"According to a Friday ProPublica investigation, the Department of Homeland Security invoked a national emergency at the southern border to bypass competitive bidding rules for a massive $220 million advertising campaign a process that ultimately funneled work to a Republican consulting firm with deep ties to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. DHS has defended its ad effort as necessary to confront a national [border] emergency, using that justification to bypass the usual bidding rules and fast-track contracts to firms hired to make the ads."
"One of the most noteworthy, filmed on just the second day of the recent government shutdown, shows Noem sitting on horseback at Mount Rushmore, declaring, Break our laws, we'll punish you. For this ad, ProPublica found that DHS's prime contractor brought in the Strategy Group, an Ohio-based political firm that worked extensively on Noem's 2022 gubernatorial reelection campaign and is run by the husband of Noem's DHS spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin."
The Department of Homeland Security declared a national emergency at the southern border and used that justification to bypass competitive bidding for a $220 million advertising campaign. The campaign produced high-profile ads, including one showing Secretary Kristi Noem on horseback with the line, Break our laws, we'll punish you. The campaign funneled significant spending to a newly formed Delaware entity, Safe America Media, while an Ohio-based Strategy Group with ties to Noem figures into production roles but does not appear on federal contracting records. Critics characterize the arrangement as corrupt and urged formal investigations; DHS defended the effort as necessary to confront the border emergency.
Read at www.mediaite.com
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