendment that would have legalized medicinal cannabis for terminally ill patients, later emphasized her intention was not to create a public medical marijuana program.“I think most of you realize I would not bring something of that magnitude to an important bill like SB 250,” said Holscher, of Overland Park, Wednesday evening. “That amendment, rather, was to mirror what was approved by President Trump in the&nbsp;<a href="https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/president-donald-j-trump-sign-right-try-legislation-fulfilling-promise-made-expand-healthcare-options-terminal-americans/" target="_blank">Right to Try Act</a>, which is a very defined, narrow scope only for terminally ill patients.”<a href="https://www.kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/sb250/" target="_blank">Senate Bill 250</a>, introduced and carried on the Senate floor by Eudora Republican Sen. Beverly Gossage, would create the Right to Try for Individualized Investigative Treatments Act. Investigational treatments can also be referred to as experimental drugs, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The bill would permit people who are unable to find relief from rare, life-threatening or debilitating conditions to access individualized, genetics-based medical treatment. The drug trial evaluation system in the U.S. is designed to evaluate medications meant to help larger populations leaving behind drugs that can be individually tailored to a patient’s unique genetic makeup, Gossage said.&nbsp;“Individualized treatments are being pioneered in the U.S. and abroad, but often patients in the U.S. travel thousands of miles,” she said.The bill passed the Senate and is awaiting approval in the House.Holscher supported the bill as a whole but voiced concerns.“I don’t want to give people false hope,” she said, “yet I certainly would not stand in the way of a parent or individual trying to get medical help for a family member.”Her amendment added medicinal cannabis to the list of treatments allowed under the definition of individualized investigative treatment.Cannabis “has been found to have proven benefits for those with life-threatening or debilitating diseases,” Holscher said.&nbsp;During floor debate on the amendment, Sen. Mike Thompson, a Shawnee Republican who sat on the two-day 2024 interim committee that evaluated the possibility of medical marijuana in Kansas, said adding legislation opens a door to unintended consequences.“We’ve examined medical cannabis for quite some time,” Thompson said, “and the term medical cannabis is nothing but a marketing ploy.”Medical marijuana is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ncsl.org/health/state-medical-cannabis-laws" target="_blank">legal</a>&nbsp;in 39 states and Washington, D.C., and recreational use is legal in 24 states and Washington, D.C. Recreational use of marijuana is legal in 24 states and the District of Columbia. Kansas and Idaho are the only states without any form of marijuana legalization. In 2023, of the four proposed bills in&nbsp;<a href="https://klrd.gov/2024/12/18/medical-marijuana-update-2025/" target="_blank">Kansas</a>&nbsp;related to medical marijuana, one received a hearing and died in committee. In 2024, two were introduced and both died in committee.&nbsp;Gossage admonished Holscher’s amendment after nine Democrats voted in favor and all 31 Republicans voted against it.&nbsp;“I just think it’s tragic that we would turn a discussion on a right to try for individualized treatment for patients with ultra-rare, life-threatening, debilitating diseases that could be life-saving to a debate on so-called medical marijuana,” she said. “That should be a completely separate bill.”

Kansas Democrat attempts to insert narrow medical marijuana legalization into treatment bill

KANSAS CITY —There were no injuries after law enforcement successfully retrieved&nbsp; a WW2 area grenade from a vehicle in downtown Blue Springs.

Authorities blocked off Main Street from 15th Street east to the railroad tracks and 14th Street from Smith to Vesper in downtown Blue Springs while the Lees Summit Police bomb squad responded and then confirmed the device was a real WW2 era grenade.&nbsp;

On Friday, Lee's Summit Police did not release details on whether the grenade was still a live explosive.&nbsp;

KANSAS CITY —There were no injuries after law enforcement successfully retrieved&nbsp; a WW2 area grenade from a vehicle in downtown Blue Springs.Authorities blocked off Main Street from 15th Street east to the railroad tracks and 14th Street from Smith to Vesper in downtown Blue Springs while the Lees Summit Police bomb squad responded and then confirmed the device was a real WW2 era grenade.&nbsp;On Friday, Lee's Summit Police did not release details on whether the grenade was still a live explosive.&nbsp;

Bomb squad retrieves World War II era grenade in KC suburb

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://stateline.org/author/thenderson/">TIM HENDERSON</a> <a href="https://stateline.org/">Stateline</a>

Conservative cities and states across the country have taken to President Donald Trump’s deportation plans and are increasing cooperation with federal authorities — even seeking new laws against illegal immigration that would be enforced by local and state police.

Florida’s legislature held a special session last week and&nbsp;<a href="https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/02/13/florida-legislature-passes-immigration-bills-the-governor-is-expected-to-sign/" target="_blank">passed legislation</a>&nbsp;creating a state-level immigration enforcement operation. Tennessee’s&nbsp;<a href="https://tennesseelookout.com/2025/01/30/tennessee-house-passes-immigration-enforcement-bill-aclu-plans-legal-challenge/" target="_blank">new law</a>&nbsp;creates a similar office and makes it a felony for public officials to back sanctuary policies.

<a href="https://x.com/KathleenBushJo2/status/1884268940110749965" target="_blank">Iowa</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/federal-court-temporarily-blocks-oklahomas-anti-immigrant-hb-4156#:~:text=OKLAHOMA%20CITY%20%E2%80%94%20A%20federal%20court,and%20conflicts%20with%20federal%20law." target="_blank">Oklahoma</a>&nbsp;passed state deportation laws that have been blocked by courts. Six Colorado counties are&nbsp;<a href="https://www.douglas.co.us/douglas-county-appeals-denver-judges-dismissal-of-immigration-lawsuit/" target="_blank">suing the state</a>&nbsp;over its sanctuary policies, and Indiana is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.insideindianabusiness.com/articles/ag-sues-st-joe-county-police-over-alleged-lack-of-cooperation-with-immigration-officials#:~:text=%2D%20Indiana%20Attorney%20General%20Todd%20Rokita,to%20honor%20ICE%20detainment%20requests" target="_blank">suing one of its counties</a>&nbsp;over immigration enforcement.

The New Hampshire House&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/house-democrats-join-republicans-passing-anti-sanctuary-city-bill-pointing-compromise" target="_blank">overwhelmingly</a>&nbsp;passed legislation that would prohibit sanctuary cities, though that bill has a competing version in the state Senate. And last week, Georgia’s Senate&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/2025/02/13/georgia-senate-passes-bill-to-take-lawsuit-immunity-away-from-so-called-sanctuary-cities/" target="_blank">passed</a>&nbsp;a bill that would allow local government employees and officials in sanctuary cities to be held civilly liable for any crimes committed by immigrants without permanent legal status.

In Louisiana, Republican Attorney General Liz Murrill last week&nbsp;<a href="https://lailluminator.com/2025/02/14/new-orleans-sanctuary/" target="_blank">filed a motion</a>&nbsp;in U.S. District Court in New Orleans to force the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office to abandon its sanctuary approach.

Despite Trump’s pledge to deport millions of people living in the United States illegally, the key targets so far have been the roughly&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2024/12/19/immigration-enforcement-deportations-biden/" target="_blank">750,000 people</a>&nbsp;who already have open deportation orders signed by a judge, said Kathleen Bush-Joseph, a policy analyst for the Migration Policy Institute, a Washington, D.C., think tank devoted to immigration policy.

Suburban Nassau County on Long Island, New York, is one locality planning closer cooperation with immigration authorities. The county voted Republican in last year’s presidential race for the first time since 1988.

The county has agreed to allow 10 detectives to help arrest wanted immigrants with criminal convictions and to hold them for up to 72 hours, in exchange for reimbursement from ICE, County Executive Bruce Blakeman, a Republican, said in a statement.

The partnership gives Nassau County more leeway to hold people on suspicion of immigration violations than it would have if it were acting independently, he wrote, because of&nbsp;<a href="https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/2025-01/oag-immigrationenforcement-guidance-1.10.pdf" target="_blank">state guidance</a>&nbsp;questioning the legality of jailing someone after their release by a court.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/1/1738002670796.png" alt="Photo Homeland Security" />
 <figcaption>Photo Homeland Security</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://stateline.org/author/thenderson/">TIM HENDERSON</a> <a href="https://stateline.org/">Stateline</a>Conservative cities and states across the country have taken to President Donald Trump’s deportation plans and are increasing cooperation with federal authorities — even seeking new laws against illegal immigration that would be enforced by local and state police.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">KBI director, Kansas attorney general allow agents to work with ICE on immigration cases | | <a href="https://t.co/RfW1IPzKSL">https://t.co/RfW1IPzKSL</a> <a href="https://t.co/zkUMzyNJx0">pic.twitter.com/zkUMzyNJx0</a>&mdash; Kansas AG&#39;s Office (@KSAGOffice) <a href="https://twitter.com/KSAGOffice/status/1891972999227576388?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Florida’s legislature held a special session last week and&nbsp;<a href="https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/02/13/florida-legislature-passes-immigration-bills-the-governor-is-expected-to-sign/" target="_blank">passed legislation</a>&nbsp;creating a state-level immigration enforcement operation. Tennessee’s&nbsp;<a href="https://tennesseelookout.com/2025/01/30/tennessee-house-passes-immigration-enforcement-bill-aclu-plans-legal-challenge/" target="_blank">new law</a>&nbsp;creates a similar office and makes it a felony for public officials to back sanctuary policies.<a href="https://x.com/KathleenBushJo2/status/1884268940110749965" target="_blank">Iowa</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/federal-court-temporarily-blocks-oklahomas-anti-immigrant-hb-4156#:~:text=OKLAHOMA%20CITY%20%E2%80%94%20A%20federal%20court,and%20conflicts%20with%20federal%20law." target="_blank">Oklahoma</a>&nbsp;passed state deportation laws that have been blocked by courts. Six Colorado counties are&nbsp;<a href="https://www.douglas.co.us/douglas-county-appeals-denver-judges-dismissal-of-immigration-lawsuit/" target="_blank">suing the state</a>&nbsp;over its sanctuary policies, and Indiana is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.insideindianabusiness.com/articles/ag-sues-st-joe-county-police-over-alleged-lack-of-cooperation-with-immigration-officials#:~:text=%2D%20Indiana%20Attorney%20General%20Todd%20Rokita,to%20honor%20ICE%20detainment%20requests" target="_blank">suing one of its counties</a>&nbsp;over immigration enforcement.The New Hampshire House&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/house-democrats-join-republicans-passing-anti-sanctuary-city-bill-pointing-compromise" target="_blank">overwhelmingly</a>&nbsp;passed legislation that would prohibit sanctuary cities, though that bill has a competing version in the state Senate. And last week, Georgia’s Senate&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/2025/02/13/georgia-senate-passes-bill-to-take-lawsuit-immunity-away-from-so-called-sanctuary-cities/" target="_blank">passed</a>&nbsp;a bill that would allow local government employees and officials in sanctuary cities to be held civilly liable for any crimes committed by immigrants without permanent legal status.In Louisiana, Republican Attorney General Liz Murrill last week&nbsp;<a href="https://lailluminator.com/2025/02/14/new-orleans-sanctuary/" target="_blank">filed a motion</a>&nbsp;in U.S. District Court in New Orleans to force the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office to abandon its sanctuary approach.Despite Trump’s pledge to deport millions of people living in the United States illegally, the key targets so far have been the roughly&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2024/12/19/immigration-enforcement-deportations-biden/" target="_blank">750,000 people</a>&nbsp;who already have open deportation orders signed by a judge, said Kathleen Bush-Joseph, a policy analyst for the Migration Policy Institute, a Washington, D.C., think tank devoted to immigration policy.Suburban Nassau County on Long Island, New York, is one locality planning closer cooperation with immigration authorities. The county voted Republican in last year’s presidential race for the first time since 1988.The county has agreed to allow 10 detectives to help arrest wanted immigrants with criminal convictions and to hold them for up to 72 hours, in exchange for reimbursement from ICE, County Executive Bruce Blakeman, a Republican, said in a statement.The partnership gives Nassau County more leeway to hold people on suspicion of immigration violations than it would have if it were acting independently, he wrote, because of&nbsp;<a href="https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/2025-01/oag-immigrationenforcement-guidance-1.10.pdf" target="_blank">state guidance</a>&nbsp;questioning the legality of jailing someone after their release by a court.

The Latest on How States are Cooperating with Trump’s Deportation Plans

SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas woman charged with driving under the influence in a crash that killed a woman in 2024 is scheduled for another court appearance Friday.

Trisha Greer, 43, is scheduled an arraignment hearing Friday afternoon before Judge Sean Hatfield, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

Just after 11p.m. May 14, Greer was driving without headlights at 55th Street South and Hoover, according to Sheriff's Lt Nathan Gibbs. The vehicle struck and killed 18-year-old Bethany Aillen Callista Leggio who was standing with a group of people at the location.

Greet was booked into jail just after 1a.m. the following morning, according to online jail records. She&nbsp;is free on bond.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1717510102482.png" alt="Greer-photo Sedgwick Co." />
 <figcaption>Greer-photo Sedgwick Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas woman charged with driving under the influence in a crash that killed a woman in 2024 is scheduled for another court appearance Friday.Trisha Greer, 43, is scheduled an arraignment hearing Friday afternoon before Judge Sean Hatfield, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.Just after 11p.m. May 14, Greer was driving without headlights at 55th Street South and Hoover, according to Sheriff's Lt Nathan Gibbs. The vehicle struck and killed 18-year-old Bethany Aillen Callista Leggio who was standing with a group of people at the location.Greet was booked into jail just after 1a.m. the following morning, according to online jail records. She&nbsp;is free on bond.

Woman charged in crash that killed Kan. teen is due back in court

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican senators pushed a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-budget-trump-republicans-tax-cuts-programs-096be7e3ed20e3dfb4640192b1018479">$340 billion budget framework</a>&nbsp;to passage early Friday, chugging through an all-night session and Democratic opposition in a step toward unleashing money the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/live/trump-presidency-updates-2-20-2025#00000195-2386-d271-ad97-a3e774a50000">Trump administration</a>&nbsp;says it needs for&nbsp;<a href="http://apnews.com/article/costa-rica-panama-mass-deportations-trump-migration-detention-85e70a0e4e053ea01b77b0e4d55c8fea">mass deportations and border security</a>&nbsp;that top their agenda.

The hours-long “vote-a-rama” rambled along in a dreaded but crucial part of the budget process, as senators considered one amendment after another,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/democrats-trump-elon-musk-doge-protest-91281e059b7e0d807a3dbb07ff638ebb">largely from Democrats</a>&nbsp;trying to halt it. But Republicans&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-tax-cuts-republicans-congress-spending-immigration-e4aebdcc9955f5d663208aec08778442">used their majority power</a>&nbsp;to muscle the package to approval on a largely party-line vote, 52-48, with all Democrats and one GOP senator opposing it. Kansas U.S. Senators Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall voted with the majority.

“What we're doing today is jumpstarting a process that will allow the Republican Party to meet President Trump's immigration agenda,” Senate Budget Committee chair Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said while opening the debate.

Graham said President Donald Trump's&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-homan-ice-border-czar-7dea915b5ea43896390b8020d254f887">top immigration czar</a>, Tom Homan, told senators that the administration's deportation operations are “out of money” and need more funding from Congress to detain and deport immigrants.

With little power in the minority to stop the onslaught, Democrats instead used the all-night debate to force GOP senators into potentially embarrassing votes — including the first one, on blocking&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tax-cuts-jobs-act-trump-treasury-agenda-f4031196e0d69d0a1630e3b06b6d3cd7">tax breaks to billionaires</a>. It was turned back on procedural grounds. So were many others.

“This is going to be a long, drawn-out fight,” Senate Democratic Leader&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/schumer-democrats-election-trump-7ee99496ac9f2a73493f1aa89a02a33d">Chuck Schumer</a>&nbsp;of New York warned. Hours later, Schumer said it “was only the beginning” of what could become a months-long debate.

The package is what Republicans view as a down payment on Trump’s agenda, part of a broader effort that will eventually include legislation to extend&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/house-republicans-budget-blueprint-trump-tax-cuts-ff2bddf31f4e7cb0928139072392a091">some $4.5 trillion in tax breaks and other priorities</a>. That's being assembled by House Speaker&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/mike-johnson/">Mike Johnson</a>&nbsp;in a separate budget package that also seeks up to $2 trillion in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/medicaid-cuts-work-requirements-congress-republicans-90ec1119f1d95de067c76f79eec7fa87">reductions to health care</a>&nbsp;and other programs.

Trump has preferred what he calls one&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-congress-tax-cuts-border-reconciliation-budget-24a43b92aafac265592525acddaf5fc5">“big, beautiful bill,”</a>&nbsp;but the White House is open to the Senate’s strategy of working on the border package first, then turning to tax cuts later this year.

As voting began, the president signaled his go-ahead, posting a thank you to Senate Majority Leader John Thune “and the Republican Senate, for working so hard on funding the Trump Border Agenda.”

Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky cast the lone GOP vote against the framework.

The Republican Senate package would allow up to $175 billion to be spent on border security, including money for mass deportation operations and building the U.S.-Mexico border wall, in addition to a $150 billion boost to the Pentagon and about $20 billion for the Coast Guard.

But there won't be any money flowing just yet, as the process has several steps ahead. The budget resolution is simply a framework that sends instructions to the various Senate committees — Homeland Security, Armed Services, Judiciary — to hammer out the details. Everything will eventually be assembled in another package, with another vote-a-rama down the road.

Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., the No. 2-ranking Senate Republican, said GOP lawmakers are acting quickly to get the administration the resources they have requested and need to curb illegal border crossings.

“The budget will allow us to finish the wall. It also takes the steps we need toward more border agents,” Barrasso said. “It means more detention beds. ... It means more deportation flights.”

Republicans insist the whole thing will be paid for, rather than piled onto debt, with potential spending cuts and new revenues.

The committees are expected to consider rolling back the Biden administration’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/methane-fee-epa-climate-biden-oil-gas-5020fdf48c51918d42176e0a4f6093dd">methane emissions fee</a>, which was approved by Democrats as part of climate change strategies in the Inflation Reduction Act, and hoping to draw new revenue from energy leases as they aim to spur domestic energy production.

One amendment that was accepted after several hours of debate was actually a Republican effort to fend off criticism that the package would be paid for by cutting safety net programs. The amendment from Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, said Medicaid and Medicare would be strengthened during the budget process.

First up from Democrats was a vote to prevent tax breaks for billionaires — an amendment that was repeated in various forms throughout the night.

Democrats argue that the GOP tax cuts approved in 2017 flowed to the wealthiest Americans, and extending them as Trump wants Congress to do later this year would prolong the giveaway. Even though the billionaire amendments failed, they picked up some Republican support. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine voted for several of them, and Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri voted for another.

Schumer launched a strategy earlier this week to use the budget debate to focus on both the implications of the tax policy and the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency, which is slashing across the federal government.

It's a better approach for Democrats than arguing against tougher border security and deportations, which divides the party.

All told, senators processed almost three dozen amendments on reversing DOGE cuts, protecting federal workers from being fired, ensuring U.S. support for Ukraine as it battles Russia and others.

Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, said the single biggest driver of the national debt since 2001 has been a series of Republican-led tax cuts.

“And you’ll never guess what our Republican colleagues on the other side of the aisle are focused on right now, nothing to lower the cost of eggs, it’s actually more Republican tax cuts,” Murray said.

She called the budget plan a “roadmap for painful cuts to programs families count on each and every day, all so they can give billionaires more tax cuts.”

The budget resolution is setting up what's called the reconciliation process, which used to be rare, but is now the tool often used to pass big bills on party-line votes when one party has control of the White House and Congress, as Republicans do now.

But Republicans are arguing with themselves over how to proceed. The House is marching ahead on its “big, beautiful bill,” believing they have one chance to get it right. The Senate views its two-bill strategy as more practical, delivering on border security first, then turning to taxes later.

Budget rules allow for passage by a simple majority vote, which is key in the Senate, where it typically takes 60 votes to break a filibuster on big items. During Trump’s first term, Republicans used the reconciliation process to pass GOP tax cuts in 2017. Democrats used reconciliation during Joe Biden's presidency to approve COVID-19 relief and the Inflation Reduction Act.

Trump appears to be stirring the fight, pitting Republicans in the House and Senate against each other to see which one delivers fastest.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/2/1740135974641.png" alt="Counting votes in the U.S. Senate at 3:30a.m. CST Friday-image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Counting votes in the U.S. Senate at 3:30a.m. CST Friday-image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican senators pushed a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-budget-trump-republicans-tax-cuts-programs-096be7e3ed20e3dfb4640192b1018479">$340 billion budget framework</a>&nbsp;to passage early Friday, chugging through an all-night session and Democratic opposition in a step toward unleashing money the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/live/trump-presidency-updates-2-20-2025#00000195-2386-d271-ad97-a3e774a50000">Trump administration</a>&nbsp;says it needs for&nbsp;<a href="http://apnews.com/article/costa-rica-panama-mass-deportations-trump-migration-detention-85e70a0e4e053ea01b77b0e4d55c8fea">mass deportations and border security</a>&nbsp;that top their agenda.The hours-long “vote-a-rama” rambled along in a dreaded but crucial part of the budget process, as senators considered one amendment after another,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/democrats-trump-elon-musk-doge-protest-91281e059b7e0d807a3dbb07ff638ebb">largely from Democrats</a>&nbsp;trying to halt it. But Republicans&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-tax-cuts-republicans-congress-spending-immigration-e4aebdcc9955f5d663208aec08778442">used their majority power</a>&nbsp;to muscle the package to approval on a largely party-line vote, 52-48, with all Democrats and one GOP senator opposing it. Kansas U.S. Senators Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall voted with the majority.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Glad to report my <a href="https://twitter.com/SenateGOP?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SenateGOP</a> colleagues and I passed a budget resolution to secure $175 billion and deliver on President <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDonaldTrump</a>’s promise to secure our border. This resolution gives us the tools to: ➡️ Build the wall ➡️ Hire more ICE agents ➡️ Equip ICE with…&mdash; Dr. Roger Marshall (@RogerMarshallMD) <a href="https://twitter.com/RogerMarshallMD/status/1892965496640692499?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>“What we're doing today is jumpstarting a process that will allow the Republican Party to meet President Trump's immigration agenda,” Senate Budget Committee chair Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said while opening the debate.Graham said President Donald Trump's&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-homan-ice-border-czar-7dea915b5ea43896390b8020d254f887">top immigration czar</a>, Tom Homan, told senators that the administration's deportation operations are “out of money” and need more funding from Congress to detain and deport immigrants.With little power in the minority to stop the onslaught, Democrats instead used the all-night debate to force GOP senators into potentially embarrassing votes — including the first one, on blocking&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tax-cuts-jobs-act-trump-treasury-agenda-f4031196e0d69d0a1630e3b06b6d3cd7">tax breaks to billionaires</a>. It was turned back on procedural grounds. So were many others.“This is going to be a long, drawn-out fight,” Senate Democratic Leader&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/schumer-democrats-election-trump-7ee99496ac9f2a73493f1aa89a02a33d">Chuck Schumer</a>&nbsp;of New York warned. Hours later, Schumer said it “was only the beginning” of what could become a months-long debate.The package is what Republicans view as a down payment on Trump’s agenda, part of a broader effort that will eventually include legislation to extend&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/house-republicans-budget-blueprint-trump-tax-cuts-ff2bddf31f4e7cb0928139072392a091">some $4.5 trillion in tax breaks and other priorities</a>. That's being assembled by House Speaker&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/mike-johnson/">Mike Johnson</a>&nbsp;in a separate budget package that also seeks up to $2 trillion in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/medicaid-cuts-work-requirements-congress-republicans-90ec1119f1d95de067c76f79eec7fa87">reductions to health care</a>&nbsp;and other programs.Trump has preferred what he calls one&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-congress-tax-cuts-border-reconciliation-budget-24a43b92aafac265592525acddaf5fc5">“big, beautiful bill,”</a>&nbsp;but the White House is open to the Senate’s strategy of working on the border package first, then turning to tax cuts later this year.As voting began, the president signaled his go-ahead, posting a thank you to Senate Majority Leader John Thune “and the Republican Senate, for working so hard on funding the Trump Border Agenda.”Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky cast the lone GOP vote against the framework.<h2>What’s in the Senate GOP package</h2>The Republican Senate package would allow up to $175 billion to be spent on border security, including money for mass deportation operations and building the U.S.-Mexico border wall, in addition to a $150 billion boost to the Pentagon and about $20 billion for the Coast Guard.But there won't be any money flowing just yet, as the process has several steps ahead. The budget resolution is simply a framework that sends instructions to the various Senate committees — Homeland Security, Armed Services, Judiciary — to hammer out the details. Everything will eventually be assembled in another package, with another vote-a-rama down the road.Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., the No. 2-ranking Senate Republican, said GOP lawmakers are acting quickly to get the administration the resources they have requested and need to curb illegal border crossings.“The budget will allow us to finish the wall. It also takes the steps we need toward more border agents,” Barrasso said. “It means more detention beds. ... It means more deportation flights.”Republicans insist the whole thing will be paid for, rather than piled onto debt, with potential spending cuts and new revenues.The committees are expected to consider rolling back the Biden administration’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/methane-fee-epa-climate-biden-oil-gas-5020fdf48c51918d42176e0a4f6093dd">methane emissions fee</a>, which was approved by Democrats as part of climate change strategies in the Inflation Reduction Act, and hoping to draw new revenue from energy leases as they aim to spur domestic energy production.One amendment that was accepted after several hours of debate was actually a Republican effort to fend off criticism that the package would be paid for by cutting safety net programs. The amendment from Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, said Medicaid and Medicare would be strengthened during the budget process.<h2>Democrats brought a slew of amendments</h2>First up from Democrats was a vote to prevent tax breaks for billionaires — an amendment that was repeated in various forms throughout the night.Democrats argue that the GOP tax cuts approved in 2017 flowed to the wealthiest Americans, and extending them as Trump wants Congress to do later this year would prolong the giveaway. Even though the billionaire amendments failed, they picked up some Republican support. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine voted for several of them, and Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri voted for another.Schumer launched a strategy earlier this week to use the budget debate to focus on both the implications of the tax policy and the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency, which is slashing across the federal government.It's a better approach for Democrats than arguing against tougher border security and deportations, which divides the party.All told, senators processed almost three dozen amendments on reversing DOGE cuts, protecting federal workers from being fired, ensuring U.S. support for Ukraine as it battles Russia and others.Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, said the single biggest driver of the national debt since 2001 has been a series of Republican-led tax cuts.“And you’ll never guess what our Republican colleagues on the other side of the aisle are focused on right now, nothing to lower the cost of eggs, it’s actually more Republican tax cuts,” Murray said.She called the budget plan a “roadmap for painful cuts to programs families count on each and every day, all so they can give billionaires more tax cuts.”<h2>Congress is racing itself</h2>The budget resolution is setting up what's called the reconciliation process, which used to be rare, but is now the tool often used to pass big bills on party-line votes when one party has control of the White House and Congress, as Republicans do now.But Republicans are arguing with themselves over how to proceed. The House is marching ahead on its “big, beautiful bill,” believing they have one chance to get it right. The Senate views its two-bill strategy as more practical, delivering on border security first, then turning to taxes later.Budget rules allow for passage by a simple majority vote, which is key in the Senate, where it typically takes 60 votes to break a filibuster on big items. During Trump’s first term, Republicans used the reconciliation process to pass GOP tax cuts in 2017. Democrats used reconciliation during Joe Biden's presidency to approve COVID-19 relief and the Inflation Reduction Act.Trump appears to be stirring the fight, pitting Republicans in the House and Senate against each other to see which one delivers fastest.___

Moran, Marshall pull all-nighter to help pass $340 billion budget

DOUGLAS COUNTY —A 22-year-old man is in custody after police believe he shot another man Wednesday night while inside a car at Casey’s General Store, 1703 W. 6th Street in Lawrence, according to a statement from the Lawrence Police Department.

&nbsp;Seven people were in the car when the suspect was recklessly handling a gun and discharged it, striking the 23-year-old victim.

At least some members of the group then drove with the victim to the hospital and remained.  Others did not and hospital staff notified Lawrence Police about 11pm.

Police did not find the car at the hospital nor all seven people when they arrived. Police learned the car was likely headed to Eudora.  Eudora Police quickly found the car near 13th and Cherry Street with only the driver inside.

The investigation led officers to the suspect’s home in the 1100 block of W. 29th Terrace.  Officers monitored the home and were able to safely arrest the suspect about 2am. Investigators also recovered the firearm allegedly used in the shooting.

Police booked the suspect into Douglas County Correctional Facility and will forward the case to the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office for charging consideration. The victim remains hospitalized in critical condition.

DOUGLAS COUNTY —A 22-year-old man is in custody after police believe he shot another man Wednesday night while inside a car at Casey’s General Store, 1703 W. 6th Street in Lawrence, according to a statement from the Lawrence Police Department.&nbsp;Seven people were in the car when the suspect was recklessly handling a gun and discharged it, striking the 23-year-old victim.At least some members of the group then drove with the victim to the hospital and remained. Others did not and hospital staff notified Lawrence Police about 11pm.Police did not find the car at the hospital nor all seven people when they arrived. Police learned the car was likely headed to Eudora. Eudora Police quickly found the car near 13th and Cherry Street with only the driver inside.The investigation led officers to the suspect’s home in the 1100 block of W. 29th Terrace. Officers monitored the home and were able to safely arrest the suspect about 2am. Investigators also recovered the firearm allegedly used in the shooting.Police booked the suspect into Douglas County Correctional Facility and will forward the case to the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office for charging consideration. The victim remains hospitalized in critical condition.

Kan. man accused of recklessly handling gun while in a car

OXON HILL, Md. (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/elon-musk">Billionaire Elon Musk</a>&nbsp;appeared at a conservative gathering outside Washington on Thursday waving a chainsaw in the air, showing openness to auditing the Federal Reserve and accusing Democrats of “treason.”

Musk, the Tesla CEO who has become perhaps President Donald Trump’s most influential adviser, spoke about his crusade to cut government spending and downsize the federal workforce with the administration’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/doge-firings-layoffs-federal-government-workers-musk-d33cdd7872d64d2bdd8fe70c28652654">Department of Government Efficiency</a>.

The entrepreneur was first announced earlier that day as a speaker, drawing huge cheers from activists gathered at the Conservative Political Action Conference. Before his appearance, he met with Argentine President Javier Milei, who has been frequently praised by Musk and popularized the power tool while campaigning in 2023 and proposing slashing public spending.

After Musk appeared onstage, wearing shades and his trademark black “Make America Great Again” hat, he said Milei had a gift for him. The Argentine leader then walked onstage with the red chainsaw and passed it to Musk. The chainsaw was engraved with Milei’s slogan, “Viva la libertad, carajo,” which is Spanish for “Long live liberty, damn it.”

“This is the chainsaw for bureaucracy,” he said.

Musk slammed the previous Biden administration for its immigration policies, specifically naming an app that was used by nearly 1 million people to be allowed into the U.S. on two-year permits with eligibility to work. He accused Biden and Democrats of doing that as an “investment” to get more support in swing states.

“A lot of people don’t quite appreciate that this was an actual real scam at scale to tilt the scales of democracy in America,” Musk said before Newsmax host Rob Schmitt asked him, “Treason?”

When Schmitt asked him if he would consider auditing the Federal Reserve, Musk responded, “Yeah, sure, while we’re at it.”

“Waste is pretty much everywhere,” Musk said.

The billionaire joked that Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has told him he is worried about his security and said he was open to ideas on how to improve his safety measures.

“President Bukele from El Salvador, who managed to put in prison like a hundred thousand murderous thugs, and he called me. ‘I am worried about your security,’” he said the Central American leader told him. “I’m like, ‘Dude, you are worried about my security?’”

When asked to describe what is like inside his mind, Musk replied: “My mind is a storm. It’s a storm.”

Steve Bannon, a popular Trump ally who once served as his chief strategist, followed Musk’s appearance and acknowledged he was not the evening’s top attraction as he took the stage to a far less enthusiastic reception.

“How did I draw the card to follow Elon Musk?” Bannon asked about a man he has frequently criticized as insufficiently loyal to Trump. “C’mon man! You bring out the world’s wealthiest guy, Superman. I’m supposed to follow it? I’m just a crazy Irishman!”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/2/1740104356573.png" alt="Image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>OXON HILL, Md. (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/elon-musk">Billionaire Elon Musk</a>&nbsp;appeared at a conservative gathering outside Washington on Thursday waving a chainsaw in the air, showing openness to auditing the Federal Reserve and accusing Democrats of “treason.”<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Elon Musk at CPAC: &quot;This is the chainsaw for bureaucracy.&quot; Full video here: <a href="https://t.co/1ZoWVmLCIT">https://t.co/1ZoWVmLCIT</a> <a href="https://t.co/hLvHOqG49J">pic.twitter.com/hLvHOqG49J</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1892706390000414729?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Musk, the Tesla CEO who has become perhaps President Donald Trump’s most influential adviser, spoke about his crusade to cut government spending and downsize the federal workforce with the administration’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/doge-firings-layoffs-federal-government-workers-musk-d33cdd7872d64d2bdd8fe70c28652654">Department of Government Efficiency</a>.The entrepreneur was first announced earlier that day as a speaker, drawing huge cheers from activists gathered at the Conservative Political Action Conference. Before his appearance, he met with Argentine President Javier Milei, who has been frequently praised by Musk and popularized the power tool while campaigning in 2023 and proposing slashing public spending.After Musk appeared onstage, wearing shades and his trademark black “Make America Great Again” hat, he said Milei had a gift for him. The Argentine leader then walked onstage with the red chainsaw and passed it to Musk. The chainsaw was engraved with Milei’s slogan, “Viva la libertad, carajo,” which is Spanish for “Long live liberty, damn it.”“This is the chainsaw for bureaucracy,” he said.Musk slammed the previous Biden administration for its immigration policies, specifically naming an app that was used by nearly 1 million people to be allowed into the U.S. on two-year permits with eligibility to work. He accused Biden and Democrats of doing that as an “investment” to get more support in swing states.“A lot of people don’t quite appreciate that this was an actual real scam at scale to tilt the scales of democracy in America,” Musk said before Newsmax host Rob Schmitt asked him, “Treason?”Musk responded, “Treason.”When Schmitt asked him if he would consider auditing the Federal Reserve, Musk responded, “Yeah, sure, while we’re at it.”“Waste is pretty much everywhere,” Musk said.The billionaire joked that Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has told him he is worried about his security and said he was open to ideas on how to improve his safety measures.“President Bukele from El Salvador, who managed to put in prison like a hundred thousand murderous thugs, and he called me. ‘I am worried about your security,’” he said the Central American leader told him. “I’m like, ‘Dude, you are worried about my security?’”When asked to describe what is like inside his mind, Musk replied: “My mind is a storm. It’s a storm.”Steve Bannon, a popular Trump ally who once served as his chief strategist, followed Musk’s appearance and acknowledged he was not the evening’s top attraction as he took the stage to a far less enthusiastic reception.“How did I draw the card to follow Elon Musk?” Bannon asked about a man he has frequently criticized as insufficiently loyal to Trump. “C’mon man! You bring out the world’s wealthiest guy, Superman. I’m supposed to follow it? I’m just a crazy Irishman!”

🎥Musk waves chainsaw, talks up Trump cost-cutting efforts

SHAWNEE COUNTY —A family avoided injured after a fire at a Kansas home.

Just after 10 a.m.Thursday, crews from the Topeka Fire Department responded to a reported house fire at 1508 SW Ward Pkwy, according to spokesperson Rosie Nichols. Crews found a two-story house with smoke and flames and extinguished the fire. All residents were able to escape before fire crews arrived.

The cause of the fire was determined to be electrical, having originated in the kitchen. The estimated loss associated with the fire is approximately $275,000, with $225,000 associated with structural damage and $50,000 associated with content loss. There were no injuries.

The home did not have working smoke detectors where the fire originated, according to Nichols.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/2/1740086018934.png" alt="Photo courtesy WIBW TV" />
 <figcaption>Photo courtesy WIBW TV</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —A family avoided injured after a fire at a Kansas home.Just after 10 a.m.Thursday, crews from the Topeka Fire Department responded to a reported house fire at 1508 SW Ward Pkwy, according to spokesperson Rosie Nichols. Crews found a two-story house with smoke and flames and extinguished the fire. All residents were able to escape before fire crews arrived.The cause of the fire was determined to be electrical, having originated in the kitchen. The estimated loss associated with the fire is approximately $275,000, with $225,000 associated with structural damage and $50,000 associated with content loss. There were no injuries.The home did not have working smoke detectors where the fire originated, according to Nichols.

$275,000 damage after fire at Kansas home

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed revenge Friday for what he described as a “cruel and malicious violation” of the ceasefire agreement after a body that Hamas released as part of the deal was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-news-ceasefire-hostages-02-20-2025-4c2ffabae1771cff1a9542fddfaf7d07">found to not be that of an Israeli mother</a>&nbsp;of two young boys, as the militants had promised.

The incident has thrown the future of the fragile ceasefire into question. Six more living hostages are scheduled to be released Saturday as part of the tenuous ceasefire that has paused over 15 months of war.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/2/1740048973222.png" alt="Shiri Bibas photo Hostages and Missing Families Forum" />
 <figcaption>Shiri Bibas photo Hostages and Missing Families Forum</figcaption>
 </figure>JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed revenge Friday for what he described as a “cruel and malicious violation” of the ceasefire agreement after a body that Hamas released as part of the deal was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-news-ceasefire-hostages-02-20-2025-4c2ffabae1771cff1a9542fddfaf7d07">found to not be that of an Israeli mother</a>&nbsp;of two young boys, as the militants had promised.The incident has thrown the future of the fragile ceasefire into question. Six more living hostages are scheduled to be released Saturday as part of the tenuous ceasefire that has paused over 15 months of war.Hamas militants turned over four bodies Thursday as part of the deal. They were supposed to have been those of Shiri Bibas and her two young sons, Kfir and Ariel Bibas, and of Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when he was abducted during the Hamas attack that started the war on Oct. 7, 2023.Israeli authorities said that while the remains of the two boys and of Lifshitz were positively identified, the fourth body was found to not be that of Shiri Bibas, or of any other Israeli hostage held in Gaza.“We will work with determination to bring Shiri home together with all our hostages — both living and dead — and ensure that Hamas pays the full price for this cruel and malicious violation of the agreement,” Netanyahu said. “The sacred memory of Oded Lifshitz and Ariel and Kfir Bibas will be forever enshrined in the heart of the nation. May God avenge their blood. And so we will avenge.”Netanyahu said the fourth body was that of a woman from Gaza. Hamas has not responded to Israel’s announcement about the identity of the remains.The revelation of the body’s identity was a shocking twist in the saga surrounding the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-gaza-ceasefire-hostages-bodies-bibas-1d8718176c8d2564cf23c3e77f09ad72">Bibas family</a>, who have become global symbols of the plight of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.During the ceasefire, which began in January, Hamas has been releasing living hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli jails. Thursday’s release marked the first time the group has returned the remains of dead hostages.The Israeli army said Thursday that the fourth body released by Hamas was an “anonymous, unidentified body.” It said the Bibas family had been notified, including Yarden Bibas, Shiri’s husband and father of the two boys, who had been taken captive separately from his wife and children and was released early this month as part of the ceasefire deal.Hamas has claimed Lifshitz, Shiri Bibas and her sons were killed in Israeli airstrikes. But Israel said the testing had found the two boys and Lifshitz were killed by their captors.U.S. envoy Adam Boehler described the release of the wrong body as “horrific” and a “clear violation” of the ceasefire.“If I were them, I’d release everybody or they are going to face total annihilation,” Boehler, who serves as the U.S. envoy for hostages, told CNN.It was unclear how the incident might affect the next scheduled swap of hostages for prisoners, set for Saturday. Hamas has said it will also release four more bodies next week, completing the first phase of the ceasefire. It is also unclear whether the truce will be extended beyond the end of the current phase, which expires in early March.In another potential blow to the deal, a series of explosions struck three parked, empty buses in central Israel overnight.There were no injuries and no claim of responsibility. But the Israeli military said in response it was beefing up its forces in the West Bank, raising the likelihood of further escalation in the area. Israel has been carrying out a broad military offensive in the occupied territory since the ceasefire took effect.If the current phase of the ceasefire goes according to plan with the release of six hostages on Saturday and four more bodies next week, Hamas will be left with about 60 hostages, about half — all men — believed to still be alive.Hamas has said it won’t release the remaining captives without a lasting ceasefire and a full Israeli withdrawal. Netanyahu, with the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-news-ceasefire-hostages-02-15-2025-1cf8b3cb7622489c368c610f85e51e35">full backing of the Trump administration</a>, says he’s committed to destroying Hamas’ military and governing capacities and returning all the hostages,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-hostages-endgame-0b4720545d294b4eb25eb97055c238eb">goals widely seen as mutually exclusive</a>.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-gaza-plan-palestinians-israel-3f12eb51869da2221afbb22b0bcf47ba">Trump’s proposal</a>&nbsp;to remove about 2 million Palestinians from Gaza so the U.S. can own and rebuild it, which has been welcomed by Netanyahu but universally rejected by Palestinians and Arab countries, has thrown the ceasefire into further doubt.Hamas could be reluctant to free more hostages if it believes that the war will resume.Israel’s military offensive killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants. Israel says it has killed more than 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence.The offensive&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/gaza-war-aftermath-destruction-4c148d498f3d67a5d6de2107b6a1c966">destroyed vast areas of Gaza</a>, reducing entire neighborhoods to rubble. At its height, the war displaced 90% of Gaza’s population. Many have returned to their homes to find nothing left and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-strip-reconstruction-trump-d6a6ff45583b7959403a8615469866d5">no way of rebuilding</a>.TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — The remains of two child hostages have been identified but another body released by Hamas was not the boys’ mother, the Israeli military said early Friday.Hamas militants had turned over four bodies Thursday under the tenuous ceasefire that has paused over 15 months of war. Israeli confirmed one body was that of Oded Lifshitz, who was 83 when he was abducted during the Hamas attack that started the war on Oct. 7, 2023.The remains of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-gaza-ceasefire-hostages-bodies-bibas-1d8718176c8d2564cf23c3e77f09ad72">Ariel and Kfir Bibas</a>&nbsp;were identified by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine in collaboration with the Israel Police and the families were notified, the Israeli Defense Forces said in a statement. It said the boys were killed in captivity in November 2023.But the additional body was not that of their mother Shiri Bibas, nor any other hostage, the military said.“This is a violation of utmost severity by the Hamas terrorist organization, which is obligated under the agreement to return four deceased hostages,” the Israeli military said in a statement early Friday. “We demand that Hamas return Shiri home along with all our hostages.”Hamas did not immediately respond to Israel’s announcement that the body was not of the boys’ mother.The announcement from the Israeli military comes as a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that began Jan. 19 remains shaky. A series of explosions Thursday on three parked buses rattled central Israel. The Israeli military said early Friday it had imposed restrictions on Palestinian movement and sealed off parts of in the West Bank amid its ongoing security operations there.A statement on behalf of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Israeli military would “carry out an intensive operation against centers of terrorism” in the West Bank, raising the specter of a further escalation there.The handover of four bodies to Israel during the day Thursday had set off a nationwide outpouring of grief as flag-waving crowds lined highways on a rainy day to pay respect to a convoy carrying the coffins and thousands packed a Tel Aviv square in an emotional nighttime vigil.Many people wiped away tears and softly sang the national anthem as the caravan wound through southern Israel — a stark contrast to the celebratory&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-gaza-hamas-hostages-ceasefire-709efbcf93714a562640133d836bb31c">return of 24 living hostages</a>&nbsp;in recent weeks under a tenuous ceasefire that has paused over 15 months of war.The handover was a grim reminder of those who died in captivity.Hamas has said that all four were killed along with their guards in Israeli airstrikes. But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Thursday that Lifshitz was killed in captivity by the Islamic Jihad militant group.Militants who handed over the bodies displayed four black coffins on a stage in the Gaza Strip surrounded by banners, including one depicting Netanyahu as a vampire. On each coffin, a photo of one of the hostages was stapled to the side.Large numbers of masked and armed militants looked on as the coffins were loaded onto Red Cross vehicles before being driven to Israeli forces. The military later held a small funeral ceremony, at the request of the families, before transferring the bodies to a laboratory in Israel for formal identification using DNA.In Tel Aviv where the bodies were transported, a double rainbow unfolded across the sky just before sunset. Thousands of people gathered at the city’s Hostage Square and recited traditional mourning prayers. Some held orange balloons, in honor of the Bibas boys, and the crowd swelled after sundown as musicians performed subdued ballads, matching the nation's grief."Our hearts — the hearts of an entire nation — lie in tatters," Israeli President Isaac Herzog said. “On behalf of the State of Israel, I bow my head and ask for forgiveness. Forgiveness for not protecting you on that terrible day. Forgiveness for not bringing you home safely.”Lifshitz's family said after the handover that his remains had been officially identified. His son, Yizhar, told an Israeli TV station that it had brought some closure to the family. He said they did not yet know the cause of death.“On a certain level, it closes the small chance that we had thought about," he said. "It is also closure that he will be buried back on the kibbutz. It’s a difficult day.”The four bodies were the first of eight hostages that Israel believes are dead and to be returned during the current phase of the ceasefire.<h2>Infant was the youngest taken hostage</h2>Kfir Bibas was a red-headed infant with a toothless smile when militants stormed the family’s home on Oct. 7, 2023. His brother, Ariel, was 4. Video from that day showed a terrified Shiri swaddling the boys as militants led them into Gaza.Her husband, Yarden Bibas, was taken separately and released this month.Relatives in Israel have clung to hope,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-hostages-gaza-kfir-bibas-birthday-490c428ef168655c9028dd612a15a35a">marking the boys' birthdays</a>. The Bibas family said Wednesday it would wait for “identification procedures” before acknowledging that their loved ones were dead.A cousin of Shiri Bibas who lives in Buenos Aires, told the local Radio Con Vos station she has been reliving the trauma of the abduction. Romina Miasnik said she hoped her loved ones “can become a symbol of something new, of coexistence, of hatred no longer having a place.”Supporters throughout Israel have worn orange — a reference to the two boys' hair color — and a popular children’s song was written in their honor.Like the Bibas family, Oded Lifshitz was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz, along with his wife, Yocheved, who was freed early in the war as an apparent humanitarian gesture.Hamas-led militants abducted 251 hostages,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/children-hostages-israel-palestinians-gaza-orphan-c8e9f6dd703a9c14161eeb6ca9e25417">including about 30 children</a>, in the Oct. 7 attack, in which they also killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians.More than&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hostages-hamas-ceasefire-gaza-bc81ab899aed78a90a5ff42088b0f79d">half the hostages</a>, and most of the women and children, have been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Israeli forces have rescued eight and have recovered dozens of bodies of people killed in the initial attack or who died in captivity.<h2>It's not clear if the ceasefire will last</h2>Hamas is set to free six living hostages on Saturday in exchange for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinian-prisoner-release-hamas-ceasefire-hostage-3a20774bb4b519e852273ec559687b3b">hundreds of Palestinian prisoners</a>, and says it will release four more bodies next week, completing the first phase. That will leave the militants with about 60 hostages, all men and about half believed to be dead.Hamas has said it won't release the remaining captives without a lasting ceasefire and a full Israeli withdrawal. Netanyahu, with the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-news-ceasefire-hostages-02-15-2025-1cf8b3cb7622489c368c610f85e51e35">full backing of the Trump administration</a>, says he's committed to destroying Hamas' military and governing capacities and returning all the hostages,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-hostages-endgame-0b4720545d294b4eb25eb97055c238eb">goals widely seen as mutually exclusive</a>.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-gaza-plan-palestinians-israel-3f12eb51869da2221afbb22b0bcf47ba">Trump's proposal</a>&nbsp;to remove about 2 million Palestinians from Gaza so the U.S. can own and rebuild it, which has been welcomed by Netanyahu but universally rejected by Palestinians and Arab countries, has thrown the ceasefire into further doubt.Hamas could be reluctant to free more hostages if it believes that the war will resume with the goal of annihilating the group or forcibly transferring Gaza's population.During the ceasefire, Israel has also been conducting a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-west-bank-gaza-militants-displaced-2fb430ce6eeeff40b416df566712eb99">broad offensive</a>&nbsp;against Palestinian militants in the West Bank, and in a sign that the region remains on edge,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-bus-explosions-palestinians-gaza-4a13242cfd220ebdbedf1f0f0a389834">a series of explosions</a>&nbsp;ripped through three empty busses in central Israel late Thursday in what authorities suspected was a militant attack. No injuries were reported.Israel's military offensive killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which doesn't distinguish between civilians and combatants. Israel says it has killed more than 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence.The offensive&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/gaza-war-aftermath-destruction-4c148d498f3d67a5d6de2107b6a1c966">destroyed vast areas of Gaza</a>, reducing entire neighborhoods to rubble. At its height, the war displaced 90% of Gaza's population. Many have returned to their homes to find nothing left and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-strip-reconstruction-trump-d6a6ff45583b7959403a8615469866d5">no way of rebuilding</a>.