DAMASCUS —U.S. forces conducted precision airstrikes targeting known ISIS camps and operatives in Syria on Monday, killing 12 ISIS terrorists, according to a statement the U.S. Central Command.

The strikes against the ISIS leaders, operatives, and camps were conducted as part of the ongoing mission to disrupt, degrade, and defeat ISIS, preventing the terrorist group from conducting external operations and to ensure that ISIS does not seek opportunities to reconstitute in central Syria.

These recent strikes are in former Regime and Russian controlled areas ensuring pressure is maintained on ISIS. Battle damage assessments are underway, and there are no indications of civilian casualties.

“CENTCOM, working with allies and partners in the region, will not allow ISIS to reconstitute and take advantage of the current situation in Syria,” said Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/8/1723583511919.png" alt="File photo U.S. Central Command" />
 <figcaption>File photo U.S. Central Command</figcaption>
 </figure>DAMASCUS —U.S. forces conducted precision airstrikes targeting known ISIS camps and operatives in Syria on Monday, killing 12 ISIS terrorists, according to a statement the U.S. Central Command.The strikes against the ISIS leaders, operatives, and camps were conducted as part of the ongoing mission to disrupt, degrade, and defeat ISIS, preventing the terrorist group from conducting external operations and to ensure that ISIS does not seek opportunities to reconstitute in central Syria.These recent strikes are in former Regime and Russian controlled areas ensuring pressure is maintained on ISIS. Battle damage assessments are underway, and there are no indications of civilian casualties.“CENTCOM, working with allies and partners in the region, will not allow ISIS to reconstitute and take advantage of the current situation in Syria,” said Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla.

U.S. conducts airstrikes against ISIS operatives in Syria

HARVEY COUNTY—&nbsp;USD 373 has concluded the internal investigation of the events that took place concerning the evacuation of a school bus on&nbsp; December 13, according to a joint statement from&nbsp;Newton USD 373 and City of Newton.

The bus driver stopped on South Kansas Avenue near SE 14th Street and asked the students to exit the bus.

Based upon the internal investigation, 37 students were onboard the bus that was evacuated due to fumes from a punctured Axe body spray aerosol can. Students were directed to stay onsite. The district says seven students returned to the bus to be taken home while the remaining students left the scene on foot. The release from the city says there were eight students. Regardless, all students made it home safely.

At that time, another bus was dispatched to assist in picking up students as well as administrators and other school personnel in personal vehicles. Transportation personnel reviewed bus video, confirmed student rosters and communicated with parents until the district was able to determine all students made it home.

USD 373 will be reaching out specifically to the families impacted by the incident regarding potential witness interviews.&nbsp;

A school resource officer made a preliminary review of the video footage from the bus on Friday, and the Police Department is now in the process of obtaining that video and audio evidence. Police are also interviewing the driver and each of the students.

“We understand parents’ frustration,” Chief Craig Dunlavy said. “We all want to know exactly what happened, but this will take some time to investigate thoroughly, especially with so many juveniles involved.

“Our primary focus on Friday was for the safety of all the kids. Now we have time to have more in-depth conversations and examination of the evidence. We’re investigating this like any other potentially criminal act.”

Some initial reports to police were that the incident took place in the Walmart parking lot because so many of the kids wound up there. Store staff helped gather them at customer service to be taken home.

“Kudos to the Walmart staff who helped round up the kids,” Dunlavy said. “That was a big help in accounting for them and getting them home sooner.

HARVEY COUNTY—&nbsp;USD 373 has concluded the internal investigation of the events that took place concerning the evacuation of a school bus on&nbsp; December 13, according to a joint statement from&nbsp;Newton USD 373 and City of Newton.The bus driver stopped on South Kansas Avenue near SE 14th Street and asked the students to exit the bus.Based upon the internal investigation, 37 students were onboard the bus that was evacuated due to fumes from a punctured Axe body spray aerosol can. Students were directed to stay onsite. The district says seven students returned to the bus to be taken home while the remaining students left the scene on foot. The release from the city says there were eight students. Regardless, all students made it home safely.At that time, another bus was dispatched to assist in picking up students as well as administrators and other school personnel in personal vehicles. Transportation personnel reviewed bus video, confirmed student rosters and communicated with parents until the district was able to determine all students made it home.USD 373 will be reaching out specifically to the families impacted by the incident regarding potential witness interviews.&nbsp;A school resource officer made a preliminary review of the video footage from the bus on Friday, and the Police Department is now in the process of obtaining that video and audio evidence. Police are also interviewing the driver and each of the students.“We understand parents’ frustration,” Chief Craig Dunlavy said. “We all want to know exactly what happened, but this will take some time to investigate thoroughly, especially with so many juveniles involved.“Our primary focus on Friday was for the safety of all the kids. Now we have time to have more in-depth conversations and examination of the evidence. We’re investigating this like any other potentially criminal act.”Some initial reports to police were that the incident took place in the Walmart parking lot because so many of the kids wound up there. Store staff helped gather them at customer service to be taken home.“Kudos to the Walmart staff who helped round up the kids,” Dunlavy said. “That was a big help in accounting for them and getting them home sooner.

Kan. school district continues investigation of bus incident

MONTGOMERY COUNTY —One person died in an accident just before 6p.m. Monday in Montgomery County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2010 Nissan Altima driven by William B&nbsp;Gregory, 30, Altamont, was southbound on U.S. 169&nbsp; three and one half miles south of U.S. 400.

The car passed several vehicles, then struck a northbound 2001 Chevy Silverado driven by Cody L. Taylor, 27, Parsons. After impact, the pickup spun counterclockwise, coming to rest off the roadway to the east of U.S. 169. The car continued southbound, veering right off the roadway and coming to rest just west of the highway in the grass.

Gregory was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to Frontier Forensics. EMS transported Taylor to the Mercy Hospital in Joplin. Gregory was not wearing a set belt, according to the KHP.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY —One person died in an accident just before 6p.m. Monday in Montgomery County.The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2010 Nissan Altima driven by William B&nbsp;Gregory, 30, Altamont, was southbound on U.S. 169&nbsp; three and one half miles south of U.S. 400.The car passed several vehicles, then struck a northbound 2001 Chevy Silverado driven by Cody L. Taylor, 27, Parsons. After impact, the pickup spun counterclockwise, coming to rest off the roadway to the east of U.S. 169. The car continued southbound, veering right off the roadway and coming to rest just west of the highway in the grass.Gregory was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to Frontier Forensics. EMS transported Taylor to the Mercy Hospital in Joplin. Gregory was not wearing a set belt, according to the KHP.

Kansas man dies after car, pickup crash

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A 15-year-old student opened fire inside a study hall at a small Christian school in Wisconsin,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/wisconsin-school-shooting-498c8ad26d299602553201ad639a4a5c">killing a teacher and teenager</a>&nbsp;and prompting a swarm of police officers responding to a second grader's 911 call.

The girl also&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/school-shooting-wisconsin-things-to-know-3df4f40327e70aa863c4b5b36fd0a04b">wounded six others in Monday's shooting</a>&nbsp;at Abundant Life Christian School, including two students who were in critical condition, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said. A teacher and three students were taken to a hospital with less serious injuries, and two of them were later released.

“Every child, every person in that building is a victim and will be a victim forever. ... We need to figure out and try to piece together what exactly happened," Barnes said.

Police said the shooter, identified as Natalie Rupnow, was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound when officers arrived and died en route to a hospital. Barnes declined to offer additional details about the shooter, partly out of respect for the family.

Abundant Life is a nondenominational Christian school — prekindergarten through high school — with approximately 420 students in Madison, the state capital.

Barbara Wiers, the school's director of elementary and school relations, said when they practice safety routines, leaders always announce that it's a drill. That didn’t happen Monday, just a week before Christmas break.

“When they heard, ‘Lockdown, lockdown,’ they knew it was real,” she said.

Wiers said the school does not have metal detectors but uses other security measures including cameras.

A motive for the shooting was not immediately known, nor was it clear if the victims were targeted, Barnes said.

“I don’t know why, and I feel like if we did know why, we could stop these things from happening,” he told reporters.

Barnes said police were talking with the shooter’s father and other family members, who were cooperating, and searching the shooter's home.

“He lost someone as well," Barnes said of the shooter's father. "And so we’re not going to rush the information. We’ll take our time and make sure we do our due diligence.”

The first 911 call to report an active shooter came in shortly before 11 a.m. First responders who were in training just 3 miles (about 5 kilometers) away dashed to the school for an actual emergency, Barnes said. They arrived three minutes after the initial call.

Investigators believe the shooter used a 9mm pistol, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.

Police blocked off roads around the school, and federal agents were at the scene to assist local law enforcement. No shots were fired by police.

Children and families were reunited at a health clinic about a mile (1.6 kilometers) from the school. Parents pressed children against their chests while others squeezed hands and shoulders as they walked side by side.

Abundant Life asked for prayers in a brief Facebook post. Wiers said they're still deciding whether they will resume classes this week.

Bethany Highman, the mother of a student, rushed to the school and learned over FaceTime that her daughter was OK.

“As soon as it happened, your world stops for a minute. Nothing else matters,” Highman said. “There’s nobody around you. You just bolt for the door and try to do everything you can as a parent to be with your kids.”

In a statement, President Joe Biden cited the tragedy in calling on Congress to pass universal background checks, a national red flag law and certain gun restrictions.

“We can never accept senseless violence that traumatizes children, their families, and tears entire communities apart,” Biden said. He spoke with Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers and Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway and offered his support.

Evers said it's “unthinkable” that a child or teacher would go to school and never return home.

The school shooting was&nbsp;<a href="https://projects.apnews.com/features/2023/mass-killings/index.html">the latest</a>&nbsp;among dozens across the U.S. in recent years, including especially deadly ones in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/newtown">Newtown, Connecticut</a>;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/parkland-florida-school-shooting">Parkland, Florida</a>; and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting">Uvalde, Texas</a>.

The shootings have set off fervent debates about gun control and frayed the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accustomed to doing active shooter drills in their classrooms. But school shootings have done little to move the needle on national gun laws.

Firearms were the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kff.org/mental-health/issue-brief/child-and-teen-firearm-mortality-in-the-u-s-and-peer-countries/">leading cause of death</a>&nbsp;among children in 2020 and 2021, according to KFF, a nonprofit that researches health care issues.

Rhodes-Conway said the country needs to do more to prevent gun violence.

“I hoped that this day would never come to Madison,” she said.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A 15-year-old student opened fire inside a study hall at a small Christian school in Wisconsin,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/wisconsin-school-shooting-498c8ad26d299602553201ad639a4a5c">killing a teacher and teenager</a>&nbsp;and prompting a swarm of police officers responding to a second grader's 911 call.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FALCSMadison%2Fposts%2Fpfbid021XqZpznjnXn97m8wTgZnvMsjwz5QqTnF2c3PEr89bitSD21jmBY3wMsqDhpcSrr7l&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="240" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share"></iframe></div>The girl also&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/school-shooting-wisconsin-things-to-know-3df4f40327e70aa863c4b5b36fd0a04b">wounded six others in Monday's shooting</a>&nbsp;at Abundant Life Christian School, including two students who were in critical condition, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said. A teacher and three students were taken to a hospital with less serious injuries, and two of them were later released.“Every child, every person in that building is a victim and will be a victim forever. ... We need to figure out and try to piece together what exactly happened," Barnes said.Police said the shooter, identified as Natalie Rupnow, was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound when officers arrived and died en route to a hospital. Barnes declined to offer additional details about the shooter, partly out of respect for the family.Abundant Life is a nondenominational Christian school — prekindergarten through high school — with approximately 420 students in Madison, the state capital.Barbara Wiers, the school's director of elementary and school relations, said when they practice safety routines, leaders always announce that it's a drill. That didn’t happen Monday, just a week before Christmas break.“When they heard, ‘Lockdown, lockdown,’ they knew it was real,” she said.Wiers said the school does not have metal detectors but uses other security measures including cameras.A motive for the shooting was not immediately known, nor was it clear if the victims were targeted, Barnes said.“I don’t know why, and I feel like if we did know why, we could stop these things from happening,” he told reporters.Barnes said police were talking with the shooter’s father and other family members, who were cooperating, and searching the shooter's home.“He lost someone as well," Barnes said of the shooter's father. "And so we’re not going to rush the information. We’ll take our time and make sure we do our due diligence.”The first 911 call to report an active shooter came in shortly before 11 a.m. First responders who were in training just 3 miles (about 5 kilometers) away dashed to the school for an actual emergency, Barnes said. They arrived three minutes after the initial call.Investigators believe the shooter used a 9mm pistol, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.Police blocked off roads around the school, and federal agents were at the scene to assist local law enforcement. No shots were fired by police.Children and families were reunited at a health clinic about a mile (1.6 kilometers) from the school. Parents pressed children against their chests while others squeezed hands and shoulders as they walked side by side.Abundant Life asked for prayers in a brief Facebook post. Wiers said they're still deciding whether they will resume classes this week.Bethany Highman, the mother of a student, rushed to the school and learned over FaceTime that her daughter was OK.“As soon as it happened, your world stops for a minute. Nothing else matters,” Highman said. “There’s nobody around you. You just bolt for the door and try to do everything you can as a parent to be with your kids.”In a statement, President Joe Biden cited the tragedy in calling on Congress to pass universal background checks, a national red flag law and certain gun restrictions.“We can never accept senseless violence that traumatizes children, their families, and tears entire communities apart,” Biden said. He spoke with Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers and Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway and offered his support.Evers said it's “unthinkable” that a child or teacher would go to school and never return home.The school shooting was&nbsp;<a href="https://projects.apnews.com/features/2023/mass-killings/index.html">the latest</a>&nbsp;among dozens across the U.S. in recent years, including especially deadly ones in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/newtown">Newtown, Connecticut</a>;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/parkland-florida-school-shooting">Parkland, Florida</a>; and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting">Uvalde, Texas</a>.The shootings have set off fervent debates about gun control and frayed the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accustomed to doing active shooter drills in their classrooms. But school shootings have done little to move the needle on national gun laws.Firearms were the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kff.org/mental-health/issue-brief/child-and-teen-firearm-mortality-in-the-u-s-and-peer-countries/">leading cause of death</a>&nbsp;among children in 2020 and 2021, according to KFF, a nonprofit that researches health care issues.Rhodes-Conway said the country needs to do more to prevent gun violence.“I hoped that this day would never come to Madison,” she said.___

Police: Wisconsin school shooter was 15-year-old girl

RENO COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on drug and sex allegations.

On December 11, detectives with Hutchinson Police Department Investigations Division, Special Operations Division, and Reno County Sheriff’s Office Drug Unit arrested Johnathon T. Carson, 41-year-old of Hutchinson on requested charges of indecent Solicitation of a Child to Commit or Submit to an Unlawful Sexual Act, Electronic Solicitation of a Child 14-15 YOA, Sexual Exploitation of a Child, Possession of Methamphetamine, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Violation of Parole.

Carson is being held in the Reno County Correctional Facility in lieu of a $100,000 bond.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/12/1734380497797.png" alt="Carson photo Reno Co." />
 <figcaption>Carson photo Reno Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>RENO COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on drug and sex allegations.On December 11, detectives with Hutchinson Police Department Investigations Division, Special Operations Division, and Reno County Sheriff’s Office Drug Unit arrested Johnathon T. Carson, 41-year-old of Hutchinson on requested charges of indecent Solicitation of a Child to Commit or Submit to an Unlawful Sexual Act, Electronic Solicitation of a Child 14-15 YOA, Sexual Exploitation of a Child, Possession of Methamphetamine, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Violation of Parole.Carson is being held in the Reno County Correctional Facility in lieu of a $100,000 bond.

Kansas man on parole accused of drug and child sex crimes

PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — In a freewheeling press conference at his Mar-a-Lago club, President-elect&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;said Monday he would consider pardoning embattled New York Mayor Eric Adams, declared the country was “not going to lose" the polio vaccine and weighed in on the flurry of drone sightings over New Jersey.

Holding court with reporters for the first time since he won the election and secured a second term, Trump also called on the Biden administration to stop selling off unused portions of the southern border wall, threatening legal action.

“We’re going to spend hundreds of millions of dollars more on building the same wall we already have,” he railed. “It’s almost a criminal act.”

Trump's performance Monday underscored how he has already forced his return to the center of the national political conversation, weeks before he is to be sworn-in for another term. He used the session, which was notably less combative than many of his exchanges with the press during the campaign, to test-drive policy ideas, attack his enemies and issue warnings of what is to come.

That even included the threat of a lawsuit against famed Iowa pollster Ann Selzer, whose final survey before the election badly underestimated Trump's support in the state that he won.

“In my opinion it was fraud and election interference," Trump claimed of the survey. Selzer announced that she would end her polling operation last month.

Separately,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abc-trump-lawsuit-defamation-stephanopoulos-04aea8663310af39ae2a85f4c1a56d68">ABC News announced</a>&nbsp;days ago that had it agreed to pay $15 million toward Trump's presidential library to settle a defamation lawsuit he had filed over anchor George Stephanopoulos’ inaccurate on-air assertion that the president-elect had been found civilly liable for raping a writer.

Continuing his threats of legal action, Trump railed Monday against the Biden administration over the border wall sales, saying he has spoken to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and other Texas officials about a potential restraining order.

Congress last year required the Biden administration to dispose of the unused border wall pieces. The measure, included in the massive National Defense Authorization Act, allows for the sale or donation of the items to states on the southern border, providing they are used to refurbish existing barriers, not install new ones. Congress also directed the Pentagon to account for storage costs for the border wall material while it has gone unused.

“I’m asking today, Joe Biden, to please stop selling the wall,” Trump said.

While Trump described the handover between Biden and his incoming team as “a friendly transition,” he also took issue with efforts to allow some members of the federal workforce to continue working from home. Trump said that if government workers don’t come back into the office under him, they will be dismissed.

Trump also weighed in on Adams, who is facing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/aoc-nyc-mayor-eric-adams-investigations-419eb7135ac7d52edbf32f7e45d0f5da">federal fraud and corruption charges</a>. Asked if he would consider pardoning Adams, Trump responded: “Yeah I would,” adding that he was not familiar with all of the specifics of the charges Adam is facing, while at the same time seeking to diminish them.

Adams has been accused of accepting flight upgrades and other luxury travel perks valued at $100,000 along with illegal campaign contributions from a Turkish official and other foreign nationals looking to buy his influence. He has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nyc-mayor-adams-investigations-f384ecdbf6a7b6664bd898e7ebce6e0f">pleaded not guilty</a>. Multiple members of his administration have also come under investigation.

Adams office did not immediately return an emailed request for comment on Trump's remarks.

Trump was pressed repeatedly on the future of vaccines, amid concerns over his decision to choose the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/robert-f-kennedy-vaccines-trump-rfkjr-7f8dcb25de76a5a70710d22bbc63f6fa">anti-vaccine</a>&nbsp;advocate,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/robert-f-kennedy-jr">Robert F. Kennedy Jr.</a>, to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, which regulates the shots.

Trump again declined to dismiss the long-debunked theory that vaccines cause autism and said Kennedy would be examining that already well-studied question. But he also assured the public that one of the most successful vaccines would not be barred by his administration.

“You’re not going to lose the polio vaccine,” he said, calling himself “a big believer in it.”

“That’s not going to happen," he said.

Trump also weighed in on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/drones-new-jersey-what-to-know-e6f565f5d51d9d47ad140e7e7d131842">the mysterious drone sightings</a>&nbsp;over parts of New Jersey and the eastern U.S. that have sparked speculation and concern over where they are coming from.

Taking a conspiratorial tone, Trump insisted that, “the government knows what is happening."

“Our military knows and our president knows and for some reason they want to keep people in suspense,” he said, without offering evidence and refusing to say whether he had been briefed on the sightings.

Trump has spent the weeks since his victory building out his incoming administration and speaking with what he said were well over 100 word leaders.

But he again played coy on whether that list included Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“I’m not going to comment on the Putin question," he said.

In addition to meetings with foreign leaders, Trump also talked about a recent dinner with Apple CEO Tim Cook as well as the heads of major pharmaceutical companies, which Kennedy joined. The outreach, he said, made this transition feel markedly different from 2016, when his win shocked the Washington establishment.

“The first time everybody was fighting me,” he said. “This time everyone wants to be my friend.”

Trump was joined at the appearance by SoftBank Group CEO&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/masayoshi-son">Masayoshi Son</a>, who announced that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-softbank-investment-us-8df47668f894b5d922839d98887bbb0e">the Japanese company is planning to invest $100 billion in U.S. projects over the next four years</a>.

It was a win for Trump, who has used the weeks since the election to promote his policies, negotiate with foreign leaders and try to strike deals.

In a post on his Truth Social site last week, Trump had said that anyone making a $1 billion investment in the United States “will receive fully expedited approvals and permits, including, but in no way limited to, all Environmental approvals.”

Trump has repeatedly boasted that he has done more in his short transition period than his predecessor did in all four years.

“There’s a whole light over the entire world," he said Monday. “There’s a light shining over the world."

PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — In a freewheeling press conference at his Mar-a-Lago club, President-elect&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;said Monday he would consider pardoning embattled New York Mayor Eric Adams, declared the country was “not going to lose" the polio vaccine and weighed in on the flurry of drone sightings over New Jersey.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">President-elect Trump: &quot;The first term everybody was fighting me, this term everybody wants to be my friend. I don&#39;t know. My personality changed or something.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/oQLM42KDld">pic.twitter.com/oQLM42KDld</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1868708246871064845?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">President-elect Trump is joined by SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son in announcing the Japanese bank&#39;s $100 billion investment in the U.S. over four years. <a href="https://t.co/Hl0T0iy1W5">pic.twitter.com/Hl0T0iy1W5</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1868697162273489079?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">President-elect Trump on TikTok ban: &quot;We&#39;ll take a look at TikTok. I have a warm spot in my heart for TikTok because I won youth by 34 points.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/NNN0edUAqe">pic.twitter.com/NNN0edUAqe</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1868699567346036762?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">President-elect Trump on conversation with Prime Minister <a href="https://twitter.com/netanyahu?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@netanyahu</a>: &quot;I&#39;ll be very available on January 20...I gave warning that if these hostages aren&#39;t back home by that date, all hell&#39;s going to break out.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/gmlWyWmxg5">pic.twitter.com/gmlWyWmxg5</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1868699046925197671?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">President-elect Trump on drones: &quot;The government knows what is happening. Look, our military knows where they took off from. If it&#39;s a garage they can go right into that garage. They know where it came from and where it went. For some reason they don&#39;t want to comment.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/JdITHAv4KJ">pic.twitter.com/JdITHAv4KJ</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1868704259031617901?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Holding court with reporters for the first time since he won the election and secured a second term, Trump also called on the Biden administration to stop selling off unused portions of the southern border wall, threatening legal action.“We’re going to spend hundreds of millions of dollars more on building the same wall we already have,” he railed. “It’s almost a criminal act.”Trump's performance Monday underscored how he has already forced his return to the center of the national political conversation, weeks before he is to be sworn-in for another term. He used the session, which was notably less combative than many of his exchanges with the press during the campaign, to test-drive policy ideas, attack his enemies and issue warnings of what is to come.That even included the threat of a lawsuit against famed Iowa pollster Ann Selzer, whose final survey before the election badly underestimated Trump's support in the state that he won.“In my opinion it was fraud and election interference," Trump claimed of the survey. Selzer announced that she would end her polling operation last month.Separately,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abc-trump-lawsuit-defamation-stephanopoulos-04aea8663310af39ae2a85f4c1a56d68">ABC News announced</a>&nbsp;days ago that had it agreed to pay $15 million toward Trump's presidential library to settle a defamation lawsuit he had filed over anchor George Stephanopoulos’ inaccurate on-air assertion that the president-elect had been found civilly liable for raping a writer.Continuing his threats of legal action, Trump railed Monday against the Biden administration over the border wall sales, saying he has spoken to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and other Texas officials about a potential restraining order.Congress last year required the Biden administration to dispose of the unused border wall pieces. The measure, included in the massive National Defense Authorization Act, allows for the sale or donation of the items to states on the southern border, providing they are used to refurbish existing barriers, not install new ones. Congress also directed the Pentagon to account for storage costs for the border wall material while it has gone unused.“I’m asking today, Joe Biden, to please stop selling the wall,” Trump said.While Trump described the handover between Biden and his incoming team as “a friendly transition,” he also took issue with efforts to allow some members of the federal workforce to continue working from home. Trump said that if government workers don’t come back into the office under him, they will be dismissed.Trump also weighed in on Adams, who is facing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/aoc-nyc-mayor-eric-adams-investigations-419eb7135ac7d52edbf32f7e45d0f5da">federal fraud and corruption charges</a>. Asked if he would consider pardoning Adams, Trump responded: “Yeah I would,” adding that he was not familiar with all of the specifics of the charges Adam is facing, while at the same time seeking to diminish them.Adams has been accused of accepting flight upgrades and other luxury travel perks valued at $100,000 along with illegal campaign contributions from a Turkish official and other foreign nationals looking to buy his influence. He has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nyc-mayor-adams-investigations-f384ecdbf6a7b6664bd898e7ebce6e0f">pleaded not guilty</a>. Multiple members of his administration have also come under investigation.Adams office did not immediately return an emailed request for comment on Trump's remarks.Trump was pressed repeatedly on the future of vaccines, amid concerns over his decision to choose the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/robert-f-kennedy-vaccines-trump-rfkjr-7f8dcb25de76a5a70710d22bbc63f6fa">anti-vaccine</a>&nbsp;advocate,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/robert-f-kennedy-jr">Robert F. Kennedy Jr.</a>, to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, which regulates the shots.Trump again declined to dismiss the long-debunked theory that vaccines cause autism and said Kennedy would be examining that already well-studied question. But he also assured the public that one of the most successful vaccines would not be barred by his administration.“You’re not going to lose the polio vaccine,” he said, calling himself “a big believer in it.”“That’s not going to happen," he said.Trump also weighed in on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/drones-new-jersey-what-to-know-e6f565f5d51d9d47ad140e7e7d131842">the mysterious drone sightings</a>&nbsp;over parts of New Jersey and the eastern U.S. that have sparked speculation and concern over where they are coming from.Taking a conspiratorial tone, Trump insisted that, “the government knows what is happening."“Our military knows and our president knows and for some reason they want to keep people in suspense,” he said, without offering evidence and refusing to say whether he had been briefed on the sightings.Trump has spent the weeks since his victory building out his incoming administration and speaking with what he said were well over 100 word leaders.But he again played coy on whether that list included Russian President Vladimir Putin.“I’m not going to comment on the Putin question," he said.In addition to meetings with foreign leaders, Trump also talked about a recent dinner with Apple CEO Tim Cook as well as the heads of major pharmaceutical companies, which Kennedy joined. The outreach, he said, made this transition feel markedly different from 2016, when his win shocked the Washington establishment.“The first time everybody was fighting me,” he said. “This time everyone wants to be my friend.”Trump was joined at the appearance by SoftBank Group CEO&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/masayoshi-son">Masayoshi Son</a>, who announced that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-softbank-investment-us-8df47668f894b5d922839d98887bbb0e">the Japanese company is planning to invest $100 billion in U.S. projects over the next four years</a>.It was a win for Trump, who has used the weeks since the election to promote his policies, negotiate with foreign leaders and try to strike deals.In a post on his Truth Social site last week, Trump had said that anyone making a $1 billion investment in the United States “will receive fully expedited approvals and permits, including, but in no way limited to, all Environmental approvals.”“GET READY TO ROCK!!!” he wrote.Trump has repeatedly boasted that he has done more in his short transition period than his predecessor did in all four years.“There’s a whole light over the entire world," he said Monday. “There’s a light shining over the world."

🎥 Highlights of Trump's first press conference since the election

HARVEY COUNTY — A man is dead after a weekend hunting accident south of Burrton.

The Harvey County Sheriff’s Office was dispatched Saturday at 7:10 a.m. to the 8200 block of South Prairie Lake Road.

Reports indicated three people were hunting in a duck blind when one individual accidentally discharged a shotgun. The gunshot fatally wounded one hunter. No one else was injured.

Aaron Snook, 41, of Goddard, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Sheriff’s Office has concluded its investigation, ruling the death accidental. No foul play was suspected.

HARVEY COUNTY —A man died in a hunting accident on Saturday in Harvey County.

The man was&nbsp;was shot by another person he was hunting with south of Burrton, according to Harvey County spokesman Kyle McCaskey.

 The man was pronounced dead at the scene. The death was ruled accidental, according to McCaskey.&nbsp; Authorities released no additional details including the name of the victim.

Check the Post for additional details as they become available.

HARVEY COUNTY — A man is dead after a weekend hunting accident south of Burrton.The Harvey County Sheriff’s Office was dispatched Saturday at 7:10 a.m. to the 8200 block of South Prairie Lake Road.Reports indicated three people were hunting in a duck blind when one individual accidentally discharged a shotgun. The gunshot fatally wounded one hunter. No one else was injured.Aaron Snook, 41, of Goddard, was pronounced dead at the scene.The Sheriff’s Office has concluded its investigation, ruling the death accidental. No foul play was suspected.-----------HARVEY COUNTY —A man died in a hunting accident on Saturday in Harvey County.The man was&nbsp;was shot by another person he was hunting with south of Burrton, according to Harvey County spokesman Kyle McCaskey. The man was pronounced dead at the scene. The death was ruled accidental, according to McCaskey.&nbsp; Authorities released no additional details including the name of the victim.Check the Post for additional details as they become available.

Sheriff IDs Kansas man who died in hunting accident

SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement investigating a homicide in Topeka have made an arrest.

have released the name of the victim as 45-year-old David Bentley, according to police spokesperson Rosie Nichols

Just before&nbsp;11:30 p.m. Wednesday, Police responded to the 2000 Block of SW Stone for a check welfare on an individual.

First responders found 45-year-old David Bentley suffering from a gun shot wound. He was pronounced deceased at the scene by medical personnel.

As a result of the investigation, Colton G. Miller, 27, Topeka was transported to the Shawnee County Department of Corrections and is being held on requested charges of Murder in the 1st degree, Unlawful to acquire proceeds from a drug transaction, Use of communication facility in commission of a felony drug violation and Distribute controlled substance.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/12/1734368304027.png" alt="Miller photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Miller photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement investigating a homicide in Topeka have made an arrest.have released the name of the victim as 45-year-old David Bentley, according to police spokesperson Rosie NicholsJust before&nbsp;11:30 p.m. Wednesday, Police responded to the 2000 Block of SW Stone for a check welfare on an individual.First responders found 45-year-old David Bentley suffering from a gun shot wound. He was pronounced deceased at the scene by medical personnel.As a result of the investigation, Colton G. Miller, 27, Topeka was transported to the Shawnee County Department of Corrections and is being held on requested charges of Murder in the 1st degree, Unlawful to acquire proceeds from a drug transaction, Use of communication facility in commission of a felony drug violation and Distribute controlled substance.

Suspect jailed for murder of Kansas man

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes drifted amid mixed trading Monday, ahead of this week’s upcoming&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-inflation-rates-trump-economy-prices-4abfd4fad49db65cad4a2b5607d9e952">meeting by the Federal Reserve</a>&nbsp;that could set Wall Street’s direction into next year.

The S&amp;P 500 rose 0.4%, coming off its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-china-inflation-rates-44ade1d46d9dc7ed714934238e810f65">first losing week in the last four</a>. The Nasdaq composite climbed 1.2% to a record, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was a laggard and fell 110 points, or 0.3%.

Broadcom leaped 11.2% to help lead the S&amp;P 500 for a second straight day after delivering a profit report last week that beat analysts’ expectations. The technology company is riding a wave of enthusiasm about its artificial-intelligence offerings in particular.

The market’s main event, though, will arrive on Wednesday when the Federal Reserve will announce its last move on interest rates for the year. The widespread expectation is that it will cut its main rate for a third straight time, as it tries to boost the slowing job market after getting inflation nearly all the way down to its target of 2%.

The question is how much more it will cut rates next year, and Fed officials will release projections for where they see the federal funds rate ending 2025, along with other economic indicators, once their meeting concludes. Fed Chair Jerome Powell will also answer questions in a press conference following the meeting.

For now, the general expectation among traders is that the Fed may cut a couple more times in 2025, according to data from CME Group. But such expectations have been shrinking following&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/inflation-prices-interest-rates-economy-federal-reserve-223c3a826318d142e283839f9d8581a2">reports</a>&nbsp;suggesting inflation may be tougher to get all the way down to 2% from here. Besides last month’s slight acceleration in inflation, another worry is that President-elect Donald Trump’s preferences for tariffs and other policies could lead to higher inflation down the line.

Goldman Sachs economist David Mericle has dropped his earlier forecast of a cut by the Fed in January, for example. Beyond the possibility of tariffs, he said Fed officials may also want to slow their cuts because of uncertainty about exactly how low rates need to go so that they no longer press the brakes on the economy.

Expectations for a series of cuts to rates by the Fed have been one of the main reasons the S&amp;P 500 has set an all-time high&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-jobs-china-bitcoin-f066b9725ca1eaf8de1fa700555920e4">57 times so far this year</a>&nbsp;and is heading for one of its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/sp-stocks-wall-street-records-c144fbee69be7fff59c2e4b945b0c393">best years of the millennium</a>. The economy has held up better than many feared, continuing to grow even after the Fed hiked the federal funds rate to a two-decade high in hopes of grinding down on inflation, which topped 9% two summers ago.

On Wall Street, MicroStrategy jumped as much as 7% during the day as it continues to benefit from the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bitcoin-trump-election-crypto-regulation-c45a747d9c32591bc4e5dcd6e5cc0c22">surging price for bitcoin</a>, which set another all-time high. But its stock ended the day down by les than 0.1% after bitcoin’s price pulled back below $106,000 after setting a record above $107,700, according to CoinDesk.

The software company has been building its hoard of the cryptocurrency, and its stock price has more than sextupled this year. It will also soon join the Nasdaq 100 index.

Bitcoin’s price has catapulted from roughly $44,000 at the start of the year, riding a recent wave of enthusiasm that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Trump</a>&nbsp;will create a system that’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/sec-chair-atkins-gensler-investors-financial-markets-d1c544f1846071b33c75b9f2dd0c1ba4">more favorable to digital currencies</a>.

Honeywell rose 3.7% after saying it’s still considering a spin-off or sale of its aerospace business, as part of a review of its overall business. It said it plans to give an update with the release of its fourth-quarter results.

They helped offset a drop for Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the world’s move into AI. Its stock fell 1.7%. Because it’s grown so massive, with a total value topping $3 trillion, it was the single heaviest weight on the S&amp;P 500.

All told, the S&amp;P 500 rose 22.99 points to 6,074.08. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 110.58 to 43,717.48, and the Nasdaq composite rose 247.17 to 20,173.89.

In the bond market, Treasury yields held relatively steady. The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged down to 4.39% from 4.40% late Friday. The two-year yield, which more closely tracks expectations for the Fed, eased to 4.24% from 4.25%.

In stock markets abroad, indexes fell modestly across much of Europe and Asia.

They sank 0.9% in Hong Kong and 0.2% in Shanghai after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-economy-trump-tariffs-057555a36a1616e3e819d51c9a2a0383">China</a>&nbsp;reported lackluster economic indicators for November despite attempts to strengthen the world’s second-largest economy.

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes drifted amid mixed trading Monday, ahead of this week’s upcoming&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-inflation-rates-trump-economy-prices-4abfd4fad49db65cad4a2b5607d9e952">meeting by the Federal Reserve</a>&nbsp;that could set Wall Street’s direction into next year.The S&amp;P 500 rose 0.4%, coming off its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-china-inflation-rates-44ade1d46d9dc7ed714934238e810f65">first losing week in the last four</a>. The Nasdaq composite climbed 1.2% to a record, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was a laggard and fell 110 points, or 0.3%.Broadcom leaped 11.2% to help lead the S&amp;P 500 for a second straight day after delivering a profit report last week that beat analysts’ expectations. The technology company is riding a wave of enthusiasm about its artificial-intelligence offerings in particular.The market’s main event, though, will arrive on Wednesday when the Federal Reserve will announce its last move on interest rates for the year. The widespread expectation is that it will cut its main rate for a third straight time, as it tries to boost the slowing job market after getting inflation nearly all the way down to its target of 2%.The question is how much more it will cut rates next year, and Fed officials will release projections for where they see the federal funds rate ending 2025, along with other economic indicators, once their meeting concludes. Fed Chair Jerome Powell will also answer questions in a press conference following the meeting.For now, the general expectation among traders is that the Fed may cut a couple more times in 2025, according to data from CME Group. But such expectations have been shrinking following&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/inflation-prices-interest-rates-economy-federal-reserve-223c3a826318d142e283839f9d8581a2">reports</a>&nbsp;suggesting inflation may be tougher to get all the way down to 2% from here. Besides last month’s slight acceleration in inflation, another worry is that President-elect Donald Trump’s preferences for tariffs and other policies could lead to higher inflation down the line.Goldman Sachs economist David Mericle has dropped his earlier forecast of a cut by the Fed in January, for example. Beyond the possibility of tariffs, he said Fed officials may also want to slow their cuts because of uncertainty about exactly how low rates need to go so that they no longer press the brakes on the economy.Expectations for a series of cuts to rates by the Fed have been one of the main reasons the S&amp;P 500 has set an all-time high&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/stocks-markets-jobs-china-bitcoin-f066b9725ca1eaf8de1fa700555920e4">57 times so far this year</a>&nbsp;and is heading for one of its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/sp-stocks-wall-street-records-c144fbee69be7fff59c2e4b945b0c393">best years of the millennium</a>. The economy has held up better than many feared, continuing to grow even after the Fed hiked the federal funds rate to a two-decade high in hopes of grinding down on inflation, which topped 9% two summers ago.On Wall Street, MicroStrategy jumped as much as 7% during the day as it continues to benefit from the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bitcoin-trump-election-crypto-regulation-c45a747d9c32591bc4e5dcd6e5cc0c22">surging price for bitcoin</a>, which set another all-time high. But its stock ended the day down by les than 0.1% after bitcoin’s price pulled back below $106,000 after setting a record above $107,700, according to CoinDesk.The software company has been building its hoard of the cryptocurrency, and its stock price has more than sextupled this year. It will also soon join the Nasdaq 100 index.Bitcoin’s price has catapulted from roughly $44,000 at the start of the year, riding a recent wave of enthusiasm that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Trump</a>&nbsp;will create a system that’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/sec-chair-atkins-gensler-investors-financial-markets-d1c544f1846071b33c75b9f2dd0c1ba4">more favorable to digital currencies</a>.Honeywell rose 3.7% after saying it’s still considering a spin-off or sale of its aerospace business, as part of a review of its overall business. It said it plans to give an update with the release of its fourth-quarter results.They helped offset a drop for Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the world’s move into AI. Its stock fell 1.7%. Because it’s grown so massive, with a total value topping $3 trillion, it was the single heaviest weight on the S&amp;P 500.All told, the S&amp;P 500 rose 22.99 points to 6,074.08. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 110.58 to 43,717.48, and the Nasdaq composite rose 247.17 to 20,173.89.In the bond market, Treasury yields held relatively steady. The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged down to 4.39% from 4.40% late Friday. The two-year yield, which more closely tracks expectations for the Fed, eased to 4.24% from 4.25%.In stock markets abroad, indexes fell modestly across much of Europe and Asia.They sank 0.9% in Hong Kong and 0.2% in Shanghai after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-economy-trump-tariffs-057555a36a1616e3e819d51c9a2a0383">China</a>&nbsp;reported lackluster economic indicators for November despite attempts to strengthen the world’s second-largest economy.

Nasdaq hits a record as Wall Street drifts ahead of Federal Reserve's meeting

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/caseyquinlan/">CASEY QUINLAN</a>

A rise in food prices makes for a less than merry holiday season.

Grocery prices rose 0.4% in November,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.t02.htm" target="_blank">according to</a>&nbsp;the Consumer Price Index, released this week by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Eggs made one of the biggest jumps at 8.2% over the month, and 37.5% over the past year, providing challenges for people trying to eat a somewhat cheaper protein and families cooking holiday foods such as sugar cookies and challah.

Although the increase in food prices has moderated a bit from past years, they are still more than 20% higher than they were before the pandemic, according to David Ortega, at Michigan State University.

“It was a key issue in the election in terms of people really feeling that sticker shock at the grocery store,” said Ortega, a food economist.

President-elect Donald Trump vowed to bring down prices during his campaign and blamed the Biden administration for how they reached this point. But in an&nbsp;<a href="https://time.com/7201565/person-of-the-year-2024-donald-trump-transcript/" target="_blank">interview with</a>&nbsp;TIME published last week, Trump said he does not believe his presidency would be a failure if grocery prices do not come down.

“It’s hard to bring things down once they’re up,” he said.

Price changes to understand before you set the holiday table

The increase in grocery, or food at home prices, was partly driven by the rise in egg and beef prices, Ortega said. He said the price of holiday roast has been affected by drought and high feed prices. This year, the inventory of beef cattle was the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fb.org/market-intel/u-s-cattle-inventory-smallest-in-73-years#:~:text=1%2C%202024%2C%20was%2028.2%20million,U.S.%20beef%20herd%20since%201951." target="_blank">smallest beef herd</a>&nbsp;since 1951.

“On eggs, the story continues to be bird flu together with increased consumer demand given the holiday season,” he said following Wednesday’s release of the latest Consumer Price Index. “And for beef the issue is supply — high input costs and decisions that beef producers made a couple of years back when they were facing drought and high feed prices which has reduced beef supply, and this in turn is affecting beef prices.”

The latest food price numbers presented a mixed bag for holiday shoppers looking to bake treats this month. Flour and prepared four mixes fell 1% and bread decreased 1.3%, while sugar and sweets rose 0.2%, and butter ticked up 1.5%.

Oranges, including the popular stocking stuffers tangerines, fell 1.8% in the latest Consumer Price Index report.

The rise in cost of eating your meals at home compared to the rise in cost of eating out is also getting narrower, with the gap in inflation between restaurant menu prices and grocery year-over-year prices being the narrowest it has been since May 2023,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.supermarketnews.com/consumer-trends/retail-food-inflation-outpaced-restaurant-menu-prices-for-2nd-time-in-three-months" target="_blank">according to</a>&nbsp;Supermarket News. Food at home in previous reports rose 0.2% and 0.4% compared to 0.2% and 0.3% for the past two food away from home reports.

Are companies profiting off uncertain times?

Rakeen Mabud, chief economist at the Groundwork Collective, a left-of-center economic think tank, said that just a few seed producers, meatpackers, and grocers dominate the food industry, which is a key part of the story of what drives grocery prices. This hurts lower-income shoppers the hardest. Oklahoma, Iowa, and Arkansas are some of the states&nbsp;<a href="https://grocerygapatlas.rafiusa.org/posts/market-dominance" target="_blank">most dominated</a>&nbsp;by a single grocer, such as Walmart or Hy-Vee.

“Across the food and grocery industry, we have a sector that is deeply consolidated,” Mabud said.&nbsp; … And so when you have big companies controlling such large chunks of the market, we know that they have used things like inflation, things like supply chain shocks to jack up prices far beyond what their input costs to justify.”

Mabud said that when there is this level of market concentration, companies can signal to each other in earnings calls that they are going to start raising prices.

“If you know that your only other competitors are also raising prices, there’s kind of no reason for you to try to undercut them if you both hold giant shares of a market,” she said.

An economic paper published this year&nbsp;<a href="https://scholarworks.umass.edu/entities/publication/c7155aaf-40b6-4da4-8d36-15556100ee7e" target="_blank">found</a>&nbsp;that companies are able to coordinate price increases around cost shocks and increase profits from these events. Mabud said the holidays provide plenty of opportunity for the food industry to raise prices on things people ordinarily don’t buy and don’t have a price comparison for during a less in-demand season.

“Grocers and the food industry kind of know that they know that they have more information about the underlying cost of a good than a consumer who only comes to buy the Christmas ham once a year. And so they can take advantage of that,” she said.

Economists are watching out for how the next administration will impact food prices.

Trump’s promise to impose&nbsp;<a href="https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2024/12/02/donald-trump-promised-to-bring-down-prices-but-experts-say-his-tariff-plans-will-do-the-opposite/" target="_blank">heavy tariffs</a>&nbsp;on the U.S.’s biggest trading partners – Mexico, Canada and China – are expected to drive up the cost of everything, including groceries.

Products the U.S. can’t produce year round, like fruit and coffee, will be affected, Ortega said.

“There’s still a lot of uncertainty in terms of whether these tariffs are really going to be implemented or are they a negotiating tool? But that creates a lot of uncertainty,” he said. “Even that amount of uncertainty can lead to a rise in costs as companies prepare for the potential of these tariffs taking place.”

Trump’s expected policy of mass deportation of immigrants will also affect the agriculture industry, in addition to the major human rights implications.

“If there’s a mass deportation that is a shock to the labor supply and the agricultural sector. And that will lead to an increase in costs as producers and companies have to offer higher wages to attract enough labor. Ultimately that gets passed down to the consumer in the form of higher prices,” Ortega said.

Mabud is also concerned that expected tariffs could mean companies take advantage of the policy change well beyond the actual financial impact to their business.

“It’s a policy change where consumers don’t necessarily know how much the price of an avocado is going up because of a tariff versus a supply chain issue versus the grocery store just wanting to increase the price,” she said.

Patricia “Pogo” Overmeyer, 65, who works as a lawyer in Arizona and lives with her retired husband, said she has always been focused on how to save money on groceries. But she said she has become even more thrifty since inflation worsened.

She said she’s been using more meatless meals and stocks up on holiday food all year round when prices are low, some of which she freezes and cans.

“Once I retire, our income will not be as high,” she said, “Most likely I will forgo some foods or make substitutions. It’s anyone’s guess as to what we will be paying for groceries.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1673438313098.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/caseyquinlan/">CASEY QUINLAN</a>A rise in food prices makes for a less than merry holiday season.Grocery prices rose 0.4% in November,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.t02.htm" target="_blank">according to</a>&nbsp;the Consumer Price Index, released this week by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.Eggs made one of the biggest jumps at 8.2% over the month, and 37.5% over the past year, providing challenges for people trying to eat a somewhat cheaper protein and families cooking holiday foods such as sugar cookies and challah.Although the increase in food prices has moderated a bit from past years, they are still more than 20% higher than they were before the pandemic, according to David Ortega, at Michigan State University.“It was a key issue in the election in terms of people really feeling that sticker shock at the grocery store,” said Ortega, a food economist.President-elect Donald Trump vowed to bring down prices during his campaign and blamed the Biden administration for how they reached this point. But in an&nbsp;<a href="https://time.com/7201565/person-of-the-year-2024-donald-trump-transcript/" target="_blank">interview with</a>&nbsp;TIME published last week, Trump said he does not believe his presidency would be a failure if grocery prices do not come down.“It’s hard to bring things down once they’re up,” he said.<h2>Price changes to understand before you set the holiday table</h2>The increase in grocery, or food at home prices, was partly driven by the rise in egg and beef prices, Ortega said. He said the price of holiday roast has been affected by drought and high feed prices. This year, the inventory of beef cattle was the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fb.org/market-intel/u-s-cattle-inventory-smallest-in-73-years#:~:text=1%2C%202024%2C%20was%2028.2%20million,U.S.%20beef%20herd%20since%201951." target="_blank">smallest beef herd</a>&nbsp;since 1951.“On eggs, the story continues to be bird flu together with increased consumer demand given the holiday season,” he said following Wednesday’s release of the latest Consumer Price Index. “And for beef the issue is supply — high input costs and decisions that beef producers made a couple of years back when they were facing drought and high feed prices which has reduced beef supply, and this in turn is affecting beef prices.”The latest food price numbers presented a mixed bag for holiday shoppers looking to bake treats this month. Flour and prepared four mixes fell 1% and bread decreased 1.3%, while sugar and sweets rose 0.2%, and butter ticked up 1.5%.Oranges, including the popular stocking stuffers tangerines, fell 1.8% in the latest Consumer Price Index report.The rise in cost of eating your meals at home compared to the rise in cost of eating out is also getting narrower, with the gap in inflation between restaurant menu prices and grocery year-over-year prices being the narrowest it has been since May 2023,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.supermarketnews.com/consumer-trends/retail-food-inflation-outpaced-restaurant-menu-prices-for-2nd-time-in-three-months" target="_blank">according to</a>&nbsp;Supermarket News. Food at home in previous reports rose 0.2% and 0.4% compared to 0.2% and 0.3% for the past two food away from home reports.<h2>Are companies profiting off uncertain times?</h2>Rakeen Mabud, chief economist at the Groundwork Collective, a left-of-center economic think tank, said that just a few seed producers, meatpackers, and grocers dominate the food industry, which is a key part of the story of what drives grocery prices. This hurts lower-income shoppers the hardest. Oklahoma, Iowa, and Arkansas are some of the states&nbsp;<a href="https://grocerygapatlas.rafiusa.org/posts/market-dominance" target="_blank">most dominated</a>&nbsp;by a single grocer, such as Walmart or Hy-Vee.“Across the food and grocery industry, we have a sector that is deeply consolidated,” Mabud said.&nbsp; … And so when you have big companies controlling such large chunks of the market, we know that they have used things like inflation, things like supply chain shocks to jack up prices far beyond what their input costs to justify.”Mabud said that when there is this level of market concentration, companies can signal to each other in earnings calls that they are going to start raising prices.“If you know that your only other competitors are also raising prices, there’s kind of no reason for you to try to undercut them if you both hold giant shares of a market,” she said.An economic paper published this year&nbsp;<a href="https://scholarworks.umass.edu/entities/publication/c7155aaf-40b6-4da4-8d36-15556100ee7e" target="_blank">found</a>&nbsp;that companies are able to coordinate price increases around cost shocks and increase profits from these events. Mabud said the holidays provide plenty of opportunity for the food industry to raise prices on things people ordinarily don’t buy and don’t have a price comparison for during a less in-demand season.“Grocers and the food industry kind of know that they know that they have more information about the underlying cost of a good than a consumer who only comes to buy the Christmas ham once a year. And so they can take advantage of that,” she said.<h2>An unhappy new year for grocery shoppers</h2>Economists are watching out for how the next administration will impact food prices.Trump’s promise to impose&nbsp;<a href="https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2024/12/02/donald-trump-promised-to-bring-down-prices-but-experts-say-his-tariff-plans-will-do-the-opposite/" target="_blank">heavy tariffs</a>&nbsp;on the U.S.’s biggest trading partners – Mexico, Canada and China – are expected to drive up the cost of everything, including groceries.Products the U.S. can’t produce year round, like fruit and coffee, will be affected, Ortega said.“There’s still a lot of uncertainty in terms of whether these tariffs are really going to be implemented or are they a negotiating tool? But that creates a lot of uncertainty,” he said. “Even that amount of uncertainty can lead to a rise in costs as companies prepare for the potential of these tariffs taking place.”Trump’s expected policy of mass deportation of immigrants will also affect the agriculture industry, in addition to the major human rights implications.“If there’s a mass deportation that is a shock to the labor supply and the agricultural sector. And that will lead to an increase in costs as producers and companies have to offer higher wages to attract enough labor. Ultimately that gets passed down to the consumer in the form of higher prices,” Ortega said.Mabud is also concerned that expected tariffs could mean companies take advantage of the policy change well beyond the actual financial impact to their business.“It’s a policy change where consumers don’t necessarily know how much the price of an avocado is going up because of a tariff versus a supply chain issue versus the grocery store just wanting to increase the price,” she said.Patricia “Pogo” Overmeyer, 65, who works as a lawyer in Arizona and lives with her retired husband, said she has always been focused on how to save money on groceries. But she said she has become even more thrifty since inflation worsened.She said she’s been using more meatless meals and stocks up on holiday food all year round when prices are low, some of which she freezes and cans.“Once I retire, our income will not be as high,” she said, “Most likely I will forgo some foods or make substitutions. It’s anyone’s guess as to what we will be paying for groceries.”

US Grocery Prices – and Eggs in Particular – Climb Heading into Holiday Season

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate is pushing toward a vote on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-social-security-benefits-expanded-bbf18277e11ba5dba30f948c84b8d6bf">legislation that would provide full Social Security benefits</a>&nbsp;to millions of people, setting up potential passage in the final days of the lame-duck Congress.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Thursday he would begin the process for a final vote on the bill, known as the&nbsp;<a href="https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IN/IN12451" target="_blank">Social Security Fairness Act</a>, which would eliminate policies that currently limit Social Security payouts for roughly 2.8 million people.

Schumer said the bill would “ensure Americans are not erroneously denied their well-earned Social Security benefits simply because they chose at some point to work in their careers in public service.”

The legislation passed the House on a bipartisan vote, and a Senate version of the bill introduced last year gained 62 cosponsors. But the bill still needs support from at least 60 senators to pass Congress. It would then head to President Biden.

At least one GOP senator who signed onto similar legislation last year, Sen. Mike Braun of Indiana, said he was still “weighing” whether to vote for the bill next week.

“Nothing ever gets paid for, so if it’s further indebtedness, I don’t know,” he said.

Decades in the making, the bill would repeal two federal policies — the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset — that broadly reduce payments to two groups of Social Security recipients: people who also receive a pension from a job that is not covered by Social Security and surviving spouses of Social Security recipients who receive a government pension of their own.

The bill would add more strain on the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ssa.gov/policy/trust-funds-summary.html" target="_blank">Social Security Trust funds</a>, which were already estimated to be unable to pay out full benefits beginning in 2035. It would add an estimated $195 billion to federal deficits over 10 years, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2024-09/hr82.pdf" target="_blank">Congressional Budget Office</a>.

The nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget also estimates that if passed, the policy would hasten the Social Security program’s insolvency date by about half a year as well as reduce lifetime Social Security benefits by an additional $25,000 for a typical dual-income couple retiring in 2033.

Sen. John Thune, the no. 2 Republican in leadership, acknowledged that the policy has strong bipartisan support, but said some Republicans also want to see it “fixed in the context of a broader Social Security reform effort.”

Conservatives have opposed the bill, decrying its cost.

“Even for something that people consider to be a good cause, it shows a lack of concern for the future of the country, so I think it would be a big mistake,” said Sen. Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky.

Still, other Republicans have pushed Schumer to bring it up for a vote.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said last month that the current federal limitations “penalize families across the country who worked a public service job for part of their career with a separate pension. We’re talking about police officers, firefighters, teachers, and other public employees who are punished for serving their communities.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate is pushing toward a vote on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-social-security-benefits-expanded-bbf18277e11ba5dba30f948c84b8d6bf">legislation that would provide full Social Security benefits</a>&nbsp;to millions of people, setting up potential passage in the final days of the lame-duck Congress.Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Thursday he would begin the process for a final vote on the bill, known as the&nbsp;<a href="https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IN/IN12451" target="_blank">Social Security Fairness Act</a>, which would eliminate policies that currently limit Social Security payouts for roughly 2.8 million people.Schumer said the bill would “ensure Americans are not erroneously denied their well-earned Social Security benefits simply because they chose at some point to work in their careers in public service.”The legislation passed the House on a bipartisan vote, and a Senate version of the bill introduced last year gained 62 cosponsors. But the bill still needs support from at least 60 senators to pass Congress. It would then head to President Biden.At least one GOP senator who signed onto similar legislation last year, Sen. Mike Braun of Indiana, said he was still “weighing” whether to vote for the bill next week.“Nothing ever gets paid for, so if it’s further indebtedness, I don’t know,” he said.Decades in the making, the bill would repeal two federal policies — the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset — that broadly reduce payments to two groups of Social Security recipients: people who also receive a pension from a job that is not covered by Social Security and surviving spouses of Social Security recipients who receive a government pension of their own.The bill would add more strain on the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ssa.gov/policy/trust-funds-summary.html" target="_blank">Social Security Trust funds</a>, which were already estimated to be unable to pay out full benefits beginning in 2035. It would add an estimated $195 billion to federal deficits over 10 years, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2024-09/hr82.pdf" target="_blank">Congressional Budget Office</a>.The nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget also estimates that if passed, the policy would hasten the Social Security program’s insolvency date by about half a year as well as reduce lifetime Social Security benefits by an additional $25,000 for a typical dual-income couple retiring in 2033.Sen. John Thune, the no. 2 Republican in leadership, acknowledged that the policy has strong bipartisan support, but said some Republicans also want to see it “fixed in the context of a broader Social Security reform effort.”Conservatives have opposed the bill, decrying its cost.“Even for something that people consider to be a good cause, it shows a lack of concern for the future of the country, so I think it would be a big mistake,” said Sen. Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky.Still, other Republicans have pushed Schumer to bring it up for a vote.Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said last month that the current federal limitations “penalize families across the country who worked a public service job for part of their career with a separate pension. We’re talking about police officers, firefighters, teachers, and other public employees who are punished for serving their communities.”He predicted the bill would pass.

Senate will vote on bill to expand Social Security benefits for millions 

KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement are investigating the death of a juvenile in Kansas City.

Just after 5p.m. Sunday patrol officers were dispatched to the 3300 block of Bales in Kansas City on a reported shooting, according to KCPD Sergeant Phil DiMartino.

First responders were directed to a home on the block. Inside they located a juvenile male victim suffering from a gunshot wound. Officers immediately began performing life saving measures and ordered emergency medical personnel to the scene.

 EMS transported the victim to a local hospital where he died of his injuries.

Preliminary investigation revealed there was an argument that led to shots being fired and the victim ultimately being struck. Detectives canvassed the area for potential witnesses and crime scene investigators are gathered any available physical evidence.&nbsp; The name of the victim has not been released. Police have not reported an arrest.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/12/1734317845598.png" alt="Photo Sheriff Daryl Forte'" />
 <figcaption>Photo Sheriff Daryl Forte'</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement are investigating the death of a juvenile in Kansas City.Just after 5p.m. Sunday patrol officers were dispatched to the 3300 block of Bales in Kansas City on a reported shooting, according to KCPD Sergeant Phil DiMartino.First responders were directed to a home on the block. Inside they located a juvenile male victim suffering from a gunshot wound. Officers immediately began performing life saving measures and ordered emergency medical personnel to the scene. EMS transported the victim to a local hospital where he died of his injuries.Preliminary investigation revealed there was an argument that led to shots being fired and the victim ultimately being struck. Detectives canvassed the area for potential witnesses and crime scene investigators are gathered any available physical evidence.&nbsp; The name of the victim has not been released. Police have not reported an arrest.

Police: Argument led to death of juvenile at KC home

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A teenage student opened fire Monday at a private Christian school in Wisconsin, killing a teacher and another teen during the final week before Christmas break. The shooter also died, police said.

The shooter also wounded others at Abundant Life Christian School, including two students who were in critical condition, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said.

“I’m feeling a little dismayed now, so close to Christmas,” Barnes said. “Every child, every person in that building is a victim and will be a victim forever. ... We need to figure out and try to piece together what exactly happened.”

The shooter was a 17-year-old female student, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official was not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation and spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity.

Police said the shooter apparently was dead by suicide when officers arrived.

Abundant Life is a nondenominational Christian school — kindergarten through high school — with approximately 390 students in Madison, the state capital. After the shooting, students were led next door to City Church where buses took them elsewhere to be reunited with families.

Meanwhile, nine public schools in Madison were locked down for a few hours as a precaution.

“As difficult as today is, that's still someone's child that's gone,” the chief said.

A motive for the shooting was not immediately known, he added.

“I don’t know why, and I feel like if we did know why, we could stop these things from happening,” Barnes said.

Someone from the school called 911 to report an active shooter shortly before 11 a.m. First responders who were in training just 3 miles (5 kilometers) away dashed to the school for an actual emergency, Barnes said.

“I’m not aware that the school had metal detectors nor should schools have metal detectors. It’s a safe space,” Barnes said.

Police blocked off roads around the school. Federal agents were at the scene to assist local law enforcement.

Abundant Life asked for prayers in a brief Facebook post.

In a statement, the White House said President Joe Biden has been briefed on the shooting and officials were in touch with local authorities to provide support.

“As a father, a grandfather, and as governor, it is unthinkable that a kid or an educator might wake up and go to school one morning and never come home,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said. “This should never happen, and I will never accept this as a foregone reality or stop working to change it.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/12/1734377244094.png" alt="First responders at the scene of the school shooting -image courtesy WKOW TV" />
 <figcaption>First responders at the scene of the school shooting -image courtesy WKOW TV</figcaption>
 </figure>MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A teenage student opened fire Monday at a private Christian school in Wisconsin, killing a teacher and another teen during the final week before Christmas break. The shooter also died, police said.The shooter also wounded others at Abundant Life Christian School, including two students who were in critical condition, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/12/1734386889041.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>“I’m feeling a little dismayed now, so close to Christmas,” Barnes said. “Every child, every person in that building is a victim and will be a victim forever. ... We need to figure out and try to piece together what exactly happened.”The shooter was a 17-year-old female student, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official was not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation and spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity.Police said the shooter apparently was dead by suicide when officers arrived.Abundant Life is a nondenominational Christian school — kindergarten through high school — with approximately 390 students in Madison, the state capital. After the shooting, students were led next door to City Church where buses took them elsewhere to be reunited with families.Meanwhile, nine public schools in Madison were locked down for a few hours as a precaution.“As difficult as today is, that's still someone's child that's gone,” the chief said.A motive for the shooting was not immediately known, he added.“I don’t know why, and I feel like if we did know why, we could stop these things from happening,” Barnes said.Someone from the school called 911 to report an active shooter shortly before 11 a.m. First responders who were in training just 3 miles (5 kilometers) away dashed to the school for an actual emergency, Barnes said.Investigators believe the shooter used a 9mm pistol, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.“I’m not aware that the school had metal detectors nor should schools have metal detectors. It’s a safe space,” Barnes said.Police blocked off roads around the school. Federal agents were at the scene to assist local law enforcement.Abundant Life asked for prayers in a brief Facebook post.Bethany Highman, the mother of a student, rushed to the school and learned over FaceTime that her daughter was OK.“As soon as it happened, your world stops for a minute. Nothing else matters,” Highman said. “There’s nobody around you. You just bolt for the door and try to do everything you can as a parent to be with your kids.”In a statement, the White House said President Joe Biden has been briefed on the shooting and officials were in touch with local authorities to provide support.“As a father, a grandfather, and as governor, it is unthinkable that a kid or an educator might wake up and go to school one morning and never come home,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said. “This should never happen, and I will never accept this as a foregone reality or stop working to change it.”It was the&nbsp;<a href="https://projects.apnews.com/features/2023/mass-killings/index.html">the latest</a>&nbsp;among dozens of school shootings across the U.S. in recent years, including especially deadly ones in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/newtown">Newtown, Connecticut</a>;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/parkland-florida-school-shooting">Parkland, Florida</a>; and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting">Uvalde, Texas</a>.The shootings have set off fervent debates about gun control and frayed the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accustomed to doing active shooter drills in their classrooms. But school shootings have done little to move the needle on national gun laws.Firearms were the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kff.org/mental-health/issue-brief/child-and-teen-firearm-mortality-in-the-u-s-and-peer-countries/">leading cause of death</a>&nbsp;among children in 2020 and 2021, according to KFF, a nonprofit that researches health care issues.Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said the country needs to do more to prevent gun violence.“I hoped that this day would never come to Madison,” she said.MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A teenage student opened fire at a private Christian school Monday morning in Wisconsin, killing a teacher and another teenage student in the final week before Christmas break. The shooter also died, police said.Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes did not give details about the age or gender of the suspected shooter who also wounded six others at Abundant Life Christian School, a K-12 school with about 390 students. Police previously said a total of five people had died but corrected the statement.Barnes said the suspected shooter likely died by suicide.“They found the person responsible who was down, deceased,” the chief said.Of those wounded, Barnes said two of them were in critical condition with life-threatening injuries. The other four had non-life-threatening injuries, Barnes said.The wounded had injuries ranging broadly from minor to life-threatening, Barnes said.“I’m feeling a little dismayed now, so close to Christmas,” he said. “Every child, every person in that building is a victim and will be a victim forever. ... We need to figure out and try to piece together what exactly happened.”Investigators did not immediately know a motive for the shooting, Barnes said.“I don’t know why, and I feel like if we did know why, we could stop these things from happening,” he said.Barnes said detectives were, “working hard to find as many answers as we can.”Barnes said police were alerted shortly before 11 a.m. and did not fire their weapons when they rushed into the building.Someone from the school called 911 to report an active shooter, Barnes said. He said the police training center is 3 miles (5 kilometers) from the school and staff responded from there.“What began as a training day became an actual day,” he said.Investigators believe the shooter used a 9mm pistol, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.“I’m not aware that the school had metal detectors nor should schools have metal detectors. It’s a safe space,” Barnes said.Police blocked off roads around the school. Federal agents were at the scene to assist local law enforcement.“We are praying for the kids, educators, and entire Abundant Life school community as we await more information and are grateful for the first responders who are working quickly to respond,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement.In a statement, the White House said President Joe Biden has been briefed on the shooting and officials were in touch with local authorities to provide support.Abundant Life Christian School, which is nondenominational, asked for prayers in a brief Facebook post.Bethany Highman, the mother of a student, rushed to the school after hearing about the shooting and learned over FaceTime that her daughter was OK.“As soon as it happened, your world stops for a minute. Nothing else matters," Highman said. "There’s nobody around you. You just bolt for the door and try to do everything you can as a parent to be with your kids.”It was the&nbsp;<a href="https://projects.apnews.com/features/2023/mass-killings/index.html">the latest</a>&nbsp;among dozens of school shootings across the U.S. in recent years, including especially deadly ones in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/newtown">Newtown, Connecticut</a>;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/parkland-florida-school-shooting">Parkland, Florida</a>; and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting">Uvalde, Texas</a>.The shootings have set off fervent debates about gun control and frayed the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accustomed to doing active shooter drills in their classrooms. But school shootings have done little to move the needle on national gun laws.Firearms were the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kff.org/mental-health/issue-brief/child-and-teen-firearm-mortality-in-the-u-s-and-peer-countries/">leading cause of death</a>&nbsp;among children in 2020 and 2021, according to KFF, a nonprofit that researches health care issues.___MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A student opened fire at a private Christian school Monday morning in Wisconsin, killing two people in the final week before Christmas break. The shooter also died, police said.(Click below to view the 12:20 p.m. Monday police briefing)<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=476&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FMadisonPolice%2Fvideos%2F1648377052440777%2F&show_text=false&width=267&t=1" width="267" height="476" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes offered no details about the victims but said other people were wounded at Abundant Life Christian School, a K-12 school with about 390 students. Police previously said a total of five people had died but corrected the statement.Barnes said the suspected shooter was a student who likely died by suicide.“They found the person responsible who was down, deceased,” the chief said.The wounded had injuries ranging broadly from minor to life-threatening, Barnes said.“I’m feeling a little dismayed now, so close to Christmas,” he said. “Every child, every person in that building is a victim and will be a victim forever. ... We need to figure out and try to piece together what exactly happened.”Barnes said police were alerted shortly before 11 a.m. and did not fire their weapons when they rushed into the building.Investigators believe the shooter used a 9mm pistol, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.“I’m not aware that the school had metal detectors nor should schools have metal detectors. It’s a safe space,” Barnes said.Police blocked off roads around the school. Federal agents were at the scene to assist local law enforcement.“We are praying for the kids, educators, and entire Abundant Life school community as we await more information and are grateful for the first responders who are working quickly to respond,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement.In a statement, the White House said President Joe Biden has been briefed on the shooting and officials were in touch with local authorities to provide support.Abundant Life Christian School, which is nondenominational, asked for prayers in a brief Facebook post.Bethany Highman, the mother of a student, rushed to the school after hearing about the shooting and learned over FaceTime that her daughter was OK.“As soon as it happened, your world stops for a minute. Nothing else matters," Highman said. "There’s nobody around you. You just bolt for the door and try to do everything you can as a parent to be with your kids.”It was the&nbsp;<a href="https://projects.apnews.com/features/2023/mass-killings/index.html">the latest</a>&nbsp;among dozens of school shootings across the U.S. in recent years, including especially deadly ones in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/newtown">Newtown, Connecticut</a>;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/parkland-florida-school-shooting">Parkland, Florida</a>; and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting">Uvalde, Texas</a>.The shootings have set off fervent debates about gun control and frayed the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accustomed to doing active shooter drills in their classrooms. But school shootings have done little to move the needle on national gun laws.Firearms were the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kff.org/mental-health/issue-brief/child-and-teen-firearm-mortality-in-the-u-s-and-peer-countries/">leading cause of death</a>&nbsp;among children in 2020 and 2021, according to KFF, a nonprofit that researches health care issues.___MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A youth opened fire at a private Christian school Monday morning in Wisconsin, killing two people in the final week before Christmas break. The shooter also died, police said.Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes offered no details on the victims but said other people were wounded at Abundant Life Christian School, a K-12 school with about 390 students. Police previously said a total of five people had died.Madison police in a statement said the suspected shooter was a student at the school. Police said seven people were hurt with injuries ranging broadly from “minor to life-threatening.”“Today is a sad, sad day, not only for Madison but for our entire country," Barnes told reporters.He said police were alerted shortly before 11 a.m. and did not fire their weapons when they rushed into the school. Barnes suggested the shooter died by suicide.“They found the person responsible who was down, deceased," the chief said.Investigators believe the shooter used a 9mm pistol, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.Police blocked off roads around the school. Federal agents were at the scene to assist local law enforcement.“We are praying for the kids, educators, and entire Abundant Life school community as we await more information and are grateful for the first responders who are working quickly to respond,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement.In a statement, the White House said President Joe Biden has been briefed on the shooting and officials were in touch with local authorities to provide support.Abundant Life Christian School is nondenominational.John Diaz De Leon, who lives nearby and attends the adjacent City Church, told WMTV-TV he heard an intense blare of sirens as police responded.“I didn’t know there were that many squad cars in Madison. We saw a few guys with long guns. They went into the school with a dog," De Leon said of police. “Later on I saw groups of kids coming out of the school into the church sanctuary.”___MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Five people are dead and others injured after a shooting Monday at a private Christian school in Wisconsin, including a child who caused the attack, authorities said.Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes was speaking to reporters when the death toll rose to five from three people. He offered no details on the victims but says others were wounded in the shooting at Abundant Life Christian School.Barnes says police officers who responded did not fire their weapons.Police had blocked off roads around the school Monday afternoon.Agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have responded to the scene to assist local law enforcement.“We are praying for the kids, educators, and entire Abundant Life school community as we await more information and are grateful for the first responders who are working quickly to respond,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement.Abundant Life Christian School is nondenominational and has about 390 students, from kindergarten through high school, according to its website.----------------MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Multiple fatalities have been reported Monday in a shooting at a Christian school in Wisconsin, police said.The shooting occurred at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, the state capital, police said.“This remains an active and ongoing investigation,” Madison police said in a statement. “More information will be released as it is available. We currently need people to avoid the area.”Police had blocked off roads around the school Monday afternoon.Agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have responded to the scene to assist local law enforcement.“We are praying for the kids, educators, and entire Abundant Life school community as we await more information and are grateful for the first responders who are working quickly to respond,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement.Abundant Life Christian School is nondenominational and has about 390 students, from kindergarten through high school, according to its website.