watchdog

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Watchdog: Epstein's Final Phone Call Went Unmonitored

Report describes multiple jail failures that led to sex trafficker's 2019 suicide

(Newser) - "Negligence, misconduct, and outright job performance failures" at Manhattan's Metropolitan Correctional Center enabled Jeffrey Epstein's 2019 suicide, according to a Justice Department inspector general's report issued Tuesday. The report describes "staffing issues, faulty security camera setups, poor management and improper handling of inmates who could...

GAO: So About That $114B Due In From Student Loans...

Watchdog report: Education Dept. is instead set to lose about $197B, partly due to COVID relief

(Newser) - The Department of Education had been banking on getting its hands on $114 billion or so in income due from federal student loans issued over the past quarter-century. Instead, a watchdog has delivered some bad news: It's actually set to lose $197 billion, in part due to the suspension...

Psaki Says Sorry for Possible Breach: 'Words Certainly Matter'

Ethics watchdog says press secretary shouldn't have promoted Va. gubernatorial contender McAuliffe

(Newser) - President Biden's camp is going all in for support of Terry McAuliffe, the Democratic candidate for Virginia governor, but one member of that team is now getting dinged for not lying low. Reuters reports that the nonprofit watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington has called for an...

Report: Congressional Committees Looking Into Pompeo Dinners

NBC: Taxpayer-funded 'Madison Dinners' hosted by Pompeo are now under scrutiny

(Newser) - The State Department inspector general who was abruptly fired on Friday may have been aware of fancy dinners hosted by Mike Pompeo and his wife on the taxpayer's dime. That’s according to NBC News , which reports Steve Linick last week made "some type of inquiry" to the...

Pompeo Controversy Involves Dog Walking, Dry Cleaning

Watchdog was investigating whether secretary of state had aide running errands, say reports

(Newser) - New details are emerging about the controversial firing of a government watchdog, and they are not the stuff of high-stakes political intrigue. Instead, they are the stuff of mundane personal errands, such as dog-walking, picking up dry cleaning, and making dinner reservations. The watchdog who got fired was investigating whether...

For 3rd Time in 2 Months, Trump Fires Government Watchdog

Steve Linick, State Department's inspector general, was said to have been investigating Mike Pompeo

(Newser) - President Trump has fired the State Department's inspector general, and Democrats say the timing of the watchdog's removal is suspect. Per the Wall Street Journal , Trump penned a congressional letter indicating he was taking Steve Linick out of his role in 30 days because he'd lost confidence...

Mnuchin Balked on Trump's Tax Returns. Watchdog: OK

Treasury sec's decision was based on DOJ advice, which acting Treasury IG didn't comment on

(Newser) - A watchdog has found that the Treasury Department appropriately handled Congress' request for President Trump's tax returns, which Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has refused to provide. Rep. Richard Neal, the Massachusetts Democrat who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee, asked acting inspector general for the Treasury, Rich Delmar,...

He Defied Trump on Ukraine Complaint. Now, a Dismissal

President Trump has fired Intelligence Community IG Michael Atkinson

(Newser) - He alerted Congress to an intel official's complaint about Trump's July 25 phone call to the Ukrainian president, which jump-started the probe that led to the president's impeachment. Now, Michael Atkinson, the inspector general of the Intelligence Community, is out of a job. Politico , the AP , and...

Dog That Tended Baby Giraffe: 'He Stayed Till the End'

Hunter the watchdog immediately took to Jazz, abandoned by his mother, at shelter

(Newser) - When Jazz, a days-old giraffe, arrived at the Rhino Orphanage animal shelter in Limpopo, South Africa, a few weeks ago, he wasn't doing so well. A farmer had found the giraffe, abandoned by its mother and dehydrated and frail, and called the shelter to take Jazz in. What happened...

Watchdog: USDA Carried Out 'Cannibal Cat' Experiments

Lawmakers want experiments—including dog remains being fed to cats—to end

(Newser) - Government scientists have fed dog remains to cats, injected cat remains into mice, and conducted other experiments on animals that one member of Congress says "need to end now." The White Coat Waste Project, a nonprofit watchdog, drew the information from USDA publications for a report it plans...

'Terrifying' Doll Gets Spotify Ad Banned

Even 'Havana' couldn't keep a UK watchdog group from banning it

(Newser) - Spotify's latest ad features a catchy popular pop tune and "a medley of horror film tropes" in the lead-up to its final tagline, per NPR : "Killer songs you can't resist." But it's just that horror theme, along with what Billboard calls a "terrifying...

Under Old Watchdog Chief: 2 to 4 Enforcements a Month. Now: Zero

No enforcement action in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in 135 days and counting

(Newser) - In the 135 days since the Trump administration took control of the nation's consumer watchdog agency, it hasn't recorded a single enforcement action against banks, credit card companies, debt collectors, or any finance companies whatsoever. That's likely no fluke: Mick Mulvaney, appointed acting director of the Consumer...

Investigate Goop, Says Watchdog Group to Regulators

Truth in Advertising says Gwyneth's website makes too many dubious claims

(Newser) - Goop is getting called out again. Gwyneth Paltrow's lifestyle site should be investigated by California regulators, according to the watchdog group Truth in Advertising. TINA announced on its website this week that it has compiled more than 50 instances of Goop claiming, directly or indirectly, that certain products "...

Feds Built $43M Gas Station in Afghanistan: Watchdog

And it's not clear if it's still operational

(Newser) - A watchdog report has some thrilling news for taxpayers: $43 million of your hard-earned money went toward building a single gas station in Afghanistan with an initial budget of $3 million. If that's not bad enough, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction says the Department of Defense has...

This Year's Craziest Restaurant Meal: 3.5K Calories

Watchdog group lists diet-annihilating dishes from US chains

(Newser) - Nearly 3,550 calories for a burger, fries, and shake sounds about right—if it's one of the meals called out on a watchdog group's annual list of fatty, sugary, calorie-heavy foods served at US chain restaurants. The Center for Science in the Public Interest pored over nutritional...

Media Matters Boss Drives the News
 Media Matters 
 Boss Drives 
 the News 
'DAILY CALLER' REPORT
Feb 13, 2012 2:42 PM CST

Media Matters Boss Drives the News

David Brock is manic, systematically influences liberal media: Tucker Carlson

(Newser) - The right-leaning Daily Caller last night published the first in an investigative series about Media Matters for America, alleging that the liberal media watchdog is in bed with the Obama administration, as well as a number of media organizations and bigwigs, and that founder David Brock systematically attempts to influence...

States Asked for Foreclosure Probe—3 Years Ago

Federal regulators turned down request, put off matter

(Newser) - State regulators suspected that there was something fishy about banks' foreclosure procedures as far back as three years ago, but federal regulators forbid them to take action, the Washington Post reports. The federal comptroller told the states his office was already planning an investigation, and that banks should only respond...

Zhu Zhu Pet Maker: Get Off Mr. Squiggles!
Zhu Zhu Pet Maker: Get Off Mr. Squiggles!
damage control
Dec 7, 2009 5:17 PM CST

Zhu Zhu Pet Maker: Get Off Mr. Squiggles!

Watchdog site used cheap equipment to back chemical claim

(Newser) - The maker of Zhu Zhu Pets is aggressively defending one of its toy hamsters against claims by a watchdog group that Mr. Squiggles contains unsafe levels of a dangerous chemical. Tests by an independent lab show the toy does not contain dangerous levels of antimony, as claimed by the GoodGuide...

Lay Off Israel, Human Rights Watch: Founder
Lay Off Israel, Human Rights Watch: Founder
OPINION
Oct 20, 2009 9:42 AM CDT

Lay Off Israel, Human Rights Watch: Founder

Group founded to light closed societies has gone astray

(Newser) - Human Rights Watch has lost its way, writes founder and chairman emeritus Robert L. Bernstein. The once even-handed organization has launched a jeremiad against Israel—a liberal democracy with a “vibrant free press”—while effectively ignoring abuses in closed, autocratic societies in the region it was created to...

Small Banks May Need More Fed Aid

(Newser) - The Treasury may have to expand its toxic asset programs and repeat stress tests, particularly for smaller banks, a US bailout watchdog panel finds. While larger banks have begun to recover, smaller financial institutions remain exposed to billions in losses from outstanding commercial property loans and are still unable to...

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