The Paper Trail: March 21, 2025

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Announcements

Working with Whistleblowers on Oversight & Investigations: POGO’s virtual training on an introduction to oversight will be TODAY at noon. This event is only open to staff in Congress, GAO, and CRS. Register HERE.

Top stories for March 21, 2025

Judge calls Trump administration’s latest response on deportation flights “woefully insufficient”: U.S. District Judge Jeb Boasberg gave the administration until noon yesterday to either provide more details about the flights or make a claim that it must be withheld because it would harm “state secrets.” The administration resisted the judge’s request, calling it an “unnecessary judicial fishing” expedition. Boasberg gave the administration until Tuesday to decide whether it will invoke the state secrets privilege. (Alanna Durkin Richer, Associated Press)

🔎 See Also: Here are the names of the Venezuelans deported by the U.S. to El Salvador (Camilo Montoya-Galvez and Annabelle Hanflig, CBS News)

Trump signs executive order aimed at dismantling U.S. Department of Education: The White House says that some key functions of the Education Department, including federal student loans, will continue to be run out of the minimized agency. Only Congress can unilaterally eliminate the department, but the administration can starve it of resources. (Annie Nova, CNBC)

🔎 See Also: Judge orders Education Dept. to restore some grants to schools (Zach Montague, New York Times)

🔎 See Also: AFT sues Education Department over removal of IDR student loan applications (Lexi Lonas Cochran, The Hill)

Agencies are placing reinstated employees in leave status. Judge says that violates his order: The Trump administration is not complying with a federal judge’s order to reinstate fired probationary employees, with the court ruling that the placement of those workers on administrative leave is failing to meet his demands. (Eric Katz, Government Executive)

🔎 See Also: Reinstated, but not back to work: Fired workers linger in “limbo” (Eileen Sullivan and Isabelle Taft, New York Times)

Trump fires Democrats on Federal Trade Commission: President Trump fired Rebecca Kelly Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya, the two Democratic members of the FTC, a rejection of the consumer protection and antitrust regulator’s traditional independence. Slaughter and Bedoya said they will challenge the decision in court. (David McCabe and Cecilia Kang, New York Times)

Emails reveal top IRS lawyer warned Trump firings were a “fraud” on the courts: In the hours before the IRS sent out letters firing nearly 7,000 probationary employees, a fierce dispute played out at the agency’s highest levels. A senior lawyer at the agency warned that the performance-related rationale in the termination letters was “a false statement” that amounted to “fraud.” (Andy Kroll, ProPublica)

Law firm bends in face of Trump demands: Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, one of three law firms targeted by President Trump as part of his retribution campaign, reached a deal under which Trump will drop his executive order restricting the firm’s government access in exchange for the firm agreeing to various commitments, including representing clients no matter their political affiliation and contributing $40 million in legal services to Trump-approved causes. (Michael S. Schmidt, New York Times)

Donald Trump Jr. mixes business and politics in Serbia, as protests there rage: Donald Trump Jr.’s visit earlier this month to Serbia, which included a meeting with the country’s embattled leader, came as the Trump family and Jared Kushner pursue plans to build a Trump hotel in the capital. (Eric Lipton, New York Times)

White House press secretary asked about commerce secretary’s shilling for Elon Musk: During an appearance on Fox News on Wednesday, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick urged viewers to buy Tesla stock, an apparent violation of federal ethics laws. Cantor Fitzgerald, the financial services firm once run by Lutnick but now helmed by his children, held roughly 740,000 shares of Tesla stock at the end of 2024. (Edith Olmsted, New Republic)

Elon Musk & DOGE

Pentagon set up briefing for Musk on potential war with China: Elon Musk has extensive financial interests in China. Pentagon officials and President Trump denied that today's briefing would be about military plans involving China. (Eric Schmitt et al., New York Times)

Judge temporarily blocks DOGE from accessing sensitive Social Security data: U.S. District Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander on Thursday temporarily barred DOGE from accessing sensitive Social Security Administration data, finding that DOGE “essentially engaged in a fishing expedition ... thereby exposing personal, confidential, sensitive, and private information” of millions of Americans. (Maegan Vazquez, Washington Post)

Judge rails against DOGE for “terrorizing” U.S. Institute of Peace after using “guns and threats” to shut it down: U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell expressed alarm at allegations that DOGE provoked a standoff this week with the U.S. Institute of Peace by instigating a hostile “takeover” of the independent nonprofit that included threats to and harassment of institute staff and a private security contractor. (Alex Woodward, The Independent)

Musk’s role in dismantling aid agency likely violated Constitution, judge finds: U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang found that Elon Musk and DOGE’s efforts to permanently shutter USAID likely violated the Constitution because Musk acted as a U.S. officer without having been properly appointed to that role by the president. The judge ordered that agency operations be partially restored, although that relief is likely to be temporary. (Zach Montague, New York Times)

🔎 See Also: Two officials who helped dismantle USAID are named as its new leaders (Karoun Demirjian and Mattathias Schwartz, New York Times)

Bondi calls Tesla vandalism “domestic terrorism,” promising steep consequences: Attorney General Pam Bondi didn’t specify what charges would be brought against those who deface or destroy Tesla vehicles or damage Tesla facilities, but she said they could face sentences of at least five years in prison. (Minho Kim and Glenn Thrush, New York Times)

DOGE reverses move that made its claims nearly impossible to check: DOGE on Tuesday began providing more granular details on its “wall of receipts” website. However, the new data shows that DOGE continues to make exaggerated claims about the savings achieved from canceling federal grants. (David A. Fahrenthold and Jeremy Singer-Vine, New York Times)

Other DOGE News:

→ Musk conflict complaints appear moot with Trump in charge

→ Musk is firing federal workers who prevent bloated tech contracts

→ Meet Steve Davis: Elon Musk’s top lieutenant who oversees DOGE

→ Top House Democrats seek DOGE details, questioning if it operates “outside the bounds” of U.S. law

→ “It’s a heist”: Real federal auditors are horrified by DOGE

Russia-Ukraine War

Analysis: The misleading metric of aid to Ukraine: The metric of the dollar value of U.S. aid to Ukraine has served as a sleight of hand, misdirecting the public and policymakers away from what truly matters. The value is frequently inflated, unreliable, and based on questionable assessments of the worth of transferred equipment — much of which is outdated, depreciated, or poorly maintained. (Meaghan Mobbs, RealClear Defense)

Political Misbehavior

With orders, investigations and innuendo, Trump and GOP aim to cripple the left: President Trump and his allies in Congress are targeting the financial, digital, and legal machinery that powers the Democratic Party and the left-leaning political world. So far, their attacks have been diffuse, indiscriminate, and inaccurate. But inside the administration, there are moves to coordinate and expand the assault. (Kenneth P. Vogel and Shane Goldmacher, New York Times)

Defense and Veterans Affairs

Pentagon’s efforts to slash civilian workforce continue to cause confusion: Efforts to slash the Pentagon’s civilian workforce by more than 60,000 aren’t proceeding as planned, due in part to a March 14 court order that could force the rehiring of thousands of probationary employees. Adding to the turmoil, a personnel freeze has placed in limbo an untold number of workers who are moving into new roles, and in some cases are moving to new countries. (Meghann Myers, Government Executive)

Hegseth touts $580M in Pentagon cuts: The eliminated expenditures deemed “wasteful spending” include HR management software and grants and contracts involving DEI and related social programs, climate change, and COVID response. (Ellen Mitchell, The Hill)

Massive purge of Pentagon websites includes content on Holocaust remembrance, sexual assault and suicide prevention: Articles about the Holocaust, September 11, cancer awareness, sexual assault, and suicide prevention are among the more than 24,000 articles either removed or flagged for removal from Pentagon websites as part of the administration’s anti-DEI crackdown. (Natasha Bertrand, Haley Britzky, and Oren Liebermann, CNN)

Judge blocks policy that would expel transgender troops: U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes temporarily blocked the Trump administration from banning transgender people from serving in the military. According to the DOD, about 4,200 current service members, or about 0.2% of the military, are transgender. (Dave Philipps, New York Times)

The warship that shows why the U.S. Navy is falling behind China: A blizzard of design changes have put production of the USS Constellation years behind schedule and millions over budget. (Alistair MacDonald and Gordon Lubold, Wall Street Journal)

VA blocks its benefits employees from speaking freely to the department’s lawyers: The VA instructed employees in its benefits office not to interact with VA’s cadre of attorneys without direct permission from political leadership, raising questions as to how employees will seek legal advice on adjudicating claims, handling litigation, and interpreting new laws and directives. (Eric Katz, Government Executive)

Business and Finance

Justice Department removes disability guidelines for U.S. businesses: The DOJ removed guidelines for businesses on compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, including explanations of how retail businesses are required to have accessible features and guidance regarding COVID masking requirements. (Lauren Aratani, The Guardian)

“Segregated facilities” are no longer explicitly banned in federal contracts: Under a new policy implemented by the GSA, the federal government will no longer explicitly prohibit contractors from having segregated work areas, restaurants, waiting rooms, or water fountains. (Selena Simmons-Duffin, NPR)

White House plans to pause $175 million for Penn over transgender policy: The administration said it would suspend about $175 million in federal funding to the University of Pennsylvania over its “policies forcing women to compete with men in sports” — in particular, Penn’s allowing Lia Thomas, a transgender woman, to be on the women’s swim team several years ago. Dozens of schools are facing federal inquiries and are being squeezed by the administration’s efforts to cut federal spending. (Alan Blinder and Michael C. Bender, New York Times)

🔎 See Also: Facing anti-DEI investigations, colleges cut ties with nonprofit targeted by conservatives (Cheyanne Mumphrey and Jocelyn Gecker, Associated Press)

Why scammers are increasingly turning to bitcoin ATMs to carry out their cons: Bitcoin ATMs resemble regular ATMs and provide a legitimate and straightforward method to convert cash into cryptocurrency. But according to the FTC, between 2020 to 2023 consumer losses in bitcoin ATM scams skyrocketed nearly tenfold to $114 million annually, with people over the age of 60 more than three times more likely to be victimized than younger adults. (Brian New, CBS News)

Tech

White House seriously considering deal from Oracle to run TikTok: The software company Oracle is accelerating talks with the White House on a deal to run TikTok, although significant concerns remain that any new ownership deal — if it keeps TikTok’s underlying technology in Chinese hands — could be only a surface-level fix to the security concerns that led to last year’s ban. Oracle founder and executive chairman Larry Ellison is a longtime Trump supporter. (Dasha Burns et al., Politico)

Facial recognition company Clearview attempted to buy social security numbers and mugshots for its database: Controversial facial recognition company Clearview AI attempted to purchase hundreds of millions of arrest records including social security numbers, mugshots, and email addresses to incorporate into its product. Both in the U.S. and internationally, Clearview AI has faced scrutiny for collecting images from social media websites. (Freddy Martinez, 404 Media)

Infrastructure

Judge bars Trump’s EPA from taking back $20B in climate grants — for now: U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan temporarily blocked the EPA from clawing back $20 billion in climate and clean-energy grants deposited at Citibank, but the decision didn’t revive the plaintiff nonprofit groups’ ability to draw from the funds. (Zack Colman, Politico)

NTSB recommends 68 bridges in U.S. be evaluated for risk of collapse. See the full list: The NTSB this week recommended 68 bridges across 19 states — including the Golden Gate Bridge and Brooklyn Bridge — be evaluated with a “vulnerability assessment” to determine their risk of collapse if involved in a vessel collision in the wake of last year’s collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. (Kierra Frazier, CBS News)

Health Care

Kennedy’s alarming prescription for bird flu on poultry farms: Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suggested allowing the bird flu virus to spread so as to identify birds that may be immune. Scientists say letting the virus sweep through poultry flocks unchecked would be inhumane and dangerous and have enormous economic consequences. (Apoorva Mandavilli, New York Times)

Trump administration weighing major cuts to funding for domestic HIV prevention: HHS is weighing plans to drastically cut funding for domestic HIV prevention, despite President Trump’s 2019 pledge to end the HIV epidemic in the U.S. (Liz Essley Whyte, Dominique Mosbergen, and Jonathan D. Rockoff, Wall Street Journal)

How airline pilots are incentivized to hide their mental illness: Pilots must be deemed medically fit by the FAA through a certification process. But being honest with the FAA about their medical history — particularly their mental-health history — can also jeopardize their careers. (Helen Ouyang, New York Times)

ICYMI

Immigration and Border Security:

→ Meet the ICE contractor running deportation flights

→ Navy plans to deploy second destroyer to patrol waters off U.S. and Mexico this week

→ Pentagon reviewing plans to cut troops handling migrants at Guantanamo

→ ICE “disappeared” 48 New Mexico residents, attorneys say

→ Judge blocks Trump administration from deporting Georgetown researcher who was in U.S. legally

→ Detentions of European tourists at U.S. borders spark fears of traveling to America

→ French academic denied entry to U.S. for “personal opinion” on Trump

→ An ICE contractor is worth billions. It’s still fighting to pay detainees as little as $1 a day to work

→ 67,000 white South Africans express interest in Trump’s plan to give them refugee status

Other News:

→ What’s in the new JFK files? Spies. State secrets. No second gunman

→ Musk donates to GOP members of Congress who support impeaching judges

→ Democratic oversight leader warns against staff cuts to agency FOIA offices

→ Social Security requiring in-office visits for millions of recipients, applicants

→ GSA to “quadruple” in size to centralize procurement across the government

→ Trump ends program millions in China use for internet, worrying Congress

→ Trump drastically cutting back annual human rights report

→ Trump administration prepares to give gun rights back to some convicts

Upcoming Events

📌 Forecasting Disaster: How DOGE's Cuts to NOAA Will Affect Weather Awareness and Well-Being. Center for American Progress. Monday, March 24, 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. ET.

📌 Nomination of Frank Bisignano to be Commissioner of the Social Security Administration. Senate Committee on Finance. Tuesday, March 25, 10:00 a.m., 215 Dirksen Senate Office Building.

📌 Oversight Hearing National Transportation Safety Board. House Committee on Appropriations. Wednesday, March 26, 9:30 a.m., 2358-A Rayburn House Office Building.

📌 NTSB Preliminary Report: The DCA Midair Collision. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation; Subcommittee on Aviation, Space, and Innovation. Thursday, March 27, 10:00 a.m., 253 Russell Senate Office Building.

Nominations & Appointments

Nominations

• Bryan Bedford - Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration

Appointments

• Adam Cassady - Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary and Deputy Administrator, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, Department of Commerce