Investigating Power
American Legislative Exchange Council state lawmakers, right-wing operatives, and corporate lobbyists are descending on Denver this week for the pay-to-play group’s 51st Annual Meeting to hear presentations and vote on model policies and resolutions that impact the environment, education, elections, fundamental human rights, and more.
A recent white paper by Isaac Kamola, director of the Center for the Defense of Academic Freedom, details the ongoing culture-war backlash against higher education in America, largely in response to the grassroots activism of Black Lives Matter in 2020 and increasing LGBTQ+ visibility.
State freedom caucuses represent an extreme Right faction of the already MAGA-dominated Republican Party that uses procedural measures in state legislatures to advance their culture war agenda.
“I ❤️ billionaires,” the far-right activist said.
The Bradley Foundation’s “MVP” is positioning itself to be the ALEC of school boards.
Nonprofits controlled by Charles Koch funneled $458.7 million to 338 higher education beneficiaries between 2018 and 2022, according to a Center for Media and Democracy analysis of IRS filings by the donor conduits.
In 2022, Stand Together Trust and Stand Together Chamber of Commerce contributed over $176 million to groups in Charles Koch’s “Stand Together” constellation of nonprofits as well as to higher education and right-wing policy, advocacy, litigation and media groups, the Center for Media and Democracy has found.
The Milwaukee-based Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation and its “aligned” donor advised fund funneled a total of $86.4 million to right-wing litigation outlets, national and state policy groups, media outlets, youth groups, and higher education in 2022, according to an analysis of its most recent IRS filings obtained by the Center for Media and Democracy.
State lawmakers, corporate lobbyists, and right-wing operatives got together in Scottsdale, Arizona last week for the 2023 States and Nation Policy Summit hosted by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). The summit — one of the largest annual gatherings of the ALEC faithful, along with the summer meeting — caps off ALEC’s 50th anniversary year.
Charles Koch contributed $52.6 million in grants to colleges and universities through his Charles Koch Foundation in 2022, an analysis of the personal foundation’s latest IRS filing obtained by the Center for Media and Democracy found.