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U.S. Supreme Court Justices Elena Kagan, left, and Amy Coney Barrett testify before the House Appropriations Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee on July 14, 2026. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) WASHINGTON — Members of Congress from both parties indicated Tuesday they will support additional security funding for the U.S. Supreme Court after two justices testified about a sharp rise in threats. Associate Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett told lawmakers on the House panel that writes the court’s annual funding bill an increase is needed to ensure around-the-clock security wherever they go and for upgrades to the building. “Maybe I lack imagination, but I didn’t expect that performing this service was going to put me in the position of explaining to my children what a bulletproof vest was and why I had to wear one,” Barrett said.  Kagan told members of the House Appropriations Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee during...

Security stands outside ICE headquarters while the Congressional Hispanic Caucus rallies on Feb. 3, 2026 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Heather Diehl/Getty Images) WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security Tuesday ordered U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to cease vehicle-related enforcement stops, following the deadly shootings of two men in their vehicles,  according to multiple media reports.  A DHS spokesperson did not respond directly to States Newsroom’s question about what was characterized in some reports as a new nationwide order.  “We are always evaluating our procedures to keep our officers safe and criminals off our streets,” the spokesperson said. “We will not disclose or discuss law enforcement tactics.” U.S. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, a Republican who is up for reelection in one of the nation’s most closely watched races,  said on social media Tuesday that she spoke with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin on Monday...

White House budget director Russell Vought speaks with reporters inside the U.S. Capitol in 2025. The U.S. Office of Management and Budget, under Vought, has proposed a new rule that would overhaul the federal grantmaking process, worrying Democratic governors. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom) A coalition of 23 state governors and the governor of Guam, all Democrats, submitted a joint comment to the U.S. Office of Management and Budget on Monday objecting to a proposed rule that would drastically change the federal grantmaking process, saying it threatens programs related to maternal health and reproductive care. The public comment period on the draft rule , posted on May 29 with 41 co-signing federal agencies, closes at the end of the day Monday, July 13. The current rule emphasizes that grant applications should be reviewed based on merit, with language about measurable results that align with an agency’s strategic goals and objectives, while considering available data, e...

Protesters gather in Biddeford after a man was fatally shot by ICE agents on Monday. (Photo by Emma Davis/Maine Morning Star) The Maine Attorney General’s Office is investigating the fatal shooting of a 26-year-old Colombian man by federal immigration agents Monday morning in Biddeford. The immigration agent who shot the man will be put on leave, according to a statement released by the office. The agent “was conducting an enforcement operation related to a final order of removal when the subject attempted to flee in a vehicle in the direction of the officer and was fatally shot,” the statement says.    It is standard protocol in police involved shootings for officers to be placed on leave. Several law enforcement agencies are assisting with the investigation, including federal authorities and local police departments from Biddeford and Saco, according to a statement on Monday.   The Attorney General’s Office will remain on the scene to continue its investigation, and the man ...

Darline Graham Nordone, center, accepted the appointment by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, right, at the Statehouse Monday, July 13, 2026, to serve out the remainder of the term of her late brother, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham. (Photo by Jessica Holdman/SC Daily Gazette) COLUMBIA — Darline Graham Nordone will finish out the term of her older brother, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, who adopted and raised her following their parents’ deaths. Gov. Henry McMaster’s appointment Monday comes a day after word of Graham’s sudden death, at the age of 71, stunned not only South Carolinians but people around the globe. “It’s my honor to ask his little sister to finish his work,” the governor said in making his announcement at the Statehouse. He took no questions from reporters. Graham Nordone, who heads the state Commission for the Blind and has spent her career helping people with disabilities find jobs, will fulfill the term that expires in January. Voters...

President Donald Trump attends a bilateral meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on the sidelines of the G7 Summit on June 17, 2026 in Evian-les-Bains, France. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump “acted in bad faith” when he swiftly dropped his tax return lawsuit and directed his Cabinet members to establish a $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund, a federal judge in Florida ruled Monday. Federal Judge Kathleen Williams of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida excoriated Trump, his sons Eric and Don Trump Jr., and their private Trump Organization for using the presidency to “manipulate the judicial process to pursue benefits unavailable in litigation.” The Trumps and their private company voluntarily dropped a $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service in May  in exchange for the departments of Justice and Treasury creating a $1.776 billion fund for alleged “victims of lawfare.” Critics  p...