{"id":369412,"date":"2021-04-01T14:45:38","date_gmt":"2021-04-01T18:45:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=369412"},"modified":"2021-04-01T14:45:39","modified_gmt":"2021-04-01T18:45:39","slug":"conservative-group-defends-donor-privacy-as-sheldon-whitehouse-demands-disclosures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/conservative-group-defends-donor-privacy-as-sheldon-whitehouse-demands-disclosures\/","title":{"rendered":"Conservative Group Defends Donor Privacy as Sheldon Whitehouse Demands Disclosures"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fconservative-group-defends-donor-privacy-as-sheldon-whitehouse-demands-disclosures%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=369412&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Sheldon-Whitehouse_736x514.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" \/><\/div>\n<p>A conservative nonprofit has refused Senator Sheldon Whitehouse&#8217;s (D., R.I.) demand that it release the names of its top funders, citing concerns that the senator is not &#8220;operating in good faith.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Whitehouse <a href=\"https:\/\/capitalresearch.org\/app\/uploads\/Sen.-Whitehouse-Request-for-Donors-letter-3-21.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">requested<\/a>&nbsp;that Capital Research Center president Scott Walter disclose the group&#8217;s donors on March 12. In a letter sent Thursday and reviewed by the <em>Washington Free Beacon<\/em>, Walter <a href=\"https:\/\/capitalresearch.org\/app\/uploads\/2021.04.01-Walter-Scott-replying-to-Sen.-Whitehouse.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">denies<\/a> the request, writing that he and his organization &#8220;oppose government-coerced disclosure of donors.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"posts-content__category-widget md:hidden -ml-4 -mr-4 my-8 px-4 py-6 bg-gray-100\">\n<h4 class=\"mt-0 text-red-600 font-medium font-sans uppercase\">Recent Stories in Democrats<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<p>This is Whitehouse&#8217;s latest attempt to get right-leaning &#8220;dark money&#8221; groups to disclose their primary funders. The senator also sent letters <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/schwartzbCNBC\/status\/1372218140449443841?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">requesting<\/a>&nbsp;that the Federalist Society and Judicial Crisis Network disclose their donors. Whitehouse has relied on <a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/politics\/sen-whitehouse-a-critic-of-dark-money-has-ties-to-dark-money\/\">groups<\/a> that conceal his donors throughout his time in the Senate.<\/p>\n<p>Two days before Whitehouse wrote to the Capital Research Center, Walter participated in the senator&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.judiciary.senate.gov\/meetings\/whats-wrong-with-the-supreme-court-the-big-money-assault-on-our-judiciary\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">hearing<\/a> on &#8220;Dark Money and the Judiciary.&#8221; Throughout the hearing, Republican senators criticized Whitehouse&#8217;s witnesses, three left-wing dark money critics who all<a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/democrats\/sheldon-whitehouse-invited-liberal-dark-money-critics-to-a-hearing-they-all-take-dark-money\/\"> receive cash<\/a> from anonymous donors.<\/p>\n<p>During the hearing, Ben Jealous, president of the liberal group People for the American Way, pledged to disclose his group&#8217;s top five donors. Whitehouse referenced Jealous&#8217;s statement in his letter to Walter, asking the Capital Research Center to reveal its top five donors &#8220;in the spirit of equivalence.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>But Jealous does not seem to have lived up to his promise. In response to a <em>Free Beacon<\/em> inquiry, Laura Kinney, People for the American Way&#8217;s communications director, affirmed that the group &#8220;will be doing this,&#8221; though no list has yet been made public. Kinney did not provide the <em>Free Beacon<\/em> with a copy of the list.<\/p>\n<p>Writing to Whitehouse, Walter defended his decision to protect donor privacy. &#8220;The practical reason for opposing donor disclosure arises from very real threats, felt across the political spectrum, of mob harassment or worse,&#8221; the letter states. &#8220;And Mr. Chairman, just as your side has more groups, active for more years and possessed of far more \u2018dark money,&#8217; so does your side have more mobs.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Whitehouse has made donor disclosure a cornerstone of his agenda. The senator <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scotusblog.com\/2021\/03\/senate-judiciary-holds-hearing-on-dark-money-and-supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">claims<\/a> that Republican dark money groups operate a vast network that grooms candidates for judicial appointments and pushes the courts to rule in favor of corporate interests.<\/p>\n<p>For years, Whitehouse and other Senate Democrats&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/politics\/senate-dems-demand-jcn-disclose-donors-ignore-own-dark-money\/\">have attempted<\/a> to coerce groups like the Judicial Crisis Network into releasing lists of their donors. In 2019, a group of Democratic senators, including Whitehouse and Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/dems-call-for-names-of-conservative-dark-money-group-donors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pressured<\/a> the network to disclose its donors after it launched campaigns defending Supreme Court justices Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch.<\/p>\n<p>Democrats rely on similar groups to shape the courts. Demand Justice, which seeks to promote left-wing causes and elevate progressive judges, is part a massive <a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/democrats\/dem-dark-money-network-rakes-in-715-million-to-bankroll-liberal-causes\/\">dark money network<\/a> managed by Arabella Advisors. Liberals have&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/courts\/left-wing-dark-money-groups-unite-to-undo-trumps-judicial-legacy\/\">expanded such coalitions<\/a> since President Joe Biden took office in an effort to influence his judicial nominees.<\/p>\n<p>Whitehouse&#8217;s office did not respond to a request for comment on his demand for Republican groups to turn over their donors.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-8 hide-print\">\n\t\t<!-- \/339474670\/Freebeacon\/InContent --><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1526555381173-4\" class=\"mobile-250 desktop-90\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A conservative nonprofit has refused Senator Sheldon Whitehouse&#8217;s (D., R.I.) demand that it release the names of its top funders, citing concerns that the senator is not &#8220;operating in good &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2311529,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Sheldon-Whitehouse_736x514.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"Conservative Group Defends Donor Privacy as Sheldon Whitehouse Demands Disclosures","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-369412","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Sheldon-Whitehouse_736x514.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"Conservative Group Defends Donor Privacy as Sheldon Whitehouse Demands Disclosures","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/369412","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=369412"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/369412\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2311529"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=369412"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=369412"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=369412"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}