WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Saturday promised to put forth a female nominee in the coming week to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, pushing the Republican-controlled Senate to consider the pick without delay.

Taking the stage at a North Carolina rally to chants of “Fill that seat,” the president said he would nominate his selection despite Democrats’ objections. And, after conducting what he joked was a “very scientific poll” of the Fayetteville crowd as to whether supporters wanted a man or a woman, he declared the choice would be “a very talented, very brilliant woman.”

He added that he did not yet know whom he would choose.

“We win an election and those are the consequences,” said the president, who then seemed to signal that he’d be willing to accept a vote on his nominee during the lame duck period after the election. “We have a lot of time. We have plenty of time. We’re talking about January 20th.”

But one Republican senator already broke ranks. Maine’s Susan Collins, who is in a tough reelection battle, said Saturday that she believed replacing Ginsburg should be the decision of the president who is elected Nov. 3. Three more defections from the GOP ranks would be needed to stop Trump’s nominee from joining the court.

At stake is a seat held by a justice who was a champion of women’s rights and spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the court’s liberal wing. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. vowed to call a vote for Trump’s nominee, but Democrats countered that Republicans should follow the precedent that GOP legislators set in 2016 by refusing to consider a Supreme Court choice in the run-up to an election.

The impending clash over the vacant seat — when to fill it and with whom — scrambles the stretch run of a presidential race for a nation already reeling from the pandemic that has killed nearly 200,000 people, left millions unemployed and heightened partisan tensions and anger.

McConnell pledged to Trump in a phone call Friday night to bring the choice to a vote though he has not said if it would be before the election. Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said any selection should come after Nov. 3. “Voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice to consider,” he said.

The president this month added 20 more names to his roster of potential court nominees, and aides in recent days have focused on a short list heavy on female candidates, according to four White House aides and officials close to the process. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss private conversations.

Those under close consideration for the high court include three women who are federal appeals court judges: Amy Coney Barrett, beloved among conservatives and an early favorite; Barbara Lagoa, who is Hispanic and comes from the battleground state of Florida; and Allison Jones Rushing, who clerked for Justice Clarence Thomas and for Neil Gorsuch, when the current Trump-appointed justice was an appeals court judge.

At least one man, appeals court Judge Amul Thapar, has also been under consideration. A McConnell ally from Kentucky, he has been screened by Trump’s team for past openings and he would be the first Asian-American on the high court.

McConnell, who sets the calendar in the Senate and has made judicial appointments his priority, declared unequivocally in a statement that Trump’s nominee would receive a confirmation vote. In 2016, McConnell refused to consider President Barack Obama’s nominee months before the election, eventually preventing a vote on Judge Merrick Garland.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York convened a conference call with Democratic senators at midday Saturday, according to a person on the private call who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. He told senators the “number one goal” must be to communicate the stakes of the confirmation vote.

Schumer also warned that if Republicans push through the nominee, “nothing is off the table” for Senate rules changes to come, the person said.

Ginsburg’s death seemed certain to stoke enthusiasm in both political parties as the election could now be viewed as referendum on the high court’s decisions, including the future of abortion rights. Democrats raised more than $71 million in the hours after Ginsburg’s death, indicating her passing has already galvanized the party’s base.

Hundreds of mourners gathered for a second night outside the Supreme Court building, holding candles in honor of Ginsburg and listening to a succession of testimonies and rallying speeches. Among the speakers was Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who eulogized Ginsberg as “an icon, a trailblazer and a friend” and accused McConnell of seeking to cynically hijack the confirmation process.

“Today Mitch McConnell and his henchmen think they can ram through a Supreme Court justice only 45 days before the election,” Warren said. “What Mitch McConnell doesn’t understand is that the fight has just begun.”

A confirmation vote in the Senate is not guaranteed, even with a Republican majority.

McConnell has launched a risky, unprecedented strategy. It could motivate conservative voters to rally behind Trump and GOP senators or it could push away moderates who prefer to see the Senate stick to norms or are fearful of a right-leaning court stripping away women’s right to choose an abortion.

Typically, it takes several months to vet and hold hearings on a Supreme Court nominee, and time is short before November. Key senators may be reluctant to cast votes so close to the election. With a slim GOP majority, 53 seats in the 100-member chamber, Trump’s choice could afford to lose only a few.

McConnell did not specify the timing. But trying for confirmation in a lame-duck session after the Nov. 3 election, if Trump had lost to Biden or Republicans had lost the Senate, would carry further political complications.

Democrats immediately denounced McConnell’s move as hypocritical, pointing out that he refused to call hearings for Garland 237 days before the 2016 election. The 2020 election is 46 days away.

The average number of days to confirm a justice, according to the Congressional Research Service, is 69, which would be after the election. But some Republicans quickly noted that Ginsburg was confirmed in just 42 days. Obama waited more than a month to nominate Garland after Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016.

John Fischetti, who waited in line more than two hours to enter Trump’s Fayetteville rally, said replacing Ginsburg would inflame tensions but was within the president’s rights.

“I would assume it would make everyone more energized,” Fischetti said of the political repercussions. “Trump’s people want him to always press forward.”

Four GOP defections could defeat a nomination, while a tie vote could be broken by Vice President Mike Pence. After Collins’ decision, focus grew on Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitt Romney of Utah, who have been critical of Trump and protective of the institution of the Senate.

And because the Arizona Senate race is a special election, that seat could be filled as early as Nov. 30 — which would narrow the window for McConnell if the Democratic candidate, Mark Kelly, wins.

The next pick could shape important decisions beyond abortion rights, including any legal challenges that may stem from the 2020 election. In the interim, if the court were to take cases with eight justices, 4-4 ties would revert the decision to a lower court; for instance, the Affordable Care Act could then be struck down by a lower Texas court.

Biden has promised to nominate a Black woman to the high court if given the chance. His campaign reiterated Saturday that it would not release names before the election.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Saturday promised to put forth a female nominee in the coming week to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, pushing the Republican-controlled Senate to consider the pick without delay.Taking the stage at a North Carolina rally to chants of “Fill that seat,” the president said he would nominate his selection despite Democrats’ objections. And, after conducting what he joked was a “very scientific poll” of the Fayetteville crowd as to whether supporters wanted a man or a woman, he declared the choice would be “a very talented, very brilliant woman.”He added that he did not yet know whom he would choose.“We win an election and those are the consequences,” said the president, who then seemed to signal that he’d be willing to accept a vote on his nominee during the lame duck period after the election. “We have a lot of time. We have plenty of time. We’re talking about January 20th.”But one Republican senator already broke ranks. Maine’s Susan Collins, who is in a tough reelection battle, said Saturday that she believed replacing Ginsburg should be the decision of the president who is elected Nov. 3. Three more defections from the GOP ranks would be needed to stop Trump’s nominee from joining the court.At stake is a seat held by a justice who was a champion of women’s rights and spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the court’s liberal wing. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. vowed to call a vote for Trump’s nominee, but Democrats countered that Republicans should follow the precedent that GOP legislators set in 2016 by refusing to consider a Supreme Court choice in the run-up to an election.The impending clash over the vacant seat — when to fill it and with whom — scrambles the stretch run of a presidential race for a nation already reeling from the pandemic that has killed nearly 200,000 people, left millions unemployed and heightened partisan tensions and anger.McConnell pledged to Trump in a phone call Friday night to bring the choice to a vote though he has not said if it would be before the election. Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said any selection should come after Nov. 3. “Voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice to consider,” he said.The president this month added 20 more names to his roster of potential court nominees, and aides in recent days have focused on a short list heavy on female candidates, according to four White House aides and officials close to the process. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss private conversations.Those under close consideration for the high court include three women who are federal appeals court judges: Amy Coney Barrett, beloved among conservatives and an early favorite; Barbara Lagoa, who is Hispanic and comes from the battleground state of Florida; and Allison Jones Rushing, who clerked for Justice Clarence Thomas and for Neil Gorsuch, when the current Trump-appointed justice was an appeals court judge.At least one man, appeals court Judge Amul Thapar, has also been under consideration. A McConnell ally from Kentucky, he has been screened by Trump’s team for past openings and he would be the first Asian-American on the high court.McConnell, who sets the calendar in the Senate and has made judicial appointments his priority, declared unequivocally in a statement that Trump’s nominee would receive a confirmation vote. In 2016, McConnell refused to consider President Barack Obama’s nominee months before the election, eventually preventing a vote on Judge Merrick Garland.Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York convened a conference call with Democratic senators at midday Saturday, according to a person on the private call who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. He told senators the “number one goal” must be to communicate the stakes of the confirmation vote.Schumer also warned that if Republicans push through the nominee, “nothing is off the table” for Senate rules changes to come, the person said.Ginsburg’s death seemed certain to stoke enthusiasm in both political parties as the election could now be viewed as referendum on the high court’s decisions, including the future of abortion rights. Democrats raised more than $71 million in the hours after Ginsburg’s death, indicating her passing has already galvanized the party’s base.Hundreds of mourners gathered for a second night outside the Supreme Court building, holding candles in honor of Ginsburg and listening to a succession of testimonies and rallying speeches. Among the speakers was Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who eulogized Ginsberg as “an icon, a trailblazer and a friend” and accused McConnell of seeking to cynically hijack the confirmation process.“Today Mitch McConnell and his henchmen think they can ram through a Supreme Court justice only 45 days before the election,” Warren said. “What Mitch McConnell doesn’t understand is that the fight has just begun.”A confirmation vote in the Senate is not guaranteed, even with a Republican majority.McConnell has launched a risky, unprecedented strategy. It could motivate conservative voters to rally behind Trump and GOP senators or it could push away moderates who prefer to see the Senate stick to norms or are fearful of a right-leaning court stripping away women’s right to choose an abortion.Typically, it takes several months to vet and hold hearings on a Supreme Court nominee, and time is short before November. Key senators may be reluctant to cast votes so close to the election. With a slim GOP majority, 53 seats in the 100-member chamber, Trump’s choice could afford to lose only a few.McConnell did not specify the timing. But trying for confirmation in a lame-duck session after the Nov. 3 election, if Trump had lost to Biden or Republicans had lost the Senate, would carry further political complications.Democrats immediately denounced McConnell’s move as hypocritical, pointing out that he refused to call hearings for Garland 237 days before the 2016 election. The 2020 election is 46 days away.The average number of days to confirm a justice, according to the Congressional Research Service, is 69, which would be after the election. But some Republicans quickly noted that Ginsburg was confirmed in just 42 days. Obama waited more than a month to nominate Garland after Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016.John Fischetti, who waited in line more than two hours to enter Trump’s Fayetteville rally, said replacing Ginsburg would inflame tensions but was within the president’s rights.“I would assume it would make everyone more energized,” Fischetti said of the political repercussions. “Trump’s people want him to always press forward.”Four GOP defections could defeat a nomination, while a tie vote could be broken by Vice President Mike Pence. After Collins’ decision, focus grew on Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitt Romney of Utah, who have been critical of Trump and protective of the institution of the Senate.And because the Arizona Senate race is a special election, that seat could be filled as early as Nov. 30 — which would narrow the window for McConnell if the Democratic candidate, Mark Kelly, wins.The next pick could shape important decisions beyond abortion rights, including any legal challenges that may stem from the 2020 election. In the interim, if the court were to take cases with eight justices, 4-4 ties would revert the decision to a lower court; for instance, the Affordable Care Act could then be struck down by a lower Texas court.Biden has promised to nominate a Black woman to the high court if given the chance. His campaign reiterated Saturday that it would not release names before the election.___

Trump pledges woman for court, pushes Senate to move on pick

HARVEY COUNTY—One person died in an accident just after 10p.m. Saturday in Harvey County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2014 Lexus driven by&nbsp; Daniel T.  Cosgrove, 61, Wichita was southbound on Interstate 35 twelve miles north of Wichita in the right lane.

A pedestrian identified as Kalub J. Rowson, 20, Minneapolis, ran across the interstate in front of and struck the right front corner of the vehicle.

Rowson was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to the Sedgwick County Forensics Center.

&nbsp;Cosgrove and two occupants in the Lexus were properly restrained and not injured, according to the KHP.

HARVEY COUNTY—One person died in an accident just after 10p.m. Saturday in Harvey County.The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2014 Lexus driven by&nbsp; Daniel T. Cosgrove, 61, Wichita was southbound on Interstate 35 twelve miles north of Wichita in the right lane.A pedestrian identified as Kalub J. Rowson, 20, Minneapolis, ran across the interstate in front of and struck the right front corner of the vehicle.Rowson was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to the Sedgwick County Forensics Center.&nbsp;Cosgrove and two occupants in the Lexus were properly restrained and not injured, according to the KHP.

Kan. man dies in pedestrian accident on I-35

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A man charged with threatening to shoot people at a Walmart last year has been sentenced to probation.

Nicholas Pratte, 39, Jefferson City, Mo., was sentenced this week to two years of unsupervised probation after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor count of making a terrorist threat. He was originally charged with a felony.

Pratte also was ordered to stay away from Walmart.

Court records said Pratte&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/16531375107f40f2ba23d417ffd92c2c">threatened</a>&nbsp;to get a gun and shoot people after supervisors criticized his productivity during a meeting in September 2019.

Walmart officials hired outside security to safeguard the store after Pratte made the threats.

A co-worker told investigators Pratte also threatened to shoot up his daughter’s school before making the comments at Walmart, according to court documents.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1600454751693.png" alt="Pratte photo Cole Co." />
 <figcaption>Pratte photo Cole Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A man charged with threatening to shoot people at a Walmart last year has been sentenced to probation.Nicholas Pratte, 39, Jefferson City, Mo., was sentenced this week to two years of unsupervised probation after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor count of making a terrorist threat. He was originally charged with a felony.Pratte also was ordered to stay away from Walmart.Court records said Pratte&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/16531375107f40f2ba23d417ffd92c2c">threatened</a>&nbsp;to get a gun and shoot people after supervisors criticized his productivity during a meeting in September 2019.Walmart officials hired outside security to safeguard the store after Pratte made the threats.A co-worker told investigators Pratte also threatened to shoot up his daughter’s school before making the comments at Walmart, according to court documents.

Man sentenced for shooting threat at Walmart

WICHITA —Law enforcement authorities are investigating an accidental shooting at the Old Cowtown Museum in Wichita.

Just after 9 p.m. Friday, police responded to a shooting call at the museum in the 1800 block of West Museum Boulevard, according to Officer Kevin Wheeler.

At the scene, first responders located a 24-year-old man who had injuries to his upper body.&nbsp; EMS transported him to a local hospital, where he remains with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries, according to Wheeler.

The investigation revealed that the 24-year-old was participating in a live demonstration&nbsp;where reenactors were supposed to use blank rounds when he was shot.

There were no other injuries.&nbsp; This incident is believed to be accidental, according to Wheeler.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1600525934167.png" alt="Police on the scene of the investigation at the Old Cowtown Museum -photo courtesy KWCH" />
 <figcaption>Police on the scene of the investigation at the Old Cowtown Museum -photo courtesy KWCH</figcaption>
 </figure>WICHITA —Law enforcement authorities are investigating an accidental shooting at the Old Cowtown Museum in Wichita.Just after 9 p.m. Friday, police responded to a shooting call at the museum in the 1800 block of West Museum Boulevard, according to Officer Kevin Wheeler.At the scene, first responders located a 24-year-old man who had injuries to his upper body.&nbsp; EMS transported him to a local hospital, where he remains with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries, according to Wheeler.The investigation revealed that the 24-year-old was participating in a live demonstration&nbsp;where reenactors were supposed to use blank rounds when he was shot.There were no other injuries.&nbsp; This incident is believed to be accidental, according to Wheeler.

Police: Performer shot during Kan. history museum reenactment

KANSAS CITY (AP) — A Kansas City Chiefs fan who tested positive for COVID-19 one day after attending the season opener was allowed into an open-air field box in the stadium’s lower level without a negative test through a lapse in protocol, health officials say.

Chiefs policy stipulates that fans be tested for the virus before being admitted to suites, including the lower level field boxes. They are mailed tests, and each suite has a designated administrator charged with handing out tickets to those who’ve received negative results. Those in regular seats are not tested.

Kansas City Health Department spokesman Bill Snook said the agency is working with the Chiefs, who are responsible for the testing, to strengthen the protocol.

“We are aware that this individual apparently violated the suite testing protocol that is in place,” a Chiefs spokesperson said in a statement. “We have worked with the health department and the testing lab to strengthen the integrity of the suite testing process.”

The health department announced Thursday that it told 10 fans to quarantine after possibly being exposed to COVID-19 during the Sept. 10 game against the Houston Texans.

KANSAS CITY (AP) — A Kansas City Chiefs fan who tested positive for COVID-19 one day after attending the season opener was allowed into an open-air field box in the stadium’s lower level without a negative test through a lapse in protocol, health officials say.Chiefs policy stipulates that fans be tested for the virus before being admitted to suites, including the lower level field boxes. They are mailed tests, and each suite has a designated administrator charged with handing out tickets to those who’ve received negative results. Those in regular seats are not tested.Kansas City Health Department spokesman Bill Snook said the agency is working with the Chiefs, who are responsible for the testing, to strengthen the protocol.“We are aware that this individual apparently violated the suite testing protocol that is in place,” a Chiefs spokesperson said in a statement. “We have worked with the health department and the testing lab to strengthen the integrity of the suite testing process.”The health department announced Thursday that it told 10 fans to quarantine after possibly being exposed to COVID-19 during the Sept. 10 game against the Houston Texans.

Chiefs fan allowed into box seat without negative virus test

TOPEKA — The first general election debate in the race for the United State Senate seat between State Senator Barbara Bollier and First District congressman Roger Marshall was held Saturday afternoon and lasted nearly 90 minutes.&nbsp; 

If you missed it live, watch the replay courtesy Barbara Bollier for Kansas Facebook page, WIBW Radio and the Kansas Ag Network.

Due to the pandemic, this virtual debate was conducted in a safe manner, consistent with the guidelines of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the CDC and not at the Kansas State Fair.

The campaigns have also agreed to a debate hosted by the Johnson County Bar Association and Kansas Public Television in the Kansas City Metro area at a date yet to be determined and a debate in Wichita hosted by KWCH television on October 6.

TOPEKA — The first general election debate in the race for the United State Senate seat between State Senator Barbara Bollier and First District congressman Roger Marshall was held Saturday afternoon and lasted nearly 90 minutes.&nbsp; If you missed it live, watch the replay courtesy Barbara Bollier for Kansas Facebook page, WIBW Radio and the Kansas Ag Network.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FWIBWNews%2Fvideos%2F383596299473825%2F&show_text=0&width=560" width="560" height="315" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowTransparency="true" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>Due to the pandemic, this virtual debate was conducted in a safe manner, consistent with the guidelines of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the CDC and not at the Kansas State Fair.The campaigns have also agreed to a debate hosted by the Johnson County Bar Association and Kansas Public Television in the Kansas City Metro area at a date yet to be determined and a debate in Wichita hosted by KWCH television on October 6.

🎥  U.S. Senate candidate debate: Marshall vs Bollier 

TOPEKA —In accordance with Executive Order 20-30, Governor Laura Kelly has ordered U.S. flags to be flown at half-staff throughout the state of Kansas on Friday, September 18, 2020 until the day of interment, in honor of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

President Donald Trump also issued a proclamation directing that flags at the White House and all public buildings and grounds and military facilities be flown at half-staff until the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is interred.

The president has also directed that flags be flown at half-staff at all U.S. embassies and other facilities abroad. The proclamation calls Ginsburg “a trailblazer, not only in the field of law, but in the history of our country.”

“Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg spent her life serving our country with passion and integrity,”&nbsp;Governor Laura Kelly said.&nbsp;“She was an agent for change, an advocate for the voiceless, and her legacy will live on in decisions that made America more equitable for all of us.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1600515201072.png" alt="White House flag at half-staff Friday night -photo courtesy White House" />
 <figcaption>White House flag at half-staff Friday night -photo courtesy White House</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA —In accordance with Executive Order 20-30, Governor Laura Kelly has ordered U.S. flags to be flown at half-staff throughout the state of Kansas on Friday, September 18, 2020 until the day of interment, in honor of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.President Donald Trump also issued a proclamation directing that flags at the White House and all public buildings and grounds and military facilities be flown at half-staff until the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is interred.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Statement from the President on the Passing of Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg <a href="https://t.co/N2YkGVWLoF">pic.twitter.com/N2YkGVWLoF</a>&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1307146028555014145?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 19, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The president has also directed that flags be flown at half-staff at all U.S. embassies and other facilities abroad. The proclamation calls Ginsburg “a trailblazer, not only in the field of law, but in the history of our country.”“Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg spent her life serving our country with passion and integrity,”&nbsp;Governor Laura Kelly said.&nbsp;“She was an agent for change, an advocate for the voiceless, and her legacy will live on in decisions that made America more equitable for all of us.”

Trump, Gov. order flags at half-staff in honor of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

WASHINGTON (AP) — Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a diminutive yet towering women’s rights champion who became the court’s second female justice, died Friday at her home in Washington. She was 87.

Ginsburg died of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, the court said.

Her death just over six weeks before Election Day is likely to set off a heated battle over whether President Donald Trump should nominate, and the Republican-led Senate should confirm, her replacement, or if the seat should remain vacant until the outcome of his race against Democrat Joe Biden is known.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly wrote on social media, "I’m incredibly saddened by this news. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg spent her life serving our country with passion and integrity. She was an agent for change, an advocate for the voiceless, and her legacy will live on in decisions that made America more equitable for all of us."

Chief Justice John Roberts mourned Ginsburg’s passing. “Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her — a tireless and resolute champion of justice,” Roberts said in a statement.

Ginsburg announced in July that she was undergoing chemotherapy treatment for lesions on her liver, the latest of her several battles with cancer.

Ginsburg spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the court’s liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers. Young women especially seemed to embrace the court’s Jewish grandmother, affectionately calling her the Notorious RBG, for her defense of the rights of women and minorities, and the strength and resilience she displayed in the face of personal loss and health crises.

Those health issues included five bouts with cancer beginning in 1999, falls that resulted in broken ribs, insertion of a stent to clear a blocked artery and assorted other hospitalizations after she turned 75.

She resisted calls by liberals to retire during Barack Obama’s presidency at a time when Democrats held the Senate and a replacement with similar views could have been confirmed. Instead, Trump will almost certainly try to push Ginsburg’s successor through the Republican-controlled Senate — and move the conservative court even more to the right.

Ginsburg antagonized Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign in a series of media interviews, including calling him a faker. She soon apologized.

Her appointment by President Bill Clinton in 1993 was the first by a Democrat in 26 years. She initially found a comfortable ideological home somewhere left of center on a conservative court dominated by Republican appointees. Her liberal voice grew stronger the longer she served.

Ginsburg was a mother of two, an opera lover and an intellectual who watched arguments behind oversized glasses for many years, though she ditched them for more fashionable frames in her later years. At argument sessions in the ornate courtroom, she was known for digging deep into case records and for being a stickler for following the rules.

She argued six key cases before the court in the 1970s when she was an architect of the women’s rights movement. She won five.

“Ruth Bader Ginsburg does not need a seat on the Supreme Court to earn her place in the American history books,” Clinton said at the time of her appointment. “She has already done that.”

On the court, where she was known as a facile writer, her most significant majority opinions were the 1996 ruling that ordered the Virginia Military Institute to accept women or give up its state funding, and the 2015 decision that upheld independent commissions some states use to draw congressional districts.

Besides civil rights, Ginsburg took an interest in capital punishment, voting repeatedly to limit its use. During her tenure, the court declared it unconstitutional for states to execute the intellectually disabled and killers younger than 18.

In addition, she questioned the quality of lawyers for poor accused murderers. In the most divisive of cases, including the Bush v. Gore decision in 2000, she was often at odds with the court’s more conservative members — initially Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist and Justices Sandra Day O’Connor, Antonin Scalia, Anthony M. Kennedy and Clarence Thomas.

The division remained the same after John Roberts replaced Rehnquist as chief justice, Samuel Alito took O’Connor’s seat, and, under Trump, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh joined the court, in seats that had been held by Scalia and Kennedy, respectively.

Ginsburg would say later that the 5-4 decision that settled the 2000 presidential election for Republican George W. Bush was a “breathtaking episode” at the court.

She was perhaps personally closest on the court to Scalia, her ideological opposite. Ginsburg once explained that she took Scalia’s sometimes biting dissents as a challenge to be met. “How am I going to answer this in a way that’s a real putdown?” she said.

When Scalia died in 2016, also an election year, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell refused to act on Obama’s nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to fill the opening. The seat remained vacant until after Trump’s surprising presidential victory. McConnell has said he would move to confirm a Trump nominee if there were a vacancy this year.

Reached by phone late Friday, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, declined to disclose any plans. He called Ginsburg a “trailblazer” and said, “While I had many differences with her on legal philosophy, I appreciate her service to our nation.”

Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer tweeted: “The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.”

Ginsburg authored powerful dissents of her own in cases involving abortion, voting rights and pay discrimination against women. She said some were aimed at swaying the opinions of her fellow judges while others were “an appeal to the intelligence of another day” in the hopes that they would provide guidance to future courts.

“Hope springs eternal,” she said in 2007, “and when I am writing a dissent, I’m always hoping for that fifth or sixth vote — even though I’m disappointed more often than not.”

She wrote memorably in 2013 that the court’s decision to cut out a key part of the federal law that had ensured the voting rights of Black people, Hispanics and other minorities was “like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet.”

Change on the court hit Ginsburg especially hard. She dissented forcefully from the court’s decision in 2007 to uphold a nationwide ban on an abortion procedure that opponents call partial-birth abortion. The court, with O’Connor still on it, had struck down a similar state ban seven years earlier. The “alarming” ruling, Ginsburg said, “cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away at a right declared again and again by this court — and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to women’s lives.”

In 1999, Ginsburg had surgery for colon cancer and received radiation and chemotherapy. She had surgery again in 2009 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and in December 2018 for cancerous growths on her left lung. Following the last surgery, she missed court sessions for the first time in more than 25 years on the bench.

Ginsburg also was treated with radiation for a tumor on her pancreas in August 2019. She maintained an active schedule even during the three weeks of radiation. When she revealed a recurrence of her cancer in July 2020, Ginsburg said she remained “fully able” to continue as a justice.

Joan Ruth Bader was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1933, the second daughter in a middle-class family. Her older sister, who gave her the lifelong nickname “Kiki,” died at age 6, so Ginsburg grew up in Brooklyn’s Flatbush section as an only child. Her dream, she has said, was to be an opera singer.

Ginsburg graduated at the top of her Columbia University law school class in 1959 but could not find a law firm willing to hire her. She had “three strikes against her” — for being Jewish, female and a mother, as she put it in 2007.

She had married her husband, Martin, in 1954, the year she graduated from Cornell University. She attended Harvard University’s law school but transferred to Columbia when her husband took a law job there. Martin Ginsburg went on to become a prominent tax attorney and law professor. Martin Ginsburg died in 2010. She is survived by two children, Jane and James, and several grandchildren.

Ginsburg once said that she had not entered the law as an equal-rights champion. “I thought I could do a lawyer’s job better than any other,” she wrote. “I have no talent in the arts, but I do write fairly well and analyze problems clearly.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1600476593364.png" alt="Justice Ginsberg spoke at the National Book Festival in August 2019-photo courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Justice Ginsberg spoke at the National Book Festival in August 2019-photo courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a diminutive yet towering women’s rights champion who became the court’s second female justice, died Friday at her home in Washington. She was 87.Ginsburg died of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, the court said.Her death just over six weeks before Election Day is likely to set off a heated battle over whether President Donald Trump should nominate, and the Republican-led Senate should confirm, her replacement, or if the seat should remain vacant until the outcome of his race against Democrat Joe Biden is known.&nbsp;&nbsp;<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">The Senate and the nation mourn the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the conclusion of her extraordinary American life. My full statement: <a href="https://t.co/NOwYLhDxIk">pic.twitter.com/NOwYLhDxIk</a>&mdash; Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) <a href="https://twitter.com/senatemajldr/status/1307121192516628480?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 19, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Kansas Governor Laura Kelly wrote on social media, "I’m incredibly saddened by this news. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg spent her life serving our country with passion and integrity. She was an agent for change, an advocate for the voiceless, and her legacy will live on in decisions that made America more equitable for all of us."<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer, tackling each challenge with passion, dedication and extraordinary intellect. She served her country with honor &amp; had an historic impact on the court and the nation. Prayers are with her family.&mdash; Senator Jerry Moran (@JerryMoran) <a href="https://twitter.com/JerryMoran/status/1307126358431223809?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 19, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Ruth Bader Ginsburg was our friend and neighbor. An intellectual giant, she was the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court and a tremendous champion of women’s rights throughout her career.&mdash; Senator Bob Dole (@SenatorDole) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorDole/status/1307116031987548161?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 19, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Erin and I send our condolences to the Ginsburg family tonight. May Justice Ginsburg rest in peace&mdash; Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) <a href="https://twitter.com/HawleyMO/status/1307123643663757318?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 19, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Chief Justice John Roberts mourned Ginsburg’s passing. “Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her — a tireless and resolute champion of justice,” Roberts said in a statement.Ginsburg announced in July that she was undergoing chemotherapy treatment for lesions on her liver, the latest of her several battles with cancer.Ginsburg spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the court’s liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers. Young women especially seemed to embrace the court’s Jewish grandmother, affectionately calling her the Notorious RBG, for her defense of the rights of women and minorities, and the strength and resilience she displayed in the face of personal loss and health crises.Those health issues included five bouts with cancer beginning in 1999, falls that resulted in broken ribs, insertion of a stent to clear a blocked artery and assorted other hospitalizations after she turned 75.She resisted calls by liberals to retire during Barack Obama’s presidency at a time when Democrats held the Senate and a replacement with similar views could have been confirmed. Instead, Trump will almost certainly try to push Ginsburg’s successor through the Republican-controlled Senate — and move the conservative court even more to the right.Ginsburg antagonized Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign in a series of media interviews, including calling him a faker. She soon apologized.Her appointment by President Bill Clinton in 1993 was the first by a Democrat in 26 years. She initially found a comfortable ideological home somewhere left of center on a conservative court dominated by Republican appointees. Her liberal voice grew stronger the longer she served.Ginsburg was a mother of two, an opera lover and an intellectual who watched arguments behind oversized glasses for many years, though she ditched them for more fashionable frames in her later years. At argument sessions in the ornate courtroom, she was known for digging deep into case records and for being a stickler for following the rules.She argued six key cases before the court in the 1970s when she was an architect of the women’s rights movement. She won five.“Ruth Bader Ginsburg does not need a seat on the Supreme Court to earn her place in the American history books,” Clinton said at the time of her appointment. “She has already done that.”On the court, where she was known as a facile writer, her most significant majority opinions were the 1996 ruling that ordered the Virginia Military Institute to accept women or give up its state funding, and the 2015 decision that upheld independent commissions some states use to draw congressional districts.Besides civil rights, Ginsburg took an interest in capital punishment, voting repeatedly to limit its use. During her tenure, the court declared it unconstitutional for states to execute the intellectually disabled and killers younger than 18.In addition, she questioned the quality of lawyers for poor accused murderers. In the most divisive of cases, including the Bush v. Gore decision in 2000, she was often at odds with the court’s more conservative members — initially Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist and Justices Sandra Day O’Connor, Antonin Scalia, Anthony M. Kennedy and Clarence Thomas.The division remained the same after John Roberts replaced Rehnquist as chief justice, Samuel Alito took O’Connor’s seat, and, under Trump, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh joined the court, in seats that had been held by Scalia and Kennedy, respectively.Ginsburg would say later that the 5-4 decision that settled the 2000 presidential election for Republican George W. Bush was a “breathtaking episode” at the court.She was perhaps personally closest on the court to Scalia, her ideological opposite. Ginsburg once explained that she took Scalia’s sometimes biting dissents as a challenge to be met. “How am I going to answer this in a way that’s a real putdown?” she said.When Scalia died in 2016, also an election year, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell refused to act on Obama’s nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to fill the opening. The seat remained vacant until after Trump’s surprising presidential victory. McConnell has said he would move to confirm a Trump nominee if there were a vacancy this year.Reached by phone late Friday, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, declined to disclose any plans. He called Ginsburg a “trailblazer” and said, “While I had many differences with her on legal philosophy, I appreciate her service to our nation.”Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer tweeted: “The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.”Ginsburg authored powerful dissents of her own in cases involving abortion, voting rights and pay discrimination against women. She said some were aimed at swaying the opinions of her fellow judges while others were “an appeal to the intelligence of another day” in the hopes that they would provide guidance to future courts.“Hope springs eternal,” she said in 2007, “and when I am writing a dissent, I’m always hoping for that fifth or sixth vote — even though I’m disappointed more often than not.”She wrote memorably in 2013 that the court’s decision to cut out a key part of the federal law that had ensured the voting rights of Black people, Hispanics and other minorities was “like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet.”Change on the court hit Ginsburg especially hard. She dissented forcefully from the court’s decision in 2007 to uphold a nationwide ban on an abortion procedure that opponents call partial-birth abortion. The court, with O’Connor still on it, had struck down a similar state ban seven years earlier. The “alarming” ruling, Ginsburg said, “cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away at a right declared again and again by this court — and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to women’s lives.”In 1999, Ginsburg had surgery for colon cancer and received radiation and chemotherapy. She had surgery again in 2009 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and in December 2018 for cancerous growths on her left lung. Following the last surgery, she missed court sessions for the first time in more than 25 years on the bench.Ginsburg also was treated with radiation for a tumor on her pancreas in August 2019. She maintained an active schedule even during the three weeks of radiation. When she revealed a recurrence of her cancer in July 2020, Ginsburg said she remained “fully able” to continue as a justice.Joan Ruth Bader was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1933, the second daughter in a middle-class family. Her older sister, who gave her the lifelong nickname “Kiki,” died at age 6, so Ginsburg grew up in Brooklyn’s Flatbush section as an only child. Her dream, she has said, was to be an opera singer.Ginsburg graduated at the top of her Columbia University law school class in 1959 but could not find a law firm willing to hire her. She had “three strikes against her” — for being Jewish, female and a mother, as she put it in 2007.She had married her husband, Martin, in 1954, the year she graduated from Cornell University. She attended Harvard University’s law school but transferred to Columbia when her husband took a law job there. Martin Ginsburg went on to become a prominent tax attorney and law professor. Martin Ginsburg died in 2010. She is survived by two children, Jane and James, and several grandchildren.Ginsburg once said that she had not entered the law as an equal-rights champion. “I thought I could do a lawyer’s job better than any other,” she wrote. “I have no talent in the arts, but I do write fairly well and analyze problems clearly.”

Justice Ginsberg dead; McConnell: Senate will vote on Trump nominee

By SUZANNE HOGAN <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-09-16/subsidies-encourage-kansas-ranchers-to-make-room-for-the-lesser-prairie-chicken">Kansas News Service</a>

ENGLEWOOD, Kansas — Lesser prairie chickens don’t really 
bother Mike McCarty. He likes them just fine, but doesn’t think people 
understand how hard it is to balance wildlife conservation and being a 
rancher and farmer in southwest Kansas.

“Yes, we need to protect our wildlife and everything,” he says, “but we also need to protect our people, our agriculture.”

For
 more than a decade, the lesser prairie chicken has been the source of 
contention out here in the southern Great Plains, especially in Kansas, 
which is where 90% of the remaining birds live. In 2014, the U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service listed it as a threatened species, but a year later<a href="https://www.fws.gov/news/ShowNews.cfm?ref=u.s.-fish-and-wildlife-service-removes-lesser-prairie-chicken-from-list-o&amp;_ID=35741" target="_blank"> a judge overturned that designation.</a> In 2019, environmental organizations filed a new lawsuit.

But next spring could be a turning point, as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is set to <a href="https://www.wafwa.org/news/e_2201/News/2020/4/WAFWA-s-Lesser-Prairie-Chicken-Program-Update" target="_blank">make a decision on the bird</a>’s
 designation. And there’s a newer program from the U.S. Department of 
Agriculture for broader voluntary conservation efforts, beyond just the 
lesser prairie chicken.

The
 lesser prairie chicken used to be found in Kansas, Colorado, New 
Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. But the region has seen quite a change in 
the past 100 years, leading to the bird losing 85% of its natural 
habitat.

More and more land is being used for agriculture and 
energy production, like wind farms and oil, and invasive trees like 
eastern red cedar and mesquite are taking over.

It’s why the USDA 
wanted to address the changing grasslands 10 years ago. Because 95% of 
the lesser prairie chicken’s habitat is on private lands, the agency 
also wanted to get landowners involved, so it started the <a href="https://www.lpcinitiative.org/" target="_blank">Lesser Prairie Chicken Initiative.</a>

The program gives ranchers incentives to do things like change grazing patterns and prescribed burns and remove invasive trees.

And
 that’s where McCarty comes back in. He originally was skeptical of the 
initiative, but after a massive wildfire killed 50% of his cattle and 
burned 90% of his grass and crops, he decided to enroll in the program.

“It
 was a very rough time. And so we felt like we had to do something to 
try to bring in income,” he says, and, overall, it has helped him stay 
afloat.

The USDA has worked with nearly 880 different landowners, 
including McCarty, investing $44 million to preserve 1.6 million acres 
of critical habitat. And in that time span, the bird <a href="https://www.lpcinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/LPCI-Outcomes-in-Conservation-Report-May-2020_final.pdf" target="_blank">has been doing a little better,</a> which makes Tim Griffiths a happy guy.

Griffiths is the Western Coordinator for <a href="https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/programs/initiatives/?cid=stelprdb1046975" target="_blank">Working Lands For Wildlife,</a>
 another USDA program. He is based in Montana but is from Klamath Falls,
 Oregon — a place that became a battleground between loggers and 
wildlife activists when the northern spotted owl was first listed as an 
endangered species.

“It was ugly,” Griffiths says. “Seeing 
firsthand some of the negative impacts associated with pitting wildlife 
against agriculture, I became inspired to get involved and help find 
some win-win solutions.”

He says Working Lands For Wildlife is 
taking some of the lessons from the Lesser Prairie Chicken Initiative 
and expanding it to the rest of the Great Plains in the hopes that more 
voluntary conservation in a larger region will have a bigger impact.

“We’re not ending any effort to conserve lesser prairie chicken 
habitat,” he said. “What we’re doing is we’re broadening our approach 
from just southern Great Plains to the whole of the Great Plains.”

Kansas
 State University researcher David Haukos is all for anything that helps
 the grasslands. But Haukos, who has studied the lesser prairie chicken 
since the 1980s, is worried about what might happen if the focus shifts 
specifically from the bird.

“It doesn’t take more than one more intensive drought and all those achievements, all those gains could be lost,” he said.

And
 because of the way their populations naturally ebb and flow, Haukos 
worries that climate change could send conservation efforts backwards.

Suzanne
 Hogan is contributing announcer, producer and reporter for KCUR 89.3. 
She also hosts and produces the podcast, A People’s History of Kansas 
City. Reach her at <a href="mailto:suzanne@kcur.org" target="_blank">suzanne@kcur.org</a>

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1600282248568.png" alt="The lesser prairie chicken is native to the Southern Great Plains, but it has lost 85% of its natural habitat due to changes in agriculture and invasive trees. Kansas rancher Ed Koger" />
 <figcaption>The lesser prairie chicken is native to the Southern Great Plains, but it has lost 85% of its natural habitat due to changes in agriculture and invasive trees. Kansas rancher Ed Koger</figcaption>
 </figure>By SUZANNE HOGAN <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-09-16/subsidies-encourage-kansas-ranchers-to-make-room-for-the-lesser-prairie-chicken">Kansas News Service</a>ENGLEWOOD, Kansas — Lesser prairie chickens don’t really 
bother Mike McCarty. He likes them just fine, but doesn’t think people 
understand how hard it is to balance wildlife conservation and being a 
rancher and farmer in southwest Kansas.“Yes, we need to protect our wildlife and everything,” he says, “but we also need to protect our people, our agriculture.”For
 more than a decade, the lesser prairie chicken has been the source of 
contention out here in the southern Great Plains, especially in Kansas, 
which is where 90% of the remaining birds live. In 2014, the U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service listed it as a threatened species, but a year later<a href="https://www.fws.gov/news/ShowNews.cfm?ref=u.s.-fish-and-wildlife-service-removes-lesser-prairie-chicken-from-list-o&amp;_ID=35741" target="_blank"> a judge overturned that designation.</a> In 2019, environmental organizations filed a new lawsuit.But next spring could be a turning point, as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is set to <a href="https://www.wafwa.org/news/e_2201/News/2020/4/WAFWA-s-Lesser-Prairie-Chicken-Program-Update" target="_blank">make a decision on the bird</a>’s
 designation. And there’s a newer program from the U.S. Department of 
Agriculture for broader voluntary conservation efforts, beyond just the 
lesser prairie chicken.<h2>The bird’s backstory</h2>The
 lesser prairie chicken used to be found in Kansas, Colorado, New 
Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. But the region has seen quite a change in 
the past 100 years, leading to the bird losing 85% of its natural 
habitat.More and more land is being used for agriculture and 
energy production, like wind farms and oil, and invasive trees like 
eastern red cedar and mesquite are taking over.It’s why the USDA 
wanted to address the changing grasslands 10 years ago. Because 95% of 
the lesser prairie chicken’s habitat is on private lands, the agency 
also wanted to get landowners involved, so it started the <a href="https://www.lpcinitiative.org/" target="_blank">Lesser Prairie Chicken Initiative.</a><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1600282313178.png" alt="Mike McCarty and his family have been ranching in southwestern Kansas for over 100 years. Suzanne Hogan" />
 <figcaption>Mike McCarty and his family have been ranching in southwestern Kansas for over 100 years. Suzanne Hogan</figcaption>
 </figure>The program gives ranchers incentives to do things like change grazing patterns and prescribed burns and remove invasive trees.And
 that’s where McCarty comes back in. He originally was skeptical of the 
initiative, but after a massive wildfire killed 50% of his cattle and 
burned 90% of his grass and crops, he decided to enroll in the program.“It
 was a very rough time. And so we felt like we had to do something to 
try to bring in income,” he says, and, overall, it has helped him stay 
afloat.The USDA has worked with nearly 880 different landowners, 
including McCarty, investing $44 million to preserve 1.6 million acres 
of critical habitat. And in that time span, the bird <a href="https://www.lpcinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/LPCI-Outcomes-in-Conservation-Report-May-2020_final.pdf" target="_blank">has been doing a little better,</a> which makes Tim Griffiths a happy guy.<h2>What’s next</h2>Griffiths is the Western Coordinator for <a href="https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/programs/initiatives/?cid=stelprdb1046975" target="_blank">Working Lands For Wildlife,</a>
 another USDA program. He is based in Montana but is from Klamath Falls,
 Oregon — a place that became a battleground between loggers and 
wildlife activists when the northern spotted owl was first listed as an 
endangered species.“It was ugly,” Griffiths says. “Seeing 
firsthand some of the negative impacts associated with pitting wildlife 
against agriculture, I became inspired to get involved and help find 
some win-win solutions.”He says Working Lands For Wildlife is 
taking some of the lessons from the Lesser Prairie Chicken Initiative 
and expanding it to the rest of the Great Plains in the hopes that more 
voluntary conservation in a larger region will have a bigger impact.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1600282379180.png" alt="A prescribed burn on Ed Koger's ranch near Belvidere, Kansas. The Lesser Prairie Chicken Initiative offers incentives to get ranchers like Koger to do things to help native grassland habitat. Ed Koger" />
 <figcaption>A prescribed burn on Ed Koger's ranch near Belvidere, Kansas. The Lesser Prairie Chicken Initiative offers incentives to get ranchers like Koger to do things to help native grassland habitat. Ed Koger</figcaption>
 </figure>“We’re not ending any effort to conserve lesser prairie chicken 
habitat,” he said. “What we’re doing is we’re broadening our approach 
from just southern Great Plains to the whole of the Great Plains.”Kansas
 State University researcher David Haukos is all for anything that helps
 the grasslands. But Haukos, who has studied the lesser prairie chicken 
since the 1980s, is worried about what might happen if the focus shifts 
specifically from the bird.“It doesn’t take more than one more intensive drought and all those achievements, all those gains could be lost,” he said.And
 because of the way their populations naturally ebb and flow, Haukos 
worries that climate change could send conservation efforts backwards.Suzanne
 Hogan is contributing announcer, producer and reporter for KCUR 89.3. 
She also hosts and produces the podcast, A People’s History of Kansas 
City. Reach her at <a href="mailto:suzanne@kcur.org" target="_blank">suzanne@kcur.org</a>

Subsidies encourage Kan. ranchers to make room for lesser prairie chicken

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Democratic Rep. Sharice Davids will reimburse her campaign for two clothing purchases after Republican challenger Amanda Adkins’ campaign questioned the expenditures. 

At issue is a $412 payment to Banana Republic and $376 to White House Black Market that are listed in Davids’ 2018 campaign finance records as “Personal Items for Candidate Debate.” 

The campaign staff for Adkins argued Thursday that the expenditures potentially violated a federal law that prohibits the use of campaign funds for such expenses.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1589750439719.png" alt="Kan. congresswoman Sharice Davids" />
 <figcaption>Kan. congresswoman Sharice Davids</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Democratic Rep. Sharice Davids will reimburse her campaign for two clothing purchases after Republican challenger Amanda Adkins’ campaign questioned the expenditures. At issue is a $412 payment to Banana Republic and $376 to White House Black Market that are listed in Davids’ 2018 campaign finance records as “Personal Items for Candidate Debate.” The campaign staff for Adkins argued Thursday that the expenditures potentially violated a federal law that prohibits the use of campaign funds for such expenses.

Kan. congresswoman will reimburse campaign for purchases

By CELIA LLOPIS-JEPSEN <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-09-18/kansas-nursing-homes-still-waiting-on-coronavirus-testing-gear-from-the-feds-and-cant-afford-labs">Kansas News Service</a>

Phillips County Retirement Center got a coronavirus testing machine 
this month from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

But it will run out of the sample-collecting kits that came with the device on Monday, just one week after turning it on.

Twenty miles away, the county’s other nursing home is still waiting for its machine.

“It’s
 been a really big struggle just to even try to find out who knows where
 it is,” said Teresa McComb, who runs Logan Manor Community Health 
Services.

A <a href="https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-20-38-nh.pdf" target="_blank">new federal rule</a>
 promises to protect nursing home residents from COVID-19 by requiring 
all workers to undergo testing up to twice a week. Homes should either 
use machines sent by HHS or find labs that can deliver results within 48
 hours.

But weeks into the new requirements, many nursing homes in
 Kansas are still scrambling to make that happen. They’re either biting 
their nails and hoping a machine will arrive soon, or else equally 
stressed trying to buy kits to keep them running.

They worry the 
new rules to keep people safe could actually push the facilities toward 
financial ruin because tests, and especially private labs, cost so much.

“They
 might as well have told me to land all my residents on the moon as to 
come up with that amount,” said Joe Ewert, the CEO of Brewster Place in 
Topeka.

In Phillips County,
 the coronavirus struck Logan Manor at the end of June. Two dozen 
residents and 15 employees tested positive. Eight people died.

“I’m
 not opposed at all to testing as often as they think we should,” McComb
 said. “I don’t want to get COVID in our building again. It is horrible 
to have and I don’t wish it upon anybody.”

The home, an hour north
 of Hays, struggled to find fast testing at the time. Samples that it 
shuttled four hours to Wichita took nearly two weeks to return results 
even though the lab had promised a swift turnaround.

On a tip from
 U.S. Rep. Roger Marshall, the home drove the rest of its swabs five 
hours to a lab in Johnson County that could give answers within a few 
days.

Kansas gets regular updates from the federal government 
showing which nursing homes have received their testing machines or 
should soon. The latest list, from last week, shows 280 homes in Kansas.
 Of those, 130 hadn’t yet received them.

LeadingAge Kansas, an association of nonprofit long-term care facilities, says some homes aren’t even on the list.

The machines conduct <a href="https://khn.org/news/trump-is-sending-fast-cheap-covid-tests-to-nursing-homes-but-theres-a-hitch/" target="_blank">rapid antigen tests</a>. They are less accurate than tests conducted in most labs, but offer cheaper and faster results.

Nursing homes must test staff <a href="https://data.cms.gov/stories/s/COVID-19-Nursing-Home-Data/bkwz-xpvg" target="_blank">monthly, weekly or twice a week</a>
 depending on the rate of people in their county who test positive for 
the coronavirus. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services uses 
that measure to gauge the local risk of transmission.

Sixty-one 
Kansas counties fall under the weekly testing rule. Twice-a-week testing
 applies in 14 counties and monthly testing in 30.

Testing even once a week poses a challenge.

The
 15-minute turnaround on the machines adds up when facilities run scores
 or even hundreds of samples per week. A single round of testing takes 
12 hours at Phillips County Retirement Center, which has about 50 
employees.

“So what you’re looking at is pulling a licensed nurse 
off the floor or out of the office to do this,” said Nate Glendening, 
the home’s administrator. “Taking away from direct care — it’s just 
tough.”

Nursing homes tend to run on slim operating margins with little in the way of extra staff.

At Brewster Place, with four times the staff of the Phillips center, the new machine is already straining. It powers down from time to time and Ewert, the nursing home’s CEO, worries it will break.

“The
 machine itself is very cool,” he said. “But in my opinion — our 
experience so far in just the two weeks — I don’t believe it was built 
to run 45 to 50 or 90 hours a week.”

Both Phillips County Retirement 
Center and Brewster Place put in orders with vendors to buy more test 
kits. They were put on waitlists. One distributor told Glendening to 
expect the supplies in late September.

But throughout the pandemic, nursing homes have seen delivery dates delayed for all sorts of critical gear because of backlogs.

“There’s no guarantee,” he said. “I’ll be real surprised if we see them, but we’re keeping our fingers crossed.”

If
 kits aren’t available when a nursing home runs out, the facility must 
look for a lab that returns results within two days. Labs in 
Glendening’s region have told him they need 72 hours.

He worries 
he might need to go as far as Johnson County, pulling an employee off of
 other tasks one day a week to make the 10-hour round trip.

CMS says nursing homes that fail to keep up the pace of testing to shield against coronavirus outbreaks risk fines of <a href="https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/press-releases/trump-administration-strengthens-covid-19-surveillance-new-reporting-and-testing-requirements" target="_blank">$400 a day</a>.

Yet it will <a href="https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-20-38-nh.pdf" target="_blank">cut facilities slack</a> if they can prove that they fell behind because they couldn’t find kits or a two-day lab.

Nursing
 homes are unsure, though, how far away they should be prepared to send 
their samples in search of that service. They also don’t know what 
happens if they can’t afford lab prices that often run $100 or more a 
pop compared to rapid antigen kits that cost less than $50.

Brewster Place will run out of kits this week.

Ewert
 worries his facility can’t afford mass testing every week at private 
labs. And if Shawnee County’s positivity climbs high enough to require 
twice-a-week testing at the 100-resident nursing home, he says, the cost
 would rival his nursing payroll.

He would need to plan its closure within a year.

“We’ve promised to take care of people for the rest of their life,” he said.

Celia Llopis-Jepsen reports on consumer health and education for the Kansas News Service. You can follow her on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/Celia_LJ" target="_blank">@celia_LJ</a>
 or email her at celia@kcur.org. The Kansas News Service is a
 collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW and High Plains Public
 Radio focused on health, the social determinants of health and their 
connection to public policy.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1600445209650.png" alt="Brewster Place in Topeka is grateful to have a coronavirus testing machine that allows on-site testing. But staff worry the device might not be able to handle running 200 samples a week for very long. Joe Ewert / Brewster Place" />
 <figcaption>Brewster Place in Topeka is grateful to have a coronavirus testing machine that allows on-site testing. But staff worry the device might not be able to handle running 200 samples a week for very long. Joe Ewert / Brewster Place</figcaption>
 </figure>By CELIA LLOPIS-JEPSEN <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-09-18/kansas-nursing-homes-still-waiting-on-coronavirus-testing-gear-from-the-feds-and-cant-afford-labs">Kansas News Service</a>Phillips County Retirement Center got a coronavirus testing machine 
this month from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.But it will run out of the sample-collecting kits that came with the device on Monday, just one week after turning it on.Twenty miles away, the county’s other nursing home is still waiting for its machine.“It’s
 been a really big struggle just to even try to find out who knows where
 it is,” said Teresa McComb, who runs Logan Manor Community Health 
Services.A <a href="https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-20-38-nh.pdf" target="_blank">new federal rule</a>
 promises to protect nursing home residents from COVID-19 by requiring 
all workers to undergo testing up to twice a week. Homes should either 
use machines sent by HHS or find labs that can deliver results within 48
 hours.But weeks into the new requirements, many nursing homes in
 Kansas are still scrambling to make that happen. They’re either biting 
their nails and hoping a machine will arrive soon, or else equally 
stressed trying to buy kits to keep them running.They worry the 
new rules to keep people safe could actually push the facilities toward 
financial ruin because tests, and especially private labs, cost so much.“They
 might as well have told me to land all my residents on the moon as to 
come up with that amount,” said Joe Ewert, the CEO of Brewster Place in 
Topeka.The struggle to get testsIn Phillips County,
 the coronavirus struck Logan Manor at the end of June. Two dozen 
residents and 15 employees tested positive. Eight people died.“I’m
 not opposed at all to testing as often as they think we should,” McComb
 said. “I don’t want to get COVID in our building again. It is horrible 
to have and I don’t wish it upon anybody.”The home, an hour north
 of Hays, struggled to find fast testing at the time. Samples that it 
shuttled four hours to Wichita took nearly two weeks to return results 
even though the lab had promised a swift turnaround.On a tip from
 U.S. Rep. Roger Marshall, the home drove the rest of its swabs five 
hours to a lab in Johnson County that could give answers within a few 
days.Kansas gets regular updates from the federal government 
showing which nursing homes have received their testing machines or 
should soon. The latest list, from last week, shows 280 homes in Kansas.
 Of those, 130 hadn’t yet received them.LeadingAge Kansas, an association of nonprofit long-term care facilities, says some homes aren’t even on the list.The machines conduct <a href="https://khn.org/news/trump-is-sending-fast-cheap-covid-tests-to-nursing-homes-but-theres-a-hitch/" target="_blank">rapid antigen tests</a>. They are less accurate than tests conducted in most labs, but offer cheaper and faster results.Nursing homes must test staff <a href="https://data.cms.gov/stories/s/COVID-19-Nursing-Home-Data/bkwz-xpvg" target="_blank">monthly, weekly or twice a week</a>
 depending on the rate of people in their county who test positive for 
the coronavirus. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services uses 
that measure to gauge the local risk of transmission.Sixty-one 
Kansas counties fall under the weekly testing rule. Twice-a-week testing
 applies in 14 counties and monthly testing in 30.Testing even once a week poses a challenge.The
 15-minute turnaround on the machines adds up when facilities run scores
 or even hundreds of samples per week. A single round of testing takes 
12 hours at Phillips County Retirement Center, which has about 50 
employees.“So what you’re looking at is pulling a licensed nurse 
off the floor or out of the office to do this,” said Nate Glendening, 
the home’s administrator. “Taking away from direct care — it’s just 
tough.”Nursing homes tend to run on slim operating margins with little in the way of extra staff.At Brewster Place, with four times the staff of the Phillips center, the new machine is already straining. It powers down from time to time and Ewert, the nursing home’s CEO, worries it will break.“The
 machine itself is very cool,” he said. “But in my opinion — our 
experience so far in just the two weeks — I don’t believe it was built 
to run 45 to 50 or 90 hours a week.”<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1600445297503.png" alt="The antigen machines need supplies like these for gathering and processing samples. Joe Ewert" />
 <figcaption>The antigen machines need supplies like these for gathering and processing samples. Joe Ewert</figcaption>
 </figure>When the kits run outBoth Phillips County Retirement 
Center and Brewster Place put in orders with vendors to buy more test 
kits. They were put on waitlists. One distributor told Glendening to 
expect the supplies in late September.But throughout the pandemic, nursing homes have seen delivery dates delayed for all sorts of critical gear because of backlogs.“There’s no guarantee,” he said. “I’ll be real surprised if we see them, but we’re keeping our fingers crossed.”If
 kits aren’t available when a nursing home runs out, the facility must 
look for a lab that returns results within two days. Labs in 
Glendening’s region have told him they need 72 hours.He worries 
he might need to go as far as Johnson County, pulling an employee off of
 other tasks one day a week to make the 10-hour round trip.CMS says nursing homes that fail to keep up the pace of testing to shield against coronavirus outbreaks risk fines of <a href="https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/press-releases/trump-administration-strengthens-covid-19-surveillance-new-reporting-and-testing-requirements" target="_blank">$400 a day</a>.Yet it will <a href="https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-20-38-nh.pdf" target="_blank">cut facilities slack</a> if they can prove that they fell behind because they couldn’t find kits or a two-day lab.Nursing
 homes are unsure, though, how far away they should be prepared to send 
their samples in search of that service. They also don’t know what 
happens if they can’t afford lab prices that often run $100 or more a 
pop compared to rapid antigen kits that cost less than $50.Brewster Place will run out of kits this week.Ewert
 worries his facility can’t afford mass testing every week at private 
labs. And if Shawnee County’s positivity climbs high enough to require 
twice-a-week testing at the 100-resident nursing home, he says, the cost
 would rival his nursing payroll.He would need to plan its closure within a year.“We’ve promised to take care of people for the rest of their life,” he said.Celia Llopis-Jepsen reports on consumer health and education for the Kansas News Service. You can follow her on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/Celia_LJ" target="_blank">@celia_LJ</a>
 or email her at celia@kcur.org. The Kansas News Service is a
 collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW and High Plains Public
 Radio focused on health, the social determinants of health and their 
connection to public policy.

Kan. nursing homes still waiting on virus testing gear from feds

ELLIS COUNTY —One person died in an accident just before 2p.m. Friday in Ellis County.

The accident occurred at the intersection of 110th Avenue and Fairground Road according to a media release from the Ellis County Sheriff.

Deputies determined Kolton Keller, 17, was driving westbound on Fairground Road approaching the controlled intersection of 110th Avenue. Terrance Kohl, 79, was driving northbound on 110th Avenue with his 93-year-old passenger Evelyn Kohl, also approaching the controlled intersection.

As both vehicles entered the intersection, the sheriff's office reported Keller failed to yield for a posted stop sign at 110th Avenue. Keller’s vehicle collided with the passenger side of the Kohls' vehicle sending it into the northwest ditch. Keller’s vehicle continued westerly through the intersection and ended up on its drivers side.

Emergency personnel responded and declared Evelyn Kohl deceased on scene. Keller and Terrance Kohl were transported by Ellis County EMS to HaysMed for medical treatment. All three accident victims are Ellis residents, according to the sheriff.

ELLIS COUNTY —One person died in an accident just before 2p.m. Friday in Ellis County.The accident occurred at the intersection of 110th Avenue and Fairground Road according to a media release from the Ellis County Sheriff.Deputies determined Kolton Keller, 17, was driving westbound on Fairground Road approaching the controlled intersection of 110th Avenue. Terrance Kohl, 79, was driving northbound on 110th Avenue with his 93-year-old passenger Evelyn Kohl, also approaching the controlled intersection.As both vehicles entered the intersection, the sheriff's office reported Keller failed to yield for a posted stop sign at 110th Avenue. Keller’s vehicle collided with the passenger side of the Kohls' vehicle sending it into the northwest ditch. Keller’s vehicle continued westerly through the intersection and ended up on its drivers side.Emergency personnel responded and declared Evelyn Kohl deceased on scene. Keller and Terrance Kohl were transported by Ellis County EMS to HaysMed for medical treatment. All three accident victims are Ellis residents, according to the sheriff.

Sheriff: 93-year-old dies Kan. woman dies in crash

PAWNEE COUNTY–A Kansas man waived his right to a preliminary hearing and entered a No Contest plea Thursday afternoon in the Pawnee County District Court to one count of Attempted Rape, according to Pawnee County Attorney Douglas McNett.

Had the matter proceeded to trial, the State would have presented testimony that on the night of October 25, 2019, Michael Patrick Stacey, 20, Larned, entered the bedroom of a female roommate at his Larned home and attempted have sexual intercourse without her consent, according to McNett.

Defense counsel indicated his client had no objection to the proffer as the defendant was intoxicated at the time of the incident and has limited memory.

After hearing the proffer of evidence and reviewing the defendant’s understanding of the consequences of his plea, District Judge Bruce Gatterman accepted the plea and found Stacey guilty of the amended charge.

 Sentencing is scheduled for October 21, 2020. As part of the plea agreement, the defendant agreed to waive his right to appeal the conviction and will be subject to lifetime Sex Offender Registration.

The defendant was originally charged with: (1) Rape of a victim overcome by force or fear; and (2) Battery. The crimes involve a single incident alleged to have occurred in Pawnee County on or about October 25, 2019. The Larned Police Department handled the investigation.

Stacey has been in the custody of the Pawnee County Sheriff since his arrest on November 12, 2019.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2019/11/1573769468888.png" alt="Michael Stacey-photo Pawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Michael Stacey-photo Pawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>PAWNEE COUNTY–A Kansas man waived his right to a preliminary hearing and entered a No Contest plea Thursday afternoon in the Pawnee County District Court to one count of Attempted Rape, according to Pawnee County Attorney Douglas McNett.Had the matter proceeded to trial, the State would have presented testimony that on the night of October 25, 2019, Michael Patrick Stacey, 20, Larned, entered the bedroom of a female roommate at his Larned home and attempted have sexual intercourse without her consent, according to McNett.Defense counsel indicated his client had no objection to the proffer as the defendant was intoxicated at the time of the incident and has limited memory.After hearing the proffer of evidence and reviewing the defendant’s understanding of the consequences of his plea, District Judge Bruce Gatterman accepted the plea and found Stacey guilty of the amended charge. Sentencing is scheduled for October 21, 2020. As part of the plea agreement, the defendant agreed to waive his right to appeal the conviction and will be subject to lifetime Sex Offender Registration.The defendant was originally charged with: (1) Rape of a victim overcome by force or fear; and (2) Battery. The crimes involve a single incident alleged to have occurred in Pawnee County on or about October 25, 2019. The Larned Police Department handled the investigation.Stacey has been in the custody of the Pawnee County Sheriff since his arrest on November 12, 2019.

Kan. man must register as sex offender as part of plea deal

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. has deployed additional troops and armored vehicles into eastern Syria after a number of clashes with Russian forces, including a recent vehicle collision that injured four American service members.

Navy Capt. Bill Urban, spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said the U.S. has also sent in radar systems and increased fighter jet patrols over the region to better protect American and coalition forces.

"The United States does not seek conflict with any other nation in Syria, but will defend Coalition forces if necessary,” said Urban.

A senior U.S. official said a half-dozen Bradley fighting vehicles and fewer than 100 additional troops were sent in to eastern Syria. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details of the military move, said the reinforcements are meant to be a clear signal to Russia to avoid any more unsafe and provocative actions against the U.S. and its allies there.

There have been a number of escalating incidents this year between U.S. and Russian forces who patrol in eastern Syria. The most serious was last month, when officials said Russian vehicles sideswiped an light-armored U.S. military vehicle, injuring four Americans. A U.S. official said at the time that two Russian helicopters also flew above the Americans, and one of the aircraft was within about 70 feet (20 meters) of the vehicle.

The deployment of the armored vehicles was first reported by NBC News.

Russia, which backs the Syrian government, has long opposed American presence in the country. The Russian Defense Ministry blamed the U.S. for the vehicle collision. The ministry said Russia had notified the U.S.-led coalition about the Russian military police convoy's route and said the U.S tried to block the Russian patrol.

The four American service members injured in the crash received concussions. U.S. troops are usually accompanied by members of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces on the patrols, and they have stayed in the region to root out remaining Islamic State insurgents.

The crash last month took place near Dayrick, in northeast Syria, where Russian troops should generally not be present. National Security Council spokesman John Ullyot said the U.S. patrol left the area “to deescalate the situation.”

While there have been several other recent incidents between the American and Russian troops in eastern Syria, officials have described the August crash as the most concerning.

This is the second time that Bradleys have been sent into Syria. They were used last October in operations with U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in missions to defeat the remnants of the Islamic State group and protect oil fields in that area.

The Bradley units are from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, based at Fort Bliss, Texas.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. has deployed additional troops and armored vehicles into eastern Syria after a number of clashes with Russian forces, including a recent vehicle collision that injured four American service members.Navy Capt. Bill Urban, spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said the U.S. has also sent in radar systems and increased fighter jet patrols over the region to better protect American and coalition forces."The United States does not seek conflict with any other nation in Syria, but will defend Coalition forces if necessary,” said Urban.A senior U.S. official said a half-dozen Bradley fighting vehicles and fewer than 100 additional troops were sent in to eastern Syria. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details of the military move, said the reinforcements are meant to be a clear signal to Russia to avoid any more unsafe and provocative actions against the U.S. and its allies there.There have been a number of escalating incidents this year between U.S. and Russian forces who patrol in eastern Syria. The most serious was last month, when officials said Russian vehicles sideswiped an light-armored U.S. military vehicle, injuring four Americans. A U.S. official said at the time that two Russian helicopters also flew above the Americans, and one of the aircraft was within about 70 feet (20 meters) of the vehicle.The deployment of the armored vehicles was first reported by NBC News.Russia, which backs the Syrian government, has long opposed American presence in the country. The Russian Defense Ministry blamed the U.S. for the vehicle collision. The ministry said Russia had notified the U.S.-led coalition about the Russian military police convoy's route and said the U.S tried to block the Russian patrol.The four American service members injured in the crash received concussions. U.S. troops are usually accompanied by members of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces on the patrols, and they have stayed in the region to root out remaining Islamic State insurgents.The crash last month took place near Dayrick, in northeast Syria, where Russian troops should generally not be present. National Security Council spokesman John Ullyot said the U.S. patrol left the area “to deescalate the situation.”While there have been several other recent incidents between the American and Russian troops in eastern Syria, officials have described the August crash as the most concerning.This is the second time that Bradleys have been sent into Syria. They were used last October in operations with U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in missions to defeat the remnants of the Islamic State group and protect oil fields in that area.The Bradley units are from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, based at Fort Bliss, Texas.“The mechanized infantry assets will help ensure the force protection of coalition forces in an increasingly complex operating environment in northeast Syria,” said Col. Wayne Marotto, spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition. “The Coalition forces remain steadfast in our commitment of ensuring the enduring defeat of Daesh.”