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June 22, 2024

Editor’s Note: Weekly Spotlight is taking a brief summer vacation for the next few weeks. We will be back in your inbox on July 6, 2024. In case you missed it, our award-winning investigative podcast Bad Watchdog returned for a second season this week. The first season took us to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), sharing a cautionary tale about what happens when the people responsible for holding our government accountable look the other way. Season two brings us back to the DHS — this time, to examine how the agency is going about its foundational mission of protecting our nation from terrorism. What happens when one agency takes on both homeland security and immigration? And what happens in DHS detention centers, where people are held on the presumption that they may be national security threats? Hosted by POGO Investigative Producer Maren Machles, the podcast draws the threads together from several POGO investigations that explore the state of DHS operations today. The first two episodes of the podcast are out now, and you can listen to them on Spotify, Apple, Amazon, or wherever you get your podcasts. POGO EVENTS Dollars and Demographics: Census Dollars in the States On Wednesday, June 26, 2024, POGO will be joining Census Counts for a webinar on how state census data figures into the distribution of federal funds. RSVP to save your spot now. PODCAST Bad Watchdog S2 E1: The Red Herring Established in the wake of September 11, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was entrusted with protecting the U.S. from national security threats. Since then, much of the agency’s focus has been on the southern border. Listen Now PODCAST Bad Watchdog S2 E2: The Hole Host Maren Machles learns more about people’s experiences in ICE detention by talking with formerly detained activist Berto Hernandez and traveling to El Paso, Texas, to hear directly from people who were recently released from ICE facilities. Listen Now QUOTE OF THE WEEK “The fact that foundation donors received special access to the secretary of state isn’t surprising, nor is the fall in foundation funding after her [Hillary Clinton] 2016 election loss, [I]t really looks like they were cozying up to who they thought was going to be the future president.” Scott Amey, General Counsel, in CNN OVERHEARD ONE LINERS “There is some progress, but it’s unclear how far it’s taken us.” Katherine Hawkins, Senior Legal Analyst, in USA Today   WANT MORE FROM POGO? Eyes on the federal government from every angle:   Paper Trail: Quick links to the news in the world of government oversight The Bunker: Military intelligence from POGO's Mark Thompson   🎧 Bad Watchdog Podcast 📺 YouTube 📱 Instagram 💸 Support our work

pogo.org The Project On Government Oversight (POGO) is a nonpartisan independent watchdog that investigates and exposes waste, corruption, abuse of power, and when the government fails to serve the public or silences those who report wrongdoing. We champion reforms to achieve a more effective, ethical, and accountable federal government that safeguards constitutional principles.

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