An investigative watchdog + journalism project exploring the influence of power and money in politics. 🔍 Get our newsletter: theshakedown.documented.org

Thank you to @LastWeekTonight for covering @ItsDocumented's resources on noncitizen voting and mass voter challenges led by a well-funded network of MAGA conspiracy theorists. Watch the full segment here: piped.video/watch?v=CkK3W0lO…
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Congress is demanding David Bernhardt reveals his schedule. Bernhardt, a former oil, gas & mining lobbyist, is Trumps' pick to run the Interior Department. Here's proof his public calendar is missing key information, like meetings with top oil lobbyists documented.net/2018/02/16/da…
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Interior department official says he is ‘thrilled’ by Trump’s ‘knack for keeping the attention of the media and public focused somewhere else.’ #uspoli theguardian.com/environment/…
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SCOOP: @EPAScottPruitt called #Trump a threat to constitution in a 2016 interview. #EPA #PollutingPruitt documentedinvestigations.org…
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WH Press Secretary @jrpsaki tells reporters that oil execs are making business decisions to slow oil production growth and reward shareholders - based on audio from investor calls. "clear evidence of them acknowledging and even shouting that out" documented.net/investigation…
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A @guardian investigation by @JamesCTobias reveals conflicts of interest and a culture of backroom deals with the fossil fuel industry at Zinke's Department of the Interior. Includes research by @itsDocumented. theguardian.com/us-news/2018…
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In a potential ethics violation @Interior official Todd Wynn met with the Council of State Governments, where he was a trustee and committee member until joining DOI. Wynn has long been a key figure in climate science denial huffingtonpost.com/entry/tod…
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Scoop from @nytimes - @EPAScottPruitt landed plum tickets for 2018 Rose Bowl with help from Renzi Stone, an exec from Oklahoma marketing firm with fossil fuel clients. @ItsDocumented has an ongoing FOIA lawsuit against #EPA for records from this trip. nytimes.com/2018/06/15/us/po…
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David Bernhardt, acting secretary of @Interior and longtime fossil fuel lobbyist, has opened up the spigot for his former clients who want to lobby his department. "More than a dozen ex-clients have arranged at least 70 scheduled meetings.." #uspoli huffingtonpost.ca/entry/davi…
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The Intercept: Interior Department is filled with ex-lobbyists who are cozy with their former employers, new ethics complaint shows interc.pt/2twoUMW #trump #news #uspoli #usa @interior
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*NEW* Documented has reviewed the new Republican Attorneys General Association filings. Here are some of the corporations that gave in Q4 of 2020. Including $25k from @zillow @Google @PepsiCo, $50k from @Uber @PayPal @CapitalOne, $70k from @Citi documented.net/raga-2020-com…
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SCOOP! Four more major corporations dump @ALEC_states as Koch foundations increase their investment. theintercept.com/2018/11/29/…#ALECInDC #ALECIdeas #ALECExposed
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Documented has published 59 internal videos from the highly secretive Council For National Policy, with numerous other materials stamped "confidential." The videos span the years of the Trump admin, reveal how the right has coordinated to back Trump. documented.net/2020/10/docum… #CNP
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Via @jessebcoleman, @JamesCTobias: Campaign Legal Center files massive ethics complaint against #Bernhardt's Dept. of the @Interior, citing "a disturbing pattern of misconduct" by powerful ex-lobbyists within the agency. #CultureOfCorruption theintercept.com/2019/02/20/…
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NEW: Audio recordings obtained by Documented + @ProPublica reveal the CEO of the religious-rights org First Liberty Institute reading out an email sent to him from Ginni Thomas thanking them for their work opposing court reform. Listen here: piped.video/watch?v=LaIG6VIE…
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SCOOP! Ginni Thomas, spouse of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, is working with right wing trickster @JamesOKeefeIII to launch a new political supergroup to protect @realDonaldTrump and attack the left. interc.pt/2XtCD4s by @lhfang, @nicksurgey, @theintercept
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NEW: An email reveals the event will take place at an "undisclosed location" & will feature an "in depth review of the network of left-wing money" that they claim is funding @marceelias & others working to protect voting rights. documented.net/media/alec-ho…
Leonard Leo backed Honest Elections Project to Host Leadership Session at ALEC Summer Meeting @ItsDocumented documented.net/media/leonard…
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How an oil and gas lobby group you’ve never heard of is quietly helping roll back endangered species protections at the US Department of the Interior. @Interior #uspoli #nature #environment #news #trump news.yahoo.com/amphtml/habit…
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Reporting from @thackerpd reveals the cozy relationship between top @Interior officials and oil & gas lobby groups who want to roll back endangered species protections news.yahoo.com/habitat-for-s…
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Rep. Mike Johnson, a former lawyer and spokesperson for the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), was elected Speaker of the House. You can learn more about ADF and its plans to take down the public education system in our new investigation into the group: documented.net/investigation…
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*NEW* The Edison Electric Institute, trade association for U.S. investor-owned utilities is "pausing" on all its political spending. AND it wont be funding the @RepublicanAGs 501C4 sister org Rule of Law Defense Fund again after it promoted the capitol riot pre-rally last week.
The Edison Electric Institute has told @ItsDocumented via a statement that it is pausing on ALL political contributions across the board ,and that it wont be funding the Rule of Law Defense Fund again following its role promoting the March to Save America rally.
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WHAT’S ZIKLAG? A new investigation by @ItsDocumented’s @NickSurgey & @propublica’s @AndyKroll takes you inside the little-known network of ultra-wealthy Christian donors working to sway the next election to Trump and reshape the nation. documented.net/reporting/ins…
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“YOU GUYS HAVE FILLED THE SAILS OF SO MANY JUDGES. CAN I JUST TELL YOU THANK YOU SO, SO, SO MUCH.” These are the words of Ginni Thomas in an email to the religious-rights group First Liberty Institute. documented.net/reporting/gin… A 🧵:
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*NEW* This week TPUSA launched "School Board Watchlist." Tensions are very high at board meetings, fueled by groups like TPUSA. Charlie Kirk, CEO of TPUSA has been spreading BS about Covid for months, and recently called school board members "parasites." 👇substack.documented.net/p/tp…
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NEW: @dgelles @nytimes pulls back the curtain on the State Financial Officers Foundation (@SFOF_States), a pay-to-play, dark money group funded by major corporations that’s coordinating attacks on climate policy from the shadows. nytimes.com/2022/08/05/clima…
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ICYMI: @ItsDocumented Co-Director @thelisagraves was on @TheLastWord last night talking about new #Kavanaugh allegations nitter.app/TheLastWord/status/104… #KavanaughConfirmation
Allegations against Supreme Ct nominee a challenge to Senate on.msnbc.com/2N9Wx3o
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New recordings obtained by Documented + @ProPublica reveal CEO of First Liberty Institute calling Justice Elena Kagan “treasonous” and “disloyal” after her endorsement of the Supreme Court’s newly adopted ethics code. documented.net/reporting/gin…
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Scoop by @JamieMCorey: New document reveals hundreds of @ALEC_states members, including @AARP @exxonmobil @BCBSAssociation @marathonpetroco + many more documentedinvestigations.org… #ALECExposed #StandUpToALEC
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Cleta Mitchell's Election Integrity Network, along w/ a cadre of other well-funded groups on the right, are manufacturing the myth of noncitizen voting to spread misinformation, advance policy goals & cast doubt on the election results. nbcnews.com/politics/2024-el… @BrandyZadrozny
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We obtained an unredacted copy of the 2019 tax filing for Nikki Haley's 501(c)(4) Stand For America, revealing the org's secret donors. You can learn more in @politicoalex's story about the filing here: politico.com/news/2022/08/26… @politico.
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Congratulations to @NickSurgey of @ItsDocumented and @AriBerman of @MotherJones for this *award-winning* investigation into the war on voting rights
Congratulations to @AriBerman of @MotherJones and @NickSurgey of @ItsDocumented on winning the June Sidney for exposing a secret right-wing voter suppression playbook: bit.ly/2TKaHME
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A GOP witness testifying against #KBJ sought to delay certification of the 2020 election and chaired a dark money group that promoted the Jan. 6 rallies. That group received funding from Judicial Crisis Network, which spent tens of millions on SCOTUS nomination battles. A 🧵:
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NEW: ALEC & GOP attorneys working w/ state legislators to "question the validity of an election," according to statements made by ALEC CEO at the secretive Council for National Policy. See the full recording here: documented.net/2020/10/newly… #CNP #2020Election #ALECExposed
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SCOOP! TPUSA is launching an "America-first education" program to indoctrinate 5yr olds. Turning Point Academy will launch in fall 2021, training thousands of K-12 teachers to teach a TPUSA curricula, bringing the culture war to the kindergarten substack.documented.net/p/tp… #education
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According to a review of SEC filings, @JoeBiden 2020 campaign #climate change advisor Heather Zichal @hrzichal received a total of $1,081,910 in compensation (cash and stock) from gas corp @Cheniere Energy Inc. between 2014 and 2018.
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💥💥 A veritable who's who of the right-wing community working to push voter suppression gathered in San Diego, CA on Wednesday to strategize on how to help the GOP win elections. @itsDocumented got a tape of the 3-hour invite-only meeting. Take a 🎧 documented.net/investigation…
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Republican secretaries of state flew to DC this summer to scheme with voter suppression advocates. Materials obtained by Documented shine a light on the late June 2021 meetings held at a 5-Star luxury hotel near the White House. substack.documented.net/p/rs… #ForThePeopleAct
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Buried in a tax filing is confirmation that @KochIndustries is a "substantial contributor" to the Stand Together Chamber of Commerce. File under "things you assumed, but didn't actually know." #KochExposed
The 2019 tax doc for the #KochNetwork $192m mega-fund Stand Together, shows @KochIndustries is a top donor. This part of the form shows a "schedule b" donor (ie a top donor) owns I360 + Georgia Pacific -both are owned by @KochIndustries. H/t @ClimateConnor for obtaining the form!
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New tax filings reveal corporations, Sheldon Adelson, and other billionaires contributed millions to state-level Republican groups close to the Nov 6 election documented.net/2018/12/10/we…
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Ginni Thomas pressured ANOTHER Wisconsin lawmaker to overturn the 2020 election, according to an email obtained by @ItsDocumented and reporting by @HenryRedrobin of @WIExaminer wisconsinexaminer.com/brief/…
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RLDF has received at least $1.485M from Judicial Crisis Network, the dark money group spending millions to oppose KBJ’s confirmation. JCN is also the top donor to RLDF’s parent organization, the Republican Attorneys General Association.
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Alabama AG Steve Marshall testifies for the GOP tomorrow. He was chair of the Rule of Law Defense Fund (RLDF) at the time the group sent robocalls on the eve of the U.S. Capitol riot. The calls, first uncovered by Documented, urged supporters to march to the Capitol on Jan 6.
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Marshall, along with Leonard Leo, was also a “key leader” on the Republican National Lawyers Association’s “Lawyers for Trump.” rnla.org/lawyersfortrump
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Documented has obtained a new membership list for the super secretive Council for National Policy (CNP). The document metadata dates it to January 19 2022. Mike Pence, Ginni Thomas, Leonard Leo, and many other right wing leaders are on the list. documented.net/investigation…
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RLDF was also listed as one of the “coalition partners” on MarchtoSaveAmerica.com, the website that coordinated the logistics of the January 6 rally. documented.net/investigation…
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Newly obtained recordings from @ProPublica + @ItsDocumented reveal First Liberty Institute CEO Kelly Shackelford reading out an email from Ginni Thomas - wife of Justice Clarence Thomas - praising the religious institute for its work against court reform. documented.net/reporting/gin…
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“We could hear the loud, persistent hiss of what I assumed was methane, a potent greenhouse gas, leaking into the atmosphere about thirty feet away.” New @TexasMonthly story from @russellgold shows hundreds of abandoned wells are rotting away in TX bays. bit.ly/3Psf9Kt
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Exxon Quits Koch-Backed Business Group After Climate Change Row. @ExxonMobil dumps @ALEC_states bloomberg.com/news/articles/… #ALECExposed #ExxonKnew #Climate
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NEW: The latest @RepublicanAGs financial report reveals Koch Industries is the joint highest donor ($250k) so far this year to the org that backs Republican Attorneys General election campaigns. documentedinvestigations.org…
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NEW: FOIA records show @EPA's Bill Wehrum frequently met with fossil fuel industry groups, including a former client documented.net/2019/02/05/fo…
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NEW: #FOIA docs reveal memberships in @ALEC_states energy task force. The list includes @MarathonPetroCo, @DukeEnergy, @AFPMonline, @Edison_Electric & many others documented.net/2019/09/alec-… #ALECExposed
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*Scoop* Mitch McConnell is facing a tough and expensive election in 2020. A review of FEC filings by Documented found 4 of the top 5 donors to his fundraising committee are Fox execs, inc Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch. Each gave $20,600. #kentuckypolitics
*Update* The new FEC report for the Mitch McConnell leadership Committee is out. And FOUR of the top five donors are Fox execs. Rupert Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Fox President Charles Carey, and Viet Dinh Chief Legal & Policy Officer, each gave McConnell $20,600 in Q1 of 2020.
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Documented obtained audio from inside a 2022 ALEC session titled, "How States Can Fight Back Against ESG." You can hear portions of that audio and analysis from @jessebcoleman in a new segment by @tongscott at @hereandnow wbur.org/hereandnow/2023/03/…
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Energy and Pharmaceutical Companies Among Sponsors of ALEC Policy Meeting documented.net/2018/11/28/en… #ALECExposed #ALECideas #ALECinDC #StandUpToALEC
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The Jan. 6 riot sought to delay certification of the 2020 election. A month earlier, Marshall was one of 17 state AGs that joined a SCOTUS brief backing a "far-fetched" lawsuit to delay certification of presidential electors in 4 battleground states. nytimes.com/2020/12/09/us/po…
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NEW: From @MarkOlalde + @propublica - The oil industry has systematically avoided paying to clean up abandoned wells, and has stymied rules to prevent future abandonment. Key to their lobbying success is the little known yet uniquely powerful @IOGCC bit.ly/4ciCyHe
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Washington DC based org @Heritage_Action is bussing in protestors from Pittsburgh and Cincinnati this weekend to teach West Virginia Senator @Sen_JoeManchin about "WV values." Get your head around that one. substack.documented.net/p/ma…
Right wing groups to hold rally this weekend in West Virginia targeting Senator Manchin on HR1 and filibuster reform. @Heritage_Action is bussing out of state protestors from PA and OH to teach Manchin about "WV values." substack.documented.net/p/ma…
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New emails obtained by Documented and @emmersbrown of @washingtonpost show Ginni Thomas pressing WI lawmakers to overturn the 2020 election. washingtonpost.com/investiga…
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Who is Cleta Mitchell? @MorePerfectUS has a new video featuring Documented’s @lekhashupeck on the former Trump attorney and election conspiracy theorist’s efforts to restrict voting.
NEW: You may not know Cleta Mitchell — but here’s why you should. Cleta calls herself "the consiglieri to the vast right-wing conspiracy." She's leading an effort to unravel our democracy and restrict voting. And her latest project will gut voting rights in a key swing state.
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"As reported by ProPublica and Documented, Ramaswamy has spoken at retreats staged by Teneo, a group Leo chairs and which aims to connect high-powered conservatives, to “crush liberal dominance” in American life." You can learn more about Teneo here: documented.net/reporting/ins…
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NEW: Election deniers’ coordinated attacks on voting have been supercharged by new software, enabling unprecedented mass voter challenges in states across the country, a new @ItsDocumented report found. documented.net/investigation…
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NEW: ALEC loses members and drops spring meeting: documented.net/2019/03/28/al… #uspoli #ALECExposed #ALECIdeas
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"And if those candidates win office, they’re going to owe an immense debt of gratitude to those secret donors," he added.
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FGA lobbyist at last week’s ALEC meeting: “We’re gonna let 15 year olds work until 9pm. They’re gonna be up watching Netflix anyways. Might as well have a job.”
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Yes! This case, being argued at the Supreme Court later this month, is really about protecting major donors like Charles #Koch from scrutiny. #KochNetwork #BigMoney #SCOTUS
Extraordinarily misleading. This case is about protecting the names of major donors being disclosed to state agencies for enforcement purposes. This is not a new practice, names are not made public, and only MAJOR DONORS are disclosed. This case is about people like Charles Koch
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Subscribe to the new @itsdocumented Substack newsletter. It's free and it packs a punch!
Last week @ItsDocumented obtained and published the recording of a robocall paid for by the Rule of Law Defense fund, promoting the pre-riot rally in DC. A week later corporations are ending their funding for RLDF and its CEO has quit. Get more like this @ substack.documented.net/
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Fueled by election deniers like Cleta Mitchell, conservative activists' efforts to purge voter rolls are sweeping up eligible voters who tend to be minorities and younger people, according to a new @CBSMornings investigation. cbsn.ws/47IFI4G
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These newly-published emails show that Ginni Thomas’s efforts to overturn Biden’s win stretched across multiple states, and involved pressure campaigns aimed at numerous state lawmakers.
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"The idea that you get a freebie because it was a long time ago is morally repugnant." Proud our co-director @thelisagraves is on the front lines of fighting for what's right. msmagazine.com/blog/2018/09/… #KavanaughConfirmation
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We've noticed similarities between the bills, committee testimony, and advocacy material from dark money groups. Our story with leaked video from Heritage Action shows that this is a coordinated effort to suppress votes. More @MotherJones motherjones.com/politics/202…
Replying to @SenWhitehouse
Think it’s a coincidence that Republican legislatures across the country are passing laws to block voting? Look at dark-money funded @ALEC_states and so-called “@StatePolicy.” And now @Heritage_Action gets caught with its hand in the latest dark-money scam. Unbelievable.
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Back to RLDF. Marshall claimed that he wasn’t aware of RLDF’s involvement in the Jan. 6 rally, and would order an “internal review.” We still haven’t heard anything about that review, and Marshall remained on RLDF’s board. montgomeryadvertiser.com/sto…
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We also partnered with @MorePerfectUS on our story with @AriBerman for @MotherJones. Check out their video and summary below.
BREAKING: Leaked footage of a right-wing donor conference reveals a secretive plot to write and pass an avalanche of voter suppression laws. "We did it quickly and we did it quietly," they admit. Footage obtained by @ItsDocumented & published with @MotherJones.
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“Having both Florida’s governor and secretary of state be featured speakers at one of these summits should set off alarm bells for anyone concerned about the stability of democracy in the state,” @itsdocumented's @lekhashupeck told @CNN cnn.it/3DTymiR
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The full April 2020 membership list for the Council for National Policy, obtained by @ItsDocumented, is now online (and searchable) on our CNP investigation page. Plus lots of other docs, and more on the way. documented.net/the-council-f…
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“Any time that you have an individual political operative [who] has well over a billion dollars at his or her disposal, it’s cause for everyone to be concerned,” @brendan_fischer told @nbcchicago about the $1.6B donation to a Leonard Leo-controlled group nbcchicago.com/news/local/ch…
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Heritage Action is spending 24 million dollars over the next two years lobbying for and working on bills across the country to suppress votes in battleground states. @NickSurgey’s story with @AriBerman for @MotherJones shows how they’re doing it. motherjones.com/politics/202…
The racist voter suppression laws across the US are a methodical attack on our democracy by scared Republican insiders who don't think they can win an election fair and square. We must pass the #ForThePeople Act now to protect all Americans’ right to vote. motherjones.com/politics/202…
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As @jacobbogage and @marialuisapaulr reported, FGA has pushed laws to relax child labor protections in states around the country. washingtonpost.com/business/… Many child labor laws amount to “unnecessary government regulation,” an FGA lobbyist told the ALEC crowd last week.
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ADF has filed many lawsuits in state and federal courts challenging schools’ instruction on racism or gender transition policies. Among the plaintiffs are VA parents arguing for reimbursement costs after pulling their kids out of schools they say taught an anti-racist curriculum.
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SCOOP! We obtained 14+ hours of internal Project 2025 training videos. Joint @itsdocumented and @Propublica investigation. #Project2025 propublica.org/article/insid…
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Check out our new story w/ @AndyKroll & @AndreaBNYC @propublica on Leonard Leo's new project: Teneo. The reporting is based on 50+ hours of internal Teneo recordings, internal documents, and interviews with members. documented.net/reporting/ins…
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NEW: Hundreds of @ALEC_States legislator names appear in a task force roster obtained by @ItsDocumented. documented.net/2019/06/06/ne… #ALECExposed
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"The reality is that some potential candidates are relying on a small handful of very wealthy donors as they map out their political future," Documented's @brendan_fischer told @politico.
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Cleta Mitchell, founder of Election Integrity Network, is helping drive the false narrative that noncitizens are voting en masse. It is part of a strategy to make it even more difficult for U.S. citizens to access the ballot box. newyorker.com/magazine/2024/…
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With the @NYTmag cover story on Ginni Thomas and her ties to CNP, good moment to refresh this, and link to the CNP materials released by @ItsDocumented over the past several years documented.net/investigation…
The cover story in @wpmagazine today is a massive investigation into the Council for National Policy by @robertoharrow. CNP is a 40-yr secretive right-wing network. The story is based on hundreds of internal CNP vids + docs obtained by @ItsDocumented. wapo.st/CNP
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The plan: ADF lawyers would file lawsuits they hoped would lead to a Supreme Court ruling that declared a constitutional right to vouchers for private and home schools - and as a result, the public education system could lose about $238 billion a year.
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“I would not give her a penny,” @johnfund said of Catherine Engelbrecht during the Aug 2020 CNP session. Engelbrecht runs True the Vote, the organization behind 2,000 Mules, a film spreading the big lie that is being boosted by Donald Trump and others on the right. #TheBigLie
*LEAKED VIDEO* 📹 In a recording from the Council for National Policy, leaders of the Big Lie Movement warn donors not to fund Catherine Engelbrecht of True the Vote. The group is behind 2000 Mules, the new film that has the right all abuzz. #TheBigLie documented.net/media/leaders…
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According to a new filing, the Republican AGs Assoc (RAGA) raked in $3.7m in Q3 - much from major corporations. Donations from companies like @Visa, @Comcast, and @Toyota will be used to elect candidates working to undermine democracy, abortion access, and more.
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"The plan, obtained by Documented, proposed a two-pronged approach that would work to block moves by Democrats in Congress to bolster voting rights while at the same time pressing Republican-controlled states to impose restrictions on access to the ballot box." Full story here:
Rightwing group pours millions in ‘dark money’ into US voter suppression bid theguardian.com/us-news/2023…
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@ItsDocumented is continuing to roll out materials on the Council for National Policy. CNP is obsessed with @splcenter. In one "action steps" doc we just published, CNP members commit to weekly attacks on SPLC via social media. documented.net/the-council-f… #ALECExposed #cnp
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While head of ADF, Farris was approached to speak to Ziklag about using courts to achieve a far-reaching resolution to their concerns about public education.
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