Author

Ariana Figueroa

Ariana Figueroa

Ariana covers the nation's capital for States Newsroom. Her areas of coverage include politics and policy, lobbying, elections and campaign finance.

A default on the U.S. debt would be far worse than a government shutdown. Here’s how

By: , , and - May 20, 2023

WASHINGTON — A U.S. default on its debt would have a significantly broader impact on federal operations, financial markets and the global economy than recent government shutdowns that have left ordinary Americans largely untouched. While the two have been confused frequently during debate over the debt limit, the federal government has had considerable practice with […]

Democratic attempt to expel Santos from U.S. House handed over to ethics panel

By: - May 18, 2023

Pennsylvania's U.S. House delegation broke along party lines, with two Democrats voting present on the resolution.

Pa.’s U.S. Rep. Smucker: Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan is a ‘bailout’

By: - May 17, 2023

U.S. House GOP lawmakers zeroed in on culture war issues as they grilled U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona.

MEXICAN BORDER TITLE 42

Pa. Republicans back bill to reinstate Trump-era immigration policies

By: and - May 12, 2023

The symbolic legislation has no future in the Senate. And President Joe Biden has said he will veto it.

Pa.’s Perry: Debt crisis ‘created by reckless Democrat policies and out of control spending’

By: and - May 11, 2023

The U.S. House GOP wants spending cuts — and $10B in home-state earmarks -- to avoid a potentially catastrophic default.

Bernie Sanders unveils push for $17/hr. federal minimum wage, citing state increases

By: - May 4, 2023

'You have billionaires who don't know what to do with their money, buying yachts and going off into outer space, so the time is long overdue,' Sanders said.

McDonald's Sign

At Kentucky McDonald’s, 10-year-olds worked past midnight, feds say

By: - May 3, 2023

WASHINGTON — Children as young as 10 were found working past midnight at a McDonald’s restaurant in Louisville, Ky., the U.S. Department of Labor said in announcing numerous civil penalties levied on fast-food franchises. As part of an investigation into federal child labor law violations in the Southeast, the Department of Labor said that three separate […]

Woman holds tablet and glass of water. Female going to take tablet from headache or painkiller or abortion pill medication drinking clear water from glass.

Congressional Democrats urge reversal of district court ruling on mifepristone

By: - May 2, 2023

Lawmakers argued that a federal judge's ruling poses a health risk to pregnant patients if they are denied access to mifepristone. 

Let Kids Play Art.

Biden proposal on transgender student athletes met with praise but also questions

By: - April 28, 2023

The proposed rule comes amid an unprecedented, coordinated attack on  transgender community members and their families.

A view of the U.S. Capitol (Capital-Star photo by Jennifer Shutt)

U.S. Senate Democrats denounce post-Dobbs landscape of state abortion bans, restrictions

By: - April 26, 2023

The chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, said the recent Texas lawsuit challenging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s more than 20-year approval of mifepristone has proven that the Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization has “paved the way for activist judges and Republican lawmakers to try to impose their anti-choice agenda on everyone else, even in states that have protected the right to abortion.”

The U.S. Capitol. Samuel Corum/Getty Images

Biden administration warns U.S. House GOP debt limit bill would slash education

By: - April 25, 2023

The White House said in a Tuesday statement that President Joe Biden would veto the proposal, calling it “a reckless attempt to extract extreme concessions as a condition for the United States simply paying the bills it has already incurred.” Biden has said debt limit legislation should not be tied to spending reductions.

Cherry blossoms outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C. (Capital-Star photo by Jennifer Shutt).

U.S. House approves bill banning transgender student athletes in girls sports

By: - April 20, 2023

The bill would amend Title IX so that 'sex shall be recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.'