The Lincoln Project

{{uspolitics}}
'''The Lincoln Project''' is a centre-right political action group that targets [[Trumpism]] and its supporters while supporting moderate [[Republican Party|Republican]] policies and politicians.<ref group=note>Though keep in mind they defined this in comparison to the borderline [[fascist]] Trump administration, which still puts them pretty far to the right compared to Europe.</ref>

==Formation==
The Lincoln Project was founded in 2019, with the explicit purpose of defeating [[Donald J. Trump]] in the [[2020 U.S. presidential election]].<ref>[https://lincolnproject.us/news/the-urgency-of-defeating-trump-falls-to-all-of-us/ "WE ARE REPUBLICANS, AND WE WANT TRUMP DEFEATED"] By George T. Conway III, Steve Schmidt, John Weaver, and Rick Wilson</ref> For this purpose, they created several provocative campaign videos, either explicitly supporting [[Joe Biden]] or targeting specific [[GOP]] candidates in several swing-states. They also created several [[ad]]s whose only purpose was to infuriate Trump, including videos mocking Trump's gait after addressing West Point graduates in 2020,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVy_LWM091g&feature=youtu.be</ref> and mocking Trump's 'triumphant' return to the White House after being treated for [[Covid-19]].<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tZVnbDq9B4</ref> Though they were primarily distributed via social media, ads were often placed in [[Washington, D.C.]] TV market (where there aren't really any swing voters), but Trump, watching TV basically all day, definitely saw them.<ref>https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/trump-s-twitter-rant-against-lincoln-project-s-mourning-america-ncna1200881</ref>

===Founding members===
TLP's co-founders include various former-GOP political operatives including, but not limited to:
*{{wpl|Jennifer Horn}} — Former chair of the [[New Hampshire]] GOP, who twice ran for Congress
*{{wpl|Rick Wilson (political consultant)|Rick Wilson}} — Worked for [[George H.W. Bush]]'s presidential campaign, as well as [[Rudy Giuliani]]'s mayoral campaign and short-lived 2008 presidential run.<ref group=note>Before he went completely insane, that is…</ref>{{cn}}
*{{wpl|George Conway}} — [[Conservative]] attorney; is best known for representing {{wpl|Paula Jones}} in her lawsuit against [[Bill Clinton]], and is closely associated with [[Ann Coulter]] and [[Matt Drudge]].<ref group=note>Also married to {{wpl|Kellyanne Conway||,}} who was employed as a Trump administration spokesperson, notorious for personally coining the term "[[lie|Alternative facts]]".</ref>
*{{wpl|Steve Schmidt}} — Campaign advisor to [[George W. Bush]], [[John McCain]], and [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]].
*{{wpl|John Weaver (political consultant)|John Weaver}} — Political consultant to McCain and [[John Kasich]]. He has been alleged to be a [[Russia]]n asset<ref>https://www.thedailybeast.com/john-weaver-bashed-the-kremlin-then-he-got-a-dollar350000-lobbying-deal</ref> and sexual predator.<ref>https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/31/us/politics/john-weaver-lincoln-project-harassment.html</ref>
*Reed Galen<ref>https://igs.berkeley.edu/people/reed-galen</ref> — Deputy campaign manager for McCain and Schwarzenegger; also served in G. W. Bush's administration.
*Ron Steslow<ref>[https://ronsteslow.com/ Ron Steslow's personal site]</ref> — Founder of the Citizen Super PAC.<ref>[https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/C00569517/summary/2016 "Citizen SuperPAC PAC Profile"]</ref>
*Mike Madrid<ref>https://dastardlycleverness.com/mike-madrid/</ref> — Former press secretary for the [[California]] Assembly's Republican leader, and former political director for the California Republican Party.

==Influence==
The videos they produced ranged from standard political advocacy,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2jchEW-aC4</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFdXzUsrhyo</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8z_t_bw4CA0</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCEUUnb3Dsk</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpWKRFRizqg</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mzcW0zUSKg</ref> to standard political [[fearmongering]],<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRHznA9VRjY</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmTTX6NdHjE</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Gms_2BMIDc</ref> to the aforementioned goofy bullshit.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5aM6W2HR_E</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0X8hSUfVBpE</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snOebCXlMbU</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcXiGPdnFz0</ref> Frequently, they got free marketing, making the rounds on traditional media, as well as frequent media appearances by Wilson, Schmidt, and Conway. There is some debate onto exactly how much influence their advocacy actually had.<ref>https://wallyboston.com/the-lincoln-project-and-its-effect-on-the-recent-election/</ref> There is certainly an argument that their targeted advertising in [[Pennsylvania]], [[Wisconsin]], [[Michigan]], [[Florida]], [[Ohio]], and [[Arizona]] didn't hurt Biden's effort. The efforts of [https://fairfight.com Fair Fight] helmed by {{wpl|Stacey Abrams}} in [[Georgia]], [https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/11/12/arizona-may-go-biden-that-took-20-years-grassroots-organizing/ BIPOC grassroots organizers] in Arizona and aggressive efforts to expand mail-in ballots for Michigan and Pennsylvania likely played a larger role.

==Mission Accomplished==
'''Spoiler Alert:''' Trump lost, and despite his best efforts, Biden was sworn in as the 46<sup>th</sup> President of the United States on January 20<sup>th</sup>, 2021. Following the election, the Lincoln Project announced that they would be shifting gears to target Trump [[Apologetics|apologists]] still in [[Congress]]. They also clearly hope to use their considerable media presence to attempt to influence GOP politics, as it navigates a post-Trump world.

==January 6<sup>th</sup>==
Following the [[2021 U.S. Capitol riot]] and subsequent Impeachment, the Lincoln Project has focused specifically on those representatives whom they believe to be culpable,<ref>[https://lincolnproject.us/news/jim-crow-caucus/ "LINCOLN PROJECT TAKES AIM AT THE JIM CROW CAUCUS"]</ref> primarily the junior Senators from [[Missouri]] and [[Texas]], [[Josh Hawley]] and [[Ted Cruz]].<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-eLOXLyezw</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRbbzpw7CNo</ref> They also have taken aim at several high-profile Republicans in the House; {{wpl|Elise Stefinak}} (R-NY),<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ehwpTrAduA</ref> House Minority Leader [[Kevin McCarthy]] (R-CA),<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJ6LlDr8q2U</ref> and [[Marjorie Taylor Greene]](
[[QAnon|Q]]
R-GA).<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmPNXVz7ntY</ref> Additionally, they have produced videos supporting conviction for Trump in his second impeachment trial.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sF-gNUdQxX4</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLJdjViD6UE</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kXc-iFvzOs</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1_hPZ6zXJE</ref> Apparently, they plan to advertise in the southeast [[Florida]] market for [http://www.maralagoclub.com/ some reason].

==The grift is real==
Because they took up the cause of attacking Trump, they earned a fair amount of cred from some high-profile celebrities, who filled their coffers. By registering as a 501(c)(3), it allowed them to raise unlimited funds with which to spend as they saw fit.<ref>https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/the-lincoln-project/C00725820/summary/2020 The Lincoln Project PAC Profile, Open Secrets</ref><ref>https://jacobin.com/2020/11/the-lincoln-project-donald-trump-gop-2020-elections</ref> In fiscal year 2020, they raised nearly $90 million. However only a third of those funds went toward paid advertisements.<ref name="apnews">[https://apnews.com/article/john-weaver-lincoln-project-crisis-b14be5f06588b8f1d78125d4141394cb "How a leading anti-Trump group ignored a crisis in its ranks"] by Steve Peoples and Brian Slodysko, AP News, 2021 Feb 12</ref> Much of this money seems to have found its way into the founders' pockets. Firms controlled by Galen and Steslow each were paid over $20 million.<ref name ="open secrets">[https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2020/05/lincoln-project-capitalizes-on-trump-rage/ "Lincoln Project capitalizes on Trump’s rage as its spending comes under scrutiny"] By Karl Evers-Hillstrom, Open Secrets, 2020 May 7</ref> Schmidt was directly paid $1.5 million, which he quickly returned.<ref name="apnews"/> In fairness, the quality of their production is exceptionally good, and legally they can do whatever the hell they want with the money. But they certainly aren't noble patriots sacrificing everything (they're not poor, either; they probably could have paid for all this themselves).

Weaver specifically seems to have benefited significantly. After decades of failure to pay [[taxes]], defaulting on loans, and threats of litigation from creditors, he made payments of more than $300,000 to the [[IRS]] and back rent. Which makes the next bit all the more disgusting.<ref name="apnews"/>

==Grooming allegations==
In early January 2021, allegations arose that Weaver was {{wpl|Child grooming|grooming}} several young men over the last several previous years, including propositioning sex as part of a job offer.<ref>[https://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/the-lincoln-projects-predator/ "The Lincoln Project’s Predator"] by Ryan Girdusky, American Conservative, 2021 January 11</ref><ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/31/us/politics/john-weaver-lincoln-project-harassment.html "21 Men Accuse Lincoln Project Co-Founder of Online Harassment"] by Maggie Astor and Danny Hakim, New York Times, 2021 Jan 31</ref> At the time the allegations were revealed, Weaver was not involved with the Lincoln Project, on a "medical leave of absence" since August. The Lincoln Project issued a statement condemning Mr. Weaver and calling him "a predator, a liar and an abuser" shortly after the revelation.<ref name="apnews"/> However, there are records which show that Steslow knew about the allegations since June, and that he had discussed removing Weaver with Galen and corporate counsel.<ref>[https://www.washingtonblade.com/2021/02/09/lincoln-projects-avowed-ignorance-of-weaver-texts-undercut-by-leaked-communications/ "Lincoln Project’s avowed ignorance of Weaver texts undercut by leaked communications"] by Chris Johnson, Washington Blade, 2021 Feb 09</ref> Weaver took full responsibility for his actions, apologizing to "the men I made uncomfortable", and stating that his [[closet|closeted]] [[homosexuality]] "led to this agonizing place".<ref>Lachlan Markay, [https://www.axios.com/john-weaver-lincoln-project-co-founder-acknowledges-inappropriate-messages-32de0ee5-bf9d-4574-945c-bc0ef4777b81.html John Weaver, Lincoln Project co-founder, acknowledges “inappropriate” messages], Axios, 15 January 2021.</ref>

Horn found this response insufficient, claiming that some in the group had known about the accusations long before the allegations were made public. Horn resigned from The Lincoln Project after, according to Horn, the group rejected a demand in her contract negotiation to "properly address the Weaver issue publicly and issue a call to action to take on sexual harassment and power imbalance/exploitation issues."<ref>[https://www.huffpost.com/entry/jennifer-horn-lincoln-project-sexual-harassment-allegations-john-weaver_n_6025f30ac5b6d667582bbb48 "Jennifer Horn, Lincoln Project Co-Founder, Says Group Knew Of Sexual Harassment Allegations"] by Dominique Mosbergen, Huffington Post, 2021 February 11</ref> The Lincoln Project dug themselves into a further hole by posting a [[Twitter]] message containing private conversations between Horn and journalist Amanda Becker on February 11, 2021.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/02/12/lincoln-project-weaver-misconduct-investigation/ "Lincoln Project tweeted a co-founder’s private messages after leaders promised to probe sexual harassment claims"] by Andrea Salcedo, Washington Post, 2021 February 12</ref>

All of this is a return to form for political activists who for decades supported candidates who courted [[racists]], [[racialism|racialists]], [[homophobes]], [[misogynists]], and [[Libertarian]] [[woo]]meisters. The response has been particularly terrible from Wilson and Schmidt, who seemed to have at least gained some level of awareness about their previous tactics, but a zebra can't change its stripes any more than a Republican can blame everyone but themselves.

All this chaos has been delicious for conservatives who felt that the Lincoln Project betrayed the GOP and for [[liberals]] who had raised ethical and moral concerns.

==External links==
*[https://lincolnproject.us/ Official site]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lincoln Project}}
[[Category:Conservative deceit]]
[[Category:Political strategery]]
[[Category:Right-wing troll campaigns]]
[[Category:Rightists who turned left with age]]

Categories: Conservative deceit, Political strategery, Right-wing troll campaigns, Rightists who turned left with age