KANSAS CITY (AP) — A federal appeals court has vacated a stay of execution for a Missouri inmate who is scheduled to be executed on Tuesday for his role in the deaths of two jailers.

Michael Tisius, 42, was sentenced to death after being convicted of killing Randolph County jailers Jason Acton and Leon Egley during a failed escape attempt.

U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/execution-missouri-jailer-death-row-killing-9056cc0ebbfa8e82be8942c56583377b">issued the stay</a>&nbsp;on Wednesday and ordered an evidentiary hearing after Tisius' attorneys argued that a juror in his 2010 resentencing was illiterate, which is not allowed under state law.

On Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit said the lower court did not have jurisdiction to order the stay.

Keith O’Connor, an attorney for Tisius, said his team will appeal the decision, the Kansas City Star&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kansascity.com/news/state/missouri/article276067031.html">reported</a>.

Missourians to Abolish the Death Penalty and the Missouri NAACP have asked Republican Gov. Mike Parson to grant Tisius clemency, citing a history of abuse, that he was 19-years-old at the time of the killings, and his remorse and rehabilitation since the shootings.

In 2000, Tisius and Tracie Bulington went to the Randolph County jail to help Bulington's boyfriend, Roy Vance, escape, prosecutors said. Tisius shot and killed the jailers. The plot failed because the intruders couldn’t find the cell keys.&nbsp;Tisius and Bulington were arrested on the day of the shootings in Wathena, Kan., about 130 miles west of Huntsville.

Defense attorneys have argued that Tisius intended to order the jailers into a holding cell and free Vance and other inmates.

Tisius' defense team issued a video earlier this week in which Vance said he planned the escape attempt and manipulated Tisius into participating.

Bulington and Vance are serving life sentences.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/3/1677790581061.png" alt="Tisius-photo MODOC" />
 <figcaption>Tisius-photo MODOC</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY (AP) — A federal appeals court has vacated a stay of execution for a Missouri inmate who is scheduled to be executed on Tuesday for his role in the deaths of two jailers.Michael Tisius, 42, was sentenced to death after being convicted of killing Randolph County jailers Jason Acton and Leon Egley during a failed escape attempt.U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/execution-missouri-jailer-death-row-killing-9056cc0ebbfa8e82be8942c56583377b">issued the stay</a>&nbsp;on Wednesday and ordered an evidentiary hearing after Tisius' attorneys argued that a juror in his 2010 resentencing was illiterate, which is not allowed under state law.On Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit said the lower court did not have jurisdiction to order the stay.Keith O’Connor, an attorney for Tisius, said his team will appeal the decision, the Kansas City Star&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kansascity.com/news/state/missouri/article276067031.html">reported</a>.Missourians to Abolish the Death Penalty and the Missouri NAACP have asked Republican Gov. Mike Parson to grant Tisius clemency, citing a history of abuse, that he was 19-years-old at the time of the killings, and his remorse and rehabilitation since the shootings.In 2000, Tisius and Tracie Bulington went to the Randolph County jail to help Bulington's boyfriend, Roy Vance, escape, prosecutors said. Tisius shot and killed the jailers. The plot failed because the intruders couldn’t find the cell keys.&nbsp;Tisius and Bulington were arrested on the day of the shootings in Wathena, Kan., about 130 miles west of Huntsville.Defense attorneys have argued that Tisius intended to order the jailers into a holding cell and free Vance and other inmates.Tisius' defense team issued a video earlier this week in which Vance said he planned the escape attempt and manipulated Tisius into participating.Bulington and Vance are serving life sentences.

Federal court reinstates death penalty order for Missouri killer

MONTGOMERY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect on multiple allegations after a standoff at a Kansas home.

Just after 9p.m. Wednesday, police asked the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office for assistance with a disturbance at 903 E. 3rd Street in Caney, Kansas, according to Sheriff Ron Wade.

Deputies learned 55-year-old Patrick Griffin had made threats to cause harm to other occupants of the residence with a large hatchet.  The victims, who were able to exit the residence unharmed prior to law enforcement arrival, stated Griffin had thrown the hatchet at one of them causing them to fear for their safety. 

 The victim’s advised Griffin was still inside the residence and may also be armed with a handgun.  Deputies with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and officers with Caney Police Department surrounded the residence and began making announcements to Griffin via their PA, requesting Patrick exit the residence. 

Deputies obtained a warrant to search the residence for Griffin.  Utilizing drones and robots, deputies were able to visually clear the majority of the first floor, with the exception of two upstairs rooms due the doors being closed. 

 Deputies eventually made entry and manually cleared the first floor with no signs of the suspect.&nbsp; Deputies were able to breach both doors to the upstairs rooms and redeploy the robot.  Again, no signs of Griffin were observed. 

 Deputies then entered the rooms and manually cleared them. They located Griffin behind a false wall, hidden behind insulation. He was verbally non-compliant but deputies were able to take him into custody without further incident. 

 The hatchet was located and seized as evidence.  No firearms were located.&nbsp; Griffin is being held without bond in the Montgomery County Department of Corrections on requested charges of Aggravated Assault w/ a Deadly Weapon and Felony Interference with a Law Enforcement Officer.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1685635193267.png" alt="Griffin-photo Montgomery Co." />
 <figcaption>Griffin-photo Montgomery Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>MONTGOMERY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect on multiple allegations after a standoff at a Kansas home.Just after 9p.m. Wednesday, police asked the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office for assistance with a disturbance at 903 E. 3rd Street in Caney, Kansas, according to Sheriff Ron Wade.Deputies learned 55-year-old Patrick Griffin had made threats to cause harm to other occupants of the residence with a large hatchet. The victims, who were able to exit the residence unharmed prior to law enforcement arrival, stated Griffin had thrown the hatchet at one of them causing them to fear for their safety. The victim’s advised Griffin was still inside the residence and may also be armed with a handgun. Deputies with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and officers with Caney Police Department surrounded the residence and began making announcements to Griffin via their PA, requesting Patrick exit the residence. Deputies obtained a warrant to search the residence for Griffin. Utilizing drones and robots, deputies were able to visually clear the majority of the first floor, with the exception of two upstairs rooms due the doors being closed. Deputies eventually made entry and manually cleared the first floor with no signs of the suspect.&nbsp; Deputies were able to breach both doors to the upstairs rooms and redeploy the robot. Again, no signs of Griffin were observed. Deputies then entered the rooms and manually cleared them. They located Griffin behind a false wall, hidden behind insulation. He was verbally non-compliant but deputies were able to take him into custody without further incident. The hatchet was located and seized as evidence. No firearms were located.&nbsp; Griffin is being held without bond in the Montgomery County Department of Corrections on requested charges of Aggravated Assault w/ a Deadly Weapon and Felony Interference with a Law Enforcement Officer.

Robot helped make arrest of Kansas man who had a hatchet

PFAS have been linked to a number of health problems

By ALLISON KITE <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/04/06/epa-estimates-more-than-54000-lead-pipes-remain-in-kansas/">Kansas Reflector</a>

Most of the sample results were normal. But one stood out.&nbsp;

Drinking water in rural Barber County contained levels of perfluorooctanoic acid —&nbsp;or PFOA —&nbsp;at more than 30 times a limit under consideration by the Environmental Protection Agency.

It was the only substance the lab detected when Barber County Rural Water District #2 had its water tested for more than 20 per- and polyfluorinated substances, or PFAS. This class of chemicals, also known as “forever chemicals,” numbers in the thousands.

Despite the striking result, the water district isn’t in violation of any regulations.

Federal and state regulators are just gearing up to impose limits on PFOA and other PFAS. The district’s manager, Bill Duvall, said the district took advantage of free testing offered by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.

“We’re trying to establish a baseline, is what we’re after,” Duvall said in an interview.&nbsp;

Duvall’s water district is one of few Kansas systems that have recent sampling results for PFOA and other PFAS.

PFAS have been used in consumer products, such as nonstick pans and paint, for decades. But a growing body of research indicates the chemicals can raise the risk of cancers, obesity and infertility.&nbsp;

The EPA has proposed a limit in drinking water of four parts per trillion —&nbsp;or nanograms per liter —&nbsp;for two PFAS: PFOA and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid, or PFOS. It has also proposed limits to four more combinations of PFAS chemicals.

The agency is&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.regulations.gov/document/EPA-HQ-OW-2022-0114-0027">taking comments on the proposed limits until Tuesday</a>.

While the EPA is working to impose restrictions on PFAS in drinking water, there’s very little data about what Kansas water districts might be contaminated. While some&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.ewg.org/interactive-maps/pfas_contamination/map/">states have required their utilities to test for PFAS, Kansas is lagging</a>.&nbsp;

“It’s very mixed across the country,” said David Andrews, a senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group who has studied PFAS for more than 10 years.&nbsp;

But Andrews noted the EPA is requiring water systems that serve more than 2,000 people to sample starting this summer. Over the next year-plus, Andrews said “much more comprehensive information” will become available.&nbsp;

The EPA said in an email that testing will help determine “the frequency and magnitude at which these chemicals are found in the nation’s drinking water systems.” It’s part of the agency’s PFAS roadmap to “understand where PFAS is occurring in drinking water and to take steps to protect human health and the environment.”

That testing “could inform how communities must respond to PFAS contamination in drinking water” if EPA’s proposed limits go into effect, the agency said.&nbsp;

Barber County Rural Water District #2 had its water sampled voluntarily along with other cities and water districts from Hays and Colby to Arkansas City.&nbsp;

Sampling results obtained from KDHE through a Kansas Open Records Act request show few of the water systems had detectable levels of PFAS. But the ones sampled recently represent about 65 of the state’s 1,000 public water systems.

A spokesman for KDHE said in an email Friday that it may not be able to respond to questions because some staff members were out of the office.

Great Bend’s water barely exceeded the proposed 4 parts-per-trillion limit for PFOA and PFOS. It reported high levels of perfluorohexane sulfonic acid, or PFHxS, which EPA proposes to regulate according to a “hazard index” in combination with other PFAS compounds.&nbsp;

The water utility’s manager did not immediately respond to a voicemail requesting comment.

Larger water systems, including those in Johnson County, Topeka and Wichita, were required to test their water for PFAS between eight and 10 years ago. But those results tell little about the state of contamination.&nbsp;

Utilities weren’t required to report the results unless they exceeded 20 parts per trillion. That’s five times greater than the limits proposed by EPA, meaning even samples that could have unsafe levels of PFAS don’t show up in the&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.epa.gov/dwucmr/occurrence-data-unregulated-contaminant-monitoring-rule">data housed on the EPA website</a>.

“This is a point that’s really infuriating,” Andrews said.&nbsp;

Andrews said the labs that performed the testing didn’t necessarily share it with the EPA or water utilities.&nbsp;

“So as far as I know, that information is not accessible through any way,” he said.&nbsp;

An EPA spokesman said in an email that detections below 20 parts per trillion in that round of monitoring are only “estimated values” and not reported.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/3/1679676449852.jpg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure><h2>PFAS have been linked to a number of health problems</h2>By ALLISON KITE <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/04/06/epa-estimates-more-than-54000-lead-pipes-remain-in-kansas/">Kansas Reflector</a>Most of the sample results were normal. But one stood out.&nbsp;Drinking water in rural Barber County contained levels of perfluorooctanoic acid —&nbsp;or PFOA —&nbsp;at more than 30 times a limit under consideration by the Environmental Protection Agency.It was the only substance the lab detected when Barber County Rural Water District #2 had its water tested for more than 20 per- and polyfluorinated substances, or PFAS. This class of chemicals, also known as “forever chemicals,” numbers in the thousands.Despite the striking result, the water district isn’t in violation of any regulations.Federal and state regulators are just gearing up to impose limits on PFOA and other PFAS. The district’s manager, Bill Duvall, said the district took advantage of free testing offered by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.“We’re trying to establish a baseline, is what we’re after,” Duvall said in an interview.&nbsp;Duvall’s water district is one of few Kansas systems that have recent sampling results for PFOA and other PFAS.PFAS have been used in consumer products, such as nonstick pans and paint, for decades. But a growing body of research indicates the chemicals can raise the risk of cancers, obesity and infertility.&nbsp;The EPA has proposed a limit in drinking water of four parts per trillion —&nbsp;or nanograms per liter —&nbsp;for two PFAS: PFOA and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid, or PFOS. It has also proposed limits to four more combinations of PFAS chemicals.The agency is&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.regulations.gov/document/EPA-HQ-OW-2022-0114-0027">taking comments on the proposed limits until Tuesday</a>.While the EPA is working to impose restrictions on PFAS in drinking water, there’s very little data about what Kansas water districts might be contaminated. While some&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.ewg.org/interactive-maps/pfas_contamination/map/">states have required their utilities to test for PFAS, Kansas is lagging</a>.&nbsp;“It’s very mixed across the country,” said David Andrews, a senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group who has studied PFAS for more than 10 years.&nbsp;But Andrews noted the EPA is requiring water systems that serve more than 2,000 people to sample starting this summer. Over the next year-plus, Andrews said “much more comprehensive information” will become available.&nbsp;The EPA said in an email that testing will help determine “the frequency and magnitude at which these chemicals are found in the nation’s drinking water systems.” It’s part of the agency’s PFAS roadmap to “understand where PFAS is occurring in drinking water and to take steps to protect human health and the environment.”That testing “could inform how communities must respond to PFAS contamination in drinking water” if EPA’s proposed limits go into effect, the agency said.&nbsp;Barber County Rural Water District #2 had its water sampled voluntarily along with other cities and water districts from Hays and Colby to Arkansas City.&nbsp;Sampling results obtained from KDHE through a Kansas Open Records Act request show few of the water systems had detectable levels of PFAS. But the ones sampled recently represent about 65 of the state’s 1,000 public water systems.A spokesman for KDHE said in an email Friday that it may not be able to respond to questions because some staff members were out of the office.Great Bend’s water barely exceeded the proposed 4 parts-per-trillion limit for PFOA and PFOS. It reported high levels of perfluorohexane sulfonic acid, or PFHxS, which EPA proposes to regulate according to a “hazard index” in combination with other PFAS compounds.&nbsp;The water utility’s manager did not immediately respond to a voicemail requesting comment.Larger water systems, including those in Johnson County, Topeka and Wichita, were required to test their water for PFAS between eight and 10 years ago. But those results tell little about the state of contamination.&nbsp;Utilities weren’t required to report the results unless they exceeded 20 parts per trillion. That’s five times greater than the limits proposed by EPA, meaning even samples that could have unsafe levels of PFAS don’t show up in the&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.epa.gov/dwucmr/occurrence-data-unregulated-contaminant-monitoring-rule">data housed on the EPA website</a>.“This is a point that’s really infuriating,” Andrews said.&nbsp;Andrews said the labs that performed the testing didn’t necessarily share it with the EPA or water utilities.&nbsp;“So as far as I know, that information is not accessible through any way,” he said.&nbsp;An EPA spokesman said in an email that detections below 20 parts per trillion in that round of monitoring are only “estimated values” and not reported.

As EPA readies to limit ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water, Kan. has done little testing

LAWRENCE COUNTY —Four people died and one person was arrested for alleged felony DUI after a six vehicle accident just before 11:30a.m. Saturday in Lawrence County.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2016 Toyota Corolla driven by Theresa L. Manetzke, 51, Aurora, was southbound on MO 39 three miles north of Aurora.

The car crossed the center line and struck a northbound 2006 Harley Davidson motorcycle driven by Jesse W. Clinkingbeard, 54, Aurora; a 2000 Harley Davidson motorcycle driven by Cody J. Zielinski, 35, Aurora; a 2003 Honda motorcycle driven by James R. Olmsted, 59, Aurora; a 2000 Honda motorcycle driven by Darrell J. Trueblood, 37, Aurora and a 2005 Honda motorcycle driven by&nbsp; Kameron L. Hale, 28, Aurora.

The impact caused all the motorcycles to overturned ejecting the drivers. The 2003 Honda also caught fire.

Olmsted, Hale, Linda G. Anderson, 61, Aurora, a passenger on the 2006 Harley and a 17-year-old female passenger on the 2003 Honda were pronounced dead at the scene.

EMS transported Clinkingbeard, Zielinski, Trueblood, and three other motorcycle passengers to area hospitals. All of those on motorcycles were wearing helmets, according to the MSHP.&nbsp;&nbsp;

&nbsp;Manetzke was arrested on requested charges of DWI and released for medical treatment, according to the MSHP.

LAWRENCE COUNTY —Four people died and one person was arrested for alleged felony DUI after a six vehicle accident just before 11:30a.m. Saturday in Lawrence County.The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2016 Toyota Corolla driven by Theresa L. Manetzke, 51, Aurora, was southbound on MO 39 three miles north of Aurora.The car crossed the center line and struck a northbound 2006 Harley Davidson motorcycle driven by Jesse W. Clinkingbeard, 54, Aurora; a 2000 Harley Davidson motorcycle driven by Cody J. Zielinski, 35, Aurora; a 2003 Honda motorcycle driven by James R. Olmsted, 59, Aurora; a 2000 Honda motorcycle driven by Darrell J. Trueblood, 37, Aurora and a 2005 Honda motorcycle driven by&nbsp; Kameron L. Hale, 28, Aurora.The impact caused all the motorcycles to overturned ejecting the drivers. The 2003 Honda also caught fire.Olmsted, Hale, Linda G. Anderson, 61, Aurora, a passenger on the 2006 Harley and a 17-year-old female passenger on the 2003 Honda were pronounced dead at the scene.EMS transported Clinkingbeard, Zielinski, Trueblood, and three other motorcycle passengers to area hospitals. All of those on motorcycles were wearing helmets, according to the MSHP.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Manetzke was arrested on requested charges of DWI and released for medical treatment, according to the MSHP.

Mo. driver in crash that killed 4 motorcyclists accused of DWI

BARRY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating after several inmates escaped the Barry County jail in Cassville late Thursday, according to the Sheriff's Department.

Two correctional officers were assaulted during the escape. At least three of the escapees have been captured. Deputies, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and U.S. Marshal's service continue to search for 34-year-old Mario Che-Tiul who is facing sex crime charges and is considered armed and dangerous.

Authorities have released no additional details. Check the Post for more information as it becomes available.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1685726414366.png" alt="Mario Che-Tiul-photo Barry Co." />
 <figcaption>Mario Che-Tiul-photo Barry Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>BARRY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating after several inmates escaped the Barry County jail in Cassville late Thursday, according to the Sheriff's Department.Two correctional officers were assaulted during the escape. At least three of the escapees have been captured. Deputies, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and U.S. Marshal's service continue to search for 34-year-old Mario Che-Tiul who is facing sex crime charges and is considered armed and dangerous.Authorities have released no additional details. Check the Post for more information as it becomes available.

Search continues: Inmates escape from SW Missouri jail

By ERIKA BOLSTAD&nbsp; <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/blogs/stateline/2022/11/16/states-test-an-electrifying-idea-roads-that-can-recharge-your-ev">Stateline</a>

From its earliest days, Route 66 has reflected the American culture of the moment.

When the road connected Chicago to Los Angeles in 1926, it represented the possibility of the automobile. In the 1930s, it served as an east-to-west escape route from the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression. By the 1950s, the 2,400-mile highway lured travelers with the post-World War II promise of adventure on the open road. And as the era of interstate highway driving dawned, Route 66 began to reflect a yearning for a time when a journey was about more than the destination.

Now the eight states traversed by America’s defining highway are getting it ready for its 100th anniversary, in 2026. States are handing out grants to restore vintage neon signs along the highway. They’re installing shoulders to make the road safer for bicyclists and improving signage to make the route more obvious through cities. And they’re installing charging stations that will make it easier to travel the entire length in an electric vehicle.

The iconic highway has always been “the ultimate symbol of a restless nation on the move,” writes Michael Wallis in “<a target="_blank" href="https://www.powells.com/book/route-66-the-mother-road-9780312082857">Route 66: The Mother Road</a>,” the 1990 book that may have saved the once-vital thoroughfare from obscurity after it was decommissioned as a federal highway in 1985. That symbolism won’t change, even as the vintage highway evolves to meet modern tourism’s demands, Wallis said in an interview with&nbsp;Stateline.

“The world still comes to Route 66,” said Wallis, who was appointed last year by President Joe Biden to the Route 66 Centennial Commission, which is planning some of the national events around the anniversary. “It’s because they can get a taste of this country before it became generic, before it was just littered with cookie-cutter franchise businesses, before it was homogenized. It’s a road not so much for tourists as it is for travelers.”

To that end, many states are planning how they can attract a new generation of travelers to Route 66. The road itself is now the destination.

In Illinois, where Route 66 begins and stretches for 300 miles, the state this spring awarded $6.6 million in grants to help communities upgrade and market their Route 66 attractions in advance of the 2026 celebrations.

The grants are aimed at boosting local tourism across Illinois as well as highlighting the state’s growing electric vehicle sector, Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement. It’s a way of “honoring the history of Route 66 and looking to the future,” Pritzker said. One grant will create pylons at the beginning of the road in Chicago, which will feature QR codes that tell drivers where to find EV charging stations along Route 66.

The state money also will pay for interpretative panels at historic sites highlighted in “The Negro Motorist Green Book,” a guide to the midcentury service stations, motels and attractions where Black travelers were welcome in segregated states or hostile towns along the nation’s highways, including Route 66.

And this winter, the city of Edwardsville, Illinois, installed a 12.5-foot monument along its stretch of Route 66 not far from the Missouri border. The sign, a tilted version of the iconic highway shield, allows visitors to pose inside the round holes made by the number 66. It’s a Tik Tok or Instagram-friendly attraction, tourism officials say, which, as with the emphasis on neon signs, appeals to younger travelers.

In Arizona, the state developed the Route 66 Digital Passport, an app that allows travelers to tick off some of the best attractions for posting on social media. The app helped welcome a new generation of road-trippers to Arizona during the pandemic, when people sought outdoors and open-road experiences, said Josh Coddington, director of communications for the state’s Office of Tourism.

All along the route, towns are “recognizing the past, but they’re also maintaining [the road] so that it remains into the future,” said Rylie Mansuetti, the public and government affairs manager for AAA Oklahoma.

“It remains picture-worthy as we’re in the age of Instagram or TikTok,” she said. “A lot of these small towns are doing a great job at still offering that authentic taste and that step back, but making it appeal to newer generations.”

In Oklahoma, which has more than 400 miles of Route 66, the road is seen as a major tourism draw, Mansuetti said. Tulsa, known as the capital of Route 66, last year hosted the AAA Route 66 Road Fest. The party will continue this year — and will be among the signature national events of the 2026 centennial celebration.

“It’s called the Mother Road for a reason,” said Mansuetti, who notes that AAA tour guides began publishing the same year as Route 66 became a national road. “It’s absolutely a symbol of adventure and exploration, and it’s a driving force behind promoting tourism in the areas it passes through.”

In Oklahoma, the state Department of Transportation allows cities and counties to buy giant adhesive stickers to install on sections of the road, an Instagrammable and directional visual aid. To make part of Route 66 more accessible to bicyclists, Oklahoma recently received a $1 million federal grant to improve 1.3 miles of the highway near several roadside attractions, including the often photographed&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://arcadiaroundbarn.com/">Arcadia Round Barn</a>.

Rhys Martin, president of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association, has traveled and photographed the entire length of the highway from Illinois to California. One of his favorite attractions in Oklahoma is the giant Blue Whale in Catoosa, a whimsical 20-foot-tall and 80-foot-long roadside attraction built in 1972. There are also dozens of local festivals in towns where Route 66 serves as their main street.

“If you just make time and get off the interstate, you’ll meet all kinds of amazing people and have some really great food and see things that you won’t see anywhere else,” he said. “Route 66 is about the experience. The phrase goes, it’s not about getting somewhere, it’s about going somewhere.”

An Oklahoma highway commissioner, Cyrus Avery, pushed tirelessly for Route 66’s creation as a federal highway in the 1920s, hopeful that it would divert traffic to Tulsa from other cross-country routes through Kansas City and Denver.

By 1939 with the publication of&nbsp;John Steinbeck’s “The Grapes of Wrath,”&nbsp;Route 66 had achieved iconic status. In the book, Steinbeck describes Route 66 as the “Mother Road” for how it served as refuge for so many people displaced by the Great Depression and the devastation in the Great Plains of the Dust Bowl years. Route 66 was “the path of a people in flight,” Steinbeck wrote, “refugees from dust and shrinking land.”

After World War II, as automobile ownership and general prosperity boomed, the highway led to vacation destinations in New Mexico, Arizona and California. It was then that travelers experienced the heyday of the mom-and-pop motels and diners with architecture and neon signage that define the peak era of the highway.

For many older baby boomers, Route 66 meant the television show that aired from 1960 to 1964, starring two young men who drove the country in a Chevrolet Corvette convertible. The show was not set exclusively on Route 66, but its title and its spirit of adventure had an outsized impact on the road trip as a cultural phenomenon.

But over the next few decades, five new interstate highways — I-55, I-44, I-40, I-15 and I-10 — began replacing Route 66. Although at least 85% of the original road is still drivable, many of the small towns along Route 66 withered away after the interstates arrived, tastes changed, and more people preferred to travel by plane than by car.

Nonetheless, Route 66 remains — as both a physical highway and in the imagination as the ultimate road trip. In 2006, a new generation was introduced to the highway via the animated Pixar feature “Cars,” featuring race car Lightning McQueen and many of the road’s noteworthy roadside attractions.

Wallis, who voiced Sheriff in “Cars,” said that despite his longtime association with the road, he’s always been wary of overly romanticizing Route 66. It’s “much more than ’57 Chevys and poodle skirts,” he said. He points out that Nat King Cole, whose 1946 rendition of “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66” helped popularize the highway, would not as a Black man have been able to stay at many of the establishments along the route.

“Those of us who want to preserve and protect Route 66 and tell the honest story, we believe there’s an obligation, since it’s arguably the most famous highway in the world,” he said. “Route 66 basically was a road for everyone. It was a road for blue bloods or rednecks, everybody traveling. But the conditions were different for various people that traveled there. And that needs to be pointed out. That’s very important.

Wallis lives in Tulsa and has written many other books in the three decades since his Route 66 classic, but the Mother Road has come to define his career. He’s often asked if the road gets boring. Never, Wallis said.

“Every time I go out on the road, I find something new,” he said. “More importantly, I find someone new.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1685794919976.png" alt=" A full-size, brightly painted old DeSoto automobile rests on top of the front of the DeSoto Barbershop building against a backdrop of clear blue sky in Ash Fork, Arizona (Leslie Connell/National Archives)." />
 <figcaption> A full-size, brightly painted old DeSoto automobile rests on top of the front of the DeSoto Barbershop building against a backdrop of clear blue sky in Ash Fork, Arizona (Leslie Connell/National Archives).</figcaption>
 </figure>By ERIKA BOLSTAD&nbsp; <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/blogs/stateline/2022/11/16/states-test-an-electrifying-idea-roads-that-can-recharge-your-ev">Stateline</a>From its earliest days, Route 66 has reflected the American culture of the moment.When the road connected Chicago to Los Angeles in 1926, it represented the possibility of the automobile. In the 1930s, it served as an east-to-west escape route from the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression. By the 1950s, the 2,400-mile highway lured travelers with the post-World War II promise of adventure on the open road. And as the era of interstate highway driving dawned, Route 66 began to reflect a yearning for a time when a journey was about more than the destination.Now the eight states traversed by America’s defining highway are getting it ready for its 100th anniversary, in 2026. States are handing out grants to restore vintage neon signs along the highway. They’re installing shoulders to make the road safer for bicyclists and improving signage to make the route more obvious through cities. And they’re installing charging stations that will make it easier to travel the entire length in an electric vehicle.The iconic highway has always been “the ultimate symbol of a restless nation on the move,” writes Michael Wallis in “<a target="_blank" href="https://www.powells.com/book/route-66-the-mother-road-9780312082857">Route 66: The Mother Road</a>,” the 1990 book that may have saved the once-vital thoroughfare from obscurity after it was decommissioned as a federal highway in 1985. That symbolism won’t change, even as the vintage highway evolves to meet modern tourism’s demands, Wallis said in an interview with&nbsp;Stateline.“The world still comes to Route 66,” said Wallis, who was appointed last year by President Joe Biden to the Route 66 Centennial Commission, which is planning some of the national events around the anniversary. “It’s because they can get a taste of this country before it became generic, before it was just littered with cookie-cutter franchise businesses, before it was homogenized. It’s a road not so much for tourists as it is for travelers.”To that end, many states are planning how they can attract a new generation of travelers to Route 66. The road itself is now the destination.In Illinois, where Route 66 begins and stretches for 300 miles, the state this spring awarded $6.6 million in grants to help communities upgrade and market their Route 66 attractions in advance of the 2026 celebrations.The grants are aimed at boosting local tourism across Illinois as well as highlighting the state’s growing electric vehicle sector, Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement. It’s a way of “honoring the history of Route 66 and looking to the future,” Pritzker said. One grant will create pylons at the beginning of the road in Chicago, which will feature QR codes that tell drivers where to find EV charging stations along Route 66.The state money also will pay for interpretative panels at historic sites highlighted in “The Negro Motorist Green Book,” a guide to the midcentury service stations, motels and attractions where Black travelers were welcome in segregated states or hostile towns along the nation’s highways, including Route 66.And this winter, the city of Edwardsville, Illinois, installed a 12.5-foot monument along its stretch of Route 66 not far from the Missouri border. The sign, a tilted version of the iconic highway shield, allows visitors to pose inside the round holes made by the number 66. It’s a Tik Tok or Instagram-friendly attraction, tourism officials say, which, as with the emphasis on neon signs, appeals to younger travelers.In Arizona, the state developed the Route 66 Digital Passport, an app that allows travelers to tick off some of the best attractions for posting on social media. The app helped welcome a new generation of road-trippers to Arizona during the pandemic, when people sought outdoors and open-road experiences, said Josh Coddington, director of communications for the state’s Office of Tourism.All along the route, towns are “recognizing the past, but they’re also maintaining [the road] so that it remains into the future,” said Rylie Mansuetti, the public and government affairs manager for AAA Oklahoma.“It remains picture-worthy as we’re in the age of Instagram or TikTok,” she said. “A lot of these small towns are doing a great job at still offering that authentic taste and that step back, but making it appeal to newer generations.”In Oklahoma, which has more than 400 miles of Route 66, the road is seen as a major tourism draw, Mansuetti said. Tulsa, known as the capital of Route 66, last year hosted the AAA Route 66 Road Fest. The party will continue this year — and will be among the signature national events of the 2026 centennial celebration.“It’s called the Mother Road for a reason,” said Mansuetti, who notes that AAA tour guides began publishing the same year as Route 66 became a national road. “It’s absolutely a symbol of adventure and exploration, and it’s a driving force behind promoting tourism in the areas it passes through.”<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1685794865041.png" alt="A sign for the legendary Route 66 is pictured against the New Mexico sky (Kellie Thorne/National Archives)." />
 <figcaption>A sign for the legendary Route 66 is pictured against the New Mexico sky (Kellie Thorne/National Archives).</figcaption>
 </figure>In Oklahoma, the state Department of Transportation allows cities and counties to buy giant adhesive stickers to install on sections of the road, an Instagrammable and directional visual aid. To make part of Route 66 more accessible to bicyclists, Oklahoma recently received a $1 million federal grant to improve 1.3 miles of the highway near several roadside attractions, including the often photographed&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://arcadiaroundbarn.com/">Arcadia Round Barn</a>.Rhys Martin, president of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association, has traveled and photographed the entire length of the highway from Illinois to California. One of his favorite attractions in Oklahoma is the giant Blue Whale in Catoosa, a whimsical 20-foot-tall and 80-foot-long roadside attraction built in 1972. There are also dozens of local festivals in towns where Route 66 serves as their main street.“If you just make time and get off the interstate, you’ll meet all kinds of amazing people and have some really great food and see things that you won’t see anywhere else,” he said. “Route 66 is about the experience. The phrase goes, it’s not about getting somewhere, it’s about going somewhere.”An Oklahoma highway commissioner, Cyrus Avery, pushed tirelessly for Route 66’s creation as a federal highway in the 1920s, hopeful that it would divert traffic to Tulsa from other cross-country routes through Kansas City and Denver.By 1939 with the publication of&nbsp;John Steinbeck’s “The Grapes of Wrath,”&nbsp;Route 66 had achieved iconic status. In the book, Steinbeck describes Route 66 as the “Mother Road” for how it served as refuge for so many people displaced by the Great Depression and the devastation in the Great Plains of the Dust Bowl years. Route 66 was “the path of a people in flight,” Steinbeck wrote, “refugees from dust and shrinking land.”After World War II, as automobile ownership and general prosperity boomed, the highway led to vacation destinations in New Mexico, Arizona and California. It was then that travelers experienced the heyday of the mom-and-pop motels and diners with architecture and neon signage that define the peak era of the highway.For many older baby boomers, Route 66 meant the television show that aired from 1960 to 1964, starring two young men who drove the country in a Chevrolet Corvette convertible. The show was not set exclusively on Route 66, but its title and its spirit of adventure had an outsized impact on the road trip as a cultural phenomenon.But over the next few decades, five new interstate highways — I-55, I-44, I-40, I-15 and I-10 — began replacing Route 66. Although at least 85% of the original road is still drivable, many of the small towns along Route 66 withered away after the interstates arrived, tastes changed, and more people preferred to travel by plane than by car.Nonetheless, Route 66 remains — as both a physical highway and in the imagination as the ultimate road trip. In 2006, a new generation was introduced to the highway via the animated Pixar feature “Cars,” featuring race car Lightning McQueen and many of the road’s noteworthy roadside attractions.Wallis, who voiced Sheriff in “Cars,” said that despite his longtime association with the road, he’s always been wary of overly romanticizing Route 66. It’s “much more than ’57 Chevys and poodle skirts,” he said. He points out that Nat King Cole, whose 1946 rendition of “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66” helped popularize the highway, would not as a Black man have been able to stay at many of the establishments along the route.“Those of us who want to preserve and protect Route 66 and tell the honest story, we believe there’s an obligation, since it’s arguably the most famous highway in the world,” he said. “Route 66 basically was a road for everyone. It was a road for blue bloods or rednecks, everybody traveling. But the conditions were different for various people that traveled there. And that needs to be pointed out. That’s very important.Wallis lives in Tulsa and has written many other books in the three decades since his Route 66 classic, but the Mother Road has come to define his career. He’s often asked if the road gets boring. Never, Wallis said.“Every time I go out on the road, I find something new,” he said. “More importantly, I find someone new.”

Route 66, America’s ‘Mother Road,’ readies for its centennial

KDHE striving to contact people in jeopardy of losing medical coverage

By TIM CARPENTER <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/04/06/grieving-moms-plea-to-kansas-lawmakers-do-something-this-epidemic-is-killing-our-kids/">Kansas Reflector</a>

OLATHE — Gov. Laura Kelly and U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids said Friday that 120,000 Kansans allowed to remain in Medicaid due to a three-year suspension of eligibility reviews during the pandemic were in jeopardy of automatically losing coverage by not applying for renewal.

The hiatus in annual eligibility assessments adopted during the national public health emergency was lifted in April by the federal government. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment has started a 12-month process of determining whether about one-fourth of 530,000 Kansans who were in the program amid COVID-19 still qualified under the law.

KDHE has been challenged to accurately direct renewal notices because contact information for many participants weren’t updated since 2020. KDHE officials extended the application window by 30 days for cases scheduled for examination in April and May, in part, due to delays in delivery of mail by the U.S. Postal Service.

Individuals who failed to meet the deadline for submitting required information to the Medicaid clearinghouse — even if unaware it was requested — would lose coverage.

“Health insurance is foundational to healthy communities, which is why I’m glad to join forces with Representative Davids to make sure qualifying Kansans know what they need to do to keep their coverage,” Kelly said.

Davids said it was essential to make more people aware of alterations to Medicaid, which is known as KanCare in Kansas.

“We’re going to need to be really intentional and focused on getting the word out to make sure that every Kansan that can possibly stay covered actually gets to do that,” she said.

The Democratic governor and congresswoman took the opportunity of a news conference at Health Partnership Clinic, to renew their call for Kansas to follow 40 other states and the District of Columbia that expanded eligibility for Medicaid. The clinic provides health care to children and adults primarily in Johnson, Franklin and Miami counties regardless of clients’ ability to pay.

“While I’m glad we could help ensure qualifying Kansans don’t lose their health care during the KanCare reviewal process, it’s far past time for Kansas to expand Medicaid coverage,” Davids said. “I’ve worked for years to ensure all Kansans can receive the affordable, quality health care they deserve, but certain actors at the state level have forgone already-paid-for federal dollars as part of a political agenda.”

Kelly said complications of the so-called unraveling process to update Medicaid rolls made the need to expand in Kansas that much clearer.

“It will boost our economy, bring hard-earned tax dollars back to our state, and most importantly, save lives,” she said.

States have been allowed to amplify eligibility for Medicaid coverage since 2014. In 2017, Republican Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback vetoed an expansion bill passed by the GOP-led House and Senate. He said the cost to the state would be “irresponsible and unsustainable.”

In 2019, the Kansas House passed another Medicaid expansion bill but it wasn’t passed by the Kansas Senate. More recent efforts at the Capitol were derailed despite bipartisan support for action.

House Speaker Dan Hawkins, R-Wichita, has denounced Medicaid expansion as a “budget busting” bloating of government, while Senate President Ty Masterson, R-Andover, complained it would cater to able-bodied adults while diminishing the state’s opportunity to serve people with disabilities.

Kelly, who as governor has proposed five expansion plans to the Legislature, pointed to a poll indicating 80% of Kansans supported expansion. Kansas has forgone more than $6 billion in federal funding by prohibiting Medicaid expansion, and the governor said those resources would have been useful to Kansas hospitals struggling to care for the uninsured.

The governor said her Medicaid expansion recommendations were shaped to deal with objections from Republican legislators, but her ideas didn’t move the needle because GOP lawmakers controlling the debate calendar were ideologically opposed to reform.

During the news conference, Kelly said persistent rejection of health and financial arguments for expansion was “stupid” and “foolish.”

“Every year, I tailor the proposal to address concerns expressed by legislative leadership,” Kelly said. “Every year, they would move the goalposts. As a result, Kansas is now a Medicaid desert.”

She vowed to introduce a new Medicaid expansion proposal in her budget recommendations to the 2024 Legislature. She also urged Kansans to pressure senators and representatives to demand Senate and House GOP leaders allow votes on Medicaid expansion. All states surrounding Kansas have adopted Medicaid expansion.

Amy Falk, chief executive officer of the Health Partnership Clinic in Olathe, said the decision by Missouri voters to expand Medicaid a year ago prompted some Kansans without health insurance to move across the state line.

“Absolutely, all the time,” she said. “Especially where we see patients who have needs beyond walls of the partnership, that have critical illnesses, need surgeries. They bring it up and, yes, that is an issue.”

Davids, who serves the 3rd District covering the Kansas side of metropolitan Kansas City, said Kansas was in a shrinking pool of states unwilling to address health care needs of their residents through Medicaid expansion.

“I’m that much more committed to continuing to push back against any partisan politics or gamesmanship that might stop us from doing what we need to do to save lives,” she said. “Because that’s what we’re talking about, is keeping people healthy and saving lives.”

The congresswoman said she supported alternative federal legislation that would enable individuals to apply for Medicaid directly through the federal government. The measure would offer residents in non-expansion states the chance to take part in a program mirroring Medicaid. Congress would provide additional funding to states to serve that population, Davids said.

“If we continue to see partisan actors at state levels blocking expansion of Medicaid, then I think that federal option is a good direction,” she said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://kansasreflector.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Christine-Osterlund-kdhe-scaled.jpg" alt="Christine Osterlund, deputy director of Medicaid operations at Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said 120,000 Kansans in Medicaid could lose services with resumption of eligibility assessments put on hold during the pandemic. She is bracketed by U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, left, and Gov. Laura Kelly. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Christine Osterlund, deputy director of Medicaid operations at Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said 120,000 Kansans in Medicaid could lose services with resumption of eligibility assessments put on hold during the pandemic. She is bracketed by U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, left, and Gov. Laura Kelly. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>KDHE striving to contact people in jeopardy of losing medical coverage</h2>By TIM CARPENTER <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/04/06/grieving-moms-plea-to-kansas-lawmakers-do-something-this-epidemic-is-killing-our-kids/">Kansas Reflector</a>OLATHE — Gov. Laura Kelly and U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids said Friday that 120,000 Kansans allowed to remain in Medicaid due to a three-year suspension of eligibility reviews during the pandemic were in jeopardy of automatically losing coverage by not applying for renewal.The hiatus in annual eligibility assessments adopted during the national public health emergency was lifted in April by the federal government. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment has started a 12-month process of determining whether about one-fourth of 530,000 Kansans who were in the program amid COVID-19 still qualified under the law.KDHE has been challenged to accurately direct renewal notices because contact information for many participants weren’t updated since 2020. KDHE officials extended the application window by 30 days for cases scheduled for examination in April and May, in part, due to delays in delivery of mail by the U.S. Postal Service.Individuals who failed to meet the deadline for submitting required information to the Medicaid clearinghouse — even if unaware it was requested — would lose coverage.“Health insurance is foundational to healthy communities, which is why I’m glad to join forces with Representative Davids to make sure qualifying Kansans know what they need to do to keep their coverage,” Kelly said.Davids said it was essential to make more people aware of alterations to Medicaid, which is known as KanCare in Kansas.“We’re going to need to be really intentional and focused on getting the word out to make sure that every Kansan that can possibly stay covered actually gets to do that,” she said.<h2>Medicaid expansion?</h2>The Democratic governor and congresswoman took the opportunity of a news conference at Health Partnership Clinic, to renew their call for Kansas to follow 40 other states and the District of Columbia that expanded eligibility for Medicaid. The clinic provides health care to children and adults primarily in Johnson, Franklin and Miami counties regardless of clients’ ability to pay.“While I’m glad we could help ensure qualifying Kansans don’t lose their health care during the KanCare reviewal process, it’s far past time for Kansas to expand Medicaid coverage,” Davids said. “I’ve worked for years to ensure all Kansans can receive the affordable, quality health care they deserve, but certain actors at the state level have forgone already-paid-for federal dollars as part of a political agenda.”Kelly said complications of the so-called unraveling process to update Medicaid rolls made the need to expand in Kansas that much clearer.“It will boost our economy, bring hard-earned tax dollars back to our state, and most importantly, save lives,” she said.States have been allowed to amplify eligibility for Medicaid coverage since 2014. In 2017, Republican Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback vetoed an expansion bill passed by the GOP-led House and Senate. He said the cost to the state would be “irresponsible and unsustainable.”In 2019, the Kansas House passed another Medicaid expansion bill but it wasn’t passed by the Kansas Senate. More recent efforts at the Capitol were derailed despite bipartisan support for action.House Speaker Dan Hawkins, R-Wichita, has denounced Medicaid expansion as a “budget busting” bloating of government, while Senate President Ty Masterson, R-Andover, complained it would cater to able-bodied adults while diminishing the state’s opportunity to serve people with disabilities.<h2>It’s about ideology</h2>Kelly, who as governor has proposed five expansion plans to the Legislature, pointed to a poll indicating 80% of Kansans supported expansion. Kansas has forgone more than $6 billion in federal funding by prohibiting Medicaid expansion, and the governor said those resources would have been useful to Kansas hospitals struggling to care for the uninsured.The governor said her Medicaid expansion recommendations were shaped to deal with objections from Republican legislators, but her ideas didn’t move the needle because GOP lawmakers controlling the debate calendar were ideologically opposed to reform.During the news conference, Kelly said persistent rejection of health and financial arguments for expansion was “stupid” and “foolish.”“Every year, I tailor the proposal to address concerns expressed by legislative leadership,” Kelly said. “Every year, they would move the goalposts. As a result, Kansas is now a Medicaid desert.”She vowed to introduce a new Medicaid expansion proposal in her budget recommendations to the 2024 Legislature. She also urged Kansans to pressure senators and representatives to demand Senate and House GOP leaders allow votes on Medicaid expansion. All states surrounding Kansas have adopted Medicaid expansion.Amy Falk, chief executive officer of the Health Partnership Clinic in Olathe, said the decision by Missouri voters to expand Medicaid a year ago prompted some Kansans without health insurance to move across the state line.“Absolutely, all the time,” she said. “Especially where we see patients who have needs beyond walls of the partnership, that have critical illnesses, need surgeries. They bring it up and, yes, that is an issue.”<h2>Federal alternative</h2>Davids, who serves the 3rd District covering the Kansas side of metropolitan Kansas City, said Kansas was in a shrinking pool of states unwilling to address health care needs of their residents through Medicaid expansion.“I’m that much more committed to continuing to push back against any partisan politics or gamesmanship that might stop us from doing what we need to do to save lives,” she said. “Because that’s what we’re talking about, is keeping people healthy and saving lives.”The congresswoman said she supported alternative federal legislation that would enable individuals to apply for Medicaid directly through the federal government. The measure would offer residents in non-expansion states the chance to take part in a program mirroring Medicaid. Congress would provide additional funding to states to serve that population, Davids said.“If we continue to see partisan actors at state levels blocking expansion of Medicaid, then I think that federal option is a good direction,” she said.

Gov. urges Kansans to take part in post-Covid Medicaid renewal process

WASHINGTON (AP) —In the year since the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-supreme-court-decision-854f60302f21c2c35129e58cf8d8a7b0">Supreme Court struck down the nationwide right to abortion</a>, America’s religious leaders and denominations have responded in strikingly diverse ways — some celebrating the state-level bans that have ensued, others angered that a conservative Christian cause has changed the law of the land in ways they consider oppressive.

The divisions are epitomized in the country’s largest denomination — the Catholic Church.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnorc.org/ap-norc-poll-details-rift-between-lay-catholics-and-bishops/">National polls</a>&nbsp;repeatedly show that a majority of U.S. Catholics believe abortion should be legal in most or all cases, yet the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.usccb.org/news/2022/usccb-statement-us-supreme-court-ruling-dobbs-v-jackson">U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops</a>&nbsp;supports sweeping bans.

Among Protestants, a solid majority of white evangelicals favor outlawing abortion. But most mainline Protestants support the right to abortion, and several of their top leaders have decried the year-old Supreme Court ruling that undermined that right by reversing the Roe v. Wade decision of 1973.

For example, the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, Michael Curry, said he was “deeply grieved” by that ruling.

The decision “institutionalizes inequality because women with access to resources will be able to exercise their moral judgment in ways that women without the same resources will not,” Curry said.

Some religious Americans have gone beyond expressions of dismay, filing lawsuits contending that new abortion bans infringed on their own religious beliefs. Jewish women played roles in such lawsuits in Indiana and Kentucky; in Florida, a synagogue in Boynton Beach — Congregation L’Dor Va-Dor — contended in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-health-religion-lawsuits-florida-6e115c5c1f23eff92161d136940ae91e">a lawsuit</a>&nbsp;that a state abortion ban violated Jewish teachings.

Dr. Sara Imershein, who performs first-trimester abortions in northern Virginia, said her Reform Judaism beliefs informed her decision to choose that path.

“I looked more at the liturgy of Judaism and found that it really supported my work,” she said. “I studied with my local rabbi.”

Imershein was in college when abortion was legalized nationwide. Now, at 69, she has seen Roe's demise.

“Laws that restrict abortion … ignore our Jewish teachings that are very old, and they stomp on our religious freedom,” she said.

In Buddhism, Islam and Sikhism, there also is widespread acceptance of abortion in some circumstances. Most U.S. Hindus are “very much in support of choice,” said Dheepa Sundaram, assistant professor of religious studies at the University of Denver; she cited the concept of karma which holds that each person has the liberty to act and face the consequences of their actions — good or bad.

Randall Balmer, a professor of American religious history at Dartmouth College, says the abortion debate is so intractable in part because believers in the opposing camps view the Bible — which doesn’t include the word “abortion” — as supporting their side.

“It shows the pliability of Scripture — the way that each group tries to marshal arguments on its behalf,” he said. “The Bible can be manipulated.”

“What strikes me about both sides is there’s no humility in their position,” Balmer added. “They stake out what they believe is God’s will, and everybody else is a heretic.”

Even within individual churches, divisions over abortion can flare. Bishop Timothy Clarke, pastor of First Church of God in Columbus, Ohio, frequently exhorts his predominantly African American congregation to respect those with opposing views.

Clarke describes himself as “biblically pro-life,” yet he criticizes the stringent abortion bans enacted in numerous Republican-led states as “excessive and extreme.”

Referring to laws that would criminalize abortion-providing doctors and deny abortion to victims of rape, he said many people in his church “are saying this is going too far. It’s beyond the pale.”

There is similar sentiment among some U.S. Catholics, says Kathleen Sprows Cummings, a professor of American studies and history at the University of Notre Dame and director of its Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism.

“There are some horrific stories coming out of pregnant women with severe issues who are being denied health care,” she said, referring to the consequences of some state abortion bans.

“We have to have a more human approach,” she said. “I think we’ll see more Catholics saying, ‘I’m not pro-abortion. But I want mercy. I want health care.’"

As a group, Catholic bishops are unwavering, as conveyed in a statement earlier this year from their conference’s president, Archbishop Timothy Broglio.

“The Catholic bishops of the United States are united in our commitment to life and will continue to work as one body in Christ to make abortion unthinkable,” he said.

<a href="https://apnorc.org/ap-norc-poll-details-rift-between-lay-catholics-and-bishops/">A poll last year</a>&nbsp;from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research showed a clear gap between the prevalent views of U.S. Catholics, and the anti-abortion positions of the bishops. According to the poll, 63% of Catholic adults said abortion should be legal in all or most cases, and 68% opposed Roe v. Wade's reversal.

“On every issue having to do with sexuality or reproductive health, there’s a huge gap between the way lay Catholics think and what the hierarchy is teaching,” said Jamie Manson, president of Catholics for Choice.

“What’s challenging,” she said, “is that even though most Catholics believe abortion should be legal, they don’t speak about it publicly because of the taboo … the fear of being ostracized by their community.”

Manson noted that a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.guttmacher.org/report/characteristics-us-abortion-patients-2014">2014 survey</a>&nbsp;by the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that supports abortion rights, found that nearly one-fourth of U.S. abortion patients identify as Catholic.

“There’s an all-male hierarchy telling them they’re complicit in murder,” Manson said. “I wish what bishops and priests would do is listen to these women, listen to their stories of why they choose abortion.”

Among mainline Protestant denominations, there have been official statements acknowledging that abortion is a complex issue, but prevailing sentiment is that last year’s Supreme Court ruling was an injustice to women, particularly those already facing economic hardships and racial discrimination.

“This decision further complicates the struggle and creates division, anger, and chaos in an already divided and conflicted country,” wrote Bishop Thomas Bickerton, president of the United Methodist Church’s Council of Bishops.

Some Protestant pastors have emerged as outspoken advocates of abortion rights; among them is Jacqui Lewis, the first African American and first woman to serve as a senior minister in New York City’s historic Middle Collegiate Church.

She evoked the fear and heartache felt by many of the women affected by the new abortion bans.

“These are the poorest of us, the most disenfranchised and they’re struggling more because some portion of Christianity feels they have the right to decide for other people what is moral,” Lewis said. “It breaks my soul to see religion weaponized this way … it’s the opposite of what religion should be.”

Among the leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention, by far the largest evangelical denomination, there’s unified opposition to abortion. However, there has been sharp disagreement over whether to impose criminal penalties on women who get abortions.

The SBC’s president, Bart Barber, opposes criminalization of women in such cases and has sparred verbally with Baptist pastors who argue that such women. in some instances, should be considered murderers.

“I think it is unjust, unnecessary, and unwise to include in abortion laws the prosecution of women who seek or obtain an abortion,” Barber writes in a lengthy&nbsp;<a href="https://erlc.com/resource-library/commentary-articles/working-toward-the-end-of-abortion/">article.</a>&nbsp;“The abortionist is the murderer, and any law banning abortion should identify the abortionist uniquely as such.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/6/1656088183967.png" alt="Protestors for and against abortion outside the Supreme Court ruling in June 2022-photo courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Protestors for and against abortion outside the Supreme Court ruling in June 2022-photo courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>BY DAVID CRARY&nbsp;WASHINGTON (AP) —In the year since the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-supreme-court-decision-854f60302f21c2c35129e58cf8d8a7b0">Supreme Court struck down the nationwide right to abortion</a>, America’s religious leaders and denominations have responded in strikingly diverse ways — some celebrating the state-level bans that have ensued, others angered that a conservative Christian cause has changed the law of the land in ways they consider oppressive.The divisions are epitomized in the country’s largest denomination — the Catholic Church.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnorc.org/ap-norc-poll-details-rift-between-lay-catholics-and-bishops/">National polls</a>&nbsp;repeatedly show that a majority of U.S. Catholics believe abortion should be legal in most or all cases, yet the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.usccb.org/news/2022/usccb-statement-us-supreme-court-ruling-dobbs-v-jackson">U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops</a>&nbsp;supports sweeping bans.Among Protestants, a solid majority of white evangelicals favor outlawing abortion. But most mainline Protestants support the right to abortion, and several of their top leaders have decried the year-old Supreme Court ruling that undermined that right by reversing the Roe v. Wade decision of 1973.For example, the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, Michael Curry, said he was “deeply grieved” by that ruling.The decision “institutionalizes inequality because women with access to resources will be able to exercise their moral judgment in ways that women without the same resources will not,” Curry said.Some religious Americans have gone beyond expressions of dismay, filing lawsuits contending that new abortion bans infringed on their own religious beliefs. Jewish women played roles in such lawsuits in Indiana and Kentucky; in Florida, a synagogue in Boynton Beach — Congregation L’Dor Va-Dor — contended in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-health-religion-lawsuits-florida-6e115c5c1f23eff92161d136940ae91e">a lawsuit</a>&nbsp;that a state abortion ban violated Jewish teachings.Dr. Sara Imershein, who performs first-trimester abortions in northern Virginia, said her Reform Judaism beliefs informed her decision to choose that path.“I looked more at the liturgy of Judaism and found that it really supported my work,” she said. “I studied with my local rabbi.”Imershein was in college when abortion was legalized nationwide. Now, at 69, she has seen Roe's demise.“Laws that restrict abortion … ignore our Jewish teachings that are very old, and they stomp on our religious freedom,” she said.In Buddhism, Islam and Sikhism, there also is widespread acceptance of abortion in some circumstances. Most U.S. Hindus are “very much in support of choice,” said Dheepa Sundaram, assistant professor of religious studies at the University of Denver; she cited the concept of karma which holds that each person has the liberty to act and face the consequences of their actions — good or bad.Randall Balmer, a professor of American religious history at Dartmouth College, says the abortion debate is so intractable in part because believers in the opposing camps view the Bible — which doesn’t include the word “abortion” — as supporting their side.“It shows the pliability of Scripture — the way that each group tries to marshal arguments on its behalf,” he said. “The Bible can be manipulated.”“What strikes me about both sides is there’s no humility in their position,” Balmer added. “They stake out what they believe is God’s will, and everybody else is a heretic.”Even within individual churches, divisions over abortion can flare. Bishop Timothy Clarke, pastor of First Church of God in Columbus, Ohio, frequently exhorts his predominantly African American congregation to respect those with opposing views.Clarke describes himself as “biblically pro-life,” yet he criticizes the stringent abortion bans enacted in numerous Republican-led states as “excessive and extreme.”Referring to laws that would criminalize abortion-providing doctors and deny abortion to victims of rape, he said many people in his church “are saying this is going too far. It’s beyond the pale.”There is similar sentiment among some U.S. Catholics, says Kathleen Sprows Cummings, a professor of American studies and history at the University of Notre Dame and director of its Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism.“There are some horrific stories coming out of pregnant women with severe issues who are being denied health care,” she said, referring to the consequences of some state abortion bans.“We have to have a more human approach,” she said. “I think we’ll see more Catholics saying, ‘I’m not pro-abortion. But I want mercy. I want health care.’"As a group, Catholic bishops are unwavering, as conveyed in a statement earlier this year from their conference’s president, Archbishop Timothy Broglio.“The Catholic bishops of the United States are united in our commitment to life and will continue to work as one body in Christ to make abortion unthinkable,” he said.<a href="https://apnorc.org/ap-norc-poll-details-rift-between-lay-catholics-and-bishops/">A poll last year</a>&nbsp;from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research showed a clear gap between the prevalent views of U.S. Catholics, and the anti-abortion positions of the bishops. According to the poll, 63% of Catholic adults said abortion should be legal in all or most cases, and 68% opposed Roe v. Wade's reversal.“On every issue having to do with sexuality or reproductive health, there’s a huge gap between the way lay Catholics think and what the hierarchy is teaching,” said Jamie Manson, president of Catholics for Choice.“What’s challenging,” she said, “is that even though most Catholics believe abortion should be legal, they don’t speak about it publicly because of the taboo … the fear of being ostracized by their community.”Manson noted that a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.guttmacher.org/report/characteristics-us-abortion-patients-2014">2014 survey</a>&nbsp;by the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that supports abortion rights, found that nearly one-fourth of U.S. abortion patients identify as Catholic.“There’s an all-male hierarchy telling them they’re complicit in murder,” Manson said. “I wish what bishops and priests would do is listen to these women, listen to their stories of why they choose abortion.”Among mainline Protestant denominations, there have been official statements acknowledging that abortion is a complex issue, but prevailing sentiment is that last year’s Supreme Court ruling was an injustice to women, particularly those already facing economic hardships and racial discrimination.“This decision further complicates the struggle and creates division, anger, and chaos in an already divided and conflicted country,” wrote Bishop Thomas Bickerton, president of the United Methodist Church’s Council of Bishops.Some Protestant pastors have emerged as outspoken advocates of abortion rights; among them is Jacqui Lewis, the first African American and first woman to serve as a senior minister in New York City’s historic Middle Collegiate Church.She evoked the fear and heartache felt by many of the women affected by the new abortion bans.“These are the poorest of us, the most disenfranchised and they’re struggling more because some portion of Christianity feels they have the right to decide for other people what is moral,” Lewis said. “It breaks my soul to see religion weaponized this way … it’s the opposite of what religion should be.”Among the leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention, by far the largest evangelical denomination, there’s unified opposition to abortion. However, there has been sharp disagreement over whether to impose criminal penalties on women who get abortions.The SBC’s president, Bart Barber, opposes criminalization of women in such cases and has sparred verbally with Baptist pastors who argue that such women. in some instances, should be considered murderers.“I think it is unjust, unnecessary, and unwise to include in abortion laws the prosecution of women who seek or obtain an abortion,” Barber writes in a lengthy&nbsp;<a href="https://erlc.com/resource-library/commentary-articles/working-toward-the-end-of-abortion/">article.</a>&nbsp;“The abortionist is the murderer, and any law banning abortion should identify the abortionist uniquely as such.”___

Religious leaders sharply divided over abortion, a year after Roe reversal

JOHNSON COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal officer-involved shooting in Olathe.

Just before 6 p.m. Saturday, police were conducting a traffic stop in the 200 block of North Water Street, according to a media release.

During the course of the traffic stop, a separate and unrelated vehicle arrived on scene and the driver of that vehicle advanced on officers armed with a knife. 

Two Officers discharged their department issued handguns striking the man.&nbsp; The 58-year-old man, received medical attention by responding Officers as well as Johnson County Med-Act. He was pronounced deceased on scene. The Officers were not injured.

The Johnson County Officer Involved Critical Incident Investigation Team (OICIIT) was activated.&nbsp; Investigators from multiple agencies are leading the investigation of the incident.&nbsp; The Johnson County Crime Lab&nbsp; processed the scene.

As a matter of standard procedure, the involved Officers have been placed on paid administrative leave pending the investigation by the Johnson County Officer Involved Critical Incident Investigation Team (OICIIT).&nbsp;&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/6/1685845131430.png" alt="Police on the scene of the fatal officer-involved shooting photo courtesy KCTV" />
 <figcaption>Police on the scene of the fatal officer-involved shooting photo courtesy KCTV</figcaption>
 </figure>JOHNSON COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal officer-involved shooting in Olathe.Just before 6 p.m. Saturday, police were conducting a traffic stop in the 200 block of North Water Street, according to a media release.During the course of the traffic stop, a separate and unrelated vehicle arrived on scene and the driver of that vehicle advanced on officers armed with a knife. Two Officers discharged their department issued handguns striking the man.&nbsp; The 58-year-old man, received medical attention by responding Officers as well as Johnson County Med-Act. He was pronounced deceased on scene. The Officers were not injured.The Johnson County Officer Involved Critical Incident Investigation Team (OICIIT) was activated.&nbsp; Investigators from multiple agencies are leading the investigation of the incident.&nbsp; The Johnson County Crime Lab&nbsp; processed the scene.As a matter of standard procedure, the involved Officers have been placed on paid administrative leave pending the investigation by the Johnson County Officer Involved Critical Incident Investigation Team (OICIIT).&nbsp;&nbsp;

Man armed with a knife dies in Kansas officer shooting

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a&nbsp; shooting that sent a 19-year-old from Wichita to the hospital where she died May 23, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.

Officers continue the search for a suspect identified as&nbsp; 19-year-old La’Niha Banks who is considered armed and dangerous.

Just after 11 p.m. May 20, police were dispatched to a shooting in the 1000 block of E 1st Street N in Wichita.

First responders located a woman with two gunshot wounds to her upper body. The victim was transported to an area hospital in critical condition and with life-threatening injuries.

The investigation revealed that the victim was trying to break up a physical altercation between an acquaintance of hers and Banks in a parking lot. 

After the victim managed to stop the fight, she started to drive away, but&nbsp; Banks produced a handgun and started to shoot into the occupied vehicle.

During the investigation, detectives were able to confirm Banks as the suspect. She was last seen fleeing in a red 2014 Buick Lacrosse with a paper 60-day tag. The police have located the car.

&nbsp;Banks is wanted on requested charges of aggravated battery, five counts of Aggravated Assault, two counts of discharge of a firearm into an occupied vehicle, and one count of&nbsp; murder.&nbsp; If you see Banks or know where she is, call 911.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/5/1684684649459.png" alt="Banks-photo Wichita Police" />
 <figcaption>Banks-photo Wichita Police</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a&nbsp; shooting that sent a 19-year-old from Wichita to the hospital where she died May 23, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.Officers continue the search for a suspect identified as&nbsp; 19-year-old La’Niha Banks who is considered armed and dangerous.Just after 11 p.m. May 20, police were dispatched to a shooting in the 1000 block of E 1st Street N in Wichita.First responders located a woman with two gunshot wounds to her upper body. The victim was transported to an area hospital in critical condition and with life-threatening injuries.The investigation revealed that the victim was trying to break up a physical altercation between an acquaintance of hers and Banks in a parking lot. After the victim managed to stop the fight, she started to drive away, but&nbsp; Banks produced a handgun and started to shoot into the occupied vehicle.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/5/1684688157483.png" alt="Police reported on May 23 they had recovered Banks' car -photo Wichita Police" />
 <figcaption>Police reported on May 23 they had recovered Banks' car -photo Wichita Police</figcaption>
 </figure>During the investigation, detectives were able to confirm Banks as the suspect. She was last seen fleeing in a red 2014 Buick Lacrosse with a paper 60-day tag. The police have located the car.&nbsp;Banks is wanted on requested charges of aggravated battery, five counts of Aggravated Assault, two counts of discharge of a firearm into an occupied vehicle, and one count of&nbsp; murder.&nbsp; If you see Banks or know where she is, call 911.

Kansas murder suspect still hiding from police

SINGAPORE (AP) — U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin vowed Saturday that Washington would not stand for any “coercion and bullying” of its allies and partners by China, while assuring Beijing that the United States remains committed to maintaining the status quo on Taiwan and would prefer dialogue over conflict.

Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual forum bringing together top defense officials, diplomats and leaders in Singapore, Austin&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-military-aquilino-china-security-north-korea-bb41e692490b13cfcc0a6e28fd8f9bef">lobbied for support for Washington's vision</a>&nbsp;of a “free, open, and secure Indo-Pacific within a world of rules and rights” as the best course to counter increasing Chinese assertiveness in the region.

The U.S. has been expanding its own activities around the Indo-Pacific to counter sweeping territorial claims from China, including regularly sailing through and flying over the Taiwan Strait and in the South China Sea.

“We are committed to ensuring that every country can fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows," he said at the forum hosted by the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank. "And every country, large or small, must remain free to conduct lawful maritime activities.”

Austin noted that the U.S. had provided millions of doses of the COVID-19 vaccine during the height of the pandemic and is regularly involved in disaster relief and humanitarian assistance efforts in the region. He said it is working to combat climate change, illegal fishing and ensure that supply chains do not suffer disruptions — ticking off many issues of importance to Asian-Pacific nations.

“We're doubling down on our alliances and partnerships,” he said.

He said the U.S. is also committed to deterring North Korea's missile threat and China's claims on Taiwan, a self-governing island democracy that Beijing says is its territory, and said Washington has been stepping up defense planning, coordination and training with partner nations in the region.

“To be clear, we do not seek conflict or confrontation,” he said. “But we will not flinch in the face of bullying or coercion.”

Underscoring Austin's words, a U.S. guided-missile destroyer and a Canadian frigate sailed Saturday through the Taiwan Strait, “waters where high-seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law,” the U.S. 7th Fleet said. There was no immediate word of a Chinese response.

In Singapore, Chinese Lt. Gen. Jing Jianfeng, a senior member of the delegation accompanying Defense Minister Gen. Li Shangfu, accused Austin of “overtly or covertly making false accusations against China” in his address.

Speaking with reporters after Austin spoke, Jing alleged the U.S. has been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-blinken-papua-biden-debt-limit-solomon-6bcfcfc6ea5c6bd179c072295c87b145">“deceiving and exploiting” Asia-Pacific nations</a>&nbsp;to advance its own self-interests to preserve “its dominant position" in the region.

He suggested that Washington has been holding on to alliances that are “remnants of the Cold War” and establishing new pacts, like the AUKUS agreement with Britain and Australia and the “Quad” grouping with Australia, India and Japan “to divide the world into ideologically-driven camps and provoke confrontation.”

Jing, who took no questions, said that by contrast, “China is committed to the region's development and prosperity.”

Austin sought to assure China that the U.S. remained “deeply committed” to the longstanding one-China policy, which recognizes Beijing as the government of China but allows informal relations with Taiwan, and continues to “categorically oppose unilateral changes to the status quo from either side.”

He added that Russia's invasion of Ukraine had served to underline how dangerous the world would be if big countries were able to "just invade their peaceful neighbors with impunity.”

“Conflict is neither imminent nor inevitable,” Austin said. “Deterrence is strong today — and it’s our job to keep it that way. The whole world has a stake in maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”

But Jing accused the U.S. of hollowing out the one-China policy, accusing Washington of supporting Taiwanese separatists without citing any evidence, and reiterating Beijing's claim that “Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's sovereign territory.”

“There's no room for us to concede or compromise,” he said.

He added that “China has indisputable sovereignty over the South China Sea islands and the adjacent waters.”

Li, who became China’s defense minister in March,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-us-military-taiwan-balloon-singapore-e78f67d3d590294a2e4a351e6430e6ec">declined Austin’s invitation to talk</a>&nbsp;on the sidelines of the conference, though the two did shake hands before sitting down at opposite sides of the same table together as the forum opened Friday.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/5/1685562587349.png" alt="From a video of the Chinese J-16 fighter pilot that "flew directly in front of the nose of a U.S. RC-135,&nbsp;forcing the American pilot to fly through the turbulent wake. Image INDOPACOM" />
 <figcaption>From a video of the Chinese J-16 fighter pilot that "flew directly in front of the nose of a U.S. RC-135,&nbsp;forcing the American pilot to fly through the turbulent wake. Image INDOPACOM</figcaption>
 </figure>SINGAPORE (AP) — U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin vowed Saturday that Washington would not stand for any “coercion and bullying” of its allies and partners by China, while assuring Beijing that the United States remains committed to maintaining the status quo on Taiwan and would prefer dialogue over conflict.Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual forum bringing together top defense officials, diplomats and leaders in Singapore, Austin&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-military-aquilino-china-security-north-korea-bb41e692490b13cfcc0a6e28fd8f9bef">lobbied for support for Washington's vision</a>&nbsp;of a “free, open, and secure Indo-Pacific within a world of rules and rights” as the best course to counter increasing Chinese assertiveness in the region.The U.S. has been expanding its own activities around the Indo-Pacific to counter sweeping territorial claims from China, including regularly sailing through and flying over the Taiwan Strait and in the South China Sea.“We are committed to ensuring that every country can fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows," he said at the forum hosted by the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank. "And every country, large or small, must remain free to conduct lawful maritime activities.”Austin noted that the U.S. had provided millions of doses of the COVID-19 vaccine during the height of the pandemic and is regularly involved in disaster relief and humanitarian assistance efforts in the region. He said it is working to combat climate change, illegal fishing and ensure that supply chains do not suffer disruptions — ticking off many issues of importance to Asian-Pacific nations.“We're doubling down on our alliances and partnerships,” he said.He said the U.S. is also committed to deterring North Korea's missile threat and China's claims on Taiwan, a self-governing island democracy that Beijing says is its territory, and said Washington has been stepping up defense planning, coordination and training with partner nations in the region.“To be clear, we do not seek conflict or confrontation,” he said. “But we will not flinch in the face of bullying or coercion.”Underscoring Austin's words, a U.S. guided-missile destroyer and a Canadian frigate sailed Saturday through the Taiwan Strait, “waters where high-seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law,” the U.S. 7th Fleet said. There was no immediate word of a Chinese response.In Singapore, Chinese Lt. Gen. Jing Jianfeng, a senior member of the delegation accompanying Defense Minister Gen. Li Shangfu, accused Austin of “overtly or covertly making false accusations against China” in his address.Speaking with reporters after Austin spoke, Jing alleged the U.S. has been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-blinken-papua-biden-debt-limit-solomon-6bcfcfc6ea5c6bd179c072295c87b145">“deceiving and exploiting” Asia-Pacific nations</a>&nbsp;to advance its own self-interests to preserve “its dominant position" in the region.He suggested that Washington has been holding on to alliances that are “remnants of the Cold War” and establishing new pacts, like the AUKUS agreement with Britain and Australia and the “Quad” grouping with Australia, India and Japan “to divide the world into ideologically-driven camps and provoke confrontation.”Jing, who took no questions, said that by contrast, “China is committed to the region's development and prosperity.”Austin sought to assure China that the U.S. remained “deeply committed” to the longstanding one-China policy, which recognizes Beijing as the government of China but allows informal relations with Taiwan, and continues to “categorically oppose unilateral changes to the status quo from either side.”He added that Russia's invasion of Ukraine had served to underline how dangerous the world would be if big countries were able to "just invade their peaceful neighbors with impunity.”“Conflict is neither imminent nor inevitable,” Austin said. “Deterrence is strong today — and it’s our job to keep it that way. The whole world has a stake in maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”But Jing accused the U.S. of hollowing out the one-China policy, accusing Washington of supporting Taiwanese separatists without citing any evidence, and reiterating Beijing's claim that “Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's sovereign territory.”“There's no room for us to concede or compromise,” he said.He added that “China has indisputable sovereignty over the South China Sea islands and the adjacent waters.”Li, who became China’s defense minister in March,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-us-military-taiwan-balloon-singapore-e78f67d3d590294a2e4a351e6430e6ec">declined Austin’s invitation to talk</a>&nbsp;on the sidelines of the conference, though the two did shake hands before sitting down at opposite sides of the same table together as the forum opened Friday.Austin said this was not enough.“A cordial handshake over dinner is no substitute for a substantive engagement,” he said.Li, who was named defense minister in March, is under American sanctions that are part of a broad package of measures against Russia — but predate its invasion of Ukraine — that were imposed in 2018 over Li’s involvement in China’s purchase of combat aircraft and anti-aircraft missiles from Moscow.The sanctions, which broadly prevent Li from doing business in the United States, do not prevent him from holding official talks, American defense officials have said.It was not clear whether Li, who is to address the forum Sunday morning, was in the room while Austin talked. He did join the American defense secretary and others later for a ministerial roundtable.Austin reiterated calls that Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese made in his opening address at the forum for China to engage in regular, direct communications to help prevent any possible conflict.“For responsible defense leaders, the right time to talk is anytime,” Austin said. “The right time to talk is every time. And the right time to talk is now.”Jing said, however, that lines of communication needed to be based upon “mutual respect.”“But the U.S. has been calling for communications on one hand and undermining China’s interests and concerns on the other,” he said.The U.S. has noted that since 2021 — well before Li became defense minister — China has declined or failed to respond to more than a dozen requests from the U.S. Defense Department to talk with senior leaders, as well as multiple requests for standing dialogues and working-level engagements.