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Death toll for US service members in Iran war at 4 as Trump projects weeks of conflict

4 hours 36 minutes ago
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Monday he expects war with Iran will continue however long it takes to achieve his objectives, which include eliminating the country’s missile program, preventing its leaders from building a nuclear weapon and ensuring it cannot fund terrorism. “Right from the beginning, we projected four to five weeks,” he said […]
Ashley Murray, Jennifer Shutt

Sen. Mark Kelly lawsuit in illegal orders case set for May arguments in appeals court

4 hours 36 minutes ago
WASHINGTON — A federal circuit court announced Monday it will hold oral arguments in May to determine whether a lower court erred when it blocked the Pentagon from downgrading Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly’s retirement rank and pay for appearing in the “Don’t Give Up The Ship” video.  The U.S. Court of Appeals for the […]
Jennifer Shutt

States try ‘public option’ Obamacare plans to reduce coverage costs

4 hours 44 minutes ago
Nearly two decades ago, progressives fought to include a so-called public option — a government-run health plan — in the broad health care overhaul known as Obamacare. That effort failed, defeated by heavy lobbying from the insurance industry and opponents who decried it as a government takeover of health care. But the final Affordable Care […]
Shalina Chatlani

Missouri cannabis regulators target rule-breakers, delays in ownership approval

8 hours 59 minutes ago
Missouri cannabis regulators want more power to penalize bad actors in the marijuana industry, according to drafts of proposed rules released last week. The sweeping revisions to Division of Cannabis Regulation rules also aim to streamline the process for ownership changes, allow publicly traded companies to own cannabis licenses, and establish recall procedures of marijuana […]
Rebecca Rivas

Missouri’s local news is under pressure — and still essential

11 hours 9 minutes ago
In rapid succession this year, the Washington Post laid off half its newsroom, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution cut 15% of its staff and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette announced it would close in May. What’s perhaps most alarming is that the collapse of major newspapers no longer arrives as a civic emergency. It’s become routine. Journalism is the […]
Jason Hancock

Tuberculosis cases have been rising as public health agencies struggle to keep up

11 hours 13 minutes ago
In Johnson County, Iowa, the number of tuberculosis cases has increased in recent years — and so has the cost of containing it. The cost of contact tracing and surveillance, traveling each day to patients’ homes to ensure they take their meds or booking hotel rooms to quarantine patients, has surged from $17,000 in 2020 to […]
Nada Hassanein

Early prenatal care declines across US, reversing years of progress

1 day 8 hours ago
Nearly a quarter of pregnant women aren’t getting prenatal care in the early stages of pregnancy, according to a new analysis from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The share of pregnant women getting prenatal care had been improving: It rose between 2016 and 2021 to a high of more than 78%, but […]
Anna Claire Vollers

US, Israel strike Iran; Democrats call for immediate vote on Trump war powers

2 days 2 hours ago
WASHINGTON — Democratic lawmakers called Saturday for Congress to weigh in on President Donald Trump’s order launching “major combat operations” in Iran, while Republicans largely provided cautious support of the attacks. Trump said in a video posted to social media at 2:30 a.m. Eastern that U.S. forces struck targets in the Islamic republic. Israeli Prime […]
Jacob Fischler, Jane Norman

House bill would bring driver’s ed courses back to Missouri schools

2 days 11 hours ago
JEFFERSON CITY — The House Education Committee is considering a bill that would bring driver’s education back to Missouri public schools at the elementary and secondary education levels. Rep. Rodger Reedy, R-Windsor, sponsor of House Bill 2195, told the committee at a hearing on Wednesday that he aims to allow public schools to integrate driver […]
Samantha Jackson

Protecting essential services by eliminating waste in Missouri Medicaid

2 days 11 hours ago
If you polled Missourians, you would be hard-pressed to find someone who enjoys paying taxes, regardless of political affiliation. Yet most Missourians recognize that some services are essential — things like roads, schools, and programs that support independence, self-sufficiency and community health. These services provide stability not just for individuals, but for entire communities. The […]
Priya Pal

US Senate Democrats demand Trump administration refund tariff payments to businesses

2 days 22 hours ago
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Friday demanding the administration refund businesses that paid tariffs to import goods into the United States under authority the Supreme Court has ruled the president never held.  “The American people — small business owners, importers, manufacturers, and the consumers who ultimately bore […]
Jennifer Shutt

DOJ appeals ruling in Sen. Mark Kelly illegal orders case; Kelly vows: ‘I won’t back down’

2 days 22 hours ago
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration must explain to a circuit court before the end of March exactly why it appealed a lower court’s ruling that allows Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly to keep his retirement rank and pay while a First Amendment case about the “Don’t Give Up The Ship” video plays out. The U.S. […]
Jennifer Shutt

Kansas Court of Appeals rules CoreCivic can’t house ICE detainees without Leavenworth permit

3 days 4 hours ago
TOPEKA — CoreCivic can’t house immigration detainees before reaching an agreement with the city of Leavenworth on reopening its private prison, the Kansas Court of Appeals ruled Friday when it upheld a lower court’s decision. “There is nothing to suggest that CoreCivic is being singled out here,” the Court of Appeals decision said. “The City […]
Morgan Chilson

Arguing an abortion procedure is unlawfully barbaric worked once. Will it work again?

3 days 4 hours ago
There is a content warning on page 7 of a friend-of-the-court brief recently submitted in a high-stakes abortion medication case by women who say they were injured or traumatized from taking the pills.  “Warning: these accounts are raw, graphic and real.” About 30 mostly anonymous people recount their medication abortions, saying they were uninformed about […]
Sofia Resnick

Democrats push back against Trump anti-DEI funding cuts for minority-serving colleges

3 days 5 hours ago
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Democrats threw a spotlight Thursday on President Donald Trump’s attempts to yank funds away from minority-serving institutions, as the administration tries to end diversity, equity and inclusion policies in schools. Hawaii U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono hosted an unofficial hearing that gathered advocates, leaders, experts and students to sound the alarm on […]
Shauneen Miranda

Education Department data shows foreign contracts, gifts to US colleges topped $5B in 2025

3 days 5 hours ago
WASHINGTON — American colleges and universities received gifts and contracts worth more than $5.2 billion from foreign entities in 2025, according to the U.S. Department of Education, which also recently published summaries of foreign investment in U.S. higher education dating back to 1986.  Qatar, the United Kingdom, China, Switzerland, Japan, Germany and Saudi Arabia marked the […]
Shauneen Miranda

Missouri House approves bill codifying protections for political expression in schools

3 days 9 hours ago
Protections for religious expression in K-12 schools could also be expanded to guard ideological and political speech through a bill that passed Thursday in the Missouri House. State Rep. Darin Chappell, a Republican from Rogersville and the bill’s sponsor, said the legislation is intended to guard First Amendment rights. “We don’t want anyone’s political ideas […]
Annelise Hanshaw