Author

Daniel C. Vock

Daniel C. Vock

Daniel C. Vock is a Washington-based correspondent for States Newsroom.

American flag is pulled apart by red and blue ropes. Model diorama | NikHeap Getty Images

Redistricting efforts in the states strained by partisan fights

By: - October 21, 2021

WASHINGTON—This year’s round of redistricting is already crumbling into partisanship and court challenges in multiple states, even as voters pay more attention than ever to new political maps that will shape elections for a decade. Hopes were high initially. Advocates in several states pushed measures over the last few years that they hoped would lessen […]

Student Loan application form

Democrats’ vision for free community college would boost undocumented students

By: - October 4, 2021

WASHINGTON—The massive economic policy package Democrats are trying to muscle through Congress could open the door to free community college for undocumented immigrants. But that lifeline for many people now denied access to higher education could also reignite controversies in Republican-leaning states over immigration and federal overreach. The provision on immigrants was included in a plan drafted […]

Wisconsin farm cornfield and landscape -- Image by David Mark free use from Pixabay

Struggle over tax break for inherited farmland churns below surface in reconciliation bill

By: - September 20, 2021

WASHINGTON—Agricultural groups and farm-state lawmakers notched a significant win when U.S. House Democrats chose not to touch a big tax break for inherited property, avoiding for now a confrontation. But opponents remain wary that the idea could come back at any time as Democrats shape their massive $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation package, and search for ways […]

Feds expand Pell Grant program for prisoners working on college degrees

By: - August 27, 2021

WASHINGTON—Prison inmates around the U.S. are getting the chance to do something that was almost unheard of a generation ago: pursue a college degree while behind bars and with financial support from the federal government. Inmates in 42 states and Washington, D.C., can now get federal grants to work with colleges and universities to earn […]

University of North Carolina graduates (photo by Evonne CC BY 2.0)

GOP furor over ‘critical race theory’ hits college campuses

By: - July 6, 2021

Professors say the Republican crusade to root out “critical race theory” is taking a toll on college campuses around the nation—places where academic freedom is supposed to encourage thought, discussion and analysis.  Much of the “critical race theory” uproar to date has centered on teaching in K-12 schools. But several high-profile incidents, combined with new […]

PHoto of teacher in front of classroom looks distressed taken from behind students heads

Teachers come under pressure as politicians, parents battle over ‘critical race theory’

By: - June 15, 2021

WASHINGTON—Teachers across the country are swept up in a wave of outrage led by GOP politicians nationwide over how schools teach kids about race in U.S. history.  Conservatives, including those in Wisconsin, have pilloried much instruction about systemic racism as “critical race theory,” even when that academic term has never been mentioned. A half dozen […]

WASHINGTON, - JUNE 06: Demonstrators march past the Lincoln Memorial during a protest against police brutality and racism takes place on June 6, 2020 in Washington, DC. This is the 12th day of protests with people descending on the city to peacefully demonstrate in the wake of the death of George Floyd, a black man who was killed in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Attempts to ban teaching on ‘critical race theory’ multiply across the U.S.

By: - May 24, 2021

WASHINGTON—From statehouses to Congress, Republicans have launched into a fight against the teaching of “critical race theory,” which just a year ago was a niche academic term. Experts in critical race theory say it’s about acknowledging how racial disparities are embedded in U.S history and society, and the concept is being mischaracterized by conservatives. But […]

AMTRAK OPEN HOUSE ON PHILADELPHIA 30TH STREET STATION CSX, Capital Limited, Garret Park, Maryland, New Burnswich Line Southern Division, P42, Supperliner, train 29 The assignment was shooting a slow shutter shot of Amtrak passenger service speeding through

With ‘Amtrak Joe’ in the White House, states hope for a passenger rail renaissance

By: - April 30, 2021

Stu Nicholson has been trying for decades without success to get Amtrak—or any other passenger rail service—to come to Columbus, Ohio.  As director of All Aboard Ohio, a passenger rail advocacy group, Nicholson helped explore possibilities, like creating a new route from Chicago to Pittsburgh, with Columbus in the middle.  But for now, Columbus, a […]

Pete Buttigieg at NAACP forum (Photo by Andrew Roth)

Buttigieg puts greenhouse gas reduction at center of Biden transportation policy

By: - January 25, 2021

Former South Bend mayor Pete Buttigieg offered an unapologetic defense of President Joe Biden’s vision for improved transportation and greenhouse gas reductions during a Senate hearing to consider Buttigieg’s nomination for U.S. transportation secretary on Thursday.  “We need to build our economy back, better than ever, and the Department of Transportation can play a central […]

Pete Buttigieg at NAACP forum (Photo by Andrew Roth)

Buttigieg to inherit a crumbling network of roads, subways and rails at DOT

By: - December 28, 2020

Pete Buttigieg as the incoming pick for U.S. transportation secretary would take office at a time when both state and local officials are deeply frustrated that not enough is being done to maintain and improve the country’s transportation networks. But nobody seems to be able to solve the problem. For example, two presidents have vowed […]

U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos speaking at the 2017 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). Photo by Gage Skidmore. (Creative Commons license CC BY-SA 2.0)

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos heads for the exits, leaving a legacy of turmoil

By: - December 19, 2020

WASHINGTON—In four years in office, U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos failed to broaden her appeal beyond the moment she won a wild Senate confirmation fight by the closest of margins. She didn’t even try. Instead, the billionaire Michigan native and Republican megadonor championed private and charter schools, often trying to funnel federal funding toward them. […]

Holstein cows in a barn at the Marshfield Agricultural Research Station's north campus near Stratford, Wis., Wednesday afternoon, July 11, 2018. Photo by Michael P. King/UW-Madison CALS

Farmers likely to see more multinational trade deals crafted in Biden administration

By: - November 30, 2020

WASHINGTON—American farmers who have gone through the drama and turbulence of trade and agriculture policy in the Trump administration can expect a far more sedate and multinational experience when President-elect Joe Biden takes office in January. On just the third day of his administration, President Donald Trump rattled world leaders and upended exports by announcing […]