Department of Veterans Affairs cancels $178K in subscriptions to Politico Pro
The Department of Veterans Affairs canceled $178,000 in subscriptions to Politico Pro, VA Secretary Doug Collins announced Monday.
Collins announced the move on X, saying his office had only recently become aware of the contract. The cancelation comes after President Donald Trump’s administration revealed that the federal government had paid over $8 million to Politico in subscription fees in recent years.
“Ran across a $178,000 contract VA had with Politico and we promptly canceled it. That money can be better spent on Veterans health care!” Collins wrote.
The VA canceled a nearly $200,000 contract with Politico this week. (Screenshot/Politico, (Photo by Samuel Corum/Getty Images) )
“It’s a new day at VA,” Collins told Fox News Digital. “We’re putting Veterans at the center of everything the department does, focusing relentlessly on customer service and convenience. We’re working every day to find new and better ways of helping VA beneficiaries. That means cutting wasteful spending and redirecting resources toward programs that benefit Veterans, families, survivors and caregivers.”
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The move comes after Politico denied claims that it was a “beneficiary of government programs” last week upon revelations of millions of dollars worth of contracts with federal agencies.
“As surely many of you saw today, there was a spirited discussion at the White House and among officials connected to the Department of Government Efficiency on the subject of government subscriptions for journalism products, at POLITICO and other news organizations,” Politico’s CEO Goli Sheikholeslami and editor-in-chief John Harris jointly wrote to staff on Wednesday in a memo obtained by Fox News Digital.
“This is a fine conversation to have, and we welcome it. The value of POLITICO subscriptions is validated daily in the marketplace. Some parts of today’s conversation, however, were confusing and left some people with false understandings. For this reason, we want you to hear from us on several points.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a briefing at the White House on Wednesday, Feb. 5. (AP/Evan Vucci)
Sheikholeslami and Harris stressed Politico “has never been a beneficiary of government programs or subsidies—not one cent, ever, in 18 years” and touted that its subscription service Politico Pro “provides both private and public sector clients with granular, fact-based reporting, real-time intelligence, and tracking tools across key policy areas.”
There was speculation on social media that the $8 million in question all came from USAID, the agency currently being targeted by DOGE co-founder Elon Musk, but only $44,000 of it came from that agency. Base subscriptions are typically between $12,000 and $15,000 for three users.
VA Secretary Doug Collins announced he was cutting a six-figure contract with Politico.
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Politico received taxpayer funding for its costly subscription service from elsewhere in the federal government. The Department of Health and Human Services led the way, with $1.37 million followed by $1.35 million from the Department of the Interior, according to USAspending.gov.
The Department of Energy paid Politico $1.29 million, the Department of Agriculture paid $552,024 and the Department of Commerce paid $485,572.
Regarding Collins’ Monday announcement, a Politico spokesperson told Fox News Media, “POLITICO Pro tracks policy, legislation, and regulations in real-time with news, intelligence, and a suite of data products. Using the POLITICO Pro platform—which is distinct and separate from POLITICO.com—ultimately increases transparency, efficiency, and accountability for those trying to navigate the massive labyrinth of the federal government, including those working in the government itself.”
Fox News’ Brian Flood contributed to this report
