Deep Dive

Chris Hughes, assistant water and wastewater operator for the towns of Cavendish and Proctorsville in Vermont, deals with the effects of a power outage at a drinking water facility. Claire Harbage/NPR hide caption

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials stand outside immigration courtrooms while cases are being heard at 290 Broadway in New York. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images/Getty Images North America hide caption

Activists hold a "Jericho Walk" in support of immigrants in front of the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in June in New York City. Andres Kudacki/Getty Images hide caption

Attorney General Pam Bondi testifies before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee in June 2025 in Washington, D.C. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images hide caption

Attorney General Pam Bondi testifies before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee in June. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images hide caption

The Trump administration is trying to get access to data held by states, such as information about people who have been enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which provides food aid to people. Ronaldo Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Dr. Maya Bass would visit Oklahoma monthly to help provide abortions at a local clinic. Since the state banned abortions after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, she found another way to support patients with limited access to abortions. Hannah Yoon for NPR hide caption

Federal agents wait outside an immigration courtroom at the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York on June 10, 2025. Yuki Iwamura/AP hide caption

FBI Director Kash Patel speaks with Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum last month. Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

A protester with a sign saying "HONK IF YOU WANT YOUR DATA BACK!!!" stands with other demonstrators outside of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management's headquarters in February in Washington, D.C., to rally against the DOGE team set up by President Trump's billionaire adviser Elon Musk getting access to personal data about federal employees. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images hide caption

President Trump speaks after signing executive orders in the Oval Office in March 2025, including terminating the security clearances of those who work at the law firm Perkins Coie. Alex Wong/Getty Images hide caption

People shop for food in a Brooklyn neighborhood that has a large immigrant population on October 16, 2023 in New York City. Spencer Platt/Getty Images hide caption

An employee holds a full-size prototype LMR battery cell at the General Motors Wallace Battery Cell Innovation Center. GM has prototyped approximately 300 full-size LMR cells as it worked with LG Energy Solution to crack the code on the chemistry. Steve Fecht for General Motors/Handout from GM hide caption

Harmeet Dhillon, far right, is sworn in during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee in February 2025 in Washington, D.C. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images hide caption

The Government Accountability Office, which falls under the legislative branch, has rejected DOGE's efforts to embed staffers at the agency. Government Accountability Office/GAO hide caption

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi is seen during a press conference on May 7 in Washington, D.C. Bondi's Department of Justice recently charged a few noncitizens for alleged illegal voting, citing assistance from the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images hide caption

A worker bathes a racehorses on the backside of a horse racing track in Louisville, Ky., on April 30, 2025. Lydia Schweickart for NPR hide caption