Leading conservative judicial activist poured $216M into causes in 12-month span: tax forms

EXCLUSIVE: A gaggle affiliated with Leonard Leo, a high conservative judicial activist, poured $216 million into causes over the course of a 12 months, tax forms obtained by Fox News Digital present.

The Marble Freedom Trust, a nonprofit for which Leo acts as chairman, has discovered itself below the microscope of media shops and Democratic politicians equivalent to Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse as a result of Leo’s involvement in the conservative judicial sphere. 

During its 2022 fiscal 12 months, the group gave massive sums of cash to a few different entities.

“Liberals, led by over $1 billion a year from the foreign-funded Arabella Advisors network, have dominated dark money in politics,” a Marble Freedom Trust spokesperson informed Fox News Digital.”In the face of such lopsided spending, Marble Freedom Trust is working to even the playing field so that conservatives can crush liberal dominance.”

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Leonard Leo speaks on the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C., April 23, 2019.  (Michael Robinson Chavez/The Washington Post through Getty Images)

According to the Marble Freedom Trust’s latest tax forms, Leo’s group disbursed $216.8 million between May 2022 and May 2023, a rise of $34.1 million over the earlier 12 months, when it handed out $182 million in donations.

The new tax paperwork present the nonprofit pushed a bulk of this money — $153.7 million — to the Schwab Charitable Fund, a donor-advised fund utilized by teams and people to make different charitable contributions.

The New York Times beforehand reported that the Schwab Charitable Fund gave $141.5 million to the 85 Fund, one other group linked to Leo, earlier than the interval laid out in the newest tax forms.

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During its most up-to-date fiscal 12 months, the Marble Freedom Trust additionally supplied $55.5 million to the Concord Fund, which beforehand was often known as the Judicial Crisis Network and likewise has been tied to Leo.

Its final donation — in the quantity of $7.6 million — went to the Knights of Columbus Charitable Fund, one other donor-advised fund. 

Once a company or particular person pushes cash to entities such because the Schwab Charitable Fund and Knights of Columbus Charitable Fund, it’s virtually unimaginable to hint the place the cash finally ends up.

Democratic senators Sheldon Whitehouse, left, and Dick Durbin, proper, have focused Leo and different judicial activists. (Getty Images)

Leo has been the goal of Democratic lawmakers over his involvement in right-leaning judicial issues as a part of their investigation into Supreme Court justices.

Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats Dick Durbin of Illinois and Whitehouse have despatched letters to Leo and billionaire activists in search of info relating to journeys and occasions Supreme Court justices have taken and took part in over time.

In October, the senators despatched a letter to Leo, Harlan Crow and Robin Arkley in an try to strong-arm them into complying with a earlier July request for particulars about journeys involving justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.

Leo, nevertheless, rejected their calls for in a letter his attorneys despatched to committee Chairman Durbin, a replica of which Fox News Digital beforehand obtained.

“We have put forward clear and detailed reasons why the Committee’s inquiry is a form of political retaliation in violation of the First Amendment and the Equal Protection component of the Due Process Clause,” Leo’s legal professional, David Rivkin, wrote in the letter. 

“But, for the most part, the October 5 Letter ignores these points, and, since our last correspondence, the Committee has only expanded the retaliatory campaign it is mounting against Mr. Leo.”

Associate Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas speaks on the Heritage Foundation Oct. 21, 2021, in Washington, D.C. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

For many years, Leo has been part of the Federalist Society, which progressive activists have lengthy criticized for its involvement in serving to advise and foyer former President Trump by means of the nominations of Supreme Court justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.

Leo has additionally been a goal of Washington, D.C.’s Democratic Atorney General Brian Schwalb, who launched an investigation into Leo’s community final summer season. 

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Schwalb’s workplace confronted criticism for focusing on Leo whereas ignoring the same liberal dark-money community overseen by the Arabella Advisors consulting agency. 

After the criticism, Schwalb’s workplace additionally opened a probe into the Arabella Advisors-managed community.