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| coordinates = <!-- {{Coord|LAT|LON|display=inline,title}} -->
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| origins =
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| key_people = [[Peter Schweizer]]<br>[[Steve Bannon]]<br>[[Wynton Hall]]
| key_people = [[Peter Schweizer]]<br />[[Steve Bannon]]<br />[[Wynton Hall]]
| area_served = United States
| area_served = United States
| products =
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| mission = "To investigate and expose [[crony capitalism]], misuse of taxpayer monies, and other governmental corruption or malfeasance."
| method =
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| revenue = $1.7 million (2014)<ref>{{cite web|title=2014 Form 990|url=http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2014/454/681/2014-454681912-0c23a818-9.pdf|publisher=GuideStar|accessdate=22 April 2016}}</ref>
| revenue = $1.7 million (2014)<ref>{{cite web|title=2014 Form 990|url=http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2014/454/681/2014-454681912-0c23a818-9.pdf|publisher=GuideStar|accessdate=22 April 2016}}</ref>
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| website = {{URL|https://g-a-i.org|g-a-i.org}}
| website = {{URL|https://g-a-i.org|g-a-i.org}}
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The '''Government Accountability Institute''' ('''GAI''') is a conservative think tank<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/mercer-bannon/ |title=The Mercers and Stephen Bannon: How a populist power base was funded and built |first=Matea|last= Gold|date=March 17, 2017|access-date=2018-09-30 |language=en|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Rutenberg|first=Jim|date=2020-09-30|title=How Trump's 'Voter Fraud' Lie Is Disenfranchising Americans|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/30/magazine/trump-voter-fraud.html|access-date=2020-09-30|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>, known for spreading lies and false conspiracy theories,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Groch-Begley |first=Hannah |date=2015-04-21 |title=Who Funds Peter Schweizer's Government Accountability Institute? |url=https://www.mediamatters.org/peter-schweizer/who-funds-peter-schweizers-government-accountability-institute |access-date=2023-06-17 |website=Media Matters for America |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Swaine |first=Jon |date=2017-11-07 |title=Offshore cash helped fund Steve Bannon's attacks on Hillary Clinton |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2017/nov/07/steve-bannon-bermuda-robert-mercer |access-date=2023-06-17 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> located in [[Tallahassee, Florida]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Thiessen|first1=Marc|title=Marc Thiessen: Why is Obama skipping more than half of his daily intelligence meetings?|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/why-is-obama-skipping-more-than-half-of-his-daily-intelligence-meetings/2012/09/10/6624afe8-fb49-11e1-b153-218509a954e1_story.html|accessdate=24 July 2014|newspaper=Washington Post|date=September 10, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Nader|first1=Ralph|title=Unstoppable: The Emerging Left-Right Alliance to Dismantle the Corporate State|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5I83BAAAQBAJ&q=%22government+accountability+institute%22&pg=PR9|publisher=Nation Books|date=2014|isbn=9781568584553}}</ref> GAI was founded in 2012<ref>{{cite news|last1=Thiessen|first1=Marc|title=Why is Obama skipping more than half of his daily intelligence meetings?|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/why-is-obama-skipping-more-than-half-of-his-daily-intelligence-meetings/2012/09/10/6624afe8-fb49-11e1-b153-218509a954e1_story.html|accessdate=24 July 2014|newspaper=Washington Post|date=September 10, 2012}}</ref> by [[Peter Schweizer]] and [[Steve Bannon]] with funding from [[Robert Mercer (businessman)|Robert Mercer and family]].<ref>Zuckerman, Gregory, Keach Hagey, Scott Patterson and Rebecca Ballhaus, [https://www.wsj.com/articles/meet-the-mercers-a-quiet-tycoon-and-his-daughter-become-power-brokers-in-trumps-washington-1483904047 "Meet the Mercers: A Quiet Tycoon and His Daughter Become Power Brokers in Trump’s Washington" (subscription)], ''The Wall Street Journal'', January 8, 2017. Retrieved 2017-01-08.</ref> Schweizer serves as the group's president.<ref>{{cite news|title=CNN Report on "Legalized Extortion": Politics, Money and Influence|url=http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2014/01/22/cnn_report_on_legalized_extortion_politics_money_and_influence.html|accessdate=24 July 2014|publisher=Real Clear Politics|date=January 22, 2014}}</ref>
The '''Government Accountability Institute''' ('''GAI''') is a conservative think tank<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/mercer-bannon/ |title=The Mercers and Stephen Bannon: How a populist power base was funded and built |first=Matea|last= Gold|date=March 17, 2017|access-date=2018-09-30 |language=en|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Rutenberg|first=Jim|date=2020-09-30|title=How Trump's 'Voter Fraud' Lie Is Disenfranchising Americans|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/30/magazine/trump-voter-fraud.html|access-date=2020-09-30|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> located in [[Tallahassee, Florida]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Thiessen|first1=Marc|title=Marc Thiessen: Why is Obama skipping more than half of his daily intelligence meetings?|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/why-is-obama-skipping-more-than-half-of-his-daily-intelligence-meetings/2012/09/10/6624afe8-fb49-11e1-b153-218509a954e1_story.html|accessdate=24 July 2014|newspaper=Washington Post|date=September 10, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Nader|first1=Ralph|title=Unstoppable: The Emerging Left-Right Alliance to Dismantle the Corporate State|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5I83BAAAQBAJ&pg=PR9|publisher=Nation Books|date=2014|isbn=9781568584553}}</ref> GAI was founded in 2012<ref>{{cite news|last1=Thiessen|first1=Marc|title=Why is Obama skipping more than half of his daily intelligence meetings?|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/why-is-obama-skipping-more-than-half-of-his-daily-intelligence-meetings/2012/09/10/6624afe8-fb49-11e1-b153-218509a954e1_story.html|accessdate=24 July 2014|newspaper=Washington Post|date=September 10, 2012}}</ref> by [[Peter Schweizer]] and [[Steve Bannon]] with funding from [[Robert Mercer (businessman)|Robert Mercer and family]].<ref>Zuckerman, Gregory, Keach Hagey, Scott Patterson and Rebecca Ballhaus, [https://www.wsj.com/articles/meet-the-mercers-a-quiet-tycoon-and-his-daughter-become-power-brokers-in-trumps-washington-1483904047 "Meet the Mercers: A Quiet Tycoon and His Daughter Become Power Brokers in Trump’s Washington" (subscription)], ''The Wall Street Journal'', January 8, 2017. Retrieved 2017-01-08.</ref> Schweizer serves as the group's president.<ref>{{cite news|title=CNN Report on "Legalized Extortion": Politics, Money and Influence|url=http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2014/01/22/cnn_report_on_legalized_extortion_politics_money_and_influence.html|accessdate=24 July 2014|publisher=Real Clear Politics|date=January 22, 2014}}</ref>


The group's stated goal is to investigate and expose government corruption, misuse of taxpayer money, and [[crony capitalism]]. It is registered as a nonpartisan organization,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Davies |first1=Dave |title=How a Political Hit Job Backfired, and Led to Trump's Impeachment Peril |url=https://www.npr.org/2019/10/09/768556474/how-a-political-hit-job-backfired-and-led-to-trumps-impeachment-peril |website=[[Fresh Air]] |publisher=[[NPR]] |language=en |date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> but largely focuses on the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]].<ref name="Chaffetz-joins">{{cite news |last1=Schwarz |first1=D. Hunter |title=Former Rep. Jason Chaffetz just joined this conservative think tank |url=https://www.deseret.com/indepth/2021/3/16/22332409/former-rep-jason-chaffetz-just-joined-this-conservative-think-tank-steve-bannon-donald-trump-clinton |work=[[Deseret News]] |date=March 16, 2021 |language=en}}</ref>
The group's stated goal is to investigate and expose government corruption, misuse of taxpayer money, and [[crony capitalism]]. It is registered as a nonpartisan organization,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Davies |first1=Dave |title=How a Political Hit Job Backfired, and Led to Trump's Impeachment Peril |url=https://www.npr.org/2019/10/09/768556474/how-a-political-hit-job-backfired-and-led-to-trumps-impeachment-peril |website=[[Fresh Air]] |publisher=[[NPR]] |language=en |date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> but is largely focused on investigations of allegations related to the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]].<ref name="Chaffetz-joins">{{cite news |last1=Schwarz |first1=D. Hunter |title=Former Rep. Jason Chaffetz just joined this conservative think tank |url=https://www.deseret.com/indepth/2021/3/16/22332409/former-rep-jason-chaffetz-just-joined-this-conservative-think-tank-steve-bannon-donald-trump-clinton |work=[[Deseret News]] |date=March 16, 2021 |language=en}}</ref>

The group is known for promoting conspiracy theories about Hillary Clinton in 2016, as well as conspiracy theories about Joe Biden before the 2020 election.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-invention-of-the-conspiracy-theory-on-biden-and-ukraine|title=The Invention of the Conspiracy Theory on Biden and Ukraine|last=Mayer|first=Jane|magazine=The New Yorker|date=2019-10-04|access-date=2019-10-06|language=en|issn=0028-792X}}</ref>


== Overview ==
== Overview ==
The Government Accountability Institute was set up by [[Steve Bannon]] as a tool for transmitting partisan dirt-digging and questionable opposition research to the mainstream media.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Tillman |first=Seth Barrett |date=2022 |title=Disqualification from the Presidency and a Trump Plea Bargain |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4194941 |journal=SSRN Electronic Journal |doi=10.2139/ssrn.4194941 |issn=1556-5068}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Green |first=Joshua |title=Devil's bargain: Steve Bannon, Donald Trump, and the storming of the presidency. |publisher=Penguin |year=2017 |pages=155}}</ref> "He realized that, though mainstream reporters were suspicious of partisan opinion, they were open to damning facts about public figures, regardless of the sourcing. He set out, with Schweizer, to produce material that would generate mainstream coverage, and right-wing outrage", wrote ''The New Yorker's'' [[Jane Mayer]].<ref name="newyorker.com">{{Cite magazine|date=2019-10-04|title=The Invention of the Conspiracy Theory on Biden and Ukraine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-invention-of-the-conspiracy-theory-on-biden-and-ukraine|access-date=2021-11-12|magazine=The New Yorker|language=en-US}}</ref>
According to ''[[Bloomberg Businessweek]]'', it is "a self-styled corruption watchdog group chaired and funded by conservative mega-donor [[Rebekah Mercer]]."<ref name="Korte-3-10-2019">{{cite news |last1=Korte |first1=Gregory |last2=Mider |first2=Zachary |title=Trump's Story of Hunter Biden's Chinese Venture Is Full of Holes |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-03/trump-s-story-of-hunter-biden-s-chinese-venture-is-full-of-holes |accessdate=7 October 2019 |agency=Bloomberg |date=3 October 2019}}</ref>
Members of GAI's board of directors include [[Steve Bannon]], [[Peter Schweizer]], [[Hunter Lewis]], Ron Robinson (president of [[Young America's Foundation]]), and [[Wynton Hall]].<ref>{{cite web|title=About|url=http://www.g-a-i.org/about/|website=Government Accountability Institute|accessdate=17 August 2015}}</ref>


While GAI claims to be "a self-styled corruption watchdog group chaired and funded by conservative mega-donor [[Rebekah Mercer]].",<ref name="Korte-3-10-2019">{{cite news |last1=Korte |first1=Gregory |last2=Mider |first2=Zachary |date=3 October 2019 |title=Trump's Story of Hunter Biden's Chinese Venture Is Full of Holes |agency=Bloomberg |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-03/trump-s-story-of-hunter-biden-s-chinese-venture-is-full-of-holes |accessdate=7 October 2019}}</ref> the group became a mainstay of [[Alt-right]] media.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gold |first=Matea |date=March 17, 2017 |title=The Mercers and Stephen Bannon: How a populist power base was funded and built |language=en |website=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/mercer-bannon/ |access-date=2023-06-17}}</ref>
GAI's research methods include analyzing tax filings, flight logs, and foreign government documents as well as engaging in data-mining on the [[deep web]], which includes the 97% of information on the [[World Wide Web]] that isn't indexed by traditional search engines. It writes reports criticizing major politicians. It has worked with media outlets such as [[ABC News]], ''[[60 Minutes]]'', and ''[[Newsweek]]'' to broadcast findings.<ref name=bloomberg/>


Members of GAI's board of directors include [[Steve Bannon]], [[Peter Schweizer]], [[Hunter Lewis]], Ron Robinson (president of [[Young America's Foundation]]), and [[Wynton Hall]].<ref>{{cite web|title=About|url=http://www.g-a-i.org/about/|website=Government Accountability Institute|accessdate=17 August 2015}}</ref> Former U.S. representative [[Jason Chaffetz]] joined the GAI as a distinguished fellow in 2021.<ref name="Chaffetz-joins" />
In the 2017 book ''[[Devil's Bargain]]'', [[Joshua Green (journalist)|Joshua Green]] said Steve Bannon designed the organization to transfer partisan investigative reports to the mainstream media, which was based on his idea that mainstream reporters were more willing to report on public figures involved in scandals compared to partisan opinion, regardless of the sourcing.<ref name="newyorker.com">{{Cite magazine|date=2019-10-04|title=The Invention of the Conspiracy Theory on Biden and Ukraine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-invention-of-the-conspiracy-theory-on-biden-and-ukraine|access-date=2021-11-12|magazine=The New Yorker|language=en-US}}</ref>


== Funding ==
== Funding ==
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==Activities==
==Activities==
The organization published several reports and books with premises and claims that were debunked after—or even before—publication.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Erichsen |first=Kristen |last2=Schrock |first2=Douglas |last3=Dowd-Arrow |first3=Benjamin |last4=Dignam |first4=Pierce |date=2020-07-16 |title=Bitchifying Hillary: Trump Supporters’ Vilification of Clinton during the 2016 Presidential Election |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2329496520941022 |journal=Social Currents |volume=7 |issue=6 |pages=526–542 |doi=10.1177/2329496520941022 |issn=2329-4965}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Mayopu |first=Richard G. |last2=Wang |first2=Yi-Yun |last3=Chen |first3=Long-Sheng |date=2023-04-20 |title=Analyzing Online Fake News Using Latent Semantic Analysis: Case of USA Election Campaign |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/bdcc7020081 |journal=Big Data and Cognitive Computing |volume=7 |issue=2 |pages=81 |doi=10.3390/bdcc7020081 |issn=2504-2289|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Geoghegan |first=Peter |title=Covering Trump: Reflections from the Campaign Trail and the Challenge for Journalism |date=2018-10-18 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94069-4_7 |work=Trump’s Media War |pages=101–112 |access-date=2023-06-17 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |isbn=978-3-319-94068-7}}</ref>
The organization has most notably been involved with the research and publication of political books including ''[[Clinton Cash|Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich]], Bush Bucks: How Public Service and Corporations Helped Make Jeb Rich,'' as well as the book ''Secret Empires: How the American Political Class Hides Corruption and Enriches Family and Friends'', which was later cited as an initial source of the [[Biden–Ukraine conspiracy theory]].<ref name=bloomberg/>


''Clinton Cash'', published in May 2015, is an investigation of donations made to the [[Clinton Foundation]] by foreign entities, paid speeches made by [[Bill Clinton|Bill]] and [[Hillary Clinton]], and the Clintons' personal enrichment since leaving the White House in 2001.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Sullivan|first1=Margaret|title=An 'Exclusive' Arrangement on a Clinton Book, and Many Questions|url=http://publiceditor.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/04/23/an-exclusive-arrangement-on-a-clinton-book-and-many-questions/?_r=0|accessdate=28 August 2015|work=New York Times|date=April 23, 2015}}</ref>
One is ''[[Clinton Cash|Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich]],'' a 2015 book that makes false claims about donations made to the [[Clinton Foundation]] by foreign entities, paid speeches made by [[Bill Clinton|Bill]] and [[Hillary Clinton]], and the Clintons' personal enrichment since leaving the White House in 2001.<ref>{{Citation |last=Benkler |first=Yochai |title=Mainstream Media Failure Modes and Self-Healing in a Propaganda-Rich Environment |date=2018-11-29 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190923624.003.0006 |work=Network Propaganda |pages=189–222 |access-date=2023-06-17 |publisher=Oxford University PressNew York |isbn=0-19-092362-8 |last2=Faris |first2=Robert |last3=Roberts |first3=Hal}}</ref>


In October 2012, GAI released a report insinuating that the Obama campaign had received unlawful contributions.<ref>Mike Burns, [http://mediamatters.org/research/2012/10/09/fox-hypes-unsubstantiated-claim-that-obama-may/190469 Fox Hypes Unsubstantiated Claim That Obama May Be Receiving Illegal Foreign Donations], Media Matters for America (October 9, 2012).</ref> Citing no evidence, it claimed that "campaigns that aggressively raise money online are soliciting donations from people around the world-whether they intend to or not," and asserted that the Obama campaign had lacked "rigorous screening for donors' citizenship" (it is illegal for non-U.S. citizens to contribute to U.S. campaigns). Multiple media sources had debunked the claim and found no supporting evidence.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Dwyer |first1=Devin |date=October 9, 2012 |title=Group Warns of Foreign, Fraudulent Donors to Obama Campaign |publisher=ABC News |url=https://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/10/group-warns-of-foreign-fraudulent-donors-to-obama-campaign/ |accessdate=24 July 2014}}</ref>
''Bush Bucks'', an [[e-book]] published in October 2015, raises questions about the millions of dollars former Florida Governor [[Jeb Bush]] earned after leaving office from companies that benefited from Bush's policy while he was serving as Florida's Governor.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Bender|first1=Michael C.|title=New Peter Schweizer E-Book Questions Jeb Bush's Earnings|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-10-20/new-peter-schweizer-e-book-questions-jeb-bush-s-earnings|accessdate=16 November 2015|publisher=Bloomberg Politics|date=October 20, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Report Traces Jeb Bush's Ties to Companies That Had Business With Florida|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/21/us/politics/report-traces-jeb-bushs-ties-to-companies-that-had-business-with-florida.html|accessdate=16 November 2015|work=New York Times|date=October 21, 2015}}</ref>


Another debunked<ref>{{Cite news |last=Mayer |first=Jane |date=2019-10-04 |title=The Invention of the Conspiracy Theory on Biden and Ukraine |language=en-US |work=The New Yorker |url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-invention-of-the-conspiracy-theory-on-biden-and-ukraine |access-date=2023-06-17 |issn=0028-792X}}</ref> book is ''Secret Empires: How the American Political Class Hides Corruption and Enriches Family and Friends'', which was the first printed source about the false [[Biden–Ukraine conspiracy theory]].<ref name="bloomberg" />
In October 2012, GAI released a report which asserted that "campaigns that aggressively raise money online are soliciting donations from people around the world-whether they intend to or not," and asserted that the Obama campaign had lacked "rigorous screening for donors' citizenship" (it is illegal for non-U.S. citizens to contribute to U.S. campaigns).<ref>{{cite news|last1=Dwyer|first1=Devin|title=Group Warns of Foreign, Fraudulent Donors to Obama Campaign|url=https://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/10/group-warns-of-foreign-fraudulent-donors-to-obama-campaign/|accessdate=24 July 2014|publisher=ABC News|date=October 9, 2012}}</ref> The report provided no evidence that the Obama campaign had received any unlawful contributions.<ref>Mike Burns, [http://mediamatters.org/research/2012/10/09/fox-hypes-unsubstantiated-claim-that-obama-may/190469 Fox Hypes Unsubstantiated Claim That Obama May Be Receiving Illegal Foreign Donations], Media Matters for America (October 9, 2012).</ref>


''Bush Bucks: How Public Service and Corporations Helped Make Jeb Rich,'' an [[e-book]] published in October 2015, raises questions about the millions of dollars former Florida Governor [[Jeb Bush]] earned after leaving office from companies that benefited from Bush's policy while he was serving as Florida's governor.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bender |first1=Michael C. |date=October 20, 2015 |title=New Peter Schweizer E-Book Questions Jeb Bush's Earnings |publisher=Bloomberg Politics |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-10-20/new-peter-schweizer-e-book-questions-jeb-bush-s-earnings |accessdate=16 November 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=October 21, 2015 |title=Report Traces Jeb Bush's Ties to Companies That Had Business With Florida |work=New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/21/us/politics/report-traces-jeb-bushs-ties-to-companies-that-had-business-with-florida.html |accessdate=16 November 2015}}</ref>
In December 2013, a GAI analysis found that from July 12, 2010, to November 30, 2013, President Obama's public schedule showed zero one-on-one meetings between Obama and then-Secretary of Health and Human Services [[Kathleen Sebelius]], though the study concedes that there was one instance of Secretary Sebelius meeting jointly with the
President and Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Schweizer|first1=Peter|title=When Barry Met Kathy|url=http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2013/12/the-zero-meeting-president-100767.html#.U9Fi9Uh8Gnc|accessdate=24 July 2014|publisher=Politico|date=December 5, 2013}}</ref>

The GAI largely avoided investigating the [[Presidency of Donald Trump|presidential administration of Donald Trump]], although it did release a report on potential conflicts of interest of Trump's Commerce Secretary, [[Wilbur Ross]].<ref name="Chaffetz-joins"/>

Former U.S. representative [[Jason Chaffetz]] joined the GAI as a distinguished fellow in 2021.<ref name="Chaffetz-joins"/>


==Links to Breitbart News==
==Links to Breitbart News==
A November 2016 investigation by ''[[The Washington Post]]'' detailed ties between the Government Accountability Institute and the conservative website [[Breitbart News]]. Three GAI employees received full-time compensation while simultaneously being employed elsewhere.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Wyland|first1=Michael|title=Trump Adviser Double-dipping from Breitbart and Nonprofit Foundation{{!}} Nonprofit Quarterly|url=https://nonprofitquarterly.org/2016/11/28/trump-adviser-double-dipping-breitbart-nonprofit-foundation/|work=Nonprofit Quarterly|date=November 28, 2016}}</ref> From 2012 to 2015, GAI co-founder and executive chair Steve Bannon received $376,000 for working 30 hours a week. He simultaneously served as executive chairman for Breitbart News.<ref name="WaPo"/> GAI communications strategist [[Wynton Hall]] received $600,000 during the same time. Hall worked as a writer for Breitbart News and was promoted to managing editor in 2013. GAI president and treasurer Peter Schweizer, also an at-large editor and writer for Breitbart News, was paid $778,000 by the GAI from 2012 to 2015.<ref name="WaPo"/>
A November 2016 investigation by ''[[The Washington Post]]'' detailed ties between the Government Accountability Institute and the conservative website [[Breitbart News]]. Three GAI employees received full-time compensation while simultaneously being employed elsewhere.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Wyland|first1=Michael|title=Trump Adviser Double-dipping from Breitbart and Nonprofit Foundation{{!}} Nonprofit Quarterly|url=https://nonprofitquarterly.org/2016/11/28/trump-adviser-double-dipping-breitbart-nonprofit-foundation/|work=Nonprofit Quarterly|date=November 28, 2016}}</ref> From 2012 to 2015, GAI co-founder and executive chair Steve Bannon received $376,000 for working 30 hours a week. He simultaneously served as executive chairman for Breitbart News.<ref name="WaPo"/> GAI communications strategist [[Wynton Hall]] received $600,000 during the same time. Hall worked as a writer for Breitbart News and was promoted to managing editor in 2013. GAI president and treasurer Peter Schweizer, also an at-large editor and writer for Breitbart News, was paid $778,000 by the GAI from 2012 to 2015.<ref name="WaPo"/>


As a 501(c)(3) public charity, GAI's political advocacy has raised the question of whether the organization had been illegally intervening in political campaigns. The ''Washington Post'' report also found that, from 2013 to 2015, GAI purchased over $200,000 in advertising from Breitbart's website.<ref name="WaPo"/><ref>{{cite news|last1=Smilowitz|first1=Elliot|title=Fla. charity paid Bannon, other Breitbart employees: report|url=http://thehill.com/media/307342-fla-charity-paid-bannon-other-breitbart-employees-report|work=The Hill|date=November 23, 2016}}</ref>
The ''Post'' noted that GAI's political advocacy raises questions about whether the 501(c)(3) public charity has illegally intervened in political campaigns. The ''Washington Post'' report also found that, from 2013 to 2015, GAI purchased over $200,000 in advertising from Breitbart's website.<ref name="WaPo"/><ref>{{cite news|last1=Smilowitz|first1=Elliot|title=Fla. charity paid Bannon, other Breitbart employees: report|url=https://thehill.com/media/307342-fla-charity-paid-bannon-other-breitbart-employees-report/|work=The Hill|date=November 23, 2016}}</ref>


==References==
==References==
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==External links==
==External links==
*{{official|http://www.g-a-i.org}}
*{{official website|http://www.g-a-i.org}}

{{Authority control}}


[[Category:2012 establishments in Florida]]
[[Category:2012 establishments in Florida]]

Latest revision as of 05:12, 16 April 2024

Government Accountability Institute
Founded2012[1]
Type501(c)(3) organization
45-4681912
Location
Area served
United States
Key people
Peter Schweizer
Steve Bannon
Wynton Hall
Revenue
$1.7 million (2014)[2]
Websiteg-a-i.org

The Government Accountability Institute (GAI) is a conservative think tank[3][4] located in Tallahassee, Florida.[5][6] GAI was founded in 2012[7] by Peter Schweizer and Steve Bannon with funding from Robert Mercer and family.[8] Schweizer serves as the group's president.[9]

The group's stated goal is to investigate and expose government corruption, misuse of taxpayer money, and crony capitalism. It is registered as a nonpartisan organization,[10] but is largely focused on investigations of allegations related to the Democratic Party.[11]

Overview[edit]

The Government Accountability Institute was set up by Steve Bannon as a tool for transmitting partisan dirt-digging and questionable opposition research to the mainstream media.[12][13] "He realized that, though mainstream reporters were suspicious of partisan opinion, they were open to damning facts about public figures, regardless of the sourcing. He set out, with Schweizer, to produce material that would generate mainstream coverage, and right-wing outrage", wrote The New Yorker's Jane Mayer.[14]

While GAI claims to be "a self-styled corruption watchdog group chaired and funded by conservative mega-donor Rebekah Mercer.",[15] the group became a mainstay of Alt-right media.[16]

Members of GAI's board of directors include Steve Bannon, Peter Schweizer, Hunter Lewis, Ron Robinson (president of Young America's Foundation), and Wynton Hall.[17] Former U.S. representative Jason Chaffetz joined the GAI as a distinguished fellow in 2021.[11]

Funding[edit]

Between 2012 and 2014, GAI received donations of almost $4 million from the Mercer Family Foundation and the Koch brothers-affiliated Donors Trust.[18][19]

In 2019, the New Yorker reported that most of the GAI's funding came from tax-exempt donations from the family foundation of Robert Mercer, and that in the organization's 2017 tax filings listed his daughter Rebekah as chairman of the GAI board.[14]

Activities[edit]

The organization published several reports and books with premises and claims that were debunked after—or even before—publication.[20][21][22]

One is Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich, a 2015 book that makes false claims about donations made to the Clinton Foundation by foreign entities, paid speeches made by Bill and Hillary Clinton, and the Clintons' personal enrichment since leaving the White House in 2001.[23]

In October 2012, GAI released a report insinuating that the Obama campaign had received unlawful contributions.[24] Citing no evidence, it claimed that "campaigns that aggressively raise money online are soliciting donations from people around the world-whether they intend to or not," and asserted that the Obama campaign had lacked "rigorous screening for donors' citizenship" (it is illegal for non-U.S. citizens to contribute to U.S. campaigns). Multiple media sources had debunked the claim and found no supporting evidence.[25]

Another debunked[26] book is Secret Empires: How the American Political Class Hides Corruption and Enriches Family and Friends, which was the first printed source about the false Biden–Ukraine conspiracy theory.[1]

Bush Bucks: How Public Service and Corporations Helped Make Jeb Rich, an e-book published in October 2015, raises questions about the millions of dollars former Florida Governor Jeb Bush earned after leaving office from companies that benefited from Bush's policy while he was serving as Florida's governor.[27][28]

Links to Breitbart News[edit]

A November 2016 investigation by The Washington Post detailed ties between the Government Accountability Institute and the conservative website Breitbart News. Three GAI employees received full-time compensation while simultaneously being employed elsewhere.[29] From 2012 to 2015, GAI co-founder and executive chair Steve Bannon received $376,000 for working 30 hours a week. He simultaneously served as executive chairman for Breitbart News.[18] GAI communications strategist Wynton Hall received $600,000 during the same time. Hall worked as a writer for Breitbart News and was promoted to managing editor in 2013. GAI president and treasurer Peter Schweizer, also an at-large editor and writer for Breitbart News, was paid $778,000 by the GAI from 2012 to 2015.[18]

The Post noted that GAI's political advocacy raises questions about whether the 501(c)(3) public charity has illegally intervened in political campaigns. The Washington Post report also found that, from 2013 to 2015, GAI purchased over $200,000 in advertising from Breitbart's website.[18][30]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Green, Joshua (October 8, 2015). "This Man Is the Most Dangerous Political Operative in America". Bloomberg Businessweek. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  2. ^ "2014 Form 990" (PDF). GuideStar. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  3. ^ Gold, Matea (March 17, 2017). "The Mercers and Stephen Bannon: How a populist power base was funded and built". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2018-09-30.
  4. ^ Rutenberg, Jim (2020-09-30). "How Trump's 'Voter Fraud' Lie Is Disenfranchising Americans". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-09-30.
  5. ^ Thiessen, Marc (September 10, 2012). "Marc Thiessen: Why is Obama skipping more than half of his daily intelligence meetings?". Washington Post. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  6. ^ Nader, Ralph (2014). Unstoppable: The Emerging Left-Right Alliance to Dismantle the Corporate State. Nation Books. ISBN 9781568584553.
  7. ^ Thiessen, Marc (September 10, 2012). "Why is Obama skipping more than half of his daily intelligence meetings?". Washington Post. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  8. ^ Zuckerman, Gregory, Keach Hagey, Scott Patterson and Rebecca Ballhaus, "Meet the Mercers: A Quiet Tycoon and His Daughter Become Power Brokers in Trump’s Washington" (subscription), The Wall Street Journal, January 8, 2017. Retrieved 2017-01-08.
  9. ^ "CNN Report on "Legalized Extortion": Politics, Money and Influence". Real Clear Politics. January 22, 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  10. ^ Davies, Dave (October 9, 2019). "How a Political Hit Job Backfired, and Led to Trump's Impeachment Peril". Fresh Air. NPR.
  11. ^ a b Schwarz, D. Hunter (March 16, 2021). "Former Rep. Jason Chaffetz just joined this conservative think tank". Deseret News.
  12. ^ Tillman, Seth Barrett (2022). "Disqualification from the Presidency and a Trump Plea Bargain". SSRN Electronic Journal. doi:10.2139/ssrn.4194941. ISSN 1556-5068.
  13. ^ Green, Joshua (2017). Devil's bargain: Steve Bannon, Donald Trump, and the storming of the presidency. Penguin. p. 155.
  14. ^ a b "The Invention of the Conspiracy Theory on Biden and Ukraine". The New Yorker. 2019-10-04. Retrieved 2021-11-12.
  15. ^ Korte, Gregory; Mider, Zachary (3 October 2019). "Trump's Story of Hunter Biden's Chinese Venture Is Full of Holes". Bloomberg. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  16. ^ Gold, Matea (March 17, 2017). "The Mercers and Stephen Bannon: How a populist power base was funded and built". Washington Post. Retrieved 2023-06-17.
  17. ^ "About". Government Accountability Institute. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  18. ^ a b c d O'Harrow Jr., Robert (November 23, 2016). "Trump adviser received salary from charity while steering Breitbart News". Washington Post.
  19. ^ Schweers, Jeffrey (November 23, 2016). "Breitbart chief Bannon got nearly $400k from nonprofit he created". Tallahassee Democrat.
  20. ^ Erichsen, Kristen; Schrock, Douglas; Dowd-Arrow, Benjamin; Dignam, Pierce (2020-07-16). "Bitchifying Hillary: Trump Supporters' Vilification of Clinton during the 2016 Presidential Election". Social Currents. 7 (6): 526–542. doi:10.1177/2329496520941022. ISSN 2329-4965.
  21. ^ Mayopu, Richard G.; Wang, Yi-Yun; Chen, Long-Sheng (2023-04-20). "Analyzing Online Fake News Using Latent Semantic Analysis: Case of USA Election Campaign". Big Data and Cognitive Computing. 7 (2): 81. doi:10.3390/bdcc7020081. ISSN 2504-2289.
  22. ^ Geoghegan, Peter (2018-10-18), "Covering Trump: Reflections from the Campaign Trail and the Challenge for Journalism", Trump’s Media War, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 101–112, ISBN 978-3-319-94068-7, retrieved 2023-06-17
  23. ^ Benkler, Yochai; Faris, Robert; Roberts, Hal (2018-11-29), "Mainstream Media Failure Modes and Self-Healing in a Propaganda-Rich Environment", Network Propaganda, Oxford University PressNew York, pp. 189–222, ISBN 0-19-092362-8, retrieved 2023-06-17
  24. ^ Mike Burns, Fox Hypes Unsubstantiated Claim That Obama May Be Receiving Illegal Foreign Donations, Media Matters for America (October 9, 2012).
  25. ^ Dwyer, Devin (October 9, 2012). "Group Warns of Foreign, Fraudulent Donors to Obama Campaign". ABC News. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  26. ^ Mayer, Jane (2019-10-04). "The Invention of the Conspiracy Theory on Biden and Ukraine". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved 2023-06-17.
  27. ^ Bender, Michael C. (October 20, 2015). "New Peter Schweizer E-Book Questions Jeb Bush's Earnings". Bloomberg Politics. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
  28. ^ "Report Traces Jeb Bush's Ties to Companies That Had Business With Florida". New York Times. October 21, 2015. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
  29. ^ Wyland, Michael (November 28, 2016). "Trump Adviser Double-dipping from Breitbart and Nonprofit Foundation| Nonprofit Quarterly". Nonprofit Quarterly.
  30. ^ Smilowitz, Elliot (November 23, 2016). "Fla. charity paid Bannon, other Breitbart employees: report". The Hill.

External links[edit]