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CNN, MS Now, Politico sue Trump over White House ban

2 weeks 3 days ago
WASHINGTON — The three news organizations that President Donald Trump has barred from entering the White House filed a lawsuit against the administration on Monday. CNN, MS Now and Politico wrote in a joint statement the suit is intended ā€œto protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what […]
Jennifer Shutt

States fight to inspect federal immigrant detention facilities

2 weeks 3 days ago
Concerned about conditions in federal immigrant detention facilities but often barred from entering them, some Democratic-led states are fighting to enforce their own health and safety standards at the sites. The Trump administration, citing the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, argues that states don’t have the authority to regulate federal facilities. But states counter […]
Shalina Chatlani

Violent victimization at school rose among students in 2024, federal data show

2 weeks 3 days ago
Students ages 12 to 18 experienced higher rates of reported crime at school than away from school in 2024, according to a new federal analysis. But the overall rate of crime victimization at school has not changed significantly since 2014. The rate of total victimization, including theft and nonfatal violent crimes such as robbery, aggravated […]
Amanda Watford

The curious case of a Ponzi schemer’s glowing profile in a Missouri newspaper

2 weeks 3 days ago
There was something strange about the glowing profile of convicted fraudster Siddharth Jawahar that appeared last month in the Jefferson City News Tribune. It was a News Tribune story. Except it really wasn’t. The byline belonged to Jake Kroesen, editor of The Missouri Times, another Scott Faughn-owned publication. Faughn bought the News Tribune late last […]
Jason Hancock

Trump likes data centers. Congress seems stuck. The midterms could deliver a verdict.

2 weeks 3 days ago
WASHINGTON — The rare 2026 issue that draws huge support from Republicans and Democrats in Congress is the same one that’s mobilized many Americans: restrictions on giant data centers. The House has overwhelmingly passed legislation forcing state regulators to consider requirements that data centers absorb the cost of the electricity they use.  But there’s more […]
David Lightman

Missouri election officials begin mailing ballots as they await ruling on congressional map

2 weeks 5 days ago
Missourians living overseas began receiving their ballots Friday despite continuing uncertainty over which congressional candidates should be listed on them. Military personnel and other eligible Missourians outside the United States can receive ballots electronically or by regular mail, with military members in combat zones able to return voted ballots directly through a portal maintained by […]
Rudi Keller

The value of a college degree can’t be measured by salary alone

2 weeks 5 days ago
Ask whether college is worth the cost, and the conversation will quickly turn to jobs. Will graduates find employment? How much will they earn? Will their salaries justify what they spent or borrowed to attend? These are necessary questions. College is expensive, and students deserve honest information about whether a degree will improve their economic […]
Ashley Burle

Trump administration faces second lawsuit to block ICE agents at polls

2 weeks 5 days ago
WASHINGTON — A coalition of civil rights groups and union organizations Friday sued the Trump administration to prevent the deployment of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to polling locations during November’s midterm elections. The suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia is the second this month, following comments from top Trump officials […]
Ariana Figueroa

More states embrace ā€˜50-50’ child custody in divorce cases

2 weeks 5 days ago
A growing numberĀ of states are making an equal split between parents the default child custody option in divorce cases. Louisiana and Mississippi this year joined at least five other states that have adopted the so-called 50-50 standard — four of them since 2021, as more legislators rework divorce-related laws that remained mostly unchanged for years. The […]
Anna Claire Vollers

Fewer students, too many schools: Communities confront closures and consolidations

2 weeks 5 days ago
Declining birth rates mean fewer students. And that means more districts grappling with whether to close or merge schools. ā€œThe big shrinkā€ is how Marguerite Roza, director of Georgetown University’s Edunomics Lab, described what is happening nationally.Ā  ā€œWhen there are fewer young people, obviously it’s going to change the shape of public education,ā€ Roza said. […]
Robbie Sequeira

Misinformation, hesitancy could blunt impact of new cancer vaccines

2 weeks 6 days ago
Nearly five years ago, Chase Johnson was cured of breast cancer — but not of the profound anxiety that it would return. When Johnson was originally diagnosed in 2021, the resident of Cary, North Carolina, was only 31 — nearly a decade away from the age at which regular mammograms are recommended — and she […]
Sofia Resnick

Mixed-status immigrant households expected to lose benefits under new public charge rule

2 weeks 6 days ago
New rules going into effect next week allow immigrants’ enrollment in safety net resources to be taken into account for lawful immigration status applications, the latest in the Trump administration’s immigration overhaul. The rules will have wide implications for mixed-status households, as people without lawful status may forgo enrollment in public benefits for their U.S. […]
Nada Hassanein

Missouri cannabis regulators recall pre-rolled joints after mold found in testingĀ 

2 weeks 6 days ago
State cannabis regulators issued a recall Wednesday after random testing found mold in pre-rolled joints sold in the state.Ā  The product, Juicy J’s cherry limeade infused pre-rolls, failed testing for Aspergillus, ā€œa common mold that can be tolerated in small amounts by healthy individuals but may cause adverse health effects in high amounts or in […]
Rebecca Rivas

With vote-by-mail court fight settled, attention shifts to protections at the polls

2 weeks 6 days ago
Voting rights groups and Democratic officials are looking to defend against what they see as possible election interference from the Trump administration ahead of the upcoming midterm elections, now that they’ve won a major battle over mail ballots. Common Cause, a nonpartisan pro-democracy organization, announced a ā€œvoter protectionā€ campaign Thursday that would place thousands of […]
Jacob Fischler

Missouri’s literacy gains inspired me to postpone retirement

2 weeks 6 days ago
I’ve worked in education for 30 years, which means I can now retire and receive my full benefits.Ā  But I’m not writing this from my favorite spot on my patio with my dogs beside me and my feet up; instead, I’m writing from my office as an elementary school principal in Phelps County, where I’ve […]
Melissa Wright

Federal court weighs whether it’s too late to revive Missouri’s gerrymandered map

2 weeks 6 days ago
The last legal battle over Missouri’s 2025 redistricting plan played out Thursday, with a panel of federal appeals court judges hearing from Republicans that they should reinstate the map designed to help the GOP flip a Democratic-held congressional seat. The hearing via videoconference before the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals featured sharp exchanges over […]
Rudi Keller

Bipartisan push to set rules for college athletes’ pay continues to advance in US Senate

2 weeks 6 days ago
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate on Thursday took another step forward on a sweeping bipartisan bill to overhaul the college sports world.  The measure, clearing its second procedural hurdle on a 77-22 vote, would set national standards for college athletes’ compensation, provide certain antitrust protections to the NCAA, establish a five-year eligibility timeline for athletes and bar professional […]
Shauneen Miranda

White House yanks nominee to lead Immigration and Customs Enforcement

2 weeks 6 days ago
WASHINGTON — The White House Thursday withdrew the nomination of Richard ā€œLanceā€ Schroyer to lead the agency the president tasked with carrying out his mass deportation campaign, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Schroyer, a former Oklahoma state trooper, had yet to have his confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.  […]
Ariana Figueroa