LATEST ON LEO: Shady New Nonprofits, SCOTUS Conflicts, and Smear Campaigns

 As conservative kingpin Leonard Leo continues his work to force his far-right agenda on everyday Americans, he’s come under increased scrutiny — from an ongoing DC Attorney General probe to a Senate Judiciary subpoena. Over the past week, new reporting has exposed Leo’s desperate attempts to rebrand, his network’s influence on a critical case heard at the Supreme Court, and his key dark money group bankrolling Islamophobic ads against a Biden nominee.

Rolling Stone: GOP Puppetmaster Expands His Dark-Money Operation 

“Conservative activist and judicial puppetmaster Leonard Leo is building out his dark-money network. A counsel at one of Leo’s primary nonprofits recently registered two new dark-money organizations with subsidiaries whose names just so happen to be very similar to groups through which Leo has run some of his most effective activism campaigns.”

“The move comes amid increased scrutiny on Leo and his dark-money network in the wake of his crowning achievement: the Supreme Court decision eliminating the federal right to an abortion. With Leo’s network facing a reported attorney general probe and subpoena threats from Congress, he and his allies may be trying to shield their right-wing advocacy operation from legal fallout, watchdog groups say.

‘As Leonard Leo faces increasing scrutiny for his shady nonprofit network, it’s no surprise he’s desperately trying to rebrand,’ says Caroline Ciccone, president at the watchdog group Accountable.US. ‘But no matter how many sketchy new groups he comes up with, he can’t rebrand the extreme agenda he’s still attempting to force on everyday Americans.’”

Lever News: SCOTUS Is Considering a Deregulation Bomb

“On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a little-covered case that has the power to wipe away safeguards for any and all regulations that govern Americans’ daily lives.”

“The case, Corner Post v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, is being litigated by the same powerful conservative law firm that ended affirmative action in July and blocked President Joe Biden’s student debt relief, in the hopes that once again, an increasingly right-wing high court will rule in its favor. Tyler Green, the lead lawyer for the plaintiffs, once clerked for Clarence Thomas — and is also the administrative trustee for Leonard Leo’s massive dark money fund, the $1.6 billion Marble Freedom Trust.”

HuffPost: ‘Disgusting’: Dark Money Group Unveils Wildly Islamophobic Ads Against Biden Court Pick

“The Judicial Crisis Network, a right-wing judicial advocacy group known for its steady stream of anonymous funding and a previous multimillion-dollar campaign aimed at smearing then-Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, unveiled digital ads on Tuesday that attempt to pressure Sens. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Bob Casey (D-Pa.) to oppose [Biden judicial nominee Adeel] Mangi’s confirmation.”

“Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), a member of the judiciary committee, said it is important to remember JCN’s ties to other influential conservative groups like the Federalist Society and its powerful leader, Leonard Leo. These groups are collectively hellbent on putting far-right conservatives into lifetime seats on federal courts, he said.

‘The Judicial Crisis Network is the phony front into which Leonard Leo shoveled millions in special-interest dark money to capture and control the Supreme Court,” Whitehouse told HuffPost in a statement. “Now Leo’s dark-money outfit is disparaging Judge Mangi’s record, to tank America’s first Muslim federal appellate court nominee.’

“It’s a dark-money hit job on a highly qualified person.’”

Learn more about Leonard Leo, his dangerous agenda, and shady web of nonprofits at LeonardLeo.org.

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