WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was making his way to Washington on Wednesday for a summit with President Joe Biden and to address Congress in his first known trip outside the country since&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine">Russia’s invasion</a>&nbsp;began in February.

Zelenskyy said on his Twitter account that the visit was “to strengthen resilience and defense capabilities” of Ukraine and discuss cooperation between his country and the U.S with Biden.

The highly sensitive trip is taking place after 10 months of a brutal war that has seen tens of thousands killed and wounded on both sides of the conflict, along with devastation for Ukrainian civilians. It also comes as U.S. lawmakers are set to vote on a year-end spending package that includes about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-3e0fef206f524f6b1b67f7c36178a688">$45 billion in emergency assistance to Ukraine</a>&nbsp;and as the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-b90ce5a55b1f6b820d03da96612b3796">Pentagon prepares to send Patriot surface-to-air missiles</a>&nbsp;to the country to defend itself.

Zelenskyy headed abroad after making&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-kyiv-9b7d42d3897185c0ecff222e5149e4ea">a daring and dangerous trip</a>&nbsp;Tuesday to what he called the hottest spot on the 1,300-kilometer (800-mile) front line of the conflict, the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine’s contested Donetsk province. He praised Ukrainian troops for their “courage, resilience and strength” as artillery boomed in the background.

Poland’s private broadcaster TVN24 said Zelenskyy crossed into Poland early Wednesday on his way to the U.S. The station showed footage of what appeared to be Zelenskyy arriving at a train station and being escorted to a motorcade. TVN24 said the video, which was partially blurred for security reasons, was shot Wednesday morning in Przemysl, a Polish border town that has been the arrival point for many refugees fleeing the war.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, in a statement Tuesday night, said that Biden looks forward to Zelenskyy's visit and that the address to Congress will demonstrate “the strong, bipartisan support for Ukraine.”

“The visit will underscore the United States’ steadfast commitment to supporting Ukraine for as long as it takes, including through the provision of economic, humanitarian, and military assistance," she said.

Zelenskyy was scheduled to meet with Biden at the White House in the afternoon and then join Biden for a news conference in the East Room. He was expected to address Congress in the evening.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23484955-pelosi-letter-to-zelenskyy">her invitation to Zelenskyy</a>&nbsp;to address a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol, said that “The fight for Ukraine is the fight for democracy itself” and that lawmakers “look forward to hearing your inspiring message of unity, resilience and determination.”

U.S. and Ukrainian officials have made clear they don’t envision an imminent resolution to the war and are preparing for fighting to continue for some time. Biden has repeated that while the U.S. will arm and train Ukraine, American forces will not be directly engaged in the conflict.

Biden and Zelenskyy first discussed the idea of a visit to Washington during their most recent phone call, on Dec. 11, and a formal invitation followed three days later, said a senior U.S. administration official, briefing reporters on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the visit. Zelenskyy accepted the invitation on Friday and it was confirmed on Sunday, when the White House began coordinating with Pelosi to arrange the congressional address.

The White House consulted with Zelenskyy on security for his departure from Ukraine and travel to Washington, including the risk of Russian action while Zelenskyy was briefly out of the country, the official added, declining to detail the measures taken to safeguard the Ukrainian leader. The official said the U.S. expected Russia to continue its attacks on Ukrainian forces and civilian infrastructure targets despite the trip.

The tranche of U.S. funding pending before Congress would be the biggest American infusion of assistance yet to Ukraine — even more than Biden's $37 billion emergency request — and is meant to ensure that support flows to the war effort for months to come.

On Wednesday, the U.S. was also set to announce that it will send a major package of $1.8 billion in military aid to Ukraine that will for the first time include a Patriot missile battery and precision guided bombs for its fighter jets, U.S. officials said.

The aid signals an expansion by the U.S. in the kinds of advanced weaponry it will send to Ukraine to bolster its air defenses against what has been an increasing barrage of Russian missiles in recent weeks. The package will include about $1 billion in weapons from Pentagon stocks and $800 million in funding through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, officials said.

The decision to send the Patriot battery comes despite threats from Russia’s Foreign Ministry that the delivery of the advanced surface-to-air missile system would be&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-biden-0cc0e5bece38007e3d9f958f536bf1fe">considered a provocative step</a>&nbsp;and that the Patriot battery and any crews accompanying it would be a legitimate target for Moscow’s military.

It’s unclear when the Patriot battery would arrive on the front lines in Ukraine, since U.S. troops will have to train Ukrainian forces on how to use the high-tech system. The training could take several weeks and is expected to be done in Germany. To date, all training of Ukraine’s forces by the U.S. and its Western allies has taken place in European countries.

The visit comes at an important moment as the White House braces for greater resistance when Republicans take control of the House in January and give more scrutiny to aid for Ukraine. GOP leader Kevin McCarthy has said his party’s lawmakers will not write a “blank check” for Ukraine.

Biden and Zelenskyy frequently have talked by phone as the White House arranges new tranches of military assistance for Ukraine. The calls have been mostly warm, with Biden praising Ukraine for remaining steadfast against the Russians and Zelenskyy thanking the U.S. president for support.

The one exception was a June phone call soon after Biden notified Zelenskyy that an additional $1 billion package was headed to Ukraine. Zelenskyy didn’t miss a beat in ticking off the additional assistance he said Ukraine needed.

That irked Biden, who underscored to Zelenskyy the American people’s generosity. But the brief moment of tension hasn’t caused any lasting difficulty, according to officials familiar with the episode.

Pelosi, who visited Zelenskyy earlier this year in Kyiv, encouraged lawmakers to be on hand for Wednesday evening’s address by the Ukrainian leader.

“We are ending a very special session of the 117th Congress with legislation that makes progress for the American people as well as support for our Democracy,” Pelosi wrote Tuesday in a letter to colleagues. “Please be present for a very special focus on Democracy Wednesday night.”

Later at the Capitol she said of Ukrainians, “They are fighting for democracy for all of us.”

Russia’s invasion, which&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-europe-russia-moscow-kyiv-626a8c5ec22217bacb24ece60fac4fe1">began Feb. 24</a>, has lost momentum. The illegally annexed provinces of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia remain fiercely contested.

With the fighting in the east at a stalemate, Moscow has used missiles and drones to attack Ukraine’s power equipment, hoping to leave people without electricity as freezing weather sets in.

In a video released by his office from the Bakhmut visit, Zelenskyy was handed a Ukrainian flag and alluded to delivering it to U.S. leaders.

“The guys handed over our beautiful Ukrainian flag with their signatures for us to pass on,” Zelenskyy said in the video. “We are not in an easy situation. The enemy is increasing its army. Our people are braver and need more powerful weapons. We will pass it on from the boys to the Congress, to the president of the United States. We are grateful for their support, but it is not enough. It is a hint — it is not enough.”

For his part, Putin on Tuesday hailed the “courage and self-denial” of his forces in Ukraine — but he did so at a ceremony in an opulent and glittering hall at the Kremlin in Moscow, not on the battlefield.

At the Kremlin ceremony, Putin presented awards to the Moscow-appointed heads of the four illegally annexed regions of Ukraine. In a video address honoring Russia’s military and security agencies, he praised the security personnel deployed to the four regions, saying that “people living there, Russian citizens, count on being protected by you.”

Putin acknowledged the challenges faced by the security personnel.

“Yes, it’s difficult for you,” he said, adding that the situation in the regions is “extremely difficult.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671623174379.png" alt="Zelenskyy address before a joint session of Congress is scheduled for approximately 6:30p.m. CDT Wednesday.-courtesy photo" />
 <figcaption>Zelenskyy address before a joint session of Congress is scheduled for approximately 6:30p.m. CDT Wednesday.-courtesy photo</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was making his way to Washington on Wednesday for a summit with President Joe Biden and to address Congress in his first known trip outside the country since&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine">Russia’s invasion</a>&nbsp;began in February.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">On my way to the US to strengthen resilience and defense capabilities of 🇺🇦. In particular, <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> and I will discuss cooperation between 🇺🇦 and 🇺🇸. I will also have a speech at the Congress and a number of bilateral meetings.&mdash; Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) <a href="https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1605443014847086592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 21, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Zelenskyy said on his Twitter account that the visit was “to strengthen resilience and defense capabilities” of Ukraine and discuss cooperation between his country and the U.S with Biden.The highly sensitive trip is taking place after 10 months of a brutal war that has seen tens of thousands killed and wounded on both sides of the conflict, along with devastation for Ukrainian civilians. It also comes as U.S. lawmakers are set to vote on a year-end spending package that includes about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-3e0fef206f524f6b1b67f7c36178a688">$45 billion in emergency assistance to Ukraine</a>&nbsp;and as the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-b90ce5a55b1f6b820d03da96612b3796">Pentagon prepares to send Patriot surface-to-air missiles</a>&nbsp;to the country to defend itself.Zelenskyy headed abroad after making&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-kyiv-9b7d42d3897185c0ecff222e5149e4ea">a daring and dangerous trip</a>&nbsp;Tuesday to what he called the hottest spot on the 1,300-kilometer (800-mile) front line of the conflict, the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine’s contested Donetsk province. He praised Ukrainian troops for their “courage, resilience and strength” as artillery boomed in the background.Poland’s private broadcaster TVN24 said Zelenskyy crossed into Poland early Wednesday on his way to the U.S. The station showed footage of what appeared to be Zelenskyy arriving at a train station and being escorted to a motorcade. TVN24 said the video, which was partially blurred for security reasons, was shot Wednesday morning in Przemysl, a Polish border town that has been the arrival point for many refugees fleeing the war.White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, in a statement Tuesday night, said that Biden looks forward to Zelenskyy's visit and that the address to Congress will demonstrate “the strong, bipartisan support for Ukraine.”“The visit will underscore the United States’ steadfast commitment to supporting Ukraine for as long as it takes, including through the provision of economic, humanitarian, and military assistance," she said.Zelenskyy was scheduled to meet with Biden at the White House in the afternoon and then join Biden for a news conference in the East Room. He was expected to address Congress in the evening.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23484955-pelosi-letter-to-zelenskyy">her invitation to Zelenskyy</a>&nbsp;to address a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol, said that “The fight for Ukraine is the fight for democracy itself” and that lawmakers “look forward to hearing your inspiring message of unity, resilience and determination.”U.S. and Ukrainian officials have made clear they don’t envision an imminent resolution to the war and are preparing for fighting to continue for some time. Biden has repeated that while the U.S. will arm and train Ukraine, American forces will not be directly engaged in the conflict.Biden and Zelenskyy first discussed the idea of a visit to Washington during their most recent phone call, on Dec. 11, and a formal invitation followed three days later, said a senior U.S. administration official, briefing reporters on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the visit. Zelenskyy accepted the invitation on Friday and it was confirmed on Sunday, when the White House began coordinating with Pelosi to arrange the congressional address.The White House consulted with Zelenskyy on security for his departure from Ukraine and travel to Washington, including the risk of Russian action while Zelenskyy was briefly out of the country, the official added, declining to detail the measures taken to safeguard the Ukrainian leader. The official said the U.S. expected Russia to continue its attacks on Ukrainian forces and civilian infrastructure targets despite the trip.The tranche of U.S. funding pending before Congress would be the biggest American infusion of assistance yet to Ukraine — even more than Biden's $37 billion emergency request — and is meant to ensure that support flows to the war effort for months to come.On Wednesday, the U.S. was also set to announce that it will send a major package of $1.8 billion in military aid to Ukraine that will for the first time include a Patriot missile battery and precision guided bombs for its fighter jets, U.S. officials said.The aid signals an expansion by the U.S. in the kinds of advanced weaponry it will send to Ukraine to bolster its air defenses against what has been an increasing barrage of Russian missiles in recent weeks. The package will include about $1 billion in weapons from Pentagon stocks and $800 million in funding through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, officials said.The decision to send the Patriot battery comes despite threats from Russia’s Foreign Ministry that the delivery of the advanced surface-to-air missile system would be&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-biden-0cc0e5bece38007e3d9f958f536bf1fe">considered a provocative step</a>&nbsp;and that the Patriot battery and any crews accompanying it would be a legitimate target for Moscow’s military.It’s unclear when the Patriot battery would arrive on the front lines in Ukraine, since U.S. troops will have to train Ukrainian forces on how to use the high-tech system. The training could take several weeks and is expected to be done in Germany. To date, all training of Ukraine’s forces by the U.S. and its Western allies has taken place in European countries.The visit comes at an important moment as the White House braces for greater resistance when Republicans take control of the House in January and give more scrutiny to aid for Ukraine. GOP leader Kevin McCarthy has said his party’s lawmakers will not write a “blank check” for Ukraine.Biden and Zelenskyy frequently have talked by phone as the White House arranges new tranches of military assistance for Ukraine. The calls have been mostly warm, with Biden praising Ukraine for remaining steadfast against the Russians and Zelenskyy thanking the U.S. president for support.The one exception was a June phone call soon after Biden notified Zelenskyy that an additional $1 billion package was headed to Ukraine. Zelenskyy didn’t miss a beat in ticking off the additional assistance he said Ukraine needed.That irked Biden, who underscored to Zelenskyy the American people’s generosity. But the brief moment of tension hasn’t caused any lasting difficulty, according to officials familiar with the episode.Pelosi, who visited Zelenskyy earlier this year in Kyiv, encouraged lawmakers to be on hand for Wednesday evening’s address by the Ukrainian leader.“We are ending a very special session of the 117th Congress with legislation that makes progress for the American people as well as support for our Democracy,” Pelosi wrote Tuesday in a letter to colleagues. “Please be present for a very special focus on Democracy Wednesday night.”Later at the Capitol she said of Ukrainians, “They are fighting for democracy for all of us.”Russia’s invasion, which&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-europe-russia-moscow-kyiv-626a8c5ec22217bacb24ece60fac4fe1">began Feb. 24</a>, has lost momentum. The illegally annexed provinces of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia remain fiercely contested.With the fighting in the east at a stalemate, Moscow has used missiles and drones to attack Ukraine’s power equipment, hoping to leave people without electricity as freezing weather sets in.In a video released by his office from the Bakhmut visit, Zelenskyy was handed a Ukrainian flag and alluded to delivering it to U.S. leaders.“The guys handed over our beautiful Ukrainian flag with their signatures for us to pass on,” Zelenskyy said in the video. “We are not in an easy situation. The enemy is increasing its army. Our people are braver and need more powerful weapons. We will pass it on from the boys to the Congress, to the president of the United States. We are grateful for their support, but it is not enough. It is a hint — it is not enough.”For his part, Putin on Tuesday hailed the “courage and self-denial” of his forces in Ukraine — but he did so at a ceremony in an opulent and glittering hall at the Kremlin in Moscow, not on the battlefield.At the Kremlin ceremony, Putin presented awards to the Moscow-appointed heads of the four illegally annexed regions of Ukraine. In a video address honoring Russia’s military and security agencies, he praised the security personnel deployed to the four regions, saying that “people living there, Russian citizens, count on being protected by you.”Putin acknowledged the challenges faced by the security personnel.“Yes, it’s difficult for you,” he said, adding that the situation in the regions is “extremely difficult.”

$45B trip: Zelenskyy to meet Biden, address Congress

WICHITA —On April 4, the Consumer Protection Division of the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office opened an investigation into a Building Development Fee charged by the Wichita Wind Surge at the Riverfront Stadium, according to a statement from the district attorney's office.

During the investigation the district attorney's office received two additional complaints from consumers regarding the fee.

On June 16, the Consumer Protection Division issued a demand letter to the Wind Surge to cease and desist based on the Kansas Consumer Protection Act. The Wind Surge voluntarily ended the practice and provided an accounting of the funds accumulated prior to the discontinuance.

On December 18, the Wind Surge provided the district attorney's office proof that the funds acquired by the fee were donated to several local charities. The district attorney has determined that the immediate action by the Wind Surge and subsequent voluntary action sufficiently addressed concerns; therefore, the district attorney's office has closed the investigation into this matter.

The District Attorney's office of Consumer Protection Division enforces the Kansas Consumer Protection Act in Sedgwick County and works to assist citizens by investigating possible violations. 

WICHITA —On April 4, the Consumer Protection Division of the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office opened an investigation into a Building Development Fee charged by the Wichita Wind Surge at the Riverfront Stadium, according to a statement from the district attorney's office.During the investigation the district attorney's office received two additional complaints from consumers regarding the fee.On June 16, the Consumer Protection Division issued a demand letter to the Wind Surge to cease and desist based on the Kansas Consumer Protection Act. The Wind Surge voluntarily ended the practice and provided an accounting of the funds accumulated prior to the discontinuance.On December 18, the Wind Surge provided the district attorney's office proof that the funds acquired by the fee were donated to several local charities. The district attorney has determined that the immediate action by the Wind Surge and subsequent voluntary action sufficiently addressed concerns; therefore, the district attorney's office has closed the investigation into this matter.The District Attorney's office of Consumer Protection Division enforces the Kansas Consumer Protection Act in Sedgwick County and works to assist citizens by investigating possible violations.

DA: Wichita Wind Surge donates hidden fee proceeds to charities

JACKSON COUNTY— A Kansas City man has been charged in the October double-murder of Chantell Gipson and Austin Scott, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.

Glenn A. Pulluaim II, 28, who is still at large, faces two Murder 1st Degree charges and two Armed Criminal Action charges.

According to court records, on Oct. 17, Kansas City police&nbsp; were dispatched to the 8700 block of Chestnut Circle to check on the welfare of an individual. 

Inside an apartment, police officers found the body of Chantell Gipson. She had been shot. In another bedroom they found the second victim, Austin Scott, Gipson's cousin. 

Witnesses helped identify Pulluaiam. His DNA profile was founnd&nbsp; on spent shells found at the crime scene.

Pulluaim fled the scene im the victim's vehicle. Police recovered the vehicle and have exhausted all leads in an attempted to find him.&nbsp;

Pulluaim is described as 6-foot,&nbsp;&nbsp;thin build with&nbsp; shoulder length dreadlocks. He should be considered armed and dangerous. The FBI is assisting with the investigation.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671103315937.png" alt="Pulluaim-photo KCPD" />
 <figcaption>Pulluaim-photo KCPD</figcaption>
 </figure>JACKSON COUNTY— A Kansas City man has been charged in the October double-murder of Chantell Gipson and Austin Scott, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.Glenn A. Pulluaim II, 28, who is still at large, faces two Murder 1st Degree charges and two Armed Criminal Action charges.According to court records, on Oct. 17, Kansas City police&nbsp; were dispatched to the 8700 block of Chestnut Circle to check on the welfare of an individual. Inside an apartment, police officers found the body of Chantell Gipson. She had been shot. In another bedroom they found the second victim, Austin Scott, Gipson's cousin. Witnesses helped identify Pulluaiam. His DNA profile was founnd&nbsp; on spent shells found at the crime scene.Pulluaim fled the scene im the victim's vehicle. Police recovered the vehicle and have exhausted all leads in an attempted to find him.&nbsp;Pulluaim is described as 6-foot,&nbsp;&nbsp;thin build with&nbsp; shoulder length dreadlocks. He should be considered armed and dangerous. The FBI is assisting with the investigation.

Police: Kansas CIty double murder suspect still at large

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Chanute, Kansas, man serving with the Army National Guard was sentenced in federal court Tuesday for sexually exploiting an 11-year-old southwest Missouri victim to produce child pornography, according to the United State's Attorney.

Christian Sinclair, 22, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 16 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Sinclair to 15 years of supervised release following incarceration.

On March 2, 2022, Sinclair pleaded guilty to one count of the sexual exploitation of a child. Sinclair admitted that he used a minor to produce child pornography from Aug. 1, 2020, through June 15, 2021.

According to Sinclair’s plea agreement, a captain in the Kansas National Guard contacted the Sierra Vista, Arizona, police department on June 15, 2021, while his unit was deployed to Arizona. The captain reported that Sinclair, one of the soldiers in his command, was sexting an 11-year-old child in Missouri. Sinclair’s fiancée had reported to the captain earlier the same day that she had screenshots between herself and Sinclair in which Sinclair admitted to “cheating” on her with an 11-year-old child.

The child victim told investigators that she had sent Sinclair multiple pornographic videos and images of herself via Snapchat at Sinclair’s request. Sinclair admitted that he also sent pornographic images of himself to the child victim via Snapchat.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie L. Wan. It was investigated by the Joplin, Mo., Police Department, the FBI, the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force, the Lamar, Mo., Police Department, the Sierra Vista, Arizona, Police Department, and the Chanute, Kan., Police Department.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/3/1646494837245.png" alt="Sinclair-photo Green Co." />
 <figcaption>Sinclair-photo Green Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Chanute, Kansas, man serving with the Army National Guard was sentenced in federal court Tuesday for sexually exploiting an 11-year-old southwest Missouri victim to produce child pornography, according to the United State's Attorney.Christian Sinclair, 22, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 16 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Sinclair to 15 years of supervised release following incarceration.On March 2, 2022, Sinclair pleaded guilty to one count of the sexual exploitation of a child. Sinclair admitted that he used a minor to produce child pornography from Aug. 1, 2020, through June 15, 2021.According to Sinclair’s plea agreement, a captain in the Kansas National Guard contacted the Sierra Vista, Arizona, police department on June 15, 2021, while his unit was deployed to Arizona. The captain reported that Sinclair, one of the soldiers in his command, was sexting an 11-year-old child in Missouri. Sinclair’s fiancée had reported to the captain earlier the same day that she had screenshots between herself and Sinclair in which Sinclair admitted to “cheating” on her with an 11-year-old child.The child victim told investigators that she had sent Sinclair multiple pornographic videos and images of herself via Snapchat at Sinclair’s request. Sinclair admitted that he also sent pornographic images of himself to the child victim via Snapchat.This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie L. Wan. It was investigated by the Joplin, Mo., Police Department, the FBI, the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force, the Lamar, Mo., Police Department, the Sierra Vista, Arizona, Police Department, and the Chanute, Kan., Police Department.

Kan. National Guard soldier sentenced for sexting with 11-year-old

KANSAS CITY —A Kansas City-area woman is going to prison for her role in a fatal DUI crash.

Desire C. Smith, 41, Blue Springs, was sentenced to 15 years Friday after pleading guilty to DWI Death of a Another Not Passenger, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.

According to court records, the Missouri Highway Patrol were dispatched on June 14, 2019, to Interstate 70, near Adams Dairy Parkway and found Smith's Cadillac and another vehicle involved in the crash. 

The woman who drove the other vehicle was pronounced dead at the scene. Witnesses told troopers that defendant's vehicle was headed westbound in the eastbound lane when she struck the victim's vehicle.

According to court documents, a partially consumed bottle of liquor was in the passenger seat of the Cadillac and a trooper at the hospital observed alcohol on Smith’s breath. A blood test was administered to determine her blood-alcohol concentration.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671383401941.png" alt="Smith-photo Jackson County" />
 <figcaption>Smith-photo Jackson County</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —A Kansas City-area woman is going to prison for her role in a fatal DUI crash.Desire C. Smith, 41, Blue Springs, was sentenced to 15 years Friday after pleading guilty to DWI Death of a Another Not Passenger, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.According to court records, the Missouri Highway Patrol were dispatched on June 14, 2019, to Interstate 70, near Adams Dairy Parkway and found Smith's Cadillac and another vehicle involved in the crash. The woman who drove the other vehicle was pronounced dead at the scene. Witnesses told troopers that defendant's vehicle was headed westbound in the eastbound lane when she struck the victim's vehicle.According to court documents, a partially consumed bottle of liquor was in the passenger seat of the Cadillac and a trooper at the hospital observed alcohol on Smith’s breath. A blood test was administered to determine her blood-alcohol concentration.

KC-area woman sentenced for deadly wrong-way I-70 crash

SEDGWICK COUNTY —The Sedgwick County District Attorney's office has charged Wichita police officer Anthony Villegas with one misdemeanor count of dissemination of criminal history record information and one misdemeanor count of official misconduct, according to a statement from police department spokesman Officer Chad Ditch.

The charges stem from an aggravated assault firearms investigation that occurred on November 21 at 8p.m. in the 2400 block of N Rosenthal in Wichita.

Villegas has been employed by the Wichita Police Department since July 2008. He has been placed on paid leave pending a review by the Chief and an internal investigation conducted by the Wichita Police Department.

SEDGWICK COUNTY —The Sedgwick County District Attorney's office has charged Wichita police officer Anthony Villegas with one misdemeanor count of dissemination of criminal history record information and one misdemeanor count of official misconduct, according to a statement from police department spokesman Officer Chad Ditch.The charges stem from an aggravated assault firearms investigation that occurred on November 21 at 8p.m. in the 2400 block of N Rosenthal in Wichita.Villegas has been employed by the Wichita Police Department since July 2008. He has been placed on paid leave pending a review by the Chief and an internal investigation conducted by the Wichita Police Department.

Kansas officer placed on leave after charged with misconduct

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — The Biden administration is asking the Supreme Court to end asylum restrictions, but asked the court for a delay until at least after Christmas.

The administration made the plea in a filing Tuesday.

Migrants have been denied rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law 2.5 million times since March 2020 on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19 under a public-health rule called Title 42.

The federal government acknowledged in its filing to the Supreme Court that the end of Title 42 will likely lead to “disruption and a temporary increase in unlawful border crossings” but asked the court to reject efforts by a group of conservative leaning states to keep Title 42 in place.

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — Suspense mounted at the U.S. border with Mexico on Tuesday about the future of restrictions on asylum-seekers as the Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/93fb4d675e5b381bc3b7196e7185edc3">issued a temporary order</a>&nbsp;to keep pandemic-era limits on migrants in place.

Conservative-leaning states won a reprieve — though it could be brief — as they push to maintain a measure that allows officials to expel many but not all asylum-seekers. In a last-ditch appeal to the Supreme Court, they argued that an increased numbers of migrants&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/public-health-immigration-asylum-54c11e091d464fe8d9272d607f6778f8">would take a toll on public services</a>&nbsp;such as law enforcement and health care and warned of an “unprecedented calamity” at the southern border.

Chief Justice John Roberts granted a stay pending further order, asking the administration of President Joe Biden to respond by 5 p.m. Tuesday. That's just hours before&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-mexico-2d6872921b9d21347175b50f30d31539">restrictions are slated to expire Wednesday</a>.

The Department of Homeland Security, which is responsible for enforcing border security, acknowledged Roberts' order — and said the agency would continue "preparations to manage the border in a safe, orderly, and humane way when the Title 42 public health order lifts.”

With the decision on what comes next going down to the wire, pressure is building in communities along both sides of the U.S-Mexico border.

In El Paso, Democratic Mayor Oscar Leeser warned that shelters across the border in Ciudad Juárez are packed to capacity with an estimated 20,000 migrants who are prepared to cross into the U.S.

Despite the court's stay, the city of El Paso rushed to expand its ability to accommodate more migrants by converting large buildings into shelters, as the Red Cross brings in 10,000 cots. Local officials also hope to relieve pressure on local shelters by chartering buses to other large cities in Texas or nearby states, bringing migrants a step closer to relatives and sponsors in coordination with nonprofit groups.

“We will continue to be prepared for whatever is coming through,” Leeser said.

Troops in tactical gear under Texas state command on Tuesday used razor wire to cordon off a gap in the border fence along a bank of the Rio Grande that became a popular crossing point in recent days for migrants who waded through shallow waters to approach immigration officials. They announced through a loudspeaker in Spanish that it's illegal to cross there.

Texas said Monday that it was sending 400 National Guard personnel to El Paso, after city officials declared a state of emergency. Leeser said the declaration was aimed largely at protecting vulnerable migrants, while the deployment included forces used to “repel and turn-back illegal immigrants,” according to a Texas National Guard statement.

A flashing signed warned motorists to “watch for unexpected pedestrians" on a highway that extends along the fenced-off border, near three bridges that connect El Paso with Mexico.

At a church-affiliated shelter a few blocks from the border, migrants including children lined up early afternoon Monday in hopes of securing a bed for the night, accepting donations of food from a succession of cars bearing gifts. Police and municipal garbage workers arrived to remove abandoned blankets and discarded possessions.

The Rev. Michael Gallagher, a priest at Sacred Heart Church in downtown El Paso, said local faith leaders have been trying to pool resources and open up empty space. On Tuesday, a gym at the church gave shelter to 200 migrants — mostly women and children.

Outside the church Monday, Jose Natera, a 48-year-old handyman from the Venezuelan town of Guaicaipuro, said he traveled for three months to reach El Paso, sometimes on foot, with no money or sponsors to take him further.

“I have to stop here until I can get a ticket” out, he said.

El Paso residents Roberto Lujan and Daniela Centeno handed out fruit, Hostess cakes, soda and chips at a street corner.

“I have to do it,” said Lujan, a 39-year-old construction worker. “I have kids and I know the struggle.”

Conservative-leaning states have argued that the federal government has no plan to deal with an increase in migrants — while in Washington, Republicans are set to take control of the House and make immigration a key issue.

Biden administration officials said they have marshaled more resources to the border in preparation for the end of Title 42. That includes more Border Patrol processing coordinators, more surveillance and increased security at ports of entry.

About 23,000 agents are currently deployed to the southern border, according to the White House.

Immigration advocates have said that the Title 42 restrictions, imposed under provisions of a 1944 health law, go against American and international obligations to people fleeing to the U.S. to escape persecution — and that the pretext is outdated as coronavirus treatments improve. They sued to end the use of Title 42; a federal judge in November sided with them and set the Dec. 21 deadline.

The Roman Catholic bishop of El Paso, Mark Seitz, expressed concern that the stay would keep migrants who had to flee their homes from even making a case for protection in the U.S., after years of pent-up need.

“What happens now with all those on their way?” he said.

Title 42 restrictions have applied to all nationalities but have fallen disproportionately on those from countries that Mexico has agreed to take back: Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and, more recently Venezuela, in addition to Mexico.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671577993523.png" alt="Migrants have been denied rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law 2.5 million times since March 2020 on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19 under a public-health rule called Title 42.- photo Rep. Tony Gonzales" />
 <figcaption>Migrants have been denied rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law 2.5 million times since March 2020 on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19 under a public-health rule called Title 42.- photo Rep. Tony Gonzales</figcaption>
 </figure>EL PASO, Texas (AP) — The Biden administration is asking the Supreme Court to end asylum restrictions, but asked the court for a delay until at least after Christmas.The administration made the plea in a filing Tuesday.Migrants have been denied rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law 2.5 million times since March 2020 on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19 under a public-health rule called Title 42.The federal government acknowledged in its filing to the Supreme Court that the end of Title 42 will likely lead to “disruption and a temporary increase in unlawful border crossings” but asked the court to reject efforts by a group of conservative leaning states to keep Title 42 in place.------------EL PASO, Texas (AP) — Suspense mounted at the U.S. border with Mexico on Tuesday about the future of restrictions on asylum-seekers as the Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/93fb4d675e5b381bc3b7196e7185edc3">issued a temporary order</a>&nbsp;to keep pandemic-era limits on migrants in place.Conservative-leaning states won a reprieve — though it could be brief — as they push to maintain a measure that allows officials to expel many but not all asylum-seekers. In a last-ditch appeal to the Supreme Court, they argued that an increased numbers of migrants&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/public-health-immigration-asylum-54c11e091d464fe8d9272d607f6778f8">would take a toll on public services</a>&nbsp;such as law enforcement and health care and warned of an “unprecedented calamity” at the southern border.Chief Justice John Roberts granted a stay pending further order, asking the administration of President Joe Biden to respond by 5 p.m. Tuesday. That's just hours before&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-mexico-2d6872921b9d21347175b50f30d31539">restrictions are slated to expire Wednesday</a>.The Department of Homeland Security, which is responsible for enforcing border security, acknowledged Roberts' order — and said the agency would continue "preparations to manage the border in a safe, orderly, and humane way when the Title 42 public health order lifts.”Migrants have been denied rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law 2.5 million times since March 2020 on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19 under a public-health rule called Title 42.With the decision on what comes next going down to the wire, pressure is building in communities along both sides of the U.S-Mexico border.In El Paso, Democratic Mayor Oscar Leeser warned that shelters across the border in Ciudad Juárez are packed to capacity with an estimated 20,000 migrants who are prepared to cross into the U.S.Despite the court's stay, the city of El Paso rushed to expand its ability to accommodate more migrants by converting large buildings into shelters, as the Red Cross brings in 10,000 cots. Local officials also hope to relieve pressure on local shelters by chartering buses to other large cities in Texas or nearby states, bringing migrants a step closer to relatives and sponsors in coordination with nonprofit groups.“We will continue to be prepared for whatever is coming through,” Leeser said.Troops in tactical gear under Texas state command on Tuesday used razor wire to cordon off a gap in the border fence along a bank of the Rio Grande that became a popular crossing point in recent days for migrants who waded through shallow waters to approach immigration officials. They announced through a loudspeaker in Spanish that it's illegal to cross there.Texas said Monday that it was sending 400 National Guard personnel to El Paso, after city officials declared a state of emergency. Leeser said the declaration was aimed largely at protecting vulnerable migrants, while the deployment included forces used to “repel and turn-back illegal immigrants,” according to a Texas National Guard statement.A flashing signed warned motorists to “watch for unexpected pedestrians" on a highway that extends along the fenced-off border, near three bridges that connect El Paso with Mexico.At a church-affiliated shelter a few blocks from the border, migrants including children lined up early afternoon Monday in hopes of securing a bed for the night, accepting donations of food from a succession of cars bearing gifts. Police and municipal garbage workers arrived to remove abandoned blankets and discarded possessions.The Rev. Michael Gallagher, a priest at Sacred Heart Church in downtown El Paso, said local faith leaders have been trying to pool resources and open up empty space. On Tuesday, a gym at the church gave shelter to 200 migrants — mostly women and children.Outside the church Monday, Jose Natera, a 48-year-old handyman from the Venezuelan town of Guaicaipuro, said he traveled for three months to reach El Paso, sometimes on foot, with no money or sponsors to take him further.“I have to stop here until I can get a ticket” out, he said.El Paso residents Roberto Lujan and Daniela Centeno handed out fruit, Hostess cakes, soda and chips at a street corner.“I have to do it,” said Lujan, a 39-year-old construction worker. “I have kids and I know the struggle.”Conservative-leaning states have argued that the federal government has no plan to deal with an increase in migrants — while in Washington, Republicans are set to take control of the House and make immigration a key issue.Biden administration officials said they have marshaled more resources to the border in preparation for the end of Title 42. That includes more Border Patrol processing coordinators, more surveillance and increased security at ports of entry.About 23,000 agents are currently deployed to the southern border, according to the White House.Immigration advocates have said that the Title 42 restrictions, imposed under provisions of a 1944 health law, go against American and international obligations to people fleeing to the U.S. to escape persecution — and that the pretext is outdated as coronavirus treatments improve. They sued to end the use of Title 42; a federal judge in November sided with them and set the Dec. 21 deadline.The Roman Catholic bishop of El Paso, Mark Seitz, expressed concern that the stay would keep migrants who had to flee their homes from even making a case for protection in the U.S., after years of pent-up need.“What happens now with all those on their way?” he said.Title 42 restrictions have applied to all nationalities but have fallen disproportionately on those from countries that Mexico has agreed to take back: Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and, more recently Venezuela, in addition to Mexico.

Biden admin. asks court to end asylum limits after Christmas

WASHINGTON&nbsp;— Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers intercepted a record number of firearms brought by passengers to airport security checkpoints in 2022. As of December 16, TSA has stopped 6,301 firearms; more than 88% were loaded. This number surpasses the previous record of 5,972 firearms detected in 2021. TSA anticipates it will prevent about 6,600 firearms in carry-on bags from entering the secure area of airports by the end of 2022, a nearly 10% increase over 2021’s record level.

Firearm possession laws vary by state and local government, but firearms are never allowed in carry-on bags at any TSA security checkpoint, even if a passenger has a concealed weapon permit.&nbsp;In order to reduce the threat of firearms at checkpoints, TSA has increased the maximum civil penalty for a firearms violation to $14,950. TSA determines the&nbsp;penalty amount for a violation based on the circumstances in each case.&nbsp;TSA will continue to revoke TSA PreCheck®&nbsp;eligibility&nbsp;for at least five years for passengers caught with a firearm in their possession.&nbsp;TSA may conduct enhanced screening for those passengers to ensure no other threats are present.&nbsp;Depending on state or local law in the airport’s location, passengers who bring firearms to a checkpoint may be arrested by law enforcement.

“I applaud the work of our Transportation Security Officers who do an excellent job of preventing firearms from getting into the secure area of airports, and onboard aircraft,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske. “Firearms are prohibited in carry-on bags at the checkpoint and onboard aircraft. When a passenger brings a firearm to the checkpoint, this consumes significant security resources and poses a potential threat to transportation security, in addition to being very costly for the passenger.”

Passengers traveling by air who wish to transport firearms must do so in checked baggage. Those&nbsp;passengers&nbsp;must&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/travel/transporting-firearms-and-ammunition">follow proper packing guidance for firearms</a>&nbsp;in checked baggage and declare them to their airline at check-in. Airlines may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition, so travelers must also contact their airline regarding firearm and ammunition carriage policies prior to arriving at the airport.

To view the complete&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/travel/civil-enforcement">list of penalties</a>, go to TSA.gov.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671448133438.png" alt="TSA image" />
 <figcaption>TSA image</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON&nbsp;— Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers intercepted a record number of firearms brought by passengers to airport security checkpoints in 2022. As of December 16, TSA has stopped 6,301 firearms; more than 88% were loaded. This number surpasses the previous record of 5,972 firearms detected in 2021. TSA anticipates it will prevent about 6,600 firearms in carry-on bags from entering the secure area of airports by the end of 2022, a nearly 10% increase over 2021’s record level.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671448314170.png" alt="TSA image" />
 <figcaption>TSA image</figcaption>
 </figure>Firearm possession laws vary by state and local government, but firearms are never allowed in carry-on bags at any TSA security checkpoint, even if a passenger has a concealed weapon permit.&nbsp;In order to reduce the threat of firearms at checkpoints, TSA has increased the maximum civil penalty for a firearms violation to $14,950. TSA determines the&nbsp;penalty amount for a violation based on the circumstances in each case.&nbsp;TSA will continue to revoke TSA PreCheck®&nbsp;eligibility&nbsp;for at least five years for passengers caught with a firearm in their possession.&nbsp;TSA may conduct enhanced screening for those passengers to ensure no other threats are present.&nbsp;Depending on state or local law in the airport’s location, passengers who bring firearms to a checkpoint may be arrested by law enforcement.“I applaud the work of our Transportation Security Officers who do an excellent job of preventing firearms from getting into the secure area of airports, and onboard aircraft,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske. “Firearms are prohibited in carry-on bags at the checkpoint and onboard aircraft. When a passenger brings a firearm to the checkpoint, this consumes significant security resources and poses a potential threat to transportation security, in addition to being very costly for the passenger.”Passengers traveling by air who wish to transport firearms must do so in checked baggage. Those&nbsp;passengers&nbsp;must&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/travel/transporting-firearms-and-ammunition">follow proper packing guidance for firearms</a>&nbsp;in checked baggage and declare them to their airline at check-in. Airlines may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition, so travelers must also contact their airline regarding firearm and ammunition carriage policies prior to arriving at the airport.To view the complete&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/travel/civil-enforcement">list of penalties</a>, go to TSA.gov.

TSA breaks record for number of firearms at airport security checkpoints

By ALLISON KITE <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/20/drone-no-fly-zone-issued-over-keystone-oil-spill-site-in-kansas/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TC Energy has established a no-fly zone over the Kansas site where its <a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/09/regulators-order-keystone-pipeline-to-investigate-after-14000-barrels-spill-in-kansas/">Keystone pipeline spilled 14,000 barrels of oil</a> following drone footage of the disaster.

The Canadian company said in a statement that it did so for safety reasons. But drone footage of the spill —&nbsp;the largest in <a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/13/keystone-pipeline-has-history-of-spills-warnings-and-fines-kansas-spill-is-largest-yet/">the pipeline’s history</a>
 —&nbsp;was among the only means of seeing the damage as the site is closed 
to press. Even lawmakers were not allowed there for a briefing.&nbsp;

“Clearing the airspace is critical 
for the safety and security of the pilots conducting ongoing monitoring 
as well as the working crew on the ground,” TC Energy said in a 
statement. “Crews are working around the clock on the incident and need 
to be distraction-free.”

Earlier this month, the Keystone pipeline spilled near Washington, Kansas, just south of the Nebraska border. So far, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.tcenergy.com/incident/milepost-14-incident/">TC Energy says it has isolated the spill</a>
 to keep it from flowing downstream and recovered 7,233 barrels of oil 
—&nbsp;or 13,877 barrels of oil and water. More than 400 personnel have 
responded to the site.&nbsp;

<a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g_47hr6qkY">Drone footage immediately following the spill</a>
 showed the 14,000 barrels —&nbsp;or 588,000 gallons —&nbsp;of oil turned Mill 
Creek black. One former Kansas legislator said oil had sprayed around 80
 yards onto his field next to the site. The oil that landed on nearby 
fields <a target="_blank" href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2022-12-11/watch-drone-footage-reveals-extent-of-keystone-pipeline-oil-spill">looks like a plume of smoke from above</a>.&nbsp;

The no-fly zone was issued Dec. 16 and ends Wednesday evening, according to the Federal Aviation Administration’s website.&nbsp;

The Keystone pipeline splits into two
 segments in Nebraska, just over the Kansas border. One cuts across 
northeast Kansas, through Missouri and ends in Illinois. The one that 
spilled runs through central Kansas and Oklahoma to refineries in 
Texas.&nbsp;

TC Energy last week announced it had 
resumed operations on the unaffected pipeline. The other remains shut 
down under an order from the U.S. Department of Transportation.&nbsp;

The spill site near Washington, 
Kansas, is still inaccessible, but on Monday, lawmakers received a 
briefing nearby and viewed a drone tour.&nbsp;

Rep. Lindsay Vaughn, D-Overland Park,
 said she appreciated that TC Energy had opened a line of communication 
but that “there are still a lot of unanswered questions.” She said it 
was difficult to determine the necessity of the drone no-fly zone, and 
she did have concerns about transparency.&nbsp;

“Third-party drones — if they’re not 
going to be allowed to monitor the site, then I think there has to be 
other ways that media or third parties can have greater information or 
access to what’s going on because that’s one of the best ways to hold 
all parties accountable for the best outcome possible,” Vaughn said.&nbsp;

Zack Pistora, a lobbyist for the 
Sierra Club in Kansas, expressed mild disbelief that the company 
couldn’t allow legislators to see the site.&nbsp;

“I understand that a company doesn’t 
want to show you the horrible side of the nature of their business,” 
Pistora said. “…That wouldn’t be something they would like to show 
government officials that may say, ‘More needs to be done to prevent 
this spill from happening next time.’”&nbsp;

TC Energy said its “priority is that the investigation, recovery, repair and remediation continue to advance.”&nbsp;

“We appreciate the interest and 
respect the role journalists play in documenting and reporting to the 
public,” the company said. “We are committed to being transparent and to
 providing access to media when it is safe to do so.”

This month’s spill is estimated to be
 larger than all of the Keystone pipeline’s previous spills combined. 
But the pipeline’s spills have been growing larger in recent years.&nbsp;

In 2020, the Keystone pipeline 
spilled 442 barrels of oil near a delivery facility in Texas because it 
failed to control corrosion. At one point, part of the pipeline in 
Missouri was so corroded that the wall was less than 1/64 of an inch 
thick.&nbsp;

At the same time, the pipeline 
company failed to correct deficiencies in its corrosion control for 
years, including 56 deficiencies along the pipeline from Nebraska to 
Illinois and six between Nebraska and Oklahoma.

TC Energy has been repeatedly warned 
about its corrosion control and installation practices, and material 
defects have caused the bulk of its 20-plus spills.&nbsp;

But despite causing an estimated $111
 million in property damage in its history, Keystone has paid fines of 
just more than $300,000 in the 12 years it has been operating. Another 
fine tied to the Texas spill is pending. The federal government has 
proposed one of more than $500,000.&nbsp;

Under a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/2022-12/TC%20Oil%20CAO.3-2022-074.pdf">corrective action order</a>
 from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous 
Materials Safety Administration, TC Energy must investigate the root 
cause of the spill in northern Kansas and create a plan to resume 
operations before receiving federal permission to restart the pipeline.&nbsp;

Bill Pannbacker, who previously 
served in the Kansas House of Representatives, said he was awakened Dec.
 8 by a phone call informing him of the spill.&nbsp;

“That got my adrenaline going probably for 10 hours,” Pannbacker said.&nbsp;

Pannbacker estimated the rupture in 
the pipeline occurred about 15 feet from his property line. Oil 
saturated the ground for 30 or 40 yards into his field. Droplets landed 
80 yards from the fracture.&nbsp;

“The creek is just pretty much black,” he said in the days after the spill.&nbsp;

Fortunately, Pannbacker said, that 
area of pasture was closed off, so the rupture didn’t affect his cattle.
 But he said a neighbor had to move cows that had previously been 
drinking from Mill Creek. He expected cleanup and construction to last 
at least through the holidays.&nbsp;

According to Kansas Rep. Lisa Moser, 
14 landowners are either affected directly by the spill or have response
 vehicles and personnel on their property. She said in a Facebook update
 they’re all being paid.&nbsp;

Vaughn said she was impressed by the level of coordination between TC Energy and federal, state and local responders.&nbsp;

One of her primary concerns was that 
the heavy oil would sink to the bottom of Mill Creek and become far more
 difficult to clean up. She said TC Energy told the group of lawmakers 
it had not sunk below the water’s surface yet.&nbsp;

Vaughn said TC Energy gave lawmakers a
 fact sheet saying its “commitment … is that our response and recovery 
efforts will continue until we have fully remediated and restored the 
area.”&nbsp;

“Going forward, I think it’s our responsibility to hold them accountable for that,” she said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1670881926358.png" alt="A massive oil spill in north-central Kansas seeped into Mill Creek and traveled about three miles downstream. Clean up crews contained the spill with a dam about four miles downstream. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency" />
 <figcaption>A massive oil spill in north-central Kansas seeped into Mill Creek and traveled about three miles downstream. Clean up crews contained the spill with a dam about four miles downstream. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency</figcaption>
 </figure>By ALLISON KITE <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/20/drone-no-fly-zone-issued-over-keystone-oil-spill-site-in-kansas/">Kansas Reflector</a>TC Energy has established a no-fly zone over the Kansas site where its <a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/09/regulators-order-keystone-pipeline-to-investigate-after-14000-barrels-spill-in-kansas/">Keystone pipeline spilled 14,000 barrels of oil</a> following drone footage of the disaster.The Canadian company said in a statement that it did so for safety reasons. But drone footage of the spill —&nbsp;the largest in <a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/13/keystone-pipeline-has-history-of-spills-warnings-and-fines-kansas-spill-is-largest-yet/">the pipeline’s history</a>
 —&nbsp;was among the only means of seeing the damage as the site is closed 
to press. Even lawmakers were not allowed there for a briefing.&nbsp;“Clearing the airspace is critical 
for the safety and security of the pilots conducting ongoing monitoring 
as well as the working crew on the ground,” TC Energy said in a 
statement. “Crews are working around the clock on the incident and need 
to be distraction-free.”Earlier this month, the Keystone pipeline spilled near Washington, Kansas, just south of the Nebraska border. So far, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.tcenergy.com/incident/milepost-14-incident/">TC Energy says it has isolated the spill</a>
 to keep it from flowing downstream and recovered 7,233 barrels of oil 
—&nbsp;or 13,877 barrels of oil and water. More than 400 personnel have 
responded to the site.&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g_47hr6qkY">Drone footage immediately following the spill</a>
 showed the 14,000 barrels —&nbsp;or 588,000 gallons —&nbsp;of oil turned Mill 
Creek black. One former Kansas legislator said oil had sprayed around 80
 yards onto his field next to the site. The oil that landed on nearby 
fields <a target="_blank" href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2022-12-11/watch-drone-footage-reveals-extent-of-keystone-pipeline-oil-spill">looks like a plume of smoke from above</a>.&nbsp;The no-fly zone was issued Dec. 16 and ends Wednesday evening, according to the Federal Aviation Administration’s website.&nbsp;The Keystone pipeline splits into two
 segments in Nebraska, just over the Kansas border. One cuts across 
northeast Kansas, through Missouri and ends in Illinois. The one that 
spilled runs through central Kansas and Oklahoma to refineries in 
Texas.&nbsp;TC Energy last week announced it had 
resumed operations on the unaffected pipeline. The other remains shut 
down under an order from the U.S. Department of Transportation.&nbsp;The spill site near Washington, 
Kansas, is still inaccessible, but on Monday, lawmakers received a 
briefing nearby and viewed a drone tour.&nbsp;Rep. Lindsay Vaughn, D-Overland Park,
 said she appreciated that TC Energy had opened a line of communication 
but that “there are still a lot of unanswered questions.” She said it 
was difficult to determine the necessity of the drone no-fly zone, and 
she did have concerns about transparency.&nbsp;“Third-party drones — if they’re not 
going to be allowed to monitor the site, then I think there has to be 
other ways that media or third parties can have greater information or 
access to what’s going on because that’s one of the best ways to hold 
all parties accountable for the best outcome possible,” Vaughn said.&nbsp;Zack Pistora, a lobbyist for the 
Sierra Club in Kansas, expressed mild disbelief that the company 
couldn’t allow legislators to see the site.&nbsp;“I understand that a company doesn’t 
want to show you the horrible side of the nature of their business,” 
Pistora said. “…That wouldn’t be something they would like to show 
government officials that may say, ‘More needs to be done to prevent 
this spill from happening next time.’”&nbsp;TC Energy said its “priority is that the investigation, recovery, repair and remediation continue to advance.”&nbsp;“We appreciate the interest and 
respect the role journalists play in documenting and reporting to the 
public,” the company said. “We are committed to being transparent and to
 providing access to media when it is safe to do so.”<h2>Keystone’s history&nbsp;</h2>This month’s spill is estimated to be
 larger than all of the Keystone pipeline’s previous spills combined. 
But the pipeline’s spills have been growing larger in recent years.&nbsp;In 2020, the Keystone pipeline 
spilled 442 barrels of oil near a delivery facility in Texas because it 
failed to control corrosion. At one point, part of the pipeline in 
Missouri was so corroded that the wall was less than 1/64 of an inch 
thick.&nbsp;At the same time, the pipeline 
company failed to correct deficiencies in its corrosion control for 
years, including 56 deficiencies along the pipeline from Nebraska to 
Illinois and six between Nebraska and Oklahoma.TC Energy has been repeatedly warned 
about its corrosion control and installation practices, and material 
defects have caused the bulk of its 20-plus spills.&nbsp;But despite causing an estimated $111
 million in property damage in its history, Keystone has paid fines of 
just more than $300,000 in the 12 years it has been operating. Another 
fine tied to the Texas spill is pending. The federal government has 
proposed one of more than $500,000.&nbsp;Under a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/2022-12/TC%20Oil%20CAO.3-2022-074.pdf">corrective action order</a>
 from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous 
Materials Safety Administration, TC Energy must investigate the root 
cause of the spill in northern Kansas and create a plan to resume 
operations before receiving federal permission to restart the pipeline.&nbsp;<h2>Spill and response&nbsp;</h2>Bill Pannbacker, who previously 
served in the Kansas House of Representatives, said he was awakened Dec.
 8 by a phone call informing him of the spill.&nbsp;“That got my adrenaline going probably for 10 hours,” Pannbacker said.&nbsp;Pannbacker estimated the rupture in 
the pipeline occurred about 15 feet from his property line. Oil 
saturated the ground for 30 or 40 yards into his field. Droplets landed 
80 yards from the fracture.&nbsp;“The creek is just pretty much black,” he said in the days after the spill.&nbsp;Fortunately, Pannbacker said, that 
area of pasture was closed off, so the rupture didn’t affect his cattle.
 But he said a neighbor had to move cows that had previously been 
drinking from Mill Creek. He expected cleanup and construction to last 
at least through the holidays.&nbsp;According to Kansas Rep. Lisa Moser, 
14 landowners are either affected directly by the spill or have response
 vehicles and personnel on their property. She said in a Facebook update
 they’re all being paid.&nbsp;Vaughn said she was impressed by the level of coordination between TC Energy and federal, state and local responders.&nbsp;One of her primary concerns was that 
the heavy oil would sink to the bottom of Mill Creek and become far more
 difficult to clean up. She said TC Energy told the group of lawmakers 
it had not sunk below the water’s surface yet.&nbsp;Vaughn said TC Energy gave lawmakers a
 fact sheet saying its “commitment … is that our response and recovery 
efforts will continue until we have fully remediated and restored the 
area.”&nbsp;“Going forward, I think it’s our responsibility to hold them accountable for that,” she said.

Drone no-fly zone issued over Keystone oil spill site in Kansas

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Planned Parenthood affiliate announced Tuesday that it has started teleconferences with off-site doctors for patients seeking medication abortions at one of its Kansas clinics, a small step toward potentially much broader access in a state that has become a destination for the procedure after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-primary-elections-kansas-abortion-b6d62a852c2ce4617f2c03589fbb523e">an August vote affirming abortion rights</a>.

Planned Parenthood Great Plains said it began offering telemedicine consultations Monday to patients visiting its Wichita clinic. President and CEO Emily Wales said the immediate goal is to have more days that patients can go there to get medication abortions. She said her affiliate hopes to offer the service to patients visiting its other two clinics on the Kansas side of the Kansas City area “in short order” and eventually to allow patients in doctors' offices and clinics across the state to teleconference with its physicians.

The move comes as Kansas abortion providers say they are seeing a flood of requests for appointments from women in states with more strenuous restrictions on abortion than Kansas — particularly Oklahoma and Texas. Kansas voters in August decisively voted to retain state constitutional protections for abortion rights.

The announcement came less than a month after a state-court judge blocked enforcement of Kansas' ban on telemedicine abortions. The abortionfinder.org website lists 26 other states in which residents seeking abortion medications can teleconference with doctors, including Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan and Wyoming. However, for some states, the website lists only online pill providers, such as Aid Access or carafem.

“My vision for telehealth medication abortion is the same as my vision for abortion generally, which is that it would be widely accessible by many providers,” Wales said in an interview ahead of the announcement.

The blocked Kansas law required a doctor to be in the same room with a patient taking what is typically the first of two doses of medication to end a pregnancy. Another provider, a Wichita clinic operated by the abortion rights group Trust Women, offered telemedicine abortions for a few months late in 2018 but stopped because the legal climate was uncertain at the time.

Trust Women also expects to offer telemedicine abortions but has said it is considering what additional staff and infrastructure it will need.

Eighteen states have bans on telemedicine abortions in place, according to national groups on both sides of the debate. They include Arizona, Indiana, Nebraska and North Carolina.

Abortion opponents have long argued that telemedicine bans protect women's health by ensuring a physician is present to deal with major problems, though research has shown that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fact-check-medication-abortion-783874945633">abortion pills are safe</a>.

The long-term goal, Wales said, is to work with a network of doctors or clinics across the state so that women don’t have to travel to Wichita or the Kansas City area to obtain abortion medications.

Patients in states with more restrictive abortion laws still would have to travel to Kansas, as they do now. Doctors doing the teleconsulting also would have to be licensed to practice medicine in Kansas, as they must be now.

For now, Planned Parenthood Great Plains is using existing staff and physicians to offer telemedicine abortion consultations to patients in Wichita. Wales said while the clinic sometimes has a doctor there three or four days a week, one day a week is typical. Her affiliate's medical director, Dr. Iman Alsaden, said there would have been no abortion appointments Monday in Wichita without teleconferencing.

The Planned Parenthood affiliate already offers some telehealth services, such as refilling birth control prescriptions or gender-affirming care visits for transgender patients. Wales said it's still deciding day-by-day how quickly to expand telemedicine abortion appointments.

Abortion providers had to wait until this year for a clearer picture of the legality of telemedicine abortions. The statewide vote in August preserved&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/3f479b218a6140719e1694fcfcdb8036">a Kansas Supreme Court ruling</a>&nbsp;in April 2019 that access to abortion is a “fundamental” right under the state constitution.

The vote came as Trust Women was pursuing a lawsuit to against the state's ban on telemedicine abortions. That lawsuit led to the state-court judge's order blocking enforcement of the Kansas telemedicine abortion ban.

“We’re pretty confident that the courts are on our side and that we have a very strong legal leg to stand on,” said Erin Thompson, Planned Parenthood Great Plains’ general counsel.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/8/1659746749113.png" alt="Emily Wales -photo courtesy Planned Parenthood Great Plains" />
 <figcaption>Emily Wales -photo courtesy Planned Parenthood Great Plains</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Planned Parenthood affiliate announced Tuesday that it has started teleconferences with off-site doctors for patients seeking medication abortions at one of its Kansas clinics, a small step toward potentially much broader access in a state that has become a destination for the procedure after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-primary-elections-kansas-abortion-b6d62a852c2ce4617f2c03589fbb523e">an August vote affirming abortion rights</a>.Planned Parenthood Great Plains said it began offering telemedicine consultations Monday to patients visiting its Wichita clinic. President and CEO Emily Wales said the immediate goal is to have more days that patients can go there to get medication abortions. She said her affiliate hopes to offer the service to patients visiting its other two clinics on the Kansas side of the Kansas City area “in short order” and eventually to allow patients in doctors' offices and clinics across the state to teleconference with its physicians.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671562172757.png" alt="Planned Parenthood Clinic in Kansas City, Kansas-Google image" />
 <figcaption>Planned Parenthood Clinic in Kansas City, Kansas-Google image</figcaption>
 </figure>The move comes as Kansas abortion providers say they are seeing a flood of requests for appointments from women in states with more strenuous restrictions on abortion than Kansas — particularly Oklahoma and Texas. Kansas voters in August decisively voted to retain state constitutional protections for abortion rights.The announcement came less than a month after a state-court judge blocked enforcement of Kansas' ban on telemedicine abortions. The abortionfinder.org website lists 26 other states in which residents seeking abortion medications can teleconference with doctors, including Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan and Wyoming. However, for some states, the website lists only online pill providers, such as Aid Access or carafem.“My vision for telehealth medication abortion is the same as my vision for abortion generally, which is that it would be widely accessible by many providers,” Wales said in an interview ahead of the announcement.The blocked Kansas law required a doctor to be in the same room with a patient taking what is typically the first of two doses of medication to end a pregnancy. Another provider, a Wichita clinic operated by the abortion rights group Trust Women, offered telemedicine abortions for a few months late in 2018 but stopped because the legal climate was uncertain at the time.Trust Women also expects to offer telemedicine abortions but has said it is considering what additional staff and infrastructure it will need.Eighteen states have bans on telemedicine abortions in place, according to national groups on both sides of the debate. They include Arizona, Indiana, Nebraska and North Carolina.Abortion opponents have long argued that telemedicine bans protect women's health by ensuring a physician is present to deal with major problems, though research has shown that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fact-check-medication-abortion-783874945633">abortion pills are safe</a>.The long-term goal, Wales said, is to work with a network of doctors or clinics across the state so that women don’t have to travel to Wichita or the Kansas City area to obtain abortion medications.Patients in states with more restrictive abortion laws still would have to travel to Kansas, as they do now. Doctors doing the teleconsulting also would have to be licensed to practice medicine in Kansas, as they must be now.For now, Planned Parenthood Great Plains is using existing staff and physicians to offer telemedicine abortion consultations to patients in Wichita. Wales said while the clinic sometimes has a doctor there three or four days a week, one day a week is typical. Her affiliate's medical director, Dr. Iman Alsaden, said there would have been no abortion appointments Monday in Wichita without teleconferencing.The Planned Parenthood affiliate already offers some telehealth services, such as refilling birth control prescriptions or gender-affirming care visits for transgender patients. Wales said it's still deciding day-by-day how quickly to expand telemedicine abortion appointments.Abortion providers had to wait until this year for a clearer picture of the legality of telemedicine abortions. The statewide vote in August preserved&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/3f479b218a6140719e1694fcfcdb8036">a Kansas Supreme Court ruling</a>&nbsp;in April 2019 that access to abortion is a “fundamental” right under the state constitution.The vote came as Trust Women was pursuing a lawsuit to against the state's ban on telemedicine abortions. That lawsuit led to the state-court judge's order blocking enforcement of the Kansas telemedicine abortion ban.“We’re pretty confident that the courts are on our side and that we have a very strong legal leg to stand on,” said Erin Thompson, Planned Parenthood Great Plains’ general counsel.

Planned Parenthood starts telemedicine abortions in Kansas

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee met Tuesday to vote on whether to publicly release years of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump's</a>&nbsp;tax returns, which the former president has long tried to shield.

Committee Chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass., has kept a close hold on the actions of the panel, which planned to vote on the release in a closed session that could span several hours. And if lawmakers move forward with plans to release the returns, it's unclear how quickly that would happen.

But after a yearslong battle that ultimately resulted in the Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-supreme-court-donald-trump-business-john-roberts-congress-8ea516dace48875ad7c5dd472dd16dcf">clearing the way</a>&nbsp;last month for the Treasury Department to send the returns to Congress, Democrats are under pressure to act aggressively. The committee received&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-supreme-court-business-donald-trump-personal-taxes-congress-7cc1a1a0d10de7bdfc1252603f53ab69">six years of tax returns</a>&nbsp;for Trump and some of his businesses. And with just two weeks left until Republicans formally take control of the House, Tuesday's meeting could be the last opportunity for Democrats to disclose whatever information they have gleaned.

Republicans have railed against the potential release, arguing that it would set a dangerous precedent.

Before Tuesday’s meeting, Rep. Kevin Brady of Texas, the committee’s top Republican, called any release of Trump’s tax records a “dangerous new political weapon” that “even Democrats will come to regret.”

“Our concern is not whether the president should have made his tax returns public, as is traditional, nor about the accuracy of his tax returns,” Brady said. “Our concern is that, if taken, this committee action will set a terrible precedent that unleashes a dangerous new political weapon that reaches far beyond the former president and overturns decades of privacy protections for average Americans that have existed since the Watergate reforms.”

Trump has long had a complicated relationship with his personal income taxes.

As a presidential candidate in 2016, he broke decades of precedent by refusing to release his tax forms to the public. He bragged during a presidential debate that year that he was “smart” because he paid no federal taxes and later claimed he wouldn't personally benefit from the 2017 tax cuts he signed into law that favored people with extreme wealth, asking Americans to simply take him at his word.

Tax records would have been a useful metric for judging his success in business. The image of a savvy businessman was key to a political brand honed during his years as a tabloid magnet and star of “The Apprentice” television show. They also could reveal any financial obligations — including foreign debts — that could influence how he governed.

But Americans were largely in the dark about Trump's relationship with the IRS until October 2018 and September 2020, when The New York Times published two separate series based on leaked tax records.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/10/02/us/politics/donald-trump-tax-schemes-fred-trump.html">2018 articles</a>&nbsp;showed how Trump received a modern equivalent of at least $413 million from his father's real estate holdings, with much of that money coming from what the Times called “tax dodges” in the 1990s. Trump sued the Times and his niece, Mary Trump, in 2021 for providing the records to the newspaper. In November, Mary Trump asked an appeals court to overturn a judge’s decision to reject her claims that her uncle and two of his siblings defrauded her of millions of dollars in a 2001 family settlement.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/27/us/donald-trump-taxes.html">2020 articles</a>&nbsp;showed that Trump paid just $750 in federal income taxes in 2017 and 2018. Trump paid no income taxes at all in 10 of the past 15 years because he generally lost more money than he made.

The articles exposed deep inequities in the U.S. tax code as Trump, a reputed multi-billionaire, paid little in federal income taxes. IRS figures indicate that the average tax filer paid roughly $12,200 in 2017, about 16 times more than the former president paid.

Details about Trump's income from foreign operations and debt levels were also contained in the tax filings, which the former president derided as “fake news."

At the time of the 2020 articles, Neal said he saw an ethical problem in Trump overseeing a federal agency that he has also battled with legal filings.

"Now, Donald Trump is the boss of the agency he considers an adversary," Neal said in 2020. “It is essential that the IRS’s presidential audit program remain free of interference.”

The Manhattan district attorney’s office also&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/manhattan-prosecutor-trump-tax-records-87f675d7ae8e24fbf2e8f33c480869d6">obtained copies of Trump’s tax records</a>&nbsp;in February 2021 after a protracted legal fight that included two trips to the Supreme Court.

The office, then led by District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., had subpoenaed Trump’s accounting firm in 2019, seeking access to eight years of Trump’s tax returns and related documents.

The DA’s office issued the subpoena after Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen told Congress that Trump had misled tax officials, insurers and business associates about the value of his assets. Those allegations are the subject of a fraud lawsuit that New York Attorney General Letitia James filed against Trump and his company in September.

Trump’s longtime accountant, Donald Bender, testified at the Trump Organization’s recent criminal trial that Trump reported losses on his tax returns every year for a decade, including nearly $700 million in 2009 and $200 million in 2010.

Bender, a partner at Mazars USA LLP who spent years preparing Trump’s personal tax returns, said Trump’s reported losses from 2009 to 2018 included net operating losses from some of the many businesses he owns through his Trump Organization.

The Trump Organization was convicted earlier this month on tax fraud charges for helping some executives dodge taxes on company-paid perks such as apartments and luxury cars.

The current Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, told The Associated Press in an interview last week that his office’s investigation into Trump and his businesses continues.

“We’re going to follow the facts and continue to do our job,” Bragg said.

Trump, who refused to release his returns during his 2016 presidential campaign and his four years in the White House while claiming that he was under IRS audit, has argued there is little to be gleaned from the tax returns even as he has fought to keep them private.

“You can’t learn much from tax returns, but it is illegal to release them if they are not yours!” he complained on his social media network last weekend.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671573521427.png" alt="Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, Republican leader of the House Ways and Means Committee, speaks before the House Ways &amp; Means Committee holds a hearing regarding tax returns from former President Donald Trump -photo courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, Republican leader of the House Ways and Means Committee, speaks before the House Ways &amp; Means Committee holds a hearing regarding tax returns from former President Donald Trump -photo courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee met Tuesday to vote on whether to publicly release years of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump's</a>&nbsp;tax returns, which the former president has long tried to shield.Committee Chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass., has kept a close hold on the actions of the panel, which planned to vote on the release in a closed session that could span several hours. And if lawmakers move forward with plans to release the returns, it's unclear how quickly that would happen.But after a yearslong battle that ultimately resulted in the Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-supreme-court-donald-trump-business-john-roberts-congress-8ea516dace48875ad7c5dd472dd16dcf">clearing the way</a>&nbsp;last month for the Treasury Department to send the returns to Congress, Democrats are under pressure to act aggressively. The committee received&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-supreme-court-business-donald-trump-personal-taxes-congress-7cc1a1a0d10de7bdfc1252603f53ab69">six years of tax returns</a>&nbsp;for Trump and some of his businesses. And with just two weeks left until Republicans formally take control of the House, Tuesday's meeting could be the last opportunity for Democrats to disclose whatever information they have gleaned.Republicans have railed against the potential release, arguing that it would set a dangerous precedent.Before Tuesday’s meeting, Rep. Kevin Brady of Texas, the committee’s top Republican, called any release of Trump’s tax records a “dangerous new political weapon” that “even Democrats will come to regret.”“Our concern is not whether the president should have made his tax returns public, as is traditional, nor about the accuracy of his tax returns,” Brady said. “Our concern is that, if taken, this committee action will set a terrible precedent that unleashes a dangerous new political weapon that reaches far beyond the former president and overturns decades of privacy protections for average Americans that have existed since the Watergate reforms.”Trump has long had a complicated relationship with his personal income taxes.As a presidential candidate in 2016, he broke decades of precedent by refusing to release his tax forms to the public. He bragged during a presidential debate that year that he was “smart” because he paid no federal taxes and later claimed he wouldn't personally benefit from the 2017 tax cuts he signed into law that favored people with extreme wealth, asking Americans to simply take him at his word.Tax records would have been a useful metric for judging his success in business. The image of a savvy businessman was key to a political brand honed during his years as a tabloid magnet and star of “The Apprentice” television show. They also could reveal any financial obligations — including foreign debts — that could influence how he governed.But Americans were largely in the dark about Trump's relationship with the IRS until October 2018 and September 2020, when The New York Times published two separate series based on leaked tax records.The Pulitzer Prize-winning&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/10/02/us/politics/donald-trump-tax-schemes-fred-trump.html">2018 articles</a>&nbsp;showed how Trump received a modern equivalent of at least $413 million from his father's real estate holdings, with much of that money coming from what the Times called “tax dodges” in the 1990s. Trump sued the Times and his niece, Mary Trump, in 2021 for providing the records to the newspaper. In November, Mary Trump asked an appeals court to overturn a judge’s decision to reject her claims that her uncle and two of his siblings defrauded her of millions of dollars in a 2001 family settlement.The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/27/us/donald-trump-taxes.html">2020 articles</a>&nbsp;showed that Trump paid just $750 in federal income taxes in 2017 and 2018. Trump paid no income taxes at all in 10 of the past 15 years because he generally lost more money than he made.The articles exposed deep inequities in the U.S. tax code as Trump, a reputed multi-billionaire, paid little in federal income taxes. IRS figures indicate that the average tax filer paid roughly $12,200 in 2017, about 16 times more than the former president paid.Details about Trump's income from foreign operations and debt levels were also contained in the tax filings, which the former president derided as “fake news."At the time of the 2020 articles, Neal said he saw an ethical problem in Trump overseeing a federal agency that he has also battled with legal filings."Now, Donald Trump is the boss of the agency he considers an adversary," Neal said in 2020. “It is essential that the IRS’s presidential audit program remain free of interference.”The Manhattan district attorney’s office also&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/manhattan-prosecutor-trump-tax-records-87f675d7ae8e24fbf2e8f33c480869d6">obtained copies of Trump’s tax records</a>&nbsp;in February 2021 after a protracted legal fight that included two trips to the Supreme Court.The office, then led by District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., had subpoenaed Trump’s accounting firm in 2019, seeking access to eight years of Trump’s tax returns and related documents.The DA’s office issued the subpoena after Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen told Congress that Trump had misled tax officials, insurers and business associates about the value of his assets. Those allegations are the subject of a fraud lawsuit that New York Attorney General Letitia James filed against Trump and his company in September.Trump’s longtime accountant, Donald Bender, testified at the Trump Organization’s recent criminal trial that Trump reported losses on his tax returns every year for a decade, including nearly $700 million in 2009 and $200 million in 2010.Bender, a partner at Mazars USA LLP who spent years preparing Trump’s personal tax returns, said Trump’s reported losses from 2009 to 2018 included net operating losses from some of the many businesses he owns through his Trump Organization.The Trump Organization was convicted earlier this month on tax fraud charges for helping some executives dodge taxes on company-paid perks such as apartments and luxury cars.The current Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, told The Associated Press in an interview last week that his office’s investigation into Trump and his businesses continues.“We’re going to follow the facts and continue to do our job,” Bragg said.Trump, who refused to release his returns during his 2016 presidential campaign and his four years in the White House while claiming that he was under IRS audit, has argued there is little to be gleaned from the tax returns even as he has fought to keep them private.“You can’t learn much from tax returns, but it is illegal to release them if they are not yours!” he complained on his social media network last weekend.

Trump taxes: House panel mulls releasing long-sought returns

WASHINGTON (AP) — Consumer banking giant Wells Fargo agreed to pay $3.7 billion to settle charges that it harmed customers by charging illegal fees and interest on auto loans and mortgages, as well as incorrectly applying overdraft fees against savings and checking accounts.

Wells was ordered to repay $2 billion to consumers by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which also enacted a $1.7 billion penalty against the San Francisco bank Tuesday. It's the largest fine ever leveled against a bank by the CFPB and the largest yet against Wells, which has spent years trying to rehabilitate its image after a series of scandals tied to its sales practices.

Regulators made it clear, however, that they believe Wells Fargo has further to go on that front.

“Put simply: Wells Fargo is a corporate recidivist that puts one out of three Americans at risk for potential harm,” said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra, in a call with reporters.

The bank's pattern of behavior has made it necessary for regulators to take additional actions against Wells Fargo that go beyond the $3.7 billion in fines and penalties, Chopra said.

The violations impacted more than 16 million customers, the bureau said. In addition to improperly charging auto loan customers with fees and interest, the bank wrongfully repossessed vehicles in some cases. The bank also improperly denied thousands of mortgage loan modifications for homeowners.

Wells Fargo has been sanctioned repeatedly by U.S. regulators for violations of consumer protection laws going back to 2016, when employees were found to have opened millions of accounts illegally in order to meet unrealistic sales goals. Since then, executives have repeatedly said Wells is cleaning up its act, only for the bank to be found in violation of other parts of consumer protection law, including in its auto and mortgage lending businesses.

Wells paid a $1 billion penalty in 2018 for widespread consumer law violations, the largest against a bank for such violations at the time.

The bank had signaled to its investors that it anticipated additional fines and penalties from regulators and aside $2 billion in the third quarter for that reason.

Wells remains under a Federal Reserve order forbidding the bank from growing any larger until the Fed deems that its problems are resolved. That order, originally enacted in 2018, was expected to last only a year or two.

CEO Charles Scharf said in a prepared statement Tuesday that the agreement with the CFPB is part of an effort to "transform operating practices at Wells Fargo and to put these issues behind us.”

While Wells Fargo tried to frame the agreement with the CFPB as a resolution of established bad behavior, CFPB officials said some of the violations cited in Tuesday's order took place this year.

“This should not been seen as Wells Fargo has moved past its problems,” Chopra said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671558859312.png" alt="Wells was ordered to repay $2 billion to consumers by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which also enacted a $1.7 billion penalty against the San Francisco bank Tuesday.-Google image" />
 <figcaption>Wells was ordered to repay $2 billion to consumers by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which also enacted a $1.7 billion penalty against the San Francisco bank Tuesday.-Google image</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Consumer banking giant Wells Fargo agreed to pay $3.7 billion to settle charges that it harmed customers by charging illegal fees and interest on auto loans and mortgages, as well as incorrectly applying overdraft fees against savings and checking accounts.Wells was ordered to repay $2 billion to consumers by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which also enacted a $1.7 billion penalty against the San Francisco bank Tuesday. It's the largest fine ever leveled against a bank by the CFPB and the largest yet against Wells, which has spent years trying to rehabilitate its image after a series of scandals tied to its sales practices.Regulators made it clear, however, that they believe Wells Fargo has further to go on that front.“Put simply: Wells Fargo is a corporate recidivist that puts one out of three Americans at risk for potential harm,” said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra, in a call with reporters.The bank's pattern of behavior has made it necessary for regulators to take additional actions against Wells Fargo that go beyond the $3.7 billion in fines and penalties, Chopra said.The violations impacted more than 16 million customers, the bureau said. In addition to improperly charging auto loan customers with fees and interest, the bank wrongfully repossessed vehicles in some cases. The bank also improperly denied thousands of mortgage loan modifications for homeowners.Wells Fargo has been sanctioned repeatedly by U.S. regulators for violations of consumer protection laws going back to 2016, when employees were found to have opened millions of accounts illegally in order to meet unrealistic sales goals. Since then, executives have repeatedly said Wells is cleaning up its act, only for the bank to be found in violation of other parts of consumer protection law, including in its auto and mortgage lending businesses.Wells paid a $1 billion penalty in 2018 for widespread consumer law violations, the largest against a bank for such violations at the time.The bank had signaled to its investors that it anticipated additional fines and penalties from regulators and aside $2 billion in the third quarter for that reason.Wells remains under a Federal Reserve order forbidding the bank from growing any larger until the Fed deems that its problems are resolved. That order, originally enacted in 2018, was expected to last only a year or two.CEO Charles Scharf said in a prepared statement Tuesday that the agreement with the CFPB is part of an effort to "transform operating practices at Wells Fargo and to put these issues behind us.”While Wells Fargo tried to frame the agreement with the CFPB as a resolution of established bad behavior, CFPB officials said some of the violations cited in Tuesday's order took place this year.“This should not been seen as Wells Fargo has moved past its problems,” Chopra said.