secret money

December 15, 2022 - Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in Moore v. Harper, a case in which North Carolina Republican state lawmakers are seeking to give state legislatures sole control over federal elections nationwide. We look at the money backing the controversial lawsuit, which is being called the "single most important case on American democracy."

May 24, 2022 - A U.S. House subcommittee recently held a hearing into ongoing efforts to limit discussion in public school classrooms on American history, race, and LGBTQ+ issues — and to punish teachers who broach those topics. Among those who testified was James Whitfield, a high school principal from North Texas who lost his job after sending students an email in response to killings of Black people by police and white vigilantes that acknowledged systemic racism and called education "a necessary conduit to get liberty and justice for all."

January 15, 2021 - The Republican Attorneys General Association, currently led by Chairman Chris Carr of Georgia and Policy Chair Steve Marshall of Alabama, is under fire for its role in amplifying false claims of presidential election fraud. We look at the group's history and its corporate funders — some of whom are now reconsidering their support.

January 16, 2020 - Since the U.S Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United 10 years ago, corporate campaign cash has poured into supreme court races across the South. With seats up for grabs this year in Arkansas, North Carolina, and West Virginia, that trend is likely to continue.

December 17, 2019 - Eighteen state attorneys general have signed a friend-of-the-court brief calling for construction to proceed on the legally blocked Atlantic Coast Pipeline. All of the signatories are members of the Republican Attorneys General Association, a political influence group funded by dirty energy interests.

September 25, 2019 - Elections for high courts in five Southern states will take place over the next year, including special elections in Georgia, Kentucky, and Louisiana. Some of these courts are already facing unprecedented political pressure, and more money in high court races is coming from groups that don't disclose their donors.

May 23, 2019 - Political watchdogs have unearthed new details about the funding of the shadowy secret-money group that promoted Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, whose confirmation is the reason so many Republican-controlled state legislatures are rushing to pass abortion bans. The group is also spending big to move state courts to the right.