The Paper Trail: October 18, 2024

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Announcements

Understanding Agency Objections: From Deliberative Process to Legislative Purpose: POGO’s virtual training on how to deal with an agency declining to cooperate with a congressional request will be held TODAY at 12 noon EDT. This event is only open to staff in Congress, GAO, and CRS. Register HERE.

The Paper Trail

Top stories for October 18, 2024

Senate Republicans raise questions after funds for disaster loans exhausted: A group of GOP senators pressed the SBA for answers after officials earlier this week said its disaster loan program exhausted its funds in the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The senators raised concerns about the SBA’s handling of its disaster loan account and what they described as the office’s “failure to provide its authorizing committees statutorily required information.” (Aris Folley, The Hill)

🔎 See Also: Helene, Milton losses expected to surpass “truly historic” $50 billion each (CBS News)

Independent panel issues scathing report on Secret Service and recommends leadership overhaul after Trump shooting: An independent panel of former law enforcement officials established by DHS recommended a complete overhaul of Secret Service leadership after reviewing the agency’s security failures that led to the near assassination of Donald Trump in Pennsylvania this summer. (Holmes Lybrand, CNN)

USPS accused of retaliation and harassment after employee raised racism allegations: People of color represent more than half of the Postal Service’s workforce. But for years, it has faced allegations of racism in its ranks. (Michael Sainato, The Guardian)

Doomsday and democracy: Former Trump aides warn of secret presidential crisis powers: Locked away in a classified safe on the White House grounds is the Presidential Emergency Action Documents (PEADs), also known as the “Doomsday Book”: a stack of papers crafted over decades listing the extraordinary powers a president may be authorized to use in the event of a nuclear attack or other major catastrophe. Successive administrations have refused to let Congress see those documents. (Brian Bennett, Time)

U.S. indicts 2 linked to Oct. 7 cyberattack on Israeli warning system: Two Sudanese brothers are accused of running a group which launched thousands of cyberassaults that disrupted websites belonging to government agencies including the FBI and Justice Department and news agencies including the Washington Post and CNN. (Michael Schwirtz, New York Times)

Warden who ran federal prisons with abusive practices now directs national training center: Andrew Ciolli, a warden who oversaw a culture of abuse at two different federal prisons and was referred for disciplinary action, has landed a role as the director of a national training academy for the Bureau of Prisons. (Christie Thompson, Beth Schwartzapfel, and Joseph Shapiro, The Marshall Project)

Insurrection

Donald Trump bears responsibility for Jan. 6 attack, Jack Smith argues in new filing: In a new court filing, the special counsel said Donald Trump “willfully caused his supporters to obstruct and attempt to obstruct” the certification of Joe Biden’s victory in 2020. Trump’s motion to dismiss the case based on claims of presidential immunity isn’t due until two days after the election. (Ryan J. Reilly, NBC News)

At least 30 election deniers and 2020 fake electors serving as Trump electors this year: Election deniers or fake electors from 2020 comprise more than a third of official GOP electors in seven key states this year. (Marshall Cohen et al., CNN)

Dobbs Aftermath

Conservative states kick off new fight to limit access to abortion pill mifepristone despite Supreme Court decision: Four months after the Supreme Court threw out an effort to restrict access to the abortion drug mifepristone, Missouri, Kansas, and Idaho filed an amended suit in a Texas federal court seeking to roll back FDA efforts to broaden access to the drug. (John Fritze, CNN)

Drug-sniffing police dogs are intercepting abortion pills in the mail: Local Postal Service employees and police officers are cracking down on the importation of foreign-made misoprostol and mifepristone pills. (Debbie Nathan, The Intercept)

Judge orders DeSantis administration to stop threats over abortion ads: Federal Judge Mark Walker said the state’s threats to prosecute TV stations that air pro-abortion rights ads amount to “unconstitutional coercion” and violate the First Amendment. Walker’s injunction against the state lasts until a week before the election, when Floridians will vote on a referendum that would repeal the state’s six-week abortion ban. (Lori Rozsa, Washington Post)

Russia-Ukraine War

Biden announces new $425 million aid to Ukraine: The U.S. has committed or provided more than $59 billion in military aid to Ukraine since Russia’s invasion in February 2022. (Mike Brest, Washington Examiner)

Political Misbehavior

Trump escalates threats to political opponents he deems the “enemy”: Never before has a presidential nominee — let alone a former president — openly suggested turning the military on American citizens simply because they oppose his candidacy. Donald Trump also still refuses to commit to a peaceful transfer of power. (Lisa Lerer and Michael Gold, New York Times)

Defense and Veterans Affairs

His country trained him to fight. Then he turned against it. More like him are doing the same: Despite the increasing participation in extremist activity by those with military experience, there is still no force-wide system to track it. Defense Department researchers developed a promising approach to detect and monitor extremism that the department has chosen not to use. (Jason Dearen, Michelle R. Smith, and Aaron Kessler, Associated Press)

Pentagon to give honorable discharges to some kicked out under “don’t ask, don’t tell”: About 13,500 service members were separated from the military under the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. About a third of them weren’t considered for discharge upgrades because they hadn’t served long enough to qualify. (John Ismay, New York Times)

Pentagon discloses 21 allegations of sexual misconduct in JROTC as it outlines reforms to Congress: Twenty-one instructors in the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program were accused of sexual misconduct against high school cadets in the 2022-23 school year. The number was disclosed in a new annual report Congress mandated amid concerns about a high rate of sexual assault and harassment in the program. (Rebecca Kheel, Military.com)

Canceled appointments, unexplained mixups – veterans facing challenges getting VA mental health care: Veterans say they often can’t get individual therapy appointments to accompany psychiatric medical care. And when they do connect, the treatment often is derailed by appointment cancellations and scheduling problems. (Patricia Kime, Military.com)

Analysis: Loopholes for military contractors are costing you money: Unchecked loopholes in the law help military contractors overcharge the Pentagon and taxpayers. (Eryn Scheyder, Project On Government Oversight)

Analysis: U.S. wasting billions on dead and violated arms control agreements: The ghost of dead and violated arms control agreements continues to impact U.S. national security policy and prevents the U.S. from reducing defense costs. (Mark B. Schneider, RealClear Defense)

Business and Finance

The DC bureaucrat who could deliver billions to Elon Musk: FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, a widely rumored contender for FCC chair in a Trump administration, downplays accusations that he’s showing special favor to Elon Musk. But he said he does want the government to play a bigger role in fostering the expansion of Musk’s Starlink satellite internet company. (John Hendel, Politico)

Many Americans are car poor from their auto loans. Here’s why: Nearly 1 in 4 consumers owe more on auto loans than the vehicle is worth, pushing the national average for upside-down balances to a record high of more than $6,400. (Michelle Singletary, Washington Post)

Amazon doubles down on nuclear energy with deal for small reactors: While small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) are pitched as safer than legacy nuclear plants, they produce significantly less power. That means more of the plants would need to be built, each having the potential to ignite community concerns about safety and environmental issues. (Shannon Najmabadi and Evan Halper, Washington Post)

Tech

The pipeline: How Russian propaganda reaches and influences the U.S.: Much remains unknown about Storm-1516 — one prong of Russia’s propaganda operation — but it has produced some of the most far-reaching and influential disinformation. Experts fear Storm-1516 and similar groups have the potential to sway public opinion by undermining the credibility of democratic institutions, influencing U.S. policy and diminishing people’s ability to distinguish fact from fiction. (Brandy Zadrozny, NBC News)

FBI arrests Alabama man in hack of SEC’s X account that caused bitcoin price spike: The hack reignited concerns about security on X, which for years has faced breaches that resulted in takeovers of high-profile accounts and multiple whistleblower complaints. (Hannah Ziegler, Washington Post)

The world’s largest internet archive is under siege — and fighting back: Last week’s hack of the Internet Archive drew comparisons to the destruction of the Library of Alexandria. It’s a dramatic comparison, but most agree that the Internet Archive has played a foundational role in the upkeep of online history. (Daniel Wu, Washington Post)

Infrastructure

Everyone loves rooftop solar panels. But there’s a problem: Researchers argue that home solar panels are raising the price of electricity and reducing the need for cheaper large solar farms — making the entire transition to clean energy more expensive and making it harder for the U.S. to meet its overall climate goals. (Shannon Osaka, Washington Post)

U.S. approves mega geothermal energy project in Utah: Despite the climate benefits, some environmentalists oppose enhanced geothermal because of its reliance on fracking, which has the potential to contaminate drinking water and trigger earthquakes. (Maxine Joselow, Washington Post)

Lead in Syracuse pipes creating “drinking water safety crisis,” groups warn: The National Resource Defense Council said the city of Syracuse, New York, substantially exceeds the federal level for lead in drinking water and is now among the highest reported lead levels in a major water system, rivaling the water contamination crisis in Flint, Michigan. (Spectrum News 1)

Health Care

Walgreens’ plan to close 1,200 stores in 3 years prompts fears of growing “pharmacy deserts”: More than 7,000 pharmacies have closed nationwide since 2019. Residents of predominantly minority communities have fewer pharmacies per capita than those who live in mostly white neighborhoods. (Megan Hickey, CBS News)

Postpartum mental health care still out of reach for many despite destigmatization efforts: Among new mothers in the U.S., one in eight suffer from postpartum depression, and three-quarters of them go undiagnosed or untreated. Most insurance policies don’t come close to meeting the demand for mothers in need of help. (Nikki Battiste, Devyn Rafols-Nunez, CBS News)

Columbia cancer surgeon notches 5 more retractions for suspicious data: Instances of research misconduct have lately bedeviled Columbia University and cancer labs at several other elite schools. (Benjamin Mueller, New York Times)

ICYMI

Project 2025:

→ Project 2025 ex-director condemns Heritage president’s “violent rhetoric”

Immigration and Border Security:

→ Lebanese nationals living in the U.S. will be granted humanitarian relief as Israel-Hezbollah conflict continues

→ The U.S.-Mexico border, the wall, and the thousands of acres between them

Other News:

→ Raytheon to pay $950 million to settle fraud, Qatar bribery charges

→ Justice Department to monitor voting in Ohio county after sheriff’s comment about Harris supporters

→ Crypto cash is flooding the 2024 election. Here’s who’s benefiting

→ A hidden form of punishment: criminal justice fees

→ Global water cycle off balance for first time in human history

Nominations & Appointments

APPOINTMENTS

• Joan Ferrini-Mundy - Member, National Science Board
• Yolanda Gil - Member, National Science Board
• Juan Gilbert - Member, National Science Board
• Michael Guest - Member, Commission on Reform and Modernization of the Department of State
• Jeffrey A. Isaacson - Member, National Science Board
• Willie E. May - Member, National Science Board
• Alondra Nelson - Member, National Science Board
• Sarah O'Donnell - Member, National Science Board
• Ryan Panchadsaram - Member, National Science Board
• Pamela Spratlen - Member, Commission on Reform and Modernization of the Department of State
• Kimberly Stegmaier - Member, National Cancer Advisory Board
• Caroline Tess - Member, Commission on Reform and Modernization of the Department of State
• Ricardo Zuniga - Member, Commission on Reform and Modernization of the Department of State