Will you donate $5 to expose the dark money attacking progressive Democrats?

Outside groups aligned with Democratic leaders are spending millions in dark money to target progressives




With all signs pointing to a massive red wave threatening to wipe out Democratic majorities in Congress this fall, you would think that leading Democrats in Washington, D.C., would be focusing all their efforts on defending the most threatened incumbent members of their caucus.

You’d be wrong.

As reporting by The Intercept has shown, outside groups aligned with Democratic leaders are spending millions in dark money to target progressives, many of them running in safe blue districts where Republicans have little chance of winning in November.

To understand why party leaders would be spending scarce resources targeting progressive challengers like Nina Turner and Summer Lee — and even incumbents like Rep. Rashida Tlaib — you must follow the money to the corporate interests and powerful lobby groups that fill the campaign coffers of both parties.

But as the Supreme Court has weakened campaign finance laws, it’s become increasingly difficult to track the mountains of dark money sloshing around in Washington, D.C.

The Intercept is one of the few news outlets committed to the investigative journalism needed to follow the money and connect the dots. But as a nonprofit outlet, we rely on donations from readers to help fund this ongoing reporting. Will you make a donation to support our hard-hitting investigative journalism?

Consider the newly formed Urban Empowerment Action PAC, a dark-money group ostensibly “dedicated to empowering urban communities to narrow the wealth gap between Black and White Americans.” Their #1 target is Tlaib, a progressive Democrat who supports Medicare for All, raising the minimum wage, and ending mass incarceration.

Or consider Mainstream Democrats, the dark-money group funded by Silicon Valley billionaire and LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman. It spent big against the progressive challengers to Oregon Rep. Kurt Schrader, one of the most outspoken Democratic opponents of the Build Back Better plan, and Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Texas Democrat who remains the party’s most strident foe of abortion rights.

Then there’s the new dark-money operation called Opportunity for All Action Fund run by longtime top Democratic Party operatives like former Hillary Clinton campaign director Patty Solis Doyle and former Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee financial services director Darrel Thompson. It spent more than half a million in just four primaries to defend incumbent Democrats against progressives in safe seats that President Joe Biden carried overwhelmingly.

This is the kind of reporting needed to uncover the dark underbelly of Democratic Party politics. Will you make a donation to help The Intercept follow the money, connect the dots, and uncover the corrupting role of money in our elections?

STAND WITH THE INTERCEPT →

Thank you,
The Intercept team

First Look Institute is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization (tax ID number 80-0951255).

The Intercept’s mailing address is:
First Look Institute
P.O. Box 27442
Washington, DC 20038

The Intercept is an award-winning nonprofit news organization dedicated to holding the powerful accountable through fearless, adversarial journalism. Our in-depth investigations and unflinching analysis focus on surveillance, war, corruption, the environment, technology, criminal justice, the media and more. Email is an important way for us to communicate with The Intercept’s readers, but if you’d like to stop hearing from us, click here to unsubscribe from all communications. Protecting freedom of the press has never been more important. Contribute now to support our independent journalism.

Older messages

New PAC Backed by Bakari Sellers Plans to Spend $1 Million to Unseat Rep. Rashida Tlaib

Sunday, June 12, 2022

With stated aims to support Black communities and narrow the racial wealth gap, the group is financed by a billionaire hedge fund investor who also funds Republicans and AIPAC. MOST READ Sen. Elizabeth

We’re facing multiple costly legal fights. Will you donate $5?

Saturday, June 11, 2022

The Intercept is currently engaged in multiple legal fights to allow our journalists to uncover the truth, and our costs have piled up. We're writing to you today because The Intercept is currently

Breaking Unions With the Language of Diversity and Social Justice

Thursday, June 9, 2022

A thin veneer of progressive rhetoric and DEI initiatives are being used to mask harsh labor conditions. MOST READ Breaking Unions With the Language of Diversity and Social Justice Lee Fang A thin

This is one of the largest hacks our team has ever seen

Wednesday, June 8, 2022

We're digging through a gold mine of data from Russia's central bank, state-owned media, law firms, and the world's largest pipeline company. The Intercept is digging through a gold mine of

How the FBI Tried to Ambush My Meeting and Arrest a Source

Sunday, June 5, 2022

Jim Risen tells the story of when a trusted intermediary lawyer betrayed him and collaborated with the FBI to stop his reporting. MOST READ The FBI Tried to Ambush My Source. Now I'm Telling the

You Might Also Like

☕ Great chains

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Prologis looks to improve supply chain operations. January 15, 2025 View Online | Sign Up Retail Brew Presented By Bloomreach It's Wednesday, and we've been walking for miles inside the Javits

Pete Hegseth's confirmation hearing.

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Hegseth's hearing had some fireworks, but he looks headed toward confirmation. Pete Hegseth's confirmation hearing. Hegseth's hearing had some fireworks, but he looks headed toward

Honourable Roulette

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

The Honourable Parts // The Story Of Russian Roulette Honourable Roulette By Kaamya Sharma • 15 Jan 2025 View in browser View in browser The Honourable Parts Spencer Wright | Scope Of Work | 6th

📬 No. 62 | What I learned about newsletters in 2024

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

“I love that I get the chance to ask questions and keep learning. Here are a few big takeaways.” ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌ ͏ ‌

⚡️ ‘Skeleton Crew’ Answers Its Biggest Mystery

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Plus: There's no good way to adapt any more Neil Gaiman stories. Inverse Daily The twist in this Star Wars show was, that there was no twist. Lucasfilm TV Shows 'Skeleton Crew' Finally

I Tried All The New Eye-Shadow Sticks

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

And a couple classics. The Strategist Beauty Brief January 15, 2025 Every product is independently selected by editors. If you buy something through our links, New York may earn an affiliate commission

How To Stop Worrying And Learn To Love Lynn's National IQ Estimates

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

... ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏

☕ Olympic recycling

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Reusing wi-fi equipment from the Paris games. January 15, 2025 View Online | Sign Up Tech Brew It's Wednesday. After the medals are awarded and the athletes go home, what happens to all the stuff

Ozempic has entered the chat

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Plus: Hegseth's hearing, a huge religious rite, and confidence. January 15, 2025 View in browser Jolie Myers is the managing editor of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Her work often focuses on

How a major bank cheated its customers out of $2 billion, according to a new federal lawsuit

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

An explosive new lawsuit filed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) alleges that Capital One bank cheated its customers out of $2 billion. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏