Weekly Spotlight: Not of its Own Volition
Takeaways from the DHS hearings this week
Top Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials appeared before both the House and Senate for questioning this week for the first time since the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good. In both hearings, the officials showed no remorse for the widespread abuse, violence, and chaos caused by DHS officers and agents, and the immigration crackdown at large. It was an unsurprising confirmation that DHS cannot be trusted to uphold constitutional laws and rights by its own volition. Any change will have to be forced by Congress. With DHS funding in the balance, your representatives must use this crucial window and the powers available to them to bring some semblance of accountability to this rogue agency. We’ve released a list of specific, enforceable reforms — help us push Congress to pass them.
- POGO’s Recommendations for Reform: Congress can prevent DHS abuses. Here’s what lawmakers should push for to have the most impact.
- “Let me send a message to anyone who thinks they can intimidate us. You will fail,” said Todd Lyons, Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in a revealing defense of the agency’s tactics.
- On Thursday, the Trump administration announced an end to the immigration crackdown in Minnesota amidst widespread criticism and disapproval. It’s proof that your voice makes a difference and is all the more reason to keep acting on your outrage.
The Surveillance State
(Illustration: Ren Velez / POGO; Photos: Getty Images)
POGO has long warned about the sprawling surveillance apparatus built by the federal government and the potential for abuse by an authoritarian government. This White House has fully realized that potential, with DHS deploying a whole arsenal of tools against immigrants and protestors — even abusing the government’s own IRS and Medicaid data. “Driven by a fundamentally racist immigration policy, the administration is systematically steamrolling longstanding statutory privacy protections to unlock the ultimate potential of surveillance — not just monitoring, but targeting, millions of people at a time on a whim,” writes POGO’s Don Bell. The writing was on the wall.
- Congress must restrict DHS’s purchase and use of surveillance technology — but it can’t stop there. It needs to take sweeping action to dismantle the surveillance state and protect your rights and freedoms, under this administration and the next.
- Some good news: POGO has been calling for restrictions around DHS agents’ use of body cameras. The reform is gaining traction in Congress. And some states are stepping forward where Congress has failed in an effort to hold federal agents accountable and bar secretive and aggressive tactics.
- We are also glad to see the House opening up an investigation into claims that the White House pressured Google and Apple to remove apps tracking ICE agents from their app stores.
Courts hold the line on two crucial fronts.
Late last year, a group of lawmakers released a video on social media telling members of the military and the intelligence community that they have the right to disobey illegal orders (this is indeed true and fundamental). The Department of Justice opened an investigation into those lawmakers over the remarks. The Pentagon also went after former naval officer and current Senator Mark Kelly (D-AR) directly, attempting to punish him for his remarks. POGO strongly condemned these blatant acts of retaliation and nearly 2,000 of you emailed Congress on the matter. We’re reassured to report that the courts barred this egregious abuse of executive power. This week, the grand jury in the DOJ case refused to indict the lawmakers and a federal judge temporarily blocked the Pentagon from punishing Kelly. These systems of justice are not tools for bullying critics into silence. We applaud the courts for defending these lawmakers’ right to free speech.
POGO Experts on Fraud
(Illustration: Ren Velez / POGO)
- In testimony to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, POGO’s Dylan Hedtler-Gaudette highlighted the systemic solutions for addressing fraud in federal spending and programming.
- POGO’s Faith Williams testified at a Democrat-led hearing about the havoc wreaked by DOGE and the administration at large in their purported mission to root out fraud and reshape the government. She writes, “There is an arrogance and a brutality in this administration’s approach toward our government and the people it serves. And there is a certain sly grin and winking nod that seems to imply that while many are losing out, a select few are more powerful and profitable than ever.”
- “If Congress is serious about addressing fraud, they must protect this key watchdog:” A new op-ed from POGO’s Janice Luong.
Introducing POGO Investigates
After 45 years of hard-hitting investigations, the Project On Government Oversight is solidifying its commitment to shining a spotlight on corruption and abuse of power in the federal government by launching POGO Investigates, a formal nonprofit newsroom division dedicated to original reporting.
