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WASHINGTON — The Government Accountability Office plans to investigate multiple whistleblower allegations of “gross mismanagement” at the Department of Veterans Affairs veterans crisis line, following a request from Kansas Republican Sen. Jerry Moran, States Newsroom has learned. Moran, ranking member on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, sent a letter to the VA secretary this week […]

The post VA veterans crisis line to face new investigation by congressional watchdog agency appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Members of both parties from both chambers of Congress spoke to tens of thousands of supporters of Israel in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, pledging to continue support for the U.S. ally’s war against Hamas even as concerns about the destruction in Gaza rise. Many speakers, including family members of Israeli and Israeli American victims, at […]

The post As ’March for Israel’ draws crowds to D.C., congressional leaders vow continued support appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The Democratic-led Senate Committee on Rules and Administration approved a resolution meant to bypass Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s blockade of hundreds of U.S. military nominees as he continues to protest a Pentagon abortion policy. The Rules Committee voted 9-7 along party lines to, in essence, temporarily change a Senate floor process to allow votes on large groups […]

The post Tuberville blockade of military nominees could be evaded after move by U.S. Senate panel appeared first on Missouri Independent.

(Rebecca Rivas/The Missouri Independent)

The post Federal lawsuit reveals behind-the-scenes saga of failed Missouri marijuana testing lab appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Sen. Markwayne Mullin, an Oklahoma Republican, challenged the head of the Teamsters union to a physical fight at a U.S. Senate hearing Tuesday intended to showcase how labor unions are making families’ lives better. The tense confrontation at the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing stemmed from acrimonious posts on social […]

The post Oklahoma senator challenges Teamsters president to fight at U.S. Senate hearing appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Members of a U.S. House committee on Tuesday grilled the head of the General Services Administration over the agency’s recent decision to place the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s new headquarters in Maryland instead of Virginia. “The process — or lack thereof — raises many questions that need to be answered,” the chair of […]

The post Maryland, Virginia lawmakers tussle over FBI HQ decision at congressional hearing appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Some scholars say a little-known, Civil War-era provision in the U.S. Constitution should prohibit former President Donald Trump from appearing on state ballots in next year’s presidential election. But it seems increasingly unlikely that he will be disqualified. Courts in Colorado, Michigan, New Jersey and elsewhere are considering whether Trump engaged in insurrection on Jan. […]

The post Courts, state officials hesitate to keep Trump off 2024 ballots appeared first on Missouri Independent.

State regulators are poised to deny a request from a southwest Missouri meat packer to discharge treated wastewater directly into a river already impaired by E. coli.  Missouri Prime Beef Packers requested permission from the state to treat wastewater from its meatpacking operation near Pleasant Hope using a proprietary microbe technology and discharge it directly […]

The post Missouri may deny meat packer’s request to dump wastewater in river appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Congress on Monday appeared to be on the edge of approving another short-term government funding bill this week, though several hurdles remain if lawmakers want to stave off a partial government shutdown when the current funding law expires at the end of the week. Democratic leaders and President Joe Biden expressed some skepticism […]

The post Congress nears another government shutdown deadline on Friday at midnight appeared first on Missouri Independent.

States can’t figure out what to do about cash bail. The system — in which an arrested suspect pays cash to avoid sitting in jail until their court date and gets the money back when they appear — is deeply entrenched in the nation’s history as a way to ensure defendants return to face justice. […]

The post Cash bail policies are facing fresh scrutiny in multiple states appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Applause broke out at a Kansas City Public Schools advisory committee meeting on Wednesday when an employee announced the district was moving away from a proposal to add armed officers to elementary schools. In the end, district administrators heard too much opposition to putting more guns on school grounds — even in the holsters of […]

The post Kansas City Public Schools won’t arm officers in elementary schools after community feedback appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The phrase “El Niño” can conjure up images of horrendous weather: severe storms in the southern U.S. and droughts in Asia and Africa. But for Kansas and Missouri, El Niño, a months-long weather pattern that typically brings warm winters and extra precipitation to the central U.S., brings hope.  Both states have been stuck in a […]

The post Why a ‘Super El Niño’ could help drought-stricken Kansas, Missouri this winter appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Given the feelings of unease that often punctuate our daily lives in many areas, the holiday season provides an opportunity for us not only to celebrate, but to discover lasting meaning that could carry us to new heights of understanding and rejuvenation. Lasting meaning can be found in many ways, but three ways in particular:  […]

The post How can we make the most of this holiday season? appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Subdivisions, restaurants and retail shops pop up around Lee’s Summit and Raymore amid rising property values as single-family homes spread across what was farmland just a few years ago. But residents say a proposed 430-acre landfill could threaten that growth. And they’ve rallied together to block it — raising money and deploying lobbyists to get […]

The post Suburbs braced to use the legislature to block a south Kansas City landfill appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Traffic deaths are lingering near historic highs in most states despite less driving overall, prompting policymakers to consider deploying more police or installing automated monitoring such as speed cameras to curb speeding and reckless driving. People are driving fewer miles than they were in 2019, but more are dying on roadways. Traffic deaths spiked 18% […]

The post Less driving but more deaths: Spike in traffic fatalities puzzles lawmakers appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Promptly at 5 p.m., every day, rain or shine, blizzard or heat, a volunteer bugler wearing a period World War I U.S. Army uniform stands at attention near the flagpole at the National World War One Memorial not far from the White House in Washington D.C.  On a brilliant autumn day, I watched as a […]

The post Taps’ mournful tune sets the right tone for Veterans Day remembrance appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin III announced Thursday he does not plan to run for reelection come 2024, giving Republicans an opportunity to pick up a seat and increasing their chances of flipping Senate control. A centrist who has long frustrated his party’s leadership and outside advocacy groups with his views on fossil […]

The post Democrats’ struggle to keep U.S. Senate majority complicated by Manchin decision  appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Sharday Hamilton, a 28-year-old advocate for foster youth, homeless youth and runaways, still bears her own scars from running. There’s one near her left knee. She got it as a little girl, running away from her foster mother, who was trying to hit her with a bag of frozen food but who sometimes used a […]

The post States lose track of thousands of foster children each year appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Even during his reign atop the Missouri political world, former House Speaker Rod Jetton’s life was a looming disaster. He’d lost the discipline of his Southern Baptist upbringing and his Marine training. He was drunk on Southern Comfort and power, and it is not hard to see how both inebriations impaired his judgment.   Over a […]

The post Why I think a scandal-plagued speaker is wise to hire a scandal-scarred former speaker appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The big news out of Tuesday’s elections was wins for Democrats and for reproductive rights in Ohio, Virginia, Kentucky and Pennsylvania. But small “d” democracy also had a good night: Virginians elected pro-voting majorities in both chambers, stymieing efforts to pass restrictive new voting laws. Ohioans turned out in large numbers to pass two popular […]

The post State, local elections offer good news for democracy appeared first on Missouri Independent.