What We’re Watching
During Donald Trump’s second presidency, ProPublica will focus on the areas most in need of scrutiny. Here are some of the issues our reporters will be watching — and how to get in touch with them securely.
Learn more about our reporting team. We will continue to share our areas of interest as the news develops.
Sharon Lerner
I cover health and the environment and the agencies that govern them, including the Environmental Protection Agency.
Andy Kroll
I cover justice and the rule of law, including the Justice Department, U.S. attorneys and the courts.
Jesse Coburn
I cover housing and transportation, including the companies working in those fields and the regulators overseeing them.
If you don’t have a specific tip or story in mind, we could still use your help. Sign up to be a member of our federal worker source network to stay in touch.
More Stories
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“The Alarm Bell”: Arizona’s Drop in SNAP Participation Signals Potential Nationwide Impact of Trump Legislation
Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act imposes stricter food stamp work requirements and shifts a larger share of the costs to states. Arizona’s swift implementation has made it more difficult to apply and caused nearly half of recipients to lose benefits.
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“Economic Civil War”: States Push Laws to Shield Oil and Gas Companies From Accountability
Most of the 15 bills being considered are part of a coordinated effort by groups linked to right-wing activist Leonard Leo.
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The Federal Government Is Rushing Toward AI. Our Reporting Offers Three Cautionary Tales.
We’ve been reporting on cybersecurity for years. As President Donald Trump and his Cabinet say artificial intelligence will transform the nation, the messaging isn’t new. It follows a familiar pattern.
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RFK Jr. May Reverse a Peptide Ban He Calls “Illegal.” Former FDA Officials Say He Mischaracterized Their Work.
The agency’s 2023 decision to place 19 peptides on the “unsafe” list was supported by numerous documented safety concerns, former officials said. Even though demand for peptide therapies has exploded since then, there’s been little new science.
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Why We Went Looking for National Defense Areas Along the U.S. Southern Border
The federal government is charging a skyrocketing number of migrants with trespassing in military zones. The boundaries can be hard to pinpoint — even for investigative reporters.
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The Trump EPA Official in Charge of Methane Regulations Helped Write an Oil Industry Argument Against Those Rules
Before becoming a top official at the Environmental Protection Agency, Aaron Szabo was a lobbyist for the oil and gas industry. Metadata shows he helped draft a trade group’s 2022 letter to the EPA objecting to controls on methane emissions.
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Trump’s Justice Department Dropped 23,000 Criminal Investigations in Shift to Immigration
Under Attorney General Pam Bondi, the DOJ abandoned a record number of cases — including hundreds of investigations into terrorism, white-collar crime and drugs — in just the first six months of President Donald Trump’s second term.
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Este sheriff afirma que su departamento eliminó el sesgo racial. Los datos demuestran lo contrario.
Cuando Jerry Sheridan era el segundo al mando en la Oficina del Sheriff del Condado de Maricopa, un juez federal determinó que había socavado las reformas destinadas a erradicar el perfilamiento racial. Ahora, como jefe del departamento, Sheridan está impulsando poner fin a la supervisión judicial.
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A Nursing Home Owner Got a Trump Pardon. The Families of His Patients Got Nothing.
Joseph Schwartz, owner of a nursing home empire, served just three months of his sentence before Trump pardoned him for a $39 million fraud scheme. Meanwhile, families who won multimillion-dollar wrongful death suits against him haven’t collected a cent.
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Utah Bans Polygraph Tests for Those Reporting Sexual Assault
A state legislator was moved to sponsor the bill — now signed into law — following a Salt Lake Tribune-ProPublica investigation that showed how polygraphs can retraumatize sexual abuse victims.
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The Horrors That Could Lie Ahead if Vaccines Vanish
Researchers at Stanford University modeled how many people could die or be disabled in 25 years if vaccines for polio, measles, rubella or diphtheria were no longer available.
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