MoInd 📰

After years of no-limit spending on Missouri politics, voters had enough in 2016. That year, as candidates raked in $65.5 million in donations larger than $100,000, Missourians overwhelmingly adopted a constitutional amendment capping donations to candidates, outlawing direct contributions from corporations and labor unions and banning efforts to conceal where money is coming from. The […]

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump announced Thursday he plans to nominate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head the Department of Health and Human Services, another controversial candidate who could face a challenging confirmation process in the U.S. Senate given his non-scientific beliefs about public health, including his anti-vaccine stance. “I am thrilled to announce Robert […]

WASHINGTON — Republicans in the Nov. 5 election took over the White House, the U.S. Senate and as of late Wednesday, the House, after calls were made in enough races to project a majority. They are expressing high hopes for unified control of government. But before they’ll be able to celebrate enacting sweeping changes to […]

An analysis of Missouri election result maps shows a steady shift to Republicans, including smaller movement in urban Democratic strongholds. At the same time, the suburbs where Democrats nationally have seen the biggest promise for growth offer a more mixed message. In fact, the data show a steady shift toward the Republican Party in nearly […]

WASHINGTON — Republicans will hold on to their majority in the U.S. House and regain control of the Senate when Congress convenes in January, setting the party up to potentially make major policy changes during the next two years. The GOP hadn’t clinched the 218 House seats needed for a majority until late Wednesday, when […]

Voters in several states, including Missouri, last week delivered a stinging rebuke to ranked-choice voting, clouding the future of an idea that had seen strong momentum in recent years. Ranked-choice voting, which allows voters to rank political candidates by preference, is used statewide in Alaska and Maine and in major U.S. localities such as New […]

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he intends to nominate U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz as the next attorney general of the United States, an unexpected pick as the Florida Republican remains the subject of a congressional ethics investigation for alleged sexual misconduct, illicit drug use and accepting improper gifts. House Speaker Mike Johnson […]

President-elect Donald Trump says he plans to nominate Pete Hegseth, a U.S. Army National Guard veteran and a weekend host on Fox News’ morning show, as secretary of Defense. Trump also announced on Wednesday afternoon he would nominate Florida Sen. Marco Rubio to be secretary of State and former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard to be the […]

Closing out a four-month search for the Missouri Department of Transportation’s new director, a 40-year veteran of the department stepped up Wednesday as the unanimous choice of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission. Ed Hassinger, who has been serving as interim director, told reporters in a press conference that increasing staffing levels is a top […]

WASHINGTON — Republicans on Wednesday elected their leadership teams for the next Congress, opting for a new slate in the Senate while reelecting many of the same lawmakers in the House. South Dakota Sen. John Thune will become that chamber’s next majority leader, marking the first time since 2007 that Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell hasn’t […]

For a few hours on Wednesday, Andrew Bailey was considered among the frontrunners to be nominated as President-elect Donald Trump’s next U.S. attorney general. Just a week after winning his first full term as Missouri attorney general, Bailey reportedly spent time with Trump at Mar-a-Lago interviewing for the job, according to numerous sources close to […]

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, McLean County, Illinois, was known mostly as the home of State Farm Insurance in Bloomington and Illinois State University in Normal. Now, the area illustrates a trend that’s bringing more factories to small cities with lower costs of living: It has thousands of new jobs manufacturing Rivian electric vehicles and a […]

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump is making demands of the next Senate Republican leader ahead of a closed-door election this week, writing on social media that whoever is chosen should recess the chamber early next year so he can appoint whoever he wants without having to go through the confirmation process. “Any Republican Senator seeking […]

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republican leaders said Tuesday voters have given them a “mandate” to enact as much conservative policy as possible once they gain unified control of the federal government in January, but declined to provide details about exactly what policies they’d seek to enact. “The American people want us to implement and deliver […]

A panel of Missouri appellate judges ruled Tuesday that the constitution’s “plain, unambiguous” language means cities and counties cannot stack marijuana sales taxes. The Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District’s decision reversed a lower court’s ruling in May that allowed both Florissant and St. Louis County to impose a 3% sales tax on marijuana products.  […]

After decades of plunging enrollment, Kansas City Public Schools is setting a new trend. The number of students is ticking upward. For the third year in a row, the district’s enrollment count in late September ran higher than the previous year. Preliminary figures show KCPS added 570 K-12 students since the official count day last […]

Donald Trump’s first term as president brought sweeping change to environmental regulations, trade policy and a host of issues that impact America’s agriculture sector. After winning his return bid on Tuesday, Trump’s second term is likely to once again have a sizable impact on the nation’s farms and ranches. Here are four ways Trump’s next […]

WASHINGTON — Two days before a key meeting with President Joe Biden, President-elect Donald Trump has not yet signed the necessary paperwork to unlock resources for a smooth transfer of power from one presidential administration to another. Trump’s transition spokesperson Brian Hughes told States Newsroom Monday that “The Trump-Vance transition lawyers continue to constructively engage […]

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 […]