He's one of the most powerful individuals in the country. His spiderweb of connections is extensive. But most Americans, including many working in Washington, have never heard of him.
What puzzles me the most is how someone like Leo, who I would guess is a true believer in his cause, can cynically play the corrupt games of linking all that dark money with the people who decide our fate on the courts? I guess the ends to require the means in his mind. It is shocking how his hand has been playing in so many different milieu.
Jun 27, 2023·edited Jun 27, 2023Liked by Greg Olear
If one were a conspiracy theorist they might draw the conclusion that Leo is doing the bidding of the Vatican Nation. Seldom mentioned are all the links and references between Leo and the Vatican. While implied throughout your essay, it's only referenced in the last two words of the essay.
To wit..Leo is a hardcore, fundamentalist Catholic evidenced by his membership in the Knights of Malta among others. As you note..." He’s put five—count ‘em, five!—justices on the Robert's Supreme Court: Amy Coney Barrett, Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch, Sam Alito, and John Roberts. A sixth, Clarence Thomas, is one of his closest friends." However, not mentioned is the fact that all of these "Justices" along with the deceased Scalia, are also fundamentalist Catholics who belong to ultra-conservative Vatican organizations. Gorsuch claims to be an Episcopalian but his affiliation with Vatican orgs and people belie that claim. The list of those complicit at the end of your essay are most if not all, hard core Catholics.
Moreover, a conspiracy theorist might conclude based on recent decisions by these Vatican reps, that they are actively codifying Vatican ideology/theology into our Constitution. As Leo's compatriot, Steven Calabresi claimed, “I think Leonard is motivated by ideology and ideas.". Thus the Carson v. Makin decision which allows the public funding of religious schools most of which are Vatican schools; the KENNEDY v. BREMERTON SCHOOL DIST. decision allowing public workers (teachers and coaches) to lead students in prayer; the Dobbs v. Jackson decision overturning a 50 yr constitutional right. And now artificial contraception as per Vatican theology is on the chopping block according to Thomas. All of these decisions were pushed and lauded by the ultra-conservative Conference of Catholic Bishops because they are all in line with Vatican ideology. The primary opponent of RvW from the git-go was the Vatican. Evangelicals came to the issue only after it became a political wedge when they adopted the extreme views of the Vatican on abortion.
The Vatican has an extensive infrastructure in the U.S. to do its political bidding through such organizations as Opus Dei with whom many of the aforementioned Extreme Court Justices belong. According to a recent Washington Post article, "Opus Dei’s money laundering through their world wide real estate holdings, like their multi-million dollar U.S. headquarter at 243 Lexington Ave, New York, NY 10016 or their banking syndicates from the now defunct Banco Popular’s destructive wake in Spain, Kenya, South America, Florida’s TotalBank to Opus Bank in Irvine, California, and on and on…They just keep moving the money around through 501(c) organizations and access to the Holy See’s diplomatic bags." Opus Dei is but the tip of the Vatican iceberg of organizations, many of which Leo uses to launder money.
And I won't even begin to cover the Vatican's institutionalized pedophile ring they've been running across the world since it's now been exposed by multiple sources including court documents.
If any other nation had done to the U.S. what the Vatican has done we would have declared war on them.
Few if any of the Vatican's activities have drawn much attention from the MSM. I guess it's hard to believe a religious organization could do such. Unless one were a conspiracy theorist.
Use this FOLLOW THE MONEY chart which shows how dark money investors funnel funds through Leonard Leo (and others) to stack the Supreme Court and get favorable rulings.
Magnificently researched and chronologically written piece Greg! Found a few twists/people I hadn’t any knowledge about thanks, looking forward to the next part!
Having once been engaged in verbal warfare with religion and the Vatican in my youthful dayswith Sister Mary Holy Water and her pedophile pals(priests/brothers) who were either there to educate, or torture us with their mordancy of being the devils children of the 50’s...
Apparently I’m in the minority of Americans that do know who Leo Leo is, but only because I’m an avid reader of Prevail. I’m powerless to do anything about this monstrous abuser of power except to mock his name (since Leo is, or was, a fairly common nickname for Leonard). I’m optimistic that the pendulum of judicial conduct will eventually swing the other way and we’ll have a reasonable SCOTUS again. But it looks like the forces of Good and Mr Leo are locked in a battle for the ages.
Excellent piece, Greg! I really wish you had the reach of a New York Times (failing though it may be!), or the Washington Post. Leo and his minions need to be brought out into the sunlight as much as possible.
I had to stop and go find out what the hell, "Woke Alerts" could possibly be, and of course, it's exactly what it sounds like. A few examples:
WOKE ALERT: DISNEY, BANK OF AMERICA, NASCAR, CHIPOTLE, KOHL’S, & GM
These six companies are funding an underground grooming website known as the Trevor Project
WOKE ALERT: BANK OF AMERICA
Bank of America is watching you. They are monitoring your purchases, tracking your emissions, helping fund abortions, and attacking your Second Amendment rights. Bank of America has gone woke, and it’s completely UnAmerican.
WOKE ALERT: THE NORTH FACE
The North Face goes Woke Targeting Kids for Pride Collection
Of course, I signed up so that I know who they're targeting, and the best places to shop. Assholes.
You answered this to another comment, but as I was reading, I thought, "do evil people KNOW they're being evil?" And no, I guess they don't. The ends ALWAYS justifies the means for them. They can see and hear stories of the ramifications of things like the Dobbs decision and think in their sick minds that it's for the greater good, and besides that, it will NEVER affect them. They're monsters and hypocrites and no one will ever be able to move me from that opinion. They make the world a worse place.
I was a bit heartened this morning to the SCOTUS decision regarding state legislatures and what they are, and what they aren't. It's very good for elections remaining as fair as they can be. I'm not sure how I feel about the free speech case. It sounds like they got into the weeds of what's a threat and what is just talk. Whenever I see a case being decided based on the offender's state of mind, to me it just means they've punted the decision, and I guess they won't revisit it until people die. Don't think for a MINUTE that I'm not appalled at almost agreeing with Amy Coney Barrett! It's like one of the signs of the Apocalypse.
And the sedevacantism (which I was completely unaware of) reference, wow! Although my wife (Argentine naturalized American) and I love Francis mostly because he’s Argentine!
Thank you for collating all of this, Greg! It’s even more stark when it’s all laid out like this.
I guess it’s Leonard Leo day. From NYT this AM.
🎁https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/27/opinion/samuel-alito-clarence-thomas-ethics.html?unlocked_article_code=qBnAzHbvHTAsBQG8p1vXr3OEDq_NgoCIRMhoGTSmGA0-D6rDuE1WI8oHrH7VmQ7Phq8CwwfDiPHhkeszLV5AvBZu0CbgIkVlE229YdwJs2Ccj9FzX1gb95gOHFki70E6Jjk5VdVvgJJ_Y3x_EPWxjxRu7xbfYV3UiOM1Y5BhZDlH41-VCWungk3AvIsbTeutQp0Cpsvxl3t15b8QYgB2kA30GvF7_DXQwZTIf9p4eT5mLJlUaqm_T1VCK_YUIxIcd1_4wTi_fUwa7lpkkohMEdbn853EfREHpl7uKS1OtLSyADHvbuAmq_3WcXQDwEwMX_QbdY6F4GL3I8ZvYNHn_0yJjCQW1jYiNnr_iE4&smid=url-share
How can we overturn the 2010 Citizens United ruling? With this much power behind it. This is bleak for the US and how can we stop it?
Great info can’t wait for next week
What puzzles me the most is how someone like Leo, who I would guess is a true believer in his cause, can cynically play the corrupt games of linking all that dark money with the people who decide our fate on the courts? I guess the ends to require the means in his mind. It is shocking how his hand has been playing in so many different milieu.
The way you piece together the insanity is most appreciated
If one were a conspiracy theorist they might draw the conclusion that Leo is doing the bidding of the Vatican Nation. Seldom mentioned are all the links and references between Leo and the Vatican. While implied throughout your essay, it's only referenced in the last two words of the essay.
To wit..Leo is a hardcore, fundamentalist Catholic evidenced by his membership in the Knights of Malta among others. As you note..." He’s put five—count ‘em, five!—justices on the Robert's Supreme Court: Amy Coney Barrett, Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch, Sam Alito, and John Roberts. A sixth, Clarence Thomas, is one of his closest friends." However, not mentioned is the fact that all of these "Justices" along with the deceased Scalia, are also fundamentalist Catholics who belong to ultra-conservative Vatican organizations. Gorsuch claims to be an Episcopalian but his affiliation with Vatican orgs and people belie that claim. The list of those complicit at the end of your essay are most if not all, hard core Catholics.
Moreover, a conspiracy theorist might conclude based on recent decisions by these Vatican reps, that they are actively codifying Vatican ideology/theology into our Constitution. As Leo's compatriot, Steven Calabresi claimed, “I think Leonard is motivated by ideology and ideas.". Thus the Carson v. Makin decision which allows the public funding of religious schools most of which are Vatican schools; the KENNEDY v. BREMERTON SCHOOL DIST. decision allowing public workers (teachers and coaches) to lead students in prayer; the Dobbs v. Jackson decision overturning a 50 yr constitutional right. And now artificial contraception as per Vatican theology is on the chopping block according to Thomas. All of these decisions were pushed and lauded by the ultra-conservative Conference of Catholic Bishops because they are all in line with Vatican ideology. The primary opponent of RvW from the git-go was the Vatican. Evangelicals came to the issue only after it became a political wedge when they adopted the extreme views of the Vatican on abortion.
The Vatican has an extensive infrastructure in the U.S. to do its political bidding through such organizations as Opus Dei with whom many of the aforementioned Extreme Court Justices belong. According to a recent Washington Post article, "Opus Dei’s money laundering through their world wide real estate holdings, like their multi-million dollar U.S. headquarter at 243 Lexington Ave, New York, NY 10016 or their banking syndicates from the now defunct Banco Popular’s destructive wake in Spain, Kenya, South America, Florida’s TotalBank to Opus Bank in Irvine, California, and on and on…They just keep moving the money around through 501(c) organizations and access to the Holy See’s diplomatic bags." Opus Dei is but the tip of the Vatican iceberg of organizations, many of which Leo uses to launder money.
And I won't even begin to cover the Vatican's institutionalized pedophile ring they've been running across the world since it's now been exposed by multiple sources including court documents.
If any other nation had done to the U.S. what the Vatican has done we would have declared war on them.
Few if any of the Vatican's activities have drawn much attention from the MSM. I guess it's hard to believe a religious organization could do such. Unless one were a conspiracy theorist.
It is really frightening that this man should have so much power.
Use this FOLLOW THE MONEY chart which shows how dark money investors funnel funds through Leonard Leo (and others) to stack the Supreme Court and get favorable rulings.
https://thedemlabs.org/2023/06/21/supreme-court-fishy-business-follow-the-money-samuel-alito-paul-singer/
And this one on how Evangelists infiltrated the Supreme Court
https://thedemlabs.org/2022/11/21/how-did-evangelists-infiltrate-the-supreme-court-to-overturn-roe/
There are even more FOLLOW THE MONEY TO THE SUPREME COURT on our website https://thedemlabs.org/blog/?wpv_post_search=supreme&wpv_aux_current_post_id=21&wpv_view_count=1371
How can Democrats compete with this? How to outwit a spider?
Magnificently researched and chronologically written piece Greg! Found a few twists/people I hadn’t any knowledge about thanks, looking forward to the next part!
Having once been engaged in verbal warfare with religion and the Vatican in my youthful dayswith Sister Mary Holy Water and her pedophile pals(priests/brothers) who were either there to educate, or torture us with their mordancy of being the devils children of the 50’s...
Good piece! Nice hat. With a provocative list that is (excuse me) “unsettling.”
Somehow I missed the point in my own Catholic upbringing where I was taught to feed the hungry, and help the poor, et cetera.
Apparently I’m in the minority of Americans that do know who Leo Leo is, but only because I’m an avid reader of Prevail. I’m powerless to do anything about this monstrous abuser of power except to mock his name (since Leo is, or was, a fairly common nickname for Leonard). I’m optimistic that the pendulum of judicial conduct will eventually swing the other way and we’ll have a reasonable SCOTUS again. But it looks like the forces of Good and Mr Leo are locked in a battle for the ages.
I find it so hard to accept that some people are just plain evil. It goes against everything we are as human beings.
WOW! I knew a bit about Leonard here and SCROTUS there but WOW. Thank You. Looking forward (backward) to Part II.
Excellent piece, Greg! I really wish you had the reach of a New York Times (failing though it may be!), or the Washington Post. Leo and his minions need to be brought out into the sunlight as much as possible.
I had to stop and go find out what the hell, "Woke Alerts" could possibly be, and of course, it's exactly what it sounds like. A few examples:
WOKE ALERT: DISNEY, BANK OF AMERICA, NASCAR, CHIPOTLE, KOHL’S, & GM
These six companies are funding an underground grooming website known as the Trevor Project
WOKE ALERT: BANK OF AMERICA
Bank of America is watching you. They are monitoring your purchases, tracking your emissions, helping fund abortions, and attacking your Second Amendment rights. Bank of America has gone woke, and it’s completely UnAmerican.
WOKE ALERT: THE NORTH FACE
The North Face goes Woke Targeting Kids for Pride Collection
Of course, I signed up so that I know who they're targeting, and the best places to shop. Assholes.
You answered this to another comment, but as I was reading, I thought, "do evil people KNOW they're being evil?" And no, I guess they don't. The ends ALWAYS justifies the means for them. They can see and hear stories of the ramifications of things like the Dobbs decision and think in their sick minds that it's for the greater good, and besides that, it will NEVER affect them. They're monsters and hypocrites and no one will ever be able to move me from that opinion. They make the world a worse place.
I was a bit heartened this morning to the SCOTUS decision regarding state legislatures and what they are, and what they aren't. It's very good for elections remaining as fair as they can be. I'm not sure how I feel about the free speech case. It sounds like they got into the weeds of what's a threat and what is just talk. Whenever I see a case being decided based on the offender's state of mind, to me it just means they've punted the decision, and I guess they won't revisit it until people die. Don't think for a MINUTE that I'm not appalled at almost agreeing with Amy Coney Barrett! It's like one of the signs of the Apocalypse.
And the sedevacantism (which I was completely unaware of) reference, wow! Although my wife (Argentine naturalized American) and I love Francis mostly because he’s Argentine!