Capture lane

Corporate Capture

The Corporate Capture capture lane traces 562 verified events documenting this mechanism of institutional capture.

562 events From Sep 4, 1872 To Mar 12, 2026 Open in filter view →
DateEventLanesStatus
2026-03-12AI Industry Super PACs Pour $125 Million Into 2026 Midterms to Block Regulation, Targeting Candidates With Hidden Influence Campaign
OpenAI · Anthropic · Andreessen Horowitz · Marc Andreessen · +7
confirmed
2026-03-12USPS Postmaster DeJoy Signs DOGE Deal to Cut 10,000 Postal Workers
Louis DeJoy · Department of Government Efficiency · Elon Musk · U.S. Postal Service · +1
confirmed
2026-03-11Trump Administration Launches Section 301 Trade Probes to Rebuild Tariff Regime After Supreme Court Defeat
Donald Trump · Scott Bessent · U.S. Office of the U.S. Trade Representative · U.S. Department of Commerce · +1
confirmed
2026-03-10Senate Stablecoin Bill Stalls as Democrats Cite Trump Crypto Conflicts of Interest
Donald Trump · U.S. Senate · Elizabeth Warren · Jeff Merkley · +2
confirmed
2026-03-09Anthropic Files Dual Federal Lawsuits Challenging Pentagon's Supply Chain Risk Designation as Unconstitutional Retaliation
Anthropic · Dario Amodei · U.S. Department of Defense · Pete Hegseth · +3
confirmed
2026-03-08Colorado Attorney General and Environmental Groups Sue EPA Over Illegal Rejection of State Clean Air Plan Protecting Coal
Phil Weiser · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · Earthjustice · Sierra Club · +2
confirmed
2026-03-08EFF and The Intercept Find OpenAI's Pentagon Deal Surveillance Guardrails Unenforceable, Warning of AI-Powered Domestic Surveillance Risk
OpenAI · Sam Altman · U.S. Department of Defense · Electronic Frontier Foundation · +1
confirmed
2026-03-08Legal Challenges Mount Against EPA Repeal of Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · Lee Zeldin · Donald Trump · Environmental Defense Fund · +1
confirmed
2026-03-07OpenAI Robotics Chief Caitlin Kalinowski Resigns Over Pentagon Deal, Citing Surveillance and Autonomous Weapons Concerns
OpenAI · Caitlin Kalinowski · Sam Altman · U.S. Department of Defense
confirmed
2026-03-06Anthropic Files Lawsuit Against Pentagon Over Unprecedented National Security Designation
Anthropic · Dario Amodei · U.S. Department of Defense · Pete Hegseth
confirmed
2026-03-05Anthropic Reopens Pentagon Talks as Defense Experts Warn Blacklist Sets Dangerous Precedent for AI Safety
Anthropic · Dario Amodei · U.S. Department of Defense · Pete Hegseth · +2
confirmed
2026-03-04Environmental Groups Press Legal Challenge Against EPA's Repeal of Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding
Earthjustice · Clean Air Task Force · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · Lee Zeldin · +1
confirmed
2026-03-04Pentagon Formally Designates Anthropic a National Security Supply-Chain Risk, First US Company So Labeled
Anthropic · Dario Amodei · U.S. Department of Defense · Pete Hegseth · +1
confirmed
2026-03-04Trump Publicly Champions Crypto Industry in Stablecoin Battle While Family Firm Profits from Same Rules
Donald Trump · Eric Trump · World Liberty Financial · U.S. Congress · +3
confirmed
2026-03-03AI Industry Super PAC Backed by OpenAI Insiders and Palantir Pours Millions Into Blocking AI-Regulation Candidate Alex Bores
OpenAI · Palantir Technologies · Greg Brockman · Joe Lonsdale · +5
confirmed
2026-02-26US-Denmark Announce "Greenland Victory" Defense Cooperation Deal with Mining Rights and Military Access
Donald Trump · Mette Frederiksen · Mute Egede · Mark Rutte · +1
confirmed
2026-02-24New York Demands $13.5 Billion Tariff Refund After Supreme Court Ruling
Kathy Hochul · Donald Trump
confirmed
2026-02-24Trump State of the Union Calls for Second Reconciliation, Celebrates Venezuela as "New Friend"
Donald Trump · United States Congress
confirmed
2026-02-21Post-SCOTUS Tariff Pivot: Trump Invokes Section 122 Global Tariff and Launches Section 301 Investigations as Legal Workaround
Donald Trump · Scott Bessent · Jamieson Greer · U.S. Office of the U.S. Trade Representative · +2
confirmed
2026-02-21Trump Invokes Section 122 to Impose New Tariffs Within 24 Hours of Supreme Court Ruling
Donald Trump · Scott Bessent · Department of the Treasury
confirmed
2026-02-20Ambassador Bridge Owner Donated $1M to MAGA Before Trump Attacked Rival Bridge
Donald Trump · Manuel Moroun · MAGA Inc.
confirmed
2026-02-20Supreme Court Strikes Down IEEPA Tariffs 6-3 in Historic Limitation on Executive Trade Authority
John Roberts · United States Supreme Court · Donald Trump
confirmed
2026-02-20Trump Demands Netflix Remove Susan Rice from Board During Merger Review
Donald Trump · Netflix · Susan Rice
confirmed
2026-02-19DHS Signs $1 Billion Palantir Agreement for Immigration Surveillance
DHS (Department of Homeland Security) · Palantir · Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) · U.S. Customs and Border Protection
confirmed
2026-02-19House Democrats Probe World Liberty Financial UAE Bank Charter and Trump Family Conflicts
Donald Trump · World Liberty Financial · United Arab Emirates
confirmed
2026-02-18FDA Commissioner Makary and Deputy Prasad Announce End of Two-Trial Drug Approval Standard in NEJM — Most Significant FDA Safety Change Since 1962
Food and Drug Administration · Marty Makary · Vinay Prasad · Donald Trump
confirmed
2026-02-18Trump Invokes Defense Production Act for Bayer/Monsanto Glyphosate, Potentially Shielding Corporation from 100,000+ Cancer Lawsuits
Donald Trump · Bayer AG · Brooke Rollins · Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
confirmed
2026-02-15Pentagon Extends Defense Contractor "Naughty List" Review Period
Pentagon · Pete Hegseth · RTX · General Dynamics · +2
confirmed
2026-02-11Denmark Purchases US Missiles to Defend Greenland as NATO Allies Arm Against Fellow Member
Denmark · North Atlantic Treaty Organization · Germany · United Kingdom
confirmed
2026-02-04Trump Reverses Position on Netflix-Warner Bros. Merger Involvement After Ethics Criticism
Donald Trump · Netflix · Warner Bros. Discovery · Department of Justice
confirmed
2026-01-30Trump Orders INDYCAR Race on National Mall via Executive Action
Donald Trump · White House · Department of the Interior · Department of Transportation · +1
confirmed
2026-01-29Ten Tech Vendors Offer $600 Million in Discounts to Implement Medicaid Work Requirements
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services · Donald Trump · Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
confirmed
2026-01-15Public Citizen Report Documents 159 Cancelled Corporate Enforcement Actions Worth $3.1 Billion
Public Citizen · Donald Trump
confirmed
2026-01-09Exxon CEO Tells Trump Venezuela Is 'Uninvestible' at White House Oil Summit
Donald Trump · Darren Woods · Marco Rubio · Chris Wright · +6
confirmed
2025-12-01Trump Administration Drops 100+ Corporate Enforcement Actions, Penalties Fall 97 Percent
Trump Administration · Department of Justice · Securities and Exchange Commission · Federal Trade Commission
confirmed
2025-11-18Meta Wins FTC Antitrust Case as Judge Rules No Monopoly Despite Instagram/WhatsApp Acquisitions
Judge James Boasberg · Meta · Mark Zuckerberg · Federal Trade Commission · +1
confirmed
2025-11-04Axon acquires Carbyne for $625 million, consolidating Israeli 911 surveillance tech with US police body camera giant
Axon · Carbyne · Ehud Barak · Peter Thiel · +1
confirmed
2025-10-27Trump Family Crypto Platform Tied to Pardoned Binance Executive Generated $500M
Binance · Changpeng Zhao · Donald Trump · Trump Family · +1
confirmed
2025-10-23Billionaire Timothy Mellon's $130M Military Donation During Shutdown Raises Oligarchy Concerns
Timothy Mellon · Trump · U.S. Department of Defense · Pentagon
reported
2025-10-23White House Releases List of 37 Corporate Donors for Trump's $300M Ballroom Project
Trump · Google · Amazon · Meta · +6
reported
2025-10-15OCC Conditionally Approves Erebor Bank Charter in Record Four Months
Palmer Luckey · Joe Lonsdale · Peter Thiel · Founders Fund · +6
confirmed
2025-10-15Valinor Enterprises Launches as Palantir/Anduril Alumni Defense-Tech Incubator
Julie Bush · Trae Stephens · Paul Kwan · Grant Verstandig · +7
confirmed
2025-10-13Pro-Trump Fund Fraudulently Markets Fake Treasury Event, Sells Sponsorships
1789 Capital · Scott Bessent · U.S. Treasury Department · Corporate Sponsors
reported
2025-10-05Private Prison Company CoreCivic Secures $300 Million in New ICE Contracts
CoreCivic · Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) · Trump Administration · U.S. Congress
reported
2025-10-04Trump Targets Corporate Deals Across 30+ Industries Before Midterm Elections
Trump Administration · Pfizer · Eli Lilly · AstraZeneca · +1
reported
2025-09-26Grover Norquist and 35 Conservative Groups Urge Trump to Let ACA Tax Credits Expire While Opposing Corporate Tax Credit Expirations
Grover Norquist · Americans for Tax Reform · Club for Growth · Americans for Prosperity · +3
confirmed
2025-09-26White House Solicits Input on Dismantling AI Regulations to Boost Industry
White House · Office of Science and Technology Policy
reported
2025-09-25Microsoft Terminates Israeli Unit 8200's Azure Access for Mass Surveillance of Palestinian Civilians
Microsoft · Brad Smith · Unit 8200 · Yossi Sariel · +3
reported
2025-09-22DOJ Eliminates Consumer Protection Branch, Guts Civil Rights Division Enforcement
Pam Bondi · Donald Trump · DOJ Civil Division
confirmed
2025-09-10Commerce Secretary Lutnick Forces Corporations to Provide Government Equity Stakes
Howard Lutnick · U.S. Department of Commerce · Intel · Lockheed Martin · +1
reported
2025-09-08CBS Appoints Trump Ally Kenneth Weinstein as Network Ombudsman Following Merger Pressure
Kenneth Weinstein · Donald Trump · CBS News · Paramount · +1
confirmed
2025-09-05FTC Reverses Nationwide Noncompete Ban, Leaving 30 Million Workers Bound by Restrictive Contracts
Andrew Ferguson · Federal Trade Commission · Donald Trump
confirmed
2025-09-05Transportation Department Drops Rule Requiring Airlines to Compensate Passengers for Delays
Sean Duffy · Department of Transportation · Airlines · Donald Trump
reported
2025-08-29Government Waives Performance Benchmarks for Intel Despite $11 Billion in Federal Support
Trump · Intel · U.S. Department of Commerce
reported
2025-08-27Silicon Valley Launches $200 Million Super PAC to Block AI Regulations Ahead of Midterms
Meta · Andreessen Horowitz · Greg Brockman · OpenAI
reported
2025-08-26Commerce Secretary Lutnick Discloses Trump Considering Equity Stakes in Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Palantir
Howard Lutnick · Trump · Lockheed Martin · Boeing · +1
reported
2025-08-26Exxon Held Secret Negotiations With Sanctioned Russian Oil Giant Rosneft Over Sakhalin Return
Exxon Mobil · Rosneft · Vladimir Putin · Trump
reported
2025-08-22U.S. Government Takes 10% Equity Stake in Intel Through CHIPS Act Conversion
Howard Lutnick · Trump · U.S. Department of Commerce · Intel
confirmed
2025-08-04Trump Sons Launch $300M SPAC Targeting US Manufacturing Revival
Eric Trump · Donald Trump Jr. · Kevin McGurn · Kyle Wool
confirmed
2025-08-01Corporate PACs Donated $174 Million to Lawmakers Who Attempted to Overturn 2020 Election
Koch Industries · American Crystal Sugar · AT&T · Corporate PACs · +1
confirmed
2025-08-01Qualcomm Donates $1 Million to Trump-Aligned Dark Money Group
Qualcomm · Securing American Greatness · Taylor Budowich · Donald Trump
confirmed
2025-07-31Trump Mobile Launches Comprehensive Wireless Service with Telehealth and Insurance
Eric Trump · Donald Trump Jr. · Pat O'Brien · Don Hendrickson · +1
confirmed
2025-07-04First Federal School Voucher Program Signed into Law — Tax Credit Scholarships for Private and Religious Schools in One Big Beautiful Bill
Donald Trump · Linda McMahon · Heritage Foundation · ALEC
confirmed
2025-07-04Musk's Lobbying Team Secures Sweeping Legislative Wins in Texas
Elon Musk · SpaceX Lobbyists · Tesla Lobbyists · Greg Abbott · +1
confirmed
2025-06-15Trump Military Parade Sponsored by Companies with Close Political Ties, Raising Ethical Concerns
Donald Trump · Norman Eisen · Dana White
confirmed
2025-05-02NASA Proposal Shifts $6 Billion, Prioritizing Mars Missions and Commercial Space Interests
Donald Trump · Trump Administration · NASA Leadership · SpaceX · +1
confirmed
2025-04-21Pilgrim's Pride, Fined $100M, Donates $5M to Trump Inauguration Under Scrutiny
Donald Trump · Trump Administration · Pilgrim's Pride · Senator Elizabeth Warren
confirmed
2025-04-21Trump Raised $239 Million for Inauguration, More Than Doubling Previous Record
Donald Trump · Trump Inaugural Committee
confirmed
2025-04-19Amazon and Meta are among the corporate sponsors of the White House Easter Egg Roll
Donald Trump · Melania Trump · Amazon · Meta · +2
confirmed
2025-04-17Judge Rules Google Operates Illegal Ad Tech Monopoly, Orders Divestiture of Ad Business
Judge Leonie Brinkema · Department of Justice · Google · Sundar Pichai · +1
confirmed
2025-04-09US-China Tariff Escalation Reaches 145% as Tit-for-Tat Retaliation Nears Total Decoupling
Donald Trump · Xi Jinping · Scott Bessent · Howard Lutnick
confirmed
2025-03-23SpaceX Secures Over $9.5 Billion in Government Contracts Despite Conflicts of Interest
Donald Trump · Elon Musk · Trump Administration · Rep. Stephen Lynch · +1
confirmed
2025-03-23Trump White House Sells Corporate Sponsorships for Easter Egg Roll, Marking New Level of Institutional Capture
Donald Trump · Trump Administration · Meta · YouTube · +3
confirmed
2025-03-21Pentagon Alters Musk Meeting After Leaked War Plan Briefing Reports
Donald Trump · Elon Musk · Pete Hegseth
confirmed
2025-03-20Trump Invokes Defense Production Act for Critical Mineral Extraction on Federal Lands
Donald Trump · Pete Hegseth · Scott Bessent · Doug Burgum
confirmed
2025-03-12Johnson says Congress will investigate attacks against Tesla owners, vehicles
Mike Johnson · Elon Musk · Marjorie Taylor Greene · Donald Trump
confirmed
2025-03-12Trump Turns White House Lawn into Tesla Showroom, Purchases Model S to Support Musk
Donald Trump · Elon Musk · White House Staff
confirmed
2025-03-11Trump turns the White House lawn into a Tesla showroom
Donald Trump · Trump Administration · Elon Musk · Tesla
confirmed
2025-02-25Axon Reports $2.1 Billion Revenue for 2024, Achieving Third Consecutive Year of 30%+ Growth Through Subscription Lock-In Model
Axon · Rick Smith
confirmed
2025-02-25Trump Administration Introduces Expansive Special Government Employee Status for Private Sector Leaders
Donald Trump · Elon Musk · Department of Government Efficiency
confirmed
2025-02-20X Threatens Interpublic Group with Potential Government Interference Over Ad Spending
Donald Trump · Trump Administration · Elon Musk · Linda Yaccarino · +1
confirmed
2025-02-13How the Trumps Turned Social Media Platform Litigation into a Profitable Strategy
Donald Trump · Alphabet Inc. · Google · YouTube · +4
confirmed
2025-02-11Trump Administration Systematically Halts Regulatory Investigations into Musk's Business Empire
Donald Trump · Trump Administration · Elon Musk · Federal Regulatory Agencies
confirmed
2025-02-10Trump signs order pausing enforcement of foreign bribery ban
Donald Trump · Trump Administration · William Barr · Department of Justice
confirmed
2025-01-30Amazon Raises Ad Spending on Elon Musk's X Platform
Jeff Bezos · Elon Musk · Andy Jassy · Donald Trump · +1
confirmed
2025-01-30Not just Big Tech: under-the-radar corporations rushed to donate to Trump's inauguration
Donald Trump · Trump Administration · CoreCivic · GEO Group · +1
confirmed
2025-01-29Meta agrees to pay $25 million to settle Trump lawsuit over suspended accounts
Donald Trump · Mark Zuckerberg · Meta Corporation
confirmed
2025-01-21Trump Signs EO 14173 'Ending Illegal Discrimination' — Foundational Anti-DEI Order Requiring Federal Contractor Certification
Donald Trump · Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs
confirmed
2025-01-13Trump Inauguration Raises Record $245 Million with $161 Million from Corporations Facing Federal Enforcement
Donald Trump · Trump Inaugural Committee · Amazon · Meta · +4
confirmed
2024-12-19SEC Charges Cantor Fitzgerald $6.75 Million for Misleading SPAC Disclosures
Securities and Exchange Commission · Cantor Fitzgerald · Howard Lutnick · View, Inc. · +1
confirmed
2024-12-13McKinsey Agrees to $650 Million Criminal Settlement for Role in 'Turbocharging' Opioid Sales for Purdue Pharma
McKinsey & Company · U.S. Department of Justice · Purdue Pharma · Martin Elling · +1
confirmed
2024-12-10FTC Blocks Kroger-Albertsons $24.6B Grocery Merger, Citing Labor and Consumer Harm
Federal Trade Commission · Kroger Company · Albertsons Companies · Judge Nelson
confirmed
2024-12-06McKinsey Pays $73 Million Final Settlement to South Africa in State Capture Resolution
McKinsey & Company · South Africa National Prosecuting Authority · U.S. Department of Justice · McKinsey South Africa · +2
confirmed
2024-12-05McKinsey Africa Agrees to Pay $122 Million Settlement for Bribery of South African Officials
McKinsey Africa · U.S. Department of Justice · Vikas Sagar · South African National Prosecuting Authority · +2
confirmed
2024-09-20FDA Commissioner Califf's Pharmaceutical Industry Revolving Door Scrutinized
Robert Califf · Food and Drug Administration · Verily Life Sciences · Joe Manchin · +1
confirmed
2024-09-19General Dynamics Virginia-Class Submarine Program Revealed to Be $17 Billion Over Budget with 2-3 Year Delays
General Dynamics · Huntington Ingalls Industries · Ken Calvert · Carlos Del Toro · +1
confirmed
2024-08-20Defense Contractors Market Ukraine War as "Battle-Tested" Surveillance Technology Proving Ground
Anduril Industries · Palantir Technologies · Clearview AI · Defense Industry
confirmed
2024-08-16Humana Pays $90 Million to Settle First-of-Its-Kind Medicare Part D Fraud Case for Fraudulent Bidding
Humana · Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services · Department of Justice · Steven Scott (whistleblower)
confirmed
2024-08-09Oracle Agrees to $115 Million Settlement Over Mass Surveillance Data Brokerage
Oracle · Judge Richard Seeborg · Irish Council for Civil Liberties
confirmed
2024-08-05Federal Judge Rules Google is Illegal Monopolist in Landmark Search Antitrust Decision
Judge Amit Mehta · Department of Justice · Google · Sundar Pichai · +1
confirmed