Contributing Writers

The Missouri Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously blocked newly enacted Republican-backed congressional districts from being used in November’s midterm elections, ruling that voters must first approve the map in a statewide referendum.The ruling marks a rare setback for Republicans in a national redistricting battle. The GOP had aimed to use Missouri’s new congressional map to help them win an additional seat and hold onto its slim House majority.

Excavation work will begin over the next two weeks on a site where the Trump administration plans to build a tall memorial arch in Washington, D.C., a project that faces a lawsuit from opponents who argue the project will disrupt nearby historic sight lines.

A Republican candidate for the Missouri state House is facing federal drug charges after newly unsealed court documents revealed an alleged plot to frame his political opponent by planting cocaine and prescription pills in her purse.Thomas Christopher Ross, 37, made his initial court appearance Thursday in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri in Springfield, where he faced one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.

The Trump administration says it has uncovered evidence that the Smithsonian Institution violated federal nondiscrimination laws and is threatening to withdraw support from its museums unless it corrects course, according to a letter recently made public by the Department of the Interior.

The Justice Department warned states they could lose billions of dollars in welfare funding if they do not report known illegal migrants to the federal government, according to a legal opinion released Wednesday.

The Pentagon on Wednesday issued clinical guidelines establishing a new mandatory testosterone deficiency screening policy for active-duty and reserve service members ages 30 and up.This comes after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced in July that he was authorizing the screening program for troops to ensure “you have the right testosterone levels to operate at your absolute best.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed permanent flight rules around President Donald J. Trump International Airport in Palm Beach, Florida, to secure the airspace near Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate amid heightened concerns over unauthorized aircraft and rogue drones — moves that some say are insufficient to deter dedicated adversaries.The regulatory action was initiated at the request of the U.S.

There’s a reason football great Deion Sanders was known as “Primetime.” Sanders epitomized his sobriquet with electric performances on “Monday Night Football” and in the playoffs.But not every political candidate is ready for primetime.The roadside is littered with political failures from both sides. Candidates are better suited for late-night public access in the suburbs.

The Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) hired a gender-affirming care coordinator last month, and the job will pay between $78,000 and $115,000 annually.The job includes oversight of a program for “managing and monitoring needs and safety risks of transgender, intersex and non-binary adults in custody,” according to the listing. The position also chairs a multidisciplinary team focused on their individualized needs.

Hasan Piker, a controversial Twitch streamer and far-left activist who has supported several challengers against moderate Democrats, celebrated the victory of Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., in a primary contest that pitted the 80-year-old progressive stalwart against a far younger and more centrist candidate.

Rep. Stephen Lynch, who has cultivated a relatively conservative reputation while representing Massachusetts for the past quarter-century, has defeated a well-funded progressive challenger.Patrick Roath, an attorney and one-time aide for former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, challenged Lynch from the left, outraising him by about $300,000. Lynch and Roath clashed over a number of issues on the campaign trail, namely immigration, healthcare, money in politics and housing.

The progressive push to unseat a veteran Democratic power broker fell short Tuesday, when Rep. Richard Neal defeated high school teacher Jeromie Whalen in Massachusetts’ 1st Congressional District primary.Neal, 77, has represented western Massachusetts in Congress for nearly four decades and has built considerable influence as the top Democrat on the powerful tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee.

A former Biden administration aide just won a crowded primary race in Massachusetts, setting up a glide path to the House of Representatives come November.Dan Koh came out first among six candidates to replace Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., who ended his House tenure with a failed run for Senate against incumbent Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., that came to a conclusion Tuesday night.

House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark toppled two progressive challengers Tuesday in Massachusetts’ safely Democratic 5th Congressional District, surviving a primary fight that put Gaza and pro-Israel political spending at the center of the race.Clark, who won handily Tuesday night against fellow Democratic Party contenders Jonathan Paz and Tarik Samman, was first elected in 2013 during a special election and has held her position as House Democratic whip since 2022.

The House of Representatives is back in town after not voting since July 23.But the House is only back for less than a week. And the Senate doesn’t even return until Monday, September 14.The first day of school, this is not.House members descending on the Capitol this week – then abandoning Washington for Labor Day is kind of like the third and final preseason game in the NFL.

House Republicans are teeing up a pair of bills this week to put Democrats on the record about where they stand on their party’s socialist insurgency.The House Rules Committee just advanced a resolution to condemn socialism during its Monday meeting, with no Democrats voting in favor of moving it forward. Democrats, in fact, criticized the resolution as a waste of time.Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass.

As the AI boom drives an unprecedented hunt for electricity, two states are taking sharply different approaches to assuage fears that Big Tech’s massive energy needs will raise Americans’ utility bills.New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s approach is to set statewide ground rules before large data centers connect to the grid.

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll has submitted his resignation to President Donald Trump, a senior U.S. official confirmed to Fox News.The resignation remains pending and has not been accepted by the White House, the official said.A source familiar with the matter told Fox News that Driscoll had raised concerns with the administration about the Army’s transformation and readiness, including his belief that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth had hindered those efforts.

Vice President JD Vance urged Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed during a rally on Monday to focus on substantive policy issues instead of attacking his wife.”I actually think that the people of Michigan think it’s kind of weird when you talk about another guy’s wife,” Vance said at a metro Detroit rally organized by MAGA Inc., a super PAC aligned with the president.

Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy on Sunday teased an upcoming announcement about the Trump administration’s fraud crackdown.In a post on X, Duffy said there would be “unprecedented fraud crackdown” announcement on Monday.”TOMORROW: UNPRECEDENTED FRAUD CRACKDOWN,” the secretary wrote.

Federal prosecutors have launched a rare special grand jury probe into D.C. public schools, zeroing in on truancy, graduation rates and attendance records.The investigation, which was first reported by The Washington Post, is examining the supervision and oversight of young people in the nation’s capital, according to people familiar with the matter.D.C. public schools have been contacted about truancy and graduation rates, as well as attendance records.

California could soon formally recognize two of Islam’s most important holy days under legislation that would give state workers greater flexibility to take them off and allow public schools to close in observance of the holidays.The measure, which overwhelmingly passed the state Assembly and is awaiting Senate action, would recognize Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha in state law and could soon head to Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk.

Jewish Canadians facing rising antisemitism might have President Donald Trump’s support for an expedited legal pathway into the United States.Trump shared a report on the plan Sunday with his millions of followers on Truth Social, amplifying the appeal as Christian lawmakers and religious leaders press his administration to act because of a “disproportionate” amount of antisemitic incidents north of the U.S. border.

The race to build more data centers for artificial intelligence is driving demand for more than chips and electricity.It also requires vast networks of high-speed optical fiber to move data between servers, putting one of America’s oldest manufacturers at the center of the boom.Corning, the New York-based company best known to many Americans for its kitchenware and smartphone glass, is ramping up optical-fiber production as the data-center buildout accelerates.

Icelanders voted Saturday on whether to reopen negotiations to join the European Union, with President Donald Trump’s push for U.S. control of neighboring Greenland adding a new security dimension to a debate that has divided the NATO ally for years.

The mayor of a small city in Mississippi is arguing against lowering the flag to honor Dolly Parton, worrying that it would “lessen the meaning of the gesture” in the future.”I believe lowering the American flag to half-staff should mean something very significant,” Olive Branch, Mississippi, Mayor Ken Adams wrote on the city’s Facebook page Friday.

President Joe Biden put Georgia at the center of the national voting rights fight in 2021 when he branded the state’s Republican-backed election overhaul “Jim Crow in the 21st century.”Now, five years later, a separate Georgia voting rights battle involving allegations of racial discrimination is garnering national attention as it plays out in federal court.

LANSING, Mich. — Socialist-adjacent Michigan U.S. Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed addressed the media during Saturday’s state Democratic Party Nominating Convention, where he was dogged by many of the same questions that have plagued his campaign for months.