By GRAHAM LEE BREWER, Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Native Americans watched the shuttered government on Friday and braced for damage to health care, education, infrastructure and other services funded by Washington under treaties struck more than a century ago.

Tribal nations with casinos, oil and gas leases and other independent revenue sources said they expect to sustain operations for several months. Tribes more dependent on government money were already furloughing workers.

Many tribal leaders said they feared that the Trump administration would use the shutdown to lay off federal workers responsible for ensuring that trust and treaty responsibilities are honored. The U.S. agreed many decades ago to protect the security, health and education of tribal citizens in return for ceding their lands.

Shuttered museums and children’s services

The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe just outside Reno, Nevada furloughed at least 25 employees starting on Oct. 1 and closed its museum and cultural center, higher education department, and services for Native children in the public school system.

It said the closures would be temporary but that more closures could still come if the shutdown endures.

“As the government shutdown continues other departments may become limited in operation,” Chairman Steven Wadsworth wrote in a letter to tribal members. “These furloughs are necessary to ensure the continued operation of public safety, such as the police, EMS, and the food bank.”

Layoffs coming?

People across Indian Country worried that the Trump administration would use the shutdown to lay off federal workers who uphold their treaty rights.

“I’m extremely nervous about that,” said Liz Carr, vice president for intergovernmental relations for the Cedar Rock Alliance, which helps tribes develop health care, self-governance and land management policies.

Related Articles

The only protester still locked up after Trump’s campus crackdown breaks silence: ‘I feel helpless’

Just before shutdown, most Americans wanted health insurance tax credits extended, poll finds

It’s déjà vu for Muslim Americans as anti-Muslim playbook follows Zohran Mamdani’s success

Feds approve Florida for a $608 million Everglades detention center reimbursement

Trump administration taps Army Reserve and National Guard for temporary immigration judges

President Donald Trump and his now-former adviser Elon Musk this year called on the General Services Administration to start terminating leases held by the nation’s 7,500-odd federal offices, including 25 regional offices of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

During the Biden administration, Carr was appointed as the first tribal adviser to the Office of Management and Budget. Carr said she was instructed to resign by the new administration and that position remains unfilled. There is a lack of understanding about trust and treaty responsibilities in the agency and at the White House, she said.

“I can see some of those programs being considered either DEI or some kind of waste. Then they come back to dismantle those programs and people aren’t able to come back and deliver those services,” she said. “And the tribes have nowhere to turn.”

Tribes go through BIA regional offices to approve things like road projects and law enforcement funding and 15 BIA offices across 38 states have closed, according to the agency. Federal employees that protect life and property are exempt from the shutdown, but BIA law enforcement officers in the department will likely be working without pay because of the way funds are appropriated.

Damaged trust

The Indian Health Service, a department within Health and Human Services, provides health care to Native Americans and Alaska Natives and will remain funded and operational, HHS contingency plan says.

However, hundreds of health care centers and clinics across that country that are owned and managed by tribal nations but federally funded are a different matter.

Agencies that assist tribes have already closed, including the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which operates the Indian Housing Block Grant, and the Federal Highway Administration, which operates the Tribal Transportation Program.

The National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers — a national organization of tribal workers dedicated to safeguarding Native traditions and cultures — is asking the federal government to halt projects like oil and gas development that require consultation with tribal nations.

The government is legally required to consult with tribes on projects could affect them, and that cannot happen without the necessary federal employees on the job, said the association’s executive director, Dr. Valerie Grussing.

“Projects should only resume when agencies are fully staffed and tribes have someone to consult with,” she said.

By KATE BRUMBACK, Associated Press

ATLANTA (AP) — A Spanish-language journalist who had been in immigration detention in Georgia since June was deported Friday to El Salvador.

Related Articles

The only protester still locked up after Trump’s campus crackdown breaks silence: ‘I feel helpless’

Iowa school district sues search firm that vetted superintendent arrested by ICE last week

Regulators approve disputed $6.2B takeover of Minnesota Power by investment group

‘Drop it now!’: Video shows Michigan church shooter was ordered to give up before he was killed

Noem visits Chicago area ICE facility as agents detain multiple protesters outside

Mario Guevara, 48, was covering a protest just outside Atlanta on June 14 when local police arrested him and then turned him over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement several days later. His lawyers had been fighting parallel battles in the immigration court and federal court systems trying to get him released.

In a live video posted on Facebook Friday afternoon, Guevara is seen, escorted by El Salvador government officials, exiting a vehicle and hugging a woman who pointed a camera phone at him. “Hello, Mom,” he said.

He looked toward the sky and said, “My country, my country, my country. Thank God. This isn’t how I wanted to come to my country, but thank God.”

Guevara’s deportation comes after the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday declined to put a hold on a deportation order issued last month by the Board of Immigration Appeals.

All criminal charges filed against Guevara since his arrest were dismissed by local prosecutors. His attorneys argued that he was being held in retaliation for his work as a journalist and to silence him, in violation of his constitutional rights.

Guevara fled El Salvador two decades ago out of fear, and he amassed a big audience as a journalist in the Atlanta area. He worked for Mundo Hispanico, a Spanish-language newspaper, for years before starting a digital news outlet called MG News a year ago. He was livestreaming video on social media from a “No Kings” rally protesting President Donald Trump’s administration when local police arrested him in DeKalb County.

He is known for arriving on the scene where ICE or other law enforcement agencies are active, often after getting tips from community members. He regularly livestreams what he is seeing on social media.

Video from his arrest shows Guevara wearing a bright red shirt under a protective vest with “PRESS” printed across his chest. He could be heard telling a police officer, “I’m a member of the media, officer.” He was standing on a sidewalk with other journalists, with no sign of big crowds or confrontations around him, moments before he was taken away.

The charges against him in DeKalb County, as well as other charges that were filed in neighboring Gwinnett County after his arrest, were dismissed by prosecutors. An immigration judge in July granted him bond, but he remained in custody while the government appealed that ruling.

An immigration case in 2012 denied Guevara’s bid to remain in the U.S. He appealed that ruling to the Board of Immigration Appeals, which hears appeals of immigration court rulings, but that appeal had not been decided when prosecutors agreed to administratively close the case. His lawyers say he has been authorized to live and work in the U.S. for the last 13 years.

Shortly after Guevara entered ICE custody in June, the government asked the Board of Immigration Appeals to reopen that old immigration case. His lawyers didn’t oppose that move, but they asked that the case be sent back to the lower immigration court because he now has a pending application for a visa supported by his adult U.S. citizen son.

The Board of Immigration Appeals last month agreed to reopen the case, dismissed Guevara’s appeal and denied his request to return the case to the lower immigration court. It also ordered him deported to El Salvador and dismissed the government’s appeal of the bond ruling, saying it is now moot.

Guevara’s lawyers appealed to the 11th Circuit and asked that court to halt the deportation order while the appeal was pending. Guevara’s lawyers argue that the Board of Immigration Appeals ruling and the subsequent refusal by the 11th Circuit to stay his deportation order are based on incorrect information.

A separate case challenged the constitutionality of Guevara’s detention in immigration custody and remains pending in a federal court. His lawyers argued he was being punished for his journalism work and asked a judge to order him immediately released and order that he not be deported while that case was pending.

Associated Press writer Elliot Spagat contributed reporting.

By ERIC TUCKER, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI Director Kash Patel says the bureau is cutting ties with two organizations that for decades have tracked domestic extremism and racial and religious bias, a move that follows complaints about the groups from some conservatives and prominent allies of President Donald Trump.

Patel said on Friday that the FBI would sever its relationship with the Southern Poverty Law Center, asserting that the organization had been turned into a “partisan smear machine” and criticizing it for its use of a “hate map” that documents alleged anti-government and hate groups inside the United States. A statement earlier in the week from Patel said the FBI would end ties with the Anti-Defamation League, a prominent Jewish advocacy organization that fights anti-Semitism.

The announcements amount to a dramatic rethinking of longstanding FBI partnerships with prominent civil rights groups at a time when Patel is moving rapidly to reshape the nation’s premier federal law enforcement agency. The organizations over the years have provided research on hate crime and domestic extremism, law enforcement training and other services, but have also been criticized by some conservatives for what they say is an unfair maligning of their viewpoints.

That criticism escalated after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk amid renewed attention to the SPLC’s characterization of the group, Turning Point USA, that Kirk founded. For instance, the SPLC included a section on Turning Point in a report titled “The Year in Hate and Extremism 2024” that described the group as a “case study in the hard right.” Prominent figures including Elon Musk lambasted the SPLC just this week about its descriptions of Kirk and the organization.

A spokesperson for the SPLC, a legal and advocacy group founded in 1971 as a watchdog for minorities and the underprivileged, did not directly address Patel’s comments in a statement Friday but said the organization has for decades shared data with the public and remains “committed to exposing hate and extremism as we work to equip communities with knowledge and defend the rights and safety of marginalized people.”

The Anti-Defamation League has also faced criticism on the right for maintaining a “Glossary of Extremism.” The organization announced this week that it was discontinuing that glossary because a number of entries were outdated and some were being “intentionally misrepresented and misused.”

Founded in 1913 to confront anti-Semitism, the ADL has long worked closely with the FBI, not only through research and training but also through awards ceremonies that recognize law enforcement officials involved in investigations into racially or religiously motivated extremism.

Former FBI Director James Comey paid tribute to that relationship in May 2017 when he said at an ADL event: “For more than 100 years, you have advocated and fought for fairness and equality, for inclusion and acceptance. You never were indifferent or complacent.”

Related Articles

The only protester still locked up after Trump’s campus crackdown breaks silence: ‘I feel helpless’

Iowa school district sues search firm that vetted superintendent arrested by ICE last week

Regulators approve disputed $6.2B takeover of Minnesota Power by investment group

‘Drop it now!’: Video shows Michigan church shooter was ordered to give up before he was killed

Noem visits Chicago area ICE facility as agents detain multiple protesters outside

A Patel antagonist, Comey was indicted last week on false statement and obstruction charges and has said he is innocent. Patel appeared to mock Comey’s comments in a post Wednesday on X in which he shared a Fox News story that quoted him as having cut ties with the ADL.

“James Comey wrote ‘love letters’ to the ADL and embedded FBI agents with them – a group that ran disgraceful ops spying on Americans,” he said in a post made as Jews were preparing to begin observing Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar. “That era is OVER. This FBI won’t partner with political fronts masquerading as watchdogs.

An ADL spokesman did not immediately comment Friday on Patel’s announcement, but CEO and executive director Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement Friday that the ADL “has deep respect” for the FBI.

“In light of an unprecedented surge of antisemitism, we remain more committed than ever to our core purpose to protect the Jewish people,” Greenblatt said.

By FERNANDA FIGUEROA, Associated Press

Hispanic Heritage Month, celebrated from Sept. 15 through October 15, offers the opportunity to recognize and celebrate the contributions of Hispanic cultures in the United States. Hispanic people in the U.S. are becoming one of the nation’s fastest growing racial and ethnic groups.

But this growing community is far from being a monolith. From shifting identities, increasing educational attainment and growing political influence, Hispanic Americans continue to be a major part of the nation’s tapestry.

Here’s a look at the Hispanic population in the U.S., by the numbers:

More than 68 million

That’s how many people in the U.S. identify as ethnically Hispanic, according to the latest census estimates.

Hispanic was a term coined by the federal government for people descended from Spanish-speaking cultures. But, being ethnically Hispanic can reflect a diverse array of histories, cultures and national origins.

There are several other identifiers for Hispanic people, depending largely on personal preference. Mexican Americans, the largest Hispanic subgroup, who grew up during the 1960s Civil Rights era may identify as Chicano. Others may go by their family’s nation of origin, such as Colombian American or Salvadorian American.

31.2 years

That’s the median age of the Hispanic population in the U.S., according to the Census. It’s the youngest of all U.S. populations.

In comparison, the median age for the overall U.S. population is 39.1.

291%

The increase in the number of Hispanic women earning advanced degrees from 2000 to 2021. The number of Hispanic men accomplishing the same increased by 199% during the same period, according to U.S. Census Bureau data analyzed by the Pew Research Center.

Although the number of Latinos earning college degrees has increased in the last two decades, they remain underpaid and underrepresented in the workforce compared to their non-Hispanic counterparts, a reality that advocates say can change only when there are more Latinos in positions of power.

68.2%

The percentage of the U.S. Hispanic population age 5 and older who speak a language other than English at home, according to 2024 census estimates. About 28.7% of them also report speaking English “less than very well.”

Until recently, the United States had no official language. Today, it is English.

Currently, there are more than 350 languages spoken in the United States, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. The most widely spoken languages other than English are Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese and Arabic.

10%

According to AP VoteCast, Hispanics made up about 10% of voters in the 2024 presidential election. Support among Hispanic voters, especially in swing states like Arizona, was an important factor to who would win the election.

About half of Hispanic voters in the 2024 election identified as Democrats. About 4 in 10 were Republicans and roughly 1 in 10 were independents.

Overall, Hispanic voters were about equally likely to say they have a favorable view of Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris. But there is a gender divide among Hispanic voters on Harris: About 6 in 10 Hispanic women have a somewhat or very favorable opinion of Harris, compared to 45% of Hispanic men.

56

The number of Hispanic or Latino members serving in the 119th Congress. That shakes out to 10.35% of total membership, according to the official Congress profile.

For comparison, 40 years ago in the 99th Congress there were only 14 Hispanic or Latino members, and all were male.

Six serve in the Senate and 50 in the House of Representatives, including two delegates and the Resident Commissioner. Of the members of the House, 38 identify as Democrats and 12 as Republican, with 19 women serving.

FILE – Secretary of State Marco Rubio listens during a meeting between President Donald Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

At the start of January, there were seven Hispanic US senators. That number decreased to six when then Sen. Marco Rubio resigned to become the Secretary of State. Of the six Hispanic senators, two are Republican and four are Democrats; one is a woman:

1. Sen. Ted Cruz

2. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto

3. Sen. Alex Padilla

4. Sen. Ben Ray Lujan

5. Sen. Ruben Gallego

6. Sen. Bernie Moreno

This year also marked a new record for Latinas in state legislatures. In total, 214 Latinas or 2.9% hold a seat in a state legislature, according to the Center for American Women and Politics. Of the 214 Latinas serving in a state house, 182 are Democrats, 31 are Republican, and one identifies as nonpartisan.

As of September 2025, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is the only active Latina governor in the U.S. Only two Latinas have been elected governor in U.S. history, and both were in New Mexico.