Solving the Corruption Crisis

Rep. James Bridenstine’s nomination is already controversial. Evidence of self-dealing won’t help matters. By Nick Schwellenbach, Adam Zagorin.

The NIH is already investigating the matter as more unseemly details emerge. By Beth Mole.

A constant drip of corruption. And this is just what we know so far… By Joy Crane, Nick Tabor. Introduction by David Cay Johnston.

The EPA is granting specific private-sector wishes as it moves to roll back, alter or delay rules. By Rachel Leven.

A fierce race to the bottom is taking place between cabinet members who have been bilking taxpayers in ways both large and small. By Alex Shephard.

Four protected areas could shrink and six others could be opened to mining, logging, and fishing, based on new recommendations to President Trump. By Laura Parker.

Free-market boosters, including Betsy DeVos, promised that a radical expansion of charter schools would fix the stark inequalities in the state’s education system. The results in the classrooms are far more complicated. By Mark Binelli.

Trump wants to privatize our nation’s infrastructure—and Democrats helped pave the way. By Rebecca Burns.

A small but vocal cohort is leading efforts to transfer federal land to the states. Is your congressional representative on the list? By Oliver Milman.

Scorning serious proposals, the White House offers a Trump University plan for employment. By Jefferson Morley.

To call what is happening in Flint, Michigan a “water crisis” feels both exact and not. By Hanif Willis-Aburraqib. (May 26, 2017)

The Dakota Access Pipeline accrued costs to the tune of $15 million for law enforcement’s brutality, now we know who will be paying for it all.… By Ruth Hopkins.

The Army Corps of Engineers was ordered to allow construction of the Dakota Access pipeline to proceed under a disputed Missouri River crossing, North Dakota Sen. John Hoeven said on Tuesday, the latest twist in a months-long legal battle over the $3.8 billion project.

Land totaling the size of Connecticut has been targeted in a new bill in the Republican House, uniting hunters and conservationists in opposition. By Caty Enders.

A change in U.S. House rules making it easier to transfer millions of acres of federal public lands to states is worrying hunters and other outdoor enthusiasts. By Keith Ridler.

Australia has finally ceased pouring millions of dollars into accounts linked to Hillary Clinton’s charities. By Rohan Smith. [Autoplay video]

The president-elect’s proposals to expand and fix up U.S. highways seem to be a recipe for more toll roads. Texans from both parties hope to change that. By Brandon Formby.

At present, proponents of school choice have the upper hand because they are backed by some of the nation’s richest people, whose campaign donations give them an outsize voice in shaping public policy. The issue that the American public must resolve in local and state as well as national elections is whether voters will preserve and protect the public school system, or allow it to be raided and controlled by the one percent and financial elites. By Diane Ravitch.

A federal appeals court ruled that an FBI whistleblower, who reported fraud and sexual misconduct involving prostitutes, was wrongfully terminated in 2010. By Kevin Gosztola.