Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

New ethics allegations levied against Interior Department

Six senior Interior Department political appointees are at the heart of "a disturbing pattern of misconduct" involving cozy relationships with their former employees, the Campaign Legal Center alleges in a complaint to the department's inspector general.

At a time when Republicans and Democrats alike say they're troubled by the ethical climate in Washington, particular attention has been focused on Interior since the start of the Trump administration. In December, Secretary Ryan Zinke was forced out amid multiple probes of his real estate dealings and other potential conflicts of interest – the fourth member of Trump's Cabinet to resign under an ethics cloud. And his would-be successor, David Bernhardt, is facing a tough path to Senate confirmation because of his past as an oil and agriculture industry lobbyist.


The Campaign Legal Center, a watchdog group focused on government accountability, contends that some of the officials named may have used their positions to give their former work colleagues – now in industries regulated by the department and at conservative think tanks – insider knowledge of Interior activities. Under the White House's "drain the swamp" ethics policies, such officials are supposed to wait two years after their leaving the administration before having any interaction about policy with previous employers.

"This is a big deal," CLC ethics lawyer Delaney Marsco told the Intercept, which provided some of the reporting that led to the complaint. "It not only reveals a pattern of indifference toward ethics at Interior's highest levels, but it also calls into question the true motives of our public servants tasked with the immense responsibility of managing the country's natural resources."

The Interior Department has declined to comment on the specifics. But Bernhardt, who is running the department as acting secretary, announced recently that he had boosted Interior's own watchdog operations in an effort to "dramatically transform a culture of ethics avoidance into one of ethics compliance."

Read More

Similarity Hub Shows >700 Instances of Cross-Partisan Common Ground

Two coloured pencils one red and one blue drawing a reef knot on a white paper background.

Getty Images, David Malan

Similarity Hub Shows >700 Instances of Cross-Partisan Common Ground

It is a common refrain to say that Americans need to find common ground across the political spectrum.

Over the past year, AllSides and More Like US found >700 instances of common ground on political topics, revealed in Similarity Hub. It highlights public opinion data from Gallup, Pew Research, YouGov, and many other reputable polling firms.

Keep ReadingShow less
U.S. Refines Military Strategy in Africa As Development Programs Face Cuts

Royal Moroccan Armed Forces service members and U.S. Army Soldiers hold an African Lion banner during a Moroccan F-16 flyover at the closing day of African Lion 2025 (AL25) at Tantan, Morocco, May 23, 2025.

By Sgt. 1st Class Andrew Mallett/U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa

U.S. Refines Military Strategy in Africa As Development Programs Face Cuts

WASHINGTON – Both the Trump administration and its critics agree the U.S. risks losing influence in Africa to rivals like China and Russia. But while the administration argues its commercially driven foreign policy will reverse the trend, critics warn that retreating from development and diplomacy could deepen the problem.

Under the Trump administration, the U.S. plans to consolidate embassies, scale back USAID operations, and pivot towards a security and commercial driven approach on the continent. While U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) defense officials insist their core missions within Africa will remain intact, civilian experts and lawmakers argue that abandoning diplomatic and development tools opens the door for strategic competitors to fill the void and fails to take into account what would best benefit African countries.

Keep ReadingShow less