David Fahrenthold
@Fahrenthold
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Investigative reporter for the New York Times, focused on nonprofits. Tips? [email protected]
Washington, DC
Joined July 2009
NEW and BREAKING: Career prosecutors do not believe criminal charges are warranted in another potential prosecution being pushed by top Trump officials related to the FBI/2016 Russia investigation. One witness approached earlier this year was told the investigation was being
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NEW: DOJ cited a watchdog group's report to justify its investigation of George Soros' nonprofits. But the report's authors say they found no evidence Soros' groups committed a crime. https://t.co/kS3lU0B2CD
nytimes.com
The head of a conservative watchdog organization acknowledged that its report did not find evidence that the network of liberal billionaire George Soros had broken the law.
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NEW: The SEC quietly dismissed complaints against 3 people pardoned or commuted by Trump for frauds that collectively bilked victims out of hundreds of millions of dollars. Now, Devon Archer, @nikolatrevor & @CarlosWatson won't have to pay back any more $
nytimes.com
Devon Archer, Trevor Milton and Carlos Watson were convicted in fraud schemes totaling hundreds of millions of dollars. Now, they will not be required by the government to pay back victims.
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A lot of independent media is hot takes & partisan claptrap presented as news. It’s hard to do serious investigative journalism without legacy media resources. That makes @PabloTorre’s run of big scoops — @NFLPA, Belichick’s gf’s influence & now this — all the more impressive.
Exclusive: Kawhi Leonard signed a $28M endorsement deal for a "no-show job" with a fraudulent tree-planting company funded by $50M from Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, according to documents obtained by @PabloTorre. "It was to circumvent the salary cap," an inside source says.
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NEW: NY AG sues right-wing nonprofit @vdare, alleging its husband-and-wife leaders used donated funds to buy a medieval-looking castle, then moved into it themselves. https://t.co/4lboUDHyGk
nytimes.com
The suit says the nonprofit’s leaders — who helped bring anti-immigrant ideas into the G.O.P. mainstream — used donor money to buy a castle-like home.
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NEW: How China influences elections in America's largest city, often using tax-exempt U.S. nonprofits. https://t.co/3D3XbbLAfW
nytimes.com
The Chinese Consulate in Manhattan has mobilized community groups to defeat candidates who don’t fall in line with the authoritarian state.
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NEW: A pastor in Wisconsin wanted to endorse @AOC in church. He wound up without a church. https://t.co/EJPk4ze60y
nytimes.com
The I.R.S. says churches can now support candidates during services, but many denominations still forbid it. A Wisconsin pastor learned the hard way.
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NEW: A biotech company donated $5M to attend a March 1 dinner with Trump. The company's co-owner brought a flier opposing a pending change limiting Medicare $ for his products. The next day, Trump posted the flier on Truth Social. The next month, the Medicare change was tabled
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New: The Justice Dept has issued subpoenas as it investigates whether NY Attorney General Letitia James violated the civil rights of... Donald Trump
nytimes.com
Letitia James, New York’s attorney general and a longtime nemesis of the president, is being investigated in two separate inquiries, in a remarkable use of executive power to pursue a foe.
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A shaky pilot, a wary instructor, an overwhelmed air-traffic controller: How three lives intersected tragically in the Jan. 29 disaster over the Potomac. https://t.co/9JDhTzvfPM
nytimes.com
Documents released in the inquiry into the deadly midair collision over the Potomac River on Jan. 29 reveal new details about three people whose decisions shaped the outcome of the disaster.
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NEW: How conservative Christians convinced the I.R.S. to grant them an exemption from a 70 year-old law, and let them endorse candidates from the pulpit. https://t.co/9yHFIgtya8
nytimes.com
The I.R.S. recently said that churches could endorse candidates from the pulpit, a shift from a longstanding interpretation of American nonprofit law.
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BIG WEEK FOR HELIUM! won Best Wi-Fi Innovation at the @WBAlliance awards 2025 in Paris, France! 🏆
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Why we almost got a "Make America Great Again" Instant Pot. https://t.co/lcrGgIV1PF
nytimes.com
Instant Brands announced a new line of pots emblazoned with the slogan “Make America Great Again.” David Fahrenthold explains what’s behind this decision and explores the link between this brand and...
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NEW: What happened to the MAGA Instant Pot? A tale of a company -- and an appliance -- trying and failing to navigate Washington's new rules. https://t.co/C7q4UXdsng
nytimes.com
As its private-equity owner fought antitrust allegations, the countertop cooker suddenly embraced the president’s politics, trying the new playbook of lobbying through flattery.
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U.S. Quietly Drafts Plan to End Program That Saved Millions From AIDS PEPFAR, the campaign to end H.I.V. globally, would morph into an effort to detect disease outbreaks and sell American products, according to documents obtained by The Times. https://t.co/x64ycNZ0Qs
nytimes.com
PEPFAR, the campaign to end H.I.V. globally, would morph into an effort to detect disease outbreaks and sell American products, according to documents obtained by The Times.
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NEW: The V.A. was under pressure to slash spending. Then it started to feed @DOGE misleading budget cuts, inflating its progress. https://t.co/neAIjPUKnn
nytimes.com
The Department of Veterans Affairs claimed credit for canceling contracts that had not been canceled, and tallied savings unrelated to the cost-cutting efforts.
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We have been mapping and studying the known flood risks at Camp Mystic. It turns out that not only was the camp in a flood zone, some cabins were located in areas that local county officials had deemed “extremely hazardous.” Here is more of what we found. 🧵 1/9
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We've dropped the paywall on all of our flood coverage at @TexasMonthly. Our journalists have been in the field with first responders, former campers, and those affected since last week. There are so many stories that deserve telling. https://t.co/7alImyBsjv
texasmonthly.com
Catastrophic flooding hit Kerrville overnight. Fourth of July revelers and campers are feared lost in the floodwaters.
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NEW: I tried to interview Joe Biden for my book on the 2024 election. I called his cell phone, and he agreed but cut it short as he boarded an Amtrak train. His aides then changed his number. NYT excerpt of 2024, w @jdawsey1 + @iarnsdorf —out today! https://t.co/KPgtNJwKOM
nytimes.com
The effort by Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s inner circle to limit access to him helps explain why it took him more than three weeks to drop his re-election bid after his disastrous debate performance.
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NEW: IRS says that churches can now endorse candidates from the pulpit -- granting them an exemption from a 70 year-old ban on politicking by tax-exempt groups. https://t.co/ZkCtnKKxBw
nytimes.com
In a court filing, the tax agency said a decades-old ban on campaigning by tax-exempt groups should not apply to houses of worship speaking to their own members.
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