Following up on this post, GAO wondered whether the Bloomberg Family Foundation was also financing the Climate Superfund gambit. Records do show that the Foundation pours enormous sums into groups that are involved at some level with this latest stab at imposing punitive energy taxes. What most struck GAO, however, was just how furiously Bloomberg’s group charged back into the business of placing privately hired activists in government, after going quiet when the initial millions to staff of progressive AGs to push the “climate” agenda drew scrutiny, some bad press, and even stirred the odd bit of legislative oversight.
That quiet period was 2019. Then in 2020 Bloomberg added $20 million “TO SUPPORT PUBLIC SERVICE FELLOWS,” followed by another $5 million in 2021.
That scheme of course infamously began with $2.8 million each in 2017 and 2018 for AGs, then later, as GAO learned last year, extended to placing “fellows” within public utility commissions (again using New York University, which even sent PUC offices an AG-program contract template saying here, tailor this).
By 2022, the Bloomberg Family Foundation had nearly $31 million, just over five years, to place “fellows” in government.
By 2023 the Bloomberg program had occupied its first PSC office, in Louisiana. A Louisiana state senator asked the then-brand new AG, I hear this is going on…can we do this here? The AG punted. So far Virginia is the only one to slam the door on this, to GAO’s knowledge.
Sure, Wisconsonites said certain functions of government should not be outsourced to deep-pocketed ideologues, but that was over the administration of elections. Private activist funding apparently remains OK for positions responsible for law enforcement and whether the lights stay on.
All to keep in mind when you see, e.g., the Michigan PSC going off the rails to impose this agenda.
In uncovering that group’s activism, GAO learned that the Bloomberg group’s recruiter or go-between is a green energy trade group called Advanced Energy United, an old Tom Steyer “founded and funded” outfit formerly known as Advanced Energy Economy. Elsewhere in Lansing, the Michigan Dept. of Energy (EGLE) began with two US Climate Alliance “fellows” (including the wife of the PSC chair (!)), then told the Bloomberg group, we’d trade it all for a little more!
After first being recruited by Bloomberg’s outfit to take on a “climate” activist to help with litigation, the state’s entire government is now larded up with privately paid climate activists, from executive agencies to implement Gov. Whitmer’s climate EO (running the money through the University of Michigan; which was running but not hiding from FOIA), to the PSC. Numerous funders have jumped in, including a new entrant called “Invest in our Future” that, from the Michigan emails, seems almost to have been created for the purpose.
In the past year, GAO has exposed the spread of this practice. And we are aware of even more consultants being provided by major partisan donors to staff up the governors’ “Resistance” (more later). But wonders: should, say, shooting sports and pro-energy foundations join in the fun? Is this acceptable for everyone in government? Or, are some donors and elected officials more equal than others?