Rusk Read 3/23/25 - The First 50 Days of DOGE, Agent Orange, & Nuclear Brain Drain
Welcome to Rusk Reads. Every Sunday I will highlight three long-form article recommendations. These pieces will be meaningful, relevant, and thought-provoking.
This last week was national Sunshine Week. Per their website : “Sunshine Week occurs each year in mid-March, coinciding with James Madison’s birthday, March 16 (1751). Madison was a driving force behind the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and presented the first version of the Bill of Rights to Congress. He also was the fourth president of the United States. Coordinated by the nonpartisan Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project at the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications, Sunshine Week helps educate the public, journalists, lawmakers, and others on the right to know in the U.S. states and federal government. Sunshine Week provides materials for publication, encourages year-around collaboration among more than 100 partners, hosts an in-person Sunshine Fest conference, highlights the effective use of public records by engaged citizens, showcases freedom of information events, and provides fun activities and other resources.”
In honor of this Sunny Week I wanted to highlight a theme of articles. The first article is from Wired who, in a partnership with the Freedom of the Press Foundation, announced they would remove paywalls for all articles that are primarily sourced via public records. The second and third articles highlight some of the impacts of DOGE in the immediate and long term.
Inside Elon Musk’s ‘Digital Coup’
By Makena Kelly, David Gilbert, Vittoria Elliott, Kate Knibbs, Dhruv Mehrotra, Dell Cameron, Tim Marchman, Leah Feiger, and Zoë Schiffer | Wired
Move fast and break things was the ethos that brought the rise and fall of Facebook and Theranos alike. This Wired headliner delves into the world we live in now where Silicon Valley and populism collide via any means for almost any ends.
Trump Halted an Agent Orange Cleanup. That Puts Hundreds of Thousands at Risk for Poisoning.
By Anna Maria Barry-Jester and Brett Murphy, and Le Van | Pro Publica
This a story of a country dropping 11 million gallons of toxic herbicide during a war that killed millions of people. The United States decided to make take some minimal amends to clean up that disaster among many actions. Now due to cuts at USAID that clean up is at risk of collapsing and even worse… ending mid-process could have worse consequences than never starting to begin with. A human tragedy is compounding itself in front of us.
DOGE Cuts Reach Key Nuclear Scientists, Bomb Engineers and Safety Experts
By Sharon LaFraniere, Minho Kim, and Julie Tate | The New York Times
The NYT highlights an important implication of the DOGE cuts. Red-lines for what we may have considered the most important jobs and assets are not so fixed either. This story highlights that event when it comes to nuclear safety and nuclear readiness some of the greatest minds are leaving with existential consequences.