OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — As states consider&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/redistricting-election-2026-texas-california-trump-1e23e2b3f8e09031cf1eee8979ff3559">redrawing their congressional district lines</a>&nbsp;to favor one political party, some politicians warn that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/gerrymandering-texas-congress-redistricting-0c751f48a7757fc11214472944670413">attempts to gerrymander</a>&nbsp;can devolve into “dummymandering,” when partisan goals end up helping the opposing party in neighboring districts.

Pushed initially&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-congress-house-republicans-texas-redistricting-d18e8280a32872d9eefcbb26f66a0331">by President Donald Trump</a>, state legislators across the country are discussing and at times agreeing to change boundaries in hopes of helping members of their party and ultimately deciding control of the U.S. House in 2026. Some are finding it's not as easy as it seems.

“Trying to win more seats comes with a risk, because in order to win more seats, they have to draw districts more competitively,” said University of Texas at Dallas political science professor Thomas L. Brunell, who helped coin the term dummymander.

Republicans could try redistricting Nebraska

U.S. House districts are typically redrawn once a decade, immediately after a census, but some states allow it to happen more frequently. And the U.S. Supreme Court has said there is no federal curb on political gerrymandering, in which districts are intentionally drawn to favor one party.

Nebraska is among a number of states being targeted for mid-decade redrawing of congressional district lines, with the head of the National Republican Redistricting Trust last week naming Nebraska among its top candidates for change. Republican Gov. Jim Pillen said he supports the idea.

The focus would be the Omaha-based 2nd Congressional District, a “blue dot” with Nebraska’s highest concentration of Democratic voters in a state otherwise dominated by Republicans.

Republicans hold all three of Nebraska’s U.S. House seats, including the 2nd District, but the Omaha seat is considered vulnerable. Incumbent Rep. Don Bacon eked out wins in the last two elections and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-nebraska-don-bacon-retiring-fb00b2cab3a37e167447e0d358d8a107">won't seek reelection</a>&nbsp;in 2026, bolstering Democratic hopes.

Gerrymandering in a state where Republicans outnumber Democrats by a 2-1 ratio would seem simple, but state Sen. John Cavanaugh said it's not.

Cavanaugh, a Democrat who worked on Nebraska’s last redistricting effort following the 2020 U.S. Census and is now seeking the 2nd District seat, said Nebraska’s congressional districts already heavily favor Republicans following decades of GOP-led redistricting efforts.

“They’ve gone to great lengths to make the 2nd District less competitive,” Cavanaugh said.

Redistricting and the 2026 midterm elections

This summer, Trump urged Republican-led Texas to reshape districts so the GOP could win more seats in next year’s elections, jump-starting an offseason redistricting battle. The Republican Party typically loses congressional seats in midterm elections and the president is trying to buck that trend. Democrats need to gain just three seats to take control of the House.

In August, Texas lawmakers&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/california-texas-redistricting-trump-map-congress-b6222dd39c494c9ab48beafabc66dc35">redrew the state’s</a>&nbsp;congressional districts to give Republicans a shot at winning five more seats.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/texas-california-redistricting-battle-f0ac783b6a5fd6ecaab0ca419125b72a">Democratic-led California</a>&nbsp;responded with a redistricting plan intended to help Democrats win more seats, though it still&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/california-house-trump-newsom-democrats-republicans-43868bbcfb81cf2b1ef5d2862b2665a9">needs voter approval</a>. Leaders in other Democratic-leaning states, such as Maryland, New York and Illinois, have said they’re considering their own mid-decade redistricting plans.

Last month, Republican-led Missouri&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/redistricting-gerrymander-trump-missouri-936e8daecadb32556fcfbd2eb9f7457b">adopted revised districts</a>&nbsp;aimed at helping the GOP win another seat. North Carolina Republican legislative leaders also have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/north-carolina-congress-redistricting-house-b32b6b1c52d9f59efac41c3b8c0db971">announced plans</a>&nbsp;to vote next week on redrawing the state’s House district map.

Redistricting remains under consideration in several other states,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jd-vance-indiana-redistricting-donald-trump-fafc5bd34f741b3886913e792ab33048">including Indiana</a>&nbsp;and Kansas, where Republican lawmakers are gathering petition signatures from colleagues in an effort to call a special session for congressional redistricting.

Some Republicans remain hesitant, partially because of concerns that mid-decade redistricting could backfire. To make Democratic-leaning districts more favorable to Republicans, map drawers would have to shift some Democratic areas into districts currently held by Republicans, making them more vulnerable.

In South Carolina, Republican leaders worry that redrawing its seven U.S. House districts could be dangerous in a state where the GOP hovers at roughly 55% in competitive elections. Republicans usually hold six of seven seats&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-house-elections-united-states-house-of-representatives-87e5a14395bb417391d413028a905739">but lost one</a>&nbsp;for a term in 2018.

Kansas had already attempted to make the state’s four districts an all-GOP congressional delegation when it redrew the lines in 2022 to weaken the Democratic stronghold on the Kansas City-area. But Democratic&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-abortion-biden-legislature-c33d92d6b33fc33c524f6b78024f3700">incumbent Rep. Sharice Davids</a>&nbsp;still won easily in 2022 and 2024.

Trump’s push to redraw the maps comes as his administration’s policies face skepticism among many voters, according to polling by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnorc.org/">The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research</a>.

Moon Duchin, a computer and data science professor at the University of Chicago and redistricting expert, said creating reliably partisan congressional maps in a large state like Texas is easier because the state has 38 districts, offering plenty of options to tinker.

It's tougher in states like Nebraska or Kansas, she said.

“You have fewer lines; you’re not going to be able to put them as far out of reach without creating opportunities elsewhere," Duchin said. "And so, yes, you have to do it really carefully because it can backfire.”

Even in Texas, Republicans saw the effects of dummymandering after they aggressively redrew political lines in the 2010s that helped pad the GOP’s House majority. That lasted until 2018, when a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/democrats-seize-house-control-but-trumps-gop-holds-senate-c0be062914e048d79f70bcf120e1ccbb">backlash against Trump</a>&nbsp;in his first term led Democrats to flip two seats that Republicans had thought safe.

“That’s the thing about gerrymandering — people are still going to vote, and you have to make guesses about future voting behavior,” Duchin said.

After initial reluctance, Republicans in states including Texas and Missouri came around to support redistricting.

That could happen in Nebraska, too, but some key Republican lawmakers remain opposed.

Republican state Sen. Merv Riepe said he's not inclined to support such a measure, leaving Republicans with too few votes to overcome a filibuster.

That's in line with Republicans' failure last year to pass a bill that would have made Nebraska the 49th state to award its Electoral College votes on a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nebraska-winner-take-all-bill-electoral-votes-ccf51606a3cd7ea9676442993c3ae368">winner-take-all</a>&nbsp;basis.

Currently, only Nebraska and Maine allow presidential electoral votes to be split by congressional district. Nebraska's 2nd District's vote has gone to Democrats three times in the last two decades — to Barack Obama in 2008,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-joe-biden-donald-trump-lincoln-omaha-93fdcb5a05fc62878b4fe70c2f7f6e5a">Joe Biden in 2020</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nebraska-house-election-2024-bacon-vargas-e17c217dc6f5c1b1227aa0d22aa504ee">Kamala Harris in 2024</a>.

Associated Press writers David A. Lieb in Jefferson City, Missouri; John Hanna in Topeka, Kansas; Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina; and Gary D. Robertson in Raleigh, North Carolina contributed.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643147273216.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — As states consider&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/redistricting-election-2026-texas-california-trump-1e23e2b3f8e09031cf1eee8979ff3559">redrawing their congressional district lines</a>&nbsp;to favor one political party, some politicians warn that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/gerrymandering-texas-congress-redistricting-0c751f48a7757fc11214472944670413">attempts to gerrymander</a>&nbsp;can devolve into “dummymandering,” when partisan goals end up helping the opposing party in neighboring districts.Pushed initially&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-congress-house-republicans-texas-redistricting-d18e8280a32872d9eefcbb26f66a0331">by President Donald Trump</a>, state legislators across the country are discussing and at times agreeing to change boundaries in hopes of helping members of their party and ultimately deciding control of the U.S. House in 2026. Some are finding it's not as easy as it seems.“Trying to win more seats comes with a risk, because in order to win more seats, they have to draw districts more competitively,” said University of Texas at Dallas political science professor Thomas L. Brunell, who helped coin the term dummymander.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Extreme D.C. politicians who’ve never set foot in Kansas shouldn’t get to decide who represents you. <a href="https://t.co/jhe4cRyLzg">pic.twitter.com/jhe4cRyLzg</a>&mdash; Sharice Davids (@sharicedavids) <a href="https://twitter.com/sharicedavids/status/1978612604378443901?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><h2>Republicans could try redistricting Nebraska</h2>U.S. House districts are typically redrawn once a decade, immediately after a census, but some states allow it to happen more frequently. And the U.S. Supreme Court has said there is no federal curb on political gerrymandering, in which districts are intentionally drawn to favor one party.Nebraska is among a number of states being targeted for mid-decade redrawing of congressional district lines, with the head of the National Republican Redistricting Trust last week naming Nebraska among its top candidates for change. Republican Gov. Jim Pillen said he supports the idea.The focus would be the Omaha-based 2nd Congressional District, a “blue dot” with Nebraska’s highest concentration of Democratic voters in a state otherwise dominated by Republicans.Republicans hold all three of Nebraska’s U.S. House seats, including the 2nd District, but the Omaha seat is considered vulnerable. Incumbent Rep. Don Bacon eked out wins in the last two elections and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-nebraska-don-bacon-retiring-fb00b2cab3a37e167447e0d358d8a107">won't seek reelection</a>&nbsp;in 2026, bolstering Democratic hopes.Gerrymandering in a state where Republicans outnumber Democrats by a 2-1 ratio would seem simple, but state Sen. John Cavanaugh said it's not.Cavanaugh, a Democrat who worked on Nebraska’s last redistricting effort following the 2020 U.S. Census and is now seeking the 2nd District seat, said Nebraska’s congressional districts already heavily favor Republicans following decades of GOP-led redistricting efforts.“They’ve gone to great lengths to make the 2nd District less competitive,” Cavanaugh said.<h2>Redistricting and the 2026 midterm elections</h2>This summer, Trump urged Republican-led Texas to reshape districts so the GOP could win more seats in next year’s elections, jump-starting an offseason redistricting battle. The Republican Party typically loses congressional seats in midterm elections and the president is trying to buck that trend. Democrats need to gain just three seats to take control of the House.In August, Texas lawmakers&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/california-texas-redistricting-trump-map-congress-b6222dd39c494c9ab48beafabc66dc35">redrew the state’s</a>&nbsp;congressional districts to give Republicans a shot at winning five more seats.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/texas-california-redistricting-battle-f0ac783b6a5fd6ecaab0ca419125b72a">Democratic-led California</a>&nbsp;responded with a redistricting plan intended to help Democrats win more seats, though it still&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/california-house-trump-newsom-democrats-republicans-43868bbcfb81cf2b1ef5d2862b2665a9">needs voter approval</a>. Leaders in other Democratic-leaning states, such as Maryland, New York and Illinois, have said they’re considering their own mid-decade redistricting plans.Last month, Republican-led Missouri&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/redistricting-gerrymander-trump-missouri-936e8daecadb32556fcfbd2eb9f7457b">adopted revised districts</a>&nbsp;aimed at helping the GOP win another seat. North Carolina Republican legislative leaders also have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/north-carolina-congress-redistricting-house-b32b6b1c52d9f59efac41c3b8c0db971">announced plans</a>&nbsp;to vote next week on redrawing the state’s House district map.Redistricting remains under consideration in several other states,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jd-vance-indiana-redistricting-donald-trump-fafc5bd34f741b3886913e792ab33048">including Indiana</a>&nbsp;and Kansas, where Republican lawmakers are gathering petition signatures from colleagues in an effort to call a special session for congressional redistricting.<h2>The effort could backfire</h2>Some Republicans remain hesitant, partially because of concerns that mid-decade redistricting could backfire. To make Democratic-leaning districts more favorable to Republicans, map drawers would have to shift some Democratic areas into districts currently held by Republicans, making them more vulnerable.In South Carolina, Republican leaders worry that redrawing its seven U.S. House districts could be dangerous in a state where the GOP hovers at roughly 55% in competitive elections. Republicans usually hold six of seven seats&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-house-elections-united-states-house-of-representatives-87e5a14395bb417391d413028a905739">but lost one</a>&nbsp;for a term in 2018.Kansas had already attempted to make the state’s four districts an all-GOP congressional delegation when it redrew the lines in 2022 to weaken the Democratic stronghold on the Kansas City-area. But Democratic&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-abortion-biden-legislature-c33d92d6b33fc33c524f6b78024f3700">incumbent Rep. Sharice Davids</a>&nbsp;still won easily in 2022 and 2024.Trump’s push to redraw the maps comes as his administration’s policies face skepticism among many voters, according to polling by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnorc.org/">The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research</a>.Moon Duchin, a computer and data science professor at the University of Chicago and redistricting expert, said creating reliably partisan congressional maps in a large state like Texas is easier because the state has 38 districts, offering plenty of options to tinker.It's tougher in states like Nebraska or Kansas, she said.“You have fewer lines; you’re not going to be able to put them as far out of reach without creating opportunities elsewhere," Duchin said. "And so, yes, you have to do it really carefully because it can backfire.”Even in Texas, Republicans saw the effects of dummymandering after they aggressively redrew political lines in the 2010s that helped pad the GOP’s House majority. That lasted until 2018, when a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/democrats-seize-house-control-but-trumps-gop-holds-senate-c0be062914e048d79f70bcf120e1ccbb">backlash against Trump</a>&nbsp;in his first term led Democrats to flip two seats that Republicans had thought safe.“That’s the thing about gerrymandering — people are still going to vote, and you have to make guesses about future voting behavior,” Duchin said.<h2>Nebraska has other challenges</h2>After initial reluctance, Republicans in states including Texas and Missouri came around to support redistricting.That could happen in Nebraska, too, but some key Republican lawmakers remain opposed.Republican state Sen. Merv Riepe said he's not inclined to support such a measure, leaving Republicans with too few votes to overcome a filibuster.That's in line with Republicans' failure last year to pass a bill that would have made Nebraska the 49th state to award its Electoral College votes on a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nebraska-winner-take-all-bill-electoral-votes-ccf51606a3cd7ea9676442993c3ae368">winner-take-all</a>&nbsp;basis.Currently, only Nebraska and Maine allow presidential electoral votes to be split by congressional district. Nebraska's 2nd District's vote has gone to Democrats three times in the last two decades — to Barack Obama in 2008,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-joe-biden-donald-trump-lincoln-omaha-93fdcb5a05fc62878b4fe70c2f7f6e5a">Joe Biden in 2020</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nebraska-house-election-2024-bacon-vargas-e17c217dc6f5c1b1227aa0d22aa504ee">Kamala Harris in 2024</a>.___Associated Press writers David A. Lieb in Jefferson City, Missouri; John Hanna in Topeka, Kansas; Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina; and Gary D. Robertson in Raleigh, North Carolina contributed.

States are redistricting to help one party but sometimes the move can backfire

KANSAS CITY —One person died in an accident just before 1:30a.m. Sunday in Kansas City.

A gray Chevrolet Malibu was southbound on Paseo at a very high rate of speed, according to KCPD Captain Jake Becchina. At 16th and Paseo, the car went into a broad slide, continued over the curb through the grass and struck a large tree.

EMS transported the unrestrained driver to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries and was subsequently pronounced deceased by hospital staff. 

The front seat passenger and left rear seat passenger were both transported to local hospitals with critical injuries. The right rear seat passenger was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The front seat passenger was reported in critical condition. The left rear seat passenger was reported in serious condition and the right rear seat passenger was in stable condition.&nbsp; Police did not release names of those involved.

This is fatality #54 compared to #75 at this time last year, according to Becchina.&nbsp;&nbsp;

KANSAS CITY —One person died in an accident just before 1:30a.m. Sunday in Kansas City.A gray Chevrolet Malibu was southbound on Paseo at a very high rate of speed, according to KCPD Captain Jake Becchina. At 16th and Paseo, the car went into a broad slide, continued over the curb through the grass and struck a large tree.EMS transported the unrestrained driver to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries and was subsequently pronounced deceased by hospital staff. The front seat passenger and left rear seat passenger were both transported to local hospitals with critical injuries. The right rear seat passenger was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The front seat passenger was reported in critical condition. The left rear seat passenger was reported in serious condition and the right rear seat passenger was in stable condition.&nbsp; Police did not release names of those involved.This is fatality #54 compared to #75 at this time last year, according to Becchina.&nbsp;&nbsp;

KCPD: One dead, 6 injured after violent crash into a tree

NOAA’s National Weather Service released their Winter Outlook.

This outlook shows the likely temperature and precipitation the U.S. could experience during meteorological winter (December 1, 2025 through February 28, 2026) and drought conditions through January 31, 2026.

La Niña conditions are expected to develop later this fall and will be a factor in the winter outlook.

A milder-than-average winter is favored across the southern tier of the country and along the Eastern Seaboard.

Drought conditions are expected to persist and worsen from southern Texas to California.

NOAA’s seasonal outlooks provide the likelihood that average temperature and total precipitation for the three-month period will be above-, near- or below-average and how drought conditions are anticipated to change in the months ahead.

Keep In Mind: The outlook does not project seasonal snowfall accumulations as snow forecasts are generally not predictable more than a week in advance, and cold weather can still be experienced in areas that are warmer-than-normal over the course of the season.

NOAA’s National Weather Service released their Winter Outlook.This outlook shows the likely temperature and precipitation the U.S. could experience during meteorological winter (December 1, 2025 through February 28, 2026) and drought conditions through January 31, 2026.Here are the highlights:<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">NOAA’s National Weather Service Winter Outlook has been released. This outlook shows the likely temperature and precipitation the U.S. could experience during meteorological winter (December 1, 2025 through February 28, 2026) and drought conditions through January 31, 2026.… <a href="https://t.co/wM6eQBDDoq">pic.twitter.com/wM6eQBDDoq</a>&mdash; National Weather Service (@NWS) <a href="https://twitter.com/NWS/status/1978839667907744157?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>La Niña conditions are expected to develop later this fall and will be a factor in the winter outlook.A milder-than-average winter is favored across the southern tier of the country and along the Eastern Seaboard.Drought conditions are expected to persist and worsen from southern Texas to California.NOAA’s seasonal outlooks provide the likelihood that average temperature and total precipitation for the three-month period will be above-, near- or below-average and how drought conditions are anticipated to change in the months ahead.Keep In Mind: The outlook does not project seasonal snowfall accumulations as snow forecasts are generally not predictable more than a week in advance, and cold weather can still be experienced in areas that are warmer-than-normal over the course of the season.

Highlights of the National Weather Service winter outlook 

JOHNSON COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating a shooting and have two suspects in custody.

Just after 5:00 p.m. Saturday, police responded to a report of an armed disturbance in the 6500 block of Ballentine Street in the city of Shawnee, according to a media release. Upon arrival, officers confirmed that shots had been fired.

Two individuals were transported to local hospitals in stable condition. One man was shot, and a second man sustained injuries from a reported battery.

Both individuals are currently in police custody. Police released no additional details.

JOHNSON COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating a shooting and have two suspects in custody.Just after 5:00 p.m. Saturday, police responded to a report of an armed disturbance in the 6500 block of Ballentine Street in the city of Shawnee, according to a media release. Upon arrival, officers confirmed that shots had been fired.Two individuals were transported to local hospitals in stable condition. One man was shot, and a second man sustained injuries from a reported battery.Both individuals are currently in police custody. Police released no additional details.

Police: 2 hospitalized and arrested after shooting at Kan. home

PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) — The U.S. Embassy in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/trinidad-and-tobago">Trinidad and Tobago</a>&nbsp;cautioned Americans on Saturday to stay away from American government facilities on the twin-island nation.

It was an unusual warning that came as tensions grow between the United States and Venezuela over&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-maduro-drugs-venezuela-911-hegseth-3db3aafed492556bb9ca7de855c4849e">deadly U.S. strikes in Caribbean waters</a>&nbsp;targeting suspected drug traffickers.

The embassy didn’t specify why it issued the warning, saying only that, “due to a heightened state of alert, please avoid and refrain from visiting all U.S. government facilities through the holiday weekend,” as it urged people to “be aware of your surroundings.” Monday is a holiday to celebrate Diwali, a Hindu festival of lights widely celebrated in Trinidad and Tobago, where 35% of its 1.4 million people identify as East Indian.

Venezuela is located just miles away from Trinidad, where people in one coastal community&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-trinidad-us-strikes-fishermen-killed-286230c6e51deaa706fdb0d2837a7ca5">are mourning the disappearance</a>&nbsp;of two local fishermen believed killed in a U.S. strike on Tuesday.

The alert is based on threats directed at American citizens in the Caribbean nation, with U.S. authorities saying “it could be linked” to ongoing tensions in the region, Trinidad and Tobago’s minister of homeland security, Roger Alexander, told The Associated Press. However, local authorities declined to share specific details about the reported threats.

Authorities in Trinidad and Tobago have responded to the threats by implementing security measures to deal with any situations that may arise, Alexander said.

With six strikes killing at least 29 people since early September, the tense situation in the region was mentioned by U.S. officials in a briefing with authorities in Trinidad and Tobago, Alexander said.

Following the most recent attack, the U.S. government&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-drug-smuggling-pentagon-strike-12820c173da3de80c1a7a559c252c743">took survivors into custody</a>, after the military struck a suspected drug-carrying vessel in the Caribbean, officials said Friday.

The Trump administration has said it considers&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-cartels-armed-conflict-cb57804807e55a00ace60ad5f4d4f24d">alleged drug traffickers as unlawful combatants</a>&nbsp;who must be met with military force.

PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) — The U.S. Embassy in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/trinidad-and-tobago">Trinidad and Tobago</a>&nbsp;cautioned Americans on Saturday to stay away from American government facilities on the twin-island nation.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Due to a heightened state of alert, please avoid and refrain from visiting all U.S. Government facilities in Trinidad and Tobago through the holiday weekend. Actions to take: Avoid all U.S. government facilities in Trinidad and Tobago. Be aware of your surroundings. Monitor… <a href="https://t.co/9iCqOkF1vy">pic.twitter.com/9iCqOkF1vy</a>&mdash; U.S. Embassy Port of Spain (@USinTT) <a href="https://twitter.com/USinTT/status/1979552663395045747?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 18, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>It was an unusual warning that came as tensions grow between the United States and Venezuela over&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-maduro-drugs-venezuela-911-hegseth-3db3aafed492556bb9ca7de855c4849e">deadly U.S. strikes in Caribbean waters</a>&nbsp;targeting suspected drug traffickers.The embassy didn’t specify why it issued the warning, saying only that, “due to a heightened state of alert, please avoid and refrain from visiting all U.S. government facilities through the holiday weekend,” as it urged people to “be aware of your surroundings.” Monday is a holiday to celebrate Diwali, a Hindu festival of lights widely celebrated in Trinidad and Tobago, where 35% of its 1.4 million people identify as East Indian.Venezuela is located just miles away from Trinidad, where people in one coastal community&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-trinidad-us-strikes-fishermen-killed-286230c6e51deaa706fdb0d2837a7ca5">are mourning the disappearance</a>&nbsp;of two local fishermen believed killed in a U.S. strike on Tuesday.The alert is based on threats directed at American citizens in the Caribbean nation, with U.S. authorities saying “it could be linked” to ongoing tensions in the region, Trinidad and Tobago’s minister of homeland security, Roger Alexander, told The Associated Press. However, local authorities declined to share specific details about the reported threats.Authorities in Trinidad and Tobago have responded to the threats by implementing security measures to deal with any situations that may arise, Alexander said.With six strikes killing at least 29 people since early September, the tense situation in the region was mentioned by U.S. officials in a briefing with authorities in Trinidad and Tobago, Alexander said.Following the most recent attack, the U.S. government&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-drug-smuggling-pentagon-strike-12820c173da3de80c1a7a559c252c743">took survivors into custody</a>, after the military struck a suspected drug-carrying vessel in the Caribbean, officials said Friday.The Trump administration has said it considers&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-cartels-armed-conflict-cb57804807e55a00ace60ad5f4d4f24d">alleged drug traffickers as unlawful combatants</a>&nbsp;who must be met with military force.

US Embassy issues unusual warning to Americans in Trinidad and Tobago

SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas girl died in an accident just after 6:30p.m. Saturday in Sedgwick County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2012 Chevy Equinox driven by Randon Marqua Amaya-Lopez, 16, Wichita, was northbound on Interstate 135 at Kellogg. The SUV left the roadway to the right and struck a bridge pillar.

EMS transported a passenger in the vehicle identified as&nbsp; Belayna Garlen&nbsp; Amaya, 14, Wichita, to Wesley Medical Center where she was pronounced deceased. Amaya-Lopez also had serious injuries. The KHP did not report where or if he was transported for treatment. The teens were not wearing seat belts, according to the KHP.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/10/1760873850092.png" alt="First responders at the scene of the fatal crash -photo courtesy KWCH" />
 <figcaption>First responders at the scene of the fatal crash -photo courtesy KWCH</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas girl died in an accident just after 6:30p.m. Saturday in Sedgwick County.The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2012 Chevy Equinox driven by Randon Marqua Amaya-Lopez, 16, Wichita, was northbound on Interstate 135 at Kellogg. The SUV left the roadway to the right and struck a bridge pillar.EMS transported a passenger in the vehicle identified as&nbsp; Belayna Garlen&nbsp; Amaya, 14, Wichita, to Wesley Medical Center where she was pronounced deceased. Amaya-Lopez also had serious injuries. The KHP did not report where or if he was transported for treatment. The teens were not wearing seat belts, according to the KHP.

14-year-old Kansas girl killed when SUV strikes bridge pillar

WASHINGTON (AP) — Protesting the direction of the country under&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">President Donald Trump</a>, people gathered Saturday in the nation’s capital and communities big and small across the U.S. for “&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/no-kings-protests-trump-immigration-first-amendment-f04e7a4728c10b694f540bcef0646370">No Kings</a>&nbsp;” demonstrations that the president's Republican Party disparaged as&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7REVjTcBdc">“Hate America” rallies</a>.

With signs such as “Nothing is more patriotic than protesting” or “Resist Fascism,” in many places the events looked more like a street party. There were marching bands, a huge banner with the U.S. Constitution’s “We The People” preamble that people could sign, and demonstrators wearing inflatable costumes, particularly frogs, which have emerged as a sign of resistance in Portland, Oregon.

It was the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/photo-gallery/no-kings-protest-trump-us-b5de52994b7c592034fb19b7d3e9d577">third mass mobilization</a>&nbsp;since Trump's return to the White House and came against the backdrop of a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/government-shutdown">government shutdown</a>&nbsp;that not only has closed federal&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/shutdown-food-aid-snap-november-417bd9a473701b6334491c9e6e28a1c4">programs and services</a>&nbsp;but is testing the core balance of power, as an aggressive executive confronts&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-layoffs-trump-unions-b312b3ca77cbdbc72e778ece3b2cbffc">Congress and the courts</a>&nbsp;in ways that protest organizers warn are a slide toward authoritarianism.

Trump himself was spending the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.

“They say they’re referring to me as a king. I’m not a king,” Trump said in a Fox News interview that aired early Friday, before he departed for a $1 million-per-plate MAGA Inc. fundraiser at his club.

Later Friday a Trump campaign social media account mocked the protests by posting a computer-generated video of the president clothed like a monarch, wearing a crown and waving from a balcony.

People packed into New York City's Times Square, Boston Common and Chicago's Grant Park; outside state capitols in several Republican-led states and a courthouse in Billings, Montana; and at hundreds of smaller public spaces.

In Washington, Iraq War Marine veteran Shawn Howard said he had never participated in a protest before but was motivated to show up because of what he sees as the Trump administration's “disregard for the law.” He said immigration detentions without due process and deployments of troops in U.S. cities are “un-American” and alarming signs of eroding democracy.

“I fought for freedom and against this kind of extremism abroad,” said Howard, who added that he also worked at the CIA for 20 years on counter-extremism operations. “And now I see a moment in America where we have extremists everywhere who are, in my opinion, pushing us to some kind of civil conflict.”

In San Francisco hundreds of people spelled out “No King!” and other phrases with their bodies on Ocean Beach. Hayley Wingard, who was dressed as the Statue of Liberty, said she too had never been to a protest before. Only recently she began to view Trump as a “dictator.”

“I was actually OK with everything until I found that the military invasion in Los Angeles and Chicago and Portland — Portland bothered me the most, because I'm from Portland, and I don't want the military in my cities. That's scary,” Wingard said.

Salt Lake City demonstrators gathered outside the Utah State Capitol to share messages of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/no-kings-protests-trump-immigration-first-amendment-f04e7a4728c10b694f540bcef0646370">hope and healing</a>&nbsp;after a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/utah-no-kings-death-gamboa-police-ecf74c0cbd9b9d2f6c2cf6ffde4442bd">protester was fatally shot</a>&nbsp;during the city’s first “No Kings” march in June.

And more than 1,500 people gathered in Birmingham, Alabama, evoking and the city’s history of protests and the critical role it played in the Civil Rights Movement two generations ago.

“It just feels like we’re living in an America that I don’t recognize,” said Jessica Yother, a mother of four. She and other protesters said they felt camaraderie by gathering in a state where Trump won nearly 65% of the vote last November.

“It was so encouraging,” Yother said. “I walked in and thought, ‘Here are my people.’”

Organizers hope to build opposition movement

“Big rallies like this give confidence to people who have been sitting on the sidelines but are ready to speak up,” Democratic U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy said in an interview with The Associated Press.

While protests earlier this year —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-musk-doge-protests-hands-off-472c574303260cbac315367cc808960d">against Elon Musk's cuts</a>&nbsp;and Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-army-parade-troops-tanks-birthday-protests-4cca4da0e89908d39c820240744375a1">military parade</a>&nbsp;— drew crowds, organizers say this one is uniting the opposition. Top Democrats such as Senate Minority Leader&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/charles-schumer">Chuck Schumer</a>&nbsp;and Independent Sen.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/bernie-sanders">Bernie Sanders</a>&nbsp;are joining what organizers view as an antidote to Trump's actions, from the administration's clampdown on free speech to its military-style immigration raids.

More than 2,600 rallies were planned Saturday, organizers said. The national march against Trump and Musk this spring had 1,300 registered locations, while the first “No Kings” day in June registered 2,100.

“We’re here because we love America,” Sanders said, addressing the crowd from a stage in Washington. He said the American experiment is “in danger” under Trump but insisted, “We the people will rule.”

Republican critics denounce the demonstrations

Republicans sought to portray protesters as far outside the mainstream and a prime reason for the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7REVjTcBdc">government shutdown</a>, now in its 18th day.

From the White House to Capitol Hill,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60epVqMtYPg">GOP leaders</a>&nbsp;called them “communists” and “Marxists.” They said Democratic leaders including Schumer are beholden to the far-left flank and willing to keep the government shut to appease those liberal forces.

“I encourage you to watch — we call it the Hate America rally — that will happen Saturday,” said&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/mike-johnson/">House Speaker Mike Johnson</a>&nbsp;of Louisiana.

“Let’s see who shows up for that," Johnson said, listing groups including “antifa types,” people who “hate capitalism” and “Marxists in full display.”

Many demonstrators, in response, said they were meeting such hyperbole with humor, noting that Trump often leans heavily on theatrics such as claiming that cities he sends troops to are war zones.

“So much of what we’ve seen from this administration has been so unserious and silly that we have to respond with the same energy,” said Glen Kalbaugh, a Washington protester who wore a wizard hat and held a sign with a frog on it.

New York police reported no arrests during the protests.

Democrats try to regain their footing amid shutdown

Democrats have refused to vote on legislation that would reopen the government as they demand funding for health care. Republicans say they are willing to discuss the issue later, only after the government reopens.

The situation is a potential turnaround from just six months ago, when Democrats and their allies were divided and despondent. Schumer in particular was berated by his party for allowing an earlier government funding bill to sail through the Senate without using it to challenge Trump.

“What we are seeing from the Democrats is some spine,” said Ezra Levin, a co-founder of Indivisible, a key organizing group. “The worst thing the Democrats could do right now is surrender.”

Associated Press journalists Gary Fields, Lisa Mascaro and Kevin Freking in Washington, Jill Colvin and Joseph Frederick in New York, Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina, Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City, Terry Chea in San Francisco, Chris Megerian in West Palm Beach, Florida, Bill Barrow in Birmingham, Alabama, and Safiya Riddle in Montgomery, Alabama, contributed.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/10/1760832442257.png" alt="Protest rally at the State Capitol in Topeka --photo courtesy WIBW TV" />
 <figcaption>Protest rally at the State Capitol in Topeka --photo courtesy WIBW TV</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Protesting the direction of the country under&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">President Donald Trump</a>, people gathered Saturday in the nation’s capital and communities big and small across the U.S. for “&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/no-kings-protests-trump-immigration-first-amendment-f04e7a4728c10b694f540bcef0646370">No Kings</a>&nbsp;” demonstrations that the president's Republican Party disparaged as&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7REVjTcBdc">“Hate America” rallies</a>.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/10/1760824251684.png" alt="Image from the online video of No Kings Rally in Washington and other locations across the nation" />
 <figcaption>Image from the online video of No Kings Rally in Washington and other locations across the nation</figcaption>
 </figure>With signs such as “Nothing is more patriotic than protesting” or “Resist Fascism,” in many places the events looked more like a street party. There were marching bands, a huge banner with the U.S. Constitution’s “We The People” preamble that people could sign, and demonstrators wearing inflatable costumes, particularly frogs, which have emerged as a sign of resistance in Portland, Oregon.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/10/1760849974856.jpeg" alt="Protestors in Hays on Saturday -Photo by Tony Guerrero/Hays Post" />
 <figcaption>Protestors in Hays on Saturday -Photo by Tony Guerrero/Hays Post</figcaption>
 </figure>It was the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/photo-gallery/no-kings-protest-trump-us-b5de52994b7c592034fb19b7d3e9d577">third mass mobilization</a>&nbsp;since Trump's return to the White House and came against the backdrop of a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/government-shutdown">government shutdown</a>&nbsp;that not only has closed federal&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/shutdown-food-aid-snap-november-417bd9a473701b6334491c9e6e28a1c4">programs and services</a>&nbsp;but is testing the core balance of power, as an aggressive executive confronts&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-layoffs-trump-unions-b312b3ca77cbdbc72e778ece3b2cbffc">Congress and the courts</a>&nbsp;in ways that protest organizers warn are a slide toward authoritarianism.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/10/1760832818093.png" alt="Protest rally Saturday in Topeka -photo courtesy WIBW TV" />
 <figcaption>Protest rally Saturday in Topeka -photo courtesy WIBW TV</figcaption>
 </figure>Trump himself was spending the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.“They say they’re referring to me as a king. I’m not a king,” Trump said in a Fox News interview that aired early Friday, before he departed for a $1 million-per-plate MAGA Inc. fundraiser at his club.Later Friday a Trump campaign social media account mocked the protests by posting a computer-generated video of the president clothed like a monarch, wearing a crown and waving from a balcony.<h2>Nationwide demonstrations</h2>People packed into New York City's Times Square, Boston Common and Chicago's Grant Park; outside state capitols in several Republican-led states and a courthouse in Billings, Montana; and at hundreds of smaller public spaces.In Washington, Iraq War Marine veteran Shawn Howard said he had never participated in a protest before but was motivated to show up because of what he sees as the Trump administration's “disregard for the law.” He said immigration detentions without due process and deployments of troops in U.S. cities are “un-American” and alarming signs of eroding democracy.“I fought for freedom and against this kind of extremism abroad,” said Howard, who added that he also worked at the CIA for 20 years on counter-extremism operations. “And now I see a moment in America where we have extremists everywhere who are, in my opinion, pushing us to some kind of civil conflict.”In San Francisco hundreds of people spelled out “No King!” and other phrases with their bodies on Ocean Beach. Hayley Wingard, who was dressed as the Statue of Liberty, said she too had never been to a protest before. Only recently she began to view Trump as a “dictator.”“I was actually OK with everything until I found that the military invasion in Los Angeles and Chicago and Portland — Portland bothered me the most, because I'm from Portland, and I don't want the military in my cities. That's scary,” Wingard said.Salt Lake City demonstrators gathered outside the Utah State Capitol to share messages of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/no-kings-protests-trump-immigration-first-amendment-f04e7a4728c10b694f540bcef0646370">hope and healing</a>&nbsp;after a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/utah-no-kings-death-gamboa-police-ecf74c0cbd9b9d2f6c2cf6ffde4442bd">protester was fatally shot</a>&nbsp;during the city’s first “No Kings” march in June.And more than 1,500 people gathered in Birmingham, Alabama, evoking and the city’s history of protests and the critical role it played in the Civil Rights Movement two generations ago.“It just feels like we’re living in an America that I don’t recognize,” said Jessica Yother, a mother of four. She and other protesters said they felt camaraderie by gathering in a state where Trump won nearly 65% of the vote last November.“It was so encouraging,” Yother said. “I walked in and thought, ‘Here are my people.’”<h2>Organizers hope to build opposition movement</h2>“Big rallies like this give confidence to people who have been sitting on the sidelines but are ready to speak up,” Democratic U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy said in an interview with The Associated Press.While protests earlier this year —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-musk-doge-protests-hands-off-472c574303260cbac315367cc808960d">against Elon Musk's cuts</a>&nbsp;and Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-army-parade-troops-tanks-birthday-protests-4cca4da0e89908d39c820240744375a1">military parade</a>&nbsp;— drew crowds, organizers say this one is uniting the opposition. Top Democrats such as Senate Minority Leader&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/charles-schumer">Chuck Schumer</a>&nbsp;and Independent Sen.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/bernie-sanders">Bernie Sanders</a>&nbsp;are joining what organizers view as an antidote to Trump's actions, from the administration's clampdown on free speech to its military-style immigration raids.More than 2,600 rallies were planned Saturday, organizers said. The national march against Trump and Musk this spring had 1,300 registered locations, while the first “No Kings” day in June registered 2,100.“We’re here because we love America,” Sanders said, addressing the crowd from a stage in Washington. He said the American experiment is “in danger” under Trump but insisted, “We the people will rule.”<h2>Republican critics denounce the demonstrations</h2>Republicans sought to portray protesters as far outside the mainstream and a prime reason for the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7REVjTcBdc">government shutdown</a>, now in its 18th day.From the White House to Capitol Hill,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60epVqMtYPg">GOP leaders</a>&nbsp;called them “communists” and “Marxists.” They said Democratic leaders including Schumer are beholden to the far-left flank and willing to keep the government shut to appease those liberal forces.“I encourage you to watch — we call it the Hate America rally — that will happen Saturday,” said&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/mike-johnson/">House Speaker Mike Johnson</a>&nbsp;of Louisiana.“Let’s see who shows up for that," Johnson said, listing groups including “antifa types,” people who “hate capitalism” and “Marxists in full display.”Many demonstrators, in response, said they were meeting such hyperbole with humor, noting that Trump often leans heavily on theatrics such as claiming that cities he sends troops to are war zones.“So much of what we’ve seen from this administration has been so unserious and silly that we have to respond with the same energy,” said Glen Kalbaugh, a Washington protester who wore a wizard hat and held a sign with a frog on it.New York police reported no arrests during the protests.<h2>Democrats try to regain their footing amid shutdown</h2>Democrats have refused to vote on legislation that would reopen the government as they demand funding for health care. Republicans say they are willing to discuss the issue later, only after the government reopens.The situation is a potential turnaround from just six months ago, when Democrats and their allies were divided and despondent. Schumer in particular was berated by his party for allowing an earlier government funding bill to sail through the Senate without using it to challenge Trump.“What we are seeing from the Democrats is some spine,” said Ezra Levin, a co-founder of Indivisible, a key organizing group. “The worst thing the Democrats could do right now is surrender.”___Associated Press journalists Gary Fields, Lisa Mascaro and Kevin Freking in Washington, Jill Colvin and Joseph Frederick in New York, Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina, Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City, Terry Chea in San Francisco, Chris Megerian in West Palm Beach, Florida, Bill Barrow in Birmingham, Alabama, and Safiya Riddle in Montgomery, Alabama, contributed.

'No Kings' protests bring a street party vibe in Kansas, nationwide

WYANDOTTE COUNTY —The victim in an aggravated battery that occurred on September 23rd has died from his injuries, and the suspect has been arrested and charged in his death, according to a statement from Kansas City, Kansas Police.

At approximately 10:30p.m. Sept. 23, police&nbsp; were dispatched to the 2300 block of Ridge Avenue regarding a physical altercation between two ment. When officers arrived on scene, they discovered 78-year-old Leroy Alexander lying outside his residence, unconscious and with apparent head trauma. He was transported to an area hospital where he died from his injuries on September 30. 

Police arrested Perry Allen Tilghman, Jr., 31, Kansas City, Kansas,&nbsp; and he has been charged with second- degree murder in Alexander’s death. He is currently being held in the Wyandotte County Jail on a $150,000 bond.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/10/1760658583335.png" alt="Tilghman photo Wyandotte Co." />
 <figcaption>Tilghman photo Wyandotte Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>WYANDOTTE COUNTY —The victim in an aggravated battery that occurred on September 23rd has died from his injuries, and the suspect has been arrested and charged in his death, according to a statement from Kansas City, Kansas Police.At approximately 10:30p.m. Sept. 23, police&nbsp; were dispatched to the 2300 block of Ridge Avenue regarding a physical altercation between two ment. When officers arrived on scene, they discovered 78-year-old Leroy Alexander lying outside his residence, unconscious and with apparent head trauma. He was transported to an area hospital where he died from his injuries on September 30. Police arrested Perry Allen Tilghman, Jr., 31, Kansas City, Kansas,&nbsp; and he has been charged with second- degree murder in Alexander’s death. He is currently being held in the Wyandotte County Jail on a $150,000 bond.

Police: 74-year-old Kan. man died a week after violent altercation

DEKALB COUNTY, Mo. —Three juveniles were injured in an accident just after 7:30a.m. Saturday in DeKalb County, Missouri.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2012 Freightliner Straight Truck driven by a 42-year-old Wichita man was southbound on MO 33 one mile north of Osborn. The driver attempted to travel through the intersection at U.S. 36 and continue southbound on Route M. The driver failed to yield to an eastbound 2018 School bus driven by a 64-year-old Burlington Junction woman.

The bus struck the rear passenger side of the truck. Three girls on the bus were transported for treatment of minor injuries.

A private vehicle transported a 15-year-old Maryville girl to Mosaic in St. Joseph and a 16-year-old Maryville girl to Cameron Regional Medical Center. DeKalb-Clinton Ambulance transported a 17-year-old Maryville girl to Mosaic in St. Joseph. The drivers were both properly restrained and not injured according to the MSHP. The Patrol no longer releases names of accident victims.

DEKALB COUNTY, Mo. —Three juveniles were injured in an accident just after 7:30a.m. Saturday in DeKalb County, Missouri.The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2012 Freightliner Straight Truck driven by a 42-year-old Wichita man was southbound on MO 33 one mile north of Osborn. The driver attempted to travel through the intersection at U.S. 36 and continue southbound on Route M. The driver failed to yield to an eastbound 2018 School bus driven by a 64-year-old Burlington Junction woman.The bus struck the rear passenger side of the truck. Three girls on the bus were transported for treatment of minor injuries.A private vehicle transported a 15-year-old Maryville girl to Mosaic in St. Joseph and a 16-year-old Maryville girl to Cameron Regional Medical Center. DeKalb-Clinton Ambulance transported a 17-year-old Maryville girl to Mosaic in St. Joseph. The drivers were both properly restrained and not injured according to the MSHP. The Patrol no longer releases names of accident victims.

3 girls injured after truck driven by Kan. man strikes a school bus

WASHINGTON (AP) — The two survivors of an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-drug-smuggling-pentagon-strike-12820c173da3de80c1a7a559c252c743">American military strike</a>&nbsp;on a suspected drug-carrying vessel in the Caribbean will be sent to Ecuador and Colombia, their home countries, President Donald Trump said Saturday.

The military rescued the pair after striking a submersible vessel Thursday, in what was at least the sixth such attack since early September.

“It was my great honor to destroy a very large DRUG-CARRYING SUBMARINE that was navigating towards the United States on a well known narcotrafficking transit route,” Trump said in a social media post. “U.S. Intelligence confirmed this vessel was loaded up with mostly Fentanyl, and other illegal narcotics.”

After Trump’s announcement, the Pentagon posted on X a brief black-and-white video of the strike. In the clip, a vessel can be seen moving through the waves, its front portion submerged inches below the water’s surface. Then, several explosions are seen, with at least one over the back of the vessel.

The Republican president said two people onboard were killed — one more than was previously reported — and the two who survived are being sent to their home countries “for detention and prosecution.”

However, the press office for Ecuador’s government said Saturday it was not aware of the plans for repatriation.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the presidential press office in Colombia did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

With Trump’s statement on his Truth Social platform of the death toll, that would mean U.S. military action against vessels in the region have killed at least 29 people.

The president has justified the strikes by asserting that the United States is&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-maduro-drugs-venezuela-911-hegseth-3db3aafed492556bb9ca7de855c4849e">engaged in an “armed conflict”</a>&nbsp;with drug cartels. He is relying on the same legal authority used by the George W. Bush administration when it declared a war on terrorism after the Sept. 11 attacks, and that includes the ability to capture and detain combatants and to use lethal force to take out their leadership. Trump is also treating the suspected traffickers as if they were enemy soldiers in a traditional war.

The repatriation would avoid questions for the Trump administration about what the legal status of the two would have been in the U.S. justice system. It may also sidestep some of the legal issues that arose out of the detention of enemy combatants in the global war on terrorism as well as challenges to the constitutionality of the current operation.

To some legal scholars, Trump's use of such military force against suspect drug cartels, along with his authorization of covert action inside Venezuela, possibly to oust President Nicolás Maduro, stretches the bounds of international law.

On Friday, Trump seemed to confirm reports that Maduro has offered a stake in Venezuela’s oil and other mineral wealth in recent months to try to stave off mounting pressure from the United States. Venezuelan government officials have also floated a plan in which Maduro would eventually leave office, according to a former Trump administration official. That plan was also rejected by the White House, The Associated Press reported.

The strikes in the Caribbean have caused unease among members of Congress from both parties and complaints about receiving insufficient information on how the attacks are being conducted. But most Republican senators backed the administration last week on a measure that would have required Trump's team to get approval from Congress before more strikes.

Meanwhile, another resolution to be considered would prevent Trump from outright attacking Venezuela without congressional authorization.

Megerian reported from West Palm Beach, Florida.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The two survivors of an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-drug-smuggling-pentagon-strike-12820c173da3de80c1a7a559c252c743">American military strike</a>&nbsp;on a suspected drug-carrying vessel in the Caribbean will be sent to Ecuador and Colombia, their home countries, President Donald Trump said Saturday.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><a href="https://t.co/3oRyqbFY0X">pic.twitter.com/3oRyqbFY0X</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1979621169629155743?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 18, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The military rescued the pair after striking a submersible vessel Thursday, in what was at least the sixth such attack since early September.“It was my great honor to destroy a very large DRUG-CARRYING SUBMARINE that was navigating towards the United States on a well known narcotrafficking transit route,” Trump said in a social media post. “U.S. Intelligence confirmed this vessel was loaded up with mostly Fentanyl, and other illegal narcotics.”After Trump’s announcement, the Pentagon posted on X a brief black-and-white video of the strike. In the clip, a vessel can be seen moving through the waves, its front portion submerged inches below the water’s surface. Then, several explosions are seen, with at least one over the back of the vessel.The Republican president said two people onboard were killed — one more than was previously reported — and the two who survived are being sent to their home countries “for detention and prosecution.”However, the press office for Ecuador’s government said Saturday it was not aware of the plans for repatriation.Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the presidential press office in Colombia did not immediately return messages seeking comment.With Trump’s statement on his Truth Social platform of the death toll, that would mean U.S. military action against vessels in the region have killed at least 29 people.The president has justified the strikes by asserting that the United States is&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-maduro-drugs-venezuela-911-hegseth-3db3aafed492556bb9ca7de855c4849e">engaged in an “armed conflict”</a>&nbsp;with drug cartels. He is relying on the same legal authority used by the George W. Bush administration when it declared a war on terrorism after the Sept. 11 attacks, and that includes the ability to capture and detain combatants and to use lethal force to take out their leadership. Trump is also treating the suspected traffickers as if they were enemy soldiers in a traditional war.The repatriation would avoid questions for the Trump administration about what the legal status of the two would have been in the U.S. justice system. It may also sidestep some of the legal issues that arose out of the detention of enemy combatants in the global war on terrorism as well as challenges to the constitutionality of the current operation.To some legal scholars, Trump's use of such military force against suspect drug cartels, along with his authorization of covert action inside Venezuela, possibly to oust President Nicolás Maduro, stretches the bounds of international law.On Friday, Trump seemed to confirm reports that Maduro has offered a stake in Venezuela’s oil and other mineral wealth in recent months to try to stave off mounting pressure from the United States. Venezuelan government officials have also floated a plan in which Maduro would eventually leave office, according to a former Trump administration official. That plan was also rejected by the White House, The Associated Press reported.The strikes in the Caribbean have caused unease among members of Congress from both parties and complaints about receiving insufficient information on how the attacks are being conducted. But most Republican senators backed the administration last week on a measure that would have required Trump's team to get approval from Congress before more strikes.Meanwhile, another resolution to be considered would prevent Trump from outright attacking Venezuela without congressional authorization.___Megerian reported from West Palm Beach, Florida.

Trump releases video of US drone strike on ‘drug-carrying submarine’

By&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/olga-r-rodriguez">OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ</a>

San Francisco (AP) — A Northern California aquarium has raised more than $2 million for sea otter conservation in just two days. All it took was Taylor Swift wearing a vintage T-shirt.

Swift wore a vintage Monterey Bay Aquarium otter conservation T-shirt in a release party movie for her new&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/taylor-swift-showgirl-eras-tour-disney-3a64afd94014fd6aa22436f5132acccc">“The Life of a Showgirl” album</a>, sending her ardent fans on a quest to buy the shirt last produced in the 1990s. After the aquarium was flooded with calls about buying the T-shirt showing two otters floating on their back, it decided to re-release the garment Thursday as part of a special campaign to raise $1.3 million, a nod to Swift’s favorite number, said Liz MacDonald, the aquarium’s director of content strategy.

The aquarium met and surpassed its goal to raise the funds for its sea otter conservation program in less than eight hours, averaging about $100,000 in sales every 15 minutes, MacDonald said. Donors who give at least $65.13 to its newest fundraising campaign to help injured and orphan otters will be mailed a T-shirt, MacDonald said.

“We definitely had a little Taylor Swift dance party in the office yesterday afternoon when we hit the goal,” she said.

The aquarium began accepting back-orders and by Friday afternoon it had raised more than $2 million, according to its website.

How Swift acquired the T-Shirt that was last produced more than 32 years ago — when she was just 3 years old — remains a mystery.

She and fiancé Travis Kelce have been documented visiting nearby Carmel, but MacDonald said the aquarium is not aware of the couple having been in their shop.

MacDonald said the staff has had fun speculating about Swift’s interest in the T-shirt.

When Taylor announced the release of her new album on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/new-heights-podcast-taylor-swift-kelce-e5b21dc74fdc8aebf04f383e5dc11b0b">Kelce’s podcast “New Heights”</a>&nbsp;a couple of weeks ago, the couple had a little banter about how he loves otters and loves sending her videos of the furry sea creatures.

“One of my favorite theories is that we have a sea otter on our exhibit whose name is Opal and she was named by the fans through an online poll, and I wonder if Taylor Swift may have been one of the people that voted for the name Opal,” MacDonald said, adding that opal is Kelce’s birthstone and that Opalite is the name of one of Swift’s songs.

Whatever the reason, the aquarium and Liberty Graphics, an employee-owned company printing the T-shirts, are reveling in the moment.

“They’re a company based in Maine who were as taken by surprise as us, but who are also as delighted to have this opportunity to be part of this amazing moment that does so much for sea otters and for ocean conservation,” MacDonald said.

Liberty Graphics will use 100% cotton in the T-shirts and water-based ink, which is more ocean-friendly and sustainable, she said.

“We’re also working to make sure that the packaging doesn’t use plastic,” she added.

The company of 50 employees normally produces 1,500 shirts a day, said Matt Enos, a company manager.

Enos said that beginning Monday the company will probably have to focus most of its resources on fulfilling T-shirt orders from Swifties.

“We definitely didn’t envision something this big but it’s a pretty good problem to have,” he said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/10/1760747072304.png" alt="Photo Monterey Bay Aquarium" />
 <figcaption>Photo Monterey Bay Aquarium</figcaption>
 </figure>By&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/olga-r-rodriguez">OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ</a>San Francisco (AP) — A Northern California aquarium has raised more than $2 million for sea otter conservation in just two days. All it took was Taylor Swift wearing a vintage T-shirt.Swift wore a vintage Monterey Bay Aquarium otter conservation T-shirt in a release party movie for her new&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/taylor-swift-showgirl-eras-tour-disney-3a64afd94014fd6aa22436f5132acccc">“The Life of a Showgirl” album</a>, sending her ardent fans on a quest to buy the shirt last produced in the 1990s. After the aquarium was flooded with calls about buying the T-shirt showing two otters floating on their back, it decided to re-release the garment Thursday as part of a special campaign to raise $1.3 million, a nod to Swift’s favorite number, said Liz MacDonald, the aquarium’s director of content strategy.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fmontereybayaquarium%2Fposts%2Fpfbid02qFHTdG2FT2fmTWHighkj6rzFPaWCpz3CkeDUfGL4LJuS3HPDGtYUw5KWNiAf4NNfl&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="460" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share"></iframe></div>The aquarium met and surpassed its goal to raise the funds for its sea otter conservation program in less than eight hours, averaging about $100,000 in sales every 15 minutes, MacDonald said. Donors who give at least $65.13 to its newest fundraising campaign to help injured and orphan otters will be mailed a T-shirt, MacDonald said.“We definitely had a little Taylor Swift dance party in the office yesterday afternoon when we hit the goal,” she said.The aquarium began accepting back-orders and by Friday afternoon it had raised more than $2 million, according to its website.How Swift acquired the T-Shirt that was last produced more than 32 years ago — when she was just 3 years old — remains a mystery.She and fiancé Travis Kelce have been documented visiting nearby Carmel, but MacDonald said the aquarium is not aware of the couple having been in their shop.MacDonald said the staff has had fun speculating about Swift’s interest in the T-shirt.When Taylor announced the release of her new album on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/new-heights-podcast-taylor-swift-kelce-e5b21dc74fdc8aebf04f383e5dc11b0b">Kelce’s podcast “New Heights”</a>&nbsp;a couple of weeks ago, the couple had a little banter about how he loves otters and loves sending her videos of the furry sea creatures.“One of my favorite theories is that we have a sea otter on our exhibit whose name is Opal and she was named by the fans through an online poll, and I wonder if Taylor Swift may have been one of the people that voted for the name Opal,” MacDonald said, adding that opal is Kelce’s birthstone and that Opalite is the name of one of Swift’s songs.Whatever the reason, the aquarium and Liberty Graphics, an employee-owned company printing the T-shirts, are reveling in the moment.“They’re a company based in Maine who were as taken by surprise as us, but who are also as delighted to have this opportunity to be part of this amazing moment that does so much for sea otters and for ocean conservation,” MacDonald said.Liberty Graphics will use 100% cotton in the T-shirts and water-based ink, which is more ocean-friendly and sustainable, she said.“We’re also working to make sure that the packaging doesn’t use plastic,” she added.The company of 50 employees normally produces 1,500 shirts a day, said Matt Enos, a company manager.Enos said that beginning Monday the company will probably have to focus most of its resources on fulfilling T-shirt orders from Swifties.“We definitely didn’t envision something this big but it’s a pretty good problem to have,” he said.

 T-shirt worn by Taylor Swift sparks a $2M windfall for sea otters

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is showing little urgency to broker a compromise that would end the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/government-shutdown">government shutdown</a>, even as Democrats insist no breakthrough is possible without his direct involvement.

Three weeks in, Congress is at a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-trump-democrats-congress-02382f77ea1ba72896148555a75dc075">standstill</a>. The House hasn’t been in session for a month, and senators left Washington on Thursday frustrated by the lack of progress. Republican leaders are refusing to negotiate until a short-term funding bill to reopen the government is passed, while Democrats say they won’t agree without guarantees on extending health insurance subsidies.

For now, Trump appears content to stay on the sidelines.

He spent the week&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-ceasefire-hostages-trump-b86ea472e290947b98976eb9b7ef6994">celebrating</a>&nbsp;an Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal he led, hosted a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/charlie-kirk-presidential-medal-of-freedom-f895a361c5c1d2663cacd64082bb5ed7">remembrance event</a>&nbsp;for conservative activist Charlie Kirk and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-zelenskyy-putin-russia-ukraine-e3a1d62d2a24f459aa6dbbfa940e1067">refocused attention</a>&nbsp;on the Russia-Ukraine war. Meanwhile, his administration has been managing the shutdown in unconventional ways, continuing to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-military-pay-troops-government-shutdown-8601ea092fe746cc35b88076e70c4598">pay the troops</a>&nbsp;while&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-federal-worker-firings-0439e8d0979d9a32e021c5c851fea1cf">laying off</a>&nbsp;other federal employees.

Asked Thursday whether he was willing to deploy his dealmaking background on the shutdown, Trump seemed uninterested.

“Well, look, I mean, all we want to do is just extend. We don’t want anything, we just want to extend, live with the deal they had,” he said in an exchange with reporters in the Oval Office. Later Thursday, he criticized Democratic health care demands as “crazy,” adding, “We’re just not going to do it.”

Spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told Fox News that Democrats must first vote to reopen the government, “then we can have serious conversations about health care.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune echoed that approach before leaving for the weekend, saying Trump is “ready to weigh in and sit down with the Democrats or whomever, once the government opens up.”

Thune said he'd also be willing to talk, but only after the shutdown ends.

“I am willing to sit down with Democrats,” Thune posted on social media Friday.

“But there’s one condition: End the Schumer Shutdown. I will not negotiate under hostage conditions, nor will I pay a ransom,” he added.

Frustration is beginning to surface among rank-and-file Republicans, with bipartisan conversations breaking out on the Senate floor as members look for ways to move things forward. Still, even those Republicans admit little happens in Congress without Trump's direction.

Leaving the Capitol on Thursday, GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski said, “We’re not making much headway this week.” For things to progress, Murkowski acknowledged Trump may need to get more involved: “I think he’s an important part of it.”

“I think there are some folks in his administration that are kind of liking the fact that Congress really has no role right now,” she added. “I don’t like that. I don’t like that at all.”

Trump has not been slowed by the shutdown

While Congress has been paralyzed by the shutdown, Trump has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-government-shutdown-russ-vought-project-2025-bf3ecd1f7cd765c9e125d7d7179c8b39">moved rapidly</a>&nbsp;to enact his vision of the federal government.

He has called budget chief Russ Vought the “grim reaper,” and Vought has taken the opportunity to withhold&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/shutdown-new-york-rail-projects-money-withheld-ada494e08ae9ae5269c6ce554ecdbd43">billions of dollars for infrastructure projects</a>&nbsp;and lay off thousands of federal workers, signaling that workforce reductions could become even more drastic.

At the same time, the administration has acted unilaterally to fund Trump’s priorities, including paying the military this week, easing pressure on what could have been one of the main deadlines to end the shutdown.

Some of these moves, particularly the layoffs and funding shifts, have been criticized as illegal and are facing court challenges. A federal judge on Wednesday&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-layoffs-trump-unions-b312b3ca77cbdbc72e778ece3b2cbffc">temporarily blocked</a>&nbsp;the administration from firing workers during the shutdown, ruling that the cuts appeared politically motivated and were carried out without sufficient justification.

And with Congress focused on the funding fight, lawmakers have had little time to debate other issues.

In the House, Johnson has said the House won’t return until Democrats approve the funding bill and has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/adelita-grijalva-swear-congress-epstein-files-25636fec1d99960a5fb11501ac86cc69">refused to swear in</a>&nbsp;Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva. Democrats say the move is to prevent her from becoming the 218th signature on a discharge petition aimed at forcing a vote on releasing documents related to the sex trafficking investigation into&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/jeffrey-epstein">Jeffrey Epstein</a>.

So far, the shutdown has shown little impact on public opinion.

An AP-NORC poll&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/poll-government-shutdown-blame-trump-republicans-democrats-12c01432bbb43746b6d8d32390c959f4">released Thursday</a>&nbsp;found that 3 in 10 U.S. adults have a “somewhat” or “very” favorable view of the Democratic Party, similar to an AP-NORC poll from September. Four in 10 have a “somewhat” or “very” favorable view of the Republican Party, largely unchanged from last month.

Democrats want Trump at the table. Republicans would rather he stay out

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries have said Republicans have shown little seriousness in negotiating an end to the shutdown.

“Leader Thune has not come to me with any proposal at this point,” Schumer said Thursday.

Frustrated with congressional leaders, Democrats are increasingly looking to Trump.

At a CNN town hall Wednesday night featuring Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, both repeatedly called for the president’s involvement when asked why negotiations had stalled.

“President Trump is not talking. That is the problem,” Sanders said.

Ocasio-Cortez added that Trump should more regularly “be having congressional leaders in the White House.”

Democrats’ focus on Trump reflects both his leadership style — which allows little to happen in Congress without his approval — and the reality that any funding bill needs the president’s signature to become law.

This time, however, Republican leaders who control the House and Senate are resisting any push for Trump to intervene.

“You can’t negotiate when somebody’s got a hostage,” said South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds, who added that Trump getting involved would allow Democrats to try the same tactic in future legislative fights.

Trump has largely followed that guidance. After previously saying he would be open to negotiating with Democrats on health insurance subsidies, he walked it back after Republican leaders suggested he misspoke.

And that's unlikely to change for now. Trump has no plans to personally intervene to broker a deal with Democrats, according to a senior White House official granted anonymity to discuss private conversations. The official added that the only stopgap funding bill that Democrats can expect is the one already on the table.

“The President is happy to have a conversation about health care policy, but he will not do so while the Democrats are holding the American people hostage,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said Thursday.

A product of the Congress Trump has molded

In his second term, Trump has taken a top-down approach, leaving little in Congress to move without his approval.

“What’s obvious to me is that Mike Johnson and John Thune don't do much without Donald Trump telling them what to do,” said Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona.

His hold is particularly strong in the GOP-led House, where Speaker Mike Johnson&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/house-speaker-mike-johnson-trump-mccarthy-0e0b5613f1d39f4e1405a475fdfea8ea">effectively</a><a href="https://apnews.com/article/mike-johnson-speaker-vote-house-freedom-caucus-be61b59070a468862119799e847ae8d8">owes his job</a>&nbsp;to Trump, and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-congress-compliant-ceding-power-republicans-4508b5e6f893da17e9064426e6fefc6c">relies</a>&nbsp;on his influence to power through difficult legislative fights.

When Republicans have withheld votes on Trump’s priorities in Congress, he’s called them on the phone or summoned them to his office to directly sway them. When that doesn’t work, he has vowed to unseat them in the next election. It’s led many Democrats to believe the only path to an agreement runs through the White House and not through the speaker’s office.

Democrats also want assurances from the White House that they won't backtrack on an agreement. The White House earlier this year cut out the legislative branch entirely with a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-foreign-aid-pocket-rescission-374c63e6b4004e819a657e33b76f502e">$4.9 billion cut to foreign aid</a>&nbsp;in August through a legally dubious process known as a “pocket rescission.” And before he even took office late last year, Trump and ally Elon Musk&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-congress-trump-elon-budget-house-republican-05481374b154949c3fe1270141a02918">blew up</a>&nbsp;a bipartisan funding agreement that both parties had negotiated.

“I think we need to see ink on paper. I think we need to see legislation. I think we need to see votes,” said Ocasio-Cortez. “I don’t accept pinky promises. That’s not the business that I’m in.”

Both parties also see little reason to fold under public pressure, believing they are winning the messaging battle.

“Everybody thinks they’re winning,” Murkowski said. “Nobody is winning when everybody’s losing. And that’s what’s happening right now. The American public is losing.”

Associated Press reporter Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/10/1759369156073.png" alt="File photo-House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., left, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speak to reporters outside the White House-image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>File photo-House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., left, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speak to reporters outside the White House-image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is showing little urgency to broker a compromise that would end the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/government-shutdown">government shutdown</a>, even as Democrats insist no breakthrough is possible without his direct involvement.Three weeks in, Congress is at a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-trump-democrats-congress-02382f77ea1ba72896148555a75dc075">standstill</a>. The House hasn’t been in session for a month, and senators left Washington on Thursday frustrated by the lack of progress. Republican leaders are refusing to negotiate until a short-term funding bill to reopen the government is passed, while Democrats say they won’t agree without guarantees on extending health insurance subsidies.For now, Trump appears content to stay on the sidelines.He spent the week&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-ceasefire-hostages-trump-b86ea472e290947b98976eb9b7ef6994">celebrating</a>&nbsp;an Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal he led, hosted a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/charlie-kirk-presidential-medal-of-freedom-f895a361c5c1d2663cacd64082bb5ed7">remembrance event</a>&nbsp;for conservative activist Charlie Kirk and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-zelenskyy-putin-russia-ukraine-e3a1d62d2a24f459aa6dbbfa940e1067">refocused attention</a>&nbsp;on the Russia-Ukraine war. Meanwhile, his administration has been managing the shutdown in unconventional ways, continuing to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-military-pay-troops-government-shutdown-8601ea092fe746cc35b88076e70c4598">pay the troops</a>&nbsp;while&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-federal-worker-firings-0439e8d0979d9a32e021c5c851fea1cf">laying off</a>&nbsp;other federal employees.Asked Thursday whether he was willing to deploy his dealmaking background on the shutdown, Trump seemed uninterested.“Well, look, I mean, all we want to do is just extend. We don’t want anything, we just want to extend, live with the deal they had,” he said in an exchange with reporters in the Oval Office. Later Thursday, he criticized Democratic health care demands as “crazy,” adding, “We’re just not going to do it.”Spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told Fox News that Democrats must first vote to reopen the government, “then we can have serious conversations about health care.”Senate Majority Leader John Thune echoed that approach before leaving for the weekend, saying Trump is “ready to weigh in and sit down with the Democrats or whomever, once the government opens up.”Thune said he'd also be willing to talk, but only after the shutdown ends.“I am willing to sit down with Democrats,” Thune posted on social media Friday.“But there’s one condition: End the Schumer Shutdown. I will not negotiate under hostage conditions, nor will I pay a ransom,” he added.Frustration is beginning to surface among rank-and-file Republicans, with bipartisan conversations breaking out on the Senate floor as members look for ways to move things forward. Still, even those Republicans admit little happens in Congress without Trump's direction.Leaving the Capitol on Thursday, GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski said, “We’re not making much headway this week.” For things to progress, Murkowski acknowledged Trump may need to get more involved: “I think he’s an important part of it.”“I think there are some folks in his administration that are kind of liking the fact that Congress really has no role right now,” she added. “I don’t like that. I don’t like that at all.”<h2>Trump has not been slowed by the shutdown</h2>While Congress has been paralyzed by the shutdown, Trump has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-government-shutdown-russ-vought-project-2025-bf3ecd1f7cd765c9e125d7d7179c8b39">moved rapidly</a>&nbsp;to enact his vision of the federal government.He has called budget chief Russ Vought the “grim reaper,” and Vought has taken the opportunity to withhold&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/shutdown-new-york-rail-projects-money-withheld-ada494e08ae9ae5269c6ce554ecdbd43">billions of dollars for infrastructure projects</a>&nbsp;and lay off thousands of federal workers, signaling that workforce reductions could become even more drastic.At the same time, the administration has acted unilaterally to fund Trump’s priorities, including paying the military this week, easing pressure on what could have been one of the main deadlines to end the shutdown.Some of these moves, particularly the layoffs and funding shifts, have been criticized as illegal and are facing court challenges. A federal judge on Wednesday&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-layoffs-trump-unions-b312b3ca77cbdbc72e778ece3b2cbffc">temporarily blocked</a>&nbsp;the administration from firing workers during the shutdown, ruling that the cuts appeared politically motivated and were carried out without sufficient justification.And with Congress focused on the funding fight, lawmakers have had little time to debate other issues.In the House, Johnson has said the House won’t return until Democrats approve the funding bill and has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/adelita-grijalva-swear-congress-epstein-files-25636fec1d99960a5fb11501ac86cc69">refused to swear in</a>&nbsp;Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva. Democrats say the move is to prevent her from becoming the 218th signature on a discharge petition aimed at forcing a vote on releasing documents related to the sex trafficking investigation into&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/jeffrey-epstein">Jeffrey Epstein</a>.So far, the shutdown has shown little impact on public opinion.An AP-NORC poll&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/poll-government-shutdown-blame-trump-republicans-democrats-12c01432bbb43746b6d8d32390c959f4">released Thursday</a>&nbsp;found that 3 in 10 U.S. adults have a “somewhat” or “very” favorable view of the Democratic Party, similar to an AP-NORC poll from September. Four in 10 have a “somewhat” or “very” favorable view of the Republican Party, largely unchanged from last month.<h2>Democrats want Trump at the table. Republicans would rather he stay out</h2>Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries have said Republicans have shown little seriousness in negotiating an end to the shutdown.“Leader Thune has not come to me with any proposal at this point,” Schumer said Thursday.Frustrated with congressional leaders, Democrats are increasingly looking to Trump.At a CNN town hall Wednesday night featuring Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, both repeatedly called for the president’s involvement when asked why negotiations had stalled.“President Trump is not talking. That is the problem,” Sanders said.Ocasio-Cortez added that Trump should more regularly “be having congressional leaders in the White House.”Democrats’ focus on Trump reflects both his leadership style — which allows little to happen in Congress without his approval — and the reality that any funding bill needs the president’s signature to become law.This time, however, Republican leaders who control the House and Senate are resisting any push for Trump to intervene.“You can’t negotiate when somebody’s got a hostage,” said South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds, who added that Trump getting involved would allow Democrats to try the same tactic in future legislative fights.Trump has largely followed that guidance. After previously saying he would be open to negotiating with Democrats on health insurance subsidies, he walked it back after Republican leaders suggested he misspoke.And that's unlikely to change for now. Trump has no plans to personally intervene to broker a deal with Democrats, according to a senior White House official granted anonymity to discuss private conversations. The official added that the only stopgap funding bill that Democrats can expect is the one already on the table.“The President is happy to have a conversation about health care policy, but he will not do so while the Democrats are holding the American people hostage,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said Thursday.<h2>A product of the Congress Trump has molded</h2>In his second term, Trump has taken a top-down approach, leaving little in Congress to move without his approval.“What’s obvious to me is that Mike Johnson and John Thune don't do much without Donald Trump telling them what to do,” said Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona.His hold is particularly strong in the GOP-led House, where Speaker Mike Johnson&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/house-speaker-mike-johnson-trump-mccarthy-0e0b5613f1d39f4e1405a475fdfea8ea">effectively</a><a href="https://apnews.com/article/mike-johnson-speaker-vote-house-freedom-caucus-be61b59070a468862119799e847ae8d8">owes his job</a>&nbsp;to Trump, and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-congress-compliant-ceding-power-republicans-4508b5e6f893da17e9064426e6fefc6c">relies</a>&nbsp;on his influence to power through difficult legislative fights.When Republicans have withheld votes on Trump’s priorities in Congress, he’s called them on the phone or summoned them to his office to directly sway them. When that doesn’t work, he has vowed to unseat them in the next election. It’s led many Democrats to believe the only path to an agreement runs through the White House and not through the speaker’s office.Democrats also want assurances from the White House that they won't backtrack on an agreement. The White House earlier this year cut out the legislative branch entirely with a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-foreign-aid-pocket-rescission-374c63e6b4004e819a657e33b76f502e">$4.9 billion cut to foreign aid</a>&nbsp;in August through a legally dubious process known as a “pocket rescission.” And before he even took office late last year, Trump and ally Elon Musk&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-congress-trump-elon-budget-house-republican-05481374b154949c3fe1270141a02918">blew up</a>&nbsp;a bipartisan funding agreement that both parties had negotiated.“I think we need to see ink on paper. I think we need to see legislation. I think we need to see votes,” said Ocasio-Cortez. “I don’t accept pinky promises. That’s not the business that I’m in.”Both parties also see little reason to fold under public pressure, believing they are winning the messaging battle.“Everybody thinks they’re winning,” Murkowski said. “Nobody is winning when everybody’s losing. And that’s what’s happening right now. The American public is losing.”—Associated Press reporter Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.