The Paper Trail: September 6, 2024
FBI Losing Track of Classified Data; States Still Waiting for Broadband Funds; Forever Chemicals Found on U.S. Farmland; and More.
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Announcements
Working with Agency & Industry Counsel on Oversight & Investigations: POGO’s virtual training on how to work cooperatively with investigative subjects to achieve your oversight goals will be held Friday, September 13 at 12 noon EDT. This event is only open to staff in Congress, GAO, and CRS. Register HERE.
Top stories for September 6, 2024
Biden administration hits Russia with sanctions over efforts to manipulate U.S. opinion ahead of the election: The Departments of Justice, State, and Treasury this week announced sanctions and criminal charges against alleged Russian government-sponsored attempts to manipulate U.S. public opinion ahead of the November election. (Ken Dilanian, Tom Winter, and Rebecca Shabad, NBC News)
🔎 See Also: Right-wing U.S. influencers say they were victims of alleged Russian plot (Phil McCausland, BBC)
🔎 See Also: Feds in Philly disrupt Russian-backed propaganda effort aimed at influencing U.S. presidential vote (Jeremy Roebuck, Philadelphia Inquirer)
Coronavirus vaccines, once free, are now pricey for uninsured people: As updated COVID vaccines hit U.S. pharmacy shelves, people without health insurance are discovering the shots are no longer free and cost up to $200. Health experts worry that the paltry 22% rate of adults staying up to date on vaccines will plummet further. (Fenit Nirappil, Washington Post)
Bugs, mold and mildew found in Boar’s Head plant linked to deadly listeria outbreak: USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service tallied 69 records of “noncompliances” flagged by inspectors over the past year at the Boar’s Head plant in Jarratt, Virginia. It’s unclear whether the company will face any penalties. Reports published by the USDA so far show no enforcement actions against the company in the past year. (Alexander Tin, CBS News)
ICE struggles to track unaccompanied minors, oversight report says: DHS’s inspector general found Immigration and Customs Enforcement has potentially lost track of thousands of unaccompanied migrant children after they were released from government custody. (Natalie Alms, Nextgov/FCW)
GSA has a backlog of 36,000 open fire, safety and health risk conditions in federal buildings: The GSA’s inspector general found the agency’s federal real estate unit has a backlog of thousands of unresolved health, safety, and fire risk conditions at public buildings across the country. (Carten Cordell, Government Executive)
FBI is losing track of classified and sensitive data, watchdog finds: The FBI needs to do a better job tracking internal hard drives containing sensitive data slated for destruction and disposal, according to an advisory memo from the DOJ’s inspector general. (Adam Mazmanian, Nextgov/FCW)
Wealthier homeowners nab billions in tax credits for energy efficiency: Upper-income homeowners are scooping up billions of dollars in tax credits for making their residences more energy efficient, while the poor are getting almost nothing under the same Biden administration effort. (Thomas Frank, Politico)
USDA chief admits “mistakes” as food shortages hit tribal populations, low-income seniors: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack acknowledged his department made mistakes in awarding a contract to a single distributor to supply critical food aid programs, a change that triggered food shortages among low-income and tribal populations in several states. (Meredith Lee Hill and Marcia Brown, Politico)
Israel-Hamas War
Biden authorized troubled Gaza pier operation as officials warned of weather and security challenges, watchdog finds: The White House authorized the Gaza pier operation despite warnings that the humanitarian aid effort would face weather challenges and security problems. The $230 million pier operated for only 20 days over a two-month span and delivered a fraction of the intended aid. (Oren Liebermann, CNN)
Supreme Court Ethics
Ginni Thomas privately praised group working against Supreme Court reform: “Thank you so, so, so much”: Last month, Ginni Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, privately congratulated a powerful religious-rights advocacy organization for fighting efforts to reform the court. (Andy Kroll and Nick Surgey, ProPublica)
Dobbs Aftermath
This doctor had to leave her state to learn how to perform abortions: A growing number of doctors are scrambling to find clinics in states willing to offer hands-on abortion training. (Alice Miranda Ollstein, Politico)
Political Misbehavior
Navy secretary violated the Hatch Act, OSC finds: The Office of Special Counsel found Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro violated the Hatch Act in January when he made statements advocating for the re-election of President Biden and criticizing Donald Trump during a BBC interview. President Biden will decide if Del Toro receives any punishment. (Sean Michael Newhouse, Government Executive)
Police Misconduct
A school cop was accused of sexual misconduct with kids. He kept his job for years: Predatory school police officers have used their positions to harm students, while the Justice Department and many law enforcement agencies and school systems have failed to take basic steps to prevent sexual misconduct and root out abusive cops. (Jenn Abelson, Jessica Contrera, and Nate Jones, Washington Post)
Chatbots offer cops the “ultimate out” to spin police reports, expert says: Officers have started using chatbots to tackle the dreaded task of drafting police reports. Legal and civil rights experts warn that the police report is the root of the entire justice system, and using AI to write them could have serious consequences. (Ashley Belanger, Ars Technica)
Defense and Veterans Affairs
Selling America: The Army’s fight to find recruits in a mistrustful, divided nation: Recruiters are struggling to find soldiers among a shrinking pool of qualified young people. Recruitment is getting harder in an increasingly polarized and pessimistic country. (Greg Jaffe and Missy Ryan, Washington Post)
A soldier abused young girls. The Army could have stopped him, lawsuit alleges: Despite a 2022 law that gave the decision to prosecute sex crimes to independent military attorneys, sexual misconduct in the ranks remains a problem. (Daniel Wu, Washington Post)
Army blames recent helicopter accidents on rushed training, pilot errors: There have been 14 major helicopter accidents resulting in 11 fatalities in the past year. The mishap rate is about double the yearly average over the last 10 years. The Army blames rushed training and pilot errors. (Stew Magnuson, National Defense)
An Air Force special ops squadron damaged three Ospreys in five days: Two new Air Force reports detail one disastrous week last year for an Air Force CV-22 Osprey squadron at Cannon Air Force Base. (Matt White, Task & Purpose)
🔎 See Also: Osprey crash investigations often blame the pilots and crew. Is that fair? (Drew F. Lawrence, Military.com)
New F-35s can fly combat training as DOD holds millions from Lockheed: Air Force officials and Lockheed Martin promised further improvements to the F-35, but the new jets will likely not be able to fly into combat until 2025. (Stephen Losey, Military Times)
Business and Finance
Some disabled workers in the U.S. make pennies per hour. It’s legal: Tens of thousands of disabled American workers are paid less than the federal minimum wage — sometimes as little as 25 cents per hour. The federal subminimum wage program is supposed to prepare these workers for higher-paying jobs, but many are paid low wages for years in a program that lacks accountability and oversight. (Amanda Morris, Caitlin Gilbert, and Jacqueline Alemany, Washington Post)
Maui wildfire survivors say insurers are failing to clean up toxic damage to their homes: Families whose homes were left standing after major wildfires often fight with insurers over cleaning up the mixture of toxic chemicals and microscopic particles the fires produce. (Brianna Sacks, Washington Post)
Kroger egg pricing turns merger trial into inflation fight: A Kroger executive testified in court that the grocery chain hiked prices on milk and eggs more than needed to account for higher costs, and that the company’s objective is to “pass through our inflation to consumers.” The FTC is challenging Kroger’s proposed acquisition of Albertsons, its primary competitor. (Leah Nylen, Bloomberg)
4 big airlines face U.S. inquiry over frequent flier programs: The Transportation Department is examining whether the companies are being straightforward with customers about what they would receive and the impact of the programs on competition. (Sydney Ember, New York Times)
Tech
Biden and Harris promised billions for broadband. Here’s why states are still waiting: President Biden’s 2021 infrastructure law promised $42 billion to help states expand broadband internet to hard-to-reach areas. So far, many states haven’t seen a cent of that money. (John Hendel, Politico)
Telegram’s Pavel Durov built a haven for free speech — and child predators: The Telegram messaging service’s anything-goes approach to online content has also made it one of the internet’s largest havens for terrorist groups, criminal organizations, and sexual predators. (Pranshu Verma, Will Oremus, and Gerrit De Vynck, Washington Post)
Infrastructure
Climate change can cause bridges to “fall apart like Tinkertoys,” experts say: Extreme heat and flooding are accelerating the deterioration of bridges, posing a quiet but growing threat. (Coral Davenport, New York Times)
Something’s poisoning America’s land. Farmers fear “forever” chemicals: Fertilizer made from municipal sewage has been spread on millions of acres of farmland for decades. Scientists say it contains high levels of PFAS, chemicals thought to increase the risk of cancer, birth defects, and developmental delays in children. (Hiroko Tabuchi, New York Times)
Health Care
Feds killed plan to curb Medicare Advantage overbilling after industry opposition: In early 2014, federal officials drafted a plan to discourage Medicare Advantage health insurers from overcharging the government, only to back off several months later amid pressure from the industry. (Fred Schulte, Fierce Healthcare)
Finding a therapist who takes your insurance can be nearly impossible. Here’s why: Although federal law requires insurers to provide the same access to mental and physical health care, these companies have been repeatedly caught shortchanging patients with mental illness by restricting coverage and delaying or denying treatment. (Annie Waldman et al., NPR)
How a leading chain of psychiatric hospitals traps patients: Acadia Healthcare is one of America’s largest chains of psychiatric hospitals. Some of that success was built on a disturbing practice: Acadia has lured patients into its facilities and held them against their will, even when detaining them was not medically necessary. (Jessica Silver-Greenberg and Katie Thomas, New York Times)
ICYMI
Project 2025:
→ Project 2025’s pro-corruption and anti-democracy agenda
→ Meet the think tank planning a second Trump administration. (It’s not Project 2025)
Immigration and Border Security:
→ Examining U.S. immigration issues: An interview with Katherine Hawkins
→ Biden’s asylum restrictions are working as predicted, and as warned
→ 140+ groups flag DHS’s AI use cases in new letter to Mayorkas
→ Homeland Security still dreams of face recognition at the border
→ What does a couple do when one partner is deported?
→ How an Ohio town landed in the middle of the immigration debate
→ Migrants in New York shelters face surprising challenge: getting their mail
Other News:
→ D.C. lawmaker reintroduces measure to grant whistleblower, OSHA protections to congressional workers
→ Trump is making new, sketchy foreign business deals
→ A Trump clemency recipient is convicted of domestic violence
→ The federal courts are full of judges who could retire but won’t. Little can be done about it
→ Meet the megadonors pumping millions into the 2024 election
→ How China extended its repression into an American city
→ Odds are you were impacted in the recent Social Security leak. Find out here
→ The corporation stealing your kid’s lunch money
→ How a small California city scored a big payout from Chevron
Because It’s Friday
NASA provides explanation for “strange noises” coming from Starliner spacecraft: NASA said the pulsating noise heard coming from the Boeing Starliner spacecraft was the result of an audio configuration between the International Space Station and the Starliner. (Stephen Sorace, Fox News)
Ahead of 9/11 commemorations, National Security Agency reveals details of its role in hunt for Osama bin Laden: Once so secretive that its very existence was classified, the NSA has sought in recent years to pull back the curtain on its operations and share more cybersecurity information with the public. (Olivia Gazis, CBS News)
Upcoming Events
📌 Where Do We Go From Here? Examining a Path Forward to Assess Agencies’ Efforts to Prevent Improper Payments and Fraud. House Committee on Oversight and Accountability; Subcommittee on Government Operations and the Federal Workforce. Tuesday, September 10, 10:00 a.m., 2154 Rayburn House Office Building.
📌 Accountable or Absent?: Examining VA Leadership Under the Biden-Harris Administration. House Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Tuesday, September 10, 10:15 a.m., 360 Cannon House Office Building.
📌 A Hearing with former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic. Tuesday, September 10, 2:00 p.m., 2154 Rayburn House Office Building.
📌 Financial Privacy under Fire: Protecting and Restoring Americans’ Rights. Cato Institute. Thursday, September 12, 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., F. A. Hayek Auditorium, 1000 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC.
Hot Docs
🔥📃 GAO - Priority Open Recommendations: Department of Homeland Security
Nominations & Appointments
Nominations
- Elizabeth C. Coombe - Judge, United States District Court for the Northern District of New York
- Sarah M. Davenport - Judge, United States District Court for the District of New Mexico
- Sharad H. Desai - Judge, United States District Court for the District of Arizona
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