TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Two groups of local Democratic activists are meeting next week to fill the Kansas Senate seats previously held by Gov.-elect Laura Kelly and Lt. Gov.-elect Lynn Rogers.

Precinct committee members of Kelly’s former Topeka-area district are scheduled to meet at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 29 at the Topeka public library.

In the Wichita district Rogers represented, precinct committee members are scheduled to meet at 1 p.m. Dec. 1 at the Service Employees International Union Local 503 headquarters.

Kelly and Rogers both resigned from the Senate earlier this month after their ticket won the governor’s race over Republicans Kris Kobach and Wink Hartman.

Kelly has served 14 years in the Senate and Rogers, two years.

The new senators will serve the remaining two years of the four-year terms until the 2020 elections.

By RAMESH SANTANAM
Associated Press

PITTSBURGH — David Feldstein knew seven of the 11 people killed in the synagogue. For Augie Siriano, they all were friends. Rabbi Jeffrey Myers was leading Shabbat services when the gunshots rang out.

Barely three weeks after the Tree of Life massacre — believed to be the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history — they and their fellow Pittsburghers are preparing to mark a holiday built around gratitude. But in the neighborhood of Squirrel Hill, they aren’t shying away from celebrating Thanksgiving. They’re welcoming it.

“It’s really a perfect time that Thanksgiving is falling right now,” Myers says. The holiday, he says, is about family — and spending time with loved ones is needed at a time like this.

And in the concentric circles of grief and healing around him — Tree of Life, Squirrel Hill and the city of Pittsburgh itself — the sentiment is similar.

“(With) Thanksgiving coming so closely on the heels of the shooting, people feel the need to be around family more,” says Dan Iddings, owner of Classic Lines, a bookstore about a half-mile from the synagogue. He will celebrate Thanksgiving with about 20 family and friends, and he expects it to be “a very family- and community-centered Thanksgiving, more so than in the past few years.”

How do you summon thankfulness in a family, in a community, when the wounds are so fresh and the grief so hard to bear? When what you’ve lost is so profound, how do you sit down around a holiday spread and enjoy what you have? To talk to people in Squirrel Hill this week — those directly affiliated with Tree of Life and those who compose the community around it — is to begin to understand the different forms that gratitude can take.

Siriano, Tree of Life’s custodian since 1993, was in the synagogue restroom when he heard gunshots Oct. 27. He rushed out to see one of the worshippers, someone he had shared tea with 10 minutes earlier, lying dead. On Thursday, he will be with family. He says he has much to be thankful for, including a grandson born Saturday.
“There has to be a place in your heart for the sadness and the joy,” says Rabbi Chuck Diamond, Tree of Life’s former rabbi who led a “healing” service outside the synagogue a week after the shooting.

“We recognize and acknowledge what we have lost, but, at the same time, looking around the table, we recognize what we have,” Diamond says. “People should observe Thanksgiving and appreciate the comfort and joy of the family around them.”

Feldstein understands the difficulty in celebrating the holiday less than a month after tragedy visited the neighborhood where he has owned a bagel shop for the past 28 years. Seven of the slain worshippers were Bagel Factory regulars, as were two of the Pittsburgh police officers injured in the shooting.

“You feel a bit guilty,” Feldstein says. “It’s a difficult feeling. But you still have to make your kids appreciate what they have so when they have children, you want them to feel that appreciation. I love my family. To me, that’s the best time.”

The shooting took place in Squirrel Hill, the center of Jewish life in the city as well as home to churches, ethnic eateries, grocery stores, delis, pizzerias, and an independent movie theater. The violence shook the neighborhood, and much of the city around it, to its foundations.

A makeshift memorial bearing the 11 victims’ names stood outside the synagogue until recently and drew thousands of visitors. Steel barricades now line the entrance to the synagogue, and the memorial sits inside, where two other congregations — New Light and Dor Hadash — also had gathered when the shooting occurred.

The crowds have thinned, but people still stop to pay respects. Bouquets of flowers and cards lean on hedges outside the synagogue. Someone left a pair of gold-painted Converse tennis shoes; written in English was the Hebrew and Arabic phrase, “Peace be unto you.”

Margaret Porter of Heath, Ohio, was in town to celebrate Thanksgiving with her son, a sophomore at the University of Pittsburgh. On Tuesday, they felt compelled to bring flowers to the synagogue. “I would say we’re more thankful this Thanksgiving,” Porter said.

What makes Pittsburgh’s Jewish community special is how different denominations interact with such ease, say Daniel and Baila Cohen, who recently took over ownership of of Pinskers Books and Judaica, as well as the adjoining cafe, in Squirrel Hill.

“Here, people know each other. They’ll be part of different synagogues,” Baila Cohen says. “We are comfortable in all of them.”

Adds her husband: “There’s a lot of crossover.”

Another reason that so many here are grateful on this holiday: the support the Jewish community received from the city, nation and throughout the world.

At Bagel Factory, people have shelled out hundreds of dollars in advance to pay for food for complete strangers. A store refused to charge for a Thanksgiving turkey when the owner learned the customer worked for Diamond. New Light, which lost three of its members in the shooting, has received thousands of letters from all over the world — all of them personal.

“People, not just Jews, were touched by this. The outreach from other religious communities has been overwhelming,” says New Light co-president Stephen Cohen. He has been welcome, he notes, at services at a black church, a mosque and a Hindu temple.

Every business in Squirrel Hill has some sign of support in its window, be it murals of love, kindness and hope, or placards reading, “Stronger than hate,” “Our hearts cry for Shalom,” or “Love our neighborhood. No place for hate.”

Crocheted or knitted Stars of David hang from bare branches, sign posts and doorways throughout the business district. A 6th grader from Arkansas scribbled, “God loves you. You are in our prayers” on the back of a leather heart, on which a Star of David made from popsicle sticks was pasted. A sign thanks people for participating in an act of Tikum Olam, the Jewish concept of repairing the world.

“So many people have walked up to me and said, ‘What can I do for you? What do you need?'” New Light’s Stephen Cohen says.

His congregation, like Dor Hadash and Tree of Life, found new locations for their services. And in those new places, during these very jumbled days, they are finding new ways of giving thanks.

They are the same community, marking the same American holiday as they did last November, but they find themselves with a new landscape to navigate — a landscape of grief, hope and, to hear them many of them tell it, gratitude.

“The first thing you do is change the venue,” Stephen Cohen says. “Then, you come together. We spend a lot of time together and we have been spending a lot of time together. That’s how you get past things like this. Maybe.”

By ZEKE MILLER and JILL COLVIN
Associated Press

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump frequently credits himself with accomplishing more for the military and veterans than any other president in recent memory. But he has yet to embark on what has long been a traditional presidential pilgrimage important to the military: a visit to troops deployed in a war zone.

As he departed Tuesday for Florida to spend the Thanksgiving holiday at his private club in Palm Beach, Trump said he’d soon correct the oversight.

“I’m going to a war zone,” he said in response to a reporter’s question about his support for the troops. He did not say when he would be making the trip or where he would be going. An official said a White House team recently returned from beginning to plan for a visit.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Wednesday that visiting a war zone is a decision for the president, while adding that there have been times in the past when he has advised against visits to “certain locations” to avoid security risks to the president and the troops.

“There’s places that I’ve been very straightforward I don’t want him to go at certain times,” Mattis said. He declined to elaborate.

The omission is one of a long list of norm-breaking moves that underscore the president’s increasingly fraught relationship with the military, which has celebrated Trump’s investments in defense spending but cringed at what some see as efforts to politicize their service.

Just this week, Trump leveled criticism against the storied commander of the 2011 mission that killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, retired Adm. William McRaven. “Wouldn’t it have been nice if we got Osama bin Laden a lot sooner than that, wouldn’t it have been nice,” Trump said.

The latest controversy followed a pattern of concerns raised by former senior military officers about Trump’s grasp of the military’s role, and it comes as White House aides and defense officials have raised alarm about what they view as the president’s disinterest in briefings about troop deployments overseas.

Shortly after taking office, Trump appeared to try to deflect responsibility for the death of a service member, William “Ryan” Owens, in a failed operation in Yemen, saying planning for the mission began under his predecessor and was backed by senior military commanders.

“They explained what they wanted to do, the generals, who are very respected,” he told “Fox & Friends” at the time. “And they lost Ryan.”

Trump won the White House on a platform of ending U.S. military commitments abroad, but he’s been bedeviled by many of the same challenges as his predecessors. More American troops are now deployed in conflict zones than when he took office.

Aides have suggested that Trump is wary of traveling to conflict zones where he doesn’t fully support the mission. Trump begrudgingly backed a surge of troops in Afghanistan last year and boosted U.S. deployments in Iraq, Syria and Africa to counter the Islamic State and other extremist groups.

Trump said last week in a “Fox News Sunday” interview that he was “very much opposed to the war in Iraq. I think it was a tremendous mistake, should have never happened.” Trump, in fact, offered lukewarm support for the invasion at the time but began offering public doubts about the mission after the conflict began in March 2003.
At home, some assert that Trump’s decision to send thousands of active-duty troops to the U.S.-Mexico border shortly before the Nov. 6 midterm elections was a political stunt.

Trump also drew criticism for his decision not to visit Arlington National Cemetery to mark Veterans Day, following his trip to Europe. He said later he “should have” visited the cemetery but was too busy with official business. His public schedule that day listed no events.

In the “Fox News Sunday” interview, Trump was asked why he hadn’t visited the troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan in the two years he’s served as commander in chief.

“Well, I think you will see that happen,” he said. “There are things that are being planned.”

He also touted his support for the men and women in uniform.

“I don’t think anybody’s been more with the military than I have, as a president,” Trump said. “In terms of funding, in terms of all of the things I’ve been able to get them, including the vets, I don’t think anybody’s done more than me.”

Trump received five draft deferments during the Vietnam War, four for education and one for a diagnosis of bone spurs — though he later told The New York Times he could not remember which foot was affected by the malady or how long it lasted.

Trump told The Associated Press in a recent interview that he doesn’t think visiting troops in a war zone is “overly necessary.”

“I’ve been very busy with everything that’s taking place here,” he added.
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Associated Press National Security Writer Robert Burns contributed to this report.

MANHATTAN — The Kansas Department of Agriculture and Carl’s Sales and Service, Inc. of Thayer hosted 21 high school agriculture students from four southeast Kansas schools at a hands-on dealership experience. The Nov. 6 event was coordinated in an effort to introduce students to careers within the agricultural mechanics pathway and farm equipment dealerships.

Schools attending the event included: Altoona-Midway High School, Cherryvale Middle-High School, Independence High School and Yates Center High School. Students heard remarks from Cindy Stiles and Randy Studebaker of Carl’s Sales and Service, Inc. and toured the facilities. They also learned about post-secondary education opportunities at Pratt Community College in a presentation from Ralph Williams, Instructor of Agriculture Power.

Upon completion of the tour and presentation, attendees rotated through four hands-on experience stations where they were asked to “find, fix, drive and sell.” Under the supervision of dealership employees, students used the computer software to locate various parts in the storefront. They disassembled and rebuilt hydraulic cylinders in the maintenance shop. All the students in attendance drove a Case IH Maxxum 150 Tractor. Lastly, students sold a Case IH 35A Tractor in a customer simulation by the teachers in attendance.

Landon Ewing, a senior from Independence High School, said, “Many people don’t realize the opportunities there are in agricultural mechanics and this day helped us to understand just how many jobs there are in both agriculture and mechanics. It was an awesome experience!”

The event was developed in response to the Agriculture Workforce Needs Assessment Survey conducted in 2015 which indicated that approximately 40 percent of Kansas job openings in agriculture were in agricultural mechanics. “We are very pleased with the enthusiasm from these students,” said Trenton Smedley, a KDA student intern who coordinated the program. “These events provide visibility and awareness about the need for growth in the technical workforce in the state of Kansas.”

“My students enjoyed working firsthand with those who are employed in the agricultural mechanics field,” said Katelyn Meiwes, agriculture educator at Altoona-Midway High School, “Their eyes were opened to the diversity of careers and opportunities within this industry.”

The event was organized by KDA and Carl’s Sales and Service, Inc. KDA serves to create partnerships between industry and education that ensure a pipeline of qualified individuals to fill the needs of agricultural employers. For more information on this workforce development program and other workforce development efforts, please email Russell Plaschka at [email protected] or call 785-564-7466.

LAWRENCE (AP) — A Kansas man jailed for more than a year in a murder case now faces charges in another death.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports that 21-year-old Steven Drake III of Lawrence was charged this week with vehicular homicide in connection with a November 2016 accident that killed 24-year-old Taylor Lister.

Drake has been in jail since last year in the fatal September 2017 shooting of 26-year-old Bryce Holladay. The first-degree murder trial is scheduled to start Jan. 14. Drake has claimed he acted in self-defense.

The new charge is a misdemeanor that alleges Drake drove in a way that created “unreasonable risk of injury” when his pickup truck left the road, went into a ditch and struck a tree. Lister died at a hospital.

PRATT (AP) — A man shot by police earlier this month near the small Kansas town of Pratt has died.

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation says 38-year-old Rene Prieto died Wednesday in a Wichita hospital, where he had been treated since the shooting on Nov. 13. An autopsy is planned and the bureau says in a brief news release that the investigation continues.

The shooting happened after Pratt police officers responded to a report of a man waving a gun on a street outside a home.

Authorities say Prieto fired at one of the responding officers. Three officers returned fire.

No officers were hurt.

Pratt is a town of 6,700 residents.

SALINA — A 41-year-old Salina man was booked into the Saline County jail Tuesday on charges that included six counts of rape of a girl under age 14.

Salina Police Sergeant Gary Hanus said Wednesday an investigation that began Nov. 3 resulted in the arrest Tuesday afternoon of Phillip J. Garrett, 41, Salina, on suspicion of six counts of rape of a victim under age 14 and one count of aggravated criminal sodomy.

The girl was an acquaintance of Garrett’s, Hanus said. The incidents occurred in a south Salina residence during a period of May through August, he added.

Hanus said the girl’s parents took the girl to the police after finding text messages between the girl and her friends that raised their suspicions and caused them to question her.

TOPEKA (AP) — Kansas state Rep. Scott Schwab is preparing to take over as secretary of state after promising to be less colorful and more focused on nuts-and-bolts administrative details than outgoing Republican incumbent Kris Kobach.

Kobach won the office in 2010 on a platform of rewriting state election laws. He boosted his national profile by championing tough voter identification laws and ran unsuccessfully for governor as a vocal ally of President Donald Trump.

Both Schwab and Kobach are conservative Republicans. But Schwab said in a recent Associated Press interview: “People want things to calm down.”

His plan is to focus on improving the day-to-day administration of elections but the Kansas Senate’s top Democrat has a proposal to curb the office’s power to oversee elections in the state’s four most populous counties.

LAWRENCE (AP) — A judge is barring an attorney from representing the man charged with fatally shooting three people and wounding two others in downtown Lawrence.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports that Douglas County District Court Judge Sally Pokorny says she has “grave concerns” about the competency of Jennifer Chaffee. Pokorny cited a laundry list of missteps that culminated with a mistrial four days into jury selection in the high-profile case.

Chaffee declined to comment. She was representing 21-year-old Anthony Roberts Jr., who is charged with three murder counts and one attempted murder count. Two other suspects face less series charges in the October 2017 shooting.

Pokorny has appointed a new attorney to represent Roberts and says she intends to appoint a second attorney soon. Roberts’ trial is now set for Feb. 4.

At least 81 dead, nearly 900 unaccounted for

By KATHLEEN RONAYNE
Associated Press

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Light right falling Wednesday in some areas of Northern California could aid crews fighting a deadly wildfire while raising the risk of flash floods and complicating efforts to recover the remains of those killed.

Heavier rain was expected later in the day in the Paradise burn area, where a monstrous wildfire has killed at least 81 people and destroyed more than 13,000 homes.

Residents of communities charred by a Los Angeles-area fire stacked sandbags as they prepared for possible downpours that threaten to unleash runoff from hillsides left barren by flames.

Forecasters say rain expected over areas of Southern California burned by recent wildfires could cause mudslides and rock slides.

In Paradise, teams sifted through ash and debris as they searched for bodies about 140 miles northwest of San Francisco.

“The task is arduous,” said Rick Crawford with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. “And the possibility exists that some people may never be found.”

Officials said nearly 870 people were still unaccounted for.

Precipitation could hinder the search by washing away fragmentary remains and turning ash into a thick paste.

Authorities trying to identify people killed are using rapid DNA testing that provides results in just two hours. The system can analyze DNA from bone fragments or other remains, then match it to genetic material provided by relatives of the missing.

The technology depends on people coming forward to give a DNA sample via a cheek swab.

But as of Tuesday, nearly two weeks after the start of the inferno, only about 60 people had provided samples to pop-up labs, said Annette Mattern, a spokeswoman for ANDE, a Colorado company that is donating use of the technology.

“We need hundreds,” Mattern said. “We need a big enough sample for us to make a positive ID on these and to also give a better idea of how many losses there actually are.”

The National Weather Service issued a flash flood watch for Paradise and nearby communities and for those areas charred by wildfires earlier this year in Lake, Shasta, Trinity and Mendocino counties.

The Camp Fire, which has burned an area about the size of Chicago — nearly 238 square miles — was 75 percent contained.

In Southern California, people who worried days earlier that their homes might be consumed by flames were taking precautions against possible mudslides caused by the approaching storm.

Residents filling sandbags at Malibu’s Zuma Beach were mindful of a disaster that struck less than a year ago when a downpour on a fresh burn scar sent home-smashing debris flows through Montecito, killing 21 people and leaving two missing.

The 151-square-mile Woolsey Fire in the Los Angeles area was almost entirely contained after three people were killed, 1,643 structures destroyed and 364 damaged.
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Associated Press journalists Olga R. Rodriguez in San Francisco, and Christopher Weber and John Antczak in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

TOPEKA (AP) — A judge has found sufficient evidence for three men to stand trial in a double homicide in Topeka.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that 19-year-old Matthew Hutto, 31-year-old Richard Showalter and 41-year-old Bradley Sportsman were bound over for trial Tuesday. They’re each jailed on $1 million bond on charges that include first-degree murder in the deaths of Sportsman’s estranged wife, 28-year-old Lisa Sportsman, and her cousin, 17-year-old Jesse Polinskey.

Twenty-year-old Cole Pingel testified at the preliminary hearing that the three talked about “taking care of business” while making the two-hour drive from the small town of Greenleaf to Topeka on July 22. The victims were found stabbed and beaten to death the next day.

Pingel is charged with interference with law enforcement for allegedly making a false statement during the investigation.

TOPEKA (AP) — Authorities say a statue of a bison calf has been stolen from a popular nature area north of Topeka.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that Doug Iliff reported that the statue was broken off at the base and taken week from the parking lot at Iliff Commons, a privately owned area that is open to the public. It has several miles of trails for walking, running, cross-country skiing and mountain biking. A replica of Topeka’s original log cabin is situated on the trail.

Iliff estimates the statue is worth about $800.

The Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the theft. But as of Wednesday, there were no reports of arrests.

By ANDREA TUDHOPE
Kansas News Service