Washington, D.C. – In advance of Sunshine Week (March 15-21), Democracy Forward today released a new report, “Demanding Accountability: Democracy Forward’s Investigations in the First Year of the Trump-Vance Administration,” which details an extensive set of investigations to uncover the way in which the federal government is operating, along with the revelations that have been uncovered over the past year from these investigations. Since January 2025, Democracy Forward filed more than 2,000 public records requests, which have already yielded 21,000 pages of documents unearthed from the group’s investigations.
“Our investigations aim to shed light on the weaponization of justice and law enforcement, the unlawful withholding of federal funding, the destruction of key governmental functions, efforts to evade our nation’s transparency laws, and much more,” the report reads. “We have also sent letters demanding oversight and accountability of other potential federal misconduct: highlighting this administration’s likely violations of the Antideficiency Act, Hatch Act, and Federal Records Act this past year.”
The report provides details of the investigations and the documents they have unearthed, as well as the many instances in which the administration has stonewalled and ignored its obligations under the law to provide information to the public. Democracy Forward has had to file suit in federal court in several instances to force the administration to turn over documents to the public.
“People and our democracy are in crisis – this administration is hampering transparency efforts and seeking to obfuscate and delay the release of public records, and thus, accountability. But as Justice Brandeis once remarked, ‘sunlight is the best disinfectant.’ The administration is underestimating the lawyers, the researchers, and the American people – and they are learning every day that that is a mistake,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “Over the past year, our team has filed more than 2,000 requests for information and we are litigating in federal courts to ensure that the people see what the government is doing. We are honored to be in partnership with so many communities across the nation to demand transparency and defend our democracy from the ongoing assault.”
The report includes highlights of the hundreds of investigations Democracy Forward has launched in the past year, and how the organization has used federal and state public records laws to submit more than 2,000 open records requests and filed 28 lawsuits to compel the disclosure of certain records owed to the public when agencies have not followed the law’s requirements for responsiveness. The report categorizes Democracy Forward’s investigative work, including information about research into:
- Weaponization of the Justice Department & Law Enforcement
- Ethical Misconduct of Senior Officials
- Unlawful Withholding of Federal Funding
- Dismantling of the Federal Government
- Unsecured Messaging and Reckless Records Management
- Attacks on Civil Rights, Education, and Equity
- Harmful and Illegal Immigration Enforcement Actions
- Weaponization of Voter Data
- State Partnerships to Expand Detention Facilities
- Harmful Delays and Denials in State Requests for Emergency Aid
Read the report here.
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Democracy Forward is a national legal organization that advances democracy and social progress through litigation, policy, public education, and regulatory engagement. For more information, please visit www.democracyforward.org.
