“When the Guardrails Erode” Series

The U.S. anti‑corruption architecture — from inspector‑general offices to transparency rules and enforcement units, and more — is being systematically weakened. In our series, When Guardrails Erode, we bring together expert analysis that traces this erosion, assesses the risks for democratic governance, and outlines pathways to rebuild or even reinvent these safeguards.

The series will expand regularly and is paired with a continuously updated Anti‑Corruption Tracker that documents every concrete action in one place. Forthcoming pieces explore international accountability measures, FOIA, the role of inspectors general, and what states can do to protect against weakened federal anti-corruption measures, and more.

• “How to End the Shadow Budget and Protect Congress’s Power of the Purse” by Scott Levy (November 21, 2025)
• “Is the U.S. Becoming a Captured State? A Comparative Perspective” by Naomi Roht-Arriaza (November 18, 2025)
• “The $550 Billion Shadow Budget: Trump’s Japan Deal and the Disappearing Appropriations Clause” by Scott Levy (October 30, 2025)
• “Should Inspectors General be Moved to the Legislative Branch?” by Jason Powell (Oct. 22, 2025)
• “The Human Costs of Systemic Corruption” by Abigail Bellows (August 11, 2025)
• “The Freedom of Information Act and Deteriorating Federal Transparency Infrastructure” by Amanda Teuscher (August 4, 2025)
• “Hard to Kill: The Transnational Survival of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act” by Bruce Swartz, Sonia Mittal, Inbar Pe’er, and Brady Worthington (July 24, 2025)
• “When the Guardrails Erode: An Anti-Corruption Series” by Dani Schulkin and Amy Markopolous (July 23, 2025)
• “The Anti-Corruption Tracker: Mapping the Erosion of Oversight and Accountability” by Dani Schulkin, Amy Markopolous, and Maya Nir (July 23, 2025)
• “American Businesses Still Face International Human Rights Obligations, Even as Oversight Diminishes at Home” by Nicole Vander Meulen (June 23, 2025)