WASHINGTON (AP) — With massive job cuts, the National Weather Service is eliminating or reducing vital weather balloon launches in eight northern locations, which meteorologists and former agency leaders said will degrade the accuracy of forecasts just as severe weather season kicks in.

The normally twice-daily launches of weather balloons in about 100 locations provide information that forecasters and computer models use to figure out what the weather will be and how dangerous it can get, so cutting back is a mistake, said eight different scientists, meteorologists and former top officials at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — the weather service's parent agency.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weather.gov/gjt/education_corner_balloon">balloons soar 100,000 feet</a>&nbsp;in the air with sensors called radiosondes hanging about 20 feet below them that measure temperature, dew point, humidity, barometric pressure, wind speed and direction.

“The thing about weather balloons is that they give you information you can't get any other way,” said D. James Baker, a former NOAA chief during the Clinton administration. He had to cut spending in the agency during his tenure but he said he refused to cut observations such as weather balloons. “It's an absolutely essential piece of the forecasting system.”

University of Oklahoma environment professor Renee McPherson said, “This frankly is just dangerous.”

“Bad,” Ryan Maue, who was NOAA's chief scientist at the end of President Donald Trump's first term, wrote in an email. “We should not degrade our weather system by skipping balloon launches. Not only is this embarrassing for NOAA, the cessation of weather balloon launches will worsen America's weather forecasts.”

Launches will be&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2025/pns25-17_Suspension_RAOB_Launches_OAX-UNR.pdf">eliminated in Omaha, Nebraska, and Rapid City, South Dakota</a>, “due to a lack of Weather Forecast Office (WFO) staffing,” the weather service said in a notice issued late Thursday. It also is cutting from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2025/pns25-18_Reduction_RAOB_Launches_ABR_GJT_GRB_APX_LBF_RIW.pdf">twice daily to once daily launches i</a>&nbsp;n Aberdeen, South Dakota; Grand Junction, Colorado; Green Bay, Wisconsin; Gaylord, Michigan; North Platte, Nebraska and Riverton, Wyoming.

The Trump administration and its Department of Government Efficiency&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/noaa-job-cuts-weather-forecasts-trump-doge-musk-7e35e9d5d757d8fc3f0f50b2bd71c87d">fired hundreds, likely more than 1,000, NOAA workers</a>&nbsp;earlier this year. The government then sent out letters telling probationary employees let go that they will get paid, but should not report to work.

Earlier this month, the agency had announced weather balloon cuts in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2025/pns25-11_intermittent_suspension_of_raob_Launches-aly_gyx.pdf">Albany, New York and Gray, Maine,</a>&nbsp;and in late February, it&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2025/pns25-08_kotzebue_ak_upper_air_suspension.pdf">ended launches in Kotzebue, Alaska</a>. That makes 11 announced sites with reduced or eliminated balloon observations, or about one out of nine launch locations which include part of the Pacific and Caribbean.

Among regularly reporting weather stations, NOAA had averaged about only one outage of balloon launches a day from 2021 to 2024, according to an Associated Press analysis of launch data.

Meteorologists Jeff Masters and Tomer Burg calculate that 14 of 83 U.S. balloon sites, or 17%, are doing partial or no launches. That includes two stations that aren't launching because of a helium shortage and a third that is hindered because of coastal erosion.

“The more data we can feed into our weather models, the more accurate our forecasts, but I can’t speculate on the extent of future impacts,” weather service spokesperson Susan Buchanan said in an email.

University at Albany meteorology professor Kristen Corbosiero looked at the map of launches Friday and said “wow, that is an empty area ... That's not great.”

Corbosiero works in the building where the Albany weather service used to go to the roof to launch twice-daily weather balloons. It's now down to one at night, which she said it is worrisome heading into severe weather season.

“For those of us east of the Rocky Mountains, this is probably the worst time of year,” said Oklahoma's McPherson. “It's the time of year that we have some of our largest tornado outbreaks, especially as we move into April and May.”

Former National Weather Service Director Elbert “Joe” Friday said the weather balloons get “the detailed lower atmospheric level of temperature and humidity that can determine whether the atmosphere is going to be hot enough to set off severe storms and how intense they might be.”

Satellites do a good job getting a big picture and ground measurements and radar show what's happening on the ground, but the weather balloons provide the key middle part of the forecasting puzzle — the atmosphere — where so much weather brews, several meteorologists said.

All of the 10 announced reductions are in the northern part of the United States. That's about where the jet stream — which is a river of air that moves weather systems across the globe — is this time of year, so not having as many observations is especially problematic, McPherson and Corbosiero said.

Weather balloons are also vital for helping forecast when and where it will rain, said Baker and another former NOAA chief, Rick Spinrad.

The weather agency has been launching balloons regularly since the 1930s. During World War II, weather balloon launches in the Arctic helped America win the air battle over Europe with better forecasts for planes, former weather chief Friday said.

It takes 90 minutes to an hour to fill a weather balloon with helium or hydrogen, get it fitted with a sensor, then ready it for launch making sure the radiosonde doesn't drag on the ground, said Friday, who recalled launching a balloon in Nome, Alaska with 30 mph winds and windchill of about 30 degrees below zero.

Meteorologists then track the data for a couple hours before the balloon falls back to the ground for a total of about four of five hours work for one person, Friday said.

WASHINGTON (AP) — With massive job cuts, the National Weather Service is eliminating or reducing vital weather balloon launches in eight northern locations, which meteorologists and former agency leaders said will degrade the accuracy of forecasts just as severe weather season kicks in.The normally twice-daily launches of weather balloons in about 100 locations provide information that forecasters and computer models use to figure out what the weather will be and how dangerous it can get, so cutting back is a mistake, said eight different scientists, meteorologists and former top officials at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — the weather service's parent agency.The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weather.gov/gjt/education_corner_balloon">balloons soar 100,000 feet</a>&nbsp;in the air with sensors called radiosondes hanging about 20 feet below them that measure temperature, dew point, humidity, barometric pressure, wind speed and direction.“The thing about weather balloons is that they give you information you can't get any other way,” said D. James Baker, a former NOAA chief during the Clinton administration. He had to cut spending in the agency during his tenure but he said he refused to cut observations such as weather balloons. “It's an absolutely essential piece of the forecasting system.”University of Oklahoma environment professor Renee McPherson said, “This frankly is just dangerous.”“Bad,” Ryan Maue, who was NOAA's chief scientist at the end of President Donald Trump's first term, wrote in an email. “We should not degrade our weather system by skipping balloon launches. Not only is this embarrassing for NOAA, the cessation of weather balloon launches will worsen America's weather forecasts.”Launches will be&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2025/pns25-17_Suspension_RAOB_Launches_OAX-UNR.pdf">eliminated in Omaha, Nebraska, and Rapid City, South Dakota</a>, “due to a lack of Weather Forecast Office (WFO) staffing,” the weather service said in a notice issued late Thursday. It also is cutting from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2025/pns25-18_Reduction_RAOB_Launches_ABR_GJT_GRB_APX_LBF_RIW.pdf">twice daily to once daily launches i</a>&nbsp;n Aberdeen, South Dakota; Grand Junction, Colorado; Green Bay, Wisconsin; Gaylord, Michigan; North Platte, Nebraska and Riverton, Wyoming.The Trump administration and its Department of Government Efficiency&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/noaa-job-cuts-weather-forecasts-trump-doge-musk-7e35e9d5d757d8fc3f0f50b2bd71c87d">fired hundreds, likely more than 1,000, NOAA workers</a>&nbsp;earlier this year. The government then sent out letters telling probationary employees let go that they will get paid, but should not report to work.Earlier this month, the agency had announced weather balloon cuts in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2025/pns25-11_intermittent_suspension_of_raob_Launches-aly_gyx.pdf">Albany, New York and Gray, Maine,</a>&nbsp;and in late February, it&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2025/pns25-08_kotzebue_ak_upper_air_suspension.pdf">ended launches in Kotzebue, Alaska</a>. That makes 11 announced sites with reduced or eliminated balloon observations, or about one out of nine launch locations which include part of the Pacific and Caribbean.Among regularly reporting weather stations, NOAA had averaged about only one outage of balloon launches a day from 2021 to 2024, according to an Associated Press analysis of launch data.Meteorologists Jeff Masters and Tomer Burg calculate that 14 of 83 U.S. balloon sites, or 17%, are doing partial or no launches. That includes two stations that aren't launching because of a helium shortage and a third that is hindered because of coastal erosion.“The more data we can feed into our weather models, the more accurate our forecasts, but I can’t speculate on the extent of future impacts,” weather service spokesperson Susan Buchanan said in an email.University at Albany meteorology professor Kristen Corbosiero looked at the map of launches Friday and said “wow, that is an empty area ... That's not great.”Corbosiero works in the building where the Albany weather service used to go to the roof to launch twice-daily weather balloons. It's now down to one at night, which she said it is worrisome heading into severe weather season.“For those of us east of the Rocky Mountains, this is probably the worst time of year,” said Oklahoma's McPherson. “It's the time of year that we have some of our largest tornado outbreaks, especially as we move into April and May.”Former National Weather Service Director Elbert “Joe” Friday said the weather balloons get “the detailed lower atmospheric level of temperature and humidity that can determine whether the atmosphere is going to be hot enough to set off severe storms and how intense they might be.”Satellites do a good job getting a big picture and ground measurements and radar show what's happening on the ground, but the weather balloons provide the key middle part of the forecasting puzzle — the atmosphere — where so much weather brews, several meteorologists said.All of the 10 announced reductions are in the northern part of the United States. That's about where the jet stream — which is a river of air that moves weather systems across the globe — is this time of year, so not having as many observations is especially problematic, McPherson and Corbosiero said.Weather balloons are also vital for helping forecast when and where it will rain, said Baker and another former NOAA chief, Rick Spinrad.The weather agency has been launching balloons regularly since the 1930s. During World War II, weather balloon launches in the Arctic helped America win the air battle over Europe with better forecasts for planes, former weather chief Friday said.It takes 90 minutes to an hour to fill a weather balloon with helium or hydrogen, get it fitted with a sensor, then ready it for launch making sure the radiosonde doesn't drag on the ground, said Friday, who recalled launching a balloon in Nome, Alaska with 30 mph winds and windchill of about 30 degrees below zero.Meteorologists then track the data for a couple hours before the balloon falls back to the ground for a total of about four of five hours work for one person, Friday said.

After job cuts, National Weather Service reducing weather balloon launches

KANSAS CITY —At the request of the Kansas City, Missouri police department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol's division of drug and crime control is investigating an officer involved shooting that occurred on Friday.

Just before 5p.m., KCPD officers located a white Hyundai passenger car which had been stolen earlier in the day during a burglary, according to a media release from the MSHP.

KCPD officers initiated a traffic stop on the car near Independence Avenue and Benton Boulevard. The driver refused to stop and fled. A KCPD helicopter in the area quickly located the car. KCPD officers on the ground discontinued any active pursuit of the car. The Hyundai began circling the area and a KCPD officer was able to successfully deploy a tire deflation device.&nbsp; The Hyundai came to a stop near 11th Street and Prospect Avenue where the driver ran from the car. KCPD officers responded to the area and began chasing the suspect on foot. Just after 5p.m. one officer fired shots striking the suspect.&nbsp; The suspect continued to run but was taken into custody a short distance later. 

EMS transported the suspect to a local hospital in stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries. Police recovered a handgun from the scene where the suspect had been shot. No officers were injured. The Patrol is in charge of the investigation. The nane of the suspect and possible charges have not been released.

KANSAS CITY —At the request of the Kansas City, Missouri police department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol's division of drug and crime control is investigating an officer involved shooting that occurred on Friday.Just before 5p.m., KCPD officers located a white Hyundai passenger car which had been stolen earlier in the day during a burglary, according to a media release from the MSHP.KCPD officers initiated a traffic stop on the car near Independence Avenue and Benton Boulevard. The driver refused to stop and fled. A KCPD helicopter in the area quickly located the car. KCPD officers on the ground discontinued any active pursuit of the car. The Hyundai began circling the area and a KCPD officer was able to successfully deploy a tire deflation device.&nbsp; The Hyundai came to a stop near 11th Street and Prospect Avenue where the driver ran from the car. KCPD officers responded to the area and began chasing the suspect on foot. Just after 5p.m. one officer fired shots striking the suspect.&nbsp; The suspect continued to run but was taken into custody a short distance later. EMS transported the suspect to a local hospital in stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries. Police recovered a handgun from the scene where the suspect had been shot. No officers were injured. The Patrol is in charge of the investigation. The nane of the suspect and possible charges have not been released.

Kansas City car theft suspect wounded in police shooting

BUTLER COUNTY —A controlled burn got too close to the Kansas Turnpike late Thursday. The Kansas Highway Patrol shared a&nbsp;midnight view from Master Trooper Zeller and Trooper J. Hill of fire at milepost 84.8 south of the Cassoday exit in Butler County. 

Kansas weather has been crazy the last week with mid-80’s, blizzard conditions, high winds, wildfires, and more. It’s not uncommon to see controlled burns along the turnpike in the spring though. The smoke can create challenges for drivers, so please remember the following safety tips. 

When driving into smoke, turn on your headlights (low-beams). Never use high-beams.&nbsp;Slow down and adjust your speed to the visibility.&nbsp;Increase following distance between vehicles in anticipation of sudden stops or changes in traffic.&nbsp;Do not stop in a travel lane. Find a safe place completely off the roadway and away from other vehicles if you stop. 

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742564511543.png" alt="Photo KHP" />
 <figcaption>Photo KHP</figcaption>
 </figure>BUTLER COUNTY —A controlled burn got too close to the Kansas Turnpike late Thursday. The Kansas Highway Patrol shared a&nbsp;midnight view from Master Trooper Zeller and Trooper J. Hill of fire at milepost 84.8 south of the Cassoday exit in Butler County. Kansas weather has been crazy the last week with mid-80’s, blizzard conditions, high winds, wildfires, and more. It’s not uncommon to see controlled burns along the turnpike in the spring though. The smoke can create challenges for drivers, so please remember the following safety tips. When driving into smoke, turn on your headlights (low-beams). Never use high-beams.&nbsp;Slow down and adjust your speed to the visibility.&nbsp;Increase following distance between vehicles in anticipation of sudden stops or changes in traffic.&nbsp;Do not stop in a travel lane. Find a safe place completely off the roadway and away from other vehicles if you stop.

KHP: Controlled burn too close to the Kansas Turnpike

KANSAS CITY, Kan.&nbsp;– The Kansas Bureau of Investigation is investigating a death that occurred Friday afternoon in Kansas City, Kansas, during a warrant arrest, according to a media release from the KBI.

The Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP) requested the KBI conduct an investigation on Friday, March 21, at around 4:34 p.m. KBI agents and the Crime Scene Response Team responded to the scene.

At 3:34 p.m., on Friday, March 21, KHP initiated a traffic stop on I-70 near the 7th&nbsp;Street exit to serve an arrest warrant for Daijon Estell, 24. During the stop, a trooper gave verbal commands for Estell to exit the vehicle. Estell did not comply with the commands, and produced a handgun. Estell fired one round, which resulted in a self-inflicted head wound. No law enforcement personnel discharged any firearms during the incident.

Troopers attempted life-saving measures until EMS arrived. At 3:43 p.m., Estell was pronounced deceased. No law enforcement officers were injured.

A small child was in the back seat of Estell’s vehicle. The child was unharmed, and was safely removed from the vehicle. The child was taken by the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department to be reunited with other family members.

This independent investigation aims to discover all events leading up to the incident. In use of force cases, the KBI releases details to the public as soon as possible. This information is preliminary in nature, and is based on evidence collected and early statements of the parties involved, witnesses, medical personnel and others. It does not represent final or thorough findings which take several weeks to complete.

When this investigation concludes, case findings will be presented to the Wyandotte County District Attorney. The investigation is ongoing.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742643109671.png" alt="Estell from a previous arrest in Wyandotte Co." />
 <figcaption>Estell from a previous arrest in Wyandotte Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY, Kan.&nbsp;– The Kansas Bureau of Investigation is investigating a death that occurred Friday afternoon in Kansas City, Kansas, during a warrant arrest, according to a media release from the KBI.The Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP) requested the KBI conduct an investigation on Friday, March 21, at around 4:34 p.m. KBI agents and the Crime Scene Response Team responded to the scene.At 3:34 p.m., on Friday, March 21, KHP initiated a traffic stop on I-70 near the 7th&nbsp;Street exit to serve an arrest warrant for Daijon Estell, 24. During the stop, a trooper gave verbal commands for Estell to exit the vehicle. Estell did not comply with the commands, and produced a handgun. Estell fired one round, which resulted in a self-inflicted head wound. No law enforcement personnel discharged any firearms during the incident.Troopers attempted life-saving measures until EMS arrived. At 3:43 p.m., Estell was pronounced deceased. No law enforcement officers were injured.A small child was in the back seat of Estell’s vehicle. The child was unharmed, and was safely removed from the vehicle. The child was taken by the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department to be reunited with other family members.This independent investigation aims to discover all events leading up to the incident. In use of force cases, the KBI releases details to the public as soon as possible. This information is preliminary in nature, and is based on evidence collected and early statements of the parties involved, witnesses, medical personnel and others. It does not represent final or thorough findings which take several weeks to complete.When this investigation concludes, case findings will be presented to the Wyandotte County District Attorney. The investigation is ongoing.

Police investigate death during a warrant arrest of Kansas man

WASHINGTON (AP) — The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;seems to be in no hurry to address an issue that has irritated Republican and Democratic administrations alike: the ability of a single judge to block a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-transgender-troops-military-7e1a52f94ee60dcd58d4c2086e14acc3">nationwide policy</a>.

Federal judges responding to a flurry of lawsuits have stopped or slowed one Trump administration action after another, from efforts to restrict birthright citizenship to freezes on domestic and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/usaid-federal-judge-trump-administration-bdc919a5d98eda5ab72a32fdfe2f147d">international spending</a>.

While several justices have expressed concern about the use of so-called nationwide, or universal, injunctions, the high court has sidestepped multiple requests to do something about them.

The latest plea comes in the form of an emergency appeal the Justice Department filed with the court last week, seeking to narrow orders issued by judges in Maryland, Massachusetts and Washington that prohibit the nationwide enforcement of an executive order signed by President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-trump-immigration-birthright-citizenship-5f1ebd68996f10a84972108f943476fd">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;to restrict&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-administration-birthright-citizenship-059a5d7a564ee025d5b4b6e4492c6e66">birthright citizenship</a>.

The justices usually order the other side in an emergency appeal to respond in a few days or a week. But in this case, they have set a deadline of April 4, without offering any explanation.

What are nationwide, or universal, injunctions?

The standard practice in U.S. courts is that a judge issues an order that gives only the people who sued what they want. As the name suggests, nationwide injunctions go well beyond the parties to a case and apply everywhere and to everyone who might be affected.

There is a scholarly dispute over when the first nationwide injunctions were issued, but there is no disagreement that they started increasing in frequency during the Obama administration and have only grown in number since.

One reason for the growth in these broad orders may be a corresponding increase in executive action.

In 2015, for instance, a judge in Texas blocked President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/daca-immigration-trump-deferred-action-obama-1302d284b9c4bdf3b4a5aa6a2a155e56">Barack Obama’s</a>&nbsp;program to protect immigrant parents of U.S. children after Congress failed to pass an immigration overhaul. Shortly after Trump took office for the first time, judges initially shut down his imposition of travel restrictions on immigrants from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/3a20abe305bd4c989116f82bf535393b">seven Muslim-majority countries</a>.

The Trump administration’s acting top Supreme Court lawyer, Sarah Harris, described one major flaw in these court orders with universal effect. “Years of experience have shown that the Executive Branch cannot properly perform its functions if any judge anywhere can enjoin every presidential action everywhere,” Harris wrote in the emergency appeal over birthright citizenship.

Her predecessor in the Biden administration, Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, struck a similar theme in high court filings last year, noting that “the government must prevail in every suit to keep its policy in force, but plaintiffs can block a federal statute or regulation nationwide with just a single lower-court victory.”

The issue has been exacerbated by the tendency of conservatives to seek out like-minded judges in Texas, Louisiana and Missouri, while liberals file suit in friendlier courthouses in Massachusetts, California and New York.

“You look at something like that and you think, that can’t be right,” Justice&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-elena-kagan-ethics-code-0de5fc0fb31eaab57202cf96b4e9c3e7">Elena Kagan</a>&nbsp;said in 2022. “In the Trump years, people used to go to the Northern District of California, and in the Biden years, they go to Texas. It just can’t be right that one district judge can stop a nationwide policy in its tracks and leave it stopped for the years that it takes to go through the normal process.”

At least two justices,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/clarence-thomas-supreme-court-senate-harlan-crow-f538d244f148065de8c52fb13e2f9853">Clarence Thomas</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-justice-gorsuch-book-over-ruled-3bdd27fe9dd50e39bffd6eef030ad24f">Neil Gorsuch</a>&nbsp;have made clear they think the answer is no. Several others have suggested the injunctions raise questions the court might someday answer.

Samuel Bray, a professor at Notre Dame Law School, is a leading voice arguing that judges have no power to issue nationwide injunctions. The limits on a judge’s power remain even in the face of an obviously unconstitutional policy, Bray said.

That restraint applies even in the birthright citizenship cases, Bray wrote on the Divided Argument blog. “Any illegal act by the president should be rejected by the federal courts. But they should reject it as courts do—one case at a time, with remedies for the parties,” he wrote, citing Kagan’s remarks.

People challenging the executive order could file a class-action lawsuit, which would have broader application. Indeed, an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/american-civil-liberties-union">American Civil Liberties Union</a>&nbsp;lawyer representing immigration advocates and individuals in a case in New Hampshire told a judge that the ACLU was considering a nationwide class action.

But the group’s lawyer, Cody Wofsy, pointed out what might happen in the interim, if the Supreme Court agrees to the administration’s request. “Children would be exposed to all the harms we’ve talked about immediately,” Wofsy said.

Amanda Frost, a professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, thinks the Supreme Court could be open to addressing the broader issue at some point because judges impose nationwide injunctions too often.

But birthright citizenship would be a terrible issue on which to do so, Frost said.

“It would create a burden on people at a moment in their lives when they’re entering into the labor delivery room...And then you create a patchwork across the United States, incentivizing pregnant women to leave for a state that recognizes birthright citizenship,” she said.

She added: “You think about the chaos that would play out.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1672235865420.png" alt="Supreme Court Credit: Fred Schilling, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States" />
 <figcaption>Supreme Court Credit: Fred Schilling, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States</figcaption>
 </figure>BY&nbsp;MARK SHERMANWASHINGTON (AP) — The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;seems to be in no hurry to address an issue that has irritated Republican and Democratic administrations alike: the ability of a single judge to block a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-transgender-troops-military-7e1a52f94ee60dcd58d4c2086e14acc3">nationwide policy</a>.Federal judges responding to a flurry of lawsuits have stopped or slowed one Trump administration action after another, from efforts to restrict birthright citizenship to freezes on domestic and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/usaid-federal-judge-trump-administration-bdc919a5d98eda5ab72a32fdfe2f147d">international spending</a>.While several justices have expressed concern about the use of so-called nationwide, or universal, injunctions, the high court has sidestepped multiple requests to do something about them.The latest plea comes in the form of an emergency appeal the Justice Department filed with the court last week, seeking to narrow orders issued by judges in Maryland, Massachusetts and Washington that prohibit the nationwide enforcement of an executive order signed by President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-trump-immigration-birthright-citizenship-5f1ebd68996f10a84972108f943476fd">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;to restrict&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-administration-birthright-citizenship-059a5d7a564ee025d5b4b6e4492c6e66">birthright citizenship</a>.The justices usually order the other side in an emergency appeal to respond in a few days or a week. But in this case, they have set a deadline of April 4, without offering any explanation.<h2>What are nationwide, or universal, injunctions?</h2>The standard practice in U.S. courts is that a judge issues an order that gives only the people who sued what they want. As the name suggests, nationwide injunctions go well beyond the parties to a case and apply everywhere and to everyone who might be affected.There is a scholarly dispute over when the first nationwide injunctions were issued, but there is no disagreement that they started increasing in frequency during the Obama administration and have only grown in number since.One reason for the growth in these broad orders may be a corresponding increase in executive action.In 2015, for instance, a judge in Texas blocked President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/daca-immigration-trump-deferred-action-obama-1302d284b9c4bdf3b4a5aa6a2a155e56">Barack Obama’s</a>&nbsp;program to protect immigrant parents of U.S. children after Congress failed to pass an immigration overhaul. Shortly after Trump took office for the first time, judges initially shut down his imposition of travel restrictions on immigrants from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/3a20abe305bd4c989116f82bf535393b">seven Muslim-majority countries</a>.<h2>Shopping for judges to get a result</h2>The Trump administration’s acting top Supreme Court lawyer, Sarah Harris, described one major flaw in these court orders with universal effect. “Years of experience have shown that the Executive Branch cannot properly perform its functions if any judge anywhere can enjoin every presidential action everywhere,” Harris wrote in the emergency appeal over birthright citizenship.Her predecessor in the Biden administration, Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, struck a similar theme in high court filings last year, noting that “the government must prevail in every suit to keep its policy in force, but plaintiffs can block a federal statute or regulation nationwide with just a single lower-court victory.”The issue has been exacerbated by the tendency of conservatives to seek out like-minded judges in Texas, Louisiana and Missouri, while liberals file suit in friendlier courthouses in Massachusetts, California and New York.“You look at something like that and you think, that can’t be right,” Justice&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-elena-kagan-ethics-code-0de5fc0fb31eaab57202cf96b4e9c3e7">Elena Kagan</a>&nbsp;said in 2022. “In the Trump years, people used to go to the Northern District of California, and in the Biden years, they go to Texas. It just can’t be right that one district judge can stop a nationwide policy in its tracks and leave it stopped for the years that it takes to go through the normal process.”<h2>Are nationwide injunctions even legal?</h2>At least two justices,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/clarence-thomas-supreme-court-senate-harlan-crow-f538d244f148065de8c52fb13e2f9853">Clarence Thomas</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-justice-gorsuch-book-over-ruled-3bdd27fe9dd50e39bffd6eef030ad24f">Neil Gorsuch</a>&nbsp;have made clear they think the answer is no. Several others have suggested the injunctions raise questions the court might someday answer.Samuel Bray, a professor at Notre Dame Law School, is a leading voice arguing that judges have no power to issue nationwide injunctions. The limits on a judge’s power remain even in the face of an obviously unconstitutional policy, Bray said.That restraint applies even in the birthright citizenship cases, Bray wrote on the Divided Argument blog. “Any illegal act by the president should be rejected by the federal courts. But they should reject it as courts do—one case at a time, with remedies for the parties,” he wrote, citing Kagan’s remarks.People challenging the executive order could file a class-action lawsuit, which would have broader application. Indeed, an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/american-civil-liberties-union">American Civil Liberties Union</a>&nbsp;lawyer representing immigration advocates and individuals in a case in New Hampshire told a judge that the ACLU was considering a nationwide class action.But the group’s lawyer, Cody Wofsy, pointed out what might happen in the interim, if the Supreme Court agrees to the administration’s request. “Children would be exposed to all the harms we’ve talked about immediately,” Wofsy said.Amanda Frost, a professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, thinks the Supreme Court could be open to addressing the broader issue at some point because judges impose nationwide injunctions too often.But birthright citizenship would be a terrible issue on which to do so, Frost said.“It would create a burden on people at a moment in their lives when they’re entering into the labor delivery room...And then you create a patchwork across the United States, incentivizing pregnant women to leave for a state that recognizes birthright citizenship,” she said.She added: “You think about the chaos that would play out.”

Supreme Court seems in no hurry to rule on Trump plea to rein in judges 

ATCHISON COUNTY —Law enforcement investigating a knife attack robbery have made an arrest.

At 1:30AM on January 1st police officers investigated a disturbance that had occurred at an apartment in the 1200 block North 4th Street in Atchison, according to Police Chief Mike Wilson. 

Two female victims, ages 37 and 46, reported a disturbance had occurred in their residence with a man they knew. During the disturbance both victims were threatened and injured by the man with a knife. One of the victims was treated and released from the hospital with an injury from the knife. The suspect took both of the victims cellphones by force and left the residence before police arrived. 

At 3:30p.m. on March 20, police located the suspect identified as 42-year-old Michael T. Leach of Atchison&nbsp;at a residence in the 1000 block Kearney and he was taken into custody on a District Court warrant for aggravated robbery, robbery, aggravated intimidation of a witness, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, criminal threat, and battery.&nbsp; He is being held on a $500,000 bond.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742569289401.png" alt="Leach photo Atchison Co." />
 <figcaption>Leach photo Atchison Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>ATCHISON COUNTY —Law enforcement investigating a knife attack robbery have made an arrest.At 1:30AM on January 1st police officers investigated a disturbance that had occurred at an apartment in the 1200 block North 4th Street in Atchison, according to Police Chief Mike Wilson. Two female victims, ages 37 and 46, reported a disturbance had occurred in their residence with a man they knew. During the disturbance both victims were threatened and injured by the man with a knife. One of the victims was treated and released from the hospital with an injury from the knife. The suspect took both of the victims cellphones by force and left the residence before police arrived. At 3:30p.m. on March 20, police located the suspect identified as 42-year-old Michael T. Leach of Atchison&nbsp;at a residence in the 1000 block Kearney and he was taken into custody on a District Court warrant for aggravated robbery, robbery, aggravated intimidation of a witness, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, criminal threat, and battery.&nbsp; He is being held on a $500,000 bond.

Police capture Kan. suspect in New Year's Day knife attack robbery

<a href="https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search/?query=byline:%22JOHN%20HANNA%20and%20JAMIE%20STENGLE%22&amp;mediaType=text&amp;st=keyword&amp;sortOrder=newest">By JOHN HANNA and JAMIE STENGLE Associated Press</a>

DALLAS (AP) — Newly released documents related to President John F. Kennedy's&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-51224feebb8742a8a4e604da845c7fa8">assassination in 1963</a>&nbsp;gave curious readers more details Wednesday into Cold War-era covert U.S. operations in other nations but didn't initially lend credence to long-circulating conspiracy theories about who killed JFK.

<a href="https://www.archives.gov/research/jfk/available-online">Click here to read the files</a>&nbsp;from the National Archives

Assessments of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jfk-assassination-files-release-trump-3e8f31e18468d96b53210572e0992c07">roughly 2,200 files</a>&nbsp;posted by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration on its website came with a huge caveat: No one had enough time as of Wednesday to review more than a small fraction of them. The vast majority of the National Archives’ more than 6 million pages of records, photographs, motion pictures, sound recordings and artifacts related to the assassination have previously been released.

An initial Associated Press review of more than 63,000 pages of records released this week shows that some were not directly related to the assassination but rather dealt with covert CIA operations, particularly in Cuba. And nothing in the first documents examined undercut the conclusion that Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone gunman in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963.

“Nothing points to a second gunman,” said Philip Shenon, who wrote a 2013 book about the assassination. “I haven't seen any big blockbusters that rewrite the essential history of the assassination, but it is very early."

Kennedy was killed on a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-298388ef0d6e41d98a47c70c86c64788">visit to Dallas</a>, when his motorcade was finishing its parade route downtown and shots rang out from the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/travel-and-tourism-e9f33c5e647d45149c1738d64ea0e3c5">Texas School Book Depository</a>&nbsp;building. Police arrested the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/national-national-general-news-808c313725d849fd884794fe49b6fd39">24-year-old Oswald,</a>&nbsp;a former Marine who had positioned himself from a sniper’s perch on the sixth floor. Two days later Jack Ruby, a nightclub owner, fatally shot Oswald during a jail transfer broadcast live on television.

Historians hope for new details about the man who killed JFK

A year after the assassination, the Warren Commission, established by Johnson to investigate, concluded that Oswald acted alone and there was no evidence of a conspiracy. But critics of the commission still spun a web of alternative theories.

Historians are hoping for details fleshing out Oswald's activities before the assassination and what the CIA and FBI knew about him beforehand.

Shenon pointed Wednesday to previously released documents about a trip Oswald made to Mexico City at the end of September 1963. Records show Oswald intended to contact the Soviet Union's embassy there after living as a U.S. defector in the U.S.S.R. from October 1959 until June 1962.

Shenon said the U.S. government may have kept information about what it knew about Oswald before the assassination secret to hide what he described as officials' possible “incompetence and laziness."

“The CIA had Oswald under pretty aggressive surveillance while he was there and this was just several weeks before the assassination,” Shenon said. “There’s reason to believe he talked openly about killing Kennedy in Mexico City and that people overheard him say that.”

Speculation about such details surrounding Kennedy’s assassination has been intense over the decades, generating countless conspiracy theories about multiple shooters and involvement by the Soviet Union, the mafia and the CIA. The new release fueled rampant online speculation and sent people scurrying to read the documents and share online what they might mean.

Many documents already were public but information had been redacted

The latest release of documents followed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jfk-files-trump-release-381cd547e10e4f41d27a8e020bb6a435">an order by President Donald Trump</a>, though most of the records were made public previously with redactions. Before Tuesday, researchers had estimated that 3,000 to 3,500 files were&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jfk-assassination-documents-release-trump-50ea62770b13f0ffc11ca18dde03500d">still unreleased</a>, either wholly or partially. Last month,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jfk-fbi-trump-newly-discovered-files-0bd8ad5569f5fa3ed92b8ee9b795c9e7#">the FBI said</a>&nbsp;it had discovered about 2,400 new records related to the assassination.

Jefferson Morley, vice president of the Mary Ferrell Foundation, a repository for files related to the assassination, said in a statement posted on the social platform X that much of the “rampant overclassification of trivial information has been eliminated” from the documents.

The latest release also is a boon to historians of the Cold War. Timothy Natafali, an adjunct professor at Columbia University who is writing a book about JFK's presidency, said scholars now appear to have more details about U.S. intelligence activities under Kennedy than under any other president.

For example, in October 1975, U.S. senators were investigating what the CIA knew about Oswald, and an October 1975 memo said they considered the agency "not forthcoming.”

A version of that memo released in 2023 redacted the name of the CIA's security contact on Oswald in Mexico, as well as the identity of someone behind the “penetration of the Cuban embassy" there. The latest version shows that the security contact was the president of Mexico in 1975, Luis Echeverria Alvarez, who died in 2022, and that the Mexican government itself penetrated the Cuban embassy.

Also, Nafatali said, before the latest release, the government had made public copies of President Lyndon B. Johnson's “daily checklist” of highly sensitive foreign intelligence in the days after Kennedy's assassination, but with much of the material redacted. Now, he said, people can read what Johnson read.

“It’s quite remarkable to be able to walk through that secret world,” he said.

Some records provide small details about covert operations

Documents show that in December 1963, the CIA director's office was receiving messages from and replying to operatives in Cuba seeking to undermine the government under Fidel Castro. One, on Dec. 9, 1963, relayed a message to the director from Cuba: “TODAY RECD THE MAGNUM PISTOLS BUT NO BULLETS.”

“You’re getting both a bird’s-eye view of U.S. foreign policy, and you’re also getting a snail’s eye view of covert action, right there on the ground,” Nafatali said.

In a previously released April 1975 memo, the CIA downplayed what it knew about Oswald's visit to Mexico City before the assassination. The memo said the CIA recorded three phone calls between Oswald and a guard at the Soviet embassy, but only in the last one did Oswald identify himself.

“We’re now discovering how much more the CIA and the FBI knew before the assassination about Oswald,” Shenon said. “And the question is, why didn’t they act on the information in their own files?"

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1700660678254.png" alt="FILE - This Nov. 22, 1963 file photo shows President John F. Kennedy riding in motorcade with first lady Jacqueline Kennedy in Dallas, Texas. (AP Photo, file)" />
 <figcaption>FILE - This Nov. 22, 1963 file photo shows President John F. Kennedy riding in motorcade with first lady Jacqueline Kennedy in Dallas, Texas. (AP Photo, file)</figcaption>
 </figure><a href="https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search/?query=byline:%22JOHN%20HANNA%20and%20JAMIE%20STENGLE%22&amp;mediaType=text&amp;st=keyword&amp;sortOrder=newest">By JOHN HANNA and JAMIE STENGLE Associated Press</a>DALLAS (AP) — Newly released documents related to President John F. Kennedy's&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-51224feebb8742a8a4e604da845c7fa8">assassination in 1963</a>&nbsp;gave curious readers more details Wednesday into Cold War-era covert U.S. operations in other nations but didn't initially lend credence to long-circulating conspiracy theories about who killed JFK.<a href="https://www.archives.gov/research/jfk/available-online">Click here to read the files</a>&nbsp;from the National ArchivesAssessments of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jfk-assassination-files-release-trump-3e8f31e18468d96b53210572e0992c07">roughly 2,200 files</a>&nbsp;posted by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration on its website came with a huge caveat: No one had enough time as of Wednesday to review more than a small fraction of them. The vast majority of the National Archives’ more than 6 million pages of records, photographs, motion pictures, sound recordings and artifacts related to the assassination have previously been released.An initial Associated Press review of more than 63,000 pages of records released this week shows that some were not directly related to the assassination but rather dealt with covert CIA operations, particularly in Cuba. And nothing in the first documents examined undercut the conclusion that Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone gunman in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963.“Nothing points to a second gunman,” said Philip Shenon, who wrote a 2013 book about the assassination. “I haven't seen any big blockbusters that rewrite the essential history of the assassination, but it is very early."Kennedy was killed on a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-298388ef0d6e41d98a47c70c86c64788">visit to Dallas</a>, when his motorcade was finishing its parade route downtown and shots rang out from the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/travel-and-tourism-e9f33c5e647d45149c1738d64ea0e3c5">Texas School Book Depository</a>&nbsp;building. Police arrested the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/national-national-general-news-808c313725d849fd884794fe49b6fd39">24-year-old Oswald,</a>&nbsp;a former Marine who had positioned himself from a sniper’s perch on the sixth floor. Two days later Jack Ruby, a nightclub owner, fatally shot Oswald during a jail transfer broadcast live on television.<h2>Historians hope for new details about the man who killed JFK</h2>A year after the assassination, the Warren Commission, established by Johnson to investigate, concluded that Oswald acted alone and there was no evidence of a conspiracy. But critics of the commission still spun a web of alternative theories.Historians are hoping for details fleshing out Oswald's activities before the assassination and what the CIA and FBI knew about him beforehand.Shenon pointed Wednesday to previously released documents about a trip Oswald made to Mexico City at the end of September 1963. Records show Oswald intended to contact the Soviet Union's embassy there after living as a U.S. defector in the U.S.S.R. from October 1959 until June 1962.Shenon said the U.S. government may have kept information about what it knew about Oswald before the assassination secret to hide what he described as officials' possible “incompetence and laziness."“The CIA had Oswald under pretty aggressive surveillance while he was there and this was just several weeks before the assassination,” Shenon said. “There’s reason to believe he talked openly about killing Kennedy in Mexico City and that people overheard him say that.”Speculation about such details surrounding Kennedy’s assassination has been intense over the decades, generating countless conspiracy theories about multiple shooters and involvement by the Soviet Union, the mafia and the CIA. The new release fueled rampant online speculation and sent people scurrying to read the documents and share online what they might mean.<h2>Many documents already were public but information had been redacted</h2>The latest release of documents followed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jfk-files-trump-release-381cd547e10e4f41d27a8e020bb6a435">an order by President Donald Trump</a>, though most of the records were made public previously with redactions. Before Tuesday, researchers had estimated that 3,000 to 3,500 files were&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jfk-assassination-documents-release-trump-50ea62770b13f0ffc11ca18dde03500d">still unreleased</a>, either wholly or partially. Last month,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jfk-fbi-trump-newly-discovered-files-0bd8ad5569f5fa3ed92b8ee9b795c9e7#">the FBI said</a>&nbsp;it had discovered about 2,400 new records related to the assassination.Jefferson Morley, vice president of the Mary Ferrell Foundation, a repository for files related to the assassination, said in a statement posted on the social platform X that much of the “rampant overclassification of trivial information has been eliminated” from the documents.<h2>A boon to historians of the Cold War</h2>The latest release also is a boon to historians of the Cold War. Timothy Natafali, an adjunct professor at Columbia University who is writing a book about JFK's presidency, said scholars now appear to have more details about U.S. intelligence activities under Kennedy than under any other president.For example, in October 1975, U.S. senators were investigating what the CIA knew about Oswald, and an October 1975 memo said they considered the agency "not forthcoming.”A version of that memo released in 2023 redacted the name of the CIA's security contact on Oswald in Mexico, as well as the identity of someone behind the “penetration of the Cuban embassy" there. The latest version shows that the security contact was the president of Mexico in 1975, Luis Echeverria Alvarez, who died in 2022, and that the Mexican government itself penetrated the Cuban embassy.Also, Nafatali said, before the latest release, the government had made public copies of President Lyndon B. Johnson's “daily checklist” of highly sensitive foreign intelligence in the days after Kennedy's assassination, but with much of the material redacted. Now, he said, people can read what Johnson read.“It’s quite remarkable to be able to walk through that secret world,” he said.<h2>Some records provide small details about covert operations</h2>Documents show that in December 1963, the CIA director's office was receiving messages from and replying to operatives in Cuba seeking to undermine the government under Fidel Castro. One, on Dec. 9, 1963, relayed a message to the director from Cuba: “TODAY RECD THE MAGNUM PISTOLS BUT NO BULLETS.”“You’re getting both a bird’s-eye view of U.S. foreign policy, and you’re also getting a snail’s eye view of covert action, right there on the ground,” Nafatali said.In a previously released April 1975 memo, the CIA downplayed what it knew about Oswald's visit to Mexico City before the assassination. The memo said the CIA recorded three phone calls between Oswald and a guard at the Soviet embassy, but only in the last one did Oswald identify himself.“We’re now discovering how much more the CIA and the FBI knew before the assassination about Oswald,” Shenon said. “And the question is, why didn’t they act on the information in their own files?"____Hanna reported from Topeka, Kansas.

JFK assassination files reveal more about CIA but don't yet point to conspiracies

KANSAS CITY —A Kansas City area high school teacher is facing charges for possessing child pornography on a school computer.

<a href="https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/2551/MEYER-COMPLAINT-RED">Austin Meyer, a drama teacher at Truman High School, faces</a>&nbsp;11 counts of Possession of Child Pornography, according to Jackson County Prosecutor&nbsp;Melesa Johnson.

<a href="https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/2550/Meyer-Austin---PC-Statement_Redacted">Click here to read the probably cause statement</a>

<a href="https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/2550/Meyer-Austin---PC-Statement_Redacted">According to court records</a>, Independence police were advised by school officials that 11 gigabytes of child pornography had been found on the Meyer's computer. Officers arrested Meyer and he is in custody on a $100,000 cash bond.&nbsp;

The Independence School District announced Meyer was placed on administrative leave due to the criminal investigation.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742506503134.png" alt="Meyer photo Jackson County" />
 <figcaption>Meyer photo Jackson County</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —A Kansas City area high school teacher is facing charges for possessing child pornography on a school computer.<a href="https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/2551/MEYER-COMPLAINT-RED">Austin Meyer, a drama teacher at Truman High School, faces</a>&nbsp;11 counts of Possession of Child Pornography, according to Jackson County Prosecutor&nbsp;Melesa Johnson.<a href="https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/2550/Meyer-Austin---PC-Statement_Redacted">Click here to read the probably cause statement</a><a href="https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/2550/Meyer-Austin---PC-Statement_Redacted">According to court records</a>, Independence police were advised by school officials that 11 gigabytes of child pornography had been found on the Meyer's computer. Officers arrested Meyer and he is in custody on a $100,000 cash bond.&nbsp;The Independence School District announced Meyer was placed on administrative leave due to the criminal investigation.

KC area teacher had child porn on his school computer

<a href="https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search/?query=byline:%22DEVI%20SHASTRI%22&amp;mediaType=text&amp;st=keyword&amp;sortOrder=newest">By DEVI SHASTRI AP Health Writer</a>

The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-mmr-vaccine-texas-rfk-ff8e744b19ead87698d7217de02814ee">measles outbreaks</a>&nbsp;in West Texas and New Mexico have surpassed a combined 350 cases, and two unvaccinated people have died from measles-related causes.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-texas-new-mexico-mmr-outbreak-vaccines-408371700e3ab548777bf0354e586549">Measles</a>&nbsp;is caused by a highly contagious virus that's airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs. It is preventable through vaccines, and has been considered eliminated from the U.S. since 2000.

Already, the U.S. has more measles cases this year than in all of 2024, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said last week. Here's what else you&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-outbreak-texas-rfk-vaccines-8cf4641b04731c713edb524ca943490c">need to know about measles in the U.S.</a>

How many measles cases are there in Texas and New Mexico?

Texas state health officials said Friday there were 30 new cases of measles since Tuesday, bringing the total to 309 across 14 counties — most in West Texas. Four more people were hospitalized, for a total of 40. Three new Texas counties reported cases: Garza, Hockley and Hale.

New Mexico health officials announced three new cases Friday, bringing the state’s total to 42. Most of the cases are in Lea County, where two people have been hospitalized, and two are in in Eddy County.

Oklahoma's state health department has four probable cases as of this week. Last week, it said the first two probable cases were “associated” with the West Texas and New Mexico outbreaks.

A&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-outbreak-west-texas-death-rfk-41adc66641e4a56ce2b2677480031ab9">school-age child died of measles in Texas</a>&nbsp;last month, and New Mexico reported its first&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-death-new-mexico-texas-outbreak-b9aef6fdd51fbb4ebd1ce9ce28e33299">measles-related death in an adult</a>&nbsp;last week.

Where else is measles showing up in the U.S.?

Measles cases also have been reported in Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines an outbreak as three or more related cases — and there have been&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/measles/data-research/">three clusters</a>&nbsp;that qualified as outbreaks in 2025.

In the U.S., cases and outbreaks are generally traced to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-asia-measles-rates-unicef-who-report-2f888732cc297090238956986fd89cc4">someone who caught the disease abroad</a>. It can then spread, especially in communities with low vaccination rates. In 2019, the U.S. saw 1,274 cases and almost lost its status of having eliminated measles.

The best way to avoid measles is to get the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safety/vaccines/mmr.html">measles, mumps and rubella</a>&nbsp;(MMR) vaccine. The first shot is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old and the second between 4 and 6 years old.

People at high risk for infection who got the shots many years ago may want to consider getting a booster if they live in an area with an outbreak, said Scott Weaver with the Global Virus Network, an international coalition. Those may include family members living with someone who has measles or those especially vulnerable to respiratory diseases because of underlying medical conditions.

Adults with “presumptive evidence of immunity” generally don’t need measles shots now, the CDC said. Criteria include written documentation of adequate vaccination earlier in life, lab confirmation of past infection or being born before 1957, when most people were likely to be infected naturally.

A doctor can order a lab test called an MMR titer to check your levels of measles antibodies, but health experts don't always recommend this route and insurance coverage can vary.

Getting another MMR shot is harmless if there are concerns about waning immunity, the CDC says.

People who have documentation of receiving a live measles vaccine in the 1960s don’t need to be revaccinated, but people who were immunized before 1968 with an ineffective measles vaccine made from “killed” virus should be revaccinated with at least one dose, the agency said. That also includes people who don’t know which type they got.

Measles first infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body, causing a high fever, runny nose, cough, red, watery eyes and a rash.

The rash generally appears three to five days after the first symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feet. When the rash appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the CDC.

Most kids will recover from measles, but infection can lead to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/measles/signs-symptoms/index.html">dangerous complications</a>&nbsp;such as pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling and death.

There’s no specific treatment for measles, so doctors generally try to alleviate symptoms, prevent complications and keep patients comfortable.

In communities with high vaccination rates — above 95% — diseases like measles have a harder time spreading through communities. This is called “herd immunity.”

But childhood vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the pandemic and more parents are claiming religious or personal conscience waivers to exempt their kids from required shots.

The U.S. saw&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-cdc-outbreak-chicago-mmr-vaccine-7ecdfef41e6dbd659c7ac8b80d5de38f">a rise in measles cases in 2024</a>, including an outbreak in Chicago that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-chicago-migrant-shelter-cdc-e58517c830f73e42266d45d45983c12b">sickened more than 60.</a>

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/2/1740584009532.png" alt="File photo A sign warning of measles is posted on a glass door as a patient checks in for an appointment in the family medicine wing of at the Texas Tech Physicians of the Permian Basin Monday, Feb. 24, 2025, in Odessa, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)" />
 <figcaption>File photo A sign warning of measles is posted on a glass door as a patient checks in for an appointment in the family medicine wing of at the Texas Tech Physicians of the Permian Basin Monday, Feb. 24, 2025, in Odessa, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)</figcaption>
 </figure><a href="https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search/?query=byline:%22DEVI%20SHASTRI%22&amp;mediaType=text&amp;st=keyword&amp;sortOrder=newest">By DEVI SHASTRI AP Health Writer</a>The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-mmr-vaccine-texas-rfk-ff8e744b19ead87698d7217de02814ee">measles outbreaks</a>&nbsp;in West Texas and New Mexico have surpassed a combined 350 cases, and two unvaccinated people have died from measles-related causes.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1741908251964.png" alt="Three new cases of measles have been confirmed in Morton County, Kansas this week, linked to a previous case identified in Stevens County last week, according to a statement from the Morton County Health Department." />
 <figcaption>Three new cases of measles have been confirmed in Morton County, Kansas this week, linked to a previous case identified in Stevens County last week, according to a statement from the Morton County Health Department.</figcaption>
 </figure><a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-texas-new-mexico-mmr-outbreak-vaccines-408371700e3ab548777bf0354e586549">Measles</a>&nbsp;is caused by a highly contagious virus that's airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs. It is preventable through vaccines, and has been considered eliminated from the U.S. since 2000.Already, the U.S. has more measles cases this year than in all of 2024, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said last week. Here's what else you&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-outbreak-texas-rfk-vaccines-8cf4641b04731c713edb524ca943490c">need to know about measles in the U.S.</a><h2>How many measles cases are there in Texas and New Mexico?</h2>Texas state health officials said Friday there were 30 new cases of measles since Tuesday, bringing the total to 309 across 14 counties — most in West Texas. Four more people were hospitalized, for a total of 40. Three new Texas counties reported cases: Garza, Hockley and Hale.New Mexico health officials announced three new cases Friday, bringing the state’s total to 42. Most of the cases are in Lea County, where two people have been hospitalized, and two are in in Eddy County.Oklahoma's state health department has four probable cases as of this week. Last week, it said the first two probable cases were “associated” with the West Texas and New Mexico outbreaks.A&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-outbreak-west-texas-death-rfk-41adc66641e4a56ce2b2677480031ab9">school-age child died of measles in Texas</a>&nbsp;last month, and New Mexico reported its first&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-death-new-mexico-texas-outbreak-b9aef6fdd51fbb4ebd1ce9ce28e33299">measles-related death in an adult</a>&nbsp;last week.<h2>Where else is measles showing up in the U.S.?</h2>Measles cases also have been reported in Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and WashingtonThe U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines an outbreak as three or more related cases — and there have been&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/measles/data-research/">three clusters</a>&nbsp;that qualified as outbreaks in 2025.In the U.S., cases and outbreaks are generally traced to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-asia-measles-rates-unicef-who-report-2f888732cc297090238956986fd89cc4">someone who caught the disease abroad</a>. It can then spread, especially in communities with low vaccination rates. In 2019, the U.S. saw 1,274 cases and almost lost its status of having eliminated measles.<h2>Do you need an MMR booster?</h2>The best way to avoid measles is to get the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safety/vaccines/mmr.html">measles, mumps and rubella</a>&nbsp;(MMR) vaccine. The first shot is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old and the second between 4 and 6 years old.People at high risk for infection who got the shots many years ago may want to consider getting a booster if they live in an area with an outbreak, said Scott Weaver with the Global Virus Network, an international coalition. Those may include family members living with someone who has measles or those especially vulnerable to respiratory diseases because of underlying medical conditions.Adults with “presumptive evidence of immunity” generally don’t need measles shots now, the CDC said. Criteria include written documentation of adequate vaccination earlier in life, lab confirmation of past infection or being born before 1957, when most people were likely to be infected naturally.A doctor can order a lab test called an MMR titer to check your levels of measles antibodies, but health experts don't always recommend this route and insurance coverage can vary.Getting another MMR shot is harmless if there are concerns about waning immunity, the CDC says.People who have documentation of receiving a live measles vaccine in the 1960s don’t need to be revaccinated, but people who were immunized before 1968 with an ineffective measles vaccine made from “killed” virus should be revaccinated with at least one dose, the agency said. That also includes people who don’t know which type they got.<h2>What are the symptoms of measles?</h2>Measles first infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body, causing a high fever, runny nose, cough, red, watery eyes and a rash.The rash generally appears three to five days after the first symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feet. When the rash appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the CDC.Most kids will recover from measles, but infection can lead to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/measles/signs-symptoms/index.html">dangerous complications</a>&nbsp;such as pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling and death.<h2>How can you treat measles?</h2>There’s no specific treatment for measles, so doctors generally try to alleviate symptoms, prevent complications and keep patients comfortable.<h2>Why do vaccination rates matter?</h2>In communities with high vaccination rates — above 95% — diseases like measles have a harder time spreading through communities. This is called “herd immunity.”But childhood vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the pandemic and more parents are claiming religious or personal conscience waivers to exempt their kids from required shots.The U.S. saw&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-cdc-outbreak-chicago-mmr-vaccine-7ecdfef41e6dbd659c7ac8b80d5de38f">a rise in measles cases in 2024</a>, including an outbreak in Chicago that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/measles-chicago-migrant-shelter-cdc-e58517c830f73e42266d45d45983c12b">sickened more than 60.</a>

Number of measles cases continues to climb

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump announced Friday that Boeing will build the Air Force’s future fighter jet, which the Pentagon says will have stealth and penetration capabilities that far exceed those of its current fleet and is essential in a potential conflict with China.

Known as Next Generation Air Dominance, or NGAD, the manned jet will serve as quarterback to a fleet of future drone aircraft designed to be able to penetrate the air defenses of China and any other potential foes. The initial contract to proceed with production on a version for the Air Force version is worth an estimated $20 billion.

The 47th president, who announced the award at the White House with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Air Force leadership, said with a grin that the new fighter would be named the F-47.

Gen. David Allvin, chief of staff of the Air Force, said, “We're going to write the next generation of modern aerial warfare with this." And Hegseth said the future fleet “sends a very clear, direct message to our allies that we’re not going anywhere.”

Critics have questioned the cost and the necessity of the program as the Pentagon is still struggling to fully produce its current most advanced jet, the F-35, which is expected to cost taxpayers more than $1.7 trillion over its lifespan. In addition, the Pentagon's future stealth bomber, the B-21 Raider, will have many of the same cutting edge technologies in advanced materials, AI, propulsion and stealth.

More than 1,100 F-35s have already been built for the U.S. and multiple international partners.

A fleet of about 100 future&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/b21-bomber-warplane-stealth-nuclear-first-flight-2004cca92c641981567cfb1a1800c838">B-21 stealth bombers</a>&nbsp;at an estimated total cost of at least $130 billion is also planned. The first B-21 aircraft are now in test flights.

With evolving drone and space warfare likely to be the center of any fight with China, Dan Grazier, a military procurement analyst, questions whether “another exquisite manned fighter jet really is the right platform going forward.” Grazier, director of the national security reform program at the Stimson Center, said $20 billion is "just seed money. The total costs coming down the road will be hundreds of billions of dollars.”

Few details of what the new NGAD fighter would look like have been public, although Trump said early versions have been conducting test flights for the last five years. Renderings by both Lockheed Martin and Boeing have highlighted a flat, tail-less aircraft with a sharp nose.

The selection of Boeing, which has faced intense pressure from Trump over cost overruns and program delays on Air Force One, came after an independent analysis by the Air Force, an official said on the condition of anonymity to provide additional details on the selection. The Boeing offer was still determined to be the “best overall value to the government,” the official said.

The Air Force has not specified how many aircraft will be produced. In a statement, however, Allvin said there would be more F-47s produced than F-22s, the advanced fighter jet it's replacing. There are now about 180 F-22 fighter jets in service.

A separate Navy contract for its version of the NGAD fighter is still under competition between Northrop Grumman and Boeing.

Last year, the Biden administration's Air Force secretary, Frank Kendall, ordered a pause on the NGAD program to review if the aircraft was still needed or if the program, which was first designed in 2018, needed to be modified to reflect the past few years of warfighting advances.

That review by think tanks and academia examined what conflict with China would look like with NGAD and then without it — and determined that NGAD was still needed. Kendall then left the decision on which firm would build the fighter jet to the incoming Trump administration, a defense official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to provide details on the decision-making.

NGAD will bring “an entirely different level of low observability,” the official said. It will also have a much longer range than the F-35 or other current fighter jets, so it will require less refueling. A future unmanned version of NGAD also is planned as the Pentagon&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKcVvA2Oo-c">improves the AI for the aircraft,</a>&nbsp;the official said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742576430833.png" alt="Image courtesy White House" />
 <figcaption>Image courtesy White House</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump announced Friday that Boeing will build the Air Force’s future fighter jet, which the Pentagon says will have stealth and penetration capabilities that far exceed those of its current fleet and is essential in a potential conflict with China.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/SecDef?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecDef</a> announce the F-47, &quot;the world&#39;s first sixth-generation fighter jet.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/kip4Vbwmrn">pic.twitter.com/kip4Vbwmrn</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1903109410701914453?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 21, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>: &quot;The F-47 will be the most advanced, most capable, most lethal aircraft ever built. An experimental version of the plane has secretly been flying for almost 5 years and we&#39;re confident that it massively overpowers the capabilities of any other nation.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/J33fjUogs5">pic.twitter.com/J33fjUogs5</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1903109912596537805?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 21, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/SecDef?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecDef</a> on the new F-47: &quot;This is a big day for our warfighters. This is a big day for our country, a big day in the world ... America is going to have generations in the future of air dominance because of this sixth-generation fighter.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/fe3V9oFaWO">pic.twitter.com/fe3V9oFaWO</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1903110938640695520?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 21, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Known as Next Generation Air Dominance, or NGAD, the manned jet will serve as quarterback to a fleet of future drone aircraft designed to be able to penetrate the air defenses of China and any other potential foes. The initial contract to proceed with production on a version for the Air Force version is worth an estimated $20 billion.The 47th president, who announced the award at the White House with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Air Force leadership, said with a grin that the new fighter would be named the F-47.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742579994644.png" alt="&nbsp;U.S. Air Force photo shows the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) Platform, the F-47." />
 <figcaption>&nbsp;U.S. Air Force photo shows the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) Platform, the F-47.</figcaption>
 </figure>Gen. David Allvin, chief of staff of the Air Force, said, “We're going to write the next generation of modern aerial warfare with this." And Hegseth said the future fleet “sends a very clear, direct message to our allies that we’re not going anywhere.”Critics have questioned the cost and the necessity of the program as the Pentagon is still struggling to fully produce its current most advanced jet, the F-35, which is expected to cost taxpayers more than $1.7 trillion over its lifespan. In addition, the Pentagon's future stealth bomber, the B-21 Raider, will have many of the same cutting edge technologies in advanced materials, AI, propulsion and stealth.More than 1,100 F-35s have already been built for the U.S. and multiple international partners.A fleet of about 100 future&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/b21-bomber-warplane-stealth-nuclear-first-flight-2004cca92c641981567cfb1a1800c838">B-21 stealth bombers</a>&nbsp;at an estimated total cost of at least $130 billion is also planned. The first B-21 aircraft are now in test flights.With evolving drone and space warfare likely to be the center of any fight with China, Dan Grazier, a military procurement analyst, questions whether “another exquisite manned fighter jet really is the right platform going forward.” Grazier, director of the national security reform program at the Stimson Center, said $20 billion is "just seed money. The total costs coming down the road will be hundreds of billions of dollars.”Few details of what the new NGAD fighter would look like have been public, although Trump said early versions have been conducting test flights for the last five years. Renderings by both Lockheed Martin and Boeing have highlighted a flat, tail-less aircraft with a sharp nose.The selection of Boeing, which has faced intense pressure from Trump over cost overruns and program delays on Air Force One, came after an independent analysis by the Air Force, an official said on the condition of anonymity to provide additional details on the selection. The Boeing offer was still determined to be the “best overall value to the government,” the official said.The Air Force has not specified how many aircraft will be produced. In a statement, however, Allvin said there would be more F-47s produced than F-22s, the advanced fighter jet it's replacing. There are now about 180 F-22 fighter jets in service.A separate Navy contract for its version of the NGAD fighter is still under competition between Northrop Grumman and Boeing.Last year, the Biden administration's Air Force secretary, Frank Kendall, ordered a pause on the NGAD program to review if the aircraft was still needed or if the program, which was first designed in 2018, needed to be modified to reflect the past few years of warfighting advances.That review by think tanks and academia examined what conflict with China would look like with NGAD and then without it — and determined that NGAD was still needed. Kendall then left the decision on which firm would build the fighter jet to the incoming Trump administration, a defense official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to provide details on the decision-making.NGAD will bring “an entirely different level of low observability,” the official said. It will also have a much longer range than the F-35 or other current fighter jets, so it will require less refueling. A future unmanned version of NGAD also is planned as the Pentagon&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKcVvA2Oo-c">improves the AI for the aircraft,</a>&nbsp;the official said.

🎥F-47: Boeing wins contract for secretive future U.S. fighter jet

SHAWNEE COUNTY—One person died in an accident just after 12:05a.m. Friday in Topeka.

A vehicle was northbound in the 1400 Block of SW Wanamaker, according to Police Lt. Manuel Munoz. The vehicle struck the bridge. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police have not released the name of the victim.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742571842855.png" alt="Police on the scene early Friday- image by Eric Ives courtesy WIBW TV" />
 <figcaption>Police on the scene early Friday- image by Eric Ives courtesy WIBW TV</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY—One person died in an accident just after 12:05a.m. Friday in Topeka.A vehicle was northbound in the 1400 Block of SW Wanamaker, according to Police Lt. Manuel Munoz. The vehicle struck the bridge. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene.Police have not released the name of the victim.

One dead after crash into Kansas bridge

WASHINGTON (AP) —Linda McMahon said she is preparing to relocate the Education Department’s core operations to other agencies and roll back federal regulations.

She sketched out a roadmap for executing President Donald Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-education-department-shutdown-b1d25a2e1bdcd24cfde8ad8b655b9843">order to dismantle the agency</a>&nbsp;in an opinion piece published Friday by Fox News.

McMahon said abolishing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/education-department-trump-ab509ad5778497dfbd6d53b9eef692b5">the department</a>&nbsp;“will not happen tomorrow,” but she plans to pave the way.

“We will systematically unwind unnecessary regulations and prepare to reassign the department’s other functions to the states or other agencies,” McMahon wrote.

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">President Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;signed an executive order Thursday calling for the dismantling of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-education-department-secretary-linda-mcmahon-a49af0778fa7c50163619d1764f93c91">U.S. Education Department</a>, advancing a campaign promise to take apart an agency that’s been a longtime target of conservatives.

Trump has derided the Education Department as wasteful and polluted by liberal ideology. However, completing its dismantling is most likely impossible without an act of Congress, which created the department in 1979. Republicans said they will introduce legislation to achieve that, while Democrats have quickly lined up to oppose the idea.

The order says the education secretary will, “to the maximum extent appropriate and permitted by law, take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return authority over education to the States and local communities."

It offers no detail on how that work will be carried out or where it will be targeted, though the White House said the agency will retain certain critical functions.

Trump said his administration will close the department beyond its "core necessities," preserving its responsibilities for Title I funding for low-income schools, Pell grants and money for children with disabilities.

The White House said earlier Thursday the department will continue to manage federal student loans, but the order appears to say the opposite. It says the Education Department doesn't have the staff to oversee its $1.6 trillion loan portfolio and “must return bank functions to an entity equipped to serve America's students.”

At a signing ceremony, Trump blamed the department for America’s lagging academic performance and said states will do a better job.

Already, Trump's Republican administration has been gutting the agency. Its workforce is being&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/education-department-layoffs-job-cuts-linda-mcmahon-ce9f6a8a63972aede0d8fbdf057ab788">slashed in half</a>, and there have been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ies-musk-doge-education-cuts-4461d7bdbe9d55c5a411d8465999b011">deep cuts</a>&nbsp;to the Office for Civil Rights and the Institute of Education Sciences, which gathers data on the nation’s academic progress.

Education Secretary Linda McMahon said she will remove red tape and empower states to decide what’s best for their schools. But she promised to continue essential services and work with states and Congress "to ensure a lawful and orderly transition.”

Part of her job will be exploring which agencies can take on the Education Department's various roles, she said.

“The Department of Justice already has a civil rights office, and I think that there is an opportunity to discuss with Attorney General Bondi about locating some of our civil rights work there,” McMahon told reporters after the signing.

The measure was celebrated by groups that have long called for an end to the department.

"For decades, it has funneled billions of taxpayer dollars into a failing system — one that prioritizes leftist indoctrination over academic excellence, all while student achievement stagnates and America falls further behind," said Kevin Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation.

Advocates for public schools said eliminating the department would leave children behind in a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-education-department-layoffs-closure-c7cddd1dbf310dadcd70e003d62a6df0">fundamentally unequal</a>&nbsp;education system.

“This is a dark day for the millions of American children who depend on federal funding for a quality education, including those in poor and rural communities with parents who voted for Trump,” NAACP President Derrick Johnson said.

Opponents are already gearing up for legal challenges, including Democracy Forward, a public interest litigation group. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called the order a “tyrannical power grab” and “one of the most destructive and devastating steps Donald Trump has ever taken.”

Margaret Spellings, who served as education secretary under Republican President George W. Bush, questioned whether whether the department will be able to accomplish its remaining missions, and whether it will ultimately improve schools.

“Will it distract us from the ability to focus urgently on student achievement, or will people be figuring out how to run the train?" she asked.

Spellings said schools have always been run by local and state officials, and rejected the idea that the Education Department and federal government have been holding them back.

Currently, much of the agency’s work revolves around managing money — both its extensive student loan portfolio and a range of aid programs for colleges and school districts, like school meals and support for homeless students. The agency also is key in overseeing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/campus-antisemitism-investigation-trump-23855f8bc5597f4f94a816b6e46b0eac">civil rights enforcement</a>.

The Trump administration has not addressed the fate of other department operations, like its support for for technical education and adult learning, grants for rural schools and after-school programs, and a federal work-study program that provides employment to students with financial need.

States and districts already control local schools, including curriculum, but some conservatives have pushed to cut strings attached to federal money and provide it to states as “block grants” to be used at their discretion.

Block granting has raised questions about vital funding sources including Title I, the largest source of federal money to America’s K-12 schools. Families of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/education-department-iep-disability-civil-rights-trump-85a6687d9ef1f5236f2637924d66a560">children with disabilities</a>&nbsp;have despaired over what could come of the federal department's work protecting their rights.

Federal funding makes up a relatively small portion of public school budgets — roughly 14%. The money often supports supplemental programs for vulnerable students, such as the McKinney-Vento program for homeless students or Title I for low-income schools.

Republicans have talked about closing the Education Department for decades, saying it wastes money and inserts the federal government into decisions that should fall to states and schools. The idea has gained popularity recently as conservative parents’ groups demand more authority over their children’s schooling.

In his platform, Trump promised to close the department “and send it back to the states, where it belongs.” Trump has cast the department as a hotbed of “radicals, zealots and Marxists” who overextend their reach through guidance and regulation.

Even as Trump moves to dismantle the department, he has leaned on it to promote elements of his agenda. He has used investigative powers of the Office for Civil Rights and the threat of withdrawing federal education money to target schools and colleges that run afoul of his orders on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/live/donald-trump-news-updates-3-19-2025">transgender athletes participating in women's sports</a>, pro-Palestinian activism and diversity programs.

Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, a Democrat on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, dismissed Trump's claim that he's returning education to the states. She said he is actually “trying to exert ever more control over local schools and dictate what they can and cannot teach.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742573578411.png" alt="On Thursday, President Trump signed an Executive Order to Dismantle Department of Education" />
 <figcaption>On Thursday, President Trump signed an Executive Order to Dismantle Department of Education</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) —Linda McMahon said she is preparing to relocate the Education Department’s core operations to other agencies and roll back federal regulations.She sketched out a roadmap for executing President Donald Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-education-department-shutdown-b1d25a2e1bdcd24cfde8ad8b655b9843">order to dismantle the agency</a>&nbsp;in an opinion piece published Friday by Fox News.McMahon said abolishing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/education-department-trump-ab509ad5778497dfbd6d53b9eef692b5">the department</a>&nbsp;“will not happen tomorrow,” but she plans to pave the way.“We will systematically unwind unnecessary regulations and prepare to reassign the department’s other functions to the states or other agencies,” McMahon wrote.-----------WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">President Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;signed an executive order Thursday calling for the dismantling of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-education-department-secretary-linda-mcmahon-a49af0778fa7c50163619d1764f93c91">U.S. Education Department</a>, advancing a campaign promise to take apart an agency that’s been a longtime target of conservatives.Trump has derided the Education Department as wasteful and polluted by liberal ideology. However, completing its dismantling is most likely impossible without an act of Congress, which created the department in 1979. Republicans said they will introduce legislation to achieve that, while Democrats have quickly lined up to oppose the idea.The order says the education secretary will, “to the maximum extent appropriate and permitted by law, take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return authority over education to the States and local communities."It offers no detail on how that work will be carried out or where it will be targeted, though the White House said the agency will retain certain critical functions.Trump said his administration will close the department beyond its "core necessities," preserving its responsibilities for Title I funding for low-income schools, Pell grants and money for children with disabilities.The White House said earlier Thursday the department will continue to manage federal student loans, but the order appears to say the opposite. It says the Education Department doesn't have the staff to oversee its $1.6 trillion loan portfolio and “must return bank functions to an entity equipped to serve America's students.”At a signing ceremony, Trump blamed the department for America’s lagging academic performance and said states will do a better job.“It’s doing us no good," he said.Already, Trump's Republican administration has been gutting the agency. Its workforce is being&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/education-department-layoffs-job-cuts-linda-mcmahon-ce9f6a8a63972aede0d8fbdf057ab788">slashed in half</a>, and there have been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ies-musk-doge-education-cuts-4461d7bdbe9d55c5a411d8465999b011">deep cuts</a>&nbsp;to the Office for Civil Rights and the Institute of Education Sciences, which gathers data on the nation’s academic progress.Education Secretary Linda McMahon said she will remove red tape and empower states to decide what’s best for their schools. But she promised to continue essential services and work with states and Congress "to ensure a lawful and orderly transition.”Part of her job will be exploring which agencies can take on the Education Department's various roles, she said.“The Department of Justice already has a civil rights office, and I think that there is an opportunity to discuss with Attorney General Bondi about locating some of our civil rights work there,” McMahon told reporters after the signing.The measure was celebrated by groups that have long called for an end to the department."For decades, it has funneled billions of taxpayer dollars into a failing system — one that prioritizes leftist indoctrination over academic excellence, all while student achievement stagnates and America falls further behind," said Kevin Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation.Advocates for public schools said eliminating the department would leave children behind in a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-education-department-layoffs-closure-c7cddd1dbf310dadcd70e003d62a6df0">fundamentally unequal</a>&nbsp;education system.“This is a dark day for the millions of American children who depend on federal funding for a quality education, including those in poor and rural communities with parents who voted for Trump,” NAACP President Derrick Johnson said.Opponents are already gearing up for legal challenges, including Democracy Forward, a public interest litigation group. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called the order a “tyrannical power grab” and “one of the most destructive and devastating steps Donald Trump has ever taken.”Margaret Spellings, who served as education secretary under Republican President George W. Bush, questioned whether whether the department will be able to accomplish its remaining missions, and whether it will ultimately improve schools.“Will it distract us from the ability to focus urgently on student achievement, or will people be figuring out how to run the train?" she asked.Spellings said schools have always been run by local and state officials, and rejected the idea that the Education Department and federal government have been holding them back.Currently, much of the agency’s work revolves around managing money — both its extensive student loan portfolio and a range of aid programs for colleges and school districts, like school meals and support for homeless students. The agency also is key in overseeing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/campus-antisemitism-investigation-trump-23855f8bc5597f4f94a816b6e46b0eac">civil rights enforcement</a>.The Trump administration has not addressed the fate of other department operations, like its support for for technical education and adult learning, grants for rural schools and after-school programs, and a federal work-study program that provides employment to students with financial need.States and districts already control local schools, including curriculum, but some conservatives have pushed to cut strings attached to federal money and provide it to states as “block grants” to be used at their discretion.Block granting has raised questions about vital funding sources including Title I, the largest source of federal money to America’s K-12 schools. Families of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/education-department-iep-disability-civil-rights-trump-85a6687d9ef1f5236f2637924d66a560">children with disabilities</a>&nbsp;have despaired over what could come of the federal department's work protecting their rights.Federal funding makes up a relatively small portion of public school budgets — roughly 14%. The money often supports supplemental programs for vulnerable students, such as the McKinney-Vento program for homeless students or Title I for low-income schools.Republicans have talked about closing the Education Department for decades, saying it wastes money and inserts the federal government into decisions that should fall to states and schools. The idea has gained popularity recently as conservative parents’ groups demand more authority over their children’s schooling.In his platform, Trump promised to close the department “and send it back to the states, where it belongs.” Trump has cast the department as a hotbed of “radicals, zealots and Marxists” who overextend their reach through guidance and regulation.Even as Trump moves to dismantle the department, he has leaned on it to promote elements of his agenda. He has used investigative powers of the Office for Civil Rights and the threat of withdrawing federal education money to target schools and colleges that run afoul of his orders on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/live/donald-trump-news-updates-3-19-2025">transgender athletes participating in women's sports</a>, pro-Palestinian activism and diversity programs.Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, a Democrat on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, dismissed Trump's claim that he's returning education to the states. She said he is actually “trying to exert ever more control over local schools and dictate what they can and cannot teach.”

Education Secretary says she’ll ‘unwind’ regulations

RENO COUNTY —One person and a pet died in house fire on Friday.

Just before 4a.m. the Hutchinson Fire Department received a call of a house fire in the 200 Block of West 15th in Hutchinson, according to a media release. Dispatch advised of possible victims inside the home. First arriving crews found a 1 and one half story home that was fully on fire with multiple exposures that consisted of residential homes. 

Crews initiated a defensive attack and worked to prevent the fire from spreading. Two nearby homes sustained moderate damage and were saved. 

 The fire was considered controlled 90 minutes after arrival. One victim and a dog died in the fire.

 Hutchinson Structural Collapse personnel brought in special equipment to shore up a load bearing wall and secure a chimney before personnel were allowed into the home to remove the victim and continue work to put the fire out.

Hutchinson Public Works Department brought in a loader to assist in removal of debris. The home is a complete loss.&nbsp; The 2 other homes were also occupied at the time of the fire. No firefighter injuries were reported. 

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742552892095.jpeg" alt="Photo Hutchinson Fire Department" />
 <figcaption>Photo Hutchinson Fire Department</figcaption>
 </figure>RENO COUNTY —One person and a pet died in house fire on Friday.Just before 4a.m. the Hutchinson Fire Department received a call of a house fire in the 200 Block of West 15th in Hutchinson, according to a media release. Dispatch advised of possible victims inside the home. First arriving crews found a 1 and one half story home that was fully on fire with multiple exposures that consisted of residential homes. Crews initiated a defensive attack and worked to prevent the fire from spreading. Two nearby homes sustained moderate damage and were saved. The fire was considered controlled 90 minutes after arrival. One victim and a dog died in the fire. Hutchinson Structural Collapse personnel brought in special equipment to shore up a load bearing wall and secure a chimney before personnel were allowed into the home to remove the victim and continue work to put the fire out.Hutchinson Public Works Department brought in a loader to assist in removal of debris. The home is a complete loss.&nbsp; The 2 other homes were also occupied at the time of the fire. No firefighter injuries were reported. The HFD fire investigator and the State Fire Marshal are currently investigating to determine cause and origin. A medical examiner from Wichita has also been brought in to assist.&nbsp; The cause of the fire is currently undetermined.