am first action bak

am1staction320

SEE MAIN W/ 1ST

see am first works hayek

nb "action" is often a later incarnation spinoff? c3 c4 shuffle?

how close is parscale?

bak 320

primary on ukraine

pretty sure firtash is foreign donor. "indiv 1" see rudy ukraine crowdstrike

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https://www.mediamatters.org/facebook/facebook-allowed-pro-trump-pac-run-hundreds-ads-false-information-about-joe-biden

pro-Trump PAC America First Action ran at least 397 ads on Facebook and Instagram since July 24 featuring a video that falsely suggests Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden supported efforts to defund the police. While Facebook finally removed many of the ads on August 4, a number of them had already run for over 10 days, earning more than 5.7 million impressions -- and the false information will still be allowed in other posts on the platform.

The false claim that Biden supports defunding the police has been repeatedly promoted by President Donald Trump and right-wing media, seemingly meant to inspire fear about supposedly radical policies among centrist voters.

PolitiFact, which is one of Facebook’s trusted fact-checking partners, fact-checked the video in America First Action PAC’s ad on July 29, five days before Facebook reportedly removed the ads:

The 15-second ad, from conservative super PAC America First Action, selectively edits a clip from Biden’s interview with liberal activist Ady Barkan. While the text on the screen reads, “Defund the police?,” Biden is seen on a TV saying, “Yes. Absolutely, yes.”

Using Facebook Ad data from the Dewey Square Adwatch tool set, Media Matters found 397 ads that America First Action PAC ran with versions of the misleading video since July 24. The PAC spent at least $87,900 on these ads, most of which specifically targeted Wisconsin, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania -- states which are part of Trump’s reported priority list. At the time of publication, at least 17 of the ads are still active on Facebook [pix]

[pix: six of 397 Facebook ads from America First Action PAC with false information about Joe Biden]

Facebook has repeatedly allowed political ads with misinformation to run on its platform. In fact, Media Matters has previously reported on hundreds of Facebook ads with misinformation and hate speech from the Trump campaign, including 529 ads with false claims of voter fraud and 88 ads with an infamous Nazi symbol; and hundreds of misleading ads from pro-Trump PACs, including Judicial Watch and The Committee to Defend the President.

Facebook has reportedly considered banning political ads leading up to the 2020 U.S. election, but that move wouldn’t prevent organic posts containing political misinformation from spreading on the platform.

Case in point: Even though Facebook removed America First Action PAC’s ads after they were fact-checked and labeled as false information, a Facebook spokesperson reportedly told Fox News that “the videos can, instead, run as original content on the group's page.”

820

top strategist for President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign doesn’t think the president has been “fascist” enough.

Trump’s approval has plummeted since federal agents used tear gas to clear protesters from a park so he could pose for photos holding a Bible, but campaign’s new senior adviser for strategy Steve Cortes wishes the president had cracked down harder, reported The Daily Beast.

“If Trump were the fascist that they pretend that he is, wouldn’t he have cracked down much, much harder on the unrest in the American streets?” Cortes said on the June 25 episode of hisself-titled radio program. “To be quite honest, you know, when there were people being bloodied, cops being attacked, businesses being smashed, I could have used a tad bit more of a fascist Trump.”

Cortes, a frequent cable news guest and former spokesman for the pro-Trump America First Action SuperPAC, has been fanning racist and anti-Semitic conspiracies on his radio program to encourage Trump to use authoritarian force.

“I think this is incredibly important that we talk about George Sorosand others,” Cortes said on the June 9 episode of his show. “There are some very powerful, very well-financed actors, both individuals and groups, on the left, who have decided that they are going to use Black Lives Matter as their vehicle, as their vehicle to achieve — and I really don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say this—to achieve a nullification, really, of America, of our founding principles.”

===

https://www.alternet.org/2020/05/stock-dumping-gop-senators-husband-gave-1-million-to-pro-trump-super-pac-after-insider-trading-scandal-broke/

the husband of stock-dumping Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) donated $1 million to the leading pro-Trump super PAC after news broke of her alleged insider trading.

Jeff Sprecher, chairman of the New York Stock Exchange, donated April 29 to America First Action, according to a report filed Wednesday with the Federal Election Commission, after news broke that he and his wife sold off stock holdings ahead of the coronavirus pandemic, reported Politico.

Loeffler, the richest person in the U.S. Senate, sold off millions of dollars in shares ahead of a massive stock market plunge and after she and other senators were briefed by federal officials about the pandemic threat to American lives and the economy.

The senator’s office said last week she turned over documents regarding the transactions to the Justice Department, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Senate Ethics Committee, and Loeffler has insisted that she doesn’t control her own trading.

loeffler, who was appointed to finish retiring Sen. Johnny Isakson’s term, is facing a tough GOP primary challenge from Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA).

She has loaned $10 million of her own money to her campaign and pledged more.

Sprecher was not the America First Action’s largest donor last month, because businessman Timothy Mellon donated $10 million to the super PAC.

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aha: kind of scary that a superpac (which is spozed to be indep?) is throwing around its wt as if it's a legit org, not a effing slush fund of dark $ whose main purpose is to give cover to funder and cand on neg attack ads (often right before election when cannot be countered/debunked?)

one wonders if this is local tv stations stading up for democracy and free speech, or their refusal to play ref, or more darkly, they just want the massive ad revenue flowing from dark money superpacs

OMG

https://www.alternet.org/2020/03/read-the-letter-trumps-campaign-sent-to-tv-stations-threatening-the-fcc-could-pull-their-licenses-over-coronavirus-ad/

no lnx

Read the letter Trump’s campaign sent to TV stations threatening the FCC could pull their licenses over coronavirus

Written by David Badash / The New Civil Rights Movement March 26, 2020

Lawyers for President Donald Trump’s official Super PAC, America First Action, tried to get TV stations in key battleground states to stop airing an anti-Trump ad that focuses on his horrific mismanagement of the coronavirus crisis. The TV stations refused to pull the ad, placed by the pro-Biden Super PAC Priorities USA (PUSA), which rightly noted that the pro-Trump Super PAC did not even have standing to make the demand.

So President Trump’s official campaign stepped in to do what his Super PAC could not.

Attorneys for the Donald J. Trump for President campaign sent a Cease and Desist letter to those TV stations demanding they stop airing the anti-Trump ad.

Not only did they make that demand, but they threatened that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which the President controls in that he appoints its commissioners, could pull their broadcast licenses if they did not comply.

The letter reads in part: “your station has an obligation to cease and desist from airing [the ad] immediately to comply with FCC licensing requirements, to serve the public interest, and to avoid costly and time-consuming litigation.”

It also says “we formally demand that your station refuse to continue airing it to meet your responsibilities not to broadcast false information,” which is ironic given the number of falsehoods and lies Trump tells on a daily basis which are often broadcast by news networks.

It adds, “your station has a responsibility to ‘protect the public from false, misleading or deceptive advertising,’” and threatens that “your failure to remove this deceptive ad … could put your station’s license in jeopardy.”

This is the ad the Trump campaign claims is “patently false, misleading, and deceptive,” says he did not call the coronavirus a “hoax,” and essentially claims the ad says he did.

Trump refused to take the threat of the coronavirus seriously, now he won’t take responsibility as his administration has been totally unprepared for this crisis. pic.twitter.com/Jdh1GY9HHS

— Priorities USA (@prioritiesUSA) March 23, 2020

The letter can be read on the Trump campaign’s website.

---

https://www.alternet.org/2019/10/a-shady-pro-trump-super-pac-at-the-heart-of-the-ukraine-scandal-has-been-raising-alarms/

no lnx

A shady pro-Trump super PAC at the heart of the Ukraine scandal has been raising alarms

Written by Mike Spies, Derek Willis / ProPublica October 18, 2019

ProPublica

Last year, a Department of Defense contractor quietly donated half a million dollars to a group supporting President Donald Trump’s reelection.

Once a watchdog organization noticed it, the contribution raised an alarm. Federal contractors are not allowed to donate to political entities. And groups are required by law to examine all donations for potential legal issues. If they discover that a contractor has made a contribution, the money has to be returned.

The other unusual aspect of the donation was the man behind it. Randy Perkins, the founder of DOD contractor AshBritt Environmental, had no history of six-figure contributions to federal political groups, although he has been a regular donor to Republicans for the past 15 years. He ran unsuccessfully for Congress as a Democrat in 2016.

The watchdog group pointed out that the money came in a day after AshBritt won a supplemental contract award worth $460,000 from the DOD for wildfire cleanup, bringing its contract total to about $1.7 million.

Asked about the donation, Perkins said he had meant to make a personal donation to express his support for specific Trump policies: “I actually think this administration cares deeply about children and mental health issues.” He said the contract extension had nothing to do with the contribution.

America First Action, the Trump super PAC that accepted the donation, adjusted its report on the source of the funds only after the watchdog group, the Campaign Legal Center, filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission. Since America First’s creation in 2017, it has refunded just a fraction of 1% of all the funds it has raised.

If you’ve been hearing about America First recently, it’s likely because two associates of presidential lawyer Rudy Giuliani were arrested on allegations that they illegally funneled money to the group.

But that case is not the only problem that has ensnared the PAC as its role in backing Republican candidates has grown.

In another instance, the American subsidiary of a Canadian company made three donations totaling $1.75 million to America First in 2018. In another complaint, the Campaign Legal Center questioned the source of the donation and alleged that Wheatland Tube LLC may have violated laws against foreign nationals contributing to federal campaigns. The company declined to comment on the matter.

Last year, Common Cause, the political reform group, asked the FEC to determine whether the Trump campaign had illegally coordinated with America First and America First Policies, a related group that can raise money without disclosing its donors. The complaint alleged that the president and his campaign were improperly soliciting contributions for the two entities.

The FEC has not acted on any of these complaints to date, and it currently lacks a quorum to vote on enforcement actions proposed by its staff.

“The number of complaints is pretty remarkable,” said Ann Ravel, a Democrat who served as chair of the FEC in 2015.

America First communications director Kelly Sadler told ProPublica that the group takes its obligations seriously and goes to great lengths to comply with the law.

The PAC has denied any wrongdoing in the criminal case against the Giuliani associates. Sadler said the contribution at the heart of the indictment has been placed in a segregated account and will remain there “until these matters are resolved and a court determines the proper disposition of the funds.”

As a super PAC, America First can take unlimited donations from corporations and individuals. In return, it is not supposed to coordinate with campaigns, which are restricted in the amount of donations they may accept.

America First has raised more money to support Trump’s reelection than any super PAC. It is currently chaired by Linda McMahon, and it has raised nearly $50 million over the last two years, including about $9 million in this election cycle to reelect Trump.

Its affiliated nonprofit group, America First Policies, was co-founded by Brad Parscale, now the president’s campaign manager.

McMahon, a former professional wrestling executive, until March was a member of the president’s cabinet, overseeing the Small Business Administration. She also donated $1 million to the PAC, whose public filings show 19 donations of at least $1 million.

The PAC’s top donors include casino magnate Sheldon Adelson and Geoffrey Palmer, a billionaire California developer. Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein, who run a shipping supplies company, donated half a million dollars each.

In the 2018 election, America First spent more than $29 million supporting Republican candidates in House and Senate races. Former Texas Rep. Pete Sessions, a powerful GOP leader, received heavy backing from the PAC — $3 million toward a contest he would go on to lose.

The $500,000 donation attributed to AshBritt was among a flood of big donations coming into the PAC in the spring of 2018. The company, based in Deerfield Beach, Florida, does disaster cleanup work.

The Campaign Legal Center’s complaint got little attention. Under FEC rules, a committee has 30 days to confirm the legality of a questionable donation or to refund it; nearly three months passed before the PAC amended its filing to show the donation as being made directly by Perkins.

Perkins said he tried to rectify the matter by providing “all paperwork to the FEC” and resubmitting forms to America First stating that the funds were in fact drawn from a corporate account that would later be taxed as personal income.

“When I wrote the check, I cleared it with America First,” Perkins told ProPublica.

Perkins acknowledges that the optics of his America First donation are less than ideal.

“The facts might be a problem,” he said. “But they are facts.”

A few weeks after Perkins’ donation, the PAC received $325,000 from Global Energy Partners, the Florida energy company that is now at the center of a presidential impeachment inquiry. The PAC was referred to as “Committee 1” in the federal indictment of Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, who pleaded not guilty on charges that they donated to try to advance their energy business in Ukraine in an arraignment this week.

The two men, according to the indictment, were key characters in a coercion campaign to recall the United States ambassador to Ukraine, Marie L. Yovanovitch, which they believed would pave the way for an investigation into Trump’s Democratic rival, former Vice President Joe Biden, and his son Hunter.

The indictment also alleges that Fruman and Parnas promised to fundraise for Sessions. Around the same time, Sessions wrote to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging Yovanovitch’s ouster.

Sessions, who is now running for Congress in a new district, did not respond to messages from ProPublica. In a statement issued on his behalf, he acknowledged meeting with the two Florida businessmen several times but said he took no action on their behalf.

Sessions denied that his letter to Pompeo was directly related to the meetings. He said he will donate the contributions Parnas and Fruman gave to his campaign to Texas charities.

The indictment also alleges that Fruman and Parnas promised to fundraise for Sessions. Around the same time, Sessions wrote to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging Yovanovitch’s ouster.

Sessions denied that his letter to Pompeo was directly related to the meetings. He said he will donate the contributions Parnas and Fruman gave to his campaign to Texas charities.

Do you have information about America First Action? Contact Mike at michael.spies@propublica.org, Derek at derek.willis@propublica.org, or David at David.McSwane@propublica.org. Here are other ways to contact us securely.

omg this could finish djt? 10/18/19

https://www.mediamatters.org/john-solomon/how-conservative-writer-john-solomon-served-conduit-rudy-giulianis-ukraine-conspiracy

At the center of the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump lies a disinformation campaign led by his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani that was aided and abetted by conservative writer John Solomon. Through Solomon, Giuliani injected his disinformation campaign straight into the heart of conservative media -- Fox News -- with seemingly full knowledge of at least some at Fox. And eventually, Solomon landed a job at the network.

It is now known that Trump blessed Giuliani to run a shadow foreign policy campaign in Ukraine, in which he sought information that would undermine the intelligence community's findings that Russia interfered in our 2016 election to benefit Trump. Giuliani was also trying to dig up dirt to smear former Vice President Joe Biden, a front-runner to challenge Trump in the 2020 election.

Much attention has focused on Giuliani’s actions and the shady cast of characters he worked with, but less has been paid to the right-wing media figures who colluded with the president’s lawyer to make his smear campaign public -- a plan that came dangerously close to succeeding.

What follows is a case study in how right-wing media work hand in hand with Trump cronies to smear his enemies, undermine democracy, and defend the president at all costs.

Here’s how it went down.

Key Takeaways

Rudy Giuliani, working with con men and Trump cronies, pursued an “investigation” in Ukraine that he claimed showed both Ukrainian collusion with Democrats in 2016 and evidence that then-Vice President Joe Biden acted corruptly in Ukraine to benefit his son.

In March, Giuliani sent the results of his investigation to the State Department to be investigated and to conservative columnist John Solomon.

The same month, Solomon began publishing a series of columns that mirrored the sourcing and claims Giuliani made in his State Department dossier.

Over the next six months, Solomon published 45 columns aimed at discrediting the Russia investigation, 12 of which focused primarily on Ukraine.

During that same time period, Solomon appeared on Fox News or Fox Business at least 72 times.

Fifty-one of those appearances were on Hannity, whose host dutifully promoted Solomon’s scoops and wove them into his ever-evolving conspiracy theory that deep state elements in the government have been plotting to overthrow Trump.

On October 5, John Solomon landed a job at Fox.

Key players

Rudy Giuliani -- the president’s personal attorney who has traveled around the globe attempting to dig up dirt on Democrats and discredit the Russia investigation on Trump’s behalf.

Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman -- two Soviet-born con men with ties to Ukraine who worked with Giuliani to concoct the disinformation campaign and to get the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine fired, reportedly in the hopes of advancing their business interests in the country. The two have since been arrested for campaign finance violations related to making allegedly illegal campaign donations to Republican candidates and committees, as well as a pro-Trump super PAC. They also reportedly worked for Dmitry Firtash.

Dmitry Firtash -- a Ukrainian pro-Russian oligarch and former business associate of Paul Manafort who is in Austria fighting extradition to the United States to face charges related to a bribery conspiracy. At the same time Parnas and Fruman were working with Giuliani, the two were reportedly also working on Firtash’s behalf to push for the removal of the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine as part of a plan to install new leadership at Ukraine’s Naftogaz gas company. Part of this plan reportedly would have included Naftogaz paying “Firtash a debt of more than $200 million that Firtash believes he is owed by the company.” NBC reported that while this was happening, Firtash “was playing a key role in the effort by Parnas, Fruman, and Giuliani to hunt for dirt on Donald Trump's political opponents in Ukraine.”

Victoria Toensing and Joe diGenova -- two attorneys closely tied to Trump who also worked with Giuliani to support his efforts in Ukraine. The duo are known for their role in bolstering conspiracy theories about the Russia investigation and at one point were considered to join Trump’s personal legal team. The two quietly represent Dmitry Firtash in fighting his extradition to the United States. They hired Parnas as an “interpreter” to work with them on the Firtash case while Parnas was also working with Giuliani.

John Solomon -- a conservative columnist who until recently was the executive vice president of The Hill. Solomon was the conduit through which Giuliani, Parnas, Toensing and diGenova planted their stories in order to spread their coordinated disinformation campaign through the media.

Sean Hannity -- Fox News host who is close to Trump and worked with Giuliani to make his show an integral part of their media strategy, providing a place where they could sow the seeds of the smear campaign against Biden. Giuliani and Hannity discussed this strategy in January, and Solomon became a staple on Hannity’s prime-time programming.

The plan

According to Parnas, his friendship with Giuliani began two years ago as they were running in similar political circles and attending the same events. In late 2018, Parnas and Fruman began connecting Giuliani to a network of disgraced former and current Ukrainian officials and prosecutors to dig up dirt on Biden and the 2016 election.

The conspiracy theory they concocted went like this: Ukrainian officials worked with Democrats to find dirt on Trump’s one-time campaign manager Paul Manafort in order to damage Trump. They did so, Giuliani claimed, by fabricating the “black ledger” that showed that Manafort had received millions of dollars from the former pro-Russia Ukrainian ruling party that had been recently overthrown. The revelation of this ledger helped force Manafort’s resignation from Trump’s campaign, and Manafort was eventually prosecuted and convicted of a wide range of crimes as part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian electoral interference in the 2016 election.

In addition, according to Giuliani’s conspiracy theory, the Ukrainian Embassy was working with Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign and in return, the American Embassy and the Obama administration actively blocked investigations in Ukraine that Giuliani claims targeted Democrats’ political allies. As with most conspiracy theories on the right, George Soros is involved in this one too. The theory posits that a Ukrainian good governance, anti-corruption group -- the Anticorruption Action Centre (AntAC) -- was involved in framing Manafort and was corruptly tied to an FBI agent who was investigating Manafort. Giuliani also claims that an investigation into the group was shut down due to U.S. pressure and that the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine provided Ukrainian officials with a “do not prosecute” list that included people linked to AntAC. As a bonus, through the “investigation,” Giuliani claims to have been presented with evidence that then-Vice President Biden acted corruptly by withholding U.S. aid to force the resignation of a Ukrainian prosecutor investigating his son.

Nothing about this conspiracy theory is true. First, there’s no evidence that the infamous “black ledger” was fraudulent, and several payments listed in the document have been confirmed to be accurate. The Intercept reported: “Sergii Leshchenko, a former investigative journalist and reformist member of parliament who helped publicize the off-the-books payments” said that “Giuliani ‘is a liar’ for saying that the black ledger was a forgery. ‘It is a real document, with real signatures,’ Leshchenko said in a telephone interview, explaining that it had been examined by Ukrainian law enforcement experts.” Giuliani seems to have adopted the false claim about the ledger from Manafort, whose legal team has embraced it since 2017 and whom Guiliani has been meeting with to discuss the materials.

As for Giuliani’s claims that investigations into AntAC were dropped due to political pressure, the State Department has called claims of a so-called “do not prosecute” list “complete poppycock.” And an investigation into the group’s handling of foreign aid money was widely believed to be politically motivated retaliation for the group’s anti-corruption work. Finally, while Biden did pressure Ukraine to fire a prosecutor who was roundly criticized for blocking corruption investigations, there’s no evidence that he did so to benefit his son. In reality, the push to get the prosecutor in question, Viktor Shokin, fired was a part of an anti-corruption effort by advocates and international supporters of Ukraine. The United States’ well-established position was that ousting Shokin was a critical aspect of anti-corruption measures. The investigation into the energy company whose board included Hunter Biden was long dormant, and Hunter Biden was never the subject of the investigation.

Nonetheless, Giuliani says he completed his “investigation” in March and sent his findings to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo with the understanding that Pompeo would investigate. (NBCNews.com, however, reported: “A source with knowledge of the events said ... that Pompeo never promised Rudy Giuliani that he would investigate the contents of the envelope or anything related to Ukraine.”) Giuliani also sent the materials to Solomon.

NBCNews.com obtained a copy of the documents that Giuliani sent to the State Department in March and reported that they contained “a glimpse of an intricate media strategy to spread the story including segments being placed on Fox News.” NBC said the “documents also show that Giuliani, through conservative writer John Solomon’s columns in The Hill, attempted to tie former ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch to the liberal donor George Soros as part of a massive conspiracy to take down Trump’s former campaign manager Paul Manafort and help Hillary Clinton win the 2016 election.” The materials Giuliani sent included interview notes from interviews he conducted with then-current and former Ukrainian prosecutors that “paint the picture of the narrative that Giuliani has been pushing involving the Bidens.”

The media strategy

Giuliani and associates feed story to Solomon

Around the same time Giuliani sent his packet of materials to the State Department, he also sent the materials to Solomon, who began reporting on its contents through the opinion pages of The Hill without identifying the materials as having originated with Giuliani. Solomon’s writing for some time had focused heavily around trying to discredit the Mueller investigation and the notion that Russia meddled into the 2016 elections to help Trump. On March 20, he published the first of many scoops specifically related to Ukraine’s involvement in this effort. Over the next six months, Solomon published 45 columns aimed at discrediting the Russia investigation, 12 of which primarily focused on Ukraine.

In his reporting, Solomon spelled out Giuliani’s conspiracy theory in detail. For instance:

He reported that Ukrainian officials claimed to have “evidence of wrongdoing by American Democrats and their allies in Kiev, ranging from 2016 election interference to obstructing criminal probes,” at least some of it related to Biden.

Solomon reported that these officials tried to “deliver their evidence to Washington” but were unable because the American ambassador (Yovanovitch) “blocked” them “from obtaining a visa” to the U.S.

He weaved an elaborate story about Americans working with Ukrainians to dig up dirt on Trump’s one-time 2016 campaign manager Manafort, in order to damage Trump.

He claimed that the infamous “black ledger” that showed Manafort had received millions in undisclosed payments from Ukrainian officials was fabricated and released to damage Trump. He also suggested that in January 2016, Obama’s Department of Justice pressured Ukraine to help the department investigate Manafort in response to Trump’s rise in popularity in the Republican primary race (Manafort did not join the Trump campaign until March 2016).

He strongly suggested that the Obama State Department pressured Ukrainian officials to drop an investigation into a Ukrainian good governance group linked to Soros because Soros backed Clinton.

He also claimed the U.S. ambassador’s “do not prosecute” list included people related to this organization, and he strained to link the group to the Manafort investigation by claiming that an FBI agent involved in the investigation is tied to the same group.

And, of course, he claimed that Biden withheld a billion dollars worth of U.S. aid to shut down an investigation into Burisma Holdings and Biden’s son Hunter through his position on the company’s board.

Solomon’s reporting relies heavily on the sources Giuliani fed him. In an interview with The Washington Post, Giuliani named three current and former Ukrainian prosecutors as persons he interviewed, specifically former Ukrainian Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin, then-Ukrainian Prosecutor General Yuri Lutsenko, and Nazar Kholodnytsky, head of Ukraine’s Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. Giuliani is also known to have met with a former Ukrainian diplomat named Andrii Telizhenko and is linked to Kostiantyn Kulyk -- Lutsenko’s deputy who was indicted on corruption charges in 2016. Eight of the twelve columns Solomon wrote on the topic featured at least one of these five sources.

At least three of Solomon’s columns feature information meant to undermine the validity of the Russia investigation that may have been leaked from the Ukrainian pro-Russia oligarch Dmitry Firtash’s legal team, which included diGenova and Toensing. Toensing and diGenova have been working with Firtash since at least July -- and indeed Solomon published an entire column in July based exclusively off material and anonymous sources from Firtash’s legal team. They appear to have been involved with his case much earlier than July, though.

Included in the material Giuliani sent to the State Department is a March 26 email from Solomon -- titled “Fwd: Outline of Soros reporting, including embedded documents” -- in which Solomon forwarded a draft of his article before it was published to the same three people working with Giuliani who are also known to have been working with Firtash -- Parnas, Toensing, and diGenova. The column was the first of three that mentioned Firtash, and it attempted to tie AntAC -- and through it Soros -- “to highly visible U.S. actions against the oligarch Dmitri Firtash, a major target of the Soros group, and Manafort.” Solomon repeated the suggestion in his August 7 column on Soros’ “secret 2016 access” to State Department officials. In a fourth column, Solomon reported on an affidavit of a former Ukrainian prosecutor that he exclusively received. The affidavit was prepared “at the request of lawyers acting for Dmitry Firtash … for use in legal proceedings in Austria.”

Solomon brings the conspiracy theory to Fox

The next stage in the plan involved Solomon taking his “scoop” to Fox News, specifically to Sean Hannity. From March 20 -- when Solomon published his first story on the Ukraine conspiracy theory -- through October 2, Solomon appeared on Fox News or Fox Business at least 72 times. Fifty-one of those appearances were on Hannity, whose host dutifully promoted Solomon’s scoops and wove them into his ever-evolving conspiracy theory that “deep state” elements in the government have been plotting to overthrow Trump. Giuliani also appeared on those networks frequently, clocking in at least 64 appearances on Fox News and Fox Business during that time period. Toensing and diGenova appeared over 75 times on the two networks during this period.

The fact that they were working together on these stories, or -- in the case of Toensing and diGenova -- that they were legally representing Firtash, was certainly not transparent to viewers. In perhaps the most egregious example, on the September 26 episode of Hannity, Hannity hosted Solomon to report on an affidavit he obtained from the disgraced prosecutor Shokin, who claimed he was forced to resign to stop the investigation into the company connected to Hunter Biden. Hannity then hosted diGenova and Toensing to discuss it, and the two hailed the affidavit as proof of their conspiracy theory and declared it would “shoot a hole in” Biden’s defense.

However, the affidavit states that it was prepared “at the request of lawyers acting for Dmitry Firtash … for use in legal proceedings in Austria.” In other words, diGenova and Toensing were part of the legal team that produced the affidavit that Solomon later exclusively obtained, wrote up, and then took to Hannity -- a fact not mentioned by any of them. Giuliani has since repeatedly referenced this affidavit in numerous media appearances to support his claims about Biden’s alleged corruption.

Hannity repeatedly gave clues suggesting he knew the full range of stories Solomon would be reporting. For instance, despite the fact that Solomon’s March 20 column did not mention Biden or corruption, Hannity teased on his radio show that day that “I just happen to have a little birdie telling me in my ear that, well, Joe Biden may have an issue here that is bigger than anything ever alleged about Donald Trump.” On September 23, Hannity and Giuliani admitted to having talked about the Biden Ukraine story as early as January.

The payoff

Giuliani repeatedly touted and praised Solomon’s “blockbuster” reporting. He has at least twice opined that Solomon should “get a Pulitzer Prize” and has taken to Twitter to sing Solomon’s praises:

Hannity, too, repeatedly praised Solomon’s “great reporting” as he hyped Solomon’s columns. He regularly described Solomon as a “friend” of the program and declared that mainstream news outlets, like The New York Times, “peddled lies, conspiracy theories and hoax[es]” about the Russia investigation whereas Solomon “was right” all along. On April 25, Hannity asked Trump about Solomon’s and others' reporting around the Russia investigation, and the president replied: “These are great reporters. … These are people that should be getting Pulitzers.” Trump added, “These are the ones that should be winning. It sounds like big stuff. It sounds very interesting with Ukraine.”

Solomon’s efforts paid off. On October 5, Fox News confirmed that John Solomon had joined the network as a contributor. During his first appearance on Hannity as an official Fox News employee, Hannity said: “John Solomon, welcome to the family. It’s been a long time coming, sir.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/08/us/politics/trump-donor-dinner-georgetown.html

Kenneth P. Vogel

March 8, 2018

WASHINGTON — President Trump dined at the ornate Georgetown home of a prominent Washington lawyer on Wednesday night with wealthy donors who are expected to play crucial roles in financing his re-election campaign.

The dinner was the latest in a series of donor events associated with a pair of independent groups — America First Policies and America First Action — that are aiming to raise $100 million this year, mostly in large donations, to support Mr. Trump’s agenda and the election campaigns of allied congressional candidates.

Attendees included donors and operatives who are working to raise money for the America First groups, such as the Dallas financial executive Roy W. Bailey and the Oklahoma oil billionaire Harold Hamm, as well as the president’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., according to someone briefed on the list of attendees and published reports.

Mr. Hamm and Mr. Bailey are on the board of America First Policies, a nonprofit group that was created to advocate Mr. Trump’s agenda and that has paid for a series of polls and strategy memos about the political effects of the Trump administration’s efforts. America First Action, on the other hand, is a “super PAC” that is raising money to air advertisements in support of Republican congressional candidates allied with the president.

The two groups are headed by the veteran Republican operative Brian O. Walsh, who also attended Wednesday’s dinner.

The gathering was hosted by C. Boyden Gray, a Washington lawyer who served in top positions in both George Bush’s and George W. Bush’s presidential administrations, and who is known for hosting gatherings of the capital’s Republican elite.

It was a rare night on the town for a president who mostly remains cloistered in the White House when he is in Washington, and who, when he does dine out, usually goes to the steakhouse in the hotel he owns five blocks away.

The evening also highlights the extent to which Mr. Trump has embraced features of Washington politics that he denounced on the campaign trail. He had pledged to “drain the swamp” of the city’s permanent political class and to forsake the contributions of wealthy donors, who he said had too much power.

Mr. Gray could not be reached for comment. Mr. Walsh and Donald Trump Jr. did not respond to requests for comment.

Lindsay Walters, a deputy White House press secretary, stressed that the dinner was not a fund-raiser.

“Tonight the president had dinner with a small group of supporters at the private residence of C. Boyden Gray,” she said on Wednesday night.

Image

[Mr. Gray at his home in 2005. He is known for hosting gatherings of Washington’s Republican elite.CreditStephen Crowley/The New York Times

Even if no money was collected Wednesday night, the gathering was part of a fund-raising campaign by the two groups that has ramped up in recent weeks with assistance from Mr. Trump, his family and top officials in his administration.

Vice President Mike Pence spoke last month at an America First round table in Dallas, and Donald Trump Jr. has attended events for the groups, as well.

Secretary of Energy Rick Perry spoke Tuesday afternoon at a round table in Houston, which was attended by Mr. Bailey and a number of prominent Texas donors, including the Dallas investor Doug Deason.

“They’re making a pretty serious push,” said Mr. Deason, who is on the finance committee of the America First groups. “It’s an all-out effort to knock it out of the park with this super PAC.”

Mr. Deason explained that the groups are careful not to ask for contributions, or to discuss spending strategies, in the presence of administration officials.

That is because officials are barred by campaign finance rules from coordinating spending strategies with — or raising large sums for — entities like the America First groups, which, unlike campaign and party committees, are not subject to federal contribution limits.

Instead, Mr. Deason said, the administration officials have generally discussed Mr. Trump’s agenda and answered questions from the assembled donors. Mr. Perry, for instance, was asked about the president’s proposed tariffs on steel and aluminum by donors who were concerned about them.

After such events, representatives from the America First groups will follow up with donors to solicit contributions — a common fund-raising strategy for super PACs and other unlimited-money political groups.

Someone with direct knowledge of the America First groups said they had been telling donors that they had already raised $40 million and intended to raise another $60 million for their 2018 efforts.

A majority of the funds raised so far have been collected by America First Policies, a nonprofit group registered under a section of the tax code — 501(c)(4) — that allows it to shield most information about its finances, including the identity of its donors.

America First Action, on the other hand, is required to disclose its donors and expenditures on a periodic basis to the Federal Election Commission.

The group’s most recent report revealed that it raised $4 million last year, with half of that coming from the Los Angeles developer Geoffrey H. Palmer. An additional $1 million came from the Murray Energy Corporation, a coal company based in Ohio that has assiduously courted Mr. Trump as it pressed the new administration to repeal President Barack Obama’s climate change policies intended to shut down old coal-burning power plants.

America First Action spent tens of thousands of dollars at the Trump International Hotel on events for donors, and also paid tens of thousands of dollars each to firms associated with Mr. Trump’s first campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, and his newly named re-election campaign manager, Brad Parscale, among other loyalists.

---

ballotpedia

America First Action is a super PAC that supports the policy agenda of President Donald Trump (R). The organization was founded in April 2017 and is affiliated with the 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization America First Policies.

Background

America First Action was founded in April 2017 as an affiliated super PAC of the nonprofit organization America First Policies. One of the nonprofit's co-founders described the organization in January 2017, saying, "Some of the same like-minded individuals who put their energy into getting Mr. Trump elected are now going to be part of a grass-roots group to go out there and help with the agenda, help the White House to be successful."[1]

Work

Fundraising meeting, October 2017

In October 2017, America First Action met at the ranch of oil industry executive T. Boone Pickens to strategize fundraising and satellite spending for the 2018 midterm elections. According to and October 2017 report in Politico:[2]

“ Republican businessmen Roy Bailey and Tommy Hicks, will lay out plans to raise money for the Trump-aligned America First Action super PAC. Bailey is spearheading an effort to establish a fundraising committee for the super PAC. Those involved in the group include energy executive Harold Hamm, real estate investor Jim Wilson, businessman Doug Deason and investor Jim Lee.[3] ”

Political activity

Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District special election, 2018

See also: Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District special election, 2018

Politico reported in February 2018, that America First Action was purchasing $1 million in ad time supporting Republican candidate Rick Saccone in the March 13, 2018 special election.[4] Saccone unsuccessfully ran against Democrat Conor Lamb in the race to replace Rep. Tim Murphy (R). Murphy announced his resignation in October 2017, following reports that he encouraged a woman with whom he had an extramarital affair to have an abortion.[5]

U.S. Senate election in Alabama, 2017

See also: United States Senate special election in Alabama, 2017

In August 2017, America First Action launched at $200,000 digital campaign to support Luther Strange (R) in his campaign to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Jeff Sessions (R) when Sessions was appointed attorney general. A spokesperson for the super PAC explained the organization's support for Strange—who had already been endorsed by Trump—saying, "As the pro-Trump super PAC, we are proud to join the president in supporting the candidacy of Sen. Luther Strange, a tireless public servant and defender of the First and Second Amendment rights of his fellow Alabamians. ... Sen. Strange has already proven himself to be the best possible candidate in this race to stand beside our president and make America great again."[6]Strange lost the Republican primary runoff in September 2017.

Republican tax plan advertising, November 2017

In November 2017, as congressional Republicans were unveiling their proposals to change the federal tax code, America First Action announced that it intended to launch a $100 million advertising campaign in support of those efforts. The organization's president, Brian Walsh, said in a statement, "This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to pass strong, bold tax reform for the American people. ... Failure is not an option and America First is committed to mobilizing grassroots supporters behind President Trump’s commitment to the middle class."[7]

According to Bloomberg, the ads were scheduled to run the first week in November on Fox News and target the districts of the following representatives:[8]

Leonard Lance (R-N.J.)

Ken Buck (R-Colo.)

Peter King (R-N.Y.)

Thomas Massie (R-Ky.)

Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.)

Leadership

As of April 2019, the following individuals were known to be members of the leadership at America First Action:

Brian O. Walsh, President[9]

Corey Lewandowski, Senior advisor and spokesman[10]

David Clarke, Senior advisor and spokesman[11]

Linda McMahon, Chair[12]

Legal status

America First Action is a super PAC. A super PAC is a political committee that can solicit and spend unlimited sums of money. A super PAC cannot contribute directly to a politician or political party, but it can spend independently to campaign for or against political figures. These committees are also called independent expenditure-only committees. A super PAC is not legally considered a political action committee (PAC) and as such is regulated under separate rules.[13][14]

See also

America First Policies

Donald Trump

External links

America First Action website

America First Action on Twitter

Footnotes

Jump up? NPR, "Trump Political Advisers Now Raising Money For His 'America First' Agenda," January 31, 2017

Jump up? Politico, "Trump-backed super PAC to hold fundraising meeting in Texas Tuesday," October 22, 2017

Jump up? Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.

Jump up? Politico, "Trump super PAC to spend $1 million in Pennsylvania special election," February 22, 2018

Jump up? The New York Times, "Conservative Pennsylvania congressman resigns amid abortion scandal," October 5, 2017

Jump up? Politico, "Pro-Trump super PAC launches last second effort for Alabama Sen. Strange," August 11, 2017

Jump up? Politico, "Trump super PAC launches $100 million blitz," November 2, 2017

Jump up? Bloomberg, "Lewandowski Stars in Pro-Trump Ad Blitz for GOP Tax Plan," November 3, 2017

Jump up? Politico, "Pro-Trump outside group taps veteran GOP strategist for day-to-day operations," April 18, 2017

Jump up? CNN, "Ex-Trump campaign chief Lewandowski joins pro-Trump super PAC," August 17, 2017

Jump up? Axios, "David Clarke joins America First Action Super PAC," September 5, 2017

Jump up? Politico, "Linda McMahon to leave Cabinet for Trump 2020 PAC," accessed April 2, 2019

Jump up? The Atlantic, "The New York Times' Disingenuous Campaign Against Citizens United," February 24, 2012

Jump up? The New York Times, "Who's Financing the 'Super PACs?" May 7, 2012

Only the first few references on this page are shown above. Click to show more.

[hide]

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Influencers

Main

What is an influencer? • National influencers • Local influencers • Influencers by type • Influencers by legal type • Influencers by policy

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By state

Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming

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Donald Trump presidential transition team • Donald Trump potential high-level administration appointments • Presidential election key staffers, 2016

Counsel to Parnas, Richard L. Yellen in New York, did not respond to requests for comment before deadline.

While the fraud allegations against Parnas were dismissed, the breach of contract claim stuck. U.S. District Judge Arthur D. Spatt awarded the plaintiff $350,000, which became $510,434.70 with interest and costs.

Parnas is also a defendant in another lawsuit brought by Campaign Legal Center, a Washington nonprofit that accuses him, business partner Igor Fruman and Global Energy Producers LLC of violating campaign finance laws with a $325,000 donation to pro-Trump, super-PAC America First Action Inc.

But Energy Transfer did announce on October 22 that it is exploring the prospect of boosting throughput capacity for Dakota Access from 500,000 barrels to 570,000 barrels per day. Oil which flows into Dakota Access comes primarily via hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) in North Dakota's Bakken Shale basin.

One of the companies which has oil flowing through that pipeline, Continental Resources, was founded by its CEO Harold Hamm, a major donor to President Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and to his 2020 campaign via the America First Action Super-PAC and a maximum allowable individual contribution. Hamm has also given tens of thousands of dollars to Republican Party congressional candidates for the 2018 midterm elections.

Kelcy Warren, the CEO and founder of Energy Transfer, also donated to Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and has given tens of thousands of dollars to GOP congressional candidates for the 2018 midterm cycle. Energy Transfer, too, has donated tens of thousands to Republican Party candidates for the 2018 election cycle.

1.3 mil new rep pac?

Independent Expenditures, Communication Costs and Coordinated Expenses as of June 20, 2019:

Grand Total: $29,251,724

Total For Democrats: $0

Total Against Democrats: $28,014,209

Total For Republicans: $1,237,515

Total Against Republicans: $0

Candidate State Party Office Total For Against

Radinovich, Joe MN D House $3,256,598 $0 $3,256,598

Allred, Colin TX D House $3,036,687 $0 $3,036,687

Donnelly, Joe IN D Senate $2,820,483 $0 $2,820,483

McCaskill, Claire MO D Senate $2,625,283 $0 $2,625,283

Tester, Jon MT D Senate $1,909,536 $0 $1,909,536

Feehan, Daniel MN D House $1,738,559 $0 $1,738,559

Lee, Susie NV D House $1,678,082 $0 $1,678,082

Slotkin, Elissa MI D House $1,397,993 $0 $1,397,993

Ojeda, Richard WV D House $1,188,009 $0 $1,188,009

Lamb, Conor PA D House $1,103,793 $0 $1,103,793

Golden, Jared ME D House $1,089,171 $0 $1,089,171

Jones, Doug AL D Senate $1,077,041 $0 $1,077,041

O'Connor, Danny OH D House $1,070,520 $0 $1,070,520

Manning, Kathy NC D House $909,067 $0 $909,067

Stevens, Haley MI D House $891,259 $0 $891,259

Scott, George PA D House $722,212 $0 $722,212

Heitkamp, Heidi ND D Senate $567,942 $0 $567,942

Brindisi, Anthony NY D House $480,256 $0 $480,256

Tucker, Clarke AR D House $394,166 $0 $394,166

McSally, Martha AZ R Senate $289,758 $289,758 $0

Hyde-Smith, Cindy MS R Senate $270,807 $270,807 $0

Donovan, Dan NY R House $176,376 $176,376 $0

Strange, Luther AL R Senate $155,000 $155,000 $0

Sessions, Pete TX R House $98,081 $98,081 $0

Balderson, Troy OH R House $75,263 $75,263 $0

Sinema, Kyrsten AZ D Senate $57,552 $0 $57,552

Budd, Ted NC R House $55,000 $55,000 $0

Epstein, Lena MI R House $44,936 $44,936 $0

Bishop, Mike MI R House $44,500 $44,500 $0

Rosendale, Matt MT R Senate $27,794 $27,794

https://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/lookup2.php?strID=C00637512&cycle=2018

2018

Total Receipts $39,002,821

Total Spent $36,439,973

Begin Cash on Hand $0

End Cash on Hand $2,562,848

Debts $0

Independent Expenditures $29,251,724

Date of last report December 31, 2018

2018 PAC Contribution Data

Contributions from this PAC to federal candidates (list recipients) $0

Contributions to this PAC from individual donors of $200 or more ( list donors) $37,321,332

Official PAC Name:

AMERICA FIRST ACTION, INC.

Location: ARLINGTON, VA 22202

Industry: Republican/Conservative

Treasurer: PROCH, JON

FEC Committee ID: C00637512

(Look up actual documents filed at the FEC)

---

ADELSON, MIRIAM DR

LAS VEGAS, NV 89145 ADELSON CLINIC 09/13/18 $5,000,000

ADELSON, SHELDON G

LAS VEGAS, NV 89145 LAS VEGAS SANDS CORP. 09/13/18 $5,000,000

PALMER, GEOFFREY H

BEVERLY HILLS, CA 90210 G. H. PALMER ASSOCIATES 06/27/18 $2,000,000

PALMER, GEOFFREY H

BEVERLY HILLS, CA 90210 G. H. PALMER ASSOCIATES 11/03/17 $2,000,000

MURRAY ENERGY CORPORATION

BEACHWOOD, OH 44122 08/08/17 $1,000,000

KANTE, BENNIE

SAPULPA, OK 74066 SENEGENCE INTERNATIONAL 10/11/18 $1,000,000

DEASON, DARWIN

DALLAS, TX 75225 DEASON CAPITAL SERVICES 10/22/18 $1,000,000

DON MCGILL TOYOTA OF KATY

KATY, TX 77450 10/18/18 $1,000,000

FERTITTA, FRANK J III

LAS VEGAS, NV 89135 RED ROCK RESORTS 03/13/18 $1,000,000

FERTITTA, LORENZO J

LAS VEGAS, NV 89135 STATION CASINOS 03/13/18 $1,000,000

MOSKOWITZ, CHERNA

MIAMI BEACH, FL 33140 HAWAIIAN GARDENS CASINO 06/08/18 $1,000,000

WHEATLAND TUBE, LLC

CHICAGO, IL 60606 04/05/18 $1,000,000

MELLON, MATTHEW T II

NEW YORK, NY 10019 RETIRED 03/23/18 $1,000,000

BEAL, ANDREW

PLANO, TX 75024 BEAL BANK 09/11/18 $1,000,000

BEAL, ANDREW

PLANO, TX 75024 BEAL BANK 07/27/18 $1,000,000

MOSKOWITZ, CHERNA

MIAMI BEACH, FL 33140 HAWAIIAN GARDENS CASINO 09/13/18 $1,000,000

BISHOP, GEORGE

THE WOODLANDS, TX 77380 GEOSOUTHERN ENERGY CORP 10/26/18 $800,000

WHEATLAND TUBE, LLC

CHICAGO, IL 60606 10/17/18 $500,000

STEPHENS, WARREN A

LITTLE ROCK, AR 72201 STEPHENS INC. 10/09/18 $500,000

HAMM, HAROLD

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK 73101 CONTINENTAL RESOURCES 01/12/18 $500,000

SAULSBURY, CHARLES R SR

ODESSA, TX 79762 SAULSBURY INDUSTRIES 10/29/18 $500,000

WYNN, STEPHEN A

LAS VEGAS, NV 89109 WYNN RESORTS 01/23/18 $500,000

CONTINENTAL RESOURCES, INC

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK 73126 04/09/18 $500,000

GLOBAL ENERGY PRODUCERS, LLC

BOCA RATON, FL 33433 05/17/18 $325,000

HARDY, JOSEPH A MR III

EIGHTY FOUR, PA 15330 HARDY WORLD LLC 84 LUMBER 07/27/17 $311,000

ANWAR, JAVAID S

MIDLAND, TX 79701 MIDLAND ENERGY, INC. 10/25/18 $250,000

DRT, LLC

CARTER LAKE, IA 51510 04/30/18 $250,000

RUSSELL, THOMAS H

JENKS, OK 74037 RETIRED 05/22/18 $250,000

WHEATLAND TUBE, LLC

CHICAGO, IL 60606 06/04/18 $250,000

CHILDS, JOHN W

VERO BEACH, FL 32963 J.W. CHILDS ASSOCIATES 09/28/18 $250,000

WEISER, RONALD

ANN ARBOR, MI 48104 MCKINLEY ASSOCIATES 04/17/17 $200,000

SINQUEFIELD, REX A

WESTPHALIA, MO 65085 RETIRED 08/02/18 $150,000

STITZER, MARK

GREENWICH, CT 06831 HAMLIN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC 07/19/18 $125,000

WRIGHT, KAREN BUCHWALD

MOUNT VERNON, OH 43050 ARIEL CORPORATION 06/26/18 $125,000

RASTIN, THOMAS

MOUNT VERNON, OH 43050 ARIEL CORPORATION 06/26/18 $125,000

HODGES, MICHAEL LYNN

NASHVILLE, TN 37204 HARPETH FINANCIAL 06/22/18 $125,000

HODGES, TINA

NASHVILLE, TN 37204 HARPETH FINANCIAL 06/22/18 $125,000

WRIGHT, KAREN BUCHWALD

MOUNT VERNON, OH 43050 ARIEL CORPORATION 03/26/18 $125,000

RASTIN, THOMAS

MOUNT VERNON, OH 43050 ARIEL CORPORATION 03/26/18 $125,000

RASTIN, THOMAS

MOUNT VERNON, OH 43050 ARIEL CORPORATION 09/28/18 $125,000

WRIGHT, KAREN BUCHWALD

MOUNT VERNON, OH 43050 ARIEL CORPORATION 09/28/18 $125,000

AMERICA FIRST POLICIES, INC

ARLINGTON, VA 22202 12/31/17 $112,426

BISHOP, GEORGE

THE WOODLANDS, TX 77380 GEOSOUTHERN ENERGY CORP 10/11/18 $100,000

CANIZARO, JOSEPH

NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112 CORPORATE CAPITAL, LLC / FIRST TRUST C 10/03/18 $100,000

ENTREPRENEURIAL PROPERTIES CORPORATION

NEWPORT BEACH, CA 92660 10/25/18 $100,000

MOLLESTON, MARGARET W

THE WOODLANS, TX 77380 GEOSOUTHERN ENERGY CORPORATION 10/11/18 $100,000

MARCUS, BERNARD

ATLANTA, GA 30327 HOME DEPOT 10/09/18 $100,000

OBERHEIDEN, NICK

DALLAS, TX 75240 OBERHEIDEN P.C. 10/26/18 $100,000

MARCUS, JOEL S

BEVERLY HILLS, CA 90210 ALEXANDRIA REAL ESTATE EQUITIES 11/01/18 $100,000

SUTTON, NICHOLAS J

WILSON, WY 83014 RESOLUTE ENERGY CORPORATION 03/22/18 $100,000

GREENSTEIN, IRA A

SCARSDALE, NY 10583 ENERPULSE TECHNOLOGIES, INC. 06/22/18 $100,000

SINQUEFIELD, REX A

WESTPHALIA, MO 65085 RETIRED 06/29/18 $100,000

ROUSE, THOMAS M

DALLAS, TX 75205 RETIRED 04/19/18 $100,000

DIEFENTHAL, EDWARD L

METAIRIE, LA 70001 WOODVINE GROUP 08/17/18 $100,000

AMERICA FIRST POLICIES, INC

ARLINGTON, VA 22202 11/26/18 $87,736

AMERICA FIRST POLICIES, INC

ARLINGTON, VA 22202 04/02/18 $85,201

AMERICA FIRST POLICIES, INC

ARLINGTON, VA 22202 08/27/18 $79,818

AMERICA FIRST POLICIES, INC

ARLINGTON, VA 22202 09/30/18 $77,561

AMERICA FIRST POLICIES, INC

ARLINGTON, VA 22202 12/31/18 $72,438

AMERICA FIRST POLICIES, INC

ARLINGTON, VA 22202 06/30/18 $68,244

JMA ENERGY COMPANY, LLC

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK 73118 05/14/18 $65,000

AMERICA FIRST POLICIES, INC

ARLINGTON, VA 22202 05/16/18 $56,085

DANIELS, GEORGE G

ORLANDO, FL 32824 DANIELS MANUFACTURING CORPORATION 01/10/18 $51,000

DOUGLASS, WILLIAM S III

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL 33316 ADVISOR 01/02/18 $50,000

BISHOP, ROBERT J

PALM BEACH, FL 33480 IMPALA ASSET MANAGEMENT 01/09/18 $50,000

BARTON, TIMOTHY L

DALLAS, TX 75244 JMJ DEVELOPMENT 03/01/18 $50,000

PRICE, WILLIAM F JR

MALIBU, CA 90265 RETIRED 10/25/18 $50,000

IRION, CHRISTOPHER

NEW ALBANY, OH 43054 E-CYCLE 10/19/18 $50,000

LOCKTON, JOHN

CHERRY HILLS VILLAGE, CO 80113 LOCKTON CORPORATION 10/18/18 $50,000

SOUTHARD, ROBERT C

WHEATLAND, WY 82201 EVERTSON INTERNATIONAL LLC 10/05/18 $50,000

fluff?

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/06/19/linda-mcmahon-2020-america-first-trump-super-pac-1368075

How to raise $300 million

Linda McMahon, chair of the pro-Trump super PAC America First Action, opens up about her plans for 2020.

By ZACK STANTON 06/19/2019 05:04 AM EDT

Subscribe to Women Rule]

Even after four years, it can be jolting: Donald Trump’s campaign speech stops, the audience roars and the P.A. system blares the Rolling Stones song “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.” Watching on TV, you know it’s coming — it always does — but it still manages to surprise.

Except, perhaps, if you’re Linda McMahon.

“I first met President Trump at a Rolling Stones concert in New Jersey,” McMahon said with a chuckle during an interview for POLITICO’s Women Rule podcast. “Our relationship really was built through business activities. He was always a very good business partner.”

Now, as the president launches his 2020 reelection campaign, McMahon — the former WWE executive and former chairwoman of the Small Business Administration — is chairing America First Action, the pro-Trump super PAC. The mission? Ensure that, unlike Mick Jagger, Trump will get exactly what he wants. And what he wants is another term in the White House.

“The goal for the super PAC is $300 million, and so that is clearly targeting a lot of large-money donors … to come in to clearly help us get to that bottom-line number,” McMahon said.

America First Action is planning to focus its resources on six states: Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Trump won all six in 2016, but early polls have him badly behind in several of them as his 2020 campaign gets off the ground.

“We believe those six states are going to be key to the president winning reelection,” McMahon said. “We will be doing polling, we’ll be doing voter registration, we’ll be doing focus groups on the super PAC side, as well as on the (c)(4) side” — a reference to America First Policies, the 501(c)(4) nonprofit incorporated to promote the Trump campaign’s “America First” policy.

Though PAC work is new to McMahon, the rigors of campaigning are not. She twice ran for U.S. Senate in her home state of Connecticut, spending roughly $100 million of her own money over the course of unsuccessful efforts in both 2010 and 2012.

“I did not fundraise. Did very, very little fundraising — hardly any at all the first time; a little bit more the second time,” she said. “I self-funded those campaigns because I didn’t want to hold an allegiance for anyone.”

Now, fundraising from big-ticket donors is her full-time gig.

But McMahon told POLITICO that you shouldn’t expect a rocky transition, citing what she sees as some of the important lessons she learned as a business executive.

“Women don’t often toot their own horn enough, and when they’re going in to ask for funding, they’re not often prepared with the business plan and make the sell as hard as they should with the confidence that they should,” McMahon said. “It’s no different from what men need to do to do the same thing, but men typically go in with a higher level of confidence.”

To hear more from Linda McMahon — including how she balanced work and life at a job where she worked with her husband and children — listen to the full podcast here. Women Rule takes listeners backstage with female bosses for real talk on how they made it and what advice they have for women looking to lead.

This article tagged under:

Linda McMahon Donald Trump Donald Trump 2020 Vince McMahon2020 Elections 2020 Presidential Candidates Women Rule podcastAmerica First Action

America First Action Summary | OpenSecrets

https://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/lookup2.php?strID=C00637512&cycle=2018

Search our Political Action Committee (PAC) database to learn about the impact they have on ... America First Action ... NOTE: This committee is a super PAC.

America First Policies - Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America_First_Policies

America First Policies is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization, incorporated on January 27, 2017, ... Acting as a "dark money" Super PAC, as of May 2018, America First Policies had spent $2 million on electioneering in 2018 campaigns.

America First Action - Home | Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/AmericaFirstAction/

See more of America First Action on Facebook. ... America First Action is the primary super PACdedicated to electing feder... ... Brian Walsh explains the importance of Florida on Fox & Friends today.

America First Action super PAC waiting for right time to battle against ...

https://www.washingtontimes.com/.../america-first-action-super-pac-waiting-for-right-...

May 9, 2019 - America First Action is embracing its role as President Trump's chief wingman, saying it plans to boost his policies such as a rewrite of the North ...

America First Action Super PAC - Vote Smart

https://votesmart.org/interest-group/2594/america-first-action-super-pac

"America First Action Super PAC is committed to creating an America where prosperity, safety, and strength reign--where hardworking people like you lead the ...

America First Action - Ballotpedia

https://ballotpedia.org/America_First_Action

Nov 2, 2017 - America First Action is a super PAC that supports the policy agenda of President Donald Trump (R). The organization was founded in April ...

Year founded?: ?2017

off bs

America First Action SuperPac

ABOUTLEADERSHIPIN THE NEWSSTOREDONATE

Leadership

LINDA MCMAHON

Chair of American First Action

McMahon served in President Donald J. Trump’s Cabinet as Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) prior to joining America First Action as its Chair.

Under McMahon’s leadership at SBA, she re-imagined the organization, focusing on rural development and championing women entrepreneurs and military veterans. She oversaw natural disaster recovery efforts and helped improved the way the SBA connected small businesses to capital, counseling and government contracts.

In addition to focusing on fundraising for the 2020 presidential reelect, Mrs. McMahon will be engaged in policy advocacy, communications, and rallying the support of millions of grassroots activists across the country. She also serves as chair of the board for America First Policies.

Linda McMahon

BRIAN O. WALSH

President of America First Action

Brian O. Walsh has spent more than 15 years working in American politics, holding leadership positions on Capitol Hill, political campaigns, a national party committee, and in conservative outside groups. Prior to becoming president of America First Action PAC, he served as president of the American Action Network and Congressional Leadership Fund, two of the most prominent conservative outside groups in America, and as political director at the National Republican Congressional Committee. Mr. Walsh also serves as a partner at RedPrint Strategy.

Brian O. Walsh

SEAN SPICER

Senior Advisor and Spokesman

Throughout his two decades in Washington, Mr. Spicer has served as Communications Director and Chief Strategist at the Republican National Committee. He recently authored a political memoir, The Briefing: Politics, the Press, and the President, about his tenure as White House Press Secretary, and travels as an event speaker with the Worldwide Speakers Group. Mr. Spicer also served as Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Media under the George W. Bush administration. In addition, he is an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve and a frequent commentator on national news programs.

Sean Spicer

KELLY SADLER

Communications Director

Prior to joining America First Action, Kelly Sadler served in President Donald J. Trump’s White House as Special Assistant to the President handling surrogate and coalitions outreach. Before joining the administration, Ms. Sadler was the deputy opinion editor at the Washington Times, writing under the byline Kelly Riddell, covering politics. Prior to the Times, Ms. Sadler worked at Bloomberg News as a reporter. She has a master’s degree in communications from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.

Ms. Sadler handles all media requests for both America First Action PAC and America First Policies and can be reached at kelly@a1apac.org.

Kelly Sadler

Accessibility Statement

Paid for by America First Action, Inc.

Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.

www.a1apac.org

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In The News

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