Oversight in your inbox
Weekly newsletter and updates
Latest Policy Publications
POGO’s experts push policymakers to enact commonsense reforms that tackle waste, corruption, and abuse of power; hold those who’ve violated the public trust accountable; protect our constitutional rights; and make the government work for all people.
-
Analysis
Intelligence Chief Uses Unreliable Lie Detector Technology to Plug Media Leaks
The testing could put intelligence workers at risk of being falsely stigmatized, jeopardizing their careers and their ability to contribute to the national security. It also could have a chilling effect on employees considering blowing the whistle on government wrongdoing.
-
Analysis
Zooey Greif Interviews Winslow T. Wheeler
Wheeler discusses his article “The Jet That Ate the Pentagon;” the large portion of procurement money earmarked for the F-35; why single-purpose planes are better and cheaper than multipurpose ones; and the price/performance penalty inherent in stealth aircraft.
-
Analysis
The Sequester Noise
The Hill is today publishing a raft of commentaries on the defense budget sequester. They include pieces by myself, Gordon Adams and Mackenzie Eaglen.
-
Policy Letter
POGO and Allies Thank Senators Who Voted Against Closing NDAA FY13
We, the undersigned national organizations representing a range of policies, interests and ideologies, asked you and other members of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) to open this year’s markup of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to the public.
-
Policy Letter
POGO and Allies Tell Senate Armed Services Not to Fund Nuclear Boondoggle
We are concerned that your Committee chose to fund the Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Replacement Nuclear Facility (CMRR-NF) in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013, even though President Obama requested no funding and the Energy and Water Appropriati...
-
Analysis
The Guerilla Warfare of Pentagon Contractors
Defense contractors, in their relentless campaign to avoid reductions in Pentagon spending and, consequently, the hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars they receive every year, have started taking hostages—their own employees.
-
Analysis
JPMorgan Deploys Former Regulators to Talk to Current Regulators
Amid a sweeping overhaul of Wall Street regulation, JPMorgan Chase, the banking powerhouse, has often deployed former government officials to represent it in Washington.
-
Analysis
An Interview with Rolling Stone Reporter Michael Hastings
Michael Hastings never thought he was going to get the top commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan fired. But in June 2010, one of the hottest D.C. summers on record, the Rolling Stone reporter—who was then only 30-years-old—penned a piece that sent shockwaves throug...
-
Policy Letter
POGO supports Nuclear Regulatory Commission chair nominee Allison Macfarlane
We write to express our support for the President’s nomination of Dr. Allison Macfarlane to chair the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Founded in 1981, the Project On Government Oversight (POGO) is a nonpartisan independent watchdog that champions good government reforms. ...
-
Analysis
Will the GSA Be Able to Break Free of the DUNS Number?
The federal government may be in a tough spot with regard to overseeing the $1 trillion it spends every year on contracts, grants, and financial assistance because the General Services Administration (GSA) heavily relies on one particular recordkeeping system developed by a pr...
-
Analysis
Billion-Dollar Deal with Russian Firm Sets Off Contracting Alarm
Day by day, Bashar al-Assad's brutal Syrian regime continues to crack down on its own civilian population. So when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accused Russia this week of providing attack helicopters to the Syrian government, most Americans were rightly outraged. But ho...
-
Analysis
Common Defense Quarterly Article on Drones
The Summer 2012 issue of Common Defense Quarterly is running my article, "MQ-9 Reaper: Not the 'Revolution in Warfare' You've Been Told."