Heather McGhee, the president of liberal think tank Demos, criticized Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing last week because of his stance on Citizens United and public disclosures of campaign contributions. But Demos has been criticized as a dark money group that also does not disclose its donors' identities.
From the Washington Free Beacon:
Demos does not disclose its donors and was cited by the Center for Public Integrity as a dark money group in January. A review of the 501(c)3 non-profit group's most recent tax forms shows that Demos garnered more than $7 million in contributions in 2014. Seven individuals accounted for more than half of those donations. The group highlighted those seven donations—ranging from $250,000 to $1.425 million—in its documents, but left the identities of those donors blank. The group paid more than $3 million in salaries and wages in 2014, including McGhee's $240,000 compensation.
Demos did not respond to multiple requests for comment about whether it planned on adopting disclosure policies in line with the ideology it was promoting. Citizen Audit, a group that tracks non-profit disclosures by examining group expenditures, has identified 13 groups that have contributed to Demos in the past. The group has benefitted from the largesse of major liberal donors, including the Rockefeller and Tides foundation, as well as organized labor groups, including the American Federation of State, County, & Municipal Workers and United Food and Commercial Workers.
Read Full Article »