Author

Ashley Murray

Ashley Murray

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

A placard at the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in Washington, D.C.

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 […]

Air commandos assigned to the 21st Special Tactics Squadron participate in an airfield establishment exercise at Hurlburt Field, Florida

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 […]

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre answers questions from reporters at a White House briefing

White House slams ‘baseless’ House GOP impeachment inquiry as ‘political stunt’

By: - September 13, 2023

WASHINGTON — The White House is lambasting the House GOP’s decision to open an impeachment inquiry into unproven allegations that President Joe Biden profited from his son’s international business scheme during his time as vice president in the Obama administration. Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy announced Tuesday that he directed several of the chamber’s […]

Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville

Tuberville blockade of military nominees roils hearing for top Air Force official

By: - September 12, 2023

WASHINGTON — The Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday conducted a nomination hearing for the next U.S. Air Force chief of staff, a key appointment caught up in the more than 300 military promotions currently blocked by Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville in protest of the Pentagon’s abortion policy. Gen. David W. Allvin, now vice chief […]

Jar for prescription drugs stuffed with hundred dollar bill representing high cost health care

Biden administration chooses first 10 drugs for Medicare price negotiations

By: - August 29, 2023

WASHINGTON — Medicare can now negotiate lower prices for 10 common high-price drugs, cutting out-of-pocket costs for an estimated 9 million seniors and saving taxpayers billions, the Biden administration said Tuesday. Medicare will begin this year to negotiate with the manufacturers of popular medications used to treat blood clots, diabetes, heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic […]

Former President Donald Trump speaks to supporters in a campaign visit to Council Bluffs, Iowa,

Judge sets March trial date in Trump federal election interference case

By: - August 28, 2023

WASHINGTON — The federal trial in the case accusing former President Donald Trump of knowingly lying about the 2020 presidential election results and trying to overturn them will begin in March, a federal judge said Monday. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who waived Trump’s appearance for the first hearing, scheduled jury selection to begin March […]

A farmer harvests corn near Slater, Iowa on Oct. 17, 2020.

Farm bill timeline in flux as a messy September for Congress nears

By: - August 15, 2023

WASHINGTON — The roundtables, listening sessions and appearances at farm shows have largely wrapped up and lawmakers tasked with reauthorizing the nation’s agriculture and nutrition programs are comparing notes and beginning to draft the massive, multi-year farm bill. The 2018 version expires Sept. 30, just as many urgent priorities compete for floor time in Congress […]

Former President Donald Trump speaks on May 28, 2022, in Casper, Wyoming.

Trump pleads not guilty to charges he sought to subvert 2020 election

By: and - August 4, 2023

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty Thursday to four felony charges in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., after a federal grand jury handed up an indictment against the former chief executive related to the 2020 election. Trump, the front-runner in the 2024 GOP presidential primary, was released under the conditions that […]

Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to supporters during a political rally while campaigning for the GOP nomination in the 2024 election at Erie Insurance Arena on July 29, 2023 in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Congress, GOP presidential candidates react to Trump indictment

By: and - August 2, 2023

WASHINGTON — Members of Congress and Republicans competing against Donald Trump in the presidential primary quickly reacted Tuesday to the latest indictment against the former president, falling largely along party lines. This one, by a federal grand jury, stems from Trump’s alleged efforts to subvert the 2020 election after Election Day and leading up to […]

Former President Donald Trump speaks on May 28, 2022, in Casper, Wyoming.

‘Fueled by lies,’ Trump charged with seeking to overturn 2020 election

By: , and - August 1, 2023

WASHINGTON — A federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., indicted Donald Trump on Tuesday, alleging that Trump and co-conspirators attempted to subvert the 2020 election to keep the former president in power through a series of illegal actions that culminated in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. The former president faces four […]

U.S. Navy Lt. Kristin Hope, from Ogden, Utah, signals to launch an F/A-18E Super Hornet from the flight deck of the Navy aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan during flight operations in the East China Sea, Aug. 22, 2019.

Massive defense bill approved by U.S. Senate, but deep partisan divide with House looms

By: - July 28, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. senators avoided a heated partisan split as they passed the massive annual defense policy package late Thursday —  in stark contrast to the GOP-led House version, in which far-right members included language to restrict abortion access and transgender care for service members. Senators passed the National Defense Authorization Act, 86-11, but lawmakers […]

Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville

Military nominees still stalled by Tuberville hold, with U.S. Senate gone until September

By: - July 28, 2023

WASHINGTON — Despite warnings from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin that vacant top military positions affect readiness, Congress is heading into August recess with hundreds of defense nominees on hold as Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville continues his protest against the Defense Department’s abortion leave policy. As of Thursday, 301 military nominees had not yet reached […]