A new congressional report alleges that Freedom 250, the Trump-backed organization overseeing many of the nation’s 250th anniversary celebrations, may have operated as a pay-to-play fundraising vehicle that diverted donations, solicited foreign money, harvested voter data, and steered federal contracts to political allies. The report raises questions about potential wire fraud, unlawful foreign fundraising, charitable solicitation fraud, and Hatch Act violations.
The interim report, released by Democrats on the House Natural Resources Committee, details how the White House sidelined the bipartisan America250 commission and elevated Freedom 250, a parallel organization that could raise and spend money with far less public scrutiny. Investigators found evidence that donors seeking to support the official America250 effort were instead directed to Freedom 250’s bank account, while companies with business before the federal government were offered access to the president. The report concludes that Freedom 250 created a blueprint for converting a bipartisan national celebration into a political and financial operation shielded from public oversight, with key donor records, contracts, and financial disclosures still hidden from the public.
Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, who serves on the foundation’s board, testified before Congress in May that he was “not aware of the final decision maker on Freedom 250.” That same month, he told CNN the organization is “run out of the White House.”
Internal docs show USDA intended to push out workers
Newly released internal documents show the U.S. Department of Agriculture planned its reorganization with the express goal of shrinking the agency, targeting a 23 percent workforce reduction (about 23,000 employees) and acknowledging it expected large numbers of workers to quit rather than relocate to regional hubs. Unions filed motions last week to halt the plan, arguing the documents prove the forced relocations were designed to compel resignations and gut the workforce, directly contradicting USDA’s public claims that the reorganization wasn’t intended to cut jobs.
Quick hits
House Democrats accuse Trump’s Freedom 250 of misleading donors, potential wire fraud
Washington Post | NPR | The Hill | Associated Press | The Guardian
Interior Department employees baffled by Trump administration reassignments
Trump’s Freedom 250 draws corporate sponsors with business before his administration
The cabinet secretary who doubles as Trump’s personal project manager
Trump administration won’t seek new bids to repair the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool
Court lets National Park Service keep removing signs on slavery, climate
Border wall through Big Bend park in “planning stages”
Inside Trump’s campaign to erase US history from national parks
Quote of the day
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum sits on the board that controls Freedom 250, his own Park Service requested that it be created, and his department pressured employees to wear its pins and stamp its logo on their official government email, yet he told Congress he does not know who authorized any of it. If it wasn’t him, he needs to name that decision-maker, release the donor lists and contracts Freedom 250 is still hiding, and explain why federal grants to this operation run through 2028, long after the semiquincentennial ends.”
—Aaron Weiss, Center for Western Priorities Executive Director
Picture This
O beautiful for spacious skies…
As we celebrate our nation’s 250th birthday today, we’re grateful for our rich history and the extraordinary country we are proud to call home.
Photo by Lynde Steensen
Feature image: UFC Freedom 250 arena, Washington, DC; Source: G. Edward Johnson/Wikimedia