Trump administration says it’s withholding social safety net money from 5 states over fraud concerns
President Donald Trump’s administration said Tuesday that it is withholding funding for programs that support needy families with children in five Democratic-led states over concerns about fraud. “For too long, Democrat-led states and Governors have been complicit in allowing massive amounts of fraud to occur under their watch,” U.S. Department...
As Pa. energy prices rise, advocates skeptical that lawmakers will put aside partisan differences
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Democrats and Republicans who lead the Pennsylvania legislature have singled out increasing energy production as a goal...
Trump Mobile’s golden phone remains nowhere to be found
A golden phone that President Donald Trump’s family business promised to release last year remains mysteriously under wraps as the technology industry serves up a glut of new gadgets at CES in Las Vegas this week. When the Trump Organization launched a mobile phone service last June, it was supposed...
Rep. Doug LaMalfa of California dies, reducing GOP’s narrow control of the House to 218-213
WASHINGTON — Republican Doug LaMalfa, a seven-term U.S. representative from California, has died, GOP officials said Tuesday. He was 65. His death, confirmed by Majority Whip Tom Emmer and National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Richard Hudson, reduces the Republicans’ already narrow control of the House to 218 seats to Democrats’...
After Maduro capture, Trump’s tough talk evokes a return to the days of American imperialism
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump hasn’t minced words about the larger message he’s trying to send the world with the U.S. military raid to capture Nicolás Maduro and spirit the deposed Venezuelan leader and his wife to the United States to face federal drug trafficking charges. “American dominance in the...
Trump tries to rally House GOP but meanders along the way as the party’s majority narrowsVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump insisted Tuesday that Republicans have “so many good nuggets” to campaign on this year as they try to hold onto their razor-thin margin in the House. But the president’s nearly 90-minute speech before House Republicans had little in the way of a fresh policy agenda...
Experts slam CDC guidance to slash childhood vaccination schedule
Pennsylvania medical experts fear vaccination rates will wane after federal health officials issued a nonbinding, but possibly influential, recommendation Monday that kids get fewer shots. Jim O’Neill, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, slashed the number of shots all children should receive to 11 from 17....
Pete Hegseth censures Sen. Kelly after Democrats’ video urging troops to resist unlawful orders
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Monday that he censured Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona over the former Navy pilot’s participation in a video that called on troops to resist unlawful orders. Hegseth said the censure — by itself simply a formal letter with little practical consequence —...
Calls for restraint, condemnation: World leaders react to U.S. action in Venezuela
The overnight attacks in Venezuela and the subsequent capture of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife in a U.S. military operation on Saturday triggered sharp international reactions, ranging from European Union calls for de-escalation to condemnations from some of Latin America’s most outspoken leaders, who described the use of force...
Wisconsin judge convicted of obstructing arrest of immigrant resigns as GOP threatens impeachment
Embattled Wisconsin Judge Hannah Dugan, who was convicted of obstruction last month for helping an immigrant evade federal officers, has sent her resignation letter to the governor. The letter was sent Saturday. Republicans had been making plans to impeach her ever since her Dec. 19 conviction. A spokesperson for Gov....
U.S. plans to ‘run’ Venezuela and tap its oil reserves, Trump says, after operation to oust Maduro
CARACAS, Venezuela — Hours after an audacious military operation that plucked leader Nicolás Maduro from power and removed him from the country, President Donald Trump said Saturday that the United States would run Venezuela at least temporarily and tap its vast oil reserves to sell to other nations. The dramatic...
Japan says Trump has invited its leader to the U.S. It comes as ties with China are strained
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump invited Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during a phone call Friday to visit the United States this year, the Japanese foreign ministry said, in what would be the ultraconservative leader’s first trip to the U.S. since taking office in October. The White House is yet...
Trump delays increased tariffs on upholstered furniture, kitchen cabinets and vanities for a year
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed a New Year’s Eve proclamation delaying increased tariffs on upholstered furniture, kitchen cabinets and vanities for a year, citing ongoing trade talks. Trump’s order signed Wednesday keeps in place a 25% tariff he imposed in September on those goods, but delays for another year...
Farmers can now learn how much aid they will get from the Trump administration
OMAHA, Neb. — Farmers are now learning how much aid they can expect to receive from a $12 billion package that President Donald Trump announced earlier this month. The U.S. Department of Agriculture released the figures Wednesday for how much aid per acre farmers can plan on for each row...
Trump, in interview, defends his energy and health, offers new details on screening he underwent
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump defended his energy and health in an interview with The Wall Street Journal and disclosed that he had a CT scan, not an MRI scan, during an October examination about which he and the White House delayed offering details. Trump, in the interview, said he...
Zohran Mamdani promises to govern ‘expansively and audaciously’ in inaugural speech as NYC mayor
NEW YORK — Zohran Mamdani became mayor of New York City on Thursday, taking over one of the most unrelenting jobs in American politics with a promise to transform government on behalf of the city’s striving, struggling working class. Mamdani, a Democrat, was sworn in at a decommissioned subway station...
Top political stories of 2025
An unprecedented political comeback. A mayor on his way out after one historic term. Government inaction in Washington and Harrisburg. A political rebuilding effort. Here’s a look at some of the year’s biggest political stories from Western Pennsylvania to Washington: Trump returns In a political comeback like none other in...
These bipartisan bills were noncontroversial — until Trump vetoed them
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump issued the first vetoes of his second term on Tuesday, rejecting two low-profile bipartisan bills, a move that had the effect of punishing backers who had opposed the president’s positions on other issues. Trump vetoed drinking water pipeline legislation from Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert of...
Ousted after 1 term, Ed Gainey leaves complex legacy as Pittsburgh’s 1st Black mayor
Ed Gainey swept into office four years ago as Pittsburgh’s first Black mayor, vowing to be a changemaker who would reimagine policing, make the city affordable for everyone and uplift minority voices. He strode into City Hall with bold ambitions. He was immediately confronted with challenges. Gainey had been in...
Judge blocks White House’s attempt to defund the CFPB, ensuring employees get paid
NEW YORK — The White House cannot lapse in its funding of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a federal district court judge ruled on Tuesday, only days before funds at the bureau would have likely run out and the consumer finance agency would have no money to pay its employees....
After quiet off-year elections, Democrats renew worries about Trump interfering in the midterms
If history is a guide, Republicans stand a good chance of losing control of the House of Representatives in 2026. They have just a slim majority in the chamber, and the incumbent party usually gives up seats in midterm elections. President Donald Trump, whose loss of the House halfway through...
More musicians cancel Kennedy Center concerts following addition of Trump’s name to building
More artists have canceled scheduled performances at the Kennedy Center following the addition of President Donald Trump’s name to the facility, with jazz supergroup The Cookers pulling out of a planned New Year’s Eve concert, and the institution’s president saying the cancellations belie the artists’ unwillingness to see their music...
Kennedy Center criticizes musician who canceled performance after Trump name added to building
WASHINGTON — The president of the Kennedy Center on Friday fiercely criticized a musician’s sudden decision to cancel a Christmas Eve performance at the venue after the White House announced that President Donald Trump’s name would be added to the facility. “Your decision to withdraw at the last moment —...
Shapiro poised to become nation’s highest-paid governor
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is poised to get a raise of more than $8,000 in the coming year to boost his annual salary to $253,870, based on cost-of-living increases provided under state law to top officials. The raise appears to position Shapiro to become the nation’s highest-paid governor. The Democrat...
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt pregnant with 2nd child
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced Friday that she’s expecting to become a mom for the second time. “The greatest Christmas gift we could ever ask for — a baby girl coming in May 2026,” she wrote on Instagram. “My husband and I are thrilled to grow our family...
