WASHINGTON (AP) ' The National Governors Association said governors from both parties would be able to meet with President Donald Trump later this month after the White House initially extended invitations to a business meeting only to Republicans.

'Were pleased the president will welcome governors from all 55 states and territories to the White House,' Brandon Tatum, the groups chief executive, said Wednesday.

Its still unclear whether every governor will participate in the full White House event. Trump initially planned to invite only Republicans to a business meeting while the governors are in Washington for their annual gathering later this month. That prompted an outcry from dozens of Democrats who said they would boycott a dinner at the White House if they werent fully included at the business meeting.

'If the reports are true that not all governors are invited to these events, which have historically been productive and bipartisan opportunities for collaboration, we will not be attending the White House dinner this year,' the Democrats said.

The dispute threatened to upend what has long served as one of Washingtons rare bipartisan gatherings.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican who chairs the NGA, told fellow governors on Wednesday that everyone would be invited to the meeting, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. The person said that announcement followed conversations between Stitt and the White House.

The White House did not immediately comment on the meeting. On Tuesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump has 'discretion to invite anyone he wants to the White House.'

'Its the peoples house,' she said. 'Its also the presidents home, so he can invite whomever he wants to dinners and events here at the White House.'

WASHINGTON (AP) ' House Republicans are rushing ahead on Wednesday on legislation that would impose strict new proof-of-citizenship requirements ahead of the midterm elections, a longshot Trump administration priority that faces sharp blowback in the Senate.

The bill, called the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, or SAVE America Act, would require Americans to prove they are citizens when they register to vote, mostly through a valid U.S. passport or birth certificate. It would also require a valid photo identification before voters can cast ballots, which some states already demand.

Republicans said the legislation is needed to prevent voter fraud, but Democrats warn it will disenfranchise millions of Americans by making it harder to vote. Federal law already requires that voters in national elections be U.S. citizens, but theres no requirement to provide documentary proof. Experts said voter fraud is extremely rare, and very few noncitizens ever slip through the cracks. Fewer than one in 10 Americans have valid passports.

'Some of my colleagues will call this voter suppression or Jim Crow 2.0,' said Rep. Bryan Steil, R-Wis., presenting the package at a committee hearing.

But he said 'those allegations are false,' and he argued the bill is needed to enforce existing laws, particularly those that bar immigrants who are not citizens from voting. 'The current law is not strong enough,' he said.

Election turmoil shadows the vote

The GOPs sudden push to change voting rules at the start of the midterm election season is raising red flags, particularly because President Donald Trump has suggested he wants to nationalize U.S. elections, which, under the Constitution, are designed to be run by individual states.

The Trump administration recently seized ballots in Georgia from the 2020 election, which the president insists he won despite his defeat to Democrat Joe Biden. The Department of Justice is demanding voter rolls from states, including Michigan, where a federal judge this week dismissed the departments lawsuit seeking the voter files. Secretaries of state have raised concerns that voters personal data may be shared with Homeland Security to verify citizenship and could result in people being unlawfully purged from the rolls.

'Let me be clear what this is about: Its about Republicans trying to rig the next election,' said Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the Rules Committee, during a hearing ahead of the floor vote. 'Republicans are pushing the Save America Act because they want fewer Americans to vote. Its that simple.'

The legislation is actually a do-over of a similar bill the House approved last year, which also sought to clamp down on fraudulent voting, particularly among noncitizens. It won the support of four House Democrats, but stalled in the Republican-led Senate.

This version toughens some of the requirements further, while creating a process for those whose names may have changed, particularly during marriage, to provide the paperwork necessary and further attest to their identity.

It also imposes requirement on states to share their voter information with the Department of Homeland Security, as a way to verify the citizenship of the names on the voter rolls. That has drawn pushback from elections officials as potentially intrusive on peoples privacy.

Warnings from state election officials

The new rules in the bill would take effect immediately, if the bill is passed by both chambers of Congress and signed into law.

But with primary elections getting underway next month, critics said the sudden shift would be difficult for state election officials to implement and potentially confuse voters.

Voting experts have warned that more than 20 million U.S. citizens of voting age do not have proof of their citizenship readily available. Almost half of Americans do not have a U.S. passport.

'Election Day is fast approaching,' said Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska. 'Imposing new federal requirements now, when states are deep into their preparations, would negatively impact election integrity by forcing election officials to scramble to adhere to new policies likely without the necessary resources.'

The fight ahead in the Senate

In the Senate, where Republicans also have majority control, there does not appear to be enough support to push the bill past the chambers filibuster rules, which largely require 60 votes to advance legislation.

That frustration has led some Republicans, led by Sen. Mike Lee of Utah, to push for a process that would skip the 60-vote threshold in this case, and allow the bill to be debated through a so-called standing filibuster ' a process that would open the door to potentially endless debate.

Lee made the case to GOP senators at a closed-door lunch this week, and some said afterward they are mulling the concept.

'I think most peoples minds are open,' said Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., 'My minds certainly open.'

But Murkowski of Alaska said she is flat out against the legislation.

'Not only does the U.S. Constitution clearly provide states the authority to regulate the ‘times, places, and manner of holding federal elections, but one-size-fits-all mandates from Washington, D.C., seldom work in places like Alaska,' she said.

Karen Brinson Bell of Advance Elections, a nonpartisan consulting firm, said the bill adds numerous requirements for state and local election officials with no additional funding.

'Election officials have a simple request of Congress ' that you help share their burdens not add to them,' she said.

Associated Press writer Kevin Freking contributed to this report.

But Jackie Robinson Stadium, where nearby UCLA plays its home-field baseball games, will be allowed to remain on the property.

The VA announced late Monday that it had dissolved deals with the exclusive K-12 private school, along with a company that ran a parking lot on the campus and an energy firm that operated an oil field on the property under a revocable license.

The terminations follow rulings from the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and a Los Angeles federal judge that determined the agreements violated federal law.

In its announcement, the VA said the terminations will enable the agency to reclaim the properties for the purpose of serving veterans as part of President Donald Trump’s executive order calling for the creation of a National Center for Warrior Independence on the campus. The center will provide housing and support for up to 6,000 homeless veterans by 2028, according to the VA.

In a notice posted on its website, the VA said it found that the department has been underpaid by more than $40 million per year by leaseholders based on the value of the properties.

“These groups have been fleecing taxpayers and Veterans for far too long, and under President Trump, VA is taking decisive action to ensure the West LA VAMC (VA Medical Center) campus is used only as intended: to benefit veterans,” VA Secretary Doug Collins said in a statement.

“By establishing the National Center for Warrior Independence, we will turn the West Los Angeles VAMC campus into a destination where homeless veterans from across the nation can find housing and support on their journey back to self-sufficiency,” he added.

Brentwood School officials said in a statement that the VA had offered to meet with them in Washington.

“The VA has offered to meet in Washington, and we look forward to that meeting with hopes of preserving our longstanding relationship and the extensive services Brentwood School provides that so many veterans value,” the school said.

As the result of a lawsuit brought by veterans, a federal judge two years ago issued an order requiring the VA to build more than 2,000 housing units for disabled veterans on the campus. A three-judge appeals panel affirmed the order in December, and the VA said it would ask for a review of the ruling before a full panel of judges.

The appeals court affirmed that the VA’s leases with Brentwood School and oil company Bridgeland Resources violated the West Los Angeles Leasing Act of 2016 and were therefore void.

However, the panel allowed UCLA to continue its lease for the baseball stadium.

The Ninth Circuit decision harshly criticized the VA’s agreements.

“This class action lawsuit, and its numerous appeals, demonstrates just how far the VA has strayed from its mission,” Circuit Judge Ana de Alba wrote in the appellate opinion. “There are now scores of unhoused veterans trying to survive in and around the greater Los Angeles area despite the acres of land deeded to the VA for their care. Rather than use the West Los Angeles VA Grounds as President Lincoln intended, the VA has leased the land to third party commercial interests that do little to benefit the veterans.”

U.S. District Judge David Carter’s landmark ruling regarding the VA’s obligations to provide housing and care for disabled, unhoused veterans delivered a decisive victory for disabled veterans in October 2024. Following multiple hearings in Los Angeles federal court, the judge issued several key orders, including temporarily locking down UCLA’s baseball complex, capping the oil well on the campus, and expediting the construction of temporary housing.

The judge’s final decision followed an earlier ruling requiring the VA to build 750 temporary housing units and 1,800 permanent units within six years on the 388-acre campus. The ruling came after a four-week non-jury trial in which the district court found that the land-use leases were unlawful.

During the trial, the VA argued it was out of space on its campus and that the lack of available acreage precludes any increase to the 1,200 housing units the agency had promised to open by 2030. VA attorneys alleged that any relief ordered by the court would burden the department financially and deprive it of the flexibility needed to solve veteran homelessness.

The Ninth Circuit decision requires the VA to build 750 units of temporary supportive housing within 18 months, construct 1,800 units of permanent supportive housing, and end the use of what was found to be discriminatory income restrictions for affordable housing by ensuring that veterans’ disability payments do not count against their eligibility for supportive housing.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) ' Police on Wednesday identified the suspect in a school shooting in Canada as an 18-year-old who had prior mental health calls to her home and who was found dead following the attack that killed eight people in a remote part of British Columbia.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald said Jesse Van Rootselaar had a history of mental health contact with police, and that the suspects mother and stepbrother were found dead in a home near the school.

The motive remained unclear.

Police initially said nine people were killed Tuesday in the attack, but McDonald clarified Wednesday that there were eight fatalities, plus the suspect, who authorities said shot herself. McDonald said the discrepancy arose from a victim who was airlifted to a medical center. Authorities mistakenly thought that person had died.

More than 25 people were wounded Tuesday in the attack in the small mountain community of Tumbler Ridge, police said.

Town is near border with Alberta

The town of 2,700 people in the Canadian Rockies is more than 600 miles northeast of Vancouver, near the provincial border with Alberta.

Police said the victims included a 39-year-old teacher and five students, ages 12 to 13.

McDonald said the suspect’s mother, who was also 39, and an 11-year-old stepbrother, were found at the suspect’s home.

The killings at the home occurred first, he said. A young family member at the home went to a neighbor, who called police.

At the school, one victim was found in a stairwell and the rest, McDonald believed, were found in the library. The suspect was not related to any of the victims at the school, he said.

'There is no information at this point that anyone was specifically targeted,” McDonald said.

Police recovered a long gun and a modified handgun. McDonald said officers arrived at the school two minutes after the initial call. When they arrived, shots were fired in their direction.

'Parents, grandparents, sisters, brothers in Tumbler Ridge will wake up without someone they love. The nation mourns with you, and Canada stands by you,' an emotional Prime Minister Mark Carney said as he arrived in Parliament.

Deadliest rampage since 2020

The attack was Canadas deadliest rampage since 2020, when a gunman in Nova Scotia killed 13 people and set fires that left another nine dead.

Carney said flags at government buildings will be flown at half-staff for seven days and added: 'We will get through this.”

Shelley Quist said her neighbor across the street lost her 12-year-old. 'We heard his mom. She was in the street crying. She wanted her sons body,' Quist said.

Quist said her 17-year-old son, Darian, was on lockdown in the school for more than two hours. The provincial government website lists Tumbler Ridge Secondary School as having 175 students in grades 7 to 12.

'The grade sevens and eights, I think, were upstairs in the library, and thats where the shooter went,' she said. Her son was in the library just 15 minutes prior to the attack.

Quist was working at the hospital down the street when the shooting started.

'I was about to go run down to the school, but my coworker held me back. And then I was able to get Darian on the phone to know he was OK,' she said.

School shootings are rare in Canada, which has strict gun-control laws. The government has responded to previous mass shootings with gun-control measures, including a recently broadened ban on all guns it considers assault weapons.

A video showed students walking out with their hands raised as police vehicles surrounded the building and a helicopter circled overhead.

Village is a ‘big family

Tumbler Ridge Mayor Darryl Krakowka said it was 'devastating' to learn how many had died in the community, which he called a 'big family.'

'I broke down,' Krakowka said. 'I have lived here for 18 years. I probably know every one of the victims.'

The Rev. George Rowe of the Tumbler Ridge Fellowship Baptist Church went to the recreation center where victims families were awaiting more information.

'It was not a pretty sight. Families are still waiting to hear if its their child thats deceased and because of protocol and procedure, the investigating team is very careful in releasing names,' Rowe said Tuesday.

Rowe once taught at the high school, and his three children graduated from there.

'To walk through the corridors of that school will never be the same again,' he said.

The school district said the high school and elementary school will be closed for the rest of the week.

Carneys office said he called off a planned trip to Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Munich, Germany. He had been set to announce a long-awaited defense industrial strategy Wednesday in Halifax before heading to Europe for the Munich Security Conference.

British Columbia Premier David Eby on Tuesday said he had spoken to the prime minister about the 'unimaginable tragedy.'

'I know its causing us all to hug our kids a little bit tighter tonight,' he said. 'Im asking the people of British Columbia to look after the people of Tumbler Ridge tonight.'

Gillies reported from Toronto.

NEW YORK (AP) ' James Van Der Beek, a heartthrob who starred in coming-of-age dramas at the dawn of the new millennium, shooting to fame playing the titular character in 'Dawsons Creek' and in later years mocking his own hunky persona, has died. He was 48.

'Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning. He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace. There is much to share regarding his wishes, love for humanity and the sacredness of time. Those days will come,' a statement from the actor’s family that was posted on Instagram said. 'For now we ask for peaceful privacy as we grieve our loving husband, father, son, brother, and friend.'

Van Der Beek revealed in 2024 that he was being treated for colorectal cancer.

Van Der Beek made a surprise video appearance in September at a 'Dawson’s Creek' reunion charity event in New York City after previously dropping out due to illness.

He appeared projected onstage at the Richard Rodgers Theatre during a live reading of the shows pilot episode to benefit F Cancer and Van Der Beek. Lin-Manuel Miranda subbed for him on stage. “Thank you to every single person here,' Van Der Beek said.

Forever tied to ‘Dawsons Creek’

A one-time theater kid, Van Der Beek would star in the movie 'Varsity Blues' and on TV in 'CSI: Cyber' as FBI Special Agent Elijah Mundo, but was forever connected to 'Dawsons Creek,' which ran from 1998 to 2003 on The WB.

The series followed a high school group of friends as they learned about falling in love, creating real friendships and finding their footing in life. Van Der Beek, than 20, played 15-year-old Dawson Leery, who aspired to be a director of Steven Spielberg quality.

'Dawsons Creek,' with the moody theme song Paula Coles 'I Dont Want To Wait,' helped define The WB as a haven for teens and young adults who related to its hyper-articulate dialogue and frank talk about sexuality. And it made household names of Van Der Beek, Joshua Jackson, Katie Holmes and Michelle Williams.

The show caused a stir when one of the teens embarked on a racy affair with a teacher 20 years his senior and when Holmes’ character climbs through Dawson’s bedroom window and they curl up together. Racier shows like 'Euphoria' and 'Sex Education' owe a debt to 'Dawson’s Creek.'

Van Der Beek sometimes struggled to get out from under the shadow of the show but eventually leaned into lampooning himself, like on Funny Or Die videos and on Kesha’s 'Blow' music video, which included his laser gun battle with the pop star in a nightclub and dead unicorns.

'Its tough to compete with something that was the cultural phenomenon that ‘Dawsons Creek was,' he told Vulture in 2013. 'It ran for so long. Thats a lot of hours playing one character in front of people. So its natural that they associate you with that.'

A popular GIF and ‘Varsity Blues

More than a decade after the show went off the air, a scene at the end of the shows third season became a GIF. Dawson was watching as his soul mate embarks on a love affair with his best friend and burst into tears.

'It wasnt scripted that I was supposed to cry; it was just one of those things where its a magical moment and it just happens in the scene,' he told Vanity Fair. He seemed exasperated when he told the Los Angeles Times: 'All of a sudden, six years of work was boiled down to one seven-second clip on loop.' (Van Der Beek himself recreated the GIF in 2011 for Funny or Die and gave it a second life.)

While still on 'Dawsons Creek,' Van Der Beek hosted 'Saturday Night Live' ' the musical guest was Everlast ' and landed a plumb role in 'Varsity Blues,' playing a second-string high school quarterback who leaps into the breach when the star suffers an injury.

Van Der Beeks character, Mox, turns out to not be a football fanatic, preferring to read Kurt Vonnegut and yearning for the college education which will allow him to escape the jock mentality of his Texas town. 'I dont want your life,' he screams at one point. Critic Roger Ebert called him 'convincing and likable.'

After ‘Dawsons Creek

Some of his projects after 'Dawsons Creek' include co-creating and playing Wesley 'Diplo' Pentz, a dull but likable music producer in the mockumentary satire on Viceland, 'What Would Diplo Do?' In 2019, he made it to the semifinals of ABCs 'Dancing with the Stars' and played a balding, out-of-shape ex-boyfriend on 'How I Met Your Mother.'

'The more you make fun of yourself and dont try to go for any kind of respect, the more people seem to respect you,' he told Vanity Fair in 2011. 'Ive always been a clown trapped in a leading mans body.'

Between 2003 and 2013, he made appearances in shows like 'Criminal Minds,' 'One Tree Hill,' and 'How I Met Your Mother.' He played himself with a crackpot intensity in the Krysten Ritter-led ABC drama 'Dont Trust the B' in Apartment 23,' and the short-lived 'CSI' spinoff 'CSI: Cyber' and CBS 'Friends With Better Lives.'

Hes also appeared in a number of movies, such as Kevin Smiths 2001 comedy 'Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back' and its 2019 sequel, 'Jay and Silent Bob Reboot.' He also was in the Bret Easton Ellis adaptation of 'The Rules of Attraction' in 2002 opposite Jessica Biel and Kate Bosworth.

In 2025, he was unmasked as Griffin on 'The Masked Singer,' after singing a cover of John Denvers 'Take Me Home, Country Roads' and 'I Had Some Help' by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen.

Early life as a theater kid

Van Der Beek, who was raised in Cheshire, Connecticut, started acting at 13 after suffering a concussion playing football that prevented him from playing for a year on doctors orders. He landed the role of Danny Zuko in his school production of 'Grease.'

He stuck with theater, landing at 16 in 1994 an off-Broadway role in 'Finding the Sun' by Pulitzer Prize-winner Edward Albee and one of the sons in a revival of 'Shenandoah' at the prestigious Goodspeed Opera House in his home state.

He earned a scholarship to New Jerseys Drew University but left school early when he got 'Dawsons Creek.' In 2024, he returned to campus to accept an honorary degree for his 'selfless service and exemplary commitment to the mission of Drew,' the university said.

Drew University President Hilary Link welcomed Van Der Beek with a popular quote from his 'Dawsons Creek' character: 'Edge is fleeting,' she said, 'but heart lasts forever. So on this morning, we pay tribute to that heart.'

He is survived by his wife, Kimberly, and six children, Olivia, Joshua, Annabel, Emilia, Gwendolyn and Jeremiah.

AP Music Writer Maria Sherman contributed to this report.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) ' A manatee that got stuck in a Florida storm drain while seeking warmer waters is now on the mend at SeaWorld Orlando after a large effort to rescue it.

Multiple fire rescue units and officials from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the University of Florida and even Jacks Wrecker Service were brought in Tuesday to get the 410-pound sea cow out of the storm drain in Melbourne Beach.

The crews convened on the scene after a worker with Melbourne Beach spotted the manatee, the citys Vice Mayor Terry Cronin told WESH-TV in Orlando.

'Were in the process of improving the storm drain across Melbourne Beach. Our people were doing a survey. And one of the surveyors noticed a manatee in what is called a bethel box.' Cronin said.

The male manatee was taken to SeaWorld Orlando, where it is being cared for in one of the parks medical pools, spokesperson Stephanie Bechara said.

'Hes breathing on his own, moving independently and showing interest in food. Our teams are adjusting water levels to support buoyancy and comfort as part of his care,' Bechara said.

She said they work to stabilize and rehabilitate rescued manatees so they can ultimately be returned to the wild.

The protected species is still recovering from a mass starvation event. In 2021, officials recorded more than 1,100 manatee deaths, mostly caused by starvation. The states Fish and Wildlife agency said the number of deaths were down significantly, with 565 deaths recorded in 2024, and 555 deaths in 2023.

Last year, SeaWorld Orlando rescued 56 manatees and has already taken in seven this year.

As the Trump administration prepares to close the Kennedy Center for a two-year renovation, the head of Washingtons performing arts center has warned its staff about impending cuts that will leave 'skeletal teams.'

In a Tuesday memo obtained by The Associated Press, Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell told staff that 'departments will obviously function on a much smaller scale with some units totally reduced or on hold until we begin preparations to reopen in 2028,' promising 'permanent or temporary adjustments for most everyone.'

A Kennedy Center spokesperson declined comment Wednesday.

Over the next few months, he wrote, department heads would be 'evaluating the needs and making the decisions as to what these skeletal teams left in place during the facility and closure and construction phase will look like.' Grenell said leadership would 'provide as much clarity and advance notice as possible.'

The Kennedy Center is slated to close in early July. Few details about what the renovations will look like have been released since President Donald Trump announced his plan at the beginning of February. Neither Trump nor Grenell have provided evidence to support claims about the building being in disrepair, and last October, Trump had pledged it would remain open during renovations.

Its unclear exactly how many employees the center currently has, but a 2025 tax filing said nearly 2,500 people were employed during the 2023 calendar year. A request for comment sent to Kennedy Center Arts Workers United, which represents artists and arts professionals affiliated with the center ' wasnt immediately returned.

Leading performers and groups have left or canceled appearances since Trump ousted the centers leadership a year ago and added his own name to the building in December. The Washington Post, which first reported about Grenells memo, has also cited significant drops in ticket revenue that ' along with private philanthropy ' comprises the centers operating budget. Officials have yet to say whether such long-running traditions as the Mark Twain Award for comedy or the honors ceremony for lifetime contributions to the arts will continue while the center is closed.

The Kennedy Center was first conceived as a national cultural facility during the Eisenhower administration, in the 1950s. President John F. Kennedy led a fundraising initiative, and the yet-to-be-built center was named in his honor following his assassination. It opened in 1971 and has become a preeminent showcase for theater, music and dramatic performances, enjoying bipartisan backing until Trumps return to office last year.

'This renovation represents a generational investment in our future,' Grenell wrote. 'When we reopen, we will do so as a stronger organization ' one that honors our legacy while expanding our impact.'

Richard Tillman, 44, was arrested on July 20 after he rammed a car into the post office in a strip mall and then set the vehicle ablaze. The lobby of the building went up in flames. Nobody was hurt.

Tillman, of San Jose, on Monday entered a guilty plea in federal court to malicious destruction of government property.

'In pleading guilty, Tillman admitted that he intentionally set the fire in order to ‘make a point to the United States government,' the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Northern District of California said in a statement.

Prosecutors didnt say what point Tillman was trying to make.

U.S. Postal Inspector Shannon Roark said in July that Tillman told officers at the scene he had livestreamed the incident on YouTube.

Tillman, who remains in federal custody, faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine when hes sentenced on April 27.

After the crash, his brother Kevin Tillman said in a statement that Richard Tillman had been suffering from 'severe mental health issues' for many years, and the family was relieved no one was hurt.

Pat Tillman left the Arizona Cardinals to join the military after 9/11 and was killed in Afghanistan in 2004 at age 27. His family is from the San Jose area.

Kevin Tillman also left his Major League Baseball career with the Anaheim Angels to serve in the military.

WASHINGTON (AP) ' After a little less than a year, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard is ending the work of a task force she created to look at big changes to the U.S. intelligence community.

The panel known as the Directors Initiative Group was formed in April and charged with rooting out what Gabbard called the politicization of intelligence gathering. The group also studied ways to reduce spending on intelligence and whether reports on high-profile topics like COVID-19 should be declassified.

The group became a lightning rod for criticism of Gabbard, with Democrats and some intelligence insiders questioning whether it would be used to weaken spy agencies and bring them under the control of President Donald Trump.

In announcing the end of the groups work Wednesday, Gabbard said it was always intended to be a temporary effort as she began her work overseeing coordination of the nations 18 intelligence agencies. Reuters first reported the winddown.

'In less than one year, weve brought a historic level of transparency to the intelligence community,' Gabbard said in a statement. 'My commitment to transparency, truth, and eliminating politicization and weaponization within the intelligence community remains central to all that we do.'

The number and identities of the officers assigned to the group is classified, Gabbards office said, adding that they now will return to other agencies to continue the work begun by the group.

Gabbard has ushered in big changes to Americas intelligence service, at times using the nations spy agencies to back up Trumps conspiracy theories about the 2016 and 2020 elections.

Under Gabbard, the government has revoked the security clearances of dozens of former and current officials as well as declassified documents meant to call into question long-settled judgments about Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Her presence at an FBI search of a Georgia election office related to the 2020 election has prompted criticism from Democrats who say she is blurring the traditional lines between foreign intelligence gathering and domestic law enforcement.

The CIA also released more information about its investigations into the origins of COVID-19, including a new assessment released last year that found COVID most likely originated in a lab.

In August, Gabbard announced plans to reduce the workforce at her office and trim more than $700 million from its annual budget. In May, she fired two top intelligence officials because she determined they opposed Trump.

WASHINGTON (AP) ' A disruption in reimbursements to states for disaster relief costs. Delays in cybersecurity response and training. And missed paychecks for the agents who screen passengers and bags at the nations airports, which could lead to unscheduled absences and longer wait times for travelers.

Those were just some of the potential ramifications of a looming funding lapse at the Department of Homeland Security, according to officials who testified before a House panel on Wednesday.

Congress has approved full-year funding for the vast majority of the federal government, but it only passed a short-term funding patch for the Department of Homeland Security that extends through Friday. In response to the killing of two American citizens in Minneapolis and other incidents, Democrats have insisted that any funding bill for the department come with changes to immigration enforcement operations.

Finding agreement on the issue of immigration enforcement will be exceedingly difficult. But even though lawmakers in both parties were skeptical, a White House official said that the administration was having constructive talks with both Republicans and Democrats. The official, granted anonymity to speak about ongoing deliberations, stressed that President Donald Trump wanted the government to remain open and for Homeland Security services to be funded.

Meanwhile, Republicans are emphasizing that a Homeland Security shutdown would not curtail the work of the agencies Democrats are most concerned about. Trumps tax and spending cut bill passed last year gave Immigration and Customs Enforcement about $75 billion to expand detention capacity and beef up enforcement operations.

'Removal operations will continue. Wall construction will continue,' said Rep. Mark Amodei, the Republican chairman of the House Appropriations subcommittee on Homeland Security.

Rather, agencies such as the Transportation Security Administration, the Secret Service, Coast Guard and Federal Emergency Management Agency would take the biggest hit, he said. Officials from those agencies appeared before the House subcommittee to explain the potential impact of a Homeland Security shutdown.

Rep. Henry Cuellar, the ranking Democrat on the panel, said the tragic loss of two American citizens in Minneapolis ' Renee Good and Alex Pretti ' should concern every lawmaker. He said that strong borders and a respect for human life are not competing values.

'When enforcement actions lead to outcomes like that, we have an obligation to ask the hard question and to make sure our laws and policies are working as intended,' Cuellar said.

He said on Homeland Security funding that 'we were almost there. We were there, Democrats and Republicans and everybody, but the second shooting brought different dynamics. I think we can get there to address that.'

Essential work continues

About 90% of the departments employees would continue working in a shutdown, but they would do so without pay. Vice Admiral Thomas Allan of the U.S. Coast Guard said law enforcement and emergency response missions continue during a shutdown, but that the possibility of missed paychecks creates significant financial hardships.

'Shutdowns cripple morale and directly harm our ability to recruit and retain the talented Americans we need to meet growing demands,' Allan said.

Ha Nguyen McNeill of the Transportation Security Administration shared a similar concern. She estimated about 95% of the agencys 61,000 workers would continue to work, but potentially go without a paycheck depending upon the length of a shutdown. She noted that they just went through a lengthy shutdown last fall.

'We heard reports of officers sleeping in their cars at airports to save money on gas, selling their blood and plasma and taking on second jobs to make ends meet,' she said. '…Some are just recovering from the financial impact of the 43-day shutdown. Many are still reeling from it. We cannot put them through another such experience.'

Homeland Security also includes the agency charged with working to protect the public and private sector from a broad range of cyber threats. Madhu Gottumukkala, acting director of that agency, said a shutdown would 'degrade our capacity to provide timely and actionable guidance to help partners defend their networks.'

'I want to be clear, when the government shuts down, cyber threats do not,' he said.

Long-term impact

Gregg Phillips, an associated administrator at FEMA, said its disaster relief fund has sufficient balances to continue emergency response activities during a shutdown, but would become seriously strained in the event of a catastrophic disaster. He said that while the agency continues to respond to threats like flooding and winter storms, long-term planning and coordination with state and local partners is 'irrevocably impacted.'

For example, he said a lapse would disrupt training for first responders at the National Disaster & Emergency Management University in Maryland.

'The import of these trainings cannot be measured,' Phillips said. 'And their absence will be felt in our local communities.'

At the Secret Service, 'the casual observer will see no difference,' said Matthew Quinn, the agencys deputy director. But he said reform efforts taking place at the Secret Service are affected.

'Delayed contracts, diminished hiring and halted new programs will be the result,' Quinn said.