New Lawsuit Seeks DHS Border Wall Emails with White House, Fox News, Border States

Nonpartisan ethics watchdog American Oversight today sued the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to release emails relating to President Trump’s proposed border wall sent between senior officials at the department and individuals in the White House, anti-immigration activist groups, and conservative media outlets including Breitbart and Fox News.

Even as President Trump has insisted that he still intends to build the border wall, details about the massive construction project have remained largely hidden from public view. American Oversight’s lawsuit asks a court to order the release of emails and other communications between senior DHS officials and the White House, outside political groups and think tanks, and the border states of California, Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico.

This is the third case brought by American Oversight in its ongoing Audit the Wall investigation of the Trump administration’s proposed border wall. Previous lawsuits have sought the release of government documents related to the costs and construction of the wall as well as State Department records of any attempts by the administration to ask the Mexican government to pay for the wall.

The new lawsuit seeks to enforce three separate Freedom of Information Act requests that American Oversight filed with DHS and Customs and Border Protection (CBP):

• Communications with the White House, including any emails about the wall between senior DHS or CBP officials and emails ending in @who.eop.gov.
• Communications with Stakeholders, including conservative activist groups like Americans for Prosperity and Heritage Action, and conservative media outlets including Breitbart and Fox News.
• Communications with Border States, including emails with officials from California, Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico.