Crossroads Grassroots Policy Strategies

Karl Rove is the principle adviser of Crossroads GPS and American Crossroads

Crossroads Grassroots Policy Strategies, also known as Crossroads GPS, is a right-wing political group created in June 2010, just a few months after the Citizens United decision, by GOP political operatives and "advised" by Karl Rove and former Republican National Committee chairman Ed Gillespie to support Republican political candidates. Since then, it has become "a symbol of the current malleability of campaign finance rules," according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

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Growth of spending by Crossroads GPS and other dark money groups. Image: Center for Responsive Politics.

Crossroads GPS is often described as a "dark money" group because it is organized as a 501(c)(4) nonprofit and does not disclose its donors, despite spending millions to influence political campaigns. During the 2012 election cycle, Crossroads GPS and its affiliated SuperPAC American Crossroads spent at least $175 million on ads influencing the 2012 presidential and senate elections, making them the largest outside spending group active in the 2012 election. Their total was likely much higher, as Crossroads GPS is not required to disclose all of its spending. The Center for Media and Democracy estimates that the groups spent just over $240 million in total in 2011 and 2012.

The American Crossroads SuperPAC established another political nonprofit, One Nation, in 2015. One Nation has spent heavily in Senate races for the 2016 election cycle.

According to its website, Crossroads GPS is "dedicated to the belief that most Americans don’t support the big-government agenda being forced upon them by Washington." Despite its name, Crossroads GPS "has almost no grassroots support — financially or in terms of volunteers," according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Crossroads GPS Gains Tax-Exempt Status as "Social Welfare" Nonprofit

After a more than five-year process, the IRS approved 501(c)(4) tax-exempt status for Crossroads GPS in November 2015. Such "social welfare" nonprofits are allowed to raise unlimited funds from corporations and individuals, and are not required to disclose their donors, but should engage primarily in social welfare activities, not politics. According to the IRS,

"a section 501(c)(4) social welfare organization may engage in some political activities, so long as that is not its primary activity."

While Crossroads GPS was ostensibly waiting for the IRS determination, it raised more than $300 million and reported spending at least $112 on political activities.

According to a report by the Center for Responsive Politics, which reviewed hundreds of pages of documents and interviewed people involved in Crossroads GPS's case, the process resulting in tax-exempt status was lengthy, but in the end illustrated "that if a group has enough money to raise eyebrows based on its political activities as a 501(c)(4), it has enough to pay the right lawyers to make its case to the IRS."

Crossroads GPS first applied for exempt status in June 2010. The IRS requested additional documentation in February 2012, and in May Crossroads GPS lawyers sent back "two three-inch binders filled with hundreds of pages of explanations and supporting documents," including a "prebuttal" in which the lawyers explained how they would challenge IRS rules if the IRS ruled against them.

See below for details of Crossroads GPS' more than $70 million in political spending, and $35 million in grants to other nonprofits that engaged in political spending, during the 2012 election cycle.

In September 2013, the IRS sent an "adverse determination" letter to Crossroads GPS, which the Center for Responsive Politics describes as a "scathing assessment" that largely rejected the group's claims that its ads were educational:

The IRS deemed that only one ad run by GPS was true “issue advocacy rather than political campaign intervention” and accounted for just 2 percent of GPS’ expenditures in its first year. The agency made a similarly critical assessment of GPS’ mailers and radio ads, concluding that only a small percentage of them actually amounted to issue advocacy.

The IRS also noted the "circular flow of funds" between Crossroads GPS and other grantor/grantee organizations, and wrote that "a number of your grantees have reported significant political expenditures."

Crossroads GPS protested the determination with hundreds more pages filed in November 2013 and February 2014. While its chairman had previously filed comments in opposition to proposed IRS rules that would have clarified what constitutes political speech, in their arguments to the IRS Crossroads GPS lawyers "lamented, at length and multiple times, that the IRS 'facts and circumstances test' lacked clarity, and therefore the group could not reasonably be punished for interpreting the law as it had."

While the IRS initially reported in July 2014 that it was proceeding with denial of Crossroads GPS' tax exemption, it allowed the group to appeal in August. In November 2015, the IRS approved its tax-exempt status.

Limits of IRS Investigation

The Center for Responsive Politics also noted that the IRS did not examine Crossroads GPS' "most questionable activities," such as grants made to Americans for Tax Reforms and Carolina Rising, nonprofits which then engaged in political spending.

The IRS did not examine whether the organization's activities were primarily benefiting a small, private group, rather than promoting general social welfare. The IRS "might have had a far more compelling case had it argued that Crossroads GPS’ entire operation supported a single political party," as the Center for Responsive Politics wrote.

The IRS also did not examine public statements by Crossroads GPS officials about the organization's purpose, such as political director Carl Forti's statement in 2010, "You know, disclosure was very important to us, which is why the [super PAC] was created. But some donors didn’t want to be disclosed, and, therefore, the (c)(4) was created."

FEC Sued over Dismissal of Complaints about Crossroads GPS

On February 19, 2016 the nonprofit organization Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filed a lawsuit against the FEC "alleging that the agency violated election laws when it dismissed a CREW complaint against Crossroads GPS," as described by The American Prospect. CREW had filed a complaint in 2012 over Crossroads GPS's fundraising and spending, but the FEC dismissed the complaint after a 3-3 split over whether to take action.

Similar suits were filed by Public Citizen and the Campaign Legal Center in 2014.

In 2012, legal staff at the FEC had found evidence that Crossroads GPS "probably violated campaign finance rules with its political spending in the 2010 midterm elections" and recommended an investigation, according to The Washington Post. The members of FEC were deadlocked over the issue.

Secret, Unlimited Fundraising

Like all 501(c)(4) organizations, Crossroads GPS is not required to disclose donor information. Virtually all funding for American Crossroads, its sister organization, comes from a small number of billionaires including Harold Simmons, the owner of Contran Corporation, and Texas Homebuilder Bob Perry, according to data collected by the Center for Responsive Politics. In 2011 and 2012, Crossroads GPS's only known donor was the Republican Jewish Coalition, which gave the group $4 million at the end of 2011..

In 2010 Crossroads GPS and American Crossroads raised a combined $71 million, followed by a combined $51 million in 2011.

Due to the U.S. Supreme Court's January 2010 Citizens United decision, groups like American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS can legally advocate for or against political candidates without restrictions on the amount of money they can raise from individuals and corporations. Due to the Court's 2007 FEC v. Wisconsin Right to Life decision, "independent" groups organized under 501(c) of the tax code (like Crossroads GPS) can run "issue-oriented" political ads without disclosing their donors. Coupling these two decisions together, "shadow Republican groups formed by longtime party officials and party operatives are raising and spending hundreds of millions of dollars in [the 2010 election]]. . . most of which is going to come in the form of secret undisclosed contributions," says Fred Wertheimer of Democracy 21, a nonpartisan campaign-finance-reform group.

As a nonprofit 501(c)(4) organization, Crossroads GPS is not required by the IRS to disclose its donors, as such organizations are intended to "promote social welfare." According to the New York Times, "[t]he rule of thumb . . . is that more than 50 percent of a 501(c)(4)’s activities cannot be political"; however, a 501(c)(4) is permitted to "intervene in political campaigns as long as its primary purpose is the promotion of social welfare."

Although Crossroads GPS does not disclose the identity of its donors thanks to its nonprofit status, it must disclose the amounts of its largest donations in its year-end IRS filing. An NPR analysis of those filings showed that in the first year and half of its existence, nearly 90 percent of the $77 million the group collected came from no more than 24 individuals or corporations giving more than $1 million each. Two of the donations were $10 million each.

Crossroads GPS has worked to get around the problem of excessive political activity in part by transferring funds to other dark money nonprofits that run ads in elections. This shell game-like activity is apparently defined as "social welfare" that allows Crossroads to claim that its primary purpose is not campaign intervention.

The idea that Crossroads GPS promotes social welfare "is a complete joke," Democracy 21's Wertheimer told TIME magazine in September 2010. "Karl Rove and Gillespie did not create this organization to influence issues in America. The organization was created to elect Republicans and defeat Democrats."

Influencing the 2014 Election Cycle

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Crossroads GPS spending in the 2014 election cycle. Source: Center for Responsive Politics.

Crossroads GPS reported $69.1 million in revenues and $65.9 million in expenditures in 2014, an election year, a dramatic increase from $3.4 million in revenues and $4.1 million in expenditures in 2013.

Of the $65.9 million spending Crossroads GPS reported in 2014, $26,015,713 was reported as political spending and $13,626,463 as grants. However, the Center for Responsive Politics calculated that at least 65 percent of Crossroads GPS' spending in 2014 went to "media firms that specialize in the production of political ads," suggesting that spending to influence elections likely made up more than half of the group's spending that year.

Grants Made

Crossroads GPS reported the following grants in 2014:

• American Future Fund: $2,000,000
• Carolina Rising Inc: $4,820,000
• Center for Individual Freedom: $40,000
• Ethics and Public Policy Center: $50,000
• Kentucky Opportunity Coalition: $390,000
• National Rifle Association: $125,000
• National Right to Life: $900,000
• John Hay Initiative: $50,000
• U.S. Chamber of Commerce: $5,250,000

North Carolina Dark Money Group Almost Solely Funded by Crossroads GPS

Crossroads GPS reported spending $3.7 million on political ads in North Carolina for the 2014 midterm election cycle, but its total influence was much larger. As the Wesleyan Media Project found, the group had already run 4,317 ads prior to the FEC reporting window. Crossroads GPS also made a $4.82 million grant to a group called Carolina Rising, or 98.7 percent of that group's budget. Crossroads reported the grant as a "social welfare" expenditure--not a political expenditure, but Carolina Rising spent $4.7 million supporting Republican Thom Tillis' campaign for the U.S. Senate against incumbent Sen. Kay Hagan, a Democrat.

Influencing the 2012 Presidential Election

In total, Crossroads GPS disclosed approximately $70 million in outside spending during the 2012 election cycle, making them one of 2012's biggest single spenders. However, the Center for Media and Democracy estimates that their total spending exceeded $100 million, more than $50 million of which was spent attacking President Barack Obama, and $7 million of which was spent in support of Mitt Romney, the Republican nominee.

In late 2011, Crossroads GPS began a national ad campaign targeting Obama's spending record and involvement with solar company Solyndra. A national cable ad aired on December 21th, followed by a second ad in early 2012 which specifically targeted Missouri, Minnesota, Michigan, and Arizona. Crossroads paid $500,000 to air the ad in all four states.

Crossroads ran ads throughout 2012 accusing President Obama of not doing enough to cut spending, decrease the deficit, and create jobs. Almost every GPS attack ad invoked this theme. As a 501(c)(4), many of Crossroads' attack ads were ostensibly "issue based" and did not directly advocate for the election or defeat of a candidate. Instead, they instructed the viewer to do something (IE: Tell Obama "____"). Some of GPS's largest ad buys used this format.

"Basketball"

• Basketball: A May 22nd, 2012 ad which features a dismayed ex-Obama voter who laments the fact that health care reform allegedly "made health insurance even more expensive." The ad instructs viewers to "Tell Obama to cut the job-killing debt" despite that fact that there is no clear reason why a high national debt would lead to fewer jobs. This ad aired in almost every major media market in the 2012 election, In a press release, Crossroads GPS stated that they paid $9.7 million to produce and air the ad, making it possibly the largest single ad buy the group made in 2012.

"Actually Debt"

• Actually Debt: A November 1st, 2012 ad which ran immediately before the general election on November 6th. This ad ran in Minnesota, and was part of a last-minute push to attempt to swing the state away from Obama. Unlike "Basketball" this is not an issue ad, and explicitly tells the viewer not to vote for Obama. The buy cost $1.4 million to run in Minnesota.

"Mitt And David"

• Mitt and David: This ad was part of a October campaign to humanize Republican Candidate Mitt Romney, rather than attack Obama. The ad focuses on Romney's charitable works, primarily helping a 14 year old boy with a terminal disease write his will. This was the only ad Crossroads GPS ran which called for the election of Mitt Romney. It ran in Ohio and Wisconsin in late October of 2012, and cost Crossroads GPS $4.2 million to produce and air.

"Deflect"

• Deflect: Compares the price of gasoline in 2009 to the price of gasoline in 2012, and attacks Obama for failing to address rising gas prices. The ad attacks Obama for restricting "oil production in the gulf" and limiting "the production of American oil shale." The ads claims are questionable at best: US gas prices are not necessarily linked to domestic oil production, and 2009 gas prices were abnormally low to begin with. The group paid $650,000 to air nationwide.

Presidential Ad Buy Summary

Anti-Obama

• The System: March 3rd, 2011: $750,000
• Shovel Ready: June 6th, 2011: $5 million
• Wake Up: July 8th, 2011: $1.1 million (estimate, part of $7 million buy)
• Thread: July 27th, 2011: $3.5 million
• Two Presidents: November 9th, 2011: $2.6 million
• Typical: December 10th, 2011:
• Every Level: January 1st, 2012: $500,000
• Deflect: March 21st, 2012: $650,000
• Too Much: April 10th, 2012 $1.7 million
• Obama's Broken Promises: $8 million
• Basketball: May 22nd, 2012: $9.7 million
• Stopwatch: June 5th, 2012: $7 million
• Excuses: July 6th, 2012: $6 million (estimate, part of $25 million buy)
• Tried: July 12th, 2012: $8 million
• News: July 31st, 2012: $4 million (estimate, part of $25 million buy)
• Bunch of Cash: September 12th: $1.4 million
• Broke: September 20th: $7.1 million
• Mesa De Cocina : October 29th, 2012: $1.6 million
• Walk Away: October 31st, 2012: $1.08 million
• Actually Debt: November 2nd, 2011: $1.4 million

Pro-Romney

• Mitt and David: October 26th, 2012: $4.2 million

Influencing 2012 Congressional Elections

Much of Crossroads GPS's spending in 2012 focused on attacking Democrats in close Senate races. In 2012, they began an active "New Majority Agenda" campaign to create a Republican-Controlled senate Crossroads GPS ads generally instruct the viewer to tell their Senator to support this "New Majority Agenda", and attack the target for supporting the Affordable Care act or the 2009 stimulus. Their favorite targets were Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine, Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill, Montana Senator Jim Testor, and North Dakota Democratic Nominee for Senate Heidi Heitkamp. Following the 2012 senate primary in Wisconsin, Crossroads GPS began running ads against Democratic Senate Nominee Tammy Baldwin. Because Crossroads GPS does not have to report how it spends its money, and its press releases often discuss several ads buys at once, it is difficult to know how much Crossroads GPS has spend influencing each election. At the beginning of 2012, Crossroads GPS and American Crossroads announced that they planned to spend $70 million influencing 2012 senate races.

The sections below detail Crossroads GPS's involvement in key senate races in the 2012 election, along with examples of ads they have aired against candidates in those races. At the end of each section, a short summary lists every major ad buy the group made in that particular race.

Indiana Senate Race

In Indiana, Crossroads GPS spent at least $3.3 million attacking Democrat Joe Donnelly, who was running against Richard Mourdock for control of Indiana's contested senate seat. Their attacks began in June, with an $860,000 ad buy that attacked Donnelly for not controlling spending during his time in Congress.

"Every Day"

Indiana Ad Buy Summary

• Everyday: June 7th, 2012: $860,000
• Pressure: September 25th, 2012: $925,000 (Estimate, part of $3.7 million ad buy)
• Promotion: October 16th, 2012: $980,000.
• Biggest Votes: October 23rd, 2012: $1 million

Iowa Congressional Race

In the fall of 2011, Crossroads GPS conducted an ad campaign in Iowa and Nebraska in advance of the 2011 Republican Straw Poll, they ran two ads, for a total buy of $300,000 dollars. Both ads targeted House Iowa Congressman Leonard Boswell, comparing him to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama. Shortly before the 2012 election, Crossroads GPS ran a second ad against Boswell, attacking him for supporting Obama's 2009 stimulus package. The ad highlighted "silly spending" in the 2009 stimulus. In total, Crossroads GPS spent just over $1 million dollars attacking Boswell, and may have contributed to his eventual defeat.

"Silly Spending"

Iowa Ad Buy Summary

• Peas: 25th October, 2011: $160,000
• Pea-Losi: 7th December, 2011: $150,000
• Silly Spending: 16th October, 2012: $1,350,000 (Estimate, Part of $8.1 million buy)

Maine Senate Race

In Maine, Crossroads GPS ignored Democratic candidate for Senate Cynthia Dill, instead focusing on Independent Angus King, who had a much better chance of winning, and was expected to caucus with the Democratic party if elected. In total, Crossroads GPS Spent about $1 million on anti-King attack ads.

"Fit For a King"

Maine Ad Buy Summary

• Fit For A King: October 6th, 2012: $390,720
• Tilting: October 23rd, 2012: $330,000
• Blew It" October 29th, 2012: $330,000

Massachusetts Senate Race

In November 2011, Crossroads GPS ran an ad in Massachusetts criticizing Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren for supporting Occupy Wall Street, and claiming the Occupy protesters “attack police, do drugs and trash public parks. They support radical redistribution of wealth and violence.”

The source for the ad's "radical redistribution of wealth" claim comes from an article critical of the protests in the Wall Street Journal by pollster Douglas Schoen. Schoen wrote in the article that the protesters supported "radical redistribution," but his own numbers actually showed only 4% of those polled supported the concept. In contrast, 35% of those polled said they'd like to influence the Democratic party (and 5% said they wanted a flat tax, a policy typically supported by conservatives).

The ad quotes the Schoen article over the image of a sign that says "fight for socialism, abolish capitalism," apparently implying that the Occupy protesters were socialists and Warren was one of them. However, a section of the Schoen poll not superimposed over the "socialist" image showed an even number of protesters identified with the socialist and libertarian parties.

The ad also uses a quote from Warren where she says “I created much of the intellectual foundation for what they do” to imply she was responsible for any violence that happens at the Occupy protests. What she actually said in an interview with The Daily Beast was this:

EW: Look, everybody has to follow the law. That’s the starting point. I’ve been fighting this fight for years and years now. As I see it, this is about two central points: one, this is about the lack of accountability. That Wall Street has not been held accountable for how they broke the economy. The second is a values question, a fundamental fairness around the way that markets have been distorted and families have been hurt. I’m still fighting that fight. I’m just fighting it from this angle…I want to fight it from the floor of the United States Senate. I think that is a place to make this difference.

TDB: Is showing solidarity with them going to get in the way of that?

EW: It’s not a question of solidarity. I just don’t think that’s the right way to say it. I support what they do. I want to say this in a way that doesn’t sound puffy. I created much of the intellectual foundation for what they do. That’s the right thing. There has to be multiple ways for people to get involved and take back our country. The fight that I’m fighting now is one that is directed towards the United State Senate. That’s just how I see it.

Commentary on the Warren Opposition

NBC's Michael Isikoff reported in 2010 that "a substantial portion of Crossroads GPS’ money came from a small circle of extremely wealthy Wall Street hedge fund and private equity moguls, according to GOP fundraising sources who spoke with NBC News on condition of anonymity."

In light of this, the director of the watchdog group Campaign Money Watch David Donnelly said of the group's anti-Occupy, anti-Elizabeth Warren ad:

“This is an ad by the one percent, for the one percent."

Ari Berman writes in The Nation why Rove and Republicans have set their sights on Warren so early in the race:

"Number one: she’s running even with Brown in a race that may very decide control of the Senate.

Number two: her reformist background and brand of progressive populism is deeply resonant right now. Unlike so many in Washington, she’s taken on the banks and their allies, is not beholden to them, and is not afraid of them. That makes her dangerous to the political establishment in both parties. No wonder Tim Geithner didn’t want her running the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Karl Rove doesn’t want her in the Senate.

Republicans are particularly afraid of her—she’s the best spokesperson the Democratic Party has on economic policy and has the potential to become one of the most popular politicians in America precisely because of her tenacity in confronting the very corporate interests who caused the economic crisis. That’s why Republicans have tried so hard to demonize her—both when she was setting up the CFPB and now that she’s running for Senate."

Missouri Senate Race

Crossroads GPS was an early opponent of Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill, beginning their attacks well in advance of the primary election that determined her Republican opponent. The Center for Media and Democracy estimates that Crossroads GPS spent at least $4.1 million on attack ads against McCaskill. Most of their attacks came in the form of unreported "issue ads", some of which aired a year before the election itself.

On August 20th, Crossroads GPS stopped airing ads against Senator Claire McCaskill in the Missouri Senate Race in response to comments made by McCaskill's opponent, Todd Akin.. Akin had, several days previous, questioned whether a women could get pregnant from “legitimate rape," which lead to speculation that he might withdraw from the race. Though he did not withdraw, Crossroads GPS did not resume ad buys in Missouri.

"Lemmings and Liberals"

Missouri Ad Buy Summary

• Watch: 8th July, 2011: $1.11 Million (Estimate, Part of $8 million ad buy)
• Step: 10th November, 2011: $360,000 (Estimate, Part of $1.8 million ad buy)
• 14: 8th December, 2011: $275,000 (Estimate, Part of $1.1 million ad buy)
• From There: 8th March, 2012: $300,000
• Hole: 25th April, 2012: $240,000 (Estimate, part of $1.2 million ad buy)
• Spending: 13th June, 2012: $667,000 (Estimate, part of $2 million ad buy)
• Obama-Claire: 20th June, 2012: $516,000
• People Over Government: 8th August, 2012: $840,000

Montana Senate Race

In total, Crossroads GPS spent $3.1 million opposing the re-election of Democrat John Testor to the U.S. Senate.

"Pay the Price"

Montana Ad Buy Summary

• Watch: July 8th, 2011: $1.11 Million (Estimate, part of $8 million buy)
• Dirt: November 10th, 2011: $360,000 (Estimate, part of $1.8 million buy)
• His Own Words: December 8th, 2012: $275,000 (Estimate, part of $1.1 million buy)
• Way: April 25th, 2012: $240,000 (Estimate, part of $1.2 million buy)
• Voice: July 10th, 2012: $833,000 (Estimate, part of $2.5 million buy)
• Sense: August 8th, 2012: $397,000
• Get Up: August 23rd, 2012: $1.05 million (Estimate, part of $4.2 million buy)
• Number One: September 18th, 2012: $571,996
• Swipe: October 2nd, 2012: $686,938
• Pay the Price: October 9th, 2012: $673,239

Nebraska Senate Race

In May of 2012, Crossroads GPS launched a campaign to attack Nebraska Senator Bob Kerry, who was involved in a close Senate race against Former Nebraska Legislator Deb Fischer. Crossroads GPS spent $260,000 attacking Kerry for supporting Wall Street Bailouts

"Disturbing"

Nevada Senate Race

Crossroads GPS Spent at least $6.6 million in Nevada in 2012. Most of their ads focused on Democratic candidate Shelley Berkley's possible ethics violations.

Nevada Ad Spending Summary

• Hole: April 25th, 2012: $240,000 (Estimate, part of $1.2 million buy)
• Pattern: August 8th, 2012: $660,114
• Shameful: September 18th, 2012: $833,000 (Estimate, part of $2.5 million buy)
• Big: September 25th, 2012: $925,000 (Estimate, Part of $3.7 million buy)
• Favorite Congressman: October 23rd, 2012: $1 million
• Dictionary: October 30th, 2012: $1.5 million

North Dakota Senate Race

Crossroads GPS disclosed $1.8 million in outside spending in the North Dakota Senate Race, the Center for Media and Democracy estimates that their total may be as high as $3.2 million, with all the money paying for attack ads targeting Democratic Senator Heidi Heitkamp.

In August, Crossroads GPS ran an ad claiming Heidi Heitkamp purchased private planes using taxpayer dollars during her tenure as the state's Attorney General. In reality, the plane mentioned in the ad was provided by the defense department for free, and used for anti-drug enforcement Crossroads paid $191,000 to air the ad in North Dakota, and was briefly taken down, but re-aired several days later with only minor changes. Heitkamp's complaints about the misleading ads eventually lead to them being pulled and revised.

"Pay Raise"

North Dakota Ad Buy Summary

• Amazing: April 25th, 2012: $240,000 (Estimate, Part of $1.2 million buy)
• Change: June 13th, 2012: $667,000 (Estimate, Part of $2 million buy)
• Why: June 27th, 2012: $180,000
• Hiding: August 8th, 2012: $191,000
• Your Vote: September 18th, 2012: $830,000 (Estimate, part of $2.5 million buy)
• Roadblock: October 29th, 2012: $391,000

Ohio Senate Race

Opensecrets estimates that Crossroads GPS spent over $6 million influencing the 2012 Ohio Senate election, with all their money helping to oppose the re-election of Democrat Sherrod Brown. Crossroads GPS was one of the independent groups that spent early to support Brown's opponent, Josh Mandel, turning an initially safe race into a very close one.

"Dragging"

Ohio Ad Buy Summary

• Watch: 8th July, 2011: $1.11 million (Estimate: Part of $8 million buy)
• Cheap: 13th June, 2012: $667,000 (Estimate: Part of $2 million buy)
• Show: 10th July, 2012: $883,000 (Estimate: Part of $2.5 million buy)
• Channel: August 23rd, 2012: $1 million (Estimate, part of $4.2 million buy)
• When: September 25th, 2012: $925,000 (Estimate, part of $3.7 million buy)
• Dragging: October 23rd, 2012: $1.3 million
• Ups and Downs: October 25th, 2012: $1.5 million

Virginia Senate Race

Crossroads GPS spent more money opposing Democratic Senator Tim Kaine than any other U.S. Senator. In total, they spent at least $10 million opposing his re-election.

"Cost"

Virginia Ad Buy Summary

• Reckless Senate Spending: March 25th, 2012: $240,000 (Estimate, part of $1.2 million buy)
• Ants: July 10th, 2012: $833,000 (Estimate, part of $2.5 million buy)
• Ants: August 9th, 2012: $370,000
• Addicted: 925,000 (Estimate, part of $3.7 million buy)
• Questionable: October 2nd, 2012: $1.2 Million
• Heart: October 9th, 2012: $1.2 million
• Ideas: October 23rd, 2012: $1.7 million
• Both: October 29th, 2012: $1.1 million
• MeadWestVaCo: October 2rd, 2012: $1.1 million

Wisconsin Senate Race

In 2012, Crossroads GPS spent over $4.7 million attacking Wisconsin Democrat Tammy Baldwin, who was running to against Republican Tommy Thompson to fill a vacated Senate Seat. .

In August and September of 2012, Crossroads GPS spent $2.1 Million on two ad buys attacking Baldwin, including one single ad buy totaling $1.1 million dollars. Crossroads GPS's ads targeted Baldwin for overspending and her support for the 2009 Recovery and Reinvestment act and the Affordable Care Act, both of which Crossroads GPS does not support. The group's September buys also attacked Baldwin for being too "extreme" for Wisconsin, making heavy use of a clip of Baldwin's speech during the 2011 Madison protests, where she says "You're damn right we're making a difference". Other ads attacked Baldwin for supporting the "failed stimulus". The ad blames the massive national debt increases over the last decade on Tammy Baldwin and the Obama Stimulus, though the debt increase can be largely attributed to other factors, including the 2008 financial collapse. Crossroads GPS has made false statements to this effect before. Crossroads paid $250,000 to air the ad in the first week after the Wisconsin Senate Primaries.

"With a T"

Wisconsin Ad Buy Summary

• With A T: August 15th, 2012: $250,000
• Mountain: August 22nd, 2012: $250,000
• Dang Right: September 18th, 2012: $833,000
• Stamp: September 26th, 2012: $1.2 million
• Extreme Takeover: October 9th, 2012: $1.2 million
• Taxing Tammy: October 17th, 2012 $961,000

2010 Midterm Election Activity

According to the Sunlight Foundation, Crossroads GPS spent $17 million in the 2010 midterm elections without disclosing their donors. NBC reported in 2010 that "a substantial portion of Crossroads GPS’ money came from a small circle of extremely wealthy Wall Street hedge fund and private equity moguls, according to GOP fundraising sources who spoke with NBC News on condition of anonymity. These donors have been bitterly opposed to a proposal by congressional Democrats — and endorsed by the Obama administration — to increase the tax rates on compensation that hedge funds pay their partners, the sources said."

Targeted Candidates

Crossroads GPS reportedly spent $17 million in the 2010 elections supporting Republican candidates (most often by running ads attacking their opponents). Here is a list of the targeted candidates, noting whether the expendites were opposing or supporting that candidate, and whether the candidate won or lost the election.

• Giannoulias, Alexander (D) IL Senate $4,479,605 (against) Lost
• Murray, Patty (D) WA Senate $3,597,316 (against) Winner
• Reid, Harry (D) NV Senate $2,253,258 (against) Winner
• Conway, Jack (D) KY Senate $1,145,296 (against) Lost
• Sestak, Joseph A Jr (D) PA Senate $809,196 (against) Lost
• Carnahan, Robin (D) MO Senate $714,234 (against) Lost
• Boccieri, John A (D) OH House $447,125 (against) Lost
• Carnahan, Robin (D) MO Senate $405,118 (against) Lost
• Crist, Charlie (I) FL Senate $354,016 (against) Lost
• Rubio, Marco (R) FL Senate $353,605 (support) Winner
• Costa, Jim (D) CA House $337,825 (against) Winner
• Conway, Jack (D) KY Senate $337,270 (against) Lost
• Reid, Harry (D) NV Senate $332,473 (against) Winner
• Rodriguez, Ciro (D) TX House $331,600 (against) Lost
• Davis, Lincoln (D) TN House $272,100 (against) Lost
• Carnahan, Russ (D) MO House $250,225 (against) Winner
• Donnelly, Joe (D) IN House $250,003 (against) Winner
• Pomeroy, Earl (D) ND House $247,700 (against) Lost
• Bennet, Michael (D) CO Senate $213,477 (against) Winner
• Angle, Sharron (R) NV Senate $126,014 (support) Lost
• Oberstar, James (D) MN House $48,546 (against) Lost

Transferring Funds to Other Dark Money Groups to Advance "Social Welfare"

The Center for Responsive Politics' Open Secrets reports that "groups like Crossroads GPS, which is a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt organization, must spend the bulk of its money on "social welfare" in order to preserve that status. How does a highly politicized group swing that? The way Crossroads did it in 2010 was to be exceptionally generous with grants to other politically active (c)(4) outfits -- many of which also ran ads critical of Democratic congressional candidates in 2010."

• American Action Network $500,000 (spent $26,088,031 on political ads in 2010)
• 60 Plus Association $50,000 (spent $7,096,125 on political ads in 2010)
• Americans for Tax Reform $4,000,000 (spent $4,140,044 on political ads in 2010)
• Center for Individual Freedom $2,750,000 (spent $2,500,617 on political ads in 2010)
• Republican Jewish Coalition $250,000 (spent $1,143,465 on political ads in 2010)
• National Federation of Independent Business $3,700,000 (reportedly used for NFIB's legal challenge to federal healthcare reform)
• National Right to Life $2,025,000
• Freedom Vote, Inc. $900,000
• Repub. Governors Public Policy Cmt $750,000
• NRA Institute $600,000
• American Justice Partnership $300,000
• Indiana Right to Life $35,000

Investigation Attempts

In late September 2010, Montana Senator Max Baucus called on the IRS to investigate political activity by groups like Crossroads GPS, in violation of the Internal Revenue Code. The Campaign Legal Center and Democracy 2010 joined the call in early October.

"With hundreds of millions of dollars being spent in election contests by tax-exempt entities,” he wrote, “it is time to take a fresh look at current practices and how they comport with the internal revenue code’s rules for nonprofits.” In his letter, Mr. Baucus asked the I.R.S. for a report of its findings, highlighting any possible violations of tax laws. Based on the agency’s review, he said, he plans to ask the committee to open its own investigation. “Groups who abuse the tax code claiming to be non-profits while pushing an overtly political agenda should not be able to trample justice, or fair, honest and open elections,” the senator said.

On October 6, 2010, conservative CNBC host and National Review columnist Larry Kudlow called for American Crossroads to make their donors public.

“Why not have the media posting of the contribution information on the Internet? That's all. And let everybody decide… Who, what, when, how, where, who got it? Put it up on the net and let free speech and free politics take its work… American Crossroads and Karl Rove and all them should post also.”

Ties to Other Groups

American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS share office space with the American Action Network, a group which promotes "Center Right Policies".

American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS are the largest customers of Crossroads Media LLC, a consultancy that purchases ad slots for political ads. Crossroads GPS, American Crossroads, and a related 501(c)(6) "trade organization" called Americans for Job Security moved over $133 million through Crossroads Media LLC in 2012 in order to make ad buys for the 2012 election. Crossroads Media was co-founded by former Americans for Job Security president Michael Dubke, who is also a partner at Black Rock Consulting, which he co-founded with Carl Forti, the current political director of American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS. Crossroads Media also shares an office with Americans for Job Security.

Sourcewatch resources

• American Crossroads
• Karl Rove
• Edward W. Gillespie

Contact

Crossroads GPS
1401 New York Avenue, NW Suite 1200
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 559-6424
info@crossroadsgps.org