SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement are investigating an alleged school threat and have made an arrest.

On Thursday, a deputy-school resource officer with the Shawnee County sheriff’s office received information about a threat to a school. During the course of the investigation, it was determined that a student had made threatening comments regarding bringing a firearm to the school,&nbsp; according to Deputy Abigail Christian. 

The 15-year-old was arrested and booked into the Shawnee Co. Juvenile Detention Center on a requested charge of criminal threat.&nbsp; The sheriff's office did not release the name of the school involved.

SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement are investigating an alleged school threat and have made an arrest.On Thursday, a deputy-school resource officer with the Shawnee County sheriff’s office received information about a threat to a school. During the course of the investigation, it was determined that a student had made threatening comments regarding bringing a firearm to the school,&nbsp; according to Deputy Abigail Christian. The 15-year-old was arrested and booked into the Shawnee Co. Juvenile Detention Center on a requested charge of criminal threat.&nbsp; The sheriff's office did not release the name of the school involved.

15-year-old arrested for alleged gun threat at Kansas school

KANSAS CITY —The Kansas City, Missouri Fire Department&nbsp;responded to building collapse in the 4800 block of Independence Avenue just before 12:30 p.m. Thursday, according to Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins.

On arrival companies reported a partial collapse of a bowstring truss roof. The collapse fell into the interior of the structure causing several walls to lean out and become compromised. 

KCFD established a collapse zone and requested dangerous buildings to the scene. The building is an occupied structure that is used for a storage location for a wholesale business, according to Hopkins. The owner of the building and the buildings renter were on scene and working with Dangerous Buildings and City Planning to develop a plan for securing the structure. There were no injuries reported at this incident.

Independence Avenue was closed in both directions from Chelsea to Brighton.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756413987947.png" alt="Photo Kansas City Fire Dept." />
 <figcaption>Photo Kansas City Fire Dept.</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —The Kansas City, Missouri Fire Department&nbsp;responded to building collapse in the 4800 block of Independence Avenue just before 12:30 p.m. Thursday, according to Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins.On arrival companies reported a partial collapse of a bowstring truss roof. The collapse fell into the interior of the structure causing several walls to lean out and become compromised. <figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756414261411.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>KCFD established a collapse zone and requested dangerous buildings to the scene. The building is an occupied structure that is used for a storage location for a wholesale business, according to Hopkins. The owner of the building and the buildings renter were on scene and working with Dangerous Buildings and City Planning to develop a plan for securing the structure. There were no injuries reported at this incident.Independence Avenue was closed in both directions from Chelsea to Brighton.

Partial roof collapse at storage building in Kansas City

By&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/safiyah-riddle">SAFIYAH RIDDLE</a> Associated Press

The parents of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/minneapolis-shooting-vigil-children-killed-c3c31d801273c77f32676f6baf8ec4f4">two schoolchildren</a>&nbsp;fatally shot in a Minneapolis church spoke out for the first time on Thursday afternoon, with some imploring the shaken community to address the root causes of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/minneapolis-school-shooting-286c32580b1bd05cef08b8e13509e374">shootings that target schools</a>.

Fletcher Merkel, 8, and Harper Moyski, 10, were killed on Wednesday morning when&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/minneapolis-catholic-school-shooting-annunciation-church-271e65d699d38e01e83a6502c18df155">a shooter opened fire</a>&nbsp;at a Mass that hundreds of students at Annunciation Catholic School attended.

City officials increased to 15 the number of injured children, who are ages 6 to 15. Three parishioners in their 80s also were injured. Only one person — a child — was in critical condition.

In a statement released Thursday, Moyski’s parents described Harper as “a bright, joyful, and deeply loved 10-year-old” who was “adored” by her younger sister.

“As a family, we are shattered, and words cannot capture the depth of our pain,” the statement read.

The 10-year-old’s parents said that they were focused on healing in the wake of the shooting, but added that they hoped Harper’s memory would fuel action that might prevent shootings going forward.

“No family should ever have to endure this kind of pain,” Harper’s parents wrote. “We urge our leaders and communities to take meaningful steps to address gun violence and the mental health crisis in this country.”

Fletcher Merkel’s his father, Jesse Merkel tearfully read a statement on Thursday outside of the church where his son was killed, saying the eight-year-old loved his family and friends and enjoyed fishing, cooking and playing any sport.

Because of the shooter’s actions, Merkel said, “we will never be allowed to hold him, talk to him, play with him and watch him grow into the wonderful young man he was on the path to becoming.”

“Please remember Fletcher for the person he was and not the act that ended his life,” Merkel said.

Even as Merkel mourned the loss of his son, he said he was thankful for the “swift and heroic actions” of adults and students inside the church without whom “this could have been a tragedy of many magnitudes more.”

Minneapolis doctors and law enforcement echoed Merkel’s sentiment throughout the day on Thursday, describing the grueling escape children and teachers endured, as well as the heroic rescue efforts that saved countless lives.

When one of the students who was injured during the shooting went in for a CT scan on Wednesday, she was visibly distressed.

Without hesitation, a nurse at the hospital who was not assigned to respond to the mass casualty event sat with the young girl throughout the procedure — even though safety protocols stipulate that medical staff should clear the room to prevent radiation exposure.

The nurse “put a little lead on, stayed there and held her hand and held her hair while she went through scanners so she didn’t have to go through alone,” Dr. Jon Gayken, one of the head trauma surgeons at Hennepin County Medical Center, said.

Several medical first responders — many of whom were stationed just blocks away from the church — have children enrolled at the Catholic school, officials announced on Thursday.

“Those are the types of things we witnessed yesterday,” Gayken said.

Despite the unimaginable tragedy of the day, Gayken said, there were far less casualties than there could have been.

Marty Scheerer, the chief of Hennepin County Emergency Medical Services, credited “unrecognized heroes,” like the children and teachers in the church who followed their active shooter safety trainings, despite the chaotic and incessant hail of gunfire.

Children “protecting other children” often “laid on the floor and covered each other up” while teachers ushered kids to safety.

The first police officer entered the church “without hesitation” just minutes after the 911 call reported the shooting, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said.

Parishioners told O’Hara that it was “the first time that the children and others there had any sense that they might be safe and survive.”

When officers entered the church, they encountered children “that had blood on them from not because they were injured, but because of blood pressure from other kids,” O’Hara said at a separate news conference later in the day.

“There’s going to be countless lessons of bravery, from young children all the way up to elders,” O’Hara said.

Riddle is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reportforamerica.org/" target="_blank">Report for America</a>&nbsp;is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756431258130.png" alt="Harper Moyski photo courtesy Michael Moyski and Jackie Flavin" />
 <figcaption>Harper Moyski photo courtesy Michael Moyski and Jackie Flavin</figcaption>
 </figure>By&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/safiyah-riddle">SAFIYAH RIDDLE</a> Associated PressThe parents of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/minneapolis-shooting-vigil-children-killed-c3c31d801273c77f32676f6baf8ec4f4">two schoolchildren</a>&nbsp;fatally shot in a Minneapolis church spoke out for the first time on Thursday afternoon, with some imploring the shaken community to address the root causes of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/minneapolis-school-shooting-286c32580b1bd05cef08b8e13509e374">shootings that target schools</a>.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">The father of one of two schoolchildren fatally shot in a Minneapolis church speaks out for the first time. <a href="https://t.co/FrMybB0Km6">pic.twitter.com/FrMybB0Km6</a>&mdash; The Associated Press (@AP) <a href="https://twitter.com/AP/status/1961231569772749097?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 29, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Fletcher Merkel, 8, and Harper Moyski, 10, were killed on Wednesday morning when&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/minneapolis-catholic-school-shooting-annunciation-church-271e65d699d38e01e83a6502c18df155">a shooter opened fire</a>&nbsp;at a Mass that hundreds of students at Annunciation Catholic School attended.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756430916001.png" alt="Fletcher Merkel photo GoFundMe" />
 <figcaption>Fletcher Merkel photo GoFundMe</figcaption>
 </figure>City officials increased to 15 the number of injured children, who are ages 6 to 15. Three parishioners in their 80s also were injured. Only one person — a child — was in critical condition.<h2>A call to action</h2>In a statement released Thursday, Moyski’s parents described Harper as “a bright, joyful, and deeply loved 10-year-old” who was “adored” by her younger sister.“As a family, we are shattered, and words cannot capture the depth of our pain,” the statement read.The 10-year-old’s parents said that they were focused on healing in the wake of the shooting, but added that they hoped Harper’s memory would fuel action that might prevent shootings going forward.“No family should ever have to endure this kind of pain,” Harper’s parents wrote. “We urge our leaders and communities to take meaningful steps to address gun violence and the mental health crisis in this country.”<h2>Remembered by his life, not death</h2>Fletcher Merkel’s his father, Jesse Merkel tearfully read a statement on Thursday outside of the church where his son was killed, saying the eight-year-old loved his family and friends and enjoyed fishing, cooking and playing any sport.Because of the shooter’s actions, Merkel said, “we will never be allowed to hold him, talk to him, play with him and watch him grow into the wonderful young man he was on the path to becoming.”“Please remember Fletcher for the person he was and not the act that ended his life,” Merkel said.Even as Merkel mourned the loss of his son, he said he was thankful for the “swift and heroic actions” of adults and students inside the church without whom “this could have been a tragedy of many magnitudes more.”<h2>Acts of heroism</h2>Minneapolis doctors and law enforcement echoed Merkel’s sentiment throughout the day on Thursday, describing the grueling escape children and teachers endured, as well as the heroic rescue efforts that saved countless lives.When one of the students who was injured during the shooting went in for a CT scan on Wednesday, she was visibly distressed.Without hesitation, a nurse at the hospital who was not assigned to respond to the mass casualty event sat with the young girl throughout the procedure — even though safety protocols stipulate that medical staff should clear the room to prevent radiation exposure.The nurse “put a little lead on, stayed there and held her hand and held her hair while she went through scanners so she didn’t have to go through alone,” Dr. Jon Gayken, one of the head trauma surgeons at Hennepin County Medical Center, said.Several medical first responders — many of whom were stationed just blocks away from the church — have children enrolled at the Catholic school, officials announced on Thursday.“Those are the types of things we witnessed yesterday,” Gayken said.Despite the unimaginable tragedy of the day, Gayken said, there were far less casualties than there could have been.<h2>Children follow active shooter training</h2>Marty Scheerer, the chief of Hennepin County Emergency Medical Services, credited “unrecognized heroes,” like the children and teachers in the church who followed their active shooter safety trainings, despite the chaotic and incessant hail of gunfire.Children “protecting other children” often “laid on the floor and covered each other up” while teachers ushered kids to safety.“That was key,” Scheerer said.The first police officer entered the church “without hesitation” just minutes after the 911 call reported the shooting, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said.Parishioners told O’Hara that it was “the first time that the children and others there had any sense that they might be safe and survive.”When officers entered the church, they encountered children “that had blood on them from not because they were injured, but because of blood pressure from other kids,” O’Hara said at a separate news conference later in the day.“There’s going to be countless lessons of bravery, from young children all the way up to elders,” O’Hara said.___Riddle is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reportforamerica.org/" target="_blank">Report for America</a>&nbsp;is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

🎥Parents of students killed in Minnesota church shooting share emotional pleas

SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on drug allegations.

Just before 7:30 August 25, a sheriff's deputy conducted a traffic stop on a white 2020 Dodge Charger with an expired license plate near NW Grant Street and NW Jackson Street, according to Deputy Abigail Christian.

During the investigation, a K-9 Unit assisted and illegal narcotics were located.&nbsp; Deputies arrested 27-year-old Rachael R. Ratzloff of Topeka on requested charges of Possession of an opiate, opium, narcotic or certain stimulant, Use/possess with intent to use drug paraphernalia, Vehicles; operate a vehicle without registration or with an expired tag and Operate a motor vehicle without a valid license

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756154206554.png" alt="Ratzloff-photo Shawnee County" />
 <figcaption>Ratzloff-photo Shawnee County</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on drug allegations.Just before 7:30 August 25, a sheriff's deputy conducted a traffic stop on a white 2020 Dodge Charger with an expired license plate near NW Grant Street and NW Jackson Street, according to Deputy Abigail Christian.During the investigation, a K-9 Unit assisted and illegal narcotics were located.&nbsp; Deputies arrested 27-year-old Rachael R. Ratzloff of Topeka on requested charges of Possession of an opiate, opium, narcotic or certain stimulant, Use/possess with intent to use drug paraphernalia, Vehicles; operate a vehicle without registration or with an expired tag and Operate a motor vehicle without a valid license

Kansas woman without driver's license caught transporting drugs

LYON COUNTY —A switch that malfunctioned is being blamed for triggering an active shooter alarm on Thursday.

Just before 4:30p.m. the Emporia Police Department received a report of an active shooter alarm at Newman Regional Health, 1201 W 12th Avenue in&nbsp; Emporia, according to Police Captain Ray Mattas.

Officers from the Emporia Police Department responded and law enforcement conducted a thorough search of the hospital and adjacent medical facilities for approximately two hours. No evidence of a shooter or any threat was found.

Further investigation revealed that the alarm was triggered by a malfunctioning emergency switch.

In addition to Emporia Police, personnel from the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office, Emporia State University Police Department, Kansas Highway Patrol, and Coffee County Sheriff’s Office, responded promptly to the scene. The Emporia Fire Department also provided support.

The Emporia Police Department extended its gratitude to all responding agencies and the staff at Newman Regional Health for their cooperation and swift action in resolving this incident. The safety and security of our community remain our top priority.

LYON COUNTY —Law enforcement in Emporia responded to an active shooter alarm at Newman Regional Health, 1201 West 12 Street in Emporia, according to police spokesperson Christine Torrens. 

Officers thoroughly searched the premises, and it appears to be an alarm only — no active threat was identified.

Police asked the public continue to use caution in the area they remained on scene.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756420037873.png" alt="Google image" />
 <figcaption>Google image</figcaption>
 </figure>LYON COUNTY —A switch that malfunctioned is being blamed for triggering an active shooter alarm on Thursday.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">ESU Alert: An active shooter has been reported at Newman Regional Health. If you are near the area: Run. Hide. Fight. If you are off campus, remain away.&mdash; Emporia State Univ. (@emporiastate) <a href="https://twitter.com/emporiastate/status/1961182134695022898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 28, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Just before 4:30p.m. the Emporia Police Department received a report of an active shooter alarm at Newman Regional Health, 1201 W 12th Avenue in&nbsp; Emporia, according to Police Captain Ray Mattas.Officers from the Emporia Police Department responded and law enforcement conducted a thorough search of the hospital and adjacent medical facilities for approximately two hours. No evidence of a shooter or any threat was found.Further investigation revealed that the alarm was triggered by a malfunctioning emergency switch.In addition to Emporia Police, personnel from the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office, Emporia State University Police Department, Kansas Highway Patrol, and Coffee County Sheriff’s Office, responded promptly to the scene. The Emporia Fire Department also provided support.The Emporia Police Department extended its gratitude to all responding agencies and the staff at Newman Regional Health for their cooperation and swift action in resolving this incident. The safety and security of our community remain our top priority.-------LYON COUNTY —Law enforcement in Emporia responded to an active shooter alarm at Newman Regional Health, 1201 West 12 Street in Emporia, according to police spokesperson Christine Torrens. <div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">ESU Alert: An active shooter has been reported at Newman Regional Health. If you are near the area: Run. Hide. Fight. If you are off campus, remain away.&mdash; Emporia State Univ. (@emporiastate) <a href="https://twitter.com/emporiastate/status/1961182134695022898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 28, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Officers thoroughly searched the premises, and it appears to be an alarm only — no active threat was identified.Police asked the public continue to use caution in the area they remained on scene.

Police detail what caused active shooter alarm at hospital in Emporia

SEDGWICK COUNTY— A Kansas woman who called 911 to report shooting her son in October of 2024 was scheduled to attend a plea hearing on Thursday in Judge Eric Williams courtroom, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

&nbsp;Last week, Tesha Florence, 46, pleaded no contest to charges of second degree murder,&nbsp; aggravated assault and aggravated burglary, according to the District Attorney's office.

On October 9, 2025, Sedgwick County Emergency Communications received a 911 call from Florence reporting that she shot her son, according to Wichita Police Captain Aaron Moses.

First responders located a 16-year-old identified as Robert Florence inside an apartment in the 9100 Block of East Harry. He had a single gunshot wound. EMS transported him to an area hospital where he was in extremely critical condition. He died two days later, according to Moses.

At the scene, officers detained&nbsp;<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/InmateSearch/Details.aspx?Id=168822">&nbsp;Florence,</a>&nbsp;the boy's mother.&nbsp;&nbsp;

During the investigation into this case, detectives learned of a previously unreported incident from March 2024 where Florence threatened an ex-husband and his current girlfriend with a gun.

Florence will be sentenced October 17, according to the district attorney's office.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1728510375843.png" alt="Police on the scene of the investigation-photo courtesy KWCH" />
 <figcaption>Police on the scene of the investigation-photo courtesy KWCH</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY— A Kansas woman who called 911 to report shooting her son in October of 2024 was scheduled to attend a plea hearing on Thursday in Judge Eric Williams courtroom, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1728555306481.png" alt="Florence photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Florence photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>&nbsp;Last week, Tesha Florence, 46, pleaded no contest to charges of second degree murder,&nbsp; aggravated assault and aggravated burglary, according to the District Attorney's office.On October 9, 2025, Sedgwick County Emergency Communications received a 911 call from Florence reporting that she shot her son, according to Wichita Police Captain Aaron Moses.First responders located a 16-year-old identified as Robert Florence inside an apartment in the 9100 Block of East Harry. He had a single gunshot wound. EMS transported him to an area hospital where he was in extremely critical condition. He died two days later, according to Moses.At the scene, officers detained&nbsp;<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/InmateSearch/Details.aspx?Id=168822">&nbsp;Florence,</a>&nbsp;the boy's mother.&nbsp;&nbsp;During the investigation into this case, detectives learned of a previously unreported incident from March 2024 where Florence threatened an ex-husband and his current girlfriend with a gun.Florence will be sentenced October 17, according to the district attorney's office.

Mother enters plea in shooting death of her 16-year-old son

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Governor&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/lisa-cook-fed-governor-trump-firing-211c3db1a5082d46449f26b865fde850">Lisa Cook</a>&nbsp;has sued the Trump administration in an effort to overturn the president’s attempt to fire her, launching an unprecedented legal battle that could significantly reshape the Fed’s longstanding political independence.

<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.284270/gov.uscourts.dcd.284270.1.0_17.pdf">Click here to read the lawsuit</a>

The lawsuit seeks an emergency injunction to block her firing and “confirm her status” as a member of the Fed's governing board.

“The President’s effort to terminate a Senate-confirmed Federal Reserve Board member is a broadside attack on the century-old independence of the Federal Reserve System,” Cook's lawyer, Abbe David Lowell, wrote in a court filing.

The case could become a turning point for the 112-year old Federal Reserve, which was designed by Congress to be insulated from day-to-day political influence. Economists prefer&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-powell-trump-independence-5c2ec1a37dc4aca6a59544f8b4513a45">independent central banks</a>&nbsp;because they can more easily take unpopular measures, such as lifting interest rates to combat inflation, than elected officials can.

The case was assigned to Judge Jia Cobb, an appointee of former President Joe Biden. A hearing was scheduled for Friday.

Many economists worry that if the Fed falls under the control of the White House, it will keep its key interest rate lower than justified by economic fundamentals to satisfy Trump's demands for cheaper borrowing. That could accelerate inflation and could also push up longer-term interest rates, such as those on mortgages and car loans. Investors may demand a higher yield to own bonds to offset greater inflation in the future, lifting borrowing costs throughout the economy.

“If Cook wins, she stays in place and we achieve some semblance of stability," said Peter Conti-Brown, a professor of financial regulation at the University of Pennsylvania and Fed historian in a Substack post. "If she loses ... that’s the end of Fed independence as it has been constructed and reconstructed over 112 years.”

If Trump can replace Cook, he may be able to gain a 4-3 majority on the Fed’s governing board. Trump appointed two board members during his first term and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-federal-reserve-miran-794df2cd9d33b327bf3b836a553dd5ef">has nominated</a>&nbsp;a key White House economic adviser, Stephen Miran, to replace&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fed-reserve-trump-kugler-powell-332a2e185ca8bbe695c78b0c5a1eb73b">Adriana Kugler</a>, another Fed governor who stepped down unexpectedly Aug. 1. Trump has said he will only appoint people to the Fed who will support lower rates.

No president has sought to fire a Fed governor before until Trump posted a letter on media&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-lisa-cook-trump-6fca3d2fbb54ba204cc91398e6a7b020">late Monday saying that Cook was fired</a>. Trump said the reason for her removal were allegations that she committed mortgage fraud in 2021, before she was appointed to the board. Most observers expect the case to end up at the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court has signaled that the president can’t fire Fed officials over policy differences, but can do so “for cause,” typically meaning misconduct or neglect of duty. Cook has not been charged with any crime.

The lawsuit argues that the allegations don't involve misconduct by Cook while in office and haven't been proven. Cook should also have been given a chance to answer the charges, the suit says.

“The unsubstantiated and unproven allegation that Governor Cook ‘potentially’ erred in filling out a mortgage form prior to her Senate confirmation—does not amount to ‘cause,’” the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit also denies the charges against Cook, without providing supporting detail.

“Neither the type of ‘offense’ the President cited nor the threadbare evidence against Governor Cook would constitute 'cause' for removal even if the President’s allegations were true—which they are not,” the lawsuit said.

The president’s decision comes as he has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/inflation-economy-federal-reserve-4821bb5d0baa9980c4c69ab26fab3ab4">repeatedly attacked</a>&nbsp;Fed Chair Jerome Powell and the other members of the Fed’s interest-rate setting committee for not cutting the short-term interest rate they control more quickly. It currently stands at 4.3%, after Fed policymakers reduced it by a full percentage point late last year. Trump has said he thinks it should be as low as 1.3%, a level that no Fed official and few economists support.

The suit argues that the allegations of mortgage fraud are simply a pretext to fire Cook because she hasn't voted to lower interest rates: “The mortgage allegations against her are pretextual, in order to effectuate her prompt removal and vacate a seat for President Trump to fill and forward his agenda to undermine the independence of the Federal Reserve.”

“The President cannot rely on brute force or clever shortcuts to circumvent Congress to bend the institution to his will,” Lowell wrote in a request for an emergency order blocking the firing. “History provides no sanction for an attempt to short-circuit ‘for cause’ removal protections by conjuring up unfounded allegations of past wrongdoing.

The lawsuit also seeks to block the Federal Reserve from accepting the firing and asks the court to require the Fed and Powell to “treat Governor Cook as a member of the Board of Governors.”

Powell&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/inflation-federal-reserve-powell-287af1c758a30d67f5384d17423c5029">signaled last week</a>&nbsp;that the central bank was leaning toward cutting its rate at its next meeting Sept. 16-17. Still, it's likely that the Fed will cut its key rate more slowly than Trump wants, and perhaps to as low as 3.25% or so — higher than Trump would prefer.

Cook is the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/lisa-cook-federal-reserve-firing-trump-dei-4fdbb4af653bcca7b6fb0432166b44f3">first Black woman</a>&nbsp;to serve as a governor. She was a Marshall Scholar and received degrees from Oxford University and Spelman College, and prior to joining the board she taught at Michigan State University and Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756411486744.png" alt="Chair Jerome H. Powell swears in Lisa D. Cook on May 23, 2022 as a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System-photo courtesy Federal Reserve" />
 <figcaption>Chair Jerome H. Powell swears in Lisa D. Cook on May 23, 2022 as a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System-photo courtesy Federal Reserve</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Governor&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/lisa-cook-fed-governor-trump-firing-211c3db1a5082d46449f26b865fde850">Lisa Cook</a>&nbsp;has sued the Trump administration in an effort to overturn the president’s attempt to fire her, launching an unprecedented legal battle that could significantly reshape the Fed’s longstanding political independence.<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.284270/gov.uscourts.dcd.284270.1.0_17.pdf">Click here to read the lawsuit</a>The lawsuit seeks an emergency injunction to block her firing and “confirm her status” as a member of the Fed's governing board.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756411352091.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>“The President’s effort to terminate a Senate-confirmed Federal Reserve Board member is a broadside attack on the century-old independence of the Federal Reserve System,” Cook's lawyer, Abbe David Lowell, wrote in a court filing.The case could become a turning point for the 112-year old Federal Reserve, which was designed by Congress to be insulated from day-to-day political influence. Economists prefer&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-powell-trump-independence-5c2ec1a37dc4aca6a59544f8b4513a45">independent central banks</a>&nbsp;because they can more easily take unpopular measures, such as lifting interest rates to combat inflation, than elected officials can.The case was assigned to Judge Jia Cobb, an appointee of former President Joe Biden. A hearing was scheduled for Friday.Many economists worry that if the Fed falls under the control of the White House, it will keep its key interest rate lower than justified by economic fundamentals to satisfy Trump's demands for cheaper borrowing. That could accelerate inflation and could also push up longer-term interest rates, such as those on mortgages and car loans. Investors may demand a higher yield to own bonds to offset greater inflation in the future, lifting borrowing costs throughout the economy.“If Cook wins, she stays in place and we achieve some semblance of stability," said Peter Conti-Brown, a professor of financial regulation at the University of Pennsylvania and Fed historian in a Substack post. "If she loses ... that’s the end of Fed independence as it has been constructed and reconstructed over 112 years.”If Trump can replace Cook, he may be able to gain a 4-3 majority on the Fed’s governing board. Trump appointed two board members during his first term and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-federal-reserve-miran-794df2cd9d33b327bf3b836a553dd5ef">has nominated</a>&nbsp;a key White House economic adviser, Stephen Miran, to replace&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fed-reserve-trump-kugler-powell-332a2e185ca8bbe695c78b0c5a1eb73b">Adriana Kugler</a>, another Fed governor who stepped down unexpectedly Aug. 1. Trump has said he will only appoint people to the Fed who will support lower rates.No president has sought to fire a Fed governor before until Trump posted a letter on media&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-reserve-lisa-cook-trump-6fca3d2fbb54ba204cc91398e6a7b020">late Monday saying that Cook was fired</a>. Trump said the reason for her removal were allegations that she committed mortgage fraud in 2021, before she was appointed to the board. Most observers expect the case to end up at the Supreme Court.The Supreme Court has signaled that the president can’t fire Fed officials over policy differences, but can do so “for cause,” typically meaning misconduct or neglect of duty. Cook has not been charged with any crime.The lawsuit argues that the allegations don't involve misconduct by Cook while in office and haven't been proven. Cook should also have been given a chance to answer the charges, the suit says.“The unsubstantiated and unproven allegation that Governor Cook ‘potentially’ erred in filling out a mortgage form prior to her Senate confirmation—does not amount to ‘cause,’” the lawsuit says.The lawsuit also denies the charges against Cook, without providing supporting detail.“Neither the type of ‘offense’ the President cited nor the threadbare evidence against Governor Cook would constitute 'cause' for removal even if the President’s allegations were true—which they are not,” the lawsuit said.The president’s decision comes as he has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/inflation-economy-federal-reserve-4821bb5d0baa9980c4c69ab26fab3ab4">repeatedly attacked</a>&nbsp;Fed Chair Jerome Powell and the other members of the Fed’s interest-rate setting committee for not cutting the short-term interest rate they control more quickly. It currently stands at 4.3%, after Fed policymakers reduced it by a full percentage point late last year. Trump has said he thinks it should be as low as 1.3%, a level that no Fed official and few economists support.The suit argues that the allegations of mortgage fraud are simply a pretext to fire Cook because she hasn't voted to lower interest rates: “The mortgage allegations against her are pretextual, in order to effectuate her prompt removal and vacate a seat for President Trump to fill and forward his agenda to undermine the independence of the Federal Reserve.”“The President cannot rely on brute force or clever shortcuts to circumvent Congress to bend the institution to his will,” Lowell wrote in a request for an emergency order blocking the firing. “History provides no sanction for an attempt to short-circuit ‘for cause’ removal protections by conjuring up unfounded allegations of past wrongdoing.The lawsuit also seeks to block the Federal Reserve from accepting the firing and asks the court to require the Fed and Powell to “treat Governor Cook as a member of the Board of Governors.”Powell&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/inflation-federal-reserve-powell-287af1c758a30d67f5384d17423c5029">signaled last week</a>&nbsp;that the central bank was leaning toward cutting its rate at its next meeting Sept. 16-17. Still, it's likely that the Fed will cut its key rate more slowly than Trump wants, and perhaps to as low as 3.25% or so — higher than Trump would prefer.Cook is the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/lisa-cook-federal-reserve-firing-trump-dei-4fdbb4af653bcca7b6fb0432166b44f3">first Black woman</a>&nbsp;to serve as a governor. She was a Marshall Scholar and received degrees from Oxford University and Spelman College, and prior to joining the board she taught at Michigan State University and Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

Read the lawsuit: Fed official sues Trump over attempt to fire her

Wall Street notched more milestones Thursday after gains in technology stocks helped push the market to another all-time high.

The S&amp;P 500 rose 0.3%, lifting the benchmark index to its second record high in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average reversed an early slide and gained 0.2%, enough to move past its record high set last Friday.

The Nasdaq composite closed 0.5% higher, finishing just short of its all-time high set two weeks ago.

About 55% of the companies in the benchmark S&amp;P 500 closed lower, but gains in the technology and communication services sectors offset losses elsewhere in the market. Broadcom rose 2.8%, Amazon added 1.1% and Google parent Alphabet finished 2% higher.

“We’re seeing a continuation of a theme that has been in place really all year long, and that is communication services, information technology, really the areas that are surrounding this incredible capital expenditure cycle, have been the primary beneficiaries,” said Bill Northey, senior investment director at U.S. Bank Asset Management.

Heading into the final day of trading in August, the S&amp;P 500 and Dow were on pace for their fourth straight monthly gain, while the Nasdaq was closing in on its fifth.

The market's latest gains came as traders pored over a mixed batch of earnings reports from big U.S. companies and new reports on the job market and U.S. economy.

Tech giant Nvidia fell 0.8% a day after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nvidia-artificial-intelligence-boom-bubble-42657a49554bf35fb12fdf48c02287d2">reporting quarterly earnings and revenue</a>&nbsp;that beat Wall Street analysts’ forecasts, though the company noted that sales of its artificial intelligence chipsets rose at a slower pace than analysts anticipated.

Investors consider Nvidia a barometer for the strength of the boom in artificial intelligence because the company makes most of the chips that power the technology. Its heavy weighting also gives Nvidia outsized influence as a bellwether for the broader market.

Shares in several retailers fell following their latest quarterly results.

Best Buy dropped 3.7% after the consumer electronics chain's second-quarter snapshot was overshadowed by an outlook clouded due to the tariffs the U.S. is imposing on trading partners.

Despite also posting better-than-expected quarterly results, Urban Outfitters slid 10.7% after the retailer warned that it expects tariffs will increase pressure on its gross margins in the second half of the year.

Dick’s Sporting Goods fell 4.8% despite reporting second-quarter results that beat analysts' expectations.

Victoria’s Secret &amp; Co. gave up an early gain and closed 0.5% lower.

Burlington Stores bucked the trend. The retail chain climbed 5.3% after its latest earnings topped analysts’ estimates.

Elsewhere in the market, Spam maker Hormel sank 13.1% for the biggest decline among S&amp;P 500 companies after its earnings fell short of Wall Street’s forecasts and the company cut its outlook for the year.

Traders also had their eye on new government reports on the job market and economy.

The Labor Department reported that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/economy-trump-jobs-unemployment-tariffs-consumer-spending-bd496163bf386a3fabaaa6d1b6db06ff">applications for unemployment benefits fell last week</a>, the latest sign that employers are holding onto their workers even as the economy&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/economy-trump-gdp-tariffs-inflation-trade-28a0da24c803c4796eb32704cd0244cc">has slowed</a>.

The most recent government data suggests hiring has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jobs-unemployment-economy-trump-federal-reserve-68a15f89d68793a6cf88a522ff33246c">slowed sharply</a>&nbsp;since this spring.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Department reported that U.S. gross domestic product —- the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/economygdp-f2f3c1a5401124fdee31ca02a1daa4b6">nation’s output of goods and services — grew at a 3.3% annual pace in the April-June quarter</a>&nbsp;after shrinking 0.5% in the first three months of this year due to the fallout from the Trump administration’s trade wars.

“The GDP print reinforces the fact that this continues to be an economy, domestically, that is continuing to show a great deal of resilience in terms of producing economic growth,” Northey said.

Still, the sluggishness in the job market is a key reason that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/inflation-federal-reserve-powell-287af1c758a30d67f5384d17423c5029">signaled last week</a>&nbsp;that the central bank may cut its key interest rate at its meeting next month.

Lower rates can boost investment prices and the economy by making it cheaper for U.S. households and businesses to borrow, but they risk worsening inflation.

Traders are still betting the Fed will trim its benchmark interest rate at its next meeting in September. Traders see an 85.3% chance that the central bank will cut the rate by a quarter of a percentage point, according to data from CME Group.

Friday will bring another update on inflation: the U.S. personal consumption expenditures index. Economists expect it to show that inflation remained at about 2.6% in July, compared with a year ago. Businesses have been warning investors and consumers about higher costs and prices because of tariffs.

Treasury yields were mixed in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped to 4.21% from 4.24% late Wednesday. The two-year Treasury yield, which more closely tracks expectations for Federal Reserve action, rose to 3.63% from 3.62%.

All told, the S&amp;P 500 rose 20.46 points to 6,501.86. The Dow added 71.67 points to 45,636.90, and the Nasdaq gained 115.02 points to close at 21,705.16.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1755116533012.jpg" alt="Image Pixaby" />
 <figcaption>Image Pixaby</figcaption>
 </figure>By ALEX VEIGA AP Business WriterWall Street notched more milestones Thursday after gains in technology stocks helped push the market to another all-time high.The S&amp;P 500 rose 0.3%, lifting the benchmark index to its second record high in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average reversed an early slide and gained 0.2%, enough to move past its record high set last Friday.The Nasdaq composite closed 0.5% higher, finishing just short of its all-time high set two weeks ago.About 55% of the companies in the benchmark S&amp;P 500 closed lower, but gains in the technology and communication services sectors offset losses elsewhere in the market. Broadcom rose 2.8%, Amazon added 1.1% and Google parent Alphabet finished 2% higher.“We’re seeing a continuation of a theme that has been in place really all year long, and that is communication services, information technology, really the areas that are surrounding this incredible capital expenditure cycle, have been the primary beneficiaries,” said Bill Northey, senior investment director at U.S. Bank Asset Management.Heading into the final day of trading in August, the S&amp;P 500 and Dow were on pace for their fourth straight monthly gain, while the Nasdaq was closing in on its fifth.The market's latest gains came as traders pored over a mixed batch of earnings reports from big U.S. companies and new reports on the job market and U.S. economy.Tech giant Nvidia fell 0.8% a day after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nvidia-artificial-intelligence-boom-bubble-42657a49554bf35fb12fdf48c02287d2">reporting quarterly earnings and revenue</a>&nbsp;that beat Wall Street analysts’ forecasts, though the company noted that sales of its artificial intelligence chipsets rose at a slower pace than analysts anticipated.Investors consider Nvidia a barometer for the strength of the boom in artificial intelligence because the company makes most of the chips that power the technology. Its heavy weighting also gives Nvidia outsized influence as a bellwether for the broader market.Shares in several retailers fell following their latest quarterly results.Best Buy dropped 3.7% after the consumer electronics chain's second-quarter snapshot was overshadowed by an outlook clouded due to the tariffs the U.S. is imposing on trading partners.Despite also posting better-than-expected quarterly results, Urban Outfitters slid 10.7% after the retailer warned that it expects tariffs will increase pressure on its gross margins in the second half of the year.Dick’s Sporting Goods fell 4.8% despite reporting second-quarter results that beat analysts' expectations.Victoria’s Secret &amp; Co. gave up an early gain and closed 0.5% lower.Burlington Stores bucked the trend. The retail chain climbed 5.3% after its latest earnings topped analysts’ estimates.Elsewhere in the market, Spam maker Hormel sank 13.1% for the biggest decline among S&amp;P 500 companies after its earnings fell short of Wall Street’s forecasts and the company cut its outlook for the year.Traders also had their eye on new government reports on the job market and economy.The Labor Department reported that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/economy-trump-jobs-unemployment-tariffs-consumer-spending-bd496163bf386a3fabaaa6d1b6db06ff">applications for unemployment benefits fell last week</a>, the latest sign that employers are holding onto their workers even as the economy&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/economy-trump-gdp-tariffs-inflation-trade-28a0da24c803c4796eb32704cd0244cc">has slowed</a>.The most recent government data suggests hiring has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jobs-unemployment-economy-trump-federal-reserve-68a15f89d68793a6cf88a522ff33246c">slowed sharply</a>&nbsp;since this spring.Meanwhile, the Commerce Department reported that U.S. gross domestic product —- the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/economygdp-f2f3c1a5401124fdee31ca02a1daa4b6">nation’s output of goods and services — grew at a 3.3% annual pace in the April-June quarter</a>&nbsp;after shrinking 0.5% in the first three months of this year due to the fallout from the Trump administration’s trade wars.“The GDP print reinforces the fact that this continues to be an economy, domestically, that is continuing to show a great deal of resilience in terms of producing economic growth,” Northey said.Still, the sluggishness in the job market is a key reason that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/inflation-federal-reserve-powell-287af1c758a30d67f5384d17423c5029">signaled last week</a>&nbsp;that the central bank may cut its key interest rate at its meeting next month.Lower rates can boost investment prices and the economy by making it cheaper for U.S. households and businesses to borrow, but they risk worsening inflation.Traders are still betting the Fed will trim its benchmark interest rate at its next meeting in September. Traders see an 85.3% chance that the central bank will cut the rate by a quarter of a percentage point, according to data from CME Group.Friday will bring another update on inflation: the U.S. personal consumption expenditures index. Economists expect it to show that inflation remained at about 2.6% in July, compared with a year ago. Businesses have been warning investors and consumers about higher costs and prices because of tariffs.Treasury yields were mixed in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped to 4.21% from 4.24% late Wednesday. The two-year Treasury yield, which more closely tracks expectations for Federal Reserve action, rose to 3.63% from 3.62%.All told, the S&amp;P 500 rose 20.46 points to 6,501.86. The Dow added 71.67 points to 45,636.90, and the Nasdaq gained 115.02 points to close at 21,705.16.European and Asian markets closed mixed.

Stocks add to their records on Wall Street

BY&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/mchilson/">MORGAN CHILSON</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>

OVERLAND PARK — Former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman pushed for deepening relationships and maintaining international growth opportunities for Kansas farmers at a meeting of state political and agricultural leaders Wednesday.&nbsp;

Glickman and U.S. Democratic Rep. Sharice Davids spoke about the effects of tariffs and federal policies on Kansas farmers during a U.S. Global Leadership Coalition luncheon. The event was closed to journalists, but Glickman shared thoughts on the current political climate afterward.&nbsp;

“My theory is pretty much don’t burn bridges, build bridges,” he said. “I got along very well with (Pat) Roberts, (Bob) Dole, (Nancy) Kassebaum. We didn’t try to kill each other.”

Glickman, a Democrat, said Dole, a longtime Republican senator, helped him get the position as secretary of agriculture, which he held from 1995 to 2001 during the Clinton administration.&nbsp;

Politicians need to be able to reach across the aisle and have open discussions and agreements, Glickman said.&nbsp;

“I hope we can create an environment where there’s trust in the system of government generally, because it’s not just agriculture, it’s everything,” he said. “And then we have some predictability in foreign policy, federal farm policy.”

He would also like to see Republicans stand up to the president, something he said he had to do when he served under Clinton.&nbsp;

“I’d like to see the Republicans show more courage and moxie in challenging the president – on the federal side, not so much on the Kansas side – when they think he’s wrong,” Glickman said. “It’s difficult to challenge a president if you’re in their party. When I would say to Clinton, ‘I think you’re wrong,’ I would do it very deliberately but still, I would do it at times, and I don’t see very much happening like that.”

National reports that legislators fear retaliation if they speak up aren’t good, Glickman said.&nbsp;

“I don’t think it’s healthy for democracy. You know, you’ve got to be able to speak out responsibly,” he said.

Building relationships extends beyond domestic politics, and Glickman is concerned international relationships may be impaired because of the way tariffs are being negotiated. He’s not against tariffs in general, he said, but he’s concerned about future trade effects.

“I’ve never been a purist on tariffs and trade,” he said. “I mean, there are some countries that abuse their relationships with us, and that’s why you have tariff agreements and trade agreements, to build those things in there so one country can’t take advantage of another by being too self protective.”&nbsp;

But Glickman said the way trade barriers are being implemented concerns him. Historically, international policies involved collaboration between Congress and the private sector to determine the best way to proceed, he said.

“Because when you put your finger on one set of problems, if you’re not careful, you’re going to create another set of problems,” Glickman said. “Agriculture has often been the whipping boy for those other sets of problems, because of how much we rely on access to global markets. So I guess my real answer is, can we do this carefully, or do we have to do it with a sledgehammer?”

Right now, the country is relying too much on the sledgehammer, Glickman said.

Growth opportunities in agriculture lie in the international market, he said.&nbsp;

“The president said something when he announced the original set of tariffs – ‘American farmers are going to love this, because they can finally take advantage of domestic markets,’ and I’m thinking to myself, no, that’s not where the growth is,” Glickman said. “There’s not really much growth in domestic markets. There might be a little here, a little there. All the growth is global, and so maybe he doesn’t understand it.”

Nick Levendofsky, executive director of the Kansas Farmers Union, attended the luncheon and agreed with Glickman.&nbsp;

“As Secretary Glickman mentioned, we are becoming less and less of a reliable trading partner to the world,” he said. “Anymore, we are a global market, and you know, you can be upset with another country because maybe they don’t do as much trade with you and all that, but I’ve always believed that the carrot versus the stick does a lot more good.”

Levendofsky said the potential of growing markets such as India are important to Kansas farmers.&nbsp;

“If China is shutting the door on us, we’ve got to find an opening somewhere,” he said. “And that, to me, right now speaks to India.”

Along with international trade, Glickman is watching the future of the Farm Bill. The reconciliation bill passed by Congress in July addressed some policies usually found in the Farm Bill, but it didn’t include all the elements that need to be addressed, he said.&nbsp;

A Farm Bill has not passed this year, and Glickman said expert assessments that this may be the beginning of creating a different process for agricultural legislation is “astute.”

“We’ve had in the last 40 or 50 years, these five-year farm bills,” he said. “But then lately, we’ve been having these extensions every year and with no real fundamental change.”

Recent legislation added $40 to $50 billion of new or enhanced programs over the next 10 years, and also addressed commodity programs, crop insurance and risk management, Glickman said.&nbsp;

He hopes this won’t be the new normal because there were many subjcts not addressed, such as research and nutrition programs.&nbsp;

In his role as a senior fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center and the Council on American Politics at George Washington University, Glickman said he keeps in contact with concerns of farmers and trade groups.

The real worry right now is instability, he said.

“The big story in agriculture is lack of stability, lack of planning, lack of predictability,” Glickman said. “Agriculture is complicated, and then the volatile weather complicates it further. Changes in the weather, plant and animal disease, making sure our research budgets are adequately funded – that’s all part of a new Farm Bill.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756402390112.png" alt=" Former U.S. Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman talked about international trade and diplomacy along with other concerns of Kansas farmers at a Wednesday U.S. Global Leadership Coalition meeting in Overland Park. (Morgan Chilson/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption> Former U.S. Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman talked about international trade and diplomacy along with other concerns of Kansas farmers at a Wednesday U.S. Global Leadership Coalition meeting in Overland Park. (Morgan Chilson/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>BY&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/mchilson/">MORGAN CHILSON</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>OVERLAND PARK — Former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman pushed for deepening relationships and maintaining international growth opportunities for Kansas farmers at a meeting of state political and agricultural leaders Wednesday.&nbsp;Glickman and U.S. Democratic Rep. Sharice Davids spoke about the effects of tariffs and federal policies on Kansas farmers during a U.S. Global Leadership Coalition luncheon. The event was closed to journalists, but Glickman shared thoughts on the current political climate afterward.&nbsp;“My theory is pretty much don’t burn bridges, build bridges,” he said. “I got along very well with (Pat) Roberts, (Bob) Dole, (Nancy) Kassebaum. We didn’t try to kill each other.”Glickman, a Democrat, said Dole, a longtime Republican senator, helped him get the position as secretary of agriculture, which he held from 1995 to 2001 during the Clinton administration.&nbsp;Politicians need to be able to reach across the aisle and have open discussions and agreements, Glickman said.&nbsp;“I hope we can create an environment where there’s trust in the system of government generally, because it’s not just agriculture, it’s everything,” he said. “And then we have some predictability in foreign policy, federal farm policy.”He would also like to see Republicans stand up to the president, something he said he had to do when he served under Clinton.&nbsp;“I’d like to see the Republicans show more courage and moxie in challenging the president – on the federal side, not so much on the Kansas side – when they think he’s wrong,” Glickman said. “It’s difficult to challenge a president if you’re in their party. When I would say to Clinton, ‘I think you’re wrong,’ I would do it very deliberately but still, I would do it at times, and I don’t see very much happening like that.”National reports that legislators fear retaliation if they speak up aren’t good, Glickman said.&nbsp;“I don’t think it’s healthy for democracy. You know, you’ve got to be able to speak out responsibly,” he said.<h2>International trade</h2>Building relationships extends beyond domestic politics, and Glickman is concerned international relationships may be impaired because of the way tariffs are being negotiated. He’s not against tariffs in general, he said, but he’s concerned about future trade effects.“I’ve never been a purist on tariffs and trade,” he said. “I mean, there are some countries that abuse their relationships with us, and that’s why you have tariff agreements and trade agreements, to build those things in there so one country can’t take advantage of another by being too self protective.”&nbsp;But Glickman said the way trade barriers are being implemented concerns him. Historically, international policies involved collaboration between Congress and the private sector to determine the best way to proceed, he said.“Because when you put your finger on one set of problems, if you’re not careful, you’re going to create another set of problems,” Glickman said. “Agriculture has often been the whipping boy for those other sets of problems, because of how much we rely on access to global markets. So I guess my real answer is, can we do this carefully, or do we have to do it with a sledgehammer?”Right now, the country is relying too much on the sledgehammer, Glickman said.Growth opportunities in agriculture lie in the international market, he said.&nbsp;“The president said something when he announced the original set of tariffs – ‘American farmers are going to love this, because they can finally take advantage of domestic markets,’ and I’m thinking to myself, no, that’s not where the growth is,” Glickman said. “There’s not really much growth in domestic markets. There might be a little here, a little there. All the growth is global, and so maybe he doesn’t understand it.”Nick Levendofsky, executive director of the Kansas Farmers Union, attended the luncheon and agreed with Glickman.&nbsp;“As Secretary Glickman mentioned, we are becoming less and less of a reliable trading partner to the world,” he said. “Anymore, we are a global market, and you know, you can be upset with another country because maybe they don’t do as much trade with you and all that, but I’ve always believed that the carrot versus the stick does a lot more good.”Levendofsky said the potential of growing markets such as India are important to Kansas farmers.&nbsp;“If China is shutting the door on us, we’ve got to find an opening somewhere,” he said. “And that, to me, right now speaks to India.”<h2>Farm Bill</h2>Along with international trade, Glickman is watching the future of the Farm Bill. The reconciliation bill passed by Congress in July addressed some policies usually found in the Farm Bill, but it didn’t include all the elements that need to be addressed, he said.&nbsp;A Farm Bill has not passed this year, and Glickman said expert assessments that this may be the beginning of creating a different process for agricultural legislation is “astute.”“We’ve had in the last 40 or 50 years, these five-year farm bills,” he said. “But then lately, we’ve been having these extensions every year and with no real fundamental change.”Recent legislation added $40 to $50 billion of new or enhanced programs over the next 10 years, and also addressed commodity programs, crop insurance and risk management, Glickman said.&nbsp;He hopes this won’t be the new normal because there were many subjcts not addressed, such as research and nutrition programs.&nbsp;In his role as a senior fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center and the Council on American Politics at George Washington University, Glickman said he keeps in contact with concerns of farmers and trade groups.The real worry right now is instability, he said.“The big story in agriculture is lack of stability, lack of planning, lack of predictability,” Glickman said. “Agriculture is complicated, and then the volatile weather complicates it further. Changes in the weather, plant and animal disease, making sure our research budgets are adequately funded – that’s all part of a new Farm Bill.”

Former ag secretary Glickman worries about ‘sledgehammer’ trade policies affecting Kansas farmers

WASHINGTON — In April Health secretary&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/robert-f-kennedy-jr">Robert F. Kennedy Jr.</a>&nbsp;warned that children in the U.S. are being diagnosed with autism at an “alarming rate,” promising to conduct exhaustive studies to identify any environmental factors that may cause the developmental disorder.

During President Trump's Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Kennedy revealed his researchers have identified what could be responsible for Autism.&nbsp;

Autism experts applaud efforts to further understand the condition, but say the number of reported cases began to balloon as the definition of the condition expanded to include mild cases.

“We will have an announcement as promised in September,” Kennedy said. “We’re finding interventions, certain interventions now that are clearly almost certainly causing autism.”

WASHINGTON — In April Health secretary&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/robert-f-kennedy-jr">Robert F. Kennedy Jr.</a>&nbsp;warned that children in the U.S. are being diagnosed with autism at an “alarming rate,” promising to conduct exhaustive studies to identify any environmental factors that may cause the developmental disorder.During President Trump's Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Kennedy revealed his researchers have identified what could be responsible for Autism.&nbsp;<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">RFK Jr. just REVEALED he has found the causes of autism. This is the moment MAHA moms have been waiting for. “We’re finding certain interventions that are almost certainly causing autism.” “We will have announcements, as promised, in September.” “In 1970, the biggest… <a href="https://t.co/KQidXc8fOY">pic.twitter.com/KQidXc8fOY</a>&mdash; Holden Culotta (@Holden_Culotta) <a href="https://twitter.com/Holden_Culotta/status/1960398300693074198?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 26, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Autism experts applaud efforts to further understand the condition, but say the number of reported cases began to balloon as the definition of the condition expanded to include mild cases.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/SecKennedy?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecKennedy</a>: &quot;I know what a healthy child is supposed to look like. I’m looking at kids as I walk through the airports today...and I see these kids that are just overburdened with mitochondrial challenges...and I know that’s not how our children are supposed to look.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/b8A2OEphav">pic.twitter.com/b8A2OEphav</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1960802249053233248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 27, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>“We will have an announcement as promised in September,” Kennedy said. “We’re finding interventions, certain interventions now that are clearly almost certainly causing autism.”

🎥The latest promise from RFK Jr. on autism research

LYON COUNTY — Police Detectives took two 14-year-old boys into custody in connection with the Attempted Aggravated Robbery that occurred around 1:30am August 17, in the 1100 block of E 12th Avenue in Emporia.

After receiving a Crime Stoppers Tip early last week, detectives gained traction in the investigation. A gun and knife, believed to be used in the attempted robbery, were recovered as part of the investigation. The gun had been reported stolen prior to the attempted robbery.

&nbsp;Police did not released the names of the two teen suspects.

The Emporia Police Department thanked the public and Lyon County Crime Stoppers for their assistance in solving the crime.

LYON COUNTY — Police Detectives took two 14-year-old boys into custody in connection with the Attempted Aggravated Robbery that occurred around 1:30am August 17, in the 1100 block of E 12th Avenue in Emporia.After receiving a Crime Stoppers Tip early last week, detectives gained traction in the investigation. A gun and knife, believed to be used in the attempted robbery, were recovered as part of the investigation. The gun had been reported stolen prior to the attempted robbery.&nbsp;Police did not released the names of the two teen suspects.The Emporia Police Department thanked the public and Lyon County Crime Stoppers for their assistance in solving the crime.

Tip led to arrest of 14-year-olds for Kansas armed robbery

A Cole County judge will decide whether to revise, throw out or keep a constitutional amendment proposed by the Missouri General Assembly that would ban abortion

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/annaspoerre/">ANNA SPOERRE</a> <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/02/20/state-senator-throws-first-punches-of-2024-missouri-governors-campaign/">Missouri Independent</a>

A Cole County judge heard arguments Wednesday over whether a proposed ban on abortion set to go to voters next year should be thrown out or revised over a provision targeting gender-affirming care for minors.&nbsp;

The ACLU of Missouri believes the proposal, which was drafted by state lawmakers, violates the state constitution because it includes multiple subjects. The group also contends the summary that would appear on the ballot is misleading.

If the courts decide to keep the measure on the ballot, plaintiffs are asking that the ballot summary be revised to explicitly state that the measure would ban abortion.

If approved by a simple majority of voters, the abortion ban amendment would repeal a citizen-led reproductive rights amendment that passed last November legalizing&nbsp; abortion in Missouri up until the point of fetal viability and enshrining other reproductive rights in the constitution, including in-vitro fertilization and contraceptives.

The new amendment would reinstate an abortion ban, allowing limited exceptions for medical emergencies, fatal fetal anomolies and for survivors of rape and incest in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.

The current language written by the Missouri General Assembly makes no mention of the ban it would enact.&nbsp;

Instead, Missourians would be asked if they want to amend the Missouri constitution to:&nbsp;

Missouri statute states “petitions for laws shall contain not more than one subject which shall be expressed clearly in the title.”&nbsp;

Chuck Hatfield, an attorney with Stinson LLP&nbsp;representing the plaintiff on Wednesday argued that the inclusion of the gender-affirming health care ban was “ballot candy” meant to win over more voters but is a separate issue from reproductive health care.&nbsp;

Recent polling by St. Louis University/YouGov shows that while the<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/08/29/poll-shows-missouri-voters-back-trump-hawley-abortion-rights-and-minimum-wage-hike/">&nbsp;majority of polled Missouri voters support access to abortion</a>, the majority also&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/08/25/poll-finds-missouri-voters-support-for-bans-on-transgender-health-care/">oppose access to gender-affirming health care for minors.&nbsp;</a>

“You can’t say to the people, ‘Here’s a proposal whether the Chiefs should stay in Kansas City and to ban crypto,’” Hatfield said.

Missouri Solicitor General Louis Capozzi, defending the proposed amendment, told Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green on Wednesday that gender-affirming procedures can cause the loss of fertility. Therefore, he believes reproductive health care “applies to all people who are thinking about whether to have children.”

Capozzi said the latest proposed amendment “ensures that Missouri children are able to make the choice whether to reproduce when they are adults,” adding that if someone is “unable to reproduce, they can’t access reproductive health care.”

Last year,&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/09/06/judge-decides-abortion-amendment-3-missouri-ballot/">anti-abortion leaders were unsuccessful in convincing the courts&nbsp;</a>to throw the abortion rights amendment off the ballot by claiming it violated the single subject rule. At the time, an attorney for the Thomas Moore Society argued unsuccessfully that the subject of that amendment,&nbsp;“a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom,” encompassed “infinite subjects.”

Hatfield on Wednesday accused the legislature and Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins of misrepresenting what the amendment would do through both the language voters will see on the ballot and the ballot language posted&nbsp;at every polling station around the state next to sample ballots.&nbsp;

Hoskins’&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sos.mo.gov/petitions/2026BallotMeasures" target="_blank">ballot language</a>&nbsp;currently reads: “A ‘no’ vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution to allow abortion in cases of medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, or incest, or to protect children from gender transition.”

Under the current law, abortion is legal up until the point of fetal viability in Missouri and gender-affirming health care for minors is banned.&nbsp;

“It’s ridiculous; it’s wrong,” Hatfield said of the ballot language. “The current constitution guarantees those rights and to imply otherwise is wrong, it’s highly argumentative.”

Capozzi argued the legislature was working with a word limit and that it was more important to state what the amendment would do. Summary statements, he said, need not detail specific exceptions.

The proposed amendment also requires any lawsuits related to reproductive health care to be filed in Cole County and gives the Attorney General’s Office the right to intervene in these cases. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit said there is not a legitimate connection to reproductive health care, as “health care is not generally provided in court rooms.”

Hatfield suggested Green “tell the General Assembly to give it another shot in compliance with the constitution.”&nbsp;

Green did not immediately rule on the challenge to the abortion ban amendment. A day earlier, he also heard arguments in a case challenging a new law set to go into effect Thursday that&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/04/25/lawsuit-challenges-the-constitutionality-of-missouri-attorney-generals-new-powers/">changes the deadlines and procedures for challenging and revising ballot language.</a>&nbsp;Green’s determination in that case could affect how he’s allowed to proceed in regarding the ballot language.&nbsp;

Despite the current law, abortion access remains tenuous in Missouri.&nbsp;

Three Planned Parenthood clinics — in Kansas City, Columbia and St. Louis —&nbsp;have resumed procedural abortions on a limited schedule that was briefly interrupted over the summer when the courts overturned and then reinstated a temporary injunction allowing some abortions to resume ahead of a trial slated for January.

But Planned Parenthood and the Missouri Attorney General’s Office are slated to meet in court a handful of times before then.

At a hearing set for Sept. 10 in Kansas City, Planned Parenthood plans to argue in favor of undoing a number of laws they say are currently preventing its clinics from prescribing medication abortion in Missouri.&nbsp;

That same day, down the street, the Western District Court of Appeals is slated to hear&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-ag-erred-in-asking-supreme-court-to-overturn-order-legalizing-abortion/">the Missouri Attorney General’s Office’s appeal of an injunction</a>&nbsp;that allowed procedural abortions to resume in Missouri in February.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/5/1746190042115.png" alt="An abortion procedure room pictured on Monday, March 3, 2025, at Planned Parenthood in Columbia, Missouri (Anna Spoerre/Missouri Independent)." />
 <figcaption>An abortion procedure room pictured on Monday, March 3, 2025, at Planned Parenthood in Columbia, Missouri (Anna Spoerre/Missouri Independent).</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>A Cole County judge will decide whether to revise, throw out or keep a constitutional amendment proposed by the Missouri General Assembly that would ban abortion</h2>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/annaspoerre/">ANNA SPOERRE</a> <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/02/20/state-senator-throws-first-punches-of-2024-missouri-governors-campaign/">Missouri Independent</a>A Cole County judge heard arguments Wednesday over whether a proposed ban on abortion set to go to voters next year should be thrown out or revised over a provision targeting gender-affirming care for minors.&nbsp;The ACLU of Missouri believes the proposal, which was drafted by state lawmakers, violates the state constitution because it includes multiple subjects. The group also contends the summary that would appear on the ballot is misleading.If the courts decide to keep the measure on the ballot, plaintiffs are asking that the ballot summary be revised to explicitly state that the measure would ban abortion.If approved by a simple majority of voters, the abortion ban amendment would repeal a citizen-led reproductive rights amendment that passed last November legalizing&nbsp; abortion in Missouri up until the point of fetal viability and enshrining other reproductive rights in the constitution, including in-vitro fertilization and contraceptives.The new amendment would reinstate an abortion ban, allowing limited exceptions for medical emergencies, fatal fetal anomolies and for survivors of rape and incest in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.The current language written by the Missouri General Assembly makes no mention of the ban it would enact.&nbsp;Instead, Missourians would be asked if they want to amend the Missouri constitution to:&nbsp;<ul>
 <li>Guarantee access to care for medical emergencies, ectopic pregnancies, and miscarriages;</li><li>Ensure women’s safety during abortions;</li><li>Ensure parental consent for minors;</li><li>Allow abortions for medical emergencies, fetal anomalies, rape, and incest;</li><li>Require physicians to provide medically accurate information; and</li><li>Protect children from gender transition?</li>
 </ul>Missouri statute states “petitions for laws shall contain not more than one subject which shall be expressed clearly in the title.”&nbsp;Chuck Hatfield, an attorney with Stinson LLP&nbsp;representing the plaintiff on Wednesday argued that the inclusion of the gender-affirming health care ban was “ballot candy” meant to win over more voters but is a separate issue from reproductive health care.&nbsp;Recent polling by St. Louis University/YouGov shows that while the<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/08/29/poll-shows-missouri-voters-back-trump-hawley-abortion-rights-and-minimum-wage-hike/">&nbsp;majority of polled Missouri voters support access to abortion</a>, the majority also&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/08/25/poll-finds-missouri-voters-support-for-bans-on-transgender-health-care/">oppose access to gender-affirming health care for minors.&nbsp;</a>“You can’t say to the people, ‘Here’s a proposal whether the Chiefs should stay in Kansas City and to ban crypto,’” Hatfield said.Missouri Solicitor General Louis Capozzi, defending the proposed amendment, told Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green on Wednesday that gender-affirming procedures can cause the loss of fertility. Therefore, he believes reproductive health care “applies to all people who are thinking about whether to have children.”Capozzi said the latest proposed amendment “ensures that Missouri children are able to make the choice whether to reproduce when they are adults,” adding that if someone is “unable to reproduce, they can’t access reproductive health care.”Last year,&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/09/06/judge-decides-abortion-amendment-3-missouri-ballot/">anti-abortion leaders were unsuccessful in convincing the courts&nbsp;</a>to throw the abortion rights amendment off the ballot by claiming it violated the single subject rule. At the time, an attorney for the Thomas Moore Society argued unsuccessfully that the subject of that amendment,&nbsp;“a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom,” encompassed “infinite subjects.”Hatfield on Wednesday accused the legislature and Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins of misrepresenting what the amendment would do through both the language voters will see on the ballot and the ballot language posted&nbsp;at every polling station around the state next to sample ballots.&nbsp;Hoskins’&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sos.mo.gov/petitions/2026BallotMeasures" target="_blank">ballot language</a>&nbsp;currently reads: “A ‘no’ vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution to allow abortion in cases of medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, or incest, or to protect children from gender transition.”Under the current law, abortion is legal up until the point of fetal viability in Missouri and gender-affirming health care for minors is banned.&nbsp;“It’s ridiculous; it’s wrong,” Hatfield said of the ballot language. “The current constitution guarantees those rights and to imply otherwise is wrong, it’s highly argumentative.”Capozzi argued the legislature was working with a word limit and that it was more important to state what the amendment would do. Summary statements, he said, need not detail specific exceptions.The proposed amendment also requires any lawsuits related to reproductive health care to be filed in Cole County and gives the Attorney General’s Office the right to intervene in these cases. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit said there is not a legitimate connection to reproductive health care, as “health care is not generally provided in court rooms.”Hatfield suggested Green “tell the General Assembly to give it another shot in compliance with the constitution.”&nbsp;Green did not immediately rule on the challenge to the abortion ban amendment. A day earlier, he also heard arguments in a case challenging a new law set to go into effect Thursday that&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/04/25/lawsuit-challenges-the-constitutionality-of-missouri-attorney-generals-new-powers/">changes the deadlines and procedures for challenging and revising ballot language.</a>&nbsp;Green’s determination in that case could affect how he’s allowed to proceed in regarding the ballot language.&nbsp;Despite the current law, abortion access remains tenuous in Missouri.&nbsp;Three Planned Parenthood clinics — in Kansas City, Columbia and St. Louis —&nbsp;have resumed procedural abortions on a limited schedule that was briefly interrupted over the summer when the courts overturned and then reinstated a temporary injunction allowing some abortions to resume ahead of a trial slated for January.But Planned Parenthood and the Missouri Attorney General’s Office are slated to meet in court a handful of times before then.At a hearing set for Sept. 10 in Kansas City, Planned Parenthood plans to argue in favor of undoing a number of laws they say are currently preventing its clinics from prescribing medication abortion in Missouri.&nbsp;That same day, down the street, the Western District Court of Appeals is slated to hear&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-ag-erred-in-asking-supreme-court-to-overturn-order-legalizing-abortion/">the Missouri Attorney General’s Office’s appeal of an injunction</a>&nbsp;that allowed procedural abortions to resume in Missouri in February.&nbsp;

Missouri judge weighing whether new abortion ban should appear on 2026 ballot

SEDGWICK COUNTY —A teen murder suspect, finally captured on June 17, after hiding from police for weeks will return to court Thursday for an arraignment hearing.

Jaden Watts, 19, will appear in the courtroom of Judge Tyler Roush, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

He is charged with second-degree murder, according to the District Attorney's office.

Wichita police and U.S. Marshals took Watts into custody in the area of 700 S Hunter in Wichita, according to a statement from Wichita Police.

In March, police issued a felony pick-up for Watts in connection with the shooting of 24-year-old Demarc Burgess&nbsp;at a residence in the 14000 block of E. Twinlake Drive in Wichita, according to Officer Juan Reboledo.&nbsp; EMS transported Burgess to a local hospital where he died.

First responders located a victim later identified as 24-year-old Demarc Burgess, according to police. Burgess had sustained multiple gunshot wounds. He was transported to a nearby hospital, where he was later pronounced deceased.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the incident occurred during a gathering at the residence, where a disturbance broke out between Watts and Burgess, which ultimately led to the shooting.&nbsp; &nbsp;Watts is being held on bonds totaling over $500,000.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/6/1750260517323.png" alt="Watts photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Watts photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —A teen murder suspect, finally captured on June 17, after hiding from police for weeks will return to court Thursday for an arraignment hearing.Jaden Watts, 19, will appear in the courtroom of Judge Tyler Roush, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.He is charged with second-degree murder, according to the District Attorney's office.Wichita police and U.S. Marshals took Watts into custody in the area of 700 S Hunter in Wichita, according to a statement from Wichita Police.In March, police issued a felony pick-up for Watts in connection with the shooting of 24-year-old Demarc Burgess&nbsp;at a residence in the 14000 block of E. Twinlake Drive in Wichita, according to Officer Juan Reboledo.&nbsp; EMS transported Burgess to a local hospital where he died.First responders located a victim later identified as 24-year-old Demarc Burgess, according to police. Burgess had sustained multiple gunshot wounds. He was transported to a nearby hospital, where he was later pronounced deceased.Preliminary investigations indicate that the incident occurred during a gathering at the residence, where a disturbance broke out between Watts and Burgess, which ultimately led to the shooting.&nbsp; &nbsp;Watts is being held on bonds totaling over $500,000.

Kan. murder suspect, who hid from police for weeks, returns to court

NEW YORK (AP) — Mall-based teen accessories retailer Claire’s, known for helping to usher in millions of teens into an important rite of passage — ear piercing — but now struggling with a big debt load and changing consumer tastes, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this month.&nbsp; The retailer is closing nearly 300 stores including seven locations in Kansas and six in Missouri.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756388896738.png" alt="Image courtesy Claire's" />
 <figcaption>Image courtesy Claire's</figcaption>
 </figure>NEW YORK (AP) — Mall-based teen accessories retailer Claire’s, known for helping to usher in millions of teens into an important rite of passage — ear piercing — but now struggling with a big debt load and changing consumer tastes, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this month.&nbsp; The retailer is closing nearly 300 stores including seven locations in Kansas and six in Missouri.<ul>
 <li>Claire’s: Town Center Plaza, Leawood</li><li>Claire’s: Flinthills Mall, Emporia</li><li>Claire’s: Manhattan Town Center, Manhattan</li><li>Claire’s: Village Square Mall, Dodge City</li><li>Claire’s: Meadowbrook Mall, Pittsburg</li><li>Claire’s: New Market Square, Wichita</li><li>Claire’s: Garden City Shopping Center, Garden City</li>
 </ul><ul>
 <li>Claire’s: Capital Mall, Jefferson</li><li>Claire’s: Ward Parkway Center, Kansas City</li><li>Claire’s: Shoppes At North Village, St Joseph</li><li>Icing: West County Mall, Des Peres</li><li>Icing: Independence Center, Independence</li><li>Icing: Northpark Mall, Joplin</li>
 </ul>Claire’s Holdings LLC and certain of its U.S. and Gibraltar-based subsidiaries — collectively Claire’s U.S., the operator of Claire’s and Icing stores across the United States, made the filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. That marked the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-c1f3b24bc8e84c94ae5598694263ea57">second time since 2018</a>&nbsp;and for a similar reason: high debt load and the shift among teens heading online away from physical stores.Claire’s Chapter 11 filing follows the bankruptcies of other teen retailers including&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/forever-21-bankruptcy-shein-amazon-temu-0c5e9bac07bf184988475a2b57842e08">Forever 21,</a>&nbsp;which filed in March for bankruptcy protection&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/mall-owners-among-group-bidding-81-million-for-forever-21-51a545a3da59b4582d622514e830ccbe">for a second time</a>&nbsp;and eventually closed down its U.S. business as traffic in U.S. shopping malls fades and competition from online retailers like Amazon, Temu and Shein intensifies.In a court filing, Claire’s said its assets and liabilities range between $1 billion and $10 billion.“This decision is difficult, but a necessary one,” Chris Cramer, CEO of Claire’s, said in a press release issued Wednesday. “Increased competition, consumer spending trends and the ongoing shift away from brick-and-mortar retail, in combination with our current debt obligations and macroeconomic factors, necessitate this course of action for Claire’s and its stakeholders.”Like many retailers, Claire’s was also struggling with higher costs tied to President Donald Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/tariffs">tariff</a>&nbsp;plans, analysts said..Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData, a research firm, noted in a note published earlier this month, Claire’s bankruptcy filing comes as “no real surprise.”“The chain has been swamped by a cocktail of problems, both internal and external, that made it impossible to stay afloat,” he wrote.Saunders noted that internally, Claire’s struggled with high debt levels that made its operations unstable and said the cash crunch left it with little choice but to reorganize through bankruptcy.He also noted that tariffs have pushed costs higher, and he believed that Claire’s is not in a position to manage this latest challenge effectively.Competition has also become sharper and more intense over recent years, with retailers like jewelry chain Lovisa offering younger shoppers a more sophisticated assortment at low prices. He also cited the growing competition with online players like Amazon.“Reinventing will be a tall order in the present environment,” he added.