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ericlipton.nytimes.com
Investigative reporter NYT. Helping cover President Trump (and Elon Musk)-without fear or favor. I write about people and power. And I do believe accountability matters. My contact on Signal: EricNYT.08 Also can get anonymous tips: nytimes.com/tips
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The thing about Trump term two is it is all (or much of it) out in the open. Like the Army tanks on the way to DC. Nothing subtle
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Or maybe this is how Trump does a pre birthday celebration
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Also interesting that Jared Kushner and Ivanka were there perhaps as a show of support after a week where Musk challenged Trump unlike any other second term ally. Trump may be flexing here in part as a response to perceived political threat re MAGA community from Musk
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"Bezos reportedly owns five apartments spanning the top four floors worth $119 million."
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Just entirely crazy the transformation that Jeff Bezos has gone through.
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Buyer With Ties to Chinese Communist Party Got V.I.P Treatment at Trump Crypto Dinner Story by team including David Yaffe-Bellany (crypto expert) Michael Forsythe (former China reporter), Devon Lum and Jiawei Wang (visual investigations) Please read and share. Transparency matters nyti.ms/4mUDTtG
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We also observed apparent/potential ties between Tianying He and CZ. We asked CZ and Binance about this. CZ did not appreciate our questions. But he did at least respond. Thank you CZ.
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Justin Sun Cheng Lu Sangrok Oh Sheldon Xia Tianying He (who we focus on in this story) These were some of the folks at VIP table for $TRUMP dinner, as seen in this photo. Biggest buyers of Trump's memecoin. Determined to buy access to the President of the United States.
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So on the one hand, Trump is banning students from China to visit the U.S. to study, and on the other, he is taking in personal payments by selling his memecoin and then inviting Chinese tech execs with ties to Communist Party to a VIP dinner and White House tour. Welcome to the USA in Trump era.
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Mr. He posted on his own social media account about the dinner and WH visit. But he covered up his face and he used an untraceable name.
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The NYT learned Mr. He's name after we obtained a copy of the guest list for the $TRUMP memecoin dinner. A NYT reporter also saw Mr. He outside the White House, as he was preparing to enter for a tour.
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Mr. He has now deleted his twitter account, which had been disguised under the name @0xSkyisnobody. Thankfully, we have screengrabs of everything he ever posted on his account.
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Again, we have no reason to believe that Mr. He did anything wrong. And the fact that he is from China is not unusual. There're a lot of crypto investors there. But this comes in the same week as President Trump has sought to limit visa for Chinese students with ties to Communist Party. A disconnect
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The Times found documentation that he was listed as an attendee at a recent meeting of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Committee
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The Times spent nearly two weeks attempting to confirm details about He Tianying, who attended the $TRUMP dinner and secured a White House tour. Here is a bit of what we learned. Mr. He is a member of China's CPPCC, a key part of China's United Front promoting the Communist Party goals.
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The point of this story is not to imply that the guest at the Trump dinner did anything wrong. Or that folks from China should not be allowed to visit the US. It is that the Trump administration has a double standard here. Restricting access for Chinese visitors. But not for $TRUMP dinner.
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Mr. He has now deleted his twitter account, which had been disguised under the name @0xSkyisnobody. Thankfully, we have screengrabs of everything he ever posted on his account.
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So on the one hand, Trump is banning students from China to visit the U.S. to study, and on the other, he is taking in personal payments by selling his memecoin and then inviting Chinese tech execs with ties to Communist Party to a VIP dinner and White House tour. Welcome to the USA in Trump era.
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Again, we have no reason to believe that Mr. He did anything wrong. And the fact that he is from China is not unusual. There're a lot of crypto investors there. But this comes in the same week as President Trump has sought to limit visa for Chinese students with ties to Communist Party. A disconnect
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The Times found documentation that he was listed as an attendee at a recent meeting of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Committee
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Mr. He posted on his own social media account about the dinner and WH visit. But he covered up his face and he used an untraceable name.
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The NYT learned Mr. He's name after we obtained a copy of the guest list for the $TRUMP memecoin dinner. A NYT reporter also saw Mr. He outside the White House, as he was preparing to enter for a tour.
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The Times spent nearly two weeks attempting to confirm details about He Tianying, who attended the $TRUMP dinner and secured a White House tour. Here is a bit of what we learned. Mr. He is a member of China's CPPCC, a key part of China's United Front promoting the Communist Party goals.
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The point of this story is not to imply that the guest at the Trump dinner did anything wrong. Or that folks from China should not be allowed to visit the US. It is that the Trump administration has a double standard here. Restricting access for Chinese visitors. But not for $TRUMP dinner.
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For more background..from a few days ago. Is Trump Unveiling a Crypto Wallet? His Associates Say Yes. His Sons Say No. The back-and-forth over a potential Trump cryptocurrency wallet on Tuesday exposed rifts among the family’s web of digital currency ventures. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/03/t...
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Is Trump Unveiling a Crypto Wallet? His Associates Say Yes. His Sons Say No. The back-and-forth over a potential Trump cryptocurrency wallet on Tuesday exposed rifts among the family’s web of digital currency ventures. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/03/t...
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The White House denounced Elon Musk on Friday for “abhorrent promotion of antisemitic and racist hate,” for his endorsement of what an administration spokesman called a “hideous lie” about Jews....Except that, in recent weeks, the U.S. government has become more dependent on him than ever.
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We actually already wrote this story in 2023. Just sub out TRUMP for BIDEN in this story. And update the date it ran..... nyti.ms/4kwLP2D
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Now this is getting rough...(Interesting concession by Trump, that this may always been around SpaceX contracts--and protecting them from federal cuts)