Sign in

Nick Schwellenbach

@schwellenbach.bsky.social
2.5K followers 920 following 641 posts

I'm an investigative journalist at POGO: www.pogo.org/about/people/nick-schw… Signal: @schwellenbach.27 Encrypted email: schwellenbach@protonmail.com Substack: districtofcorruption.substack.com

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Dan Friedman @dfriedman.bsky.social · 19h
Salus Worldwide, whose big contract helping DHS run a "self-deportation" contract we've reported on bunch, appears be out. Source familiar with Salus' contract have said that press coverage of the deal contributed to DHS leaders looking to replace Salus. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
How taxpayers are still getting screwed on Kristi Noem's Big Beautiful Jet
The infamous 737 is connected to a DHS contractor who received “an appearance of favoritism.”
04924
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Sahil Kapur @sahilkapur.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
GOP Sen. Mike Rounds, who sits on the Appropriations Cmte, says Trump’s $810 million unilateral rescission undermines a funding deal, including GOP goals of more military money: “It’s going to make it very hard for us to actually get an outcome in the next appropriations bill.”
911121
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Sahil Kapur @sahilkapur.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., slams the White House’s pro-Trump ad that’s paid for with taxpayer money and says it is not a PSA: “I hate it. I tell you, it feels like Viktor Orbán talking to the Hungarian people. There’s no place for that sort of thing.”
3545376
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Dan Friedman @dfriedman.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Political routed through LLCs, a fake charity and a 2020 Trump lawyer. www.propublica.org/article/fbi-...
1418
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Dan Friedman @dfriedman.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Emailing this not as smart. www.propublica.org/article/fbi-...
77321
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
The Atlantic @theatlantic.com · 22/09/2026
Exclusive: The ICE officer who shot a Venezuelan man in Austin was hired last year and was not wearing his body camera, @nickmiroff.bsky.social reports.
bit.ly
The ICE Officer in Austin Wasn’t Wearing a Body Cam
The officer who shot a Venezuelan man was hired last year from another federal law-enforcement agency.
25262115
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 22/09/2026
Jaw-dropping documents from our lawsuit against Microsoft and OpenAI reveal how tech leaders talk when they think no one is listening: We may have pulled off “the largest theft of labor in human history.”
motherjones.com
AI exec: We may have pulled off “the largest theft of labor in human history.”
Documents from our lawsuit reveal how tech leaders talk when they think no one is listening.
4359214
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Today @propublica.org revealed a federal probe into Sen. Susan Collins & donations to her from a defense contractor through a shell company, allegedly to get her help winning contracts. That probe got shut down after Trump returned to office www.propublica.org/article/fbi-...
propublica.org
The FBI Anti-Corruption Squad Was Circling Susan Collins — Until Trump Got in the Way
After the FBI caught a defense contractor’s CEO making illegal campaign contributions, it sought to launch a sweeping political bribery probe involving Collins and others. Then the second Trump admini...
131
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Lauren McGaughy @lmcgaughy.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
A Venezuelan man was shot and injured by ICE yesterday in Austin, TX. I spent hours outside the hospital with his wife, who told me he called just after he was shot. She didn’t see him before he was discharged into federal custody. More from @nytimes.com: www.nytimes.com/2026/09/20/u...
01915
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Columbia Journalism Review @columjournreview.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
The Trump administration is ramping up its hostile environment for journalists, from American streets to the corridors of the White House, writes Jem Bartholomew. www.cjr.org/the_media_to...
cjr.org
Trump’s hostile environment for journalists, from American streets to the corridors of the White House.
The Trump administration is ramping up its hostile environment for journalists, from American streets to the corridors of the White House.
1238
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Gillian Brockell @gillianbrockell.com · 21/09/2026
This will make it nearly impossible to file habeas petitions, because attorneys won’t even know what federal district their client has been moved to to stage for their removal. Something like a third of all people in ICE custody. apnews.com/article/ice-...
apnews.com
AP Exclusive: ICE hides locations of thousands of detainees with final removal orders
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has stopped publicly revealing where it is holding most detainees who are subject to final deportation orders, in a move that has made it harder for lawyers an...
2822001234
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Mehdi Hasan @mehdirhasan.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Nancy Mace told me there is not a genocide in Gaza. It's just a 'narrative,' she said. So I educated her on Gaza and genocide in less than 60 seconds. I brought receipts. I named names.
1241824383
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Jason Leopold @jasonleopold.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
HUGE EXCLUSIVE from @bloomberg.com Inside the US ‘Kill Chain’ That Destroyed an Iranian School Pentagon investigators discovered that flawed intel, outdated imagery & overreliance on AI contributed to a missile strike that killed 123 children in Minab 🎁 www.bloomberg.com/graphics/202...
bloomberg.com
Inside the US ‘Kill Chain’ That Destroyed an Iranian School
Pentagon investigators have discovered that flawed intelligence, outdated imagery and an overreliance on AI contributed to a missile strike that killed 123 children in Minab.
11026681410
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
POGO Investigates @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
The GAO report reveals a rising number of whistleblower reprisal complaints reviewed by the DHS watchdog in recent years and a large share of the most recent cases were open when GAO collected data
022
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
POGO Investigates @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
The Government Accountability Office found that DHS's watchdog took over 3 years to investigate a majority of DHS #whistleblower reprisal claims www.gao.gov/products/gao...
gao.gov
U.S. GAO - Whistleblower Protection: DHS Should Ensure Timely Resolution of Retaliation Complaints
Federal whistleblowers are critical to fighting fraud, waste, and abuse in the government. However, they risk retaliation, such as demotion and firing...
152
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
worth a read... by the @acdatacollective.bsky.social crew thebulletin.org/2026/09/insi...
thebulletin.org
Insiders are betting on war: How prediction markets are becoming a national security threat
Prediction markets allow those with insider information bet on national security issues, giving adversaries a potential heads-up.
032
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
POGO Investigates @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Welcome veteran journalist @kyle_rempfer to the POGO Investigates team! As a new senior investigative reporter, Kyle brings valuable experience covering all things defense related. We’re thrilled to have his expertise as we dig deeper into the decisions shaping national security.
044
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Catherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Since becoming president again, Trump has promised: -$5000 stimulus checks via "DOGE dividend" -$2000 stimulus checks via "tariff dividend" -$1000+ checks via "savings" from expiring ACA subsidies -$5000 "dividend" if Rs win midterms No checks have been issued www.thebulwark.com/p/trump-magi...
46079483378
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
"We’re here because we didn’t listen to the civil libertarians. It’s not too late to start." - @radleybalko.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/2026/09/10/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | Civil Libertarians Knew This Would Happen. We Should Have Listened.
The civil libertarians’ warnings have come true.
000
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Sahil Kapur @sahilkapur.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
This is a familiar promise — last year Trump proposed a DOGE dividend of $5,000 and $2,000 per person tariff checks. Neither one happened. This requires approval from Congress, which is already controlled by Republicans (who aren’t interested).
1316563
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Jazmine Ulloa @jazmineulloa.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Breaking news this morning: The City of Denver, Latino civil rights organizations and government watch groups asked a federal judge on Thursday to block the Trump administration from allowing armed federal immigration agents to serve warrants at polling sites. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/10/u...
nytimes.com
Denver Sues to Block Armed ICE Agents at Voting Sites
The City of Denver and civil rights groups argued that sightings of ICE agents at polling places are having a chilling effect.
112025
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Ryan Goodman @rgoodlaw.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
3/ "Trump pledged to bring down home prices and create more housing. But for more than a year, the nation’s homebuilders have told administration officials that their immigration policies keep that from happening... 'It’s been chaotic,' Associated Builders and Contractors president and CEO" said.
68223
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Gillian Brockell @gillianbrockell.com · 09/09/2026
Eastern Airlines' subsuming of Omni Air International's longtime ICE-route monopoly appears complete. They've already taken over Omni's Africa removals, now they appear to be on their first removal flight to Asia.
An ADSBx map showing Eastern's N771KW flying from Alexandria, Louisiana, to Anchorage and then heading southwest toward Asia.
39445
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
A holding company owned by Steven Witkoff, "co-founder emeritus" of Trump's World Liberty Financial (WLFI), received about $107 million last year from WLFI & other ventures, per a new financial disclosure, obtained by @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social www.documentcloud.org/documents/28...
187
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Excited that @kyle-rempfer.bsky.social started at @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social today! www.pogo.org/press-center/release/as-part-of-newsroom-expansion-pogo-investigates-hires-veteran-journalist-kyle-rempfer
pogo.org
As Part of Newsroom Expansion, POGO Investigates Hires Veteran Journalist Kyle Rempfer
As a senior investigative reporter, Rempfer will cover Pentagon issues.
000
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
POGO Investigates @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
New reporting shows that Greg Bovino, who led controversial DHS raids in Chicago and Los Angeles, was under internal investigation when he retired from CBP: www.chicagotribune.com/2026/08/31/b...
chicagotribune.com
Bovino was under internal investigation by Border Patrol when he retired, newly released records show
Former Border Patrol chief Gregory Bovino retired while under internal investigation for his conduct during immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis and Chicago, records show.
131
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Jon Collins @jcollins.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Two prominent right-leaning legal groups are backing an effort by Minnesota 15 defendants to obtain more discovery from the feds, including correspondence they believe could show the prosecution is politically motivated or intended to suppress 1A activities. share.google/VkgxP7qohIWx...
share.google
Right-leaning groups say MN 15 prosecution violates free speech of anti-ICE activists
Free speech and conservative legal groups are urging a federal judge to order prosecutors to release documents in the Minnesota activists conspiracy case that defendants say could reveal political tar...
05422
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
This new reporting raises pointed questions about SEC enforcement & Trump's profiting from crypto at exactly the moment Washington is debating the future of crypto regulation
010
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Gizmodo @gizmodo.com · 25/08/2026
Legal Experts Are Alarmed the SEC Isn’t Investigating Trump-Linked Crypto Venture
gizmodo.com
Legal Experts Are Alarmed the SEC Isn’t Investigating Trump-Linked Crypto Venture
A shareholder lawsuit against a Trump-linked crypto company has also been uncovered.
01411
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
FOIA Feed @foiafeed.social.freedom.press.ap.brid.gy · 25/08/2026
Gizmodo: Legal Experts Are Alarmed the SEC Isn’t Investigating Trump-Linked Crypto Venture gizmodo.com/legal-experts-are-alarm…
Excerpt: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission could not find records of an investigation into AI Financial Corporation, formerly Alt5 Sigma, over the previous year, according to a Freedom of Information Act response obtained by POGO Investigates. AI Financial is the public company that cut a massive 2025 deal with World Liberty Financial, the Trump family crypto venture, and then saw its stock collapse as investors got hammered.
042
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
POGO Investigates @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
A murky crypto deal helped enrich Trump and his family by an estimated $500 million last year. Now, a previously unreported shareholder lawsuit raises questions about whether the SEC will do their job when President Trump’s business interests are at stake: www.pogo.org/investigates...
pogo.org
No SEC Probe of Trump Crypto Deal Despite Alleged "Illegality"
In matters involving the president and cryptocurrency, some experts say the Securities and Exchange Commission has abandoned its mission of protecting investors.
134
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
David Dayen @ddayen.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
working class hero RIP www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbxU...
youtube.com
Dolly Parton - 9 To 5 (Official Video)
YouTube video by DollyPartonVEVO
110018
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
tony romm @tonyromm.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
E.P.A. Moves to Curb Public Input on Data Centers www.nytimes.com/2026/08/25/c...
nytimes.com
E.P.A. Moves to Curb Public Input on Air Pollution Permits for Data Centers
Under the proposal, states would no longer need to provide public notice or solicit comments on air pollution permits for data centers and other projects.
1115
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
“They need to investigate,” @rokhanna.bsky.social told @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social in regards to a massive Trump crypto deal with a publicly traded company. But we found out that the SEC isn't investigating.
1188
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
“The SEC abetting Trump’s corruption is a problem in its own right,” said @csfrayer.bsky.social, director of investor protection for the Consumer Federation of America and a former SEC advisor on crypto markets. He also said its hands-off approach is fueling distrust in U.S. markets
010
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Project On Government Oversight @pogo.org · 25/08/2026
The latest from @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social: The SEC isn't investigating a deal between Trump's crypto venture and a publicly traded company called Alt5 Sigma. But an Alt5 shareholder lawsuit alleges "illegality" and "unjust enrichment." Read more:
pogo.org
No SEC Probe of Trump Crypto Deal Despite Alleged "Illegality"
In matters involving the president and cryptocurrency, some experts say the Securities and Exchange Commission has abandoned its mission of protecting investors.
066
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 25/08/2026
DHS agents secretly recorded meetings of anti-ICE protesters at churches, libraries around Minneapolis, infiltrated group chats, sought financial records, and more. The scope of the surveillance was “breathtaking,” @rlevinsonwaldman.bsky.social tells NPR.
npr.org
Churches, libraries and breweries: Inside DHS' covert surveillance operation
DHS allegedly went undercover at community meetings, subpoenaed the financial records of labor unions, and created dossiers on people at a church gathering, according to court filings.
10150124
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
David Szakonyi @szakonyi.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
The SEC cannot locate a single investigative record for a company that handed the president's crypto venture $750m and then fell 90% www.pogo.org/investigates...
pogo.org
No SEC Probe of Trump Crypto Deal Despite Alleged "Illegality"
In matters involving the president and cryptocurrency, some experts say the Securities and Exchange Commission has abandoned its mission of protecting investors.
174
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Gillian Brockell @gillianbrockell.com · 25/08/2026
I’ve lost track of the number of times an immigrant has told me they had to sit on a prison bus in the back of an airport for six, 10, 20 hours with no food or water and being told to urinate in a corner or onto themselves.
A screenshot of a White House tweet styled after The Magic School Bus cartoon but this one says “The Magic Deportation Bus” and shows shackled brown men in the back. The White House account says “Please let this be a normal field trip…” One put gray text over the whole thing that says “FASCIST PROPAGANDA.”
161567506
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
🚨In 2025, Trump's crypto venture World Liberty Financial struck a deal w/ a publicly traded company called Alt5 Sigma That deal came under fire in a lawsuit against Alt5 that alleged “illegality,” “unjust enrichment” & “avarice” that @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social is first reporting 1/4
pogo.org
No SEC Probe of Trump Crypto Deal Despite Alleged "Illegality"
In matters involving the president and cryptocurrency, some experts say the Securities and Exchange Commission has abandoned its mission of protecting investors.
134
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
The Lever @levernews.com · 25/08/2026
🚨 Private prison giant GEO Group landed two five-year ICE contracts expected to generate $160M+ a year. Weeks later, it gave $1.4M to a Trump-aligned super PAC. Now, the company is jockeying for even more of the administration’s detention business.
33222
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Eric Umansky @ericumansky.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Dronemaker is new darling of U.S. military. Don Jr. and his bro Eric happen to be investors. They got onboard via a merger between the drone company ....golf course firm. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/23/b...
nytimes.com
The U.S. Start-Up Making Low-Cost Interceptors for the Iran War
For Florida-based Powerus, becoming a global supplier of counterdrone technology has meant involving the Trumps, a golf course and a new way of doing business.
2229
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
D. Earl Stephens @dearlstephens.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
🗞️As a former Managing Editor of Stars and Stripes I can tell you it is the most important newspaper in the world because it exists to inform and protect our troops from people like the despicable Pete Hegseth and Donald Trump who do not believe they — or anybody for that matter — are owed the truth.
apnews.com
Stars and Stripes editor says he has been fired for insubordination after doing interview
The editor-in-chief of Stars and Stripes says the Pentagon has fired him as well as its publisher and a reporter.
531886808
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Kyle Griffin @kylegriffin1.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
BREAKING: WASHINGTON (AP) - Editor of Stars and Stripes says he is being fired for insubordination after saying any censorship is a 'red line.'
449148265285
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Freedom of the Press Foundation @freedom.press · 21/08/2026
Journalist Carlitos Ricardo Parias has been in ICE detention for 300+ days; the longest known time a journalist has been in U.S. custody. In Oct., he was shot in the arm, arrested by ICE at an immigration stop in LA. @adamrose.bsky.social writes about the horrific detention conditions he’s facing.
theintercept.com
ICE Shot a Journalist and Threw Him in Detention. He’s Approaching 300 Days Behind Bars With a Festering Wound.
With the case of Carlitos Ricardo Parias, the U.S. has broken its own record for holding a journalist in custody.
26136
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Steve Herman @newsguy.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
"This is an assault on the fundamental principle that journalists must be free to report the news without fear of retaliation from the government officials they cover." - National Press Club President Mark Schoeff Jr.
413851
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
Dan Friedman @dfriedman.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Got to go on KALW in San Francisco with @schwellenbach.bsky.social to talk about DHS contractors that are viscously fighting over profits from deporting people with various levels of coercion. www.kalw.org/show/your-ca...
kalw.org
Immigrants caught in the fight over lucrative ICE contracts
Mother Jones reports that Salus, CSI, and GEO, which are profiting from Trump's immigration crackdown, are fighting over portions of the Trump-era deportation industry.
2127
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Thanks for having us on, @kalwradio.bsky.social!
000
Nick Schwellenbach @schwellenbach.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
🧵below on ICE's twisted inspection system where detention centers get glowing grades even when there are violations of standards and deaths... And follow my @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social colleague @ziembavision.bsky.social!
053
Reposted by Nick Schwellenbach
KatherineHawkins @krhawkins.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Everyone please follow @pogoinvestigates.bsky.social, which has just officially launched its own social media, and investigators @ziembavision.bsky.social @schwellenbach.bsky.social @marenmachles.bsky.social if you haven't already.
123