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

As the Washington Bureau Chief of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization, Jane directs national coverage, managing staff and freelance reporters in the nation’s capital and assigning and editing state-specific daily and enterprise stories. Jane is a veteran of more than three decades in journalism.

Jacob Fischler

DC Deputy Bureau Chief

Jacob covers federal policy and helps direct national coverage as deputy Washington bureau chief for States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization. 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, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization. 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, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization. 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, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization. Her areas of coverage include politics and policy, lobbying, elections and campaign finance.

Shauneen Miranda

DC Bureau Reporter

Shauneen covers the nation’s capital for States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization. An alumna of the University of Maryland, she previously covered breaking news for Axios.

STORIES

Harris to roll out new plan on tax relief for small businesses

BY: - September 3, 2024

WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to announce economic policy proposals aimed at helping small businesses during a campaign speech Wednesday in New Hampshire. The Democratic presidential candidate will stump in Portsmouth for expanding the tax deduction to $50,000 on business start-up costs, up from $5,000, a campaign official said on background Tuesday. […]

Trump taps into culture war issues, seeks to energize base at Moms for Liberty event

BY: - August 31, 2024

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump late Friday rarely touched on education issues during the third conference of Moms for Liberty, a conservative parental rights group that has ties to Project 2025, the far-right playbookTrump has tried to distance himself from. Instead, in a more than one-hour interview with Moms for Liberty co-founder Tiffany Justice, […]

Harris, Walz defend past statements, promise ‘opportunity economy’ in CNN interview

BY: - August 30, 2024

WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday defended her values and vowed, if elected, to appoint a Republican to her cabinet in her first major sit-down interview since her presidential campaign began just over a month ago. Harris, who rose to the top of the Democratic ticket after President Joe Biden dropped his bid […]

Biden’s newest student loan repayment plan temporarily blocked by Supreme Court

BY: - August 29, 2024

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday slashed the Biden administration’s latest efforts to provide student debt relief to millions of borrowers to go forward while the appeals process unfolds. The Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan provided lower monthly loan payments for borrowers and lessened the time it takes to pay off […]

U.S. Education Department outlines testing period for phased rollout of new FAFSA form

BY: - August 27, 2024

WASHINGTON — With the U.S. Department of Education using a staggered approach in opening up the 2025-26 application period for federal financial student aid, the agency said Tuesday it will partner with a small number of community-based organizations to participate in the first testing period beginning Oct. 1. Earlier in August, the department said it […]

Special Counsel Smith files new indictment in Trump’s Jan. 6 case

BY: - August 27, 2024

WASHINGTON — Adjusting for the U.S. Supreme Court’s sweeping presidential immunity decision last month, U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith on Tuesday filed a fresh federal indictment alleging former President Donald Trump attempted to overturn the 2020 election in his favor. In a superseding indictment filed in the late afternoon, Smith emphasized the private nature of […]

DOJ looks to revive classified documents case against Trump, argues judge’s dismissal was ‘flawed’

BY: - August 27, 2024

WASHINGTON — U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith has asked a federal appeals court to reverse the dismissal of a case alleging former President Donald Trump mishandled classified documents at his Florida home after he left the Oval Office. The appeals process could take months, likely closing the door on any movement in the classified documents […]

Federal judge pauses program that grants protections for undocumented spouses

BY: - August 27, 2024

WASHINGTON — A Texas federal judge late Monday sided with 16-Republican led states to temporarily block a Biden administration program that grants deportation protections for undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens and a potential pathway to citizenship. The ruling by Judge J. Campbell Barker of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, is […]

Trump promises mass deportations of undocumented people. How would that work?

BY: - August 26, 2024

WASHINGTON — “Mass deportation now!” is a catchphrase for the Trump presidential campaign, as the Republican nominee proposes a crackdown on immigration that would oust thousands of undocumented people. Often citing a deportation operation enacted by former President Dwight Eisenhower in the 1950s, former President Donald Trump has repeatedly vowed in campaign rallies that he […]

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suspends his presidential bid, backs Trump

BY: - August 23, 2024

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Friday he is suspending his campaign and threw his support behind former President Donald Trump — the GOP presidential nominee. The announcement from the environmental lawyer and anti-vaccine activist, who has held on to a long-shot presidential bid, comes just a day after Vice President Kamala Harris […]

‘Let’s fight for it’: Harris vows to chart a new way forward, defeat Trump

BY: and - August 23, 2024

CHICAGO — Vice President Kamala Harris accepted her party’s nomination for president Thursday evening, pitching her candidacy as an opportunity for the nation to move forward, rather than accept a dark future she said would follow a second election of her Republican opponent. Harris on the last night of the Democratic National Convention took advantage […]

Democrats stress gun violence prevention on convention’s final night

BY: - August 22, 2024

CHICAGO — The final night of the Democratic National Convention Thursday included a lineup of lawmakers and others who have long advocated for gun safety and have dealt with the aftermath of gun violence in their communities. “Our losses do not weaken us — they strengthen our resolve,” Georgia U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, a longtime […]