Happy Monday morning! We’ve been keeping busy and have a lot of great reporting to share with you, from exposing the Koch influence network’s soaring assets and RFK Jr.’s polluting megadonor to co-publishing an article with Drilled on the similarities between police crackdowns on climate activists and pro-Palestine protesters. Have someone who you think would like to get updates from CMD? Feel free to forward this newsletter or send them this link to sign-up: TinyURL.com/CMDEmails Enjoy! | |
Here’s the Latest From CMD | |
Koch-Controlled Assets Soar to Over $8.1 Billion The Koch fleet’s combined net revenue skyrocketed in 2022, up to $4.8 billion. This is largely due to a $4.3 billion injection into a nonprofit called Believe in People, which almost doubled the network’s assets in a single year. This explosive growth in revenue is significantly higher than the previous record set by Koch groups’ combined net revenue in 2020 — $2.4 billion. Read the full story here. | |
Rights Clash in Wisconsin Records Dispute The Wisconsin Supreme Court will soon hear a case involving records related to the voting rights of mentally incompetent people. No matter which side wins, the public has in some ways already lost. That’s because while the case pits the public’s right to scrutinize voter eligibility against the rights of voters to protect their own private health information, elected officials have missed a chance to solve the underlying problem. Read the full story here. | |
In Backlash to Campus Pro-Palestine Protests, Echoes of Standing Rock and the Global Crackdown on Climate Protest By being at Standing Rock, Palestinian activists took on the risk of being subjected to fossil fuel industry surveillance. Now, as historic antiwar protests arise across the U.S., the roles have been reversed, with environmental and Indigenous activists standing in defense of Palestinians. Read the full story here. | |
Railroad Owned by RFK Jr.’s Megadonor Repeatedly Violated Environmental and Safety Laws Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may claim he will be “the best environmental president in American history,” but the Republican industrialist bankrolling the super PAC behind his longshot bid for the White House has a long history of violating environmental laws. A CMD review of the railroad business owned by RFK’s megadonor found numerous violations of federal and state environmental and safety laws, including a criminal conviction of the company for covering up a 2006 oil spill. Read the full story here. | |
Our research has recently been cited by or featured in the following publications: - Up North News: “This Billionaire’s PAC is Spreading a Big Lie About Tammy Baldwin, Medicare, and Taxpayer Savings”
- Pleiades Strategy: “Report: Anti-ESG Executive Actions in the States”
- Philadelphia Inquirer: “The CO2 Coalition, a Source of Climate Change Misinformation in Pa., Wants Us to Love Carbon Dioxide”
- Wis Politics: “Wisdems: What They’re Saying, Eric Hovde’s Dark Money Allies Forced to Take Down False Attack Ad”
- Mother Jones: “How a Few Secret Donors Are Fueling the New Right-Wing Infrastructure”
- Mother Jones: “How the Right Turned Protest Into A Criminal Enterprise”
- People for the American Way: “‘Trumptastrophe’: Trump’s First 100 Days and the Frightening Plans He Has for His Next Term Image for Peter Montgomery”
- Iowa Starting Line: “Reynolds’ Voucher Program as About Destroying Public Education”
| |
That’s all for now! Hope you have a great start to your week. Thank you for following our investigations and for your continued support! Team CMD | |
