Midwest
GOP lawmakers hit with 'gut punch' as red state's Dem governor ekes out win in transgender bill battle
Kansas Republicans failed Monday evening to override Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s veto of a bill that would have banned transgender surgical procedures for children.
Just a few hours after the Senate voted 27-13 to override the veto, the GOP-supermajority in the state House came up two votes shy to solidify its reversal. Two Republicans dissented in the final tally, which was 82-43.
“I’m extremely disappointed,” state Sen. Mike Thompson told Fox News Digital on Tuesday morning. “We’ve tried now three times to get a bill to protect these kids, so that they they are not guided into making a decision that changes their lives permanently.”
“The House has been a reliable partner in this up until now, so I don’t know what was going through the minds of those two representatives who caved in yesterday, but it was another gut punch for us, unfortunately,” he said.
TENNESSEE SENATE CLEARS BILL MAKING IT ILLEGAL TO ASSIST MINORS SEEKING ABORTIONS
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly recently vetoed a bill that would have banned transgender surgical procedures for children. (Photo by Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images)
Kelly, who vetoed the bill earlier this month, said in a statement Monday that she was “glad that bipartisan members of the legislature have stood firm in saying that divisive bills like House Substitute for Senate Bill 233 have no place in Kansas.”
“The legislature’s decision to sustain my veto is a win for parental rights, Kansas families, and families looking to call our state home,” she said.
The ban would have prevented state employees from encouraging “social transitioning,” such as the use of pronouns or choice of dress that matches a person’s preferred identity.
Substitute Bill for Senate Bill 233 sought to outlaw transgender treatment for minors and allow for causes of action against healthcare providers who provided such treatment. The bill would also have restricted the use of state funds for transgender treatment.
KANSAS GOVERNOR VETOES BILL BANNING TRANSGENDER TREATMENT TO MINORS, ABORTION RESTRICTIONS
Trans youth protesting. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
“We’re on the right side of history on this,” Kansas Senate Health Committee Chair Beverly Gossage told her colleagues during Monday’s vote.
Republican state Rep. John Eplee said the “language put in the bill” that prevents is an effort to prohibit “state entities, state employees, from promoting the use of different pronouns and, if you will, the search for gender change.”
State Republican Sen. Mark Steffen said the bill aims to stomp out “woke” health care providers who carry out such procedures on “confused” children.
“No more than we would ever tell somebody with anorexia that they’re fat would we tell a boy that they’re a girl or girl that they’re a boy,” he said.
Meanwhile, Democrats decried the Senate’s vote to override. State Sen. Mary Ware, a Democrat, said the bill “tramples” on “the rights of some Kansas citizens to live peaceably, lawfully and free to make their own decisions about their own bodies.”
KANSAS REPUBLICANS USE ‘POWER OF THE PURSE’ TO TIE UP IMMIGRATION, DEI PROVISIONS IN BUDGET
Kansas Republicans voted to override the governor’s veto. (Thom Bridge/Independent Record via AP, File)
When the governor vetoed the bill, she said in a statement the “divisive” legislation “targets a small group of Kansans by placing government mandates on them and dictating to parents how to best raise and care for their children.”
“I do not believe that is a conservative value, and it’s certainly not a Kansas value,” she said.
The bill comes as more than a dozen states in the U.S. have enacted similar bans on surgical procedures and hormonal prescriptions for transgender youth. Idaho, North Dakota, Florida, Oklahoma and Alabama have passed laws making it a felony to perform sex changes on children.
Read the full article from Here
LINCOLN, Neb. (KSNB) – One lucky player who bought a Nebraska Pick 4 ticket for the Thursday drawing is holding a ticket worth $3,125.
The ticket was sold at Pump & Pantry #16, 109 Lincoln Avenue, in York. The winning numbers from Thursday’s Nebraska Pick 4 draw were 09, 06, 01, 02.
Winning Nebraska Lottery Lotto tickets expire 180 days after the drawing. Tickets with total prize amounts of $501 to $19,999 must be claimed by mail or at a Regional Lottery Claim Center. Additional information about claiming prizes can be found at the Nebraska Lottery website, nelottery.com, or by calling 800-587-5200.
Nebraska Pick 4 is a daily Lotto game from the Nebraska Lottery. Players select four numbers, each from a separate set of digits 0 through 9, for a chance to win up to $6,000. Players decide what type of play style and potential prizes to play for by choosing from one of six bet types. The odds of winning the $3,125 prize in Nebraska Pick 4 are 1 in 10,000.
Click here to subscribe to our KSNB Local4 daily digest and breaking news alerts delivered straight to your email inbox.
Copyright 2026 KSNB. All rights reserved.
North Dakota
Hoeven, Armstrong, Traynor speak on OBBB Rural Health Transformation Fund updates in ND
BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) – On Friday, North Dakota U.S. Senator John Hoeven, Governor Kelly Armstrong and Health and Human Services Commissioner Pat Traynor explained how the state plans to use millions of dollars from the Big Beautiful Bill’s Rural Health Transformation Fund to transform healthcare across the state.
They spoke extensively about the special session to allocate the funds, and confirmed that it is still tentatively set for Jan. 21.
The Big Beautiful Bill allocated $25 billion for rural healthcare nationwide. North Dakota received $500 million for five years and $200 million for the first year. There is still another $25 billion left to be spent, and North Dakota is hoping to receive an extra $500 million.
“I truly believe that with the plan we’re putting in place and the things we built that line up with that, we’ll get a billion dollars over five years,” said Hoeven.
Federal rules require the state to lock in contracts for the money by October first— a deadline officials say is driving the need for a special session.
In the first year, North Dakota will focus on retention grants to keep existing staff, technical assistance and consultants for rural hospitals, as well as telehealth equipment and home patient monitoring.
Governor Armstrong says the special session will include policy bills tied to how much federal rural health funding the state can earn.
“We’re going to have a physical fitness test for physical education courses, nutrition education, continuing education requirement for physicians, physician assistant licensure compact—which North Dakota has been doing, dealing with that since the heart of the oil boom and moving forward—and then an expanded scope of practice for pharmacists,” said Armstrong.
Hundreds of millions of dollars could reshape healthcare in rural North Dakota, and state leaders say the next few weeks are key to receiving and spending that money wisely.
The governor says he only wants to focus on bills related to the Rural Health Transformation Program during the special session and doesn’t intend to deal with other state issues during that time.
Copyright 2026 KFYR. All rights reserved.
CLEVELAND, Ohio — OHSAA girls basketball scores from Friday in Ohio, as provided by The Associated Press.
Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, Mich. 43, Notre Dame Academy 35
Baltimore Liberty Union 47, Cols. Hamilton Twp. 34
Berlin Center Western Reserve 68, N. Jackson Jackson-Milton 46
Blanchester 40, Bethel-Tate 37
Chagrin Falls 37, Burton Berkshire 32
Circleville 62, Amanda-Clearcreek 40
Cle. Hay 88, Cle. Glenville 2
Cols. Centennial 78, Columbus International 50
Cols. Linden-McKinley 54, Cols. Whetstone 28
Cols. Walnut Ridge 73, Cols. Marion-Franklin 12
Delaware Buckeye Valley 50, CSG 43
Delta 48, Bryan 44
Dublin Coffman 47, Cols. Upper Arlington 39
Hilliard Darby 43, Thomas Worthington 32
Johnstown 47, Johnstown Northridge 41
Mason 54, Cin. Colerain 32
Newark 56, Ashville Teays Valley 42
Oak Harbor 52, Millbury Lake 31
Ohio Deaf 50, Ky. School for the Deaf, Ky. 9
Pemberville Eastwood 65, Rossford 35
Pickerington North 41, New Albany 33
Springboro 66, Centerville 33
Stryker 54, Montpelier 20
W. Chester Lakota W. 76, Fairfield 24
Wauseon 55, Swanton 13
Western Reserve Academy 65, Lawrenceville School, N.J. 33
Westerville Cent. 57, Grove City Cent. Crossing 20
Worthington Christian 57, Tree of Life 16
Zanesville 58, Newark Licking Valley 40
‘It was apocalyptic’, woman tells Crans-Montana memorial service, as bar owner detained
$3,125 Nebraska Pick 4 winning ticket sold in York
Motorcyclist dies on I-15 near Tropicana, police say
New Hampshire services respond to 7-car crash
NJ officers surprised with Eagles playoffs tickets for saving boy who fell through ice
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Video: ‘It Didn’t Have to Happen This Way:’ U.Va. Faculty Call for Review of Police Response to Protests
Federal judge blocks Trump from cutting childcare funds to Democratic states over fraud concerns
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,416
Trump administration can’t block child care, other program money for 5 states: Judge
AOC accuses Vance of believing ‘American people should be assassinated in the street’
Mercosur: How Macron’s domestic weakness undercut his Brussels clout
-
Detroit, MI6 days ago2 hospitalized after shooting on Lodge Freeway in Detroit
-
Technology4 days agoPower bank feature creep is out of control
-
Dallas, TX5 days agoDefensive coordinator candidates who could improve Cowboys’ brutal secondary in 2026
-
Dallas, TX1 day agoAnti-ICE protest outside Dallas City Hall follows deadly shooting in Minneapolis
-
Health6 days agoViral New Year reset routine is helping people adopt healthier habits
-
Iowa3 days agoPat McAfee praises Audi Crooks, plays hype song for Iowa State star
-
Nebraska3 days agoOregon State LB transfer Dexter Foster commits to Nebraska
-
Nebraska4 days agoNebraska-based pizza chain Godfather’s Pizza is set to open a new location in Queen Creek