Subject: Is government accountability important to you?
From: "Danielle Brian, Project On Government Oversight" <[email-masked]>
To: John Podesta <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 2015 12:27:22 -0500

http://getinvolved.pogo.org/site/R?i=BHqnRz-kwk9Vgng27SzUOQ

Dear John,

With the year just a little more than halfway over, we need a moment to catch our breath. We've packed a lot into the past six and half months.

As we've done for nearly 35 years, we've continued our mission of holding the federal government accountable. This past spring, we exposed the Navy's questionable--possibly illegal--attempts to lobby Congress for an off-budget account to fund new nuclear submarines. We also exposed the Senate Armed Services Committee's secret and improper vote to keep the Pentagon budget debate behind closed doors.

Last month, the Society of Professional Journalists' DC Chapter recognized our investigative work by giving us five awards, including their top "Watchdog" prize.

It has, to some degree, been a year of addition by way of subtraction. We pushed the Obama administration to remove officials who failed the public interest--and in several cases, we claimed victory.

Those we're not sorry to see go include the Air Force general who asserted that airmen communicating with Congress about the capabilities of the A-10 aircraft were "committing treason," the Commerce Inspector General with a history of acting against whistleblowers, the Department of Defense "watchdog" who seemed more interested in protecting Pentagon superiors than holding them accountable, and the Veterans Affairs Acting Inspector General who helped perpetuate the department's toxic culture of retaliation and intimidation.

In the last case, the VA official stepped down just a few weeks after I testified before a Senate committee about his terrible record.

None of these victories would have happened without our supporters, people like you, who make our work possible through contributions and by signing petitions and sending emails to Congress and the President demanding accountability.

Donate today:
( http://getinvolved.pogo.org/site/R?i=2arOqZtRCApNxxJT9AecnQ )

But there is much more work to be done. Please support us by making a contribution to the Project On Government Oversight today. ( http://getinvolved.pogo.org/site/R?i=mJDO4pwUlA7xMt3D38yFVQ )

With your help, POGO will continue to be able to tackle problems like these, and to make a difference in Washington.

Sincerely,

Danielle Brian
Executive Director

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