Why government shutdowns are so common in the U.S.

Garret Martin is a Hurst senior professorial lecturer and the co-director of the Transatlantic Policy Center at the American University School of International Service. When it comes to shutdowns, the U.S. is very much an exception rather than the rule. On Oct. 1, 2025, hundreds of thousands of federal employees were furloughed as the business of government

Illegal Immigrants and Federal Health Benefits: What to Know

Republicans and Democrats offer competing claims about whether people who entered the country unlawfully are benefiting from Medicaid. “The law prohibits undocumented immigrants from getting payments from Medicare, Medicaid, or the ACA. There’s no money, not a penny of federal dollars that are going there,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on Sept. 30.

Immigration judge denies Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s bid to reopen immigration case

Washington — An immigration judge in Maryland declined to reopen the immigration case involving Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran man who was mistakenly deported to his home country earlier this year and then brought back to the U.S. to face criminal charges, according to court filings. Abrego Garcia’s lawyers had asked an immigration judge in

Supreme Court gears up for new term with cases on social issues, Trump policies

Washington — The Supreme Court is set to convene Monday for the start of its new term, with cases involving “conversion therapy” for minors, the use of race in redistricting and state laws barring the participation of transgender athletes in girls’ sports on the docket. But looming over the high court’s newest term are legal