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Shutdown Stops the Regulation of Campaign Money

Here's one way the partial government shutdown is doing particular harm to the work of good governance: The already minimal regulation of money in politics has been suspended. All but 30 of the Federal Election Commission's 300 employees have been furloughed since the funding impasse began 27 days ago and the year's first meeting of the commissioners had to be scrapped.

"The lapse in government funding means that enforcement of campaign finance laws that hold politicians and political committees accountable has stopped," all nine Democrats on the Senate Rules and Administration Committee wrote in a letter to the agency's chairwoman, Ellen Weintraub. "The lack of law enforcement and transparency brought on by the government shutdown has severe implications for the health and security of our democracy."


The senators pressed for reassurances the shutdown would not prevent the FEC from getting its systems for enforcing campaign finance violations and disclosing contributions quickly up to speed when the impasse ends. And they asked pointedly what lessons the agency had learned from the last extended shutdown, five years ago.

"During the 2013 government shutdown, Chinese hackers managed to break into the FEC's computer network because not a single employee was present for the prevention of such a threat," they wrote, a reminder of what the Center for Public Integrity described at the time as likely "the worst act of sabotage" since the agency was created soon after Watergate. "The FEC has been maintaining a 'skeleton staff' of employees, presumably leaving the commission in a better position than in the past. However, it remains unclear the precise extent to which the present shutdown leaves the FEC prone to similar cybersecurity breaches."

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Insider trading in Washington, DC

U.S. senators and representatives with access to non-public information are permitted to buy and sell individual stocks. It’s not just unethical; it sends the message that the game is rigged.

Getty Images, Greggory DiSalvo

Insider Trading: If CEOs Can’t Do It, Why Can Congress?

Ivan Boesky. Martha Stewart. Jeffrey Skilling.

Each became infamous for using privileged, non-public information to profit unfairly from the stock market. They were prosecuted. They served time. Because insider trading is a crime that threatens public trust and distorts free markets.

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Supreme Court Changes the Game on Federal Environmental Reviews

A pump jack seen in a southeast New Mexico oilfield.

Getty Images, Daniel A. Leifheit

Supreme Court Changes the Game on Federal Environmental Reviews

Getting federal approval for permits to build bridges, wind farms, highways and other major infrastructure projects has long been a complicated and time-consuming process. Despite growing calls from both parties for Congress and federal agencies to reform that process, there had been few significant revisions – until now.

In one fell swoop, the U.S. Supreme Court has changed a big part of the game.

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Growing Up Latina in Georgia, We Feared More Than ICE

An ICE agent monitors hundreds of asylum seekers being processed.

(Photo by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images)

Growing Up Latina in Georgia, We Feared More Than ICE

Last month, about an hour north of where I grew up in suburban Georgia, 19-year-old Ximena Arias-Cristobal was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after a mistaken traffic stop. Though granted bond on May 21, Ximena Arias-Cristobal is still facing deportation despite residing in Georgia since she was four years old.

While supporters nationwide have rallied around Ximena Arias-Cristobal, raising nearly $100,000 for her legal defense, this case serves as a solemn reminder that Latinos, especially in the South, are being surveilled. As someone who grew up Latina in a predominantly white suburb of Georgia, I also know that this surveillance isn’t limited to that by the state but ingrained into the fabric of our everyday lives.

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Scams Targeting Immigrants Take Advantage of Fears of Immigration Status and Deportation

Scam incoming call alert screen on mobile phone.

Getty Images/Stock Photo

Scams Targeting Immigrants Take Advantage of Fears of Immigration Status and Deportation

WASHINGTON–When my phone rang and I saw the familiar DC area code, I picked up, and a man with a slight Indian accent said: “Ma’am, this is the Indian Embassy.”

Expecting a response from the Indian Embassy for an article I was working on, I said, “Is this in regards to my media inquiry?” He said no. He was calling about a problem with my Indian passport. I asked who he called, and when he said a name I didn’t recognize, I informed him he had the wrong person and hung up, figuring it was a scam.

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