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There’s a growing feeling, among both experts and ordinary Americans, that our democracy isn’t functioning well — and even that it’s under threat. “American democracy is cracking,” the Washington Post reported August 18. “I’m terrified,” one democracy expert told the paper. “I think we are in bad shape, and I don’t know a way out.” […]

The post Americans are worried about democracy. You wouldn’t know it from the GOP debate. appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Reporting on problems with Medicaid, pandemic food benefits and other state issues facing lower-income Missourians earned The Missouri Independent the media award Thursday during Legal Services of Eastern Missouri’s annual “For the Common Good Awards” luncheon in St. Louis. The award, given for “significant contributions to promoting equal access to justice in our community” recognized […]

The post The Independent wins annual media award from Legal Services of Eastern Missouri appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Editor’s Note: This article was initially published by Georgia Recorder. Follow their live blog throughout the day for the latest on the surrender of former President Donald Trump. A large crowd of reporters and demonstrators was amassing around the Fulton County Jail Thursday morning in anticipation of the arrival of former President Donald Trump, who […]

The post Crowd grows outside Fulton jail in anticipation of Trump’s Georgia surrender appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Statewide teacher development programs could curb educator burnout, the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s blue ribbon commission concluded in its latest set of recommendations. The commission, which is studying teacher recruitment and retention, presented its recommendations to the State Board of Education for review last week after speaking to teachers, administrators and community […]

The post Commission recommends more leadership opportunities for Missouri teachers appeared first on Missouri Independent.

When special counsel Jack Smith announced the charges he was bringing against former President Donald Trump for retaining government documents, he did something unusual: He invited the public to read the formal legal document, known as an indictment, detailing the allegations. And many did – concluding not only that the indictment was well-written but engaging. […]

The post Trump’s classified-documents indictment more than allege crimes − it tells a compelling story appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Eight Republican presidential candidates gathered onstage Wednesday night in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for a heated first primary debate heavily influenced by former President Donald Trump, though the party’s front runner refused to attend the two-hour event. Trump instead recorded a competing 46-minute interview with former Fox News personality Tucker Carlson that aired on X, formerly known […]

The post Trump absent but still dominates as GOP presidential rivals clash at first debate appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Of the many challenges confronting the nation’s aging, straining electric grid, the need for a lot of new transmission capacity is among the most pressing, experts and policymakers say. Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Energy said the nation will need thousands of miles of new lines to better link regions to handle extreme […]

The post Federal, state regulators prod utilities to consider technology for grid upgrade appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Several months after President Joe Biden ended the national emergency for COVID-19, preliminary health data indicates the historic degree to which the pandemic increased death rates nationwide — not just because of the virus itself, but also through the pandemic’s reverberating effects on society. Deaths from vehicle crashes, homicides, suicides and overdoses spiked in many […]

The post Death counts remain high in some states even as COVID fatalities wane appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Even as low-income families across most of the country are receiving federal food aid for this summer, thousands of Missouri families are still waiting for last summer’s benefits. Missouri still needs to issue food benefits to around 177,000 children for a federal program that were designed to help cover costs from last summer, Mallory McGowin, […]

The post More than 170,000 Missouri kids waiting for last summer’s food aid appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Former President Donald Trump is lapping his challengers among Missouri Republicans, Sen. Josh Hawley is the most polarizing politician in the state, and children shouldn’t discuss gender identity or sexual orientation in elementary school, a new poll released Wednesday suggests. The latest St. Louis University/YouGov poll, which surveyed 900 likely Missouri voters from July 27 […]

The post Missouri voters back Trump, show little middle ground on Hawley, new poll shows appeared first on Missouri Independent.

INDIANAPOLIS — For years, Indiana’s GOP-controlled legislature has focused on creating a business-friendly climate by pushing favorable tax rates and regulations, aiming to foster the creation of good-paying jobs across the state. The way Republican state Sen. Michael Crider sees it, those moves have worked: Companies such as Amazon and Walmart have built new warehouses […]

The post ‘Who’s going to work there?’: Lawmakers grapple with labor shortages appeared first on Missouri Independent.

For thousands of families who lived and worked near top-secret nuclear testing sites or uranium processing facilities in the 1940s, 50s and 60s, the road to getting an official apology from the federal government — and financial help for medical bills related to cancers and other diseases — might be coming to an end. The U.S. […]

The post Was your family affected by radiation from the Manhattan Project? We want to hear your story appeared first on Missouri Independent.

TOPEKA — Marion County Record co-owner Joan Meyer leaned into her walker and stood up to at least six law enforcement personnel executing a search warrant in her living room during a bizarre series of legally questionable raids of her residence, the newspaper’s office and a city council member’s home. Meyer, 98, died of cardiac […]

The post ‘You’re an ***hole, police chief’: Kansas newspaper owner defiant in video of home invasion appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Over the past decade, ranked choice voting has become increasingly popular. From conservative Utah to liberal New York City, 13 million American voters in 51 jurisdictions — including all of Alaska and Maine — now use the system, under which voters rank candidates based on preference, leading to an instant runoff in a crowded race. […]

The post As ranked choice voting gains momentum, parties in power push back appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Students are returning to the classroom around Missouri this week, and new laws go into effect Monday. But state officials are still not clear on how they will enforce restrictions on transgender athletes – one of the most controversial new laws approved by Missouri legislators this year. Neither the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education […]

The post Enforcement unclear as Missouri approaches transgender athlete restrictions appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri’s history offers a stark contrast to the limited criticism by Republican members of Congress to Donald Trump’s criminal charges. The defenses by Republican officials to Trump’s indictments are quite different from Missouri’s legislature during the last several decades when there was strong support for removal of officials from the same party who faced charges […]

The post Capitol Perspectives: Missouri courage in holding officials accountable appeared first on Missouri Independent.

TOPEKA — Affidavits signed by a police chief and magistrate to warrant the raid on the Marion County Record were supposed to provide evidence that a reporter committed a crime. Instead, they serve as evidence that the local officials abused their power. Police Chief Gideon Cody received approval from Magistrate Judge Laura Viar to conduct […]

The post ‘Completely unjustified’: Affidavits point to abuse of power in raid on Kansas newspaper appeared first on Missouri Independent.

In the marijuana industry, they say potency is king.  Producers all over the country are competing to put the most intoxicating product on the shelves. And that can leave the labs who test these products in a tough spot. At least, that’s been the case in California and other states where marijuana is legal, said […]

The post Missouri cannabis regulators target ‘lab shopping’ in new rules appeared first on Missouri Independent.

It is August, a time for new beginnings, infused with hope even amid anxiety and trepidation. August is rarely thought of as a time of new beginnings and reflection. But just think about it. Vacations are ending. It’s harvest time for farmers. Kids, young and old alike, are beginning or returning to school. August is […]

The post What you hope for determines what you work for appeared first on Missouri Independent.

America’s pharmaceutical giants are suing this summer to block the federal government’s first effort at drug price regulation. Last year’s Inflation Reduction Act included what on its face seems a modest proposal: The federal government would for the first time be empowered to negotiate prices Medicare pays for drugs — but only for 10 very […]

The post A peek at big pharma’s playbook that leaves many Americans unable to afford their drugs appeared first on Missouri Independent.