A painting of Clarence Thomas and Leonardo Leo from about five years ago of the two men at Camp Topridge, a lavish resort, sitting outside while smoking cigars next to conservative political operatives, has resurfaced amid reports that Thomas accepted Harlan Crow’s lavish trips around the world for more than two decades.
4/at Crowe's invitation only, fully paid for resort "Topridge shows him in conversation with Leonard Leo, the Federalist Society leader regarded as an architect of SCOTUS's recent turn to the right. access to the justice extends to anyone the businessman chooses to invite along. pic.twitter.com/52CwKmlLZl
— Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) April 6, 2023
Leo, a 56-year-old whose Catholic faith is opposed to abortion, remains an unknown figure to the majority of the US public, despite revelations that he is the leader of a political organization that has received an astounding $1.6 billion donation to advance conservative causes, including election rigging in 2022, and allegedly receiving more than $73 million over six years from non-profit organizations that may be illegally diverting money to his businesses.
Also Read| CashApp founder Bob Lee called 911, screamed for help before death after getting stabbed
Who is Leonard Leo?
Leonard A. Leo is a conservative legal activist and lawyer from the United States. He served as the Federalist Society’s vice president for many years and is now co-chairman of the organization’s board of directors with Steven G. Calabresi.
Leo is a Roman Catholic. He has seven children with his wife Sally. Margaret, their 14-year-old daughter, died of spina bifida in 2007.
Leo was raised in suburban New Jersey by a practicing Catholic household after being born on Long Island, New York. His grandpa was a vice president of Brooks Brothers and was an immigrant from Italy. To study at Cornell University, Leo.
Leo started a student branch of the Federalist Society while he was a law student at Cornell in 1989, and in 1991 he moved to Washington, D.C. to work for the organization. While working as an Appeals Court clerk, he encountered Clarence Thomas, and the two quickly grew close. To support Thomas during his confirmation proceedings for the Supreme Court, Leo postponed his start date at the Federalist Society. Leo worked at the Federalist Society for more than 25 years in a variety of roles.
Also Read| Who are Miles Routledge and Kevin Cornwell, YouTuber and medic captured by Taliban in Afghanistan?
Leo took time off from the Federalist Society to coordinate the activities in favor of John Roberts and Samuel Alito’s Supreme Court nominations. Leo worked to advance Miguel Estrada’s appointment to the judiciary by the Bush government.
Campaign for Accountability, a non-profit watchdog organization based in Washington, called for an investigation into seven non-profit groups linked to Leo that it claims are misusing millions of dollars for the personal benefit of insiders, in violation of their tax-exempt status, in April 2023.
Leo “caused” a number of newly established non-profits to “pay him (directly or indirectly) more than $73m over a six-year period from 2016 through 2021,” according to the document’s conclusion.
It continues by stating that there is some proof that Leo’s for-profit companies, BH Group and CRC Advisors, which received millions of dollars for purported consulting, research, or public relations services, “may have either not have provided those services at all or may have provided services at a level not commensurate with the payments received.”
