Summary
The Judicial Crisis Network (JCN), also known as the Concord Fund, is a dark money organization that devotes millions of dollars to initiatives promoting conservative and anti-abortion agendas. It primarily works by shaping the federal judiciary to better serve conservative, anti-abortion interests. JCN was founded in 2005 by Gary Marx and Wendy Long as the Judicial Confirmation Network to promote the appointments of then-President George W. Bush. After the election of President Obama in 2008, Marx and Long changed its name to the Judicial Crisis Network and worked to block Obama’s appointees to the federal judiciary. Part of its work targets Democratic senators who might attempt to block votes on conservative judicial appointments. JCN has always been intricately connected with Leonard Leo, a co-chair of the board of directors for the Federalist Society. Open Secrets has described the organization as having “unmatched influence” over the composition of the federal judiciary.
When it comes to abortion, the Judicial Crisis Network has recently shifted toward targeting specific ballot initiatives or amendments up for vote at the state level. Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade, the Judicial Crisis Network has donated millions to committees and ad campaigns attacking abortion rights amendments. It is led by Carrie Severino, described as a “protégé of Leo’s.” Severino has personally spearheaded efforts supporting the confirmations of Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, while also being deeply involved in blocking Democratic nominees.
Extremism
The Judicial Crisis Network Promotes The Confirmations of Conservative Judges and Opposes the Appointments of Progressive Ones
In 2013, The Judicial Crisis Network Ran Ads Attacking U.S. Senator Mark Begich, In Addition To Democratic Senators In Louisiana And Arkansas, For Approving President Obama’s Federal Judicial Nominees. “The Judicial Crisis Network recently became the latest Outside group to enter the U.S. Senate campaign in Alaska, starting a two-week holiday TV blitz against Sen. Mark Begich for voting to approve all of President Barack Obama’s court nominees. Under IRS rules, the Washington, D.C., group is not required to say who is bankrolling the attack, which it describes as a “six-figure TV ad buy.” In Fairbanks, the group plans to spend about $13,000 over the next two weeks, according to an advertising disclosure on file at KATN, Channel 2. The ad, which is to run dozens of times, uses the same music, the same graphics, the same narrator and most of the same words and pictures as recent ads attacking Democratic senators in Louisiana and Arkansas for approving Obama nominees.” [Anchorage Daily News, 12/21/13]
The Judicial Crisis Network Launched A $7 Million Campaign Encouraging Republicans To Block President Obama’s Nomination Of Merrick Garland For The Supreme Court. “On January 9, 2017, before President Trump had even taken office, JCN announced that it expected to spend it at least $10 million to support the confirmation of President Trump’s yet unnamed Supreme Court nominee. This $10 million campaign came on the heels of JCN’s $7 million campaign encouraging Republicans to block President Obama’s choice, Judge Merrick Garland, for the same vacancy. JCN ran advertisements thanking Republican senators for their unprecedented partisan obstruction of Judge Garland, and then ran millions of dollars of advertisements targeting Democratic Senators to support Judge Gorsuch.” [Sen. Whitehouse’s Letter to JCN, 8/15/18]
In 2017, JCN Formed A Coalition To Engage A $10 Million Campaign Targeting Democratic Senators To Support The Confirmation Of Neil Gorsuch. “Two conservative advocacy organizations hope to stop Senate Democrats from blocking President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee. ‘The focus is to put pressure on Democratic senators to decide between following the will of American people and the voters in their state or to follow Sen. Chuck Schumer and the radical left down a path of obstructionism,’ Judicial Crisis Network senior adviser Gary Marx told The Daily Signal.” [Politico, 2/21/17]
The Judicial Crisis Network Supported The Nomination Of Conservative Kyle Duncan For The Fifth Circuit Court Of Appeals. “Kennedy’s public indecision has attracted attention from at least three national conservative groups who’ve enthusiastically backed the White House’s decision to tap Duncan for the Fifth Circuit seat. The groups — Americans United for Life, the Judicial Crisis Network and the National Pro-Life Committee — each launched campaigns in Louisiana urging the Senate to confirm Duncan.” [nola.com, 11/27/17]
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (RI) Called On The Judicial Crisis Network In 2018 To Reveal Its Donors After It Spent $4.5 Million On A Campaign Supporting The Confirmation Of Federalist Society Member Brett Kavanaugh. “Now, with the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to replace Justice Brett Kavanaugh to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy, JCN is at it again. Since the president nominated Judge Kavanaugh, JCN has spent $4.5 million on ad buys to support the Kavanaugh nomination. In a July appearance on CSPAN’s ‘Newsmakers,’ you [Carrie Severino] said that JCN was ‘certainly ready’ to again spend $10 million ‘or more’ to secure Kavanaugh’s confirmation.” [Sen. Whitehouse’s Letter to JCN, 8/15/18]
In 2019, JCN Spent $500,000 Campaigning For The Confirmation Of Neomi Rao, Who Once Said That Victims Of Date Rape Had Made A ‘Choice,’ For The D.C. Circuit Court. “The Judicial Crisis Network will launch a $500,000 ad buy across television, radio and digital platforms in Missouri next week to pressure freshman Republican Sen. Josh Hawley into supporting Rao, a former prosecutor President Donald Trump tapped last November to fill the seat on the powerful D.C. Circuit that Brett Kavanaugh vacated when he joined the Supreme Court. A person familiar with the effort said Hawley, who’s said publicly that he has reservations about Rao’s judicial philosophy, needs to feel the heat in his own backyard.” [Politico, 2/25/19]
The Judicial Crisis Network Came Out Against One Of Trump’s Nominations For Federal District Court Because He Wasn’t Conservative Enough. “Their complaint centers on a belief that Bogren is no friend to religious liberty after he signed a brief while defending the City of East Lansing against a Catholic couple that opposed same-sex marriage. ‘To repeatedly compare this family to the KKK, to compare them to radical Muslim imams who want to take rights away from women… these are inflammatory remarks and they were meant to be inflammatory,’ said Hawley, who has been the most vocal opponent of the nominee to sit on the District Court for the Western District of Michigan. Key conservative advocacy groups, like the Judicial Crisis Network, Heritage Action and Conservative Action Project, have also criticized or come out against Bogren, which could further dampen GOP support.” [Politico, 6/6/19]
JCN’s President Carrie Severino Spoke Out In Favor Of The Confirmation Of Conservative Lawyers Lawrence VanDyke And Patrick Bumatay. “Carrie Severino, policy director of the Judicial Crisis Network, a conservative advocacy group, said Trump is ‘in the midst of completely remaking the historically-unruly 9th Circuit,’ adding: ‘VanDyke will be yet another solid addition, bringing his intelligence, humility, and dedication to the rule of law.’ Severino, a classmate of VanDyke at Harvard Law School, said on Twitter that VanDyke was ‘another victim of left’s tiresome smear train and the ABA’s sham evaluation process. But thankfully the @SenateGOP called out the brazen ideological bias against him, and VanDyke’s sterling character, impressive record, and razor-sharp legal acumen won the day.’ Severino called Bumatay’s confirmation ‘yet another step toward restoring sanity’ on the 9th Circuit. ‘Bumatay has fearlessly prosecuted drug cartels and organized crime, and helped shape the response to our nation’s opioid crisis. He is also a committed originalist and textualist,’ she said.” [Associated Press International, 12/11/19]
The Judicial Crisis Network Launched A Campaign Accusing Biden Southern District Court Of New York Nominee Dale Ho Of Dark Money Involvement and Left Extremism. “The more than $300,000 cable and digital buy against Ho, director of the American Civil Liberties Union voting rights project, accuses him of being ‘a career puppet for left-wing, dark-money groups.’ He was nominated in September and is awaiting a Senate committee hearing, potentially as early as this week. The ad is from the Judicial Crisis Network, which also relies on so-called ‘dark money.’ The group spent $10 million to get now-Justice Amy Coney Barrett confirmed to the Supreme Court, and its spending now is an indication conservatives are willing to spend big to try to stop — or, at least, slow — Biden’s court picks.” [Axios, 11/30/21]
The Judicial Crisis Network Supports The Death Penalty
In 2015, JCN Donated $200,000 To Nebraskans For The Death Penalty. “The largest donation in July came from the conservative, Washington-based Judicial Crisis Network, which gave $200,000.” [Associated Press, 8/26/15]
The Judicial Crisis Network Supported The Passing Of Unconstitutional State Gestational Age Limits On Abortion Ahead Of the Dobbs Decision
The President Of The Judicial Crisis Network Equated Earlier Limits To Bidding On eBay. “It’s like having a reserve price on eBay,” said Carrie Severino, the president of the Judicial Crisis Network, which opposes Roe. If the court says 15 weeks is an appropriate limit, but not six weeks, “then the states say, ‘Great, we have one of those.’” [New York Times, 3/7/22]
JCN Supported The Unprecedented Rushed Confirmation Of Amy Coney Barrett To The Supreme Court
Before Amy Coney Barrett Was Even Announced As Trump’s Supreme Court Pick, JCN Vowed To Spend At Least $2 Million On Ads Supporting His Nominee and Partnered With Other Conservative Groups To Launch A $5 Million Campaign. “Spending on both the left and the right is expected to skyrocket this fall during the confirmation process. Already the right-leaning Judicial Crisis Network has vowed to spend more than $2 million on ads related to the Supreme Court pick; the Club for Growth money adds to the amount of spending done by conservative groups. On the left, ActBlue raised more than $100 million between the announcement of the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, on Friday, and Sunday afternoon.” [Politico, 9/23/20]
Severino Called Those Opposed To Barrett’s Appointment ‘Left-Wing Extremists.’ “Justice Ginsburg was confirmed in 42 days, Justice O’Connor in 33, and both confirmations were nearly unanimous,” Carrie Severino, president of Judicial Crisis Network, said in a statement. “But Democrats won’t be able to bring themselves to support Judge Barrett because they are beholden to left-wing extremists who want to pack the Supreme Court and defund the police while our cities burn.” [Press TV, 9/27/20]
The Judicial Crisis Network Was One Of Over 200 Conservative Groups To Sign A Letter Urging The Senate To Move Forward With The Confirmation Of Conservative Judge Amy Coney Barrett. “Spearheaded by Americans for Prosperity, a group backed by Charles Koch, the letter was signed by Brent Gardner of AFP, David McIntosh of Club for Growth, Jessica Anderson of Heritage Action, Marjorie Dannenfelser of the Susan B. Anthony List, Carrie Severino of the Judicial Crisis Network and Grover Norquist with Americans for Tax Reform, among others.” [Senate Committee on the Judiciary, 10/8/20]
By The Time Of Barrett’s Confirmation, JCN And Its Allies Had Spent Nearly $30 Million In Total To Support Her Nomination. “In the weeks since Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death, a constellation of conservative groups have thrown money and support behind Barrett’s nomination on a larger scale than for either of Trump’s two previous Supreme Court nominees, three communications professionals who helped coordinate the effort say. The major organizations in this ecosystem on the right, including Judicial Crisis Network, Heritage Action for America, Club for Growth and others, spent nearly $30 million in total to support Barrett’s nomination, according to these professionals. ‘The entire conservative movement, from social issue groups to economic groups, pretty much the whole gamut, was involved,’ one of the communications advisers says. The effort this time around was ‘much, much more energized even than [Brett] Kavanaugh and [Neil] Gorsuch.’” [Time Magazine, 10/26/20]
JCN President Carrie Severino Celebrated The Overturning Of Roe v. Wade
When The Draft Opinion Leaked, Severino Praised Justice Alito And The Conservative Majority On The Supreme Court. “‘Justice Alito did a tour de force on the history of abortion law that just made it abundantly clear how absurd the idea is that abortion is a fundamental right, rooted in American history and Constitution, in any sense,’ said Carrie Severino, the president of the conservative Judicial Crisis Network. ‘It’s so heartening to know that we finally have a majority of justices on the Supreme Court who recognize the legitimate way to interpret the Constitution.’” [CNN Wire, 5/3/22]
Severino Tweeted Her Support Of The Overturn. “Carrie Severino, the president of the conservative advocacy organization Judicial Crisis Network, said on Twitter that the Supreme Court has corrected ‘the most egregious judicial distortion of the Constitution in living memory.’ She added: ‘Now the people, through their elected representatives, are free to legislate as they will on this contested topic.’” [Axios, 6/24/22]
Severino Described The Overturn As A Success Of The Conservative Legal Movement. “’The fact that Justice Thomas went from being a member of the dissent in Casey to a member of the majority in Dobbs 30 years later shows the extent of his influence on the court and the success of the conservative legal movement,’ said Carrie Severino, president of the Judicial Crisis Network, referencing a 1992 abortion case that revisited and upheld Roe. ‘It’s remarkable that in a span of just 24 hours, Justice Thomas and Justice Alito wrote the majority opinions in two of the most significant cases in the last decade.’” [USA Today, 6/28/22]
Severino Argued That The Impacts Of Roe’s Overturn Wouldn’t Be Very Extreme Because People Would Get To Decide Abortion Access At The State Level. “Severino argued ‘most states’ will hash out abortion laws ‘somewhere in the middle.’ ‘I think what this is going to give people the opportunity to do is say, all right, it is not just about the huge one side pro or con about abortion. Most Americans feel somewhere in the middle about it. Most states will end up somewhere in the middle about that. People can hash out at the legislative level what are the compromises to make and in the process a lot of the states are ramping up their care and provision for women who are in those crisis pregnancy centers and they’re opening their doors and ramping up their abilities to make sure they are there to help women who are carrying their pregnancies to term and make sure they have the ability and support to do so.’” [Mediaite, 6/24/22]
The Judicial Crisis Network Gave Money To Multiple Groups Involved In The January 6 Insurrection
From 2013 To 2019, JCN Gave Millions To Three Groups Involved In The January 6 Rally. “Judicial Crisis Network also contributed to multiple groups involved in the Jan. 6 rally that escalated when many participants stormed the Capitol in a violent insurrection. The group gave at least $4.7 million to the Tea Party Patriots, $50,000 to Turning Point Action and $1.9 million to the Rule of Law Defense Fund from 2013 to 2019, according to OpenSecrets’ review of its tax records. The Rule of Law Defense Fund’s affiliated Republican Attorneys General Association got millions more.” [Open Secrets, 3/9/21]
Key Players
President
Carrie Severino
Carrie Campbell Severino is the president of the Judicial Crisis Network and has worked as a leader in the organization since 2010 when she was hired as its policy director and chief spokesperson. She claims to support an originalist interpretation of law to justify her right-wing views. In 2022, Severino praised extremist conservative anti-abortion decision of Justice Alito in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health case that overturned abortion rights, declaring, “Finally we have a court where the majority of the justices recognize what the Constitution says and they have courage, even in the face of these outrageous displays — the violence, the threats, and the intimidation.” She clerked for Justice Clarence Thomas, whom she described as “the only member of the court who’s actually spoken directly, saying that he thinks that Roe and its progeny were wrongly decided.” Severino is married to Roger Severino, a vice president at the Heritage Foundation and former Director of the Office for Civil Rights at the Department of Health and Human Services under Trump. They met at Harvard Law, where they were both active in the Society for Law, Life and Religion, a conservative anti-abortion group.
Co-Chairman of Federalist Society Board of Directors
Leonard Leo
Leonard Leo is an attorney and the former vice president and current co-chairman of the Federalist Society’s board of directors. Leo was the architect behind the Federalist Society’s takeover of the U.S. Supreme Court, he is personally responsible for Trump’s three SCOTUS appointees – Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett – and aided in the confirmations of John Roberts, Samuel Alito, and Clarence Thomas. Leo is a trustee for several organizations, both 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) nonprofits and for-profits. He was previously listed as the co-chair of the board for Students for Life of America. Leo advocates for originalist interpretation of the law to disguise his anti-human rights agenda in a cloak of neutrality; he once said people should not be worried about the overturning of Roe but instead should be “worried about having judges who are really going to interpret the law as written.” Through questionable lobbying within the Federalist Society, Leo obtained a $1.6 billion windfall and became the sole trustee of Marble Freedom Trust. Tax filings show contributions from Marble Freedom Trust made their way to the anti-abortion group American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, a plaintiff in U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine. Leo helped establish the Judicial Confirmation Network in 2005, which he uses to help fund his other organizations and enrich himself.
Vice President and Senior Counsel
Frank Scaturro
Frank J. Scaturro is vice president and senior counsel of the Judicial Crisis Network. From 2005 to 2009, he served as counsel on the Senate Judiciary Committee, where he assisted in the confirmations of John Roberts and Samuel Alito. From 2010 to 2014, Scaturro made three unsuccessful bids for the U.S. House. In 2020, Scaturro defended the rushed confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court in an opinion written for the Washington Examiner, a conservative news outlet, writing, “The Senate should process the next Supreme Court nomination without delay. Doing so would signal that the Senate leadership will not tolerate Democratic shenanigans.”
Founder
Ann Corkery
Ann Corkery is a lawyer and the secretive force behind much of the Judicial Crisis Network’s founding and funding. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington said in 2021, “While most Americans wouldn’t recognize their names, [the Corkerys] have been the overseers of massive amounts of money that have gone into federal judicial races.” Open Secrets described Corkery as instrumental in launching the Judicial Crisis Network. In its early days, Corkery secured a number of donors for JCN while her husband, Neil Corkery, served as the organization’s treasurer. Corkery is also the former president of the Wellspring Committee, a dark money group that served as one of JCN’s largest donors until it shut down in 2018. As devout Catholics, many of the donors and relationships that Corkery and her husband courted for JCN’s funding relied on personal relationships with other Catholics. She has regularly targeted Catholic donors since at least 2000 when she reached out to Catholics in her work with the Republican National Committee. Corkery worked on the Mitt Romney 2008 presidential campaign as co-chair of the National Women for Mitt Finance Committee. She was also involved with Opus Dei and served on the board of directors for the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights and the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. For the fiscal year 2023, Corkery took home the highest salary from the Judicial Crisis Network, at $331,729.
Founder and Senior Adviser
Gary Marx
Gary Marx is a senior adviser for the Judicial Crisis Network. He and Wendy Long cofounded the organization in 2005 to support Bush’s nominations of conservatives to the federal judiciary. Before that, Marx campaigned in support of Bush for the 2004 presidential election. In addition to JCN, Marx has served in leadership or advisory positions for the Faith and Freedom Coalition and Our American Revival.
The Federalist Society
The Judicial Crisis Network and The Federalist Society Are Both Within Leonard Leo’s Network Of Organizations.
- JCN And The Federalist Society Are Intimately Connected In Their Involvement With Judicial Appointments. “The Federalist Society and the Judicial Crisis Network share a hallway in the same office building. After the Federalist Society Executive Vice President who oversaw the judicial selection operation was identified in the Washington Post article, he left for another group and was replaced in his judicial selection function by the top official of the Judicial Crisis Network.” [Sen. Whitehouse’s Letter To Commission On Supreme Court, 5/18/21]
- The Judicial Crisis Network Supports The Confirmation Of Federalist Society Picks For The Supreme Court. “Judicial Crisis Network is linked to the Federalist Society and a web of anonymously funded groups that together laid the ideological, financial and communications groundwork for Mr. Trump’s effort to fill some 200 judgeships and a third Supreme Court seat with conservative jurists. Judicial Crisis expects to spend at least $10 million to support Judge Barrett with ads and media interviews by Mrs. Severino.” [New York Times, 10/15/20]
The 85 Fund
The 85 Fund and The Judicial Crisis Network Are Sister Organizations Closely Associated With Leonard Leo.
- The Two Organizations Were Founded In 2005 As Counterparts To Each Other. “Leo’s Supreme Court advocacy campaigns, which date back to 2005, were long run through Judicial Crisis Network. Its sister charitable arm was known as the Judicial Education Project. In 2020, Leo and his allies rebranded those organizations as the Concord Fund and 85 Fund, respectively, and designed the groups to act as fiscal sponsors, or hubs for new advocacy and educational groups. The structure makes it easy to launch new organizations or campaigns; forming a new group is as simple as registering a trade name. (The rebranded organizations registered the Judicial Crisis Network and Judicial Education Project as trade names.)” [Rolling Stone, 2/20/24]
- Senator Whitehouse Described The Two Organizations As Extremely Connected Within Leo’s Network. “Just to give you an idea, the Concord Fund and the 85 Fund are the two kind of base entities. They operate out of the same location with overlapping staff and funders and directors. I would argue that the corporate veil between the two could be pierced with a banana. The operation of these two entities–a conjoined 501(c)(3) and 501(c)4–then has these different legs. Each one of these six legs is a fictitious name–a fictitious name filed under Virginia corporate law– through which these entities operate. It is not a separate thing. It is just a fictitious name for–in this case, Judicial Education Project for the 85 Fund. So these eight organizations are, in effect, the same organization, and out of it, money gets pumped up to these entities, which are Leonard Leo’s means of extracting wealth for himself for his services provided in making sure that this piece of his operation can go forward and help capture the Court. So that is the background of all of this. So when the Judicial Crisis Network shows up here, it is a pretty significant tell that there is more going on here than just independent organizations bringing their views to the Supreme Court.” [Congressional Record—Senate, 1/24/24]
CRC Advisors
Along With The 85 Fund, JCN Has Given More Than $18 Million To CRC Advisors Since 2020. “The 85 Fund and the Concord Fund: Formerly known as the Judicial Education Project and Judicial Crisis Network, respectively, these groups are run by Mr. Leo’s allies. But they have paid his for-profit groups, including more than $7.4 million to BH Group, which is owned at least partly by Mr. Leo, since the beginning of 2016; and more than $18.3 million to CRC Advisors since Mr. Leo joined that firm in 2020. The 85 Fund and the Concord Fund act as funding hubs to a broader coalition, disseminating tens of millions of dollars in grants to allied nonprofits, and serving as incubators for in-house projects, including one highlighting critical race theory in schools and another fighting Democratic efforts to expand voter access.” [New York Times, 10/12/22]
From July 2022 To June 2023, It Donated Over $6 million To Leo’s Consulting Firm CRC Advisors. “The Concord Fund, a Virginia-based nonprofit, paid $6 million to Leo’s firm CRC Advisors between July 2022 and the end of June 2023 for ‘Consulting,’ according to the filing, provided to POLITICO by the left-leaning watchdog group Accountable.US. The revelations of the large sum transferred to Leo’s firm come amid mounting questions around Leo’s advocacy activities and whether he has stood to gain financially from nonprofit groups pushing a conservative agenda around the country.” [Politico, 6/7/24]
BH Fund
Along With The 85 Fund, JCN Has Paid Over $7.4 Million To The BH Fund, Or BH Group, Since 2020. “The 85 Fund and the Concord Fund: Formerly known as the Judicial Education Project and Judicial Crisis Network, respectively, these groups are run by Mr. Leo’s allies. But they have paid his for-profit groups, including more than $7.4 million to BH Group, which is owned at least partly by Mr. Leo, since the beginning of 2016; and more than $18.3 million to CRC Advisors since Mr. Leo joined that firm in 2020. The 85 Fund and the Concord Fund act as funding hubs to a broader coalition, disseminating tens of millions of dollars in grants to allied nonprofits, and serving as incubators for in-house projects, including one highlighting critical race theory in schools and another fighting Democratic efforts to expand voter access.” [New York Times, 10/12/22]
Influence
The Judicial Crisis Network Gives Millions to Support Republican Politicians
The Judicial Crisis Network Has Invested Money In State Supreme Court Cases. [New York Times, 7/8/22]
From 2014 To 2023, The Judicial Crisis Network Gave $20.3 Million To The Republican Attorneys General Association. “Tax filings show that the Concord Fund, one of several Leo-linked groups that spend money to influence elections and aren’t required to disclose their donors, gave $20.3 million from July 2014 through June 2023 to the Republican Attorneys General Association, the political nonprofit that works to elect Republicans as states’ top law enforcement officers. Known as RAGA, the group funneled more than $1.2 million to Paxton’s campaign over three election cycles from 2014 to 2022, Texas campaign finance records show.” [The 19th, 8/16/24]
From July 2022 To June 2023 Alone, The Judicial Crisis Network Donated $10 Million To Republican Politician Associations. “The Concord Fund also gave $6 million to the Republican Governors Association and $4 million to the Republican Attorney Generals Association. It gave an additional $3 million to a group that was backing the Republican candidate for Kentucky governor, David Cameron, who ultimately lost.” [Politico, 6/7/24]
It Also Gave $1.3 Million To Political Committees And Nonprofits Tied to Influential Conservative Politicians. “The Concord Fund also gave $500,000 each to a Florida political committee then called Friends of Ron DeSantis and a nonprofit founded by former Vice President Mike Pence called Advancing American Freedom. It also gave $300,000 to a nonprofit founded by former presidential candidate and U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley.” [Politico, 6/7/24]
The Judicial Crisis Network Pressures Conservative Politicians And Judges To Push Its Agenda
JCN’s President Carrie Severino Criticized Supreme Court Justice Gorsuch For Decision Protecting LGBTQ+ Rights. “Carrie Severino, president of the conservative legal advocacy group Judicial Crisis Network, said that ‘Justice Scalia would be disappointed that his successor has bungled textualism so badly today for the sake of appealing to college campuses and editorial boards.’ The group spent millions to confirm Gorsuch and block the appointment of Merrick Garland in 2016.” [Politico, 6/16/20]
The Judicial Crisis Network Runs Ad Campaigns Opposing Federal Nominations Of Progressive Candidates
In 2021, JCN Spent $800,000 On An Ad Campaign Targeting Vanita Gupta, Biden’s Nomination For Associate Attorney General. “One $800,000 ad campaign accuses Gupta of supporting the defund the police movement. It’s paid for by the Judicial Crisis Network, a 501(c)(4) that does not disclose its donors. Gupta, who served as head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division under President Barack Obama, has said she never supported defunding the police. The ad campaign was part of a coordinated effort targeting Biden nominees in collaboration with the conservative 501(c)(3) nonprofit Americans for Public Trust and 501(c)(4) Heritage Action for America, an arm of the Heritage Foundation that does not disclose its donors despite spending to influence elections.” [Open Secrets, 3/9/21]
The Judicial Crisis Network Donates Millions To Leading Anti-Abortion Groups
In Its June 2024 Financial Filing, The Judicial Crisis Network Reported Giving $8.8 Million To Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. [Politico, 6/7/24]
Legal & Financial
Lobbying
As A 501(c)(4) Organization, The Judicial Crisis Network Registered to Lobby In Late 2023. “The Concord Fund said in a filing that it will lobby on ‘Issues related to government oversight and reform.’ The conservative firm OnMessage will lobby on its behalf. Thomas Binion, a former aide to Rep. Steve King — the Iowa Republican who was removed from his congressional committees and lost his reelection bid — is expected to work on the Concord Fund’s behalf.” [Politico, 10/19/23]
- As of June 2024, The Judicial Crisis Network Has Reported Spending $140,000 to Lobby Congress [Politico, 6/7/24]
- The Judicial Crisis Network Spent More Than $25 Million To Fight An Abortion Rights Amendment In Ohio. “One is The Concord Fund, which spent more than $25 million in Ohio last year – more than 40% of the total in opposition to the amendment. Like abortion-related ballot measures in six other states since 2022, the abortion-rights side prevailed.” [Associated Press, 10/4/24]
The Judicial Crisis Network Has Engaged in State-Level Anti-Abortion Lobbying Ahead Of The 2024 Election.
- The Judicial Crisis Network Gave $500,000 To No G For SD, A Ballot Question Committee Opposing A Constitutional Right To Abortion In South Dakota. “A supplemental campaign finance report filed Thursday with the South Dakota Secretary of State’s Office shows The Concord Fund, a Virginia advocacy group, gave $500,000 to No G for SD, a ballot question committee opposing Constitutional Amendment G. The contribution was made Wednesday, according to the report, which also noted a $100,000 contribution Tuesday from Celebrate Wesleyan Church of Sioux Falls.” [Argus Leader, 11/1/24]
- The Judicial Crisis Network Donated $1 Million To A Campaign Opposing Missouri’s Abortion Rights Amendment. “The Concord Fund, an advocacy organization funded by groups connected to Leo, stepped into the fight over Amendment 3 with a $1 million check to a PAC called Vote No on 3, according to filings with the Missouri Ethics Commission.” [Missouri Independent, 10/30/24]
- The Judicial Crisis Network Donated $2 million to the Florida GOP, Likely To Help Defeat The State’s Abortion Rights Amendment. “Leonard Leo group gave $2 million to Florida GOP amid abortion battle’ via Jason Garcia of Seeking Rents – The eleventh-hour gift from The Concord Fund – part of an opaque network of groups linked to Leo, the conservative legal scholar who helped orchestrate the overturn of Roe v. Wade – came as the state Republican Party was paying for ads attacking Amendment 4, the ballot initiative that would have overturned Florida’s near-total abortion ban. Because the $2 million was routed through the state GOP, there’s no way to say for sure that the donation was specifically for the campaign to keep abortion banned in Florida. The Republican Party was simultaneously funding ads opposing another measure on the ballot: Amendment 3, which would have legalized marijuana in Florida. But the donation came around the same time that Leo’s Concord Fund put $1 million in last-minute money into a campaign opposing a similar abortion-rights ballot measure in Missouri, according to the Missouri Independent.” [Florida Politics, 11/11/24]
Financials & Incorporation
The Judicial Crisis Network Is A Registered 501(c)(4) Nonprofit Incorporated In Vienna, Virginia, And Had $52,773,080 In Revenue In Its Fiscal Year 2023.
JCN Was Originally Backed By Conservative Political Megadonor Robin Arkley II.
Arkley Donated A Large Amount To The Judicial Crisis Network At Its Founding. “Arkley, the president and CEO of Security National Corp. who had tapped Corkery to be his political liaison and senior advisor, became a key underwriter of JCN’s operations, to the tune of the high six or low seven figures, sources say. The pair went to some of the early fundraising and policy retreats held by the Kochs — events that now draw a glittering cast of wealthy allies and conservative stars to raise millions for the brothers’ network of politically active groups. Arkley was also a financial backer of the Federalist Society. ‘Arkley helped put Ann in play’ as a liaison to funding for advocacy groups on the right, said one conservative.” [Open Secrets, 3/23/15]
The Largest Known Donors Of The Judicial Crisis Network Are Intricately Connected With Leo’s Network.
In Its Early Years, The Wellspring Committee Was JCN’s Largest Donor. “New tax returns obtained by the Center for Responsive Politics show that one such donor group, the Wellspring Committee, keeps the Judicial Crisis Network afloat, as it has for years. The filings also show that Wellspring’s own cashflow comes largely from an $8.5 million contribution from a single anonymous donor.” [Open Secrets, 3/24/17]
In 2019, The BH Group Gave The Judicial Crisis Network $6 Million. “Judicial Crisis Network received $6 million from a secretive 501(c)(4) nonprofit called BH Fund, according to the fund’s most recent tax return obtained by OpenSecrets. In 2019, the BH Fund shelled out more than $12 million in grants and did little else. At the end of the year, the organization had whittled down its leftover assets to $7.2 million.” [Open Secrets, 3/9/21]
JCN Has Since Received Millions From The Leo-Controlled Marble Freedom Trust. “The Concord Fund has in turn received about $29 million from the Marble Freedom Trust, created in 2021 with $1.6 billion and controlled by Leonard Leo, the co-chair of the board of the Federalist Society who helped bring about conservative dominance on the Supreme Court.” [New York Times, 9/12/23]