Tom Ramstack

WASHINGTON -- A U.S. Senate committee sought answers again Tuesday on how to stop a nationwide crisis of opioid addictions while acknowledging their previous efforts have largely failed. A record 61,300 people died from drug overdoses in 2017 in the U.S., up from 54,800 a year... Read More

WASHINGTON -- A congressional committee took a last look at a Democratic proposal to repeal a cap on state and local taxes before a vote expected in the U.S. House this week. The cap is a $10,000 limit on state and local income tax deductions Republicans... Read More

WASHINGTON -- Democratic members of Congress accused U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Thursday of neglecting her duty to protect students from for-profit colleges that defrauded them, promising degrees or job placements they were unable to deliver. In response, the Obama administration’s Education Department instituted a... Read More

WASHINGTON -- The FBI was justified in investigating the Trump 2016 presidential campaign’s alleged ties to the Russian government but the investigation was deeply flawed, the Justice Department’s inspector general told Congress Wednesday. Inspector General Michael Horowitz testified to the Senate Judiciary Committee about his 417-page... Read More

WASHINGTON - Civil rights leaders and members of Congress urged that tougher policies be adopted to oppose human rights abuses in China and Hong Kong during a congressional hearing earlier this week. They accused China of mass incarceration of political prisoners, interrogations of private citizens who... Read More

WASHINGTON - A high-ranking Defense Department official acknowledged during a Senate hearing Thursday that the U.S. government is considering sending more troops to the Middle East to counter an Iranian military buildup. “We’re concerned about the threat stream we’re seeing,” said John C. Rood, undersecretary of... Read More

WASHINGTON -- Top U.S. State Department officials warned Tuesday about aggression from Russia as Congress considers legislation to counter the country’s military and political threats. The officials spoke during a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee as it reviewed Russia’s compliance with the New START... Read More

WASHINGTON - Four states are appealing a federal judge’s September dismissal of their lawsuit challenging federal authority to limit state and local tax deductions. In a filing before the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, attorneys for the states argue the cap unconstitutionally interferes with their... Read More

WASHINGTON -- A Food and Drug Administration official told a U.S. Senate committee this week that new regulations to control vaping are likely coming soon, but couldn’t say when. His testimony drew rebukes and words of frustration from members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and... Read More