MoInd 📰

In less than two years of selling legal recreational weed, Missouri’s cannabis market has grown to $1.4 billion — outperforming states with a longer history of marijuana legalization like Arizona, Colorado and Nevada. “Those are mature marketplaces, and you are surpassing them,” said Laurie Parfitt, CEO at LKP Impact Consulting. “Missouri is doing amazing things, […]

A judge on Friday found a northeast Missouri hospital board guilty of “gross violations” of the Sunshine Law and voided all the actions taken during illegal closed meetings in August 2022. Circuit Judge Rick Roberts also ruled that Scotland County Hospital must also pay a civil fine of $5,000 and attorneys fees to its former […]

We are not going back. Kamala Harris’ campaign staffers slipped those words into the first speech she gave as the presumptive Democratic nominee for the presidency, after President Joe Biden withdrew from the race in July. It was a vow not to return to a Donald Trump presidency, and all the damage that could bring. […]

Most people agree that actual facts matter – in such activities as debate, discussion and reporting. Once facts are gathered, verified and distributed, informed decision-making can proceed in such important exercises as voting. But what happens when important, verified facts are published and broadcast widely, yet the resulting impact proves underwhelming – or even meaningless? […]

WASHINGTON — A federal judge late Thursday struck down a White House policy that created a pathway to citizenship for people in the country lacking permanent status who were married to a U.S. citizen. Eastern District of Texas Judge J. Campbell Barker ruled that the Biden administration overstepped its authority and the program “stretches legal interpretation […]

The Federal Reserve cut its key rate on Thursday — one of many factors that will decide what kind of economy Americans remember from President Joe Biden’s final days in office and what  President-elect Donald Trump is left with at the start of his second term. The Federal Reserve cut the rate by a quarter […]

Racist text messages received this week primarily by Black students nationwide — including in Missouri — are under investigation by federal authorities. The FBI said in a statement issued Thursday it “is in contact with the Justice Department and other federal authorities on the matter.” Locally, groups have condemned the attacks, and college campuses are […]

Republican and Democratic lawmakers gathered in Jefferson City this week to choose new leaders for the upcoming legislative session in January.  In the Senate, where GOP infighting has caused unending gridlock for the last few years, Sen. Cindy O’Laughlin was chosen by her caucus to be president pro tem — the highest ranking job in […]

WASHINGTON — Immigration advocates and civil rights groups are preparing to take on President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign promises to  crack down on immigration, from reviving controversial policies of his first term to enacting mass deportations.   Trump has pledged to end, immediately after retaking office, parole programs that have allowed immigrants to work and live in […]

Deputy Solicitor General Sam Freedlund ran into a skeptical panel of judges Thursday as he tried to persuade the Western District Missouri Court of Appeals to overturn a ruling giving state transportation workers a raise. Cole County Circuit Judge Cotton Walker misread the Constitution, Freedlund argued, when he ruled last year that the Highways and […]

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Thursday reassured the nation that democracy won despite his party’s resounding election losses, and promised his accomplishments will live on, in brief remarks from the White House. “I know for some people, it’s a time for victory, to state the obvious. For others, it’s a time of loss. Campaigns […]

A coalition of Missouri business advocacy groups says it is exploring multiple avenues to challenge the implementation of Proposition A — a measure that Missouri voters passed on Tuesday that will raise the state’s minimum wage and guarantee sick leave for some workers.  The measure passed with 58% of the vote and had the support […]

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Before the election results began rolling in, Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly took the stage, confident that Democrats could break the long-held Republican supermajority that has thwarted many of her legislative priorities. “If we do that, you will not only make my life better, you will make the life of every Kansan […]

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s return to the presidency could set the stage for sweeping changes in U.S. education policy. Throughout his campaign, Trump has vowed to “save American education,” with a focus on parental rights and universal school choice — offering a sharp contrast to the Biden administration’s education record. With Trump’s White House victory […]

Missourians voted Tuesday night to protect abortion rights, raise the minimum wage and guarantee paid sick leave for workers. They also voted by wide margins to send Republicans to Jefferson City who vehemently oppose those proposals and may try to roll them back.  It’s become a familiar pattern in Missouri — progressive ballot measures like […]

WASHINGTON — Voters delivered a decisive win for former President Donald Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris in Tuesday’s election, laying the groundwork for a second administration — a “golden age,” he calls it — in which he has vowed to conduct mass deportations of migrants, impose stiff taxes on foreign goods and install wealthy […]

Ameren Missouri would spend more than $61 million to offset its past clean air violations under a joint proposal filed Wednesday in federal court. The St. Louis-based electric utility, which serves 1.2 million customers, has been in litigation for more than a decade over its Rush Island Energy Center, which operated for years in violation […]

Missouri’s Planned Parenthood clinics filed a lawsuit Wednesday seeking to strike down the state’s current abortion restrictions, less than 24 hours after an amendment enshrining reproductive rights in the constitution was approved by voters.  The news was announced Wednesday afternoon by coalition members of Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, the organization behind Amendment 3.  Leaders with […]

WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris Wednesday afternoon called Donald Trump to concede the 2024 presidential race, according to a senior Harris aide. During the call, the Democratic presidential nominee “discussed the importance of a peaceful transfer of power and being a president for all Americans,” the senior aide said. Steven Cheung, the Trump campaign […]

WASHINGTON — Republicans were moving toward unified control of Congress on Wednesday as more House races were called in their favor and GOP candidates continued flipping Democratic seats in the Senate. Democratic leaders were still holding out hope that they would secure a narrow majority in the House once there’s a clear outcome in fewer […]