For ads-free news, click here.
From the Daily Caller: An organization under investigation by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation received financial backing from a group of Democratic donors, according to The Associated Press.
Patriots Run Project, a group that an AP investigation found is backed by Democratic firms, has recruited conservatives to run against Republicans in competitive House and Senate races. The AP concluded that the recruits, most of whom were retired or disabled, are likely intended to serve as spoiler candidates to worsen the GOP’s odds of retaining the House and flipping the Senate in November.
“Whether it’s congressional or presidential races, this kind of activity is a real problem and it undermines the functioning of democracy,” Ohio State University law professor Edward Foley told the AP.
David Steinglass, a retired private equity fund manager, and his wife, Liz, for instance, have given more than $5 million to Democratic-aligned political committees, according to the AP. The duo, however, contributed to the campaign of Thomas Leager, a self-described “America First” candidate and gun rights advocate who is running for Senate in Wisconsin.
Leager was also one of unindicted co-conspirators in a 2020 plot to kidnap Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, the AP reported.
The Patriots Run Project collects cash from Democratic donors and then recruits little-known conservatives to run as spoilers, which ends up pulling votes away from Republican candidates and thereby aiding Democrats, the report explains.
The Associated Press wrote:
For the past year, the group has recruited Trump supporters to run as independent candidates in key swing districts where they could siphon votes from Republicans in races that will help determine which party controls the House next year, an Associated Press review has found. In addition to two races in Iowa, the group recruited candidates in Nebraska, Montana, Virginia and Minnesota. All six recruits described themselves as retired, disabled — or both.
The group’s operation provides few clues about its management, financing or motivation. But interviews, text messages, emails, business filings and other documents reviewed by the AP show that a significant sum has been spent — and some of it traces back to Democratic consulting firms.
The AP notes that the shadowy group utilizes Facebook, where the Patriots Run Project operated a series of pro-Trump pages and ran ads that used apocalyptic rhetoric to attack establishment politicians in both parties while urging conservatives to run in November.
“We need American Patriots like YOU to stand for freedom with President Trump and take back control from the globalist elites by running for office,” one Facebook ad reads.
In reality, it’s not about helping Trump at all – it’s about diluting the conservative vote, in order to help Democrats.
Although funded by Democrat donors, it’s still a mystery exactly who is running the group, the AP report notes. Below is another excerpt:
Patriots Run Project is not a registered business in the United States and it is not listed as a nonprofit with the IRS. It has not filed paperwork to form a political committee with the Federal Election Commission. The only concrete identifying detail listed on the group’s website is a P.O. Box inside a UPS store in Washington, D.C.
Messages left at email addresses and phone numbers for the group’s operatives went unanswered.
Americans for Public Trust explained, “The liberal dark money group, ‘Patriots Run Project,’ is spending BIG to support third-party candidates to act as spoilers in swing races, and their contributions are coming from an unlikely donor base — reliable Democrats.”
NEW: The liberal dark money group, ‘Patriots Run Project,’ is spending BIG to support third-party candidates to act as spoilers in swing races, and their contributions are coming from an unlikely donor base — reliable Democrats. https://t.co/kny3Mp0kh8 pic.twitter.com/PupYYsRtQ8
— Americans for Public Trust (@apublictrust) September 27, 2024
NEW: Democratic donors prop up web of far-right “spoiler” candidates in House and Senate races, including Wisconsin man who was an unindicted co-conspirator in the plot to kidnap MI Gov. Gretchen Whitmer
W/ @rjfoley https://t.co/pQsGrYB7aV
— Brian Slodysko (@BrianSlodysko) October 1, 2024
IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO ALL DML NEWS APP READERS ABOUT COMMENTS ON ARTICLES: The feature on our website that automatically approves comments is currently down. We are hoping it will be fixed this week, but it is out of our control. We are making every effort to come in every few minutes and manually push all pending comments out. We apologize for the inconvenience and ask for your patience and understanding until this matter is resolved. Please DO continue posting your comments. Your interaction and feedback is still very important to us. As usual, comments calling for violence or death toward any individual are not permitted.
The Dennis Michael Lynch Podcast archive is available below, with the most recent on top. Never miss an episode. Subscribe to the show by downloading The DML News App or go to Apple Podcasts.
