The Paper Trail: April 25, 2025

Signalgate: Act III; Trump Cryptocurrency Pay-To-Play; RFK Jr. Amassing Americans’ Medical Records; And More.

Apr 25, 2025

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The Paper Trail

Announcements

The Office of the Whistleblower Ombuds is hosting a pop-up tabling event on April 28 from 12:00 noon to 1:30 p.m. in the Longworth Cafeteria. Stop by and pick up their latest guides, get your questions answered, and learn more information about designating a staff member as your Office Whistleblower Liaison (OWL).

Elon Musk & DOGE

Elon Musk vows to spend less time in Washington as Tesla’s profit drops 71%: Musk said he would continue to spend “a day or two per week” on Washington matters, probably for the rest of Trump’s presidency. (Jack Ewing, New York Times)

100 days of DOGE: lots of chaos, not so much efficiency: Reuters found 20 instances where staff and funding cuts led to purchasing bottlenecks and increased costs, paralysis in decision-making, longer public wait times, higher-paid civil servants filling in menial jobs, and a brain drain of scientific and technological talent. (Tim Reid, Alexandra Alper, and Nathan Layne, Reuters)

What Elon Musk didn’t budget for: firing workers costs money, too: Experts estimate that firings, re-hirings, lost productivity, and paid leave of thousands of workers will cost upward of $135 billion this fiscal year. At the IRS, the DOGE-driven exodus of 22,000 employees would cost about $8.5 billion in revenue in 2026 alone. (Elizabeth Williamson, New York Times)

Here’s all the Health and Human Services data DOGE has access to: DOGE has access to 19 accounting systems at HHS. In at least one instance, it appears that access was granted without the proper security training. (Matt Giles et al., Wired)

When government thinks you’re dead, it upends lives. DOGE may make it worse: False claims by Elon Musk and DOGE about dead people getting benefits have led to millions of names being erroneously added to Social Security’s Death Master File, possibly in violation of a court order. (Meryl Kornfield, Lisa Rein, and Hannah Natanson, Washington Post)

Other DOGE News:

→ How Americans feel about DOGE and Elon Musk

→ “Who is DOGE?” has become a metaphysical question

Weaponization of the Government

Trump and GOP ramp up investigations on Democrats’ top fundraising platform: President Trump directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate ActBlue, the main fundraising apparatus of the Democratic Party, “regarding the unlawful use of online fundraising platforms to make ‘straw’ or ‘dummy’ contributions or foreign contributions to political candidates and committees.” Congressional Republicans have investigated similar complaints against ActBlue, but the claims haven’t been substantiated. (Maeve Reston and Jeremy Roebuck, Washington Post)

States could lose infrastructure funding over immigration, DEI: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned states they will lose federal funding for roads, bridges, and other infrastructure projects if they continue to foster DEI programs, impede President Trump's immigration enforcement efforts, or defy other directives from the administration. (Elizabeth Crisp, The Hill)

Angst builds inside federal agency over Trump’s moves against law firms: The EEOC has become a powerful weapon in President Trump’s anti-DEI assault on the nation’s biggest law firms, upending the agency’s traditional role in enforcing civil rights laws and upsetting its staff. (Jessica Silver-Greenberg, Matthew Goldstein, and Kenneth P. Vogel, New York Times)

🔎 See Also: EEOC texted college professors’ personal phones to ask if they're Jewish (Akela Lacy, The Intercept)

Trump signs executive order targeting university accreditors: The order’s purpose is to combat what the administration calls “ideological overreach” and “divisive DEI ideology” in higher education. (Sara Randazzo and Meridith McGraw, Wall Street Journal)

Signalgate

Hegseth had Signal messaging app installed on an office computer: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth installed Signal on a desktop computer in his Pentagon office. In doing so, Hegseth effectively “cloned” the app on his personal cellphone, a work-around that enabled him to use Signal in a classified space where cellphones and other personal electronics aren't permitted. (Dan Lamothe, Washington Post)

Hegseth’s personal phone use created vulnerabilities, analysts say: Hegseth’s personal phone number, the one used in the Signal chat, was easily accessible on the internet and public apps as recently as March, potentially exposing national security secrets to foreign adversaries. “There’s zero percent chance that someone hasn’t tried to install Pegasus or some other spyware on his phone,” said Mike Casey, former director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center. (Helene Cooper et al., New York Times)

Details Hegseth shared on Signal came from a secure site: Details about American strikes in Yemen that Hegseth shared on Signal came from U.S. Central Command through a secure system designed for sending classified information. (Helene Cooper and Eric Schmitt, New York Times)

Prominent role of Pete Hegseth’s wife at Pentagon draws scrutiny: News that Jennifer Hegseth was included in a second group chat where he shared sensitive military operations details has focused attention on the prominent role she has occupied at the Pentagon without being formally employed. It’s unclear if she has received a security clearance. (Haley Britzky and Natasha Bertrand, CNN)

Dobbs Aftermath

The data we don’t collect is killing women: Since Roe was overturned, at least 10 women have died as a direct result of their inability to access healthcare. This number is only a guess, because there’s no single national resource tracking reproductive healthcare data. (Sydney Saubestre, Ms.)

Defense and Veterans Affairs

Pentagon to resume medical care for transgender troops: The Pentagon is returning to the Biden-era medical policy for transgender service members following to a court order that struck down gender-affirming care restrictions. The administration is appealing the order, but an appellate court in California denied the effort to halt the policy while its challenge is pending. (Jack Detsch, Paul McLeary, and Kyle Cheney, Politico)

Navy Secretary John Phelan ends climate action plan as DOD cuts programs: Navy Secretary John Phelan scrapped the service’s climate action program aimed at addressing a threat his predecessor called “existential.” In a video posted on X, Phelan said, “We need to focus on having a lethal and ready naval force, unimpeded by ideologically motivated regulations.” (Anastasia Obis, Federal News Network)

VA forces staff in workforce reduction discussions to sign non-disclosure agreements: VA is requiring all employees working on plans to slash tens of thousands of workers to sign non-disclosure agreements, an unusual move that has prevented supervisors from sharing basic information with staff. The NDAs could also be violating whistleblower protection laws. (Eric Katz, Government Executive)

Officials launch task force to root out “anti-Christian bias” in VA: The VA asked employees to report fellow staffers for any “informal policies, procedures, or unofficial understandings hostile to Christian views.” (Leo Shane III, Military Times)

Health Care

Measles surge in Southwest is now the largest single outbreak since 2000: Health officials managing this year’s outbreak are facing unexpected obstacles, most notably mass layoffs at federal health agencies and cuts in federal funds to local health departments. A senior CDC scientist said the agency is now “scraping to find the resources” to support states grappling with outbreaks. (Teddy Rosenbluth and Apoorva Mandavilli, New York Times)

🔎 See Also: Americans unsure what to believe about the measles vaccine, poll shows (Anumita Kaur, Washington Post)

🔎 See Also: Millions of U.S. measles cases forecast over 25 years if shots decline (Lena H. Sun, Washington Post)

Trump cuts threaten meals and services for people with disabilities and the aging: The Administration for Community Living, the federal agency responsible for overseeing programs for people with disabilities and senior citizens, is being dismantled as part of the overhaul of HHS. (Reed Abelson, New York Times)

FDA suspends milk quality tests amid workforce cuts: The FDA is suspending a quality control program for the testing of milk and other dairy products due to reduced capacity in its food safety and nutrition division. (Leah Douglas, Reuters)

USDA withdraws a plan to limit salmonella levels in raw poultry: The USDA won’t require poultry companies to limit salmonella bacteria in their products, withdrawing a rule proposed in August aimed to reduce an estimated 125,000 salmonella infections from chicken and 43,000 from turkey each year. (Jonel Aleccia, Associated Press)

DOJ cancels grants for gun-violence and addiction prevention, victim advocacy: The DOJ canceled grants to community organizations and local governments for gun-violence prevention programs, crime-victim advocacy, and efforts to combat opioid addiction. (Perry Stein, Tom Jackman, and Jeremy Roebuck, Washington Post)

Trump touts “clean coal” — but cuts programs that protect miners: A federal program that screens coal miners for black lung disease has been shuttered because of layoffs and budget cuts. (Maxine Joselow and Ricky Carioti, Washington Post)

More than 400 nonprofit hospitals chase down patients eligible for free care: Although America’s approximately 3,000 nonprofit hospitals are required by law to provide free or discounted medical care to those who cannot afford it, hundreds of those hospitals continue to bill the lowest-income Americans. (Steve Reilly et al., CBS News)

ICYMI

Immigration and Border Security:

→ Judge orders administration to seek return of another deported migrant

→ Trump says undocumented immigrants shouldn’t get trials before deportation

→ After a month of searching, man learns from NBC News that DHS sent his brother to El Salvador

→ ICE arrested Columbia protester without a warrant, court documents show

→ Senator probes CBP nominee’s alleged interference in migrant death investigation

→ ICE Air Has a New Contractor. This State Is Asking How It Will Protect the Detainees on Board.

→ Fearing Trump’s visa crackdown, college students race to scrub op-eds

Other News:

→ Judge pauses parts of Trump’s sweeping executive order on voting

→ Meet the top donors to Trump’s $239 million inauguration fund

→ AI firm behind mysterious Trump donation is run by alleged election overthrow plotter

→ Interim DC U.S. Attorney Ed Martin ghostwrote online attacks against a judge — and still became a top Trump prosecutor

→ Dallas SWAT doctor Alex Eastman has years of acclaim — and sexual harassment allegations

→ Leaders of mental health giant promised big bonuses to deal with federal investigations

Because It’s Friday

No more food dye in Froot Loops? Not so fast: Companies like Kellogg make packaged foods without synthetic dyes in other countries. The question is: Will big food companies adopt the practice in the U.S.? And will consumers, raised on color-popping cereals, flame-colored chips, and neon blue sports drinks consume those foods if they are a bit more…beige? (Julie Creswell, New York Times)

Upcoming Events

📌 Tracking Progress: Updates to DOD’s Financial Management Scorecard. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform; Subcommittee on Government Operations. Tuesday, April 29, 10:00 a.m., 2247 Rayburn House Office Building.

📌 Oversight of the U.S. Postal Service. House Committee on Appropriations; Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government. Wednesday, April 30, 10:00 a.m., 2358A Rayburn House Office Building.