JOHNSON COUNTY—A Kansas man is going to prison for the murder of a Kansas woman and her unborn child.

On July 15, Judge T. Kelly Ryan sentenced 30-year-old Doniel Sublett, Jr., to life with no possibility of parole until he has serves 50-years, according to the Johnson County District Attorney's office.

In November, Sublett plead guilty to pre meditated first-degree murder of Kathleen Jane Dampier and her unborn baby boy.

In September of 2022,&nbsp;&nbsp;police responded to report of a medical emergency at an apartment in the 7400 Block of Flint in Olathe, according to a media release from police.

At the scene, officers located 25-year-old Kathleen J. Dampier with gunshot wounds. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Police took Sublette into custody for questioning and made an arrest.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/9/1663757512945.png" alt="Sublett photo Johnson Co." />
 <figcaption>Sublett photo Johnson Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>JOHNSON COUNTY—A Kansas man is going to prison for the murder of a Kansas woman and her unborn child.On July 15, Judge T. Kelly Ryan sentenced 30-year-old Doniel Sublett, Jr., to life with no possibility of parole until he has serves 50-years, according to the Johnson County District Attorney's office.In November, Sublett plead guilty to pre meditated first-degree murder of Kathleen Jane Dampier and her unborn baby boy.In September of 2022,&nbsp;&nbsp;police responded to report of a medical emergency at an apartment in the 7400 Block of Flint in Olathe, according to a media release from police.At the scene, officers located 25-year-old Kathleen J. Dampier with gunshot wounds. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Police took Sublette into custody for questioning and made an arrest.

Hard 50: Kansas man killed woman, her unborn child

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-secret-service-cheatle-biden-48d384057a894b71859f945034092902">Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle</a>&nbsp;said Monday that her agency failed in its mission to protect former President Donald Trump, as lawmakers of both major political parties demanded during a highly contentious congressional hearing that she resign over security failures that allowed a gunman&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">to scale a roof and open fire at a campaign rally</a>.

During the hearing, both Repulican Chairman James Comer and Ranking Member, Democrat Jamie Raskin, called for United States Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign.

Cheatle was berated for hours by Republicans and Democrats, repeatedly angering lawmakers by evading questions about the investigation during the first hearing over the July 13 assassination attempt. Cheatle called the attempt on Trump’s life the Secret Service’s “most significant operational failure” in decades, and vowed to “move heaven and earth” to get to the bottom of what went wrong and make sure there’s no repeat of it.

Click below to watch a replay of the hearing.

“The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders. On July 13th, we failed,” she told lawmakers on the House Oversight and Accountability Committee.

Cheatle acknowledged that the Secret Service was told about a suspicious person two to five times before the shooting at the Butler, Pennsylvania, rally. She also revealed that the roof from which&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-drone-fbi-733811e02b1e609de6a9bc35f6b8c141">Thomas Matthew Crooks</a>&nbsp;opened fire had been identified as a potential vulnerability days before the rally. Cheatle said she apologized to Trump in a phone call after the assassination attempt.

Yet Cheatle remained defiant that she was the “right person” to lead the Secret Service, even as she said she takes full responsibility any security lapses at the event. When Republican Rep. Nancy Mace suggested Cheatle begin drafting her resignation letter from the hearing room, Cheatle responded, “No, thank you.”

In a rare moment of unity for the often divided committee, the Republican chairman, Rep. James Comer, and its top Democrat, Rep. Jamie Raskin, issued a letter calling on Cheatle to step down.

The White House didn’t immediately comment on whether President Joe Biden still has confidence in Cheatle after her testimony.

Democrats and Republicans were united in their exasperation as Cheatle said she didn’t know or couldn’t answer numerous questions more than a week after the shooting that left one spectator dead. At one point, Mace used profanity as she accused Cheatle of lying and dodging questions, prompting calls for lawmakers to show “decorum.”

Lawmakers pressed Cheatle on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">how the gunman could get so close</a>&nbsp;to the Republican presidential nominee when he was supposed to be carefully guarded, and why Trump was allowed to take the stage after local law enforcement had identified Crooks as suspicious.

"It has been 10 days since an assassination attempt on a former president of the United States. Regardless of party, there need to be answers,” said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York.

Cheatle acknowledged that Crooks had been seen by local law enforcement before the shooting with a rangefinder, a small device resembling binoculars that hunters use to measure distance from a target. She said the Secret Service would never have taken Trump onto the stage if it had known there was an “actual threat." Local law enforcement took a photograph of Crooks and shared it after seeing him acting suspiciously outside the security perimeter, but he wasn’t deemed to be a “threat” until seconds before he opened fire, she said.

“An individual with a backpack is not a threat,” Cheatle said. “An individual with a rangefinder is not a threat.”

Cheatle said local enforcement officers were inside the building from which Crooks fired. But when asked why there were no agents on the roof or if the Secret Service used drones to monitor the area, Cheatle said she is still waiting for the investigation to play out, prompting groans and outbursts from members on the committee.

“Director Cheatle, because Donald Trump is alive, and thank God he is, you look incompetent," said Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio. "If he were killed you would look culpable.”

Rep. Ro Khanna, one of the Democrats who joined the calls for Cheatle to resign, noted that the Secret Service director who presided over the agency when there was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/reagan-assassination-attempt-trump-butler-gunman-bd3c038d706de55a64727f7d15dffbc8">an attempted assassination of former Republican President Ronald Reagan</a>&nbsp;later stepped down.

“The one thing we have to have in this country are agencies that transcend politics and have the confidence of independents, Democrats, Republicans, progressives and conservatives,” Khanna said, adding that the Secret Service was no longer one of those agencies.

Trump was wounded in the ear, a former Pennsylvania fire chief&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-rally-fatal-shooting-corey-comperatore-8c09711e88a56432424ef3f980321ed2">was killed</a>&nbsp;and two other attendees were injured after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-rally-shooting-guns-fbi-motive-08e925cb85e52c5266878cd76e796ad2">Crooks</a>&nbsp;climbed atop the roof of a nearby building and opened fire with an AR-style rifle shortly after Trump started speaking at the rally.

Cheatle said the agency hopes to have its internal investigation completed in 60 days. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has separately appointed a bipartisan, independent panel to review the assassination attempt, while the department’s inspector general has opened three investigations.

<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-secret-service">The Secret Service</a>&nbsp;has acknowledged it denied some requests by Trump's campaign for increased security at his events in the years before&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/secret-service-trump-rally-4e3415b1461f5acefbc8e1fadad0375b">the assassination attempt</a>. But Cheatle said Monday there were “no assets denied" for the Pennsylvania rally.

Authorities have been hunting for clues into what motivated Crooks but have not found any ideological bent that could help explain his actions. Investigators who searched his phone&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-shooting-federal-investigation-2a90bdfd23ba9c3569cb9c29a459e87b">found photos of Trump</a>, Biden and other senior government officials and found that he had looked up the dates for the Democratic National Conventional as well as Trump’s appearances. He also searched for information about major depressive order.

The attack on Trump was the most serious attempt to assassinate a president or presidential candidate since&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/reagan-assassination-attempt-trump-butler-gunman-bd3c038d706de55a64727f7d15dffbc8">Reagan was shot in 1981</a>. It was the latest in a series of security lapses by the agency that has drawn investigations and public scrutiny over the years.

Cheatle took over two years ago as head of the Secret Service's 7,800 special agents, uniformed officers and other staffers whose main purpose is protecting presidents, vice presidents, their families, former presidents and others. In announcing&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/08/24/statement-from-president-biden-on-the-appointment-of-kimberly-cheatle-to-be-the-next-director-of-the-united-states-secret-service/">her appointment</a>, Biden said Cheatle had served on his vice presidential detail and called her a “distinguished law enforcement professional with exceptional leadership skills” who had his “complete trust.”

Cheatle took the reins from James M. Murray as multiple congressional committees and an internal watchdog&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/capitol-siege-united-states-government-and-politics-e5b67d9a848b76a3803e9f7e3546bb51">investigated missing text messages</a>&nbsp;from when Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The Secret Service says they were purged during a technology transition.

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-secret-service-cheatle-biden-48d384057a894b71859f945034092902">Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle</a>&nbsp;said Monday that her agency failed in its mission to protect former President Donald Trump, as lawmakers of both major political parties demanded during a highly contentious congressional hearing that she resign over security failures that allowed a gunman&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">to scale a roof and open fire at a campaign rally</a>.During the hearing, both Repulican Chairman James Comer and Ranking Member, Democrat Jamie Raskin, called for United States Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/7/1721678257128.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Cheatle was berated for hours by Republicans and Democrats, repeatedly angering lawmakers by evading questions about the investigation during the first hearing over the July 13 assassination attempt. Cheatle called the attempt on Trump’s life the Secret Service’s “most significant operational failure” in decades, and vowed to “move heaven and earth” to get to the bottom of what went wrong and make sure there’s no repeat of it.Click below to watch a replay of the hearing.<div><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hyP3tKtgtnw?si=FfORvNPU782UDTjs&amp;start=1165" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>“The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders. On July 13th, we failed,” she told lawmakers on the House Oversight and Accountability Committee.Cheatle acknowledged that the Secret Service was told about a suspicious person two to five times before the shooting at the Butler, Pennsylvania, rally. She also revealed that the roof from which&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-drone-fbi-733811e02b1e609de6a9bc35f6b8c141">Thomas Matthew Crooks</a>&nbsp;opened fire had been identified as a potential vulnerability days before the rally. Cheatle said she apologized to Trump in a phone call after the assassination attempt.Yet Cheatle remained defiant that she was the “right person” to lead the Secret Service, even as she said she takes full responsibility any security lapses at the event. When Republican Rep. Nancy Mace suggested Cheatle begin drafting her resignation letter from the hearing room, Cheatle responded, “No, thank you.”In a rare moment of unity for the often divided committee, the Republican chairman, Rep. James Comer, and its top Democrat, Rep. Jamie Raskin, issued a letter calling on Cheatle to step down.The White House didn’t immediately comment on whether President Joe Biden still has confidence in Cheatle after her testimony.Democrats and Republicans were united in their exasperation as Cheatle said she didn’t know or couldn’t answer numerous questions more than a week after the shooting that left one spectator dead. At one point, Mace used profanity as she accused Cheatle of lying and dodging questions, prompting calls for lawmakers to show “decorum.”Lawmakers pressed Cheatle on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">how the gunman could get so close</a>&nbsp;to the Republican presidential nominee when he was supposed to be carefully guarded, and why Trump was allowed to take the stage after local law enforcement had identified Crooks as suspicious."It has been 10 days since an assassination attempt on a former president of the United States. Regardless of party, there need to be answers,” said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York.Cheatle acknowledged that Crooks had been seen by local law enforcement before the shooting with a rangefinder, a small device resembling binoculars that hunters use to measure distance from a target. She said the Secret Service would never have taken Trump onto the stage if it had known there was an “actual threat." Local law enforcement took a photograph of Crooks and shared it after seeing him acting suspiciously outside the security perimeter, but he wasn’t deemed to be a “threat” until seconds before he opened fire, she said.“An individual with a backpack is not a threat,” Cheatle said. “An individual with a rangefinder is not a threat.”Cheatle said local enforcement officers were inside the building from which Crooks fired. But when asked why there were no agents on the roof or if the Secret Service used drones to monitor the area, Cheatle said she is still waiting for the investigation to play out, prompting groans and outbursts from members on the committee.“Director Cheatle, because Donald Trump is alive, and thank God he is, you look incompetent," said Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio. "If he were killed you would look culpable.”Rep. Ro Khanna, one of the Democrats who joined the calls for Cheatle to resign, noted that the Secret Service director who presided over the agency when there was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/reagan-assassination-attempt-trump-butler-gunman-bd3c038d706de55a64727f7d15dffbc8">an attempted assassination of former Republican President Ronald Reagan</a>&nbsp;later stepped down.“The one thing we have to have in this country are agencies that transcend politics and have the confidence of independents, Democrats, Republicans, progressives and conservatives,” Khanna said, adding that the Secret Service was no longer one of those agencies.Trump was wounded in the ear, a former Pennsylvania fire chief&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-rally-fatal-shooting-corey-comperatore-8c09711e88a56432424ef3f980321ed2">was killed</a>&nbsp;and two other attendees were injured after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-rally-shooting-guns-fbi-motive-08e925cb85e52c5266878cd76e796ad2">Crooks</a>&nbsp;climbed atop the roof of a nearby building and opened fire with an AR-style rifle shortly after Trump started speaking at the rally.Cheatle said the agency hopes to have its internal investigation completed in 60 days. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has separately appointed a bipartisan, independent panel to review the assassination attempt, while the department’s inspector general has opened three investigations.<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-secret-service">The Secret Service</a>&nbsp;has acknowledged it denied some requests by Trump's campaign for increased security at his events in the years before&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/secret-service-trump-rally-4e3415b1461f5acefbc8e1fadad0375b">the assassination attempt</a>. But Cheatle said Monday there were “no assets denied" for the Pennsylvania rally.Authorities have been hunting for clues into what motivated Crooks but have not found any ideological bent that could help explain his actions. Investigators who searched his phone&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-shooting-federal-investigation-2a90bdfd23ba9c3569cb9c29a459e87b">found photos of Trump</a>, Biden and other senior government officials and found that he had looked up the dates for the Democratic National Conventional as well as Trump’s appearances. He also searched for information about major depressive order.The attack on Trump was the most serious attempt to assassinate a president or presidential candidate since&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/reagan-assassination-attempt-trump-butler-gunman-bd3c038d706de55a64727f7d15dffbc8">Reagan was shot in 1981</a>. It was the latest in a series of security lapses by the agency that has drawn investigations and public scrutiny over the years.Cheatle took over two years ago as head of the Secret Service's 7,800 special agents, uniformed officers and other staffers whose main purpose is protecting presidents, vice presidents, their families, former presidents and others. In announcing&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/08/24/statement-from-president-biden-on-the-appointment-of-kimberly-cheatle-to-be-the-next-director-of-the-united-states-secret-service/">her appointment</a>, Biden said Cheatle had served on his vice presidential detail and called her a “distinguished law enforcement professional with exceptional leadership skills” who had his “complete trust.”Cheatle took the reins from James M. Murray as multiple congressional committees and an internal watchdog&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/capitol-siege-united-states-government-and-politics-e5b67d9a848b76a3803e9f7e3546bb51">investigated missing text messages</a>&nbsp;from when Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The Secret Service says they were purged during a technology transition.

🎥Read the letter: GOP, Dems call for Secret Service Director to resign

LEAVENWORTH COUNTY —A Kansas teen died in an accident just after 11a.m. Monday in Leavenworth County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2020 Toyota Camry driven by&nbsp; &nbsp; Caleb James&nbsp; Stricker, 17, Atchison, was northbound on U.S. 73 just south of Lowemont Road.&nbsp;

The Toyota traveled across the center line and struck a southbound 2014 Freightliner semi driven by Dustin Lee Anderson, 24, Williamsburg, head-on.&nbsp; &nbsp;

&nbsp;Stricker was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to&nbsp;First Call Morgue. Anderson was not transported for treatment of a minor injury. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

LEAVENWORTH COUNTY —A Kansas teen died in an accident just after 11a.m. Monday in Leavenworth County.The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2020 Toyota Camry driven by&nbsp; &nbsp; Caleb James&nbsp; Stricker, 17, Atchison, was northbound on U.S. 73 just south of Lowemont Road.&nbsp; The Toyota traveled across the center line and struck a southbound 2014 Freightliner semi driven by Dustin Lee Anderson, 24, Williamsburg, head-on.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;Stricker was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to&nbsp;First Call Morgue. Anderson was not transported for treatment of a minor injury. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

Kansas teen dies after head-on crash with a semi

&nbsp;KANSAS CITY—Law enforcement are investigating another homicide in Kansas City and asking the public for help to identify a suspect seen on security cameras.

Just after 4:30a.m. July 19, police responded on a shots fired call at 54th and Prospect, according to Sheriff Daryl Forte'.

First responders located a man identified as 45-year-old&nbsp;Ernest J. Scott suffering from gunshot wounds in a grassy area. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police interviewed witnesses and found surveillance video in an effort to identify the suspect.

This is 80th homicide of 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri, according to KCPD.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the TIPS Hotline anonymously at 816-474-TIPS. There is a reward of up to $25,000 for information submitted anonymously that leads to an arrest in the case.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/7/1721670632152.png" alt="Photo KCPD" />
 <figcaption>Photo KCPD</figcaption>
 </figure>&nbsp;KANSAS CITY—Law enforcement are investigating another homicide in Kansas City and asking the public for help to identify a suspect seen on security cameras.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/7/1721406797743.png" alt="Police on the scene of the investigation photo courtesy KCTV" />
 <figcaption>Police on the scene of the investigation photo courtesy KCTV</figcaption>
 </figure>Just after 4:30a.m. July 19, police responded on a shots fired call at 54th and Prospect, according to Sheriff Daryl Forte'.First responders located a man identified as 45-year-old&nbsp;Ernest J. Scott suffering from gunshot wounds in a grassy area. He was pronounced dead at the scene.Police interviewed witnesses and found surveillance video in an effort to identify the suspect.This is 80th homicide of 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri, according to KCPD.Anyone with information is asked to contact the TIPS Hotline anonymously at 816-474-TIPS. There is a reward of up to $25,000 for information submitted anonymously that leads to an arrest in the case.

KCPD asks for help to ID suspect in weekend killing 

WASHINGTON— President Joe Biden tested positive for COVID-19 while traveling Wednesday in Las Vegas. On Monday Dr. Kevin O'Connor, the president's physician, provided an update on Biden's recovery.

&nbsp;Biden&nbsp;announced Sunday&nbsp;that he is dropping his reelection bid against Donald Trump. He has not been seen in public since last week.

WASHINGTON— President Joe Biden tested positive for COVID-19 while traveling Wednesday in Las Vegas. On Monday Dr. Kevin O'Connor, the president's physician, provided an update on Biden's recovery.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/7/1721673941588.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>&nbsp;Biden&nbsp;announced Sunday&nbsp;that he is dropping his reelection bid against Donald Trump. He has not been seen in public since last week.

Read doctor's Monday update on Biden's COVID recovery

NEW YORK (AP) — Abdul “Duke” Fakir, the last surviving original member of the beloved Motown group the Four Tops that was known for such hits as “Reach Out, I’ll Be There” and “Standing in the Shadows of Love,” has died at age 88.

Fakir died Monday of heart failure, according to a family spokesperson, with his wife and other loved ones by his side.

The Four Tops were&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/video/r-b-stevie-wonder-detroit-music-national-5ee215678e564d37b31dc87643436906">among Motown's most popular and enduring acts</a>, and peaked in the 1960s. Between 1964 and 1967, they had 11 top 20 hits and two No. 1’s: “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)” and the operatic classic “Reach Out I’ll Be There.” Other songs, often sagas of romantic pain and bereavement, included “Baby I Need Your Loving,” “Standing in the Shadows of Love,” “Bernadette” and “Just Ask the Lonely.”

Many of Motown’s greatest stars, from the Supremes to Stevie Wonder, came of age at the Detroit-based company founded by Berry Gordy in the late 1950s. But Fakir, lead singer Levi Stubbs, Renaldo “Obie" Benson and Lawrence Payton had been together for a decade when Gordy signed them up in 1963 (after the group had turned him a few years earlier) and they already had a polished stage act and versatile vocal style that enabled them to perform anything from country songs to pop standards like “Paper Doll.”

They called themselves the Four Aims when they started out, but soon renamed themselves the Four Tops to avoid confusion with the white harmony quartet the Ames Brothers.

The Tops had recorded for several labels, including the famed Chess Records in Chicago, with little commercial success. But Gordy and A&amp;R man Mickey Stevenson paired them with the songwriting-production team of Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier and Brian Holland and they quickly caught on, blending tight, haunting harmonies (with Fakir as lead tenor) behind Stubbs’ urgent, sometimes desperate baritone.

After Holland-Dozier-Holland left Motown in 1967, the Tops had more sporadic success, with hits over the next few years including “Still Water (Love),” and a pair of top 10 songs in the early 1970s for ABC/Dunhill Records, ”Keeper of the Castle” and “Ain’t No Woman (Like the One I’ve Got.” They reached the top 20 for the last time in the early 1980s, with the sentimental ballad “When She Was My Girl.”

Throughout, they remained a busy concert act and at times toured with latter day members of the Temptations, a friendly rivalry launched when the groups performed together at the all-star 1983 television concert marking Motown’s 25th anniversary. While the Temptations and other peers suffered from drug problems, internal dissension and personnel changes, the Four Tops remained united and intact until Payton died in 1997. (Benson died in 2005 and Stubbs in 2008).

“The things I love about them the most — they are very professional, they have fun with what they do, they are very loving, they have always been gentlemen,” Wonder said of them when he helped induct them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.

Fakir later toured as the Four Tops with lead vocalist Alexander Morris, Ronnie McNeir and Lawrence ‘Roquel’ Payton Jr., the son of Lawrence Payton.

“As each one of them (the original members) passed a little bit of me left with them,” Fakir told UK Music Reviews in 2021. “When Levi left us, I found myself in a quandary as to what I was going to do from that moment on but after a while I realized that the name together with the legacy that they had left us simply had to carry on, and judging by the audience reaction it soon became pretty evident that I did the right thing and I really do feel good about that.”

Besides the Rock Hall of Fame, their honors included being voted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998 and receiving a Grammy lifetime achievement award in 2009. More recently, Fakir was working on a planned Broadway musical based on their lives and completed the memoir “I’ll Be There,” published in 2022.

Fakir was married twice and he had seven children. His marriage to Piper Gibson lasted 50 yearsIn the mid-1960s, he was briefly engaged to Mary Wilson of the Supremes.

A lifelong Detroit resident who stayed home even after Gordy moved the label to Los Angeles in early 1970s, Fakir was of Ethiopian and Bangladeshi descent and grew up in a rough neighborhood where rival Black and white gangs fought often. He had early dreams of being a professional athlete, but was also a talented singer whose tenor brought him attention as a performer in his church choir. He was in his teens when he befriended Stubbs and the two first sang with Benson and Payton at a birthday party thrown by a local “girl” group whom Fakir remembered as “high-class, very fine young ladies.”

“Singing was the by-product of us going to the party looking for the girls!” Fakir said in a 2016 interview with&nbsp;<a href="https://writewyattuk.com/">https://writewyattuk.com</a>.

“We told Levi to just pick a song and sing the lead. We’d just back him up. Well, when he started, we all fell in like we’d been rehearsing the song for months! Our blend was incredible. We were just looking at each other as we were singing, and right after we said, ’Man, this is a group! This is a group!’”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/7/1721676891878.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>NEW YORK (AP) — Abdul “Duke” Fakir, the last surviving original member of the beloved Motown group the Four Tops that was known for such hits as “Reach Out, I’ll Be There” and “Standing in the Shadows of Love,” has died at age 88.Fakir died Monday of heart failure, according to a family spokesperson, with his wife and other loved ones by his side.The Four Tops were&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/video/r-b-stevie-wonder-detroit-music-national-5ee215678e564d37b31dc87643436906">among Motown's most popular and enduring acts</a>, and peaked in the 1960s. Between 1964 and 1967, they had 11 top 20 hits and two No. 1’s: “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)” and the operatic classic “Reach Out I’ll Be There.” Other songs, often sagas of romantic pain and bereavement, included “Baby I Need Your Loving,” “Standing in the Shadows of Love,” “Bernadette” and “Just Ask the Lonely.”Many of Motown’s greatest stars, from the Supremes to Stevie Wonder, came of age at the Detroit-based company founded by Berry Gordy in the late 1950s. But Fakir, lead singer Levi Stubbs, Renaldo “Obie" Benson and Lawrence Payton had been together for a decade when Gordy signed them up in 1963 (after the group had turned him a few years earlier) and they already had a polished stage act and versatile vocal style that enabled them to perform anything from country songs to pop standards like “Paper Doll.”They called themselves the Four Aims when they started out, but soon renamed themselves the Four Tops to avoid confusion with the white harmony quartet the Ames Brothers.The Tops had recorded for several labels, including the famed Chess Records in Chicago, with little commercial success. But Gordy and A&amp;R man Mickey Stevenson paired them with the songwriting-production team of Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier and Brian Holland and they quickly caught on, blending tight, haunting harmonies (with Fakir as lead tenor) behind Stubbs’ urgent, sometimes desperate baritone.After Holland-Dozier-Holland left Motown in 1967, the Tops had more sporadic success, with hits over the next few years including “Still Water (Love),” and a pair of top 10 songs in the early 1970s for ABC/Dunhill Records, ”Keeper of the Castle” and “Ain’t No Woman (Like the One I’ve Got.” They reached the top 20 for the last time in the early 1980s, with the sentimental ballad “When She Was My Girl.”Throughout, they remained a busy concert act and at times toured with latter day members of the Temptations, a friendly rivalry launched when the groups performed together at the all-star 1983 television concert marking Motown’s 25th anniversary. While the Temptations and other peers suffered from drug problems, internal dissension and personnel changes, the Four Tops remained united and intact until Payton died in 1997. (Benson died in 2005 and Stubbs in 2008).“The things I love about them the most — they are very professional, they have fun with what they do, they are very loving, they have always been gentlemen,” Wonder said of them when he helped induct them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.Fakir later toured as the Four Tops with lead vocalist Alexander Morris, Ronnie McNeir and Lawrence ‘Roquel’ Payton Jr., the son of Lawrence Payton.“As each one of them (the original members) passed a little bit of me left with them,” Fakir told UK Music Reviews in 2021. “When Levi left us, I found myself in a quandary as to what I was going to do from that moment on but after a while I realized that the name together with the legacy that they had left us simply had to carry on, and judging by the audience reaction it soon became pretty evident that I did the right thing and I really do feel good about that.”Besides the Rock Hall of Fame, their honors included being voted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998 and receiving a Grammy lifetime achievement award in 2009. More recently, Fakir was working on a planned Broadway musical based on their lives and completed the memoir “I’ll Be There,” published in 2022.Fakir was married twice and he had seven children. His marriage to Piper Gibson lasted 50 yearsIn the mid-1960s, he was briefly engaged to Mary Wilson of the Supremes.A lifelong Detroit resident who stayed home even after Gordy moved the label to Los Angeles in early 1970s, Fakir was of Ethiopian and Bangladeshi descent and grew up in a rough neighborhood where rival Black and white gangs fought often. He had early dreams of being a professional athlete, but was also a talented singer whose tenor brought him attention as a performer in his church choir. He was in his teens when he befriended Stubbs and the two first sang with Benson and Payton at a birthday party thrown by a local “girl” group whom Fakir remembered as “high-class, very fine young ladies.”“Singing was the by-product of us going to the party looking for the girls!” Fakir said in a 2016 interview with&nbsp;<a href="https://writewyattuk.com/">https://writewyattuk.com</a>.“We told Levi to just pick a song and sing the lead. We’d just back him up. Well, when he started, we all fell in like we’d been rehearsing the song for months! Our blend was incredible. We were just looking at each other as we were singing, and right after we said, ’Man, this is a group! This is a group!’”

Last surviving original member of the legendary Four Tops has died

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A newly posted video of Miss Kansas calling out her domestic violence abuser from the stage the night she was crowned is whipping up a maelstrom of support on social media.

Alexis Smith, who works overnight shifts as a cardiothoracic intensive care nurse in Wichita, was crowned Miss Kansas on June 8, but posted the video of her on-stage comments just this past week on the platform now known as X. Her comments are resonating with thousands in part because she called out her own abuser from the stage while she said the perpetrator was sitting in the audience.

<a href="https://x.com/MissAmericaKS/status/1813197140606288016">The video</a>&nbsp;Smith posted July 16 has been viewed more than 60,000 times and generated a rash of news stories.

“My vision as the next Miss Kansas is to eliminate unhealthy and abusive relationships,” Smith said during the interview portion of the pageant last month. “Matter of fact, some of you in this audience saw me very emotional because my abuser is here today. But that’s not going to stop me from being on this Miss Kansas stage and from representing as the next Miss Kansas.”

Smith just recently started her reign and began raising concerns about the issue in interviews and social media posts. Her bold pageant statement against domestic abuse and her courage to speak out is being praised online by dozens of people as her video gets shared again and again.

The beauty queen cares deeply about domestic violence issues because not only was she a victim, but so were many of the other women in her family, she has said.

“My family, every single woman in my family, was impacted by domestic violence,” she said in an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ksn.com/news/local/miss-kansas-a-survivor-advocates-against-domestic-violence/">interview</a>&nbsp;with Wichita television station KSN. “At the age of 14, I got in my first relationship, but it was also an abusive relationship that I was in until about 2018, 2019. It’s something that I’m still experiencing and dealing with today.”

Smith said she even moved to Texas for a couple years after she escaped the relationship. She returned to Wichita to study nursing at Newman University.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1718101435215.png" alt="Miss Kansas 2024 Alexis Smith-courtesy photo" />
 <figcaption>Miss Kansas 2024 Alexis Smith-courtesy photo</figcaption>
 </figure>WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A newly posted video of Miss Kansas calling out her domestic violence abuser from the stage the night she was crowned is whipping up a maelstrom of support on social media.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Respect Reclaimed! Our time is now for healthy relationships.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MissAmerica?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MissAmerica</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ThereSheIs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ThereSheIs</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pageants?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Pageants</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RespectReclaimed?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RespectReclaimed</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MissKansas?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MissKansas</a> <a href="https://t.co/npejBb6CCs">pic.twitter.com/npejBb6CCs</a>&mdash; Alexis Smith, Miss Kansas (@MissAmericaKS) <a href="https://twitter.com/MissAmericaKS/status/1813197140606288016?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 16, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Alexis Smith, who works overnight shifts as a cardiothoracic intensive care nurse in Wichita, was crowned Miss Kansas on June 8, but posted the video of her on-stage comments just this past week on the platform now known as X. Her comments are resonating with thousands in part because she called out her own abuser from the stage while she said the perpetrator was sitting in the audience.<a href="https://x.com/MissAmericaKS/status/1813197140606288016">The video</a>&nbsp;Smith posted July 16 has been viewed more than 60,000 times and generated a rash of news stories.“My vision as the next Miss Kansas is to eliminate unhealthy and abusive relationships,” Smith said during the interview portion of the pageant last month. “Matter of fact, some of you in this audience saw me very emotional because my abuser is here today. But that’s not going to stop me from being on this Miss Kansas stage and from representing as the next Miss Kansas.”Smith just recently started her reign and began raising concerns about the issue in interviews and social media posts. Her bold pageant statement against domestic abuse and her courage to speak out is being praised online by dozens of people as her video gets shared again and again.The beauty queen cares deeply about domestic violence issues because not only was she a victim, but so were many of the other women in her family, she has said.“My family, every single woman in my family, was impacted by domestic violence,” she said in an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ksn.com/news/local/miss-kansas-a-survivor-advocates-against-domestic-violence/">interview</a>&nbsp;with Wichita television station KSN. “At the age of 14, I got in my first relationship, but it was also an abusive relationship that I was in until about 2018, 2019. It’s something that I’m still experiencing and dealing with today.”Smith said she even moved to Texas for a couple years after she escaped the relationship. She returned to Wichita to study nursing at Newman University.

🎥Miss Kansas called out her abuser in public. Her campaign against domestic violence is going viral

SHAWNEE COUNTY –Authorities have identified as Kansas man who died in an accident just after 3a.m. Sunday in Shawnee County as Chance M. Lucas, 28, of Topeka.

According to Deputy Abigail Christian, investigators determined a&nbsp; 2019 Nissan Altima driven by Lucas was westbound on SW 33rd Street when it drove through the stop sign at SW Auburn Road and struck a tree on the west side of the roadway. Lucas&nbsp;was pronounced deceased at the scene.

This accident is still under investigation, according to Christian.

SHAWNEE COUNTY –Authorities have identified as Kansas man who died in an accident just after 3a.m. Sunday in Shawnee County as Chance M. Lucas, 28, of Topeka.According to Deputy Abigail Christian, investigators determined a&nbsp; 2019 Nissan Altima driven by Lucas was westbound on SW 33rd Street when it drove through the stop sign at SW Auburn Road and struck a tree on the west side of the roadway. Lucas&nbsp;was pronounced deceased at the scene.This accident is still under investigation, according to Christian.

Sheriff IDs Kansas man who died after car strikes a tree

KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement authorities are now investigating a homicide after a man found wounded in Kansas City died.

Just after 4p.m. Friday, police responded to NE 34th and NE Chouteau Trafficway in Kansas City after reports of a stolen vehicle, according to Sheriff Daryl Forte'.&nbsp;

First responders found a man suffering gunshot trauma inside a vehicle. On Sunday Forte' reported police learned the victim died of his injuries.

Police have not reported additional information including the name of the victim.

KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement authorities are now investigating a homicide after a man found wounded in Kansas City died.Just after 4p.m. Friday, police responded to NE 34th and NE Chouteau Trafficway in Kansas City after reports of a stolen vehicle, according to Sheriff Daryl Forte'.&nbsp;First responders found a man suffering gunshot trauma inside a vehicle. On Sunday Forte' reported police learned the victim died of his injuries.Police have not reported additional information including the name of the victim.

KCPD: Stolen vehicle report leads to homicide investigation

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;Vice President Kamala Harris&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/kamala-harris-joe-biden-2024-presidential-campaign-aad5c42336bd1e4db58aa0868b4586b5">is being thrust into the most scrutinizing of spotlights</a>, suddenly the leading candidate to succeed President Joe Biden as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee and her&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-harris-election-2024-democrats-withdrawal-trump-c8b82fa105953e8f485c769580f7da49">party’s main hope</a>&nbsp;of defeating Donald Trump.

She spoke Monday at a White House celebration with the NCAA championship teams, her first appearance since Biden announced he was leaving the race.

Biden's exit Sunday, prompted by Democratic worries over his fitness for office, was a seismic shift to the presidential contest that upended both major political parties' carefully honed plans for the 2024 race.

Aiming to put weeks of intraparty drama over Biden's candidacy behind them, prominent Democratic elected officials, party leaders and political organizations quickly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/harris-biden-democratic-convention-2fb8b1bc88b99e919872e63efdd8c275">lined up behind Harris</a>&nbsp;in the hours after Biden announced he was dropping&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-election-2024-president-democrats-trump-9c72115656855da89a41cac3f79aa65b">his reelection campaign</a>.

Biden's departure&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/projects/election-results-2024/ap-dnc-delegate-survey/">frees his delegates</a>&nbsp;to vote for whomever they choose. Harris, whom Biden backed after ending his candidacy, is thus far the only declared candidate and was working to quickly secure endorsements from a majority of delegates.

Additional endorsements Monday, including Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, left a dwindling list of potential rivals to Harris.

Winning the nomination is only the first item on a staggering political to-do list for her after Biden's decision to exit the race, which she learned about on a Sunday morning call with the president. If she's successful at locking up the nomination, she must also pick a running mate and pivot a massive political operation to boost her candidacy instead of Biden's with just over 100 days until Election Day.

On Sunday afternoon, Biden’s campaign formally changed its name to Harris for President, reflecting that she is inheriting his political operation of more than 1,000 staffers and a war chest that stood at nearly $96 million at the end of June. It got bigger by Monday morning: Campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt said Harris had raised $49.6 million in donations in the first 15 hours after Biden’s endorsement.

Harris spent much of Sunday surrounded by family and staff, making more than 100 calls to Democratic officials to line up their support for her candidacy, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the effort. It comes as she tries to move her party past the painful, public wrangling that had defined the weeks since the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/debate-trump-biden-presidential-campaign-44e71c900a1c4af2bed93041fdfe923d">Biden's disastrous June 27 debate</a>&nbsp;with Trump.

Speaking to party leaders, Harris expressed gratitude for Biden's endorsement but insisted she was looking to earn the nomination in her own right, the person said.

In a sign that the Democratic Party was moving to coalesce behind her, Harris quickly won endorsements from the leadership of several influential caucuses and political organizations, including the AAPI Victory Fund, which focuses on Asian American and Pacific Islander voters, The Collective PAC, focused on building Black political power, and the Latino Victory Fund, as well as the chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the entire Congressional Black Caucus. Harris, if elected, would be the first woman and first person of South Asian descent to be president.

Notably, a handful of men who had already been discussed as potential running mates for Harris — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly — also swiftly issued statements endorsing her. Aides to Shapiro and Cooper confirmed that Harris spoke with them Sunday afternoon. In her brief call with Cooper, the North Carolina governor told Harris he was backing her to be the Democratic nominee, according to Cooper spokeswoman Sadie Weiner.

But former President Barack Obama held off on an immediate endorsement, as some in the party have expressed worry that the quick shift to Harris would appear to be a coronation, instead pledging his support behind the eventual party nominee.

West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, who left the party earlier this year but considered re-registering as a Democrat to vie for the nomination against the vice president, told CBS News on Monday that he would not be a candidate.

Harris is set to travel to Wilmington, where the Biden campaign had been headquartered, to meet with her new campaign staff.

Harris, in a statement, praised Biden’s “selfless and patriotic act” in deciding to leave the race and said she intends to “earn and win” her party’s nomination.

“I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party — and unite our nation — to defeat Donald Trump and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/rnc-republicans-heritage-foundation-project-2025-8cce6cfef6f5bdf45269146739222f80">his extreme Project 2025 agenda</a>,” she said.

Biden planned to discuss his decision to step aside later this week in an address to the nation. He wrote in a letter posted Sunday to his X account, “I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term."

Nearly 30 minutes after he delivered the news that he was folding his campaign, Biden threw his support behind Harris.

“Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year,” he said in another post on X. “Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump.”

<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/democratic-national-convention">The Democratic National Convention</a>&nbsp;is scheduled to be held Aug. 19-22 in Chicago, but the party had announced it would hold&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ohio-ballot-biden-access-3bf359cce8e73714be45cb99a6e31546">a virtual roll call</a>&nbsp;to formally nominate Biden before in-person proceedings begin. The convention's rules committee is scheduled to meet this week to finalize its nomination process and it is unclear how it will be adjusted to reflect Biden's exit.

Congressional Hispanic Caucus chairwoman Nanette Barragan, who emphasized that she was “all in” behind the vice president, said she spoke Sunday with Harris, who communicated that she preferred to forego a virtual roll call for the nomination process and instead hold a process that adheres to regular order.

The Democratic National Committee’s chair, Jaime Harrison, said in a statement that the party would “undertake a transparent and orderly process” to select “a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November.”

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;Vice President Kamala Harris&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/kamala-harris-joe-biden-2024-presidential-campaign-aad5c42336bd1e4db58aa0868b4586b5">is being thrust into the most scrutinizing of spotlights</a>, suddenly the leading candidate to succeed President Joe Biden as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee and her&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-harris-election-2024-democrats-withdrawal-trump-c8b82fa105953e8f485c769580f7da49">party’s main hope</a>&nbsp;of defeating Donald Trump.She spoke Monday at a White House celebration with the NCAA championship teams, her first appearance since Biden announced he was leaving the race.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/VP?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@VP</a>: &quot;Joe Biden&#39;s legacy of accomplishment over the past three years is unmatched in modern history.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/m12gjVAkD6">pic.twitter.com/m12gjVAkD6</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1815421541628125644?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 22, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Biden's exit Sunday, prompted by Democratic worries over his fitness for office, was a seismic shift to the presidential contest that upended both major political parties' carefully honed plans for the 2024 race.Aiming to put weeks of intraparty drama over Biden's candidacy behind them, prominent Democratic elected officials, party leaders and political organizations quickly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/harris-biden-democratic-convention-2fb8b1bc88b99e919872e63efdd8c275">lined up behind Harris</a>&nbsp;in the hours after Biden announced he was dropping&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-election-2024-president-democrats-trump-9c72115656855da89a41cac3f79aa65b">his reelection campaign</a>.Biden's departure&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/projects/election-results-2024/ap-dnc-delegate-survey/">frees his delegates</a>&nbsp;to vote for whomever they choose. Harris, whom Biden backed after ending his candidacy, is thus far the only declared candidate and was working to quickly secure endorsements from a majority of delegates.Additional endorsements Monday, including Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, left a dwindling list of potential rivals to Harris.Winning the nomination is only the first item on a staggering political to-do list for her after Biden's decision to exit the race, which she learned about on a Sunday morning call with the president. If she's successful at locking up the nomination, she must also pick a running mate and pivot a massive political operation to boost her candidacy instead of Biden's with just over 100 days until Election Day.On Sunday afternoon, Biden’s campaign formally changed its name to Harris for President, reflecting that she is inheriting his political operation of more than 1,000 staffers and a war chest that stood at nearly $96 million at the end of June. It got bigger by Monday morning: Campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt said Harris had raised $49.6 million in donations in the first 15 hours after Biden’s endorsement.Harris spent much of Sunday surrounded by family and staff, making more than 100 calls to Democratic officials to line up their support for her candidacy, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the effort. It comes as she tries to move her party past the painful, public wrangling that had defined the weeks since the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/debate-trump-biden-presidential-campaign-44e71c900a1c4af2bed93041fdfe923d">Biden's disastrous June 27 debate</a>&nbsp;with Trump.Speaking to party leaders, Harris expressed gratitude for Biden's endorsement but insisted she was looking to earn the nomination in her own right, the person said.In a sign that the Democratic Party was moving to coalesce behind her, Harris quickly won endorsements from the leadership of several influential caucuses and political organizations, including the AAPI Victory Fund, which focuses on Asian American and Pacific Islander voters, The Collective PAC, focused on building Black political power, and the Latino Victory Fund, as well as the chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the entire Congressional Black Caucus. Harris, if elected, would be the first woman and first person of South Asian descent to be president.Notably, a handful of men who had already been discussed as potential running mates for Harris — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly — also swiftly issued statements endorsing her. Aides to Shapiro and Cooper confirmed that Harris spoke with them Sunday afternoon. In her brief call with Cooper, the North Carolina governor told Harris he was backing her to be the Democratic nominee, according to Cooper spokeswoman Sadie Weiner.But former President Barack Obama held off on an immediate endorsement, as some in the party have expressed worry that the quick shift to Harris would appear to be a coronation, instead pledging his support behind the eventual party nominee.West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, who left the party earlier this year but considered re-registering as a Democrat to vie for the nomination against the vice president, told CBS News on Monday that he would not be a candidate.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/7/1721650226823.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Harris is set to travel to Wilmington, where the Biden campaign had been headquartered, to meet with her new campaign staff.Harris, in a statement, praised Biden’s “selfless and patriotic act” in deciding to leave the race and said she intends to “earn and win” her party’s nomination.“I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party — and unite our nation — to defeat Donald Trump and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/rnc-republicans-heritage-foundation-project-2025-8cce6cfef6f5bdf45269146739222f80">his extreme Project 2025 agenda</a>,” she said.Biden planned to discuss his decision to step aside later this week in an address to the nation. He wrote in a letter posted Sunday to his X account, “I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term."Nearly 30 minutes after he delivered the news that he was folding his campaign, Biden threw his support behind Harris.“Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year,” he said in another post on X. “Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump.”<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/democratic-national-convention">The Democratic National Convention</a>&nbsp;is scheduled to be held Aug. 19-22 in Chicago, but the party had announced it would hold&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ohio-ballot-biden-access-3bf359cce8e73714be45cb99a6e31546">a virtual roll call</a>&nbsp;to formally nominate Biden before in-person proceedings begin. The convention's rules committee is scheduled to meet this week to finalize its nomination process and it is unclear how it will be adjusted to reflect Biden's exit.Congressional Hispanic Caucus chairwoman Nanette Barragan, who emphasized that she was “all in” behind the vice president, said she spoke Sunday with Harris, who communicated that she preferred to forego a virtual roll call for the nomination process and instead hold a process that adheres to regular order.The Democratic National Committee’s chair, Jaime Harrison, said in a statement that the party would “undertake a transparent and orderly process” to select “a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November.”

🎥Harris makes first public comments since Biden ended campaign

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-secret-service-cheatle-biden-48d384057a894b71859f945034092902">Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle</a>&nbsp;said Monday that her agency failed in its mission to protect former President Donald Trump during a highly contentious congressional hearing with lawmakers of both major political parties demanding she resign over security failures that allowed a gunman&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">to scale a roof and open fire at a campaign rally</a>.

Cheatle was berated for hours by Republicans and Democrats, repeatedly angering lawmakers by evading questions about the investigation in her first congressional hearing over the July 13 assassination attempt She called the attempt on Trump’s life the Secret Service’s “most significant operational failure” in decades.

“The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders. On July 13th, we failed,” Cheatle said.

Cheatle acknowledged that the Secret Service was told about a suspicious person two to five times before the shooting. She also revealed that the roof from which Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire had been identified as a potential vulnerability days before the rally. Cheatle said she apologized to Trump in a phone call after the shooting.

Yet Cheatle remained defiant that she was the “right person” to lead the Secret Service, even as she said she takes full responsibility for any security lapses at the Butler, Pennsylvania, rally.

When Republican Rep. Nancy Mace suggested Cheatle begin drafting her resignation letter from the hearing room, Cheatle responded, “No, thank you.”

Democrats and Republicans were united in their exasperation as Cheatle said she didn't know or couldn't answer numerous questions more than a week after the shooting, which left one spectator dead.

"It has been 10 days since an assassination attempt on a former president of the United States. Regardless of party, there need to be answers,” said Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York.

Lawmakers peppered Cheatle with questions about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">how the gunman could get so close</a>&nbsp;to the Republican presidential nominee when he was supposed to be carefully guarded and about why Trump was allowed to take the stage after local law enforcement had identified&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-rally-shooting-guns-fbi-motive-08e925cb85e52c5266878cd76e796ad2">Thomas Matthew Crooks</a>&nbsp;as suspicious.

Cheatle acknowledged that Crooks had been seen by local law enforcement before the shooting with a rangefinder, a small device resembling binoculars that hunters use to measure distance from a target. She said the Secret Service would never have taken Trump onto the stage if it had known there was an “actual threat." But while Crooks had been reported as suspicious, he wasn't identified as a threat until seconds before the shooting, she said.

“An individual with a backpack is not a threat,” Cheatle said. “An individual with a range finder is not a threat.”

Asked about why there were no agents on the roof where the shooter was located or if the Secret Service used drones to monitor the area, Cheatle said she is still waiting for the investigation to play out, prompting groans and outbursts from members on the committee.

“Director Cheatle, because Donald Trump is alive, and thank God he is, you look incompetent," said Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio. “If he were killed you would look culpable.”

Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., noted that the Secret Service director who presided over the agency when there was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/reagan-assassination-attempt-trump-butler-gunman-bd3c038d706de55a64727f7d15dffbc8">an attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan</a>&nbsp;later stepped down.

Trump was wounded in the ear, a former Pennsylvania fire chief&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-rally-fatal-shooting-corey-comperatore-8c09711e88a56432424ef3f980321ed2">was killed</a>&nbsp;and two other attendees were injured after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-rally-shooting-guns-fbi-motive-08e925cb85e52c5266878cd76e796ad2">Crooks</a>&nbsp;climbed atop the roof of a nearby building and opened fire with an AR-style rifle shortly after Trump started speaking at the July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-secret-service">The Secret Service</a>&nbsp;has acknowledged it denied some requests by Trump's campaign for increased security at his events in the years before&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/secret-service-trump-rally-4e3415b1461f5acefbc8e1fadad0375b">the assassination attempt</a>. But Cheatle said that there were “no assets denied" for the rally.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has called what happened a “failure” while several lawmakers have called on Cheatle to resign or for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;to fire her. The Secret Service has said Cheatle does not intend to step down. So far, she retains the support of Biden, a Democrat, and Mayorkas.

Before the shooting, local law enforcement had noticed Crooks pacing around the edges of the rally, peering into the lens of a rangefinder toward the rooftops behind the stage where the president later stood, officials have told The Associated Press. An image of Crooks was circulated by officers stationed outside the security perimeter.

Witnesses later saw him climbing up the side of a squat manufacturing building that was within 135 meters (157 yards) of the stage. He then set up his rifle and lay on the rooftop, a detonator in his pocket to set off crude explosive devices that were stashed in his car parked nearby.

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-secret-service-cheatle-biden-48d384057a894b71859f945034092902">The Secret Service director</a>&nbsp;is set to testify Monday before the House Oversight Committee as calls mount for her to resign over security failures at a rally where a 20-year-old gunman&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">attempted to assassinate</a>&nbsp;former President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>.

The House Oversight Committee hearing will be Kimberly Cheatle's first appearance before lawmakers since the July 13 Pennsylvania rally shooting that left one spectator dead. Trump was wounded in the ear and two other attendees were injured after Thomas Matthew Crooks climbed atop the roof of a nearby building and opened fire.

Kansas Congressman Jake LaTurner is a member of the committee.

Lawmakers have been expressing anger over how the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">gunman could get so close</a>&nbsp;to the Republican presidential nominee when he was supposed to be carefully guarded. The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-secret-service">Secret Service</a>&nbsp;has acknowledged it denied some requests by Trump's campaign for increased security at his events in the years before the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/secret-service-trump-rally-4e3415b1461f5acefbc8e1fadad0375b">assassination attempt</a>.

Witnesses later saw him climbing up the side of a squat manufacturing building that was within 135 meters (157 yards) from the stage. He then set up his AR-style rifle and lay on the rooftop, a detonator in his pocket to set off crude explosive devices that were stashed in his car parked nearby.

The attack on Trump was the most serious attempt to assassinate a president or presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981. It was the latest in a series of security lapses by the agency that has drawn investigations and public scrutiny over the years.

Authorities have been hunting for clues into what motivated Crooks, but so far have not found any ideological bent that could help explain his actions. Investigators who searched his phone&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-shooting-federal-investigation-2a90bdfd23ba9c3569cb9c29a459e87b">found photos of Trump</a>, Biden and other senior government officials, and also found that he had looked up the dates for the Democratic National Conventional as well as Trump’s appearances. He also searched for information about major depressive order.

WASHINGTON —The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-secret-service">Secret Service</a>&nbsp;has acknowledged it denied some requests by Republican presidential nominee&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump's campaign</a>&nbsp;for increased security at his events in the years before the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/secret-service-trump-rally-4e3415b1461f5acefbc8e1fadad0375b">assassination attempt</a>&nbsp;on him at a recent rally.

In the immediate aftermath of the July 13 attack, the law enforcement agency had denied rejecting such requests. But the Secret Service acknowledged late Saturday, a week after the attempt on Trump's life, that it had turned back some requests to increase security around the former president.

The reversal is likely to be a key focus of a congressional hearing Monday where&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-secret-service-cheatle-biden-48d384057a894b71859f945034092902">Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle</a>&nbsp;is expected to appear before lawmakers who have been expressing anger over security lapses that allowed a 20-year-old gunman to climb atop the roof of a nearby building at Trump's rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and fire his weapon.

Trump was wounded in the right ear, one rallygoer was killed and two others were injured. Secret Service gunmen killed the shooter.

“The Secret Service has a vast, dynamic, and intricate mission. Every day we work in a dynamic threat environment to ensure our protectees are safe and secure across multiple events, travel, and other challenging environments,” the agency's chief spokesperson, Anthony Guglielmi, said in a statement released late Saturday to The Washington Post. The newspaper was first to report on the agency's reversal, which it said was based on detailed questions submitted to the agency.

“We execute a comprehensive and layered strategy to balance personnel, technology, and specialized operational needs,” Guglielmi said.

He said the agency will rely on state and local law enforcement departments in some cases where specialized Secret Service units are unavailable.

“In some instances where specific Secret Service specialized units or resources were not provided, the agency made modifications to ensure the security of the protectee,” Gugliemi said. “This may include utilizing state or local partners to provide specialized functions or otherwise identifying alternatives to reduce public exposure of a protectee.”

After the assassination attempt, as reports began to circulate that the agency had denied the Trump campaign's requests, Guglielmi issued a denial.

There is "an untrue assertion that a member of the former President’s team requested additional security resources &amp; that those were rebuffed,”&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/SecretSvcSpox/status/1812451649387933912">Gugliemi said</a>&nbsp;in a social media post. “This is absolutely false. In fact, we added protective resources &amp; technology &amp; capabilities as part of the increased campaign travel tempo.”

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has called what happened a “failure” while several lawmakers have called on Cheatle to resign or for President Joe Biden to fire her. The Secret Service has said Cheatle does not intend to step down. So far, she retains the support of Biden, a Democrat, and Mayorkas.

But the agency's acknowledgement that it had denied some of the campaign's requests sparked fresh condemnation on Sunday.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said on CNN’s “State of the Union, that the reversal “is just beyond the pale" and that Cheatle's "got a lot to answer for.”

Johnson said lawmakers on Monday would release details about a bipartisan congressional task force that will investigate the Secret Service.

Rep. James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, which has subpoenaed Cheatle to appear at a hearing on Monday, said the Secret Service has a more than $3 billion annual budget that “is more than enough” to provide adequate protection.

“We want to know who’s at fault for what happened,” the Kentucky Republican said.

Trump’s son, Eric Trump, said Cheatle should resign in “absolute disgrace.”

“The fact that she is still in her job is beyond,” he said on Fox News' “Sunday Morning Futures,”

Biden has ordered an independent investigation. The Homeland Security Department and congressional committee are also investigating.

Trump says he was given no indication that law enforcement had identified a suspicious person when the former president took the stage in Pennsylvania. Some rallygoers said in interviews after the attempted assassination that they saw the gunman on the roof before Trump walked out onto the stage and had alerted law enforcement authorities on site.

In an interview with Fox News host Jesse Watters set to air Monday, Trump said, “No, nobody mentioned it, nobody said there was a problem” before he took the stage and a gunman opened fire. “They could’ve said, ‘Let’s wait for 15 minutes, 20 minutes, 5 minutes, something.’ Nobody said. I think that was a mistake.”

Trump also questioned the security lapses and how the gunman was able to access the roof of the building.

“How did somebody get on that roof? And why wasn’t he reported? Because people saw that he was on the roof,” Trump said. “So you would’ve thought someone would’ve done something about it.”

Local law enforcement officers had seen the man and deemed him suspicious enough to circulate his photo and witnesses reported seeing him scaling the building.

Trump's campaign and the White House did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment.

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-secret-service-cheatle-biden-48d384057a894b71859f945034092902">Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle</a>&nbsp;said Monday that her agency failed in its mission to protect former President Donald Trump during a highly contentious congressional hearing with lawmakers of both major political parties demanding she resign over security failures that allowed a gunman&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">to scale a roof and open fire at a campaign rally</a>.Click below to watch a replay of the hearing.<div><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hyP3tKtgtnw?si=Pqhet5TaSu_xleoJ&amp;start=999" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>Cheatle was berated for hours by Republicans and Democrats, repeatedly angering lawmakers by evading questions about the investigation in her first congressional hearing over the July 13 assassination attempt She called the attempt on Trump’s life the Secret Service’s “most significant operational failure” in decades.“The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders. On July 13th, we failed,” Cheatle said.Cheatle acknowledged that the Secret Service was told about a suspicious person two to five times before the shooting. She also revealed that the roof from which Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire had been identified as a potential vulnerability days before the rally. Cheatle said she apologized to Trump in a phone call after the shooting.Yet Cheatle remained defiant that she was the “right person” to lead the Secret Service, even as she said she takes full responsibility for any security lapses at the Butler, Pennsylvania, rally.When Republican Rep. Nancy Mace suggested Cheatle begin drafting her resignation letter from the hearing room, Cheatle responded, “No, thank you.”Democrats and Republicans were united in their exasperation as Cheatle said she didn't know or couldn't answer numerous questions more than a week after the shooting, which left one spectator dead."It has been 10 days since an assassination attempt on a former president of the United States. Regardless of party, there need to be answers,” said Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York.Lawmakers peppered Cheatle with questions about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">how the gunman could get so close</a>&nbsp;to the Republican presidential nominee when he was supposed to be carefully guarded and about why Trump was allowed to take the stage after local law enforcement had identified&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-rally-shooting-guns-fbi-motive-08e925cb85e52c5266878cd76e796ad2">Thomas Matthew Crooks</a>&nbsp;as suspicious.Cheatle acknowledged that Crooks had been seen by local law enforcement before the shooting with a rangefinder, a small device resembling binoculars that hunters use to measure distance from a target. She said the Secret Service would never have taken Trump onto the stage if it had known there was an “actual threat." But while Crooks had been reported as suspicious, he wasn't identified as a threat until seconds before the shooting, she said.“An individual with a backpack is not a threat,” Cheatle said. “An individual with a range finder is not a threat.”Asked about why there were no agents on the roof where the shooter was located or if the Secret Service used drones to monitor the area, Cheatle said she is still waiting for the investigation to play out, prompting groans and outbursts from members on the committee.“Director Cheatle, because Donald Trump is alive, and thank God he is, you look incompetent," said Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio. “If he were killed you would look culpable.”Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., noted that the Secret Service director who presided over the agency when there was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/reagan-assassination-attempt-trump-butler-gunman-bd3c038d706de55a64727f7d15dffbc8">an attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan</a>&nbsp;later stepped down.“The one thing we have to have in this country are agencies that transcend politics and have the confidence of independents, Democrats, Republicans, progressives and conservatives,” Khanna said, adding that the Secret Service was no longer one of those agencies.Trump was wounded in the ear, a former Pennsylvania fire chief&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-rally-fatal-shooting-corey-comperatore-8c09711e88a56432424ef3f980321ed2">was killed</a>&nbsp;and two other attendees were injured after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-rally-shooting-guns-fbi-motive-08e925cb85e52c5266878cd76e796ad2">Crooks</a>&nbsp;climbed atop the roof of a nearby building and opened fire with an AR-style rifle shortly after Trump started speaking at the July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-secret-service">The Secret Service</a>&nbsp;has acknowledged it denied some requests by Trump's campaign for increased security at his events in the years before&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/secret-service-trump-rally-4e3415b1461f5acefbc8e1fadad0375b">the assassination attempt</a>. But Cheatle said that there were “no assets denied" for the rally.Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has called what happened a “failure” while several lawmakers have called on Cheatle to resign or for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;to fire her. The Secret Service has said Cheatle does not intend to step down. So far, she retains the support of Biden, a Democrat, and Mayorkas.Before the shooting, local law enforcement had noticed Crooks pacing around the edges of the rally, peering into the lens of a rangefinder toward the rooftops behind the stage where the president later stood, officials have told The Associated Press. An image of Crooks was circulated by officers stationed outside the security perimeter.Witnesses later saw him climbing up the side of a squat manufacturing building that was within 135 meters (157 yards) of the stage. He then set up his rifle and lay on the rooftop, a detonator in his pocket to set off crude explosive devices that were stashed in his car parked nearby.The attack on Trump was the most serious attempt to assassinate a president or presidential candidate since&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/reagan-assassination-attempt-trump-butler-gunman-bd3c038d706de55a64727f7d15dffbc8">Reagan was shot in 1981</a>. It was the latest in a series of security lapses by the agency that has drawn investigations and public scrutiny over the years.Authorities have been hunting for clues into what motivated Crooks but have not found any ideological bent that could help explain his actions. Investigators who searched his phone&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-shooting-federal-investigation-2a90bdfd23ba9c3569cb9c29a459e87b">found photos of Trump</a>, Biden and other senior government officials and found that he had looked up the dates for the Democratic National Conventional as well as Trump’s appearances. He also searched for information about major depressive order.-------------WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-secret-service-cheatle-biden-48d384057a894b71859f945034092902">The Secret Service director</a>&nbsp;is set to testify Monday before the House Oversight Committee as calls mount for her to resign over security failures at a rally where a 20-year-old gunman&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">attempted to assassinate</a>&nbsp;former President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>.The House Oversight Committee hearing will be Kimberly Cheatle's first appearance before lawmakers since the July 13 Pennsylvania rally shooting that left one spectator dead. Trump was wounded in the ear and two other attendees were injured after Thomas Matthew Crooks climbed atop the roof of a nearby building and opened fire.Kansas Congressman Jake LaTurner is a member of the committee.Lawmakers have been expressing anger over how the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-thomas-matthew-crooks-shooter-881581c46c07025898027143fc9132e5">gunman could get so close</a>&nbsp;to the Republican presidential nominee when he was supposed to be carefully guarded. The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-secret-service">Secret Service</a>&nbsp;has acknowledged it denied some requests by Trump's campaign for increased security at his events in the years before the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/secret-service-trump-rally-4e3415b1461f5acefbc8e1fadad0375b">assassination attempt</a>.Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has called what happened a “failure” while several lawmakers have called on Cheatle to resign or for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;to fire her. The Secret Service has said Cheatle does not intend to step down. So far, she retains the support of Biden, a Democrat, and Mayorkas.Before the shooting, local law enforcement had noticed Crooks pacing around the edges of the rally, peering into the lens of a rangefinder toward the rooftops behind the stage where the president later stood, officials have told The Associated Press. An image of Crooks was circulated by officers stationed outside the security perimeter.Witnesses later saw him climbing up the side of a squat manufacturing building that was within 135 meters (157 yards) from the stage. He then set up his AR-style rifle and lay on the rooftop, a detonator in his pocket to set off crude explosive devices that were stashed in his car parked nearby.The attack on Trump was the most serious attempt to assassinate a president or presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981. It was the latest in a series of security lapses by the agency that has drawn investigations and public scrutiny over the years.Authorities have been hunting for clues into what motivated Crooks, but so far have not found any ideological bent that could help explain his actions. Investigators who searched his phone&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-shooting-federal-investigation-2a90bdfd23ba9c3569cb9c29a459e87b">found photos of Trump</a>, Biden and other senior government officials, and also found that he had looked up the dates for the Democratic National Conventional as well as Trump’s appearances. He also searched for information about major depressive order.------------WASHINGTON —The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-secret-service">Secret Service</a>&nbsp;has acknowledged it denied some requests by Republican presidential nominee&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump's campaign</a>&nbsp;for increased security at his events in the years before the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/secret-service-trump-rally-4e3415b1461f5acefbc8e1fadad0375b">assassination attempt</a>&nbsp;on him at a recent rally.In the immediate aftermath of the July 13 attack, the law enforcement agency had denied rejecting such requests. But the Secret Service acknowledged late Saturday, a week after the attempt on Trump's life, that it had turned back some requests to increase security around the former president.The reversal is likely to be a key focus of a congressional hearing Monday where&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-assassination-attempt-secret-service-cheatle-biden-48d384057a894b71859f945034092902">Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle</a>&nbsp;is expected to appear before lawmakers who have been expressing anger over security lapses that allowed a 20-year-old gunman to climb atop the roof of a nearby building at Trump's rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and fire his weapon.Trump was wounded in the right ear, one rallygoer was killed and two others were injured. Secret Service gunmen killed the shooter.The attack on Trump was the most serious attempt to assassinate a president or presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981. It was the latest in a series of security lapses by the agency that has drawn investigations and public scrutiny over the years.“The Secret Service has a vast, dynamic, and intricate mission. Every day we work in a dynamic threat environment to ensure our protectees are safe and secure across multiple events, travel, and other challenging environments,” the agency's chief spokesperson, Anthony Guglielmi, said in a statement released late Saturday to The Washington Post. The newspaper was first to report on the agency's reversal, which it said was based on detailed questions submitted to the agency.“We execute a comprehensive and layered strategy to balance personnel, technology, and specialized operational needs,” Guglielmi said.He said the agency will rely on state and local law enforcement departments in some cases where specialized Secret Service units are unavailable.“In some instances where specific Secret Service specialized units or resources were not provided, the agency made modifications to ensure the security of the protectee,” Gugliemi said. “This may include utilizing state or local partners to provide specialized functions or otherwise identifying alternatives to reduce public exposure of a protectee.”After the assassination attempt, as reports began to circulate that the agency had denied the Trump campaign's requests, Guglielmi issued a denial.There is "an untrue assertion that a member of the former President’s team requested additional security resources &amp; that those were rebuffed,”&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/SecretSvcSpox/status/1812451649387933912">Gugliemi said</a>&nbsp;in a social media post. “This is absolutely false. In fact, we added protective resources &amp; technology &amp; capabilities as part of the increased campaign travel tempo.”Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has called what happened a “failure” while several lawmakers have called on Cheatle to resign or for President Joe Biden to fire her. The Secret Service has said Cheatle does not intend to step down. So far, she retains the support of Biden, a Democrat, and Mayorkas.But the agency's acknowledgement that it had denied some of the campaign's requests sparked fresh condemnation on Sunday.House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said on CNN’s “State of the Union, that the reversal “is just beyond the pale" and that Cheatle's "got a lot to answer for.”Johnson said lawmakers on Monday would release details about a bipartisan congressional task force that will investigate the Secret Service.Rep. James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, which has subpoenaed Cheatle to appear at a hearing on Monday, said the Secret Service has a more than $3 billion annual budget that “is more than enough” to provide adequate protection.“We want to know who’s at fault for what happened,” the Kentucky Republican said.Trump’s son, Eric Trump, said Cheatle should resign in “absolute disgrace.”“The fact that she is still in her job is beyond,” he said on Fox News' “Sunday Morning Futures,”Biden has ordered an independent investigation. The Homeland Security Department and congressional committee are also investigating.Trump says he was given no indication that law enforcement had identified a suspicious person when the former president took the stage in Pennsylvania. Some rallygoers said in interviews after the attempted assassination that they saw the gunman on the roof before Trump walked out onto the stage and had alerted law enforcement authorities on site.In an interview with Fox News host Jesse Watters set to air Monday, Trump said, “No, nobody mentioned it, nobody said there was a problem” before he took the stage and a gunman opened fire. “They could’ve said, ‘Let’s wait for 15 minutes, 20 minutes, 5 minutes, something.’ Nobody said. I think that was a mistake.”Trump also questioned the security lapses and how the gunman was able to access the roof of the building.“How did somebody get on that roof? And why wasn’t he reported? Because people saw that he was on the roof,” Trump said. “So you would’ve thought someone would’ve done something about it.”Local law enforcement officers had seen the man and deemed him suspicious enough to circulate his photo and witnesses reported seeing him scaling the building.Trump's campaign and the White House did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment.

🎥 Secret Service director testifies on attempted assassination of Donald Trump

WASHINGTON (AP) — Shortly after President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-drops-out-2024-election-ddffde72838370032bdcff946cfc2ce6">Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;announced that he would&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-drops-out-2024-election-ddffde72838370032bdcff946cfc2ce6">drop his reelection campaign</a>, Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison had a message: There would be no automatic coronation for his replacement.

“In the coming days, the party will undertake a transparent and orderly process to move forward,” Harrison said in a statement. “This process will be governed by established rules and procedures of the party. Our delegates are prepared to take seriously their responsibility in swiftly delivering a candidate to the American people.“

The comment reflected the reality that while Vice President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/kamala-harris">Kamala Harris</a>&nbsp;is emerging as the prohibitive favorite to become the party's nominee — backed already by Biden and many Democrats — it's not so simple. And, for now, the party isn't offering many details on what happens next.

Some DNC members had already begun privately discussing contingency plans for the possibility that Biden would step aside prior to his decision to formally do so on Sunday, and a committee setting the party’s rules for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/democratic-national-convention">the Democratic National Convention</a>, which opens Aug. 19 in Chicago, will gather virtually on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the next steps.

Harris has to formally secure the nomination from the around 4,700 Democratic convention delegates — including those pledged to Biden, as well as the elected officials, former presidents and other party elders known as superdelegates. She spent part of Sunday calling elected officials and delegates to solidify their support.

Biden won Democratic primaries in every state, and Harris was on the ticket as his running mate. His tapping her as his successor while bowing out of the race further strengthens her case, as does the endorsements of party heavyweights like South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn. Other top Democrats openly backed the vice president even before Biden abandoned his reelection bid, urging him to “pass the torch” to her in the wake of his&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bidentrumppresidentialdebate-0e7577e9a354a69f50675494fea54ca9">dismal debate performance</a>&nbsp;against Republican nominee&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;last month.

“Folks will be weighing in and they should. I think we’re seeing a lot of coalescing behind the vice president,” said Rahna Epting, executive director of the progressive organization MoveOn. “And that's important because, as we saw throughout the Biden debate fallout, there is momentum that can be built one way or the other, and it is important for us to build momentum toward unity.”

Ken Martin, president of the Association of State Democratic Committees, which represents the 57 parties in the states and territories, said Harris was the obvious choice: “Having served alongside President Biden, she is ready on day one as a candidate and as our next president.” She was also endorsed by the 1.75-million-member American Federation of Teachers union.

But Democratic rules state only that delegates “in all good conscience” vote for the candidate they were elected to represent, with no mechanism for defectors. And some in the party have endorsed an open nominating process.

There’s been active debate about how to proceed among lawmakers, major donors and former high-ranking officials of the Biden, Obama and Clinton administrations, said a Democrat with deep ties to the Biden administration.

The person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal conversations, argued that Harris would benefit from a competitive mini-primary ahead of the Democratic convention, because it would help solidify her as a strong candidate and diminish criticism that she’s been undemocratically anointed. That's a charge the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-biden-harris-drops-out-920d7fe1c364e82290abeb9e0d1411c7">Trump campaign</a>&nbsp;has already sought to use against her, and could loom large in the battle for undecided voters in battleground states.

Such a scenario might leave Democrats heading into their convention without a clear nominee, though, and perhaps choosing one via a series of potentially messy floor votes. That could mean top Democratic candidates looking to replace Biden resorting to visiting individual state delegations to lobby — a process unseen since 1960, when Johnson and John F. Kennedy jockeyed for support during their party's convention in Los Angeles.

If that happened, in addition to Harris, many other leading Democrats could vie for the nomination, including the likes of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and California Rep. Ro Khanna — though many of those said shortly after Biden's announcement that they were formally endorsing Harris.

Inside the White House, meanwhile, there’s low expectation that Harris will get a serious challenge, according to a person familiar with deliberations who requested anonymity to discuss the private conversations.

Others who have been mentioned as viable contenders — including Shapiro and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper — have also both endorsed Harris and would seem unlikely to run in light of Biden’s backing her, and the expected fundraising advantage she would hold over anyone who’d enter the field.

Further complicating matters is the fact that the DNC had planned to hold a virtual roll call to choose its nominee ahead of the convention, in order to meet Ohio ballot eligibility rules. That state's original deadline ballot deadline was Aug. 7, and though the Legislature has since approved a law nullifying that, it doesn’t take effect until Sept. 1.

DNC lawyers say that means the party could face legal challenges in Ohio if it fails to name their party’s nominee prior to the state’s original deadline. But the convention rules committee has said it won’t set a date for the virtual roll call — which could take place over several days — before Aug. 1.

Some Democrats fear a host of other GOP legal challenges, including New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who had defended Biden staying in the race by arguing that replacing him might trigger “a presidential election being decided by Clarence Thomas and the Supreme Court” — like what happened during the 2000 presidential election and the disputed recount in Florida.

At Wednesday's conventions rules committee meeting, members could establish virtual roll call rules and a process to nominate Harris or create a more open process for choosing a nominee, according to a person familiar with the process on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

“During the convention, we will have an opportunity to show the country and the world who Democrats are and what we stand for,” Minyon Moore, Democratic convention chair, said in a statement.

Harrison, the DNC chair, refrained from endorsing Harris in a statement, saying only, "In short order, the American people will hear from the Democratic Party on next steps and the path forward for the nomination process.”

A somber Harrison also joined a virtual meeting of the convention credentials committee on Sunday, telling members, “I'm emotional.”

“I still support my president,” Harrison said of Biden. "And we will get through this, my friends, as we always do.”

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 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/7/1721587655391.png" alt="File photo White House" />
 <figcaption>File photo White House</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Shortly after President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-drops-out-2024-election-ddffde72838370032bdcff946cfc2ce6">Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;announced that he would&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-drops-out-2024-election-ddffde72838370032bdcff946cfc2ce6">drop his reelection campaign</a>, Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison had a message: There would be no automatic coronation for his replacement.“In the coming days, the party will undertake a transparent and orderly process to move forward,” Harrison said in a statement. “This process will be governed by established rules and procedures of the party. Our delegates are prepared to take seriously their responsibility in swiftly delivering a candidate to the American people.“<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/7/1721650226823.png" alt="" />
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 </figure>The comment reflected the reality that while Vice President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/kamala-harris">Kamala Harris</a>&nbsp;is emerging as the prohibitive favorite to become the party's nominee — backed already by Biden and many Democrats — it's not so simple. And, for now, the party isn't offering many details on what happens next.Some DNC members had already begun privately discussing contingency plans for the possibility that Biden would step aside prior to his decision to formally do so on Sunday, and a committee setting the party’s rules for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/democratic-national-convention">the Democratic National Convention</a>, which opens Aug. 19 in Chicago, will gather virtually on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the next steps.Harris has to formally secure the nomination from the around 4,700 Democratic convention delegates — including those pledged to Biden, as well as the elected officials, former presidents and other party elders known as superdelegates. She spent part of Sunday calling elected officials and delegates to solidify their support.Biden won Democratic primaries in every state, and Harris was on the ticket as his running mate. His tapping her as his successor while bowing out of the race further strengthens her case, as does the endorsements of party heavyweights like South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn. Other top Democrats openly backed the vice president even before Biden abandoned his reelection bid, urging him to “pass the torch” to her in the wake of his&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bidentrumppresidentialdebate-0e7577e9a354a69f50675494fea54ca9">dismal debate performance</a>&nbsp;against Republican nominee&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;last month.“Folks will be weighing in and they should. I think we’re seeing a lot of coalescing behind the vice president,” said Rahna Epting, executive director of the progressive organization MoveOn. “And that's important because, as we saw throughout the Biden debate fallout, there is momentum that can be built one way or the other, and it is important for us to build momentum toward unity.”Ken Martin, president of the Association of State Democratic Committees, which represents the 57 parties in the states and territories, said Harris was the obvious choice: “Having served alongside President Biden, she is ready on day one as a candidate and as our next president.” She was also endorsed by the 1.75-million-member American Federation of Teachers union.But Democratic rules state only that delegates “in all good conscience” vote for the candidate they were elected to represent, with no mechanism for defectors. And some in the party have endorsed an open nominating process.There’s been active debate about how to proceed among lawmakers, major donors and former high-ranking officials of the Biden, Obama and Clinton administrations, said a Democrat with deep ties to the Biden administration.The person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal conversations, argued that Harris would benefit from a competitive mini-primary ahead of the Democratic convention, because it would help solidify her as a strong candidate and diminish criticism that she’s been undemocratically anointed. That's a charge the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-biden-harris-drops-out-920d7fe1c364e82290abeb9e0d1411c7">Trump campaign</a>&nbsp;has already sought to use against her, and could loom large in the battle for undecided voters in battleground states.Such a scenario might leave Democrats heading into their convention without a clear nominee, though, and perhaps choosing one via a series of potentially messy floor votes. That could mean top Democratic candidates looking to replace Biden resorting to visiting individual state delegations to lobby — a process unseen since 1960, when Johnson and John F. Kennedy jockeyed for support during their party's convention in Los Angeles.If that happened, in addition to Harris, many other leading Democrats could vie for the nomination, including the likes of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and California Rep. Ro Khanna — though many of those said shortly after Biden's announcement that they were formally endorsing Harris.Inside the White House, meanwhile, there’s low expectation that Harris will get a serious challenge, according to a person familiar with deliberations who requested anonymity to discuss the private conversations.Others who have been mentioned as viable contenders — including Shapiro and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper — have also both endorsed Harris and would seem unlikely to run in light of Biden’s backing her, and the expected fundraising advantage she would hold over anyone who’d enter the field.Further complicating matters is the fact that the DNC had planned to hold a virtual roll call to choose its nominee ahead of the convention, in order to meet Ohio ballot eligibility rules. That state's original deadline ballot deadline was Aug. 7, and though the Legislature has since approved a law nullifying that, it doesn’t take effect until Sept. 1.DNC lawyers say that means the party could face legal challenges in Ohio if it fails to name their party’s nominee prior to the state’s original deadline. But the convention rules committee has said it won’t set a date for the virtual roll call — which could take place over several days — before Aug. 1.Some Democrats fear a host of other GOP legal challenges, including New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who had defended Biden staying in the race by arguing that replacing him might trigger “a presidential election being decided by Clarence Thomas and the Supreme Court” — like what happened during the 2000 presidential election and the disputed recount in Florida.At Wednesday's conventions rules committee meeting, members could establish virtual roll call rules and a process to nominate Harris or create a more open process for choosing a nominee, according to a person familiar with the process on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.“During the convention, we will have an opportunity to show the country and the world who Democrats are and what we stand for,” Minyon Moore, Democratic convention chair, said in a statement.Harrison, the DNC chair, refrained from endorsing Harris in a statement, saying only, "In short order, the American people will hear from the Democratic Party on next steps and the path forward for the nomination process.”A somber Harrison also joined a virtual meeting of the convention credentials committee on Sunday, telling members, “I'm emotional.”“I still support my president,” Harrison said of Biden. "And we will get through this, my friends, as we always do.”

Dems promise an 'orderly process' to replace Biden. Harris is favored, but questions remain

JOHNSON COUNTY —Two adults and a child were displaced after a weekend fire possibly caused by carless discard of smoking materials.

Just after 3a.m. Saturday, crews were called to a fire at 120th and Hayes Street in Overland Park, according to a media release.

First responders found smoke and fire coming from the back of the 2-story duplex. Fire crews went to work attacking a fire in the chimney box that spread from the ground level to the second story and into the ceiling. It took firefighters 20-minutes to bring the fire under control.&nbsp;

Two adults and a child escaped safely and are staying with relatives. Residents in the adjacent unit were able to reoccupy. There were no injuries and the unit did have working smoke alarms.

One of the residents reported smoking outside before the fire. While investigators believe the cause of the fire to be careless discard of smoking materials, the exact cause is still under investigation.&nbsp; Authorities did not release a damage estimate.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/7/1721616902647.png" alt="Image Overland Park Fire" />
 <figcaption>Image Overland Park Fire</figcaption>
 </figure>JOHNSON COUNTY —Two adults and a child were displaced after a weekend fire possibly caused by carless discard of smoking materials.Just after 3a.m. Saturday, crews were called to a fire at 120th and Hayes Street in Overland Park, according to a media release.First responders found smoke and fire coming from the back of the 2-story duplex. Fire crews went to work attacking a fire in the chimney box that spread from the ground level to the second story and into the ceiling. It took firefighters 20-minutes to bring the fire under control.&nbsp;Two adults and a child escaped safely and are staying with relatives. Residents in the adjacent unit were able to reoccupy. There were no injuries and the unit did have working smoke alarms.One of the residents reported smoking outside before the fire. While investigators believe the cause of the fire to be careless discard of smoking materials, the exact cause is still under investigation.&nbsp; Authorities did not release a damage estimate.