ROME (AP) — Pope Francis endorsed same-sex civil unions for the first time as pope while being interviewed for the feature-length documentary “Francesco,” which had its premiere at the Rome Film Festival on Wednesday.

The papal thumbs up came midway through the film that delves into issues Francis cares about most, including the environment, poverty, migration, racial and income inequality, and the people most affected by discrimination.

“Homosexual people have the right to be in a family. They are children of God,” Francis said in one of his sit-down interviews for the film. “What we have to have is a civil union law; that way they are legally covered.”

While serving as archbishop of Buenos Aires, Francis endorsed civil unions for gay couples as an alternative to same-sex marriages. However, he had never come out publicly in favor of civil unions as pope.

One of the main characters in the documentary is Juan Carlos Cruz, the Chilean survivor of clergy sexual abuse whom Francis initially discredited during a 2018 visit to Chile.

Cruz, who is gay, said that during his first meetings with the pope in May 2018, Francis assured him that God made Cruz gay. Cruz tells his own story in snippets throughout the film, chronicling both Francis’ evolution on understanding sexual abuse as well as to document the pope’s views on gay people.

Director Evgeny Afineevsky had remarkable access to cardinals, the Vatican television archives and the pope himself. He said he negotiated his way in through persistence, and deliveries of Argentine mate tea and Alfajores cookies that he got to the pope via some well-connected Argentines in Rome.

“Listen, when you are in the Vatican, the only way to achieve something is to break the rule and then to say, ‘I’m sorry,’” Afineevsky said in an interview ahead of the premiere.

The director worked official and unofficial channels starting in early 2018, and ended up so close to Francis by the end of the project that he showed the pope the movie on his iPad in August. The two recently exchanged Yom Kippur greetings; Afineevsky is a Russian-born Jew who lives in Los Angeles.

But “Francesco” is more than a biopic about the pope.

Wim Wenders did that in the 2018 film “Pope Francis: A Man of His Word,” which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. “Francesco,” is more a visual survey of the world’s crises and tragedies, with audio from the pope providing possible ways to solve them.

Afineevsky traveled the world to film it: the settings include Cox’s Bazaar in Bangladesh where Myanmar’s Rohingya sought refuge; the U.S.-Mexico border and Francis’ native Argentina.

“The film tells the story of the pope by reversing the cameras,” said Vatican communications director Paolo Ruffini, who was one of Afineevsky’s closest Vatican-based collaborators on the film.

Ruffini said that when Afineevsky first approached him with the idea of a documentary, he tried to tamp down his hopes for interviewing the pope.

“I told him it wasn’t going to be easy,” he said.

But Ruffini gave him some advice: names of people who had been impacted by the pope, even after just a brief meeting. Afineevsky found them: the refugees Francis met with on some of his foreign trips, prisoners he blessed, and some of the gays to whom he has ministered.

“I told him that many of those encounters had certainly been filmed by the Vatican cameras, and that there he would find a veritable gold mine of stories that told a story,” Ruffini said. “He would be able to tell story of the pope through the eyes of all and not just his own.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603292366279.png" alt="Pope Francis enters the House chamber ahead of an address to a joint session of Congress in 2015- image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Pope Francis enters the House chamber ahead of an address to a joint session of Congress in 2015- image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>ROME (AP) — Pope Francis endorsed same-sex civil unions for the first time as pope while being interviewed for the feature-length documentary “Francesco,” which had its premiere at the Rome Film Festival on Wednesday.The papal thumbs up came midway through the film that delves into issues Francis cares about most, including the environment, poverty, migration, racial and income inequality, and the people most affected by discrimination.“Homosexual people have the right to be in a family. They are children of God,” Francis said in one of his sit-down interviews for the film. “What we have to have is a civil union law; that way they are legally covered.”While serving as archbishop of Buenos Aires, Francis endorsed civil unions for gay couples as an alternative to same-sex marriages. However, he had never come out publicly in favor of civil unions as pope.One of the main characters in the documentary is Juan Carlos Cruz, the Chilean survivor of clergy sexual abuse whom Francis initially discredited during a 2018 visit to Chile.Cruz, who is gay, said that during his first meetings with the pope in May 2018, Francis assured him that God made Cruz gay. Cruz tells his own story in snippets throughout the film, chronicling both Francis’ evolution on understanding sexual abuse as well as to document the pope’s views on gay people.Director Evgeny Afineevsky had remarkable access to cardinals, the Vatican television archives and the pope himself. He said he negotiated his way in through persistence, and deliveries of Argentine mate tea and Alfajores cookies that he got to the pope via some well-connected Argentines in Rome.“Listen, when you are in the Vatican, the only way to achieve something is to break the rule and then to say, ‘I’m sorry,’” Afineevsky said in an interview ahead of the premiere.The director worked official and unofficial channels starting in early 2018, and ended up so close to Francis by the end of the project that he showed the pope the movie on his iPad in August. The two recently exchanged Yom Kippur greetings; Afineevsky is a Russian-born Jew who lives in Los Angeles.But “Francesco” is more than a biopic about the pope.Wim Wenders did that in the 2018 film “Pope Francis: A Man of His Word,” which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. “Francesco,” is more a visual survey of the world’s crises and tragedies, with audio from the pope providing possible ways to solve them.Afineevsky traveled the world to film it: the settings include Cox’s Bazaar in Bangladesh where Myanmar’s Rohingya sought refuge; the U.S.-Mexico border and Francis’ native Argentina.“The film tells the story of the pope by reversing the cameras,” said Vatican communications director Paolo Ruffini, who was one of Afineevsky’s closest Vatican-based collaborators on the film.Ruffini said that when Afineevsky first approached him with the idea of a documentary, he tried to tamp down his hopes for interviewing the pope.“I told him it wasn’t going to be easy,” he said.But Ruffini gave him some advice: names of people who had been impacted by the pope, even after just a brief meeting. Afineevsky found them: the refugees Francis met with on some of his foreign trips, prisoners he blessed, and some of the gays to whom he has ministered.“I told him that many of those encounters had certainly been filmed by the Vatican cameras, and that there he would find a veritable gold mine of stories that told a story,” Ruffini said. “He would be able to tell story of the pope through the eyes of all and not just his own.”

Pope calls for civil union law for same-sex couples

By MAX MCCOY <a href="http://kansasreflector.com">Kansas Reflector</a>

When I was a kid, Saturdays would find me at the Johnston Public Library on West Tenth Street in Baxter Springs, where one book in particular was so strange that even as a kid, I detected a deeply disturbing vibe.

It was the life story of one&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/john-r-brinkley/11988">John Romulus Brinkley</a>, as told by himself.

You may recognize the name from any number of books, articles, a play, and even an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckJD4d-gdkE&amp;has_verified=1">animated documentary</a>&nbsp;in recent years. Brinkley is best known as the Kansas Goat Doctor. But that wasn’t talked about much in decades past. Imagine my shock as I read that Brinkley had discovered a way to restore old men to sexual vigor by the grafting, onto older men’s tender parts, testicular material from goats. There was a black-and-white photo plate opposite the title page, as I recall, of the supposed first baby to have resulted from this method: a happy boy named “Billy.”

Now, there’s no need here to recount all of the medical frauds associated with Doc Brinkley, who had a 16-bed clinic (with the goats out back) at Milford, in Geary County. Suffice it to say he was a fraud of the first class, that the goat gland method was bogus, and that Brinkley probably killed dozens of patients on the operating table.

Gland grafting, as odd as it now seems, was a medical fad in the early 20th century, and Brinkley cashed in on it and every other form of pseudoscience, especially the sale of colored water as various “medicines.” There was no physical, mental or spiritual illness in any human being that Brinkley did not claim to cure. In doing so, the Goat Doctor amassed millions of dollars.

For a thorough discussion of Brinkley’s offenses against medicine, check out Pope Brock’s skillful 2008 book, “<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/18642/charlatan-by-pope-brock/">Charlatan</a>.” I don’t recall the name of the Brinkley book I found at the Johnston library, but it may have been a version of “<a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/29362/29362-h/29362-h.htm">The Goat Gland Transplantation</a>,” published in 1921 and available at Project Gutenberg.

Brinkley had no credible medical training and had purchased his medical degree from a diploma mill. Brinkley, who was born in North Carolina, had hawked patent cures at medicine shows across the south and had spent some time at an unaccredited “eclectic” medical college before moving to Milford in 1916. It was there, for $750 a whack — more than $15,000 in today’s money — he performed his goat gland quackery.

But it’s not Brinkley’s contributions to medical flimflam that I’ve been pondering lately. It’s his political career, and how closely it resembles the practices used by the nation’s charlatan-in-chief, Donald Trump. Brinkley created the playbook for modern politics, and like Trump, he kept people awake at night worrying about what he would do next.

A short list of his innovations include: The first to use a new electronic medium — in this case, radio — to speak directly and immediately to his patients and his supporters, allowing him to bypass traditional gatekeepers; the first “talk radio” host to appeal to the American yeoman with a folksy style and the public denunciation of communists, liberals, radicals and traditional experts; and the first to make widespread use of an airplane for campaign hops.

Brinkley also garnered the support of fascists, including&nbsp;<a href="http://specialcollections.wichita.edu/collections/ms/87-09/87-9-A.HTML">Gerald B. Winrod</a>, a Wichita preacher and Nazi sympathizer who blamed all of society’s troubles on an international Jewish conspiracy.

In 1923, Brinkley received a license for a radio station and began construction at Milford of what became&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/kfkb/18621">KFKB</a>&nbsp;— “Kansas First Kansas Best.” Commercial radio was still in its infancy, but Brinkley saw the power inherent in the new medium. At a time when nearly four out of five radio stations accepted no advertising, Brinkley made sales of his services the cornerstone of every broadcast.

“Each day Brinkley would sit at a small table with his gold-finished microphone,” Brock writes, “a grandfather clock ticking gravely behind him, and free-associate for hours in a mysterious soothsayer’s voice that coasted across America’s prairies and beyond.”

Brinkley had a “Medical Question Box” segment in which he gave advice to those who wrote in, and on Sundays he personally delivered sermons. Increasingly, he began to see himself as a Christ-like figure. Those who attacked him were attacking God.

The town of Milford largely overlooked his fraud because of the boon he brought to the local economy and because of his generosity; he provided, for example, the uniforms for the Little League team, the Brinkley Goats. To his radio audience, in addition to his soothing voice and comforting if worthless advice, he brought entertainment in the form of live music, with singing cowboys a specialty.

In 1930, Radio Digest named KFKB the most popular station in the United States.

But in June, the Federal Radio Commission voted 3-2 that KFKB was not operated in the public interest, but only in Brinkley’s interest. His license to broadcast was revoked. He told his radio listeners that he’d been crucified. Shortly after that, the state revoked his license to practice medicine.

Days later, on Sept. 20, Brinkley announced his candidacy for governor.

It was too late to get his name on the ballot, so he waged an all-out write-in campaign. He flew across the state in “The Romancer,” a plane once owned by Charles Lindbergh, speaking to record crowds.

“But voters felt more for the goat-gland man than just sympathy,” Brock writes. “When he stood on that platform and tore into the government, the (American Medical Association), all the powers of darkness out to destroy him, a lot of folks scared to death by the onslaught of the Depression identified with him keenly.”

In just weeks, Brinkley had turned Kansas politics on its head.

An example of one of his speeches is reported in the Oct. 27, 1930, issue of the Iola Register. On short notice, two thousand people turned out at the airport to greet Brinkley and his family as they stepped down from the Romancer.

“As you see, I’ve left my horns behind,” Brinkley quipped.

He railed against the Kansas City Star, the two-party system, urban business interests, and the suggestion that his candidacy was a joke. Later, Brinkley said: “It was an insult to the people of Kansas when the opposition said that the persons who listened to the Milford radio programs were the illiterate class of the state.”

The article noted that if Brinkley received 40% of the vote against his opponents, Republican Frank Haucke and Democrat Harry H. Woodring, he would win.

But just three days before the election, the state attorney general announced a change in the long-standing rules about how write-in votes would be counted. Previously, it had always been the intent of the voter that mattered. But now, only one form of his name would be counted: “J.R. Brinkley.” Anything that contained John or Doc or got the initials or spelling wrong would be thrown out.

Woodring won the election — with a margin of only 251 votes. The vote between Woodring and Haucke was nearly evenly split, at 35% each. Officially, Brinkley received 30% of the count. But tens of thousands of votes for Brinkley were disqualified. Clearly, Brinkley would have won had it not been for the last-minute change in the rules.

Brinkley would run for governor again, in 1932, but suffer a clean loss to Alf Landon.

Done with Kansas, Brinkley eventually moved his operation south. While living in a mansion at Del Rio, Texas, he built a new radio station, XER (later XERA), just across the border in Villa Acuña, where regulations on content and power were more relaxed. Eventually, this “border blaster” station pumped out a million watts, making it the most powerful radio station on earth.

Brinkley continued his established format of quackery and live music, and gave a start to some of the biggest names in country music, including the Carter Family. Later, XERA and its disc jockeys, such as Wolfman Jack, would be among the first to introduce rock-and-roll to an American listening audience.

Brinkley died broke in 1942 at San Antonio, after being hit with multiple lawsuits for malpractice and being indicted for tax and mail fraud. He was 56.

What Brinkley pioneered for us was not only modern political methods, but also the politics of influential outrage.

In the early 20th century, Brinkley marshalled a mass audience sympathetic to his message of magical medical thinking, his ostentatious celebrity and his public persecution complex. Whatever good he did — the baseball uniforms, the promotion of popular music — was incidental to his overriding selfishness.

In that, and many other things, he was like Trump.

But the thing that keeps me awake is not the fraud or the hucksterism, the genuine brilliance corrupted by narrow self-interest or even the flirtations with fascism. It’s that percentage required for Brinkley to be elected governor in 1930. Forty percent. And he got it; four of 10 Kansans voted for the fraud who was called “America’s most dangerous man” by the AMA.

Take a look at the presidential race polling data. No matter how bad things get for Trump, not matter what outrage he commits, no matter what pseudoscience he spouts, his approval rating never dips much below 40%.

It felt strange, all those years ago, reading about Brinkley in that old book. Those crazy ideas! It all seemed so remote. But now, just 16 days away from an election that history will see as a national referendum on fraud and quackery, I realize that we’re never all that far away from crazy.

The above opinion piece was republished with permission from&nbsp;<a href="http://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>. It in no way reflects the views of Salina Post.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603045369601.png" alt="A hand-colored photograph of John Brinkley, taken during one of his campaigns for governor by Clarisa "Cassie" V. McColloch, of McPherson. (kansasmemory.org/Kansas State Historical Society)" />
 <figcaption>A hand-colored photograph of John Brinkley, taken during one of his campaigns for governor by Clarisa "Cassie" V. McColloch, of McPherson. (kansasmemory.org/Kansas State Historical Society)</figcaption>
 </figure>By MAX MCCOY <a href="http://kansasreflector.com">Kansas Reflector</a>When I was a kid, Saturdays would find me at the Johnston Public Library on West Tenth Street in Baxter Springs, where one book in particular was so strange that even as a kid, I detected a deeply disturbing vibe.It was the life story of one&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/john-r-brinkley/11988">John Romulus Brinkley</a>, as told by himself.You may recognize the name from any number of books, articles, a play, and even an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckJD4d-gdkE&amp;has_verified=1">animated documentary</a>&nbsp;in recent years. Brinkley is best known as the Kansas Goat Doctor. But that wasn’t talked about much in decades past. Imagine my shock as I read that Brinkley had discovered a way to restore old men to sexual vigor by the grafting, onto older men’s tender parts, testicular material from goats. There was a black-and-white photo plate opposite the title page, as I recall, of the supposed first baby to have resulted from this method: a happy boy named “Billy.”Now, there’s no need here to recount all of the medical frauds associated with Doc Brinkley, who had a 16-bed clinic (with the goats out back) at Milford, in Geary County. Suffice it to say he was a fraud of the first class, that the goat gland method was bogus, and that Brinkley probably killed dozens of patients on the operating table.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603045559439.jpeg" alt="John Brinkley performs surgery. (kansasmemory.org/Kansas State Historical Society)" />
 <figcaption>John Brinkley performs surgery. (kansasmemory.org/Kansas State Historical Society)</figcaption>
 </figure>Gland grafting, as odd as it now seems, was a medical fad in the early 20th century, and Brinkley cashed in on it and every other form of pseudoscience, especially the sale of colored water as various “medicines.” There was no physical, mental or spiritual illness in any human being that Brinkley did not claim to cure. In doing so, the Goat Doctor amassed millions of dollars.For a thorough discussion of Brinkley’s offenses against medicine, check out Pope Brock’s skillful 2008 book, “<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/18642/charlatan-by-pope-brock/">Charlatan</a>.” I don’t recall the name of the Brinkley book I found at the Johnston library, but it may have been a version of “<a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/29362/29362-h/29362-h.htm">The Goat Gland Transplantation</a>,” published in 1921 and available at Project Gutenberg.Brinkley had no credible medical training and had purchased his medical degree from a diploma mill. Brinkley, who was born in North Carolina, had hawked patent cures at medicine shows across the south and had spent some time at an unaccredited “eclectic” medical college before moving to Milford in 1916. It was there, for $750 a whack — more than $15,000 in today’s money — he performed his goat gland quackery.But it’s not Brinkley’s contributions to medical flimflam that I’ve been pondering lately. It’s his political career, and how closely it resembles the practices used by the nation’s charlatan-in-chief, Donald Trump. Brinkley created the playbook for modern politics, and like Trump, he kept people awake at night worrying about what he would do next.A short list of his innovations include: The first to use a new electronic medium — in this case, radio — to speak directly and immediately to his patients and his supporters, allowing him to bypass traditional gatekeepers; the first “talk radio” host to appeal to the American yeoman with a folksy style and the public denunciation of communists, liberals, radicals and traditional experts; and the first to make widespread use of an airplane for campaign hops.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603045781692.jpeg" alt="John Brinkley stands beside an airplane with two unidentified men. (kansasmemory.org/Kansas State Historical Society)" />
 <figcaption>John Brinkley stands beside an airplane with two unidentified men. (kansasmemory.org/Kansas State Historical Society)</figcaption>
 </figure>Brinkley also garnered the support of fascists, including&nbsp;<a href="http://specialcollections.wichita.edu/collections/ms/87-09/87-9-A.HTML">Gerald B. Winrod</a>, a Wichita preacher and Nazi sympathizer who blamed all of society’s troubles on an international Jewish conspiracy.In 1923, Brinkley received a license for a radio station and began construction at Milford of what became&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/kfkb/18621">KFKB</a>&nbsp;— “Kansas First Kansas Best.” Commercial radio was still in its infancy, but Brinkley saw the power inherent in the new medium. At a time when nearly four out of five radio stations accepted no advertising, Brinkley made sales of his services the cornerstone of every broadcast.“Each day Brinkley would sit at a small table with his gold-finished microphone,” Brock writes, “a grandfather clock ticking gravely behind him, and free-associate for hours in a mysterious soothsayer’s voice that coasted across America’s prairies and beyond.”Brinkley had a “Medical Question Box” segment in which he gave advice to those who wrote in, and on Sundays he personally delivered sermons. Increasingly, he began to see himself as a Christ-like figure. Those who attacked him were attacking God.The town of Milford largely overlooked his fraud because of the boon he brought to the local economy and because of his generosity; he provided, for example, the uniforms for the Little League team, the Brinkley Goats. To his radio audience, in addition to his soothing voice and comforting if worthless advice, he brought entertainment in the form of live music, with singing cowboys a specialty.In 1930, Radio Digest named KFKB the most popular station in the United States.But in June, the Federal Radio Commission voted 3-2 that KFKB was not operated in the public interest, but only in Brinkley’s interest. His license to broadcast was revoked. He told his radio listeners that he’d been crucified. Shortly after that, the state revoked his license to practice medicine.Days later, on Sept. 20, Brinkley announced his candidacy for governor.It was too late to get his name on the ballot, so he waged an all-out write-in campaign. He flew across the state in “The Romancer,” a plane once owned by Charles Lindbergh, speaking to record crowds.“But voters felt more for the goat-gland man than just sympathy,” Brock writes. “When he stood on that platform and tore into the government, the (American Medical Association), all the powers of darkness out to destroy him, a lot of folks scared to death by the onslaught of the Depression identified with him keenly.”In just weeks, Brinkley had turned Kansas politics on its head.An example of one of his speeches is reported in the Oct. 27, 1930, issue of the Iola Register. On short notice, two thousand people turned out at the airport to greet Brinkley and his family as they stepped down from the Romancer.“As you see, I’ve left my horns behind,” Brinkley quipped.He railed against the Kansas City Star, the two-party system, urban business interests, and the suggestion that his candidacy was a joke. Later, Brinkley said: “It was an insult to the people of Kansas when the opposition said that the persons who listened to the Milford radio programs were the illiterate class of the state.”<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603045888729.jpeg" alt="A 1931 political rally for John Brinkley in Wichita. (kansasmemory.org/Kansas State Historical Society)" />
 <figcaption>A 1931 political rally for John Brinkley in Wichita. (kansasmemory.org/Kansas State Historical Society)</figcaption>
 </figure>The article noted that if Brinkley received 40% of the vote against his opponents, Republican Frank Haucke and Democrat Harry H. Woodring, he would win.But just three days before the election, the state attorney general announced a change in the long-standing rules about how write-in votes would be counted. Previously, it had always been the intent of the voter that mattered. But now, only one form of his name would be counted: “J.R. Brinkley.” Anything that contained John or Doc or got the initials or spelling wrong would be thrown out.Woodring won the election — with a margin of only 251 votes. The vote between Woodring and Haucke was nearly evenly split, at 35% each. Officially, Brinkley received 30% of the count. But tens of thousands of votes for Brinkley were disqualified. Clearly, Brinkley would have won had it not been for the last-minute change in the rules.Brinkley would run for governor again, in 1932, but suffer a clean loss to Alf Landon.Done with Kansas, Brinkley eventually moved his operation south. While living in a mansion at Del Rio, Texas, he built a new radio station, XER (later XERA), just across the border in Villa Acuña, where regulations on content and power were more relaxed. Eventually, this “border blaster” station pumped out a million watts, making it the most powerful radio station on earth.Brinkley continued his established format of quackery and live music, and gave a start to some of the biggest names in country music, including the Carter Family. Later, XERA and its disc jockeys, such as Wolfman Jack, would be among the first to introduce rock-and-roll to an American listening audience.Brinkley died broke in 1942 at San Antonio, after being hit with multiple lawsuits for malpractice and being indicted for tax and mail fraud. He was 56.What Brinkley pioneered for us was not only modern political methods, but also the politics of influential outrage.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603045991258.jpeg" alt="John Brinkley used a Chevrolet truck, identified as “Ammunition Train No.1 Heavy Artillery,” during his unsuccessful 1932 campaign for Kansas Governor. (kansasmemory.org/Kansas State Historical Society)" />
 <figcaption>John Brinkley used a Chevrolet truck, identified as “Ammunition Train No.1 Heavy Artillery,” during his unsuccessful 1932 campaign for Kansas Governor. (kansasmemory.org/Kansas State Historical Society)</figcaption>
 </figure>In the early 20th century, Brinkley marshalled a mass audience sympathetic to his message of magical medical thinking, his ostentatious celebrity and his public persecution complex. Whatever good he did — the baseball uniforms, the promotion of popular music — was incidental to his overriding selfishness.In that, and many other things, he was like Trump.But the thing that keeps me awake is not the fraud or the hucksterism, the genuine brilliance corrupted by narrow self-interest or even the flirtations with fascism. It’s that percentage required for Brinkley to be elected governor in 1930. Forty percent. And he got it; four of 10 Kansans voted for the fraud who was called “America’s most dangerous man” by the AMA.Take a look at the presidential race polling data. No matter how bad things get for Trump, not matter what outrage he commits, no matter what pseudoscience he spouts, his approval rating never dips much below 40%.It felt strange, all those years ago, reading about Brinkley in that old book. Those crazy ideas! It all seemed so remote. But now, just 16 days away from an election that history will see as a national referendum on fraud and quackery, I realize that we’re never all that far away from crazy.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603046178114.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>The above opinion piece was republished with permission from&nbsp;<a href="http://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>. It in no way reflects the views of Salina Post.

MCCOY: How Kansas’ infamous goat gland doc carved political path for Trump

Barbara (Schroeder) Johnsonpassed away peacefully on April 11, 2020, at the age of 92 while residing at Presbyterian Manor in Salina, KS.

Barb was born March 3, 1928, at the home of her maternal grandmother in Trumbull, NE. She was the daughter of Kenneth Black and Doris Perry Black. Her early years were spent in the Trumbull area. The family later moved to Caldwell, ID. She attended school in Caldwell and received an associate degree in education.

In June of 1948, Barb married Dr. Stanley Schroeder, a young veterinarian. They resided in Imperial, NE for many years. They had 4 daughters and one young son (Scott) who died at the age of 2.

Following her divorce from Stan, Barb went back to college at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln. After several years of hard work and diligence completed her degree in elementary education. She worked during the school year in Imperial as an educational assistant. Upon graduation, she took a teaching job in Superior, NE at the local elementary school. She married Vernon Johnson in January of 1984, and they spent many happy years together.

Next to family, she loved spending time with friends. In Imperial, she was in Sewing Club, which was a group of moms who met regularly to support each other and have fun. Barb loved it when friends would drop by for a cup of coffee and a chat. During her daughters' younger years, she patiently helped with many 4-H projects, club meetings and county fair exhibits. She was also very supportive of her daughters' friends always finding a way to make a meal stretch to feed as many as needed and making sure there were plenty of ingredients for making cookies. In Superior, she and Vernon enjoyed playing golf, frequent trips to Lindsborg, KS, gardening and Bird Watchers' Club. They were active members of the Presbyterian Church.

Barb had a huge passion for music. She sang in church choirs in Imperial and Superior, directed Junior Choir and entertained at various venues with the Farmerettes singing group in Superior. She was also a founding member of POM POMS (Promoters of Music) and made sure her daughters learned to enjoy and appreciate music. Whenever she heard music, she would sing along - always choosing to sing harmony. Her very last breath came while listening to "Amazing Grace."

Survivors include her 4 daughters, Sue Ann Lang (Terry) of Sioux Falls, SD, Mary Siegler (Nelson) of Boulder, CO, Kameha Schwan (Kutarr) of Watsonville, CA and Linda Rohrer (Ben) of Salina, KS. She is also survived by 7 grandchildren, Heather Lang of Bloomington, MN, Sera Jordan of Denver, CO, Gretchen Lang, Robin Lang and Betsy Lang of Sioux Falls, SD, Tanner Rohrer (Sierra) of Lawrence, KS and Madeline Rohrer (fiance Bryce) of Kansas City, KS; and 2 great grandchildren, Tyson and Eleanor Jacobsen of Bloomington, MN.

Memorial services will take place at a later date in both Imperial and Superior, NE. Announcements will be made in local newspapers.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are requested to be given in Barbara's name to either the Imperial Community Foundation or The Alzheimer's Association. Please send checks to Mary Siegler, 1355-D Bear Mountain Drive, Boulder, CO, 80305.

Barb had such a full life, and she will remain forever in our memories and our hearts.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1602981249227.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Barbara (Schroeder) Johnsonpassed away peacefully on April 11, 2020, at the age of 92 while residing at Presbyterian Manor in Salina, KS.Barb was born March 3, 1928, at the home of her maternal grandmother in Trumbull, NE. She was the daughter of Kenneth Black and Doris Perry Black. Her early years were spent in the Trumbull area. The family later moved to Caldwell, ID. She attended school in Caldwell and received an associate degree in education.In June of 1948, Barb married Dr. Stanley Schroeder, a young veterinarian. They resided in Imperial, NE for many years. They had 4 daughters and one young son (Scott) who died at the age of 2.Following her divorce from Stan, Barb went back to college at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln. After several years of hard work and diligence completed her degree in elementary education. She worked during the school year in Imperial as an educational assistant. Upon graduation, she took a teaching job in Superior, NE at the local elementary school. She married Vernon Johnson in January of 1984, and they spent many happy years together.Next to family, she loved spending time with friends. In Imperial, she was in Sewing Club, which was a group of moms who met regularly to support each other and have fun. Barb loved it when friends would drop by for a cup of coffee and a chat. During her daughters' younger years, she patiently helped with many 4-H projects, club meetings and county fair exhibits. She was also very supportive of her daughters' friends always finding a way to make a meal stretch to feed as many as needed and making sure there were plenty of ingredients for making cookies. In Superior, she and Vernon enjoyed playing golf, frequent trips to Lindsborg, KS, gardening and Bird Watchers' Club. They were active members of the Presbyterian Church.Barb had a huge passion for music. She sang in church choirs in Imperial and Superior, directed Junior Choir and entertained at various venues with the Farmerettes singing group in Superior. She was also a founding member of POM POMS (Promoters of Music) and made sure her daughters learned to enjoy and appreciate music. Whenever she heard music, she would sing along - always choosing to sing harmony. Her very last breath came while listening to "Amazing Grace."Survivors include her 4 daughters, Sue Ann Lang (Terry) of Sioux Falls, SD, Mary Siegler (Nelson) of Boulder, CO, Kameha Schwan (Kutarr) of Watsonville, CA and Linda Rohrer (Ben) of Salina, KS. She is also survived by 7 grandchildren, Heather Lang of Bloomington, MN, Sera Jordan of Denver, CO, Gretchen Lang, Robin Lang and Betsy Lang of Sioux Falls, SD, Tanner Rohrer (Sierra) of Lawrence, KS and Madeline Rohrer (fiance Bryce) of Kansas City, KS; and 2 great grandchildren, Tyson and Eleanor Jacobsen of Bloomington, MN.Memorial services will take place at a later date in both Imperial and Superior, NE. Announcements will be made in local newspapers.In lieu of flowers, memorials are requested to be given in Barbara's name to either the Imperial Community Foundation or The Alzheimer's Association. Please send checks to Mary Siegler, 1355-D Bear Mountain Drive, Boulder, CO, 80305.Barb had such a full life, and she will remain forever in our memories and our hearts.

Barbara (Schroeder) Johnson

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Kansas City Chiefs'&nbsp;Andy Reid, Tommy Townsend, and Derrick Nnadi talk to the media during a Saturday presser. From <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KansasCityChiefs">The Kansas City Chiefs</a> Facebook page:

You can listen to the Chiefs' games on KINA (910 AM and 107.5 FM) and 99KG (99.9 FM), your local Chiefs Radio Network stations.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Kansas City Chiefs'&nbsp;Andy Reid, Tommy Townsend, and Derrick Nnadi talk to the media during a Saturday presser. From <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KansasCityChiefs">The Kansas City Chiefs</a> Facebook page:<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FKansasCityChiefs%2Fvideos%2F2773487066273735%2F&show_text=true&width=560" width="560" height="429" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowTransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>You can listen to the Chiefs' games on KINA (910 AM and 107.5 FM) and 99KG (99.9 FM), your local Chiefs Radio Network stations.

📹Chiefs' Reid, Townsend, and Nnadi talk with media Saturday

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas City Chiefs' coordinators and defensive end Frank Clark spoke with the media Friday. From <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KansasCityChiefs">The Kansas City Chiefs</a> Facebook page:

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas City Chiefs' coordinators and defensive end Frank Clark spoke with the media Friday. From <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KansasCityChiefs">The Kansas City Chiefs</a> Facebook page:<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FKansasCityChiefs%2Fvideos%2F2791863634434892%2F&show_text=true&width=560" width="560" height="429" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowTransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>You can listen to the Chiefs' games on KINA (910 AM and 107.5 FM) and 99KG (99.9 FM), your local Chiefs Radio Network stations.

📹Chiefs coordinators, DE Clark field media questions Friday

My boyfriend lives in a different state, and I’m planning to move there when we get married. I know I love him, but sometimes he is not what I consider to be responsible with money. There have been times in the past when he has taken out small loans or paid bills late in order to buy something he wanted. How can I talk to him about this?

If it were me, I think I’d make sure things move a little more slowly in the relationship until he gets his spending under control. Sometimes when things like this happen it’s just a situation where a person needs to learn the benefits of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.everydollar.com/guide-to-budgeting-dave-says" target="_blank">budgeting</a>&nbsp;and handling money in a mature, responsible way. You can’t do something if you haven’t been taught&nbsp;how&nbsp;to do it, and hopefully this is the case with your boyfriend.&nbsp;

You mentioned&nbsp;<a href="https://www.daveramsey.com/recommends/life-insurance-for-married-couples" target="_blank">marriage</a>, so that tells me you’re both taking this relationship seriously—that you’re in the process of making sure you want to spend the rest of your lives with each other. Bring it up gently, and tell him why you’re concerned. Share your hopes and dreams for the future with him. You might even offer to help him make out a monthly budget. That way, once he understands the process and value of spending money on paper before the month begins, it will be easier for him to stick to it.

A friend recently told me about you and your teachings about money. While we were talking, she mentioned something called a “legacy drawer” for important papers. Can you explain more about this?

Simply put, a legacy drawer is a collection of your essential documents in a safe place where your family and loved ones can find them when you die, or if you’re sick or disabled. It doesn’t have to be a drawer, specifically, just a safe, secure place where you keep all the pieces of your financial life—your will, living will, estate plan,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.daveramsey.com/smartvestor/investment-calculator?snid=tools.investingcalc" target="_blank">investment</a>&nbsp;statements, insurance policies, and property deeds. You should also include stuff like power of attorney documents, bank and lock box access information, and any other instructions for and information about your last wishes and what you leave behind.

The stress and grief when someone becomes seriously ill or dies is bad enough. Don’t make it any harder than it has to be by leaving your finances and other essentials in a mess!

<a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/" target="_blank">Dave Ramsey&nbsp;</a>is a seven-time #1 national best-selling author, personal finance expert, and host of The Dave Ramsey Show, heard by more than 16 million listeners each week. He&nbsp;has appeared on Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, Today Show, Fox News, CNN, Fox Business, and many more. Since 1992, Dave has helped people regain control of their money, build wealth and enhance their lives. He also serves as CEO for Ramsey Solutions.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/8/1596845065840.jpeg" alt="Dave Ramsey" />
 <figcaption>Dave Ramsey</figcaption>
 </figure>Try to help him, but move slowlyDear Dave,My boyfriend lives in a different state, and I’m planning to move there when we get married. I know I love him, but sometimes he is not what I consider to be responsible with money. There have been times in the past when he has taken out small loans or paid bills late in order to buy something he wanted. How can I talk to him about this?HeatherDear Heather,If it were me, I think I’d make sure things move a little more slowly in the relationship until he gets his spending under control. Sometimes when things like this happen it’s just a situation where a person needs to learn the benefits of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.everydollar.com/guide-to-budgeting-dave-says" target="_blank">budgeting</a>&nbsp;and handling money in a mature, responsible way. You can’t do something if you haven’t been taught&nbsp;how&nbsp;to do it, and hopefully this is the case with your boyfriend.&nbsp;You mentioned&nbsp;<a href="https://www.daveramsey.com/recommends/life-insurance-for-married-couples" target="_blank">marriage</a>, so that tells me you’re both taking this relationship seriously—that you’re in the process of making sure you want to spend the rest of your lives with each other. Bring it up gently, and tell him why you’re concerned. Share your hopes and dreams for the future with him. You might even offer to help him make out a monthly budget. That way, once he understands the process and value of spending money on paper before the month begins, it will be easier for him to stick to it.Good luck, Heather!DaveIdea behind the legacy drawerDear Dave,A friend recently told me about you and your teachings about money. While we were talking, she mentioned something called a “legacy drawer” for important papers. Can you explain more about this?AnnaDear Anna,Simply put, a legacy drawer is a collection of your essential documents in a safe place where your family and loved ones can find them when you die, or if you’re sick or disabled. It doesn’t have to be a drawer, specifically, just a safe, secure place where you keep all the pieces of your financial life—your will, living will, estate plan,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.daveramsey.com/smartvestor/investment-calculator?snid=tools.investingcalc" target="_blank">investment</a>&nbsp;statements, insurance policies, and property deeds. You should also include stuff like power of attorney documents, bank and lock box access information, and any other instructions for and information about your last wishes and what you leave behind.The stress and grief when someone becomes seriously ill or dies is bad enough. Don’t make it any harder than it has to be by leaving your finances and other essentials in a mess!Dave<a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/" target="_blank">Dave Ramsey&nbsp;</a>is a seven-time #1 national best-selling author, personal finance expert, and host of The Dave Ramsey Show, heard by more than 16 million listeners each week. He&nbsp;has appeared on Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, Today Show, Fox News, CNN, Fox Business, and many more. Since 1992, Dave has helped people regain control of their money, build wealth and enhance their lives. He also serves as CEO for Ramsey Solutions.

DAVE SAYS: Try to help him; Idea behind the legacy drawer

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas City Chiefs' Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes,&nbsp;Mike Remmers, and Mecole Hardman talk football Thursday. From <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KansasCityChiefs">The Kansas City Chiefs</a> Facebook page:

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas City Chiefs' Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes,&nbsp;Mike Remmers, and Mecole Hardman talk football Thursday. From <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KansasCityChiefs">The Kansas City Chiefs</a> Facebook page:<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FKansasCityChiefs%2Fvideos%2F1303313546686375%2F&show_text=true&width=560" width="560" height="429" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowTransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>You can listen to the Chiefs' games on KINA (910 AM and 107.5 FM) and 99KG (99.9 FM), your local Chiefs Radio Network stations.

📹Chiefs' Reid, Mahomes, Remmers, Hardman talk football

The undefeated Southeast of Saline football team hits the road for a short trip to Lindsborg to take on 2-4 Smoky Valley.

The Trojans are 2-0 in district play, while the Vikings are 1-2.

Kickoff is at 7 p.m. Friday from Lindsborg. 

If you can't travel to the game, you can listen to it on KINA (910 AM and 107.5 FM) or you can watch a livestream of the game thanks to Salina Post! We'll have a link to the livestream on <a href="http://SalinaPost.com">SalinaPost.com</a> late Friday afternoon. And, of course, we'll share that link on the Salina Post Facebook page!

Get your snacks ready, don your purple and white, and get ready to watch the Trojans take on the Vikings via Salina Post!

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1602727825864.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>The undefeated Southeast of Saline football team hits the road for a short trip to Lindsborg to take on 2-4 Smoky Valley.The Trojans are 2-0 in district play, while the Vikings are 1-2.Kickoff is at 7 p.m. Friday from Lindsborg. If you can't travel to the game, you can listen to it on KINA (910 AM and 107.5 FM) or you can watch a livestream of the game thanks to Salina Post! We'll have a link to the livestream on <a href="http://SalinaPost.com">SalinaPost.com</a> late Friday afternoon. And, of course, we'll share that link on the Salina Post Facebook page!Get your snacks ready, don your purple and white, and get ready to watch the Trojans take on the Vikings via Salina Post!

Watch the SES Trojans take on the Smoky Valley Vikings

An open letter to the Salina Commissioners 10/12/20:

This letter is in response to the Salina City Commission Notice of the public forum and listening session regarding the proposed “Citizen Review Board” proposed by the SUNFLOWER COALITION that has the BLM, Black Lives Matter FIST on its opening face book page. They want their policy proposal accepted quickly. All this causes me great concern.

After watching many examples of BLM on television of their lawlessness, violence, massive property damage, looting, and injury to innocent citizens, business owners, and police, I am alarmed!

I love this peaceful city. I never want to see several bus loads of BLM terrorists unloaded in Salina. They could attempt to destroy our rebuilt downtown and more. When the Police try to stop their lawless activity and their resisting arrest, (as we see across the nation) there would be violence against our Police. The Police could be accused of excessive force in protecting themselves, our lives, and our property.

To me it is an outrage to even consider the unidentified members of the Sunflower Coalition, which supports the BLM to have any part in promoting a Citizen Review Board to evaluate our Police and law enforcement activities

In the past military surplus equipment was not necessary. Now, with Terrorists, Criminals, and so -called peaceful protestors destroying our cities, Law Enforcement could better protect us with the military equipment supplied by the 1033 program. Why waste tax- payer money on buying expensive similar civilian equipment?

The Sunflower Coalition Policy Proposal, July 15, 2020 would give to much power and authority to the Citizen Review Board. The Salina Commission and the Chief of Police and his staff can evaluate their proposal and take from it some items if necessary. I believe the Salina Commissioners Should REJECT the Sunflower Coalition Proposal.

An open letter to the Salina Commissioners 10/12/20:This letter is in response to the Salina City Commission Notice of the public forum and listening session regarding the proposed “Citizen Review Board” proposed by the SUNFLOWER COALITION that has the BLM, Black Lives Matter FIST on its opening face book page. They want their policy proposal accepted quickly. All this causes me great concern.After watching many examples of BLM on television of their lawlessness, violence, massive property damage, looting, and injury to innocent citizens, business owners, and police, I am alarmed!I love this peaceful city. I never want to see several bus loads of BLM terrorists unloaded in Salina. They could attempt to destroy our rebuilt downtown and more. When the Police try to stop their lawless activity and their resisting arrest, (as we see across the nation) there would be violence against our Police. The Police could be accused of excessive force in protecting themselves, our lives, and our property.To me it is an outrage to even consider the unidentified members of the Sunflower Coalition, which supports the BLM to have any part in promoting a Citizen Review Board to evaluate our Police and law enforcement activitiesIn the past military surplus equipment was not necessary. Now, with Terrorists, Criminals, and so -called peaceful protestors destroying our cities, Law Enforcement could better protect us with the military equipment supplied by the 1033 program. Why waste tax- payer money on buying expensive similar civilian equipment?The Sunflower Coalition Policy Proposal, July 15, 2020 would give to much power and authority to the Citizen Review Board. The Salina Commission and the Chief of Police and his staff can evaluate their proposal and take from it some items if necessary. I believe the Salina Commissioners Should REJECT the Sunflower Coalition Proposal.Milo Wilcox, Salina

WILCOX: Open letter to city commission

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid today took full responsibility for the team's loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday during a Monday presser. From <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KansasCityChiefs">The Kansas City Chiefs</a> Facebook page:

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid today took full responsibility for the team's loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday during a Monday presser. From <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KansasCityChiefs">The Kansas City Chiefs</a> Facebook page:<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FKansasCityChiefs%2Fvideos%2F1013702072405293%2F&show_text=true&width=560" width="560" height="429" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowTransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>You can listen to the Chiefs' games on KINA (910 AM and 107.5 FM) and 99KG (99.9 FM), your local Chiefs Radio Network stations.

📹Reid takes responsibility for Chiefs' loss

WASHINGTON (AP) — Confirmation hearings for&nbsp;Supreme Court&nbsp;nominee Amy Coney Barrett are set to begin as a divided Senate charges ahead on President Donald Trump’s pick to replace the late&nbsp;Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg&nbsp;and cement a conservative court majority before&nbsp;Election Day.

<a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?476315-1/supreme-court-nominee-amy-coney-barrett-confirmation-hearing-day-1">Click here</a>&nbsp;to watch day one of the confirmation hearing 8a.m.CDT

Barrett, a federal appeals court judge, will tell the Senate Judiciary Committee that she is “forever grateful” for Ginsburg’s trailblazing path as a woman. But she is resolved to maintain the perspective of her own mentor, the late conservative Justice Antonin Scalia and “apply the law as written,” according to her&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/7224757-Barrett-Opening-Statement.html" target="_blank">prepared opening remarks</a>&nbsp;for the hearings, which start Monday as the country is in the grips of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/virus-outbreak">coronavirus&nbsp;</a>pandemic.

“Courts are not designed to solve every problem or right every wrong in our public life,” Barrett says in the remarks, which The Associated Press obtained.

Republicans, who control the Senate, are moving at a breakneck pace to seat Barrett before the Nov. 3 election to secure Trump’s pick and hear a high-profile challenge to the Affordable Care Act and any election-related challenges.

Democrats are trying in vain to delay the fast-track confirmation by raising fresh concerns about the safety of meeting during the pandemic after two GOP senators on the panel tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., have not said if they will attend in person. Lee’s spokesman said the senator is symptom-free but would be making a decision on whether to attend Monday morning, per his doctor’s orders. A spokesman for Tillis did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Both tested positive 10 days ago.

Key Democrats are staying away. California Sen. Kamala Harris, the Democratic vice presidential nominee and a committee member, plans to participate remotely from her Senate office due to coronavirus concerns, her spokesman said Sunday.

The committee released a letter from the Architect of the Capitol on Sunday that says the hearing room has been set up in consultation with the Office of Attending Physician with appropriate distance between seats and air ventilation systems that meet or exceed industry standards.

“We’re going to work safely,” said the committee’s chairman,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-virus-outbreak-donald-trump-confirmation-hearings-jaime-harrison-44d1f3004a4e98a12bb7b94ed3ecae66">Sen. Lindsey Graham</a>, R-S.C., on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures.” He said he took a coronavirus test last week and is “negative.”

Trump chose the 48-year-old judge after the death last month of Ginsburg, a liberal icon. It’s the opportunity to entrench a conservative majority on the court for years to come with his third justice.

Outside groups are pushing Democrats to make a strong case against what they call an illegitimate confirmation, when people are already voting in some states, saying the winner of the presidency should make the pick. No Supreme Court justice has ever been confirmed so close to a presidential contest.

“The public is with them that this shouldn’t happen before the election,” said Brian Fallon, executive director of Demand Justice, which advocates against right-leaning nominees.

The country will get an extended look at Barrett over the next three days in hearings like none other during the heated election environment and the pandemic limiting public access.

Faith and family punctuate her testimony, and she said would bring “a few new perspectives” as the first mother of school-age children on the nine-member court.

Barrett says she uses her children as a test when deciding cases, asking herself how she would view the decision if one of her children were the party she was ruling against.

“Even though I would not like the result, would I understand that the decision was fairly reasoned and grounded in the law?” she says in the prepared remarks.

A Catholic, she says she believes in the “power of prayer.” Barrett’s religious views and past leadership role in a Catholic faith community pose&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-ruth-bader-ginsburg-amy-coney-barrett-dianne-feinstein-judiciary-2aaf6821079ac0c5c6fe50699ad745ba">a challenge&nbsp;</a>for Democrats as they try to probe her judicial approach to abortion, gay marriage and other social issues without veering into inappropriate questions of her faith.

Ordinarily, Barrett would get to show off her family and seven children. But the White House event announcing her nomination, in which most of the audience did not wear masks, has been labeled a “superspreader” for the coronavirus.

More than two dozen people linked to the Sept. 26 Rose Garden event, including the two GOP senators, have contracted COVID-19 since then. Barrett and her family went maskless at the event. She and her husband, Jesse, tested positive for the virus earlier this year and recovered, two administration officials have said.

Democrats already were enraged that Republicans are moving so quickly having refused to consider President Barack Obama nominee in February 2016, well before that year’s election.

Barrett is the most openly anti-abortion Supreme Court nominee in decades and her vote could provide a majority to restrict if not overturn abortion rights. Democrats have made clear that they will press Barrett on health care, abortion and other issues where her vote could push the court further to the right.

Republicans will highlight Barrett’s belief in sticking to the text of laws and the original meaning of constitutional provisions, both Scalia trademarks as well.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1602507946003.png" alt="Judge Amy Coney Barrett listens to opening statements during day 1 of her confirmation hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee -image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Judge Amy Coney Barrett listens to opening statements during day 1 of her confirmation hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee -image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Confirmation hearings for&nbsp;Supreme Court&nbsp;nominee Amy Coney Barrett are set to begin as a divided Senate charges ahead on President Donald Trump’s pick to replace the late&nbsp;Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg&nbsp;and cement a conservative court majority before&nbsp;Election Day.<a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?476315-1/supreme-court-nominee-amy-coney-barrett-confirmation-hearing-day-1">Click here</a>&nbsp;to watch day one of the confirmation hearing 8a.m.CDTBarrett, a federal appeals court judge, will tell the Senate Judiciary Committee that she is “forever grateful” for Ginsburg’s trailblazing path as a woman. But she is resolved to maintain the perspective of her own mentor, the late conservative Justice Antonin Scalia and “apply the law as written,” according to her&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/7224757-Barrett-Opening-Statement.html" target="_blank">prepared opening remarks</a>&nbsp;for the hearings, which start Monday as the country is in the grips of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/virus-outbreak">coronavirus&nbsp;</a>pandemic.“Courts are not designed to solve every problem or right every wrong in our public life,” Barrett says in the remarks, which The Associated Press obtained.Republicans, who control the Senate, are moving at a breakneck pace to seat Barrett before the Nov. 3 election to secure Trump’s pick and hear a high-profile challenge to the Affordable Care Act and any election-related challenges.Democrats are trying in vain to delay the fast-track confirmation by raising fresh concerns about the safety of meeting during the pandemic after two GOP senators on the panel tested positive for the novel coronavirus.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1602508448677.png" alt="Judge Barrett's husband and her children attending the confirmation hearing -image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Judge Barrett's husband and her children attending the confirmation hearing -image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., have not said if they will attend in person. Lee’s spokesman said the senator is symptom-free but would be making a decision on whether to attend Monday morning, per his doctor’s orders. A spokesman for Tillis did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Both tested positive 10 days ago.Key Democrats are staying away. California Sen. Kamala Harris, the Democratic vice presidential nominee and a committee member, plans to participate remotely from her Senate office due to coronavirus concerns, her spokesman said Sunday.The committee released a letter from the Architect of the Capitol on Sunday that says the hearing room has been set up in consultation with the Office of Attending Physician with appropriate distance between seats and air ventilation systems that meet or exceed industry standards.“We’re going to work safely,” said the committee’s chairman,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-virus-outbreak-donald-trump-confirmation-hearings-jaime-harrison-44d1f3004a4e98a12bb7b94ed3ecae66">Sen. Lindsey Graham</a>, R-S.C., on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures.” He said he took a coronavirus test last week and is “negative.”Trump chose the 48-year-old judge after the death last month of Ginsburg, a liberal icon. It’s the opportunity to entrench a conservative majority on the court for years to come with his third justice.Outside groups are pushing Democrats to make a strong case against what they call an illegitimate confirmation, when people are already voting in some states, saying the winner of the presidency should make the pick. No Supreme Court justice has ever been confirmed so close to a presidential contest.“The public is with them that this shouldn’t happen before the election,” said Brian Fallon, executive director of Demand Justice, which advocates against right-leaning nominees.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1601169417695.png" alt="Judge Amy Coney Barrett on the day President Trump introduced her during a Rose Garden Ceremony -photo courtesy White House" />
 <figcaption>Judge Amy Coney Barrett on the day President Trump introduced her during a Rose Garden Ceremony -photo courtesy White House</figcaption>
 </figure>The country will get an extended look at Barrett over the next three days in hearings like none other during the heated election environment and the pandemic limiting public access.Faith and family punctuate her testimony, and she said would bring “a few new perspectives” as the first mother of school-age children on the nine-member court.Barrett says she uses her children as a test when deciding cases, asking herself how she would view the decision if one of her children were the party she was ruling against.“Even though I would not like the result, would I understand that the decision was fairly reasoned and grounded in the law?” she says in the prepared remarks.A Catholic, she says she believes in the “power of prayer.” Barrett’s religious views and past leadership role in a Catholic faith community pose&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-ruth-bader-ginsburg-amy-coney-barrett-dianne-feinstein-judiciary-2aaf6821079ac0c5c6fe50699ad745ba">a challenge&nbsp;</a>for Democrats as they try to probe her judicial approach to abortion, gay marriage and other social issues without veering into inappropriate questions of her faith.Ordinarily, Barrett would get to show off her family and seven children. But the White House event announcing her nomination, in which most of the audience did not wear masks, has been labeled a “superspreader” for the coronavirus.More than two dozen people linked to the Sept. 26 Rose Garden event, including the two GOP senators, have contracted COVID-19 since then. Barrett and her family went maskless at the event. She and her husband, Jesse, tested positive for the virus earlier this year and recovered, two administration officials have said.Democrats already were enraged that Republicans are moving so quickly having refused to consider President Barack Obama nominee in February 2016, well before that year’s election.Barrett is the most openly anti-abortion Supreme Court nominee in decades and her vote could provide a majority to restrict if not overturn abortion rights. Democrats have made clear that they will press Barrett on health care, abortion and other issues where her vote could push the court further to the right.Republicans will highlight Barrett’s belief in sticking to the text of laws and the original meaning of constitutional provisions, both Scalia trademarks as well.___

🎥 Supreme Court nominee Barrett faces Senate despite virus

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House doctor said that President Donald Trump was no longer at risk of transmitting the coronavirus but did not say explicitly whether Trump had tested negative for it. The diagnosis came as the president prepared to resume campaign rallies and other activities.

In a memo released Saturday night by the White House, Navy Cmdr. Dr. Sean Conley said Trump met the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria for safely discontinuing isolation and that by “currently recognized standards” he was no longer considered a transmission risk.

The memo did not declare Trump had tested negative for the virus. But sensitive lab tests — like the PCR test cited in the doctor’s statements — detect virus in swab samples taken from the nose and throat. Dr. William Morice, who oversees laboratories at the Mayo Clinic, said earlier this week that using the PCR tests, the president’s medical team could hypothetically measure and track the amount of virus in samples over time and watch the viral load go down.

Some medical experts had been skeptical that Trump could be declared free of the risk of transmitting the virus so early in the course of his illness. Just 10 days since an initial diagnosis of infection, there was no way to know for certain that someone was no longer contagious, they said.

Dr. Albert Ko, an infectious disease specialist and department chairman at the Yale School of Public Health, said Saturday night that the White House appeared to be following CDC guidelines for when it is appropriate to end isolation after mild to moderate cases of COVID-19.

But Ko cautioned that those who have had severe cases of the diseases should isolate for 20 days. He noted that Trump was treated with the steroid dexamethasone, which is normally reserved for patients with severe COVID.

Ko added that White House had issued “convoluted” statements about Trump’s health that left many questions unanswered, including whether the president ever had pneumonia.

CDC guidelines note that most people do not require testing to decide when they can be around others. Ko said people who have had COVID-19 can continue to test positive for weeks or longer after they are no longer infectious.

The memo stated that Trump had reached day 10 from the onset of symptoms, had been free of fever for well over 24 hours, and that all symptoms had improved.

Saskia Popescu, an infectious disease epidemiologist at George Mason University, said the tight time frame laid out by the White House made it appear that “they’re really just pushing to get him out of isolation” and back to campaigning.

The memo followed Trump’s first public appearance since returning to the White House after being treated for the coronavirus at a military hospital. Hundreds of people gathered Saturday afternoon on the South Lawn for a Trump address on his support for law enforcement from a White House balcony.

Trump took off a mask moments after he emerged on the balcony to address the crowd on the lawn below, his first step back onto the public stage with just more than three weeks to go until Election Day. He flouted, once more, the safety recommendations of his own government just days after acknowledging that he was on the brink of “bad things" from the virus and claiming that his bout with the illness brought him a better understanding of it.

His return was a brief one. With bandages visible on his hands, likely from an intravenous injection, Trump spoke for 18 minutes, far less than his normal hour-plus rallies. He appeared healthy, if perhaps a little hoarse, as he delivered what was, for all intents and purposes, a short version of his campaign speech despite the executive mansion setting.

Though the gathering was billed as an official event, Trump offered no policy proposals and instead delivered the usual attacks on Democrat Joe Biden while praising law enforcement to supporters, most of whom wore masks while few adhered to social distancing guidelines.

“I’m feeling great,” said Trump, who said he was thankful for their good wishes and prayers as he recovered. He then declared that the pandemic, which has killed more than 210,000 Americans, was “disappearing” even though he is still recovering from the virus.

In either an act of defiance or simply tempting fate, officials organized the crowd just steps from the Rose Garden, where exactly two weeks ago the president held another large gathering to formally announce his nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. That event is now being eyed as a possible COVID-19 superspreader as more than two dozen people in attendance have contracted the virus.

Trump had hoped to hold campaign rallies this weekend but settled for the White House event. But even as his health remained unclear, he planned to ramp up his travel with a rally in Florida on Monday, followed by trips to Pennsylvania and Iowa on subsequent days.

Security was stepped up around the White House before the event, which was called a “peaceful protest for law &amp; order” and predominantly attended by Black and Latino supporters. Police and the Secret Service closed surrounding streets to vehicles and shut down Lafayette Square, the park near the White House that has long been a gathering place for public protest.

As questions linger about his health — and Democratic opponent Joe Biden steps up his own campaigning — Trump has more frequently called into radio and TV programs to speak with conservative interviewers, hoping to make up for lost time.

Biden's campaign said he again tested negative on Saturday for COVID-19. Biden was potentially exposed to the coronavirus during his Sept. 29 debate with Trump, who announced his positive diagnosis barely 48 hours after the debate.

The president had not been seen in public — other than in White House-produced videos — since his return five days ago from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he received experimental treatments for the coronavirus.

On Saturday, all attendees were required to bring masks or were provided with them, and were given temperature checks and asked to fill out a brief questionnaire. Some in the crowd removed their mask to listen to Trump.

Trump's Monday event in Sanford, Florida, what he's described as a “BIG RALLY," was originally scheduled to be held on Oct. 2, the day after he tested positive. Ahead of his Saturday event, Trump used Twitter to share news articles about problems with mail-in ballots in New Jersey, Ohio and Texas. Trump has repeatedly made unsubstantiated claims that universal mail-in voting is beset by widespread fraud.

Trump's return to public activity came as Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious-disease expert, cautioned the White House again to avoid large-scale gatherings of people without masks.

Fauci said of the Barrett event in an interview with The Associated Press, “I was not surprised to see a superspreader event given the circumstances." That means “crowded, congregate setting, not wearing masks. It is not surprising to see an outbreak," he said.

District of Columbia virus restrictions prohibit outdoor gatherings larger than 50 people, although that rule has not been strictly enforced. Masks are mandatory outdoors for most people, but the regulations don’t apply on federal land, and the Trump White House has openly flouted them for months.

Confined to the White House as he recovers, Trump spent sizable chunks of the past few days making the rounds of friendly conservative media, calling in to Fox News host Sean Hannity on Thursday night and spending two hours live on air with radio host Rush Limbaugh on Friday in what his campaign billed as a “radio rally.”

Holding court on his reelection battle, his fight against the coronavirus and revived negotiations with Democrats to pass an economic stimulus bill, Trump made a direct appeal to his base of loyal supporters, whom he needs to turn out to the polls in droves.

In a Friday night interview on Fox's Tucker Carlson's show, Trump was asked if he has been retested for COVID-19. “I have been retested, and I haven’t even found out numbers or anything yet. But I've been retested, and I know I’m at either the bottom of the scale or free," he said.

White House officials, however, have declined to answer when Trump last tested negative for the virus before his diagnosis or release detailed information about lung scans taken while Trump was hospitalized.

While reports of reinfection in COVID-19 victims are rare, the CDC recommends that even people who recover from the disease continue to wear masks, stay distanced and follow other precautions. It was unclear if Trump, who has refused mask wearing in most settings, would abide by that guidance as he resumes his campaign.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1602428635792.png" alt="President Trump speaking Saturday from the White House&nbsp; balcony at a peaceful protest for law and order-image courtesy White House" />
 <figcaption>President Trump speaking Saturday from the White House&nbsp; balcony at a peaceful protest for law and order-image courtesy White House</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House doctor said that President Donald Trump was no longer at risk of transmitting the coronavirus but did not say explicitly whether Trump had tested negative for it. The diagnosis came as the president prepared to resume campaign rallies and other activities.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1602428312557.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>In a memo released Saturday night by the White House, Navy Cmdr. Dr. Sean Conley said Trump met the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria for safely discontinuing isolation and that by “currently recognized standards” he was no longer considered a transmission risk.The memo did not declare Trump had tested negative for the virus. But sensitive lab tests — like the PCR test cited in the doctor’s statements — detect virus in swab samples taken from the nose and throat. Dr. William Morice, who oversees laboratories at the Mayo Clinic, said earlier this week that using the PCR tests, the president’s medical team could hypothetically measure and track the amount of virus in samples over time and watch the viral load go down.Some medical experts had been skeptical that Trump could be declared free of the risk of transmitting the virus so early in the course of his illness. Just 10 days since an initial diagnosis of infection, there was no way to know for certain that someone was no longer contagious, they said.Dr. Albert Ko, an infectious disease specialist and department chairman at the Yale School of Public Health, said Saturday night that the White House appeared to be following CDC guidelines for when it is appropriate to end isolation after mild to moderate cases of COVID-19.But Ko cautioned that those who have had severe cases of the diseases should isolate for 20 days. He noted that Trump was treated with the steroid dexamethasone, which is normally reserved for patients with severe COVID.Ko added that White House had issued “convoluted” statements about Trump’s health that left many questions unanswered, including whether the president ever had pneumonia.CDC guidelines note that most people do not require testing to decide when they can be around others. Ko said people who have had COVID-19 can continue to test positive for weeks or longer after they are no longer infectious.The memo stated that Trump had reached day 10 from the onset of symptoms, had been free of fever for well over 24 hours, and that all symptoms had improved.Saskia Popescu, an infectious disease epidemiologist at George Mason University, said the tight time frame laid out by the White House made it appear that “they’re really just pushing to get him out of isolation” and back to campaigning.The memo followed Trump’s first public appearance since returning to the White House after being treated for the coronavirus at a military hospital. Hundreds of people gathered Saturday afternoon on the South Lawn for a Trump address on his support for law enforcement from a White House balcony.Trump took off a mask moments after he emerged on the balcony to address the crowd on the lawn below, his first step back onto the public stage with just more than three weeks to go until Election Day. He flouted, once more, the safety recommendations of his own government just days after acknowledging that he was on the brink of “bad things" from the virus and claiming that his bout with the illness brought him a better understanding of it.His return was a brief one. With bandages visible on his hands, likely from an intravenous injection, Trump spoke for 18 minutes, far less than his normal hour-plus rallies. He appeared healthy, if perhaps a little hoarse, as he delivered what was, for all intents and purposes, a short version of his campaign speech despite the executive mansion setting.Though the gathering was billed as an official event, Trump offered no policy proposals and instead delivered the usual attacks on Democrat Joe Biden while praising law enforcement to supporters, most of whom wore masks while few adhered to social distancing guidelines.“I’m feeling great,” said Trump, who said he was thankful for their good wishes and prayers as he recovered. He then declared that the pandemic, which has killed more than 210,000 Americans, was “disappearing” even though he is still recovering from the virus.In either an act of defiance or simply tempting fate, officials organized the crowd just steps from the Rose Garden, where exactly two weeks ago the president held another large gathering to formally announce his nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. That event is now being eyed as a possible COVID-19 superspreader as more than two dozen people in attendance have contracted the virus.Trump had hoped to hold campaign rallies this weekend but settled for the White House event. But even as his health remained unclear, he planned to ramp up his travel with a rally in Florida on Monday, followed by trips to Pennsylvania and Iowa on subsequent days.Security was stepped up around the White House before the event, which was called a “peaceful protest for law &amp; order” and predominantly attended by Black and Latino supporters. Police and the Secret Service closed surrounding streets to vehicles and shut down Lafayette Square, the park near the White House that has long been a gathering place for public protest.As questions linger about his health — and Democratic opponent Joe Biden steps up his own campaigning — Trump has more frequently called into radio and TV programs to speak with conservative interviewers, hoping to make up for lost time.Biden's campaign said he again tested negative on Saturday for COVID-19. Biden was potentially exposed to the coronavirus during his Sept. 29 debate with Trump, who announced his positive diagnosis barely 48 hours after the debate.The president had not been seen in public — other than in White House-produced videos — since his return five days ago from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he received experimental treatments for the coronavirus.On Saturday, all attendees were required to bring masks or were provided with them, and were given temperature checks and asked to fill out a brief questionnaire. Some in the crowd removed their mask to listen to Trump.Trump's Monday event in Sanford, Florida, what he's described as a “BIG RALLY," was originally scheduled to be held on Oct. 2, the day after he tested positive. Ahead of his Saturday event, Trump used Twitter to share news articles about problems with mail-in ballots in New Jersey, Ohio and Texas. Trump has repeatedly made unsubstantiated claims that universal mail-in voting is beset by widespread fraud.Trump's return to public activity came as Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious-disease expert, cautioned the White House again to avoid large-scale gatherings of people without masks.Fauci said of the Barrett event in an interview with The Associated Press, “I was not surprised to see a superspreader event given the circumstances." That means “crowded, congregate setting, not wearing masks. It is not surprising to see an outbreak," he said.District of Columbia virus restrictions prohibit outdoor gatherings larger than 50 people, although that rule has not been strictly enforced. Masks are mandatory outdoors for most people, but the regulations don’t apply on federal land, and the Trump White House has openly flouted them for months.Confined to the White House as he recovers, Trump spent sizable chunks of the past few days making the rounds of friendly conservative media, calling in to Fox News host Sean Hannity on Thursday night and spending two hours live on air with radio host Rush Limbaugh on Friday in what his campaign billed as a “radio rally.”Holding court on his reelection battle, his fight against the coronavirus and revived negotiations with Democrats to pass an economic stimulus bill, Trump made a direct appeal to his base of loyal supporters, whom he needs to turn out to the polls in droves.In a Friday night interview on Fox's Tucker Carlson's show, Trump was asked if he has been retested for COVID-19. “I have been retested, and I haven’t even found out numbers or anything yet. But I've been retested, and I know I’m at either the bottom of the scale or free," he said.White House officials, however, have declined to answer when Trump last tested negative for the virus before his diagnosis or release detailed information about lung scans taken while Trump was hospitalized.While reports of reinfection in COVID-19 victims are rare, the CDC recommends that even people who recover from the disease continue to wear masks, stay distanced and follow other precautions. It was unclear if Trump, who has refused mask wearing in most settings, would abide by that guidance as he resumes his campaign.

Doctor: President won’t transmit virus, ready for active schedule

By KAY HAWES KU Medical Center

The University of Kansas Medical Center has been chosen as one of 32 institutions nationwide to receive a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) through the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nih.gov/research-training/medical-research-initiatives/radx/radx-programs#radx-up" target="_blank">RADx-UP program</a>&nbsp;to support projects designed to rapidly implement COVID-19 testing strategies in populations disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

KU Medical Center will partner with community efforts in 10 Kansas counties, six rural (Crawford, Finney, Lyon, Riley, Saline and Seward) and four urban (Douglas, Johnson, Sedgwick, Wyandotte).

The goal is to establish community-led, health department-linked Local Health Equity Action Teams in 10 counties in Kansas disproportionately affected by COVID-19 and provide them with the training and resources to identify and respond to COVID-related inequities in their communities.

Address inequities, beginning with testing

"We know that underserved minority and rural communities have been disproportionately affected by COVID, leading to more serious illnesses and more deaths," said&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kumc.edu/school-of-medicine/population-health/faculty-and-staff/faculty/edward-f-ellerbeck.html">Edward Ellerbeck,</a>&nbsp;M.D., MPH, chair of the Department of Population Health and professor at the KU School of Medicine and one of the study's co-principal investigators. "The idea here is to partner with communities and local health departments to help address inequities, beginning with inequities in testing, and the vast majority of these funds will go into these counties and directly into these at-risk communities."

Part of the NIH's Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics (RADx) initiative, the RADx Underserved Populations (RADx-UP) program, KU Medical Center's $3.5 million grant will be overseen by four principal investigators:

●Mario Castro, M.D., MPH, vice chair for clinical and translational research in the Department of Internal Medicine and a pulmonologist at the KU School of Medicine. 

●Broderick Crawford, president of the NBC Community Development Corporation, the outreach arm of the New Bethel Church in Kansas City, Kansas. 

●Allen Greiner, M.D., MPH, vice chair of the Department of Family Medicine and professor at the KU School of Medicine, and county health officer in Wyandotte County.

"It is critical that all Americans have access to rapid, accurate diagnostics for COVID-19, especially underserved and vulnerable populations who are bearing the brunt of this disease," said NIH Director Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D. "The RADx-UP program will help us better understand and alleviate the barriers to testing for those most vulnerable and reduce the burden of this disease."

Partner with communities, developing strategies

KU Medical Center researchers will conduct a needs assessment in each county and then partner with communities in each county to develop messages and strategies specific to their community. Working with the Local Health Equity Action Teams, KU researchers will take their cues from the communities. "In some cases, we will support what they're already doing. In some cases, we will complement what they're doing," said&nbsp;<a href="http://juntosks.org/who-we-are/our-team/mariana-ramirez/">Mariana Ramirez</a>, LMSW, director of&nbsp;<a href="http://juntosks.org/">JUNTOS Center for Advancing Latino Health&nbsp;</a>in the Department of Population Health at KU Medical Center and one of eight co-investigators on the grant. "It is critical that we listen to each community and assist them with what is needed there."

Castro, who also directs the KU Clinical and Translational Science Institute, known as Frontiers, points out that this grant is unique because it relies on partnerships in the community and throughout the state.

"It is an exciting grant for KU Medical Center and for our partners because it will capitalize on the infrastructure we have built with Frontiers and community partners and help all of us work together to address disparities within our underserved communities," Castro said.

"A number of studies have shown that African-American, Hispanic and rural communities have a higher prevalence of hospitalization and deaths, and there is some evidence that the virus also is more severe in these communities, perhaps due to a higher proportion of risk factors, such as obesity and high blood pressure. And when we look at rural counties, we also see overwhelmed practitioners and no infrastructure for conducting clinical trials. With the RADx-UP resources, we think this could really be a win-win relationship with these communities."

Use Wyandotte County task force as model

KU Medical Center has been working throughout the pandemic with Wyandotte County community leaders, and Greiner explained that the statewide effort will be modeled after the work of the Health Equity Task Force in Wyandotte County.

"We've had some really great community partners step up in Wyandotte County," Greiner said. "There's been a lot of collaboration. Throughout the pandemic, we've seen some really tough issues throughout the community. We think our partners can help share lessons learned, and those best practices can be valuable in advising other counties."

While the underserved populations in each county may be different, many of the obstacles are the same:

●Multiple generations may be living in one household.

●Family members may be engaged in high-risk, essential work, perhaps in meatpacking or cleaning industries.

●A lack of health insurance and lack of sick leave may be an issue.

●Another set of issues is lack of access to medical care and lack of COVID-19 testing.

"We saw the first COVID-19 death in Kansas in Wyandotte County, but there was no testing in Wyandotte County at that time," Crawford said. "We determined we needed to take testing into the community."

Crawford noted that pop-up testing sites in churches, libraries and colleges were well attended. "We put pop-up sites in places in the community where the need was greatest and also in places people trusted."

"With this grant, the idea is to be able to share the successes in Wyandotte County with the nine other counties throughout Kansas," Crawford said. "It won't look the same in each of these counties, but we want to provide information and lessons learned. One thing COVID has shown all of is that there has to be joint collaborative effort by all of us -- researchers, community leaders, faith leaders, doctors, health offices -- to fight this disease."

For more information on the NIH's RADx initiative and RADx-UP program, see the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/nih-assess-expand-covid-19-testing-underserved-communities" target="_blank">NIH website</a>.

By KAY HAWES KU Medical CenterThe University of Kansas Medical Center has been chosen as one of 32 institutions nationwide to receive a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) through the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nih.gov/research-training/medical-research-initiatives/radx/radx-programs#radx-up" target="_blank">RADx-UP program</a>&nbsp;to support projects designed to rapidly implement COVID-19 testing strategies in populations disproportionately affected by the pandemic.KU Medical Center will partner with community efforts in 10 Kansas counties, six rural (Crawford, Finney, Lyon, Riley, Saline and Seward) and four urban (Douglas, Johnson, Sedgwick, Wyandotte).The goal is to establish community-led, health department-linked Local Health Equity Action Teams in 10 counties in Kansas disproportionately affected by COVID-19 and provide them with the training and resources to identify and respond to COVID-related inequities in their communities.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1602284241461.jpeg" alt="KU Medical Center will partner with the counties marked with an orange dot to create Local Health Equity Action Teams. Map courtesy KU Medical Center" />
 <figcaption>KU Medical Center will partner with the counties marked with an orange dot to create Local Health Equity Action Teams. Map courtesy KU Medical Center</figcaption>
 </figure>Address inequities, beginning with testing"We know that underserved minority and rural communities have been disproportionately affected by COVID, leading to more serious illnesses and more deaths," said&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kumc.edu/school-of-medicine/population-health/faculty-and-staff/faculty/edward-f-ellerbeck.html">Edward Ellerbeck,</a>&nbsp;M.D., MPH, chair of the Department of Population Health and professor at the KU School of Medicine and one of the study's co-principal investigators. "The idea here is to partner with communities and local health departments to help address inequities, beginning with inequities in testing, and the vast majority of these funds will go into these counties and directly into these at-risk communities."Part of the NIH's Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics (RADx) initiative, the RADx Underserved Populations (RADx-UP) program, KU Medical Center's $3.5 million grant will be overseen by four principal investigators:●Ellerbeck. ●Mario Castro, M.D., MPH, vice chair for clinical and translational research in the Department of Internal Medicine and a pulmonologist at the KU School of Medicine. ●Broderick Crawford, president of the NBC Community Development Corporation, the outreach arm of the New Bethel Church in Kansas City, Kansas. ●Allen Greiner, M.D., MPH, vice chair of the Department of Family Medicine and professor at the KU School of Medicine, and county health officer in Wyandotte County."It is critical that all Americans have access to rapid, accurate diagnostics for COVID-19, especially underserved and vulnerable populations who are bearing the brunt of this disease," said NIH Director Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D. "The RADx-UP program will help us better understand and alleviate the barriers to testing for those most vulnerable and reduce the burden of this disease."Partner with communities, developing strategiesKU Medical Center researchers will conduct a needs assessment in each county and then partner with communities in each county to develop messages and strategies specific to their community. Working with the Local Health Equity Action Teams, KU researchers will take their cues from the communities. "In some cases, we will support what they're already doing. In some cases, we will complement what they're doing," said&nbsp;<a href="http://juntosks.org/who-we-are/our-team/mariana-ramirez/">Mariana Ramirez</a>, LMSW, director of&nbsp;<a href="http://juntosks.org/">JUNTOS Center for Advancing Latino Health&nbsp;</a>in the Department of Population Health at KU Medical Center and one of eight co-investigators on the grant. "It is critical that we listen to each community and assist them with what is needed there."Castro, who also directs the KU Clinical and Translational Science Institute, known as Frontiers, points out that this grant is unique because it relies on partnerships in the community and throughout the state."It is an exciting grant for KU Medical Center and for our partners because it will capitalize on the infrastructure we have built with Frontiers and community partners and help all of us work together to address disparities within our underserved communities," Castro said."A number of studies have shown that African-American, Hispanic and rural communities have a higher prevalence of hospitalization and deaths, and there is some evidence that the virus also is more severe in these communities, perhaps due to a higher proportion of risk factors, such as obesity and high blood pressure. And when we look at rural counties, we also see overwhelmed practitioners and no infrastructure for conducting clinical trials. With the RADx-UP resources, we think this could really be a win-win relationship with these communities."Use Wyandotte County task force as modelKU Medical Center has been working throughout the pandemic with Wyandotte County community leaders, and Greiner explained that the statewide effort will be modeled after the work of the Health Equity Task Force in Wyandotte County."We've had some really great community partners step up in Wyandotte County," Greiner said. "There's been a lot of collaboration. Throughout the pandemic, we've seen some really tough issues throughout the community. We think our partners can help share lessons learned, and those best practices can be valuable in advising other counties."While the underserved populations in each county may be different, many of the obstacles are the same:●Multiple generations may be living in one household.●Family members may be engaged in high-risk, essential work, perhaps in meatpacking or cleaning industries.●A lack of health insurance and lack of sick leave may be an issue.●Another set of issues is lack of access to medical care and lack of COVID-19 testing."We saw the first COVID-19 death in Kansas in Wyandotte County, but there was no testing in Wyandotte County at that time," Crawford said. "We determined we needed to take testing into the community."Crawford noted that pop-up testing sites in churches, libraries and colleges were well attended. "We put pop-up sites in places in the community where the need was greatest and also in places people trusted."Provide collaborative effort"With this grant, the idea is to be able to share the successes in Wyandotte County with the nine other counties throughout Kansas," Crawford said. "It won't look the same in each of these counties, but we want to provide information and lessons learned. One thing COVID has shown all of is that there has to be joint collaborative effort by all of us -- researchers, community leaders, faith leaders, doctors, health offices -- to fight this disease."For more information on the NIH's RADx initiative and RADx-UP program, see the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/nih-assess-expand-covid-19-testing-underserved-communities" target="_blank">NIH website</a>.

Saline County part of KU Medical Center's COVID-19 effort

I decided a couple of years ago to start following your plan. Part of getting out of debt for me included paying off my car. I’m taking your advice, and saving up to pay cash for my next vehicle. I know you like mutual funds, so should I put the money I’m setting aside for that purchase in a mutual fund?

I’m glad to hear you’ve decided to get control of your money.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.daveramsey.com/blog/what-are-mutual-funds" target="_blank">Mutual funds</a>&nbsp;are great for long-term investing, and by long-term investing I’m talking about a bare minimum of five years—preferably 10. But I wouldn’t recommend them as a way of saving up for a vehicle purchase. The problem with mutual funds, in the type of short-term scenario you’re talking about, is they can go up, or down, in value.&nbsp;

I’d suggest a simple savings or money market account when it comes to stashing the money you’re saving for a newer car. They don’t pay much in terms of interest, but your money will be safe, and you won’t have the ups and downs of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.daveramsey.com/blog/stock-market-correction" target="_blank">stock market</a>&nbsp;to worry about.

Did you know the average monthly payment in America for a new car right now about $554 a month? It makes my head hurt to think about that much cash flying out the window every month on something that’s dropping in value like a rock. Even if you just stashed that kind of money in a shoebox you’d have over $6,600 saved in just a year. And despite what some people say, that’s enough to buy a dependable, pre-owned car.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/8/1596845065840.jpeg" alt="Dave Ramsey" />
 <figcaption>Dave Ramsey</figcaption>
 </figure>Saving for a carDear Dave,I decided a couple of years ago to start following your plan. Part of getting out of debt for me included paying off my car. I’m taking your advice, and saving up to pay cash for my next vehicle. I know you like mutual funds, so should I put the money I’m setting aside for that purchase in a mutual fund?CoreyDear Corey,I’m glad to hear you’ve decided to get control of your money.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.daveramsey.com/blog/what-are-mutual-funds" target="_blank">Mutual funds</a>&nbsp;are great for long-term investing, and by long-term investing I’m talking about a bare minimum of five years—preferably 10. But I wouldn’t recommend them as a way of saving up for a vehicle purchase. The problem with mutual funds, in the type of short-term scenario you’re talking about, is they can go up, or down, in value.&nbsp;I’d suggest a simple savings or money market account when it comes to stashing the money you’re saving for a newer car. They don’t pay much in terms of interest, but your money will be safe, and you won’t have the ups and downs of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.daveramsey.com/blog/stock-market-correction" target="_blank">stock market</a>&nbsp;to worry about.Did you know the average monthly payment in America for a new car right now about $554 a month? It makes my head hurt to think about that much cash flying out the window every month on something that’s dropping in value like a rock. Even if you just stashed that kind of money in a shoebox you’d have over $6,600 saved in just a year. And despite what some people say, that’s enough to buy a dependable, pre-owned car.Stick with the plan, Corey!DaveRelationships and givingDear Dave,Do you have guidelines for giving when it comes to helping family members? My wife and I are both 52, we’re debt-free, and we have savings along with about $750,000 in retirement. We agree with you that it’s a bad idea to loan money to relatives, but we were hoping you could give us a little extra guidance.SamuelDear Samuel,I love that you have a helping and generous heart toward your&nbsp;<a href="https://www.daveramsey.com/blog/gomez-family-new-home" target="_blank">family</a>. Wanting to help is a noble and caring thing. Wanting to help in the best way possible for all concerned in a sign of maturity and wisdom.The big thing is to make sure you’re helping someone get back on their feet, and make positive changes in their life. You’re not helping anyone when you give a drunk a drink, so you have to ask yourself if your generosity is really helping them or if you’re just enabling bad behavior. Also, you can’t give to a point where you’re putting your own household at risk. You have to continue to be responsible with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chrishogan360.com/riq/" target="_blank">your finances</a>&nbsp;where your own family is concerned, as well.This isn’t about being a control freak, Samuel. It’s about using the resources God has given you in a wise and responsible manner. In human terms, that means helping someone get out of a mess they’re in, while at the same time ensuring they’re working to make sure they never end up there again!Dave<a href="https://www.daveramsey.com/" target="_blank">Dave&nbsp;Ramsey</a>&nbsp;is a seven-time #1 national best-selling author, personal finance expert, and host of The Dave&nbsp;Ramsey&nbsp;Show, heard by more than 16 million listeners each week. He&nbsp;has appeared on Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, Today Show, Fox News, CNN, Fox Business, and many more. Since 1992, Dave has helped people regain control of their money, build wealth and enhance their lives. He also serves as CEO for&nbsp;Ramsey&nbsp;Solutions.