See the latest in our investigations into Barr’s politicization of DOJ and industry’s influence over pandemic relief fund allocation.  

Investigations Update: Attorney General Barr's Conduct, Airline Industry Influence, and Trump's Suggestion to Postpone the Election
In this email:
* New Lawsuit for Records of Complaints Against Barr
* Excluding International Students from Higher Education Covid-19 Aid
* Airline Industry Influence on Pandemic Relief Funds
* Trump’s Election-Postponement Tweet

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Here’s a look at the investigations our team has been pursuing through public records requests in the last week:

New Lawsuit for Records of Complaints Against Barr: Today, we sued ([link removed]) the Justice Department for records of complaints filed with the Office of the Inspector General and the Office of Professional Responsibility concerning Barr’s professional conduct. We requested ([link removed]) these records back in July, as more and more legal experts and former officials were calling for investigations ([link removed];) into his actions and even for his ([link removed]) resignation ([link removed]) .

Suspension of Work Visas: In June, President Donald Trump announced ([link removed]) the suspension ([link removed]) of employment-based visas and barred the entrance of hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals seeking work in the United States. The unclear ([link removed]) and inconsistent ([link removed]) implementation of the suspension has resulted in panic ([link removed]) for many U.S.- based workers and their families. The ban has also had negative effects on the medical
([link removed]) and technology ([link removed]) industries. We filed FOIA requests ([link removed]) with multiple agencies for records regarding the visa suspension, including any analyses, directives, and communications. We also filed requests ([link removed]) for directives related to any family separations resulting from the visa suspension.

Excluding International Students from Higher Education Covid-19 Aid: In April, the Department of Education issued a rule ([link removed]) that, by limiting Covid-19 relief assistance to students who qualify to apply for federal financial aid, effectively excludes ([link removed]) undocumented and international students from receiving help from the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund ([link removed]) . We filed FOIA requests ([link removed]) with the Department of Education for communications concerning the exclusion, including emails
([link removed]) with White House Senior Adviser Stephen Miller, whose influence on immigration policy is far-reaching.

Airline Industry Influence on Pandemic Relief Funds: In March, the Hill newspaper reported that airline CEOs and industry groups went on a “lobbying blitz ([link removed]) ” in order to secure bailouts and tax relief to weather the economic downturn. Since then, further reporting ([link removed]) has revealed that two recipients of this aid (both private jet companies) are headed by individuals who made large donations to the Trump campaign, and members of Congress are asking questions ([link removed]) about how the Treasury Department distributed funds meant to save aviation jobs. Meanwhile, the airline industry is poised to
implement ([link removed]) major ([link removed]) furloughs ([link removed]) in the upcoming weeks despite receiving billions in taxpayer money. We filed FOIA requests ([link removed]) with the Department of Transportation and the Treasury Department for communications with industry representatives, and sent a FOIA request ([link removed]) to the Treasury for communications with prominent donors to the Trump campaign or affiliated PACs.

HHS Covid-19 Database NDA: Earlier this month, a law firm representing TeleTracking Technologies stated ([link removed]) that the company was bound by a non-disclosure agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services that prevents the company from answering certain questions (in this case, questions submitted ([link removed]) by Sens. Chuck Schumer and Patty Murray) related to its $10.2 million contract ([link removed]) to manage the administration’s new coronavirus database. We filed a FOIA request
([link removed]) with HHS for a copy of the non-disclosure agreement.

Trump’s Election-Postponement Tweet: On July 30, Trump posted a tweet ([link removed]) that implied the 2020 presidential election should be postponed, prompting ([link removed]) widespread condemnation ([link removed]) from across the political spectrum. Following the tweet, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated ([link removed]) that he would defer to the Justice Department to decide whether the president has the authority to delay the upcoming presidential election (he does not have that power). We filed FOIA requests ([link removed]) with the Justice Department
for records related to the tweet, including any legal analyses regarding postponing the November election.

USPS Board’s Ethics Waivers and Communications: In recent weeks, the U.S. Postal Service has been a major subject of the country’s conversation on election security and voter suppression. The Trump administration has shown an interest ([link removed]) in dismantling the USPS for some time, but Trump’s recent ([link removed]) attacks on mail-in ballots — not to mention his own admission ([link removed]) that withholding USPS funding will mean “you can’t have universal mail-in voting” — have raised ([link removed]) serious concerns
([link removed]) that the sabotage ([link removed]) of the Post Office will also sabotage ([link removed]) the election. We filed FOIA requests for the ethics waivers ([link removed]) and select communications ([link removed]) of members of the USPS Board of Governors, as well as for Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s text messages ([link removed]) concerning agency business.

U.S. Attorney John Bash: In May, Attorney General William Barr tapped John Bash, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Texas, to investigate ([link removed]) the intelligence community’s “unmasking” practices, in which the identity of an individual on a communication obtained through intelligence is revealed. The broad scope of Bash’s investigation, along with the Justice Department’s investigation into the origins of the Mueller probe, has raised ([link removed]) further concerns about the politicization of the department under Barr. We filed FOIA requests ([link removed]) with the department for directives related to the investigation, as well as for Bash’s related communications.

Trump Associates’ Prison Releases: In May, the president’s former lawyer Michael Cohen ([link removed].) , former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort ([link removed]) , and political consultant W. Samuel Patten ([link removed]) were released from prison to serve their sentences (all for crimes related to the 2016 campaign or Trump’s inauguration) outside of jail, where the spread of Covid-19 has been devastating. Though a few institutions have responded to the pandemic by releasing frail inmates
([link removed]) , advocates are criticizing the fact ([link removed]) that authorities are not granting most inmates the same flexibility given to Cohen, Manafort, and Patten. We filed FOIA requests ([link removed]) with the Justice Department for directives and communications relating to Cohen, Manafort, and Patten’s releases.
To find out more about our work, you can follow us on Twitter at @WeAreOversight ([link removed]) and @ojocorrupcion ([link removed]) , or like us on Facebook ([link removed]) . If you are able, please consider supporting our work with a contribution here ([link removed]) .

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Thank you again for following our latest news. We are grateful for your support and for helping us hold the administration accountable.

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