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Peter Elkind

I report on government and business, and the compelling stories behind the intersection of the two.

Need to Get in Touch?

I’m eager for tips about important stories, and zealously protect whistleblowers and confidential sources. You can reach me by email or securely on Signal.

What I Cover

I’m focusing on the U.S. Department of Energy and the impact of the Trump administration’s “drill, baby, drill” agenda on the public, business and the environment.

My Background

I’ve written about FBI director James Comey’s handling of the Hillary Clinton investigation; profiled Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign manager, Brad Parscale; investigated how America’s biggest oxygen company has repeatedly cheated Medicare and elderly patients; reported how a private equity firm plundered a chain of safety-net hospitals; detailed a tax-shelter industry that transformed a charitable deduction into a profitable investment, costing the government tens of billions; explained the fiasco that nearly shut down the entire U.S. aviation system; and profiled Trump’s shadowy accountants.

I’m the co-author of the bestseller “The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron” and also wrote “Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer” and “The Death Shift: The True Story of Nurse Genene Jones and the Texas Baby Murders.”

Before joining ProPublica in 2017, I worked at Fortune for 20 years, edited the Dallas Observer, and was on staff at Texas Monthly. At Fortune, I wrote about how Steve Jobs concealed his fatal battle with pancreatic cancer; covered a cyber-invasion that brought Sony Pictures to its knees; and co-authored an account of a coup at Pfizer. The Pfizer story was awarded the Gerald Loeb Award for magazine writing.

My work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, on newyorker.com and in The Washington Post. I live in Texas.

Trump, Inc.

Meet the Shadowy Accountants Who Do Trump’s Taxes and Help Him Seem Richer Than He Is

The Supreme Court fight over Donald Trump’s tax returns has pushed his accounting firm into the limelight. In various episodes over 30 years, partners — including the CEO — have run into trouble for fraud, misconduct or malpractice.

Coronavirus

Trump Congratulates Businesses for Helping Fight Coronavirus. But His Own Company Has Been Absent.

We checked in on the Trump Organization’s properties and couldn’t find any sign they were joining the effort to fight the coronavirus, even as the president urges other companies to do so.

Texas Baby-Killer Pleads Guilty to a New Murder

Genene Jones, a former nurse long suspected of murdering multiple children, was sentenced to life after accepting responsibility for a second killing. She had been scheduled to be released from prison in 2018 before prosecutors reopened her case.

Gutting the IRS

The IRS Tried to Crack Down on Rich People Using an “Abusive” Tax Deduction. It Hasn’t Gone So Well.

The tax agency, Justice Department and Congress have all taken aim at a much-abused deduction exploited by wealthy investors. Yet the crackdown is having minimal impact, costing the Treasury billions.

Prosecutors Investigating the Trump Organization Zero In on Trump CFO Allen Weisselberg

Weisselberg is one of the Trump Organization’s longest tenured employees and is now co-running the business. He escaped federal prosecution for the Stormy Daniels payments but is now a focus of an investigation by Manhattan’s district attorney.

The Myths of the “Genius” Behind Trump’s Reelection Campaign

Brad Parscale has said he’s taking a relative pittance to run the president’s reelection operation. But as with much of what Parscale has claimed about his work and life, that’s not the full story. This is.

Trump, Inc.

Trump Jr. Invested in Hydroponic Lettuce Company Whose Chair Was Seeking Administration Funds

The president’s eldest son became the most prominent shareholder in a company while its co-chairman sought federal support for his other business interests.

Inside a Trump Project that Failed. Spoiler: The Trumps Still Won.

Never-before-published emails offer a window into the Trumps’ approach, this time in a failed condo project in Tampa. “They must think we are the dumbest people,” Donald Jr. wrote in one.

Trump, Inc.

Pump and Trump

Donald Trump claims he only licensed his name for real estate projects developed by others. But an investigation of a dozen Trump deals shows deep family involvement in projects that often involved deceptive practices.

How a Typical Government Leak Turned Into a Three-Way War Between Comey, McCabe and Trump

Two former allies, James Comey and Andrew McCabe, have offered contradictory accounts of the orchestrated FBI leak that spawned a critical investigation. That means one of them has to be lying — as President Trump is happy to tweet to the world.