Children eating lunch in a school cafeteria (Photo by CDC on Unsplash)

Advocates worried more rural kids may go hungry this summer

Federal waivers put in place at the height of the pandemic allowed federal child nutrition programs more flexibility in delivering meals to households because kids were not at school. Those waivers are set to expire in a few months, and in states like Arkansas, groups working to fight hunger warn that more children, especially in rural areas, […]

Student Loan graphic

Pause on federal student loan repayments extended by Biden through August 31

(Missouri Independent) – The Biden administration Wednesday announced its plans to extend the pause on federal student loan repayments until the end of August. “I recognized in recently extending the COVID-19 national emergency, we are still recovering from the pandemic and the unprecedented economic disruption it caused,” President Joe Biden said in a statement.  “If loan […]

Guilty Plea

Woman pleads guilty to racketeering conspiracy involving the forced labor of Mexican agricultural workers

A woman in Florida pleaded guilty to a federal racketeering conspiracy that victimized Mexican agricultural workers admitted into the United States under the H-2A temporary visa program. Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg for the Middle District of Florida made the announcement. According […]

Eric Greitens (Photo is screenshot from Eric Greitens YouTube channel)

Women within Missouri GOP speak out against Eric Greitens as party remains silent

(Missouri Independent) – In just two weeks since allegations of domestic violence surfaced, Eric Greitens’ campaign for the U.S. Senate has been under siege from fellow Republicans urging him to drop out of the race.  With one notable exception. The state party, which in recent years has denounced several candidates running under the GOP banner for […]

Commodity Credit Corporation (USDA) website

USDA and Commodity Credit Corporation expect no purchases or sales of sugar under Feedstock Flexibility Program

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Commodity Credit Corporation announced today that it does not expect to purchase and sell sugar under the Feedstock Flexibility Program for crop year 2021, which runs until Sept. 30, 2022. The CCC is required by law to quarterly announce estimates of sugar to be purchased and sold under the Feedstock […]

Bank Robbery

Missouri man who shot at police chief after failed bank robbery, found guilty at trial, faces 27 years in prison

A Missouri man has been convicted after shooting at law enforcement officers while fleeing a failed bank robbery. Jacob Allen Monteer, 30, of Drexel, was found guilty following a bench trial before U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes on Monday, March 21, of one count of bank robbery, one count of brandishing a firearm during […]

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson photo courtesy Wikipedia

Senate winds up grueling Supreme Court hearings on Ketanji Brown Jackson nomination

(Missouri Independent) –  Representatives of the American Bar Association reiterated their finding that Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is well qualified to sit on the U.S. Supreme Court, and law enforcement groups rebutted GOP accusations Jackson is soft on child pornographers during the final day of Jackson’s confirmation hearings Thursday. Republicans, however, called in witnesses to […]

Sheena Greitens (Photo courtesy Wikipedia)

Sheena Greitens stands by allegations of abuse against her ex-husband

(Missouri Independent) – Former Missouri First Lady Sheena Greitens said Tuesday that she stands by her allegations against her ex-husband of physically abusing her and their children and denies any insinuation that her motivations are political. Greitens released a written statement Tuesday after her ex-husband — former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens — alleged she had […]

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson photo courtesy Wikipedia

Ketanji Brown Jackson vows to decide U.S. Supreme Court cases from a ‘neutral posture’

(Missouri Independent) – Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson began her four-day confirmation process to become the nation’s first Black female associate justice on Monday, listening to hours of opening statements from Senate Judiciary Committee members before giving her own. In her first public remarks since President Joe Biden nominated her last month, Jackson, who grew […]

A gavel and a name plate with the engraving Lawsuit

Missouri Attorney General files lawsuit against Rockwood School District for alleged Sunshine Law violations

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed a lawsuit against the Rockwood School District for alleged Sunshine Law violations. On November 19, 2021, the Missouri Attorney General’s Office sent three Sunshine Law requests to the Rockwood School District seeking public records relating to the Rockwood School District’s decision to publish the FBI’s link to report parents […]

Mask Mandate News Graphic

Republicans in Congress file suit to end mask mandate for air travel

(Missouri Independent) – Seventeen Republican members of Congress have sued the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, seeking an end to the federal rule requiring passengers on commercial flights and in airports to wear masks. The mandate illegally restricts the lawmakers’ freedom and is not backed by legal authority, they said in the suit filed Monday. […]

Governor Mike Parson and First Lady Teresa Parson

Governor Parson to embark on trade mission to United Kingdom and Ireland promoting Missouri

From March 11 – 19, Governor Mike Parson and First Lady Teresa Parson will travel to the United Kingdom and Ireland for their third international Trade Mission. The U.K. and Ireland are key trade partners for Missouri, with nearly $354 million and more than $130 million in exports in 2021, respectively. Consistent with Governor Parson’s […]

Missouri Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick (photo by Tim Bommel - Missouri House Communications)

Schools left ‘scrambling’ after Missouri treasurer tied bond deals to Attorney General’s COVID demands

(Missouri Independent) – It was just after 5 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 10, when the forms arrived from the state treasurer’s office. Without warning, and with little explanation, school superintendents discovered they were now required to certify their district had complied with Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s demands to drop all COVID-19 mitigation measures, such as […]

Carjacking

Missouri man sentenced to eight years in federal prison for his role in carjacking plot

United States District Court Judge Sarah E. Pitlyk sentenced Antwan Jones to eight years in federal prison for his role in a carjacking, weapons charges, and assaulting a federal officer.  Jones had previously pleaded guilty in November 2021.   According to the plea agreement, Jones and his co-defendant stopped their SUV next to the victim on […]

Medicaid

Groups push back against attempt to repeal Medicaid expansion

Groups advocating for health-care access for all Missourians urged the state Senate to reject a proposed constitutional amendment to undermine Medicaid expansion passed by the House. House Joint Resolution 117 would empower the Legislature to block services to the hundreds of thousands of newly eligible residents who are signing up, by repealing expansion and making it […]

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson

Video: Biden taps Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson as first black woman on the U.S. Supreme Court

(Missouri Independent) – President Joe Biden formally announced the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday afternoon. “President Biden sought a candidate with exceptional credentials, unimpeachable character, and unwavering dedication to the rule of law,” the White House said in a statement. If confirmed by the Senate, Jackson, 51, […]

Carjacking

Missouri man sentenced to more than 14 years in prison for carjacking pizza driver

A Missouri man appeared before United States District Court Judge Stephen R. Clark late Friday afternoon and was sentenced to 179 months in prison for carjacking a Domino’s Pizza driver in February 2021.   According to the plea agreement, on or about February 5, 2021, Ryan McDaniel, 25, of St. Louis, approached the victim who was […]