In the days before Missourians voted to enshrine the right to abortion in the state constitution, incoming House Speaker Jon Patterson declared lawmakers should respect the people’s choice, whatever the outcome. Now, with abortion set to become legal in Missouri, Republican Rep. Justin Sparks of Wildwood is mounting a long-shot challenge seeking to block Patterson […]
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump late Sunday announced he will appoint Tom Homan as “border czar” in his administration as Trump seeks to carry out his campaign commitment of mass deportations of immigrants who lack permanent legal status. Homan is the former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the previous Trump administration who […]
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump has several choices to make in the coming months about whether his second administration will keep access to contraception and abortion as it is now or implement changes. While Trump cannot on his own enact nationwide laws or abortion bans without Congress, he and the people he picks for key […]
Election night at BlaqOut in Kansas City was always going to double as a launch party for the organization’s fight for policy and attitude changes toward the Black LGBTQ+ community. As vote results came in, a particular sense of urgency followed. “We have to continue to organize beyond Election Day,” said D. Rashaan Gilmore, the […]
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 […]
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