Sam Sacks - page 13

Needing more jail space to carry out sweeping deportation actions, the Trump administration may gut safe detainment regulations to entice local prisons to offer up their cells for the effort. The new contracts with jailers would roll back many of the protections afforded to detained immigrants under the Obama administration, including medical care upon request within 24 hours and translation services. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) rules that required suicidal detainees to be checked on every 15 minutes, and notification when individuals spend more than… Keep Reading

A lawsuit filed on Tuesday alleges that the Department of Defense failed to account for hazardous waste at the Guantanamo Bay military prison, which has contributed to high cancer rates of personnel onsite. The legal actions were brought by attorneys who work out of the facility’s Camp Justice—the hub for military commission proceedings. The suit notes that nine individuals who have worked at the camp have been diagnosed with cancer. Three have since died. “For years, personnel have raised concerns regarding conditions and environmental contamination… Keep Reading

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has agreed to a request from Democratic lawmakers to review President Trump’s transition for possible conflicts of interest and unusual foreign contacts. The GAO’s fact-finding mission will focus on how public funds were managed during the period before the President took office, if the proper financial disclosures of transition officials were made, and whether national security protocols were followed with overseas communications. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) formally requested the GAO investigation last November. “Mr. Trump’s… Keep Reading

A coalition of transparency advocacy groups filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to compel President Trump’s protective detail to turn over the names of individuals that he is meeting. The scope of the FOIA action includes visitor names and the dates they met with the President at the White House and at other Trump residences: Mar-a-Lago in Florida, and Trump Tower in New York. The lawsuit was initiated by the liberal non-profit group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). The National Security… Keep Reading

A select group on Capitol Hill is notified on a near monthly basis that US lawmakers and their staff often have their conversations collected by intelligence agencies. The so-called Gang of Eight are the only ones on Capitol Hill privy to the intercept notifications, and they’re briefed “as often as once a month,” according to a report by Circa. The gang includes Democratic and Republican leadership posts in the House and Senate, and intelligence committee chairs and ranking members from both chambers. News of the… Keep Reading

During a hearing Wednesday with the Homeland Security chief, Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) ripped apart the Trump administration’s plans for “extreme vetting” of foreign travelers. She was then accused of fomenting hysteria by her colleague, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who warned that people were trying to bring cell phone bombs aboard airplanes. The heated back-and-forth occurred during proceedings before the Senate Homeland Security Committee, featuring testimony from DHS Secretary John Kelly. “You’ve got to understand, Secretary Kelly,” McCaskill said, “if they know we’re going to… Keep Reading

In a dramatic display that stretched across two committee hearings on Tuesday, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) subpoenaed the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration for documents on its confidential sources program. Members of Congress have been seeking copies of the DEA’s informant guidelines since last year, following an eye-opening report by the Department of Justice watchdog. The agency’s inspector general detailed how the agency doled out more than $200 million to confidential sources with very little oversight. Lawmakers have only been allowed to view the… Keep Reading

A witness testifying before the Senate Intelligence Committee’s first public hearing on alleged Russian election-meddling claimed that Kremlin cyber operations could split the US apart. Compared to its counterpart in the House, the Senate Intelligence Committee has been heralded as the sober panel–one putting aside politics to get to the bottom of what actually happened in last year’s election. During Thursday’s proceedings, however, both witnesses and lawmakers peddled hyperbole which did not seem aimed at advancing a serious inquiry. “Americans should be concerned because right… Keep Reading

*UPDATED TO INCLUDE RESPONSE FROM WHITE HOUSE* A decision to abruptly cancel House Intelligence Committee hearings this week was reportedly forced by the Trump administration. The Washington Post obtained letters regarding a forthcoming appearance of former Acting Attorney General Sally Yates before the committee, as part of its investigation into possible coordination between the Trump campaign and Russian officials. Yates was slated to appear before the panel on Tuesday, but the correspondences retrieved by the Post suggest that the White House moved to block her… Keep Reading