WASHINGTON (AP) — President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">Joe Biden’s</a>&nbsp;push to have Congress replenish wartime aid for Ukraine as part of a deal on border and immigration policy changes will drag into next year.

The Senate, which had postponed its holiday recess, returned to Washington on Monday after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/border-security-ukraine-congress-senate-biden-cb8d4e3ad8271323cfd9294b527d6615">negotiators worked through the weekend</a>&nbsp;on the border legislation, trying to reach an agreement that could unlock the Republican votes for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-ukraine-israel-budget-3762a0bdf00653e3c8a38175d3c3d3cb">Biden’s $110 billion package of aid</a>&nbsp;for Ukraine, Israel and other security priorities.

The biggest line item in the funding request&nbsp;$61.4 billion to support Ukraine. Some of that money would go to replenishing Pentagon stockpiles of weapons that have already been provided.

Barely half of the senators returned for a Monday evening vote. Kansas Senior U.S. Senator Jerry Moran was in western Kansas for a ribbon cutting at a VA clinic.

“Obviously we need time,” said Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, the top Democratic negotiator.

The delay heaps more uncertainty on the future of the Biden administration's priority of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ukraine-russia-war-funding-weapons-2153375d4394d5783fad73858b51e993">providing support against Russia's invasion</a>. It also puts a potential pause on politically fraught negotiations over immigration and border security policy, though Senate negotiators planned to continue working on the package.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the negotiations were “among the most difficult things we’ve done in recent memory.”

“Everyone knows that something should be done to fix our broken immigration system,” he said in a Senate floor speech to start the week. “But we can’t do so by compromising our values. Finding the middle ground is exceptionally hard.”

The House has already departed for the year as Congress settles into a long winter's break. Lawmakers aren't scheduled to return until the second week of January, and they will then need to tend to other matters besides the Ukraine funding, including facing a partial shutdown in mid-January if Congress can't pass a government funding package.

But as the Senate undertook the first substantial rewrite of immigration and border security law in decades, Republicans insisted they would not agree to rushing legislation.

“Getting this agreement right and producing legislative text is going to require some time,” Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said on the Senate floor.

Schumer said both Republicans and Democrats would need to make more concessions and it would take “some more time to get it done.”

Members of the core Senate negotiating group — Murphy and Sens. Kyrsten Sinema, an Arizona independent, and James Lankford, an Oklahoma Republican — met with White House staff on Monday.

“We’re all going to be back in January, but it’s going to take a while to be able to finish up all the text,” Lankford said.

The weeks-long wait comes as the Defense Department says it has nearly run out of available funds for supporting Ukraine's defense. In a letter to Congress, the Pentagon notified lawmakers last week that will soon be transferring more than $1 billion to replenish stockpiles sent to Ukraine, with no further funds available as it maintains the United States’ own military readiness.

“Once these funds are obligated, the Department will have exhausted the funding available to us for security assistance to Ukraine,” according to the letter obtained by The Associated Press.

The department said “it is essential that Congress act without delay” on the pending supplemental request.

Ukrainian forces tried to launch a counteroffensive this year, but faced dug-in Russian troops, minefields and other hazards. They struggled to make any significant gains.

As the conflict grinds towards the end of a second year, U.S. public support has waned for sending billions of dollars more in weapons and economic aid. The European Union, too, had to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/eu-ukraine-aid-orban-membership-summit-dd194ead36abf3affab6e2c322d1f75a">push into the new year</a>&nbsp;a plan to supply Ukraine with $54.5 billion after a veto from Hungarian Prime Minister&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/viktor-orban">Viktor Orban</a>, a right-wing leader who is on good terms with Russian President Vladimir Putin as well as Donald Trump, the former president and front-runner for the Republican nomination next year.

As his country scrapes low on money to repel Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has traveled the world to ask for support. He elicited praise from Republicans after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ukraine-zelenskyy-washington-congress-biden-5796a2429169d01959510f318fbc968a">meeting with them in the Capitol</a>&nbsp;last week, but the conservatives remained unmoved and in no hurry to approve Biden's emergency funding request.

Republicans have said there is still time to redouble support before Ukraine's defense suffers. Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa said that since the European Union put off sending Kyiv more money until the new year, he thinks the U.S. can as well.

“If it’s OK for them, it’s surely OK for us,” he said.

Dozens of Republican House members have signaled they won't support continued Ukraine aid, and even GOP senators who in the past have been stalwart advocates of the Ukraine war effort have insisted that Congress also pass new border restrictions.

Biden has offered to compromise on border and immigration policy, and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-immigration-border-congress-ukraine-asylum-69007f56dca2977a2204c22cbc5cbef0">top White House officials have joined</a>&nbsp;the Senate negotiations, including Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-ukraine-israel-funding-us-mexico-border-e1da808689aeef52308d19010a5e3cfa">Negotiators have closed in on a list</a>&nbsp;of immigration enforcement measures, including detaining people who claim asylum at the border and granting nationwide authority to quickly remove migrants who have been in the U.S. for less than two years. They have also agreed on raising the initial threshold for people to enter an asylum claim in credible fear screenings.

The White House has tried to preserve an immigration program known as humanitarian parole. The Biden administration has leaned heavily on the use of humanitarian parole as part of its policy of providing legal pathways for some migrants to enter the country while beefing up consequences for those who don’t use those pathways. But Republicans have objected — and even sued to stop it — saying that the administration is essentially bypassing Congress and improperly letting migrants into the country who normally wouldn’t qualify.

Still, Biden's willingness to make concessions in the negotiations has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/senate-border-immigration-biden-66531bcefb908d5440a52b54c543b006">alarmed immigration advocates and drawn criticism from influential Hispanic Democrats</a>.

On a conference call with reporters Monday, advocates decried the policies under consideration as a return to the strategies pursued by Trump that left large numbers of migrants waiting in Mexico to apply for asylum in the U.S.

“If you have asylum seekers pushed back into Mexico, it’s going to be extremely dangerous,” said Kerri Talbot, executive director of The Immigration Hub.

The senators have also described their work as a complex undertaking as they delve into laws that for years have been at the center of intense legal and political fights.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The next roll call vote in the Senate is expected at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, January 8, 2024.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/12/1702427915109.png" alt="President Joe Biden shakes hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as they meet in the Oval Office of the White House Dec. 12-photo courtesy CSPAN&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>President Joe Biden shakes hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as they meet in the Oval Office of the White House Dec. 12-photo courtesy CSPAN&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">Joe Biden’s</a>&nbsp;push to have Congress replenish wartime aid for Ukraine as part of a deal on border and immigration policy changes will drag into next year.The Senate, which had postponed its holiday recess, returned to Washington on Monday after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/border-security-ukraine-congress-senate-biden-cb8d4e3ad8271323cfd9294b527d6615">negotiators worked through the weekend</a>&nbsp;on the border legislation, trying to reach an agreement that could unlock the Republican votes for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-ukraine-israel-budget-3762a0bdf00653e3c8a38175d3c3d3cb">Biden’s $110 billion package of aid</a>&nbsp;for Ukraine, Israel and other security priorities.The biggest line item in the funding request&nbsp;$61.4 billion to support Ukraine. Some of that money would go to replenishing Pentagon stockpiles of weapons that have already been provided.Barely half of the senators returned for a Monday evening vote. Kansas Senior U.S. Senator Jerry Moran was in western Kansas for a ribbon cutting at a VA clinic.“Obviously we need time,” said Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, the top Democratic negotiator.The delay heaps more uncertainty on the future of the Biden administration's priority of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ukraine-russia-war-funding-weapons-2153375d4394d5783fad73858b51e993">providing support against Russia's invasion</a>. It also puts a potential pause on politically fraught negotiations over immigration and border security policy, though Senate negotiators planned to continue working on the package.Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the negotiations were “among the most difficult things we’ve done in recent memory.”“Everyone knows that something should be done to fix our broken immigration system,” he said in a Senate floor speech to start the week. “But we can’t do so by compromising our values. Finding the middle ground is exceptionally hard.”The House has already departed for the year as Congress settles into a long winter's break. Lawmakers aren't scheduled to return until the second week of January, and they will then need to tend to other matters besides the Ukraine funding, including facing a partial shutdown in mid-January if Congress can't pass a government funding package.But as the Senate undertook the first substantial rewrite of immigration and border security law in decades, Republicans insisted they would not agree to rushing legislation.“Getting this agreement right and producing legislative text is going to require some time,” Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said on the Senate floor.Schumer said both Republicans and Democrats would need to make more concessions and it would take “some more time to get it done.”Members of the core Senate negotiating group — Murphy and Sens. Kyrsten Sinema, an Arizona independent, and James Lankford, an Oklahoma Republican — met with White House staff on Monday.“We’re all going to be back in January, but it’s going to take a while to be able to finish up all the text,” Lankford said.The weeks-long wait comes as the Defense Department says it has nearly run out of available funds for supporting Ukraine's defense. In a letter to Congress, the Pentagon notified lawmakers last week that will soon be transferring more than $1 billion to replenish stockpiles sent to Ukraine, with no further funds available as it maintains the United States’ own military readiness.“Once these funds are obligated, the Department will have exhausted the funding available to us for security assistance to Ukraine,” according to the letter obtained by The Associated Press.The department said “it is essential that Congress act without delay” on the pending supplemental request.Ukrainian forces tried to launch a counteroffensive this year, but faced dug-in Russian troops, minefields and other hazards. They struggled to make any significant gains.As the conflict grinds towards the end of a second year, U.S. public support has waned for sending billions of dollars more in weapons and economic aid. The European Union, too, had to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/eu-ukraine-aid-orban-membership-summit-dd194ead36abf3affab6e2c322d1f75a">push into the new year</a>&nbsp;a plan to supply Ukraine with $54.5 billion after a veto from Hungarian Prime Minister&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/viktor-orban">Viktor Orban</a>, a right-wing leader who is on good terms with Russian President Vladimir Putin as well as Donald Trump, the former president and front-runner for the Republican nomination next year.As his country scrapes low on money to repel Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has traveled the world to ask for support. He elicited praise from Republicans after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ukraine-zelenskyy-washington-congress-biden-5796a2429169d01959510f318fbc968a">meeting with them in the Capitol</a>&nbsp;last week, but the conservatives remained unmoved and in no hurry to approve Biden's emergency funding request.Republicans have said there is still time to redouble support before Ukraine's defense suffers. Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa said that since the European Union put off sending Kyiv more money until the new year, he thinks the U.S. can as well.“If it’s OK for them, it’s surely OK for us,” he said.Dozens of Republican House members have signaled they won't support continued Ukraine aid, and even GOP senators who in the past have been stalwart advocates of the Ukraine war effort have insisted that Congress also pass new border restrictions.Biden has offered to compromise on border and immigration policy, and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-immigration-border-congress-ukraine-asylum-69007f56dca2977a2204c22cbc5cbef0">top White House officials have joined</a>&nbsp;the Senate negotiations, including Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-ukraine-israel-funding-us-mexico-border-e1da808689aeef52308d19010a5e3cfa">Negotiators have closed in on a list</a>&nbsp;of immigration enforcement measures, including detaining people who claim asylum at the border and granting nationwide authority to quickly remove migrants who have been in the U.S. for less than two years. They have also agreed on raising the initial threshold for people to enter an asylum claim in credible fear screenings.The White House has tried to preserve an immigration program known as humanitarian parole. The Biden administration has leaned heavily on the use of humanitarian parole as part of its policy of providing legal pathways for some migrants to enter the country while beefing up consequences for those who don’t use those pathways. But Republicans have objected — and even sued to stop it — saying that the administration is essentially bypassing Congress and improperly letting migrants into the country who normally wouldn’t qualify.Still, Biden's willingness to make concessions in the negotiations has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/senate-border-immigration-biden-66531bcefb908d5440a52b54c543b006">alarmed immigration advocates and drawn criticism from influential Hispanic Democrats</a>.On a conference call with reporters Monday, advocates decried the policies under consideration as a return to the strategies pursued by Trump that left large numbers of migrants waiting in Mexico to apply for asylum in the U.S.“If you have asylum seekers pushed back into Mexico, it’s going to be extremely dangerous,” said Kerri Talbot, executive director of The Immigration Hub.The senators have also described their work as a complex undertaking as they delve into laws that for years have been at the center of intense legal and political fights.&nbsp;&nbsp;The next roll call vote in the Senate is expected at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, January 8, 2024.

Unhappy holiday: No $61 billion Ukraine funding from U.S. Senate

BAGHDAD&nbsp; — At approximately 7:30 a.m. (Iraq time) on Wednesday a 122mm rocket was fired at al Assad Air Base in Iraq –the US military's largest in the country. The there were no injuries or damage caused, according to a statement from the U.S. Central Command.

Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve located the point of origin and passed the location to the Iraqi Security Forces who moved to the site to investigate. The ISF seized a flatbed truck modified to launch up to 5 x 122mm rockets that was located at the site.

Meanwhile, at least 46 people were killed and more than 100 wounded&nbsp; Wednesday after Israel bombarded the urban Jabaliya refugee camp near Gaza City, according to Munir al-Bursh, a senior official in the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.

The Israeli military said its troops have located “&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-12-20-2023-81b80e4716b53756c8fab96c183089ef">a vast tunnel network</a>&nbsp;” under Gaza City that included command and control positions, meeting rooms and hideout apartments for the most senior leaders of Hamas, including Yahya Sinwar and Ismail Haniyeh.

There were new signs of progress Wednesday in negotiations to halt the war in Gaza and secure the release of at least some of the estimated 129 Israeli captives held by Palestinian militants. Hamas said that Haniyeh, who is believed to be based in Qatar, was in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss the war, without providing more details.

Nearly 20,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel declared war on Hamas, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Gaza</a>, which does not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths. Thousands more lie buried&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-buried-rubble-airstrikes-89c0e8d0934d573d94d2fbfeba44d933">under the rubble</a>&nbsp;of Gaza, the U.N. estimates. Israel says more than 130 of its soldiers have died in its ground offensive after Hamas&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-attack-military-war-a8f63b07641212f0de61861844e5e71e">raided southern Israel</a>&nbsp;on Oct. 7, killing about 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and taking&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hostages-gaza-b6ffc286ca7d4b48caaada43e9c6e411">about 240 hostages</a>.

BAGHDAD&nbsp; — At approximately 7:30 a.m. (Iraq time) on Wednesday a 122mm rocket was fired at al Assad Air Base in Iraq –the US military's largest in the country. The there were no injuries or damage caused, according to a statement from the U.S. Central Command.Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve located the point of origin and passed the location to the Iraqi Security Forces who moved to the site to investigate. The ISF seized a flatbed truck modified to launch up to 5 x 122mm rockets that was located at the site.Meanwhile, at least 46 people were killed and more than 100 wounded&nbsp; Wednesday after Israel bombarded the urban Jabaliya refugee camp near Gaza City, according to Munir al-Bursh, a senior official in the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.The Israeli military said its troops have located “&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-12-20-2023-81b80e4716b53756c8fab96c183089ef">a vast tunnel network</a>&nbsp;” under Gaza City that included command and control positions, meeting rooms and hideout apartments for the most senior leaders of Hamas, including Yahya Sinwar and Ismail Haniyeh.There were new signs of progress Wednesday in negotiations to halt the war in Gaza and secure the release of at least some of the estimated 129 Israeli captives held by Palestinian militants. Hamas said that Haniyeh, who is believed to be based in Qatar, was in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss the war, without providing more details.Nearly 20,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel declared war on Hamas, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Gaza</a>, which does not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths. Thousands more lie buried&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-buried-rubble-airstrikes-89c0e8d0934d573d94d2fbfeba44d933">under the rubble</a>&nbsp;of Gaza, the U.N. estimates. Israel says more than 130 of its soldiers have died in its ground offensive after Hamas&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-attack-military-war-a8f63b07641212f0de61861844e5e71e">raided southern Israel</a>&nbsp;on Oct. 7, killing about 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and taking&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hostages-gaza-b6ffc286ca7d4b48caaada43e9c6e411">about 240 hostages</a>.

Another rocket fired at U.S. air base in Iraq

MILWAUKEE (AP) — President Joe Biden said it's “self-evident” that Donald Trump is an insurrectionist for trying to overturn his 2020 election loss but stopped short of commenting on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-2024-colorado-d16dd8f354eeaf450558378c65fd79a2">a Colorado legal case</a>&nbsp;that would bar him from the state's ballot.

The Democratic president made the comments about his likely Republican opponent in next year's election shortly after landing in Milwaukee for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/milwaukee-biden-wisconsin-small-businesses-black-latino-b12b198e413c7916e16ae4b61179d828">an event focused on the economy</a>.

“Whether the 14th Amendment applies or not, we’ll let the court make that decision," Biden told reporters on the tarmac after stepping off Air Force One. "But he certainly supported an insurrection. There’s no question about it. None. Zero. And he seems to be doubling down on it.”

The Colorado Supreme Court issued a decision on Tuesday declaring that Trump is ineligible to serve as president under&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-14th-amendment-insurrection-2024-election-ballot-9c5f79203109ba221b35a48e708ad725">Section 3 of the 14th Amendment</a>. It's the first time in the country's history that the provision has been used to keep a candidate off the ballot.

Republicans have denounced the court's decision, and Trump's lawyers said they plan to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Trump has refused to back down from his lies that voter fraud allowed Biden to win in 2020, and he's pledged to pardon supporters who participated in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Biden has repeatedly condemned Trump and described him as a threat to American democracy. However, he's been more circumspect when addressing his predecessor's legal challenges, including several criminal cases against him, and this one is no different.

Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to comment when asked by reporters aboard Air Force One.

“The president is not involved; we’re not involved in this," she said. "This is a legal process and we’re not involved in this.”

Biden's campaign was similarly circumspect in a call with reporters on Tuesday.

“What I will say is that the president looks forward to defeating Donald Trump or whoever else emerges from the Republican primary on the ballot box in November 2024," said Brooke Goren, the campaign's deputy communications director.

MILWAUKEE (AP) — President Joe Biden said it's “self-evident” that Donald Trump is an insurrectionist for trying to overturn his 2020 election loss but stopped short of commenting on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-2024-colorado-d16dd8f354eeaf450558378c65fd79a2">a Colorado legal case</a>&nbsp;that would bar him from the state's ballot.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Q: Is Trump an insurrectionist, sir? President Biden: &quot;It&#39;s self-evident. You saw it all. Now whether the 14th Amendment applies, I&#39;ll let the court make that decision. But he certainly supported an insurrection. There&#39;s no question about it. None. Zero.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/kREbFSDbyV">pic.twitter.com/kREbFSDbyV</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1737526031697801707?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 20, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The Democratic president made the comments about his likely Republican opponent in next year's election shortly after landing in Milwaukee for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/milwaukee-biden-wisconsin-small-businesses-black-latino-b12b198e413c7916e16ae4b61179d828">an event focused on the economy</a>.“Whether the 14th Amendment applies or not, we’ll let the court make that decision," Biden told reporters on the tarmac after stepping off Air Force One. "But he certainly supported an insurrection. There’s no question about it. None. Zero. And he seems to be doubling down on it.”The Colorado Supreme Court issued a decision on Tuesday declaring that Trump is ineligible to serve as president under&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-14th-amendment-insurrection-2024-election-ballot-9c5f79203109ba221b35a48e708ad725">Section 3 of the 14th Amendment</a>. It's the first time in the country's history that the provision has been used to keep a candidate off the ballot.Republicans have denounced the court's decision, and Trump's lawyers said they plan to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.Trump has refused to back down from his lies that voter fraud allowed Biden to win in 2020, and he's pledged to pardon supporters who participated in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.Biden has repeatedly condemned Trump and described him as a threat to American democracy. However, he's been more circumspect when addressing his predecessor's legal challenges, including several criminal cases against him, and this one is no different.Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to comment when asked by reporters aboard Air Force One.“The president is not involved; we’re not involved in this," she said. "This is a legal process and we’re not involved in this.”Biden's campaign was similarly circumspect in a call with reporters on Tuesday.“What I will say is that the president looks forward to defeating Donald Trump or whoever else emerges from the Republican primary on the ballot box in November 2024," said Brooke Goren, the campaign's deputy communications director.

🎥 President Biden asked if Trump supported insurrection

CAIRO(AP) —The top leader of Yemen's Houthi rebels threatened Wednesday to target U.S. warships if attacks are launched against Yemen, a day after Washington announced a new international coalition to protect commercial vessels sailing through the Red Sea.

For weeks, the Iran-backed rebels in Yemen have been attacking ships transiting the Red Sea with drones and ballistic missiles. The group has said their attacks aim to end Israel's military offensive in the Gaza Strip. But the Israeli ties to the commercial ships targeted by the hardline Shia force have grown more tenuous with each attack.

In an hourlong speech, Abdel Malek al-Houthi said, “America seeks to militarize the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, seeking to turn the region into a war zone.”

On Tuesday, Washington announced the establishment of a new international coalition to protect vessels traveling through the Red Sea. The United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain have joined the new maritime security mission, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. Bahrain is the only Arab country in the coalition, and it does not border the Red Sea. Few additional details about how the maritime alliance will operate were made public.

The rebel leader also accused other Arab countries of intercepting its missile fire bound for Israel. In both cases, no specific country was named.

The Houthis control the capital, Sanaa, several northern provinces bordering Saudi Arabia as well as much of the western highlands and Red Sea ports.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1696803172229.png" alt="The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group arrived in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea in mid October-photo U.S. Central Command" />
 <figcaption>The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group arrived in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea in mid October-photo U.S. Central Command</figcaption>
 </figure>CAIRO(AP) —The top leader of Yemen's Houthi rebels threatened Wednesday to target U.S. warships if attacks are launched against Yemen, a day after Washington announced a new international coalition to protect commercial vessels sailing through the Red Sea.For weeks, the Iran-backed rebels in Yemen have been attacking ships transiting the Red Sea with drones and ballistic missiles. The group has said their attacks aim to end Israel's military offensive in the Gaza Strip. But the Israeli ties to the commercial ships targeted by the hardline Shia force have grown more tenuous with each attack.In an hourlong speech, Abdel Malek al-Houthi said, “America seeks to militarize the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, seeking to turn the region into a war zone.”On Tuesday, Washington announced the establishment of a new international coalition to protect vessels traveling through the Red Sea. The United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain have joined the new maritime security mission, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. Bahrain is the only Arab country in the coalition, and it does not border the Red Sea. Few additional details about how the maritime alliance will operate were made public.The rebel leader also accused other Arab countries of intercepting its missile fire bound for Israel. In both cases, no specific country was named.The Houthis control the capital, Sanaa, several northern provinces bordering Saudi Arabia as well as much of the western highlands and Red Sea ports.

Terrorists threaten to strike US warships if Yemen is attacked 

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Civil rights organizations on Tuesday filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-texas-border-8c86bc6c20a7c30d6127b2413b8688fc">new Texas law</a>&nbsp;that would allow police to arrest migrants who cross the border illegally and permit local judges to order them to leave the country.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Austin, argues that the measure that is set to take effect in March is unconstitutional because the federal government has sole authority over immigration.

The American Civil Liberties Union, its Texas branch, and the Texas Civil Rights Project sued less than 24 hours after Republican Gov. Greg Abbott signed the measure during a ceremony on the U.S.-Mexico border in Brownsville.

The civil rights groups filed the lawsuit on behalf of El Paso County and two immigrant aid groups seeking to block enforcement of the measure, known as SB 4, and declare it unlawful.

“S.B. 4 creates a new state system to regulate immigration that completely bypasses and conflicts with the federal system,” the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit was filed against the head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, whose troopers could arrest migrants, and the El Paso County district attorney, whose office would potentially prosecute cases in that border community.

A DPS spokesperson declined to comment in an email Tuesday, citing the pending litigation. A person who answered the phone in Hicks’ office said he was not available and had no immediate comment.

Abbott and other Texas Republicans who support the measure say President Joe Biden isn’t doing enough to control the 1,950-mile (3,149-kilometer) southern border.

“In his absence, Texas has the constitutional authority to secure our border through historic laws like SB 4,” Abbott said in an email Tuesday, adding that he was willing to take the case to the Supreme Court.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre criticized the law, but wouldn’t say whether the Justice Department would also challenge it.

“This is an extreme law that will not and does not make the communities in Texas safer,” Jean-Pierre said. She added that the purpose of the law was to “demonize immigrants and also dehumanize immigrants” and said “communities should not be individually targeted and put into harm’s way.”

According to Tuesday’s lawsuit, DPS Director Steve McGraw told lawmakers that his agency estimates approximately 72,000 arrests will be made each year under the measure.

The law comes as the U.S.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/arizona-border-wall-breaches-asylum-immigration-beddd2ca0ffd02884ce0d0ad1785f538">is seeing an increase in illegal border crossings.</a>&nbsp;Customs and Border Patrol acting commissioner Troy Miller called the number of daily arrivals “unprecedented,” as illegal crossings have topped 10,000 on some days this month.

The measure allows any Texas law enforcement officer to arrest people who are suspected of entering the country illegally. Once in custody, they could either agree to a Texas judge’s order to leave the U.S. or be prosecuted on misdemeanor charges of illegal entry. Migrants who don’t leave could face arrest again under more serious felony charges.

Opponents have called it the most dramatic attempt by a state to police immigration since a 2010 Arizona law — denounced by critics as the “Show Me Your Papers” bill — that was largely&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/57fd255191214d54b420a39a96b82451">struck down</a>&nbsp;by the U.S. Supreme Court. The lawsuit cites the 2012 Supreme Court decision on the Arizona law, which stated the federal government has exclusive power over immigration.

“The bill overrides bedrock constitutional principles and flouts federal immigration law while harming Texans, in particular Brown and Black communities," Adriana Piñon, legal director of the ACLU of Texas, said in a statement.

Earlier Tuesday, ACLU affiliates in Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arkansas, Louisiana, Arizona, Texas, and San Diego and Imperial Counties in California issued a travel advisory warning of a possible threat to travelers’ civil and constitutional rights violations when passing through Texas.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/12/1702952665492.png" alt="Gov. Greg Abbott signed three bills into law at a border wall construction site in Brownsville, Texas on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, that will broaden his border security plans and add funding for more infrastructure to deter illegal immigration. (AP Photo/Valerie Gonzalez)" />
 <figcaption>Gov. Greg Abbott signed three bills into law at a border wall construction site in Brownsville, Texas on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, that will broaden his border security plans and add funding for more infrastructure to deter illegal immigration. (AP Photo/Valerie Gonzalez)</figcaption>
 </figure>By Associated PressAUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Civil rights organizations on Tuesday filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-texas-border-8c86bc6c20a7c30d6127b2413b8688fc">new Texas law</a>&nbsp;that would allow police to arrest migrants who cross the border illegally and permit local judges to order them to leave the country.The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Austin, argues that the measure that is set to take effect in March is unconstitutional because the federal government has sole authority over immigration.The American Civil Liberties Union, its Texas branch, and the Texas Civil Rights Project sued less than 24 hours after Republican Gov. Greg Abbott signed the measure during a ceremony on the U.S.-Mexico border in Brownsville.The civil rights groups filed the lawsuit on behalf of El Paso County and two immigrant aid groups seeking to block enforcement of the measure, known as SB 4, and declare it unlawful.“S.B. 4 creates a new state system to regulate immigration that completely bypasses and conflicts with the federal system,” the lawsuit states.The lawsuit was filed against the head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, whose troopers could arrest migrants, and the El Paso County district attorney, whose office would potentially prosecute cases in that border community.A DPS spokesperson declined to comment in an email Tuesday, citing the pending litigation. A person who answered the phone in Hicks’ office said he was not available and had no immediate comment.Abbott and other Texas Republicans who support the measure say President Joe Biden isn’t doing enough to control the 1,950-mile (3,149-kilometer) southern border.“In his absence, Texas has the constitutional authority to secure our border through historic laws like SB 4,” Abbott said in an email Tuesday, adding that he was willing to take the case to the Supreme Court.White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre criticized the law, but wouldn’t say whether the Justice Department would also challenge it.“This is an extreme law that will not and does not make the communities in Texas safer,” Jean-Pierre said. She added that the purpose of the law was to “demonize immigrants and also dehumanize immigrants” and said “communities should not be individually targeted and put into harm’s way.”According to Tuesday’s lawsuit, DPS Director Steve McGraw told lawmakers that his agency estimates approximately 72,000 arrests will be made each year under the measure.The law comes as the U.S.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/arizona-border-wall-breaches-asylum-immigration-beddd2ca0ffd02884ce0d0ad1785f538">is seeing an increase in illegal border crossings.</a>&nbsp;Customs and Border Patrol acting commissioner Troy Miller called the number of daily arrivals “unprecedented,” as illegal crossings have topped 10,000 on some days this month.The measure allows any Texas law enforcement officer to arrest people who are suspected of entering the country illegally. Once in custody, they could either agree to a Texas judge’s order to leave the U.S. or be prosecuted on misdemeanor charges of illegal entry. Migrants who don’t leave could face arrest again under more serious felony charges.Opponents have called it the most dramatic attempt by a state to police immigration since a 2010 Arizona law — denounced by critics as the “Show Me Your Papers” bill — that was largely&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/57fd255191214d54b420a39a96b82451">struck down</a>&nbsp;by the U.S. Supreme Court. The lawsuit cites the 2012 Supreme Court decision on the Arizona law, which stated the federal government has exclusive power over immigration.“The bill overrides bedrock constitutional principles and flouts federal immigration law while harming Texans, in particular Brown and Black communities," Adriana Piñon, legal director of the ACLU of Texas, said in a statement.Earlier Tuesday, ACLU affiliates in Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arkansas, Louisiana, Arizona, Texas, and San Diego and Imperial Counties in California issued a travel advisory warning of a possible threat to travelers’ civil and constitutional rights violations when passing through Texas.

Lawsuit filed over new Texas law that lets police arrest illegals

DENVER (AP) — A divided Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday declared former President Donald Trump ineligible for the White House under the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause and removed him from the state’s presidential primary ballot, setting up a likely showdown in the nation’s highest court to decide whether the front-runner for the GOP nomination can remain in the race

On social media, Kansas U.S. Senator Roger Marshall blasted the decision, "&nbsp;Colorado Democrats: If you can't beat him, take him off the ballot. This unprecedented weaponization of the 14th Amendment will only make victory that much sweeter on Nov. 5th, 2024."

The decision from a court whose justices were all appointed by Democratic governors marks the first time in history that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-14th-amendment-insurrection-2024-election-ballot-9c5f79203109ba221b35a48e708ad725">Section 3 of the 14th Amendment</a>&nbsp;has been used to disqualify a presidential candidate.

“A majority of the court holds that Trump is disqualified from holding the office of president under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment,” the court wrote in its 4-3 decision.

Colorado’s highest court overturned a ruling from a district court judge who found that Trump incited an insurrection for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, but said he could not be barred from the ballot because it was unclear that the provision was intended to cover the presidency.

The court stayed its decision until Jan. 4, or until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the case. Colorado officials say the issue must be settled by Jan. 5, the deadline for the state to print its presidential primary ballots.

“We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” wrote the court’s majority. “We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.”

Trump’s attorneys had promised to appeal any disqualification immediately to the nation's highest court, which has the final say about constitutional matters.

Trump's legal spokeswoman Alina Habba said in a statement Tuesday night: “This ruling, issued by the Colorado Supreme Court, attacks the very heart of this nation’s democracy. It will not stand, and we trust that the Supreme Court will reverse this unconstitutional order.”

Trump didn't mention the decision during a rally Tuesday evening in Waterloo, Iowa, but his campaign sent out a fundraising email citing what it called a “tyrannical ruling.”

Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel labeled the decision “Election interference” and said the RNC’s legal team intends to help Trump fight the ruling.

Trump lost Colorado by 13 percentage points in 2020 and doesn’t need the state to win next year’s presidential election. But the danger for the former president is that more courts and election officials will follow Colorado’s lead and exclude Trump from must-win states.

Dozens of lawsuits have been filed nationally to disqualify Trump under Section 3, which was designed to keep former Confederates from returning to government after the Civil War. It bars from office anyone who swore an oath to “support” the Constitution and then “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against it, and has been used only a handful of times since the decade after the Civil War.

“I think it may embolden other state courts or secretaries to act now that the bandage has been ripped off,” Derek Muller, a Notre Dame law professor who has closely followed the Section 3 cases, said after Tuesday's ruling. “This is a major threat to Trump’s candidacy.”

The Colorado case is the first where the plaintiffs succeeded. After a weeklong hearing in November, District Judge Sarah B. Wallace found that Trump indeed had “engaged in insurrection” by inciting the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-confirm-joe-biden-78104aea082995bbd7412a6e6cd13818">Jan. 6 attack</a>&nbsp;on the Capitol, and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-amendment-2024-ballot-colorado-5b6e40f069abc1b8604ec37c46621055">her ruling that kept him on the ballot</a>&nbsp;was a fairly technical one.

Trump’s attorneys convinced Wallace that, because the language in Section 3 refers to “officers of the United States” who take an oath to “support” the Constitution, it must not apply to the president, who is not included as an “officer of the United States” elsewhere in the document and whose oath is to “preserve, protect and defend” the Constitution.

The provision also says offices covered include senator, representative, electors of the president and vice president, and all others “under the United States,” but doesn’t name the presidency.

The state’s highest court didn’t agree, siding with attorneys for six Colorado Republican and unaffiliated voters who argued that it was nonsensical to imagine that the framers of the amendment, fearful of former confederates returning to power, would bar them from low-level offices but not the highest one in the land.

“President Trump asks us to hold that Section 3 disqualifies every oathbreaking insurrectionist except the most powerful one and that it bars oath-breakers from virtually every office, both state and federal, except the highest one in the land,” the court’s majority opinion said. “Both results are inconsistent with the plain language and history of Section 3.”

The left-leaning group that brought the Colorado case, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, hailed the ruling.

“Our Constitution clearly states that those who violate their oath by attacking our democracy are barred from serving in government,” its president, Noah Bookbinder, said in a statement.

Trump’s attorneys also had urged the Colorado high court to reverse Wallace’s ruling that Trump incited the Jan. 6 attack. His lawyers argued the then-president had simply been using his free speech rights and hadn’t called for violence. Trump attorney Scott Gessler also argued the attack was more of a “riot” than an insurrection.

That met skepticism from several of the justices.

“Why isn’t it enough that a violent mob breached the Capitol when Congress was performing a core constitutional function?” Justice William W. Hood III said during the Dec. 6 arguments. “In some ways, that seems like a poster child for insurrection.”

In the ruling issued Tuesday, the court's majority dismissed the arguments that Trump wasn’t responsible for his supporters’ violent attack, which was intended to halt Congress' certification of the presidential vote: “President Trump then gave a speech in which he literally exhorted his supporters to fight at the Capitol,” they wrote.

Colorado Supreme Court Justices Richard L. Gabriel, Melissa Hart, Monica Márquez and Hood ruled for the petitioners. Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright dissented, arguing the constitutional questions were too complex to be solved in a state hearing. Justices Maria E. Berkenkotter and Carlos Samour also dissented.

“Our government cannot deprive someone of the right to hold public office without due process of law,” Samour wrote in his dissent. “Even if we are convinced that a candidate committed horrible acts in the past — dare I say, engaged in insurrection — there must be procedural due process before we can declare that individual disqualified from holding public office.”

The Colorado ruling stands in contrast with the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-election-president-f6b72c94bb351c1b870d4884e54f6a75">Minnesota Supreme Court</a>, which last month decided that the state party can put anyone it wants on its primary ballot. It dismissed a Section 3 lawsuit but said the plaintiffs could try again during the general election.

In another 14th Amendment case,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-ballot-michigan-b2a870f98a60dffbe4c9566cfe97457c">a Michigan judge</a>&nbsp;ruled that Congress, not the judiciary, should decide whether Trump can stay on the ballot. That ruling is&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-michigan-appeal-c6b66ef9ed85734305ff2dd27023447d">being appealed</a>. The liberal group behind those cases, Free Speech For People, also filed another lawsuit in Oregon seeking to bounce Trump from the ballot there.

Both groups are financed by liberal donors who also support President Joe Biden. Trump has blamed the president for the lawsuits against him, even though Biden has no role in them, saying his rival is “defacing the constitution” to try to end his campaign.

Trump’s allies rushed to his defense, slamming the decision as “un-American” and “insane” and part of a politically-motivated effort to destroy his candidacy.

“Four partisan Democrat operatives on the Colorado Supreme Court think they get to decide for all Coloradans and Americans the next presidential election,” House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik said in a statement.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/12/1703040304815.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>DENVER (AP) — A divided Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday declared former President Donald Trump ineligible for the White House under the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause and removed him from the state’s presidential primary ballot, setting up a likely showdown in the nation’s highest court to decide whether the front-runner for the GOP nomination can remain in the raceOn social media, Kansas U.S. Senator Roger Marshall blasted the decision, "&nbsp;Colorado Democrats: If you can't beat him, take him off the ballot. This unprecedented weaponization of the 14th Amendment will only make victory that much sweeter on Nov. 5th, 2024."<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">The Left invokes “democracy” to justify its use of power, even if it means abusing judicial power to remove a candidate from the ballot based on spurious legal grounds. SCOTUS should reverse. <a href="https://t.co/D4pCzZ7FhY">https://t.co/D4pCzZ7FhY</a>&mdash; Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) <a href="https://twitter.com/RonDeSantis/status/1737297350257693102?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 20, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/12/1703039912250.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>The decision from a court whose justices were all appointed by Democratic governors marks the first time in history that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-14th-amendment-insurrection-2024-election-ballot-9c5f79203109ba221b35a48e708ad725">Section 3 of the 14th Amendment</a>&nbsp;has been used to disqualify a presidential candidate.“A majority of the court holds that Trump is disqualified from holding the office of president under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment,” the court wrote in its 4-3 decision.Colorado’s highest court overturned a ruling from a district court judge who found that Trump incited an insurrection for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, but said he could not be barred from the ballot because it was unclear that the provision was intended to cover the presidency.The court stayed its decision until Jan. 4, or until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the case. Colorado officials say the issue must be settled by Jan. 5, the deadline for the state to print its presidential primary ballots.“We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” wrote the court’s majority. “We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.”Trump’s attorneys had promised to appeal any disqualification immediately to the nation's highest court, which has the final say about constitutional matters.Trump's legal spokeswoman Alina Habba said in a statement Tuesday night: “This ruling, issued by the Colorado Supreme Court, attacks the very heart of this nation’s democracy. It will not stand, and we trust that the Supreme Court will reverse this unconstitutional order.”Trump didn't mention the decision during a rally Tuesday evening in Waterloo, Iowa, but his campaign sent out a fundraising email citing what it called a “tyrannical ruling.”Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel labeled the decision “Election interference” and said the RNC’s legal team intends to help Trump fight the ruling.Trump lost Colorado by 13 percentage points in 2020 and doesn’t need the state to win next year’s presidential election. But the danger for the former president is that more courts and election officials will follow Colorado’s lead and exclude Trump from must-win states.Dozens of lawsuits have been filed nationally to disqualify Trump under Section 3, which was designed to keep former Confederates from returning to government after the Civil War. It bars from office anyone who swore an oath to “support” the Constitution and then “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against it, and has been used only a handful of times since the decade after the Civil War.“I think it may embolden other state courts or secretaries to act now that the bandage has been ripped off,” Derek Muller, a Notre Dame law professor who has closely followed the Section 3 cases, said after Tuesday's ruling. “This is a major threat to Trump’s candidacy.”The Colorado case is the first where the plaintiffs succeeded. After a weeklong hearing in November, District Judge Sarah B. Wallace found that Trump indeed had “engaged in insurrection” by inciting the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-confirm-joe-biden-78104aea082995bbd7412a6e6cd13818">Jan. 6 attack</a>&nbsp;on the Capitol, and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-amendment-2024-ballot-colorado-5b6e40f069abc1b8604ec37c46621055">her ruling that kept him on the ballot</a>&nbsp;was a fairly technical one.Trump’s attorneys convinced Wallace that, because the language in Section 3 refers to “officers of the United States” who take an oath to “support” the Constitution, it must not apply to the president, who is not included as an “officer of the United States” elsewhere in the document and whose oath is to “preserve, protect and defend” the Constitution.The provision also says offices covered include senator, representative, electors of the president and vice president, and all others “under the United States,” but doesn’t name the presidency.The state’s highest court didn’t agree, siding with attorneys for six Colorado Republican and unaffiliated voters who argued that it was nonsensical to imagine that the framers of the amendment, fearful of former confederates returning to power, would bar them from low-level offices but not the highest one in the land.“President Trump asks us to hold that Section 3 disqualifies every oathbreaking insurrectionist except the most powerful one and that it bars oath-breakers from virtually every office, both state and federal, except the highest one in the land,” the court’s majority opinion said. “Both results are inconsistent with the plain language and history of Section 3.”The left-leaning group that brought the Colorado case, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, hailed the ruling.“Our Constitution clearly states that those who violate their oath by attacking our democracy are barred from serving in government,” its president, Noah Bookbinder, said in a statement.Trump’s attorneys also had urged the Colorado high court to reverse Wallace’s ruling that Trump incited the Jan. 6 attack. His lawyers argued the then-president had simply been using his free speech rights and hadn’t called for violence. Trump attorney Scott Gessler also argued the attack was more of a “riot” than an insurrection.That met skepticism from several of the justices.“Why isn’t it enough that a violent mob breached the Capitol when Congress was performing a core constitutional function?” Justice William W. Hood III said during the Dec. 6 arguments. “In some ways, that seems like a poster child for insurrection.”In the ruling issued Tuesday, the court's majority dismissed the arguments that Trump wasn’t responsible for his supporters’ violent attack, which was intended to halt Congress' certification of the presidential vote: “President Trump then gave a speech in which he literally exhorted his supporters to fight at the Capitol,” they wrote.Colorado Supreme Court Justices Richard L. Gabriel, Melissa Hart, Monica Márquez and Hood ruled for the petitioners. Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright dissented, arguing the constitutional questions were too complex to be solved in a state hearing. Justices Maria E. Berkenkotter and Carlos Samour also dissented.“Our government cannot deprive someone of the right to hold public office without due process of law,” Samour wrote in his dissent. “Even if we are convinced that a candidate committed horrible acts in the past — dare I say, engaged in insurrection — there must be procedural due process before we can declare that individual disqualified from holding public office.”The Colorado ruling stands in contrast with the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-election-president-f6b72c94bb351c1b870d4884e54f6a75">Minnesota Supreme Court</a>, which last month decided that the state party can put anyone it wants on its primary ballot. It dismissed a Section 3 lawsuit but said the plaintiffs could try again during the general election.In another 14th Amendment case,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-ballot-michigan-b2a870f98a60dffbe4c9566cfe97457c">a Michigan judge</a>&nbsp;ruled that Congress, not the judiciary, should decide whether Trump can stay on the ballot. That ruling is&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-michigan-appeal-c6b66ef9ed85734305ff2dd27023447d">being appealed</a>. The liberal group behind those cases, Free Speech For People, also filed another lawsuit in Oregon seeking to bounce Trump from the ballot there.Both groups are financed by liberal donors who also support President Joe Biden. Trump has blamed the president for the lawsuits against him, even though Biden has no role in them, saying his rival is “defacing the constitution” to try to end his campaign.Trump’s allies rushed to his defense, slamming the decision as “un-American” and “insane” and part of a politically-motivated effort to destroy his candidacy.“Four partisan Democrat operatives on the Colorado Supreme Court think they get to decide for all Coloradans and Americans the next presidential election,” House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik said in a statement.

Kan. U.S. Senator blasts decision to kick Trump off ballot in Colorado

WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS said Tuesday it is going to waive penalty fees for people who failed to pay back taxes that total less than $100,000 per year for tax years 2020 and 2021.

Nearly 5 million people, businesses and tax-exempt organizations — most making under $400,000 per year — will be eligible for the relief starting this week, which totals about $1 billion, the agency said.

The IRS temporarily suspended mailing automated reminders to pay overdue tax bills during the pandemic, beginning in February 2022, and agency leadership says the pause in automated reminders is a reason behind the decision to forgive the failure-to-pay penalties.

“Due to the unprecedented effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, these reminders would have normally been issued as a follow up after the initial notice,” the IRS said in a statement.

“Although these reminder notices were suspended, the failure-to-pay penalty continues to accrue for taxpayers who did not fully pay their bills in response to the initial balance due notice.”

While the IRS plans to resume sending out normal collection notices, the Tuesday announcement is meant as one-time relief based on the unprecedented interruption caused by the pandemic, IRS officials said.

“It was an extraordinary time and the IRS had to take extraordinary steps,” IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel told reporters. He said the change will be automatic for many taxpayers and will not require additional action.

Taxpayers are eligible for automatic relief if they filed a Form 1040, 1041, 1120 series or Form 990-T tax return for years 2020 or 2021, owe less than $100,000 per year in back taxes, and received an initial balance-due notice between Feb. 5, 2022 and Dec. 7, 2023.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS said Tuesday it is going to waive penalty fees for people who failed to pay back taxes that total less than $100,000 per year for tax years 2020 and 2021.Nearly 5 million people, businesses and tax-exempt organizations — most making under $400,000 per year — will be eligible for the relief starting this week, which totals about $1 billion, the agency said.The IRS temporarily suspended mailing automated reminders to pay overdue tax bills during the pandemic, beginning in February 2022, and agency leadership says the pause in automated reminders is a reason behind the decision to forgive the failure-to-pay penalties.“Due to the unprecedented effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, these reminders would have normally been issued as a follow up after the initial notice,” the IRS said in a statement.“Although these reminder notices were suspended, the failure-to-pay penalty continues to accrue for taxpayers who did not fully pay their bills in response to the initial balance due notice.”While the IRS plans to resume sending out normal collection notices, the Tuesday announcement is meant as one-time relief based on the unprecedented interruption caused by the pandemic, IRS officials said.“It was an extraordinary time and the IRS had to take extraordinary steps,” IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel told reporters. He said the change will be automatic for many taxpayers and will not require additional action.Taxpayers are eligible for automatic relief if they filed a Form 1040, 1041, 1120 series or Form 990-T tax return for years 2020 or 2021, owe less than $100,000 per year in back taxes, and received an initial balance-due notice between Feb. 5, 2022 and Dec. 7, 2023.

Christmas bonus: IRS cancels $1 billion in taxpayer penalties 

DENVER (AP) — A divided Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday declared former President Donald Trump ineligible for the White House under the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause and removed him from the state’s presidential primary ballot, setting up a likely showdown in the nation’s highest court to decide whether the front-runner for the GOP nomination can remain in the race.

The court stayed its decision until Jan. 4, or until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the case.

"The Colorado Supreme Court issued a completely flawed decision tonight and we will swiftly file an appeal to the United States Supreme Court and a concurrent request for a stay of this deeply undemocratic decision,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement Tuesday night.

Colorado officials say the issue must be settled by Jan. 5, the deadline for the state to print its presidential primary ballots.

The state’s highest court didn’t agree, siding with attorneys for six Colorado Republican and unaffiliated voters who argued that it was nonsensical to imagine the framers of the amendment, fearful of former Confederates returning to power, would bar them from low-level offices but not the highest one in the land.

“You’d be saying a rebel who took up arms against the government couldn’t be a county sheriff, but could be the president,” attorney Jason Murray said in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-2024-ballot-14th-amendment-insurrection-f865cff9bdc5ac7ab61d63a3742a3630">arguments before the court</a>&nbsp;in early December.

Trump’s attorneys argued unsuccessfully that the writers of the amendment expected the Electoral College to prevent former insurrectionists from becoming president.

They also had urged the Colorado high court to reverse Wallace’s ruling that Trump incited the Jan. 6 attack. His lawyers argued the then-president had simply been using his free speech rights and hadn’t called for violence. Trump attorney Scott Gessler also argued the attack was more of a “riot” than an insurrection.

Colorado Supreme Court Justices Richard L. Gabriel, Melissa Hart, William W. Hood III and Monica Márquez ruled for the petitioners. Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright dissented, arguing the constitutional questions were too complex to be solved in a state hearing. Justices Maria E. Berkenkotter and Carlos Samour also dissented.

In another 14th Amendment case,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-ballot-michigan-b2a870f98a60dffbe4c9566cfe97457c">a Michigan judge</a>&nbsp;ruled that Congress, not the judiciary, should decide whether Trump can stay on the ballot. That ruling is&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-michigan-appeal-c6b66ef9ed85734305ff2dd27023447d">being appealed</a>.

The liberal group behind those cases, Free Speech For People, also filed another lawsuit in Oregon seeking to bounce Trump from the ballot there. The Colorado case was filed by another liberal group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/12/1703030684419.png" alt="Trump during a campaign address in Iowa December 13-image CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Trump during a campaign address in Iowa December 13-image CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>DENVER (AP) — A divided Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday declared former President Donald Trump ineligible for the White House under the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause and removed him from the state’s presidential primary ballot, setting up a likely showdown in the nation’s highest court to decide whether the front-runner for the GOP nomination can remain in the race.The decision from a court whose justices were all appointed by Democratic governors marks the first time in history that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-14th-amendment-insurrection-2024-election-ballot-9c5f79203109ba221b35a48e708ad725">Section 3 of the 14th Amendment</a>&nbsp;has been used to disqualify a presidential candidate.“A majority of the court holds that Trump is disqualified from holding the office of president under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment,” the court wrote in its 4-3 decision.Colorado’s highest court overturned a ruling from a district court judge who found that Trump incited an insurrection for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, but said he could not be barred from the ballot because it was unclear that the provision was intended to cover the presidency.The court stayed its decision until Jan. 4, or until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the case.“We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” wrote the court’s majority. “We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.”Trump’s attorneys had promised to appeal any disqualification immediately to the nation's highest court, which has the final say about constitutional matters."The Colorado Supreme Court issued a completely flawed decision tonight and we will swiftly file an appeal to the United States Supreme Court and a concurrent request for a stay of this deeply undemocratic decision,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement Tuesday night.Trump lost Colorado by 13 percentage points in 2020 and doesn’t need the state to win next year’s presidential election. But the danger for the former president is that more courts and election officials will follow Colorado’s lead and exclude Trump from must-win states.Colorado officials say the issue must be settled by Jan. 5, the deadline for the state to print its presidential primary ballots.Dozens of lawsuits have been filed nationally to disqualify Trump under Section 3, which was designed to keep former Confederates from returning to government after the Civil War. It bars from office anyone who swore an oath to “support” the Constitution and then “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against it, and has been used only a handful of times since the decade after the Civil War.The Colorado case is the first where the plaintiffs succeeded. After a weeklong hearing in November, District Judge Sarah B. Wallace found that Trump indeed had “engaged in insurrection” by inciting the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-confirm-joe-biden-78104aea082995bbd7412a6e6cd13818">Jan. 6 attack</a>&nbsp;on the Capitol, and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-amendment-2024-ballot-colorado-5b6e40f069abc1b8604ec37c46621055">her ruling that kept him on the ballot</a>&nbsp;was a fairly technical one.Trump’s attorneys convinced Wallace that, because the language in Section 3 refers to “officers of the United States” who take an oath to “support” the Constitution, it must not apply to the president, who is not included as an “officer of the United States” elsewhere in the document and whose oath is to “preserve, protect and defend” the Constitution.The provision also says offices covered include senator, representative, electors of the president and vice president, and all others “under the United States,” but doesn’t name the presidency.The state’s highest court didn’t agree, siding with attorneys for six Colorado Republican and unaffiliated voters who argued that it was nonsensical to imagine the framers of the amendment, fearful of former Confederates returning to power, would bar them from low-level offices but not the highest one in the land.“You’d be saying a rebel who took up arms against the government couldn’t be a county sheriff, but could be the president,” attorney Jason Murray said in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-2024-ballot-14th-amendment-insurrection-f865cff9bdc5ac7ab61d63a3742a3630">arguments before the court</a>&nbsp;in early December.Trump’s attorneys argued unsuccessfully that the writers of the amendment expected the Electoral College to prevent former insurrectionists from becoming president.They also had urged the Colorado high court to reverse Wallace’s ruling that Trump incited the Jan. 6 attack. His lawyers argued the then-president had simply been using his free speech rights and hadn’t called for violence. Trump attorney Scott Gessler also argued the attack was more of a “riot” than an insurrection.That met skepticism from several of the justices.“Why isn’t it enough that a violent mob breached the Capitol when Congress was performing a core constitutional function?” Justice William W. Hood III said during the Dec. 6 arguments. “In some ways, that seems like a poster child for insurrection.”In the ruling issued Tuesday, the court's majority dismissed the arguments that Trump wasn’t responsible for his supporters’ violent attack, which was intended to halt Congress' certification of the presidential vote: “President Trump then gave a speech in which he literally exhorted his supporters to fight at the Capitol,” they wrote.Colorado Supreme Court Justices Richard L. Gabriel, Melissa Hart, William W. Hood III and Monica Márquez ruled for the petitioners. Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright dissented, arguing the constitutional questions were too complex to be solved in a state hearing. Justices Maria E. Berkenkotter and Carlos Samour also dissented.“Our government cannot deprive someone of the right to hold public office without due process of law,” Samour wrote in his dissent. “Even if we are convinced that a candidate committed horrible acts in the past — dare I say, engaged in insurrection — there must be procedural due process before we can declare that individual disqualified from holding public office.”The Colorado ruling stands in contrast with the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-election-president-f6b72c94bb351c1b870d4884e54f6a75">Minnesota Supreme Court</a>, which last month decided that the state party can put anyone it wants on its primary ballot. It dismissed a Section 3 lawsuit but said the plaintiffs could try again during the general election.In another 14th Amendment case,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-ballot-michigan-b2a870f98a60dffbe4c9566cfe97457c">a Michigan judge</a>&nbsp;ruled that Congress, not the judiciary, should decide whether Trump can stay on the ballot. That ruling is&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-michigan-appeal-c6b66ef9ed85734305ff2dd27023447d">being appealed</a>.The liberal group behind those cases, Free Speech For People, also filed another lawsuit in Oregon seeking to bounce Trump from the ballot there. The Colorado case was filed by another liberal group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.Both groups are financed by liberal donors who also support President Joe Biden. Trump has blamed the president for the lawsuits against him, even though Biden has no role in them, saying his rival is “defacing the constitution” to try to end his campaign.___<h2>Story Details</h2>

Landmark ruling: Trump removed from ballot in Colorado

<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/nebraskas-600000-juvenile-justice-federal-grant-follows-multi-year-dry-spell/">Nebraska Examiner</a>

LINCOLN —&nbsp;Nebraska is to receive a $600,000 federal award to help prevent delinquency and protect youths in the juvenile justice system, the Department of Justice announced Thursday.

States can use the funds for a variety of youth services, including job training, mental health, substance abuse treatment and school-based programs to prevent truancy.

A DOJ news release said that Nebraska hadn’t received funding from the Title II Part B Formula Grants program since 2018. While it did not explain the gap, a program description says that a state might not receive an award if it hasn’t adequately addressed statutory state plan requirements.

Applicants have to submit a three-year plan describing how their state would use the funding. Among other requirements, they had to outline efforts to deinstitutionalize status offenders, separate youths from incarcerated adults and address racial and ethnic disparities.

“Title II funding is the clearest expression of the Justice Department’s deep commitment to supporting our youth and helping them succeed,” said Amy Solomon, assistant attorney general of the Office of Justice Program, which provides federal resources to reduce crime, advance racial equity, assist victims and enhance the rule of law.

Liz Ryan of the program said her staff worked closely with Nebraska officials to help meet grant requirements. As part of its plan, Nebraska is to fill vacancies on a state advisory group, prioritizing recruitment of members younger than 28 years old.

It also is to hire or appoint a juvenile justice specialist, a state compliance monitor and racial and ethnic disparities coordinator.

Nationwide, nearly $57 million has been invested in the Formula Grants program for fiscal year 2023. The funds are authorized under the amended Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974.

Cindy Gonzalez<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/nebraskas-600000-juvenile-justice-federal-grant-follows-multi-year-dry-spell/">Nebraska Examiner</a>LINCOLN —&nbsp;Nebraska is to receive a $600,000 federal award to help prevent delinquency and protect youths in the juvenile justice system, the Department of Justice announced Thursday.States can use the funds for a variety of youth services, including job training, mental health, substance abuse treatment and school-based programs to prevent truancy.A DOJ news release said that Nebraska hadn’t received funding from the Title II Part B Formula Grants program since 2018. While it did not explain the gap, a program description says that a state might not receive an award if it hasn’t adequately addressed statutory state plan requirements.Applicants have to submit a three-year plan describing how their state would use the funding. Among other requirements, they had to outline efforts to deinstitutionalize status offenders, separate youths from incarcerated adults and address racial and ethnic disparities.“Title II funding is the clearest expression of the Justice Department’s deep commitment to supporting our youth and helping them succeed,” said Amy Solomon, assistant attorney general of the Office of Justice Program, which provides federal resources to reduce crime, advance racial equity, assist victims and enhance the rule of law.Liz Ryan of the program said her staff worked closely with Nebraska officials to help meet grant requirements. As part of its plan, Nebraska is to fill vacancies on a state advisory group, prioritizing recruitment of members younger than 28 years old.It also is to hire or appoint a juvenile justice specialist, a state compliance monitor and racial and ethnic disparities coordinator.Nationwide, nearly $57 million has been invested in the Formula Grants program for fiscal year 2023. The funds are authorized under the amended Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974.

Nebraska’s $600,000 juvenile justice federal grant follows multi-year dry spell

LINCOLN, NEB. – In a letter to Homeland Security, Nebraska Farm Bureau (NEFB) expressed grave concern over the recent decision to close international railway entry points in Texas. The organization says&nbsp;suspending operations at the crossings in Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas will likely lead to substantial economic harm.

“The recent decision by the Biden administration to shut down two railway entries at the U.S.-Mexico border is as asinine as it is economically harmful. The crisis at our nation’s Southern border and our nation’s broken immigration and guest worker systems are all in dire need of attention. However, the repurposing of a very small handful of U.S. Customs and Border Protection employees away from these vital rail entries won’t fix these problems,” said Mark McHargue, NEFB president.

NEFB says the value of Nebraska’s agricultural trade relationship with Mexico cannot be understated as Mexico remains our largest export partner. In 2021, Nebraska farmers exported 89 percent of the state’s corn exports or $590.4 million worth of corn into Mexico. Mexico also remains Nebraska’s largest soybean customer, importing over $280.6 million worth of soybeans and soybean products.

“What this move will do is block over 60 trains or 10,000 rail cars a day from carrying grain and other consumer goods into Mexico from the United States. What this move will do is disrupt supply chains and negatively impact both the U.S. and Mexican economies. The issues that exist at our southern border didn’t appear overnight, and it absolutely will not be fixed by adding a few employees who should remain at their posts at the Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas rail crossings,” said McHargue

In the letter, NEFB pointed out the closures come at a critical time for farmers and that the rail network connecting the U.S. and Mexico is vital to the economic success of both countries.

“The timing could not be worse in that many farmers sell and deliver grain from storage during the Jan-March timeframe when prices and local basis tend to strengthen post-harvest and into the earlier part of the marketing year, said McHargue.

NEFB’s letter calls for the return of employees and reopening of the Eagle Pass and El Paso rail crossings.

The Nebraska Farm Bureau is a grassroots, state-wide organization dedicated to supporting farm and ranch families and working for the benefit of all Nebraskans through a wide variety of educational, service, and advocacy efforts. More than 55,000 families across Nebraska are Farm Bureau members, working together to achieve rural and urban prosperity as agriculture is a key fuel to Nebraska’s economy. For more information about Nebraska Farm Bureau and agriculture, visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.nefb.org/" target="_blank">www.nefb.org</a>.

Nebraska Farm BureauLINCOLN, NEB. – In a letter to Homeland Security, Nebraska Farm Bureau (NEFB) expressed grave concern over the recent decision to close international railway entry points in Texas. The organization says&nbsp;suspending operations at the crossings in Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas will likely lead to substantial economic harm.“The recent decision by the Biden administration to shut down two railway entries at the U.S.-Mexico border is as asinine as it is economically harmful. The crisis at our nation’s Southern border and our nation’s broken immigration and guest worker systems are all in dire need of attention. However, the repurposing of a very small handful of U.S. Customs and Border Protection employees away from these vital rail entries won’t fix these problems,” said Mark McHargue, NEFB president.NEFB says the value of Nebraska’s agricultural trade relationship with Mexico cannot be understated as Mexico remains our largest export partner. In 2021, Nebraska farmers exported 89 percent of the state’s corn exports or $590.4 million worth of corn into Mexico. Mexico also remains Nebraska’s largest soybean customer, importing over $280.6 million worth of soybeans and soybean products.“What this move will do is block over 60 trains or 10,000 rail cars a day from carrying grain and other consumer goods into Mexico from the United States. What this move will do is disrupt supply chains and negatively impact both the U.S. and Mexican economies. The issues that exist at our southern border didn’t appear overnight, and it absolutely will not be fixed by adding a few employees who should remain at their posts at the Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas rail crossings,” said McHargueIn the letter, NEFB pointed out the closures come at a critical time for farmers and that the rail network connecting the U.S. and Mexico is vital to the economic success of both countries.“The timing could not be worse in that many farmers sell and deliver grain from storage during the Jan-March timeframe when prices and local basis tend to strengthen post-harvest and into the earlier part of the marketing year, said McHargue.NEFB’s letter calls for the return of employees and reopening of the Eagle Pass and El Paso rail crossings.The Nebraska Farm Bureau is a grassroots, state-wide organization dedicated to supporting farm and ranch families and working for the benefit of all Nebraskans through a wide variety of educational, service, and advocacy efforts. More than 55,000 families across Nebraska are Farm Bureau members, working together to achieve rural and urban prosperity as agriculture is a key fuel to Nebraska’s economy. For more information about Nebraska Farm Bureau and agriculture, visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.nefb.org/" target="_blank">www.nefb.org</a>.

Nebraska Farm Bureau Calls for Ending of Border Rail Crossing Closures

DALLAS (AP) — Southwest Airlines will pay a $35 million fine as part of a $140 million settlement to resolve a federal investigation into a debacle in December 2022 when the airline canceled thousands of flights and stranded more than 2 million travelers over the holidays.

Most of the settlement will go toward compensating future passengers, which the U.S. Department of Transportation considers an incentive for Southwest to avoid repeating last winter’s mess.

The government said the assessment was the largest it has ever imposed on an airline for violating consumer protection laws.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the settlement demonstrates his agency’s resolve to make airlines take care of their passengers.

Southwest said it was “grateful to have reached a consumer-friendly settlement” that gives the airline credit for compensation it already provided to customers. The airline said it has “learned from the event, and now can shift its entire focus to the future.”

The assessment stems from nearly 17,000 canceled flights a year ago, which&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/kansas-city-plants-dallas-district-of-columbia-business-d2034f41df7a4f78de02db8aa4ba11df" target="_blank">started as</a>&nbsp;a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/winter-storm-forecast-updates-d0808da42ce16e8a0ca4541b747572cb" target="_blank">winter storm</a>&nbsp;paralyzed Southwest operations in Denver and Chicago and then snowballed when a crew-rescheduling system couldn’t keep up with the chaos.

Even before the settlement, the nation’s fourth-biggest airline by revenue said the meltdown cost it&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-c679b26a8efe039f1881a2edb6535d01" target="_blank">more than $1.1 billion</a>&nbsp;in refunds and reimbursements, extra costs and lost ticket sales over several months.

The government said in a consent decree dated Friday that Southwest “violated the law on numerous occasions,” including by failing to help customers who were stranded in airports and hotels, leaving many of them to scramble for other flights.

Many who called the airline’s overwhelmed customer service center got a busy signal or were stuck on hold for hours.

Southwest also did not keep customers updated about canceled and delayed flights, failing to fulfill a requirement that airlines notify the public within 30 minutes of a change. Some said they never got an email or text notice and couldn’t access Southwest’s website.

The government also charged Southwest did not provide refunds quickly enough. People who made a mistake entering details in refund requests to a special Southwest website were not told to fix the error; they simply didn’t get the money. Others didn’t receive immediate refunds for things like pet fees and boarding upgrades that went unused because of canceled flights, according to the department.

In the consent order, Dallas-based Southwest disputed many of the Transportation Department’s findings.

Southwest said that only a small percentage of refunds were issued late and that it never gave false promises about long wait times for reaching customer service during weather-related disruptions. Still, the company said it entered the agreement just to settle the matter.

Southwest said the 2022 storm that produced record cold temperatures, blizzards and power outages a few days before Christmas created “unanticipated operational challenges.” The airline said it quickly began reimbursing travelers for meals, hotels and alternative transportation and also distributed frequent flyer points.

Southwest has added trucks and other&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/southwest-airlines-cancellations-technology-weather-314069ab4bb9de5eb804c566927606ec" target="_blank">de-icing equipment</a>&nbsp;and will increase staff during extreme cold temperatures at key airports such as Denver, CEO Robert Jordan said.

Southwest had previously agreed to make more than $600 million in refunds and reimbursements. Still, the carrier disclosed in October that federal officials found its efforts fell short and the carrier&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/southwest-airlines-december-cancellations-04b7dcd50716b5ce0cccfc32457160e0" target="_blank">could face a civil penalty</a>&nbsp;over its service to customers.

The settlement provides that in addition to the $35 million fine, Southwest will get $33 million in credit for compensation already handed out, mostly for giving 25,000 frequent flyer points each, worth about $300, to affected customers. The company promised to give out $90 million in vouchers to future travelers.

Starting next spring and running until April 2027, Southwest will provide a voucher of at least $75 to travelers who request them if they reach their destination at least three hours late because of a delay or flight cancellation caused by the airline.

The government values vouchers at 80% of their face value, so Southwest received credit for $72 million for the future vouchers, not the full $90 million to be distributed over three years. If Southwest pays out less than $30 million in any of those years, it will owe the government a penalty of 80% of any shortfall.

In exchange for Southwest agreeing to the fine and other measures, the government stopped short of deciding whether the airline advertised a flight schedule that it knew could not be kept. Buttigieg had raised that charge publicly.

The Transportation Department said it reviewed thousands of consumer complaints, visited Southwest facilities and met with senior company officials during the investigation.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1672191058148.png" alt="Southwest Airlines scrubbed thousands of flights last December in the aftermath of the massive winter storm that wrecked Christmas travel plans across the U.S- photo courtesy KMGH" />
 <figcaption>Southwest Airlines scrubbed thousands of flights last December in the aftermath of the massive winter storm that wrecked Christmas travel plans across the U.S- photo courtesy KMGH</figcaption>
 </figure>DALLAS (AP) — Southwest Airlines will pay a $35 million fine as part of a $140 million settlement to resolve a federal investigation into a debacle in December 2022 when the airline canceled thousands of flights and stranded more than 2 million travelers over the holidays.Most of the settlement will go toward compensating future passengers, which the U.S. Department of Transportation considers an incentive for Southwest to avoid repeating last winter’s mess.The government said the assessment was the largest it has ever imposed on an airline for violating consumer protection laws.Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the settlement demonstrates his agency’s resolve to make airlines take care of their passengers.Southwest said it was “grateful to have reached a consumer-friendly settlement” that gives the airline credit for compensation it already provided to customers. The airline said it has “learned from the event, and now can shift its entire focus to the future.”The assessment stems from nearly 17,000 canceled flights a year ago, which&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/kansas-city-plants-dallas-district-of-columbia-business-d2034f41df7a4f78de02db8aa4ba11df" target="_blank">started as</a>&nbsp;a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/winter-storm-forecast-updates-d0808da42ce16e8a0ca4541b747572cb" target="_blank">winter storm</a>&nbsp;paralyzed Southwest operations in Denver and Chicago and then snowballed when a crew-rescheduling system couldn’t keep up with the chaos.Even before the settlement, the nation’s fourth-biggest airline by revenue said the meltdown cost it&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-c679b26a8efe039f1881a2edb6535d01" target="_blank">more than $1.1 billion</a>&nbsp;in refunds and reimbursements, extra costs and lost ticket sales over several months.The government said in a consent decree dated Friday that Southwest “violated the law on numerous occasions,” including by failing to help customers who were stranded in airports and hotels, leaving many of them to scramble for other flights.Many who called the airline’s overwhelmed customer service center got a busy signal or were stuck on hold for hours.Southwest also did not keep customers updated about canceled and delayed flights, failing to fulfill a requirement that airlines notify the public within 30 minutes of a change. Some said they never got an email or text notice and couldn’t access Southwest’s website.The government also charged Southwest did not provide refunds quickly enough. People who made a mistake entering details in refund requests to a special Southwest website were not told to fix the error; they simply didn’t get the money. Others didn’t receive immediate refunds for things like pet fees and boarding upgrades that went unused because of canceled flights, according to the department.In the consent order, Dallas-based Southwest disputed many of the Transportation Department’s findings.Southwest said that only a small percentage of refunds were issued late and that it never gave false promises about long wait times for reaching customer service during weather-related disruptions. Still, the company said it entered the agreement just to settle the matter.Southwest said the 2022 storm that produced record cold temperatures, blizzards and power outages a few days before Christmas created “unanticipated operational challenges.” The airline said it quickly began reimbursing travelers for meals, hotels and alternative transportation and also distributed frequent flyer points.Southwest has added trucks and other&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/southwest-airlines-cancellations-technology-weather-314069ab4bb9de5eb804c566927606ec" target="_blank">de-icing equipment</a>&nbsp;and will increase staff during extreme cold temperatures at key airports such as Denver, CEO Robert Jordan said.Southwest had previously agreed to make more than $600 million in refunds and reimbursements. Still, the carrier disclosed in October that federal officials found its efforts fell short and the carrier&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/southwest-airlines-december-cancellations-04b7dcd50716b5ce0cccfc32457160e0" target="_blank">could face a civil penalty</a>&nbsp;over its service to customers.The settlement provides that in addition to the $35 million fine, Southwest will get $33 million in credit for compensation already handed out, mostly for giving 25,000 frequent flyer points each, worth about $300, to affected customers. The company promised to give out $90 million in vouchers to future travelers.Starting next spring and running until April 2027, Southwest will provide a voucher of at least $75 to travelers who request them if they reach their destination at least three hours late because of a delay or flight cancellation caused by the airline.The government values vouchers at 80% of their face value, so Southwest received credit for $72 million for the future vouchers, not the full $90 million to be distributed over three years. If Southwest pays out less than $30 million in any of those years, it will owe the government a penalty of 80% of any shortfall.In exchange for Southwest agreeing to the fine and other measures, the government stopped short of deciding whether the airline advertised a flight schedule that it knew could not be kept. Buttigieg had raised that charge publicly.The Transportation Department said it reviewed thousands of consumer complaints, visited Southwest facilities and met with senior company officials during the investigation.

$90M in vouchers for future travelers after holiday travel nightmare

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://pronto.associatedpress.com/Legal%20experts%20have%20called%20the%20measure%20a%20flagrant%20violation%20of%20the%20U.S.%20government's%20purview%20over%20immigration%20enforcement.">Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott</a>&nbsp;on Monday approved&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/texas-immigration-migrants-arrest-explainer-306f644e8bb95333b078ed3923adacf0">sweeping new powers</a>&nbsp;that allow police to arrest migrants who illegally cross the U.S. border and give local judges authority to order them to leave the country, testing the limits of how far a state can go to enforce immigration laws.

Opponents have called the measure the most dramatic attempt by a state to police immigration since a 2010 Arizona law — denounced by critics as the “Show Me Your Papers” bill — that was largely&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/57fd255191214d54b420a39a96b82451">struck down</a>&nbsp;by the U.S. Supreme Court. Immigration enforcement is a federal responsibility, and Texas’ law is also likely to face swift legal challenges.

The law, which takes effect in March, allows any Texas law enforcement officer to arrest people who are suspected of entering the country illegally. Once in custody, they could either agree to a Texas judge’s order to leave the U.S. or be prosecuted on misdemeanor charges of illegal entry. Migrants who don’t leave could face arrest again under more serious felony charges.

Abbott, who signed the law in front of a section of border fence in Brownsville, predicted the number of people crossing illegally into Texas would drop by “well over 50%, maybe 75%." He did not offer evidence for that estimate.

“The consequences of it are so extreme that the people being smuggled by the cartels, they will not want to be coming into the state of Texas," he said.

The law adds another tension point over immigration amid a struggle between the White House and Senate negotiators&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/border-security-ukraine-congress-senate-biden-cb8d4e3ad8271323cfd9294b527d6615">to reach a deal on border security</a>. Republicans in Congress are demanding changes to the immigration system in exchange for any help for Ukraine, Israel and other national security needs.

Texas Republicans have increasingly challenged the U.S. government’s authority over immigration, saying President Joe Biden's administration isn’t doing enough to control the 1,950-mile (3,149-kilometer) southern border. Texas has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/migrants-los-angeles-california-texas-immigration-abbott-3fdb47985b34cd8301b61251b590778c">bused more than 65,000 migrants</a>&nbsp;to cities across America since August 2022 and recently&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/texas-immigration-border-wire-522e993680a4d729e538a53a788ec185">installed razor wire</a>&nbsp;along the banks of the Rio Grande, which has snagged and injured some asylum-seekers.

The U.S. government on Monday temporarily shut down two railroad border crossings in Texas, a move that rail operators said would hamper trade ahead of Christmas. Troy Miller, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s acting commissioner, said the closures at Eagle Pass and El Paso were a response to more migrants traveling on freight trains, particularly over the last week.

Miller said authorities are seeing “unprecedented” arrivals at the border, topping 10,000 crossings on some days this month.

Shortly after Abbott signed the new law, the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas said it would challenge the measure in court. More than 20 congressional Democrats also signed a letter urging the U.S. Justice Department to sue to stop the law, known as Senate Bill 4.

“SB 4 is dangerous for the people of Texas and interferes with the federal government’s exclusive authority over immigration and foreign affairs," the letter read.

Mexico’s government also has rebuked the measure. Under bilateral and international agreements, Mexico is required to accept deportations of its own citizens, but not those of other countries. Under the Texas law, migrants ordered to leave would be sent to ports of entry along the border with Mexico, even if they are not Mexican citizens. In September and October,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/border-arrests-venezuela-mexico-a89f66759ac97c7ec62e4559af4e48a3">Venezuelans were the largest nationality</a>&nbsp;arrested for illegally crossing the U.S. border.

During debate in the Texas House in November, GOP state Rep. David Spiller pushed back against concerns that the law would be used as a dragnet to arrest immigrants statewide. He said enforcement would mostly take place in border counties. But he also rebuffed several efforts by Democrats to narrow the law, including a proposed carve-out for police on college campuses.

Because the illegal entry charge is a misdemeanor, which has a statue of limitation of two years, Spiller has said the law will not be used to target immigrants who have long been settled in the U.S.

“This is not, ‘Round up everyone who is here illegally and ship them back to Mexico,’” he said during debate over the bill.

Opponents have accused Texas Republicans of using the law as a vehicle to force the Supreme Court’s new conservative majority to revisit its landmark 2012 Arizona decision. At the time, Justice Anthony Kennedy said Arizona may have “understandable frustrations” with immigrants who are in the country illegally but that it can’t pursue policies that “undermine federal law.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/12/1702952665492.png" alt="Gov. Greg Abbott signed three bills into law at a border wall construction site in Brownsville, Texas on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, that will broaden his border security plans and add funding for more infrastructure to deter illegal immigration. (AP Photo/Valerie Gonzalez)" />
 <figcaption>Gov. Greg Abbott signed three bills into law at a border wall construction site in Brownsville, Texas on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, that will broaden his border security plans and add funding for more infrastructure to deter illegal immigration. (AP Photo/Valerie Gonzalez)</figcaption>
 </figure>BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://pronto.associatedpress.com/Legal%20experts%20have%20called%20the%20measure%20a%20flagrant%20violation%20of%20the%20U.S.%20government's%20purview%20over%20immigration%20enforcement.">Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott</a>&nbsp;on Monday approved&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/texas-immigration-migrants-arrest-explainer-306f644e8bb95333b078ed3923adacf0">sweeping new powers</a>&nbsp;that allow police to arrest migrants who illegally cross the U.S. border and give local judges authority to order them to leave the country, testing the limits of how far a state can go to enforce immigration laws.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FTexasGovernor%2Fvideos%2F1979749065731909%2F&show_text=false&width=560&t=40" width="560" height="314" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>Opponents have called the measure the most dramatic attempt by a state to police immigration since a 2010 Arizona law — denounced by critics as the “Show Me Your Papers” bill — that was largely&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/57fd255191214d54b420a39a96b82451">struck down</a>&nbsp;by the U.S. Supreme Court. Immigration enforcement is a federal responsibility, and Texas’ law is also likely to face swift legal challenges.The law, which takes effect in March, allows any Texas law enforcement officer to arrest people who are suspected of entering the country illegally. Once in custody, they could either agree to a Texas judge’s order to leave the U.S. or be prosecuted on misdemeanor charges of illegal entry. Migrants who don’t leave could face arrest again under more serious felony charges.Abbott, who signed the law in front of a section of border fence in Brownsville, predicted the number of people crossing illegally into Texas would drop by “well over 50%, maybe 75%." He did not offer evidence for that estimate.“The consequences of it are so extreme that the people being smuggled by the cartels, they will not want to be coming into the state of Texas," he said.The law adds another tension point over immigration amid a struggle between the White House and Senate negotiators&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/border-security-ukraine-congress-senate-biden-cb8d4e3ad8271323cfd9294b527d6615">to reach a deal on border security</a>. Republicans in Congress are demanding changes to the immigration system in exchange for any help for Ukraine, Israel and other national security needs.Texas Republicans have increasingly challenged the U.S. government’s authority over immigration, saying President Joe Biden's administration isn’t doing enough to control the 1,950-mile (3,149-kilometer) southern border. Texas has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/migrants-los-angeles-california-texas-immigration-abbott-3fdb47985b34cd8301b61251b590778c">bused more than 65,000 migrants</a>&nbsp;to cities across America since August 2022 and recently&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/texas-immigration-border-wire-522e993680a4d729e538a53a788ec185">installed razor wire</a>&nbsp;along the banks of the Rio Grande, which has snagged and injured some asylum-seekers.The U.S. government on Monday temporarily shut down two railroad border crossings in Texas, a move that rail operators said would hamper trade ahead of Christmas. Troy Miller, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s acting commissioner, said the closures at Eagle Pass and El Paso were a response to more migrants traveling on freight trains, particularly over the last week.Miller said authorities are seeing “unprecedented” arrivals at the border, topping 10,000 crossings on some days this month.Shortly after Abbott signed the new law, the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas said it would challenge the measure in court. More than 20 congressional Democrats also signed a letter urging the U.S. Justice Department to sue to stop the law, known as Senate Bill 4.“SB 4 is dangerous for the people of Texas and interferes with the federal government’s exclusive authority over immigration and foreign affairs," the letter read.Mexico’s government also has rebuked the measure. Under bilateral and international agreements, Mexico is required to accept deportations of its own citizens, but not those of other countries. Under the Texas law, migrants ordered to leave would be sent to ports of entry along the border with Mexico, even if they are not Mexican citizens. In September and October,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/border-arrests-venezuela-mexico-a89f66759ac97c7ec62e4559af4e48a3">Venezuelans were the largest nationality</a>&nbsp;arrested for illegally crossing the U.S. border.During debate in the Texas House in November, GOP state Rep. David Spiller pushed back against concerns that the law would be used as a dragnet to arrest immigrants statewide. He said enforcement would mostly take place in border counties. But he also rebuffed several efforts by Democrats to narrow the law, including a proposed carve-out for police on college campuses.Because the illegal entry charge is a misdemeanor, which has a statue of limitation of two years, Spiller has said the law will not be used to target immigrants who have long been settled in the U.S.“This is not, ‘Round up everyone who is here illegally and ship them back to Mexico,’” he said during debate over the bill.Opponents have accused Texas Republicans of using the law as a vehicle to force the Supreme Court’s new conservative majority to revisit its landmark 2012 Arizona decision. At the time, Justice Anthony Kennedy said Arizona may have “understandable frustrations” with immigrants who are in the country illegally but that it can’t pursue policies that “undermine federal law.”___

Immigration showdown: New Texas law lets police arrest illegals

MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — The U.S. and a host of other nations are creating a new force to protect&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/red-sea-ship-attacks-bp-yemen-houthis-dcece18717aa59648ff9a6b04fbc798c">ships transiting the Red Sea</a>&nbsp;that have come under attack by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthi-ship-attack-israel-hamas-69289146266b9042b5896aa4679605ef">drones and ballistic missiles</a>&nbsp;fired from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced Tuesday in Bahrain.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/12/1702947351254.png" alt="Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III greets Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in Tel Aviv, Israel, Dec. 18, 2023. Austin traveled to Israel to meet with counterparts and underscore unwavering U.S. commitment to Israel's right to defend itself in accordance with international humanitarian law.&nbsp;Photo By:Chad McNeeley, DOD" />
 <figcaption>Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III greets Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in Tel Aviv, Israel, Dec. 18, 2023. Austin traveled to Israel to meet with counterparts and underscore unwavering U.S. commitment to Israel's right to defend itself in accordance with international humanitarian law.&nbsp;Photo By:Chad McNeeley, DOD</figcaption>
 </figure>MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — The U.S. and a host of other nations are creating a new force to protect&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/red-sea-ship-attacks-bp-yemen-houthis-dcece18717aa59648ff9a6b04fbc798c">ships transiting the Red Sea</a>&nbsp;that have come under attack by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthi-ship-attack-israel-hamas-69289146266b9042b5896aa4679605ef">drones and ballistic missiles</a>&nbsp;fired from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced Tuesday in Bahrain.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1696803172229.png" alt="The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group arrived in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea in mid October-photo U.S. Central Command" />
 <figcaption>The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group arrived in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea in mid October-photo U.S. Central Command</figcaption>
 </figure>The seriousness of the attacks, several of which have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthi-rebels-ship-attacks-us-navy-1727df3d95e548c6e4d20b51f096268f">damaged vessels,</a>&nbsp;has led multiple shipping companies to order their ships to hold in place and not enter the Bab el-Mandeb Strait until the security situation can be addressed.The U.S. military's Central Command reported two more of the attacks on commercial vessels Monday. A strike by an attack drone and a ballistic missile hit a tanker off Yemen, at roughly the same time a cargo ship reported an explosive detonating in the water near them, the military said.“This is an international challenge that demands collective action,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement released just after midnight in Bahrain. “Therefore today I am announcing the establishment of Operation Prosperity Guardian, an important new multinational security initiative.”There are about 400 commercial vessels transiting the southern Red Sea, an area roughly the size of Washington D.C. to Boston, at any given time, a senior military official told reporters who are traveling with Austin in the region.Under the new mission, the military ships will not necessarily escort a specific vessel, but will be positioned to provide umbrella protection to as many as possible at a given time, the official said on the condition of anonymity to provide additional details not made public on how the new operation will work.Mohammed Abdel-Salam, the Houthis’ chief negotiator and spokesman, on Tuesday, challenged the U.S.-created coalition, saying the Iranian-backed rebels would continue targeting Israel-linked vessels off Yemen.“The American-formed coalition is to protect Israel and militarize the sea without any justification, and will not stop Yemen from continuing its legitimate operations in support of Gaza,” he wrote on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.He said the Houthis’ attacks “are not a show of force nor a challenge to anyone,” adding, “Whoever seeks to expand the conflict must bear the consequences of his actions.”On Tuesday the shipping company Maersk announced that for now, it had decided to re-route its ships that have been paused for days outside the strait and Red Sea, and send them around Africa through the Cape of Good Hope instead — a much longer and less efficient passage. Maersk said it welcomed the international security effort, but at the present time, the much longer route would provide "more predictable outcomes” for its customers.In the last four weeks,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-attacks-iran-ships-retaliation-15d10ed74c7f3cc7fd36fa0f77f73e54">Houthi militants</a>&nbsp;have attacked or seized commercial ships 12 times and still hold 25 members of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-houthi-rebels-hijacked-ship-red-sea-dc9b6448690bcf5c70a0baf7c7c34b09">MV Galaxy Leader hostage in Yemen,</a>&nbsp;Austin said in remarks Tuesday in a ministerial meeting on the new maritime mission. The U.S. is still actively seeking member countries to join the mission, and increase the number of navies present and participating.The United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain have joined the new maritime security mission, Austin said. Some of those countries will conduct joint patrols while others provide intelligence support in the southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.One notably absent participant is China, which has warships in the region, but those ships have not responded to previous calls for assistance by commercial vessels, even though some of the ships attacked have had ties to Hong Kong, the military official said.Several other countries have also agreed to be involved in the operation but prefer not to be publicly named, a defense official said on the condition of anonymity to discuss additional details of the new mission that have not been publicly announced.The new maritime security mission will be coordinated by the already existing Combined Task Force 153, which was set up in April 2022 to improve maritime security in the Red Sea, Bab el-Mandeb and the Gulf of Aden. While the task force has primarily provided a headquarters structure to date, the goal of the new mission is to provide ships and other assets to carry out the protection. There have been 39 member nations in CTF 153, but officials were working to determine which of them would participate in this latest effort.Separately, the United States has also called on the United Nations Security Council to take action against the attacks.In a letter to council members obtained Monday by The Associated Press, U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said Houthi attacks targeting commercial vessels legally transiting the international waterways continue to threaten “navigational rights and freedoms, international maritime security, and international commerce.”The 15 council members discussed the Houthi threat behind closed doors Monday but took no immediate action.Two U.S. warships — the USS Carney and the USS Mason, Navy destroyers — are currently moving through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to help deter and respond to attacks from the Houthis.The move to set up the expanded operation came after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/red-sea-houthi-yemen-ships-attack-israel-hamas-war-gaza-strip-716770f0a780160e9abed98d3c48fbde">three commercial vessels were struck by missiles</a>&nbsp;fired by Iranian-back Houthis in Yemen on Dec. 3. Those attacks were part of an escalating campaign of violence that also included armed and other drones launched in the direction of U.S. warships.To date, the U.S. has not struck back at the Iranian-back Houthis operating in Yemen or targeted any of the militants’ weapons or other sites. On Monday Austin did not answer a question as to why the Pentagon had not conducted a counterstrike.___