{"id":847797,"date":"2021-10-05T05:14:04","date_gmt":"2021-10-05T09:14:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=847797"},"modified":"2021-10-05T05:14:09","modified_gmt":"2021-10-05T09:14:09","slug":"dark-money-dems-use-fake-newspaper-to-influence-virginia-election","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dark-money-dems-use-fake-newspaper-to-influence-virginia-election\/","title":{"rendered":"Dark Money Dems Use Fake Newspaper To Influence Virginia Election"},"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%2Fdark-money-dems-use-fake-newspaper-to-influence-virginia-election%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=847797&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 readability=\"29.600858369099\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"article-category\"><a class href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/elections\/\">Elections<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"article-excerpt\">David Brock uses liberal media outlet to target voters, skirting campaign finance law<\/p>\n<figure class=\"post-thumbnail-container relative lg:mr-24 w-full my-4 mb-8\">\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"736\" height=\"514\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/brock_736x514-1.jpg\" class=\"w-full lazyload blur-up wp-post-image\" alt srcset=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 736px) 100vw, 736px\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/brock_736x514.jpg 736w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/brock_736x514-300x210.jpg 300w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/brock_736x514-703x491.jpg 703w\" data-sizes=\"auto\" \/><figcaption class=\"absolute text-white p-4 w-full text-right text-xs bottom-0 bg-black opacity-75\">\n\t\t\t\tDavid Brock \/ Twitter\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\t\t\t<span class=\"text-gray text-xs md:text-lg\"><a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/author\/collin-anderson\/\" title=\"Posts by Collin Anderson\" class=\"author url fn text-red-700\" rel=\"author\">Collin Anderson<\/a> \u2022 October 5, 2021 5:00 am<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div readability=\"106.46531264263\">\n<p><span>Democratic dark money kingpin David Brock is using his &#8220;pseudo-news outlet&#8221; to send Virginia voters unsolicited mailers that falsely attack Republican gubernatorial nominee Glenn Youngkin.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Brock in September bombarded voters in the state&#8217;s northern suburbs with an unsolicited &#8220;Virginia edition&#8221; of his liberal media outlet, <\/span><i><span>The American Independent<\/span><\/i><span>, photos obtained by the <\/span><i><span>Washington Free Beacon<\/span><\/i><span> show. The 11-page mailer\u2014which is designed to look like a local newspaper\u2014includes misleading content that echoes Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Terry McAuliffe&#8217;s campaign messaging.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>One page, for example, falsely says Youngkin&#8217;s plan to &#8220;eliminate the state&#8217;s income tax&#8221; would cut funding for public schools. Just days before Brock sent the mailer, McAuliffe made the same false claim during a debate against the Republican nominee. McAuliffe&#8217;s campaign followed up with a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/terrymcauliffe.com\/terry-mcauliffe-touts-plan-to-create-world-class-education-for-virginias-children-slams-glenn-youngkins-plan-to-cut-funding-for-public-schools\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span>press release<\/span><\/a>, which<span> said Youngkin&#8217;s &#8220;plan to eliminate the state income tax would usher in massive cuts to funding for Virginia\u2019s schools.&#8221; Brock <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediamatters.org\/fake-news\/siriusxms-dan-rathers-america-david-brock-warns-misinformation-existential-threat\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">called<\/a> &#8220;misinformation&#8221; an &#8220;existential threat to democracy&#8221; in a 2016 interview with former CBS News anchor Dan Rather, whose career ended after he used fake documents to claim then-candidate George W. Bush went AWOL while serving in the Texas National Guard.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-1525497\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4039-1-768x1024-1.jpg\" alt width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4039-1-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4039-1-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4039-1-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4039-1-1400x1867.jpg 1400w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4039-1-736x981.jpg 736w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4039-1-368x491.jpg 368w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4039-1-150x200.jpg 150w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4039-1.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-1525371\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4047-576x1024-1.jpeg\" alt width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4047-576x1024.jpeg 576w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4047-169x300.jpeg 169w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4047-768x1365.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4047-864x1536.jpeg 864w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4047-736x1308.jpeg 736w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4047-276x491.jpeg 276w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/IMG_4047.jpeg 1152w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span>The mailers mark the latest attempt by a well-funded liberal group to influence elections with fake news. Liberal activist Tara McGowan launched <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/media\/tara-mcgowan-fake-news-network-owner-to-speak-on-panel-about-fake-news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span>Courier Newsroom<\/span><\/a><span> in 2019 through her dark money group, ACRONYM. The media company aims to &#8220;build nimble communications infrastructure for Dems in critical states,&#8221; an internal memo obtained by <\/span><i><span>Vice <\/span><\/i><span>states. The Center for Responsive Politics admonished both Courier and <\/span><i><span>The American Independent<\/span><\/i><span> in a 2020 <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/news\/2020\/05\/dark-money-networks-fake-news-sites\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span>article<\/span><\/a><span>, which referred to the sites as &#8220;pseudo-news outlets&#8221;&nbsp; that are &#8220;pouring millions of \u2018dark money&#8217; dollars into ads and digital content masquerading as news to influence&#8221; elections.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Brock&#8217;s mailers sparked concern among ethics experts. Traditional political groups are required to &#8220;disclose who they are and where their funding comes from&#8221; when they spend &#8220;more than $1,000 to influence an election,&#8221; Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust executive director Kendra Arnold told the <\/span><i><span>Free Beacon<\/span><\/i><span>. But that law does not apply to a &#8220;progressive news&#8221; outlet such as <\/span><i><span>The American Independent<\/span><\/i><span>, which has received millions of dollars from dark money sources.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>&#8220;This is a new legal issue, and there is some gray area on what precisely constitutes a legitimate media outlet in the context of political spending, but in this particular case it does appear to be pushing the limits,&#8221; Arnold said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Brock founded <\/span><i><span>The American Independent<\/span><\/i><span>\u2014which did not return a request for comment\u2014as the <em>Blue Nation Review&nbsp;<\/em>in 2014.&nbsp;Brock started the outlet to help elect failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, he <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/09\/23\/us\/politics\/hillary-clinton-media-david-brock.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span>told<\/span><\/a><span> the <\/span><i><span>New York Times<\/span><\/i><span> in 2016.&nbsp;<\/span><span>According to its <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/americanindependent.com\/company\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span>website<\/span><\/a><span>, <\/span><i><span>The American Independent<\/span><\/i><span> receives charitable donations from groups in Brock&#8217;s vast political network, including the American Bridge 21st Century Foundation and The American Independent Foundation, two tax-exempt nonprofits that do not disclose their donors. American Bridge, which Brock launched in 2010, funneled nearly $2.7 million to <\/span><i><span>The American Independent<\/span><\/i><span>\u2018s parent company from 2017 to 2018, tax filings show.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Those transactions prompted an ethics complaint, with Patriots Foundation cofounder Craig Robinson <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/david-brock-accused-of-illegally-profiting-from-his-political-empire-by-patriots-foundation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span>alleging<\/span><\/a><span> Brock &#8220;circumvented rules and exploited the tax-exempt status of the organizations for personal benefit and partisan political purposes.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>One Virginia voter who got <\/span><i><span>The American Independent<\/span><\/i><span>\u2018s &#8220;Virginia edition&#8221; told the <\/span><i><span>Free Beacon<\/span><\/i><span> she &#8220;never signed up to receive these mailers.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>&#8220;At first glance, it looked like a normal neighborhood newsletter, but once you start reading it the bias was very clear,&#8221; the voter said. &#8220;It&#8217;s pretty sad McAuliffe&#8217;s allies are resorting to literal fake news to try and con voters.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Brock&#8217;s mailers came as McAuliffe struggled to maintain a strong lead against Youngkin in a state President Joe Biden won by double digits. A September <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Fox_September-26-29_Virginia_Topline_September-30-Release.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span>Fox News poll<\/span><\/a><span> showed McAuliffe leading Youngkin by just 4 points. Voters have until Oct. 12 to register to vote in the election, which will take place on Nov. 2.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Elections David Brock uses liberal media outlet to target voters, skirting campaign finance law  David Brock \/ Twitter  Collin Anderson \u2022 October 5, 2021 &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-847797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/847797","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\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=847797"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/847797\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=847797"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=847797"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=847797"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}