DC BUREAU

Our Washington, D.C., bureau reports on congressional delegations and key Supreme Court and administrative decisions that affect our state.

STAFF

Jane Norman

DC Bureau Chief

Jane directs national coverage, managing staff and freelance reporters in the nation’s capital and assigning and editing state-specific daily and enterprise stories.

Jacob Fischler

DC Bureau Senior Reporter

Jacob covers federal policy as a senior reporter for States Newsroom. Based in Oregon, he focuses on Western issues. His coverage areas include climate, energy development, public lands and infrastructure.

Ashley Murray

DC Bureau Senior Reporter

Ashley Murray covers the nation’s capital as a senior reporter for States Newsroom. Her coverage areas include domestic policy and appropriations.

Jennifer Shutt

DC Bureau Senior Reporter

Jennifer covers the nation’s capital as a senior reporter for States Newsroom. Her coverage areas include congressional policy, politics and legal challenges with a focus on health care, unemployment, housing and aid to families.

Ariana Figueroa

DC Bureau Reporter

Ariana covers the nation's capital for States Newsroom. Her areas of coverage include politics and policy, lobbying, elections and campaign finance.

STORIES

Congress clears bill to avert shutdown, with vote promised later on Ukraine aid

BY: - September 30, 2023

WASHINGTON — Congress approved a bill Saturday night that would stave off a government shutdown until at least mid-November, though the measure doesn’t include Ukraine aid backed by both Republicans and Democrats. The bipartisan 88-9 vote in the U.S. Senate, just hours before a midnight deadline, took place after the U.S. House earlier in the […]

Women workers could bear economic brunt as federal child care funding ends

BY: - September 29, 2023

A huge chunk of pandemic relief funding that kept child care programs afloat for the past few years is set to run out Saturday, and policy advocates say the economic impact will be profound, with the ripple effect hurting labor force participation and consumer spending at a time when the country is still trying to […]

Government shutdown nears: U.S. House GOP fails to pass one-month spending plan

BY: , , and - September 29, 2023

WASHINGTON — A sweeping government shutdown appeared inevitable on Friday, with the U.S. Senate stuck in a procedural holding pattern on its bipartisan stopgap bill and divided U.S. House Republicans unable to pass their short-term spending bill. Both chambers of Congress must approve and President Joe Biden must sign government funding legislation before midnight on […]

Shutdown would mean even more delays in overwhelmed U.S. immigration courts

BY: - September 29, 2023

WASHINGTON — A looming partial government shutdown will put added pressure on an already strained system — U.S. immigration courts. Canceling or rescheduling court cases that many immigrants have awaited for years will cause even more backlogs, immigration attorneys and judges have warned. “Where we’ll really kind of see the backlog continue to build will […]

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California dies at 90

BY: - September 29, 2023

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with more comments from senators and others. WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein died Thursday night in her home in Washington, D.C. The California Democrat was 90 and had announced in February she would not run for reelection in 2024. “She left a legacy that is undeniable and […]

hown is Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. Most national park sites would be shuttered if a government shutdown begins this weekend, the Interior Department says. (Photo courtesy National Park Service)

Nearly all national park sites to close during government shutdown

BY: - September 29, 2023

Almost all National Park Service sites will be inaccessible during a partial federal government shutdown likely to start this weekend, the U.S. Interior Department said Friday.

During the first U.S. House impeachment inquiry hearing, House Oversight and Accountability Chair James Comer of Kentucky alleged that Republicans will show evidence of how President Joe Biden “abused his public office for his family’s financial gain.” (Screenshot from committee webcast)

GOP witnesses at Biden impeachment hearing see insufficient evidence of wrongdoing so far

BY: - September 28, 2023

House Republicans held their first impeachment inquiry hearing Thursday over unproven allegations that President Joe Biden benefited from his son’s business dealings overseas.

Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and his wife Nadine arrive for a court appearance at Manhattan Federal Court on Sept. 27, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Pennsylvania’s Fetterman may pursue expulsion of ‘defiant’ Menendez from U.S. Senate

BY: - September 28, 2023

Pennsylvania Democratic U.S. Sen. John Fetterman said Thursday he would be open to expelling New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez from the Senate.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has released guidance on what functions will continue and which will be suspended in a government shutdown that could occur beginning Saturday at midnight. (Getty Images)

Government shutdown won’t affect health care or most benefits for veterans, VA says

BY: - September 28, 2023

WASHINGTON — Veterans who rely on government health care and other assistance can continue to see their doctors and receive education and pension benefits despite a possible, and likely imminent, partial shutdown that will temporarily cease many federal operations. The Department of Veterans Affairs on Tuesday released guidance on what functions will continue and not […]

GOP presidential hopefuls tear into each other and absent Trump at second debate

BY: and - September 28, 2023

The candidates polling from second to eighth in the race for the Republican nomination for president largely agreed on policy, fought over their records and took aim at former President Donald Trump at their second debate of the year Wednesday night. Trump, who leads polls of the race by substantial margins, skipped the event at […]

Foreign ownership of U.S. farmland probed at U.S. Senate hearing

BY: - September 27, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. senators said during a Wednesday hearing that foreign ownership of U.S. farmland is a national security threat that should be further examined. The U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry discussed foreign ownership of the nation’s agricultural lands, with testimony from experts and Senate colleagues who have been taking the lead […]

Active-duty military would work without pay in shutdown, White House warns

BY: - September 27, 2023

WASHINGTON — The White House is warning that a partial government shutdown would mean 1.3 million active-duty armed services members must keep working without receiving paychecks and hundreds of thousands of Pentagon employees would face furloughs. The Biden administration on Tuesday blasted what it’s now calling an “Extreme Republican Shutdown,” saying it would undermine national […]