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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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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. […]

The two online bookies who financed the campaign to legalize sports wagering in Missouri have won $120 million from bets placed in the state but so far have not had to pay any tax on those profits. FanDuel and DraftKings handled 73% of the $928 million wagered in Missouri during the first two months of […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

Hundreds of Missourians with disabilities, their families and advocates crowded into the Capitol rotunda Wednesday for a rally on the state’s 25th annual Disability Rights Legislative Day, spilling into surrounding halls and onto the stairs framing the speakers’ podium. Personal testimony from dozens of Missourians earlier this month moved a bipartisan group of lawmakers to […]

When people hear “workplace violence,” they often picture a physical attack. But in health care settings, the more common reality is persistent threats, intimidation and verbal hostility — exposure that accumulates over time. In a Fall 2025 survey conducted by the Missouri Nurses Association, 90% of nurses reported verbal abuse and 63% reported physical violence. […]

WASHINGTON — The nation’s main agency for handling disaster response and recovery is shuttered for the third time in recent months and its workers are on the verge of missing paychecks, as members of Congress and the White House remain divided in a separate dispute over immigration enforcement. Lawmakers are raising questions about how the […]

Pressured by businesses on the importance of immigrant labor, some Republican states are backing off plans to require all employers to check for legal employment status before hiring workers. State and federal legislation to require that employers use E-Verify, a federal system to check legal status, has been limited this year as a push grows […]

Rhode Island’s congressional delegates want to know more after the ranking member of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday asked the congressional watchdog office to investigate FBI Director Kash Patel’s alleged misuse of government aircraft. U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat and Senate Democratic Whip, accused Patel of delaying the arrival of a […]

The Missouri House passed a bill along party lines Thursday that would remove the expiration date on the state’s restrictions for transgender athletes. In 2023, the General Assembly passed a law that prevents transgender athletes from competing according to their gender identity alongside a ban on gender-affirming care for minors. Democrats in the Senate filibustered […]

The list of Republicans hoping to win Missouri’s gerrymandered 5th Congressional District grew by one on Thursday when state Sen. Rick Brattin joined the race. Brattin, of Harrisonville, is making his second bid for a seat in Congress. He said at an announcement in Jefferson City that he is the conservative the district needs. “I […]

A Republican lawmaker stripped of his influence on the state budget for bucking GOP leadership struck back Wednesday by introducing an alternative to Gov. Mike Kehoe’s spending plan. State Sen. Lincoln Hough, a Springfield Republican, was removed as Senate Appropriations Committee chairman in September, just 20 minutes after he voted against shutting off debate on […]