KPRC Click2Houston

‘It gives gives riches to my soul’: Sprinkler company owner donates new system to historic community garden

Mario Díaz, Anthony Peavie — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 23:34:43 +0000

Beauty’s Community Garden in Independence Heights has a new sprinkler system, thanks to a local business that stepped up to help.

The garden, located in the 3200 block of Airline Drive near East 32nd Street, was previously featured by 2 Helps You for how it has been serving the community.

At the time, founder Yvette Leno was working to keep the community garden growing without a sprinkler system.

That caught the attention of 2 Helps You, which reached out to Sprinklers By Design.

Owner Issa Al Dalgamouni and his family-run company designed and installed a new sprinkler system for the garden at no cost to the organization.

For Al Dalgamouni, the project is about more than installing sprinklers.

MORE FROM 2 HELPS YOU: Illegal dumping site in North Harris County finally cleaned up months after being exposed by 2 Helps You

“It gives riches to my soul. It keeps me going. I am doing something that I am proud of.”

Al Dalgamouni started the business six years ago. His two sons and nephew also helped with the installation, turning the project into both a family experience and a lesson in giving back.

“That’s going to be a very huge lesson for them. Give back! Give back. Listen, this county gave us so much. The least we can do is just give something back,” said Dalgamouni.

For Leno, the new system means the garden can continue serving the community without worrying about how to keep it watered.

“It means everything to the garden.”

When she saw the completed system, Leno celebrated the moment.

“Whoo! My gosh, we don’t have to worry anymore.”

Leno said she always believed the garden would eventually get the help it needed, but she didn’t expect it to happen so quickly.

MORE FROM 2 HELPS YOU: Dickinson 55+ apartment complex had security issues, residents wanted action, then a fix suddenly emerged - why?

“I know that if it doesn’t happen one way, it will happen another way, but it will happen. But sure enough, it happened through Channel 2.”

And the help doesn’t stop with the installation.

Al Dalgamouni and his team told Leno that if the sprinkler system ever needs repairs, she can call them — and they’ll return to help at no charge.

For Beauty’s Community Garden, it’s one more reason to keep growing.

The garden is not only known for the work it has done in it’s community, but also the surrounding area. On Saturday October 3rd, they will be deeply involved in the Food Is Medicine: A Community Celebration of Health, Culture & Sustainability event.

For more information contact Beauty’s Community Garden.

Seen on Houston Life

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 22:37:46 +0000

2026

Friday, September 25

Thursday, September 24

Wednesday, September 23

Tuesday, September 22

Monday, September 21

Friday, September 18

Thursday, September 17

Wednesday, September 16

Tuesday, September 15

Monday, September 14

Friday, September 11

Thursday, September 10

Wednesday, September 9

Tuesday, September 8

Monday, September 7

Friday, September 4

Thursday, September 3

Wednesday, September 2

Monday, August 31

Friday, August 28

Houston Life celebrates 10 years on the air with epic lookback of the broadcast

Thursday, August 27

Wednesday, August 26

Tuesday, August 25

Monday, August 24

Friday, August 21

Thursday, August 20

Wednesday, August 19

Tuesday, August 18

Monday, August 17

Friday, August 14

Thursday, August 13

Wednesday, August 12

Tuesday, August 11

Monday, August 10

Friday, August 7

Thursday, August 6

Wednesday, August 5

Tuesday, August 4

Monday, August 3

Friday, July 31

Thursday, July 30

Wednesday, July 29

Monday, July 27

Friday, July 24

Thursday, July 23

Wednesday, July 22

Tuesday, July 21

Monday, July 20

Friday, July 17

Thursday, July 16

Wednesday, July 15

Tuesday, July 14

Monday, July 13

Friday, July 10

Thursday, July 9

Wednesday, July 8

Tuesday, July 7

Monday, July 6

Thursday, July 2

Wednesday, July 1

Tuesday, June 30

Monday, June 29

Friday, June 26

Thursday, June 25

Wednesday, June 24

Tuesday, June 23

Houston Life goes LIVE from new IKEA Webster ahead of Grand Opening

Monday, June 22

Thursday, June 18

Wednesday, June 17

Tuesday, June 16

Monday, June 15

Friday, June 12

Thursday, June 11

FIFA Fan Festival™ Houston

Wednesday, June 10

Tuesday, June 9

Monday, June 8

Friday, June 5

Thursday, June 4

Wednesday, June 3

Tuesday, June 2

Monday, June 1

Friday, May 29

Thursday, May 28

Wednesday, May 27

Tuesday, May 26

Friday, May 22

Thursday, May 21

Wednesday, May 20

Tuesday, May 19

Monday, May 18

Friday, May 15

Thursday, May 14

Wednesday, May 13

Tuesday, May 12

Monday, May 11

Friday, May 8

Thursday, May 7

Wednesday, May 6

Tuesday, May 5

Monday, May 4

Friday, May 1

Thursday, April 30

Wednesday, April 29

Tuesday, April 28

Inside Golden Roastery: A popular Middle Eastern shop serving traditional desserts and coffee
How to make a popular Arab dessert Kunafa
- Golden Roastery (Walk-in offer only; get 20% off Kunafa items from now to May 10)
Help us save lives at the KPRC 2 Community Blood Drive with Gulf Coast Blood
- Community Blood Drive at KPRC 2
Cedric The Entertainer brings the laughs in new Netflix animated film ‘Swapped’
- Netflix’s ‘Swapped’

Monday, April 27

Friday, April 24

Thursday, April 23

Wednesday, April 22

Tuesday, April 21

Monday, April 20

Friday, April 17

‘Houston Life’ is live today at the Houston Ballet Nutcracker Market Spring

Thursday, April 16

Wednesday, April 15

Brush up on your makeup routine at Blushington River Oaks
- Houston Life Deals (Get 20% off beauty services at Blushington River Oaks)
- Blushington River Oaks
The King himself shares how to save 20% on tickets to the Texas Renaissance Festival
- Texas Renaissance Festival
Ethan’s Ohana
Cube Against Cancer 2026 Houston
Cube Against Cancer
Fortis College

Tuesday, April 14

Monday, April 13

Friday, April 10

Thursday, April 9

Wednesday, April 8

Tuesday, April 7

Monday, April 6

Friday, April 3

Thursday, April 2

Wednesday, April 1

Tuesday, March 31

Monday, March 30

Friday, March 27

Wednesday, March 25

Tuesday, March 24

Monday, March 23

Thursday, March 19

Springtime fun at the Houston Zoo

Wednesday, March 18

Tuesday, March 17

Monday, March 16

Friday, March 13

Thursday, March 12

Tuesday, March 10

Monday, March 9

Friday, March 6

Thursday, March 5

Wednesday, March 4

Tuesday, March 3

Monday, March 2

Friday, February 27

Thursday, February 26

Wednesday, February 25

Tuesday, February 24

Monday, February 23 (WE ARE BACK!!!)

February 6 - 20

Houston is off air due to the Winter Olympics, but that doesn’t mean we’ll stop entertaining you. Be sure to follow us on social media to see all the HL fun. We’ll be back Feb. 23.

Thursday, February 5

Wednesday, February 4

Tuesday, February 3

Monday, February 2

Friday, January 30

Thursday, January 29

Wednesday, January 28

Tuesday, January 27

Monday, January 26

Friday, January 23

Discover why Sam Houston Race Park is a top spot for family outings with “Houston Life”

Thursday, January 22

Wednesday, January 21

Friday, January 16

Thursday, January 15

Wednesday, January 14

Tuesday, January 13

Monday, January 12

Friday, January 9

Thursday, January 8

Wednesday, January 7

Tuesday, January 6

Monday, January 5

Friday, January 2

Thursday, January 1

SEEN ON HL 2025 ARCHIVE

SEEN ON HL 2024 ARCHIVE

SEEN ON HL 2023 ARCHIVE

Gonzalo Passing Near The Northeastern Cabo Verde Islands

National Hurricane Center — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 02:48:07 +0000


Location	35 miles SSE of Sal Cabo Verde
Wind	50 mph
Heading	N at 12 mph
Pressure	29.53
Coordinates	22.7W, 16.2N

Discussion

At 800 PM CVT (2100 UTC), the center of Tropical Storm Gonzalo was located near latitude 16.2 North, longitude 22.7 West. Gonzalo is moving toward the north near 12 mph (19 km/h). A northward to north-northwestward motion is expected through tonight, followed by a slower north-northwestward motion over the weekend. On the forecast track, the center will pass near the northeastern portion of the Cabo Verde Islands tonight and move north of the Cabo Verde Islands on Saturday.

Maximum sustained winds are near 50 mph (85 km/h) with higher gusts. Little change in strength is expected tonight. Weakening is expected to begin by Saturday morning and continue through the weekend. Gonzalo is forecast to become a post-tropical remnant low by Sunday.

Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 205 miles (335 km) primarily to the northeast of the center. The official observing station on Sal in the Cabo Verde Islands recently reported a sustained wind of 31 mph (50 km/h) with a gust to 43 mph (69 km/h).

The estimated minimum central pressure is 1000 mb (29.53 inches).

Tropics Satellite at 6:31 Friday Evening, September 25th

Watches and Warnings

CHANGES WITH THIS ADVISORY:

None.

SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT:

A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for, * The Cabo Verde Islands

A Tropical Storm Warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area.

For storm information specific to your area, please monitor products issued by your national meteorological service.

Tropics Models at 6:29 Friday Evening, September 25th

Land Hazards

Key messages for Gonzalo can be found in the Tropical Cyclone Discussion under AWIPS header MIATCDAT2 and WMO header WTNT42 KNHC.

WIND: Tropical storm conditions will continue over portions of the Cabo Verde Islands tonight.

RAINFALL: Tropical Storm Gonzalo is expected to produce rainfall totals of 1 to 3 inches (25 to 75 mm) across the eastern portions of the islands of Cabo Verde on Friday and Saturday with less than 1 inch anticipated for the western side of the island chain. Across coastal areas of Guinea-Bissau, Gambia, and Senegal, rain bands east of Gonzalo’s track will produce another 1 to 2 inches of rainfall (25 to 50 mm) with isolated higher amounts along the immediate coast.

SURF: Swells generated by the storm are expected to affect the Cabo Verde Islands through Saturday. These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions. Please consult products from your local weather office.

Fay Weakens Over The Atlantic Ocean

National Hurricane Center — Sat, 19 Sep 2026 14:50:50 +0000


Location	1075 miles WSW of The Azores
Wind	50 mph
Heading	WSW at 5 mph
Pressure	29.65
Coordinates	43.0W, 29.8N

Discussion

At 900 PM GMT (2100 UTC), the center of Tropical Storm Fay was located near latitude 29.8 North, longitude 43.0 West. Fay is moving toward the west-southwest near 5 mph (7 km/h). A gradual turn to the southwest is expected to occur along with an increase in forward speed.

Maximum sustained winds have weakened to near 50 mph (85 km/h) with higher gusts. Gradual weakening is expected to occur for the next few days.

Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 80 miles (130 km) from the center.

The estimated minimum central pressure is 1004 mb (29.65 inches).

Tropics Satellite at 6:32 Friday Evening, September 25th

Watches and Warnings

There are no coastal watches or warnings in effect.

Tropics Models at 6:28 Friday Evening, September 25th

Land Hazards

None.

Tokyo X brings Japanese culture, sumo wrestling and 10-yen cheese coins to Houston

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 23:27:37 +0000

Tokyo X returns to Houston this weekend, bringing Japanese culture, entertainment, food and plenty of ways to get in on the fun at the Reliant Center.

Whether you’re into anime and gaming, cosplay and J-pop, martial arts and taiko drumming, or cars and Japanese food, there’s a lot to explore. The two-day festival also features tea ceremonies, gaming tournaments and a historical exhibit with more than 1,000 authentic artifacts, including samurai armor, Japanese swords and artwork.

And anime fans have an especially big reason to show up. Four internationally recognized voice actors behind one of anime’s most iconic characters, Goku from the “Dragon Ball” series, will appear together at the festival.

Tokyo X event details

When: Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 26-27, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Where: Reliant Center, 1 Fannin St.
Tickets: General admission starts at $30.27
Click here to get your ticket

Sumo wrestling takes center stage

At the festival, you’ll get plenty of chances to jump into Japanese culture — including a look at the traditional sport of sumo wrestling.

Houston native Nicholas Ton is the co-founder of Shōgeki Sumo, a nonprofit introducing audiences to the sport while helping its wrestlers compete nationally and internationally. The team has even competed in Japan at the amateur world championships and is preparing for another world championship in Azerbaijan.

So, what does it take to win a sumo match? The goal is simple: force your opponent out of the ring or make any part of their body, other than the soles of their feet, touch the ground. But there’s much more to sumo than what happens inside the ring. Rituals such as shiko, the traditional leg lift and stomp, and throwing salt to purify the ring are part of the sport’s rich history and symbolism.

You can see Shōgeki Sumo in action this Sunday at Tokyo X — and see a preview in the video above.

Want to give sumo a try? Shōgeki Sumo holds practices on Tuesdays at Buffalo Bayou Park and Thursdays and Sundays at O Athletik. Visit shogekisumo.com for practice details and more information.

A taste of sumo culture

What started as a way to help fund Shōgeki Sumo’s competitions has turned into a delicious side of the dojo.

Nicholas began hosting food pop-ups in 2022, starting with chankonabe, the hearty stew traditionally eaten by sumo wrestlers in Japan. Today, the food sales help pay for competition fees, travel, accommodations and other expenses as the team competes nationally and internationally.

The menu now includes Japanese-inspired favorites such as 10-yen cheese coins and omurice. All weekend at Tokyo X, the team is adding something new: Japanese-inspired fried chicken wings.

What is a 10-yen cheese coin?

f you like a good cheese pull, this one’s for you.

The 10-yen cheese coin is a golden waffle cake made in a custom waffle maker shaped like a Japanese 10-yen coin. Inside is melted cheese that stretches when you pull the waffle apart.

Nicholas shows us how to make the snack with waffle batter and mozzarella. And while you may not have the special coin-shaped waffle maker at home, you can make your own version with a regular waffle maker.

To make it at home, prepare your favorite waffle mix according to the package instructions. Add mozzarella, Colby Jack or another cheese that melts well between layers of batter. Cook in a waffle maker until golden and cooked through.

Serve with syrup or your favorite dipping sauce. For a savory kick, mix Kewpie mayonnaise with CHIN-SU chili sauce to taste.

See Shōgeki Sumo at Tokyo X

For Shōgeki Sumo, the food is about more than a tasty snack. Every bite helps support the team’s journey to competitions around the country and the world.

You can sample the team’s food throughout Tokyo X, including its new Japanese-inspired fried chicken wings, and see Shōgeki Sumo’s wrestlers in action Sunday.

From sumo wrestling and Japanese-inspired food to anime, music, fashion and more, Tokyo X brings a wide range of Japanese culture and entertainment to Houston.

Tokyo X takes place Sept. 26-27 at Reliant Center from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. General admission starts at $30.27.

For tickets and information, visit tokyonightfest.com.

What Arizona’s ESA program shows Texas families about school choice, oversight and public school funding

Rilwan Balogun, Roger Franco — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 22:48:42 +0000

When Arizona expanded its Education Savings Account (ESA) program statewide in 2022, it opened the door to a different approach to educating children.

Now, as Texas gets underway with its own Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA) program, the experience in Arizona offers an early look at what can happen when taxpayer-funded education dollars follow families beyond traditional public schools.

ENOUGH’s Rilwan Balogun and Roger Franco traveled to Phoenix to see how Arizona’s program is working on the ground and to hear from the families, educators and state officials who see it very differently.

One Arizona education advocate described the program bluntly.

“It’s been the Wild Wild West,” said Beth Lewis with Save Our Schools Arizona, a non-partisan, community-based organization supporting strong public schools.

That divide runs through nearly every conversation about Arizona’s ESAs. Supporters say the program gives families options they may not otherwise have, including access to microschools and other alternative approaches to education. Critics argue that the rapid expansion has created questions about oversight, accountability and the impact on traditional public schools.

For Texas, the question is no longer simply whether families should have more choices. It is what those choices will look like once public dollars begin flowing through the new system.

A different kind of school

Gabrielle Shorter left public schools for microschools to better equip her son.

At School to Purpose, operated by the Black Mothers Forum, the traditional idea of a school is turned on its head.

The facility is divided into individual microschools, with blended classrooms serving different age groups. In one classroom, students from kindergarten through third grade learn together.

Tiffany Dudley, the organization’s executive director, says the model is intentionally different from a conventional school.

Rather than organizing instruction strictly around individual grade-level standards, the school teaches concepts that students can approach at different levels of complexity. A coach might begin with the entire classroom before breaking students into smaller groups, where they rotate between individualized instruction, activities and computer work.

And the adults leading the classrooms aren’t necessarily viewed as traditional teachers.

“We look at it more like a coach,” Dudley explained. She said the role is to help students learn rather than serve as their sole source of knowledge.

That distinction is central to how School to Purpose approaches education.

Gabrielle Shorter, a parent at the school who later became a coach herself, said she was drawn to smaller classes after her son struggled in traditional classrooms during kindergarten, first and second grade.

By fourth grade, she said, the environment at School to Purpose gave him room to develop his voice and understand that he was in a safe space.

The experience ultimately changed Shorter’s career. She moved from the health industry into education and became a coach at the microschool.

“If you’re looking for a traditional school, it wouldn’t be a micro school,” she said.

Supporters see choice and opportunity

For supporters of microschools, the fundamental argument is that education shouldn’t have to be one-size-fits-all.

Dudley also rejects the idea that creating a microschool necessarily means taking something away from a public school. In her view, public schools, charter schools and microschools can coexist.

That perspective reflects a larger philosophical question at the center of the ESA debate: What should be the ultimate goal of the education system?

When asked what she would tell Texas families who worry that school choice could harm public schools, Dudley put the question differently: is the goal simply to have good public schools, or is the goal to serve children?

Critics see a system with too little oversight

Arizona’s ESA program has another side.

Lewis, director of Save Our Schools Arizona, argues that the state’s experience shows the risks of expanding education savings accounts without sufficient oversight.

She says Arizona’s voucher system began in 2011 as a targeted program, including for students with disabilities, before becoming universal in 2022.

She also points to concerns about how ESA dollars are spent.

Lewis says Arizona has seen cases involving what she describes as fraud, waste and abuse, and argues that the program has allowed purchases with too few questions asked up front.

Tom Horne, Arizona’s state superintendent of education, sees the issue differently.

When asked about criticism of fraud and waste in the ESA program, Horne said those concerns are exaggerated. He said less than 2% of dollars spent had been questioned as improper purchases and that the actual fraud figure, in his estimation, was 0.3%.

MAP: See Texas school voucher applications and awards by school district

Horne also acknowledged a challenge created by the scale of the program.

“We have the same number of personnel for 108,000 students that were designed for 11,000 students,” Horne said. “So, we can’t possibly vet everything before it’s paid.”

Horne said that means the state cannot vet every purchase before money is spent.

Instead, he said, the state identifies improper purchases afterward and seeks to recover the money. Families can be required to repay funds, banned from the program and, in major cases, referred to the attorney general for collection or prosecution.

For Texas, that may be one of the clearest lessons from Arizona: oversight isn’t simply a question of whether rules exist. It is also a question of whether the state has enough people and systems to enforce those rules as participation grows.

Horne believes Texas has already taken that lesson to heart.

“They’ve learned from our mistakes,” Horne said.

But what does accountability look like?

The question of accountability extends beyond how money is spent.

WATCH OUR INTERVIEW WITH ARIZONA INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER JOE DANA

Critics of Arizona’s program question the academic accountability of private schools, charter schools and microschools that do not operate like traditional public schools.

Horne said that if the legislature required students participating in the program to take state tests, the department would administer them. But under the current approach, he said, the theory is that parents themselves are the accountability mechanism.

In other words, families are expected to judge whether a school or educational provider is working for their children and leave if it isn’t.

Horne’s advice to parents is straightforward: choose carefully, and if the choice doesn’t work, make another choice.

But that argument raises a question Texas will have to answer for itself: is parental choice enough to demonstrate that children are receiving a quality education?

Curtis Finch, superintendent of Deer Valley Unified School District in Phoenix, says it isn’t.

“I don’t have a problem with choice,” Finch said. He said he has no problem with microschools, charter schools or private schools. But he wants them to take the state test and demonstrate that they are actually teaching students.

Public schools feel the impact

Deer Valley Unified School District Superintendent Curtis Finch district lost 1, 176 students to ESA in fiscal years 2017 through 2026.

For Finch, he says his district has lost nearly 1,200 students to ESAs between 2017 to 2026 and that each departing student represents funding leaving the district.

Finch sees ESA expansion as one major factor contributing to the pressure on public school systems.

He argues that public schools face a responsibility that other educational providers don’t: if a student lives in the district, the district has to take that child. Private schools and other educational providers, he points out, can decide which students they will accept.

That difference, he argues, makes the concept of “choice” more complicated than simply allowing parents to select where their children attend school.

“They don’t have to let your kid in,” Finch said referring to private, homeschools, and microschools. “Every student that comes to Deer Valley, if they are a resident of my district, I take them.”

Finch says he has also seen students return back to his district after their families determine that the program they chose wasn’t meeting their needs.

For him, the question isn’t whether families should have options. It’s whether every educational option receiving public money should meet some standard of accountability.

A parent says the choice is personal

Families experiencing the system firsthand see the issue through a different lens.

Shorter describes her son’s experience in public school as the reason her family began looking for something else.

At School to Purpose, she says, the emphasis on behavior, personal development and finding a child’s voice is part of education, not separate from it.

When ENOUGH’s Rilwan Balogun asked whether children at microschools are being adequately educated, she pushed back on the premise that academic education and personal development should be separated.

“Becoming a better person is educating them,” she said.

Arizona’s experience offers Texas a warning and an opportunity

Arizona’s ESA program doesn’t produce a single answer.

Supporters point to families who found an educational environment that they believe better fits their children. Microschools have emerged as one example of what can develop when families have access to education dollars outside a traditional public school setting.

Critics point to the consequences of rapid expansion: questions about spending, oversight, academic accountability and the financial pressure placed on public school districts.

And Arizona’s state superintendent argues that Texas has an advantage Arizona didn’t have: the opportunity to learn from what happened there.

For Texas families, that may be the most important lesson.

As the TEFA program gets underway, the experience of Arizona suggests that the debate won’t end when families are given the ability to choose.

Dudley believes the key is understanding the program before judging it.

She said she had to take the time to research ESAs and understand how they affect children and families.

Lewis has a different message for Texans concerned about what happens to their public schools: look beyond the local principal, school board or superintendent and pay attention to the decisions being made by the state legislature.

For Texas, Arizona is now a case study playing out in real time.

The state has demonstrated what a universal ESA system can make possible. It has also exposed the questions that emerge when public education dollars follow families into a much broader and less traditional educational marketplace.

Community mourns 15-year-old Royce Witchet shot near Westfield High School

Bryce Newberry — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 23:21:27 +0000

Dozens of young people and family members gathered at a memorial outside Westfield High School to mourn 15-year-old Royce Witchet, who was fatally shot Tuesday near campus.

Chants of “Justice for Roy!” and “Forever 15!” rang out at the vigil, reflecting the overwhelming emotion felt by those who knew Witchet before they released balloons at the time Witchet was pronounced dead.

RELATED: 14-year-old now charged with murder in fatal shooting of Westfield High School student

“It was just another one today. We’re doing this too many times young people,” Witchet’s cousin said at the memorial.

The shooting happened within minutes of school letting out Tuesday afternoon on a sidewalk near campus. Witchet was taken to the hospital, where he later died.

“How do you stay calm? When something so precious has been taken from us, ripped away,” the cousin said.

Witchet’s family members said an increased police presence could have prevented the tragedy and called for stronger protections for children.

Deputies arrested the accused killer about 24 hours after the shooting — a fellow Spring ISD student, according to Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, who is just 14 years old.

RELATED: ‘I called him my heart’: Family identifies 15-year-old killed near Westfield High School

At the Harris County Juvenile Justice Center Friday, family members of the accused kept their faces hidden from cameras, only sending condolences to Witchet’s family and claiming the truth will come out.

“This is the result. Family members are hurting. And another life lost behind bars,” Witchet’s cousin said.

Investigators have not revealed a motive. Witchet’s family hopes that the shooting will serve as motivation for change.

“Parents pay attention to your children. Community pay attention to your children, it’s okay to be nosy, they’re your children,” a family member said.

RELATED: 14-year-old arrested in deadly shooting of Westfield High School student

The suspect has not been publicly identified, but a judge ordered he remain in custody. There’s no bond in the juvenile system, so generally, a detention hearing is held every 10 working days to re-evaluate if a suspect remains in custody.

Spring ISD said counselors and an increased law enforcement presence will continue on campus next week.

Westbury High School senior shot and killed near campus, Houston police say

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 15:11:42 +0000

A 17-year-old Westbury High School senior was shot and killed near the southwest Houston campus on Friday, and authorities are searching for the person responsible, Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz said.

RELATED: LIVE UPDATES: Senior killed near Westbury High School; shooter at large

The student’s name has not been released.

“This happened just outside of the school,” Diaz said. “School is safe. Staff is safe. We’re working diligently to make sure we get someone in custody as soon as possible — to make sure this area is safe.”

RELATED: Coping with violence: therapist’s advice after two teens killed near Houston schools

HPD said the call came in around 8:21 a.m. The shooting happened just outside the campus grounds on Dryad Street near 11911 Chimney Rock Road, according to HPD. Police said there was never an active threat inside the school, and students and staff are safe.

Investigators have recovered video from a nearby apartment complex and are canvassing the neighborhood for additional surveillance footage and information. Police are also interviewing two witnesses, while homicide detectives remain at the scene. Authorities said the community has license plate readers that could help investigators.

VIDEO: Full press conference

“We’re looking at leads,” Diaz said. “This is something that should not happen in our community. Young people at the moment making bad decisions. We have got leads. We have got video cameras. The community has license plate readers all around it. Witnesses at the moment are being interviewed. Homicide detectives are at the scene, and we’re working toward making sure this gets resolved.”

HPD is receiving help from 25 additional state troopers as the search continues, Diaz said.

Diaz said he spoke with the victim’s grandmother, mother and aunt, who are “beside themselves.” HPD is providing support to the family.

Westbury High School was placed in secure mode — meaning no one in, no one out — after the shooting, according to Houston ISD. Authorities said the campus will allow parents to pick up their students in a controlled release.

Counseling services are being provided to students and staff, according to authorities.

HPD is asking anyone with cell phone video, dash camera video, home surveillance or any additional information to contact the Houston Police Department.

This is a developing story.

The Latest: Supreme Court rejects a Trump-backed Missouri congressional map

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 12:32:57 +0000

The Supreme Court turned away an attempt to use a new Missouri congressional map backed by President Donald Trump on Friday, potentially putting an end to a long-running legal dispute as absentee voting is underway in the midterm elections.

Earlier in the day, the high court lifted restrictions on a controversial federal voter database, granting Trump a temporary win in his aggressive campaign against noncitizen voting.

Meanwhile Trump took Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit the National Archives, showing off the sacred texts of U.S. democracy to the leader of the world’s most powerful communist country to cap off a three-day state visit criticized for being heavy on pomp and light on substance.

Here's the latest:

Appeals court appears divided in case over Venezuelan migrants deported to El Salvador prison

The court appeared to be divided on whether to reverse or uphold an order for the Trump administration to facilitate the return of dozens of Venezuelan migrants who were deported from the U.S. to a notorious prison in El Salvador last year.

The three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit did not indicate how soon they would rule after hearing arguments from government attorneys and the migrants who were flown to El Salvador without any notice or opportunity to challenge their removals.

The Justice Department appealed after District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg ordered the Trump administration in February to make arrangements for some of the migrants to return at the government’s expense. Boasberg said the administration has essentially told him to “pound sand.”

Two panel members appeared skeptical that the migrants have a right to return to challenge their deportations.

▶ Read more

A White House press ban was lifted this week. But the tensions and legal battle aren’t over yet

Journalists from three news outlets that Trump banned from the executive complex are back, with TV cameras, laptops and microphones in hand.

But the legal battle between the president and some of the media that cover him is far from over.

Here are some things to know about the White House press corps, lawsuits over access and the increasingly contentious relationship between Trump and the Fourth Estate.

▶ Read more

Congressional Democrats press Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on an ethics agreement change involving law firm fees

They want answers from the Health secretary over what they say is a previously undisclosed change to the ethics agreement he made before being confirmed, which they say calls into question his credibility and the integrity of his decisions.

Ahead of his confirmation vote last year, Kennedy told lawmakers he would not collect fees related to litigation he pursued before becoming a government official against the drugmakers of a cervical cancer vaccine, saying he would transfer his financial interests to his adult son.

The lawmakers say they recently learned, however, that shortly after his confirmation hearings, Kennedy quietly changed his ethics disclosures and transferred his stake to his former employer, personal injury law firm Wisner Baum, apparently contradicting his sworn commitments.

HHS Spokesperson Emily G. Hilliard told AP that the agency confirmed Kennedy’s compliance with his ethics agreement in May 2025 and “any claim that Secretary Kennedy maintained a financial interest in this litigation after taking office is false.”

▶ Read more

Nevada disputes Trump administration’s claim about noncitizens on voter rolls

Chief Deputy Attorney General Greg Ott sent a letter this week to the Department of Homeland Security saying 185 people it identified as noncitizens on the state’s voter rolls were, in fact, U.S. citizens.

It followed a call last month in which DHS officials said they made the identifications through “voter case numbers.”

Ott’s letter said multiple people can have the same voter registration number because of the recent transition to a new statewide registration system. He said the state’s own records review found that all 185 were citizens.

In a statement, Democratic Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar said DHS has not provided any evidence to alter the state’s assessment.

“Repeating unsupported claims does not make them true,” he said.

DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin wrote letters to Nevada and three other states in July claiming, without providing evidence, that up to 250,000 noncitizens registered to vote there.

Supreme Court rejects a Trump-backed Missouri congressional map for the third time

The high court turned away an attempt to use a new map backed by the president, potentially putting an end to a long-running legal dispute as absentee voting is underway in the midterm elections.

The justices halted a federal appeals court ruling that would have revived the Republican-friendly map for the November elections, which will determine control of Congress.

The Supreme Court instead let stand a decision by the Missouri Supreme Court, which ruled earlier this month that a citizen petition prevents the new map from being used unless first approved by voters in a November referendum. The decision means Missouri residents will vote under the same congressional districts used in the 2024 and 2022 elections.

Republicans had hoped the new House map — which already was used in the August primaries — could help them win an additional seat as part of a nationwide redistricting battle pushed by Trump to gain an edge in the midterms.

▶ Read more

Trump said he would campaign in midterm battlegrounds. He’s starting in deep red states instead

The president vowed to campaign in 35 of the most competitive battleground districts in the final sprint to November’s midterm elections. Instead he will begin October by stumping in Alabama and Oklahoma, two of the most Republican states in the nation.

His events are sure to draw enthusiastic crowds of fans, but his choice of destinations is a reminder of his deep unpopularity in much of the country during a campaign season he’s sought to make all about himself.

While organizers insist the rallies are in locations with media markets that span state lines and they will help bolster broader turnout, Trump’s itinerary is yet another sign of the uphill fight that his party faces.

Republicans have already been pouring money into red states once considered safe as they try to shore up candidates facing an unhappy electorate that has soured on Trump and his policies.

▶ Read more

Taxpayer-funded pro-Trump TV ad campaign grows with new spot, wider reach

The administration appeared to ramp up its use of government-funded political advertisements promoting the president Friday, airing its second TV ad in three days while expanding spending on the first to at least $443,000.

The White House maintains the ads are “public service announcements” like those used by past presidents, but multiple lawmakers of both parties have criticized the first one, questioning its legality and appropriateness given its political nature, proximity to November’s midterms and the use of taxpayer funds.

The new, minute-long ad features scenic videos of Mount Rushmore at night with quotes and clips from Trump’s Fourth of July weekend speech there honoring the country’s 250th anniversary.

“We know that this is not an ending,” Trump says. “This is only the beginning of the golden age of America.”

At the end, text appears: “Paid for by the U.S. Government.”

The ad’s costs weren’t immediately clear but it was airing on Newsmax with a spot on at least two programs, according to AdImpact.

▶ Read more

Iran sends US plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz

Abbas Araghchi said Iran also would resume talks on its nuclear program if the U.S. meets the conditions it has laid out.

Talking to reporters at the U.N., Araghchi said the plan was delivered to Washington through Qatari mediators on the sidelines of the General Assembly.

“If the necessary conditions are met, the strait can be reopened and normal maritime passage restored within seven days,” he said. “The choice now rests with the United States.” The seven-day clock will begin when the U.S. accepts the plan, Araghchi added.

The White House said earlier Friday that U.S. officials are having positive and constructive conversations with mediators on the Iran war.

Idaho’s elections chief says a federal database has been useful for checking voter rolls

Secretary of State Phil McGrane, a Republican, said Friday all 1 million-plus Idaho voter registrations have been checked against a controversial federal database that the U.S. Supreme Court is allowing the Trump administration to use ahead of November’s election.

Idaho began checks in 2024, even before Trump’s second term began. Officials there ultimately referred 15 cases of potential noncitizen registrations or voting to federal prosecutors, McGrane said.

He said there are additional checks before officials move to cancel registrations, and voters have 20 days to prove their citizenship first.

“It being known publicly that we’re doing this work also has a deterrent effect,” he said.

Lawmakers from both parties question Trump inviting Putin to G20 in Florida

A bipartisan group of 14 senators is urging Trump to rescind the invitation to Russian President Vladimir Putin to attend the G20 summit to be held in Florida in December.

“President Putin bears sole responsibility for launching Russia’s full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine. Allowing him to participate in a G20 Summit in the United States raises serious concerns about legitimizing and normalizing a government that continues to attack Ukrainian civilian targets every day,” the senators wrote in a letter.

Among those who signed the letter are Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Chris Coons, D-Del.

Putin says Moscow ‘welcomes’ US-China talks

The reason is they are the world’s two largest economies, the Russian president told reporters in St. Petersburg.

“Depending on what they agree on regarding contentious issues, regarding those problematic issues that arise from the illegitimate sanctions imposed by the U.S., depending on how and what agreements are reached, this will affect the entire global economy, and our economy as well,” Putin said.

He noted that Russia’s ties and trade with the U.S. “are down to zero” but that Moscow’s trade with China amounts to $240 billion, with opportunities for further development.

“We welcome any positive agreements between China and the United States,” Putin said on the sidelines of a culture forum.

Asked if he would attend the APEC summit in China in November, Putin said he was “determined to take part” but noted that it “will depend on the situation in Russia.”

Schumer slams Supreme Court’s SAVE ruling as ‘putting its thumb on the scale’ for Trump

In a post on X, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer accused the Supreme Court of bending to “Trump’s election-rigging agenda” with its Friday ruling on a revamped federal voter eligibility database.

“Elon Musk’s DOGE-overhauled SAVE database is ridden with errors,” Schumer wrote. “With this decision, thousands of American voters could be wrongly stripped from voter rolls and prevented from voting this election season.”

SAVE can be valuable if used as one of many tools, election experts say

Former election officials and other experts reacting to the Supreme Court’s SAVE ruling said the federal database is useful for election administrators — as long as it’s not abused.

Critics have pointed out the tool can wrongly flag eligible voters as potential noncitizens. But Stephen Richer, the Republican former top election official in Arizona’s largest county, said it can be a “win for the nation’s voter rolls if used responsibly.”

The SAVE program is the only “widely-encompassing nationwide tool” for election officials to confirm voter citizenship, he said on social media, adding that because it’s imperfect, administrators should “only use it as a starting point.”

David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, agreed, noting the tool is voluntary.

“States may find this to be a useful tool used along with other tools to keep their lists up-to-date,” he said.

A wrongly suspended Texas voter is disappointed by the US Supreme Court’s latest election decision

Anthony Nels, of Denton, said Friday that a controversial federal voter database “harms people’s constitutional right to vote.” The Supreme Court said the Trump administration could use the database ahead of the November election.

When Texas ran its voter rolls through the database last year, Nels was flagged as a potential noncitizen, even though the South Africa became a citizen more than a decade ago. His registration was temporarily canceled while he replaced an expired passport.

“This just seems like another illegitimate way to affect upcoming and future elections,” he said in a text to The Associated Press.

There is no change in policy on Taiwan, US ambassador to China says

David Perdue, the U.S. ambassador to China, said “nothing has changed” when it comes to the U.S. policy on Taiwan.

“Of course, China has tried to coerce change in that regard,” Perdue said when speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box on Friday. “We’re not changing the language; we’re not changing our position.”

“We want peace across the strait. We don’t want coercion,” he said. “We don’t support independence.”

Chinese leader Xi Jinping in private talks with President Donald Trump on Thursday urged the U.S. side to take one step further and “oppose” Taiwan independence, according to a Chinese official statement.

Taiwan is a self-governed island that Beijing considers as its own territory.

Gabrielle Giffords’ PAC pumps $700K into California US House battleground

A PAC founded by former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is pumping $700,000 in ads into a central California U.S. House battleground where Democrats hope to oust Republican Rep. David Valadao.

The dairyman Valadao has frustrated Democrats for years, beating back challengers in his farm belt district despite its heavy Democratic tilt in voter registration. Democrats see an opening this year as the party looks to retake control of the chamber, with President Donald Trump’s popularity sagging and voters vexed by high gas and grocery prices.

Giffords PAC says it’s making the investment as part of its national push to elect gun safety advocates. Valadao is facing progressive Democrat Randy Villegas, who is backed by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

The race is among the mostly costly House contests in the nation in terms of advertising. According to data from AdImpact, Republicans have spent or booked more than $15 million of airtime and digital messaging through Election Day, while Democrats are at about $13 million.

Trump hails Xi’s state visit as a success

“The meeting was one of Friendship, Strength, and Success, for both China and the U.S.A.,” Trump offered on social media shortly after Xi departed Washington.

Trump also confirmed he’ll meet two more times this year with Xi.

The two are slated to meet during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China, in November and again in December at the Group of 20 summit in Florida.

Trump asked Xi not to provide help to Iran, US diplomat says

U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue says Trump asked Xi during their visit to avoid providing help to Iran as the war stretches to nearly seven months.

“We made it very clear to them weeks ago that, you know, any help that they would give Iran — whether it be direct or indirect, whether it be intelligence or parts or military equipment — was totally unacceptable,” Perdue told CNBC on Friday. “President Trump made that very clear again yesterday.”

Perdue was asked whether China has helped Iran constrain traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial waterway for global energy shipments.

“There’s been indirect support we think, but there’s no direct evidence,” Perdue said. “We’re very concerned about this indirect work, and we’ve made that very clear.”

Trump administration officials have played down the impact of any assistance that China may be providing to Iran.

Almost 40 million barrels of oil have made it through Strait of Hormuz in past 48 hours, White House says

The White House said Friday that U.S. officials are having positive and constructive conversations with mediators on the Iran war.

But the Trump administration does not feel like it faces a rush to resolve the war. The White House said in response to questions from The Associated Press that America is in a very strong position with control of the Strait of Hormuz, saying that nearly 40 million barrels of oil have gone through the waterway in the last 48 hours.

Trade analysts question Trump-Xi summit accomplishments

“I can’t recall a U.S.-China summit that produced fewer deliverables,’’ said Scott Lincicome of the Cato Institute. “Normally, there’s Boeing purchases and soybean targets ... So far, it seems much lighter than that. A lot of pomp and circumstance or sound and fury but signifying nothing. There’s just not a lot there.’’

Trump’s tariffs drew retaliation from China, forcing the world’s two biggest economies into an uneasy truce. “It’s pretty clear at this point that China has fought the U.S. to a draw, that U.S. tariffs have not been successful in slowing China’s export machine and reversing Chinese industrial policy,’’ Lincicome said.

“Another summit without tangible results merely allows China to run out the clock on Trump’s second term without significant concessions,” said Jeff Moon, a former U.S. trade official and diplomat who runs the China Moon Strategies consultancy.

Protesters near Xi and Trump visit tear up Chinese flag

People carrying signs opposing China’s ruling Communist Party and Chinese President Xi Jinping protested at a plaza next to the National Archives.

Inside, President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump showed the U.S. Constitution to Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, during their state visit to Washington.

Two men tore a Chinese national flag, and one of them sat down and used part of it to wipe his shoe.

The protesters held signs calling on Xi and the Chinese Communist Party to step down. They also displayed black-and-white photographs of Xi with large red Xs over his face.

Cattle industry groups protest immigration enforcement in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas

The Texas Cattle Feeders Association, Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association and Kansas Livestock Association say U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations have delayed shipment of thousands of cattle, resulting in millions of dollars in lost revenue.

The industry groups say ICE operations have disrupted operations at feedyards, dairy processors, feed and grain companies, and transportation hubs. They say they are frustrated that business is likely to be affected for weeks.

Their joint statement says operations have had “a massive chilling effect on the legal, documented, skilled workers that put beef on the table and keep the cattle supply chain moving.” They anticipate higher beef prices will result.

ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Compared to China, Trump says US still a young country at 250 years old

Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping looked at a copy of the U.S. Constitution at the National Archives and discussed how old their nations are.

“We’re just comparing,” Trump told reporters. “Ours goes 250 years, which is great, and we’re proud of it. But theirs goes 6,000 years.”

By Trump’s math, China is 24 times older than the U.S.

“There’s a little difference between 6,000 and 250, but we’re very proud of our 250,” Trump said.

Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson to meet with tech CEOs on AI next week

The White House meeting set for Tuesday is something the House speaker has encouraged the president to do, suggesting the leaders should go behind closed doors to hash out a strategy as voices sound alarms about AI technology.

Johnson has dismissed concerns about AI as overhyped but the political leaders are under growing pressure from constituents and the tech executives themselves to chart a path forward. The meeting was first reported by Axios.

Xi calls the visit ‘very successful’ and says they are ‘very satisfied’

He expressed his thanks for the treatment he and his wife, Peng Liyuan, have received so far.

Xi thanked Trump and the first lady for “everything” they did for him and his wife.

“The highest courtesies, the most meticulous arrangements,” Xi said in Chinese. “This visit is very successful, and we also feel very satisfied.”

Supreme Court lets Trump administration use revamped federal voter eligibility database for now

The Supreme Court on Friday lifted restrictions on a controversial federal voter database before November’s elections, granting President Trump a temporary win in his aggressive campaign against noncitizen voting.

The emergency order allows states, for now, to use the Department of Homeland Security program, called Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements, or SAVE, in their efforts to verify the eligibility of voters on their rolls. But because existing law blocks most states from systematically purging voters from their rolls within 90 days of an election, the immediate impact on the upcoming midterms is likely limited.

States’ use of the SAVE program is voluntary.

The court’s order puts on hold a federal judge’s June ruling that had deemed the Republican administration’s recently revamped version of SAVE illegal.

▶ Read more

After days of tirades against the press, Trump offers thanks for fair coverage

Speaking to reporters alongside Xi on Friday, Trump made a point of thanking the press.

“Thank you very much and we appreciate the fair coverage,” Trump told reporters. “It’s been very fair. We appreciate it.”

It was a hard turn from other comments Trump made throughout the week, attacking the U.S. press for what he sees as unfair coverage and attempting to ban CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House.

Xi and Trump have two more opportunities to meet this year

Chinese leader Xi Jinping said he expects to meet President Trump two more times this year as he wrapped up his state visit to Washington on Friday.

Xi extended an invite for Trump and his wife, Melania, to come to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China, in November. He noted that they could meet again a month later at the G20 summit at the Trump National Doral Miami golf club in Florida.

“I do welcome Mr. President and the first lady to visit China,” Xi said.

Trump responded, “We will, and we’ll be speaking a lot.”

Report finds many security deficiencies at Utah university where Charlie Kirk was killed

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 18:32:43 +0000

Charlie Kirk’s political organization insisted he speak outdoors at the Utah university where he was assassinated, despite security concerns from campus officials who then failed to properly assess dangers including a potential rooftop shooter, according to a report released Friday.

An external review released by Utah Valley University found that the school failed to conduct a formal security assessment, did not create a written event action plan and deferred critical decision-making to Turning Point USA, the Kirk-led organization that scheduled his appearances on college campuses across the U.S.

A charismatic but polarizing figure, Kirk, 31, was killed on Sept. 10, 2025, by a sniper perched on a rooftop more than 400 feet (122 meters) away, authorities said. The conservative activist had been debating students before a crowd of thousands in an outdoor courtyard surrounded by tall buildings and elevated walkways on the campus in Orem, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City. His appearances often attracted protests, further complicating his security.

Tyler Robinson has pleaded not guilty to aggravated murder in Kirk’s killing, a charge that could make him eligible for the death penalty if convicted. Prosecutors say the 23-year-old defendant wrote in a text message about Kirk: “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.” No trial date has been set.

Kirk’s killing was a watershed moment during a wave of political violence in the United States. President Donald Trump has survived multiple assassination attempts in the past three years, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare was gunned down in 2024 and a Minnesota lawmaker and her husband were killed at their home in 2025.

Utah Valley President Jon Anderson said in a statement that the school has a responsibility to “learn from the findings of this review, and follow through on its recommendations.”

The report echoes complaints made by Kirk's family

Last week, Kirk’s family announced a wrongful death notice — a precursor to a possible lawsuit — accusing Utah Valley officials of hastening his death with a string of “reckless decisions.”

They included failing to conduct an adequate risk assessment, failing to establish a secure perimeter and failing to have first responders immediately available, which led to Kirk being taken to a hospital in a private vehicle instead of an ambulance.

The family’s lawyer, Brett Parkinson, said in a statement that the report reaffirms those allegations. By hosting the event, he said, Utah Valley assumed responsibility for the safety of all in attendance, including Kirk.

“The buck stopped with UVU leadership and law enforcement,” Parkinson said. “Justice for Charlie and his family requires true accountability for UVU’s fatal shortcomings that day.”

University officials had suggested other locations for the event

According to the report, which Utah Valley said was done independently by outside consultants, some university officials expressed reservations in an August 2025 meeting with Turning Point about holding the event in an outdoor space surrounded by tall buildings.

The officials suggested multiple other locations, including some that were indoors. But a Turning Point representative insisted that Kirk speak at a campus courtyard because he had been there previously and the organization was familiar with the location. The university ultimately allowed the event to go forward in the courtyard.

“In our assessment, those decisions were consequential,” the report said.

Turning Point USA deferred to Parkinson’s statement when asked for comment on the findings. The organization and its security team did not respond to several requests to participate in the review, according to the report.

The event location “created significant protective operations considerations,” the report said, but the planning process failed to include a documented line-of-sight assessment, pre-event briefing or walk-through with security stakeholders. Nor was there clear coordination with Kirk's private security team and external law enforcement partners, the report said.

An Associated Press review last year found that the campus did not use several public safety practices that have become standard at events around the country. Campus police did not fly a drone to monitor rooftops or coordinate with local law enforcement to secure the event attended by about 3,000 people. There were no bag checks or metal detectors.

The report notes a walk-through didn't happen the day of the event

The report also highlighted a lack of coordination and communication between campus police and Kirk’s private security in the days leading up to the event.

In foregoing a day-of walk-through and pre-event briefing, they missed opportunities to go over roles, assess staffing and equipment, add resources such as drones, and address any concerns or threats, the report said.

The university’s police chief sent a text message asking Turning Point’s security supervisor to meet at the event location a few hours beforehand, but no meeting ever happened, the report said.

Utah Valley University says it is making key changes

The report makes nearly 150 recommendations, including hiring a police sergeant to focus on campus events and creating clear criteria for when events must be moved indoors or to more controllable venues.

“This requires humility, an honest examination of our policies and practices, and a commitment to act on what we learn,” said Anderson, who took over as university president last month. He added that the university has made “meaningful progress in strengthening campus safety over the past year.”

That includes hiring a chief public safety officer to coordinate with emergency response agencies and hiring more campus police officers. At the time of the shooting, the university had just 13 sworn officers, which the report said was not sufficient for Utah Valley’s size and the types of events held on the campus. It’s the state’s largest university, with about 50,000 students on a sprawling campus in Orem, beneath the Wasatch Mountains.

___

Sisak reported from New York. Associated Press reporter Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia contributed.

Supreme Court rejects a Trump-backed Missouri congressional map for the third time

David A. Lieb, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 22:02:54 +0000

The Supreme Court on Friday turned away an attempt to use a new Missouri congressional map backed by President Donald Trump, putting an end to a long-running legal dispute as absentee voting is underway in the midterm elections.

The justices halted a federal appeals court ruling that would have revived the Republican-friendly map for the November elections, which will determine control of Congress. There were no noted dissents.

“At this late date, ordering reversion to the 2025 map in the midst of an ongoing election would usher in electoral chaos,” the high court wrote in an unsigned opinion. “The District Court and Court of Appeals should not enjoin or otherwise prohibit the use of the 2022 map in the 2026 congressional election in Missouri.”

The new map had targeted a district held by longtime Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver.

“I think my reelection prospects shot up significantly,” a jubilant Cleaver said after the Supreme Court ruling.

A panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had ruled Monday that switching districts between the primary and general elections would violate the U.S. Constitution. The panel directed a district judge to bar Missouri from using anything other than the new map but delayed the order's effect until next Monday to allow time for an appeal to the Supreme Court.

The legal wrangling has caused confusion for more than a million potential Missouri voters — nearly 1 in 4 statewide — who were shifted from one district to another, resulting in different candidates on their ballots. Absentee voting began Tuesday under the 2022 congressional districts. Thousands of ballots already had been mailed, and some already have been cast.

A decision from the Supreme Court is “a big sigh of relief," said Kansas City election director Shawn Kieffer. He added, "We just want it over, so we can do our job properly.”

Republican redistricting focused on Kansas City

Republicans currently hold six of Missouri's eight House districts. At the urging of Trump and Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe, Missouri lawmakers last September passed revised districts that were intended to help them win seven seats in the midterms.

The redistricting significantly reshaped a Kansas City-based district held by Cleaver. It shed parts of Kansas City to neighboring districts with Republican incumbents and stretched the remainder of Cleaver's 5th Congressional District far eastward into rural Republican areas.

The result was about 59% of potential voters were new to the district, according to an Associated Press estimate. The ripple effects also shifted some voters in most of Missouri's other congressional districts.

Cleaver was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Republican state Sen. Rick Brattin won a six-way Republican primary under the revised districts. They remain the candidates for the general election, even though the district boundaries have reverted to their prior lines.

Cleaver said the court ruling affirms the people's right to use to referendum petitions against state legislative actions they don't like.

“We just received a healthy dose of encouragement that the voice of people in the United States still matters," he said.

Brattin was a plaintiff, along with Republican Rep. Bob Onder and two other voters, in a federal lawsuit that led to the 8th Circuit's ruling and the last two appeals to the Supreme Court. He had no immediate comment.

Missouri's redistricting prompted a big legal fight

At least 16 lawsuits have been filed in state and federal courts related to Missouri's congressional redistricting. The battle has been the longest and most complex among roughly a dozen states that sought to change their U.S. House districts over the past year.

Missouri's new map survived most of the lawsuits, including ones contending that mid-decade redistricting violated the state constitution and that the new districts ran afoul of requirements to be compact. In one case, the Missouri Supreme Court allowed the new districts to be used while election officials worked to verify petition signatures seeking to put the map to a statewide vote.

Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins waited until the legal deadline on Aug. 4 — the day the new districts were used in the primaries — to reject the petition. He asserted referendum petitions aren't allowed for congressional redistricting.

The Missouri Supreme Court ruled Sept. 3 that the referendum petition was valid. It ordered Hoskins not to use the new map and to instead use the districts adopted in 2022, after the last census. The U.S. Supreme Court let that ruling stand on Sept. 8. But minutes later, U.S. District Judge Stephen Clark issued a conflicting order in favor of the new map.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Sept. 10 blocked Clark's order from taking effect. That day, the Missouri Supreme Court held Hoskins temporarily in contempt for telling local election authorities to use the new map after Clark's order.

But that wasn't the end of the matter. The 8th Circuit, hearing an appeal of Clark's blocked order, ruled in favor of the Trump-backed map Monday. That's what led to the latest decision from the U.S. Supreme Court.

Richard von Glahn, executive director of People Not Politicians Missouri, said the group was pressing forward with its campaign to persuade voters to permanently reject the new map in the November referendum.

“We have said from the beginning, people, not politicians will be the final deciders on this DC power grab," he said in a statement.

___

Associated Press writer Lindsay Whitehurst in Washington contributed to this report.

___

Follow the AP’s coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court at https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court and redistricting at https://apnews.com/hub/redistricting.

Texas school vouchers program raises questions over how families can use funds

Rilwan Balogun, Jon Hill — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 19:31:43 +0000

Texas’ new school choice program has awarded funds to about 118,440 students, but as families begin using the funds, families raise questions about what the money can actually pay for and how the state-funded accounts interact with financial assistance offered by private schools.

Travis Pillow, a spokesperson for the Texas Education Freedom Accounts program, described the program as the largest first-year school choice program in the nation’s history.

The program, known as TEFA, currently prioritizes students in two groups: low- and middle-income students with a disability, and other low-income students. Pillow said the second group includes families earning less than $66,000 a year for a family of four.

WATCH THE FULL EPISODE BELOW:

“We have about 110,000 students who have been awarded an Education Freedom account,” Pillow said.

The program is also drawing attention because many of the students’ receiving awards were already attending private schools.

MAP: See Texas school voucher applications and awards by school district

When asked about data showing that most applicants so far were already enrolled in private schools, and criticism that the program could function as a subsidy for families who already can afford private education, Pillow pointed to the legislature’s priorities.

“The Texas legislature prioritized students with disabilities and low- and middle-income families, as well as students in low income families,” Pillow said. “And that’s who we’re serving right now.”

Asked about families who were already paying private-school tuition, Pillow said many of those families were making financial sacrifices to afford private education.

“So many students across this state are enrolled in private schools, but their parents and their families are making financial sacrifices to send them there and to afford tuition,” he said.

But questions about how the money can be used extend beyond who receives it.

A TEFA award does not necessarily mean a family can use the money with any provider

That became clear for Houston-area parent Joseph Parle after he was approved for the $2,000 TEFA option for a homeschool student.

Parle initially believed the funds could be used for his son’s dual-credit coursework at a college. He said the TEFA information he reviewed described a “dual-credit course at a higher education provider” as an eligible expense.

But when Parle contacted Odyssey, the platform administering the accounts, he said he learned that the college providing the course would have to be an approved vendor on the Odyssey platform.

Joseph Parle, a father, applied for TEFA for his son but the school voucher didn't ultimately pay for the program he wanted.

Parle said he asked Odyssey customer support whether the program could pay his son’s college directly or reimburse him for the expenses.

He said he was told neither was possible.

“Initially when we were approved for the $2,000 option for a home school student, I assumed that we could use the TEFA funds for a ‘dual-credit course at a higher education provider’ as mentioned on the website,” Parle said. “What I did not expect or understand is that any institution that provides that type of education must be an approved vendor on the Odyssey site.”

Parle said he also asked whether any colleges offering dual-credit courses were available through Odyssey.

“The customer service representative I spoke to said that she did not think there were,” he said.

The result was not what Parle expected when he applied.

“This was very disappointing as I had anticipated that the $2,000 could be used to defray the costs of his college classes as part of his homeschool curriculum,” he said.

What happens when TEFA meets school financial aid?

Another issue is how TEFA interacts with financial assistance provided directly by private schools.

We contacted 286 participating TEFA schools and asked whether they require families to apply for TEFA in addition to applying for school-based financial assistance. We also asked what happens if a family receives both.

The responses varied considerably.

Some schools require families seeking financial assistance to first apply for TEFA. Others encourage families to apply, but do not require it. Some schools allow families to combine TEFA with school-based assistance, while others reduce or eliminate school assistance after a TEFA award.

The state says private schools have significant flexibility when making those decisions.

Pillow said Texas law protects the autonomy of private schools and that the state does not dictate private schools’ educational or financial decisions.

Travis Pillow, a spokesperson for Texas Education Freedom Accounts, spoke to ENOUGH Reporter Rilwan Balogun about the process of applying for school vouchers.

“We do not dictate the educational decisions or the financial decisions of private school,” Pillow said. “They have a lot of flexibility.”

When asked about reports that some schools are adjusting their financial aid based on the amount of TEFA funding a family receives, Pillow said schools have flexibility in structuring their financial aid packages, but students must be treated fairly.

“And there’s a really important subtlety here where we want to make sure that all students are treated the same and charged the same tuition regardless of whether they’re in this program or not,” Pillow said. “But schools do have significant flexibility to decide how they structure their financial aid packages.”

In an email to KPRC 2 News, Pillow further clarified the state’s position:

“The bottom line is that our office does not dictate the tuition and financial aid practices of private schools, but we do require students to be treated fairly and schools to make sure they do not treat students differently simply because they receive Texas Education Freedom Accounts.”

The agency said parents or schools can report concerns about tuition policies or other program-integrity issues at TEFA.watchdog@cpa.texas.gov.

The agency also addressed financial aid in a May 2026 news release, stating that schools have discretion to tailor financial aid based on individual circumstances and may consider a student’s TEFA award when analyzing a family’s ability to pay.

The agency said schools should have a written policy explaining how financial aid does not change the amount of tuition charged.

MORE: Houston private school says TEFA helped boost enrollment 200% as it opens first brick-and-mortar campus

Schools take different approaches

Here’s a list of the responses we received when asking schools about their TEFA policies:

12 Stones Christian Microschool: “Thank you for contacting me about 12 Stones Microschool. We are a faith-based microschool in Northwest Houston. As an accredited school, we are able to accept students who are currently approved for TEFA and have been enrolling fully approved students since June. Our registration period for TEFA students ends July 13,2026.

In addition to scholarship students, we also admit non-scholarship students. Every family that shows interest is offered a campus tours, is interviewed parents and students alike before full admission is granted.

Our program is appealing to many parents because it is a valuable qualitative school-unique because often times value, private school, and qualitative gives an impression of less when 12 Stones is actually much more!

We are accredited through Western Association of Schools and Colleges, TEPSAC with our students learning: Bible, Spanish, Vietnamese, Art, Music, Dance, in addition to the core coursework that exceeds Texas Essential Knowledge Skills.”

The school sent this additional statement: Yes, we currently have students who are on both TEFA and non-TEFA scholarships.

Families who are not using TEFA but require financial assistance are referred to friends of the school, who remain anonymous to the families but often pay the tuition. The families must show that they could not qualify for the TEFA yet need tuition support.

We have partnered with a foundation that will provide our non-TEFA families with access to scholarships of $3,000 annually per child starting January 1st and this would reduce tuition for them.”

Acton Academy Kingwood: “I am not quite sure what you are asking as far as applying for financial assistance on top of the TEFA program.

We are a small school and don’t have an official application for financial assistance. Also, our tuition is less than the amount given by the TEFA program, so any family that receives the TEFA award does not need any more financial assistance to cover tuition.”

Adults & Teen Challenge of Texas Thrive Girls Academy – Montgomery: “Yes we do accept the Texas school choice. You have to apply through with odyssey.com”

All Nations Community School: “Thank you for reaching out. To answer your question directly: yes, we required all families who received financial aid from us last school year to also apply for the Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) program.

Because this program is so new, our general policy is that families are expected to cover the full cost of tuition, which at our school ranges from $8,000 to $16,100 depending on grade level. We evaluate each family’s situation individually rather than applying a blanket rule.

In some cases, once a family received their TEFA award, they chose to withdraw their financial aid application altogether. In other cases, TEFA did not cover the full remainder of tuition and that was still going to be a financial burden for the family, so we still offered financial aid, though sometimes at a reduced amount from what was originally offered.

Most of our families understand that as a small private Christian school, we do not have an endowment or a dedicated scholarship fund. So for families who were originally offered a financial aid award and then received TEFA, we may have adjusted that award accordingly. We did try to wait until most families received their official TEFA notification before making those adjustments. Some families, particularly those in tier 2 who were on the waitlist, received their notifications later, and those were the cases where we sometimes had to adjust financial aid after the fact.”

The Arbor School: “Yes. As part of The Arbor’s financial assistance process, we ask families seeking tuition assistance to also apply for the Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) program if they are eligible. However, receiving TEFA funding is not a requirement for receiving financial assistance from The Arbor.

Many of the families we support do not ultimately receive TEFA funding. Some exceed the program’s income thresholds or fall into lower funding priority tiers, while others have children who are younger than the ages currently served through the program. We continue to provide institutional financial assistance to these families because their needs remain significant.

If a family is awarded TEFA funding, those funds are coordinated with any financial assistance provided by The Arbor to help make attendance as affordable as possible. Our goal is to maximize the resources available to each family while also stewarding our philanthropic dollars responsibly so we can serve as many students as possible.

It’s also important to understand that every Arbor family benefits from philanthropy. The actual cost of educating students at The Arbor far exceeds what families pay in tuition. Through the generosity of our donors, every student receives a “silent scholarship” that helps bridge the gap between tuition and the true cost of providing specialized education, therapies, and individualized support.

Because our students have significant special needs, many of our families also face substantial medical, therapy, and caregiving expenses outside of tuition. Those realities make financial assistance especially important, regardless of whether a family receives TEFA funding.

Rather than reducing the need for financial assistance, TEFA has increased demand at The Arbor. We are hearing from more families than ever before who previously viewed a specialized education like ours as financially out of reach. We see TEFA as one tool that can work alongside The Arbor’s own financial aid program and philanthropic support to expand access for children with significant special needs.

Ultimately, our mission is to ensure that finances are as little of a barrier as possible for families seeking the specialized education and services their children need.”

Calvary Episcopal Preparatory Richmond: “If a family applies for Calvary’s Financial Aid than we require them to apply for TEFA as well. Yes, families can receive TEFA and Calvary’s financial aid and both may be applied to their tuition balances. We also have families who earn scholarships through ACE and military scholarships.”

Crossbar Academy: “Thanks for reaching out. We do not require families to apply for TEFA.”

Christian Covenant Academy: “We do not require the families to apply for TEFA. If they qualify, we accept TEFA. If they do not qualify, they are welcome to apply for a scholarship but it’s not guaranteed. We still have families paying regularly for tuition in monthly installments. We do serve primarily low income families, but that is not exclusive. We have families of all financial and demographic backgrounds.”

Endless Possibilities Academy: “At this time, Endless Possibilities Academy does not offer a separate school-based financial assistance or scholarship program.

We do accept students who participate in the Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) program; however, families are not required to apply for TEFA in order to enroll at our school. Families may enroll through our standard admissions process regardless of whether they participate in the program.

Since we do not currently offer additional financial assistance, there is no policy regarding combining TEFA funds with school-awarded financial aid.

If you don’t mind me asking, how did you hear about Endless Possibilities Academy? I’d also be curious to know what prompted you to reach out to us specifically.

At this time, we anticipate that approximately 5 families will be utilizing TEFA funding for the upcoming school year. As a newer microschool, that number may change as enrollment continues throughout the summer.”

Excel Adventist Academy: We do not require families to apply for TEFA in addition to our financial assistance application, because their TEFA funds will be sufficient to cover their fees for the year.”

Gateway Academy: We asked our current families to apply for TEFA before being considered for Financial Assistance through the school. Yes, they may use both to pay for tuition. This has been a great benefit for our families and new students with their TEFA funds.

Grace Christian Academy: “We do require families to apply for TEFA. In compliance with TEFA, all students are still eligible to receive our sibling, active military, pastoral, or current employee standard tuition discounts. Financial aid is not simultaneously offered when a student receives TEFA.”

God’s Little People Learning Academy: “Thank you so much for your interest in our program! Our school is registered with Odyssey and is eligible to accept families who have been awarded the TEFA Scholarship. We also accept other forms of financial assistance that families may receive. For families who are recipients of TEFA funding, and are awarded additional scholarships or financial assistance, we are pleased to accept both sources of funding. Eligible funds will be applied towards the student’s educational expenses in accordance with the terms of each program.

At this time, we do not offer an in-house financial assistance program. However, one of our goals is to establish a scholarship fund in future school years to help support families who may need additional assistance.

Additionally, our school does not require families to apply for the Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) program. Families are welcome to apply if they choose, but it is entirely optional. We hope this helps.”

Houston Focus Academy: “Focus Academy does not require families to apply for the Texas Education Freedom Accounts program before applying for admission or being considered for any available financial assistance.

Although we do not have a formal scholarship program, we currently have one family receiving limited financial assistance from the school. If that family were approved for TEFA, the TEFA funds and the school’s assistance could both be applied because there would still be a remaining tuition balance. The family would be responsible for any amount not covered by those combined resources.

Focus Academy only recently enrolled as a participating TEFA provider, and we have not yet had a student enroll who has received TEFA funding. At this point, I do not anticipate that the program will have a significant financial impact on our school or most of our families.

One concern I have is that some families may be awarded TEFA funds but still be unable to find an appropriate school they can afford. This may be especially true for students with special needs, since tuition at specialized private schools often exceeds the amount provided through the program. TEFA may help reduce the cost, but in many cases it will not cover most of the tuition.”

The Imani School:

1. “No, we do not require families to apply for TEFA. It is not a condition of enrollment or financial assistance at The Imani School.

2. As for financial assistance, the school itself does not administer a financial aid program. The only outside scholarship opportunity we make families aware of is ACE Scholarships, which families must apply for independently through ACE. It is not managed by the school.

3. If an accepted family is awarded TEFA funds and/or an ACE Scholarship, they may use both toward their tuition and fees.

Joshua 1:9 Learning Center: “We don’t require our parents to apply for TEFA. We encourage them to apply because it will help with tuition and other fees. Financial assistance at our school is given in sibling scholarships. If students are not chosen for TEFA, they can apply for financial assistance through us. This varies semester to semester based off of enrollment and/or donors. We are a small school so this type of assistance is seldomly granted.”

Journey School For The Uniquely Gifted and Talented: “If a student is awarded TEFA funds they can use that in addition to any scholarships awarded internally or externally. However, due to lack of funding and donations, we do not currently have any additional internal scholarships available at this time. Our tuition starts at $35,000 but the actual cost to educate each student ranges from $45,000-$50,000 so technically each student receives a scholarship because we have generous donors who believe in what we are doing at Journey School. We are currently trying to partner with businesses and corporations to gain new partnerships and allow for additional funding.”

Knowledge-First Academy & Career Institute: “ Does your school requires families to apply for the Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) program in addition to applying for financial assistance? NO, families are not required to apply for TEFA. As anon-profit school, we provide financial assistance to each family and if there remains a balance, the parent is responsible for that amount.

If so, what happens if a family is approved for TEFA? Are they able to use both their TEFA funds and any financial assistance awarded by the school? Families who are awarded TEFA also receive financial assistance. In most cases these parents will have a ZERO (0) tuition balance. Including students on Tier 1 with an IEP!”

Little Explorers Academy: “Thank you for reaching out. I’m happy to clarify how our school plans to administer the Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA) program alongside other forms of financial assistance.

Yes, families are welcome to apply for both the TEFA program and other financial assistance programs, like CCS (Child Care Services through Workforce Solutions), for which they may qualify.

One important distinction is that our private school and our licensed childcare program are separate programs, even though they operate on the same campus. Families whose children require care outside of the instructional day are effectively enrolled in both programs and can receive the continuity of care if needed beyond the school day.

Our private school instructional day runs from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. In our case, TEFA funding is intended to fully cover tuition for our elementary educational program, which serves Pre-K3 to 5th Grade.

Many of our families also need care before school, after school, or during school breaks due to their work schedules. Those services are provided through our licensed childcare program and are separate from the private elementary school instructional day. Eligible families may receive assistance for those childcare services through Workforce Solutions Child Care Services (CCS) or other childcare assistance programs, while others pay privately.

This is similar to a child who attends a public elementary school during the day and participates in a before- and after-school childcare program outside of school hours. The difference is that our private educational and childcare programs operate on the same campus, and the transition is seamless and requires no transportation.

Because these funding sources apply to different programs and different services, they are not duplicative. TEFA supports the private elementary school instructional day - 8:00 am to 3:00 pm, while childcare assistance programs (CCS) support eligible childcare services provided outside of school hours, like in our case, before school - 6:00 am to 8:00 am and after school - 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

Our goal is to ensure families can access both a quality Christian education and reliable, quality childcare while using each funding source only for its intended purpose.”

The Mays School: “We do not require, but we encourage, families to apply for TEFA, and families are able to use any financial assistance they are awarded, from the state or from us, for their tuition. Please let me know if you need any clarification or any other information.”

Montessori Reggio Academy: “Montessori Reggio Academy® proudly accepts funding through the Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA) program, as well as other eligible government-funded tuition assistance programs. Families who choose to participate in these programs apply directly through the applicable state or government program and those funds are applied toward their tuition at our school.

While we are pleased to accept these external funding opportunities, Montessori Reggio Academy® does not offer institutionally funded financial aid or scholarships. Any tuition or school-related fees not covered by an approved funding program remain the responsibility of the family.

We believe programs like TEFA help expand educational choice by making it possible for more families to access the learning environment that aligns with their educational values and their child’s individual needs. We are proud to partner with families by accepting these funds and assisting with any school documentation required as part of the application process.”

Pines Montessori: “We can allocate only a small amount of our school’s operating budget each year to help our currently enrolled families with Tuition Assistance. We invite our families to apply each year and if their circumstances improve, we ask that they return any unused portion to help the next family.

When TEFA became available this year the timing of our assistance and the TEFA funding differed. Therefore, we asked that if families qualified for TEFA the assistance awarded through our school would be released to other families who did not qualify for TEFA.”

PivotED: “PivotED does not require families to apply for TEFA. We do accept TEFA funds, and we currently have four students using them.

At this time, because we are still a new school, we do not offer our own financial assistance program. If we are able to offer financial assistance in the future, our intention would be to allow eligible families to use both TEFA funds and school-based financial assistance whenever possible.

I started PivotED after teaching in public education because I saw firsthand that, while public schools work incredibly hard, the traditional model isn’t the right fit for every child. My goal is to make our program accessible to families whenever we can, and I hope that as we grow, we’ll be able to provide additional financial support to students who need it.”

The School for Young Children: “We are a non-profit foundation. Our tuition and fees do not fully cover the costs of educating our students and we are not able to offer financial assistance.”

Providence Classical School: “Our Enrollment Director forwarded me your email requesting information on our financial aid policies with TEFA. Here are the key points of how we handle financial aid and the TEFA funding.

• We use a third party to assess a family’s financial aid needs

• If a family applies for financial aid with our school, we require that they also apply for TEFA funding

• If a family is awarded TEFA funding, we may still provide financial aid. It depends on the third party’s recommendation. For example:

• If they recommend we offer $8000 in financial aid, and the family receives TEFA, then they will not receive further aid.

• If the third party recommends $14000 in financial aid, and the family receives TEFA, they we will award extra aid as long as we have it available.”

PSAT Academy: Almost everyone gets some sort of internal scholarship. 90% of people that come to PSA T gets some sort of financial aid. They have so little funds to help families. When they get TEFA, it helps help other families. 135 approved applicants. Example is tuition: 1699 and TEFA gave them 1300, then they will cover the difference.

Robindell Private School: “No we do not “require” our families to apply for TEFA, however we do make them aware that it is available and we provide them information on how to apply, and what the benefits would mean for them. But we can not apply for them, and it is completely up to them on whether or not they choose to do so. On your second question, since this is the first year I don’t think anyone really knows exactly how the two programs will work, however there are two things to remember. The TEFA funds are for school hours only, so if you have an afterschool program or are like us open 24/7, then the TEFA may not cover those extra service days and times. I expect we will have some students who end up with a TEFA who are also receiving TWC funds, and it is my belief that those TWC approvals will be for part time afterschool care only, or in our case possibly weekend care which the TEFA would not cover. There is also a chance that any student receiving a TEFA may lose their TWC funding completely, we just don’t know yet.”

Sherwood Forest Montessori School: “As a small school, we depend wholly on tuition as our only source of income; therefore, we are unable to offer financial assistance. We do not require families to apply for TEFA.”

Silverline Montessori School: “No, we do not,” Sara Lacy, Head of School.

St. Michael School – Weimar: “We do not have the policy of applying for TEFA before asking for financial assistance this year as everything is new to us. This is something that may change next year though.

All of the families who applied for financial assistance except two were awarded funds that would cover everything so no assistance is needed.”

Spell Well Montessori School: “Hello Rilwan, Thanks for your email, we do accept TEFA and funding from workforce for before and after school care. As a school we do not offer any other financial assistance.”

The Tenney School: “The financial assistance program offered by our school is called the Tenney Scholarship. It is awarded based on a combination of need and merit.

Families are not required by our school to apply for the Texas Education Freedom Account program in order to apply for a Tenney Scholarship. However, we do make families aware of TEFA as a possible outside funding source if they may be eligible.

We currently have families using different combinations of support. Some students receive only a Tenney Scholarship, some use only TEFA funds, and some use both.

If a family is awarded both a Tenney Scholarship and TEFA funding, those may be used together to help offset the family’s tuition obligation, subject to the requirements of each program.

Our Tenney Scholarship process is separate from TEFA. Scholarship decisions are made based on our school’s scholarship criteria, not on whether a family has applied for or received TEFA funds.”

Upward Hope Academy: “Our tuition is below the TEFA amount as it is $9000 per year. We do have 4 scholarships available and we accept payments from parents. Many of our students will only be with us for a few months to finish their diploma. Their tuition is adjusted to fit this. If you need more information I can be reached at 409-457-9256. Kathy Whatley Principal UHA”

“I’m sorry I was out of town. Our parents can choose to pay on their own, apply for ACE scholarships or TEFA. We work with parents on payment plans and some have had their church pay part of the tuition. We are always willing to work with parents.” -- Kathy Whatley Principal of UHA

Valor Heights: “We don’t require families to apply for TEFA or financial assistance. They can do either, both or neither.

If a family is approved for TEFA they can use both TEFA and Financial assistance at our school.” They offered up an interview

Empowerment Leadership Academy: “Thank you for reaching out regarding TEFA and financial assistance policies.

Regarding your questions: 1. Yes, families are encouraged to apply for TEFA (not required). At this time, I am newly opening and do not have financial assistance opportunities, this year. My tuition is affordable enough that if a family is approved for TEFA funds, it could possibly cover their tuition completely. Otherwise, flexible payment options are available.”

Veritas Christian Academy of Houston: “We do require families to have applied for TEFA before we give FA. We are happy to speak more if you’re writing an article. I’ve copied my head of school and financial director on this email.”

“Yes, families that apply for TEFA can still apply for FA, and we do have a few that receive both. All are done on a case-by-case basis and according to how much FA we have available at the time of application.”

Houston private school says TEFA helped boost enrollment 200% as it opens first brick-and-mortar campus

Rilwan Balogun, Jon Hill — Sun, 20 Sep 2026 13:00:00 +0000

A Houston private school operator says Texas’ new school choice program has dramatically increased enrollment at his school, helping fuel an expansion into a new brick-and-mortar campus.

Andrew Green, founder of PSAT Academy, said the school’s enrollment has grown by about 200% since the Texas Education Freedom Accounts program launched.

“Our enrollment went up 200% just because of TEFA,” Green said.

PSAT Academy is an approved private school that accepts Texas Education Freedom Account, or TEFA, funding.

Green has been a vocal supporter of TEFA and traveled to Austin to advocate for the program. He also developed a relationship with state Rep. Brad Buckley, who chairs the House Public Education Committee that worked on the legislation that became the state’s new school choice law.

Andrew Green founder of PSAT Academy, with State Rep. Brad Buckley, who chairs the Public Education Committee in the Texas House.

He said the growth comes as the school moves into its first true brick-and-mortar location in Houston.

Green said PSAT Academy operated out of a church two years ago before moving into a converted warehouse last year.

Now, he has reached an agreement with a nearby charter school that allows PSAT Academy to operate from its new space.

The school expects to have about 60 to 75 students attending classes in the building this school year, with another roughly 75 students being served online.

More than 70% of students receive financial aid

Green said the school’s growth is notable because a large majority of PSAT Academy students receive some form of financial assistance.

“More than 70% of them,” Green said.

He said most parents would not otherwise have the ability to afford private school.

But providing that financial assistance comes with a cost to the school.

Green said PSAT Academy does not have outside organizations covering the difference.

“It’s us just taking that loss in tuition,” he said, explaining that the school then has to find a way to make up the money needed for teacher salaries, supplies and other expenses.

“Usually that comes from me,” Green said.

Asked how the school is able to absorb those costs, Green said the school’s mission is part of the reason he continues to do it.

“Education is a ministry,” he said. “Just like pastors are used to making sacrifices, school administrators, teachers are used to making sacrifice.”

Green acknowledged that the school is effectively absorbing the cost of a large portion of its students.

“It’s a ministry,” he said.

MAP: See Texas school voucher applications and awards by school district

Green says TEFA has been a “blessing” for some private schools

Green said TEFA is particularly beneficial for private schools that are willing to accept a broader range of students.

He said some private schools have chosen not to participate in TEFA because they want to remain selective about who they admit. But for schools with a model similar to PSAT Academy, he said the program has been significant.

“So, for those private schools that are more like us, this has been a blessing.”

Green said some private schools are struggling financially and could be at risk of closing.

His argument is that families facing the cost of private-school tuition are often forced to make difficult financial choices.

“Parents, I’ve got to pay my mortgage or pay tuition. I’m going to pay my mortgage,” Green said.

TEFA arrives as public schools announce closures

PSAT Academy’s expansion comes as school districts in the Houston area have announced multiple school closures.

That creates a broader debate about where taxpayer-funded education dollars should go at a time when some traditional public schools are closing.

Green was asked directly about criticism that TEFA sends taxpayer money to private-school operators while public schools are shutting down.

His response was that public, and private schools should focus on serving students well rather than competing over which model receives families.

“If what they are doing is working, they’re not concerned with us,” Green said. “If you do what you need to do for families, they’re not leaving,” he said.

He argued that schools that meet the needs of families will retain their students. Green said he wants public schools to succeed, too.

MORE: What Arizona’s ESA program shows Texas families about school choice, oversight and public school funding

But he said he believes there are enough students who need different types of educational options.

“The truth of the matter is there are more students that need good schools, both public, private, and homeschool,” Green said. “Nobody has to worry about anything. Just do what you do best. Don’t worry about what somebody else is doing.”

Would PSAT Academy survive without TEFA?

Green was also asked what would happen to PSAT Academy if TEFA did not exist.

He said he believes the school would remain open.

“It probably will remain open for a while,” Green said. “It just might not grow as fast.”

Green said the program has accelerated the school’s growth in more than one way.

Before TEFA, he said, PSAT Academy had limited money for marketing, meaning many families simply did not know the school existed.

But being listed among schools’ families can search for through the TEFA program changed that.

“Not many people even knew about PSAT because we didn’t have a lot of money to put in marketing,” Green said.

“Then when we showed up in a list of schools that you could search for, now all of a sudden people are like, I didn’t even know this school existed.”

For PSAT Academy, Green says TEFA has introduced the school to families who otherwise might never have found it and helped accelerate its transition from a church and warehouse-based operation into a growing private school with a permanent campus.

At the same time, the school’s experience highlights one of the central questions surrounding the new program: whether taxpayer-funded education freedom accounts will primarily shift students and money toward existing private schools, or whether they will help expand access to private education for families who previously could not afford it.

Tasia Fortune's hanging was 'staged' after her death in a drug dispute, Mississippi police say

Sophie Bates, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 19:20:03 +0000

Tasia Fortune was apparently killed in a drug dispute before her body was hung in a tree in a “staged” lynching behind an abandoned home in the Mississippi capital this summer, a detective testified Friday.

Fortune was killed in a disagreement about drugs, and she fought hard with her attackers before she was killed, Jackson police Detective Samuel Dukes told the court. Citing the medical examiner's opinion, he also said the hanging was “staged.”

Fortune was Black, and the Aug. 3 discovery of her hanging body stoked fear and drew widespread attention because the scene recalled actual lynchings in the Southern state, which has a long and troubled history of racial violence.

Authorities haven’t disclosed the exact cause of Fortune’s death or said why they think her body was hanged afterward, but they ruled it a homicide and arrested two men, both of them also Black, on murder charges. A 45-year-old man turned himself in Friday after a warrant was issued for his arrest. He was charged with murder and will appear in court Monday.

Outside court, Fortune’s mother, Christy Spivey, told reporters that she had been aware that her daughter died before her body was hanged. But that step, she added, “brought all the attention to it.”

“What bothered me was they said Tasia fought for her life. I know she did. I know my daughter,” Spivey said.

The hearing was meant to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to send the case against the first man arrested, Jarques Ratliff, to a grand jury for a possible indictment. It will resume Sept. 30.

Ratliff, 51, was arrested in mid-September and has pleaded not guilty. He remains jailed without bond. Police arrested a second defendant, 25-year-old Earnest Lloyd Jr., this week.

During Friday's hearing, Ratliff blurted out in court that he and Fortune were friends.

“It sounded sincere. Tasia had a lot of friends,” Spivey said later. “I hope if he is innocent that he can prove he’s innocent. We don’t want any innocent people going to jail.”

Ratliff’s stepdaughter, Lashuna Jones, was among her father's supporters at court.

“He didn’t do it, and I’m behind him,” she said.

Spivey has said her daughter, who had four children, struggled with homelessness in recent years, and that she wasn’t sure where Fortune was living at the time of her death. She said Fortune had talked about starting a cleaning business and was trying to get her life in order.

___

White reported from Detroit.

Westbury High School homecoming football game canceled after deadly shooting

Christian Terry — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 22:46:15 +0000

The Westbury High School homecoming football game scheduled for Saturday has been canceled following Friday’s deadly shooting of a senior student near campus.

RELATED: Westbury senior who was shot and killed identified as LePaul Warren

In a message to families, Principal Adrea Alexander says campus administration is working to reschedule the game and will share updates with families and students once those plans are finalized.

The cancelation comes after Westbury High School senior LePaul Warren was shot and killed just steps from the school campus on Friday.

Warren, a wide receiver and starter on the school’s varsity football team and a shooting guard for varsity basketball, was described by his godfather as a “good kid, very respectful, very polite.”

RELATED: LIVE UPDATES: Senior killed near Westbury High School; shooter at large

Witnesses said the shooter was dressed in all black with a ski mask on.

Investigators have interviewed witnesses and are also hoping license plate readers in the area can help them track down the shooter. They also had video from the apartment complex next door to the school.

If you have cell phone video, dash cam footage, home surveillance or anything else that might help, Houston police want to hear from you.

New Mexico jury finds Facebook liable for deceiving users about privacy protections

Mikella Schuettler, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 17:44:03 +0000

A New Mexico jury on Friday found Facebook liable for deceiving users about privacy protections on the platform in the latest legal setback against the social media giant that has already cost it billions of dollars.

The jury found over 43 million violations of state consumer protection law and it is now up to the judge to determine how much the company would pay, with attorneys representing the state asking for the maximum $5,000 penalty per violation.

“The verdict marks a significant victory for New Mexico consumers and holds one of the world’s largest technology companies accountable for its conduct,” the New Mexico Department of Justice said in a statement.

The two-week trial in Santa Fe centered on accusations that Facebook, owned by Meta, deceived users about a data breach stemming from a third-party personality quiz that harvested data from roughly 87 million profiles and sold it to a political consulting firm, Cambridge Analytica, to generate targeted ads. The now-defunct firm’s clients included the 2016 campaign for Donald Trump.

Jurors sided with prosecutors, finding Facebook made deceptive statements about protecting users’ data that affected New Mexico’s entire population of more than two million people. The jury also found Facebook misled the public about investigations into third-party app developers that harvest user data following the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

Facebook claims state's evidence was ‘outdated’

“We disagree with the verdict and will continue to defend ourselves against efforts to distort our record,” said Alex Burgos, a spokesperson for Meta in an email.

During closing arguments, lawyers for Facebook claimed the state’s evidence was outdated and that despite having five years to gather material, New Mexico found only one other instance of a data breach.

In one of the few wins for the defense, jurors found the state didn’t prove that Facebook made false claims about removing harmful content, including misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic.

The state claimed the company favored certain accounts and allowed for violent or inaccurate content to proliferate. During closing arguments, Randi McGinn, an attorney representing the state, argued that Facebook profited off harmful content.

Facebook denied the claims, arguing the company has adapted its policies since the state's lawsuit was filed in 2021 and that it removes 99% of content that violates standards. In a deposition played for jurors, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the company had robust systems to determine whether content should be taken down.

“Meta’s platforms are forums for free expression. We have a First Amendment right to manage those platforms in a way we believe best serves the interests of our community. This means prioritizing free speech, protecting our users’ information and giving them control over their data,” Burgos said in a statement after the verdict.

Expert says impact on the company remains unclear

Despite jurors finding millions of violations, it's unclear how much of an impact the case will have on the company's bottom line, given how profitable Meta is.

"It's unlikely that this is going to be the case that effectively penalizes the company in a meaningful way," said Peter Ormerod, an associate professor of law at Villanova University.

Ormerod said the social media company has very high margins and previously skirted regulatory actions on its platforms.

If the state successfully persuades the judge to award the maximum civil penalties for every violation, the company could owe over $200 billion, with interest accruing if it decides to appeal. The judge will have to weigh complex arguments from both sides about what penalties are fair. In a previous case, New Mexico secured $942 million over the platform’s policies to protect minors.

Ormerod commended the state’s “dogged prosecution” of the social media giant, but isn’t sure the judgment will be significant enough to change Meta’s ways.

“There’s been a lot of criticism that none of these amounts of money are enough to discipline the company,” Ormerod said.

Judge will decide penalties at later date

The judge will decide on penalties during a hearing on Oct. 1. Attorney General Raúl Torrez told reporters following the verdict that all money awarded will go into a fund for the state's education system. The state is also seeking an injunction to stop similar practices in the future.

Friday's verdict follows several others against Meta recently.

In August, Meta agreed to pay up to $18 billion to settle a multistate lawsuit involving child safety issues. Buried in the 130-page settlement was an agreement to release Meta from future liability related to the Cambridge Analytica privacy breach, making New Mexico the only state to decide to pursue a case on its own. Florida was the only other state that did not sign the settlement, saying it was not tough enough on Meta, leaving the door open for future litigation.

Also this year, New Mexico won judgments totaling $942 million from Meta in a two-phase trial about the company’s safety protections for minors. The court ordered Meta to implement new safeguards, including age-verification technology and time limits on its platforms.

—

Schuettler reported from Phoenix.

— Schuettler is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

Houston Weather: Dry air sticks with us this weekend. Increasing rain chances next week!

Daji Aswad, Collin Myers — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 11:04:57 +0000

Cool Start Saturday:

Low humidity will help temperatures cool more efficiently tonight into Saturday morning- expect lows in the upper 60s to low 70s. While 70° in Houston doesn’t seem that cool, the last time temperatures were below 71° was May 28th. It’s been a long humid summer.

Waking up cool Saturday

Humidity back Sunday:

On Sunday it will again feel like summer with heat, humidity and high temperatures in the mid-90s and that continues into the new week.

Humidity returns Sunday

Never trust the first fall cold front:

Two things I’m watching next week are tropical moisture from the Pacific and a cold front. The Pacific Ocean has two hurricanes, Cat 1 Odalys and Cat 5 Polo. Both of those will send tropical moisture to Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. Some of that moisture could arrive in Houston Wednesday with a cool front moving through at the same time. But what looked like the cold front moving through yesterday, now looks like the front will stall in Texas. That means we won’t get a cool down or lower humidity. But we could get off and on storms Tuesday through Sunday the 4th of October. We’ll keep updating this forecast with the changes that come along.

Rain is possible next week from this front

Tracking the tropics:

All is quiet in the Gulf. Tropical Storm Gonzalo continues to bring heavy rain and strong winds to Cabo Verde and is expected to move north through the weekend as it slowly weakens.

Tropical Storm Fay is well east of Bermuda and will bring no impacts to land.

Two storms in the Atlantic

So far this hurricane season we’ve had seven tropical storms. We have not had a hurricane in the Atlantic basin. The latest first hurricane to form was Gustav and Humberto, which formed on September 11th. This means our 2026 hurricane season set a record for the latest hurricane to form.

We are on pace for latest first hurricane to form

Extended forecast:

Our next chance of rain arrives next week. And there is the chance we get off and on rain through the first weekend of October.

Rain chances finally return!

Houston’s new $5 trash fee is hitting water bills. But it won’t cover the cost of service

Joel Eisenbaum, Talisa Treviño, Roger Franco, Adrian Montes — Tue, 15 Sep 2026 16:50:24 +0000

Most Houston residents have started seeing a new $5 monthly solid waste administration fee on their September water bill, a charge city leaders say is meant to help stabilize a household sanitation service system that has drawn years of complaints about missed pickups and inconsistent service.

But Houston Public Works Director Randy Macchi said the fee, at least for now, is not designed to fully pay for the system and he said the city’s overall costs far exceed what the new charge will bring in.

“You know, ultimately five bucks, first of all, is not going to cover the cost of the operation,” Macchi said in an interview to ENOUGH’s Joel Eisenbaum.

Macchi said the fee will generate about $25 million annually, while he put current costs for the solid waste operation at about $137 million. Macchi told Eisenbaum he expects costs to come down over time as the city addresses backlogged problems and improves efficiency.

MAP: Houston neighborhoods with the most missed trash pickup complaints

“I don’t think it’s $137 million a year,” Macchi said, describing the figure as a starting point as the city tries to “catch up really quickly on a number of problems.” He said he believes the number will be lower “once you bring in efficiencies.”

A Burns & McDonnell cost-of-service and enterprise fund study prepared for the city and dated May 4, 2026, projects a potential total monthly solid waste cost of $27.28 per household, according to the study’s summary materials. The study describes that total as a $24.72 residential solid waste fee plus a $2.56 Clean City fee.

The study also lays out why city officials say additional revenue is needed. It says the Solid Waste Management Department has expanded beyond core garbage and recycling pickup over time, and that maintenance and infrastructure improvements “have been deferred for decades.”

The study projects annual costs for SWMD services at more than $160 million in fiscal year 2026 and $235 million in FY 2030, not including certain variable costs such as additional cleanup needed after significant storms.

Ken Gantt lives in Garden Oaks and has had enough of his trash not being picked up. He spoke to Reporter Joel Eisenbaum about it for our story

‘We really just want the trash to be picked up’

For residents, the debate over rates and long-term planning often comes down to a simple expectation: consistent pickup.

“We’ve told the city to come out and pick up this trash,” one resident said in an interview clip included in the broadcast script.

Another added: “We really just want the trash to be picked up.”

Ken Gantt said he called the city 11 times last year after his garbage was not picked up.

“They do it every once in a while,” Gantt said. “But I keep telling them … there’s a house by itself on Shepherd.”

The ENOUGH team brought Gantt’s missed pick-ups issue to the City of Houston.

Macchi said that the issue appeared to be with Houston Solid Waste’s truck routing in Gantt’s neighborhood, which appeared to skip his home because of it’s location away from other houses on the route.

Macchi said that problem has since since been corrected and provided photos of the garbage pickup at Gantt’s home.

The Burns & McDonnell study includes performance-related benchmarks that echo the frustration residents describe. The study says the department “currently averages collection rates of 85% for residential garbage” and 65% for recycling and heavy trash. It says meeting an “industry-standard 99% collection rate across all services” would require additional vehicles and staff to run 114 additional weekly routes.

The study also points to equipment challenges, saying 34% of the solid waste fleet is 7 years old and older and describing an industry best practice of replacing collection vehicles every seven years.

What the fee can — and can’t — do

Macchi said the $5 fee is a step toward building a more sustainable funding model, but he emphasized it will not cover the full cost of the operation. He also said the city conducted the Burns & McDonnell rate study to better understand what solid waste services actually cost and what a longer-term system could require.

Macchi said the city will also explore additional revenue opportunities beyond individual homeowners.

“There are revenue opportunities that extend beyond just the individual homeowner,” he said.

Maachi said thhat those revenue opportunities for the city could include commerical and apartment complex service.

Currently, the city’s curbside sanitation system is designed to serve customers who dwell in single family homes.

Editor’s note: The Burns & McDonnell study cited in this story was provided to the newsroom. The city has not posted a public link, and key cost and revenue estimates referenced in this story were provided by Public Works Director, Randy Macchi, during an interview.

Nor'easter to lash the East Coast with strong winds, flooding and heavy rain

Kimberlee Kruesi And Leah Willingham, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 15:22:15 +0000

The powerful nor’easter headed to New England intensified Friday, generating storm-force winds and creating massive waves along the East Coast that forecasters warned could create dangerous conditions through the weekend.

Tens of millions of people are in the path of the storm, which has already canceled concerts and prompted people on islands near Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to head to the mainland in the days ahead of the nor’easter’s arrival. Dangerous flooding was expected along the Mid-Atlantic coast, particularly near New Jersey and Delaware starting Friday and heading into Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.

“The heaviest rain is probably going to be from coastal Jersey, Long Island, up to Rhode Island, and eastern Massachusetts,” said Brian Hurley, senior national forecaster with NWS' Weather Prediction Center, adding that the storm was expected to weaken later Saturday.

New Jersey communities brace for major flooding

A voluntary evacuation had been issued in some low-lying areas of Manasquan, a coastal New Jersey borough, while the governors of New Jersey and New York declared states of emergency in advance of the storm.

“We’re definitely seeing at the high end of moderate and maybe the low end of major flooding,” said Manasquan Mayor Mike Mangan. “That may not mean a lot to people, but that means there is going to be a lot of water in the streets for a long time.”

Brian Kelly, the mayor of the tiny New Jersey beach community Sea Bright, said the borough is bracing for winds up to 50 mph (80 kph) and flooding that could reach up to 6 feet (1.8 meters) on some streets. Officials expect the flooding to start Saturday and worsen by midday.

“It’s going to be worse than average. We do have probably one or two flooding events a year, sometimes more, sometimes less, but I think this one will be closer to an Irene-scale flooding event,” Kelly said, referencing the 2011 storm that caused major flooding in the Northeast. “I hope I’m wrong, but that’s my gut feeling."

Kelly hopes hundreds of residents living in low-lying areas will consider evacuating. He said the town will open its recreation center for evacuees. “A lot of the homes are elevated, but obviously, you know, people can get trapped in their house temporarily," he added.

Damaging winds threaten coastal New England

Peak wind gusts could approach 60 to 65 mph (97 to 105 kph) on Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket on Friday night and Saturday, compared with about 50 to 55 mph (80 to 89 kph) around Boston and 35 to 40 mph (56 to 64 kph) farther inland, according to Matthew Belk, a meteorologist with NWS in Norton, Massachusetts.

“It’s definitely going to be a case of the closer to the coast you are, the more impacts from the storm you’re likely to see,” Belk said.

Belk said nor'easters are not unusual as New England moves into fall, but one concern this early in the season is that leaves remain on the trees, creating more wind resistance. That could increase the risk of downed limbs, which in turn can cause power outages and leave debris in roads, he said.

Storm disrupts concerts, baseball and island travel

As residents braced for the storm Friday, the Red Sox announced their weekend series against the Chicago Cubs would be adjusted. The team moved the Sunday afternoon game to Friday to create a split doubleheader. Separately, Ed Sheeran announced that his high-profile Friday and Saturday shows at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, would be canceled due to the storm.

Meanwhile, the public ferry service connecting Cape Cod with the islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard was experiencing widespread cancellations Friday due to strong winds and choppy water. Several flights to the islands were also canceled.

Over in Rhode Island, ferries were also canceled for Block Island. The disrupted ferry service was expected to also spill into Saturday.

For people who regularly travel to and from the islands, the possibility of getting stuck on one side or the other is “part of life,” said Sean Driscoll, a spokesperson for the Woods Hole, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority. Most people have backup plans in place for when boats are canceled.

“It’s a nuisance, but you know, we know what to do with this kind of stuff at this point,” he said. “This is not out of the realm of ordinary. Part of living in this region is just kind of knowing how to deal with this stuff.”

Ashley Destino of Gloucester, a coastal city in northern Massachusetts, enjoyed a stroll along the beach with her two young children before preparing to hunker down at home during the storm.

“We came to the beach on Friday afternoon because we knew we were going to be inside all weekend,” said Destino, who has Legos and arts and crafts activities prepared to entertain her two children, ages 7 and 4.

She also prepared for the high winds and tides by securing her boat with additional lines, and her husband pulled out a generator in case the electricity goes out.

___

Willingham reported from Boston. Associated Press writers Michael Casey in Boston; Rodrique Ngowi in Gloucester, Massachusetts; and Anthony Izaguirre in New York contributed to this report.

New Jersey’s lieutenant governor resigns after sexual harassment and ethics complaints

Mike Catalini And Philip Marcelo, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 16:30:43 +0000

New Jersey ’s Democratic lieutenant governor resigned Friday, pushed out by the state’s governor after less than a year in office over accusations of ethics lapses and inappropriate behavior with women.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill, also a Democrat, had given Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell until Friday to resign, seeking to end a scandal that threatened to be a drag on her fledgling administration.

Republicans have hammered Sherrill for weeks about the investigation into Caldwell, who served as acting governor in her absence. He also oversaw elections as New Jersey’s secretary of state, and his resignation comes weeks ahead of midterm elections that will decide who controls Congress.

At a news conference announcing the resignation, Sherrill said she was committed to changing what she called a longstanding problem in state government of people turning a blind eye to sexual harassment.

“There has been a culture in Trenton, probably since the birth of our nation, to sweep this under the rug,” she said.

“That is not the kind of government I’m running,” she added. “When I say there is a culture change taking place, I mean it.”

The governor had called for Caldwell to resign on Thursday after a law firm she hired released a report saying he behaved inappropriately around women.

In a statement Friday, Caldwell said he stepped down to keep the controversy from interfering with Sherrill’s important work, while maintaining that the matter had damaged his reputation.

“My decision to resign should not be interpreted as an acceptance of the report’s findings,” he said. His attorney, Thomas Calcagni, said they were looking into legal options to challenge the report.

Caldwell's resignation was far from certain

Sherrill picked Caldwell, a Methodist pastor and former president of Centenary University, as her running mate last year. They took office in January, but within four months, Caldwell had become the subject of an anonymous complaint about his behavior with women.

Caldwell at first showed no signs he would leave office willingly. In New Jersey, a governor can’t fire the lieutenant governor, but Caldwell could have been impeached and removed by the legislature.

Sherrill told reporters she'd spoken and texted with Caldwell in recent days, but wouldn’t say whether he expressed any remorse.

Sherrill faces questions about her judgement

Republican state Sen. Kristin Corrado on Friday questioned Sherrill’s judgment for allowing Caldwell to serve as acting governor when she left the state, even as his conduct was being investigated.

“New Jersey residents deserve leadership, transparency, and answers from their government,” she said. “So far, we have gotten none.”

The resignation probably won’t move the needle much in New Jersey’s midterms, said Matt Hale, a political science professor at Seton Hall University, but it gives Republicans fresh ammunition against the governor.

Still, he said, Democrats can contrast Caldwell’s swift dismissal with the Trump administration’s attitude toward controversy.

“This wouldn’t even make page six news if it was at the federal level,” Hale said.

The allegations went beyond inappropriate comments

The law firm’s report released Thursday said Caldwell committed several violations of state policy. It said Caldwell, 66, made an advance toward a staff member’s friend and when he was rebuffed told the staffer, “you young women are looking for young sperm.”

The report said Caldwell had tried to get a promotion for a state employee he was dating and brought personal guests to the opera and other ticketed events without paying for them, as required by ethics rules.

Caldwell’s lawyer said his client “categorically denies” making the sperm statement but acknowledged that Caldwell had recommended the woman for a promotion, although he denied ordering anyone to promote her. Caldwell denied other claims, including that he gave out his business cards to women for inappropriate reasons.

In a letter included in the report, Caldwell said he suspected his relationships with women were being subjected to extra scrutiny because he was a single Black man.

“This (resignation) might hurt her with some Black Democratic men,” said Richard Bensel, a government professor at Cornell University, “but I suspect that will be more than compensated by the approval of Black Democratic women.”

Until a new lieutenant governor is named, state Senate President Nicholas Scutari will step in as acting governor if Sherrill is away or unable to perform her duties. The secretary of state roll will be filled by the acting state comptroller, Shirley Emehelu.

Lieutenant governor turmoil isn't unique to New Jersey

In neighboring New York, a similar impasse has played out over the past year between Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul and her estranged Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado, who launched a caustic primary challenge to unseat her only to withdraw from the race as the election neared.

Hochul is now running for reelection in November with Adrienne Adams, the former speaker of the New York City Council, as her replacement lieutenant governor nominee.

Caldwell, the fourth lieutenant governor since the position was created in 2009, is the first to resign. But he’s hardly the first Garden State politician to be felled by scandal.

U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, who quit in the wake of his 2024 bribery conviction, and New Jersey Gov. Jim McGreevey, who resigned in 2004 after coming out as gay as questions swirled about him appointing his one-time lover as the state’s homeland security adviser. Both are also Democrats.

___

Marcelo reported from New York.

It's officially Dolly Parton Day, with parades, pink lights and book drives

Kimberlee Kruesi, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 04:01:25 +0000

Pour yourself a cup of ambition. It’s Dolly Parton Day.

Across the world, communities are dedicating Friday to honoring the beloved country singer. The day is falling on Sept. 25, a wink at Parton’s hit song “9 to 5.”

Parton, who died of cancer last month at age 80, built an impressive legacy over the decades as a singer-songwriter, actor, philanthropist and entrepreneur — leaving big and small ways to honor the icon.

So whether it’s dusting off your rhinestones, donating a book or throwing back a pink-themed cocktail, here’s how you can celebrate Dolly Parton Day.

Join a celebration

In the U.S., a growing number of state and local leaders are establishing Sept. 25 as an annual Dolly Parton Day from California to the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The proclamations highlight Parton’s successful career and stress her lifelong commitment to promoting literacy.

In Nashville — where Parton had lived since she was 18 — the city will honor the singer with pink lights and posters and give away stickers, buttons and bookmarks. Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines announced that it would hold a Parton-inspired karaoke Friday for travelers and employees. Tennessee state and local officials are currently in the process of renaming the airport after Parton.

“Dolly Parton’s impact on Nashville will be felt for generations, through the music she has given us, the people she has helped and the example she continues to set,” said Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell in a statement. “She has shown us that caring for a community means showing up for one another.”

Over in New Orleans, the marching group Krewe of Dolly will lead a parade through the city’s French Quarter to honor Parton.

And in San Francisco, organizers are planning a public event in the heart of the city, called “Dolly Day,” designed to be a celebration of life that will include “singing loud, dressing up, and being a little kinder than usual in her honor.”

Donate a book to Imagination Library

For those chained to their actual 9 to 5 job on Friday, sneaking away for an event may be challenging. Instead, you can channel Parton’s giving spirit.

Parton made it her mission to improve literacy through her Imagination Library book giveaway program. The program has quickly expanded, resulting in more than a million books sent out each month to children in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia.

The Imagination Library is encouraging the public to give directly to their local Imagination Library Partner on Dolly Parton Day, or help establish a new program in their community.

Don’t know where to start? The Dollywood Foundation is directing people to ImaginationLibrary.com, where a ZIP code search can find nearby programs.

“For Dolly, giving was always personal and from her heart,” said Jeff Conyers, president of The Dollywood Foundation, in a statement. “She believed deeply in helping people, especially children, and she always felt if you are in a position to help, you should help.”

Get inspired by Parton's style and songs

The Queen of Country was known for her over-the-top style, proudly wearing sequins with big hair and plenty of fringe in her signature color pink.

Parton especially adored butterflies, singing that “love is like a butterfly, as soft and gentle as a sigh.”

Dig into your closet and throw on something extra flashy, shiny or sparkly. Feeling adventurous? Some tattoo artists are offering Dolly-inspired tattoos on Friday, but a butterfly clip will also work.

Of course, there's no easier way to celebrate Parton than by playing one of her many, many albums throughout the day.

Known for her hits “9 to 5,” “Jolene,” and “I Will Always Love You,” Parton's catalog runs deep, and there's room to discover new favorites.

It was Parton’s wish that her songs would have a lasting impact, and that in turn, she would be remembered for trying to make the world a better place.

“I hope that a lot of my songs may last that long. And I hope I’ll be remembered as somebody that tried to do some good in the world and left, you know, a few good things,” she told The Associated Press in 2024.

Hurricanes in the Pacific threaten Hawaii and Mexico with floods and high surf

Eugene Garcia, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 14:38:51 +0000

People on Hawaii’s Big Island are preparing for another potentially life-threatening and catastrophic storm as Hurricane Nolo is expected to bring flash floods and extreme surf as it churns just south of the islands through the weekend.

Nolo was expected to strengthen to a major hurricane on Saturday. Its maximum sustained winds increased to 105 mph (165 kph) Friday. The storm’s center was located about 185 miles (300 kilometers) south of Hawaii’s southernmost point.

Forecasters warned parts of the Big Island could see rainfall totals up to 15 inches (38 centimeters), with a possibility of up to 25 inches (64 centimeters). That was down from an earlier forecast that called for up to 35 inches (89 centimeters).

“People are going to want to kind of shelter in place on the Big Island, be in their safe place, certainly by later today, tonight, well into Saturday," Michael Brennan, director of the National Hurricane Center, said Friday. “Don’t venture out if you don’t have to into the dangerous flooding environment, but also high winds. We can have trees and power lines down.”

Heavy rainfall also was possible on Hawaii's other islands, the hurricane center said. Maui also could see heavy rainfall and potential life-threatening flooding and mudslides, forecasters said.

Crews on the Big Island spent hours Friday trying to build berms to guide water and move large debris ahead of the worst of the rain, said Erika Kapu, Hawaii program manager for the humanitarian nonprofit CORE.

CORE and other nonprofit partners spent the week packing and shipping supplies like camp stoves and hygiene products by air cargo from Oahu to the Big Island for a community relief hub that has been active since August's Hurricane Lala.

Hawaii prepares as northern edge of Nolo is expected to barrel through

Hawaii officials told residents to put together emergency kits, and the governor issued an emergency proclamation, activating more than 230 Hawaii National Guard members. Schools were closed in some areas.

Hawaii County officials on the Big Island were urging residents in flood-prone areas to consider taking refuge at shelters being set up or other locations.

“We encourage everyone to complete their preparations, stay connected to official alerts and weather updates, and secure safe shelter before flooding strikes,” Mayor Kimo Alameda said in a statement.

The heaviest rain from Nolo is likely to fall over the same southeastern region of the Big Island that was hit by Lala and where grounds are still wet from additional precipitation. The storm surge could hit 1 to 3 feet (30 to 91 centimeters), creating large and dangerous waves and coastal flooding, the hurricane center said.

Hawaiian Electric, the state’s primary utility, said crews that had been helping restore power in Kauai after this month’s Hurricane Lowell would return to Oahu, Maui and the Big Island in preparation for the coming storm.

Residents and tourists on the Big Island were busy preparing.

In Hilo, where light rain was falling Friday, residents filled bags with sand and gravel at Francis Wong Stadium, where authorities set up a sand distribution center.

Dean Taise said water was starting to get into his driveway from the street, so he decided to get a few sandbags ready ahead of possible floods.

“They say, prepare for the worst, right? Hope for the best,” Taise said.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green has requested an emergency disaster declaration for four Hawaii counties.

Polo is strengthening after returning to Category 5 intensity

Meanwhile, Mexico is under the threat of Hurricane Polo as it heads toward the Baja California peninsula after bringing storm conditions to the southwestern coast.

The hurricane center said Polo gained significant force overnight into Friday morning and doused parts of Mexico's Pacific Coast. No major damage or flooding was reported along the coast overnight into Friday.

By midday Friday, attention turned to the peninsula, where the hurricane was slated to arch back and hit between Monday and Tuesday. Local authorities were preparing shelters, and Mexico’s government announced Friday afternoon that they were closing ports in the region as dark clouds swirled overhead.

The latest estimated sustained winds were 180 mph (290 kph).

Residents stacked sandbags to fortify beachfront shops and evacuated their homes in some coastal areas on Thursday. Mexican authorities opened shelters and cleared people from beaches, and 15,000 security personnel were deployed across the coast. Schools were closed.

In the port city of Lázaro Cárdenas in Michoacán, seawater swept through homes and left wooden planks and furniture strewn on the streets. Locals and government officials were clearing debris and shoveling thick mud coating much of the town.

Alicia Contreras said the walls and roof of her restaurant had been severely damaged by 15-foot (4.5-meter) waves. As officers and family helped pick through the damage, Contreras worried about how she would recover economically.

“This is huge because we have no other source of income. Now we’re just surviving,” Contreras said.

Brennan said some moisture associated with Polo will be pushed into parts of the southwestern U.S. by Monday, possibly producing scattered flash flooding in the Four Corners region, particularly portions of Arizona and New Mexico.

Biologists on Friday relocated eggs from two olive ridley sea turtle nests on Southern California beaches to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach over concern about high tides and hazardous surf as officials monitor Hurricane Polo.

Powerful storms come during the weather phenomenon El Niño

El Niño is prompting major environmental shifts across the world, fueling drought in some areas and flooding in others. It traditionally dampens the Atlantic hurricane season, while it tends to rev up tropical cyclone activity in the Pacific with moist air and little wind shear.

A third storm in the Pacific, Hurricane Odalys, was at Category 4 status and was still far from land Friday, roughly 955 miles (1,537 kilometers) west-southwest of the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula.

Two other powerful storms were churning in the Atlantic Ocean but were not near land.

In the northern Atlantic, Tropical Storm Fay reformed early Thursday. As of Friday, it was about 1,040 miles (1,674 kilometers) west-southwest of the Azores, the hurricane center said. Off Africa's western coast, Tropical Storm Gonzalo strengthened early Friday as it approached the Cabo Verde Islands.

___

Associated Press writers Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut; Gabriela Aoun Angueira in San Diego; and Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, contributed to this report.

U2 goes back to school to put on a show where it all began 50 years ago

Brian Melley, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 17:51:56 +0000

Irish band U2 returned to school Friday to put on a surprise class in rock and roll where they formed a half century ago.

The band ripped through a seven-song set including an encore of “With or Without You” for hundreds of students in the schoolyard of Mount Temple Comprehensive School in Dublin and a crowd of others who got word of the gig or — like a construction crew several floors up a nearby building — were lucky to be within earshot and have a bird's eye view.

“We escaped the lab — how’s the experiment going for you?” Bono said as he pointed to the science classrooms.

The band got its start at the school 50 years ago when a 14-year-old Larry Mullen posted a note on a message board reading: “Drummer seeks musicians to form band.”

Originally known as Feedback, the group consisted of singer Paul Hewson, now Bono, guitarist David Evans, known as The Edge, and Adam Clayton on bass.

The rest, as they say, is history, though it would be a couple of years before they settled on the name U2 and not until 1980 that their first album, “Boy,” dropped, featuring “I Will Follow,” the first tune they played for the enthusiastic children.

The 30-minute gig was not quite as secret as it may have seemed. A camera crew was rolling, international news media were gathered and a group of 32 students accompanied the band on stringed instruments for the hit, "One.”

It was part of a promotional push for their new album, “Carnaval De Luz,” which features a duet between Bono and Dolly Parton, who died of cancer last month.

They later performed from a balcony to a crowd of fans on popular Grafton Street in central Dublin.

Students, some sticking their heads out of classroom windows, screamed and cheered. They captured the moment on their phones and sang along to the familiar tunes. Some yelled, “I love you Bono!”

Bono thanked his captive audience but noted they had “nowhere else to go.”

As he counted down the signature start of “Vertigo,” with “uno, dos, tres, catorce” (one, two, three, 14), he quipped: “If you’re taking Spanish lessons, don’t take them from me."

In a tribute to teachers, he became philosophical about his time at the school, saying it was where the band began the “humblest and hardest lesson” of learning how much they needed to be taught.

“Part of that started here and the sense was that maybe all we needed was around us, just under our feet — if we could see it in our mates, our wider community that was going to help us get through the next 50 years," he said. "So we want to thank them — and the wider community around this rock ‘n’ roll high school.”

___

Melley reported from London.

LIVE UPDATES: Senior killed near Westbury High School; shooter at large

Taylor Bruck, Heikki Mustonen, Christian Hudspeth, Mariana La Roche — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 16:05:58 +0000

A 17-year-old Westbury High School senior was shot and killed Friday morning just steps from campus, prompting a massive law enforcement response and hours of heightened security for thousands of southwest Houston students and families.

Officers were called to the scene around 9 a.m. Houston Police Department Chief Noe Diaz said detectives are interviewing two witnesses and reviewing surveillance video from apartment cameras along Chimney Rock Road. Follow live updates below.

4 p.m. Westbury High School has canceled the homecoming game scheduled for Saturday. This is what Principal Alexander Westbury informed the school community.

“Dear Westbury High School Families,

“We want to share an additional update regarding this weekend’s activities. Due to today’s tragic loss and its impact on our school community, tomorrow’s Homecoming game has been canceled.

“Campus administration is working to reschedule the game, and we will share updated information with students and families once those plans are finalized.

“Thank you for your understanding and continued support of our Westbury community.”

1:30 p.m. Family identifies the 17-year-old killed as LePaul Warren. He was a football and basketball player at Westbury High School.

Family identifies the student killed as LePaul Warren.

11:30 a.m. Dryad St. and the adjacent areas have been reopened to vehicular traffic.

10:30 a.m. Law enforcement and 25 Texas DPS troopers continue to canvass surrounding apartment buildings and wooded areas for the shooter.

9:55 a.m. “This is something that should not happen in our community. Young people at the moment making bad decisions.” HPD Police Chief Noe Diaz said. “We’re working diligently to make sure we get someone in custody as soon as possible. To make sure this area is safe.”

9:40 a.m. “I heard the shot then I saw it when I crossed the sidewalk and that’s when I saw it.” a student tells KPRC Reporter Taylor Bruck. “I heard the shot then I saw it when I crossed the sidewalk and that’s when I saw it.”

9:30 a.m. Sky 2 News Chopper overflies the scene as police canvass the area.

9:20 a.m. HPD tells KPRC 2 News that homicide investigators are responding to the scene.

9 a.m. Houston Police Department reports a person was shot near Westbury High School.

View this post on Instagram

This is a developing story.

Alcaraz and Mensik win doubles to put Team Europe up 3-1 after opening day of Laver Cup

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 19:37:29 +0000

Carlos Alcaraz and doubles partner Jakub Mensik gave Team Europe a 3-1 lead over Team World after the opening day of the Laver Cup on Friday.

Alcaraz and Mensik beat Alexander Bublik and Taylor Fritz 6-4, 6-4 in the final match of the day at the O2 Arena.

Rafael Jodar had broken a 1-1 deadlock after the day session by defeating Bublik 6-2, 6-3 in the evening's singles match.

In the day session, Brandon Nakashima made the most of his Laver Cup debut by beating Mensik 6-1, 3-6, 10-7.

The 16th-ranked Nakashima was a late addition to Andre Agassi's roster after U.S. Open runner-up Ben Shelton withdrew last week.

In the event's opener, Casper Ruud beat Francisco Cerundolo 6-7 (4), 6-4, 10-8 to give Europe an early lead.

There are four matches per day in the three-day event.

Wins are worth one point on Friday, two points on Saturday and three points on Sunday. The first team to reach 13 points wins.

Europe has won the Laver Cup five times while Team World took its third title in last year's edition of the Ryder Cup-style event.

___

See AP’s full tennis coverage here

Coping with violence: therapist’s advice after two teens killed near Houston schools

Karen Araiza, Corley Peel — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 20:00:33 +0000

Key Takeaways for Families

✅ Parents: Regulate yourself first before talking to your child
✅ Ask what they know before adding new information
✅ Keep communication open -- make it clear they can always come to you
✅ Watch for two weeks of behavior changes as a signal to seek help
✅ Teachers: be honest about your own feelings with students
✅ Students: lean on friends, but bring in a trusted adult too

Start with yourself, parents

Before you sit down with your child, Jiles says the most important thing a parent can do is regulate their own emotions first.

“Your baby is in a school where you presume that they are safe and something like this happens,” Jiles said. “You want to be regulated first -- tapping into your community to make sure you’re leveled before you enter into conversations with your child.”

That means leaning on your own support system, like a friend, a partner, a counselor, before bringing the conversation home. “Their ability to regulate is largely contingent upon the parent or the guardian,” Jiles said.

How to start the conversation

Once you’re grounded, Jiles recommends a simple but powerful approach: ask questions.

Find out what your child already knows. Ask open-ended questions about what they’ve heard, then correct misinformation or gently fill in gaps.

Most importantly, keep the door open.

“We really want to make sure that we’re leaving a door open for them to always have constant communication,” Jiles said, “so that they can provide updates as need be — because remember, we are the ones regulating the children.”

Warning signs to watch for

Not every child will come to you with their fears. Jiles says parents need to know their child’s baseline behavior, and watch for changes that last.

“All of our kids are wired differently,” he said. “Is my kid a more shy kid? Are they expressive or not? And when do those things begin to change?”

His rule of thumb: if something seems off for two weeks, it’s time to act. That could mean a visit to your child’s pediatrician, who can point you toward the right resources, or connecting with a community mental health agency that works with children.

“What’s more important is a parent’s presence in a child’s life and knowing when their child’s behavior is off,and then getting help from there,” Jiles said.

A message for teachers and school staff

Educators are not just bystanders to this trauma, they are living it too. Jiles says school staff should give themselves permission to be honest about how they feel.

“That is a scary situation, to go into a building not knowing whether you may come out alive or not,” he said.

He encourages teachers to acknowledge the reality in the classroom, not by turning every lesson into a therapy session, but by being human.

“Acknowledging that ‘I too am scared’, or ‘I too wish this wasn’t a reality,’ and then providing space for the kids to express how they need to,” Jiles said. “The teachers are people. Administration are people. And it’s a very scary situation.”

Acknowledgement might look like a moment of silence, briefly stepping out to collect yourself, or simply telling students: I’m feeling this too.

Advice for students leaning on each other

It’s natural for teens to turn to friends before adults when processing something scary. Jiles says that’s okay -- with one important addition.

“If you have trusted friends that you want to speak to, definitely do that,” he said. “But I would encourage kids to also bring in a trusted adult.”

The reason: without guidance, well-meaning friends can accidentally spread misinformation or reinforce harmful ideas. His suggestion is for a group of friends to collectively identify one trusted adult they can bring into the conversation.

“We want to make sure we’re doing this the right way — and that we are not coming up with ideas that would actually be harmful to us going forward,” Jiles said.

Westbury senior who was shot and killed identified as LePaul Warren

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 19:22:23 +0000

A family member has identified the victim of this morning’s deadly school shooting as LePaul Warren, who was a senior at Westbury High School in southwest Houston.

Warren, 17, was a wide receiver and starter on the school’s varsity football team and a shooting guard for varsity basketball.

He was shot and killed just steps from the school campus and a search is on for the shooter.

RELATED: LIVE UPDATES: Senior killed near Westbury High School; shooter at large

His godfather, Nate Santee, says he was a good kid, very respectful, very polite.

Ke’Shon Joyce, a friend and also a senior at the school, said he was just with Warren at a McDonald’s the day before.

RELATED: Coping with violence: Therapist’s advice after two teens killed near Houston schools

The call came in around 8:21 a.m. Warren was shot just outside the campus grounds on Dryad Street near 11911 Chimney Rock Road, right outside an apartment complex that sits across from the school’s own athletic fields. It’s an area kids hang out in before school, according to Joyce.

After the shooting, Westbury High School went into secure mode, meaning nobody in and nobody out. Houston ISD later set up a controlled release so parents could come pick up their kids. Counselors are on hand for students and staff who need support.

Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz said said the school itself was never in danger and students, teachers and staff were safe.

“This happened just outside of the school,” Diaz said. “We’re working diligently to make sure we get someone in custody as soon as possible, to make sure this area is safe.”

Diaz said he personally spoke with Warren’s grandmother, mother and aunt, and said they were “beside themselves.”

As for the investigation, detectives have already pulled surveillance video from a nearby apartment complex, and they’re going door to door looking for more footage.

Witnesses said the shooter was dressed in all black with a ski mask on. On Tuesday, the 14-year-old accused of shooting and killing 15-year-old Westfield student Royce Witchet, was also wearing all black with a ski mask. Investigators have not connected the two shootings.

“We have got leads. We have got video cameras,” Diaz said. “Homicide detectives are at the scene, and we’re working toward making sure this gets resolved.”

25 additional Texas DPS troopers are on the ground helping HPD search nearby apartment buildings and wooded areas.

If you have cell phone video, dash cam footage, home surveillance or anything else that might help, Houston police want to hear from you.

Houston ISD released the following statement after the shooting:

“The Houston Police Department responded this morning to an off-campus incident near Westbury High School involving a Westbury student. As law enforcement responded and investigated, the campus was placed in Secure as a precaution. All students and staff on campus remained safe.

The District later learned that the student died as a result of the incident. Crisis counselors are on campus and will continue to be available next week to support students and staff. All after-school activities at Westbury have been canceled for today.

“We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of a Westbury High School student. My thoughts are with the student’s family, friends, classmates, teachers, and the entire Westbury community during this incredibly difficult time,” said Superintendent Mike Miles. “HISD is providing counseling and additional support for students and staff at Westbury, and we will continue to support the school community in the days ahead. We are grateful to the law enforcement officers and campus staff who responded this morning and worked to ensure the safety of everyone on campus.”

What to know before bringing home a puppy plsu spotting puppy mill red flags

Javana Vela — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 21:54:49 +0000

If you’re thinking about adding a dog to your family, experts say one of the most important questions to ask is: Where did that pet come from?

Meera Nandlal, a board member with the Texas Humane Legislation Network, and Greg Evans with the Houston Humane Society joined Houston Life to discuss puppy mills, responsible pet ownership and what consumers should know before bringing a new pet home.

Puppy mills are large-scale commercial breeding facilities where large numbers of puppies may be bred and sold. Nandlal says consumers may not know a puppy’s full history when purchasing from a retail pet store, including where it was born, how it was raised or how far it traveled before arriving in Texas.

The issue can also become a financial one for families. Nandlal says some puppies may arrive with health problems, potentially leaving new owners with unexpected veterinary expenses. She emphasized that consumers should feel comfortable asking questions and seeking transparency about where an animal was raised and its health history.

For people who want a specific breed, Nandlal recommends working with a reputable breeder who is willing to show where the animals are kept and allow potential owners to meet the puppy’s mother.

Texas Humane Legislation Network also supported ethical pet ownership legislation in 2025 that would have prevented retail pet stores from selling commercially bred puppies and kittens while allowing stores to partner with shelters and rescues. The legislation did not pass.

Evans encouraged Houstonians considering a new pet to check with the Houston Humane Society, where dogs and other animals are available for adoption. He said the organization’s adoption counselors work with potential owners to help find a pet that fits their lifestyle.

During the Houston Life segment, three puppies from the Houston Humane Society also joined the conversation. Red Velvet, Tiramisu, and Lemon Meringue are not old enough for adoptions, but were available for adoption information through the organization’s website.

For more information about responsible pet ownership, puppy mill warning signs and animals available for adoption, visit Houston Humane Society or Texas Humane Legislation Network

Trump said he would campaign in midterm battlegrounds. He's starting in deep red states instead

Jill Colvin And Kim Chandler, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 18:48:43 +0000

President Donald Trump vowed to campaign in 35 of the most competitive battleground districts in the final sprint to November's midterm elections.

Instead, he will begin October by stumping in Alabama and Oklahoma, two of the most Republican states in the nation. His events are sure to draw enthusiastic crowds of fans, but his choice of destinations is a reminder of his deep unpopularity in much of the country during a campaign season he's sought to make all about himself.

Trump will hold rallies next week in Durant, Oklahoma, and Mobile, Alabama, where he is sure to draw crowds, but he has also raised eyebrows.

While organizers insist the rallies are in locations with media markets that span state lines and they will help bolster broader turnout, Trump's itinerary is yet another sign of the uphill fight that his party faces. Republicans have already been pouring money into red states once considered safe as they try to shore up candidates facing an unhappy electorate that has soured on Trump and his policies.

Some Republicans have also been distancing themselves from the president in recent weeks as they try to appeal to voters beyond Trump's “Make America Great Again” base. They have removed or downplayed references to the president on their websites and increasingly voiced opposition to his unpopular war with Iran.

But Trump's events — Thursday in Durant and Friday in Mobile — are also likely to deliver something else he craves: adoring crowds. He is almost guaranteed to fill the venues with the kind of die-hard supporters who fueled his political rise, projecting excitement as he tries to bolster enthusiasm and rally Republicans.

“The President’s ability to engage with and activate low-propensity voters is unmatched. That’s why he’ll be barnstorming the country to activate the voters we need to win in November,” said Republican National Committee spokesperson Natalie Baldassarre, promising more October rallies to come.

Democrats, meanwhile, celebrated the announcement. “The political floor is falling out from underneath Trump and Congressional Republicans, forcing them to scramble to spend and campaign in deep red territory in the final weeks,” said Viet Shelton, spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

The RNC noted that Durant, Oklahoma, is on the Texas border and next to the Dallas-Fort Worth media market, and will draw Republicans in Texas, which has emerged as one of the most critical states on the map. Scandal-plagued Attorney General Ken Paxton, whom Trump backed over incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, is locked in a tight race against Democrat James Talarico. Gov. Greg Abbott is also facing a stronger-than-expected challenger in Democrat Gina Hinojosa.

Mobile is next to Florida’s panhandle, a Republican stronghold where high turnout can help bolster Trump-backed candidates running for Senate and governor. However, Florida Republican Sen. Ashley Moody is not expected to attend.

In Oklahoma, Trump will be stumping for Mike Mazzei, whom he backed as the Republican nominee for governor during a competitive primary. Mazzei is running against Oklahoma's Democratic House Minority Leader Cyndi Munson.

“This race continues to get more competitive — and national Republicans are right to be worried about Mazzei,” Democratic Governors Association spokesperson Kevin Donohoe said in a statement.

Alabama, meanwhile, holds deep nostalgia for Trump and his early supporters. He held his first mega-rally in Mobile more than a decade ago, drawing some 30,000 people to a college football stadium. The crowd made clear to skeptics of his campaign that he was more than a celebrity novelty.

“I think it’s very natural that he would host a rally here as he is gearing up for the midterm elections,” said John Wahl, the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor and former chair of the Alabama Republican Party.

Although Republicans remain the heavy favorites in Alabama's statewide campaigns, they face a more challenging political landscape this year.

Former Democratic Sen. Doug Jones is mounting a vigorous campaign for Alabama governor against one of Trump’s most vocal allies, Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who said he welcomed the president's visit.

Republican Rep. Barry Moore, running to replace Tuberville in the Senate with Trump's backing, said the president's rally “will be the jet fuel we need to win big in Alabama.”

Mobile is also near Alabama's 2nd Congressional District, which leans red after its lines were redrawn but is not a slam dunk for Republicans as they try to dislodge Democratic Rep. Shomari Figures.

Figures has been criticizing the president's plan to lower import tariffs on foreign beef in an appeal to cattle ranchers as he tries to fend off a challenge from his Trump-backed opponent, State Rep. Rhett Marques.

Trump has promised to ramp up his campaigning in the election's final stretch and had said he would visit all of the most competitive districts.

“It’s all about 35 races,” he said at a recent Rose Garden dinner attended by Republican lawmakers. “I’m going to go to every one of those 35 places and we’re going to see if we can get everyone elected."

___

Colvin reported from New York. Associated Press reporter Bill Barrow in Atlanta contributed to this report.

Dessert Gallery celebrates 31 years of keeping Houston sweet

Javana Vela — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 21:36:31 +0000

For more than three decades, Dessert Gallery has been part of Houston’s celebrations, from birthday cakes to everyday sweet treats.

Founded in 1995 by Sara Brook, the local bakery has grown alongside the city while keeping one thing the same: its desserts are made from scratch. Brook says her love of baking started when she was a child, when her babysitter taught her how to read a recipe on the back of a chocolate chip cookie package.

That early passion eventually led Brook to open Dessert Gallery. She says owning a bakery was not originally part of her plan, but she followed her passion and built the business into a Houston staple.

Brook says she still loves baking at home and keeps cookie dough in her freezer for when friends and family stop by. She also credits her longtime employees for helping make Dessert Gallery what it is today.

That team is especially meaningful around National Bakery Day, which celebrates the people behind the desserts. Brook says Dessert Gallery’s bakers and decorators make everything from scratch, from breaking eggs for lemon bars to making German chocolate filling in-house.

As Dessert Gallery celebrates 31 years, Brook says she still has a hard time believing how much time has passed. This National Bakery Day, Dessert Gallery is also encouraging Houstonians to support local bakeries and the people who keep these sweet traditions going.

Iran's foreign minister details new offer to reopen strait, and other Mideast developments

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 09:55:36 +0000

Word of an offer from Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume talks on its nuclear program is emerging from the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s top cleric issued a rare statement, calling on the kingdom’s troops to defend the country from neighboring Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

In New York, where the wars in Iran and Gaza have dominated the U.N. agenda, the leaders of Iraq, Lebanon and Egypt were scheduled to address world leaders later Friday.

Here is a look at the latest news from the Middle East. More coverage of the U.N. General Assembly is available here.

Proposal to reopen strait, resume nuclear talks on the table

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed Friday reporting that Tehran has put forth a seven-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume talks on its nuclear program if the U.S. meets the conditions it has laid out. Talking to reporters at the U.N., Araghchi said the plan was delivered to Washington through Qatari mediators on the sidelines of the General Assembly. “If the necessary conditions are met, the strait can be reopened and normal maritime passage restored within seven days,” he said. “The choice now rests with the United States.” The seven-day clock will begin when the U.S. accepts the plan, Araghchi added. The White House said earlier Friday that U.S. officials are having positive and constructive conversations with mediators on the Iran war

Top religious figure urges Saudi troops to be ready to defend the kingdom

With Saudi oil facilities, cities and ships off its coast coming under escalating attacks, the kingdom's top religious authority has called on soldiers to be prepared to defend the country from Iran-backed Houthis.

Grand Mufti Sheikh Saleh al-Fawzan, who traditionally avoids weighing in on politics in a country that holds enormous influence among Muslims worldwide, issued the strongly worded statement. Al-Fawzan addressed his message to soldiers defending the kingdom's borders and members of the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis in Yemen, peppering it with Quranic verses and religious edicts.

“Protecting this great nation, guarding its borders, defending against aggression and punishing those who want to harm any inch of it is one of the greatest duties,” he said.

The head of Yemen's internationally recognized government, Rashad al-Alimi, likewise urged Yemenis to rally behind Saudi-backed armed forces and allied groups in their fight with the Houthis.

Al-Alimi, who chairs the country’s Presidential Leadership Council, also called on Yemenis fighting alongside the Houthis to defect, announcing a general amnesty.

Al-Alimi says goal is to retake capital Sanaa from Houthis

Al-Alimi said the aim of the fighting is to restore his government’s control over Sanaa, the capital, which the Houthis seized in 2014.

His call to arms came during his first speech since his Saudi-backed forces were routed from the western Red Sea coast by the Houthis’ lightning advance on the city of Mokha and islands in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, where 12% of the world's trade passes.

The swift Houthi advances raised questions about the effectiveness of the Saudi-backed forces in the face of the disciplined, well-armed Houthis. The Houthi assault exploited divisions among the Saudi-backed forces and distrust among its leaders, leading to a chaotic troop withdrawal before the fall of Mokha.

Al-Alimi’s speech came on the 64th anniversary of the military coup that ousted the monarchy ruling northern Yemen, rooted in the Zaydi Shiite sect to which the Houthis also belong. The Houthis battled Yemen’s central government for years before sweeping down from their northern stronghold and seizing Sanaa.

Pakistani, Saudi and Turkish military chiefs hold first joint meeting

The first joint meeting of the military chiefs of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey was held in Riyadh on Friday, following the signing of the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement by the three countries, Pakistan’s military said in a statement.

The chiefs of defense forces and chiefs of general staff from the three countries reviewed the regional security situation and threats facing Saudi Arabia, according to the statement.

“They strongly resented the attacks targeting the Holy City of Mecca and civilian and economic infrastructure,” the statement said.

The military chiefs also praised the vigilance and professionalism of the Saudi armed forces in ensuring the safety of the people and security of the kingdom, it said.

Iran's president says he supports Xi's call for return to MOA

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Friday in a post on X that Tehran supports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s call for a return to the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding and renewed diplomacy between Iran and the United States.

Pezeshkian said he appreciated Xi’s “thoughtful and responsible support” for resolving differences through dialogue and diplomacy, adding that Iran backed returning to the understanding and honoring previously agreed commitments.

The post came a day after Pezeshkian met with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York. Sharif said Pezeshkian told him the Islamabad memorandum remained “fully acceptable” to Iran and that Tehran was ready to take it forward.

The 14-point memorandum, mediated by Pakistan and signed in June, provided a framework for ending the conflict.

UN Security Council demands halt to attacks by Houthi rebels

In a statement approved by its 15 members, the U.N.’s most powerful body condemned Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and against commercial shipping in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

The council called for “practical cooperation,” including with Yemen’s internationally recognized government, to prevent the Houthis from obtaining weapons, military material and training enabling them to carry out attacks.

It reminded all countries of their obligation to implement the U.N. arms embargo against the Houthis.

2 Israeli soldiers are killed in Gaza

Israel’s military said two of its soldiers were killed in northern Gaza on Thursday while inspecting an unexploded Israeli drone near a military post. They were the first Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza in months.

Five other Israeli soldiers have been killed since last October’s ceasefire that attempted to halt a more than two-year war between Israel and the militant Hamas group.

While the heaviest fighting has subsided, almost daily Israeli fire has continued. Israeli forces have carried out repeated airstrikes and frequently fire on Palestinians near military-held zones and have killed 1,408 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials.

___

This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.

Man City ready to fight Premier League after reports that club guilty of almost all charges

James Robson And Steve Douglas, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 15:26:23 +0000

Manchester City plans to fight the Premier League for months if found guilty of alleged financial breaches in potentially the biggest scandal in English soccer history.

Reports Friday said an independent panel had upheld nearly all of the 100-plus financial charges against the club in a case that was initiated more than three years ago.

City did not confirm the decision, saying its case with the Premier League was “ongoing."

City, however, would appeal a guilty decision and the process would take several months, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity to respect confidentiality elements of the process.

The Athletic first reported that City has been found guilty of all but one of more than 100 charges laid by the Premier League, which accused the club in February 2023 of providing misleading information about its finances over a nine-year period from 2009-18. The report said the sanctions have not been decided and all possibilities remain open.

The BBC also reported the story.

In response, City said in a statement: “The Premier League process remains ongoing, with significant elements to be completed, and subject to strict confidentiality.”

City added that its position “remains consistent” with previous comments about the case. The club has always denied the charges.

“The club has diligently respected due process for eight years,” City said, “on the basis that the Premier League board and executive would behave as an independent, impartial and fair-minded regulator, free from partisan influence.”

City’s punishment could be a huge points deduction, and as extreme as expulsion from the Premier League.

When contacted by The Associated Press on Friday, the Premier League said it couldn’t comment on the reports.

City has always protested its innocence after supposed leaked emails and documents, likely hacked, were published starting in 2018 by German magazine Der Spiegel. The documents allegedly showed City tried to mask the source of revenue from deals tied to Abu Dhabi, whose ruling family bought the club in 2008 and has overseen the spending of hundreds of millions of dollars on some of the world’s best players over the following two decades.

City has been the most dominant team in England over the last 15 years, winning eight Premier League titles since 2012 as well as the Champions League in 2023. Over the period in question — 2009-18 — City won the league three times, in 2012, 2014 and 2018.

Friday's news comes after Pep Guardiola stood down as City manager at the end of last season following an unprecedented period of success.

Guardiola always maintained the club's innocence.

“What people accuse us of, we do not agree with what they say,” he said in 2023.

And Spain midfielder Rodri, who played for City from 2019 until leaving this offseason for Barcelona, said he still believed the club has done nothing wrong.

“They always expressed the confidence that they never did something wrong, and we believe in that. That’s the thing,” Rodri said of City's ownership.

“Until the moment they are proved wrong, we believe in the club. I’ve been there, I know how they work, and how they co-operate.”

Speaking at Wembley Stadium on Friday night the day before Spain plays England in the Nations League, Rodri said nobody would be able to take away City's recent titles.

“It is something that is not paid by money, it is paid with effort, with partnership and with being shoulder to shoulder every day,” he said.

“We had a lot of success over the years, and here in Wembley, so I can tell you everything was deserved and I’m glad I could live one of the best eras of English football.”

Former Manchester United and England player Rio Ferdinand suggested City's titles should be expunged and awarded to the runner-up for each season in question.

“Another premier league medal to be added to the cabinet,” he posted on X in reference to City’s 2012 title win over United.

The Premier League competition has had financial fair play rules designed to ensure clubs essentially spend what they earn from deals that are assessed to determine if they are at legitimate market value. City had previously been accused by UEFA, European soccer’s governing body, of overstating sponsorship revenue to comply with Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations.

In 2020, UEFA ruled City had committed “serious breaches” of FFP regulations from 2012-16. But a two-year ban was later overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport because allegations were either rejected or found to have happened too long ago to be investigated.

The Premier League charges came subsequently, after a four-year investigation. City was accused of more than 100 breaches including providing misleading information about its finances and failure to co-operate with the investigation.

___

Douglas reported from Sundsvall, Sweden

___

James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

___

See AP’s full soccer coverage here

Iran proposes a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz in 7 days if the US meets its conditions

Cara Anna, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 13:38:54 +0000

Iran has offered to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume talks on its nuclear program in seven days if the United States lifts its naval blockade of Iranian ports, waives sanctions on Iranian oil sales and observes a ceasefire that would include Lebanon.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi detailed the proposal to reporters outside the U.N. Security Council on Friday, saying it would also restart stalled talks with the U.S. on Iran's nuclear program.

“The seven-day timeline will start as soon as the United States accepts this plan,” he said.

Araghchi said initial steps would take about four to five days to complete, and the strait would be open on the sixth day. “And on day seven, the talks with the U.S. will be started for the final deal on mutually agreed subjects,” he said, referring to the nuclear program.

Iran's disruption of the strait — through which a fifth of the world's traded oil and gas transited before the war — has emerged as its main point of leverage. The effects have been felt far beyond the Middle East and posed political problems for President Donald Trump and his Republican Party ahead of November's midterm congressional elections.

The White House said only that U.S. officials are having positive and constructive conversations with mediators on the Iran war. In response to questions, it said the U.S. is facilitating significant oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz.

There was no immediate comment on the proposal from Gulf Arab nations, although a person familiar with the matter, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations, told The Associated Press that Saudi Arabia was skeptical of the latest push for a deal.

The proposal resembles a June deal that quickly crumbled

The proposal, conveyed to the U.S. by Qatar, strongly resembles an interim deal reached in June, but with an accelerated timetable. The earlier agreement, which called for a 60-day interim period, quickly collapsed as Iran resumed attacks on shipping in the strait.

Trump has said he is in no rush to reach a deal, even as high oil prices fuel inflation. On the Iranian side, there are questions as to whether the hard-liners who dominate the security forces would accept compromises championed by moderates like President Masoud Pezeshkian.

“If Trump calculates this arrangement is worthwhile and can bring political benefit before the midterms and reduce gas prices, perhaps we'll see flexibility not seen in previous weeks,” said Trita Parsi, executive vice president of the Quincy Institute think tank.

But he noted “deep suspicion,” especially around the prospect of Iran merely buying time to ship out more of its oil and ease its economic pain.

There are other signs of renewed diplomacy

In the latest sign of diplomatic movement, Pezeshkian hosted the prime minister of Qatar early Friday. Qatar has been a key mediator, including during indirect Iran-U.S. talks at the U.N. this week.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that “if there’s an opportunity to exchange ideas and messages, we will.”

After multiple failed attempts at a deal, however, suspicion is high on both sides. The U.S. and Israel have attacked Iran twice while it was engaged in nuclear talks, and the U.S. and Iran accuse each other of having swiftly violated the June agreement.

“The Iranians already know that the chances of this not being accepted by Trump are much higher than the opposite,” Hamidreza Azizi, senior Iran analyst at the International Crisis Group think tank, wrote on X.

“They want to show that they were ready for diplomacy and that it was the United States that, for the third time, decided to attack in the middle of a diplomatic track — something that people within (Iran’s) strategic community have been anticipating over the past few days,” he said.

Araghchi said Friday that more than 5,000 people in Iran have been killed in the nearly seven-month U.S.-Israeli war.

It's unclear if the proposal would include the Yemen conflict

The proposal would include Lebanon, where Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah have been mostly observing a ceasefire. It's not clear, however, if it would include the revived conflict between Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels and Saudi Arabia, which has put even more pressure on global markets.

Iran appears to think the Houthis' newly enhanced ability to threaten the Bab el-Mandeb strait on the Red Sea — another trade chokepoint on the other side of the Arabian Peninsula — could push Trump to make a deal.

Araghchi met with his Saudi counterpart on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, as he and other Iranian officials held meetings that included representatives from other countries that Tehran has exchanged military strikes with over the last year.

With the Houthis' latest surge in attacks, Saudi Arabia was skeptical of Araghchi’s latest push for a deal with the U.S., according to the person familiar with the matter.

The kingdom, along with other Gulf states, had advocated over the summer for a return to negotiations, saying they could live with an agreement that gave Iran a temporary role in managing the Strait of Hormuz, the person said.

But the Saudi calculations changed as the Houthis seized Yemen’s strategic Red Sea coast from pro-government forces and a vital Saudi pipeline came under attack.

Earlier this month, Gulf leaders planned to gather in Oman to discuss an emerging agreement between Oman and Iran on the Strait of Hormuz, which runs between the two countries. But the meeting was canceled after Saudi Arabia called for amendments, only some of which were accepted by Iran, the person said.

Iran's leadership has shown signs of divisions

Iran's leaders have sought to project unity, but some hard-liners want to continue or escalate the war to secure bigger U.S. concessions and have criticized Pezeshkian and Araghchi's diplomatic steps this week.

Firebrand lawmaker Ebrahim Rezaei wrote on X that merely meeting with “the aggressor enemy” showed weakness. Iran’s Assembly of Experts, a panel of Shiite clerics who appoint the supreme leader, said “there is no path other than resistance.”

Iran's parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, who served as chief negotiator in earlier U.S. talks, provided a rare public acknowledgment of the internal divide.

“There is a view that speaks of war but offers no prospect or mechanism for bringing it to a powerful conclusion,” he wrote on social media. “At the opposite end is a current that makes the error of underestimating national capabilities.”

He added: “The first error keeps the country in a state of permanent crisis, while the second hands national resources and dignity over to the enemy.”

___

Associated Press reporters Josh Boak and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed.

A reprieve from rising oil prices helps US stocks finish the week higher

Chan Ho-Him, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 04:30:03 +0000

A cooldown in oil prices on Friday helped release some of the pressure that’s built up on Wall Street, and U.S. stocks closed out their first winning week in the last three.

The S&P 500 added 0.5% to break a three-day losing streak marked by big swings due to rising yields in the bond market. Despite the week’s uneasiness, the main measure of the U.S. stock market’s health pulled back within 0.7% of its all-time high set last month.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 478 points, or 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.5%.

Stocks got a boost after the price for a barrel of Brent oil dropped 2.8% to $97.44 per barrel. It’s been yo-yoing on uncertainty about when the war with Iran will allow oil to flow freely again from the Middle East. Prices go down when hopes rise for a possible deal to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers, and they go up when doubts resurface.

But trading was shaky again on Wall Street Friday, particularly after a report on U.S. consumer sentiment sent Treasury yields higher in the morning.

The report from the University of Michigan said U.S. consumers are bracing for inflation of 4.6% in the coming year, up from their forecast of 4% the month before. It also said that overall sentiment among consumers was not as bad as economists expected, even if it was the lowest in four months.

The rising expectations for high inflation are potentially dangerous for the economy because they could encourage behavior that leads to a vicious cycle that makes the cost of living spiral even higher.

Some consumers told the survey that buying some kinds of products now would help them avoid higher prices in the future. If many rush to make such purchases at the same time, it could encourage sellers to raise prices further.

Following the report on consumer sentiment, the yield on the 10-year Treasury briefly jumped to 5.22%, up from 5.18% late Thursday, and was near its highest level since 2007.

High yields slow the economy by making it more expensive for everyone to borrow money, while undercutting prices for stocks and other investments. The 10-year yield has been jumping since the start of the war with Iran, when it was at 3.97%.

Higher yields worldwide are rattling all kinds of financial markets. They’re on the rise because of worries about inflation, expensive oil, big government debt loads, signs of continued economic strength and other factors.

But yields eased later in trading on Friday as the price of oil pulled lower, and the 10-year yield fell back to 5.15%. That helped stocks on Wall Street regain strength.

Helping to drive the market higher was Akamai Technologies. The cloud company’s stock rose 3.2% after it announced an $11.6 billion, multiyear agreement with Anthropic, the company behind the Claude AI chatbot.

Costco Wholesale climbed 2.9% after the retailer reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Such strong profit reports from U.S. companies have helped the stock market remain resilient despite all the worries about high inflation and oil prices.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 39.28 points to 7,743.41. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 478.64 to 51,828.62, and the Nasdaq composite gained 129.34 to 27,068.72.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe following bigger moves in Asia. Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 1.3%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1%.

___

AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Michelle Chapman contributed to this report.

Republicans expect to retain control of Texas House, lawmaker says

Texas Tribune, Alejandro Serrano — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 21:13:54 +0000

A day after the leader of the Texas House Democratic Caucus predicted the state’s minority party will flip the Texas House, a GOP lawmaker said Friday the math does not add up for them and Republicans should retain control of the chamber.

“If Republican voters turn out, we won’t have to worry about anything like that happening,” state Rep. Mitch Little, R-Lewisville, said during a panel at the Texas Tribune Festival.

Little made the comment during a discussion about the Republican Party with state Rep. Daniel Alders, R-Tyler, and state Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Plano. The state lawmakers called for reducing taxes, regulating data centers and addressing prediction markets.

On Thursday, Democratic state Rep. Gene Wu of Houston said Democrats can gain enough seats in November to establish a majority in the Legislature’s lower chamber. The party needs 14 seats to gain control of the chamber.

“If everyone pushes a little bit, we win,” Wu said.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick warned in April that Republicans are “going to have a tough time” holding onto control of the Texas House, as the GOP battles political headwinds ahead of the midterm election.

Leach said that the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate Ken Paxton “has got to communicate more effectively with independents.” The attorney general will face state Rep. James Talarico of Austin in November, the Democratic nominee.

“I personally believe, for what it’s worth, that General Paxton needs to get on a debate stage with James Talarico,” Leach said. “We conservatives do not run from a fight. We shouldn’t at least, and so I’m hopeful that that will happen.”

In July, Paxton’s campaign said “of course we are going to debate James Talarico” but has yet to accept a debate invitation. Speaking at the Texas Tribune Festival on Thursday, Talarico challenged Paxton to a debate moderated by Fox News’ Bret Baier.

The Republican state lawmakers also previewed the next legislative session. Leach floated the idea of redrawing state house districts, after the Legislature redrew the state’s congressional map last year, pointing to Wu’s comments Thursday that Democrats should consider the same should they regain power.

“Why would we not redistrict next session?” Leach said.

But more urgent is an array of issues that constituents are talking about, according to lawmakers — like worries about data centers, property taxes, schools and public safety.

“There is not enough relief that we could provide Texas homeowners in the area of property taxes,” Little said, referring to maintenance and operations taxes.

Watch: Pod Save America hosts live show at the 2026 Texas Tribune Festival

Texas Tribune, Texas Tribune Events Staff — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 20:50:00 +0000

The hosts of one of America’s most popular political podcasts bring their live show to Austin for a special TribFest taping on the midterms, the state of democracy and what’s at stake in November.

Jon Rosenthal says he and Bo French agreed to first major debate between Texas statewide candidates

Texas Tribune, Uriel J. García — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 17:37:19 +0000

Bo French, the Republican candidate for railroad commissioner who has been under fire for making racist social media posts about University of Texas students, will face off against Democrat nominee Jon Rosenthal in a debate next month ahead, Rosenthal said Friday.

The two candidates are seeking one of three seats on the Railroad Commission of Texas — which oversees a constellation of energy infrastructure across the state, including gas and oil. The agency does not actually oversee railroads.

Rosenthal, a state representative from Cypress, posted on social media that he and French have agreed to a debate at 5 p.m. on Oct. 22 at the Dallas Press Club, which will be live streamed.

“If you can see this, Bo — I’m still ready, — any time, any place — any moderator,” Rosenthal wrote in a statement on his X account.

Rosenthal’s campaign manager, Fawaz Anwar, said the debate will be at the studio of Jeff Crilley at 5400 LBJ Freeway, Suite 800, in Dallas.

French has not publicly confirmed his participation. He did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The debate appears to be the first to be announced between any two statewide candidates this election cycle, as Democrats at the top of the ticket are pressuring their counterparts to participate.

French came under fire by fellow Republicans earlier this month for sharing a post on X showing a photo of the student section cheering a Texas Longhorn victory against Ohio State, referring to the students as “foreigners” who displaced Americans, without having any information about their status. French has stood by his remark since but has also started speaking publicly about his potential policies on gas and energy. French last week also deleted several old posts making other offensive statements.

French is a high-ranking Republican operative who last served as chair of the Tarrant County Republican Party and who has made culture wars the centerpiece of his campaign — such as questioning whether Jewish people or Muslims posed a bigger threat to the United States. In March, French said the U.S. should deport 100 million people — roughly a third of the country’s population.

French has pledged to end Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives, funding and practices at the Texas Railroad Commission and has called to end Chinese government influence in the oil industry.

Rosenthal, is a career oil field engineer and four-term House member, who has said that if he wins he would like to hire community liaisons for the Texas Railroad Commission in every region, and expand language access to include Spanish and Vietnamese, among others. He has also said that he will work for affordable gas rates by scrutinizing utility companies.

The Sharks make 20-year-old Macklin Celebrini the youngest captain in team history

Josh Dubow, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 18:11:15 +0000

Macklin Celebrini was picked as captain of the San Jose Sharks, becoming the youngest player ever to fill that role for the team at the age of 20.

Celebrini was presented the captain's jersey at a team meeting by former captain Joe Thornton before practice Friday.

“It’s a huge honor,” Celebrini said. “It’s just something that I can’t really take lightly. Obviously, there’s a responsibility that comes with that. But at the same time I’m not really going to change who I am or what I do. Just a huge honor first and foremost and with that comes some responsibility.”

Celebrini takes over the spot that had been vacant since Logan Couture went down with a career-ending injury, becoming the 11th full-time captain in Sharks history.

Couture was given that role for the 2019-20 season and held it through the 2024-25 season even though he didn't play a single game that year because of a chronic injury to his groin and pelvic area that ended his career.

Celebrini was one of five players who rotated as alternate captains last season but now has the role for the foreseeable future. He is the youngest player to fill the leadership role, with Patrick Marleau previously holding that mark when he was named captain at age 24 in 2004. He is also the youngest current captain in the NHL, edging out 21-year-old Connor Bedard, who was named captain in Chicago earlier this month.

“He’s earned it through the way he works and competes and the way he’s played on the ice and the way he’s handled himself off the ice,” general manager Mike Grier said. “I don’t know if anyone drafts someone at 18 and thinks by the time they’re 20 they’re going to be leading your team and be your captain. But there are those rare special players who do it and Macklin is one of them.”

Celebrini has become the face of the franchise since being drafted first overall in 2024 and quickly developing into one of the game's biggest stars. He signed a five-year, $94 million extension this summer and is under contract through the 2031-32 season.

Celebrini, who turned 20 in June, has 178 career points for the fifth-most ever for a teenager and his 70 career goals are seventh best for a player before turning 20.

“We’ve seen it since day one, the type of player he is, but also the type of person he is,” coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “The way he leads our group on and off the ice. The guys gravitate towards him."

Celebrini had 45 goals and 70 assists last season, with his 115 points breaking Thornton’s franchise record of 114 set in 2006-07 and trailing Wayne Gretzky (137 in 1979-80) and Sidney Crosby (120 in 2006-07) for the most in a season for a player before turning 20.

He had the 10th-most points ever for a player who missed the playoffs, recording a point on 46.2% of San Jose goals for the second-best rate in the league behind Connor McDavid (48.9%) and the best ever for a teenager.

He also was the leading goal scorer in the Olympics, with five goals to help Canada win the silver medal. He then served as captain of Team Canada for the World Cup in the spring.

Despite Celebrini’s exploits, the Sharks still missed the playoffs for the seventh straight season. They improved by 34 points for the 10th best single-season jump in the last 30 years but landed four points out of the playoffs.

“It definitely starts with his work ethic,” teammate Tyler Toffoli said. “It’s not always the things he says. Obviously, he’s very vocal in the sense of he’s still a young kid and he enjoys coming to the rink and cracking jokes and having fun. But at the same time, when it comes to work and in the middle of a period in a game, he can be serious. It’s one of those things when whenever he talks, you listen."

Celebrini is part of a strong young core in San Jose alongside fellow promising players like Michael Misa, Will Smith, Igor Chernyshov and Sam Dickinson. The Sharks added even more young talent this offseason with three first-round picks headlined by Swedish left winger Ivar Stenberg at No. 2 overall.

Grier also brought in veteran reinforcements at the start of the offseason, trading for defenseman Darnell Nurse and signing defenseman Jacob Trouba and forward Mason Marchment.

Now with those veterans and Celebrini leading the way, the Sharks are hoping to get back to the postseason.

“When you get a special player, it changes, you know, the trajectory of things that you’re on,” Grier said. “He gives the group a certain level of belief that things are possible. We were fortunate to win the lottery and be able to select Mac."

___

See AP’s full NHL coverage here

Inside the AI-powered Novatio School, rethinking what a school day can look like

Lauren Kelly — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 20:39:50 +0000

Artificial intelligence is quickly becoming part of everyday life, helping us do everything from shopping and banking to finding information and getting things done more efficiently.

But what happens when AI enters the classroom? Could technology actually change the way students learn?

That’s the idea behind Novatio School, an AI-powered school for students in grades 2 through 8 that is rethinking what a school day can look like.

So, what does an AI-powered school actually look like? Think less “robots running the classroom” and more technology working behind the scenes to help students learn at their own pace.

Students still have live teachers, classmates, discussions, coaching, clubs and plenty of opportunities to build relationships.

AI can help analyze student performance, identify knowledge gaps and personalize learning, giving teachers more information about where each student may need additional support.

To learn more or to see if Novatio is a fit for your child -- go to www.novatio.school.

Watch as Karissa Ham, Head of School at Novatio School, explains what AI-powered education actually looks like—and why the goal isn’t to replace teachers with technology.

Ukraine's Zelenskyy says he urged Trump to enlist China's help in ending Russia's invasion

Hanna Arhirova And Barry Hatton, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 11:57:02 +0000

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that he asked U.S. President Donald Trump to press China’s leader to use Beijing’s influence over Moscow in a diplomatic effort to get Russia to end its 4½-yearlong invasion of Ukraine.

Zelenskyy told reporters he has not yet received feedback from the White House about Trump’s talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping but expects to learn the outcome.

Zelenskyy, who is keen to muster more international support for Ukraine’s defense, was in the United States this week on a trip coinciding with the U.N. General Assembly. He met with Trump on Tuesday.

NATO countries have called China a “decisive enabler” of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion.

Zelenskyy shared more details of his U.S. trip in voice messages to a group of journalists.

Here’s what Zelenskyy also said:

Zelenskyy says the US wants initial technical talks

Washington is pushing for a three-way meeting involving delegations from the U.S., Ukraine and Russia, with officials holding technical talks in that format without the countries' leaders, Zelenskyy said.

Ukraine is waiting for the U.S. to propose a date for those meetings, he said, adding that American officials suggested the United Arab Emirates as the location for these talks.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday that Putin and Trump during their call earlier this month discussed holding such a meeting in the near future. “As of now, I can’t give you any specifics,” Peskov said.

Representatives from the three countries held three rounds of trilateral negotiations early this year, twice in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE, and once in Geneva, but the talks achieved no significant breakthroughs.

Speaking to reporters in St. Petersburg on Friday night, Putin decried recent Ukrainian attacks deep inside Russia and on Russian-held areas of Ukraine and said that while “proposals to resume the talks are all on the table,” Moscow “will think carefully about what we need to do in response.”

The Kremlin will make its decisions, “including on the possible resumption of the negotiation process, based on the interests of the Russian Federation,” Putin stressed.

US passed hefty sanctions on Russia

Zelenskyy met with U.S. senators and Congress members during his U.S. trip and said he thanked them for their bipartisan support in passing a powerful sanctions bill aimed at Moscow last month. Trump signed the bill into law last week but hasn’t enacted the measures yet.

Sanctions are key in forcing Putin to the negotiating table, Zelenskyy said, adding that he hoped Trump would implement the measures.

“The sanctions are indeed strong ... all of this is now in the hands of the president of the United States. He can use this tool to pressure the Russian Federation,” Zelenskyy said.

Zelenskyy says he got Trump's OK for Patriot licenses

The Ukrainian leader said Trump confirmed he had made a final decision that Kyiv would get licenses to produce Patriot air defense systems.

Ukraine is desperate for more of the American-made air defense systems that are needed to stop Russia’s ballistic missiles, but they have been in short supply since the war in Iran started on Feb. 28.

Trump had said in July that he would allow Ukraine to make its own Patriots but later appeared to be reconsidering the move.

Countries urge free flow of food through Black Sea

Ukraine and Russia are both major global suppliers of wheat, barley, sunflower oil and other food that developing nations rely on. However, wartime attacks on cargo vessels in the Black Sea have choked that supply route, raising fears of shortages.

Zelenskyy said he held separate talks in the U.S. with the leaders of India, Turkey, Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries that want unimpeded Black Sea shipping routes. He added that these leaders were also due to speak to Russian officials.

Kyiv wants Moscow to accept a Black Sea ceasefire that would allow full deliveries to resume, Zelenskyy said.

Ukraine needs more money

Zelenskyy said he also spoke in the U.S. with the heads of the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission about plugging Ukraine’s budget deficit as its finances are strained by wartime expenses and drops in production. Russia's economy is also hurting.

The European Union will extend its financial aid for Ukraine, and the IMF will continue its financial support programs, he said.

Most of the funding gap relates specifically to weapons purchases, Zelenskyy said, and future financing for Ukraine could come in the form of deals for sharing technology and joint drone production. Ukraine is a world leader in military drones.

A boy is killed in a Kyiv strike as Russia also reports civilian casualties

Russian aerial attacks on Ukraine overnight and into Friday killed five people and wounded 11, officials said, while Russian authorities reported one dead and 21 wounded in Ukrainian long-range strikes.

Zelenskyy said eight Ukrainian regions came under attack. Russia kept up its relentless round-the-clock attacks on the Ukrainian capital, hitting an office block where four people were killed, Zelenskyy said. A 14-year-old boy was also killed in a Kyiv apartment building strike and at least seven residents were injured, according to officials.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said its forces hit a missile engine depot near Kyiv, among other targets.

Ukraine hit two refineries as part of its sustained campaign to damage Russia’s economy, Zelenskyy said.

Unconfirmed Russian media reports said Ukrainian drones also struck a Russian military electronics plant and a synthetic rubber producer.

___

Hatton reported from Lisbon, Portugal.

___

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Houston ISD considers selling closed neighborhood schools. The list of people who are helping decide is confidential

Kelly Wiley, Beth Peak, Wladimir Moquete — Wed, 23 Sep 2026 16:23:51 +0000

Natasha Johnson remembers her grandfather walking her to Burrus Elementary School on the north side of Houston every morning. The daily drop-off is a tradition she repeated at Burrus with her daughter, grandchildren and – until this year – her great grandson.

For the first time since Burrus opened in 1928, its doors remained closed this school year. In February, the state-appointed school board that replaced Houston’s elected trustees voted to close the school and 11 other campuses. Burrus had an A-rating from the state at the time.

WATCH THE FULL EPISODE HERE WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 23 AT 8P ON YOUTUBE, 10P ON KPRC.

Five months later, the same unelected board voted to include Burrus on a short list of properties the district plans to potentially sell or repurpose.

School board president and Houston real estate developer Ric Campos, said during an August board meeting the decision does not mean all the neighborhood schools will be sold to the highest bidder. “It means that you are going to take the next steps and then figure out maybe a community involvement that could happen,” Campos said from the dais on Aug. 13.

But so far, much of the district’s planning has happened behind closed doors, outside public view. KPRC 2’s ENOUGH team found that Houston Independent School District is also seeking to keep confidential the names of the people who helped recommend which schools should be sold or repurposed.

Natasha Johnson standing in front of Burrus Elementary School (KPRC Photo/Beth Peak)

Houston ISD’s Chief of Organizational Effectiveness, Kari Feinberg, said in April the district brought together 20 internal and external “stakeholders” – made up of school district staff and others from the City of Houston, non-profit organizations, philanthropists and the private sector to create the Facilities Usage Committee.

Feinberg said the committee met four times since April to come up with a recommendation for which of the closed schools should be sold or repurposed. The committee’s final recommendation went to Superintendent Mike Miles in July, according to Feinberg, and the board of managers reviewed the committee’s recommendation during a closed session at its Aug. 13 meeting where the public could not see or hear the discussion.

Video shows, after returning from closed session, the nine-member board reconvened publicly and voted unanimously to declare Burrus and 8 other newly closed schools as surplus property. The vote also authorized the superintendent to begin the sale process.

Houston Independent School District School Board Meeting (KPRC Photo/Rayan Graham)

“What is the reason?” Is it because someone wants to tear it down and build some apartments or build some two-story homes?” Johnson asked. “It’s prime property. Burrus is prime property and everybody knows that.”

KPRC 2’s ENOUGH team submitted public information requests seeking the names of the Facilities Usage Committee members who made recommendations on the future of these properties and the report presented to the superintendent outlining those recommendations. Weeks later, Houston ISD’s attorney asked the Texas Attorney General for permission to withhold both from public release.

In response to our emailed questions, Houston ISD officials told the ENOUGH team, it was keeping the members of the Facilities Usage Committee confidential because “… some community members requested to keep their participation private.”

The district said in an email, the committee provided broad input on the administration’s proposals for next steps for the properties and served as “partners in ideation,” but said committee members did not make any final decisions.

“I don’t know why you’d want to hide who is on the committee. You would only make everything suspect when you start off that way,” Texas State Sen. Carol Alvarado, D-Houston, said “Anytime you are dealing with the public’s money, public facilities like schools, that should be a very transparent process.”

What’s happening in Houston reflects a broader trend. Across Texas, school districts are selling off taxpayer-funded campuses with little required public input and no statewide standard for how those decisions get made.

School board records show, just this school year, more than 80 campuses across the state have closed – many of which held A, B and C-ratings from the state when the decision to shut down the campus was made.

“There are no standards”

In Austin, the school board voted to close 11 schools this year because of a budget shortfall and declining enrollment. Parents learned about one of the closures just 19 days before the first day of school. The district is also in the middle of a legal fight over the sale of school property that hasn’t been utilized in more than four years.

Rosedale School, located in North Austin, closed in 2022 after 83 years of serving students. The people who own homes surrounding the old Rosedale school, like Carl Reynolds, said the district initially proposed turning the land into affordable housing for educators.

“Flash forward 435 units, six stories – that is what is being proposed. Much, much denser than anything Austin ISD talked to the neighborhood about,” Reynolds said.

The old Rosedale School in Austin, TX. (KPRC Photo/Wladimir Moquete)

District officials said the discussion with neighbors about the Rosedale property becoming affordable housing for district employees happened when the district’s financial position was different, and before the district sold the property to real estate development company OHT Partners.

Austin ISD has been under contract with OHT for the purchase of Rosedale since August 2025, but district officials say the sale cannot close until the city council reviews zoning and development requirements and a judge provides “legal clarification” on the neighborhood’s deed restrictions.

According to the Rosedale neighbors, the six-story multifamily residential development proposed would violate the neighborhood’s deed restrictions that allow only for one single-family home and a garage apartment on each of the 27 lots that make up the Rosedale property.

Court records show months after entering the agreement with OHT Partners, the district sued 125 neighbors to seek “legal clarification” on the Rosedale deed restrictions.

“It’s amazing that a school district would sue its own constituents in order to ram something down their throat and this is a community that has supported the school district for decades. Whenever they have a bond issue we vote for it,” Rosedale homeowner Darrell Azar said.

Austin ISD said, in a statement to KRPC’s ENOUGH team, “the financial benefit of the sale became an important consideration as part of the district’s broader strategy to improve its financial position.”

Austin City Councilmember Mike Siegel postponed the discussion on zoning and development requirements for the property earlier this month “to allow for legal settlement discussions to take place” between the district and impacted neighbors, according to Siegel’s office.

“CM Siegel very much desires for a resolution to the litigation and an agreement to build more dense housing on the property,” officials with Siegel’s office said in a statement to KPRC’s ENOUGH team.

Renea Hicks, who represents 60 of the homeowners who are being sued by the district – and lives in the neighborhood, said the homeowners he represents are willing to consider a larger project if it is designed with the neighborhood in mind.

“The neighbors believe in public schools and they believe in affordability. They believe in the community,” Hicks said. “You can do more. We are OK with that. Just make it reasonable. Treat the neighborhood well. Treat it decently.”

Hicks told our team on Monday settlement negotiations over the future of the property had broken down. OHT Partners has not answered any questions related to the Rosedale property.

The dispute in Rosedale raises broader questions about what happens when school districts sell neighborhood campuses. Hicks said Texas law does not establish clear standards for community involvement in those sales.

“The first problem is there are no standards — no standards for what you do when you sell the property. There is no requirement for public involvement,” Hicks said. “They will let the public come to an open meeting where they say they are doing the deal, but that is it - that is all the legislature has required.”

“Give us the opportunity”

Houston ISD officials said the district has already received interest in the newly closed schools the board authorized the superintendent to sell or repurpose. At the September board meeting, the executive director of the Independence Heights Redevelopment Council, Tonia Wells, urged the district to sell Burrus Elementary School to their organization.

“Give us the opportunity to keep the Burrus legacy alive,” Wells said during public comment on Sept. 10.

Records show, outside of the nine recently closed schools that have been declared surplus property, the district already entered into sales agreements for six other properties – including three school buildings that closed years ago.

Sales records obtained by KPRC’s ENOUGH team show Habitat for Humanity purchased the old Chatham Elementary building, that closed in 2005. Records also show the former Fonwood Elementary School was sold to Enclave Properties, and in June, the century old Historic Harper building that educated Black students during segregation, was sold to a company called BKR Real Estate Management.

After a fire at Harper school this summer, Mayor John Whitmire posted a video to social media where he said he would attempt to “salvage” the Harper School building as an important part of Houston’s history.

Permit records show the City of Houston approved a demolition permit for the historical Harper School on Aug. 13. Photos of the former school’s location taken on Friday show the building is no longer standing.

A spokesperson for Mayor John Whitmire’s office said on Friday the city salvaged historical pieces of The Harper School building, including an “original founding cornerstone,” a stone “Owl Medallion,” two stone circle “Circle Decorative Medallions,” a stone “Heraldic Shied Stone Crest,” and the entire exterior doorway stone with the Harper School engraving above the main entry.

The historical pieces will be used in an art exhibit on the exterior grounds of the African American History Research Center at the Gregory School, according to the Mayor’s Office spokesperson Álvaro Ortiz.

BKR Management has not responded to KPRC’s questions about its intentions for the property. The company’s website shows its developed properties across Houston, including the Buffalo Heights mixed-use district where it developed a five-story luxury multifamily apartment complex.

Harper School on Center Street in Houston, TX (KPRC Photo/Wladamir Moquete)

The Harper School at 3200 Center Street (KPRC Photo/Rayan Graham)

Officials with Habitat for Humanity told us they partnered with the Northeast Houston Redevelopment Council to turn the former Chatham Elementary property into a community-focused center.

“This is a great example of what can happen when organizations come together with a shared vision for neighborhood revitalization so that community spaces, like these HISD school properties, can continue to serve used neighborhoods as they did in the past,” Habitat for Humanity CEO Allison Hay said in a statement to KPRC’s ENOUGH team.

Enclave Properties has not responded to our questions about its plans for the former Fonwood school.

The district answered several written questions from our team but did not respond to multiple requests to interview Superintendent Mike Miles, Board President Campo or Feinberg about the process and intention for the properties being sold.

In response to an email to HISD’s Press Office, sharing what we planned to report, district officials said the board’s decision to declare the closed schools as surplus and authorize the superintendent to initiate sales procedures, does not mean all of the properties will be sold.

“Once property is determined surplus to the district’s operational needs, HISD can evaluate potential future uses, and administration must go through a set of legally mandated steps before public [or] private entities can secure any of these properties,” the district said in an emailed statement.

Houston ISD grandparent and alum Natasha Johnson stands outside Burrus Elementary School in Independence Heights. (KPRC Photo/Beth Peak)

Johnson said she hopes the Independence Heights Redevelopment Council can purchase the Burrus property and keep it open as a community resource. The Texas Historical Commission said the historic marker that sits in front of Burrus won’t protect it from sale or alteration if a new owner wants to build something new in its place.

“We’re hoping that the school’s not tore down,” Johnson said. “It’ll be really interesting to see what they really decide and is it in the best interest of the community or the best interests of HISD.”

Pope warns a ‘paradise of machines’ could undermine humanity as he opens France trip

Nicole Winfield And Sylvie Corbet, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 04:12:26 +0000

Pope Leo XIV warned Friday that a “paradise of machines” risked undermining humanity as he opened a trip to France by posing fundamental questions about what it means to be human in the age of artificial intelligence, a nuclear arms race and other threats to life itself.

Leo raised existential concerns about scientific progress, life and human rights during his opening speech to President Emmanuel Macron and authorities at the Élysée Palace and then to diplomats and United Nations employees at the headquarters of UNESCO, the U.N. culture and education organization.

With wars plaguing Europe and the Middle East, he reaffirmed the Vatican’s opposition to nuclear weapons and said the nuclear deterrence doctrine was “mistaken” since it was just fueling a new arms race.

“Peace is not a balance of power; rather, it is built day by day through dialogue and justice,” he said.

Leo has an intense four days in France, where the Catholic Church has lost ground in influencing ethical issues given the strict approach to secularism that is enshrined in the French Constitution.

Yet thousands of people lined his motorcade route, waving French and Holy See flags, with some braving hours of the unseasonable heat to catch a glimpse of him. The turnout underscored the surprising level of interest in Leo’s visit, the first official state visit by a pope to France in 18 years.

"To see him, praying with us, it comforts us in our faith and on our path,” said Senegalese Sister Antonia Faye, who was glowing after her first-ever event with a pope, an evening prayer service at Notre Dame that featured angelic choirs and the cathedral’s booming organ.

“Being with the pope is different to being alone or praying alone. We felt the benediction that came down on us,” she said.

A capstone visit as Macron’s term ends

For Macron, who is barred from seeking a third term in May elections, hosting the American pope is something of a capstone. Pope Francis had refused repeatedly to make a proper state visit to France during his 12-year pontificate and pointedly refused to join the inauguration of the rebuilt Notre Dame cathedral in 2024 that Macron had championed.

“For a president of the republic as Macron, who is at the end of his mandate, it can be important to be aside the pope and to capture a part of his popularity,” said Charles Mercier, director of history and sociology of Catholicism studies at Paris EPHE university.

With seven months left in his term, Macron’s approval ratings are near record lows, driven by anger over the rising cost of living and criticism of France’s growing debt and deficit and deteriorating public services.

Smiling broadly as Leo spoke French, Macron thanked the pope for visiting, saying: “You are here with us for an extended visit, giving us your time, and that is moving.”

Leo calls for the French to mull lofty questions about life

Unlike Francis, who liked to travel to small Catholic communities far from Rome, Leo has been keen to emphasize and reawaken Europe’s Christian roots. He is seeking to push the church’s message about the value and dignity of human life in a country where the right to abortion was enshrined in the constitution in 2024, and where lawmakers recently gave final approval to a bill allowing adults with incurable illnesses to receive lethal medication.

The French Catholic hierarchy strongly opposed the measures, in keeping with Catholic teaching that human life must be protected and defended from conception until natural death.

In his speech to Macron and other government and diplomatic authorities, Leo reminded France of its “deep Christian roots” and called for the French to remember that the right to life is the “indispensable foundation of every other human right.”

His concern about the dignity of human life and humanity as a whole extended to the threats posed by artificial intelligence.

“The paradox has become increasingly evident: while ‘intelligence’ is attributed to computational systems, we struggle to recognize the inalienable dignity of human persons, whose lives are judged according to the criterion of efficiency and, when deemed no longer productive, are rejected and discarded,” he said.

From the very start of his pontificate, Leo has identified AI as one of the greatest challenges facing humanity. He dedicated his first encyclical to the topic, “Magnificent Humanity,” calling for robust regulation and for AI developers to work for the common good rather than profit.

Leo also appealed to AI developers and political leaders responsible for regulating them to slow down, an appeal that several top AI companies seem to have taken to heart recently.

“If we are to avoid losing our humanity amid a ‘paradise of machines’ invading and conditioning our daily lives, there is an urgent need for education in ethical discernment and the capacity to acknowledge the moral good,” he said.

Leo earlier told reporters that he was pleased his message was being heard and said he hoped the dialogue that the Vatican initiated with tech companies would continue.

“And I think from their perspective, many of them, they’re very much open to looking for ways of making sure that AI does not displace or ultimately destroy humanity, but rather is a tool for human beings,” he said.

A visit to Notre Dame that Francis declined

Later on Friday, Leo presided over evening prayers in Paris' soaring Notre Dame cathedral, the first pope to celebrate there since the devastating 2019 fire that consumed the cathedral’s roof and toppled its spire.

After being mobbed by a crowd of eager nuns outside, Leo walked down the central aisle to the combined thundering of the organ above and cheers from the pews below. As bells tolled, he knelt in silent prayer in the same spot where, in 2019, flames brought down scorched roof beams.

Leo marveled at the brilliance of the stained-glass windows and restored cream columns and praised the artisans who repaired them. He urged the priests and nuns gathered in the pews to be inspired by the combined effort to bring the Gothic masterpiece back to life.

Francis had refused to visit France on a proper state visit, and explicitly refused Macron’s invitation to come for the 2024 reopening of the cathedral that drew dozens of world leaders.

He did make three short trips to French cities, however, including Strasbourg in 2014 and Marseille and Corsica in 2024, a one-day visit that became his last foreign trip.

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

No surgery on the table as the Commanders talk about how to get Jayden Daniels back on the field

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 15:20:07 +0000

The Commanders have not discussed putting Jayden Daniels on injured reserve with the quarterback's return from a dislocated left elbow apparently a possibility within the next month, Washington general manager Adam Peters said Friday.

"As of right now, surgery is not on the table, and we haven’t discussed IR,” Peters said on 106.7 The Fan. “So it’s just a matter of how we’re going to get him back on the field. That’s still to be determined.”

Peters said Daniels returned late Thursday night and was meeting with the Commanders on Friday. Team officials have talked with medical officials around the country, and Peters called it a medical decision that Washington is working through.

Being placed on injured reserve would mean Daniels would miss a minimum of four games.

Daniels was hurt during Sunday’s loss at Dallas on a broken play at the end of the first half. He took a snap under center, and left guard Chris Paul stepped on Daniels' foot as he backed away from the line. Daniels braced himself with his non-throwing arm, which bent awkwardly under the pressure.

A similar thing happened last November, when Daniels used his left arm to brace himself and dislocated his elbow against Seattle. He returned just over a month later, only to aggravate the problem and miss the rest of the season.

Marcus Mariota is set to start Sunday’s home opener against Seattle.

Coach Dan Quinn said Friday that he'll have updates later on the guidelines for Daniels' return once he gets to that stage. For now, he is considered week-to-week.

Asked about his initial reaction to the injury, Quinn said sometimes the scenarios that play out in someone's mind “are worse than the actual news.”

"But you just wait to get all the information you can, and then, spoke with him (Daniels) on the phone and again we had a chance to visit this morning. So, I thought just what a great bit of news for him and for us,” Quinn said.

The coach said the team has a lot of confidence in Mariota.

“In fact, so much — I thought this was such a cool thing — the captains huddled up with me earlier in the week and said, ‘Hey, we’d like to make Marcus our sixth captain.’ And I thought what a great tribute of brotherhood of those guys asking,” Quinn said. “Of course, they were all like as on board, as you can imagine. I thought it was awesome, too, but what a great example of teammate and leadership.”

___

See AP’s full NFL coverage here

Taxpayer-funded pro-Trump TV ad campaign grows with new spot, wider reach

Ali Swenson, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 15:40:40 +0000

The Trump administration on Friday appeared to ramp up its use of U.S. government-funded political advertisements promoting President Donald Trump, airing its second TV ad in three days while expanding its spending on the first to at least $443,000.

The White House maintains the ads are “public service announcements” like those used by past presidents, but multiple lawmakers of both parties on Thursday criticized the first one, questioning its legality and appropriateness given its political nature, proximity to November's midterms and the use of taxpayer funds.

The new, minute-long ad features scenic videos of Mount Rushmore at night with quotes and clips from Trump’s Fourth of July weekend speech there honoring the country’s 250th anniversary.

“We know that this is not an ending,” Trump says in the ad. “This is only the beginning of the golden age of America.”

At the end, text appears onscreen that reads, “Paid for by the U.S. Government.”

The ad's costs weren't immediately clear but it was airing Friday on Newsmax, with a spot on at least two programs, “Carl Higbie Frontline” and "Greg Kelly Reports," according to AdImpact, which tracks media spending.

The first ad, a 30-second spot that began airing Wednesday, features clips of Trump talking about defeating communism interspersed with onscreen text promoting the “largest tax cuts in history,” “reigniting American manufacturing” and a call to “defend law and order and police.” The ad’s soundtrack includes a chorus singing “love me” repeatedly and ends with a message disclosing it was paid for by the U.S. government.

The White House on Friday defended its ads as “very clearly not campaign ads,” saying Trump isn't on the ballot and the ads don't include a call to action. It provided examples of past administrations from both parties that bought network time for public service announcements, including George W. Bush's administration airing a campaign about a Medicare law and the Biden administration running one about COVID-19 vaccinations.

“Patriotism isn’t partisan. These public service announcements are unapologetically American, clearly disclosed, and aimed at the country — not a line on the ballot,” the White House said.

It didn’t answer an inquiry about what part of the government supplied the funds.

Politicians of both parties on Thursday criticized the ads, with some noting that laws prohibit taxpayer funds from being used for “publicity or propaganda” and limit the partisan political activities of government employees. Republicans running to defend their majorities in Congress in the upcoming midterm elections have created ads with similar messaging about communism, the economy and crime.

Several House Democrats with senior committee roles on Thursday demanded that the first ad be taken off the air, calling it “the sort of government propaganda one might expect in North Korea.”

North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican who is not running for reelection, called the ad “inappropriate” and likened it to something he would expect from the former right-wing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

Xi says he'll see Trump again soon as he wraps up US visit with a look at the Constitution

Michelle L. Price, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 04:00:30 +0000

Chinese President Xi Jinping wrapped up his state visit to Washington on Friday by announcing that he will meet President Donald Trump two more times before the end of the year, doubling the number of face-to-face discussions between the leaders of the world’s two largest economies in 2026.

The promise of more meetings to come capped off a three-day state visit that has been criticized by some in the U.S. for being heavy on pomp and light on substance, though Trump said they discussed the war in Iran. The two leaders have made a show of working to preserve harmony, but there were no major breakthroughs this week on issues such as trade or the safety of artificial intelligence.

Some trade analysts were struck by how few tangible accomplishments seemed to come from the meeting. Little was announced outside of the promise of more meetings and Washington and Beijing agreeing as Xi landed in the U.S. to extend their trade truce only a few months until January.

“A lot of pomp and circumstance or sound and fury but signifying nothing. There’s just not a lot there,” said Scott Lincicome, vice president of general economics at the Cato Institute.

The leaders discussed the Iran war behind closed doors

The two leaders met behind closed doors for 90 minutes on Thursday, when they discussed issues such as the Middle East, Ukraine and the Korean Peninsula, according to the official Chinese government readout of the meeting. Trump told reporters on Friday that he and Xi discussed the Iran war, but did not offer additional details.

“We had a great meeting. We had a really great meeting. Great for the farmers. Great for everybody,” he said.

Though Trump administration officials have played down the impact of any assistance that China may be providing to Iran as the war stretches to nearly seven months, U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue said Friday that Trump asked Xi to avoid providing help to Tehran.

“We made it very clear to them weeks ago that, you know, any help that they would give Iran — whether it be direct or indirect, whether it be intelligence or parts or military equipment — was totally unacceptable,” Perdue told CNBC in an interview Friday. “President Trump made that very clear again yesterday.”

Xi is hosting the APEC summit in China in November

Xi extended an invitation for Trump and first lady Melania Trump to go to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China, in November and noted that they could meet again a month later at the G20 summit at the Trump National Doral Miami golf club in Florida.

“We do welcome Mr. President and the first lady to visit China,” Xi said.

Trump responded, “We will, and we’ll be speaking a lot.” He later confirmed the two meetings in a post on social media.

Trump takes Xi to the National Archives

Trump on Friday took Xi to visit the National Archives, showing off the sacred texts of U.S. democracy to the leader of the world’s most powerful communist country.

Trump, a Republican, has been seeking to demonize Democrats as communists during the run-up to the November midterm elections, a message that has been muddied by the red-carpet treatment he has given Xi this week.

Inside the nation’s vault of records, where the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights are kept, Xi peered at the documents behind protective glass as a guide spoke about them.

After viewing the Constitution, Trump told reporters waiting nearby that the two leaders discussed how old their nations are.

“We’re just comparing,” Trump said. “Ours goes 250 years, which is great, and we’re proud of it. But theirs goes 6,000 years.”

He added: “There’s a little difference between 6,000 and 250, but we’re very proud of our 250.”

The leaders and their spouses had tea in the Red Room

The Trumps feted their guests Thursday night with a black-tie state dinner attended by technology industry titans. Earlier in the day, Trump gave Xi a personal tour of his White House flourishes, including a gallery wall of presidents and a new 100-foot-long (30-meter-long) granite helicopter landing pad — and pointed out his ballroom, still under construction. Melania Trump and Peng Liyuan toured the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art.

On Friday, Xi's day began at the White House, where Trump and the first lady hosted the Chinese leader and his wife, Peng Liyuan, for tea in the White House’s Red Room.

Their visit fell during China’s Mid-Autumn Festival, a national holiday when families traditionally gather to celebrate the end of harvest, sharing mooncakes, round pastries filled with a sweet paste, over tea.

Xi thanked the Trumps for the visit. "The highest courtesies, the most meticulous arrangements,” Xi said in Chinese. “This visit is very successful, and we also feel very satisfied.”

Trump grinned when an interpreter relayed what Xi had said.

“We’ve had a tremendous visit from two spectacular people, and we really enjoyed it, and I think we’ve made tremendous strides,” Trump said.

___

AP writers Ken Moritsugu in Beijing and Didi Tang, Josh Boak and Paul Wiseman in Washington contributed to this report.

The Mohegan Tribe made an early bet on a WNBA team. Now the Sun is setting

Savannah Peters, Associated Press — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 17:26:19 +0000

For Cass Meehan, childhood visits to their Mohegan homelands meant family time and basketball. At 6, sporting a red jersey that hung past their knees, Meehan joined a roaring crowd at some of the Connecticut Sun’s first WNBA games.

Two decades later, the Mohegans have sold the Sun to the Houston Rockets and the Sun is relocating.

“I remember the energy in the arena,” Meehan said. “I knew it was Mohegan’s team we were cheering for.”

Now 29, Meehan is among a loyal group of Mohegan fans preparing to say goodbye to a team that became a point of community pride.

The Mohegan Tribe purchased its WNBA franchise for $10 million in 2003, becoming the first Native American tribe to own a professional sports team. Over 24 seasons, the Connecticut Sun connected generations of tribal members and gave Mohegan people a platform to share their language, culture and values with the league and its fast growing fan base.

But in May, the tribe’s business arm closed a $300 million deal with Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta to sell the Sun and relocate the team, with proceeds going to help strengthen the tribe's balance sheet as it digs out from substantial debt.

Beth Regan, chairwoman of the Mohegan Tribe’s Council of Elders and a self-proclaimed “Day 1” Connecticut Sun fan, said the team’s last game on Mohegan land on Thursday night will be emotional.

“Family and community mean everything to us,” Regan said. “The Connecticut Sun are part of our cháhshayooô, our family.”

Tribal members embraced the team

Basketball is not a particular passion for Meehan. Their loyalty and enthusiasm for the Sun is an exception.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s not a good year and they’re not winning or whatever,” Meehan said. “The team is special and the fan base is special.”

Meehan remembers wearing their hair in space buns like their favorite Sun player, Nykesha Sales, and flocking to the tunnel with other tribal members to ask for players’ autographs.

Players visited tribal youth camps and the annual Mohegan Wigwam Festival. The Sun’s fiery, free-spirited mascot, Blaze, made appearances at social dances.

Generations of Heather Landry's Mohegan family connect over their love of the Sun. Landry bought season tickets this year, giving her 10-year-old daughter Emersyn an opportunity to meet favorite players and even score a selfie with Brittany Griner and Saniya Rivers.

But Landry said her favorite memory of the team came when her family stopped by the Mohegan government center, happened upon a Sun practice session in the community gym and got invited to watch from the bleachers.

“I’m sure my daughter will cry when we walk out of the arena on Thursday,” Landry said of the team's last game in Connecticut.

The Sun “Moheganized” the WNBA

In April, when WNBA guard Charlisse Leger-Walker learned she had been drafted by an Indigenous-owned team, she felt it was “meant to be.”

Leger-Walker, who is Māori and Samoan, said Mohegan elders often visited Sun practices to welcome new players and offer blessings and prayers for the team’s success.

“It was cool for me to come to that realization, that a lot of my values that I carry with me from home are the exact same here,” Leger-Walker said.

From halftime performances featuring tribal singers and dancers to a team logo styled after a traditional Mohegan symbol, the Connecticut Sun brought Mohegan culture to the WNBA and to a national stage.

Regan has smudged the team with sage during losing streaks, a cleansing practice meant to help the players let go of poor performances. She has also gifted injured players sweetgrass braids and laughed when she remembered athletes including 6’6” center Jonquel Jones hugging their knees to squeeze into the community’s sweat lodge.

In 2021, when the WNBA and Nike gave team uniforms an upgrade, Regan said it was the perfect opportunity to “Moheganize” their uniforms with imagery like the “trail of life” motif, which is traditionally painted on woven baskets, and alternating purple and white trim styled after a wampum collar. One of the team’s alternate jerseys displays the word “Keesusk,” the Mohegan word for “Sun.”

“Our languages were taken from us in colonization,” Regan said. “So to see ‘Keesusk’ on those uniforms is so joyous, so validating for our tribe.”

The tribe took an early bet on the WNBA

The Mohegan Tribe purchased the WNBA’s Orlando Miracle in 2003 amid a financial crisis for the league with no clear path forward. That's when the team relocated to Uncasville, Connecticut and became the Sun.

By 2010, the Sun had made deep playoff runs, ranked near the top of the league in game attendance and became the first WNBA team to turn a profit despite playing in the league's smallest market.

Following the Mohegans' lead, other tribes have since invested in professional sports to diversify their economies. Wilton Rancheria is now majority owner of Major League Soccer's Sacramento Republic FC. The Seneca Nation recently purchased the National Lacrosse League’s Rochester Knighthawks. And the Pechanga Band of Indians' business arm is a founding partner of the LA Clippers' Intuit Dome arena.

Regan said the “writing's been on the wall” since the WNBA exploded in popularity and players negotiated a new collective bargaining agreement that requires teams to provide state-of-the-art practice facilities among other expensive upgrades that the tribe would have struggled to afford.

The Mohegan Tribal Council declined an emailed interview request Wednesday. In selling the team, Meehan trusts that the council made the right business decision. But they called the WNBA's move to effectively block a deal that would have sent the Sun to Boston, a much closer venue, a “betrayal" of the tribe that they say rescued the franchise.

Ahead of Thursday's final game, Meehan is gathering 24 years of Connecticut Sun mementos — ticket stubs, their original 2003 team jersey — to keep in a framed shadow box signed by the 2026 team's players.

Regan fought tears while explaining what Mohegan people will lose when the team relocates. She said her people should be proud of the role they played in shaping the WNBA's success story.

“Before all the attention, when the WNBA needed investment, who stepped up?” Regan said. “Mohegan did.” ___ This story is published through the Global Indigenous Reporting Network at The Associated Press.

Texas’ maternal health report delay is political and puts pregnant women at risk, lawmakers say

Texas Tribune, Terri Langford — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 19:29:29 +0000

The state’s delay of a highly-anticipated report of maternal deaths until after the election is going to prevent lifesaving recommendations from going into effect and lawmakers from getting a head start on writing legislation, women’s health advocates said Friday.

“State leadership would rather sweep the Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Review Committee’s biannual report under the rug than be held accountable for the impact their policies have had on the lives of Texas moms,” said state Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, at a rally outside the Texas Department of State Health Services headquarters.

The maternal mortality committee’s report, which is released every two years, was to be released by Sept. 1. Instead, it’s been delayed until December, which the state is permitting because of a state law that passed in 2025 that gave more leeway for report submissions to the governor. It gives agencies until December to submit any health and safety-related report. The maternal mortality report, which contains findings and recommendations to reduce maternal deaths, includes, for the first time, data on deaths of women that have occurred after Texas banned abortion in 2021.

The state health department has said the report is merely proceeding through the regular internal review. “As part of that process, the acting commissioner has asked the committee to strengthen the report by further describing its work around preventability, better defining the sources of its recommendations, and making clearer connections between the underlying data, findings, and recommendations,” the department said in an earlier statement.

Still, it marks the second time since the committee was created in 2013, that its review of maternal deaths has not been released until after a midterm election. The last time was in 2022 when it was released after that year’s elections.

Howard and other women’s health organizations pointed out the delay — ahead of the election and the upcoming state legislative session — impacts Texans in three ways.

It keeps pregnant Texans unaware of possible risks that resulted in state deaths in prior years.

The delay this year also gives state lawmakers less time to generate bills based on the report’s recommendations. Bill prefiling for next year’s session begins on Nov. 9.

Thirdly, the delay also means voters concerned about maternal mortality can’t use the information from the report to consider their political candidate choices on Nov. 3. Reproductive rights have not been a major pillar of candidates’ campaigns this election cycle since the state’s initial ban on abortion in 2021 and the overturning of Roe v. Wade the following year.

“All of this amounts to a systemic and politically-motivated cover up,” said Raven E. Freeborn, a doula and the CEO of the pro-abortion group, Avow Texas. “We cannot allow hidden agendas to be the reasons Texans don’t survive their pregnancies.”

As speakers took turns to urge the report’s immediate release, photos of several women who have died from pregnancy complications, were displayed in front of a podium outside DSHS offices.

One photo was of Tierra Walker whose family this month filed a lawsuit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and the Texas Medical Board. Their suit blames the state’s abortion ban which they say prevented doctors from terminating her pregnancy as she suffered from serious pregnancy complications, including preeclampsia, that resulted in her 2024 death.

A year ago, the news organization ProPublica reported that pregnancy in Texas has become more dangerous following the abortion ban, with the rate of sepsis rose by 50% among Texas women hospitalized after losing their pregnancies in the second trimester. This month, ProPublica reported that there’s been a rise in deaths among women who experienced ectopic pregnancies, where a pregnancy implants outside of the uterus, usually in the fallopian tubes. That rise is worse in abortion-ban states like Texas.

State Rep. Vikki Goodwin, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, was the only statewide political candidate who attended the rally outside the DSHS office, where inside the maternal mortality committee was meeting in executive session, which is closed to the public.

“Women are leaving this state because they don’t feel safe being pregnant in Texas,” Goodwin said. “This is incredibly unfortunate and unacceptable.”

The last report reviewed cases from 2019 and 2020. The committee decided to skip 2022 and 2023 to focus on cases from 2021 and 2024 because members said they wanted to look at more recent cases.

Since as far back as 2024, the maternal mortality committee’s minutes have shown that it has been reviewing 2021 deaths and have repeatedly acknowledged they had a Sept. 1, 2026 deadline to publish their findings. At their December 2025 meeting, the committee reports that DSHS identified 277 death cases associated with pregnancy in 2021 and 180 cases for the first three quarters of 2024. The 2021 deaths are higher than the two years prior. More context is needed to draw conclusions about the data, including how many of them died because of COVID-19 and other causes and how many pregnant women there were that year.

At that same meeting nearly a year ago, the committee’s minutes indicated that their review of all the 2021 deaths would be completed that day and that the 2024 would be finished by May of 2026.

On Thursday, Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett chided Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in a letter she sent this week to him and Texas health commissioner Imelda Garcia about the report’s delay.

“The Abbott administration has failed Texas mothers. Under this administration’s leadership, Texas is one of the lowest-performing states for overall maternal health,” she wrote. “Concealing the official data that demonstrates your failures until after the election denies Texans the opportunity to examine updated data on your failures less than 30 days before early voting is set to begin on October 19, 2026.”

Constable’s office releases descriptions in church burglary, seeks help from public

Kendra Mackey — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 17:57:37 +0000

Deputies with Constable Mark Herman’s Office are asking for the public’s help identifying people wanted for a burglary at Lakeway Baptist Church in the 5800 block of FM 1960 Road East.

Investigators said two male suspects riding bicycles forced entry into a locked shed on the church property. The suspects are described as white males, approximately 6 feet to 6 feet 5 inches tall and weighing about 200 pounds.

Anyone who recognizes the suspects or has information that could assist investigators is asked to contact dispatch at 281-376-3472. Callers should reference case No. 2609-03267.

Suspects sought in Harris County Constable Precinct 4 church burglary case.

Bobby Pulido thanks rival Rep. Monica De La Cruz for campaign “advice”

Texas Tribune, Carlos Nogueras Ramos — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 19:23:54 +0000

Bobby Pulido, the award-winning Tejano musician and Democratic congressional candidate, thanked the incumbent he’s challenging for the 15th Congressional District for giving him the best piece of election “advice”: campaigning at quinceañeras.

“We would have never thought about that,” Pulido said at the Texas Tribune Festival. “You got them on a Friday night or Saturday night, they’re a little tipsy, and they’re happy, took a selfie with you, and everybody’s got their cellphones, and they’re streaming, and you’re like, ‘Oh, this algorithm’s going really good.’”

Pulido, who said he has performed in at least 75 quinceañeras while running for office, is challenging U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz, R-Edinburg, for the 15th Congressional District, which spans Hidalgo County and runs north to rural San Antonio. De La Cruz in March criticized Pulido for performing at such events, saying the race “isn’t about who you want performing at your niece’s quinceañera.”

Pulido turned the dig into a campaign strategy, arguing the events are a means to reach Hispanic voters too busy to keep up with the election.

On Friday, the Cook Political Report categorized the race as a toss-up in a district De La Cruz has represented since 2022.

The region has undergone a political shift. In 2025, Texas Republicans redrew the state’s congressional maps to bolster the party’s majority in the U.S. House. The new congressional maps redrew two South Texas districts to favor Republicans, complicating Democrats’ chances to retain control in the region. President Donald Trump won Congressional District 15 by 18 points in 2024.

Pulido said Democrats have long taken the region for granted, particularly in the northern portion of the district.

“Candidates that used to go in these districts didn’t go to northern counties because they didn’t have to,” Pulido said, adding that candidates relied on voters further south in the border towns of the Rio Grande Valley. “We were spending resources in Republican counties … for a primary because none of their elected officials were Democrats. But that’s not the point. The point is to show up early; that way you gain their trust, and not a caricature of what they think a Democrat is.”

Pulido also said both parties have misunderstood the region’s Hispanic population, arguing that their political views transcend labels.

“The Hispanic vote is the most difficult to figure out for both parties, and as the Hispanic vote goes, so goes the country,” Pulido said. “We’re a bellwether for everything across the nation, and especially in the Mexican diaspora, which is what we are.”

If elected to Congress, Pulido said his two priorities would be reforming immigration, which he called a humanitarian and economic issue, and healthcare.

Fetal remains discovered inside freezer of Independence Heights home

Bryce Newberry — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 19:11:03 +0000

Homicide detectives are investigating after fetal remains were discovered inside a freezer at an Independence Heights home.

Investigators say the remains were found Friday morning after a woman—whose age has not been released—experienced a medical emergency. She reportedly did not know she was pregnant.

Houston Police homicide detectives are investigating after fetal remains were discovered inside a freezer at an Independence Heights home.

The remains may have been placed in the freezer Wednesday, according to investigators, but the Harris County Medical Examiner’s Office will determine the cause of death and whether the baby was viable.

Westbury High School senior shot and killed near campus, Houston police say

Police say there is no indication of foul play at this time.

Houston Police homicide detectives are investigating after fetal remains were discovered inside a freezer at an Independence Heights home.

Everyone in the home is cooperating, according to police, who encouraged anyone facing a similar emergency to call 911 without delay and explain what happened.

Ed Sheeran, Global Citizen, CBGB and All Things Go cancel concerts because of nor'easter

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 16:44:19 +0000

Ed Sheeran can't be in love with the shape of this forecast.

A weekend nor'easter bound for New England has prompted the cancellation of the English pop singer's concerts Friday and Saturday in Foxborough, Massachusetts, about 22 miles (37 kilometers) southwest of Boston. Refunds will be provided.

“Due to the severe weather warnings in place in Boston and New England throughout the weekend and following consultation with local officials, we have made the difficult decision to cancel the Ed Sheeran concerts at Gillette Stadium,” concert promoter Messina Touring said in a statement Friday.

The decision “was made with the safety of fans, staff and everyone involved in the shows as the top priority,” the company said.

The storm is expected to sock much of the East Coast with strong winds, coastal flooding and heavy rain. The National Weather Service said gusts could hit 60 to 65 mph (97 to 105 kph) on Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket on Friday night, and about 50 to 55 mph (80 to 89 kph) around Boston.

The storm also led organizers of the Global Citizen, CBGB and All Things Go festivals to cancel performances in New York set for this weekend. Global Citizen, which had already raised nearly $210 million this year for its antipoverty efforts, was going to be headlined this year by Ms. Lauryn Hill and her Fugees’ bandmate Wyclef Jean.

All Things Go in New York was going to include performances by Zara Larsson, Lola Young, Brandi Carlile, Carly Rae Jepsen and others, while CBCB headliners included Morrissey and Patti Smith.

A tumultuous two weeks for Sheeran's Loop Tour

The cancellations are the latest disruption to Sheeran’s Loop Tour after Macklemore was dropped from the lineup for making pro-Palestinian comments onstage during a Sept. 5 show in New Jersey and supporting acts withdrew in solidarity.

Sheeran said at a concert Saturday in Philadelphia that he wants his music and shows to be about unity and humanity, not politics. But he said the attacks in Israel of Oct. 7, 2023, were horrific and called what is happening in Gaza “catastrophic and unjustifiable.”

The decision to drop Macklemore came at the urging of Robert Kraft, the owner of the NFL's New England Patriots and Gillette Stadium, who said in a statement that it was the result of the rapper’s recent comments “and a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery.”

Sheeran has said he was not responsible for cutting Macklemore from the tour, blaming the tour promoter.

Macklemore said last week that he was donating $1 million to support Palestinian relief efforts and called on Kraft to match the gift. A spokesperson for Kraft said the billionaire and Sheeran each agreed to donate $2 million, but they haven't specified where the money will be directed.

As of last year, the Grammy-winning “Shape of You” singer was the No. 3 top-earning concert act of the millennium, according to industry magazine Pollstar.

___

This story has been updated to correct that Sheeran’s Philadelphia concert was on Saturday, not Sunday.

Former VP Al Gore: A clean Earth is within world's grasp even as climate dangers accelerate

By Seth Borenstein, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 17:15:06 +0000

Longtime climate warrior Al Gore sees victory within Earth's grasp. But he worries that it could still slip through humanity's fingers.

“While we're in grave danger, but I think there is a possibility that 2026 will be looked back upon in the history books as the beginning of a positive tipping point,” Gore said in a sit down interview with The Associated Press during New York Climate Week. He sees a good chance the world is peaking its use of coal, oil and gas, which cause global warming, as solar and other renewable power is overtaking dirtier fossil fuels.

History makes the former U.S. vice president hopeful. He compared the effort to make a cleaner world to the U.S. civil rights movement, Nelson Mandela's anti-apartheid movement and women's equality efforts as “the other great morally based challenges that humanity has confronted in the past.

“And in all of those prior movements,” he said, "there were times when the advocates felt despair but they kept going because courage is not the absence of fear, it's the determination to go forward in spite of it."

Nature makes him nervous because Earth's warming is accelerating and with it extreme weather, such as heat waves and the deadly glacier collapse and flooding that killed 1,300 people in Nepal.

“I’m temperamentally optimistic, but the dangers are extremely grave, getting more so all the time,” said, Gore, often accused of being a doomsayer by nonscientist political opponents. “We’re seeing these extreme events come fast and furious. They’re worse as well as more frequent. ... It’s like a nature hike through the book of Revelation.”

A race between old and new power

“This is a close race between the unfathomable risk we are taking, the unacceptable damages we are enduring on one hand, and the incredibly exciting advance of all the clean, cheap, job-producing alternatives that people not under the sway of the fossil fuel industry are adopting in droves,” Gore said.

He ticked off factoids such as Africa installing 100,000 solar panels per day, that 91% of the new U.S. electricity generation was renewable and that 30% of all new car s sold globally this year will be electric. And, he said, in Pakistan the common dowry now includes three solar panels.

Who will win the race? “The answer is in our hands,” Gore said. “The last chapter of this story won’t come for a while, but I think we really are at a turning point."

Ten years ago, 55% of the world's investment was in fossil fuels and 45% in renewables. Now it's 65% renewables, Gore said. He said society changes when a new technology becomes cheaper than the old one, much like cellphones supplanting, then replacing landlines.

Experts say Gore is right to be optimistic

Three climate scientists basically agreed with Gore's assessments of both increasing dangers, but also still had an optimistic outlook.

"I agree with Al Gore that we have incredible progress on exponential rise in adoption and decline in price for renewable electric green solutions," said Johan Rockstrom, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impacts Research in Germany. “But the dilemma, so far, is that they largely meet growing energy demand. We are not yet bending the curve on oil, gas and coal.”

Climate Analytics CEO Bill Hare of Australia said he's generally optimistic like Gore “about what we can achieve particularly with the rapid development of clean technology." But, he said, "I am the at the same time fearful that this is not fast enough and is being held back by the fossil fuel industry.”

Even though change isn't fast enough, the University of Pennsylvania's Michael Mann said Gore's tone is crucial: “Doomism, despair and disengagement is the greatest threat at this point. We must not fall victim to it.”

Gore is having none of that. At 78, he thinks he'll see meaningful bends in the carbon pollution curve in his lifetime. But even if it takes longer, that's OK, Gore said, paraphrasing the Jewish Talmud:

“You are not required to finish the work, but you are required to undertake it.”

___

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Residents of largest city in northern Ethiopia express fear after eruption of fighting

Amanuel Gebremedhin And Samuel Getachew, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 10:22:15 +0000

Residents of the largest city in northern Ethiopia said they were living in fear as fighting resumed between federal troops and rebels opposed to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, with many reportedly trying to flee to other provinces to escape violence.

Some told The Associated Press that internet service was disrupted across parts of northern Ethiopia, and roads connecting the northernmost region of Tigray with the neighboring region of Afar had been closed to civilian traffic.

“There is an atmosphere of fear,” said Selam Fantay, who sells garlic in the market in the Tigrayan capital of Mekelle. “People are deeply concerned that the suspension of transport services signals the outbreak of renewed conflict.”

U.N. rights official decries suffering faced by civilians

A top United Nations rights official described the suffering that civilians face as federal troops battle fighters loyal to the Tigray People's Liberation Front, or TPLF.

Airstrikes by the Ethiopian military, some carried out using drones, reportedly hit five schools in Tigray on Tuesday, resulting in an unknown number of casualties. A mortar strike on Wednesday in Kobo, a town in the Amhara region, killed civilians, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said in a statement on Friday.

“I am deeply alarmed by the recent escalation in hostilities between Ethiopian Government forces and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front and its allies, and the harmful impacts it is already having on civilians," he said.

Türk also raised concern over an “ongoing campaign of forced mass recruitment of civilians, including children, by the TPLF across Tigray,” and violence targeting those who resist recruitment.

Some in Mekelle who spoke to the AP said that they were concerned about displacement and disruptions to their lives.

“As long as this conflict persists, it will continue to drive up the prices of basic commodities,” said businessman Hailay Meles.

Valerie Browning, a co-founder of the Afar Pastoralist Development Association, a humanitarian group, said many people were fleeing Tigray into Afar.

She said that “too many people are being displaced. Our vehicles, including our ambulances, are being taken from us by the government for use (in) the war.”

Federal troops and opposition fighters trade blame

The renewed fighting has shattered a 2022 peace agreement that ended a devastating two-year war in Tigray, the epicenter of renewed hostilities between federal troops and fighters loyal to the TPLF.

The TPLF is an armed political group based in Tigray, and for years it was the dominant party in a coalition that ruled Ethiopia between 1991 and 2018. It has been outlawed by Abiy's government.

After the November 2022 peace agreement between the TPLF and federal authorities, a caretaker administration reporting to Abiy took charge in Mekelle. But tensions remained, and caretaker leader Tadesse Werede was removed in May and replaced with a TPLF leader who led Tigrayans in the 2020-2022 war.

Both sides accuse each other of violating the peace agreement. In recent months, Ethiopian federal authorities accused the TPLF of seeking to build an alliance with neighboring Eritrea to destabilize Ethiopia. The TPLF accused Ethiopian authorities of conducting drone attacks in Tigray.

Neighboring Eritrea, whose soldiers fought alongside Ethiopian troops in the previous Tigray conflict, said it was alarmed by Abiy’s repeated assertions of his wish for sovereign access to the Red Sea via Eritrea.

Ethiopia’s military said Thursday that dozens of TPLF fighters had been killed in ongoing operations. It said other fighters were detained and that federal forces have seized weapons.

Opposition joins forces to try to remove prime minister

Air travel into the region was suspended this week after fighters loyal to the TPLF seized Mekelle’s airport from federal police. Ethiopian Airlines canceled flights to and from the region.

Fighting erupted days after seven opposition groups said they were banding together in a coalition in a bid to remove the recently reelected Prosperity Party government of Abiy.

Magnus Taylor, an analyst with International Crisis Group, said that the new alliance combines political opposition to Abiy with military coordination among armed groups operating in different parts of Ethiopia.

The alliance “is a combination of a political alliance based around mutual antipathy to Abiy Ahmed’s government and also a kind of opportunistic military alliance intended to threaten the Ethiopian military in the areas where the groups operate,” Taylor said.

In addition to the TPLF, the coalition’s other prominent members include the Amhara Fano National Movement and the Oromo Liberation Army.

Taylor pointed out that coordinated campaigns could open several fronts against the federal government.

“I think there is a real risk that the fighting could spread around the country,” he said, adding that the opposition alliance meant different armed groups can coordinate to “develop campaigns against the federal government in parallel to each other.”

___ Desmond Tiro in Nairobi, Kenya, and Rodney Muhumuza in Kampala, Uganda, contributed to this report.

Supreme Court lets Trump administration use revamped federal voter eligibility database for now

Ali Swenson, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 15:37:30 +0000

The Supreme Court on Friday lifted restrictions on a controversial federal voter database before November’s elections, granting President Donald Trump a temporary win in his aggressive campaign against noncitizen voting.

The court's three liberal-leaning justices publicly dissented from the decision.

The emergency order allows states, for now, to use the Trump administration's revamped version of a Department of Homeland Security program, called Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements, or SAVE, in their efforts to verify the eligibility of voters on their rolls. It's a program that has drawn scrutiny for its use of voters' sensitive personal data and its tendency to wrongly flag some eligible voters as noncitizens.

States' use of the SAVE program is voluntary, limiting the ruling's impact on the midterm elections. Existing law also blocks most states from systematically purging voters from their rolls within 90 days of an election, said David Becker, an election law expert who leads the Center for Election Innovation and Research. He said DHS itself has admitted the data is not perfect.

Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, a Democrat who has refused to participate in the SAVE program, said the ruling will have no effect in her state because it “does not force states to change the way we run our elections.”

The plaintiffs and their lawyers in the case called the ruling “profoundly disappointing” and said it puts “millions of Americans at risk of being unlawfully targeted by the administration’s unreliable voter purge database” before the midterms.

On X, James Percival, the general counsel for DHS, responded to a post about the decision with, “Yes, you read that right. We had to file an emergency petition in the Supreme Court just so we could use government data to help states stop noncitizens from illegally voting.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.

Ruling pauses a lower court's ban on the tool

The court’s order puts on hold a federal judge’s June ruling that had deemed the Republican administration’s recently revamped version of SAVE illegal. U.S. District Court Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan had blocked the use of the tool, saying it violated Americans’ privacy rights and could result in voters being wrongly removed from the rolls.

A federal appeals court let her order stand.

But the Supreme Court majority found that a 1996 law explicitly allows DHS to get information about citizenship and immigration from other federal agencies. The federal government also has “an obligation to respond” to states seeking to verify citizenship.

“The order below prevents the Federal Government from using the program it believes is best suited to the task,” the majority wrote in the unsigned order.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor. The database has long been seen to fall under federal privacy laws, she wrote, and there are real risks that legitimate voter registrations could be mistakenly revoked.

“The harm caused by burdening or disenfranchising even a few lawful voters outweighs the nonexistent harm that the Government experiences when it is prevented from taking an action that it likely lacks the authority to take,” Jackson wrote.

The plaintiffs pledged to do “everything in our power” to ensure the district court decision stands.

Trump administration tool has wrongly flagged some legal registrants

The SAVE program was created under an immigration law mandating that DHS help federal, state and local agencies prevent government benefits from going to noncitizens. The Trump administration last year moved to significantly expand its search abilities. Since then, at least 67 million registrations have been scanned through the program, but critics worry it could end up purging valid voters from the rolls.

Some registrants have already been wrongly flagged. In Travis County, Texas, for example, officials said they investigated 97 voters flagged by SAVE as apparent noncitizens and found that at least 10% of them — and likely up to 21% — were U.S. citizens. The county urged the Supreme Court to reject the administration’s appeal, while the state of Texas submitted its own brief defending the database.

In Denton, Texas, north of Dallas, voter Anthony Nels was disappointed that the Supreme Court allowed the continued use “of a system that harms people’s constitutional right to vote.”

Last year, after Texas ran its voter registrations through the SAVE system, Nels, 29, was flagged as a potential noncitizen, even though the South Africa native had become a U.S. citizen more than a decade ago. His local election office temporarily canceled his registration while he obtained a new passport to replace an expired one.

“This just seems like another illegitimate way to affect upcoming and future elections,” he said in a text to The Associated Press.

Stephen Richer, the Republican former top election official in Arizona's largest county, said the Supreme Court's ruling could be a positive step “if used responsibly.”

“That being said, the SAVE program has been shown time after time to be a highly-imperfect tool, so election administrators should only use it as a starting point, not as a definitive indicator of citizenship,” he wrote on social media.

SAVE is one piece of the administration's crusade against noncitizen voting

Even though the use of the SAVE program was blocked for months ahead of Friday's ruling, the administration has said in court filings that it has continued using Social Security Administration data "in certain cases to verify information and help determine whether illegal voting may have occurred."

DHS in August launched its own investigation to find noncitizen voters on state rolls, according to a federal whistleblower statement that said the effort is rushed, filled with errors and potentially violates state laws. DHS has defended that investigation as being conducted “diligently and professionally.”

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin also suggested over the summer that there could be as many as 250,000 noncitizens registered to vote across four states, an unsubstantiated claim that puzzled state election officials who said the numbers dramatically exceeded their own findings.

The effort to create a national voter list is among numerous steps Trump has taken during his second term to try to overhaul the way elections are run. Most of those steps have been blocked by various courts, in part because the Constitution gives states and Congress the authority to set election rules, but provides no such power to the president. In mid-September, the Supreme Court rejected a bid from Trump to restrict mail ballot procedures before the midterms.

Trump has remained fixated on the idea that massive numbers of noncitizens are voting in U.S. races, but all evidence says otherwise.

Ahead of the 2024 presidential election, Georgia’s secretary of state found that 20 of the state’s 8.2 million registered voters were not U.S. citizens. In Ohio, prosecutors secured indictments against nine people for voting as noncitizens over the span of 10 years. The state has some 8 million registered voters. Even with the Trump administration laser-focused on the issue in his second term, DHS said its investigations into potential noncitizens on voter rolls nationwide had led to 160 arrests.

Those numbers are supported by a mountain of research at the national and state level that has found the percentage of noncitizens on voter rolls is a tiny fraction of the nation's nearly 228 million registered voters.

___

Hanna reported from Topeka, Kansas, and Whitehurst reported from Washington.

Cattle associations say ICE operations are disrupting Texas agriculture industry, will cause higher beef prices

Texas Tribune, Jayme Lozano Carver — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 18:34:51 +0000

Three organizations representing thousands of ranchers in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas issued a joint statement Friday warning operations by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement are disrupting the agricultural community and will make beef prices spike again. Their statement is the beef’s industry latest salvo against policies and actions by the Trump administration.

The Texas Cattle Feeders Association, Kansas Livestock Association, and Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association said they are closely monitoring ICE’s activity and the impacts it’s creating. They described hearing reports of delays in shipping thousands of cattle to processors and workforce disruptions in important links of the supply chains such as dairies, feedyards, transportation hubs as well as feed and grain companies.

“These ICE operations are having a massive chilling effect on the legal, documented, skilled workers that put beef on the table and keep the supply chain moving,” the groups said. “Additionally, these types of disruptions will lead to higher beef prices for consumers.”

The ranchers’ statement about ICE is just the latest complaint they’ve had about the Trump administration’s impacts that they say are hurting the beef industry.

As beef prices reached record highs this year and the U.S. cattle herd shrunk to its lowest in 75 years, there has been a growing discontent among ranchers about some of the policies made by President Donald Trump. Most recently, Trump announced plans to suspend tariffs and import 300,000 metric tons of ground beef from countries such as Argentina and Brazil.

The meat would be sold at a discount for American consumers. While this was done to bring beef prices down for consumers, U.S. ranchers said it undercut their business. In response to the backlash, Trump issued a set of executive orders to see how to make it easier for ranchers to process and sell their own meat directly to consumers, as well as changes to labeling and mapping more than two million additional acres of grazing land to be managed by the Department of the Interior.

In response to a request for comment from The Tribune, the Department of Homeland Security shared a post on X by DHS Sec. Markwayne Mullin.

“ICE is not conducting worksite operations in Kansas,” Mullin said. “ICE law enforcement has conducted operations targeting heinous criminals including murderers, rapists, and drug traffickers and illegal aliens with final orders of removal.”

Mullin did not mention Texas or Oklahoma in his statement.

In their statement, the three cattle organizations called the disruptions caused by ICE operations come at a time of “enhanced focus and pressure” on the cattle and beef supply chain.

“They are a costly and unnecessary impact to cattle producers already suffering from unwelcome political interference to both the markets as well as the physical supply chain,” they said in the statement. “Frustratingly, the harm these actions cause to cattle producers last for days and weeks after such operations conclude.”

The three associations said they respect the responsibility federal agencies have to “enforce the law.” However, the groups said rural businesses depend on a stable workforce. They added the sudden workforce disruptions can create immediate animal-welfare, operational and economic consequences that go beyond a single business.

“We urge federal officials to conduct enforcement actions in a lawful, orderly, and transparent manner; respect due process; and communicate clearly with affected employers and communities,” the organizations said in their statement.

Federal court says Pentagon can label Anthropic a supply chain risk

Kaitlyn Huamani, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 16:47:28 +0000

In the latest twist in Anthropic's dispute with the Pentagon, a federal appeals court on Friday rejected the artificial intelligence lab's challenge to the government's labeling of it as a supply chain risk.

The decision allows the Pentagon to continue to remove Anthropic’s Claude models from its systems and bar the use of its products for Defense Department work. Judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled 2-1 in the Pentagon's favor.

“Today’s DC Circuit Court ruling completely validates the Department’s position,” the Pentagon’s top spokesman, Sean Parnell, wrote in a social media post.

The dispute between the AI company and the government broke out in February when President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth accused Anthropic of endangering national security and designated the company a supply chain risk. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei refused to back down over concerns the company’s products could be used for mass surveillance or autonomous armed drones.

The ruling is separate from one this summer in California, where a federal judge found the Pentagon acted illegally by punishing the AI company for its criticism of the Pentagon’s views on AI use. This case, which was filed earlier this year in Washington, D.C., focused on a different rule the Pentagon was using to try to declare Anthropic a supply chain risk.

The majority opinion states the Pentagon had “ample support” for its actions. It notes that by Anthropic's own admission, “the company encodes restrictions into Claude that prevent the model from performing tasks that Anthropic wishes to prevent.”

“The Department reasonably feared that Anthropic might manipulate Claude’s design to prevent it from performing national-security functions that the Department deems contractually authorized and necessary,” Judge Gregory G. Katsas wrote in the majority opinion. Both Katsas and Judge Neomi Rao, who formed the majority, were nominated by Trump. The sole dissenter, Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson, was nominated by Republican President George H. W. Bush.

The judges said that they have "no reason to doubt" that Anthropic acts with “noble intentions” in restricting Claude, specifically with respect to its concerns around privacy and AI safety. But they said the definition of a supply chain risk in this context hinges “on what Anthropic does, not why Anthropic does it.”

An Anthropic spokesperson said in a written statement the company “respectfully disagrees” with the court’s decision. “Another federal court has already held the government’s parallel designation unlawful,” the statement continued. "We remain confident in our position and are considering all options, including further review.”

The judges who ruled against Anthropic said they had “no quarrel” with the conclusions of the the separate case that was filed in San Francisco, but they found that a “bad motive” on Anthropic’s part is not required to support a supply chain risk designation.

The Department of Defense began removing Claude from its workflows earlier this year, and the ruling upholds its ability to do so, including prohibiting contractors from using Anthropic products in their work for the department. Anthropic’s products are not barred from the federal government as a whole under this ruling.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Europe's top leagues add to pressure on Infantino by calling for FIFA reform

James Robson, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 08:44:01 +0000

Gianni Infantino came under more pressure on Friday as the Premier League and three other top European leagues called for FIFA governance reform following the failed plan to sell stakes in the World Cup.

A statement co-signed with the top leagues from Spain, Italy and Germany said soccer had “suffered one of the biggest abuses of power in FIFA’s history.”

It accused FIFA's president of actively promoting “exploitative ideas rather than safeguarding against them.”

The Premier League is soccer's richest and most popular league. Its collaboration with Europe's other leading leagues adds to the growing pressure on Infantino, who is facing the biggest crisis in his 10 years as FIFA’s leader.

While the leagues did not follow UEFA by specifically calling for Infantino to step down, their statement was highly critical, hitting out at FIFA's “relentless expansionism.”

“Football’s longstanding foundations have, in recent years, been threatened by a fundamental governance problem,” it said. “Now is the moment to decide not only who will lead FIFA, but also how FIFA should be led.”

It is the latest rift between leagues and Infantino, whose biggest projects have been seen as attacks on domestic soccer and were successfully resisted by a backlash from European officials.

The big four leagues also are members of the European Leagues network, which filed a formal complaint against “abusive” FIFA governance standards in 2023 at the European Commission in Brussels.

Despite the backlash over his controversial plan to sell profits in the World Cup through a commercial subsidiary, and losing the support of many national federations, FIFA says Infantino plans to stand again in next year’s elections for a final term in office through 2031.

The leagues in England, Spain, Italy and Germany said they wanted presidential candidates to stand on a manifesto of fundamental reform.

“FIFA’s governance problem goes far beyond the role of one individual. The wider question is whether FIFA’s president should simultaneously wield such regulatory, commercial and political power without effective checks and balances," they said.

Infantino's now ditched proposal to create a $20 billion company called the FIFA Forward Enterprise to run the World Cup with private investors including the Kushner family, caught the soccer world by surprise when it emerged in July.

The backlash came from both within world soccer's governing body and from other federations, with some declaring they had lost faith in Infantino as a result.

While he has tried to quell anger, with FIFA apologizing for errors and committing to “ensure they do not happen again,” criticism has not gone away.

The group of four leagues provide another critical voice, just days before the influential European Football Clubs group meets in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Nov. 18 is the deadline for candidates to enter the next presidential contest, exactly four months ahead of the vote in Morocco.

___

James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

___

See AP’s full soccer coverage here

Takeaways from Trump-Xi summit: Lots of pomp and even more punting on tensions in US-China relations

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 18:05:16 +0000

Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping have wrapped up a three-day Washington summit that was heavy on pomp but light on substance.

The U.S. president delighted in the personal rapport he says he's built with Xi, while the Chinese leader emphasized the two sides “must hold the line” to ensure there is “no conflict and no confrontation between us.”

The two leaders discussed the wars in Iran and Ukraine as well as artificial intelligence and Taiwan. The biggest policy announcement of the visit was modest: an agreement to extend by two months a trade truce that had been set to expire in November.

Here are seven key takeaways from the visit:

Trump shows deference to Xi after trade tussle

Trump's red-carpet treatment for Xi is remarkable considering less than a year ago the two were locked in a tariff battle that threatened to send the global economy into a recession.

The warmth sharply contrasts with the hostility Trump shows for America’s northern neighbor and biggest export market, Canada, and Prime Minister Mark Carney.

Only China and Canada fought back against Trump’s tariffs last year with retaliatory tariffs of their own.

But Trump has been deferential to Xi while raging against Ottawa, announcing 50% tariffs on some Canadian imports and a ban on some Canadian products, including motorcycles and alcohol. The ban takes effect Tuesday. Trump even posted an image of himself in a U.S. hockey uniform, looming over Carney cowering on the ice.

Former U.S. trade official Jeff Moon said the explanation is simple.

“Trump is a bully who enjoys punching down when he can but will stop when he can’t,” said Moon, noting Canada sends about 70% of its exports to the U.S.

Trump eased up on China last year when Beijing cut off supplies of critical minerals needed for advanced manufacturing. “Punching down was no longer possible,’’ said Moon, the founder of China Moon Strategies.

No breakthroughs on the thorniest global issues

The leaders are facing calls to collaborate on guardrails for artificial intelligence even as they compete to dominate the rapidly developing technology.

Xi acknowledged that the U.S. and China have the “responsibility to develop and manage AI for good” while ensuring it remains under human control. But Trump appears more focused on his push to rebrand artificial intelligence to “super intelligence,” claiming on social media Friday that Xi “seems to like” the term without divulging the substance of their discussions.

Trump, a Republican, has repeatedly said that he doesn’t want to impede the industry and that the U.S. must ensure an edge over China.

The leaders also delved into the Iran war, which Trump is struggling to wind down. China urged Washington and Tehran to return to talks and an interim deal, but Iran’s largest trading partner has played no major public role in pushing for peace despite its outsize influence.

The costs of the war -- including higher gasoline prices and dwindling stockpiles of advanced weapons -- are hurting Republicans ahead of November’s midterm elections.

Xi’s push on Taiwan with Trump alarms Taipei

In their private talks, Xi told Trump he hoped the U.S. will “adhere to the correct position of opposing” the independence of Taiwan, a self-governed island, according to an official Chinese statement.

Trump hasn’t said much yet about his private conversations with Xi. But Taiwan’s foreign ministry said the Chinese statement was “distorting” the facts, while underscoring that Taiwan’s sovereignty belongs to its people.

The Chinese government’s choice of the word “adhere” is revealing, because it implies Beijing believes Washington is already behaving in ways it wants, says Craig Singleton, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

“Beijing’s objective is to get Trump to absorb Chinese red lines into his own definition of a stable relationship,” Singleton added.

Anxiety was already heightened about Trump’s position on Taiwan. Following his May visit to Beijing, Trump paused a $14 billion arms sale to Taiwan.

Xi challenged Trump’s zero sum worldview. Trump didn't push back

Xi seemed to subtly reject Trump’s framing of global competition as zero sum with nations either winning or losing.

The Chinese leader said any competition with the U.S. should be limited and “within bounds” and suggested that Trump need not worry about trying to contain China.

To be sure, Xi couched his remarks in history and diplomatic nuance. But Trump did not offer a counterargument.

U.S. policies have tried to contain Chinese manufacturing through tariffs and export controls. Those have achieved mixed results. China continues to innovate with electric vehicles, match AI breakthroughs and expand its global trade surplus.

“It should be a race of catching up with one another, not a wrestle in which one either wins or loses,” said Xi, openly contesting Trump’s claims that the front-runner in AI automatically “wins.”

Trump takes his military rival into his helicopter

The U.S. president took pains to show Xi around and spent time looking at a new helicopter landing pad he had rushed to finish ahead of the state visit. But it was surprising when Trump invited Xi -- the head of a communist country that is a key military rival -- to step on board the chopper, which is one of the most secure and well-protected aircraft on earth.

Trump has had other issues with airborne security recently. A luxury jet gifted to him by Qatar for use as Air Force One lacked the advanced defense systems of the traditional presidential aircraft — a problem acute enough that Trump in July was concealed in a catering truck before secretly flying out of Turkey on a different plane in the face of credible threats from Iran.

Trump also showed off the construction site for his new White House ballroom, a project he has partially justified because it will house military and security operations. At Xi's state dinner, Trump invited Chinese officials and all his guests to walk over for a firsthand look at the project. It’s unclear whether anyone took him up on that invitation.

Trump's ongoing media battle created an awkward dynamic

Trump last week barred CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House, sparking a legal fight that overshadowed Xi's visit.

The White House’s five-network television pool rotation refused to cover Trump’s events in response to the action against CNN, and Trump grumbled on social media that TV networks “refused to cover one of the Biggest and Most Beautiful Events to take place in many years.”

His fight with the press created an extraordinary split screen as he welcomed the world’s most powerful autocrat with a lavish state visit all while battling in court to keep prominent American media outlets out of the People’s House.

It’s all to be continued …

After Xi’s trip to Washington, the two leaders are still on track to meet two more times this year.

That means their exchanges are part of an ongoing dialogue, rather than a set of finalized agreements. It also creates opportunities for the trade truce that was extended for two months through Jan. 10, 2027, to get another extension.

In November, Xi will host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China, and in December, the Group of 20 summit will be held at the Trump National Doral Miami golf club in Florida.

Xi confirmed before leaving Washington on Friday that he expected to see Trump again soon.

Watch: Raphael Warnock speaks at the 2026 Texas Tribune Festival

Texas Tribune, Texas Tribune Events Staff — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 17:20:00 +0000

The senator from Georgia discusses how faith informs his politics and winning as a Democrat in a traditionally red state.

A data-sharing clause derailed US-Zimbabwe health talks. Now all funding ends this month

Farai Mutsaka, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 15:39:49 +0000

The United States will end funding for Zimbabwe’s health programs at the end of September following the collapse of negotiations over a U.S.-proposed deal that Zimbabwe rejected in part over a requirement to share sensitive health data, the U.S. Embassy said Friday.

An embassy spokesperson in Harare confirmed the decision and released remarks delivered this week by U.S. Ambassador Pamela Tremont at an event titled “Beyond assistance."

Tremont said the end of U.S.-supported health programs followed “Zimbabwe’s decision to decline a bilateral health MOU." She added that the U.S. will now shift its relations with Zimbabwe “from one largely focused on health and humanitarian assistance, to one built on broader economic, trade and investment opportunities.”

Zimbabwe is among the first countries to face the consequences of Washington’s new approach of tying health aid to bilateral country-to-country agreements.

The withdrawal casts uncertainty over programs to combat HIV and other diseases in a country where shortages often force patients to bring basic supplies such as bandages to clinics and buy their own medicines.

For decades, the U.S. has been Zimbabwe’s largest health donor, supporting HIV prevention and treatment, tuberculosis and malaria programs, clinical care, laboratory systems, health workers, medical supplies and community-based programs.

Zimbabwean officials have raised concerns over diminishing international aid, saying the country would prioritize raising funds domestically as assistance from the U.S. and other Western countries dries up. Some health advocates, however, question whether Zimbabwe’s financially troubled government can absorb the costs.

“Zimbabweans have already been suffering gravely as a result of abrupt disruptions to lifesaving malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV programs caused by the U.S. stop work orders and USAID award terminations in 2025," said Asia Russell, executive director of Health GAP, an international advocacy group. “This deadly decision will trigger a public health catastrophe,” she added.

The dispute dates to February, when both countries announced the collapse of talks on a bilateral deal proposed under U.S. President Donald Trump’s “America First” approach to foreign aid.

Zimbabwe government spokesperson Nick Mangwana said the proposal contained conditions the country could not accept, citing concerns over data sharing, fairness, sovereignty and Washington’s shift away from global health institutions.

According to Mangwana, the proposal was tied to “comprehensive access to Zimbabwe’s sensitive health data, including virus samples and epidemiological information from our citizens.”

Namibia also rejected a bilateral agreement with the U.S. because of concerns about provisions for sharing health data and biological specimens, local media reported. In early September, the U.S. said it would start phasing out its financial support for Namibia’s HIV response programs. The U.S. will provide Namibia with $45 million for its HIV response in fiscal 2027 before shifting to “technical cooperation,” the two governments said in September, but did not cite the health data fallout as the reason for the development.

African governments have in recent months increasingly called for “health sovereignty,” reflecting efforts to finance and manage their health systems with less reliance on foreign aid.

Africa CDC has described the continent as facing “an unprecedented financing crisis,” saying official development assistance to Africa has halved over the last five years.

Under the Trump administration’s new approach, Washington has been negotiating country-by-country health agreements that it says will reduce donor dependency and increase domestic financing. So far, 35 countries have signed such agreements, the majority in Africa, according to KFF, a U.S. health-policy research organization tracking the deals.

At least four African countries — Ghana, Zambia, South Africa and Zimbabwe — have publicly resisted or failed to conclude new U.S. bilateral health agreements, while Kenya’s agreement has faced a legal challenge.

Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama said Friday the U.S. wanted information about endemic diseases and the country's medical records and that Ghana would have no right to inspect medications or medical products brought into the country.

Mahama was in New York for high-level meetings and the general debate of the United Nations General Assembly. Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations, he said the U.S. proposal was taken to the Cabinet and “thrown out in record time.”

“I've never seen anything thrown out as fast as that,” he said.

___

AP Writer Jennifer McDermott contributed to this report from New York.

___

For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse

___

The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Join UT MD Anderson’s 11th annual Boot Walk to End Cancer® at Helix Park Nov. 14

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 17:06:35 +0000

For 11 years, Houston has stepped up to give cancer the boot. Join UT MD Anderson on Nov. 14 at Helix Park in the Texas Medical Center.

This family-friendly event brings together thousands of neighbors, friends and teams for a 1.2-mile in-person walk and supporters across the country can participate virtually from their own neighborhoods.

Boot Walk participants have raised more than $16 million to fund lifesaving research, prevention, education and patient programs at MD Anderson.

Why this milestone matters

The 2026 Boot Walk marks the start of a new decade of impact. Every step helps fuel MD Anderson’s mission to end cancer.

This year’s fundraising goal is $1.7 million, with a recruitment target of 6,000 participants and 450 teams.

All funds raised by participants (100%) support MD Anderson’s research, patient programs, prevention and education efforts; generous sponsors offset event costs so donations go directly to the mission.

How to join and make an impact

There is no registration fee. Sign up at MDAnderson.org/BootWalk and download the event app to track steps, fundraise and stay connected.

Participants can personalize their experience by fundraising, tracking steps or raising awareness for MD Anderson’s mission areas.

Teams that raise $25,000 or more and individuals who raise $10,000 or more may designate their funds to a specific MD Anderson program or project.

Whether you walk with us at Helix Park or celebrate from your community, your steps make a difference in Houston’s fight against cancer.

Final results of Russia's tightly managed vote give a record high parliament seats to Kremlin party

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 09:19:26 +0000

Full results released Friday from Russia's first wartime parliamentary election showed that the tightly orchestrated vote had further cemented the Kremlin's overwhelming political control of the country.

United Russia, the main Kremlin party, will get more than three-fourths of the seats in the State Duma, a record high, according to returns released by the Central Election Commission.

Virtually any genuine opposition parties or candidates were excluded from running in the Sept. 18-20 election. A massive state media campaign and tight control over the voting process allowed the Kremlin to strengthen its political dominance despite Russia's economic troubles and long-range Ukrainian drone attacks.

Nearly 60% of the 111 million eligible voters turned out in the three-day balloting, the most for a parliamentary election in more than a decade. Authorities had spread the voting over three days and allowed online voting in some regions to boost participation.

The parliamentary election was the first since President Vladimir Putin launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and the first to include residents of four regions of that country that were seized and illegally annexed by Moscow later that year.

Voting also was held in Crimea, which was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014. Kyiv denounced the voting in those regions as illegal.

Russia didn’t invite election observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

Election commission chief Ella Pamfilova said United Russia got 349 out of 450 seats in the State Duma, the lower chamber. It polled 58% of the ballot for the 225 seats apportioned by parties and also won 209 single-seat races that fill the other half of the chamber.

On Wednesday, Putin declared that the election results were a show of public support for his policies.

Several smaller parties representing the “systemic opposition” that vote in line with the Kremlin on all key issues won 97 seats, and the remaining four seats were filled by regional officials who ran without a party affiliation.

Pamfilova said 46 Ukraine war veterans were elected, including 41 from United Russia.

“The experience of our heroes is in demand; the voting results have clearly confirmed this,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “They will make a maximum contribution to the shaping of various initiatives.”

The liberal Yabloko party, the only registered political entity that dared to publicly criticize the war, was removed from the ballot last month by Russia’s Supreme Court. It only had a few dozen candidates in the single-seat races and none of them won a seat.

Ahead of the campaign, some anti-war politicians were imprisoned or forced to flee abroad.

As the election commission announced the full results, Russian media reports said independent political analyst Alexander Kynev, who closely followed the campaign, had been arrested on drug charges, which he denied. He could face from 10 to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Earlier this year, Kynev has been designated as “foreign agent” by the Justice Ministry, a label that carries strong pejorative connotations in the country and brings additional government scrutiny.

The election took place against the backdrop of incessant Ukrainian drone attacks. Officials said air defenses downed over 1,100 Ukrainian drones, including 450 drones heading for Moscow on the final day of voting in what Mayor Sergei Sobyanin described as “the largest ever” attack on the capital. The attack, which damaged an oil refinery and a residential building, killed three people and injured 38 in the wider Moscow region, officials said.

Pamfilova said six poll workers were killed in Ukrainian attacks and 75 polling stations were damaged or destroyed by shelling.

The first session of the newly elected lower house has been set for Wednesday. Russian media reports said its speaker, Vyacheslav Volodin, is expected to retain his position.

The White House network TV pool resumes operations after a dayslong ban of news outlets from grounds

Jocelyn Noveck, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 14:27:12 +0000

The U.S. network video pool for the White House was back in operation Friday, for the first time since President Donald Trump banned three news outlets in an extraordinary showdown over media access.

At noon on CNN, viewers could see Trump and President Xi Jinping touring the National Archives, along with Melania Trump and Peng Liyuan, Xi's wife. The banner along the bottom of the screen read: “Trump and China’s Xi Visit National Archives.” It was a routine report from a state visit — but for the fact that CNN had not aired live video of Trump in several days.

“As of now, all systems are go,” said a person familiar with the pool, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the fluidity of the situation.

The pool consists of five major U.S. broadcast outlets that take turns shooting and sharing video. When the White House banned CNN — which belongs to the pool — from White House grounds, along with MS NOW and Politico, the other four pool providers declined to participate in a show of solidarity.

A judge temporarily struck down the ban in an overnight ruling early Thursday, but his ruling didn't directly address the pool. The networks continued to refrain from covering Trump as part of the pool, even as reporters from all three outlets were allowed back in the White House.

CNN was not commenting directly on Friday, referring instead to its editorial coverage. But Brian Stelter, the network’s media analyst, posted on X that CNN had a pool assignment at the National Archives event and that the White House had approved the network’s credentials.

Police responding to shooting near Westbury High School in southwest Houston

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 14:14:18 +0000

Police are responding to a reported shooting near Westbury High School in southwest Houston, located at 11911 Chimney Rock Road, according to the Houston Police Department.

LATEST UPDATE: Westbury High School senior shot and killed near campus, Houston police say

HISD said the high school is in secure mode due to “an incident near the school.”

KPRC 2 confirmed that HPD Homicide is responding.

Authorities are expected to hold a media briefing with more details as this develops.

This is a developing story.

Brightline reworks debt in bankruptcy court but its high-speed trains will keep running in Florida

Josh Funk And Michelle Chapman, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 12:57:25 +0000

The Brightline companies that bet more than $5 billion on developing the nation's only privately held passenger railroad are reworking their debt in bankruptcy court, but the bright yellow trains will continue running between Miami and Orlando.

This financial move does not affect Brightline's sister company Brightline West, which is working to build a high-speed railroad between Las Vegas and a stop outside Los Angeles in Southern California.

The deal that Brightline worked out with its creditors will allow the railroad to borrow $490 million more as it works to attract enough riders to pay all of its bills. Assured Guaranty said on Friday that the financing commitments include $350 million of new junior debt and $140 million of additional senior debt.

Assured said that Brightline Trains Florida LLC, which runs the railroad, has not filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, but that certain other Brightline Florida entities did file for such protection.

“Brightline is a critical part of Florida’s transportation network that has changed the way people move around the state,” Brightline Florida CEO Patrick Goddard said in a statement. “Today’s agreement brings $490 million in new long-term capital to Brightline from the stakeholders who know this business, and it comes at a time of real momentum.”

Brightline earned the worst safety record of any railroad in the nation with more than 200 deaths along its tracks since it was founded, but Goddard said at a news conference earlier this month that the railroad has been working to improve safety with better safety measures around rail crossings.

The company has seen its ridership grow 14% for the year-to-date through August, with revenue up 17% for the same period when compared with last year.

But Tim Hynes, who is head of Global Credit Research at Debtwire, said Brightline's current ridership of about 3.5 million people a year that generates about $240 million of revenue is less than half the number of riders and one-third of the revenue the railroad predicted in 2024. He said that's why Brightline needed to rework its debt and obtain additional financing.

“The broader lesson is that intercity rail financed mainly with private high-yield debt is very hard to make work, so expect future projects to lean more on public money,” said Hynes, who also thinks investors will demand more conservative ridership forecasts.

Brightline first began running its trains between Miami and Orlando in 2023. The company began operating between Miami and West Palm Beach in 2018. But it is only able to run at its maximum speed of 125 mph (202 kph) on the stretch between the Orlando airport and Cocoa, Florida, because that section is totally fenced off and doesn't have any public grade crossings.

Brightline hopes to eventually extend its service to Tampa.

Police investigating for hazing after men covered in food found in Wisconsin fraternity

Scott Bauer, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 15:32:14 +0000

Police are investigating suspected hazing after about 30 partially-clothed young men covered in food, condiments and other liquids were found in the basement of a fraternity house near the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus this week.

Madison police said some of the men, who they described as pledges to the fraternity, had signs of being physically assaulted.

Police went to the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity house Wednesday night after receiving an anonymous tip. Two fraternity members, both 20, were arrested on tentative misdemeanor charges of hazing and disorderly conduct, police said. No formal charges had been filed against them as of Friday morning.

The university said it was taking the incident seriously and launching its own investigation.

“UW–Madison is fully committed to preventing and addressing hazing and takes all incidents involving our community seriously,” the university said in a Thursday statement.

Any student found to have broken the law or university policy could be subject to sanctions ranging from a written reprimand to expulsion, the university said.

Police released a photo that shows about two dozen men, all shirtless, in the basement of the fraternity with trash and other debris littered on the ground. The faces of the people in the photo are blurred out.

Police said the thermostat was set to 81 degrees, causing hot and humid conditions in the basement where the walls appeared to be painted black. A majority of those in the basement were 18 years old, police said.

The fraternity’s status as a recognized student organization on the Madison campus was terminated in 2015 for holding events while suspended. It had been suspended in 2013 for hosting a party in which a 17-year-old and another person were taken to detox after being served alcohol at a party hosted by the fraternity, according to university records.

The termination came after a fourth incident involving either events, alcohol or both, the university said.

Since 2016, there were seven additional allegations involving the fraternity related to intramural sports, disrespectful behavior, drinking and hazing, the university said.

Because the fraternity is still recognized by its national organization, it is able to operate as a fraternity chapter unaffiliated with the university, UW-Madison said.

Jon Pierce, spokesperson for the national fraternity, said it is taking the allegations “very seriously” and will cooperate fully with investigations. Any member found to have participated will be expelled from the fraternity, he said.

“Hazing is a betrayal of everything our fraternity stands for,” Pierce said. “There is no place for it in AEPi. No exceptions. No excuses.”

The fraternity house is located just blocks from the heart of the UW-Madison campus, which is home to about 52,000 students.

Police said their investigation is also ongoing. The university’s Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards is also investigating in accordance with its nonacademic misconduct process, UW-Madison said.

All recent polls have Talarico ahead of Paxton in the U.S. Senate race

Texas Tribune, Hien An Ngo — Fri, 07 Aug 2026 10:00:00 +0000

Texas’ candidates in this year’s U.S. Senate race are neck and neck, according to recent polling. Since the runoff election on May 26, state Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic nominee, has performed slightly better than his Republican opponent, Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Notably, Talarico has enjoyed larger leads in recent polling than Democrat Beto O’Rourke ever did in 2018 when he nearly beat U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz. Talarico is dominating Paxton in fundraising.

How to read a poll

The quality of polls and pollsters can be measured by several metrics, including how well their polls have performed in the past and how transparent they are about their methodology. Here are a few things to pay attention to when navigating different polls.

Partisan sponsors: Polls sponsored by a candidate or party should be taken with a grain of salt, according to the American Association for Public Opinion Research. While nonpartisan polling organizations typically release all of their polling results regardless of who is ahead, candidate-sponsored or party-affiliated surveys can choose to only release results that benefit their campaigns.

Sample size: In general, the more people an election poll surveys the more reliable its results are. As sample sizes increase, the results of a survey are more likely to reflect the real attitudes of those who will vote in an election.

Sample type: Election polls usually survey three kinds of populations: adults, registered voters and those they deem to be “likely voters,” based on their voting history and gauged interest.

Polls that survey adults are able to increase their sample sizes, but can be less reflective of the opinions of those who will actually make it to the polls to vote on Election Day. During an election year, polls using samples of registered voters are common as they are a concrete group and more likely to vote than unregistered adults.

Closer to election day, polls with “likely voter” samples are often considered more representative of those who will actually vote. Different pollsters use different methodologies to determine who is a likely voter, using factors such as past voting behavior and interest in the election.

Sampling method: The methods by which pollsters select who participates in their surveys usually fall into two categories: probability and non-probability samples.

In a probability-based sample, every person of the full population has a chance of being selected for the survey, whereas in a non-probability based sample, such as an internet panel or a self-selected sample, the chance of any one person being selected is unknown. As a result, the samples can be skewed toward characteristics that may not be as reflective of the whole population.

Although probability based sampling has been the preferred method for many decades, its rising cost has led researchers to turn to non-probability based sampling. The results of some non-probability based surveys have been shown to be comparable to and sometimes more accurate than probability based surveys.

Margin of error: While polls conducted with probability samples allow for the calculation of the margin of error, non-probability polls have no simple way of calculating the same error metric. They must instead use statistical models to produce estimates of their sampling error.

Methodology for our tracker

Where the polls come from

The New York Times collects polls and manages a database of election polling. This tracker pulls data from their collection, and estimates the average of every poll conducted since Paxton won his Republican runoff election in May.

Which polls we include

We included every public poll of the Texas U.S. Senate that asked voters to choose who they would vote for if the election occurred that day and included James Talarico and Ken Paxton as options. Polls that ended before the May runoff election are not included in the average, but are listed in the table.

How the average works

The average is calculated by weighting every poll by three factors: recency, sample size and whether the poll’s sponsor has a partisan affiliation. We then averaged them.

Recent polls count more than older ones as they are more reflective of current sentiment.
Polls with larger sample sizes count more than those with smaller samples.
Polls sponsored by a political party count half as much as ones without a partisan sponsor.

Limits

The average is not a forecast of the election and who will eventually win. Additionally, early in the race, the number of polls that have been released can be relatively low, meaning the average can shift meaningfully when a single new poll is added. As a result, individual outlier polls carry more weight early on.

Apurva Mahajan contributed to this report.

Disclosure: The New York Times has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in The Texas Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

BOO! Houston Life previews the month-long creepy crawly fun at Houston Zoo’s annual Zoo Boo

Wed, 23 Sep 2026 16:42:56 +0000

The Houston Life crew returned to the the Houston Zoo for the annual Zoo Boo celebration! We’re checking out the family-friendly fun, including Instagram-worthy photo ops, activities for kids and even a talking pumpkin.

Interactive pumpkin at Zoo Boo

Derrick Shore drinking a Biscoff Cookie Latte at Houston Zoo's Zoo Boo

We also visit the bug house to meet some of the zoo’s tiniest residents and learn how they get ready for the day. Plus, we’re eating our way around the zoo with seasonal treats, specialty coffees, cookies and new breakfast options.

Zoo Boo

Zoo Boo sign

Stream Houston Life Monday to Friday HERE at 1 p.m. on KPRC 2.

How sweeping job cuts have reshaped life and job prospects in the DC area, according to a new survey

Gary Fields And Linley Sanders, Associated Press — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 04:07:51 +0000

Sam Trumbull once wrote public assistance policy to help people receiving food assistance, then needed public assistance for her family. Amanda Nataro won't take personal effects to her new job, after being crushed by the sudden end of her last one. Nicoletta Barbera and her husband are considering leaving the area because of rising costs and lower salaries than they once had.

The women are among the thousands of federal workers and contract employees in the Washington region whose lives were upended when the Trump administration and the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency overhauled the federal workforce last year, cutting jobs and grants.

A new survey released Thursday by Gallup and the Greater Washington Community Foundation shows the far-reaching impact on the nation's capital.

Despite living in one of the most affluent parts of the country, many in the greater D.C. area — which includes parts of Maryland and Virginia and is referred to as the DMV — now see a bleak local job market and rising costs. Some are even considering leaving the region.

“It wasn’t just about our jobs being gone. It was really this awful ripple effect of all these lives and destinies really disrupted," Nataro said.

The District of Columbia, which official figures show accounted for a fifth of the roughly 100,000 job losses in the region and is host to an ongoing deployment of the National Guard, has been particularly impacted. According to the survey, about two-thirds of D.C. residents said their household had been directly affected by the job cuts, one of the highest percentages in the region.

Federal job cuts impacted higher-income households

More affluent households were hit especially hard by the cuts, the survey found. A majority — 58% — of those in households with an annual income of $90,000 or more said they were impacted by the reductions, compared to 48% of lower-income households.

Trumbull earned over $130,000 annually at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. After DOGE came for her job, she took a deferred resignation in the second-round offering, under threat of a forthcoming USDA reorganization that wasn’t really a decent option. She only secured new, part-time employment a year later.

During that time, she had to take a forbearance on her mortgage. She applied for public assistance. She and her husband took home just $2,000 a month, she said, while amassing debt from their home ownership.

When jobs didn’t come through, she did some contract work and taught to “cobble together enough money to make sure my kids were supplied — cause you don’t get to stop buying diapers.”

“I don’t see a future where I can go back to not worrying about moving money around constantly” to cover bills, she said.

Even though lower-income residents were less likely to report any impacts, the survey suggests that hardship was still acute among this group. About 1 in 10, 14%, DMV residents say that they or someone in their household accessed social services like food banks or job placement support for the first time in the past year, which rose to about one-quarter of those in households earning less than $90,000 per year.

Many residents worry about housing payments and healthcare

About one-third of DMV residents say they are “very” or “somewhat” worried about being able to pay their rent or mortgage, down from about half in 2023 following the economic troubles of the COVID pandemic. Renters, Black and Hispanic adults, and lower-income residents are particularly worried about housing payments.

Nataro, 42, and a single mom of two young children, asked her landlord for a rent reduction after she lost her job at USAID, one of DOGE's first targets. She signed up for food stamps and unemployment assistance. She found work in academia quickly but took a substantial pay cut.

“It’s very humbling, because you know before that you’re paying all your bills and struggling but you’ve got enough to cover everything,” she said. Now, she has had to ask for help.

Roughly 2 in 10 DMV residents say there were times in the past year when they couldn't pay for healthcare, according to the survey. Nataro said she has had to make tough choices on her personal healthcare needs to cut costs.

Danielle Yates, the managing director of marketing and communications at the Greater Washington Community Foundation, said the survey found that a significant number of people in the region had trouble taking care of their basic needs.

About 1 in 10 DMV residents say they couldn't provide adequate shelter or housing for their family the past year, according to the survey, and roughly 2 in 10 say there were times when they couldn't pay for food.

A Capital Area Food Bank survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago last year also found broad food insecurity. “Thirty-eight percent of our area’s residents said that they needed some support in putting food on their tables so that they could lead an active and healthy lifestyle,” said Radha Muthiah, executive director of the CAFB.

Views of the local job market have dimmed

Residents' perceptions of the local job market are much less optimistic than just a few years ago. Only about half of DMV residents rate the availability of good jobs where they live as “excellent” or “good," down from 65% in 2023.

Those who have found work say they've been left with the scars of DOGE's ruthlessness.

A job Nataro loved and felt made a difference in the world was taken away, leaving her “traumatized.”

"I haven’t taken any real personal effects to the office. We haven’t really unboxed things.”

Some consider leaving the region

Rising costs and housing also influence how DMV residents think about the region, in addition to the job cuts.

About one-third of DMV residents expect that living conditions in the Washington area will be “worse” in the next five years, while about half think they will be “about the same.” Only about 2 in 10 expect things will get better.

About 1 in 10 D.C. residents, 14%, say they are considering leaving the DMV region in the next year, with most who are thinking about departing pointing to rising costs and housing expenses.

Barbera and her husband both worked at the U.S. Institute of Peace, a place where the staff was fired twice because of court decisions. A year and a half after they were fired in March 2025, the couple are considering leaving the area because of rising costs, especially childcare for their three children. Although both have full-time jobs and do consulting work part time, they are earning half of what they did, said Barbera.

The two had worked a collective 30 years for the peace-focused organization when they were let go. She said she feels lucky because they have family support and jobs but are being forced into considering a different future.

“This is the only place they’ve lived,” Barbera said of her children. “We don’t want to leave. But we have to have the conversation.”

___

This story was first published on Sept. 24, 2026. It was published again on Sept. 25, 2026, to correct Nicoletta Barbera said that she and her husband have full-time jobs and do consulting work part time, not that she and her husband have full-time jobs doing consulting work.

___

The VoicesDMV analysis is based on a mail survey of U.S. adults aged 18 and older living in the Greater Washington Region using random address-based sampling. The survey of 2,801 residents was conducted Feb. 9 to April 6, 2026. The margin of sampling error for the full sample is plus or minus 2.6 percentage points.

Cheetah cubs at Prague Zoo are doing well after a period of strong storms and their mother’s illness

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 12:37:25 +0000

Five cheetah cubs had to survive a weather scare and the illness of their mother after their birth at the Prague Zoo. But they are doing well now, the zoo said on Friday.

The zoo said the quintuplets — four males and one female — that were born on June 18 had faced a tough time from the start.

Their mother, Daenerys, opted to give birth in an outdoor enclosure with a period of strong storms hitting Prague soon after.

Despite her inexperience, Daenerys took “exemplary” good care of her first cubs under such weather conditions.

Daenerys protected the five from torrential rains, licking water from their fluffy fur to keep them dry, curator Pavel Brandl said.

In the wild, the cheetah’s infant mortality is high because of predators, and cheetah cubs also are vulnerable to diseases such as pneumonia.

To make things worse, Daenerys suffered from an intestinal infection in August.

But despite all odds, the five looked lively and healthy on Friday.

“At this moment, everything seems fine, but it’s still a long run,” Brandl said. He said that it might take a year before it’s clear that they will survive the crucial period after their birth.

Scientists say every cub is critical to saving the species, which is threatened with extinction.

Cheetahs are the fastest animals on land that can reach maximum speeds of between 70 and 75 mph (112 kph and 120 kph). It’s estimated that fewer than 7,000 of them remain in the wild.

Democrats press RFK Jr. on an ethics agreement change involving law firm fees

Fatima Hussein, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 12:00:28 +0000

Congressional Democrats are pressing for answers from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over what they describe as a previously undisclosed change to the ethics agreement he made before being confirmed, which they say calls into question his credibility and the integrity of his decisions.

Ahead of his confirmation vote last year, Kennedy told lawmakers that he would not collect fees related to litigation he pursued before becoming a government official against the drugmakers of a cervical cancer vaccine, saying he would transfer his financial interests to his adult son.

The lawmakers say they recently learned, however, that shortly after his confirmation hearings, Kennedy quietly changed his ethics disclosures and transferred his stake to his former employer, the personal injury law firm Wisner Baum, apparently contradicting his sworn commitments to members of Congress.

In a letter sent to Kennedy on Thursday, Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Ron Wyden of Oregon, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland said the health secretary has provided no explanation for the change.

“Your decision to withhold this information from Congress and apparent failure to report this change to agency ethics officials is deeply alarming,” the senators wrote. “These troubling findings call into question the veracity of your public ethics commitments, your transparency with Congress and the public, and potentially, your compliance with federal ethics disclosure laws and regulations.”

Emily G. Hilliard, an HHS spokeswoman, told The Associated Press that HHS had confirmed Kennedy's compliance with his ethics agreement in May 2025. “Any claim that Secretary Kennedy maintained a financial interest in this litigation after taking office is false,” she said.

Kennedy's testimony to lawmakers during his confirmation hearing has come under scrutiny before.

During the arduous confirmation process in which he needed the support of some skeptical Republican lawmakers to advance, Kennedy pledged to maintain vaccine policies that, once in office, he moved to change. He also said a 2019 trip to Samoa had “nothing to do with vaccines,” an account refuted by documents recently obtained by the AP. The Department of Health and Human Services has denied Kennedy lied over the Samoa trip.

Kennedy's initial ethics disclosure, filed in January 2025, allowed him to retain a 10% contingency fee in cases that he had referred to Wisner Baum. After warnings from lawmakers about the conflict of interest, Kennedy agreed to amend his ethics agreement to divest his interest to his son.

But in an Aug. 25 letter to Warren, HHS revealed Kennedy transferred those fees to Wisner Baum. Kennedy’s son Conor Kennedy is employed at the firm.

“At the time, Secretary Kennedy intended to assign those interests to a non-dependent adult family member,” said the letter. “After further consideration, Secretary Kennedy irrevocably assigned his outstanding contingency-fee interests in the Gardasil cases directly to Wisner Baum.”

The senators are now pushing Kennedy for answers on what his agreement with Wisner Baum entails, noting that if it involves any agreement about future payments, it could amount to a conflict of interest.

“If you made any kind of implicit or explicit agreement for future payment or other future rewards with Wisner Baum in exchange for assigning them this stake, it would mean that you have an ongoing conflict of interest that calls into question your integrity and the motivations for your decisions as HHS Secretary," the lawmakers' letter to Kennedy said.

Friday's MLB clinching scenarios: AL Central and West, NL wild card still up for grabs

David Brandt, Associated Press — Mon, 21 Sep 2026 20:08:08 +0000

Major League Baseball's postseason is rapidly approaching, with the Los Angeles Dodgers seeking a third straight World Series title. Four teams clinched their playoff tickets Thursday, leaving only two spots remaining as the season reaches its final weekend.

The Dodgers are once again among the best teams in the big leagues, and they'll have several challengers in October, including the Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays. Los Angeles is rolling into the postseason and four-time MVP Shohei Ohtani returned to the lineup on Wednesday after a stint on the injured list. He appears ready for playoff baseball.

It was a busy Thursday in the playoff race, with the San Diego Padres, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Guardians all clinching invites to the postseason.

The New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves have also previously clinched. Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, a three-time AL MVP, is dealing with a right calf strain that could keep him out through at least the Wild Card Series.

While the 12-team playoff field is mostly set, the final NL wild card and AL West winner are still up for grabs.

Here's some of what to watch as the season comes to a close.

Here's who can clinch a playoff spot Friday

The Philadelphia Phillies can lock up the final NL wild card with a win over the Rays and a D-backs loss to the Padres.

AL Central and West are tight, other division winners are set

There's quite a bit of mediocrity in the AL Central and West divisions this season, which has led to some fascinating pennant races and could lead to a sub-.500 team making the postseason.

The Guardians (83-76) have a narrow advantage over the White Sox (82-77) in the AL Central, but Chicago owns the head-to-head tiebreaker. Cleveland plays at Kansas City this weekend, while the White Sox host Colorado. Both teams have already clinched at least a wild card, but the division winner will get a bye into the Division Series.

The Rangers (79-80) and Astros (79-80) are fighting for the AL West, and Houston has the tiebreaker if the season ends in a tie. Texas is playing at Minnesota this weekend, and the Astros are playing in Sacramento against the A's.

In the National League, the Padres (89-70), Cubs (88-71) and Phillies (87-72) are jockeying for position in the wild-card race. The Diamondbacks (85-74) are a longshot to sneak past the Phillies into the bracket, but they've won five straight games and are still lurking two games back. Chicago holds the head-to-head tiebreaker for home field over Philadelphia and San Diego, and the Phillies own the tiebreaker over the Padres after sweeping that season series 6-0.

Chicago's series at Boston has already been impacted by a nor'easter hitting New England this weekend. The Cubs' Sunday finale was rescheduled as part of a doubleheader Friday, and they are now scheduled to conclude their season Saturday.

MVP races, stats to watch

MLB's major awards probably won't have much drama this season.

Both MVP races have strong favorites with Chicago's Pete Crow-Armstrong running away with the NL honor while Houston's Yordan Alvarez is the probable choice in the AL, though Tampa Bay's Junior Caminero has also had a fantastic season. Alvarez still has an outside shot at a Triple Crown. He leads the AL in batting average at .315 and his 41 homers are tied with Caminero, New York's Ben Rice and Baltimore's Pete Alonso. His 102 RBIs are eight back of Alonso.

For the Cy Young Award, Milwaukee flame thrower Jacob Misiorowski and New York ace Cam Schlittler are the favorites in the NL and AL, respectively.

The Rookie of the Year races also look set with Cincinnati's Sal Stewart and his 110-RBI season the leader in the NL and Detroit's Kevin McGonigle the favorite in the AL.

What is the MLB playoff format?

There are 12 teams that qualify for MLB’s postseason, including six teams from both the AL and NL. The three division winners in each league get seeds No. 1 through No. 3, ranked by win-loss record. Then the three wild-card teams get seeds No. 4 through No. 6, also ranked by win-loss record.

The top two teams with the best record in both the AL and NL automatically advance to the Division Series. The other eight teams play in the Wild Card Series, which is a best-of-three format beginning on Tuesday, Sept. 29. In both the AL and NL, the No. 6 seed will travel to face the No. 3 seed while the No. 5 seed goes to No. 4. The higher seed hosts all three games.

The winners then advance to the best-of-five Division Series, followed by the best-of-seven League Championship Series and a best-of-seven World Series between the winners of the AL and NL.

What is the MLB postseason schedule?

Wild Card Series: Sept. 29-Oct. 1 (NBC/Peacock)

Division Series: Oct. 3-10 (AL on TBS, NL on FOX/FS1)

Championship Series: Oct. 11-20 (AL on TBS, NL on FOX/FS1)

World Series: Oct. 23-31 (FOX)

Who are the favorites to win the World Series?

The Dodgers (+200) are the favorites to capture a third straight World Series title while the Brewers (+550), Rays (+800) and Yankees (+850) are viewed as the top contenders.

___

See AP’s full MLB coverage here

EU vows to defend its stand against X after the US backs a court challenge from Elon Musk

Lorne Cook And Kelvin Chan, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 12:45:11 +0000

The European Union's executive arm said Friday it's prepared to defend a 120 million euro ($137 million) fine against the social media platform X after the U.S. government threw its support behind a legal effort by Elon Musk this week to have the case dismissed.

The European Commission fined X late last year for breaches of the bloc’s landmark digital regulations, stoking tensions with Washington.

The U.S. Justice Department said Thursday that it had filed an application to support X's bid to have the case annulled at the European Union's General Court. It was the second time in three months that the Justice Department has intervened to defend a company owned by Musk.

In July, the Justice Department filed a motion to intervene in a civil rights lawsuit that alleges Musk’s xAI is illegally running dozens of natural gas turbines to power a $20 billion AI data center in Mississippi.

In that case, the NAACP and other groups said xAI failed to get a permit for its power plant — which is located near homes, schools and churches — creating health risks for families in North Mississippi and nearby Memphis and violating the federal Clean Air Act.

Trump and the world's richest businessman appeared to dial down a war of words that stunned Washington and Wall Street alike last year after Musk called Trump's tax breaks and spending cuts a “disgusting abomination.”

Musk on Thursday evening attended a state dinner held by Trump honoring China’s leader Xi Jinping, along with other tech titans.

The EU fine against X, which followed a two-year investigation, was the first penalty issued under the bloc's digital regulations governing online content. Regulators said X’s blue checkmarks broke the rules because they involved“deceptive design practices” and could expose users to scams and manipulation.

European Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier said Friday that it is the EU’s “sovereign right” to draft legislation aimed at protecting its citizens.

“We are enforcing our legislation objectively, transparently and with a solid case,” he told reporters. “We are ready to defend our position in court. We have a lot of evidence at our disposal, and it will be for the court to decide as always.”

The commission is the top enforcer of the 27-nation EU's Digital Services Act, which requires tech companies to clean up their online platforms under threat of hefty financial penalties.

But the rulebook has become a flashpoint with the Trump administration, and U.S. officials have criticized it as amounting to online censorship.

The Justice Department warned that the fine, if upheld, “may have significant implications” for U.S. online platforms and other companies providing digital services in the EU.

Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division said in Thursday's statement that the "European Commission inappropriately attempted to expand its regulatory authority to reach American companies not present or operating within its jurisdiction,”

“We will not tolerate the European Commission engaging in regulatory overreach to try and control American engines of innovation and economic growth,” he said.

When asked whether the Justice Department had informed the commission that it intended to back Musk, Regnier said: “We do not need to be informed about anything.”

He said the commission doesn't expect the case to hurt broader relations between Brussels and Washington, notably in talks to mitigate the damage of Trump administration tariffs.

“From our perspective, nothing will change because of a DSA case,” he said.

___

AP Business Writer Kelvin Chan contributed to this report from London.

___

This version corrects the day Regnier spoke to Friday instead of Thursday.

Good Neighbor Program helps Houston District J homeowners make critical repairs at no cost

Paige Hubbard — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 14:05:41 +0000

For some homeowners, a minor repair can quickly become a major financial burden. A new program in Houston’s District J is working to prevent that by helping seniors, veterans and homeowners with disabilities make necessary exterior repairs at no out-of-pocket cost.

The Good Neighbor Program, launched by District J Councilman Edward Pollard, connects qualifying residents with crews who assess their homes and complete minor exterior repairs.

Harris County DA hosting ‘Clean Slate Day’ to help eligible residents clear criminal records

Pollard said the program was created after his office heard concerns from code enforcement officials and homeowners’ associations about properties in need of maintenance.

“Instead of citing them or instead of forcing them to come out of pocket for these repairs, we decided to put together this program to help them with these minor exterior home repairs,” Pollard said.

The program is currently available specifically to residents of District J who are seniors, veterans or people with disabilities.

Repairs can include wheelchair ramps, damaged porch columns, gutters and other exterior maintenance. Pollard also pointed to situations such as an overgrown tree near a power line a relatively small issue that could potentially lead to more serious problems if left unaddressed.

“These are seniors who may be on a fixed income. These may be disabled residents who just can’t get to it. And we also want to do as much as we can to support our veterans,” Pollard said.

Learn while you earn: Apprenticeships and free services help Houston-area families build financial stability

How the program works:

Pollard described the process as simple and streamlined.

Residents can contact the District J office by emailing districtj@houstontx.gov and putting “Good Neighbor Program” in the subject line. They should include their address and contact information. You can also go straight to the website.

From there, a crew will visit the property and assess the needed repairs with the homeowner. The crew and homeowner can discuss the issues and the available budget before scheduling the work.

Pollard emphasized that residents participating in the program do not have to pay for the repairs.

“This is a free program for them,” Pollard said. “They don’t have to have any additional cost that’s associated with it.”

How Texans can save money on prescription medications without insurance

For Pollard, the program is also a way to demonstrate how local tax dollars can directly benefit residents.

“We want them to get bang for the buck for the taxes that they pay,” he said. “This is a tangible way that they’re seeing their tax dollars at work.”

A model for constituent services:

Pollard said the Good Neighbor Program is part of a broader effort to make constituent services more direct and accessible.

Rather than requiring residents to navigate multiple city departments, he said his office wants to provide a more streamlined experience for people who need help.

“We don’t want you having to always go to 311 and bounce you from department to department,” Pollard said. “When you come to our office, things get done quickly, fast, and reasonable.”

HISD cuts campus budgets and positions as enrollment falls

The program is currently limited to District J, but Pollard said he believes the approach could eventually serve as a model for a citywide initiative.

“At the moment, it’s just for District J,” Pollard said. “But as I said, we believe this could be a model for something citywide one day.”

For residents who qualify, the goal is straightforward: address small home repairs before they become bigger, more expensive problems while helping people remain safely in their homes.

Pollard described the broader philosophy behind the initiative as providing “impact that you can feel and this change you can see.”

Pope Leo XIV affirms need for media to cover public figures when asked about Trump ban

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 08:14:19 +0000

Pope Leo XIV told journalists they were welcome to report on him, as he responded to the Trump administration’s attempt to bar U.S. media from the White House and affirmed the importance of journalists covering public figures.

Leo spoke to reporters Friday on his way to France for a four-day visit. Asked by a CNN reporter about the Trump administration’s attempt to bar CNN and other reporters, Leo said the media was welcome on his plane.

“I am very happy that here, you are all welcome,” he said. Good media coverage is important, he said, and equally important "that we have it all the way around, for everyone”

CNN, MS NOW and Politico were back at the White House on Thursday after a judge handed them a reprieve from President Donald Trump's ban, but the extraordinary showdown between him and outlets whose coverage he dislikes continued.

On a high-profile day when Chinese leader Xi Jinping was visiting Washington and attending a state dinner, no major American network was airing live coverage, and both CNN and MS NOW said their journalists were denied access to Xi’s state dinner arrival.

The American pope has long affirmed the need for free and independent press, a point he made in one of his first audiences as pope. Speaking to journalists who covered the 2025 conclave that elected him, Leo called for the release of imprisoned journalists and affirmed the “precious gift of free speech and the press.”

That said, since the COVID-19 pandemic, independent media have been prevented from covering photo opportunities inside the pope's private studio when heads of state visit. Additionally, many of the pope's private audiences with other groups and individuals are closed to non-Vatican press.

Leo had opposed Trump on the war

Leo's airborne comments about Trump followed his April back-and-forth over the American president's criticism of his opposition to the Iran war. Leo's position won him points with some Parisans opposed to Trump's policies who came out in droves to celebrate the first official state visit by a pope in 18 years.

“He dared, at his level, to oppose the American president,” said retiree Thierry Marien, who lined up hours early to grab a spot on the popemobile route to Notre Dame cathedral, where Leo was to celebrate vespers later Friday. “Not because he is opposed to the American president but because he’s opposed to countries where we can see there’s a risk of their political systems becoming a bit more dictatorial and there are already enough of those in the world.”

“I appreciated that he did that. He could quite easily have said to himself, ‘In my situation, I won’t criticize any heads of state,'” he said.

Leo took further distance from the Trump administration policies later Friday by making a lengthy visit to UNESCO, the U.N. cultural and educational agency, from which the U.S. has withdrawn as part of its retreat from the international organization.

Leo, who has championed multilateral diplomacy, toured the UNESCO grounds inside and out, greeted its employees and received a guided tour of some of its art collections. He then delivered a speech on the values UNESCO espouses to promote peace through culture and education.

Leo apologizes to reporters

Also on the flight Friday, Leo also apologized for missing an opportunity to speak with the press the last time he traveled internationally, when his Iberia charter broke down in Spain's Canary Islands and he returned home solo on the king's private jet, skipping his traditional airborne press conference.

More than 70 reporters and the Vatican delegation waited for several hours at the airport for a replacement plane to arrive. Leo addressed the media's disappointment when he came to the back of the plane to greet reporters.

“A special mention I would like to make for those of you who were traveling with me when we returned to Rome from Spain,” he said. “I want to apologize personally for an incident, that I had nothing to do with, but which I know left a number of you unhappy with the fact that we couldn’t have the flight back together back to Rome.”

In other comments to reporters, Leo said he believed his alma mater Villanova would be the fan favorite when the Augustinian university plays the Catholic University of Notre Dame's basketball team in Rome on Nov. 1.

“They tell me that the people coming to the match, 90% are Villanova and 10% Notre Dame, so the voice of the people of God will be very strong on the Villanova side,” Leo said.

___

Associated Press writer John Leicester in Paris contributed to this report.

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Watch: Maggie Haberman speaks at the 2026 Texas Tribune Festival

Texas Tribune, Texas Tribune Events Staff — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 13:50:00 +0000

The New York Times’ Maggie Haberman discusses the reporting from her new book, “Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump.”

Russell takes Azerbaijan GP pole after F1 leader Antonelli hits the wall

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 12:31:22 +0000

George Russell took pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix after Formula 1 standings leader Kimi Antonelli hit the wall in qualifying Friday.

With his teammate Antonelli out of the running, Russell showed why Mercedes is such a big favorite at the Baku track as he went nearly a second faster than anyone else.

“When I crossed the line and I saw the gap. I was shocked. I knew the lap was was great,” Russell said.

Still, he added “you can't discount Kimi” for Saturday's race after Antonelli won from 19th on the grid at his home Italian Grand Prix this month. The 20-year-old Antonelli leads Russell by 81 points.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was .837 of a second off the pace in second and Oscar Piastri was third-fastest for McLaren, .001 further back. That was a big turnaround for Piastri after McLaren even resorted to using cable ties to hold together parts of the car's bodywork in a chaotic Friday practice.

“It’s been a little bit of a tricky one for us, but it’s not the first time this year," the Australian said. "I feel like we get to qualifying, we take all the fuel out and the car just comes alive more.”

Isack Hadjar was fourth for Red Bull on his return from injury and no one else got within a second of Russell on a disappointing day for McLaren's Lando Norris in fifth, Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in sixth and Red Bull's Max Verstappen in eighth.

It's the first pole for Russell since the Austrian Grand Prix in June, which was also his last win. The long straight at Baku favors Mercedes' engine and car design.

Antonelli is set to start Saturday's race in 16th place on the grid after he clipped the wall and damaged a wheel and suspension in the first part of qualifying. He tried to get back to the pits but the team told him to stop because there was too much damage.

The Mercedes driver's previous lap time was enough to reach the second part of qualifying but he was unable to continue.

___

See AP’s full auto racing coverage here

Olivia Rodrigo, Charlie Puth, Sombr, Raye and Katseye set for 2026 iHeartRadio Jingle Ball tour

Mark Kennedy, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 13:30:31 +0000

iHeartRadio is loading its 2026 holiday tour with some starry acts, including performances by Olivia Rodrigo, Charlie Puth, Raye, Katseye, Jonas Brothers, Alex Warren, Hilary Duff, Sombr, OneRepublic, Ludacris, Teddy Swims and Sienna Spiro.

The nine-city iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour will visit: Dallas/Fort Worth; Los Angeles; Chicago; Detroit; New York; Boston; Washington, D.C.; Philadelphia; and, for the first time, Nashville, Tennessee. The lineup will change depending on the city.

The tour will kick off at the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, on Dec. 1 with Katseye, Raye, Ludacris, Myles Smith, Tove Lo, Kylie Cantrall, The Beaches and JYT.

Los Angeles is next with Rodrigo's only appearance on this tour Dec. 4; then Chicago led by Raye on Dec. 7; Detroit led by Warren on Dec. 8; Boston with Duff and Sombr on Dec. 13; Washington, D.C., with Jonas Brothers and Sombr on Dec. 14; Philadelphia with Puth and Sombr on Dec. 15; and Nashville with Duff and Warren on Dec. 17.

The Jingle Ball concert was first introduced in 1996 at Madison Square Garden by New York radio station Z100 and has since become a multicity tour and an annual tradition.

This year, the Dec. 11 Madison Square Garden concert will feature Duff, Sombr, Warren, Puth, Swims, Spiro, Tomorrow X Together & Yeonjun, Stella Lefty and Freya Skye with special guest performances from Bella Kay and The Beaches.

A presale for Capital One cardholders will begin Sept. 29 at 10 a.m. local time and end Oct. 1 or while supplies last. Tickets for the general public from Ticketmaster will go on sale Oct. 2.

The iHeartRadio Jingle Ball tour stops will be part of a nationwide television special as well, airing on ABC in December. It will be available on Hulu and Disney+ the next day.

Exclusive: Board of Peace quietly met with UNRWA, ex-agency chief says

Julia Frankel, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 05:28:10 +0000

As the U.S.-created Board of Peace pushes ahead with plans to rebuild Gaza, it has said there’s no place for the U.N. body that for decades has provided support to displaced Palestinians. But the agency’s last chief says that behind the scenes, board members and others have been more open to working with the U.N. agency for Palestinians than it seems.

Israel wants the agency known as UNRWA out of Gaza and has repeatedly accused it of being infiltrated by Hamas militants, allegations the International Court of Justice says have not been substantiated. And yet UNRWA remains the territory’s largest aid provider, playing a key role in health and education.

Philippe Lazzarini, who led UNRWA until earlier this year, told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview — his first since stepping down — that members of the Palestinian technocratic committee want to work with the agency. Another U.N. official shared minutes from meetings where UNRWA and the committee discussed collaborating on plans for Gaza.

A Board of Peace official confirmed that board members had met multiple times with UNRWA officials.

And while the agency’s days are over, its programs “may persist if they are serving Gazans well,” the official added, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

Israel's Foreign Ministry did not comment.

UNRWA has more workers in Gaza than anyone else

There’s been no reconstruction in Gaza, almost a year since the ceasefire. Israel still prevents the entry of the Palestinian committee chosen by the Board of Peace to eventually govern the strip, saying Hamas must first disarm. The committee says it needs to be inside the strip to activate Gaza plans.

That's left UNRWA on the ground in Gaza, with far more workers than any other U.N. agency or nongovernmental organization. While Israel’s attacks on the agency neutered its role coordinating aid entry and distribution in Gaza, UNRWA’s core programs have remained.

“They want to get rid of the agency, but on the other hand they know that if you get completely rid of the agency today, it might have a further ... devastating impact on the population,” Lazzarini said.

UNRWA props up about half of Gaza’s public health system, said Lazzarini, whose last working day was March 31.

It still has around 11,000 Palestinian employees in Gaza. They conduct about 14,000 medical appointments daily, maintain water and waste management systems for over a million Palestinians, run digital literacy and math programs for over 280,000 children and staff temporary learning spaces for 60,000 more, UNRWA says.

UNRWA makes sure aid reaches people, Lazzarini said. “If you want the vaccine to end up in the mouths of the children, you still need the workforce, the presence of an agency like ours.”

UNRWA was told it's vital in planning Gaza's future

Publicly, the agency has not been included in the Board of Peace’s planning for Gaza. At the board's briefing to the U.N. General Assembly Wednesday, officials named various U.N. agencies as partners, but not UNRWA.

However, behind the scenes, the Palestinian committee that will eventually govern Gaza acknowledged that UNRWA is necessary for planning, Lazzarini said.

Two senior U.N. officials and the board official told the AP the board had met multiple times with UNRWA since the ceasefire was signed.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media, confirmed at least three meetings between UNRWA officials and the Palestinian committee this year, most recently this month. Two took place during Lazzarini’s tenure.

Shortly before the end of his tenure, Lazzarini said, he spoke to Ali Shaath, who leads the Palestinian committee.

“Basically, he said, ‘I don’t know how I can succeed without you’,” Lazzarini said. Shaath and a spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment.

An internal U.N. description of a Jan. 26 meeting in Cairo, held without UNRWA, said Shaath praised the agency, showed a clear intention to see it back on track and said the Palestinian committee's system would largely build on its work.

The Tony Blair Institute, a Board of Peace partner, also asked for UNRWA’s help and spoke to UNRWA personnel, one senior U.N. official said. In response, the institute said it works with multiple U.N. agencies and NGOs in Gaza "to understand the situation on the ground, the needs of the population and the practical requirements for improving conditions.”

At a pledging conference for UNRWA on June 30, the agency's current acting chief, Christian Saunders, called it “vital” to efforts by the board to move forward with the ceasefire.

But the Board of Peace official painted a different picture, saying the meetings focused on determining how UNRWA’s operations work in order to develop programs that are “far more efficient and accountable.”

“UNRWA’s days are over,” the official said. Still, its employees ”will remain if they pass vetting and are delivering on their mandate and not advancing ideology or Hamas interests.”

Lazzarini said it's an “absurd contradiction" — the Board of Peace says UNRWA is not wanted while U.N. member countries “expect it to deliver.”

“We continue to emphasize that UNRWA is indispensable,” Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told journalists Thursday, after over 50 countries attended a ministerial meeting on the agency at U.N. headquarters.

Lazzarini says he has faced personal attacks

UNRWA was established to help Palestinians who fled or were driven out of what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation.

In January 2024, Israel claimed, without providing evidence, that hundreds of Palestinian militants worked for the agency and over a dozen employees took part in the Oct. 7 attack.

Lazzarini said that he was never given written evidence to back up the allegations despite asking Israel and UN member states, but that he doesn't regret his decision to fire the employees accused of taking part in the attack.

“I did because it was in the best interest of the agency and the population we were helping," Lazzarini said, adding that he has faced “extraordinary vicious, heinous attacks on social media” as well as being accosted in the streets, "in Geneva and in New York” and shouted at by "pro-Israeli groups.”

In his two-hour interview with the AP, he shared recollections from the Gaza war.

He remembered how Palestinians released from Israeli detention told his staff they'd worn diapers in detention and had spent days sitting in their own excrement. He remembered how a displaced father — staying in a school courtyard with four kids — slept with shoes at his head, in case they needed to evacuate from bombardment.

His book, “A Witness to Gaza: What Cannot Be Erased,” will be published in French in October, with an English version to follow.

___

Associated Press writer Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.

CDC vaccine policy recommendations grind to a halt under Health Secretary Kennedy

Mike Stobbe, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 10:29:24 +0000

The Food and Drug Administration recently approved a new flu vaccine that tested well in older adults. But the federal agency responsible for telling doctors and the general public how to use it has made no recommendation on it.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s inaction on the mFlusiva vaccine marks a break in longstanding practice. It’s also an example of how the agency’s vaccine review-and-recommendation process has been blown up in the past year, grinding decision-making to a halt.

Efforts by vaccine-wary officials in President Donald Trump's administration to scale back shot recommendations have been put on hold. Federal guidance on new vaccines has stopped. And public discussion of vaccine policy questions that might cross political divides — including whether there’s solid evidence to justify giving fewer shots to kids — has diminished.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s crusade to upend vaccine policy and the legal action opposing it have disrupted longstanding systems that deliver crucial health guidance to Americans, affecting whether people are getting the best available protection against vaccine-preventable diseases.

“We find ourselves at a point where even if credible evidence (for a new vaccine policy) has reached a tipping point, we don’t have an obvious mechanism that can formalize that change,” said Jason Schwartz, a Yale University health policy researcher who studies government health agencies.

Many in the medical field praised a court ruling that halted Kennedy’s changes

For 60 years, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices guided the CDC’s vaccine recommendations. The committee met publicly, reviewed vaccine data and sought input from various health groups. The panel voted on recommendations that went to the CDC director, who almost always adopted them as the government’s guidance, leading public and private insurers to pay for the shots.

Trump, a Republican, appointed Kennedy to oversee federal health agencies, including the CDC. Kennedy last year dismissed the committee and replaced it with a group that included several anti-vaccine voices. Controversial decisions followed, leading to a lawsuit from the American Academy of Pediatrics and some other medical groups.

In March, a federal judge said Kennedy likely violated federal procedures, stopped Kennedy’s panel from holding further meetings and suspended Kennedy’s decision to reduce the number of vaccines recommended for children.

Many in the medical and public health communities celebrated the decision and took the order as a respite from what they saw as the Trump administration’s assault on vaccines.

Dr. Jason Goldman, president of the American College of Physicians, said he hoped “it will mean a return to a transparent and evidence-driven process that safeguards the health of all communities and the best interests of our patients.”

In reality, the process stalled and splintered

With Kennedy’s committee shut down by the court order, doctors’ groups that used to collaborate with the ACIP have gone their own way. Working with a University of Minnesota researcher, they have debated — not publicly — the kind of medical evidence formerly presented at ACIP meetings and issued their own recommendations.

The trade association for private health insurers decided to heed the medical societies’ choices, and the insurers have continued to pay for shots recommended by those organizations.

Many of the groups’ recommendations match prior ones made by ACIP and the CDC before Kennedy’s arrival. But they also made their own updates.

For example, ACIP previously recommended that a new shot be given to women late in pregnancy: a vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, which can be dangerous to newborns. The government panel recommended that the vaccine be given between September and January in most of the U.S., to coincide with the time of year when RSV infections are most common.

But RSV season sometimes remains active longer. For that reason, the medical groups recently said the shot should be offered to those women through the beginning of March.

“We all recognized this needs to evolve,” Chris Regal, director of clinical innovation at America’s Health Insurance Plans, the health insurance trade association, said in a recent webinar.

The official CDC guidance remains unchanged.

Unanswered vaccine issues are piling up

The mFlusiva flu shot is another example of the unusual way vaccine policy updates have stalled.

The shot is the first flu vaccine made with the mRNA technology that was key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic. Kennedy has criticized mRNA vaccines and last year canceled contracts for the development of new ones. The shots also took a tortuous path through the FDA, which finally granted full approval in people ages 50 to 64.

But the CDC this month quietly posted that it has decided to maintain its flu vaccine endorsements from last year due to “legal uncertainties and inquiries.” That means mFlusiva is not among the listed flu vaccines recommended to the public this fall.

The medical societies are recommending it as an option, however.

Another ACIP function was to vote on whether certain vaccines should be covered by Vaccines for Children, a government program that pays for shots for children who have no health insurance.

The FDA approved updated COVID-19 vaccines, but as the summer dragged on — and fall vaccination campaigns got underway — the government would not say if the VFC program will pay for those shots. It was only this week that officials confirmed orders could be placed through that program.

HPV vaccine reassessment is derailed

Another question concerns the HPV vaccine, given to preteens to prevent certain cancers.

Two HPV shots are recommended, but some recent research has suggested that perhaps one shot could be enough — at least for girls. Indeed, in 2024 the ACIP formed a working group to begin a reassessment of the recommendations.

That work was derailed when Kennedy fired the entire committee. In January, he decided on his own to order that the number of recommended doses be reduced to one as part of a dramatic contraction of the childhood vaccination schedule. His decision was suspended by the judge’s order.

Experts are trying to better understand the timing and the duration of protection from just one dose, particularly in boys. The American Academy of Pediatrics is weighing a change to its HPV vaccination recommendations and could reach a conclusion later this year, said the AAP’s Dr. James Campbell.

It’s possible that the medical societies will end up agreeing with Kennedy on just how many HPV shots make sense. But that might not necessarily clear up the current mess, Schwartz said.

“The credibility of the Trump administration, when it comes to vaccine recommendations, is so compromised in the eyes of the mainstream medical and public health communities,” he said, “that even recommendations that might align with where the public health community was trending are likely to be viewed with skepticism or distrust.”

Meanwhile, the Trump administration is considering changing the federal government's categories for vaccine recommendations, although a specific proposal has not been released and a Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson did not respond to questions about what is being contemplated. Public comments were due earlier this week.

An alliance of 15 Democratic state governors said the proposed changes are likely to increase confusion and administrative complexity.

“It’s Governors and their residents who bear the brunt of any increased disease outbreaks due to confusion related to hastily made federal changes,” Angela Botticella, managing director of the Governors Public Health Alliance, said in a statement.

___

The Associated Press’ health and science coverage receives financial support from the AP Fund for Journalism and private foundations. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find the AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

In China, the Xi-Trump summit is seen as projecting image of the country’s rise

Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 09:59:25 +0000

It’s unclear if U.S. President Donald Trump’s elaborate reception of his Chinese counterpart in Washington dazzled President Xi Jinping, but for the Chinese public, it made quite an impression.

Trump’s rare welcome of Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, at the airport, as well as the bilateral and cultural events the leaders attended were closely covered — and praised — by Chinese state media. Those who watched at home saw a China elevated in status.

“I read the news that the U.S. reception standards for President Xi are very high,” Xiang Ziyu, a postgraduate student in Beijing, told The Associated Press. “I’m quite impressed because it shows that our country has become really powerful.”

That takeaway was shared by several people interviewed by the AP as well as in comments on Chinese social media, which praised China's cooperation with the United States.

The official People’s Daily newspaper allocated the entire front page to the trip, featuring six photos of the Xi-Trump meetings.

Meanwhile, on the Chinese search engine Baidu, the three most popular search topics on Friday were the talks between Trump and Xi; the state dinner attended by Xi and Peng; and greetings extended by Xi to Chinese people on the occasion of the Mid-Autumn Festival being celebrated on Friday.

Shen Zuohang, a Beijing resident, felt reassured by the coverage and by Trump and Xi’s seeming agreeability on topics like trade, artificial intelligence and security.

“We have no trade war and no military conflict. Even on the issue of Taiwan we are moving in a good direction instead of having heated confrontation,” Shen said.

“The two sides are handling issues in a more acquiescent way.”

According to China’s Foreign Ministry, Xi called on Trump to oppose the independence of Taiwan, an island democracy China claims as its own territory, and to handle the issue with caution. Trump did not immediately make comments on Taiwan, but had previously described U.S. arms sales to the island as open to negotiations with China.

Xiang, the student, said the summit overall sent a positive signal and will help improve the Chinese public’s opinion of the relations between the two countries.

“It is better than not communicating,” he said.

___

Associated Press video producer Wayne Zhang in Beijing and writer Simina Mistreanu in Taipei, Taiwan, contributed to this report.

Fort Bend County Fair and Rodeo kicks off 90th anniversary celebration with parade

Christian Hudspeth — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 12:17:51 +0000

The Fort Bend County Fair and Rodeo is celebrating 90 years in the community with its opening-day parade Friday morning.

The parade begins at 9 a.m. Sept. 25 near the Historic Courthouse in downtown Richmond. Nearly 200 entries will travel west along Highway 90A before ending at Millie Street in Rosenberg.

Grab your boots and get ready for some serious fair fun at the 90th annual Fort Bend County Fair

This year’s theme is “90 Years Strong: Honoring the Past. Growing the Future.”

The parade marks the official start of the annual Fort Bend County Fair and Rodeo, which will feature rodeo events, carnival rides, food and family activities throughout the weekend. Visitors can find the full schedule and event details on the fair’s website.

An isolated Netanyahu was defiant at UN as he seeks reelection at home

Erin Cunningham, Associated Press — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 17:04:51 +0000

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu began the year declaring that he stood “shoulder to shoulder” with U.S. President Donald Trump as the two countries launched a war against Iran. But this week, as world leaders gathered in New York for the United Nations General Assembly, there were no plans for the two men to be in the same room, or even in the same city.

As the war with Iran has dragged on, Trump and Netanyahu have split over how to prosecute it, straining a relationship between the two allies. Netanyahu has also faced global criticism both for Israel’s war in Gaza and settler violence in the occupied West Bank. Instead of a packed itinerary, Netanyahu, who arrived in New York on Thursday, was to meet only a handful of leaders before giving his speech.

The apparent snub underscored how badly the relationship between Trump and the prime minister has fractured. Many in Washington associate Netanyahu with the increasingly unpopular fight with Iran and Trump has labored to avoid the appearance that the Israeli leader forced him into a war that Trump said would be a “little excursion” lasting only weeks.

Netanyahu's brief visit also demonstrated how isolated he is globally, three years after launching a punishing war in Gaza in retaliation for the Hamas-led attacks on Oct. 7, 2023. He faces reelection next month in polls widely seen as a referendum on his responsibility for the security failures surrounding the attacks and his ability to defend Israel's reputation on the world stage.

Still, Netanyahu was unfazed when scores of diplomats marched out when he took the stage on Thursday.

“If there are any other moral cowards who have not yet left this hall, please do so now,” Netanyahu said and delivered a defiant speech lashing out at critics who accuse Israel of genocide and war crimes in Gaza.

He also accused New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who had called for Netanyahu's arrest, of spreading lies about Israel and endangering Jewish New Yorkers.

Netanyahu is a master showman

Still, the prime minister is a master showman, often turning to props and visual aids during speeches in flawless English to drive home his message. His speech, ahead of next month's elections, appeared aimed at Israeli voters, and was repeatedly interrupted by cheers from supporters he had brought into the hall.

“He times his speech so that it is broadcast here in primetime,” said Michael Oren, a former Israeli ambassador to the U.S. who served under Netanyahu and lives in Israel.

But experts say without the usual high-profile meetings, the trip could hurt Netanyahu’s image at home.

“I think the trip is a mistake, because it exposes his weaknesses,” said Eytan Gilboa, an expert on U.S.-Israel relations and professor at Israel’s Bar-Ilan and Reichman universities.

While many Israelis view the U.N. as hostile toward Israel, he added, the fact that he could not secure a meeting with Trump only highlights how poorly Netanyahu has managed the relationship with his nation's strongest ally.

In 2023, U.S. President Joe Biden was reluctant to host Netanyahu at the White House but still made time to sit down with him on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly.

“Israel cannot survive without the United States,” Gilboa said.

Meanwhile, Mike Huckabee, the U.S. ambassador to Israel and a longtime supporter of Israeli settlements, has sharply criticized settlers attacking Palestinian communities in the West Bank. In unusual remarks for an ambassador, he referred to the attackers as “terrorists."

“It’s significant of a deeper rift,” Oren said of Netanyahu's slim itinerary.

When Trump was in New York on Tuesday, he met with an array of leaders from Arab nations, as well as from Denmark, Japan, Greenland, Ukraine and Venezuela, among others. He then quickly returned to Washington to roll out the red carpet for Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Netanyahu has met with Trump seven times since the U.S. president's return to office in January 2025, though only once since the war with Iran began.

Not meeting the president was a “big, big miss for him at a time where he can’t afford misses,” said Natan Sachs, senior fellow at the Middle East Institute in Washington.

On other past trips, Netanyahu met with a slate of high-profile leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and then-German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

This year, though, the prime minister's office said “many world leaders” asked to meet with Netanyahu during his brief visit, but that he was on a “tight schedule” and needed to return to Israel before the start of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, which begins at sundown on Friday.

On his schedule, the statement said, were leaders from Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, Panama, Ethiopia, Greece, Slovenia, and Papua New Guinea.

A month after Nepal-China floods, Ukrainian families still desperate for answers

Huizhong Wu, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 03:15:00 +0000

Olena Kalynychenko was looking forward to sharing the chrysanthemum tea she had bought in China with her partner.

“She said, ‘When I come back home, we will drink the tea made from Chinese flowers,’” said Oles Visich, Kalynychenko’s partner. He has now been waiting for news about her for a month, after she and thousands of others disappeared in catastrophic flooding along the Nepal-China border.

Her last known location was exiting China at a border post at 10:22 a.m. local time, 15 minutes before the flood.

Kalynychenko, 36, was part of a group of 56 people, mostly Ukrainians, who had traveled to Mount Kailash in Tibet for a spiritual retreat.

Their families' situation is a sign of how complex and time-consuming the process is of rescuing, recovering and identifying victims lost to the disaster. Given the number of missing, the process will likely take months.

They disappeared while heading from China to Nepal on their way home. Some relatives say they have received no information from authorities. The Chinese government has told at least two families that their relatives left Chinese territory before the flood struck, but they haven't been able to confirm whether they entered Nepal as Nepal's immigration complex and its records were destroyed in the floods.

Little information is reaching families

The floods killed more than 1,400 people and left more than 6,000 missing, most of them on the Nepali side of the border. Nepal has said that 636 foreign nationals remain missing, including 54 Ukrainians. China has reported 261 foreign nationals among the missing on its side, including one Ukrainian.

Families in Ukraine say most of them have not received any answers since realizing their relatives were among the missing.

“We only have the statistics that are being posted online — how many people have been found, how many are alive, how many are dead, and how many are still missing,” said Stanislav Solohub, whose brother and sister-in-law went missing on Aug. 25.

Nepal says it has recovered 1,451 bodies, but only 112 have been handed over to families so far.

The government said it has collected DNA samples from 2,035 relatives so far, but it has not disclosed how many victims have been identified.

Last messages were sent minutes before the floods began

The group, led by Irina Blonskaya, a spiritual teacher who often organized retreats, was returning from its journey home in China when the flood struck Aug. 26. Their plan was to travel by bus from the Tibet region to Kathmandu, where its members would board flights to their respective countries. The group’s last message was sent at 8:27 a.m. Nepal time, about 10 minutes before the mountain slope collapsed.

Many had not checked in with their loved ones that morning, owing to the time difference.

Authorities have said the floods were triggered when a section of ice and rock broke away from a Himalayan mountain slope, creating a fast-moving torrent of water, ice, mud and debris. It destroyed communities and Gyirong Port, a border crossing used by some pilgrims traveling to or returning from Mount Kailash.

‘Who is looking for them?’

Vladsylava Horlova’s mother, Elena, was traveling in the group as well. She initially found her mother’s name on the list of the missing from the Nepali government, but hasn't received any further information from the Nepali side. Later, the Chinese embassy confirmed her mother had left the country, and was not counted in China's list of missing people.

Horlova, a college student who is a refugee in Norway, worries that her mother was not recorded as being in either country, and that neither side is looking for her. There’s a stretch of road between the Nepali immigration building and the Chinese one along the border, videos from travelers show.

“You think about what if someone appeared to be in a no man’s land or that they left China, but not physically, who’s looking for them?” she asked.

Horlova has attempted to contact organizations ranging from the Ukrainian embassy in China, to Norwegian police, and even the Red Cross. She, like the others, has submitted her DNA samples to police to help the search.

On the other side of the border, China has said that when the remains of foreigners are identified, it will notify their respective embassies, but the authorities have not given any details about how many identities have been confirmed so far.

People still have hope

Though it has been a month since the original disaster, some families are still holding on to hope.

Just days before Kalynychenko left for her travels, she organized a retreat for women in Ukraine whose partners were fighting on the front lines of the war, some of whom had not heard from their partners for two years.

Visich, her partner, sees the irony of his situation, but like others in the group, has chosen to stay positive. Visich, also a psychologist, wrote a support guide for others like himself, offering tips on mental health.

“Because for my Olenka, for example, the most important thing in our connection is that each other … needs to be happy,” Visich said.

___

Associated Press writer Binaj Gurubacharya in Kathmandu, Nepal and senior video producer Volodymr Yurchuk in Kyiv, Ukraine contributed to this report.

2 Newsletter: Big changes slated for the Houston power grid

Christian Hudspeth — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 11:10:55 +0000

Hello, Houston.☀️

Here’s a quick look at the latest news, developments and updates from across the Houston area, with the information you need to start your day.

As always, follow us for the latest on Click2Houston.com and watch us live on KPRC 2+.

➡️ Love our morning newsletter? Share it with your family and friends!

Weather ⛅

HIGH: 92° LOW: 75°

The KPRC 2 Weather Team says:

“Dry air moves in late Thursday, we’ll wake up to a refreshing feel Friday morning. Some cities north of I-10 we’ll start in the 60s! Along I-10 and south we’ll be in the 70s. But even those of us with mild temperatures will feel good with a low humidity in the morning and throughout the day. While 70° in Houston does look that cool, the last time temperatures were below 71° was May 28th. It’s been a long humid summer.”

➡️ More weather headlines? Check them out here

Get your forecast details here.

Houston’s Top Headlines 📰

Houston could see boost from $5.25B national investment to strengthen power grid

The U.S. Department of Energy is investing $5.25 billion in projects designed to strengthen the nation’s power grid, including $50 million for a CenterPoint Energy project in Houston. The funding will help upgrade existing transmission lines, increase capacity and improve resilience during severe weather and other disruptions.

Harris County treasurer cited after 4‑vehicle North Freeway crash

Harris County Treasurer Dr. Carla Wyatt was cited for allegedly failing to control her speed after police say she caused a four-vehicle crash on the North Freeway. Six people were involved, but no injuries were reported; the crash comes as Wyatt faces a pending DWI charge in Galveston County.

14-year-old accused of killing teen near Houston school: Can he face adult charges?

A 14-year-old is charged with murder in the shooting death of 15-year-old Royce Witchet near Westfield High School, but any decision to prosecute him as an adult could take months. Prosecutors and a juvenile court judge will consider factors including the teen’s age, background, psychological evaluation and the circumstances of the alleged crime.

Former Texas Rep. Garnet Coleman dies at 65 after decades of public service

Former state Rep. Garnet F. Coleman, who represented Houston’s House District 147 for more than 30 years, died Sept. 23 of natural causes, his family announced. Coleman leaves a legacy in health care, mental health, criminal justice reform and economic development, including work on children’s health coverage and the Sandra Bland Act.

HISD cuts campus budgets and positions as enrollment falls

HISD is cutting campus budgets and adjusting staffing just weeks into the school year, citing lower-than-expected enrollment and changing funding levels. Programs including choir, debate, agriculture, IB career-related options and student support services could be affected, with the district’s official October enrollment count still ahead.

ICE body camera deadline approaches amid questions over compliance, training

ICE says all field agents are expected to have body cameras by the end of September, but recent shootings are raising questions about whether agents are wearing and activating them. In Houston, the family of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo—who was killed by ICE agents in July—continues to call for the preservation and release of evidence as the agency’s deadline approaches.

KPRC 2’s new show ENOUGH at 10 p.m.

KPRC 2’s new show, ENOUGH, airs Sunday through Thursday at 10 p.m. ENOUGH is a new commitment to accountability journalism — digging deeper into the issues affecting Houstonians and pushing for answers about what’s working, what isn’t, and what happens next. Here’s what you missed if you did not catch the latest episodes:

Job seekers say AI is making the search harder; experts say the reality is more complicated

What’s trending in Houston?

You can catch up on what’s trending in Houston and across the internet during the KPRC 8 a.m. stream.

We’ll bring you the latest happenings around Space City, along with the biggest stories and conversations making waves online. Make sure you tune in!

Here are some of this week’s trending stories:

Things 2 Know 💡

How Texans can save money on prescription medications without insurance

Houston-area haunted houses: When 2026 Halloween attractions open

Harris County DA hosting ‘Clean Slate Day’ to help eligible residents clear criminal records

High School Football is Back

Are you ready for some football? How about Houston’s Friday Football Frenzy on KPRC 2? We are back for our 21st season of bringing viewers the most comprehensive high school football coverage in Greater Houston.

Buckle up because it’s that time again for all levels across Texas starting this weekend!

The journey to a state championship is a difficult road that navigates through pre-district, district and the marathon postseason that goes to 16 weeks in Texas for teams to reach Arlington’s AT&T Stadium to play for a coveted title just before the holidays.

Enjoy the season and make sure to tune in for the Friday Football Frenzy on KPRC 2, KPRC 2 YouTube, and Click2Houston.com‘s Frenzy page!

Share your Pins! 📷

See a news story in your neighborhood? Capture a great weather moment? Just want to share a photo of your pet? Send your photos and videos to Click2Pins, and you may see them on air and online!

Don’t miss a minute

We’re tracking your forecast, bringing you traffic solutions, and covering important news LIVE from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. on KPRC 2 and the KPRC 2+ livestream. Join us today!

How Texans can save money on prescription medications without insurance

Bill Spencer — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 10:25:11 +0000

Prescription medications can be expensive, especially for people without health insurance. In Texas, about 5.1 million people are uninsured, meaning many patients may pay the full retail price for their prescriptions.

But there are ways to lower the cost.

Compare prices before you buy

Discount prescription websites allow consumers to compare prices at pharmacies and find potential savings. Some websites also offer coupons that may lower the price of a medication—even for people with insurance.

Three options to consider include:

Prices can vary widely between pharmacies, so compare the cost before filling your prescription. Ask your doctor or pharmacist whether a lower-cost generic version is available, and check whether using a discount program is cheaper than using your insurance.

Discount programs may not work with insurance, and prices can change. Always confirm the final price with the pharmacy and talk with your doctor before making any changes to your medication.

Yemen’s civil war returns and overwhelms hospitals with 'a very dangerous situation'

Fatma Khaled, Ahmed Al-Haj And Cara Anna, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 05:09:00 +0000

Tarek al-Salami, aged 7, sat in a diaper, looking frail. Normally, the malnutrition and diarrhea that weakened his tiny frame would have been treated within a few days, but nothing is normal in Yemen anymore.

Tarek's father carried him on foot from the southwestern city of Mokha as Iran-backed rebels swept in this month, bringing a return to civil war. The boy reached a hospital two days later in the government-held city of Aden, 270 kilometers (170 miles) away but it said it had no beds. Like others, it was overwhelmed by the wounded. They finally found a therapeutic feeding center.

The boy arrived in “acute crisis” after the delay in care, according to the center's director, Dr. Arwa Atef, and he only began walking again on Wednesday, over a week later.

“I swear to God, when I look at him, my heart breaks,” said his father, Mohammed al-Salami. “He looks almost lifeless.”

This is how the already fragile health system in the Arab world’s poorest nation is collapsing, caught in a new front of the Iran war. The Associated Press spoke with patients, medical workers and aid groups in Yemen as medicines run short and some workers flee. A few facilities have been overtaken by the fighting.

Some health centers are turning pregnant women and others in need away to focus on trauma patients. Vulnerable children are filling incubators and sharing beds. Millions of people are affected by the fighting backed by two of the Middle East’s biggest powers as Iran-backed Houthis advance against government forces supported by Saudi Arabia. Over 130,000 have fled their homes.

The feeding center where Tarek and other children are recovering is struggling to cope with a rise in patients in a country where many already were hungry, Atef said.

“We can’t keep up with the situation,” she said.

Overwhelmed hospitals focus on the wounded

Most hospitals and primary health centers affected by the escalation in fighting closed for the first 48 hours before resuming services, the United Nations said. But the Houthis have seized the Red Sea coast, including key ports for aid.

“The areas with some of the highest health needs are increasingly difficult to reach,” the World Health Organization said Friday.

Less than 10% of the affected health centers are fully equipped with the trauma services that wounded people need, WHO has said. With resources thin, a painful triage is underway.

Fewer facilities are handling the pregnancy-related emergencies that were killing three Yemeni women every day even before the escalation, said Francesco Galtieri with the United Nations Population Fund. That's one of the highest rates in the Arab world.

"Around 2,000 pregnant women are on the move,” with over 200 expected to deliver in the next week or so, he said.

Maternity wards have been converted into emergency rooms in some hospitals close to the fighting, said Hashem Osseiran, an International Committee of the Red Cross spokesperson, adding that many lack enough anesthesia drugs, oxygen supplies and sterile surgical gloves.

At a hospital treating mothers and children in the government-held city of Marib, Dr. Ahmed Modhesh said they are seeing more emergency maternity cases as other city hospitals focus on the wounded.

But his facility, Martyr Mohamed Hayel hospital, lacks intensive care specialists and doesn’t have enough generators to keep all departments running if the power goes out.

A midwife said the number of childbirths the hospital is handling has basically doubled to about 80. One woman with an ectopic pregnancy arrived bleeding heavily, yet the under-resourced staff were still able to perform an emergency procedure to save her life, the midwife said. She spoke on condition of anonymity because she wasn’t authorized to speak with the media.

Yemen’s healthcare was in trouble before the fighting

Even before the escalation, hospitals in Yemen relied on limited government support and citizen donations. Some were not able to fully pay staff.

Now, “we are in a very dangerous situation,” said Fahd al-Nazari, manager of the health office in Taiz province, which has received most of the newly displaced. “Within a day or two, or a week at most, we might have to close down (some facilities). In fact, some hospitals are already closed.”

Three of the province’s 17 hospitals are no longer under government control. Hospitals across Taiz had received around 635 casualties, including 112 bodies, as of Thursday after the Houthis captured Mokha, al-Nazari said. They included civilians and combatants.

“We’re exhausted receiving wounded people under these circumstances,” al-Nazari said.

Medical supplies and fuel are running short after key supply routes between Mokha and Taiz were largely cut off, forcing convoys onto mountainous roads unsuitable for large trucks. Even before the escalation, public hospitals in the province had just one MRI machine available.

At the Yemeni-Swedish Maternity and Children's Hospital in Taiz, incubators were full and two or three children were sharing beds in the emergency room, general manager Sami al-Sharabi said.

“I’m scared that the conflict would reach the hospital,” he said. “Any explosive that could hit us would destroy the hospital, as some parts of the building are already weak.”

Even hospitals in Aden, where Yemen’s government is based, struggle to cope. Doctors Without Borders said more than 60 wounded people had been admitted to Al-Gamhouria hospital in a week. Many needed urgent surgery or blood transfusions.

Fighters are also seeking emergency treatment

At a private hospital treating rebels in the Houthi-held city of Sanaa, two medical officials last week said it was overwhelmed with hundreds of wounded. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of security concerns.

It was not clear how many Houthi fighters have been killed or wounded overall. Few aid agencies operate in rebel-controlled areas, as the group has detained and harassed dozens of humanitarian workers. Experts say the Houthis have struggled to pay salaries to civil servants, including public sector doctors and diverted most tax revenues to their military wing.

The ICRC, one of the few global agencies still able to operate in Sanaa, last week said it delivered 22 tons of badly needed medical supplies to support “overwhelmed” hospitals.

There is also little information about casualties among government forces, though one government-allied group has said over 1,500 of its fighters were wounded.

Some medical workers have fled the conflict, making it harder to find care.

In Mokha, Doctors Without Borders said its small team was still working “despite the severe shortage of health professionals.” The charity’s deputy coordinator of operations in Yemen, Emmanuel Massart, said three other hospitals there had closed for days before resuming services.

Resupplying remains a major challenge because of closed roads, Massart said.

“We should not forget about Yemen," he said. It “remains one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world.”

___

Khaled reported from Cairo and Anna from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Abdulnasser Alseddik in Aden and Toqa Ezzidin in Cairo contributed to this report.

Harris County DA hosting ‘Clean Slate Day’ to help eligible residents clear criminal records

T.J. Parker, Christian Hudspeth — Thu, 10 Sep 2026 20:41:24 +0000

The Harris County District Attorney’s Office is hosting a free expunction clinic Saturday aimed at helping eligible residents clear certain criminal records that officials say can create barriers to jobs, housing and other opportunities.

“Clean Slate Day” will be held Saturday, Sept. 26, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Fallbrook Church, 12512 Walters Road in Houston.

Aqua Texas customers flood newsroom with complaints after our first report

The event will provide free expunction services for eligible Harris County residents ages 18 to 30 whose Class A or B misdemeanor cases were dismissed or ended in an acquittal.

Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare said the effort is intended to help people move forward after their cases have already been resolved.

“These charges follow people all through their lives and prevent them from moving on to the next steps, so being a part of the solution to that is really meaningful to me and to our entire office,” Teare said.

The event will place a particular emphasis on people who were previously charged with misdemeanor possession of marijuana. Eligible offenses include possession of marijuana up to 4 ounces, theft, unlawful carrying of a weapon, resisting or evading arrest, criminal trespass and criminal mischief.

Teare said criminal records can affect young adults as they apply for apartments and jobs and attempt to make other changes in their lives.

“Those are the types of things that negatively impact people going forward in trying to launch and create meaningful changes in their lives,” Teare said. “So if we can stop being a barrier to that and help, it’s a win-win for everyone.”

The expunction services are intended for eligible people whose cases have already been resolved through a dismissal or acquittal. The goal is to erase the record of the arrest and related proceedings.

This will be the fifth time the effort has been held. Teare said previous events have been successful and he wants the initiative to become more consistent.

‘Something needs to be done’: Families with young children left without power at Sharpstown apartments

Clean Slate Day will also include a job fair and community resource tables, which will be available to all attendees regardless of whether they qualify for legal services.

The City of Houston Health Department’s My Brother’s Keeper Houston will be among the organizations providing resources.

People who are already employed can also receive help applying for an occupational driver’s license through a partnership with Justice of the Peace Wanda Adams. Court hearings on those applications will be scheduled for a later date.

The event is being held in partnership with Fallbrook Church and with support from State Rep. Charlene Ward Johnson, Harris County Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis, State Sen. Molly Cook and My Brother’s Keeper Houston.

Registration is required for legal services. Residents can register by scanning the QR code on the event flyer or visiting the Harris County District Attorney’s Office website.

Flyer

Poland halted asylum claims at the Belarus border and now wants Europe to follow its example

Claudia Ciobanu, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 06:20:44 +0000

When Poland stopped registering asylum applications from migrants entering from Belarus in March 2025, authorities presented it as a temporary emergency measure to counter what they saw as a push by Russia and its ally Belarus to destabilize the country by directing tens of thousands of migrants toward the European Union.

But the policy has remained in force for the past 18 months, and Poland is now urging the 27-nation bloc to allow temporary suspensions of asylum applications during episodes of “instrumentalized” mass migration elsewhere — a move that rights advocates warn could violate international law.

The border between Poland and Belarus, a non-EU country that is aligned with Russia, runs for about 400 kilometers (250 miles).

Since 2021, EU authorities have accused authoritarian Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of weaponizing migration by luring people to his country to find an easier entry point into the bloc than the more dangerous routes across the Mediterranean Sea.

European Commission announces new emergency framework

The prospect of an EU-wide approach appeared to move closer on Sept. 16, when European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the EU executive branch would soon propose a new “European emergency response framework” for cases of “engineered and weaponized” mass migration.

The new emergency framework would allow for “flexibility” in applying standard migration procedures under specific circumstances and for a limited period of time, she said.

Von der Leyen didn't specify what procedures would be made flexible. It's unclear what form this proposed framework would take, whether it would need approval from the EU Parliament and EU leaders, and how soon it might come into practice. The European Commission didn't respond to requests from The Associated Press to list those procedures.

But Poland’s deputy interior minister in charge of migration, Maciej Duszczyk, celebrated the announcement as a sign that Europe was becoming interested in what he calls “the Polish solution.”

“We are happy that what we’ve been saying for a year, or a year and a half, is now becoming mainstream in the EU,” Duszczyk told the AP in an interview.

He said that the July border crisis in Ceuta, when more than 70,000 people suddenly crossed from Morocco into the Spanish enclave in North Africa, “made the EU realize” that other countries can be affected by similar border crises as Poland.

Tineke Strik, a Dutch member of the European Parliament, told the AP that she fears von der Leyen’s new emergency framework is indeed poised to take the Polish model EU-wide and legitimize the curtailing of asylum.

“If you normalize it, if you make it the default policy of all EU member states, you (the Poles) are not falling outside of the framework,” Strik said. “It simply has been legalized.”

“That would of course really undermine the core of the European and international asylum law — namely that people always must have the possibility to ask for asylum before they can be returned because otherwise you don’t know what will happen to them,” she said.

Michael O’Flaherty — the human rights commissioner for the Council of Europe, which is unrelated to the EU — said that the fact that the suspension of the right to asylum now appears in discussions at the EU level “worries” him because “it can very easily cross the line into a violation of international law.”

Critics say legalizing the suspension of asylum would constitute a major blow to fundamental human rights, particularly the principle of non-refoulement, which bars countries from returning people to places where they may face persecution. The principle was enshrined in the postwar refugee protection system after Jews and others fleeing Nazi persecution were refused safe haven during World War II.

‘Polish solution’ contrary to international law, rights groups say

Duszczyk said that the suspension of the right to asylum in Poland is fully compatible with international law and that people in the most vulnerable categories — pregnant women, children or those facing persecution in Belarus — can still apply for asylum even under the current system.

“Each person who appears on the border has the right to speak to the Polish border guards and explain their situation,” Duszczyk said.

But the Polish ombudsman and nongovernmental organizations assisting migrants on the border contradict the minister.

“Visibly pregnant women might stand a chance, but in the case of sick people or teenagers who are minors, their arguments are typically undermined,” said Karolina Czerwinska from the Association for Legal Intervention, a Polish NGO offering legal aid to migrants.

Duszczyk said that the world today has changed since the 1950s, when countries recovering from the traumas of World War II created a system of international law, including refugee rights, meant to protect individuals from state violence.

Czerwinska said that “we Poles located on the front lines of the war in Ukraine should really make sure human rights are respected. We may need to make use of them ourselves.”

EU's new migration pact already outdated, Poland says

Human rights groups said that von der Leyen's announcement came as a surprise, because the EU’s new Pact on Migration and Asylum, which took effect three months ago, already allowed countries faced with border crises to deviate from standard asylum procedures by extending deadlines for processing applications and holding migrants in detention for longer periods of time.

But Duszczyk said that von der Leyen's announcement meant that the European Commission recognized the new pact was “not enough” and that “we need a new instrument in EU law which guarantees that sometimes we can suspend normal procedures and have a sort of state of emergency.”

According to the Polish minister, the European Commission is expected to give more details about the framework during a summit of interior ministers on Oct. 1, and discussions would continue during a European Council summit later that month.

___

Sam McNeil contributed to this report from Brussels.

Texas governor 2026: Who is running and what to know

Texas Tribune, Kayla Guo And María Méndez — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 10:00:00 +0000

Editor’s note: To help readers learn more about the candidates running for statewide seats, The Texas Tribune is sharing information about the Republican, Democratic and third-party candidates. For more information on midterms and the voting process, check out our election resources here.

About the elected seat: The governor is the chief executive of the state, whose responsibilities include implementing state laws, laying out biennial budget recommendations for the Legislature and leading the state and its military forces during emergencies. The governor handpicks the leadership of major state agencies like the Department of Public Safety, overseeing state law enforcement, and the Texas Education Agency, in charge of public schools.

The governor has the power to veto bills passed by the Legislature and to issue executive orders and disaster declarations to unlock money and resources. The governor also has the sole authority to call special legislative sessions and to set the agenda for those overtime legislating periods, as Gov. Greg Abbott did twice in 2025 to pursue mid-decade redistricting, flood response bills and other priorities.

If an elected official, a judge or a justice resigns or dies, the governor is responsible for calling a special election or filling that vacancy. The governor can also make appointments to hundreds of government entities.

What’s at stake: The person elected to this position will lead Texas, the world’s 8th largest economy and currently the largest state led by Republicans, and serve as the state’s primary liaison to the federal government. The governor has enormous power to direct the state legislative agenda, the budget and emergency responses. Through executive orders, he also has the power to shape the agendas and policies of state entities, including regulators and public universities.

The governor also commands influence through appointments. The governor is empowered to nominate or appoint their preferred candidates to powerful positions throughout the state bureaucracy, including the secretary of state, who oversees elections; the commissioner of public education; the commissioner of higher education; members of the Public Utility Commission, which regulates the state’s power grid and other utilities; and the boards of regents for four-year public universities. This means that the power and influence of a Texas governor can grow the longer they’re in office. For example, Abbott, who’s been governor for more than a decade, has appointed every single regent for every university board in Texas, giving him incredible sway over higher education policy.

Greg Abbott

" data-image-description="" data-image-meta="{" data-image-title="Greg Abbott" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?fit=780%2C780&ssl=1" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?fit=800%2C800&ssl=1" data-orig-size="800,800" data-permalink="https://www.texastribune.org/greg-abbott-11/" data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" height="780" loading="lazy" sizes="auto, (max-width: 780px) 100vw, 780px" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=780%2C780&ssl=1" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?w=800&ssl=1 800w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=300%2C300&ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1 150w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=768%2C768&ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=600%2C600&ssl=1 600w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=400%2C400&ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=200%2C200&ssl=1 200w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=780%2C780&ssl=1 780w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Greg-Abbott-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?w=370&ssl=1 370w" style="width:1500px;height:auto" width="780"/>

Campaign photo

Campaign site

Greg Abbott

Republican, incumbent

💰 Campaign finance:

Cash on hand as of June 30: $67.4 million
Raised between Jan.1-June 30: $28.3 million

💰 Major donors this year:

Janvaid Anwar, Midland oil executive – $1.5 million
Texas Republican Leadership Fund, backed by Amarillo businessman Alex Fairly – $1 million
Ross Perot Jr., Dallas businessman – $548,000
Elon Musk, Space X and Tesla Motors CEO – $500,000
Mackenzie Price, co-founder of Alpha School – $500,000
Kelcy Warren, executive at Energy Transfer Partners and University of Texas regent – $500,000

Experience:

48th governor of Texas, first elected in 2014 and now serving his third term
Previously, Abbott was the longest-serving attorney general in state history. He also served on the Supreme Court of Texas and as a state district judge in Harris County.

Political ideology:

Earlier in his tenure, Abbott was more aligned with the party’s pro-business establishment wing. As the Republican Party has moved right, Abbott has embraced more hardline, socially conservative causes and transformed into a partisan warrior closely aligned with President Donald Trump. Recent legislative election cycles have been characterized by Abbott’s willingness to draw from his deep campaign coffers to support his preferred candidates and to oust Republican incumbents who disagreed in particular with his signature policy issue, school vouchers.

Policy stances:

Paused new data center connections to the state grid until an audit is completed after previously calling Texas the “epicenter” for artificial intelligence development. Supports tighter restrictions on data center development, including ending data center tax breaks.
Ordered state agencies to pause funding for Flock surveillance cameras after a Texas Tribune investigation found a state agency had devoted at least $30 million to building up the state’s Flock surveillance network by providing grants to local police departments.
Ordered state agencies to create stricter regulations on THC products, which culminated with the state health agency’s ban of smokeable hemp.
Called for more education changes, including banning the use of H-1B visa workers in public schools, limiting screen time in classrooms and punishing Texas teachers who have inappropriate relationships with students with 10 years in prison.
Reducing property taxes, with proposals including abolishing school property taxes for homeowners (the primary source of funding for Texas public schools); requiring two-thirds voter approval for any property tax increases; and lowering the appraisal cap from 10% to 3%.
Securing the southern border, including through Operation Lone Star, an $11 billion program to install razor wire and buoys, seize trafficked drugs and arrest and deport unauthorized migrants. It also initiated a state funded border wall, which has since ended as federal wall construction restarted.
Stricter bail laws, including a constitutional amendment requiring judges to deny bail to some defendants accused of certain violent offenses.
Private school vouchers, to which the Legislature dedicated $1 billion for two years.

In the news:

Here’s what Greg Abbott, Gina Hinojosa say about education priorities in Texas governor’s race, The Texas Tribune (2026)
Texas will audit up to 300 projects, mostly data centers, after Gov. Greg Abbott’s order, The Texas Tribune (2026)
Gov. Abbott proposes ban on H-1B visa use for Texas public schools during campaign stop, The Texas Tribune (2026)
Gov. Greg Abbott proposes further limiting screen time in K-12 classrooms, The Texas Tribune (2026)
Greg Abbott threatens Dallas, Houston airports’ grant funds over Islamic washing facilities, The Texas Tribune (2026)
At GOP convention, Abbott vows to “demolish” Democrats, calls for crackdown on H-1B visas and Sharia law, The Texas Tribune (2026)
Q&A: Meet the Republican primary candidates for Texas governor, Community Impact (2026)
Gov. Greg Abbott has a sweeping plan to abolish Texas’ school property taxes. Would it work?, The Texas Tribune (2025)

Endorsements:

President Donald Trump
National Border Patrol Council
Texas Municipal Police Association, Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas, Association of Texas EMS Professionals

How to contact:

Info@GregAbbott.com

Texans for Greg Abbott

P.O. Box 308

Austin, TX 78767

Gina Hinojosa

" data-image-description="" data-image-meta="{" data-image-title="Gina Hinojosa" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?fit=780%2C780&ssl=1" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?fit=800%2C800&ssl=1" data-orig-size="800,800" data-permalink="https://www.texastribune.org/gina-hinojosa/" data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" height="780" hinojosa","created_timestamp":"1768516714","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"gina="" hinojosa","orientation":"0"}"="" loading="lazy" sizes="auto, (max-width: 780px) 100vw, 780px" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=780%2C780&ssl=1" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?w=800&ssl=1 800w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=300%2C300&ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1 150w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=768%2C768&ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=600%2C600&ssl=1 600w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=400%2C400&ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=200%2C200&ssl=1 200w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?resize=780%2C780&ssl=1 780w, https://i0.wp.com/www.texastribune.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Gov-Gina-Hinojosa-Campaign-Voter-Guide.jpg?w=370&ssl=1 370w" style="width:1500px;height:auto" width="780"/>

Campaign photo

Campaign site

Gina Hinojosa

Democrat

💰 Campaign finance:

Cash on hand as of June 30: $3 million
Raised between Jan. 1-June 30: $7.4 million

💰 Major donors this year:

United Food and Commercial Workers Active Ballot Club General Fund – $155,000
James Talarico state campaign account – $100,000
Texas American Federation of Teachers’ political fund – $75,000
Edward Allen III, co-founder of Eagle Global Advisors – $100,000
Domingo Garcia, attorney at law offices of Domingo Garcia – $50,000

Major donors this year:

United Food and Commercial Workers Active Ballot Club General Fund – $155,000
James Talarico state campaign account – $100,000
Texas American Federation of Teachers’ political fund – $75,000
Edward Allen III, co-founder of Eagle Global Advisors – $100,000
Domingo Garcia, attorney at law offices of Domingo Garcia – $50,000

Experience:

Serving her fifth term in the Texas House of Representatives
Previously served as president and an at-large member of the Austin Independent School District Board
Civil rights and union lawyer at the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; Kator, Parks & Weiser in Austin; Catholic Charities, Office of Immigrant Concerns; Texas Rural Legal Aid; and the Equal Justice Center.

Political ideology:

Rice University political science fellow Mark Jones ranked Hinojosa, who serves as vice chair of the Texas Legislative Progressive Caucus, as one of the most liberal members of the Texas House in every legislative session since she was elected. Her marquee issue was investing in public education, but she also worked on health care funding, corporate reform and public safety issues.

Policy stances:

Supports a moratorium on new data centers until lawmakers pass legislation to give communities more protections and end data center tax breaks.
Views Flock cameras as a method of “warrantless surveillance” and asked Abbott to “stop turning Texas into a surveillance state.”
Would push for Texas voters to decide on THC regulations and protections for children through a public vote.
Wants to give Texans a one-time $1,500 check each out of the state’s savings account.
Supports investing in school safety and increasing teacher pay.
Wants to end standardized testing in public schools, stop state takeovers of public schools and replace Abbott-appointed Education Commissioner Mike Morath with an educator.
Opposes private school vouchers.
Supports reining in private equity players in health care to lower costs and improve quality

In the news:

Here’s what Greg Abbott, Gina Hinojosa say about education priorities in Texas governor’s race, The Texas Tribune (2026)
Gina Hinojosa proposes sending every Texas household $1,500 in her bid to oust Greg Abbott, The Texas Tribune (2026)
James Talarico, Gina Hinojosa attack GOP with parallel populist pitches at Texas Democratic Convention, The Texas Tribune (2026)
Abbott trolls Talarico with tacos and cattle at Texas Democratic Convention, ignoring opponent Hinojosa, The Texas Tribune (2026)
Texas Rep. Gina Hinojosa joins Democratic race to challenge Gov. Greg Abbott, The Texas Tribune (2025)
Texas is poised to replace STAAR. Here is what schools’ new standardized tests would look like., The Texas Tribune (2025)
In historic first, Texas House approves private school voucher program, The Texas Tribune (2025)
Q&A: Meet the Democratic primary candidates for Texas governor, Community Impact (2026)

Endorsements:

State Rep. James Talarico, Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate
U.S. Reps. Lloyd Doggett, Greg Casar, Veronica Escobar, Sylvia Garcia, Vicente Gonzalez, Julie Johnson
Dozens of state lawmakers and local elected Democrats across Texas
Texas AFL-CIO, Texas American Federation of Teachers

How to contact:

info@ginafortexas.com

Gina Hinojosa Campaign

P.O. Box 300095

Austin, TX 78703

Campaign site

Pat Dixon

Libertarian

💰 Campaign finance:

Cash on hand as of June 30: $6,374
Raised between Jan. 1-June 30: $9,233

💰 Major donors this year:

Michael Chastain, retired – $1,250
James Lark, University of Virginia professor – $1,000
Dustin Trammell, venture capital executive – $1,000
Libertarian Booster PAC – $523 in in-kind donations

Experience:

Owner and operator of Dixon Process Automation Services Inc. in Lago Vista
Two terms as a Lago Vista city council member
Several leadership roles within the Libertarian party, including 10 years as chair of the Libertarian Party of Texas and two terms on the Libertarian Party National Committee
Experience in “executive level positions in private industry, non-profit, and political entities” and working with the Texas Legislature, according to his website

Political ideology: Dixon emphasized that taxpayers should not pay for growth under “free market sustainability”. The Libertarian Party of Texas’ platform says it seeks “the maximum protection for the rights of all people against any violation” and that “government must be kept to the minimum necessary to protect the rights of individuals.” The party also says the government should not interfere in personal matters such as free speech, religion, marriage, family and property rights. It also supports the right to bear arms.

Policy stances:

Opposes tax incentive programs, including for data centers, to attract businesses to Texas
Reduce government spending by slashing business tax breaks, cutting programs like the Texas Department of Agriculture’s inspections of scales and lowering the state’s sales tax
Says surveillance cameras should be allowed on private property and roads to help address serious crimes, but a search of a statewide network should require “probable cause”
When it comes to hemp, THC and marijuana, he says that “adults should be free to make their own choices, provided they don’t harm others” while also “punishing impaired driving and other conduct that puts innocent people at risk”
Supports a “statewide scholarship,” in which every child would be given the same amount of funds to follow them to any school, and remove “politically motivated testing mandates”

In the news:

Libertarians meet in Abilene to nominate candidates for November ballot, KACU (2026)
Fed up with both parties? Texas Libertarians hope you’ll give them a shot, Chron.com (2026)
Pat Dixon: The TT Interview, The Texas Tribune (2010)

How to contact:

P. O. Box 4187,

Lago Vista, TX 78645

pat@patdixon.org

Edward Earl Giles, Jenn Mack, Jinghpaw Majoishingra and Mike Miller are declared write-in candidates for governor.

Disclosure: Javaid Anwar has been a major financial supporter of The Texas Tribune. American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees, Domingo Garcia and Rice University have been financial supporters within the past five years. The Texas Tribune is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in our journalism. Find a complete list of them and more information about our financial and disclosure policies here.

Nepal's leader, at UN, says recent floods serve as a 'warning to the world' about climate change

Seth Borenstein And Anton L. Delgado, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 02:49:07 +0000

Nepal's prime minister scolded fellow world leaders Thursday, saying the nation's recent deadly flood reminds a warming world that climate change keeps hurting people who didn't cause the crisis but now need help.

The August disaster “was not just a local tragedy. It was a warning to the world. And I ask you today: Have you really heard that warning?” Nepali Prime Minister Balendra Shah said at the U.N. General Assembly on Thursday night. “Nearly three years ago, standing in the shadow of our Mount Everest, the secretary-general of the United Nations warned about humanity about the madness and impending climate disaster.”

“That cry from the rooftop of the world was not heard enough,” Shah said. “We in Nepal heard it. Our communities heard it. Scientists around the world heard it. They repeated it with evidence. But we, the political leaders, have been negligent to translate those warnings in action at the speed and scale that the vulnerable people require.”

International scientists have connected melting permafrost from climate — caused by burning coal, oil and gas — to the instability of the glacier, which partly collapsed and triggered a massive flood that has killed at least 1,400 people with even more still missing.

Shah said that Nepal contributed less than one-tenth of 1% of the heat-trapping gases behind climate change. About 99% of Nepal's electricity comes from hydropower, and many workers were trapped in tunnels by the flooding.

“We did not create this crisis, yet we are paying a colossal price for it,” said Shah, 36, a former rapper and engineer who is the youngest head of government to address the General Assembly this year. “Our glaciers are retreating, our mountain slopes are becoming unstable, our rivers are becoming less predictable, and every major disaster threatens to erase years of development.”

He said climate change ‘does not recognize borders’

In a black Dhaka topi, a traditional brimless Nepali hat, Shah spoke while wearing his signature dark sunglasses, which he uses for medical reasons. He said “the tragic consequences of a warming climate” tells the world that “climate change does not recognize borders. Glaciers and floods do not travel with stamps and passports.”

Subeksha Khadka, a humanitarian and former Miss Nepal International, in an online interview, praised Shah's speech and echoed the warning: "This time Nepal has been on the target, but it could be anyone. This is our story right now, and it can be anybody else’s tomorrow. So it’s time to act.”

Shah didn't ask for a specific amount in aid, but he called the international financial aid system inadequate and too bureaucratic. This included a loss and damage fund agreed upon a few years ago for poor nations hit by climate disasters not of their own making.

“Climate finance must not become another bureaucratic maze through which vulnerable countries spend years” maneuvering through when they need help. “When the house is burning, we do not ask a family to complete 50 forms. We act. This is what climate justice means.”

He exhorted the General Assembly to act on relief, rehabilitation, reconstruction — which are traditional international help concepts — but also “responsibility, reparation, resilience.” Reparation is a word and an issue that rankles industrial western nations like the United States, which is historically the world's biggest carbon emitter.

He says it's ‘not an isolated disaster’

Over the past 75 years, the United States has spewed about 1,500 times more carbon into the air than Nepal has, according to the Global Carbon Project, a group of scientists that track greenhouse gas emissions by countries. Historical emissions matter because carbon dioxide stays in the atmosphere for more than a century trapping heat.

The U.S. this week announced $31 million in aid to Nepal for flood recovery, which bring America's total financial help up to $36 million. It's less than 1% of what they need.

“Preliminary assessments indicate that from recent disaster alone, Nepal has suffered loss of over $5 billion, nearly 15% of our GDP and a third of our annual budget," Shisir Khanal, Nepal's foreign minister, said Wednesday at the UN climate summit. "Thus for Nepal, this catastrophe is not merely a humanitarian emergency. It is a development emergency dismantling years of progress. It is a justice crisis exposing the inequities of global climate action and it is an existential crisis striking at the very survival of our communities and our future.”

“What happened in Nepal is not an isolated disaster but a preview of what awaits many vulnerable nations,” Khanal said.

Former United States Vice President Al Gore said in an interview that Nepal's disaster shows that the climate crisis “was getting worse much faster” than people can handle and foreshadows problems with melting glaciers that feed all of the great rivers of Asia, putting the water supply of 2 billion people at risk.

___

Delgado reported from New York. Associated Press writer Jennifer McDermott contributed to this report.

___

Bijan Robinson runs roughshod over the Packers as the Falcons breeze to a 35-14 victory

Steve Megargee, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 03:30:40 +0000

Once the Atlanta Falcons finally reached the red zone, they kept coming back again and again.

Bijan Robinson rushed for 194 yards and two touchdowns as the Falcons capitalized on the return of quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and trounced the punchless Green Bay Packers 35-14 on Thursday night.

Atlanta (1-2) erased an early 7-0 deficit by scoring 27 straight points to take control amid a chorus of boos at Lambeau Field. The Falcons outrushed the Packers 242 yards to 17.

It was a stunning turn of events for an Atlanta offense that hadn't run a single play inside an opponent's 20-yard line during the first two weeks of the season.

“That was the weight off the shoulders — just getting back to the red zone,” Robinson said. “And we knew we had to punch it in every opportunity we get when we get down there. That was the main focus — to get the ball down there and let's put the ball in the end zone. When we scored, it was definitely something we enjoyed, and we kept on doing it.”

Penix went 18 of 25 for 256 yards with one touchdown and an interception in his first action since tearing the ACL in his left knee during a loss to Carolina on Nov. 16.

“I'm proud of him,” Falcons coach Kevin Stefanski said. “It's not easy to rehab from injuries. That's a tough thing to do, that he's put himself through — the extra workouts in the weight room, the extra treatments in the training room, all those times that he's out in the field and he's running when no one's watching.”

Atlanta had struggled to produce any offense whatsoever in two games with Cooper Rush at quarterback. The Falcons became the first team since the 2008 Rams not to run any plays in the red zone through the first two weeks of a season.

That wasn’t a problem Thursday.

Robinson and Drake London became the first teammates to each compile at least 190 yards from scrimmage in a road game since Lawrence McCutcheon and Ron Jessie did it for the Rams at Miami on Oct. 3, 1976. London caught nine passes for a career-high 194 yards.

“Me and Drake, that's my real-life brother," Robinson said. "I call him my blood brother. We do everything together.”

Green Bay (1-2) lost a home opener for the first time since falling 30-22 to the San Francisco 49ers in 2012. The Packers had won 13 straight home openers from 2013-25 to share the NFL record with the Miami Dolphins, who also won 13 in a row from 1976-88.

“We’ve got a couple extra days here, and everybody’s got to take a long, hard look at themselves,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said. “We’ve got to find solutions and just come back ready to work.”

Green Bay's Jordan Love went 28 of 53 for 312 yards with two touchdowns — one to Christian Watson and another to Matthew Golden — and an interception. MarShawn Lloyd and Kaleb Johnson combined for 17 yards on eight carries.

Love was working behind an offensive line missing left guard Aaron Banks and right tackle Zach Bako-Bewele, who tore his patellar tendon Sunday and will miss the rest of the season. Banks was dealing with a toe injury.

Jager Burton, a rookie fifth-round pick from Kentucky, made his first career start at left guard, and 2025 second-round selection Anthony Belton started at right tackle.

The lack of discipline that hindered Green Bay in its first two games cropped up again Thursday.

Green Bay led 7-0 and had forced an apparent third-and-11 incompletion late in the first quarter when Brenton Cox Jr. was called for roughing the passer. Robinson delivered a 55-yard carry on the next play to set up his own 3-yard touchdown run.

The Packers had committed an NFL-high 26 penalties through the first two weeks of the season.

Atlanta dominated the rest of the first half and led 17-7 at the break.

Nick Folk put Atlanta ahead by hitting a 44-yard field goal with 4:48 left in the second quarter. After Atlanta’s Zach Harrison blocked Trey Smack’s 47-yard field-goal attempt, Penix threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Austin Hooper on third-and-goal with 59 seconds left in the half.

Green Bay wasted a red-zone opportunity on its first drive of the second half when Love couldn’t connect with Watson in the end zone on fourth-and-1 from the 7. Atlanta poured it on from there.

“It felt great to get a win. It felt great to come out of there healthy. Just blessed, just blessed,” Penix said.

Injuries

Falcons: CB A.J. Terrell (groin) didn't play after getting placed on injured reserve this week.

Packers: LB Edgerrin Cooper was evaluated for a concussion in the second half. G Jacob Monk hurt his quadriceps late in the fourth quarter.

Up next

Falcons: At New Orleans on Monday, Oct. 5.

Packers: At Tampa Bay on Oct. 4.

___

See AP’s full NFL coverage here

Trump's state dinner for Xi features sea bass and a long list of tech titans

Will Weissert, Associated Press — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 20:36:56 +0000

A tech-heavy guest list, the fashion choices of those on it, who sat where and what was on the menu marked the softer — often and glitzier — details of diplomacy as Donald Trump threw a Thursday night state dinner honoring China’s leader Xi Jinping.

The event featured a cavalcade of billionaires, Washington powerbrokers, business leaders and the type of festivities that most excite Trump, who has a reputation for reveling in hosting parties.

“President Xi and I both understand we represent different systems, but the ties between our people endure, and we’ve never gotten along better,” Trump said during his toast, adding that “together, we can continue to build a relationship that promotes prosperity and security for future generations.”

Trump has done his best to impress Xi during China's leader's during Xi's three-day visit to Washington, and praised their close personal relationship — even as he has decried top Democratic candidates as “communists” ahead of the November midterm elections.

Xi and Trump discussed tensions over Taiwan, trade and artificial intelligence during business hours — even as an ongoing First Amendment fight over press access at the White House has unfolded. But Trump publicly chose to focus on showing Xi his White House updates on Thursday afternoon, including letting him tour his Marine One presidential helicopter and a new helipad he built for it — before attention quickly turned to the flashy details of the swanky meal.

Xi noted in his own toast that “President Trump has pledged to make America great again” and that “China is committed to achieving great national rejuvenation.”

“These two goals are both ambitious and can surely be mutually reinforcing,” Xi said.

Trump wore a tuxedo, and her office said first lady Melania Trump opted for a tuxedo-style outfit: a white Saint Laurent cotton poplin blouse, a black silk cummerbund and black brocade pants — both from Dolce & Gabbana — with a peony motif.

Xi chose a black suit and his wife, Peng Liyuan, wore a red gown. The East Room, where the dinner was held, featured low lighting and place settings with elegant red and gold decor.

Those in attendance included OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who signed autographs upon arriving at the White House. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang opted for a tuxedo over his trademark black leather jacket. Bernard Arnault, the CEO of French luxury goods company LVMH, walked through black security fencing to enter the event.

Trump says he can't help but talk up the ballroom being built

The president toasted his strong relationship with Xi and the bond between the U.S. and China, but then added, “If I could go off script just for a second, I just want to say I had to do it,” as those assembled laughed.

“I’d like to invite everyone in the room to visit through that beautiful curtain in the back,” Trump said, referring to the construction site of his White House ballroom on the South Lawn, which he said, “you've heard so much about.”

Trump said the project was a year from completion, and said he thought attendees “will see something that I think you will really love.”

The president said that after the dinner attendees could go see the worksite and be “the first people to step foot” on it.

“We’ll do that. Maybe after we’ve finished with the entertainment tonight,” Trump said, asking, “Anybody wants to walk into a construction site that’s nice and sparkling, it’s our honor to have you do so.”

Trump has called the ballroom he’s building the “Great Hall of the United States,” and suggested it could rival the Great Hall of the People, where he dined during a state visit to Beijing in May.

The president also presented Xi with an eagle statue that he said was designed “in personal collaboration with Melania and myself.” Xi did not present Trump a public gift in return during the dinner.

Guests dined on squash and sea bass

The first lady helped craft the evening's menu, which was served on the red china from Ronald Reagan’s presidency. It featured a first course of yellow squash velouté with wild mushrooms, fresh herbs, crispy pancetta and drizzled scallion oil.

After that, guests got sesame-crusted sea bass with braised baby bok choy, roasted garden eggplant and a sauce verte. Dessert was vanilla crémeux with sour cherry confit and walnut frangipane, as well as ice cream with honey from the White House.

Trump has sought to one-up Xi after Beijing

The dinner came after the president took the unusual step of personally greeting Xi and his wife on Wednesday as they arrived at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington. Normally, presidents wait for their state visit guests to arrive at the White House itself before offering a formal welcome.

Thursday's dinner was packed with technology industry titans like Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, OpenAI President and co-founder Greg Brockman, and Dell Technologies chairman and CEO Michael Dell.

During his own visit to Beijing in May, Xi hosted Trump for a state dinner that unfolded beneath grand chandeliers in the Great Hall of the People. That event also included many tech luminaries, such as Tim Cook, formerly Apple's CEO, and Musk.

It was all a stark departure from 2015, when then-President Barack Obama was preparing to host Xi for a state visit and Trump — in the midst of his first presidential run — criticized all the hubbub.

“Just take them to McDonald’s and go back to the negotiating table,” Trump said then, during a rally in South Carolina. He later conceded on Fox News Channel that Xi might at least be worthy of getting “probably a double-size Big Mac.”

Yemen tells UN that Houthi rebels' moves on key strait threaten global economy

Associated Press — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 12:40:51 +0000

Yemen's internationally recognized government pressed world leaders anew Thursday for help defeating the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, saying that their new perch along one of the world's busiest waterways presents an international economic risk.

The Houthis — who have controlled Yemen's capital, Sanaa, and much of the country's north for over a decade — stormed down Yemen's coast this month and seized the crucial port city of Mokha and key Red Sea islands. That gives them better surveillance of ships passing through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, at the sea's southern end. About 12% of the world’s trade usually passes through the waterway.

The rebels have declared a blockade on Saudi shipping. While asserting there's no other threat to commercial shipping on the Red Sea, they have warned other nations not to get involved.

But the vice president of the internationally recognized government council urged world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly not to trust the Houthis' assurances — and to see a bigger picture in the strife around the strait.

“The Houthi militias' use of the safety of navigation as a tool for blackmail threatens not only Yemen. It is taking hostage the entire global economy,” said the vice president, Abdullah Abdulkader al Alimi-Bawzer.

Yemeni VP says weapons, technology should be kept from rebels' hands

Arguing that protecting the strait “is the responsibility of every economy that depends on secure supply chains, energy security and freedom of navigation,” he urged the international community to keep weapons and technology from getting into the rebels' hands.

For years, the U.N. Security Council has imposed an arms embargo on the Houthis and an asset freeze and travel ban on their leaders and top officials.

Iran denies arming the Houthis, but smuggled Iranian weapons and parts have been seized from numerous shipments bound for Yemen, and a report by U.N. experts in 2024 documented extensive military ties between the Houthis, Iran and its other allies. Al Alimi-Bawzer contended Thursday that the rebels wouldn't have been able to maintain their position for a dozen years without Iranian weapons, expertise and military technologies.

The Houthis claimed Thursday to have fired dozens of ballistic missiles and drones at Saudi Arabia’s southwestern Jazan province. A Saudi military spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Turki al-Malki, said the kingdom intercepted six ballistic missiles targeting its Red Sea port of Yanbu and the southwestern city of Taif, blaming the Houthis.

His statement followed alerts by Saudi civil defense authorities, who later noted the danger had passed.

Fighting risks full-scale return to civil war

In Yemen, the latest fighting risks a full-scale return to the civil war that killed more than 150,000 people and forced millions from their homes. Already, nearly 130,000 people have been newly displaced and hundreds killed, and a humanitarian crisis is deepening in the Arab world’s poorest country.

The fighting near the crucial Red Sea shipping corridor and the Houthis' pursuit of a blockade of Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, also have worried global markets. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait has become all the more crucial since Iran has asserted control over the even busier Strait of Hormuz, off its coast, since the U.S. and Israel attacked the Islamic Republic in February.

After the Houthis overran Sanaa and northern parts of Yemen in 2014, Saudi Arabia formed a military coalition to intervene on behalf of the Yemeni government. But the fighting wore on, and the Houthis endured.

A truce took hold in 2022. But after the Israel-Hamas war began the next year, the Houthis began attacking Red Sea shipping. The attacks continued until a U.S. bombing campaign in 2025.

Yemeni official thanks Saudis and US

On Thursday, Al Alimi-Bawzer thanked the Saudis and hailed the U.S. for having shown a “decisive approach.”

The Saudis have recently again sought military support from allies, but the U.S. hasn't renewed military involvement. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said repeatedly that the U.S. will fulfill its defense commitments to Saudi Arabia but has not specified how.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan told reporters at the U.N. on Thursday that his country was “continuing to work with our partners in the U.S. to address the issue of this conflict.”

Despite the Houthis’ latest advances, he suggested his country wasn’t worried about a Houthi takeover in Yemen's south. The Yemeni government, he said, “is very capable of defending the territory it controls."

___

Anna reported from Jerusalem and Khaled from Cairo. Associated Press writer Farnoush Amiri contributed from the United Nations.

Israel's Netanyahu, at UN, calls accusations of genocide in Gaza 'the biggest lie of the century'

Sam Metz And Megan Mineiro, Associated Press — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 14:15:24 +0000

Lashing out at his country's critics, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu angrily dismissed allegations of Israeli genocide in Gaza as “the biggest lie of the century” in a defiant speech to the U.N. General Assembly that asserted his nation’s right to wage war against Iran. Scores of delegates trooped out of the hall in protest.

Netanyahu addressed the plenum after days of speeches by world leaders condemning Israel's war in Gaza and accusing him of orchestrating a genocide against the Palestinian people. At times, the Israeli leader, facing a tough race for re-election next month, became emotional and indignant as he lectured his critics, among them New York's mayor.

Netanyahu, his voice rising in emphasis, said attacking Iran “was one of the easiest decisions I’ve ever had to make” and denounced as “moral cowards” a mass of delegates who walked out of the hall when he took the podium to speak.

“In defending itself, Israel is also defending many of the countries whose delegates just left this hall,” Netanyahu said. “In fact, I want you to know that many of their leaders even thank us privately for taking out Iran’s nukes.”

When Netanyahu walked to the rostrum, a mix of cheers, boos and mass walkouts erupted. Scores of delegates marched out and a majority of visible seats sat empty afterward. “Order in the hall, please,” General Assembly President Khalilur Rahman said repeatedly.

“If there are any other moral cowards who have not yet left this hall, please do so now,” Netanyahu said.

A speech aimed at a domestic audience

Netanyahu's remarks — which at times sounded like a stump speech — were aimed largely at the audience at home as the country prepares for elections on Oct. 27. It was delivered during the evening prime time in Israel and filled with standard talking points used to defend policies in the occupied West Bank and treatment of the Palestinians.

Netanyahu reminded the assembly of the scale of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack in which Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people.

“This is equal to 40,000 innocent Americans slaughtered in less than 24 hours,” he said, or 16 times the death count of the 9/11 attacks that left nearly 3,000 people dead in New York and more in Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon.

Netanyahu said the attack left Israel with no choice but to hit Hamas hard. Many governments have accused Israel of committing war crimes, and Netanyahu himself faces an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court accusing him of crimes against humanity.

He predicted the fall of Iran's government

While the war in Iran has been inconclusive and caused havoc on the global economy, Netanyahu insisted he had made the right decision.

He thanked U.S. President Donald Trump for taking decisive action against Iran, and predicted Iran’s theocratic government would fall. Trump made a similar assertion at the outset of the war that began nearly seven months ago, but the Iranian government appears to remain firmly in charge.

Netanyahu, known for using visual aids during his General Assembly speeches, at one point held up a pager while reminding the audience of the Sept. 17, 2024, attack in which Israel remotely detonated thousands of pagers that had been distributed to the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon. The pager attack wounded more than 3,000 people and killed 12, including two children.

He says reports of settler violence in the West Bank are distorted

Netanyahu dismissed incidents of Israeli settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank as a “handful of young juvenile delinquents” throwing stones, chopping down olive trees and lighting fires.

“I can’t stand that. I won’t stand for vigilantism,” the prime minister said before accusing foreign leaders and the international press of distorting the scale of violence in the West Bank.

Netanyahu’s government is dominated by settlers and their allies, and has made few arrests in the wave of settler violence.

Israel captured the West Bank and east Jerusalem in the 1967 war, and the Palestinians want both as part of their future state. The Palestinians and most of the international community view the settlements as illegal and as an obstacle to creating a viable, contiguous Palestinian state.

The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has reported more than 1,600 settler attacks this year.

At least 104 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli settlers or soldiers this year, according to the Ramallah-based Palestinian Health Ministry. Four Israelis have been killed by Palestinians over the same period. This week, a settler was killed and the son of Israel's ambassador to the U.S. badly wounded in separate Palestinian attacks.

Israel is increasingly isolated on the world stage

Netanyahu also accused New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani of spreading lies about Israel and endangering Jewish New Yorkers with his criticism of the country's military actions in Gaza.

Before the prime minister arrived in New York, Mamdani called him a “war criminal” and pushed for his arrest. The mayor has acknowledged that New York does not have the authority to execute an International Criminal Court warrant but urged federal authorities to do so.

In past years, Netanyahu has used his General Assembly speech to both denounce the United Nations as biased and make Israel's case to world leaders. His address is the cornerstone of an abbreviated trip to the United States as Israel has grown increasingly isolated throughout the war in Gaza.

The war in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel, killing around 1,200 people and kidnapping 251. At least 73,922 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's subsequent offensive, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, part of the Hamas-run government whose numbers are generally considered reliable by the international community.

A ceasefire agreed to by Israel and Hamas last October halted the heaviest of the fighting and led to the release of the remaining hostages yet further steps have since stalled. Israel maintains control of most of Gaza and continues to carry out airstrikes on Palestinians near military-held zones. Hamas not disarmed or relinquished power and there has been no progress toward reconstruction in the mostly destroyed territory.

Netanyahu has said no Palestinian state will be established while he is Israel’s leader and has argued that the Palestinian Authority is not a partner for peace.

Netanyahu followed the Palestinian president’s remote speech

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas also addressed the U.N. General Assembly earlier Thursday, delivering prerecorded remarks from his office in Ramallah after the United States denied him a visa to attend the gathering for the second year in a row.

Though world leaders have repeatedly invoked the plight of Palestinians in speeches throughout the week, Abbas urged the international community to take more tangible action against Israel.

“How long will some countries continue to remain silent about Israel, or continue supplying it with weapons that it uses against our people?" Abbas said. “What, then, is the international community waiting for before it acts to protect the Palestinian people?”

___

Associated Press reporters Jennifer Peltz and Edith M. Lederer contributed.

Powerful Hurricane Polo drenches Mexico's coast as Nolo takes aim at Hawaii

Megan Janetsky And Gabriela Aoun, Associated Press — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 08:20:27 +0000

Residents along Mexico’s west coast stacked sandbags to fortify beachfront shops and evacuated their homes, while Hawaii’s Big Island and Maui braced for potentially catastrophic flooding, as separate hurricanes swirled in the Pacific on Thursday.

Nolo became a hurricane in the Pacific Ocean on Thursday night and was expected to strengthen while turning toward the Big Island, the National Hurricane Center said. Forecasters warned that the Big Island could see rainfall totals of 15 to 30 inches (38 to 76 centimeters), with higher amounts possible through Saturday. The island of Maui also could be hit with life-threatening floods, the hurricane center said.

Meanwhile, heavy rains from powerful Hurricane Polo could cause torrential flooding and landslides in Mexico, according to the U.S. hurricane center. In the port city of Lázaro Cárdenas, seawater already swept through homes Thursday and left wooden planks and furniture strewn on the streets.

Polo has fluctuated between Category 4 and 5, both major-hurricane strength. It was expected to regain Category 5 status on Friday, then gradually weaken Friday night and Saturday, the hurricane center said.

After skirting Mexico's coast, Polo was expected to move farther out to sea Thursday night and Friday before hooking back toward land to the north on Saturday.

The series of powerful storms comes as the weather phenomenon El Niño prompts major environmental shifts across the world, fueling drought in some areas and flooding in others. El Niño traditionally dampens the Atlantic hurricane season, while it tends to rev up tropical cyclone activity in the Pacific with moist air and little wind shear.

Hawaii has been battered this year by major flooding in the spring, an earthquake and two other hurricanes since mid-August.

“In my 20 years of experience here, I’ve never seen three hurricane watches for the islands in the same year,” said John Bravender of the National Weather Service in Honolulu.

Polo could trigger flooding and mudslides in Mexico

Mexican authorities were opening shelters and clearing people from beaches, while coastal residents tried to protect businesses from getting swept away. People in high-risk areas were being evacuated, though authorities didn’t immediately say how many.

Much of the worry from locals comes from hurricanes in past years that devastated cities along the Pacific coast. Hurricane Otis in 2023 unexpectedly plunged Acapulco into turmoil for weeks.

“So many people said it wouldn’t happen and then it did. After that, you’re left on edge,” said Gonzalo Ramírez, a bartender in the city.

Polo posed the biggest threat to Guerrero and Michoacán, neighboring states in southwest Mexico that share a long coastline scattered with small ports, tourist towns and fishing villages. Much of the area is marked by poverty, and residents routinely complain they are left to fend for themselves during natural disasters.

Mexican authorities have deployed 15,000 security personnel across the coast and suspended schools.

In Lázaro Cárdenas, a port city in Michoacán that was hit with high surf, locals and government officials were clearing out piles of wooden planks from a number of destroyed ramadas and shoveling thick mud coating much of the town.

Alicia Contreras said the walls and roof of her restaurant had been severely damaged by 15-foot (4.5-meter) waves. As officers and family helped pick through the damaged house, Contreras worried how she would economically recover.

“This is huge because we have no other source of income. Now we’re just surviving,” Contreras said.

Nolo could flood parts of Hawaii still recovering from other storms

While the Big Island is expected to bear the brunt of Nolo, its full path remains uncertain, according to Bravender, the weather service's warning coordination meteorologist in Hawaii.

Most concerning, he said Thursday, is that the heaviest rain is likely to fall over the same southeastern region of the Big Island hit in August by Hurricane Lala and where grounds are still wet from additional precipitation.

“There are several communities that were isolated, flooded, roads that were washed out,” he said. “It’s that same area that is most under threat,” Bravender said.

Hawaii officials told residents to put together emergency kits and the governor issued an emergency proclamation, activating more than 230 Hawaii National Guard members. Schools were closed for the rest of the week.

Odalys and Fay are not near land

A third storm in the Pacific, Hurricane Odalys, was centered far from land, roughly 1,110 miles (1,785 kilometers) west-southwest of the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula.

In the northern Atlantic Ocean, Tropical Storm Fay re-formed early Thursday, the U.S. hurricane center said. It was nearly 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometers) west-southwest of the Azores.

Tropical Storm Gonzalo formed in the Atlantic Ocean late Thursday, about 190 miles (306 kilometers) southeast of the Cape Verde islands off the coast of West Africa. The U.S. hurricane center said that if it stays on its current track, the storm will pass near or over portions of the islands Friday.

___

Aoun Angueira reported from San Diego. Associated Press journalists John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City and Jeriel Vargas Ambriz in Lázaro Cárdena, Mexico, contributed to this report.

Rangers finish home slate with 3-1 win over Mets to keep Texas tied for AL West lead

Stephen Hawkins, Associated Press — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 21:11:38 +0000

Josh Jung and Corey Seager homered, Kumar Rocker pitched five solid innings and Texas closed out its home schedule with a 3-1 win over the New York Mets on Thursday that kept the Rangers tied for the AL West lead heading into the regular season's final weekend.

Texas stopped a three-game losing streak, and Houston won 7-5 later Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series at the Athletics. Both teams are 79-80 with three games left, with the Astros holding the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Texas, which finishes the regular season in Minnesota, went ahead to stay on Jung's two-run homer in the first inning off rookie left-hander Zac Thornton (5-6). Seager snapped an 0-for-15 skid when he led off the sixth with his 19th homer.

Rocker (6-11) struck out four while allowing one run and three hits. Jordan Montgomery, the fourth Rangers reliever, worked a perfect ninth for his second big league save. He's made 161 starts and 17 relief appearances over nine big league seasons.

Francisco Lindor led off the game with a double and scored on Carson Benge's two-out single to put New York up 1-0. Benge has 160 hits, a Mets rookie record.

Thornton struck out four and walked one in five innings. He allowed four hits and the only runs he surrendered were on Jung's 12th homer. Seager went deep off Jefry Yan, another rookie.

Jung, who finished with three hits and a walk, is hitting .341 (15 for 44) in 11 games since coming off the injured list Sept. 12. He missed 47 games because of a left calf strain.

Up next

New York (73-86) goes to Washington (75-84) to open a three-game series Friday matching the teams at the bottom of the NL East standings.

Two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom (11-10) is set to start for Texas on Friday against the Twins, who never trailed while sweeping three games in Texas in mid-June.

___

See AP’s full MLB coverage here

Harris County treasurer cited after 4‑vehicle North Freeway crash

Jaewon Jung, Michael Lemons — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 23:00:18 +0000

Harris County Treasurer Dr. Carla Wyatt was cited after Houston police say she caused a four-vehicle crash on the North Freeway last week, according to a crash report obtained by our Community News Partner Grizzy’s Hood News and KPRC.

The Sept. 18 crash comes as Wyatt continues to face a pending driving while intoxicated charge in Galveston County stemming from her May arrest in Texas City.

According to the Texas Peace Officer’s Crash Report, the four-vehicle collision happened shortly after noon in the 6500 block of the North Freeway, north of Tidwell Road.

Investigators said Wyatt was driving a black 2005 Nissan Xterra northbound in the far-left lane behind another vehicle.

“All of a sudden, just a big jolt,” said Amanda Byford, who was driving the first vehicle that was hit.

According to the investigator’s narrative, Wyatt “failed to control speed” and struck the back of that vehicle.

The impact caused the second driver to move into the adjacent lane, according to the report. Police said Wyatt then continued north and struck the back of a third vehicle, pushing that vehicle into a fourth.

One of Byford’s passengers, Carrie, said the group was stunned by what happened next.

“I can’t believe someone would hit us that hard and not even stop,” she said. “I mean, it wasn’t even a hesitation. It was a speed up and let me get out of here kind of feeling.”

The report lists six people involved in the crash and says none were injured.

Byford said she watched the Xterra hit the other vehicle immediately after striking her cr.

“We saw immediately right after she hits this other vehicle, this Durango,” Byford said.

Byford said she eventually pulled alongside Wyatt and got out to check on her.

“I said, ‘Ma’am, can you roll down your window a little bit?’ I said, ‘Are you OK? Is there something wrong with you?’” Byford recalled.

According to Byford, Wyatt responded, “No. What happened?”

Wyatt was issued a citation for failure to control speed.

The report also indicates no alcohol or drug specimen was collected from Wyatt. There is no allegation in the crash report that alcohol or impairment contributed to the collision.

We have reached out to Wyatt and her attorney for comment and will update this article when they get back.

Wyatt currently facing DWI charge in Galveston County

The crash happened roughly four months after Wyatt was arrested on a DWI charge in Texas City.

As KPRC 2 previously reported, a Texas City police officer responded to Highway 3 around 1:30 a.m. on May 9 after receiving a report of a vehicle stopped in the left lane.

RELATED: Harris County Treasurer Carla Wyatt’s latest arrest adds to growing legal troubles during re-election campaign

According to the probable cause affidavit obtained by KPRC 2, the officer found Wyatt in the driver’s seat of a running Toyota 4Runner and wrote that she appeared to be asleep.

When the officer woke Wyatt and asked where she was, the affidavit says Wyatt initially responded that she was “in heaven.” She later told the officer she was in Houston and was headed to Galveston for a conference.

The officer wrote that Wyatt initially said she had consumed one glass of wine at home and later said she had two. According to the affidavit, the officer reported smelling alcohol and observing Wyatt swaying and other alleged signs of intoxication.

Wyatt was arrested and charged with DWI. KPRC 2 previously reported that she was released on a $3,000 bond. The case remains pending.

Wyatt’s attorney has previously said they looked forward to reviewing the evidence and investigating the basis for the arrest.

Previous DWI case dismissed after pretrial diversion

The Galveston County case is Wyatt’s second DWI case.

KPRC 2 previously obtained records showing Wyatt was arrested for DWI in Houston in December 2023.

According to the HPD report from that case, officers found Wyatt in the driver’s seat of a vehicle stopped in the roadway on Scott Street near Old Spanish Trail. A witness told police Wyatt appeared to be going in and out of consciousness.

RELATED: Harris County Treasurer Carla Wyatt told police she was ‘in heaven’ during DWI arrest, affidavit says

Officers reported that Wyatt had slurred speech, balance issues and smelled of alcohol. According to the police report, breath samples registered between .365 and .367, more than four times Texas’ legal limit of .08.

That DWI charge was ultimately dismissed after Wyatt completed a pretrial diversion program.

Other legal and political scrutiny

Wyatt, who was elected Harris County Treasurer in 2022, was also arrested in December 2025 on a burglary of a motor vehicle charge.

Police accused Wyatt of entering another person’s vehicle outside a business on Washington Avenue. Her attorney, Christopher Downey, said at the time that Wyatt’s behavior was “unusual” but maintained that she did not intend to commit theft.

A Harris County grand jury later no-billed the case, declining to indict Wyatt.

Earlier this year, Harris County Commissioners Court also unanimously moved some financial responsibilities out of the Treasurer’s Office. Commissioners have discussed pursuing the elimination of the elected office through the constitutional amendment process.

In August, Wyatt asked for her $139,547 salary to be increased to $305,000, arguing that she should be compensated similarly to other countywide elected officials. A citizen salary grievance committee later recommended a smaller increase to $181,411, but Commissioners Court rejected that recommendation earlier this month.

Wyatt is seeking reelection as Harris County Treasurer in the Nov. 3 election.

It's been an intense hurricane season in the Pacific and there's still a long way to go

John Raby, Associated Press — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 23:16:57 +0000

It’s already been an intense hurricane season in the Pacific Ocean — and there’s still quite a ways to go.

Tropical storms have spawned in what seems like assembly-line fashion in recent weeks, as El Nino conditions that emerged in June have caused waters to grow warmer than normal, setting off a chain of unusual weather around much of the world.

“It’s ramping up to be perhaps the strongest El Nino on record,” University of Miami hurricane expert Brian McNoldy said.

The number of hurricanes in the eastern Pacific has already surpassed what occurs in a typical season. This week alone, Hurricane Polo drenched Mexico’s Pacific coast as it seesaws between Category 4 and 5. And in storm-weary Hawaii, there’s the potential for catastrophic flooding from a growing Hurricane Nolo.

During El Nino, low-level surface winds blowing from east to west across the Pacific are weakened or sometimes reversed. It causes a shift in the jet stream and drives record global heat, severe droughts, wildfires and shrinking water supplies.

El Ninos don’t follow a regular schedule, occurring every two to seven years on average. Some can be mild. Others can pack a punch. McNoldy predicted that the current El Nino will peak during the coming winter but linger into 2027.

“It doesn’t turn off right away,” he said.

While the focus is on the increased number of Pacific storms, El Ninos conversely curtail hurricane activity in the Atlantic Ocean: Tropical weather activity in the Atlantic has been virtually silent this year.

A turbocharged hurricane year in the Pacific

Thanks to El Nino, both the eastern Pacific and the central Pacific have seen four more tropical storms than is normal to date with more than two months left in the hurricane season, said Matthew Rosencrans, lead hurricane season forecaster with NOAA’s National Weather Service.

From 1991 to 2020, there was an average of 15 named storms in the eastern Pacific per season, which runs from May 15 to Nov. 30.

But surpassing the yearly average in September? “That's a different story,” Rosencrans said.

What also sets this year’s El Nino-fueled storms apart is that three Pacific hurricanes have reached Category 5 strength, tying a record set in 2002, also during an El Nino, he said.

The most active season on record in the eastern Pacific was 1992, when there were 25 named storms, Rosencrans said. For the central Pacific, it was 14 in 2015.

In 2015 there were nine major hurricanes, of Category 3 or higher, in the eastern Pacific, but no reported deaths. Due to El Nino, forecasters said the eastern Pacific storms formed farther west and tracked more westward, remaining over the open ocean throughout their cycle.

During another strong El Nino in 1997, hundreds of people died when Hurricane Pauline tore across Mexico’s Pacific coast. That same year Tropical Storm Nora gave landlocked southwestern Arizona an unusual soaking. And a December storm in Southern California caused flooding that swept cars into a storm channel and prompted evacuations of some mobile home parks.

In 1998, El Nino was blamed for flooding in China that killed 4,150 people, most along the Yangtze River.

Hawaii finds itself in the crosshairs again

Hawaii has felt the wrath of two hurricanes over the past month. Lala in August and Lowell in early September combined to destroy or damage more than 510 homes and cause $168 million in damage to public infrastructure. Lala also caused $21.5 million in damage to 38 schools.

Nolo, which strengthened to a hurricane Thursday night, is expected to make it three. Forecasters say the storm could drop rainfall amounts on Hawaii that are measured in feet, not inches.

On top of that, heavy rains in March caused the worst flooding to hit Hawaii in two decades. That was followed in May by a magnitude-6.0 earthquake, prompting Gov. Josh Green to remark that this year has been “unlike anything I can recall.”

Two hurricanes came within 200 miles (320 kilometers) of Hawaii in 1957, but that did not happen again for more than a half century. Then it occurred in 2014, 2016 and 2018 before this year's predicted trifecta.

Meteorologists often worry about “preparedness fatigue,” when communities gear up for storms that never arrive or fall short of their potential strength. But John Bravender, a weather service warning coordination meteorologist, said 2026 has yielded a different type of weariness in Hawaii.

“The fact that we’ve had these damaging impacts that keep happening, and as we’re recovering from them, we have to get ready for the next event — that’s a new one that really drains the resources and leads to this overall sense that this is a very busy hurricane season for us,” he said.

Residents understand the risks and are getting more accustomed to preparing.

“I think community members realize how dangerous the weather can be, how important it is for them to be self-sufficient, have food, water and also look out for their neighbors,” Bravender said.

___

Associated Press writer Gabriela Aoun Angueira contributed to this report.

Trump administration moves to limit fixes for systemic racism in schools

Annie Ma, Associated Press — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 04:01:14 +0000

For decades, a key principle underpinned civil rights enforcement in American schools: Not all discrimination was intentional.

Even if a school policy was written without overt racial bias, it might unfairly hurt one group of students over another, the understanding went. The concept is known as systemic racism, and Republican and Democratic administrations agreed: Schools and universities that received federal funding had an obligation to address it.

Under President Donald Trump's administration, that's no longer the case. One by one, the administration has limited the remedies schools can use to address systemic racial injustice.

This summer, the Education Department rescinded a regulation that allowed schools to gauge potential discrimination by comparing outcomes across races, such as the racial breakdown of students in advanced classes. Then, it issued a letter to American schools, emphasizing it's illegal to consider race when crafting discipline policies — even if one particular racial group ends up suspended or expelled more often.

At the same time, Trump's Justice Department has stepped away from many school desegregation cases. In a news release Thursday, the department boasted of successfully working through the courts to close more than 50 desegregation cases since Trump took office, with motions to dismiss in the works in many other cases. Previous administrations had used these federal court cases to hold schools accountable when students of color had worse outcomes than white students — high rates of discipline, worse school facilities or reduced access to extracurriculars and advanced coursework.

While Trump's first administration deprioritized enforcing racial justice, his current administration has gone further — threatening to punish schools for any consideration of race in their policies and practices.

To the administration, the practice of examining different outcomes for particular groups of students, sometimes known as “disparate impact,” was itself a form of racial discrimination.

“The Obama and Biden Administrations weaponized disparate impact by effectively coercing schools to discipline students differently based on race in order to engineer equitable disciplinary outcomes across racial groups,” Education Department spokesperson Sabin Sidney said. "These practices unfortunately led to unsafe classrooms and undermined student learning."

Critics worry the administration's actions will make it easier to get away with racial discrimination.

“When they talk about returning it to the states and making America great again, they’re talking about returning to how it was before 1954,” when school segregation was legal, said U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va.

School discipline data had offered insights on discrimination

Since Trump's return to office, the administration has set its sights on school discipline.

In May 2025, the president signed an executive order directing federal agencies to stop looking for “ disparate impact," or policies that appear neutral but result in outsized impact to one group over another. Those policies had been examined for possible discrimination, regardless of their intent.

In education, that analysis had most often been applied to school discipline — especially to removing students from the classroom, such as through suspensions, expulsions and referrals to law enforcement.

Federal and state data have long shown students of color, particularly Black students, are more likely than their peers to be pulled from the classroom for similar infractions. Research shows that students who are suspended are more likely to become disengaged from school and to have worse academic outcomes.

In 2021, the Education Department began investigating a complaint alleging Black male students with disabilities in Denver Public Schools were being disproportionately pushed out of the classroom. Progress on the case halted after Trump took office in 2025.

Advocates had also filed the complaint with state authorities, who found violations of civil rights laws and ordered the district to mandate new training. Meanwhile, families have heard nothing from the federal Education Department.

The silence gives school districts permission to continue with business as usual, said Pam Bisceglia, executive director of Advocacy Denver, which filed the complaints.

“I’d like to say that we have overcome and that marginalized communities are enjoying equal protections. We see that, in fact, that isn’t true,” she said.

Trump's administration has changed which cases are investigated

Under Trump's first administration, the Education Department continued to investigate and resolve cases of racial discrimination against minority students.

In 2018, the Education Department reached a settlement agreement with Durham Public Schools in North Carolina, after examining whether the district's discipline policies, or their effects, were racially discriminatory. The investigation found Black students were disproportionately given out-of-school suspension — especially in instances involving subjective decisions on matters like disobedience.

For a time, Jovonia Lewis, a parent and former Durham school board member, constantly received calls about her son being kicked out of the classroom. She was told he couldn’t sit still. But the federal settlement agreement helped Black parents see their children's experiences were not occurring in isolation, Lewis said.

“We knew our kids were being treated differently, but this data gave us leverage,” she said.

The investigation had a significant impact in Durham, Lewis recalled. The district adopted a new student code of conduct and created an equity affairs office.

Under the Trump administration's new guidance, federal authorities are unlikely to take up similar cases.

“The federal government has chosen to close its eyes to that way of understanding discrimination,” said Catherine Lhamon, who oversaw education civil rights under Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, both Democrats.

The impact of the administration's changes will outlast Trump's presidency, said Johnathan Smith, a former attorney in the civil rights division at the Justice Department and a managing director at the National Center for Youth Law. Once the administration changes rules and regulations, future efforts to investigate civil rights could be held up in court.

“They're building an infrastructure that says, ‘Not only are we taking down these structures, but we are building in roadblocks to make it very difficult for any future administration to change course,’” Smith said.

Decades-old school desegregation cases are being closed

Across the South, the Justice Department has taken an interest in closing cases of court-mandated school desegregation, arguing the decades-old orders are outdated. But civil rights attorneys say the impact of segregation continues to be felt today.

Courts have long maintained the passage of time is not enough to rule that discrimination has passed, said Kelly Gardner, deputy director of litigation at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. To be released from a desegregation order, schools have had to show that they have removed the lingering effects of segregation to the extent possible. That can involve assessing extracurricular offerings, funding levels and the state of school facilities.

Now, the Justice Department is intervening to close cases, often without taking account of those considerations, Gardner said.

In January, a federal court granted a request from the Justice Department and the DeSoto Parish School Board in Louisiana to release the small district from its desegregation order. In the order, the district had allowed students to transfer out of racially isolated schools, with transportation provided. As recently as 2024, the order was used to ensure those students had equal access to extracurriculars in their new schools.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, a Republican, praised the court decision for freeing the district from federal oversight.

“After 60 years of litigation and federal control, the elected members of the DeSoto Parish School Board now have the full powers of their office, as our Constitution has always intended,” Murrill wrote in a social media post at the time.

A few months after the order was lifted, the school district amended its policies. The district would no longer accept new applications for transfers, and students in the transfer program would have to return to their zoned schools once they finished the highest grade at their current school.

____

The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.