HAYS, Kan. - No. 24 Fort Hays State baseball used the home run ball to deliver a 15-5 run-rule victory over Emporia State Tuesday at Larks Park. The Tigers&nbsp; scored 12 of their 15 runs off of&nbsp; four home runs, which included a pair of two-run blasts by Derek Woolwine and grand slams from Zane Knox and Tony Moore..

It's the fourth time this season the Tigers&nbsp; (20-6, 15-2 MIAA) have hit four home runs in a game and it's the fastest the program has reached 20 wins since 2006 when they did it in their first 25 games.&nbsp;

The Tigers jumped out to an early lead in the first inning. After Cesar Saavedra&nbsp;was hit by a pitch to start the game, Woolwine&nbsp;launched a two-run blast to left field, putting Fort Hays State on top 2-0. Two innings later Trey DeGarmo walked then promptly stole second before Woolwine delivered his second two-run homer to center to extend the lead to 4-0.

Emporia State answered with a four-run fourth. TJ Racherbaumer lead off the inning with a triple then Noah Steele homered to center. Back-to-back homers from Cooper Schwindt and Jovanni Toledo tied the game 4-4.&nbsp;

FHSU answered with three in the bottom of the inning. Saavedra was hit by a pitch for the second time, Tony Moore followed with a walk. DeGarmo came through with an RBI single to put the Tigers back in front. Brady Kreutzer ripped a clutch two-run triple, bringing home which scored Moore and DeGarmo to extend the Tigers' advantage to 7-4.

After the Hornets scratched across an unearned run in the fifth to cut the deficit to 7-5, the Tigers' erupted in the sixth. Zane Knox launched a grand slam to right field, extending the lead to 11-5. The Tigers put the game away in the seventh. Luis Ayala drew a leadoff walk, Copper Howell followed with a bunt single then a Saavedra walk&nbsp;set the stage for Tony Moore. The Hoisington freshman delivered a grand slam to right-center to end the game.

Mike Acierno made the start for the Tigers and pitched three scoreless innings before giving up the four runs in the fourth. Brett Jacobs (2-0) pitched the final 3 2/3 innings and allowed one unearned run on two hits and picked up the win.

The first place Tigers head to Warrensburg for a key MIAA series with No. 3 Central Missouri beginning Friday at Crane Stadium.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742952827469.png" alt="Fort Hays State's Derek Woolwine (22) is congratulated by Trey DeGarmo (5) and Brady Kreutzer (13) after hitting a two-run homer against Emporia State on Tuesday, March 25, 2025 at Larks Park in Hays, Kan. (FHSU Athletics photo/Ryan Prickett)" />
 <figcaption>Fort Hays State's Derek Woolwine (22) is congratulated by Trey DeGarmo (5) and Brady Kreutzer (13) after hitting a two-run homer against Emporia State on Tuesday, March 25, 2025 at Larks Park in Hays, Kan. (FHSU Athletics photo/Ryan Prickett)</figcaption>
 </figure>Hays PostHAYS, Kan. - No. 24 Fort Hays State baseball used the home run ball to deliver a 15-5 run-rule victory over Emporia State Tuesday at Larks Park. The Tigers&nbsp; scored 12 of their 15 runs off of&nbsp; four home runs, which included a pair of two-run blasts by Derek Woolwine and grand slams from Zane Knox and Tony Moore..<div><iframe width="100%" height="300" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" allow="autoplay" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/2063305832&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true"></iframe><div style="font-size: 10px; color: #cccccc;line-break: anywhere;word-break: normal;overflow: hidden;white-space: nowrap;text-overflow: ellipsis; font-family: Interstate,Lucida Grande,Lucida Sans Unicode,Lucida Sans,Garuda,Verdana,Tahoma,sans-serif;font-weight: 100;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/user-814667509" title="Eagle Radio" target="_blank" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;">Eagle Radio</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/user-814667509/fhsu-baseball-coach-justin" title="Justin Wichert Postgame vs. Emporia State ()March 25, 2025)" target="_blank" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;">Justin Wichert Postgame vs. Emporia State ()March 25, 2025)</a></div></div>It's the fourth time this season the Tigers&nbsp; (20-6, 15-2 MIAA) have hit four home runs in a game and it's the fastest the program has reached 20 wins since 2006 when they did it in their first 25 games.&nbsp;The Tigers jumped out to an early lead in the first inning. After Cesar Saavedra&nbsp;was hit by a pitch to start the game, Woolwine&nbsp;launched a two-run blast to left field, putting Fort Hays State on top 2-0. Two innings later Trey DeGarmo walked then promptly stole second before Woolwine delivered his second two-run homer to center to extend the lead to 4-0.Emporia State answered with a four-run fourth. TJ Racherbaumer lead off the inning with a triple then Noah Steele homered to center. Back-to-back homers from Cooper Schwindt and Jovanni Toledo tied the game 4-4.&nbsp;FHSU answered with three in the bottom of the inning. Saavedra was hit by a pitch for the second time, Tony Moore followed with a walk. DeGarmo came through with an RBI single to put the Tigers back in front. Brady Kreutzer ripped a clutch two-run triple, bringing home which scored Moore and DeGarmo to extend the Tigers' advantage to 7-4.After the Hornets scratched across an unearned run in the fifth to cut the deficit to 7-5, the Tigers' erupted in the sixth. Zane Knox launched a grand slam to right field, extending the lead to 11-5. The Tigers put the game away in the seventh. Luis Ayala drew a leadoff walk, Copper Howell followed with a bunt single then a Saavedra walk&nbsp;set the stage for Tony Moore. The Hoisington freshman delivered a grand slam to right-center to end the game.<div><iframe width="100%" height="300" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" allow="autoplay" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/2063306060&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true"></iframe><div style="font-size: 10px; color: #cccccc;line-break: anywhere;word-break: normal;overflow: hidden;white-space: nowrap;text-overflow: ellipsis; font-family: Interstate,Lucida Grande,Lucida Sans Unicode,Lucida Sans,Garuda,Verdana,Tahoma,sans-serif;font-weight: 100;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/user-814667509" title="Eagle Radio" target="_blank" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;">Eagle Radio</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/user-814667509/fhsu-baseball-vs-emporia" title="#24 Fort Hays State BSB Highlights vs. Emporia State (March 25, 2025)" target="_blank" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;">#24 Fort Hays State BSB Highlights vs. Emporia State (March 25, 2025)</a></div></div>Mike Acierno made the start for the Tigers and pitched three scoreless innings before giving up the four runs in the fourth. Brett Jacobs (2-0) pitched the final 3 2/3 innings and allowed one unearned run on two hits and picked up the win.UP NEXTThe first place Tigers head to Warrensburg for a key MIAA series with No. 3 Central Missouri beginning Friday at Crane Stadium.

⚾ No. 24 Tigers erupt in run-rule win over Hornets

GREAT BEND - The High girls soccer team opened the 2025 season with an impressive 9-2 win at Great Bend Tuesday. 

HHS (1-0) got a hat trick from Karlee Crispin. Kinslee Newll and Dani Willeford both added two goals. Sienna Lummus and Annie Humphrey also scored a goal.

The Indians are back on the road at Junction City on Tuesday, April 1.

Hays PostGREAT BEND - The High girls soccer team opened the 2025 season with an impressive 9-2 win at Great Bend Tuesday. HHS (1-0) got a hat trick from Karlee Crispin. Kinslee Newll and Dani Willeford both added two goals. Sienna Lummus and Annie Humphrey also scored a goal.UP NEXTThe Indians are back on the road at Junction City on Tuesday, April 1.

⚽ HHS girls open season with big win at Great Bend

WASHINGTON (AP) — President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;on Tuesday&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/live/donald-trump-news-updates-3-25-2025">downplayed</a>&nbsp;the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/war-plans-trump-hegseth-atlantic-230718a984911dd8663d59edbcb86f2a">texting of sensitive plans for a military strike</a>&nbsp;against Yemen's Houthis this month to a group chat that included a journalist, saying it was “the only glitch in two months” of his administration as Democratic lawmakers heaped criticism on the administration for handling highly sensitive information carelessly.

Trump told NBC News that the lapse “turned out not to be a serious one," and articulated his continued support for national security adviser&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-national-security-adviser-mike-wlatz-0c81d044c9ffe18dfd745202e8351b9c">Mike Waltz</a>, who mistakenly added the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to the chain that included 18 senior administration officials discussing planning for the strike.

“Michael Waltz has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man," Trump said. He also appeared to point blame on an unnamed Waltz aide for Goldberg being added to the chain. “It was one of Michael’s people on the phone. A staffer had his number on there."

But the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/signal-app-atlantic-war-plans-32699da142c5209b845e57f690df4925">use of messaging app Signal</a>&nbsp;to discuss a sensitive operation has opened the administration to blistering criticism from Democratic lawmakers who expressed outrage at the White House's and senior administration officials' insistence that no classified information was shared. Senior administration officials have struggled to explain why the publicly available app was used to discuss such a delicate matter.

One Democrat calls the mistake ‘an embarrassment’

One official reported to be on the Signal chain, Director of National Intelligence&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/tulsi-gabbard">Tulsi Gabbard,</a>&nbsp;acknowledged during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on Tuesday that she was traveling overseas during the exchange. She wouldn't say whether she was using her personal or government-issued phone because the matter is under review by the White House National Security Council.

Both Gabbard and CIA Director&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/john-ratcliffe">John Ratcliffe</a>, who also was a participant in the Signal exchange and also testified at Tuesday's intelligence hearing, faced blistering criticism from lawmakers.

“This is an embarrassment,” said Sen. Jon Ossoff, a Georgia Democrat. “This is utterly unprofessional. There’s been no apology. There’s been no recognition of the gravity of this error.”

In the run-up to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fb2e92a47f054019a2589ace78d20836">his 2016 election victory</a>&nbsp;over Democrat Hillary Clinton, Trump urged criminal prosecution of the former secretary of state for communicating about classified information with her aides on a private email server she set up. The matter was investigated, but the FBI ultimately recommended against charges. None were brought.

Clinton was among Democrats this week to criticize Trump administration officials' use of Signal.

“You have got to be kidding me,” Clinton said in an X post that spotlighted The Atlantic article and included an eyes emoji.

Trump also faced charges&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-justice-department-indictment-classified-documents-miami-182ac44fde89767bc0c3e634f61686bd">for mishandling</a>&nbsp;classified information at his Mar-a-Lago resort following his first White House term. Those charges were&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-classified-documents-smith-c66d5ffb7ba86c1b991f95e89bdeba0c">later dismissed.</a>

Administration says Democrats shouldn't be outraged

But on Tuesday, top administration officials were insistent the Democratic outrage was misplaced.

On Capitol Hill, Ratcliffe and Gabbard told lawmakers that no classified information was included in the texts about U.S. attack plans in the message chain.

But&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/03/trump-administration-accidentally-texted-me-its-war-plans/682151/">the Atlantic reported</a>&nbsp;that the messages included precise information about weapons packages, targets and timing, but did not publish those details.

Pressed on whether such information should be classified, Gabbard hedged. “I defer to the secretary of defense, the National Security Council, on that question,” she said.

Democrats pushed back, saying the leaked military plans show a sloppy disregard for security, but Ratcliffe insisted no rules were violated.

“My communications to be clear in the Signal message group were entirely permissible and lawful and did not include classified information,” Ratcliffe told lawmakers in the hearing that was supposed to be focused on global security threats.

Facing heated questions from Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, Gabbard said there’s a difference between “inadvertent” releases of information and intentional leaks. “There was no classified material that was shared,” Gabbard said.

Warner, though, said the lapse in security could have cost lives.

“If this information had gotten out, American lives could have been lost. If the Houthis had this information they could reposition their defensive systems,” Warner said.

In response to questions from Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, Gabbard and Ratcliffe said they would participate in an audit looking into administration officials' use of Signal. Wyden said it must be investigated.

“I’m of the view that there ought to be resignations,” Wyden said.

FBI Director Kash Patel, appearing with Ratcliffe and Gabbard at the hearing, said he was only recently briefed on the Signal chat matter and doesn’t have an update on whether the FBI has opened an investigation into it. Warner asked for an update by the end of the day.

The White House in a statement Tuesday called the uproar a “coordinated effort to distract from the successful actions taken by President Trump and his administration to make America’s enemies pay and keep Americans safe.”

White House communications director Steven Cheung grumbled that the article triggering the criticism of the administration was the work of a segment of Washington's "NatSec establishment community running the same, tired gameplay from years past.

“From the ‘Russia, Russia, Russia’ hoax of the first term to the fake documents case of the last four years … at every turn anti-Trump forces,” Cheung posted on X, referring to investigations into Russian influence on the 2016 presidential campaign and Trump's classified documents case.

Defense Secretary&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/pete-hegseth">Pete Hegseth</a>, in his first comments on the matter on Monday,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/video/hegseth-slams-journalist-after-officials-text-yemen-war-plans-to-a-group-chat-in-a-secure-app-signal">attacked the journalist</a>&nbsp;who received the messages, Goldberg, as “deceitful” and a “discredited so-called journalist” while alluding to previous critical reporting of Trump from the publication.

“Nobody was texting war plans and that’s all I have to say about that,” Hegseth said in an exchange with reporters on Monday.

Signal is&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/privacy-encryption-signal-whatsapp-9faf31ed3411bc5b7cab0647b4ab224d">an app</a>&nbsp;that can be used for direct messaging and group chats as well as phone and video calls. It uses end-to-end encryption for its messaging and calling services that prevents any third party from viewing conversation content or listening in on calls.

In other words, messages and calls sent on Signal are scrambled; only the sender and recipient at each end will have the key to decipher them.

Signal’s encryption protocol is open source, meaning that it’s freely available for anyone to inspect, use or modify. The encryption protocol is also used by another popular chat service, social media company Meta’s WhatsApp platform.

Government officials have used Signal for organizational correspondence, such as scheduling sensitive meetings. But in the Biden administration, people who had permission to download it on their White House-issued phones were instructed to use the app sparingly, according to a former national security official who served in the administration.

The official, who requested anonymity to speak about methods used to share sensitive information, said Signal was most commonly used to notify someone that they should check for a classified message sent through other means.

The use of Signal became more prevalent during the last year of the Biden administration after federal law enforcement officials warned that China and Iran were hacking the White House as well as officials in the first Trump administration, according to the official.

Sen. Angus King, a Maine Independent, questioned Ratcliffe and Gabbard over their assertion that no classified information was included in the chat.

“It’s hard for me to believe that targets and timing and weapons would not have been classified,” he said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742932610024.png" alt="President Trump National Security team before a Senate committee on Tuesday-image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>President Trump National Security team before a Senate committee on Tuesday-image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;on Tuesday&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/live/donald-trump-news-updates-3-25-2025">downplayed</a>&nbsp;the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/war-plans-trump-hegseth-atlantic-230718a984911dd8663d59edbcb86f2a">texting of sensitive plans for a military strike</a>&nbsp;against Yemen's Houthis this month to a group chat that included a journalist, saying it was “the only glitch in two months” of his administration as Democratic lawmakers heaped criticism on the administration for handling highly sensitive information carelessly.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">President Trump on Signal group chat: &quot;There was no classified information as I understand it.&quot; National Security Adviser Michael Waltz: &quot;We have our technical experts looking at it. We have our legal teams looking at it...the attack was phenomenal and it&#39;s ongoing.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/2DjG0idfJa">pic.twitter.com/2DjG0idfJa</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1904617345160532395?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 25, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Trump told NBC News that the lapse “turned out not to be a serious one," and articulated his continued support for national security adviser&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-national-security-adviser-mike-wlatz-0c81d044c9ffe18dfd745202e8351b9c">Mike Waltz</a>, who mistakenly added the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to the chain that included 18 senior administration officials discussing planning for the strike.“Michael Waltz has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man," Trump said. He also appeared to point blame on an unnamed Waltz aide for Goldberg being added to the chain. “It was one of Michael’s people on the phone. A staffer had his number on there."But the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/signal-app-atlantic-war-plans-32699da142c5209b845e57f690df4925">use of messaging app Signal</a>&nbsp;to discuss a sensitive operation has opened the administration to blistering criticism from Democratic lawmakers who expressed outrage at the White House's and senior administration officials' insistence that no classified information was shared. Senior administration officials have struggled to explain why the publicly available app was used to discuss such a delicate matter.<h2>One Democrat calls the mistake ‘an embarrassment’</h2>One official reported to be on the Signal chain, Director of National Intelligence&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/tulsi-gabbard">Tulsi Gabbard,</a>&nbsp;acknowledged during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on Tuesday that she was traveling overseas during the exchange. She wouldn't say whether she was using her personal or government-issued phone because the matter is under review by the White House National Security Council.Both Gabbard and CIA Director&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/john-ratcliffe">John Ratcliffe</a>, who also was a participant in the Signal exchange and also testified at Tuesday's intelligence hearing, faced blistering criticism from lawmakers.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/SenOssoff?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SenOssoff</a>: &quot;This is an embarrassment. This is utterly unprofessional. There&#39;s been no apology. There has been no recognition of the gravity of this error...We will get the full transcript of this chain and your testimony will be measured carefully against its content.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/rgeBxLrbKS">pic.twitter.com/rgeBxLrbKS</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1904568753917943950?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 25, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>“This is an embarrassment,” said Sen. Jon Ossoff, a Georgia Democrat. “This is utterly unprofessional. There’s been no apology. There’s been no recognition of the gravity of this error.”<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Sen. Cotton: &quot;They testified...that there&#39;s no intelligence community classified information, is that correct?&quot; Ratcliffe: &quot;That&#39;s correct.&quot; Gabbard: &quot;Yes.&quot; Sen. King: &quot;That&#39;s not correct! She said repeatedly there&#39;s nothing classified. Period.&quot; Sen. Warner: &quot;Period.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/Ta27JnxKXt">pic.twitter.com/Ta27JnxKXt</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1904564790569156611?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 25, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>In the run-up to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fb2e92a47f054019a2589ace78d20836">his 2016 election victory</a>&nbsp;over Democrat Hillary Clinton, Trump urged criminal prosecution of the former secretary of state for communicating about classified information with her aides on a private email server she set up. The matter was investigated, but the FBI ultimately recommended against charges. None were brought.Clinton was among Democrats this week to criticize Trump administration officials' use of Signal.“You have got to be kidding me,” Clinton said in an X post that spotlighted The Atlantic article and included an eyes emoji.Trump also faced charges&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-justice-department-indictment-classified-documents-miami-182ac44fde89767bc0c3e634f61686bd">for mishandling</a>&nbsp;classified information at his Mar-a-Lago resort following his first White House term. Those charges were&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-classified-documents-smith-c66d5ffb7ba86c1b991f95e89bdeba0c">later dismissed.</a><h2>Administration says Democrats shouldn't be outraged</h2>But on Tuesday, top administration officials were insistent the Democratic outrage was misplaced.On Capitol Hill, Ratcliffe and Gabbard told lawmakers that no classified information was included in the texts about U.S. attack plans in the message chain.But&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/03/trump-administration-accidentally-texted-me-its-war-plans/682151/">the Atlantic reported</a>&nbsp;that the messages included precise information about weapons packages, targets and timing, but did not publish those details.Pressed on whether such information should be classified, Gabbard hedged. “I defer to the secretary of defense, the National Security Council, on that question,” she said.Democrats pushed back, saying the leaked military plans show a sloppy disregard for security, but Ratcliffe insisted no rules were violated.“My communications to be clear in the Signal message group were entirely permissible and lawful and did not include classified information,” Ratcliffe told lawmakers in the hearing that was supposed to be focused on global security threats.Facing heated questions from Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, Gabbard said there’s a difference between “inadvertent” releases of information and intentional leaks. “There was no classified material that was shared,” Gabbard said.Warner, though, said the lapse in security could have cost lives.“If this information had gotten out, American lives could have been lost. If the Houthis had this information they could reposition their defensive systems,” Warner said.In response to questions from Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, Gabbard and Ratcliffe said they would participate in an audit looking into administration officials' use of Signal. Wyden said it must be investigated.“I’m of the view that there ought to be resignations,” Wyden said.FBI Director Kash Patel, appearing with Ratcliffe and Gabbard at the hearing, said he was only recently briefed on the Signal chat matter and doesn’t have an update on whether the FBI has opened an investigation into it. Warner asked for an update by the end of the day.The White House in a statement Tuesday called the uproar a “coordinated effort to distract from the successful actions taken by President Trump and his administration to make America’s enemies pay and keep Americans safe.”White House communications director Steven Cheung grumbled that the article triggering the criticism of the administration was the work of a segment of Washington's "NatSec establishment community running the same, tired gameplay from years past.“From the ‘Russia, Russia, Russia’ hoax of the first term to the fake documents case of the last four years … at every turn anti-Trump forces,” Cheung posted on X, referring to investigations into Russian influence on the 2016 presidential campaign and Trump's classified documents case.Defense Secretary&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/pete-hegseth">Pete Hegseth</a>, in his first comments on the matter on Monday,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/video/hegseth-slams-journalist-after-officials-text-yemen-war-plans-to-a-group-chat-in-a-secure-app-signal">attacked the journalist</a>&nbsp;who received the messages, Goldberg, as “deceitful” and a “discredited so-called journalist” while alluding to previous critical reporting of Trump from the publication.“Nobody was texting war plans and that’s all I have to say about that,” Hegseth said in an exchange with reporters on Monday.<h2>Examining the security of Signal</h2>Signal is&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/privacy-encryption-signal-whatsapp-9faf31ed3411bc5b7cab0647b4ab224d">an app</a>&nbsp;that can be used for direct messaging and group chats as well as phone and video calls. It uses end-to-end encryption for its messaging and calling services that prevents any third party from viewing conversation content or listening in on calls.In other words, messages and calls sent on Signal are scrambled; only the sender and recipient at each end will have the key to decipher them.Signal’s encryption protocol is open source, meaning that it’s freely available for anyone to inspect, use or modify. The encryption protocol is also used by another popular chat service, social media company Meta’s WhatsApp platform.Government officials have used Signal for organizational correspondence, such as scheduling sensitive meetings. But in the Biden administration, people who had permission to download it on their White House-issued phones were instructed to use the app sparingly, according to a former national security official who served in the administration.The official, who requested anonymity to speak about methods used to share sensitive information, said Signal was most commonly used to notify someone that they should check for a classified message sent through other means.The use of Signal became more prevalent during the last year of the Biden administration after federal law enforcement officials warned that China and Iran were hacking the White House as well as officials in the first Trump administration, according to the official.Sen. Angus King, a Maine Independent, questioned Ratcliffe and Gabbard over their assertion that no classified information was included in the chat.“It’s hard for me to believe that targets and timing and weapons would not have been classified,” he said.___

🎥Trump team scrambles to handle fallout from 'careless' Signal chat 

BY&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/susan-haigh">SUSAN HAIGH</a>&nbsp;AND&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/adriana-morga">ADRIANA MORGA</a>

If you haven’t filed your 2021 tax returns you might be missing out on a COVID stimulus payment. Taxpayers who haven’t filed 2021 tax returns who may be eligible for the Recovery Rebate Credit must file it by April 15, 2025 to claim the credit.

Earlier this year, the IRS announced that it’s distributing about $2.4 billion to taxpayers who didn’t receive their COVID stimulus payments. The agency said it’s distributing these payments to taxpayers who failed to claim a Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2021 tax returns. The Recovery Rebate Credit is a refundable credit for individuals who did not receive one or more Economic Impact Payments (EIP), also known as stimulus payments.

“Looking at our internal data, we realized that one million taxpayers overlooked claiming this complex credit when they were actually eligible,” IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said in a statement.

The special payments announced by the IRS are being sent to those taxpayers who filed a 2021 tax return but left the data field for the Recovery Rebate Credit blank or they filled it out as $0 when they were actually eligible for the credit.

How much money will eligible taxpayers receive?

Payments will vary but the maximum amount will be $1,400 per individual. In total, the IRS will be distributing about $2.4 billion to taxpayers who failed to claim a Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2021 tax returns.

The IRS has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/2021-recovery-rebate-credit-questions-and-answers" target="_blank">posted information online</a>&nbsp;about eligibility and how the payment was calculated.

Why is the IRS sending out stimulus checks?

The Recovery Rebate Credit is a refundable credit for individuals who didn’t receive the Economic Impact Payments, also known as stimulus payments, during 2020 and 2021. A refundable tax credit is a credit you can get as a refund even if you don’t owe any tax.

The IRS announced this initiative after reviewing its internal data and finding that many eligible taxpayers who filed a 2021 tax return didn’t claim the credit.

“To minimize headaches and get this money to eligible taxpayers, we’re making these payments automatic, meaning these people will not be required to go through the extensive process of filing an amended return to receive it,” said Werfel.

If I qualify for a stimulus payment, how will I receive it?

If you qualify for the Recovery Rebate Credit you don’t have to take any action. The IRS plans sent letters to eligible taxpayers notifying them of the special payment. The payments went out automatically and should’ve arrived by direct deposit or check by late January. They’ll are being sent to the bank account listed on the taxpayer’s 2023 return or to the address IRS has on file.

What if I haven’t filed my 2021 tax return yet?

You still might be able to receive the money. However, taxpayers need to file a tax return and claim the Recovery Rebate Credit by the April 15, 2025 deadline, even if any income from a job, business or other source was minimal or nonexistent, according to the IRS.

How many rounds of COVID stimulus payments were there?

There were three rounds of payments to households impacted by the pandemic, totaling $814 billion. IRS based the amounts that taxpayers received on their income, tax filing status and number of children or qualifying dependents.

In March 2020, eligible individuals received up to $1,200 per income tax filer and $500 per child under the CARES Act. In December 2020, eligible individuals received up to $600 per income tax filer and $600 per child under the Consolidated Appropriations Act. In March 2021, eligible individuals received up to $1,400 per income tax filer and $1,400 per child under the American Rescue Plan Act.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/1/1579706571729.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>BY&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/susan-haigh">SUSAN HAIGH</a>&nbsp;AND&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/adriana-morga">ADRIANA MORGA</a>If you haven’t filed your 2021 tax returns you might be missing out on a COVID stimulus payment. Taxpayers who haven’t filed 2021 tax returns who may be eligible for the Recovery Rebate Credit must file it by April 15, 2025 to claim the credit.Earlier this year, the IRS announced that it’s distributing about $2.4 billion to taxpayers who didn’t receive their COVID stimulus payments. The agency said it’s distributing these payments to taxpayers who failed to claim a Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2021 tax returns. The Recovery Rebate Credit is a refundable credit for individuals who did not receive one or more Economic Impact Payments (EIP), also known as stimulus payments.“Looking at our internal data, we realized that one million taxpayers overlooked claiming this complex credit when they were actually eligible,” IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said in a statement.Here’s what you need to know:<h2>Who is eligible to receive a check?</h2>The special payments announced by the IRS are being sent to those taxpayers who filed a 2021 tax return but left the data field for the Recovery Rebate Credit blank or they filled it out as $0 when they were actually eligible for the credit.<h2>How much money will eligible taxpayers receive?</h2>Payments will vary but the maximum amount will be $1,400 per individual. In total, the IRS will be distributing about $2.4 billion to taxpayers who failed to claim a Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2021 tax returns.The IRS has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/2021-recovery-rebate-credit-questions-and-answers" target="_blank">posted information online</a>&nbsp;about eligibility and how the payment was calculated.<h2>Why is the IRS sending out stimulus checks?</h2>The Recovery Rebate Credit is a refundable credit for individuals who didn’t receive the Economic Impact Payments, also known as stimulus payments, during 2020 and 2021. A refundable tax credit is a credit you can get as a refund even if you don’t owe any tax.The IRS announced this initiative after reviewing its internal data and finding that many eligible taxpayers who filed a 2021 tax return didn’t claim the credit.“To minimize headaches and get this money to eligible taxpayers, we’re making these payments automatic, meaning these people will not be required to go through the extensive process of filing an amended return to receive it,” said Werfel.<h2>If I qualify for a stimulus payment, how will I receive it?</h2>If you qualify for the Recovery Rebate Credit you don’t have to take any action. The IRS plans sent letters to eligible taxpayers notifying them of the special payment. The payments went out automatically and should’ve arrived by direct deposit or check by late January. They’ll are being sent to the bank account listed on the taxpayer’s 2023 return or to the address IRS has on file.<h2>What if I haven’t filed my 2021 tax return yet?</h2>You still might be able to receive the money. However, taxpayers need to file a tax return and claim the Recovery Rebate Credit by the April 15, 2025 deadline, even if any income from a job, business or other source was minimal or nonexistent, according to the IRS.<h2>How many rounds of COVID stimulus payments were there?</h2>There were three rounds of payments to households impacted by the pandemic, totaling $814 billion. IRS based the amounts that taxpayers received on their income, tax filing status and number of children or qualifying dependents.In March 2020, eligible individuals received up to $1,200 per income tax filer and $500 per child under the CARES Act. In December 2020, eligible individuals received up to $600 per income tax filer and $600 per child under the Consolidated Appropriations Act. In March 2021, eligible individuals received up to $1,400 per income tax filer and $1,400 per child under the American Rescue Plan Act.

Haven’t filed your 2021 tax return? You might be missing out on a COVID stimulus check

KANSAS CITY (AP) —Sam Peterson is one of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mass-firings-federal-workers-trump-administration-7cc7320f469cc65529367aaea2fd9dcb">thousands of fired federal workers</a>&nbsp;who was offered his job back under a judge’s order, but he didn’t jump at the chance to go back to his park ranger position at Washington state’s Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area.

Instead, he quickly turned it down, opting to move with his wife to start a career outside the government at an Oregon museum.

“We signed a lease Monday and who knows what the next few months would bring if I were to return to federal employment,” said Peterson, 26.

Whether to return to the federal workforce is a decision confronting thousands of fired employees after two judges this month found legal problems with how President Donald Trump is carrying out a dramatic downsizing of the U.S. government. One ruling by a California federal judge would reinstate 16,000 probationary employees.

On Monday, the Trump administration sought to stop giving fired workers any choice by asking the U.S. Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mass-firings-trump-administration-supreme-court-bfe86f68e9877bf58c64bbc3b01db9c6">to halt the rehiring orders</a>. It was not clear how quickly the nation’s high court could rule on the emergency appeal, which argued that U.S. District Judge William Alsup, who was appointed by Democratic President Bill Clinton, went beyond his legal authority.

Although it is unknown how many federal workers are taking up the offers to return to work, some employees have already decided to move on, fearing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-elon-musk-federal-workers-layoffs-d295d4bb2cdd5023c27d9cb03754e81b">more reductions</a>&nbsp;down the road.

Others who were asked to return were immediately put on administrative leave, with full pay and benefits, or offered early retirement. For those who chose to return, some say the decision came down to their dedication to the work and a belief that what they do is important.

Eric Anderson, 48, got word last week that he can return to his position as a biological science technician at the Indiana Dunes National Park. He said he’s excited to go back on Tuesday, where he’ll lead a crew conducting prescribed burns to limit wildland fire impacts, but is concerned about the uncertainty.

“I’ve heard that some people’s positions have changed from doing what they normally do to doing something completely weird and different,” Anderson said. “It’ll be interesting going back and seeing if stuff still changes by the day.”

Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mass-firings-federal-workers-trump-administration-7cc7320f469cc65529367aaea2fd9dcb">Department of Government Efficiency</a>, overseen by billionaire Elon Musk, has not disclosed how many probationary workers were cut, how many were reinstated or how many rehired workers were placed on leave.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts asked the Government Accountability Office to seek answers to those questions and to study the impacts of the firings, arguing that removing people from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/job-cuts-doge-reductions-force-rif-musk-197a432955b328073714bcc0e4ff95be">critical areas of government</a>&nbsp;— such as air travel, wildland firefighting, infectious disease control, nuclear security and veterans’ health care — has put the county’s health and safety at risk. In a letter to Warren and other Democratic senators, the federal office said it accepted their request to review the firings.

One agency, the National Park Service, was authorized to rehire 1,000 workers, according to the National Parks Conservation Association. The group celebrated the reversal but criticized the process.

“This chaotic whiplash is no way to manage the Park Service, especially as they are welcoming millions of visitors right now,” said association president and CEO Theresa Pierno. “This administration needs to stop playing games with the future of our national parks.”

Brian Gibbs,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-national-park-firings-doge-grand-teton-baedee0a748a6374eafb6f95aac5dadc">who was fired</a>&nbsp;from his environmental educator job at the Effigy Mounds National Monument in Iowa in February, returned to work Monday. In a widely shared Facebook post, Gibbs said he’s committed to serving the American public “to the best of my abilities as long as I am authorized to” and leading field trips at the park.

Some Department of Interior workers were given their jobs back only to be offered an early retirement package, according to a letter reviewed by The Associated Press.

Other returning workers were placed on administrative leave as the Trump administration appeals the court rulings on mass firings. That means some workers were fired as part of an effort to eliminate government waste only to be rehired and paid, at least for a time, to not work.

Sydney Smith, 28, was a probationary employee with the Forest Service who was on a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-musk-doge-federal-workforce-presidential-fellow-0e2acf445d13c08251d9d28653797c6e">temporary assignment to the Library of Congress</a>&nbsp;when she was terminated. She was rehired but was immediately placed on administrative leave with backpay. Smith said she’s ready to get back to work and hopes others get back too.

“It’s not clear at what point they would have me return to work,” she said. “So I am being paid but not working. That feels inefficient.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742925269954.png" alt="Sign for USDA office in Topeka -Google image" />
 <figcaption>Sign for USDA office in Topeka -Google image</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY (AP) —Sam Peterson is one of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mass-firings-federal-workers-trump-administration-7cc7320f469cc65529367aaea2fd9dcb">thousands of fired federal workers</a>&nbsp;who was offered his job back under a judge’s order, but he didn’t jump at the chance to go back to his park ranger position at Washington state’s Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area.Instead, he quickly turned it down, opting to move with his wife to start a career outside the government at an Oregon museum.“We signed a lease Monday and who knows what the next few months would bring if I were to return to federal employment,” said Peterson, 26.Whether to return to the federal workforce is a decision confronting thousands of fired employees after two judges this month found legal problems with how President Donald Trump is carrying out a dramatic downsizing of the U.S. government. One ruling by a California federal judge would reinstate 16,000 probationary employees.On Monday, the Trump administration sought to stop giving fired workers any choice by asking the U.S. Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mass-firings-trump-administration-supreme-court-bfe86f68e9877bf58c64bbc3b01db9c6">to halt the rehiring orders</a>. It was not clear how quickly the nation’s high court could rule on the emergency appeal, which argued that U.S. District Judge William Alsup, who was appointed by Democratic President Bill Clinton, went beyond his legal authority.Although it is unknown how many federal workers are taking up the offers to return to work, some employees have already decided to move on, fearing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-elon-musk-federal-workers-layoffs-d295d4bb2cdd5023c27d9cb03754e81b">more reductions</a>&nbsp;down the road.Others who were asked to return were immediately put on administrative leave, with full pay and benefits, or offered early retirement. For those who chose to return, some say the decision came down to their dedication to the work and a belief that what they do is important.Eric Anderson, 48, got word last week that he can return to his position as a biological science technician at the Indiana Dunes National Park. He said he’s excited to go back on Tuesday, where he’ll lead a crew conducting prescribed burns to limit wildland fire impacts, but is concerned about the uncertainty.“I’ve heard that some people’s positions have changed from doing what they normally do to doing something completely weird and different,” Anderson said. “It’ll be interesting going back and seeing if stuff still changes by the day.”Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mass-firings-federal-workers-trump-administration-7cc7320f469cc65529367aaea2fd9dcb">Department of Government Efficiency</a>, overseen by billionaire Elon Musk, has not disclosed how many probationary workers were cut, how many were reinstated or how many rehired workers were placed on leave.Democratic U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts asked the Government Accountability Office to seek answers to those questions and to study the impacts of the firings, arguing that removing people from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/job-cuts-doge-reductions-force-rif-musk-197a432955b328073714bcc0e4ff95be">critical areas of government</a>&nbsp;— such as air travel, wildland firefighting, infectious disease control, nuclear security and veterans’ health care — has put the county’s health and safety at risk. In a letter to Warren and other Democratic senators, the federal office said it accepted their request to review the firings.One agency, the National Park Service, was authorized to rehire 1,000 workers, according to the National Parks Conservation Association. The group celebrated the reversal but criticized the process.“This chaotic whiplash is no way to manage the Park Service, especially as they are welcoming millions of visitors right now,” said association president and CEO Theresa Pierno. “This administration needs to stop playing games with the future of our national parks.”Brian Gibbs,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-national-park-firings-doge-grand-teton-baedee0a748a6374eafb6f95aac5dadc">who was fired</a>&nbsp;from his environmental educator job at the Effigy Mounds National Monument in Iowa in February, returned to work Monday. In a widely shared Facebook post, Gibbs said he’s committed to serving the American public “to the best of my abilities as long as I am authorized to” and leading field trips at the park.Some Department of Interior workers were given their jobs back only to be offered an early retirement package, according to a letter reviewed by The Associated Press.Other returning workers were placed on administrative leave as the Trump administration appeals the court rulings on mass firings. That means some workers were fired as part of an effort to eliminate government waste only to be rehired and paid, at least for a time, to not work.Sydney Smith, 28, was a probationary employee with the Forest Service who was on a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-musk-doge-federal-workforce-presidential-fellow-0e2acf445d13c08251d9d28653797c6e">temporary assignment to the Library of Congress</a>&nbsp;when she was terminated. She was rehired but was immediately placed on administrative leave with backpay. Smith said she’s ready to get back to work and hopes others get back too.“It’s not clear at what point they would have me return to work,” she said. “So I am being paid but not working. That feels inefficient.”

Fired federal workers face choices now that a judge wants them rehired

HAYS, KS – The USD 489 Board of Education approved the hiring of Chris Drees as the new assistant principal and activities director at Hays High School during their meeting on Monday.

Drees will succeed Lance Krannawitter, who is retiring.

Currently the athletic director and head basketball coach at Plainville High School, Drees brings extensive experience to the position. During his 12-season tenure at Plainville, he compiled a 159-117 record, led the team to three state tournament appearances, and achieved a state runner-up finish in 2014.

Hays PostHAYS, KS – The USD 489 Board of Education approved the hiring of Chris Drees as the new assistant principal and activities director at Hays High School during their meeting on Monday.Drees will succeed Lance Krannawitter, who is retiring.Currently the athletic director and head basketball coach at Plainville High School, Drees brings extensive experience to the position. During his 12-season tenure at Plainville, he compiled a 159-117 record, led the team to three state tournament appearances, and achieved a state runner-up finish in 2014.

Drees hired as Hays High Assistant Principal and Activities Director

By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays Post

The Hays USD 489 school board approved the purchase of laptops for Hays High students at its meeting on Monday.

The district's Technology Committee had recommended buying iPads with keyboards to replace the aging laptops at the high school.

The district budgets to replace the high school devices every four years.

Two Hays High students spoke during the public comments session of the meeting. Both advocated for the continued use of laptops.

Although the students cited more computing power available on the laptops, Scott Summers, director of technology, said the iPads actually beat the Dell laptops the students are using now for computing power.

However, to gain the computing power students said they wanted in a student-led survey, the district would have to upgrade to MacBook Pros, Summers said.

The board approved a bid from Dell for&nbsp;$605,935 for 1,100 devices. iPads would have cost about $150,000 less over the life of the computers.&nbsp;

The MacBook Pros would have cost about $120,000 more than the Dells over the four-year life of the computers. The estimated costs include buyback of old devices, Summers said.

Board member Ruth Ruder commended the students for coming before the board with their concerns. Ruder, whose daughter attends Hays High, said several students approached her and expressed their desires to continue to use laptops.&nbsp;

Board member Jayme Goetz, a former teacher in the district, said teachers approached her saying they preferred laptops for their classes.

The board unanimously approved the purchase of the Dell laptops.

The board approved the purchase of bleachers and a press box for Hays High softball at a cost of $178,160 from Heartland Seating. It also approved&nbsp;bleachers at the new Hays Middle School athletic field from Heartland Seating for $127,442.

Board members asked about moving the old bleachers from Hays Middle School to the new location.&nbsp;

Superintendent Ron Wilson said he thought the community will continue to use the field at the current middle school.

He said he was also concerned about the stability of the old bleachers if they had to be disassembled and bolted back together. He expressed concerns about liability issues.

New weight racks were purchased for the new high school with bond funds. Additional weights are needed for the facility.&nbsp;

The board&nbsp;approved the purchase of weights and equipment from BSN Sports for $54,492 from the capital outlay fund.

The board also discussed moving the election of board officers from July to January.&nbsp;

The district financial year starts July 1. However, board elections, which used to be in April, are now in November.&nbsp;

The board made no decisions on the elections Monday night. They will discuss the issue again at their June meeting.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742870908693.jpg" alt="Photo courtesy of Pixabay." />
 <figcaption>Photo courtesy of Pixabay.</figcaption>
 </figure><div><iframe title="Post Podcast: USD 489 School Board Update" allowtransparency="true" height="300" width="100%" style="border: none; min-width: min(100%, 430px);height:300px;" scrolling="no" data-name="pb-iframe-player" src="https://www.podbean.com/player-v2/?from=embed&i=nws3v-185ff99-pb&square=1&share=1&download=1&fonts=Arial&skin=3267a3&font-color=auto&rtl=0&logo_link=podcast_page&btn-skin=60a0c8&size=300" loading="lazy" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays PostThe Hays USD 489 school board approved the purchase of laptops for Hays High students at its meeting on Monday.The district's Technology Committee had recommended buying iPads with keyboards to replace the aging laptops at the high school.The district budgets to replace the high school devices every four years.Two Hays High students spoke during the public comments session of the meeting. Both advocated for the continued use of laptops.Although the students cited more computing power available on the laptops, Scott Summers, director of technology, said the iPads actually beat the Dell laptops the students are using now for computing power.However, to gain the computing power students said they wanted in a student-led survey, the district would have to upgrade to MacBook Pros, Summers said.The board approved a bid from Dell for&nbsp;$605,935 for 1,100 devices. iPads would have cost about $150,000 less over the life of the computers.&nbsp;The MacBook Pros would have cost about $120,000 more than the Dells over the four-year life of the computers. The estimated costs include buyback of old devices, Summers said.Board member Ruth Ruder commended the students for coming before the board with their concerns. Ruder, whose daughter attends Hays High, said several students approached her and expressed their desires to continue to use laptops.&nbsp;Board member Jayme Goetz, a former teacher in the district, said teachers approached her saying they preferred laptops for their classes.The board unanimously approved the purchase of the Dell laptops.<h2>Bleachers</h2>The board approved the purchase of bleachers and a press box for Hays High softball at a cost of $178,160 from Heartland Seating. It also approved&nbsp;bleachers at the new Hays Middle School athletic field from Heartland Seating for $127,442.Board members asked about moving the old bleachers from Hays Middle School to the new location.&nbsp;Superintendent Ron Wilson said he thought the community will continue to use the field at the current middle school.He said he was also concerned about the stability of the old bleachers if they had to be disassembled and bolted back together. He expressed concerns about liability issues.New weight racks were purchased for the new high school with bond funds. Additional weights are needed for the facility.&nbsp;The board&nbsp;approved the purchase of weights and equipment from BSN Sports for $54,492 from the capital outlay fund.<h2>Board elections</h2>The board also discussed moving the election of board officers from July to January.&nbsp;The district financial year starts July 1. However, board elections, which used to be in April, are now in November.&nbsp;The board made no decisions on the elections Monday night. They will discuss the issue again at their June meeting.

🎙 Hays USD 489 school board votes to purchase laptops for Hays High students

WASHINGTON (AP) — Top national security officials for President Donald Trump, including his defense secretary, texted war plans for upcoming military strikes in Yemen to a group chat in a secure messaging app that included the editor-in-chief for The Atlantic, the magazine reported in a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/03/trump-administration-accidentally-texted-me-its-war-plans/682151/">story posted online</a>&nbsp;Monday. The National Security Council said the text chain “appears to be authentic.”

Trump initially told reporters he was not aware that the highly sensitive information had been shared, 2 1/2 hours after it was reported. He later appeared to joke about the breach.

The material in the text chain “contained operational details of forthcoming strikes on Iran-backed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-yemen-houthis-rebels-attack-airstrike-11b0e080b3982542dd621338a7b18afd">Houthi-rebels in Yemen,</a>&nbsp;including information about targets, weapons the U.S. would be deploying, and attack sequencing,” editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg reported.

It was not immediately clear if the specifics of the military operation were classified, but they often are and at the least are kept secure to protect service members and operational security. The U.S. has conducted airstrikes against the Houthis since the militant group began targeting commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea in November 2023.

Just two hours after Goldberg received the details of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthis-us-airstrikes-israel-hamas-war-911e99729c71e3c59420f8b511afa2e9">attack on March 15</a>, the U.S. began launching a series of airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.

The National Security Council is looking into the matter

The National Security Council said in a statement that it was looking into how a journalist’s number was added to the chain in the Signal group chat. In addition to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, it included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's director of national intelligence.

Goldberg said he received the Signal invitation from Mike Waltz, Trump's national security adviser, who was also in the group chat.

Hegseth in his first comments on the matter attacked Goldberg as “deceitful” and a “discredited so-called journalist” while alluding to previous critical reporting of Trump from the publication. He did not shed light on why Signal was being used to discuss the sensitive operation or how Goldberg ended up on the message chain.

“Nobody was texting war plans and that’s all I have to say about that,” Hegseth said in an exchange with reporters after landing in Hawaii on Monday as he began his first trip to the Indo-Pacific as defense secretary.

In a statement late Monday, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said the president still has the “utmost confidence” in Waltz and the national security team.

Earlier Monday, Trump told reporters, “I don’t know anything about it. You’re telling me about it for the first time.” He added that The Atlantic was “not much of a magazine.”

By early evening, the president jokingly brushed it aside. He amplified a social media posting from Elon Musk spotlighting a conservative satirical news site article with the cutting headline: “4D Chess: Genius Trump Leaks War Plans to ‘The Atlantic’ Where No One Will Ever See Them."

Government officials have used Signal for organizational correspondence, but it is not classified and can be hacked. Privacy and tech experts say the popular end-to-end encrypted messaging and voice call app is more secure than conventional texting.

The sharing of sensitive information comes as Hegseth's office has just announced a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/leaks-pentagon-polygraph-trump-investigation-685b08e14d813050a722cec89eb5c323">crackdown on leaks</a>&nbsp;of sensitive information, including the potential use of polygraphs on defense personnel to determine how reporters have received information.

Sean Parnell, a spokesman for Hegseth, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on why the defense secretary posted war operational plans on an unclassified app.

The administration's handling of the highly sensitive information was swiftly condemned by Democratic lawmakers. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called for a full investigation.

“This is one of the most stunning breaches of military intelligence I have read about in a very, very long time,” Schumer, a New York Democrat, said in a floor speech Monday afternoon.

“If true, this story represents one of the most egregious failures of operational security and common sense I have ever seen,” said Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, in a statement.

He said American lives are “on the line. The carelessness shown by Trump’s Cabinet is stunning and dangerous. I will be seeking answers from the Administration immediately.”

Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said in a statement that he was “horrified” by the reports.

Himes said if a lower-ranking official “did what is described here, they would likely lose their clearance and be subject to criminal investigation. The American people deserve answers,” which he said he planned to get at Wednesday’s previously scheduled committee hearing.

Some Republicans also expressed concerns.

Sen. Roger Wicker, the Mississippi Republican who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, told reporters Monday, “We’re very concerned about it and we’ll be looking into it on a bipartisan basis.”

Reed said he would be speaking with Wicker about what the committee will do to “follow up” on the Signal leak.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he wants to learn more about what happened.

“Obviously, we got to to run it to the ground, figure out what went on there,” said Thune, a South Dakota Republican.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson offered a notably forgiving posture.

“I think it would be a terrible mistake for there to be adverse consequences on any of the people that were involved in that call," Johnson said. "They were trying to do a good job, the mission was accomplished with precision."

There are strict laws around handling defense information

The handling of national defense information is strictly governed by law under the century-old Espionage Act, including provisions that make it a crime to remove such information from its “proper place of custody” even through an act of gross negligence.

The Justice Department in 2015 and 2016 investigated whether former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton broke the law by communicating about classified information with her aides on a private email server she set up, though the FBI ultimately recommended against charges and none were brought.

In the Biden administration, some officials were given permission to download Signal on their White House-issued phones, but were instructed to use the app sparingly, according to a former national security official who served in the Democratic administration.

The official, who requested anonymity to speak about methods used to share sensitive information, said Signal was most commonly used to communicate what they internally referred to as “tippers” to notify someone when they were away from the office or traveling overseas that they should check their “high side” inbox for a classified message.

The app was sometimes also used by officials during the Biden administration to communicate about scheduling of sensitive meetings or classified phone calls when they were outside the office, the official said.

The official was unaware of top Biden administration officials — such as Vice President Kamala Harris, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and national security adviser Jake Sullivan — using Signal to discuss sensitive plans as the Trump administration officials did.

Some of the toughest criticism targeted Hegseth, a former Fox News Channel weekend host. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran, said on social media that Hegseth, “the most unqualified Secretary of Defense in history, is demonstrating his incompetence by literally leaking classified war plans in the group chat.”

Leak reveals internal debate on Houthi operation

Vance in the chain of the messages questioned whether Americans would understand the importance of strikes that came with the risk of “a moderate to severe spike in oil prices” and if the timing of the operation might be a “mistake.”

“I am willing to support the consensus of the team and keep these concerns to myself,” Vance argued. “But there is a strong argument for delaying this a month, doing the messaging work on why this matters, seeing where the economy is, etc.”

Vance also made the case that Europe would benefit much more than the U.S. by the action aimed at decimating the Houthis and securing Red Sea shipping lanes.

“If you think we should do it let’s go. I just hate bailing Europe out again,” Vance said in a back-and-forth with Hegseth.

“I fully share your loathing of European free-loading. It’s PATHETIC,” Hegseth replied. He added, “I think we should go.”

The vice president’s communication’s director, William Martin, in a statement downplayed the debate. He said Vance “unequivocally supports this administration’s foreign policy.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — Top national security officials for President Donald Trump, including his defense secretary, texted war plans for upcoming military strikes in Yemen to a group chat in a secure messaging app that included the editor-in-chief for The Atlantic, the magazine reported in a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/03/trump-administration-accidentally-texted-me-its-war-plans/682151/">story posted online</a>&nbsp;Monday. The National Security Council said the text chain “appears to be authentic.”<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">.<a href="https://twitter.com/SecDef?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecDef</a> Hegseth on <a href="https://twitter.com/JeffreyGoldberg?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JeffreyGoldberg</a>: &quot;You&#39;re talking about a deceitful and highly discredited so-called journalist who&#39;s made a profession of peddling hoaxes time and time again...This is a guy who peddles in garbage...Nobody was texting war plans and that&#39;s all I have to say.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/IEYyMPYQBz">pic.twitter.com/IEYyMPYQBz</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1904315678842097972?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 24, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Trump initially told reporters he was not aware that the highly sensitive information had been shared, 2 1/2 hours after it was reported. He later appeared to joke about the breach.The material in the text chain “contained operational details of forthcoming strikes on Iran-backed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-yemen-houthis-rebels-attack-airstrike-11b0e080b3982542dd621338a7b18afd">Houthi-rebels in Yemen,</a>&nbsp;including information about targets, weapons the U.S. would be deploying, and attack sequencing,” editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg reported.It was not immediately clear if the specifics of the military operation were classified, but they often are and at the least are kept secure to protect service members and operational security. The U.S. has conducted airstrikes against the Houthis since the militant group began targeting commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea in November 2023.Just two hours after Goldberg received the details of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthis-us-airstrikes-israel-hamas-war-911e99729c71e3c59420f8b511afa2e9">attack on March 15</a>, the U.S. began launching a series of airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.<h2>The National Security Council is looking into the matter</h2>The National Security Council said in a statement that it was looking into how a journalist’s number was added to the chain in the Signal group chat. In addition to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, it included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's director of national intelligence.Goldberg said he received the Signal invitation from Mike Waltz, Trump's national security adviser, who was also in the group chat.Hegseth in his first comments on the matter attacked Goldberg as “deceitful” and a “discredited so-called journalist” while alluding to previous critical reporting of Trump from the publication. He did not shed light on why Signal was being used to discuss the sensitive operation or how Goldberg ended up on the message chain.“Nobody was texting war plans and that’s all I have to say about that,” Hegseth said in an exchange with reporters after landing in Hawaii on Monday as he began his first trip to the Indo-Pacific as defense secretary.In a statement late Monday, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said the president still has the “utmost confidence” in Waltz and the national security team.Earlier Monday, Trump told reporters, “I don’t know anything about it. You’re telling me about it for the first time.” He added that The Atlantic was “not much of a magazine.”By early evening, the president jokingly brushed it aside. He amplified a social media posting from Elon Musk spotlighting a conservative satirical news site article with the cutting headline: “4D Chess: Genius Trump Leaks War Plans to ‘The Atlantic’ Where No One Will Ever See Them."Government officials have used Signal for organizational correspondence, but it is not classified and can be hacked. Privacy and tech experts say the popular end-to-end encrypted messaging and voice call app is more secure than conventional texting.<h2>Reaction poured in quickly</h2>The sharing of sensitive information comes as Hegseth's office has just announced a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/leaks-pentagon-polygraph-trump-investigation-685b08e14d813050a722cec89eb5c323">crackdown on leaks</a>&nbsp;of sensitive information, including the potential use of polygraphs on defense personnel to determine how reporters have received information.Sean Parnell, a spokesman for Hegseth, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on why the defense secretary posted war operational plans on an unclassified app.The administration's handling of the highly sensitive information was swiftly condemned by Democratic lawmakers. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called for a full investigation.“This is one of the most stunning breaches of military intelligence I have read about in a very, very long time,” Schumer, a New York Democrat, said in a floor speech Monday afternoon.“If true, this story represents one of the most egregious failures of operational security and common sense I have ever seen,” said Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, in a statement.He said American lives are “on the line. The carelessness shown by Trump’s Cabinet is stunning and dangerous. I will be seeking answers from the Administration immediately.”Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said in a statement that he was “horrified” by the reports.Himes said if a lower-ranking official “did what is described here, they would likely lose their clearance and be subject to criminal investigation. The American people deserve answers,” which he said he planned to get at Wednesday’s previously scheduled committee hearing.Some Republicans also expressed concerns.Sen. Roger Wicker, the Mississippi Republican who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, told reporters Monday, “We’re very concerned about it and we’ll be looking into it on a bipartisan basis.”Reed said he would be speaking with Wicker about what the committee will do to “follow up” on the Signal leak.Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he wants to learn more about what happened.“Obviously, we got to to run it to the ground, figure out what went on there,” said Thune, a South Dakota Republican.Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson offered a notably forgiving posture.“I think it would be a terrible mistake for there to be adverse consequences on any of the people that were involved in that call," Johnson said. "They were trying to do a good job, the mission was accomplished with precision."<h2>There are strict laws around handling defense information</h2>The handling of national defense information is strictly governed by law under the century-old Espionage Act, including provisions that make it a crime to remove such information from its “proper place of custody” even through an act of gross negligence.The Justice Department in 2015 and 2016 investigated whether former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton broke the law by communicating about classified information with her aides on a private email server she set up, though the FBI ultimately recommended against charges and none were brought.In the Biden administration, some officials were given permission to download Signal on their White House-issued phones, but were instructed to use the app sparingly, according to a former national security official who served in the Democratic administration.The official, who requested anonymity to speak about methods used to share sensitive information, said Signal was most commonly used to communicate what they internally referred to as “tippers” to notify someone when they were away from the office or traveling overseas that they should check their “high side” inbox for a classified message.The app was sometimes also used by officials during the Biden administration to communicate about scheduling of sensitive meetings or classified phone calls when they were outside the office, the official said.The use of Signal became more prevalent during the last year of the Biden administration after federal law enforcement officials warned that China and Iran were hacking the White House as well as officials in the first Trump administration, according to the official.The official was unaware of top Biden administration officials — such as Vice President Kamala Harris, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and national security adviser Jake Sullivan — using Signal to discuss sensitive plans as the Trump administration officials did.Some of the toughest criticism targeted Hegseth, a former Fox News Channel weekend host. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran, said on social media that Hegseth, “the most unqualified Secretary of Defense in history, is demonstrating his incompetence by literally leaking classified war plans in the group chat.”<h2>Leak reveals internal debate on Houthi operation</h2>Vance in the chain of the messages questioned whether Americans would understand the importance of strikes that came with the risk of “a moderate to severe spike in oil prices” and if the timing of the operation might be a “mistake.”“I am willing to support the consensus of the team and keep these concerns to myself,” Vance argued. “But there is a strong argument for delaying this a month, doing the messaging work on why this matters, seeing where the economy is, etc.”Vance also made the case that Europe would benefit much more than the U.S. by the action aimed at decimating the Houthis and securing Red Sea shipping lanes.“If you think we should do it let’s go. I just hate bailing Europe out again,” Vance said in a back-and-forth with Hegseth.“I fully share your loathing of European free-loading. It’s PATHETIC,” Hegseth replied. He added, “I think we should go.”The vice president’s communication’s director, William Martin, in a statement downplayed the debate. He said Vance “unequivocally supports this administration’s foreign policy.”

🎥Defense Secretary denies anyone was texting war plans 

BY&nbsp;&nbsp;MICHAEL KUNZELMAN&nbsp;AND&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/lindsay-whitehurst">LINDSAY WHITEHURST</a>

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Monday invoked a “state secrets privilege” and refused to give a federal judge any additional information about the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-venezuela-el-salvador-immigration-dd4f61999f85c4dd8bcaba7d4fc7c9af">deportation of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador</a>&nbsp;under an 18th century wartime law — a case that has become a flashpoint amid escalating tension with the federal courts.

The declaration comes as&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-deportation-judge-boasberg-venezuela-supreme-court-ccc7e61ccf8e8062d7075b617c87cdb5">Chief Judge James Boasberg</a>&nbsp;weighs whether the government defied his order to turn around planes carrying migrants after he blocked deportations of people alleged to be gang members without due process.

He has asked for details about when the planes landed and who was on board, information that the Trump administration asserts would harm “diplomatic and national security concerns.”

Government attorneys also asked an appeals court on Monday to lift Boasberg’s order and allow deportations to continue, a push that appeared to divide the judges.

Circuit Court Judge Patricia Millett said Nazis detained in the U.S. during World World II received better legal treatment than Venezuelan immigrants who were were deported to El Salvador this month under the same statute.

“We certainly dispute the Nazi analogy,” Justice Department attorney Drew Ensign responded during a hearing of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Millett is one of three appellate judges who will decide whether to lift a March 15 order temporarily prohibiting deportations under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. They didn’t rule from the bench Monday.

A second judge appeared open to the administration’s argument that the migrants should be challenging their detention in Texas rather than the nation’s capital. The third judge on the panel didn’t ask any questions.

The administration has transferred hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants to El Salvador, invoking the Alien Enemies Act for the first time since World War II.

Also on Monday, attorneys representing the Venezuelan government&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/el-salvador-deportees-us-venezuela-beb288b05df201e5fc42c3811fcf6c57">filed a legal action in El Salvador</a>&nbsp;to free 238 Venezuelans who are being held in a Salvadoran maximum-security prison after the U.S. deported them.

President Donald Trump’s administration appealed after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-deportation-judge-boasberg-venezuela-supreme-court-ccc7e61ccf8e8062d7075b617c87cdb5">Chief Judge James Boasberg</a>&nbsp;blocked those deportations and ordered planeloads of Venezuelan immigrants to return to the U.S. That did not happen.

The Alien Enemies Act allows noncitizens to be deported without the opportunity to go before an immigration or federal court judge. Trump issued a proclamation calling the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tren-de-aragua-gang-venezuela-us-a12c8fee9dc4a0ca73769ea893e09e53">Tren de Aragua gang</a>&nbsp;an invading force.

Ensign argued that Boasberg’s ruling was an “unprecedented and enormous intrusion upon the powers of the executive branch.”

“The president has to comply with the Constitution and the laws like anyone else,” said MiIlett, who was nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama in 2013.

Judge Justin Walker, whom Trump nominated in 2020, seemed to be more receptive to the administration’s arguments based on his line of questioning. Walker pointed to the government’s arguments that the plaintiffs should have filed their lawsuit in Texas, where the immigrants were detained.

“You could have filed the exact same complaint you filed here in Texas district court,” Walker told American Civil Liberties Union attorney Lee Gelernt.

“We have no idea if everyone is in Texas,” Gelernt said.

Walker also pressed the plaintiffs’ lawyer to cite any prior case in which a judicial order blocking “a national security operation with foreign implications” survived appellate review.

Gelernt accused the administration of trying to use the law to “short circuit” immigration proceedings. Plaintiffs’ attorneys had no way to individually challenge all the deportations before planeloads of Venezuelans took off on March 15, he added.

“This has all been done in secret,” Gelernt said.

Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson, who was nominated by Republican President George H.W. Bush in 1990, was the third judge on the panel. She didn’t ask any questions during a hearing that lasted roughly two hours.

Boasberg, an Obama nominee, ruled that immigrants facing deportation must get an opportunity to challenge their designations as alleged gang members. He said there is “a strong public interest in preventing the mistaken deportation of people based on categories they have no right to challenge.”

“The public also has a significant stake in the Government’s compliance with the law,”&nbsp;<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436.53.0.pdf" target="_blank">the judge wrote</a>.

Trump and his allies have called for impeaching Boasberg. In&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-federal-judges-impeachment-29da1153a9f82106748098a6606fec39">a rare statement</a>, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts said “impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision.”

Just after midnight Monday, Trump posted a social media message questioning Boasberg’s impartiality and calling for him to be disbarred.

During&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-deportations-boasberg-venezuelans-8c1287a1fec1c026efb2bde51ffdda9a">a hearing Friday</a>, Boasberg vowed to determine whether the government defied his oral order from the bench to turn planes around. The Justice Department has said that the judge’s oral directions did not count, that only his written order needed to be followed and that it couldn’t apply to flights that had already left the U.S.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/3/1742866027364.png" alt="Image from video provided by El Salvador President&nbsp;Nayib Bukele and U.S. Senator from Missouri Eric Schmitt" />
 <figcaption>Image from video provided by El Salvador President&nbsp;Nayib Bukele and U.S. Senator from Missouri Eric Schmitt</figcaption>
 </figure>BY&nbsp;&nbsp;MICHAEL KUNZELMAN&nbsp;AND&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/lindsay-whitehurst">LINDSAY WHITEHURST</a>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Monday invoked a “state secrets privilege” and refused to give a federal judge any additional information about the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-venezuela-el-salvador-immigration-dd4f61999f85c4dd8bcaba7d4fc7c9af">deportation of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador</a>&nbsp;under an 18th century wartime law — a case that has become a flashpoint amid escalating tension with the federal courts.The declaration comes as&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-deportation-judge-boasberg-venezuela-supreme-court-ccc7e61ccf8e8062d7075b617c87cdb5">Chief Judge James Boasberg</a>&nbsp;weighs whether the government defied his order to turn around planes carrying migrants after he blocked deportations of people alleged to be gang members without due process.He has asked for details about when the planes landed and who was on board, information that the Trump administration asserts would harm “diplomatic and national security concerns.”Government attorneys also asked an appeals court on Monday to lift Boasberg’s order and allow deportations to continue, a push that appeared to divide the judges.Circuit Court Judge Patricia Millett said Nazis detained in the U.S. during World World II received better legal treatment than Venezuelan immigrants who were were deported to El Salvador this month under the same statute.“We certainly dispute the Nazi analogy,” Justice Department attorney Drew Ensign responded during a hearing of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">While you slept, your government sent three planes full of Tren de Aragua and MS-13 thugs to the beautiful prisons of El Salvador. Thanks to the leadership of this administration—and our friend <a href="https://twitter.com/nayibbukele?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nayibbukele</a>—America is safer today than it was yesterday. <a href="https://t.co/eO76KRqOuG">pic.twitter.com/eO76KRqOuG</a>&mdash; Eric Schmitt (@Eric_Schmitt) <a href="https://twitter.com/Eric_Schmitt/status/1901344554000793658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 16, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Millett is one of three appellate judges who will decide whether to lift a March 15 order temporarily prohibiting deportations under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. They didn’t rule from the bench Monday.A second judge appeared open to the administration’s argument that the migrants should be challenging their detention in Texas rather than the nation’s capital. The third judge on the panel didn’t ask any questions.The administration has transferred hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants to El Salvador, invoking the Alien Enemies Act for the first time since World War II.Also on Monday, attorneys representing the Venezuelan government&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/el-salvador-deportees-us-venezuela-beb288b05df201e5fc42c3811fcf6c57">filed a legal action in El Salvador</a>&nbsp;to free 238 Venezuelans who are being held in a Salvadoran maximum-security prison after the U.S. deported them.President Donald Trump’s administration appealed after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-deportation-judge-boasberg-venezuela-supreme-court-ccc7e61ccf8e8062d7075b617c87cdb5">Chief Judge James Boasberg</a>&nbsp;blocked those deportations and ordered planeloads of Venezuelan immigrants to return to the U.S. That did not happen.The Alien Enemies Act allows noncitizens to be deported without the opportunity to go before an immigration or federal court judge. Trump issued a proclamation calling the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tren-de-aragua-gang-venezuela-us-a12c8fee9dc4a0ca73769ea893e09e53">Tren de Aragua gang</a>&nbsp;an invading force.Ensign argued that Boasberg’s ruling was an “unprecedented and enormous intrusion upon the powers of the executive branch.”“The president has to comply with the Constitution and the laws like anyone else,” said MiIlett, who was nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama in 2013.Judge Justin Walker, whom Trump nominated in 2020, seemed to be more receptive to the administration’s arguments based on his line of questioning. Walker pointed to the government’s arguments that the plaintiffs should have filed their lawsuit in Texas, where the immigrants were detained.“You could have filed the exact same complaint you filed here in Texas district court,” Walker told American Civil Liberties Union attorney Lee Gelernt.“We have no idea if everyone is in Texas,” Gelernt said.Walker also pressed the plaintiffs’ lawyer to cite any prior case in which a judicial order blocking “a national security operation with foreign implications” survived appellate review.Gelernt accused the administration of trying to use the law to “short circuit” immigration proceedings. Plaintiffs’ attorneys had no way to individually challenge all the deportations before planeloads of Venezuelans took off on March 15, he added.“This has all been done in secret,” Gelernt said.Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson, who was nominated by Republican President George H.W. Bush in 1990, was the third judge on the panel. She didn’t ask any questions during a hearing that lasted roughly two hours.Boasberg, an Obama nominee, ruled that immigrants facing deportation must get an opportunity to challenge their designations as alleged gang members. He said there is “a strong public interest in preventing the mistaken deportation of people based on categories they have no right to challenge.”“The public also has a significant stake in the Government’s compliance with the law,”&nbsp;<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436.53.0.pdf" target="_blank">the judge wrote</a>.Trump and his allies have called for impeaching Boasberg. In&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-federal-judges-impeachment-29da1153a9f82106748098a6606fec39">a rare statement</a>, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts said “impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision.”Just after midnight Monday, Trump posted a social media message questioning Boasberg’s impartiality and calling for him to be disbarred.During&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-deportations-boasberg-venezuelans-8c1287a1fec1c026efb2bde51ffdda9a">a hearing Friday</a>, Boasberg vowed to determine whether the government defied his oral order from the bench to turn planes around. The Justice Department has said that the judge’s oral directions did not count, that only his written order needed to be followed and that it couldn’t apply to flights that had already left the U.S.

Court battle escalates over Trump's deportation effort

The Hays USD 489 school board will consider several capital purchaes during its meeting at 6:30 tonight.

The board will consider a project to install softball bleachers and a press box at a cost of $178,160 from Heartland Seating.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/12/1608234493687.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays PostThe Hays USD 489 school board will consider several capital purchaes during its meeting at 6:30 tonight.The board will consider a project to install softball bleachers and a press box at a cost of $178,160 from Heartland Seating.It will consider the purchase of three sets of additional bleachers at the new Hays Middle School athletic field from Heartland Seating for $127,442. It will consider the purchase of laptops for Hays High students from Dell Technologies for $605,935. This is part of the budgeted device replacement program for the district.The board will consider the purchase of weights and equipment from BSN Sports for $54,492 for the new Hays High School.The board is also set to consider moving the election of officers to January instead of July.The baord will discuss hiring a seperate project manager just for the school board to oversee the bond projects.