(RepublicanJournal.org) – FreedomWorks, a conservative advocacy group based in Washington, D.C., successfully drove Tea Party politics for many years. However, a notable shift within the Republican Party has led the organization to disband. Those in charge blame former President Donald Trump for its abrupt closure.
In an exclusive interview with POLITICO published on Wednesday, May 8, FreedomWorks president Adam Brandon said the company has “dissolved” and “It’s effective immediately.” He noted that the conservative advocacy organization had made the decision the previous days. Members voted unanimously to shut down operations.
At that point, only approximately 25 workers remained. Last March, FreedomWorks laid off around 40% of its staff. Those affected by Tuesday’s decision will continue to receive their healthcare benefits and paychecks for the next few months.
Brandon said that over the past two years, the group’s total revenue had plunged by about half, down to $8 million from $16 million. He blamed that decline — and the company’s subsequent dissolution — was due to Trump. Brandon noted that Trump’s rise in the conservative movement opened up a “huge gap” between FreedomWorks’ libertarian principles, which the organization’s leadership followed, and the MAGA following of its members.
Brandon said that shift led to a division in the staff into “MAGA and Never Trump factions.” It also had a negative impact on fundraising because donors wanted to know what the organization was doing for Trump when it was neither for nor against the former US leader. However, internal politics led to a dramatic shift that put FreedomWorks in “an impossible position.”
A former employee who left last year also spoke with POLITICO on condition of anonymity, saying that Brandon, who admitted to doing his best to create a balance, “let a bunch of right-wing nutjobs turn [the organization] into a MAGA mouthpiece,” because of the finances and visibility it gained FreedomWorks.
Copyright 2024, RepublicanJournal.org
