“Dark money may have existed well before Citizens United, but that 2010 Supreme Court decision opened the floodgates for untraceable money to soak our elections. It also left voters clueless about who was putting up the hundreds of millions of dollars spent by groups with anodyne names like Priorities USA and Americans for Prosperity.”
“One of the most infamous players in the dark-money game was an outfit by the name of Americans for Job Security. Founded by a Republican political operative close to Rick Perry, Americans for Job Security acted like a laundromat for wealthy donors. Instead of giving directly to a candidate or campaign and having their names disclosed, they donated to Americans for Job Security, which scrubbed their identity and spent their millions to elect Republicans across the country and push right-wing policy proposals.”
“After losing a seven-year legal battle, the now-defunct group revealed where its money had came from — a rare victory for clean-government groups and an even more rare glimpse at the internal workings of a dark-money juggernaut. According to documents turned over to Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Americans for Job Security’s donor list is a who’s-who of 1-percenters.”
“The biggest givers include: Investor Charles Schwab ($8.8 million); Amway co-founder and Christian conservative mega-donor Richard DeVos and wife Helen ($2 million); Peter Thiel, the libertarian investor and Trump supporter: ($500,000); casino tycoon Sheldon Adelson and wife Miriam ($500,000).”
“Dark-money groups have poured nearly $1 billion into U.S. politics since 2010, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. The biggest spenders range from the NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the Koch-backed Americans for Prosperity on the right end of the political spectrum to Majority Forward and the League of Conservation Voters on the left. The data show that right-leaning dark-money groups have outspent left-leaning ones in the past four election cycles.”
Read more: The Secrets of a Right-Wing Dark-Money Juggernaut — Revealed
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