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

U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., speaks during a press conference

Menendez urged to step down by a growing number of U.S. Senate Democrats

BY: and - September 26, 2023

WASHINGTON — More than a dozen U.S. Senate Democrats are calling on New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez to resign following his indictment on corruption charges for the second time. Among the 18 senators on the record as of early Tuesday afternoon was New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker, who said in a statement that […]

Fall peppers and chili at Bloomingdale Farmers Market

Food benefits for low income families at risk in a government shutdown, White House says

BY: - September 26, 2023

WASHINGTON — As Congress barrels toward a partial government shutdown, the White House on Monday warned that a program that helps millions of low income families afford healthy food could see substantial cuts. The White House released a state-by-state breakdown, estimating that nearly 7 million people who rely on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for […]

U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) speaks during a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee

Menendez steps down temporarily as U.S. Senate committee chairman amid federal charges  

BY: - September 22, 2023

WASHINGTON — New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez will temporarily step aside as chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee following a federal indictment for conspiracy to commit bribery and other charges. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer made the announcement Friday afternoon, saying in a written statement that “Senator Menendez has rightly decided to […]

Pistols on the shelf at Caso’s Gun-A-Rama store

Biden administration to create new gun violence prevention office

BY: - September 22, 2023

WASHINGTON — The White House on Thursday announced the formation of an Office of Gun Violence Prevention that will help states and local governments as they implement a gun safety legislative package President Joe Biden signed into law last year. Lacking additional action in Congress to curb gun violence, “the Office of Gun Violence Prevention […]

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky Meets With U.S. Lawmakers On Capitol Hill

‘If we don’t get the aid, we will lose the war’: Zelenskyy asks Congress to help Ukraine

BY: and - September 21, 2023

WASHINGTON — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday traveled to Capitol Hill to meet with lawmakers to reiterate the need for continued aid to support his country’s fight against the Russian invasion, even as the U.S. faces a partial government shutdown as soon as the end of the month. “If we don’t get the aid, […]

U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.,

Shutdown inches closer as U.S. House GOP fails to pass defense bill, lawmakers exit D.C.

BY: - September 21, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans were unable for a third time Thursday to begin debate on the Defense funding bill, throwing another wrench into Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s leadership tenure. The 212-216 vote that rejected the rule for the $826 billion Defense spending measure was unexpected, coming less than a day after House GOP lawmakers gathered […]

Venezuelan migrants in El Paso, Texas

Biden administration offers temporary protection to Venezuelan migrants 

BY: - September 21, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced late Wednesday that the agency will expand protected status to nearly half a million Venezuelan nationals, allowing them to live and work in the United States. The move comes after multiple requests from cities that have struggled to house asylum seekers and calls from […]

Silhouette of the entrance to the Wounded Knee Massacre Monument in South Dakota at sunrise

U.S. House passes Wounded Knee memorial bill

BY: - September 21, 2023

The U.S. House approved by voice vote Wednesday a bill that would help protect land at the site of the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre in South Dakota, where an estimated 350 Lakota were killed by U.S. soldiers. The site is within the Lakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River […]

U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama,

U.S. Senate confirms a military nominee, the first since Tuberville blockade began

BY: - September 21, 2023

The U.S. Senate confirmed a nominee for a high-ranking military post Wednesday night and advanced another, the first votes on military nominations or promotions since Alabama Republican Tommy Tuberville started blocking them seven months ago to protest Defense Department abortion policies. Tuberville did not object to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, […]

The U.S. Capitol grounds

A ‘disaster’ nears: Millions of federal workers’ paychecks would be on hold in a shutdown

BY: - September 21, 2023

WASHINGTON — More than 3.5 million federal employees and military personnel — many in the Washington, D.C., area but also scattered across the states and around the globe — are bracing for another partial government shutdown, as U.S. House Republicans struggle to produce a short-term plan to fund the government past the end of the […]

U.S. Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, (center) speaks with Idaho Water Resources Board member Al Barker

U.S. Senate panel grapples with how to ensure access to water amid Western drought

BY: - September 20, 2023

Decades of drought in the West has made water quality and quantity a major issue requiring government funding and innovation to fix, members of a U.S. Senate panel said Wednesday. Demand for water in growing municipalities is stretching agricultural and tribal communities, while shrinking availability is leading to higher water prices, witnesses told the Senate […]

U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, speaks at a press conference outside the U.S. Capitol

Americans sickened by radioactive waste press Congress for action on assistance

BY: - September 20, 2023

WASHINGTON — Victims of nuclear contamination rallied in the nation’s capital on Wednesday in support of bipartisan legislation that would extend compensation for those harmed by radioactive waste. U.S. Sens. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, and Ben Ray Luján, a New Mexico Democrat, held a rally and press conference outside the U.S. Capitol as part […]