Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick revealed that Trump administration military leaders are ’thinking about’ acquiring equity stakes in major defense contractors including Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and Palantir Technologies. Lutnick justified the proposal by noting Lockheed Martin derives …
Howard LutnickTrumpLockheed MartinBoeingPalantirstate-capitalismconflicts-of-interestdefense-contractorscorruptioncorporate-capture
SpaceX continues to receive substantial federal contracts, totaling $9.5 billion from the Department of Defense in 2025, despite congressional investigations into potential conflicts of interest stemming from Elon Musk’s role in the Trump administration. These contracts include a $5.9 billion …
Donald TrumpElon MuskTrump AdministrationRep. Stephen LynchRep. Gerry Connollygovernment-contractskleptocratic-capturesystematic-corruptioncorporate-capture
President Trump turned the White House South Lawn into a Tesla showroom, personally endorsing the company and Elon Musk amid declining stock values. The event raised substantial ethical concerns about presidential influence and corporate favoritism, with Trump displaying five Tesla vehicles and …
Donald TrumpTrump AdministrationElon MuskTeslakleptocracycorporate-captureexecutive-branchethics-violation
Trump Media & Technology Group awarded $800,000 in stock to Kash Patel on January 28, 2025, just days before his Senate confirmation hearing for FBI director. Patel claimed he would not accept the stock ’to avoid any appearance of conflict’, but the award raised significant ethical …
Donald TrumpTrump AdministrationKash PatelDonald Trump Jr.Linda McMahonmedia-controlcorporate-captureethical-violationstrump-administration
Kash Patel, a prominent Trump administration figure, disclosed holding between $1 million and $5 million in stock from Elite Depot Limited, the parent company of Shein, a Chinese corporation facing bipartisan criticism for alleged use of forced labor. Senator Adam Schiff demanded a comprehensive …
Facebook employees stage an unprecedented virtual walkout protesting Mark Zuckerberg’s refusal to take action against Trump’s post threatening violence against protesters, stating “when the looting starts, the shooting starts.” The employee revolt exposes Facebook’s …
Mark ZuckerbergDonald TrumpFacebookFacebook EmployeesSheryl Sandbergfacebooktrumpincitementemployee-protestcontent-moderation+3 more
Court records and testimony reported by Reuters show AT&T played a pivotal role in launching and sustaining One America News Network (OANN), at times accounting for the vast majority of its revenue via carriage deals. OANN’s founder testified AT&T executives sought a conservative …
AT&TOne America News NetworkRobert Herring Sr.Donald TrumpDirecTVoannattcarriage-feesmedia-economicsconservative-media+1 more
Amazon Web Services wins a $600 million contract to build a private cloud computing infrastructure for the Central Intelligence Agency, marking the CIA’s first major cloud computing contract and establishing Amazon as a central infrastructure provider for the U.S. intelligence community. The …
Amazon Web ServicesCIAIBMsurveillance-infrastructurecloud-computingintelligence-agenciesgovernment-contractscorporate-capture+1 more
Major oil executives testify before Congress denying participation in Cheney’s 2001 Energy Task Force, despite White House documents proving their involvement. In joint hearings by Senate Energy and Commerce committees, CEOs of ExxonMobil, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips categorically denied their …
ExxonMobilChevronConocoPhillipsShell OilBP America+10 moreoil-industrycongressional-testimonyfalse-statementscorporate-capturecheney-task-force+2 more
In Cheney v. United States District Court, the Supreme Court rules 7-2 to protect the secrecy of Vice President Cheney’s Energy Task Force meetings with oil executives. The Court vacates a lower court order requiring disclosure of task force participants and documents, ruling that federal …
Dick CheneySupreme CourtAnthony KennedyAntonin ScaliaRuth Bader Ginsburg+3 moresupreme-courtexecutive-privilegecheneyenergy-task-forcesecrecy+2 more
Halliburton subsidiary KBR was secretly awarded a $7 billion no-bid contract to rebuild Iraq’s oil infrastructure, just days before the invasion began. The contract was awarded by the Army Corps of Engineers without competitive bidding, citing ’emergency circumstances.’ Vice …
Dick CheneyHalliburtonKBRArmy Corps of EngineersBunnatine Greenhouseiraq-warcheneyhalliburtonwar-profiteeringcorruption+4 more
The White House Iraq Group (WHIG) coordinated an unprecedented media manipulation campaign in September 2002 to build public support for the Iraq War. On September 7-8, 2002, top administration officials including Cheney, Rice, and Rumsfeld appeared on all five major Sunday news programs, delivering …
Dick CheneyCondoleezza RiceDonald RumsfeldRichard MyersRichard Armitage+5 morepropagandawhigcorporate-contractor-relationshipspermanent-capture-infrastructurerevolving-door-institutionalization+11 more
CNN executives Walter Isaacson and Eason Jordan met with National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice and White House communications director Karen Hughes to discuss network coverage of the administration’s Iraq policy. Internal CNN memos later revealed that Isaacson instructed staff to …
Walter IsaacsonEason JordanCondoleezza RiceKaren HughesCNNpropagandawhigiraq-warcorporate-contractor-relationshipspermanent-capture-infrastructure+10 more
The Bush administration releases the National Energy Policy, revealing extensive incorporation of Enron’s recommendations. Analysis shows the task force adopted “all or significant portions” of Enron’s recommendations in seven of eight policy areas, with at least 17 policies …
Dick CheneyGeorge W. BushEnronKenneth LayNational Energy Policy Development Group+1 moreenronenergy-policycorporate-captureregulatory-capturecorruption+1 more
The Bush administration releases the National Energy Policy report developed by Cheney’s Energy Task Force, containing 105 recommendations that overwhelmingly favor fossil fuel industries while giving minimal attention to renewable energy. The report recommends opening the Arctic National …
George W. BushDick CheneyNational Energy Policy Development GroupExxonMobilShell Oil+6 moreenergy-policycorporate-captureoil-industrycheney-task-forceregulatory-capture+3 more
On April 17, 2001, Enron CEO Kenneth Lay met with Vice President Dick Cheney and his National Energy Policy Development Group (Energy Task Force), presenting a three-page “wish list” of corporate energy policy recommendations. This meeting was one of at least six interactions between …
Kenneth LayDick CheneyEnronNational Energy Policy Development GroupGeorge W. Bush+1 moreenroncheneyenergy-task-forcecorporate-capturecorruption+2 more
Vice President Dick Cheney initiated secret meetings of the National Energy Policy Development Group, systematically involving Enron executives like Kenneth Lay while excluding environmental groups. Between late January and April 2001, the task force held at least 40 meetings with energy industry …
Dick CheneyKenneth LayGeorge W. Bushenergy-policycorporate-capturecheneyenronregulatory-capture+1 more
Vice President Dick Cheney established the National Energy Policy Development Group conducting secret meetings with oil industry executives while excluding environmental groups. Between late January and April 2001, Cheney’s task force held at least 40 meetings with energy interests versus just …
Dick CheneyExxonMobilShell OilBP AmericaConoco+2 moreenergy-policycorporate-capturecheneyoil-industrysecrecy+1 more
By 2000, ALEC’s membership had grown to include over 2,000 state legislators, representing approximately one-quarter to one-third of all state legislators nationwide (out of approximately 7,400 total state legislators across all 50 states). This level of penetration meant that in most state …
American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)State Legislators (2,000+ members)corporate-capturelegislative-capturealecstate-legislaturespolitical-penetration+1 more
By year’s end, the Asian Financial Crisis results in a fundamental restructuring of Southeast Asian economies. Millions lose jobs, local companies are sold at fire-sale prices to multinational corporations, and national economic policies are effectively rewritten under IMF and World Bank …
International Monetary FundWorld BankMcKinsey & CompanyMultinational CorporationsFederal Reserveasian-financial-crisisstructural-adjustmentimfeconomic-shock-therapycorporate-capture+1 more
In June 1998, multinational financial institutions and international organizations systematically exploited the Asian Financial Crisis through coordinated structural adjustment policies. The IMF and World Bank engineered $100 billion in support packages that effectively restructured Asian economies, …
Goldman SachsCitigroupMcKinsey & CompanyIMFWorld Bank+2 morecorporate-captureeconomic-interventionasset-strippingglobalizationimf-intervention+1 more
McKinsey & Company plays a pivotal strategic role during the 1997-98 Asian Financial Crisis, positioning itself as a key restructuring advisor to multinational corporations and government entities. The firm’s ‘Productivity-led Growth for Korea’ report provides a comprehensive …
McKinsey & CompanyWorld BankIMFMultinational CorporationsSouth Korean Governmentasian-financial-crisiscorporate-capturemckinseystructural-adjustmentimf-intervention+1 more
The IMF mandates comprehensive structural adjustment policies for affected Asian countries, including Indonesia, South Korea, and Thailand. These policies involve privatization, trade liberalization, and financial deregulation, fundamentally transforming local economic structures to benefit …
In 1996, ALEC adopted an internal business plan that explicitly redefined the organization’s purpose in commercial terms, cementing its pay-to-play structure for moving pro-corporate legislation through state legislatures. The plan stated: “ALEC must begin to function more like a …
American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)corporate-capturelegislative-capturealecpay-to-playcorporate-lobbying+1 more
By 1984, ALEC’s corporate membership had grown so rapidly that Executive Director Kathleen Teague reported corporations were overwhelming the organization’s capacity. Major corporations supporting ALEC that year included Edison Electric Institute, Procter & Gamble Co., Mary Kay …
American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)Kathleen TeagueEdison Electric InstituteProcter & GambleEli Lilly+5 morecorporate-capturelegislative-capturealeccorporate-membershiplobbying+1 more
In 1981, ALEC formalized its systematic corporate legislative capture mechanism by establishing seven Cabinet Task Forces that worked directly with the Reagan administration on policy development. President Ronald Reagan formed a national Task Force on Federalism headed by U.S. Senator Paul Laxalt …
American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)Ronald ReaganPaul LaxaltTom StiversJohn Kasichcorporate-capturelegislative-capturealecreagan-administrationstate-level-politics+2 more
ALEC’s executive director actively sought funding from the Tobacco Institute trade group, beginning a lucrative partnership that would provide legislative influence for the tobacco industry. This early corporate capture model would become the template for ALEC’s expansion into multiple …
American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)Tobacco InstituteALEC Executive Directoralectobacco-industrytobacco-institutecorporate-capturelegislative-influence+1 more
ALEC was strategically established in September 1973 by Paul Weyrich, Henry Hyde, and Lou Barnett as a pioneering corporate-legislative coordination mechanism. Developed from the Powell Memorandum’s blueprint, ALEC created a novel ‘model legislation’ approach allowing corporations …
Paul WeyrichHenry HydeLou Barnettcorporate-capturestate-level-politicsconservative-movementlegislative-infrastructurepolicy-engineering