Democrats zero in on right-wing influence over the Supreme Court after the GOP attacked 'far-left dark money groups' during Jackson hearings

[pecksniff]

Interesting times.

During last month's Supreme Court confirmation hearings, Republicans unleashed a myriad of complaints about "far-left dark money groups" that they argued played a part in Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's nomination process.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, aired concerns about "the troubling role of far-left dark money" that is "attacking the independence of the judiciary."

One after the other, Republicans echoed that messaging. The scenes were reminiscent of when Democrats, notably Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, raised concerns about right-wing dark money influence over the Supreme Court during the 2020 confirmation hearings for President Donald Trump's nominee Amy Coney Barrett. Whitehouse said millions of dollars in undisclosed donations went toward boosting conservative judicial nominees.

In response to the GOP's newfound concern with dark money, Democrats on Tuesday released a report, which Insider obtained an advanced copy of, reiterating their case against a "decades-long scheme" by right-wing anonymous groups to "capture and control" the Supreme Court and push forward conservative interests. Led by Whitehouse, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, the report singles out the Judicial Crisis Network, a conservative advocacy powerhouse that has for years spent tens of millions of anonymous dollars promoting conservative judicial nominees.

"The Judicial Crisis Network lurks at the center of a web of right-wing front groups built to control the Supreme Court," Whitehouse said in a statement to Insider on Tuesday. "With President Biden in charge, JCN is launching ugly smears against Biden nominees like Judge Jackson as part of an effort to distract from their own dark-money operation. This report shows how JCN and its dark-money donors operate, and reveals why it's time to end anonymous special interests' hold on the Court."

One would have to be David-Horowitz-level crazy even to consider the existence of "far-left dark money groups" anyway.

This Judicial Crisis Network needs some deep body-cavity-search investigation.

 

[ll74]

The right wing can't bitch about dark money for SCOTUS....the Federalist has been around for far too long and is one of the worst examples

 

[LittleDixie]

ITT: "No, you!"

 

[Chobham]

A tempest in a teapot, a joke. Campaign rhetoric that isn't going anywhere.

 

[pecksniff]

A tempest in a teapot, a joke. Campaign rhetoric that isn't going anywhere.

I doubt many Americans have read Democracy in Chains or Dark Money -- nevertheless, their publication matters.

 

[butters]

i don't want to ever hear another republican complain about dark money as long as they're voting for these senate republicans and not openly calling them out for the decision to prevent the bill even being discussed:

After all 49 of his GOP colleagues in attendance voted to prevent debate on the legislation endorsed by President Joe Biden, Whitehouse released a statement slamming right-wing lawmakers for fighting to preserve "dark money's poisonous influence over American democracy."

"Today, Senate Republicans stood in lockstep with their megadonors and secretive special interests to protect the most corrupting force in American politics—dark money," said Whitehouse, a senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. "The American people are fed up with dark money influence campaigns that rig their government against them and stymie their priorities."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/poli...sedgntp&cvid=44d5c1516b684de1b64ee893e4eecb09

 

[SevMax2]

As Ryne Douglas Pearson commented through a POV character in one of his political thriller novels, "Point the finger at anyone and you would be right."