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Trump tried to lay off more than 2,000 Interior staff in shutdown plan now on hold

1 month 3 weeks ago
WASHINGTON — The Interior Department announced Monday it will pause efforts to lay off 2,050 employees throughout the country, after a federal judge expanded a temporary restraining order late last week. The new filing provides more information about how the Trump administration plans to reduce the size and scope of a department that oversees much […]
Jennifer Shutt

Shutdown leaves gaps in states’ health data, possibly endangering lives

1 month 3 weeks ago
As the federal shutdown continues, states have been forced to fall back on their own resources to spot disease outbreaks — just as respiratory illness season begins. The shutdown has halted dashboards and expert analysis from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which monitors indicators such as wastewater to provide early warnings of […]
Tim Henderson

Missourians can’t stand on the sidelines as America’s democracy breaks down

1 month 3 weeks ago
We are witnessing what is tantamount to a creeping breakdown and dissolution of our political process at the state and national level — laws disregarded, people’s rights dismissed and operational norms ignored on multiple fronts. What is the endgame? What are the real goals behind the suppression and gutting of the processes that have been […]
Janice Ellis

No Kings rallies draw thousands across Missouri, bolster initiative petition campaigns

1 month 3 weeks ago
Thousands gathered in cities and towns all over Missouri on Oct. 18 at No Kings demonstrations to speak up against the many ways they believe the current administration — both at the federal and state level — is a threat to democracy. And scattered among the crowds were volunteers with clipboards, collecting signatures for initiative […]
Annelise Hanshaw, Anna Spoerre

SNAP benefits on pace to run out in two weeks if shutdown persists

1 month 3 weeks ago
WASHINGTON — As the federal government shutdown extends to day 17, and with congressional leaders nowhere near negotiating, state officials are beginning to raise concerns of potential cuts to nutrition assistance benefits that feed millions if the government isn’t reopened.  Minnesota has already halted new enrollments in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. And officials in Kansas, New […]
Ariana Figueroa

No Kings day expected to draw millions for anti-Trump mass protests

1 month 3 weeks ago
WASHINGTON — More than 2,600 nonviolent demonstrations against President Donald Trump’s administration are slated Saturday as part of No Kings day. The includes in Missouri, where rallies are expected to take place in communities all across the state and at the Capitol in Jefferson City. The second No Kings day, following another in June, is […]
Shauneen Miranda

Trump’s new $100K visa fee could worsen state doctor shortages, experts say

1 month 4 weeks ago
In Kentucky, patients drive up to two hours to see Dr. Manikya Kuriti, one of the few endocrinologists who serve the rural communities surrounding Louisville. Kuriti’s husband, a pulmonologist, drives from Louisville to small hospitals an hour south and north, in Indiana, to help small teams treat critically ill patients. Rural communities have long struggled […]
Nada Hassanein

Trump isn’t sending troops to cities with highest crime rates, data shows

1 month 4 weeks ago
President Donald Trump has argued that he needs to deploy National Guard troops across state lines to protect federal personnel and property or to support overwhelmed local law enforcement in cities he claims are “overrun” by crime. But a Stateline analysis of U.S. Census Bureau and federal crime data shows that Trump’s deployments and proposals […]
Amanda Watford

Bridge, building maintenance backlogs will hit state budgets as federal aid declines

1 month 4 weeks ago
The growing backlog of bridges and public buildings in need of repair or replacement poses an increasing threat to state finances, but tracking of maintenance liabilities varies wildly across the states. That reality is examined in a new analysis published Thursday by the Volcker Alliance, a nonprofit that supports public sector workers, along with The […]
Kevin Hardy

What is an American?  Are they Christian? Are they white?

1 month 4 weeks ago
Missouri’s junior U.S. senator, Eric Schmitt, posed a thought-provoking question during his speech last month at the National Conservatism Conference, whose audience was apparently mostly white Christians. “What is an American?” Before describing briefly some of the specifics of his speech, let’s acknowledge that the senator raises a significant question — whether you give him […]
Michael A. Wolff

With funding for courts in question, Congress stuck in shutdown gridlock for day 16

1 month 4 weeks ago
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate left for its customary long weekend Thursday afternoon, following a brief three days in session despite the ongoing government shutdown.  The House remained on an extended break from Capitol Hill, where neither Democrats nor Republicans seemed motivated to talk to each other despite mounting repercussions from the funding lapse. Federal […]
Jennifer Shutt, Ariana Figueroa

Lawsuit, threat of criminal charges part of GOP effort to block vote on Missouri map

1 month 4 weeks ago
As the campaign to repeal Missouri’s gerrymandered congressional map approaches the 106,000 signatures needed to put the issue on the 2026 ballot, Republicans are pulling out all the stops to block it.  Secretary of State Denny Hoskins announced Wednesday that roughly 100,000 signatures gathered so far for the referendum won’t count — and that gathering […]
Jason Hancock

Striking St. Louis Boeing union workers file federal labor law complaint

1 month 4 weeks ago
The union representing 3,200 Boeing Defense workers on strike in the St. Louis area said it has filed an unfair labor practice complaint with the National Labor Relations Board against the company.  The complaint follows an Oct. 8 letter sent to workers by Boeing Executive Vice President Steve Parker, where he urged employees to take […]
Rebecca Rivas

Midterms will likely see increased misinformation, reduced federal security activity, experts say

1 month 4 weeks ago
A year after the 2024 presidential election, technologists and election experts are wrestling with their new reality; tech-aided misinformation and disinformation campaigns are and will continue to be a part of the United States’ democratic process. Technology has always played a role in information dissemination in elections, said Daniel Trielli, an assistant professor of media […]
Paige Gross

Democratic governors launch multistate public health alliance to counter Trump, RFK Jr.

1 month 4 weeks ago
In a clear rebuke of recent federal health policy, 15 Democratic governors announced today they’ve formed a public health alliance that breaks with guidance from the Trump administration and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.  It’s the largest move by states to diverge from recent policy decisions under Kennedy that have […]
Anna Claire Vollers