18+ hour, 51+ min ago (550+ words) In recent days, five U.S. senators and two representatives requested documents from the Department of Homeland Security and a formal investigation into how a firm closely tied to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem ended up receiving money from a $220 million, taxpayer-funded ad campaign. The demands came in response to a ProPublica story this month that revealed that the Republican consulting firm had been secretly working on the ads, which star Noem. The company, called the Strategy Group, has long-standing personal and business ties to Noem and her senior aides at DHS. Its CEO is married to Noem's chief spokesperson at DHS. Under Noem, DHS bypassed the normal competitive bidding process when awarding the contracts " allocating the majority of the money to a mysterious Delaware LLC that was created days before the deal was finalized. The Strategy Group does not appear on public…...

18+ hour, 21+ min ago (1736+ words) It was Friday, June 6, and the rent was due. As soon as she finished an errand, Imelda Carreto planned on joining her family as they gathered scrap metal to earn a little extra cash. Her fianc, Julio Matias, and 15-year-old nephew, Carlos, had set out early, hitching a trailer to the back of their beat-up gray truck. Carreto didn't carry any proof that she had custody of the boy. She had left it in another car in her rush. She recalls officers saying her nephew would likely be released to her in a few days once she presented the proper documents. Before they drove him away, Carlos started to tear up. Carreto told him, "Don't cry. I don't know how, but I'll get you back. Understand?" A cracked windshield, a waiting officer, a forgotten document: The new family separations often…...

2+ hour, 26+ min ago (539+ words) The Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles has fired a longtime employee nearly five years after investigators found he used his position to garner steep discounts on cars he bought from a towing company, according to a termination letter obtained last week. In total, DMV investigators found that from 2015 to 2019, D&L sold 15 vehicles to an investment firm owned by Stefanski, who had worked for the agency since 1999 and was then a document examiner in the DMV's main office. In one case, Stefanski bought a Cadillac for $1,000 and sold it for $17,500. The car was eventually sold by another company for $23,250. But the DMV did not discipline Stefanski or issue fines against D&L in the years after the investigation. The agency declined to comment on the firing and declined to answer specific questions about the investigation. Stefanski was placed on paid…...