Judicial Confirmtn Netwk J C N

see JCN 2 for newer

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Judicial_Confirmation_Network

promoted to primary, dark money, AG, state takeover MI WI walker

dan backer bagman launder?

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the-jcn-story-building-a-secretive-gop-judicial-machine

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increasingly there are two americas, red and blue states, despite BO's famous speech; in some ways the South won the civil war, eventually. Southern strategy by Nixon after racist Dixiecrats defected to gop (they had set up anti-commie freedom schools to avoid desegregation). GOP is making it harder to vote, gerrymander to make minority vote less important, attacking unions and green.

The increasing polarysis and expense of attack ads in federal elections (driven up by CU tsunami of cash), RWI are looking at state level candidates, and even local. This may have begun with Rove judiciual elections in Texas, later GA etc; AG scandal was attempt to purge those who would not do ideological will vs law; JCN/RAGA now working to elect, eg CO which was hard fought by ATI, much local resistance on local vs corp rights.

sleazy ads in MI WI state scotus

An ad paid for by the group with undisclosed donations shamelessly exploits the tragedy of the death of a young soldier in Afghanistan, Joseph Johnson - with the help of his mother, Teri. "My son is a hero and fought to protect us," she says in the ad. "Bridget McCormack volunteered to help free a terrorist. How could you?"

That's easy to answer. She didn't. Ms. Johnson may not know that, but the Republican activists who paid for the ad surely do.

Ms. McCormack, a law professor at the University of Michigan, was part of a legal network called the Center for Constitutional rights, which coordinated efforts by American lawyers to represent Guantanamo detainees - most of whom were found to be improperly detained and released. Their goal was not to "free terrorists," but to ensure that American prisoners were entitled to the rights and representation provided under international and American law. The Supreme Court affirmed those rights on more than one occasion.

The prisoner Ms. McCormack represented, Wahldof Abdul Mokit, was in fact released from Guantanamo in 2007 - by a military tribunal under a process created by the Bush administration - not by Ms. McCormack. He was sent back to his native Tajikistan, where he was arrested and sentenced for being a member of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, which fought alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan. NYTimes.com, [11/1/12]

Michigan Outlet: "Flagrant Foul" And "Cynical Manipulation." The Center for Michigan's Bridge Magazine criticized JCN's ad as committing a "flagrant foul," concluding that it is "a cynical manipulation of individually correct facts to create the most unflattering image of a candidate. ... The tone of the ad says far more about the people who funded and crafted it than it does about the candidate it tries to attack." MLive.com, [11/5/12]

Detroit Free Press Criticizes Ad: "Claim Ignores The U.S. Rule Of Law." Detroit Free Press reporter Paul Egan criticized the ad in a piece headlined, "She tried to 'help free a terrorist'? Claim ignores the U.S. rule of law." He added: "No crimes -- no matter how heinous -- should be attributed to attorneys who help assure that the constitutional and international legal rights of accused people are observed." [Detroit Free Press, 11/4/12, via Nexis]

JCN Behind Campaign That's "Grotesquely Distorting" Arkansas Supreme Court Justice's Record

JCN Behind Campaign Attacking Arkansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Candidate For Voter ID Decision. JCN has been spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to oppose Justice Courtney Goodson in her race for Arkansas Supreme Court chief justice. A JCN mailer attacked Goodson for striking down the state's 2013 voter ID law, claiming she's opening the door to "Illegal Immigrants Voting," "Election Theft," and "Widespread Voter Fraud." *Arkansas Times*, [2/16/16]

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SCALIA:

http://www.pfaw.org/category/organizations/judicial-crisis-network

Judicial Crisis Network

Judicial Confirmation Network

The Judicial Confirmation Network (JCN) was created just as the debate in the Senate over Republican leaders' plans to eliminate the use of the filibuster on judicial nominations was reaching its apex. JCN was also active in the right-wing campaign to confirm Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito.

Ron Johnson Is Taking His SCOTUS Talking Points Straight From Right-Wing Groups

Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin is one of the Republican senators who is under considerable pressure in his home state to break from his party leadership and consider the nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court.

So far, Johnson has toed the party line and says that he supports blocking any nominee to the Supreme Court for the remainder of Obama’s presidency. In defending this position, he has turned to a number of stock talking points cooked up by right-wing groups seeking to keep an Obama nominee off the Supreme Court.

As soon as President Obama announced his nomination of Garland, Johnson turned to the talking point that the conservative Judicial Crisis Network has been promotingsince soon after Justice Antonin Scalia’s death left a vacant seat on the Supreme Court.

In just 8 months, the American people will decide direction of the country. Give them a voice on the direction of court. #SCOTUSnominee

— Senator Ron Johnson (@SenRonJohnson) March 16, 2016

Johnson’s appeal to let the American people “decide” and give them a “voice” by discounting President Obama’s entire last year in office, comes straight out of the messaging that JCN started hammering in early ads urging obstruction. In JCN’s first ad, a narrator says:

It’s ‘We the People.’ Sometimes the politicians forget that. The Supreme Court has a vacancy and your vote in November is your only voice. Sen. Chuck Grassley agrees: the American people should decide. This isn’t about Republicans or Democrats. It’s about your voice.You choose the next president, the next president chooses the next justice. Call Sen. Chuck Grassley. Thank him for letting the people decide.

In the weeks leading up to the March 16 nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court, media outlets uncritically featured discredited conservative group the Judicial Crisis Network (JCN) and its debunked talking points attacking Garland and other potential nominees. Following Garland's nomination, some mainstream outlets continue to credulously cite the group and its false claims, even though JCN has a history of injecting misinformation into judicial nomination fights.

Obama Named Judge Merrick Garland As His Nominee To The Supreme Court

President Obama Named Judge Merrick Garland As His Nominee To The Supreme Court. On March 16, President Obama named Merrick Garland, the chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court. Garland has served on the D.C. Circuit since 1997. *The New York Times,* [3/16/16]

Judicial Crisis Network Has A Long History Of Injecting Misinformation Into Judicial Nomination Fights

JCN Previously Called Itself The Judicial Confirmation Network And Was Devoted To An "Up Or Down Vote" For "Every Nominee." The Judicial Crisis Network was founded during the second Bush administration and was originally named the Judicial Confirmation Network. It was founded to push through Bush's often-far-right nominees, "support the confirmation of highly qualified individuals to the Supreme Court of the United States," and "ensure that the confirmation process for all judicial nominees is fair and that every nominee sent to the full Senate receives an up or down vote." JCN -- which once derided "'obstructionists' for blocking votes on Bush nominees" -- changed its name and mission after President Obama took office. Its current mission is to support "only highly qualified individuals who share" a vision of "limited government." *Media Matters,* [2/19/16]

In 2009, JCN Misrepresented Sotomayor's Record To Fearmonger About A "Liberal Activist Judge." JCN was active in the opposition to Sonia Sotomayor's Supreme Court nomination, misrepresenting her judicial record to suggest she was an "activist" judge. JCN ran a web ad making the false claim that Sotomayor had a "100% reversal rate as a court of appeals judge," which was subsequently taken offline. But Wendy Long, the JCN counsel at the time, continued to peddle similar claims in the media without challenge. Long was quoted in Congressional Quarterly alleging that "Sotomayor has an extremely high rate of her decisions being reversed, indicating that she is far more of a liberal activist than even the current liberal activist Supreme Court." Long also appeared on CNN days later with the misleading claim that Sotomayor "had plenty of cases ... overturned unanimously" by the Supreme Court. In reality, Sotomayor's reversal rates were deemed by legal experts and fellow judges to be "lower than the overall Supreme Court reversal rate for all lower court decisions from the 2004 term through the present" and "typical." *Media Matters*, [5/26/09, 5/27/09, 5/29/09]

In Recent Years, JCN Has Led Misinformation Campaigns Against State-Level Court Candidates. In 2012, JCN reportedly spent roughly $1 million on an ad attacking Michigan Supreme Court candidate Bridget McCormack, who was backed by Democrats and went on to win the race. The ad featured Michigan woman Teri Johnson, whose son was killed in Afghanistan, stating: "My son's a hero and fought to protect us. Bridget McCormack volunteered to help free a terrorist. How could you?" JCN's attack was premised on McCormack's past work for the Center for Constitutional Rights, which participated in a network that sought to vindicate the rights of improperly detained Guantanamo prisoners. The editorial page editor of The New York Times criticized the "McCarthyist" ad for "shamelessly exploit[ing]" the death of a soldier and falsely attacking McCormack. Local media also called out the ad as a "cynical manipulation" of the facts, writing that the claim "ignore[d] the U.S. rule of law." JCN also spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to oppose Justice Courtney Goodson in her unsuccessful race this year for Arkansas Supreme Court chief justice. A JCN mailer attacked Goodson for striking down the state's 2013 voter ID law, claiming she was opening the door to "Illegal Immigrants Voting," "Election Theft," and "Widespread Voter Fraud," pushing a series of debunked right-wing talking points alleging an imaginary voter fraud issue, and "grotesquely distorting" Goodson's record. The voter ID decision in question was decided unanimously, with all seven justices finding that the law violated the state constitution. *Media Matters,* [2/19/16]

JCN Has Launched A Misleading "Seven Figure" Advertising Campaign Fearmongering About "One More Liberal Justice On The Supreme Court." On February 18, JCN announced a "seven figure television, radio and digital advertising campaign on the importance of the Supreme Court in the upcoming presidential election." JCN chief counsel and policy director Carrie Severino -- also a frequent conservative pundit who writes forNational Review -- described the goal of the campaign as giving "the people a voice. Let them decide in November what kind of Court they want." On February 29, Politico reported that the group was "ramping up its efforts to oppose" Obama's nominee for the Scalia seat, describing the digital ads JCN launched, which attack Democratic senators:

http://mediamatters.org/research/2016/03/18/reminder-to-media-the-judicial-crisis-network-i/209400

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http://mediamatters.org/research/2016/02/19/why-media-outlets-shouldnt-take-the-judicial-cr/208705

Media outlets should be wary of the Judicial Crisis Network (JCN), which is launching a "seven figure" campaign urging senators to block any appointment by President Obama to replace Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court. JCN has given millions to Republican-aligned groups and has a history of misleading campaigns. The group was previously called the Judicial Confirmation Network and criticized "obstructionists" for not giving an "up or down vote" on a president's judicial nominations.

Judicial Crisis Network Launching "Seven Figure" Campaign Opposing Obama SCOTUS Nomination

Judicial Crisis Network: "Let the People Decide" In "November What Kind Of Court They Want."The Judicial Crisis Network announced on February 18 that it is "launching a seven figure television, radio and digital advertising campaign" demanding the Senate give "the people a voice. Let them decide in November what kind of Court they want." The group will run ads "in Washington, DC during network and cable Sunday shows as well as in markets covering Senators who have taken a stand, including: Kelly Ayotte (NH), Chuck Grassley (IA), Ron Johnson (WI), John McCain (AZ), Mitch McConnell (KY), Rob Portman (OH), and Pat Toomey (PA)." Judicial Crisis Network, [2/18/16]

Judicial Crisis Network Is Heavily Tied To GOP Infrastructure

JCN Spent More Than "More Than A Half-Million Dollars A Month Before Election Day In 2008" Attacking Obama.The Associated Press wrote that JCN "shelled out more than a half-million dollars a month before Election Day in 2008 for TV ads that linked Obama to shady characters and questioned who he would choose for the Supreme Court." The Associated Press, [6/9/10]

JCN Gave The Republican Attorneys General Association $1,095,000 In 2015. JCN gave the Republican Attorneys General Association, "whose mission is electing Republicans to the Office of State Attorney General," $1,095,000 in 2015, according to an IRS filing. JCN gave the association $1,000,000 in 2014. IRS.gov, [2/1/16, 12/4/14; Republican Attorneys General Association, accessed 2/19/16]

JCN Gave $500,000 To The Republican Governors Association In 2015. JCN gave the Republican Governors Association, which helps "elect Republicans to governorships throughout the nation," $500,000 in 2015, according to an IRS filing. IRS.gov, [1/30/16; Twitter.com, 1/31/16; Republican Governors Association, accessed 2/19/16]

Daily Beast: "JCN Has Emerged As A Pipeline For Secret Money To Other, Better-Known Dark Money Groups."Viveca Novak and Peter Stone wrote in The Daily Beast of JCN:

To expand its influence in state elections, JCN has emerged as a pipeline for secret money to other, better-known dark money groups like the Wisconsin Club for Growth and the American Future Fund which, in turn, have spent big bucks in state Supreme Court and AG races.

JCN heightened its focus on AG races last year when it pumped $1 million in secret money into the Republican Attorneys General Association, making it the third-biggest contributor to RAGA and helping the GOP pick up three new slots so that it now controls the majority of state AG posts.

JCN's pivotal part in the surge of spending on court elections has received scant attention. But in 2012, it dished out more than $2 million in court races in Michigan alone--half of that in a single down-ticket state circuit contest, according to the Michigan Campaign Finance Network. And over the last two years, the organization contributed a minimum of about $2 million to groups that were involved in 2014 state judicial elections and efforts to influence how judges are chosen. Recipients of JCN checks included the many-tentacled Republican State Leadership Committee, which for the first time invested in court races around the country, spending more on them than any other outside group. The Daily Beast, [3/23/15]

JCN Head Regularly Writes For The Conservative National Review. Carrie Severino serves as chief counsel and policy director for JCN. She clerked for Justice Clarence Thomas. She also writes for the National Review's legal section, where she frequently criticizes the Obama administration on legal issues. Judicial Crisis Network, accessed [2/18/16; NationalReview.com, accessed 2/18/16; Media Matters, accessed 2/18/16]

**JCN Once Called Itself The Judicial Confirmation Network And Was Devoted To An "Up Or Down Vote" For "Every Nominee"**

Judicial Crisis Network Was Previously Named The Judicial Confirmation Network And Pushed Bush Judicial Nominees.The Judicial Crisis Network was founded during the George W. Bush administration and was originally named the Judicial Confirmation Network. It was founded to push through President Bush's far-right nominees and "support the confirmation of highly qualified individuals to the Supreme Court of the United States" and "ensure that the confirmation process for all judicial nominees is fair and that every nominee sent to the full Senate receives an up or down vote." The group changed its name and mission after President Obama took office. It's current mission is to support "only highly qualified individuals who share" a vision of "limited government." From a 2008 JCN ad:

Right Wing Watch, [2/11/10; ThinkProgress.org, 11/12/13; Judicial Crisis Network, accessed 2/19/16; YouTube.com,]

JCN Once Derided "'Obstructionists' For Blocking Votes On Bush Nominees."The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported of the group:

In 2005, the group was committed to speeding up the judicial selection process and denounced "obstructionists" for blocking votes on Bush nominees.

In a news release, Gary Marx, the group's executive director at the time, said, "Our message is simple, the people want the Senate to do its work and our petition will remind Senators that they have an obligation to bring these nominations to the floor for a fair vote."

At a news conference, the group's legal counsel at the time, Wendy Long, said her organization had already started "grass-roots citizens efforts" in Arkansas and in five other "red states that have blue senators" to press for up-or-down votes on Bush judicial nominees.

By 2009, the group was organizing Arkansans to oppose Obama nominees, linking with representatives of the National Rifle Association, the Family Council, Arkansas Federalist Society and the Republican Party of Arkansas to oppose Sonia Sotomayor's nomination to the nation's high court. *Arkansas Democrat-Gazette*, [2/19/16]

Daily Beast: "JCN's Modus Operandi And Battlegrounds Have Shifted -- Particularly Since Barack Obama Won The White House."Viveca Novak and Peter Stone wrote in The Daily Beast that JCN "shifted" its operations when a Democrat took over the White House:

The Judicial Confirmation Network (JCN), set up as a 501(c)(4) "social welfare" group that doesn't disclose its donors, would prove to be a crucial player in drumming up support for Bush Supreme Court nominees John Roberts Jr. and Samuel Alito Jr. -- eventual allies for Scalia on the Court's right flank.

In the years since, JCN's modus operandi and battlegrounds have shifted -- particularly since Barack Obama won the White House, which prompted the group to sound the alarm and change its name to the Judicial Crisis Network. In the ensuing years, not only has it fought to block Obama's nominees to the high court, but it has spent millions to sway state judicial elections and attorneys general races, helping to uphold state laws backed by conservatives, nurture like-minded talent in the states, and advance pro-business, limited-government legal agendas aligned with its donors' leanings. The Daily Beast, [3/23/15]

Reporters On JCN Michigan Ad: "McCarthyist," "Flagrant Foul," And "Cynical Manipulation"

JCN Released An Ad Accusing Court Candidate Of Volunteering "To Help Free A Terrorist." JCN reportedly spent roughly $1 million on an ad attacking Michigan Supreme Court candidate Bridget McCormack, who was backed by Democrats and went on to win the race. The ad features Michigan woman Teri Johnson, whose son was killed in Afghanistan, stating: "My son's a hero and fought to protect us. Bridget McCormack volunteered to help free a terrorist. How could you?" YouTube.com,[ 10/30/12 ; Media Matters, 11/6/12; MLive.com, 10/30/12]

NY Times' Rosenthal: "McCarthyist" Ad Was Misleading. Andrew Rosenthal, the editorial page editor of The New York Times, criticized the "McCarthyist" ad for "shamelessly exploit[ing]" the death of a soldier and falsely attacking McCormack:

An ad paid for by the group with undisclosed donations shamelessly exploits the tragedy of the death of a young soldier in Afghanistan, Joseph Johnson - with the help of his mother, Teri. "My son is a hero and fought to protect us," she says in the ad. "Bridget McCormack volunteered to help free a terrorist. How could you?"

That's easy to answer. She didn't. Ms. Johnson may not know that, but the Republican activists who paid for the ad surely do.

Ms. McCormack, a law professor at the University of Michigan, was part of a legal network called the Center for Constitutional rights, which coordinated efforts by American lawyers to represent Guantanamo detainees - most of whom were found to be improperly detained and released. Their goal was not to "free terrorists," but to ensure that American prisoners were entitled to the rights and representation provided under international and American law. The Supreme Court affirmed those rights on more than one occasion.

The prisoner Ms. McCormack represented, Wahldof Abdul Mokit, was in fact released from Guantanamo in 2007 - by a military tribunal under a process created by the Bush administration - not by Ms. McCormack. He was sent back to his native Tajikistan, where he was arrested and sentenced for being a member of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, which fought alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan. NYTimes.com, [11/1/12]

JCN Behind Campaign That's "Grotesquely Distorting" Arkansas Supreme Court Justice's Record

JCN's Suggestions About Voter ID Laws Are False. JCN is repeating frequent right-wing media claims in support of voter ID laws. In reality, there is no evidence of massive voter impersonation fraud that would result in "Illegal Immigrants Voting" and "Election Theft." Furthermore, there are "mountains of evidence" that voter ID laws can be racially discriminatory and disenfranchise voters. *Media Matters*, [10/30/14]

Arkansas Times: JCN Is "Grotesquely Distorting A Candidate's Record."Arkansas Times reporter Benjamin Hardy strongly criticized the JCN mailing, writing at the Times'Arkansas Blog:

These assertions are based on the fact that in 2014, the Arkansas Supreme Court unanimously struck down a 2013 voter ID law narrowly passed by the legislature. All seven justices agreed the law was unconstitutional; evidently, the entire court was a hotbed of liberal activism.

[...]

This is foul stuff, even by the standards of outside spending in elections. Grotesquely distorting a candidate's record? Check. Demonizing immigrants? Check. Cynically injecting a dog whistle partisan issue into a judicial race? Check. Fabricating a linkage to Obama out of thin air? Check.

[...]

Arkansans might be surprised to learn that Goodson -- who is lately touting her endorsement from the National Rifle Association, an unusual occurrence in a judicial race -- is an activist liberal judge. *Arkansas Times*, [2/16/16]

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: Mailer "Didn't Mention" Decision Was Unanimous.The Arkansas Democrat-Gazettenoted that the JCN mailer left out context about the voter ID ruling, reporting:

One of the mailings criticizes Goodson for her role in striking down the state's 2013 voter-ID law. The mailer also linked her to President Barack Obama's "Liberal Agenda" in Arkansas.

What the mailer from the Judiciary Crisis Network didn't mention is that the decision to strike down the state's voter-ID law was unanimous. Goodson was one of seven justices who all agreed that the 2013 voter-ID law amounted to another qualification on voting, and since such qualifications are set in the state constitution, the law was thus unconstitutional. *Arkansas Democrat-Gazette*, [2/19/16]

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/10/videos-sleazy-attack-ads-judicial-elections-dark-money

"Free a terrorist"

An ad attacking, Bridget McCormack, now a Michigan Supreme Court justice, accused her of helping to "free a terrorist." Sponsored by the conservative Judicial Crisis Network, the ad ran 416 times at an estimated cost of $614,000 during the 2011-12 cycle, according to the Brennan Center for Justice.

secretive nonprofit that has given millions of dollars to conservative 501(c)(4) groups over the years sank more than $6.6 million into the Judicial Crisis Network in 2014, giving a significant boost to a group that has become increasingly involved in not only state judicial but also attorneys general races.

The donor, the Wellspring Committee, gave out nearly $8.3 million in grants last year, according to a new filing with the IRS, more than triple what it donated the year before. The sum was more than Wellspring has given away in any year except 2010, when it sent $8.4 million to like-minded organizations. That year, though, JCN and an offshoot group received just $400,000 from Wellspring, a sliver of what it got last year.

The bond between the two groups is strong — familial, even. Wellspring was founded and is still headed by Ann Corkery, a lawyer who for years has been involved in conservative fundraising and also helped launch JCN. Her husband, Neil, is JCN’s treasurer. Their daughter, Kathleen, is on Wellspring’s board, and the secretary-treasurer of the group, Michael Casey, is the son of one of JCN’s board members.

Wellspring received all of its 2014 revenue of $7.8 million from just three contributions — one of which was a transfer of $6.95 million, according to the annual form 990 it filed this month. Like other (c)(4) organizations, Wellspring is not required to disclose the identities of its donors. The group’s 990 says its “mission is to advance limited government and free markets.” But it functions as little more than a conduit, with no program activities of its own and virtually all of its money going out to other groups.

JCN was formed in 2005 as the Judicial Confirmation Network to help get President George W. Bush’s Supreme Court appointees approved by the Senate. After President Barack Obama was elected, though, “Confirmation” became “Crisis,” and the group began fighting to block his nominees to the high court. It also started spending large sums in some states to influence judicial and attorneys general races.

JCN also sent funds to other groups that worked to sway state judgeship elections, such as the Republican State Leadership Committee, which spent more money putting conservatives on the bench in more states than any other outside group in 2014, according to the nonpartisan organization Justice at Stake.

But attorneys general have been a growing focus of conservative donor groups. Carrie Severino, JCN’s chief counsel, said in 2012 that conservative AGs, many of whom have challenged Obamacare, the Dodd-Frank financial services overhaul and EPA regulations, are “emerging as key leaders in the battle for limited constitutional government.”

In 2014 JCN gave $1 million to the Republican Attorneys General Association,making it the third largest donor to the GOP organization that year. Between mid-2013 and mid-2014 JCN also donated $1.35 million — the largest grant it handed out in that period — to another dark money group, the American Future Fund, which has its own project to elect GOP attorneys general and is also a donor toRAGA. According to RAGA’s disclosure filings, JCN gave it another $200,000 in the first half of 2015.

Similarly, Wellspring gave $350,000 to something called the American Dream Initiative last year — a group run by Dan Backer that spent hundreds of thousands of dollars attacking the Democratic candidate in Texas’ 2014 attorney general race.

This fall, JCN has spent at least $200,000 on TV and digital ads criticizing Supreme Court Justices Anthony Kennedy and John Roberts, comparing them to former Justice David Souter — a Republican appointee who often sided with the more liberal wing of the court. While Roberts and Kennedy can hardly be called liberals (particularly Roberts), two of the court’s decisions last term, one upholding the Affordable Care Act and one legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide, triggered widespread disgust on the right. JCN’s statement announcing the ads called Kennedy and Roberts “examples of bad GOP appointments.” The group has a website describing the judicial appointment philosophies of the Republican presidential candidates.

Our efforts to reach Wellspring and JCN for comment by phone and on foot were unsuccessful. We visited the address JCN lists on its 990 — 722 12th St. NW, fourth floor — and found only Americans for Tax Reform, the group headed by Grover Norquist that asks candidates to sign a pledge saying they won’t raise taxes. An ATR receptionist was noncommittal about whether JCN had offices in the suite but said she would get a message to someone connected with the group.

Other Wellspring grants went to the Federalist Society, a conservative legal organization whose executive vice president, Leonard Leo, was instrumental in getting both Wellspring and JCN off the ground, and the Catholic Association.

Categories: 501(c) groups Outside Money

Tags: american dream initiative, American Future Fund, ann corkery, carrie severino, Dan Backer, Federalist Society, Judicial Crisis Network, leonard leo, Neil Corkery, republican attorneys general association,Republican State Leadership Committee, Viveca Novak, Wellspring Committee

3/15

http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2015/03/the-jcn-story-building-a-secretive-gop-judicial-machine

was a cold winter night in Washington, D.C., not long after President George W. Bush won a second term, and the mood at the upscale Italian restaurant was downright celebratory.

The most prominent guest was Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, but his table also boasted a mix of high-powered conservatives, including some deep-pocketed donors. Among the elite were Federalist Society executive Leonard Leo, fundraiser and lawyer Ann Corkery, and California real estate magnate Robin Arkley II. “The big prize was to sit next to Scalia,” quipped one attendee at the soiree, adding that Arkley was one such lucky winner.

As it happened, the bash coincided with the birth of a new judicial advocacy outfit that Corkery was instrumental in launching, and Arkley in funding, according to conservative sources familiar with the events. The Judicial Confirmation Network (JCN), set up as a 501(c)(4) “social welfare” group that doesn’t disclose its donors, would prove to be a crucial player in drumming up support for Bush Supreme Court nominees John Roberts Jr. and Samuel Alito Jr. — eventual allies for Scalia on the Court’s right flank.

In the years since, JCN’s modus operandi and battlegrounds have shifted — particularly since Barack Obama won the White House, which prompted the group to sound the alarm and change its name to the Judicial Crisis Network. In the ensuing years, not only has it fought to block Obama’s nominees to the high court, but it has spent millions to sway state judicial elections and attorneys general races, helping to uphold state laws backed by conservatives, nurture like-minded talent in the states, and advance pro-business, limited-government legal agendas aligned with its donors’ leanings.

To expand its influence in state elections, JCN has emerged as a pipeline for secret money to other, better-known dark money groups like the Wisconsin Club for Growth and the American Future Fund which, in turn, have spent big bucks in state Supreme Court and AG races.

JCN heightened its focus on AG races last year when it pumped $1 million in secret money into the Republican Attorneys General Association, making it the third-biggest contributor to RAGA and helping the GOP pick up three new slots so that it now controls the majority of state AG posts.

JCN’s pivotal part in the surge of spending on court elections has received scant attention. But in 2012, it dished out more than $2 million in court races in Michigan alone — half of that in a single down-ticket state circuit contest, according to the Michigan Campaign Finance Network. And over the last two years, the organization contributed a minimum of about $2 million to groups that were involved in 2014 state judicial elections and efforts to influence how judges are chosen. Recipients of JCN checks included the many-tentacled Republican State Leadership Committee, which for the first time invested in court races around the country, spending more on them than any other outside group.

More broadly, in the last election cycle TV ad spending in state Supreme Court elections jumped to at least $13.8 million, according to a preliminary tally by the nonprofit Justice at Stake Campaign. Outside groups, both conservative and liberal, accounted for an estimated $4.9 million of that, or more than 35 percent — a greater share than ever before.

The sharp rise in judicial election spending by JCN and other groups on both sides of the political aisle troubles some judicial candidates who have been targeted. “To the extent that judicial campaigns start looking like other campaigns, there’s a risk that judges will be perceived as having a political agenda,” Sam Ervin IV, a North Carolina Supreme Court justice, told The Daily Beast. Ervin, who was elected in 2014 and is the grandson of the celebrated senator who led Congress’s investigation of the Watergate scandal, lost an earlier race in 2012 after a spending blitz by several outside groups totaling almost $2.6 million, much of it dark money including $75,000 from JCN. “The public is better served, in an environment where judges are elected, if they know the source of the funding for those campaigns,” Ervin, a Democrat, added.

To fill its own coffers, JCN has increasingly relied on funding — to the tune of nearly $4 million, according to IRS documents — from another non-disclosing group, the Wellspring Committee, that’s run by Corkery and was founded seven years ago with the help of conservative donors in the network led by billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch. Corkery’s entree to that rarefied network came via JCN supporter Arkley, an early attendee of their famed retreats. And Ann Corkery and her husband, Neil — who is JCN’s treasurer — are central figures in a cluster of other nonprofits, IRS filings show.

A fast rise

JCN’s early niche entailed working in tandem with a well-organized conservative coalition — in whichLeo, the Federalist Society’s executive vice president, was a key player — to ensure that Roberts and Alito won Senate confirmation. To that end, JCN spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in 2005 and January 2006 on radio and online ads, as well as on grassroots efforts, to shape public opinion. One example: The group ran a radio ad blitz in late 2005 in Arkansas, where the two Democratic senators’ votes were considered in play, using Christmas themes and an appeal from a black minister.

Well-connected consultants helped JCN get things up and running. One was Gary Marx, a rising social conservative star who Corkery recruited to became the group’s executive director, according to a well-placed source.

Another was New York lawyer Wendy Long, a former clerk for Clarence Thomas. She left the law firm Kirkland & Ellis and signed on as counsel to JCN, becoming the organization’s face on cable news and buttressing its legal bona fides.

But mostly, JCN’s early rise was attributable to Corkery’s ability to rope in a few big donors. “Ann is very good at cultivating relationships and capitalizing on them,” a conservative source observed.

Robin Arkley, the president and CEO of Security National Corp. who had tapped Corkery to be his political liaison and senior advisor, became a key underwriter of JCN’s operations, to the tune of the high six or low seven figures, sources say. The pair went to some of the early fundraising and policy retreats held by the Kochs— events that now draw a glittering cast of wealthy allies and conservative stars to raise millions for the brothers’ network of politically active groups. Arkley was also a financial backer of the Federalist Society. “Arkley helped put Ann in play” as a liaison to funding for advocacy groups on the right, said one conservative.

Corkery had a breakthrough year in 2008. Koch operatives gave her the reins to their fledgling Wellspring Committee, a dark money conduit that began pumping funds to other dark money Koch-backed groups like Americans for Prosperity. At the same time, Corkery served as a finance vice chair for Mitt Romney’s 2008 presidential campaign.

Though Corkery’s most direct Koch ties frayed after the ’08 elections and Arkley’s wallet took a hit in the financial crisis, according to sources and reports, Corkery mined other big donors she’d been courting for Wellspring, such asJohn Templeton Jr., a Pennsylvania philanthropist, and New York hedge fund mogul Paul Singer, conservative sources said.

Conservative and business groups had been pouring money into state court elections through the early 2000s in order to produce afriendlier legal climate — one that curbed tort liability for corporations, for example. Smart marketing and intellectual heft provided by Leo’s Federalist Society helped them notch significant gains. From 2000 to 2009, business and conservative groups spent more than twice as much on state court elections as plaintiffs’ lawyers, unions, and liberal groups — $26.3 million to $11.9 million, according to Justice at Stake.

Wellspring, followed quickly by JCN, became big players in directly and indirectly funding state Supreme Court races. In 2008, for example, Wellspring funneled $200,000 to a group that produced the negative attack ads that helped a conservative eke out a victory over a sitting Supreme Court justice in Wisconsin, tipping control of the bench to the right. In 2009, Wellspring grants went to groups trying to change judicial selection methods in Missouri and Tennessee.

In 2010, Wellspring began sending money directly to JCN, giving it and a related organization, the Judicial Education Project, $400,000; an additional $306,000 came in 2011, then $1.5 million in 2012 and $1.4 million the next year. Big grants also went to other organizations playing in judicial politics — including $400,000 in 2011 for Wisconsin Club for Growth, a major actor in that state’s shift to a conservative Supreme Court majority.

Wisconsin Club for Growth was also aided by JCN to the tune of more than half-a-million dollars from mid-2012 to mid-2013 as JCN began to function as a dark money conduit like Wellspring. The Wisconsin group spent close to $400,000 to help win a second 10-year term for Justice Patience Roggensack.

Conservative control of the Wisconsin court, enabled in no small part by the big pots of dark money dumped into the state, has proved vital to the rejection of challenges to two signature conservative policies championed by GOP Gov. Scott Walker: his initiatives to curb public sector unions and to require voter IDs. (The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday turned away a challenge to the voter ID law, so it will stand.)

And an investigation into whether Walker illegally coordinated efforts with several groups — including Wisconsin Club for Growth — in the run-up to his 2012 recall vote now depends on a ruling by the state’s justices. The special prosecutor leading the probe has asked at least one — perhaps all four — of the court’s conservatives to recuse themselves because of support they have gotten from the groups. (Given recent history and the state’s weak judicial conduct rules, court observers say that seems unlikely.)

The lower court money bomb

While turning, and keeping, the Wisconsin court conservative was a high priority for JCN and others on the right, the group didn’t spend much cash there directly. But the opposite was true in neighboring Michigan, where JCN laid out more than $2 million on two 2012 court races. About half the money went to an effort to keep law professor Bridget McCormack from sitting on the state Supreme Court, including a accusing McCormack of volunteering to represent terrorists, featuring the mother of a soldier killed in Afghanistan. (McCormack did volunteer one of her law school clinics to represent a Guantanamo detainee, though he was released before the students communicated with him.)

The other $1 million, though, was spent attempting to kick anOakland County Circuit Court judge off the bench— and JCN’s spending in that race was matched by Americans for Job Security, which had earlier benefited from Wellspring largesse.

Such staggering spending on a lower court contest may be unprecedented, and it was far from clear why the groups were interested. One possible explanation: a funder with an ax to grind.

Who that was may never be known. But “pretty much everyone believed” it to be Manoj Bhargava or a person or entity linked to him, said a Michigan lawyer who had a ringside seat at the time; other attorneys and journalists in the state told The Daily Beast the same thing.

The Indian-born Bhargava, who invented the now-ubiquitous 5-Hour Energy shot,might be seen by some as a walking contradiction. On the one had, he lived as a monk in India for years and has taken a pledge to give more than half his wealth to charity. But he’s also a fierce competitor who, according to a profile in Forbes, displays in his office cardboard tombstones bearing the names of rivals his company has beaten in court.

A 2012 case before Circuit Judge Phyllis McMillen may shed light on the origins of the campaign against her. Bhargava, through 5-Hour’s parent company Innovation Ventures, was suing a key 5-Hour contractor for allegedly stealing trade secrets. At first McMillen issued a temporary restraining order against the contractor. As facts emerged, though, she lifted the TRO. To allow Innovation Ventures to “crush competitors” unfairly, she said in court February 10, “is certainly not something that’s supported by public policy.”

McMillen was running for her first full term in 2012. That spring, soon after she lifted the TRO, she and her colleagues who were also on the ballot learned they had opposition: a couple of lawyers from Republican Attorney General Bill Schuette’s office. Three non-Michiganders had provided the seed money for their candidacies: Andrew McKenna of Virginia, a fundraising consultant with ties to Bhargava, according to a well-placed source; John Templeton, one of Ann Corkery’s funding sources; and John Bryan of Oregon, a retired oil and chemicals executive who spoke at one of the Koch confabs.

TV ads sponsored by JCN and its dark money ally showed up closer to the election, with some attacking McMillen (one made her appear to have been lenient with a habitual offender) and others praising the challengers. “They were on every half-hour,” McMillen told The Daily Beast. “It was relentless.” There was radio, too, and a torrent of direct mail.

McMillen says she doesn’t know who went after her. “I have no idea,” she said. “There are people who don’t like the way I’ve decided; we handle big litigation.”

Bhargava did not respond to numerous requests for comment.

In any case, JCN’s Wolverine State crusades didn’t work out too well. McCormack is now a Supreme Court justice and McMillen won her contest, too. In early 2013, she ruled against Bhargava.

But in 2014 he clearly emerged as a national mega donor to boost GOP governors at a time when his energy drink company was facing probes by as many as 33 state AGs into allegations of deceptive advertising. In the last election cycle Bhargava’s ETC Capital investment firm gave nearly $2.8 million to the Republican Governors Association, putting him at the top of RGA’s donor heap right after David Koch and his company and casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson.

Attorneys general become focus

JCN’s surging dark money dollars found a new outlet last year when the network ponied up $1 million to the Republican Attorneys General Association for its2014 drive to help the GOP capture AG seats in Nevada, Colorado, and elsewhere. That made JCN RAGA’s third-largest donor in a year when RAGA was instrumental in helping Republicans capture enough AG posts that they now hold the majority. RAGA and similar 527 organizations must disclose their donors, but the sources of JCN’s contributions remain in the dark.

On top of that, JCN sent $750,000 to the Iowa-based American Future Fund, which started its own AG project between July 1, 2012, and June 30, 2013, tax filings show — JCN’s largest grant of that fiscal year. In turn, AFF chipped in $680,000 to RAGA last year.

State attorneys general had been moving higher on JCN’s political radar. Policy director and chief counsel Carrie Severino, who succeeded Wendy Long as JCN’s counsel in 2010 and, like her, once clerked for Justice Thomas, wrote in National Review right before the 2012 elections that conservative AGs are “emerging as key leaders in the battle for limited constitutional government.” Many of them, she noted, had joined the challenge to Obamacare, and a number were also fighting the Dodd-Frank financial services overhaul and EPA regulations.

Dark money ties that bind

The JCN spending through RAGA to boost the GOP’s share of AG slots is just one example of the synergies that the network has forged as a dark money vehicle. Other ties binding JCN to various groups it has funded — and received money from — are evident in the comings and goings of personnel, consultants, and board members. For instance, when Gary Marx stepped down as JCN’s executive director in mid-2011, he took a similar post with Ralph Reed’s Faith and Freedom Coalition (a group that Wellspring helped in 2010 with a $250,000 check). Likewise, last year Chris Jankowski became a consultant to JCN after spending several years running the Republican State Leadership Committee until he departed suddenly in early 2014, according to multiple sources. Both JCN and Wellspring had funneled hundreds of thousands to the RSLC, which has helped the GOP chart major gains in legislatures and other state offices. (RAGA had been part of that group but was spun off early last year.)

But JCN’s tightest ties with any group or individual revolve around Ann and Neil Corkery, which meant that Wellspring’s links to JCN were personal as well as political. Serendipitously Ann Corkery’s husband Neil was JCN’s treasurer, a paid part-time gig. The group’s small board also includes Dan Casey, a veteran GOP operative and “the political and PR brains” of that shop, says one source. Wellspring’s board was made up of Ann Corkery and two people the Corkerys knew from their work with Catholic groups.

But in 2011, the ties between these two dark money machines grew even closer when Ann Corkery sacked her two fellow board members at Wellspring and replaced them with her daughter and the son of JCN board member Casey, according to IRS filings and former board members. One of those ousted, treasurer Steven Wagner, said, “I never saw any financial records. I was treasurer in name only.”

In fact, Wellspring and JCN are the tip of a nonprofit iceberg when it comes to the Corkery family. In 2012, tax records show that Neil Corkery was not only treasurer of JCN, president of its allied Judicial Education Project, and executive director of a charity called the Sudan Relief Fund, all of which paid him salaries; but he also drew paychecks from at least four other organizations: the anti-gay union National Organization for Marriage, ActRight Action, the Catholic Association Foundation, and Catholic Voices. His total earnings were almost $450,000, and his weekly workload was 105 hours in the first half of the year, the groups’ IRS filings show, before dropping back to a mere 80.

Some who are familiar with the groups are dubious about that workaholic schedule — especially at the Sudan charity, where Corkery was paid $235,000for a supposed 40-hour workweek. Neither Ann nor Neil Corkery responded to phone messages or written requests for comment on this story.

Moving ahead

Critics notwithstanding, the board changes at Wellspring a few years ago seemed to spell good news for JCN, coinciding with the two recent years in which JCN received close to $3 million from Wellspring and allowing the network to ramp up its efforts in the states.

And JCN has been otherwise busy, too — churning out, for example, amicus briefs for major legal challenges to Obama administration policies, including the high-profile case that now threatens to undermine key sections of Obamacare which was argued before the Supreme Court in early March.

The group doesn’t always toe the mainstream GOP line: It has at times weighed in against Republicans in what look like internal party spats fueled by donor preferences.

Ultimately JCN looks poised to continue its role as a dark money juggernaut in 2016 in state and federal elections — both directly and via allied dark money and 527 conduits. If JCN’s recent history proves a guide, that means voters going to the polls in 2016 will remain largely uninformed about who’s writing the network’s big checks for ad and grassroots drives to help elect the highest judicial and legal officers in the states, and senators who may well have to approve nominees to fill future Supreme Court vacancies.

Robert Maguire of the Center for Responsive Politics contributed to this piece

Peter Stone, who covered lobbying and the influence of money in politics at National Journal for 18 years, has been writing for Mother Jones, The Huffington Post, The Daily Beast and others.

http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2013/11/wellsprings-flow.html

And still other Wellspring recipients train their sights on the judicial branch. The Judicial Crisis Network (JCN) -- originally called Judicial Confirmation Network -- was started in 2004 to help build support for former President George W. Bush's federal court nominees. Now it works against Obama's judicial picks -- and Obama himself. According to Federal Election Commission records, JCN spent $571,000 in 2008 opposing Obama's election. JCN also runs ads benefiting conservative state court candidates. According to the Michigan Campaign Finance Network, the group spent more than $1 million airing ads against a Democratic state supreme court candidate in Michigan last year; its target, Bridget Mary McCormack, won despite that. It also spent $1 million on a lower court race – believed to be the first time dark money has been used in a trial court contest.

As it happens, Neil Corkery is treasurer of JCN. Wellspring, run by his wife, gave the group and its affiliate, the Judicial Education Project, a total of more than $700,000 over a two-year period encompassing 2010 and 2011.

In 2010 Wellspring gave $125,000 each to the Michigan-based American Justice Partnership (AJP) and the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, which shares AJP's goal of putting more conservatives on the bench.

That year, AJP gave more than $1 million to the Michigan Republican Party. And the Michigan Chamber gave $5.4 million to the Republican Governors Association -- about the same amount that the RGA subsequently routed to the Michigan GOP. The state GOP spent about $4.8 million on in Michigan's supreme court race that year, according to the independent Michigan Campaign Finance Network, which did a detailed review of public records.

Got that? Not if the groups involved can help it. The upshot, though, is that two of Wellspring's recipients invested in the contest -- which ultimately restored a conservative majority to the highest court in the state.

In addition, over the course of three years, Wellspring has given nearly $1 million to Missourians for Better Courts. That group has fought to change Missouri's judicial selection process, which it argues is overly influenced by liberal trial lawyers.

Putting, or keeping, conservatives on the nation’s courts was the focus of several other Wellspring grantees, including the Alabama Civil Justice Reform Committee, Alabama Voters Against Lawsuit Abuse, Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce and the Illinois Manufacturers Association.

Cash in, cash out

On the other side of the ledger sheet, though, the sources of Wellspring's millions are mostly a cipher. Like all 501(c)(4) organizations, it doesn't have to reveal them. CRP and NPR have been able to learn of only three donors, all of which are also (c)(4)s: The American Democracy Alliance gave Wellspring $150,000 in 2008, the year the Corkery group launched. A second, Founding Principles PAC gave it $1,026, also in 2008. And Rosebush Corp. gave Wellspring $100,000 in 2011.

That's a little more than $251,000 -- roughly 1 percent of the $24 million Wellspring has reported as income from 2008 through 2011. None of the three donor groups returned calls from NPR and CRP seeking comment.

The American Democracy Alliance, like Wellspring, has taken an interest in judicial elections: In 2010, it gave $100,000 to ShowMe Better Courts, a Missouri group; and $500,000 to the Adam Smith Foundation -- which, in turn sent money to Missourians for Better Courts, the same group that received nearly $1 million from Wellspring.

Rosebush Corp., headed by a Pennsylvanian named Brian Sullivan, also gave $750,000 in 2011 to Americans for Limited Government, a group headed by wealthy libertarian Howard Rich that has spent millions running ads against Democrats and giving to other conservative organizations. The next year, Rosebush gave to Club for Growth Action, which has helped fuel the rise of some tea party Republicans, and to the pro-Mitt Romney super PAC, Restore Our Future.

Founding Principles PAC is a tiny political action committee, inactive since early 2010, funded largely with donations from Ann Corkery's former boss at Security National Servicing Corp., Robin Arkley, and his wife.

https://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Judicial_Crisis_Network

The Judicial Confirmation Network (JCN) is a "Republican-organized web site [that] has direct connection to the White House and is promoting the meme that the Senate has 'an obligation to bring these nominations to the floor for a fair vote.' The web site is adminstered by Campaign Solutions (whois record), the PR firm for Bush-Cheney '04, the Republican National Committee and the National Republican Congressional Committee." [1]

JCN describes itself as "an organization of citizens joined together to support the confirmation of highly qualified individuals to the Supreme Court of the United States. In addition, JCN works to ensure that the confirmation process for all judicial nominees is fair and that every nominee sent to the full Senate receives an up or down vote." [2]

Personnel

Gary Marx, Executive Director
Wendy E. Long, Counsel

To schedule an interview with Gary Marx or Wendy E. Long of the Judicial Confirmation Network, please call Creative Response Concepts at 703 683-5004. [3]

Donate Online & the Swift Boat Connection

The link for online donations connects to a donation page bearing the same logos and information as other JCN web pages. However, the web address is that for DonationReport.com (plus an extension code for JCN).

The connection for the DonationReport.com website arrives at a Login page—requiring both a User ID and Password—which belongs to eDonation.com, a member of The Donatelli Group, a fundraising company that has raised campaign funds for the RNC, Republican National Convention, Bush-Cheney '04 Inc., John McCain, the NRA [4], and an exhaustive list of Republican members of the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives, as well as other political organizations. [5]

The Donatelli Group, using its "primary segment" Campaign Solutions [6], is associated with Creative Response Concepts, the public relations firm that advised Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, the "organization that accused Kerry of inflating his Vietnam War record" during the 2004 presidential campaign. [7]

The Donatelli Group, which produced the RNC website [8], on July 30, 2004, registered the SWIFTBOATVETSFORTRUTH.ORG website with Connell Donatelli Inc. (a.k.a. The Donatelli Group) as registrant. Connell Donatelli Inc. also registered the SWIFTBOATVETSFORTRUTH.COM website on July 30, 2004, with CD, Inc. as both the website's administrator and tech organization.

Domain Names

The JUDICIALNETWORK.COM domain name and the JUDICIALCONFIRMATIONNETWORK.COM domain name, administered by Becki Donatelli of Campaign Solutions, were both created December 13, 2004, and due to expire December 13, 2006 (unless renewed). The following key meta words link to the web sites: filibuster, filibuster reform, bush, rehnquist, supreme court, court, justice, judge, high court, nominee, william rehnquist, judiciary, judiciary committee, conservative, gop, republican, conservative.

The CONFIRMJUDGEROBERTS.COM domain name was registered June 8, 2005, by Campaign Solutions, which is also listed as administrator and for tech operations.

The web link http://www.confirmjudgeroberts.com/index.html now redirects to JCN's website. Previously, the media contact for the website was Creative Response Concepts.

Contact Information

The Judicial Confirmation Network

PO Box 791

Alexandria, Virginia 22313-0791

Email: info AT judicialnetwork.com

Website: http://www.judicialnetwork.com/

Website: http://www.judicialconfirmationnetwork.com

Related SourceWatch Resources

External links

Todd Johnson "Swift Boat PR Team Reassembles to Market Bush Supreme Court Candidate," ePluribus Media, July 5, 2005.

Retrieved from "http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Judicial_Confirmation_Network"

Categories: Elections (U.S.) | Judiciary

Judicial Confirmation Network

The Judicial Confirmation Network (JCN) was "a post-office box and a Web site registered by Donatelli late [in 2004], with Campaign Solutions as the point of contact. The JCN claims to be 'an organization of citizens' that works 'to ensure that the confirmation process for all judicial nominees is fair'," Todd Johnston wrote in the July 5, 2005, Daily Kos.

JCN "distributes information through other conservative groups, including :{Focus on the Family:(style="background-color:#fff200"):}:, :{Americans for Tax Reform:(style="background-color:#fff200"):}: NORQUIST, Family Research Council and the Americans for Limited Government [11]," the Associated Press's Deb Reichmann reported June 9, 2005.

The Network was coordinated by Gary Marx, "a political consultant for George W. Bush's campaign at Century Strategies in 1999, when its founder and president Ralph E. Reed was allegedly helping his long-time friend Jack Abramoff swindle over $1.2 million from the Choctaw Indians" and "coalitions organizer for the Bush-Cheney campaign in 2004" [12], and Wendy E. Long, a "former clerk for Supreme Court Justice :{Clarence Thomas:(style="background-color:#fff200"):}:" [13].

The Network hired :{Creative Response Concepts:(style="background-color:#fff200"):}: (CRC), the :{public relations:(style="background-color:#fff200"):}: firm "that advised Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, an organization that accused Kerry of inflating his Vietnam War record during last year's presidential campaign," Reichmann wrote.

JCN Domain Names

RWW:

Judicial Confirmation Network

PO Box 791

Alexandria, VA 22313-0791

Website: http://www.judicialnetwork.com

Executive Director: Gary Marx (Bush-Cheney '04, The Family Foundation of Virginia)

Counsel: Wendy Long (former law clerk for Justice Clarence Thomas)

Founded: 2004

Read the latest news on the Judicial Confirmation Network on the group's Right Wing Watch index page

Purpose

The Judicial Confirmation Network (JCN) was created to ensure that "highly qualified individuals" are confirmed to United States' highest courts. It calls for a "fair, impartial confirmation process" and strongly advocates the up-or-down vote. JCN believes in judges who "strictly interpret the Constitution" and that do not "impose his or her personal or political agenda on the people." It firmly supported Judge John Roberts for confirmation to the United States Supreme Court.

Activities

JCN was very active in the battle over the "nuclear option" which would have eliminated the use of the filibuster to block the confirmation of judicial nominees. In fact, JCN came into existence mainly to help fight that battle.
JCN quickly launched a national advertising campaign in support of the "nuclear option," targeting mainly Democratic senators from "red states" as well as moderate Republicans.
JCN was also very active during the confirmation process for John Roberts, defending his record, praising him in the press and on television, and attacking Democrats.
JCN partnered with "dozens of other grassroots and civic organizations including Focus on the Family, Americans for Tax Reform, the Committee for Justice, Americans for Limited Government and the American Center for Law and Justice" to distribute its e-mails and alerts.

History

Gary Marx was invited by Jay Sekulow, a close friend and president of the ultra-conservative American Center for Law and Justice, in 2004 to create the JCN. The organization also has very close ties to Progress for America.

Funding

In preparation for Supreme Court nomination battles, the JCN was expected to be the main repository of money raised from business groups and other Republican allies. It promised to spend about $18 million for radio and TV ads, phone banks, and other grassroots tools.

About Gary Marx

Before his position at JCN, Marx served on the 2004 Bush-Cheney campaign as the national conservative coalition director who helped organize church-sponsored voter drives in Ohio. Marx was also involved in Bush's campaign while working at the firm Century Strategies, where his task was outreach to pro-family conservative voters during the primary and general election races.

Century Strategies was founded and is led by former Christian Coalition director Ralph Reed, who advises Fortune 500 companies while heavily endorsing political candidates. Reed has worked on seven presidential campaigns and has advised on 88 campaigns for U.S. Senate, Governor and Congress in 24 states. He was the Chairman of the Georgia Republican Party in 2002, and ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of Georgia in 2006.

Quotes

"The Republican base, which worked hard to elect President Bush twice, does not think the Supreme Court should be stuck in the mentality of the 1960s, which has proven so destructive to the rule of law and respect for our American institutions. Liberal groups now arguing for 'balance' on the Court and the appointment of a 'moderate' Justice just want to keep the Supreme Court on a leftward march, away from the Constitution. When the people speak through their elected representatives on political and policy matters, as they are entitled to do in our representative democracy, the liberal Left runs to the courts to implement opposite policies through judicial tyranny."

—Wendy Long, "JCN: Americans Deserve Better From U.S. Supreme Court," July 7, 2005

"Seeking a 'consensus' candidate is not the right thing to do. It is not what the Constitution contemplates, in our system built on the consent of the governed... By definition, those will never be 'consensus' nominees. Justices Ginsburg and Breyer were not 'consensus' nominees, nor should any Republican nominees be—particularly when Republicans control the Senate, for heaven's sake."

—Wendy Long, June 22, 2005

Updated: April 2006

Judicial Confirmtn Netwk J C N

JCN Behind Campaign That's "Grotesquely Distorting" Arkansas Supreme Court Justice's Record

Judicial Crisis Network

Judicial Confirmation Network

Ron Johnson Is Taking His SCOTUS Talking Points Straight From Right-Wing Groups

Obama Named Judge Merrick Garland As His Nominee To The Supreme Court

Judicial Crisis Network Has A Long History Of Injecting Misinformation Into Judicial Nomination Fights

Judicial Crisis Network Launching "Seven Figure" Campaign Opposing Obama SCOTUS Nomination

Judicial Crisis Network Is Heavily Tied To GOP Infrastructure

JCN Once Called Itself The Judicial Confirmation Network And Was Devoted To An "Up Or Down Vote" For "Every Nominee"

Reporters On JCN Michigan Ad: "McCarthyist," "Flagrant Foul," And "Cynical Manipulation"

JCN Behind Campaign That's "Grotesquely Distorting" Arkansas Supreme Court Justice's Record

Personnel

Donate Online & the Swift Boat Connection

Domain Names

Contact Information

Related SourceWatch Resources

External links

Judicial Confirmation Network

JCN Domain Names

Judicial Confirmation Network

Purpose

Activities

History

Funding

About Gary Marx

Quotes

Attachments

**JCN Once Called Itself The Judicial Confirmation Network And Was Devoted To An "Up Or Down Vote" For "Every Nominee"**