On the left: Nate Cavanagh, a 28-year-old DOGE staffer and college dropout.
On the right: Mohammad Halimi, a 53-year-old exiled Afghan scholar.
This is the story of how DOGE targeted Halimi on social media. Then the Taliban took his family. 🧵
On the right: Mohammad Halimi, a 53-year-old exiled Afghan scholar.
This is the story of how DOGE targeted Halimi on social media. Then the Taliban took his family. 🧵
2/ It starts with a viral Elon Musk post.
“United States Institute of Peace Funded Taliban,” the graphic read, falsely claiming that USIP was funding the terrorist group through Halimi, whose work with the independent nonprofit involved providing expert advice to help U.S. diplomats understand Afghanistan.
“United States Institute of Peace Funded Taliban,” the graphic read, falsely claiming that USIP was funding the terrorist group through Halimi, whose work with the independent nonprofit involved providing expert advice to help U.S. diplomats understand Afghanistan.
3/ Halimi initially wonders if Musk’s accusation is an April Fool’s joke. After all, the decades of work he had done consulting for U.S. diplomats wasn’t in service of the Taliban; it was the opposite.
Little did he know his nightmare was just beginning.
propublica.org/article/doge-m…
Little did he know his nightmare was just beginning.
propublica.org/article/doge-m…
4/ First came the flurry of threatening messages.
A week later, the realization of his worst fears: Taliban agents blindfolded his relatives and held them for several days in a remote prison, where they were repeatedly beaten and questioned about Halimi’s work.
A week later, the realization of his worst fears: Taliban agents blindfolded his relatives and held them for several days in a remote prison, where they were repeatedly beaten and questioned about Halimi’s work.
5/ Halimi tried his best not to show his panic. He turned to his bosses in Washington to ask for help in clearing his name, but everyone he knew was gone.
DOGE had axed them all. Now USIP was firmly in the hands of someone he’d never heard of: Cavanaugh, who had been installed as interim president.
DOGE had axed them all. Now USIP was firmly in the hands of someone he’d never heard of: Cavanaugh, who had been installed as interim president.
6/ Halimi and his family were on their own. Maybe, they hoped, this would all blow over if they stayed quiet and laid low.
That’s when Cavanaugh, Musk and other DOGE members made an appearance on Fox News.
That’s when Cavanaugh, Musk and other DOGE members made an appearance on Fox News.
7/ One by one, each of the DOGE members one-upped each other with outrageous — yet often inaccurate — examples of government waste.
With each story, host Jesse Watters egged them on, raising his eyebrows in disbelief. Every so often, the team would burst into laughter.
With each story, host Jesse Watters egged them on, raising his eyebrows in disbelief. Every so often, the team would burst into laughter.
8/ Then came Cavanaugh’s turn. The United States Institute of Peace, he told the assembled men, was making payments to a contractor associated with the Taliban.
As he spoke, the chyron at the bottom of the screen read: “THE TALIBAN GETS DOGED.”
As he spoke, the chyron at the bottom of the screen read: “THE TALIBAN GETS DOGED.”
9/ Cavanaugh called the US Institute of Peace “the least peaceful agency we worked with.”
He told Watters he’d uncovered documents showing USIP was making payments to a contractor associated with the Taliban and that DOGE was unable to find any justification for those payments.
He told Watters he’d uncovered documents showing USIP was making payments to a contractor associated with the Taliban and that DOGE was unable to find any justification for those payments.
10/ But documents obtained by ProPublica show that four weeks earlier, Cavanaugh had received detailed records from USIP outlining Halimi’s work.
Records included invoices, project descriptions, and dates and times showing what Halimi was supposed to be doing on specific days.
Records included invoices, project descriptions, and dates and times showing what Halimi was supposed to be doing on specific days.
11/ Cavanaugh did not respond to questions about his access to these records or how they appeared to conflict with his statements on Fox News. But Cavanaugh defended cuts at the agency as needed and aligning with President Trump's agenda.
12/ “DOGE was completely indifferent to the effect their actions had on human beings,” said Barnett Rubin, an Afghanistan expert who has served as a senior advisor for the United Nations and State Department. All it cared about, he said, was making “its enemies look bad.”
13/ Neither the White House nor Musk responded to reporters’ requests for comment.
14/ For Halimi and his family, those actions would have far-reaching consequences.
Read the full story from @AASchapiro @Bing_Chris
propublica.org/article/doge-m…
Read the full story from @AASchapiro @Bing_Chris
propublica.org/article/doge-m…
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
![Portion of document that reads: "Following the February 2019 El Salvador presidential election, MS-13 leaders, including Ranfla Nacional leaders [REDACTED] also known as "Diablito de Hollywood," [REDACTED] also known as "Crook de Hollywood," and [REDACTED] secretly met numerous times with representatives of the government of El Salvador inside Zacatecoluca and Izalco prisons and elsewhere. These meetings were arranged by El Salvadoran government and prison officials"](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GtPFCLyWQAAz-fb.jpg)
