WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump and Congress have until August or September to reach agreement and act on the debt limit, the Congressional Budget Office forecast Wednesday. Otherwise the United States would default for the first time in history, likely leading to a global financial crisis. The nonpartisan CBO projection is similar to an estimate published […]
A bill in the Missouri Senate’s education committee concerning religion in the classroom had senators, faith-based leaders and school advocates at odds Tuesday. If passed, Senate Bill 594 would require classrooms to display a poster of at least 11 inches by 14 inches with the Ten Commandments in “large, easily readable font” beginning Jan. 1, […]
WASHINGTON — A group that focuses on electing Democratic women who support abortion rights announced Wednesday it would target 46 U.S. House seats held by Republicans in the midterm elections as it seeks to turn the chamber from red to blue. “In 2026, we must take back the majority in the U.S. House to create […]
Proposed federal cuts to Medicaid and food assistance could blow a $2 billion hole in Missouri's budget and cost the state more than 20,000 jobs and hundreds of millions in tax revenue, according to a pair of reports released this week.
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration on Tuesday appealed a federal judge’s order that the State Department restore contracts to nonprofits that aid in refugee resettlement. In a late Monday written order, U.S. District Judge Jamal Whitehead of the Western District of Washington found the department unlawfully canceled contracts to the group, saying executive branch management of […]
The revamp of widely-criticized legislation that sought to create a registry of pregnant girls and women “at risk” of abortion raised bipartisan concerns of government overreach during a House committee hearing Tuesday morning. The initial bill, filed by state Rep. Phil Amato, a Republican from Arnold, would have required that the state “maintain a central […]
WASHINGTON — National security officials grilled by Democratic senators Tuesday denied any wrongdoing by Trump administration Cabinet members who discussed plans to bomb Yemen on a Signal group chat shared with The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg. CIA Director John Ratcliffe and National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard sidestepped questions about specific details shared in the text […]
The House Budget Committee squeezed $139 million in general revenue out of the Missouri state budget for road, port and other earmarked projects Monday night, but Republicans thwarted an effort by Democrats to shift $50 million into public schools. During a stop-and-go work session that stretched late into the night, the committee approved a $47.9 […]
WASHINGTON — Democrats warned Monday about President Donald Trump and billionaire adviser Elon Musk’s plans to pare down the Social Security Administration, an agency that pays out benefits to tens of millions of Americans. Lawmakers, a Social Security recipient and a former commissioner cried foul over the U.S. DOGE Service and administration’s agenda to cut […]
March 25 is Equal Pay Day, marking how many days the median woman would need to work into 2025 to earn what the median man earned in 2024. This day was designed to draw the public’s attention to the discrepancy in pay between men and women in the United States. It has been recognized annually […]
School safety legislation that requires school districts create a policy governing cell phone use by students won initial approval Monday afternoon in the Missouri House. The bill’s sponsor, Republican state Rep. Brenda Shields of St. Joseph, called the bill a “comprehensive approach to school safety.” It includes provisions to equip schools with bleeding-control kits, require […]
A bipartisan pair of Florida U.S. House members introduced a bill Monday to remove the Federal Emergency Management Agency from the Department of Homeland Security and elevate it to an independent Cabinet-level agency. Democrat Jared Moskowitz and Republican Byron Donalds filed the bill Monday, with Moskowitz saying divorcing FEMA from the bureaucracy at DHS would […]
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Personnel Management and Treasury Department were temporarily barred by a federal judge on Monday from disclosing the “personally identifiable information” of a lawsuit’s plaintiffs and organization members to Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service. U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman, who issued the preliminary injunction, wrote in her opinion that “no […]
A bill that would require public schools to offer extracurricular activities to local homeschooled students is gaining traction after more than a decade of consideration by Missouri lawmakers. High school senior Lydia Meredith, whose family annually drives from Joplin to testify in favor of the bill, told the Senate Education Committee in February it was […]
WASHINGTON — Two separate coalitions of advocacy and labor groups each filed suit against the Trump administration Monday over its sweeping efforts to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education. The National Education Association, NAACP, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Maryland Council 3 and public school parents filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District […]
The abuse that state Rep. Cecelie Williams survived from her former husband wasn’t physical at first. “It didn’t start with him hitting me,” said the Republican from Dittmer, describing the ways he increasingly demanded and controlled her two decades ago. “Once I became a shell of the person I once was, the yelling started, then […]
A longtime state employee is accusing Missouri officials in a new lawsuit of subverting competitive bidding laws in order to steer lucrative technology contracts to a well-connected company, then demoting him when he raised red flags. In a lawsuit filed earlier this month in Cole County against the Missouri Office of Administration, Rodney Rice alleges […]
The Missouri House Budget Committee on Monday will debate a spending plan that eliminates one of Gov. Mike Kehoe’s major initiatives, adds dozens of new earmarked projects and dips into state general revenue reserves for about $1 billion. The annual markup session, where committee members seek changes in the revised budget unveiled March 12 by […]
Historically, there has been the proverbial argument about whether the United States is a democracy or republic. The answer is the United States is both. But that question pales in comparison to the one looming over Americans today. Will America remain a democracy, a democratic republic? You might become indignant at the very question. Given […]
WASHINGTON — Americans living in rural communities throughout the country could see their access to health care diminish if Congress changes eligibility for Medicaid or significantly reduces its federal funding. While rural residents who depend on the state-federal program for lower income people would experience the most substantial impacts, those who have private health insurance or […]
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