A Politico article by Eric Bazail-Eimil reports that internal DHS emails and Signal messages, obtained by American Oversight through a FOIA request, show Corey Lewandowski wielding wide-ranging authority over immigration enforcement as an unpaid special government employee with no official role, including in deportation planning and the Kilmar Ábrego García case, and being treated as Kristi Noem's equal. The article judges the messages to raise new questions about the power Lewandowski exerted on Noem's behalf, and American Oversight's executive director says Congress has a duty to investigate.