U.S. Senator Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., described the federal indictment of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) on Tuesday as “pretty explosive,” stating it reinforces long-standing concerns from conservatives about the group’s activities.
Schmitt criticized the SPLC as a “sham organization” that has “been going after conservative groups and mislabeling them and trying to generate a lot of hate against those groups.”
A federal grand jury in Montgomery, Alabama, charged the SPLC with 11 counts, including wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured bank, and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering. Prosecutors allege that between 2014 and 2023, the organization funneled more than $3 million to individuals tied to extremist groups while concealing these payments through shell entities and misleading donors about how their funds were used.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche characterized the alleged activities as “doing the exact opposite” of the SPLC’s stated mission by allegedly funding rather than dismantling extremism.
Schmitt noted that the allegations fit a broader pattern, saying: “And now we find out that they were actually funding actual groups in order to, I guess, to keep their racket going and the grift going. So, I can’t say I’m surprised.”
The Missouri senator added that the case could lead to wider scrutiny of nonprofit and political funding networks, particularly concerning potential misconduct by organizations such as ActBlue: “I actually think once they start getting into these NGO networks, there’s some potential with ActBlue laundering money. There’s a lot out there.”
The SPLC, founded in 1971 and known for its “Intelligence Project” that tracks hate groups, has denied wrongdoing. The group stated that the payments cited in the indictment were made to confidential informants used to gather intelligence on violent extremist organizations, arguing such efforts have helped save lives.
The organization has vowed to fight the charges, calling them politically motivated. The case represents a significant escalation in federal scrutiny of one of the nation’s most prominent civil rights nonprofits and is expected to draw continued political and legal attention in the coming weeks.
