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Sam Sacks - page 6

Sam Sacks has 859 articles published.

Kelly Defends Trump Phone Call, But Offers Few Details About Deadly Niger Ambush

Botched condolences from President Trump to a Gold Star widow prompted White House Chief of Staff John Kelly on Thursday to give reporters a play-by-play of the administration’s outreach to grieving military families. Left out of Kelly’s account, however, was the cause of that grieving: an explanation for why a dozen US Army Green Berets were in Niger, when an ambush left four of them dead. “The fact of the matter is,” Kelly told the press, “young men and women that were our uniforms are deployed around… Keep Reading

A.G. Sessions Non-Compliant in First Oversight Hearing

The Attorney General rebuffed several Senators’ questions on Wednesday, relying on a contrived theory of executive privilege to remain silent on issues ranging from the firing of James Comey to the pardoning of disgraced Sheriff Joe Arpaio. The hearing also revealed that the Senate Judiciary Committee is growing increasingly impatient with the DOJ’s lack of responsiveness to inquiries. Even before he fielded questions, Attorney General Jeff Sessions informed the committee that he would not be revealing the details of any conversations he may have had… Keep Reading

Warren: Credit Reporting Agencies a Threat to National Security

A Senate Banking Committee hearing on Tuesday showcased how Senators are considering major reforms to a credit reporting industry dealing with data breaches. The proceedings were the latest in a series following the stunning hack of Equifax earlier this year, which exposed the social security numbers and sensitive information of 143 million Americans. “The credit reporting industry is a threat to each of us personally, but it is also a threat to our national security,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said during the hearing. The lawmaker’s remarks were… Keep Reading

Report Finds More Whistleblower Woes at the Pentagon

The Department of Defense Inspector General (DODIG) takes too long to investigate allegations of whistleblower retaliation, and can’t entirely ensure the integrity of its probes into reprisals. Those are the findings of a Government Accountability Office report released on Tuesday, reviewing the quality of the DODIG’s casework on behalf civilian and contractor employees who reported abuse following their act of whistleblowing. The GAO audit spanned from 2013 to 2015, and found that the inspector general’s office “did not meet statutory or internal timeliness goals for more… Keep Reading

Pruitt Get His Chance, Moves to Kill the Clean Power Plan

The deconstruction of President Obama’s environmental agenda continues apace, with the most sweeping regulatory component of the last administration now in the sights of the Trump White House. On Tuesday, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) chief Scott Pruitt formally proposed a rule to repeal the 2015 Clean Power Plan (CPP) aimed at slowing global warming. “The war on coal is over,” Pruitt said Monday at an event in Kentucky, announcing his intentions.  A former Attorney General of Oklahoma, Pruitt previously sued the Obama administration to kill… Keep Reading

After Closed Briefing, No Leads on Alleged Cuban Sound Attacks

Members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee received information behind closed doors on an incident in Cuba that left US and Canadian diplomatic staff injured. But answers remain elusive. “No,” committee chairman Sen. Bob Coker (R-Tenn.) told reporters bluntly after the Wednesday briefing, when asked if investigators were any closer to learning what exactly happened. Corker clarified that the US isn’t accusing the Cuban government of being responsible for the incident, which allegedly left 21 diplomats suffering hearing loss and other ailments. He stated, however,… Keep Reading

DHS Official: “Rational” Bill Includes Pathway to Citizenship for Dreamers

In the first oversight hearing focused on the White House’s decision to unwind deportation protections for Dreamers, a Department of Homeland Security official admitted that President Trump would like to see a pathway to citizenship for certain undocumented immigrants. The testimony contradicts prior statements by the President about what should be done for individuals previously covered under the 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which terminates in fewer than six months. Under questioning in the Senate Judiciary Committee from Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.),… Keep Reading

Childrens Health Insurance Program Put on Congressional Calendar—After it Expires

Republican leaders in the House have finally set a date to consider a bill reauthorizing a program providing health care assistance to tens of millions of Americans, specifically children. Unfortunately for the roughly 36 million people who currently rely on the Children Health Insurance Program (CHIP), the date scheduled for markup of the legislation falls after the initiative expires. The House Energy and Commerce Committee announced it would consider CHIP reauthorization on October 4, three days after it sunsets. So far details about the legislation have not been publicly… Keep Reading

DHS Chief Can’t Promise She Won’t Hand Over Dreamer Data to ICE

The acting Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security said on Wednesday that sensitive information about Dreamers could soon be handed over to federal deportation forces. Under questioning from Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), DHS Secretary Elaine Duke said she could not guarantee a promise made by the Obama administration to those who registered with the DACA program—known as Deferred Actions for Childhood Arrivals. “They were told by your agency that if they submitted this comprehensive information about their background and their status to apply for… Keep Reading

FBI Has “Systemic Issues” Dealing with Misconduct

The Department of Justice’s Inspector General penned a memo this week to FBI Director Christopher Wray, raising concerns that serious allegations of misconduct by agents aren’t being properly investigated. Inspector Michael Horowitz warned of potential national security risks due to the bureau’s failure to abide by federal regulations that require employees with “high risk security” issues to be referred to oversight offices. “Despite these requirements, we identified several instances in which the FBI could not demonstrate that allegations of employee misconduct were referred either to… Keep Reading

Trump Creates Legal Chaos With Introduction of New Travel Ban

The US Supreme Court cancelled an upcoming hearing on the legality of the Trump administration’s Muslim travel ban, one day after the White House introduced a more sweeping, and punitive, measure. Arguments set for next month were removed from the high court’s calendar on the concerns that the President’s new executive order renders the case “moot.” Issued on Sunday evening, an updated travel ban—now in its third iteration—adds more countries to the restricted list, and proposes keeping the prohibitions in place indefinitely. Trump’s prior orders… Keep Reading

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