Article excerpt: But internal DHS records reviewed by ProPublica contradict Noem’s Senate testimony. The records show Lewandowski personally approved a multimillion-dollar equipment contract at the agency last summer. That was not a one-off. Lewandowski has approved numerous contracts at DHS and often needs to sign off on large ones before any money goes out the door, the current and former department employees said. Last year, Noem imposed a new policy that consolidated her and her top aides’ power over all spending at DHS, requiring that she personally review and approve all contracts above $100,000. Before the contracts reach Noem, they must be approved by a series of political appointees, who each sign or initial a checklist sometimes referred to internally as a routing sheet. Typically, the last name on the checklist before Noem’s is Lewandowski’s, the DHS officials said.

#ICYMI: Noem denied that aide Corey Lewandowski was involved in approving DHS contracts.

But DHS staffers say Lewandowski had approved numerous contracts at the agency and often needed to sign off on large contracts before any money went out the door.

➡️ More: https://propub.li/3Nh7wZd

Note from the editors: ProPublica is publishing the names of the two federal immigration agents involved in the fatal shooting of Minnesota protester Alex Pretti. We believe there are few investigations that deserve more sunlight and public scrutiny than this one, in which two masked agents fired 10 shots at Pretti as he lay on the ground after being pepper-sprayed. The Department of Justice said it is investigating the incident, but the names of the two agents have been withheld from Congress and from state and local law enforcement. The policy of shielding officers’ identities, particularly after a public shooting, is a stark departure from standard law enforcement protocols, according to lawmakers, state attorneys general and former federal officials. Such secrecy, in our view, deprives the public of the most fundamental tool for accountability.

A note from our editors:

Two CBP Agents Identified in Alex Pretti Shooting The two federal immigration agents who fired on Minneapolis protester Alex Pretti are identified in government records as Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and Customs and Border Protection officer Raym...

BREAKING: The two federal immigration agents who fired on Minneapolis protester Alex Pretti are identified in government records as Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and Customs and Border Protection officer Raymundo Gutierrez.

I’ve been in Minneapolis the last few days reporting on the ICE raids happening across the city. This morning federal agents shot and killed a man, identified by the AP as Alex Pretti. This marks the third shooting by federal agents since Operation Metro Surge started in Minnesota last month.

Sick in a Hospital Town, Part 1: The Business of Care Welcome to Albany, Georgia, where one hospital dominates the political and economic landscape. The story of Phoebe Putney Memorial is the story of American health care.

NEW: In a five-part series, “Sick in a Hospital Town,” ProPublica’s @gingerthompson.bsky.social pursues the question:

Why are people in Albany, Georgia, so sick when its most powerful institution is a hospital?

Start with Part 1 here:

Foreign Food Safety Inspections Hit Historic Low After Trump Cuts The dramatic shift in oversight comes at a time when the U.S. has never been more reliant on foreign food, which accounts for the vast majority of the nation’s seafood and more than half its fresh fru...

NEW: Billions of pounds of food are imported to the U.S. each year.

The FDA inspects foreign producers to ensure what we're eating is safe from pathogens and dangerous manufacturing practices.

But now, after Trump's drastic staff cuts, these inspections have plummeted to a historic low.
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“Biblical Justice, Equal Justice, for All”: How North Carolina’s Chief Justice Transformed His State and America Paul Newby, a born-again Christian, has turned his perch atop North Carolina’s Supreme Court into an instrument of political power. Over two decades, he’s driven changes that have reverberated well be...

Quote from the North Carolina GOP's comms director:

"I’m sure you’re aware of our connections with the Trump Administration and I’m sure they would be interested in this matter,” Mercer said in his email to @propublica.org. “I would strongly suggest dropping this story.”

Russell Vought, Trump’s Shadow President From the wholesale gutting of federal agencies to the ongoing government shutdown, Russell Vought has drawn the road map for Trump’s second term. Vought has consolidated power to an extent that inside...

“But, according to court records,…, DOGE’s efforts were guided, more than was previously known, by the OMB director. Musk bragged about “feeding USAID into the wood chipper,” but the details of the agency’s downsizing were ironed out by Vought’s office.” www.propublica.org/article/russ...

Trending Nonprofits Most-viewed nonprofits, measured by unique visitors to an organization’s pages in the past seven days. 1. Turning Point Usa Inc Indianapolis, IN 2. Raven Drum Foundation Beverly Hills, CA 3. Urban Recipe Inc Atlanta, GA 4. American Israel Public Affairs Committee Washington, DC 5. Stephen Siller Tunnel To Towers Foundation Staten Island, NY 6. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan Inc Oakland, CA 7. Feeding America Chicago, IL 8. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals Oakland, CA

Find out which nonprofits are piquing folks' interest these days with a look at this week's most-viewed orgs on @propublica.org's Nonprofit Explorer tool:
projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/

Screenshot of post on X from VA Secretary Doug Collins. The text reads: @ProPublica is an extreme liberal news outlet that will do anything to make the Trump Administration look bad. But this week, the far-left editors there reached a new low by sending @VernalColeman to stalk @DeptVetAffairs employees at their homes. This creepy behavior will discourage good people from coming to work at VA. @ProPublica, please do better and stop letting your hatred of the Trump Administration continue to warp your judgment.

It's a journalist's job to ask questions of government officials, no matter which party is in power. That often means respectfully knocking on doors to get answers people deserve to know.

Tips and evidence are essential to our nonpartisan work: www.propublica.org/tips/

Trump Is Accusing Foes With Multiple Mortgages of Fraud. Records Show 3 of His Cabinet Members Have Them. The White House has targeted opponents, including a Fed governor, for having more than one primary residence on their loan papers. ProPublica found that, in one case, a Trump cabinet secretary got two...

The White House has targeted opponents, including a Fed governor, for having more than one primary residence on their loan papers.

@propublica.org found that, in one case, a Trump cabinet secretary got two such mortgages in quick succession. propub.li/4p9uhvZ

Billy Long, Trump’s Nominee to Lead the IRS, Touts a Credential That Tax Experts Say Is Dubious The former representative from Missouri, who once pushed to abolish the IRS, has marketed himself as a certified tax and business advisor after attending only a three-day seminar.

Trump has removed Billy Long as IRS head by Trump and made him ambassador to Iceland, per @wsj.com.

Long, a former representative from Missouri who once pushed to abolish the IRS, had marketed himself as a certified tax and business advisor after attending only a 3-day seminar. propub.li/4m5nhyd

The IRS Is Building a Vast System to Share Millions of Taxpayers’ Data With ICE ProPublica has obtained the blueprint for the Trump administration’s unprecedented plan to turn over IRS records to Homeland Security in order to speed up the agency’s mass deportation efforts.

ProPublica has obtained the blueprint for the Trump administration’s unprecedented plan to turn over IRS records to Homeland Security in order to speed up the agency’s mass deportation efforts. propub.li/4lAzTxl

“Put Them in Trauma”: Inside a Key MAGA Leader’s Plans for a New Trump Agenda Private videos reveal Trump adviser Russ Vought’s “shadow” plans for using the military on protesters, defunding the EPA and villainizing civil servants.

“We want the bureaucrats to be traumatically affected,” said Trump adviser Russell Vought. “When they wake up in the morning, we want them to not want to go to work because they are increasingly viewed as the villains. We want their funding to be shut down."

(Published Oct. 2024 w/ @documented.net)

The Tech Recruitment Ruse That Has Avoided Trump’s Crackdown on Immigration Every Sunday, newspapers are full of ads for tech jobs that aren't really looking for applicants. They reveal an aspect of U.S. immigration law that hurts both domestic and foreign workers — yet has e...

The immigration pipeline that takes those with H1B visas through to the green card process six years later is broken. @alecmac.bsky.social explores it in his latest for @propublica.org: propub.li/4ku9gtn

More Than a Dozen U.S. Officials Sold Stocks Before Trump’s Tariffs Sent the Market Plunging Records show well-timed trades by executive branch employees and congressional aides. Even if they had no insider information, ethics experts say such trading undermines faith in government and the ma...

Records show well-timed trades by executive branch employees and congressional aides.

Even if they had no insider information, ethics experts say such trading undermines faith in government and the markets. propub.li/3H4LpBD

U.S. AG Pam Bondi Sold More than $1 Million in Trump Media Stock the Day Trump Announced Sweeping Tariffs Disclosure forms show that Bondi sold between $1 million and $5 million worth of shares on April 2. That day, after the market closed, Trump’s “Liberation Day” press conference sent the market tumblin...

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi sold more than $1 million in Trump media stock the day Trump announced sweeping tariffs, @propublica.org reports: propub.li/3YNHnUd

The Pulitzer Prizes Explanatory Reporting finalists: Alexia Campbell, April Simpson and Pratheek Rebala of the Center for Public Integrity; Nadia Hamdan of Reveal; and Roy Hurst, contributor, Mother Jones. Azam Ahmed, Christina Goldbaum of The New York Times and Matthieu Aikins, contributing writer. Annie Waldman, Duaa Eldeib, Max Blau and Maya Miller of ProPublica.

Our “America’s Mental Barrier” series, which examines how insurance companies interfere with access to necessary mental health care across the United States, was also named a finalist in the explanatory reporting category: www.propublica.org/series/ameri...

Via @pulitzerprizes.bsky.social

ProPublica Wins Pulitzer Prize for Public Service The award, for exposing the fatal consequences of abortion bans, marks ProPublica’s 8th Pulitzer; investigation into mental health care access is named a Pulitzer finalist.

ProPublica has won the Pulitzer Prize for public service for its "Life of the Mother" series, which the judges described as "urgent reporting about pregnant women who died after doctors delayed urgently needed care for fear of violating vague ‘life of the mother' exceptions." propub.li/42XIBxl

A DOGE Aide Involved in Dismantling Consumer Bureau Owns Stock in Companies That Could Benefit From the Cuts Gavin Kliger helped oversee mass firings at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau while holding stock in companies that experts say likely stand to benefit from dismantling that agency — a potentia...

NEW: A DOGE staffer who is helping carry out the downsizing of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau owns stock in companies that could benefit from the agency’s dismantling, ProPublica has found.

Trump Laid Off Nearly All the Federal Workers Who Investigate Firefighter Deaths The cuts, which are part of Trump’s slashing of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, will also halt a first-of-its-kind study of the causes of thousands of firefighters’ cancer c...

Among the impacts: The cuts will halt a first-of-its-kind study of the causes of thousands of firefighters’ cancer cases. propub.li/3GeQOWv

An Indian Drugmaker, Investigated by ProPublica Last Year, Has Recalled Two Dozen Medications Sold to U.S. Patients FDA inspectors found serious problems at a Glenmark factory in India that manufactured the recalled drugs. Another medication made there has been tied to deaths of U.S. patients.

FDA inspectors found serious problems at a Glenmark factory in India that manufactured the recalled drugs.

Another medication made there has been tied to deaths of U.S. patients.

THREAD: Last year, ProPublica started receiving tips from an unusual kind of source: flight attendants. They said they'd worked on deportation flights for ICE, and they could tell us what it was really like on board. 1/

He Wanted to Fix Local News. It’s Harder Than He Thought. An entrepreneur who owns 92 local newspapers confronts tariffs, distrust of print outlets and changing news diets

Jeremy Gulban, the 50-year-old head of an IT company in New Jersey, is discovering in ways large and small just how hard it is to revive America’s ailing local news outlets www.wsj.com/business/med...

The CDC Buried a Measles Forecast That Stressed the Need for Vaccinations The move — along with the CDC’s explanation — is a sign that the nation’s top public health agency may be falling in line under HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of vaccines.

This week, as the number of confirmed measles cases rose to 483, the CDC buried a report that would’ve stressed the importance of getting vaccinated.

The move was “not normal at all,” one agency staff member said.

By @sheinvestigates.bsky.social

The CDC Buried a Measles Forecast That Stressed the Need for Vaccinations The move — along with the CDC’s explanation — is a sign that the nation’s top public health agency may be falling in line under HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of vaccines.

The move is a sign that the nation’s top public health agency may be falling in line under HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of vaccines.

How Elon Musk’s SpaceX Secretly Allows Investment From China As a U.S. military contractor, SpaceX sees allowing Chinese ownership as fraught. But it will allow the investment if it comes through secrecy hubs like the Cayman Islands, court records say. “It is c...

As a U.S. military contractor, SpaceX sees allowing Chinese ownership as fraught.

But the company will allow the investment if it comes through secrecy hubs like the Cayman Islands, according to previously unreported court records.

"In July 2023, access-control doors acquired through the grant program prevented a gunman from entering Margolin Hebrew Academy in Memphis. In 2021, when gunfire struck the Jewish Family Service offices in Denver, grant-funded protective window film stopped bullets from penetrating the building."

Killing Grants That Have Saved Lives: Trump’s Cuts Signal End to Government Work on Terrorism Prevention Tens of millions of dollars slated for violence prevention have been cut or are frozen as DOGE steamrolls the national security sector. “This is the government getting out of the terrorism business,” ...

Training that a rabbi credits with saving his Texas synagogue from a hostage taker in 2022 came from a broader community initiative whose federal funding is now in limbo.

Each case involved an individual who posted in Terrorgram chats, followed Terrorgram accounts or was a member of an organized group whose leaders participated in the Terrorgram community.