Phillip Swarts

UPDATED 17:27 PM EDT, May 22, 2013

Taking the Fifth

"I have not done anything wrong," Lois Lerner tells House Oversight Committee

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UPDATED 15:29 PM EDT, May 22, 2013

Five-Sided Spending Machine

Twenty years after first warning, GAO finds Pentagon has failed to place adequate safeguards to protect taxpayers

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UPDATED 8:16 AM EDT, May 18, 2013

A Bad Week for Truth at the White House

The White House is in damage control mode - and stretching facts to defend itself

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UPDATED 21:48 PM EDT, May 21, 2013

Farming for Tax Dollars

A bill designed to help farmers is riddled with millions of dollars in giveaways

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UPDATED 23:21 PM EDT, May 15, 2013

Does Not Compute

OMB plans to close 40 percent of federal data centers, but officials aren't sure if they'll actually save the estimated $3 billion

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UPDATED 11:47 AM EDT, May 15, 2013

Highway to Waste

Watchdogs at the Federal Highway Administration were asleep at the wheel, investigators say, allowing misspending at the state level to slip through the cracks

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UPDATED 16:58 PM EDT, May 13, 2013

Rethinking Medicaid

GAO says Medicaid should consider demand, geography when making payments to states

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UPDATED 20:50 PM EDT, May 12, 2013

Changing Facts on Climate Change

Climate change concerns are growing, but politicians twist the facts in the debate

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UPDATED 23:09 PM EDT, May 15, 2013

No Tank You

Congress wins a Hammer for forcing the Defense Department to buy and keep equipment it doesn't want

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UPDATED 6:53 AM EDT, May 10, 2013

Afghan Warning

After decade of war and $90 billion in reconstruction, Afghan military still struggling and could set back country, John Sopko says

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UPDATED 23:46 PM EDT, May 7, 2013

Air Repairs

Federal investigators question effectiveness of FAA's oversight of airline repair facilities

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UPDATED 21:35 PM EDT, May 8, 2013

AID Through Rose-Colored Glasses

The US Agency for International Development is seeing the good, sometimes ignoring the bad, in Afghanistan

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UPDATED 22:56 PM EDT, May 7, 2013

Flushing Away Taxpayer Money

The Water Resources Development Act of 2013 gives more than $12 billion to the Army Corps of Engineers - with little oversight

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UPDATED 22:37 PM EDT, May 6, 2013

Hospital Hardship?

Chief U.S. watchdog for Afghanistan thinks new hospital construction isn't meeting the needs of the local government. The agency in charge disagrees.

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UPDATED 7:01 AM EDT, May 6, 2013

Coming Up Empty

Lawmakers question why government is keeping 100,000 unused buildings at heavy taxpayer expense

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UPDATED 6:36 AM EDT, April 29, 2013

EPA: Environmental Purchasing (un)American?

Despite a stimulus law requirement that agencies buy U.S.-made goods, investigators say a project in Illinois didn't follow the rules. Now EPA doesn't want to recover the money.

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UPDATED 7:54 AM EDT, April 29, 2013

Grounding the Truth

The furlough of air traffic controllers due to budget cuts led a prominent lawmaker to get some math wrong

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UPDATED 23:02 PM EDT, April 22, 2013

Food Stamp Follies

Program that provides food to poor mothers, kids failed to disqualify 42 vendors that overcharged or served expired goods, probe finds

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UPDATED 23:25 PM EDT, April 25, 2013

Media Meltdown

Sometimes the truth tellers are the ones who stick their feet in their mouths

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UPDATED 10:24 AM EDT, April 19, 2013

Disinterested in Savings

By not waiting 20 days to hand out prescription drug benefits, the government is missing out on $111 million in interest, investigators find

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Phillip Swarts is an investigative reporter specializing in government accountability and political ethics for the Washington Guardian.

Originally from Warsaw, Ind., he graduated from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University with both a Bachelors and Masters of Science in Journalism and a minor in Political Science.

While at Northwestern, he partnered with The Washington Post to investigate military healthcare for National Guard and reserve troops. He also completed an internship with The Oregonian in Portland, Ore. reporting on law enforcement and breaking news.

Phillip's work has appeared in the McClatchy News Service, Military Times, Daily Caller and United Press International. Phillip started reporting in the 7^th grade for his middle school paper and has never lost his passion for writing.