Capitol buildings are almost always an imposing presence.

Hours to go before a midnight government shutdown, the House approved a new plan late Friday from Speaker Mike Johnson that would temporarily fund federal operations and disaster aid, but drops President-elect Donald Trump’s demands for a debt limit increase into the new year.

What services could be impacted if Congress does not pass a spending bill that would keep the government running?

Attorney General Ken Paxton sought to delay legal proceedings until Jan. 13 — the day before the committee disbands — even as lawmakers vowed to continue fighting to hear from Roberson.

The motion escalates a tense standoff between Paxton and a bipartisan Texas House committee, which had subpoenaed Roberson to testify at the Capitol on Friday.

Congress has until midnight Friday to come up with a way to fund the government, or federal agencies will shutter.

President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defense is expected to face his first public questioning from U.S. senators on Jan. 14.

Congressional leaders have unveiled legislation that will keep the federal government funded through March 14 and provide more than $100 billion in emergency aid to help states and local communities recover from Hurricanes Helene and Milton and other natural disasters.

The FBI should have done more to collect intelligence before the Capitol riot even though the bureau did prepare for the possibility of violence on Jan. 6, 2021, according to a watchdog report.

North Dakota regulators have approved permits for underground carbon dioxide storage for a massive pipeline proposed for the Midwest.

A person accused of accosting U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace in a Capitol Office building has pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor assault charge.

The Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from Wisconsin parents who wanted to challenge a school district’s guidance for supporting transgender students.

Elon Musk was the sole funder of a super PAC that focused on advertising likening Donald Trump’s stance on abortion to that of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Democrat Adam Gray has won election to a U.S. House seat representing California’s Central Valley, defeating Republican Rep. John Duarte in the final House contest to be determined this year.

A federal judge who was nominated by Donald Trump says it would be “beyond frustrating and disappointing” if the president-elect hands out mass pardons to rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol after the 2020 election.

House Speaker Mike Johnson signaled support for a Republican effort to ban Democrat Sarah McBride — the first transgender person to be elected to Congress — from using women’s restrooms in the Capitol once she’s sworn into office next year.

A federal judge in Texas has blocked a new rule from the Biden administration that would have expanded access to overtime pay to millions more salaried workers across the U.S. In a Friday ruling, U.S. District Judge Sean Jordan sided with the state of Texas and a group of business organizations that argued the Labor Department exceeded its authority when it finalized a rule earlier this year to significantly expand federal overtime eligibility for salaried workers.

Utility regulators in North Dakota have approved part of a carbon dioxide pipeline that would span five Midwestern states.

Georgia House Republicans will keep their leadership team for the next two years.

Two migrants were found by a Texas trooper last week inside a gas tank along the southwestern Texas border, according to a Texas Department of Public Safety spokesperson.

The barrage of ads focused on trans kids playing youth sports motivated the Republican base as Democrats struggled to respond.

Some of the Donald Trump supporters who stormed the U.S. Capitol nearly four years ago are celebrating the president-elect's electoral victory.

The closest West Virginia voters could come to having their say at the ballot box on whether abortion should be legal in the post-Roe v. Wade era might be in this year’s governor’s race.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a law aimed at preventing gas prices from spiking at the pump.

New court papers in Donald Trump’s federal 2020 election interference case pull back the curtain on his conversations with family members, former Vice President Mike Pence and other close advisers in the weeks leading up to the attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Congressional leaders have a deal on a short-term spending bill that will fund federal agencies for about three months.

Police on Friday arrested a 15-year old boy on charges related to threats on social media that prompted an increased police presence at multiple schools in the nation's capital.

Rodríguez Ramos faces an uphill battle, as Democrats are the minority party with 64 seats in the 150-member Texas House.

Arizona’s Civil War-era ban on nearly all abortions is officially repealed.

In an effort to prevent another riot like the one on Jan. 6, 2021, the Homeland Security secretary has designated the congressional count and certification of the presidential election as a national special security event.

The U.S. is divided when it comes to state and federal marijuana policy, but recent political developments could move the country toward greater acceptance of cannabis.

Donald Trump is persisting in saying he won the 2020 election and he's taking no responsibility for what unfolded at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The race for control of Congress is as close as ever.

House Republicans have unveiled legislation to avoid a partial government shutdown at the end of the month.

Three gun shops that sold dozens of firearms to a man who trafficked the weapons in and around Washington, D.

The Arkansas Supreme Court has upheld the state’s rejection of signature petitions in favor putting an abortion rights initiative on the November ballot.

A trial is scheduled to start in June 2025 for a California man charged with trying to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh at his home in a suburb of Washington, D.

Former U.S. Rep. George Santos is expected to plead guilty to multiple counts in his federal fraud case, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The Arizona Supreme Court has ruled that an informational pamphlet for voters can refer to a fetus as an “unborn human being.”.

A proposed amendment to New York's constitution meant to protect abortion access is a crucial part of Democrats' plans to drive voter turnout in the state this fall and potentially flip vital congressional districts.

Voters in Arizona will get to decide in November whether to add the right to an abortion up to about 24 weeks to the state constitution.

Elon Musk’s social media platform X has sued a group of advertisers, alleging that a “massive advertiser boycott” deprived the company of billions of dollars in revenue and violated antitrust laws.

The South Dakota Supreme Court has reversed a judge's dismissal of a lawsuit seeking to remove an abortion rights initiative from the November ballot.

Five months after holding its presidential primaries, Washington state is looking further down the ticket to select candidates to compete for federal and state offices in November.

A court filing shows that the signatures collected by volunteers for an Arkansas abortion-rights measure would fall short of the number needed to qualify for the ballot if they're the only ones counted.

Puerto Rico’s governor has signed a law that prohibits discrimination against people wearing Afros, twists, braids and other hairstyles in the racially diverse U.S. territory.

The Arkansas Supreme Court has ordered the state to initially count signatures that were collected by volunteers in favor of putting an abortion rights measure on the ballot.

Former U.S. Rep. George Santos has lost a bid to get rid of part of the criminal case against him as he heads toward trial on charges that include defrauding campaign donors.

Months beforehand, some Pennsylvania lawmakers had proposed to outlaw the type of rifle that was used in the assassination attempt against Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

Arkansas is being sued for rejecting petitions in favor of a proposed ballot measure to scale back the state’s abortion ban.

A federal judge has ruled that the Biden administration complied with the law when it declined to grant an extension to Georgia’s year-old Medicaid plan, which is the only one in the country that has a work requirement for recipients of the publicly funded health coverage for low-income people.

By now, Georgia officials expected their new Medicaid plan to provide health insurance to 25,000 low income residents.

Facebook has lifted restrictions imposed on Donald Trump after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.

Voters in five states will decide referendums on abortion rights this year, with potentially more to come.

Arkansas election officials have rejected the petitions submitted for an abortion-rights ballot measure.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is now expected to address former President Donald Trump’s nominating convention next week.

Virginia has joined a growing number of states that are pushing for cellphone restrictions in public schools.

A judge on Tuesday rejected an attempt to revive the recall effort targeting the longest-serving Wisconsin Assembly speaker in state history, likely putting an end to the recall push.

Three and a half years after the Capitol attack, former President Donald Trump still falsely claims the 2020 election was stolen and has promised that if he wins the presidency again he will pardon his supporters who violently beat police and broke into the building to try and overturn the legitimate results.

Organizers of an effort to scale back Arkansas’ abortion ban on say they have submitted enough signatures to get the measure on the November ballot.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is insisting that President Joe Biden can still win her state, a key battleground in the 2024 election, even as many national Democrats question whether Biden should move forward after his shaky debate performance.

The English bulldog had never been featured prominently in West Virginia history, until now.

In the first presidential debate, the Capitol riot and Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election weren't center stage.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson says he expects the state to put together an aid plan by the end of the year to try to keep the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals in Missouri.

Puerto Rico’s Justice Department says it is suing at least 30 ex-government officials accused of corruption to recover more than $30 million in public funds.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court has ruled that the approval of what would be the nation's first state-funded Catholic charter school is unconstitutional.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul says she is considering a ban on face masks in the New York City subway system, following what she described as concerns over people shielding their identities while committing antisemitic acts.

North Dakota voters have just approved a ballot initiative that bars anyone who would be 81 years old during his or her U.S. House or Senate term from running for Congress.

A federal appeals court has upheld California’s ban on gun shows at county fairs and other public properties, deciding the laws do not violate the rights of firearm sellers or buyers.

Former President Donald Trump’s campaign has begun requesting information from his potential vice presidential candidates, sending vetting paperwork to a list of top contenders in recent weeks.

Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton crusaded against House Republicans who voted against school vouchers and in favor of impeachment, respectively.

Chief Justice John Roberts has declined an invitation to meet with Democratic senators to talk about Supreme Court ethics and flags that flew outside Justice Samuel Alito's homes.

Idaho Democrats have selected Joe Biden as their nominee for the White House, giving the president more delegates after he already clinched his party’s 2024 nomination.

Idaho voters are heading to the polls to decide primaries for the U.S. House and the state legislature.

Amy Kremer is a conservative activist who helped organize the Jan. 6, 2021 rally that led to a mob storming the U.S. Capitol.

The Biden administration is preparing more changes to the nation’s asylum system meant to speed up processing and potential removal of migrants who continue to arrive at the southern border.

Arizona Supreme Court Justice Clint Bolick sided with the majority in restoring an 1864 ban on nearly all abortions.

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves has signed a new law regulating transgender people’s use of bathrooms, locker rooms and dormitories in public education buildings.

A political action committee that helps Republicans get elected to Congress is doing the unusual — spending more than $450,000 to defeat a GOP incumbent.

Colorado’s Democratic-controlled Legislature has nixed a bill to ban the sale and transfer of semi-automatic firearms.

Mississippi’s Republican-led Legislature has completed a last-ditch effort to revive a bill to regulate transgender people’s use of bathrooms, locker rooms and dormitories in public education buildings.

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders says her state won't comply with a federal regulation that seeks to protect the rights of transgender students in the nation's schools.

The Mississippi House Democratic leader says a Medicaid expansion plan endorsed by Republican leaders could struggle for bipartisan support.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled that a former Milwaukee police officer was properly fired for posting racist memes related to the arrest of an NBA player.

Democratic state Sen. Timothy Kennedy has won a special election for the upstate New York congressional seat vacated by Democrat Brian Higgins.

Congress has given one of its highest final tributes, a lying in honor ceremony at the Capitol, to Medal of Honor Recipient Ralph Puckett Jr. He led an outnumbered company in battle during the Korean War and was the last surviving veteran of that war to receive the Medal of Honor.

In June 2022, state Rep. Frederick Frazier was indicted on two charges of impersonating a public servant. A Collin County district judge dismissed the misdemeanor charges as part of his deferred adjudication.

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem — a potential running mate for presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump — is getting attention again.

We want to hear the experiences of students, faculty and families affected by pushback against diversity, equity and inclusion and free speech efforts at Texas universities.

Puerto Rico’s Republican Party held a district assembly and awarded former President Donald Trump all 23 of their national delegates.

New York lawmakers have approved a $237 billion state budget that includes plans to spur housing construction, combat unlicensed marijuana stores and address the migrant crisis.

A California superior court judge has tentatively denied a group's request to change language describing a proposed ballot measure that would require school staff to notify parents if their child asks to change gender identification at schools.

The 12 students and one teacher killed in the Columbine High School shooting were remembered in a vigil on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the tragedy.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has announced the framework of a $237 billion budget that includes broad plans to drive new housing construction, address the influx of migrants and crack down on illegal marijuana shops.

The near-total abortion ban resurrected last week by the Arizona Supreme Court dates to 1864, a time when gold-seekers were moving in, dueling had to be regulated and settlers were increasingly encroaching on tribal lands.

Examining charitable bail organizations and banning Delta 9 were also among Patrick’s priorities in the next legislative session.

Pennsylvania state representatives have approved a bill requiring that consumers be notified when artificial intelligence is used to generate content.

A little-known and rarely enforced law that makes cheating on your spouse a crime in the state of New York could soon be a thing of the past.

North Dakota lawmakers expecting a legal challenge to a congressional age limit, if passed through a ballot initiative in the June election.

U.S. Rep. Raúl Grijalva has announced that he has been diagnosed with cancer, but he says he is continuing to work as he undergoes treatment.