Managing editor/local at ProPublica, past prez of AHCJ, Detroit Lions fan. Email: charles.ornstein@propublica.org. Posts are my own.
Phenomenal news! 🎉🎉🎉 ProPublica Hires Four Reporters to Expand Washington and National Security Coverage
ProPublica Hires Four Reporters to Expand Washington and National Security Coveragewww.propublica.orgFCC Commissioners Face Ethics Complaints for Taking Luxury Gifts From Paramount, by @coreygjohnson.bsky.social
FCC Commissioners Face Ethics Complaints for Taking Luxury Gifts From ParamountCiting a ProPublica report on Paramount providing luxury Kennedy Center gala tickets to FCC officials, the complaints note that commissioners accepted the gifts while the FCC was reviewing or about to...www.propublica.orgNEW: Solar Developer Cancels Washington State Project on Sacred Indigenous Land @highcountrynews.org
Solar Developer Cancels Washington State Project on Sacred Indigenous LandThe company, Avangrid, pulled its long-standing and controversial project following years of delays, as well as tribal objections spurred in part by High Country News and ProPublica reporting.www.propublica.orgCheck out this @brookings.edu updated interactive tool that tracks state safety net programs from 2001 to 2024, showing how policy changes have shaped benefits across states and over time.
State Safety Net Interactive | BrookingsBrookings researchers have updated the State Safety Net Interactive for Summer 2026, adding new programs, family types, and data since the Spring 2024 version.www.brookings.eduWOW. How Trump and his “princess of darkness” are persuading corporate America to donate hundreds of millions to fund his projects. via @wsj.com
Exclusive | ‘The Boss Wants This Money’: Inside Trump’s Unprecedented Fundraising OperationMeredith O’Rourke, nicknamed ‘princess of darkness,’ carries out the president’s desire to wring hundreds of millions from companies for his projects.www.wsj.comNEW: A last-ditch legislative attempt to help California school districts keep problematic teachers out of the classroom has collapsed following opposition from unions and the state teacher licensing agency. @kqednews.kqed.org
For the Second Time, Lawmakers Failed to Fix California’s Warning System for Teacher MisconductCalifornia is set to launch a database for school support staff, such as bus drivers and janitors, with substantiated claims of egregious misconduct. Setting up a similar system for public school teac...www.propublica.orgTrump’s Canada Tariffs Decimate Border Crossings, Business in Upper Michigan, by @annaleighclark.bsky.social
As Trump’s Tariff War With Canada Drags On, This Border Community Suffers Without a VoiceUnder an intensifying trade war, parts of northern Michigan are feeling the financial pain. But with a president intent on conflict and a congressman silent on the issue, these Michiganders see no sig...www.propublica.orgNew Mexico is awash in oil and gas money. The question for the state now: What to do with it?
New Mexico Is Divided Over What to Do With $75 Billion in Oil CashThe second-largest oil-producing state is also one of the poorest. How can it make its new wealth count?www.wsj.comIn 2020 as Kentucky faced a spike of deadly overdoses, @govandybeshear.bsky.social set out to help more people access drug treatment by loosening Medicaid spending controls. But as the costs piled up, so did the warnings that the system was being abused. @kentucky.com
Andy Beshear Set Out to Make Drug Treatment Widely Available in Kentucky. Fraud and Abuse Followed.In 2020 as Kentucky faced a spike of deadly overdoses, Gov. Andy Beshear set out to help more people access drug treatment by loosening Medicaid spending controls. But as the costs piled up, so did th...www.propublica.orgNEW: Kentucky @govandybeshear.bsky.social Set Out to Make Drug Treatment Widely Available in His State. Fraud and Abuse Followed. by @aacquisto.bsky.social @taylorsixhl.bsky.social @kentucky.com
Andy Beshear Set Out to Make Drug Treatment Widely Available in Kentucky. Fraud and Abuse Followed.In 2020 as Kentucky faced a spike of deadly overdoses, Gov. Andy Beshear set out to help more people access drug treatment by loosening Medicaid spending controls. But as the costs piled up, so did th...www.propublica.orgNEW: Senators Push Federal Regulator to Prove School Bus Safety Data Is Accurate, by @tophersanders.bsky.social @wmariano.bsky.social w/ @wbur.org
Senators Push Federal Regulator to Prove School Bus Safety Data Is AccurateThe request from two Democratic lawmakers comes after WBUR and ProPublica found that the federal safety record was missing dozens of fatal crashes involving one of the nation’s largest public transit ...www.propublica.orgNEW: Anthropic’s New AI Model Can Identify More Software Bugs Than Ever. Microsoft Is Struggling to Fix Them Fast Enough. by @reneedudley.bsky.social w/ Doris Burke
Anthropic’s New AI Model Can Identify More Software Bugs Than Ever. Microsoft Is Struggling to Fix Them Fast Enough.Anthropic’s Mythos has flagged bugs faster than Microsoft can fix them. Documents reviewed by ProPublica reveal the tech giant's “mad dash” behind the scenes to patch holes before hackers can find and...www.propublica.orgNick Adams’ Foundation for Liberty and American Greatness has brought in millions in donations and helped him land a State Department appointment, but records show there is almost no indication FLAG was spending that money on its stated mission. @kalibomeli.bsky.social
This MAGA Influencer Runs a Charity to Teach Kids Civics. Much of the Money Goes to Him Instead.Nick Adams’ Foundation for Liberty and American Greatness has brought in millions in donations and helped him land a State Department appointment, but records show there is almost no indication FLAG w...www.propublica.orgThis MAGA Influencer Runs a Charity to Teach Kids Civics. Much of the Money Goes to Him Instead.
This MAGA Influencer Runs a Charity to Teach Kids Civics. Much of the Money Goes to Him Instead.Nick Adams’ Foundation for Liberty and American Greatness has brought in millions in donations and helped him land a State Department appointment, but records show there is almost no indication FLAG w...www.propublica.orgNEW: Federal Judges Chastise Trump’s Justice Department for “Unlawful,” “Unethical” and “Unseemly” Conduct, by @davidmcswane.bsky.social @pratheekrebala.bsky.social @carla-astudi.bsky.social
Federal Judges Chastise Trump’s Justice Department for “Unlawful,” “Unethical” and “Unseemly” ConductProPublica reviewed hundreds of cases in which judges criticized the actions of federal prosecutors. In many, judges expressed frustration that they can no longer take the government at its word.www.propublica.orgNEW: How Trump’s “America First” Administration Could Shut U.S. Scientists Out of the Next Nobel-Worthy Discovery @lisalsong.bsky.social
How Trump’s “America First” Administration Could Shut U.S. Scientists Out of the Next Nobel-Worthy DiscoveryA proposed White House rule would give political appointees unprecedented control over scientific funding. One physicist, who helped discover the Higgs boson, explains how the rule would’ve stifled th...www.propublica.orgA 2-Year-Old’s Drowning and a Fight Over the Line Between Life and Death
A 2-Year-Old’s Drowning and a Fight Over the Line Between Life and DeathA Texas family sued to stop a hospital from testing whether their child was brain-dead. Opposition to the test has been gaining support from anti-abortion activists.www.nytimes.comNEW: Ken Paxton Touts His Efforts to Fight Voter Fraud. His Senate Opponent Is Now Accusing Him of Committing It. @zachdespart.bsky.social w/ @texastribune.org
Ken Paxton Touts His Efforts to Fight Voter Fraud. His Senate Opponent Is Now Accusing Him of Committing It.James Talarico’s comments come after ProPublica and The Texas Tribune found that the Texas attorney general may have broken state law by voting using an address where he no longer appears to live.www.propublica.orgHow Videos Helped Me Uncover Abuse at an Arkansas Private School, by @jsmithrichards.bsky.social
How Videos Helped Me Uncover Abuse at an Arkansas Private SchoolMary “Tracy” Morrison ordered students to scrub floors and urged them to attack a classmate. Few records exist of incidents at The Delta Institute for the Developing Brain, a private school with littl...www.propublica.orgNEW: How the Government’s Obligation to Keep Foreign Workers Safe Collided With Its Efforts to Keep Farms Afloat @maxblau.bsky.social
How the Government’s Obligation to Keep Foreign Workers Safe Collided With Its Efforts to Keep Farms AfloatFarmers want the Trump administration to overhaul the H-2A visa program to make it more favorable to their businesses. But cutting red tape could cut labor protections, too.www.propublica.org