House testimony covers Southern Poverty Law Center practices

The House Judiciary Committee questioned more witnesses on Tuesday about alleged financial crimes by the Southern Poverty Law Center. The Department of Justice indicted the historic civil rights law center in April on charges of fraud and misusing donor funds. Initial testimony began over two weeks ago, with Tuesday marking the second half of the Republican-led committee’s investigation into the center, known as the SPLC.

The Southern Poverty Law Center has moved for the charges to be dismissed on the basis that they were brought not because of any criminal activity, but as retaliation for its criticisms of the Trump administration.

Committee Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, convened the session by reviewing the accusation of fraud against SPLC. The group that claimed to fight racism appeared to be funding it with $4 million in donations, Jordan alleged. Records showed the SPLC made $300,000 to an organizer of the 2017 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, and another $350,000 to the Aryan Nation’s motorcycle club leader, Jordan noted. The SPLC manufactured hate so that it could be viewed as a leading authority on identifying hate groups, he continued.

Jordan took issue with SPLC labeling Moms for Liberty, Turning Point USA, and Alliance Defending Freedom as hate groups. Jordan also took issue with the close ties between the Biden administration and the SPLC. This concerning relationship resulted in the now-infamous FBI memo telling employees that being a pro-life Catholic qualified as extremism, Jordan said.

Ranking Member Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., pushed back on Jordan’s comments during his opening remarks. Raskin characterized the SPLC as a leading civil rights group that has been repeatedly targeted by white supremacist violence. The center stands as an enduring beacon of hope and protection for anyone and everyone, naturally prompting the Trump administration’s ire, he said. Raskin also clarified that the alleged fraud payments were made to informants inside extremist groups for intelligence purposes.

Who testified? Lawmakers heard from SPLC’s Interim President and CEO Bryan Fair, who insisted that the center faced false allegations, namely due to misinformation about their confidential informant program. The SPLC has never lost its guiding principles of fighting for a fair and just society for every person, he said. Fair opened by noting that he could not provide answers to every question due to ongoing litigation.

Dr. Alveda King, American Dream Chairwoman at the America First Policy Institute and the niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., testified about her faith and belief in the inherent value of human life. Americans with traditional Christian values should not be flagged as threats, she said. King also repeatedly took issue with what she described as a SPLC slush fund for transgender procedures on children, and specifically called for people to recognize the value of human life from the womb to the tomb. King said she was inaccurately labeled by the SPLC in the past. She has only advocated for peace and love, to stop mutilating children and killing unborn babies, she said.

Special counsel to the president at Alliance Defending Freedom, Ryan Bangert, testified that the SPLC drifted from its original purpose. The group is now painting mainstream conservative groups as hate groups even though they reject racism and recognize the Biblical values of life, he said. After SPLC named ADF a hate group, the religious nonprofit was blackballed, losing nonprofit discounts and web hosting space, Bangert recalled. SPLC functioned as a political hit group and an unaccountable private gatekeeper to services, he added.