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Center to Protect Patient Rights
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This article is part of the Center for Media & Democracy's spotlight on front groups and corporate spin. |
The Center to Protect Patients' Rights (CPPR) is a secretive nonprofit group organized under Section 501(c)(4) of the tax code that funneled nearly $55 million to a variety of other front groups that attacked Democrats in the 2010 elections. [1] In 2012, the group's role as a part of an $11 million campaign money laundering shell game was revealed after the California Fair Practices Commission filed suit against one of its donors and recipients, Americans for Responsible Leadership.[2]
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Koch Ties
According to CPPR's 2009 and 2010 tax filings, the group is run by Sean Noble, who Politico has described as a "Koch operative." [3] Noble was part of a group of GOP operatives who met regularly with Karl Rove’s American Crossroads to target 120 House of Representatives races in 2010. [3] Nobel was hired by the Kochs to coordinate with other conservative Super PACs to target Democratic representatives in 2010. [4] Other individuals associated with the group also have Koch ties. Consultant Cheryl Hillen has raised at least $2.6 million for the organization and was formerly director of fundraising for the Koch Brothers-backed Citizens for a Sound Economy (which later split into Americans for Prosperity and Freedomworks). One of CPPR's original directors, Heather Higgins, is chairwoman of the Independent Women's Forum, a climate change denialist group that has received Koch money and was previously run by a Koch lobbyist.[5]
2012
In 2012, CPPR came under scrutiny during an investigation of a "campaign money laundering"[2] shell game. The Arizona-based 501(c)(4) Americans for Responsible Leadership (ARL) made an $11 million donation to the Small Business Action Committee PAC in California, which spent those funds to oppose Proposition 30 (which would raise taxes) and Proposition 32 (which would prohibit labor unions from raising money for political activities through employees' voluntary payroll deductions).[6] California's elections board did not buy ARL's claim that its donors had given $11 million for reasons other than funding ads to influence these ballot issues and demanded it reveal its funders.[7] ARL spent $11 million on ballot initiatives through a donation of that sum to the Small Business Action Committee PAC (SBAC) in October 2012.[8]
After initial resistance, ARL revealed that it had received $11 million in contributions for the purpose of funding ballot initiatives from another dark money nonprofit, Americans for Job Security(AJS), a group that received its funding from none other than the CPPR. According to the California Fair Political Practices Commission, "Under California law, the failure to disclose this initially was campaign money laundering."[2]The group not only gets funding from CPPR, but is housed in the same offices as Karl Rove's American Crossroads SuperPAC.[9]
While in 2010, CPPR gave $4.8 million to AJS, a sum that was used on anti-Democrat attack ads, in 2012, AJS gave $11 million to CPPR, which gave the money to ARL. ARL then passed the $11 million to the SBAC, indicating that some of the money flow between the organizations has been reversed.[9] The money seems to have moved from one group to another in the span of a few days.[8]
2011
According to CPPR's tax filings for 2011, the organization gave nearly $15 million away to various conservative groups which heavily aired ads in the 2012 election cycle. The organization raised $25.3 million in 2011 and spent $23.2 million. [10] This is down from 2010, but that is likely due to the fact that 2011 was not an election year.
The American Future Fund one of the biggest recipients of grants from the Center to Protect Patient Rights, in recent years, received $1.1 million in 2011. AFF themselves spent $25 million on the 2012 elections, $11 million of which would go towards supporting Mitt Romney or opposing Barack Obama.
The right-wing groups receiving funding in 2011 include:
- Free Enterprise America received $3.6 million
- The 60 Plus Association received $2.4 million
- The Coalition to Protect Patient Rights received $1.6 million
- Concerned Women for America received $1.5 million
- Americans for Responsible Leadership received $902,000
- Americans for Job Security received $17,000
- American Commitment received $1.6 million
Additionally, two consulting firms run by Noble, DC London and Noble & Associates, were paid a total of $3.1 million by CPPR.
2010
In 2010, the CPPR made a round of massive donations to some of the most prominent right-wing profit political groups, most of which oppose the Affordable Care Act, higher taxes on the wealthy, or abortion. As a 501(c)4 nonprofit organization, the CPPR does not have to disclose its donors, the source of this money. However, it must disclose its donations. Most of the recipients of CPPR's largesse are also nonprofits that do not disclose their donors, so CPPR's contributions had not been previously reported.[1]
The group gave out more than $44 million in grants in 2010. Including $11.7 to the American Future Fund This exceeds the $10 million the organization originally reported to Federal Election Committee
The table below lists every organization given money by CPPR in 2010:[11]
- American Future Fund $11,685,000
- 60 Plus Association $8,990,000
- Americans for Limited Government $5,585,000
- Americans for Job Security $4,828,000
- Americans for Tax Reform $4,189,000
- Revere America $2,300,000
- Americans for Prosperity $1,924,000
- US Health Freedom Coalition $1,430,000
- Susan B Anthony $1,025,000
- Club for Growth $690,000
- Americans United for Life Action $559,000
- The Institute for Liberty $457,000
- Noble & Associates $340,000
- American Energy Alliance $250,000
- Coalition to Protect Patient Rights $205,000
- Freedom Vote $200,000
- Protect Your Vote $100,000
- Hispanic Leadership Fund $47,000
- Americans United for Life $45,000
- Tea Party Patriots $30,000
- Common Sense Issues Coalition $25,000
- Common Sense Issues $10,000
- Concerned Women 4 America $4,500
2009
- American Future Fund $1.3 million
- 60 Plus Association $2.6 million
- Coalition to Protect Patient Rights $1.9 million
Ties to the Coalition to Protect Patient Rights?
The Center to Protect Patient Rights appears to have ties to the similarly-named Coalition to Protect Patient's rights, whose records are stored at the same Glendale, Ariz., address by a woman who describes herself as an employee of DCI Group, a lobbying firm practiced in manufacturing "grassroots" campaigns for the tobacco industry and others that has handled public relations for the Coalition. But the Coalition's spokesman, physician and lawyer, Donald Palmisano, told OpenSecrets Blog in 2011 he'd never heard of CPPR, as did a publicist with DCI Group. [12]
The Coalition received nearly $1.6 million from CPPR in 2011, as well as $1.9 million in 2009 and $205,000 in 2010.
"According to its most recent Form 990, obtained by OpenSecrets Blog, the Coalition paid Mentzer Media $1.4 million in 2011 for "media strategy and ad buy." That expenditure along accounted for nearly all of the Coaltion's spending in 2011, and all of the money it received from CPPR. Though it has never reported any spending on federal candidates to the Federal Election Commission, the Coalition was listed as one of the groups mounting an attack against Ohio Democratic Senate candidate Sherrod Brown, according to the Huffington Post; Brown won his race." [1]
Articles and resources
Related SourceWatch articles
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Vivica Novak and Robert Macguire: Mystery Health Care Group Funneled Millions to Conservative Nonprofits, May 18th, 2012
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Americans for Responsible Leadership Admits Campaign Money Laundering, Discloses $11 Million Donor", "California Fair Political Practices Commission", November 5, 2012.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Ken Vogel, Kochs brothers' plan for 2012: raise $88 million, Politico, Feb. 11, 2011.
- ↑ Lee Fang: Koch Operative Steered $55 Million To Front Groups Airing Ads Against Democrats; Ads Assailed Candidates Over Abortion, 9/11, Medicare, Republic Report, May 19th, 2012
- ↑ Brendan Fischer, Americans for Job Security Targets WI GOP Senate Race, From the Shadows, PRwatch, Aug. 10, 2012.
- ↑ Andy Kroll, "California's Biggest 'Campaign Money Laundering' Scheme, Revealed- Kinda", "Mother Jones", November 5, 2012
- ↑ Ian Lovett, "California: Lawsuit Seeks Name of Political Donors", October 25, 2012.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Chris Megerian and Patrick McGreevy "Disclosure by Arizona nonprofit shows ties to Koch brothers", LA Times Blog, November 5th, 2012.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Brendan Fischer, "California Elections Board Peels Back Layer of Dark Money Onion, Finds More Onion", "PR Watch", November 6, 2012.
- ↑ Novak, Viveca. Center to Protect Patient Rights Gave Millions in 2011 to Outside Spenders in Election Accessed 12/17/2012.
- ↑ Vivica Novak and Robert Macguire: Mystery Health Care Group Funneled Millions to Conservative Causes, Opensecrets.org, Accessed Monday October 1st, 2012
- ↑ Novak, Viveca. Center to Protect Patient Rights Gave Millions in 2011 to Outside Spenders in Election Accessed 12/17/2012.
