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Turning Point USA

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Turning Point USA is a right-wing youth and student group, with a mission to "identify, educate, train, and organize students to promote the principles of freedom, free markets, and limited government."[1] The group funnels money to right-wing candidates for student government at universities across the country and has faced numerous allegations of racial discrimination. Turning Point USA is funded by a variety of right-wing mega-donors with a history of flooding the political process with money, including the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, the Ed Uihlein Family Foundation, Foster Friess, Mike Leven and various Koch brothers-affiliated groups, such as the Foundation for Economic Education, DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund.

The group was founded by right-wing activist Charlie Kirk in 2012. It claims to be the "largest and fastest growing youth organization in America" with "a presence on over 1,300 college campuses and high schools across the country."[1]

Activities include a National Field Program, which launches and supports university and high school chapters and maintains a database of student members in order to "Effectively push back against intolerance and bias against conservatives in higher education. Turning Point USA also conducts extensive marketing and branding activities, such as creating "sound bites like, “Big Government Sucks” and the incorporation of pop culture...to reach new demographics and continuously expand the base." The group also writes original brochures and studies with titles such as "5 Reasons Censorship Should Offend You" and "If The Founders Had Twitter," and hosts conferences and events to promote free-market ideology.[1]

Contents

News and Controversies

Allegation of Racial Bias

Jane Mayer reported obtaining screenshots of messages sent by Crystal Clanton, who served until the summer of 2016 as Turning Point USA's National Field Director. One message sent to another Turning Point employee stated, “i hate black people. Like f*** them all . . . I hate blacks. End of story.”[2] Clanton denied any knowledge of the text message. Founder Charlie Kirk had previously praised Clanton, proclaiming her as “the best hire we ever could have made” and called her “integral to the success of Turning Point while effectively serving as its chief operating officer.”[2]

Gabrielle Fequiere, a former field director claimed she was the only African-America employee of Turning Point USA at the time. She recalls of her experience working with the group, “in looking back, I think it was racist.” She also mentioned a tendency for minority staff to be excluded from workplace events and official functions.[2]

Professor Watchlist

Turning Point USA maintains Professor Watchlist, a directory of university professors across America who have been flagged by the right-wing group for supposedly promoting liberal biased viewpoints. Students are invited to "submit a tip" about professors they feel should be included in the list. Professor Watchlist currently contains several hundred professor entries with descriptions of their "liberal" statements and views.[3]

The site has drawn intense criticism, even from fellow right-wing advocates and donors in the Koch network. Sarah Ruger, the director of Free Speech Initiatives for the Charles Koch Institute said, “It’s truly McCarthyism 2.0. It’s a platform that exists to put the names and the profiles of self-identified progressive professors out there and encourages conservative students to intimidate them. … If there’s anything political tribes can agree on today, it’s that they all want to censor someone. They just disagree on who should be silenced. That’s entirely antithetical to who we are."[4]

Dark Money for Right-Wing Student Government Candidates

A report by the Chronicle of Higher Education detailed what it called Turning Point USA's “stealth plan for political influence.”[2] The report alleges that the organization funneled money to certain candidates for student government in violation of the administrative rules of various schools across the country.

The report was in line with Turning Point USA's "Campus Victory Project", which sought to “commandeer the top office of Student Body President at each of the most recognizable and influential American Universities.” Once Turning Point USA allies controlled student government, the group would influence the student office holders to fulfill a political agenda. That agenda would include defunding progressive student organizations, removing bans on campus hate speech, and blocking a school from adopting a Boycott, Divest and Sanctions movement against Israel.[2]

Illegal Support for Political Campaigns

According to Jane Mayer of the New Yorker, "the group may have skirted campaign-finance laws that bar charitable organizations from participating in political activity." Former employees of Turning Point USA reported being directed to work with political operatives, such as Virginia Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, in support of Republican political candidates.[2] For example, Thomas instructed Turning Point USA staff to distribute placards for Ted Cruz during the Wisconsin primary. E-mails obtained by the New Yorker also demonstrated that a Ted Cruz Super PAC asked Kirk to send “as many kids as possible” to canvass in South Carolina in support of the presidential candidate. Other former employees claim that lists of student supporters were passed to the Marco Rubio presidential campaign.

Commenting on the allegations against Turning Point USA's involvement supporting political candidates, former FEC Commissioner Trevor Potter stated, "If what Turning Point USA was doing was helping Republicans on campus and feeding them to campaigns, that’s a political operation, and it sounds as if it crosses the line."[2]

Ties to the Fossil Fuel Industry

Charlie Kirk has engaged in fundraising at closed-door meetings of the National Mining Association and the Independent Petroleum Association of America. Turning Point USA has also written numerous publications and organized student activities in support of the fossil fuel industry. One such publication was titled, "10 Ways Fossil Fuels Improve Our Daily Lives."[2]

Ties to the Trump Family

Charlie Kirk established ties to the Trump Family while speaking at the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Kirk claims that he "hit it off" with Donald Trump Jr. at the convention. He then served as a youth outreach specialist for the Trump campaign. After the election of President Trump in November 2016, both Donald Trump, Jr. and Lara Trump, the wife of Don, Jr.,’s brother Eric have become involved in Turning Point USA activities. They have spoken at rallies and appeared in promotional materials.[2]

In November 18, President Trump retweeted a statement from Charlie Kirk in which he implied that Hillary Clinton stated all black people look alike when making a joke during an interview. The tweet read, "WOW - if a conservative said this they would be boycotted and not allowed back in the public arena — Hillary said “all black people look the same” - incredibly racist thing to say Hillary! RT!"[5]

Involvement with Kanye West

In October 2018, musician Kanye West made headlines when he called African slavery in America a choice, called to abolish the 13th Amendment and publically praised Donald Trump. At the same time, West developed a close relationship with Turning Point USA spokeswoman Candice Owens. Owens was responsible for developing a campaign titled "Blexit" which called for African-Americans to leave the Democractic Party. Kanye West reportedly created a logo for the Blexit campaign. Regarding West's involvement, Owens stated, "Blexit is a renaissance and I am blessed to say that this logo, these colors, were created by my dear friend and fellow superhero Kanye West.”[6]

But after being met with widespread criticism, including derision and mockery on television comedy programs, West distanced himself from politics and Turning Point USA. On October 31, 2018, West tweeted that he did not design the Blexit logo and did not want further involvement with the campaign. Numerous right-wing activists and pundits, such as Lucian Wintrich and Tomi Lahren, blamed Owens and Turning Point USA for driving West away from supporting President Trump, depriving the far right of their most high-profile celebrity backer.[7]

Attacks on Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Appearing on "Fox & Friends," Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk railed against the newly elected New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Kirk criticized the ideology of democratic socialism which Ocasio-Cortez promotes. He stated, "This is what is so scary is that Ocasio-Cortez pretends to be the fighter for the people. Yet she represents an ideology that has destroyed cultures and destroyed civilizations and destroyed countries over the last 100 years. Of course, we're talking about democratic socialism, or just socialism in general, and Pelosi is bought and paid for by a lot of special interests. But Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez fights for ideology that's even more harmful than those special interests."[8]

Comparison of Hillary Clinton to Herpes

On November 22, 2018, Turning Point USA's Director of Spanish Engagement, Anna Paulina, appeared on Fox News and made inappropriate comments about former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. During a conversation with Fox News host Rick Leventhal and Democratic strategist Doug Schoen, Leventhal stated, “I am amazed that with everything going on in the world, we still have Hillary Clinton in the headlines.” At that point, Paulina interjected, "She won’t go away. She’s like herpes." At that point, Leventhal cut off the conversation, stating "Okay, that’s news that we are breaking here” and called Paulina's language “not appropriate."[9]

Paulina later apologized on Twitter but continued her attack on Clinton, stating "Yesterday on Fox I was placed on the wrong segment & in the confusion made a brash and unprofessional joke. To Fox and those watching, I am deeply sorry. My feeling simply is that Big Government creates dynasties like the Clintons that won’t go away & Americans are over it."[9]

Funding & Sponsors

Turning Point USA's funders have included:

Turning Point USA has worked with many organizations as event sponsors. According to Kirk, such sponsors usually contribute $5,000 to $10,000 per event. Event sponsors have included:

Core Financials

2015[11]
Total Revenue: $4,320,698
Total Expenditures: $3,874,250
Net Assets: $1,368,351

2014[12]
Total Revenue: $2,052,349
Total Expenditures: $1,358,254
Net Assets: $921,903

2013[13]
Total Revenue: $443,859
Total Expenditures: $242,999
Net Assets: $227,808

2012[14]
Total Revenue: $78,809
Total Expenditures: $51,942
Net Assets: $26,948

Personnel

Contact Information

Turning Point USA NFP
217 1/2 East Illinois Street
Lemont, Illinois 60439
Phone: (630)-803-7076
Website: https://www.tpusa.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/turningpointusa
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TPUSA

Articles and Resources

External Resources

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Turning Point USA, About Turning Point USA, accessed November 27, 2018.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 Jane Mayer, A Conservative Non-Profit that Seeks to Transform College Campuses Faces Allegations of Racial Bias and Illegal Campaign Activity, New Yorker, December 21, 2017.
  3. ↑ Professor Watchlist, Home, accessed December 9, 2018.
  4. ↑ ”James Hohmann, The Daily 202: Koch network warns of ‘McCarthyism 2.0’ in conservative efforts to harass professors, Washington Post, August 1, 2018.
  5. ↑ Trump Retweets Image of His Political Opponents Behind Bars, Including His Own Deputy Attorney General, Haaretz, November 29, 2018.
  6. ↑ Elahe Izadi and Travis M. Andrews, Kanye West says he’s distancing himself from politics: 'I’ve been used to spread messages I don’t believe in’, Washington Post, October 30, 2018.
  7. ↑ Will Sommer, Pro-Trump Activists Blame Charlie Kirk and Candace Owens for Losing Kanye West, The Daily Beast, October 31, 2018.
  8. ↑ Joe Concha, Turning Point's Kirk: Ocasio-Cortez represents ideology that's 'destroyed civilizations', The Hill, September 22, 2018.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Scott Morefield, Turning Point USA Guest Booted Off Fox News Segment Apologizes for Comparing Hillary to Herpes, The Daily Caller, November 23, 2018.
  10. ↑ 10.00 10.01 10.02 10.03 10.04 10.05 10.06 10.07 10.08 10.09 10.10 10.11 10.12 10.13 10.14 10.15 10.16 10.17 10.18 10.19 10.20 10.21 10.22 10.23 10.24 10.25 10.26 10.27 Alec Kotch, Who Funds Conservative Campus Group Turning Point USA? Donors Revealed, International Business Times, November 28, 2017.
  11. ↑ Turning Point USA 2015 990 Form, accessed December 3, 2018.
  12. ↑ Turning Point USA 2014 990 Form, accessed December 3, 2018.
  13. ↑ Turning Point USA 2013 990 Form, accessed December 3, 2018.
  14. ↑ Turning Point USA 2012 990 Form, accessed December 3, 2018.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Turning Point USA 2016 IRS 990 Form, accessed November 30, 2018.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Turning Point USA, Staff Directory: TPUSA Headquarters, accessed November 30, 2018.
  17. ↑ Turning Point USA, Advisory Council, accessed November 30, 2018.
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