The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper The Spokesman-Review
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
Current Temperature
47°F
Current Conditions
Clear sky
View complete weather report

Color Scheme

Subscribe now
Orion Donovan Smith

Orion Donovan Smith

Current Position: Washington, DC reporter

Orion Donovan Smith came to The Spokesman-Review in June 2020 through a grant received from the Report for America reporter program. He is the legislative reporter in our Washington, DC Bureau.

Email
orionds@spokesman.com
Phone
(202) 853-2524

All Stories

News >  Family

‘A grand experiment’: With first monthly payments to parents set to arrive Thursday, Democrats push to make them permanent

WASHINGTON – Starting Thursday, families across the United States will receive the first in a series of monthly payments of up to $300 per child that could dramatically cut child poverty and offer a preview of what might become a major part of the American social safety net for years to come – if Democrats get their way.
News >  Nation

‘Facing atrocities head-on’: Tribal leaders support Interior Secretary Deb Haaland’s decision to investigate Native American boarding schools

WASHINGTON – Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the first Native American to lead the federal agency that for decades oversaw a system of boarding schools that tore Indigenous children away from their families and cultures, announced Tuesday that her department is launching an initiative to investigate and account for the schools’ legacy.
News >  WA Government

New tax credit could cut child poverty in half, but White House and Northwest tribes fear poorest families could miss out

WASHINGTON – Starting in July, most American families are eligible to receive monthly payments of up to $300 per child that promise to cut child poverty by nearly half, but the White House and Inland Northwest tribes warned Monday that some of the children who need the benefits most could miss out unless their parents sign up through a new website.
News >  WA Government

Senate hearing highlights rift between Democrats, Republicans on student-athlete rights

WASHINGTON – A week after a Senate panel showed bipartisan agreement on the need to let collegiate athletes earn money while in school, current and former student-athletes and a father who lost his son to a deadly college football practice urged the senators Thursday to expand the scope of a bill to ensure athletes’ rights to health care, quality education and more.
News >  WA Government

As high-profile infrastructure talks grind along in Congress, Cantwell-led Senate panel approves separate $78 billion transportation bill

WASHINGTON – While attention at the Capitol remained focused on an uncertain effort to strike a bipartisan deal on new infrastructure spending, on Wednesday the Senate Commerce Committee voted overwhelmingly to approve a five-year, $78 billion transportation bill to boost the federal government’s annual spending on passenger rail, freight transportation, road safety and more.