The New York Times published a major national story on Karen Budd-Falen's family financial ties to the Thacker Pass lithium mine in early January 2026, by reporter Lisa Friedman [1][3]. Secondary sources published January 6, 2026 cite the NYT story and confirm it had appeared by that date [1]. The U.S. military operation in Venezuela occurred on January 3, 2026, the same weekend as the NYT publication [2]. Maddow's claim that the NYT published "that big, national, quintessential corruption story about her in January" is fully supported.