History
Founded by conservative attorney Larry Klayman in 1994[4], Judicial Watch came to public attention after filing 18 lawsuits against the administration of Democratic U.S. President Bill Clinton and figures in the Clinton administration.
The organization received considerable financial support from prominent Clinton critics, including $7.74 million from conservative billionaire Richard Mellon Scaife.[5] This led Clinton administration officials to accuse Judicial Watch of "abusing the judicial system for partisan ends."[6]
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Funding
In 2002, Judicial Watch received $1.1 million from The Carthage Foundation[27] and a further $400,000 from the Sarah Scaife Foundation. BOTH foundations are Managed by Richard Mellon Scaife. [27] The year before the Scaife Foundation gave $1.35 million and Carthage $500,000.[27]
In all, between 1997 and 2002 Judicial Watch received $7,069,500 (unadjusted for inflation) in 19 grants from a handful of foundations. The bulk of this funding came from just three foundations – the Sarah Scaife Foundation, The Carthage Foundation and the John M. Olin Foundation, Inc.[27] According to MediaTransparency, "Judicial Watch is essentially a tool of Richard Mellon Scaife, who provides almost all its funding."[27]
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