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States Sue Trump Administration Over Decision to Allow Donor Secrecy

New York and New Jersey are suing the Trump administration to find out what's behind its decision to stop requiring some tax-exempt groups to reveal their donors.

The federal lawsuitfiled Monday seeks to force the IRS and Treasury Department to turn over documents related to the decision to change the rules. Last summer, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced the government would no longer require politically active nonprofits — including so-called "dark money" groups — to provide the agency with a confidential list of names and addresses of its largest donors every year.


"Good government" groups have criticized Mnuchin's decision in part because dark money nonprofits spend extraordinary sums to influence elections – $147 million during the 2018 campaign – and requiring donor disclosures to the IRS could help ensure illegal foreign contributions are not funneled into their coffers.

In October, Attorneys General Letitia James of New York and Gurbir Grewal of New Jersey, both Democrats, filed Freedom of Information Act requests seeking documents about what led to the decision. Their lawsuit argues the government has all but ignored those requests.

"Not only was this policy change made without notice, the Treasury and the IRS are now refusing to comply with the law to release information about the rationale for these changes," James said. "No one is above the law — not even the federal government — and we will use every tool to ensure they comply with these regulations to provide transparency and accountability."

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A person in a military uniform holding a gavel.

As the Trump administration redefines “Warrior Ethos,” U.S. military leaders face a crucial test: defend democracy or follow unlawful orders.

Getty Images, Liudmila Chernetska

Warrior Ethos or Rule of Law? The Military’s Defining Moment

Does Secretary Hegseth’s extraordinary summoning of hundreds of U.S. command generals and admirals to a Sept. 30 meeting and the repugnant reinstatement of Medals of Honor to 20 participants in the infamous 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre—in which 300 Lakota Sioux men, women, and children were killed—foreshadow the imposition of a twisted approach to U.S. “Warrior Ethos”? Should military leaders accept an ethos that ignores the rule of law?

Active duty and retired officers must trumpet a resounding: NO, that is not acceptable. And, we civilians must realize the stakes and join them.

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Yes, They Are Trying To Kill Us
Provided

Yes, They Are Trying To Kill Us

In the rush to “dismantle the administrative state,” some insist that freeing people from “burdensome bureaucracy” will unleash thriving. Will it? Let’s look together.

A century ago, bureaucracy was minimal. The 1920s followed a worldwide pandemic that killed an estimated 17.4–50 million people. While the virus spread, the Great War raged; we can still picture the dehumanizing use of mustard gas and trench warfare. When the war ended, the Roaring Twenties erupted as an antidote to grief. Despite Prohibition, life was a party—until the crash of 1929. The 1930s opened with a global depression, record joblessness, homelessness, and hunger. Despair spread faster than the pandemic had.

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