How one decision restructured American politics in fifteen years

Citizens United and what came after

The Roberts Court ruling on January 21, 2010 — and the cascade of dark money, super PACs, and constitutional erosion that followed.

9 actors 20082026 18 yrs
Citizens United and what came after2010201520202025Citizens UnitedTrump 1.0Trump 2.0U.S. Supreme Court81 eventsJohn RobertsSamuel AlitoAntonin ScaliaCharles KochAmerican Legislative Exchange CouncilHeritage FoundationFederalist SocietyLeonard Leo
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Before Citizens United v. FEC, corporations and unions could not spend unlimited general-treasury funds on independent political communications. After it — January 21, 2010 — they could. The 5–4 majority opinion was authored by Justice Anthony Kennedy and joined by John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, Samuel Alito, and Clarence Thomas.

This timeline tracks what fifteen years of that ruling produced: the rise of super PACs, the explosion of dark-money networks, the operational coordination between donor-advised funds and the Federalist Society’s judicial pipeline, and the legal challenges that further expanded — never narrowed — the doctrine.

All events on this timeline

chronological
DateEventActorsStatus
2008-01-01Hans von Spakovsky Joins Heritage Foundation to Lead Voter Suppression Infrastructure Development
Hans von Spakovsky · Heritage Foundation · American Legislative Exchange Council · Council for National Policy · +1
5confirmed
2008-04-28Crawford v. Marion County: Supreme Court Upholds Strict Voter ID Laws Despite No Evidence of In-Person Fraud
U.S. Supreme Court · American Civil Liberties Union · Republican National Committee
3confirmed
2008-07-01Samuel Alito Takes Undisclosed Alaska Fishing Trip with Billionaire Paul Singer
Samuel Alito · Paul Singer · Leonard Leo
3confirmed
2009-01-01Americans for Prosperity Organizational Profile: Koch Brothers' Astroturf Empire Manufacturing Fake Grassroots Movements
Americans for Prosperity · Charles Koch · David Koch · Koch Industries
4confirmed
2009-02-19Koch Network Prepares Tea Party Mobilization After Santelli Rant
David Koch · Charles Koch · Americans for Prosperity · FreedomWorks
4confirmed
2009-02-19Rick Santelli CNBC Rant Triggers Immediate Koch Network Tea Party Response
David Koch · Charles Koch · Americans for Prosperity · FreedomWorks · +1
5confirmed
2009-04-15Tax Day Tea Party Protests Organized by Koch Network Groups
Americans for Prosperity · FreedomWorks · David Koch · Charles Koch · +1
5confirmed
2009-06-26Koch Network Mobilizes to Kill Waxman-Markey Cap-and-Trade Climate Bill
Koch brothers · Charles Koch · David Koch · Americans for Prosperity · +4
8confirmed
2009-07-17ALEC Creates Model Voter ID Legislation Following Obama Election
American Legislative Exchange Council · Hans von Spakovsky · Heritage Foundation
3confirmed
2009-09-129/12 Taxpayer March on Washington Demonstrates Koch Network Mobilization Power
FreedomWorks · Americans for Prosperity · Dick Armey · David Koch · +4
8confirmed
2009-12-01Arizona SB 1070 Immigration Law Drafted at ALEC Meeting with CCA Executives - Direct Quid Pro Quo for Immigrant Detention Profits
American Legislative Exchange Council · Corrections Corporation of America · Jan Brewer · GEO Group
4confirmed
2010-01-01ALEC Distributes Climate Denial Model Legislation to Kill Regional Climate Pacts
American Legislative Exchange Council · Koch Industries · ExxonMobil · State Legislatures
4confirmed
2010-01-01ALEC's 'Resolution in Opposition to a Carbon Tax' Obstructs Market-Based Climate Solutions
American Legislative Exchange Council · Koch Industries · ExxonMobil · Peabody Energy · +3
7confirmed
2010-01-01Corporate-Funded Think Tanks Testify to Congress While Hiding Donor Conflicts of Interest
Heritage Foundation · American Enterprise Institute · Koch brothers · General Electric · +2
6confirmed
2010-01-01DonorsTrust Organizational Profile: Dark Money ATM Enabling Anonymous Billionaire Political Spending
DonorsTrust · Koch brothers · Federalist Society · State Policy Network · +2
6confirmed
2010-01-21Supreme Court Citizens United Decision Unleashes Unlimited Corporate Spending
U.S. Supreme Court · Federal Election Commission · Anthony Kennedy
3confirmed
2010-01-27Obama Criticizes Citizens United at State of Union, Alito Responds 'Not True'
Barack Obama · Samuel Alito · John Roberts · Ruth Bader Ginsburg · +3
7confirmed
2010-04-23Arizona Passes SB 1070 Drafted by ALEC and Private Prison Companies
Jan Brewer · Corrections Corporation of America · American Legislative Exchange Council · GEO Group
4confirmed
2010-12-03ALEC Coordinates Right-to-Work Push After 2010 GOP Midterm Wave
American Legislative Exchange Council · Koch brothers · Americans for Prosperity · Republican Party
4confirmed
2011-01-0134 States Introduce ALEC Voter ID Bills in Coordinated Suppression Campaign
American Legislative Exchange Council · Republican state legislators · Heritage Foundation · State Policy Network
4confirmed
2011-01-01ALEC Grants Corporate Lobbyists 'Equal Vote' on Model Legislation for State Legislatures
American Legislative Exchange Council · State Legislatures · Koch Industries · ExxonMobil
4confirmed
2011-01-01Arizona Becomes First State to Enact ALEC-Inspired Education Savings Accounts - Pioneering Universal Voucher Path
Jan Brewer · American Legislative Exchange Council · K12 Inc.
3confirmed
2011-03-11Wisconsin Act 10 Crushes Public Sector Unions Using ALEC Model Legislation
Scott Walker · American Legislative Exchange Council · Koch brothers · Americans for Prosperity · +1
5confirmed
2011-07-01ALEC Achieves Systematic Legislative Capture: 200+ Corporate-Drafted Bills Enacted Annually Across States
American Legislative Exchange Council · State Legislatures · Koch Industries · ExxonMobil · +1
5confirmed
2011-07-13ALEC Exposed: Leaked Documents Reveal 800 Corporate-Written Model Bills
American Legislative Exchange Council · Center for Media and Democracy · State Legislators
3confirmed
2012-01-01Koch Network Spends $407 Million in Coordinated 2012 Election Campaign
Charles Koch · David Koch · Americans for Prosperity
3confirmed
2012-01-01Leonard Leo Directs Hidden Payments to Ginni Thomas Through Kellyanne Conway, Instructs "No Mention of Ginni"
Leonard Leo · Ginni Thomas · Clarence Thomas · Kellyanne Conway · +1
5confirmed
2012-02-01Indiana Becomes 23rd Right-to-Work State Using ALEC Model Legislation
American Legislative Exchange Council · National Right to Work Committee · Koch brothers
3confirmed
2012-03-02Iowa Governor Branstad Signs Nation's First Modern Ag-Gag Law Criminalizing Undercover Documentation of Agricultural Facility Abuses, Using ALEC Model Legislation to Shield Corporate Factory Farms from Whistleblower Investigations
American Legislative Exchange Council
1confirmed
2012-04-13Major Corporate Exodus from ALEC: Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Kraft, McDonald's, Wendy's, Mars, and Intuit Drop Membership After Public Pressure Campaign
Color of Change · American Legislative Exchange Council · Center for Media and Democracy · Common Cause
4confirmed
2012-05-22Kansas Governor Brownback Signs ALEC-Laffer Tax Plan Eliminating Pass-Through Business Income Taxes - 'Kansas Experiment' Becomes Test Case for Supply-Side Economics
Arthur Laffer · American Legislative Exchange Council · Koch Industries
3confirmed
2012-06-28Supreme Court Makes ACA Medicaid Expansion Optional, Enabling State Obstruction
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Republican Governors
3confirmed
2012-10-01ALEC's 'Electricity Freedom Act' Systematically Attacks State Renewable Energy Standards
American Legislative Exchange Council · Heartland Institute · Edison Electric Institute · State Legislatures
4confirmed
2012-12-11Michigan Passes Right-to-Work in Lame Duck Surprise Using Verbatim ALEC Language
Rick Snyder · American Legislative Exchange Council · Mackinac Center · Koch brothers
4confirmed
2013-04-03Edwin Feulner Retires as Heritage Foundation President After 36 Years Building Conservative Movement Infrastructure
Edwin Feulner · Heritage Foundation · Jim DeMint · Richard Scaife · +4
8confirmed
2013-06-01Justice O'Connor Expresses Regret Over Bush v. Gore Damage to Court Reputation
Sandra Day O'Connor · U.S. Supreme Court
2confirmed
2013-06-25ALEC States Immediately Implement Voter Restrictions After Shelby County Decision
North Carolina Legislature · American Legislative Exchange Council · U.S. Supreme Court
3confirmed
2013-06-25Shelby County Decision Guts Voting Rights Act Preclearance
Clarence Thomas · Samuel Alito · John Roberts
3confirmed
2013-07-01ALEC Coordinates 139 Education Privatization Bills Across States - Systematic Public School Defunding Campaign
American Legislative Exchange Council · Center for Media and Democracy · K12 Inc. · Koch Industries · +4
8confirmed
2014-04-02Supreme Court Strikes Down Aggregate Campaign Contribution Limits in McCutcheon v. FEC
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Republican National Committee · Anthony Kennedy · +5
9confirmed
2014-06-16Supreme Court backs broad discovery in Argentina debt case (Alito joined majority); Singer's fund later benefited
Samuel Alito · Paul Singer · U.S. Supreme Court
3confirmed
2014-06-19Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank: Supreme Court Restricts Software Patents, Reducing Patent Troll Leverage Over Abstract Business Methods
U.S. Supreme Court · Clarence Thomas
2confirmed
2014-06-25Supreme Court Rules Warrantless Cell Phone Searches Unconstitutional in Riley v. California
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts
2confirmed
2014-07-04Richard Mellon Scaife Dies After Investing $620 Million in Conservative Movement Infrastructure
Richard Scaife · Heritage Foundation · Federalist Society · State Policy Network · +2
6confirmed
2015-01-01Eastern District of Texas Patent Troll Haven: Judge Rodney Gilstrap Handles 25% of All U.S. Patent Cases, Forum Shopping Peak
John Roberts
1confirmed
2015-03-09Wisconsin Becomes 25th Right-to-Work State, Completing ALEC's Union Destruction
Scott Walker · American Legislative Exchange Council
2confirmed
2015-06-25Supreme Court Rejects King v. Burwell Challenge to ACA Subsidies in Federal Exchanges
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Antonin Scalia
3confirmed
2016-01-01ALEC Develops Comprehensive Government Union Reform Act as All-in-One Union Elimination Playbook
American Legislative Exchange Council
1confirmed
2016-02-12West Virginia Becomes 26th Right-to-Work State, Overriding Governor Veto with ALEC Model
American Legislative Exchange Council · Koch Network · State Policy Network · Americans for Prosperity
4confirmed
2016-02-13Justice Antonin Scalia Dies, McConnell Immediately Vows to Block Any Obama Nominee
Antonin Scalia · Mitch McConnell · Barack Obama
3confirmed
2016-05-18Trump Promises All Supreme Court Picks Will Come From Federalist Society
Donald Trump · Leonard Leo · Don McGahn · Neil Gorsuch · +4
8confirmed
2017-01-09Kentucky Becomes 27th Right-to-Work State in First Week of Session Using ALEC Model
Matt Bevin · Kentucky Legislature · American Legislative Exchange Council
3confirmed
2017-01-1428 States Adopt Right-to-Work Laws, Documenting ALEC's Systematic Labor Suppression Success
American Legislative Exchange Council · Koch brothers · Americans for Prosperity · U.S. Chamber of Commerce · +2
6confirmed
2017-01-20Heritage Foundation Staffs Trump Admin, Implements 64% of Agenda
Heritage Foundation · Donald Trump · Mick Mulvaney · Scott Pruitt · +3
7confirmed
2017-01-31Federalist Society Captures Federal Judiciary with $250M Dark Money
Federalist Society · Leonard Leo · Donald Trump · Mitch McConnell
4confirmed
2017-05-02Ed Feulner Returns as Heritage Foundation Interim President After DeMint Ousted for Management Failures
Edwin Feulner · Jim DeMint · Heritage Foundation · Kay Coles James · +1
5confirmed
2017-05-22TC Heartland v. Kraft: Supreme Court Limits Patent Forum Shopping, Curbing Eastern District of Texas Troll Haven
U.S. Supreme Court · Clarence Thomas
2confirmed
2017-06-06Kansas Legislature Overrides Brownback Veto to Repeal Failed Tax Cuts - Republican-Controlled Legislature Rejects Supply-Side Economics After Devastating 5-Year Experiment
Arthur Laffer · American Legislative Exchange Council
2confirmed
2017-12-22Trump Signs Tax Cuts and Jobs Act - Corporate Rate Permanently Slashed from 35% to 21%, Pass-Through Deduction, Estate Tax Exemption Doubled, $1.9 Trillion Added to Deficit
Donald Trump · Paul Ryan · Mitch McConnell · Orrin Hatch · +5
9confirmed
2018-02-26Texas Leads 20 Republican States in Lawsuit Seeking to Eliminate Entire ACA
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton · U.S. Supreme Court · Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
3confirmed
2018-05-21Epic Systems v. Lewis: Supreme Court Allows Mandatory Arbitration Blocking Class Action Labor Claims
U.S. Supreme Court · Neil Gorsuch · Federalist Society · Corporate employers · +1
5confirmed
2018-06-11Supreme Court Upholds Ohio's Aggressive "Use It Or Lose It" Voter Purge System
U.S. Supreme Court · Samuel Alito · Sonia Sotomayor
3confirmed
2018-06-27Janus v. AFSCME - Supreme Court Strikes Down Public Sector Union Fees, Targeting Teachers' Unions
Samuel Alito · Neil Gorsuch · State Policy Network · Bradley Foundation · +3
7confirmed
2019-01-01State Corporate Tax Rates Decline 33% Over Three Decades - ALEC's Interstate Race-to-Bottom Costs States $43-57 Billion Annually in Lost Revenue
American Legislative Exchange Council · State Legislatures · Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy
3confirmed
2019-02-14William Barr Confirmation as Attorney General Enables Systematic DOJ Politicization Using WHIG Template for Crisis-Accelerated Institutional Capture
William Barr · Donald Trump · Senate Judiciary Committee · Department of Justice · +4
8confirmed
2019-05-15Utah adopts ALEC model legislation requiring legislative approval for "major" agency rules
American Legislative Exchange Council
1confirmed
2019-06-27Supreme Court Rules Partisan Gerrymandering Beyond Federal Court Jurisdiction
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Robert Rucho · Common Cause
4confirmed
2020-01-01ALEC's Education Privatization Campaign Achieves Dominance - Model Legislation Controls Voucher Landscape Nationwide
American Legislative Exchange Council · K12 Inc. · Koch Industries · DeVos family · +3
7confirmed
2020-04-01CNP Coordinates National COVID-19 Anti-Lockdown Protest Movement
Council for National Policy · CNP Action · Stephen Moore · Heritage Foundation · +3
7confirmed
2020-06-30Espinoza v. Montana - Supreme Court Strikes Down State Bans on Religious School Funding
John Roberts · Clarence Thomas · Samuel Alito · Institute for Justice
4confirmed
2020-09-18Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Dies 46 Days Before Election, McConnell Immediately Vows to Confirm Replacement Despite 2016 Standard
Ruth Bader Ginsburg · Mitch McConnell · Donald Trump · John Roberts
4confirmed
2020-10-21Trump Issues Original Schedule F Executive Order: Civil Service Protection Elimination
Donald Trump · Office of Personnel Management · Heritage Foundation · Project 2025 · +1
5confirmed
2021-01-01440 Voter Restriction Bills Introduced in 49 States - ALEC's Largest Suppression Wave
American Legislative Exchange Council · Heritage Foundation · Heritage Action · Republican state legislators · +1
5confirmed
2021-01-01ALEC Develops New Model Election Bills to Implement Trump's "Big Lie"
American Legislative Exchange Council · Heritage Foundation · Heritage Action · State Policy Network · +1
5confirmed
2021-01-01Barre Seid Donates $1.6 Billion to Leonard Leo Dark Money Network
Leonard Leo
1confirmed
2021-01-25Supreme Court Dismisses All Trump Emoluments Cases as Moot
U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · Maryland
3confirmed
2021-03-25Georgia SB 202 Enacts Comprehensive Voter Suppression with Multiple ALEC Provisions
Brian Kemp · American Legislative Exchange Council
2confirmed
2021-05-13Leaked Video Exposes Heritage Action's $24 Million Voter Suppression Campaign Coordinating State Legislation
Heritage Action · Heritage Foundation · Hans von Spakovsky · Brian Kemp · +1
5confirmed
2021-08-26Supreme Court Strikes Down CDC Eviction Moratorium as Unauthorized Executive Action
U.S. Supreme Court · Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · Joe Biden
3confirmed
2022-01-13Supreme Court Blocks Biden OSHA Vaccine Mandate as Executive Overreach
U.S. Supreme Court · Joe Biden · U.S. Department of Labor
3confirmed
2022-04-01Heritage Foundation Launches 2 Million Project 2025 Initiative
Heritage Foundation · Kevin Roberts · Paul Dans
3confirmed
2022-06-24Dobbs v. Jackson: Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade — The 49-Year Institutional Capture Project Succeeds
Samuel Alito · Leonard Leo · Federalist Society · Neil Gorsuch · +2
6confirmed
2022-06-30Supreme Court Establishes Major Questions Doctrine in West Virginia v. EPA, Limiting Regulatory Power
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Clarence Thomas · Samuel Alito · +9
13confirmed
2022-12-05Kendal Price Files Whistleblower Complaint on Jane Roberts Commission Income and Chief Justice Non-Recusal
John Roberts · Dick Durbin
2confirmed
2023-01-01CNP Members Lead Project 2025 Coalition Organizations - Coordination Infrastructure for Trump Return
Council for National Policy · Heritage Foundation · Edwin Meese III · Cleta Mitchell · +1
5confirmed
2023-02-01Project 2025 launches Presidential Administration Academy — Heritage Foundation training pipeline for future conservative political appointees
Heritage Foundation · Paul Dans · Roger Severino
3confirmed
2023-03-01Project 2025 Presidential Personnel Database launches — Heritage Foundation 'conservative LinkedIn' with ideological screening for 20,000 vetted candidates
Heritage Foundation · Paul Dans
2confirmed
2023-04-01Heritage Foundation launches Project 2025 initiative
Heritage Foundation · Kevin Roberts · Paul Dans · Mark Meadows · +3
7confirmed
2023-04-06ProPublica Exposes Two Decades of Undisclosed Thomas-Crow Gifts
ProPublica · Clarence Thomas · Harlan Crow · U.S. Supreme Court
4confirmed
2023-06-20ProPublica Reveals Samuel Alito's Undisclosed Luxury Trip with Billionaire Paul Singer
Samuel Alito · Paul Singer · Leonard Leo · ProPublica
4confirmed
2023-06-27Supreme Court Rejects Dangerous "Independent State Legislature" Theory in Moore v. Harper
U.S. Supreme Court · North Carolina Legislature
2confirmed
2023-06-29Supreme Court Ends Affirmative Action in College Admissions in Students for Fair Admissions Decisions
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Clarence Thomas · Samuel Alito · +9
13confirmed
2023-06-30Supreme Court Allows Religious Exemptions from Anti-Discrimination Laws in 303 Creative v. Elenis
U.S. Supreme Court · Neil Gorsuch · John Roberts · Clarence Thomas · +8
12confirmed
2023-06-30Supreme Court Strikes Down Biden Student Loan Forgiveness 6-3 - Protects Debt System Against Democratic Relief
John Roberts · Joe Biden · Elena Kagan
3confirmed
2023-11-09Senate Judiciary Subpoenas Harlan Crow Over Thomas Gifts After Resistance
Senate Judiciary Committee · Dick Durbin · Harlan Crow · Clarence Thomas · +1
5confirmed
2023-12-31Investigation Reveals $6.6 Million in Gifts to Supreme Court Justices
Supreme Court Justices · Harlan Crow · Paul Singer · Clarence Thomas · +1
5confirmed
2024-01-01Clarence Thomas Secretly Participated in Koch Network Donor Events
Clarence Thomas · Koch Network · Charles Koch · David Koch · +1
5confirmed
2024-03-19SCOTUS allows Texas SB 4 to take effect temporarily
Supreme Court of the United States · State of Texas · Biden Administration · Samuel Alito · +3
7confirmed
2024-05-27Danube Institute 'Rule of Law as Lawfare' Conference Convenes US Heritage Foundation, Polish Supreme Court, Israeli Overhaul Author, and Federalist Society-Orbit Scholars in Budapest
Heritage Foundation · John Yoo
2confirmed
2024-06-26SCOTUS: Plaintiffs lack standing in social-media coercion case (Murthy v. Missouri)
Supreme Court of the United States · Amy Coney Barrett · Samuel Alito · Clarence Thomas · +2
6confirmed
2024-06-27SCOTUS limits SEC use of in-house tribunals for civil penalties (SEC v. Jarkesy)
Supreme Court of the United States · Securities and Exchange Commission · John Roberts · Clarence Thomas · +3
7confirmed
2024-06-27Supreme Court Rejects $6B Purdue Pharma Settlement Granting Sackler Family Immunity from Opioid Lawsuits
U.S. Supreme Court · Sackler Family · Purdue Pharma · Department of Justice
4confirmed
2024-06-27Supreme Court Rejects Sackler Immunity in 5-4 Decision, Blocks Bankruptcy Shield
U.S. Supreme Court · Neil Gorsuch · Ketanji Brown Jackson · Brett Kavanaugh · +2
6confirmed
2024-06-28SCOTUS overrules Chevron deference (Loper Bright v. Raimondo)
Supreme Court of the United States · John Roberts
2confirmed
2024-07-01Supreme Court Grants Broad Presidential Immunity in Trump v. United States, Creating King-Like Powers
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Clarence Thomas · Samuel Alito · +9
13confirmed
2024-07-01Supreme Court Trump Immunity Ruling Institutionalizes WHIG Constitutional Crisis Precedent into Permanent Oligarchic Governance Framework
Supreme Court of the United States · John Roberts · Donald Trump · Clarence Thomas · +4
8confirmed
2024-07-30Paul Dans departs as Project 2025 director amid campaign controversy
Paul Dans · Kevin Roberts · Heritage Foundation · Donald Trump · +1
5confirmed
2024-08-13JD Vance Writes Foreword for Project 2025 Architect's Book
J.D. Vance · Kevin Roberts · Heritage Foundation · Paul Dans
4confirmed
2024-10-30Supreme Court Allows Virginia to Purge 1,600 Voters Days Before Election Despite Federal Law
U.S. Supreme Court
1confirmed
2025-01-20Executive Order 14171: Restoring Accountability to Policy-Influencing Positions (Schedule F)
Donald Trump · Office of Personnel Management · Heritage Foundation
3confirmed
2025-01-20JD Vance Sworn In as 50th Vice President, Positioned for Potential Constitutional Crisis Management
J.D. Vance · Brett Kavanaugh · Donald Trump · U.S. Supreme Court · +1
5confirmed
2025-01-20Project 2025: Trump Administration Launches Massive Federal Civil Service Restructuring
Donald Trump · Heritage Foundation · Kevin Roberts · Paul Dans
4confirmed
2025-01-20Systematic Coordination Emerges in Federal Worker Purge and Civil Service Dismantling
Trump Administration · Heritage Foundation · Office of Personnel Management · Paul Dans · +1
5confirmed
2025-01-20Trump Signs Unconstitutional Executive Order Challenging Birthright Citizenship
Donald Trump · Department of Justice · U.S. Supreme Court · American Civil Liberties Union
4confirmed
2025-01-24Time finds nearly 65% of early executive actions mirror Project 2025 proposals
Donald Trump · Russ Vought · Heritage Foundation · Paul Dans
4confirmed
2025-01-25Brendan Carr chairs FCC after writing Project 2025 FCC chapter
Brendan Carr · Federal Communications Commission · Trump Administration · Heritage Foundation
4confirmed
2025-02-01ALEC Publishes 'Essential Policy Solutions 2025' Playbook - State-Level Corporate and Income Tax Elimination Agenda, Coordination with Federal Project 2025
American Legislative Exchange Council · Lisa Nelson · Arthur Laffer · State Policy Network · +5
9confirmed
2025-02-01Schedule F Implementation Targets 50,000 Federal Workers
Donald Trump · Russell Vought · Heritage Foundation
3confirmed
2025-02-15Federal Courts Grapple with Unprecedented Emoluments Enforcement Challenge
U.S. Supreme Court · Trump Administration
2confirmed
2025-02-15Federal Judges Address Escalating Threats to Judicial Independence
John Roberts · Federal Judiciary · U.S. Supreme Court · U.S. Marshals Service
4confirmed
2025-02-15Supreme Court Confronts Unprecedented National Guard Federalization Crisis
U.S. Supreme Court · Trump Administration · State Governors
3confirmed
2025-02-18Trump Asserts Unitary Executive Control Over DOJ, Echoing Nixon's Saturday Night Massacre
Donald Trump · Department of Justice · Heritage Foundation
3confirmed
2025-02-21Attorney General Bondi Says Epstein Files "Sitting on My Desk"
Pam Bondi · John Roberts · Fox News
3confirmed
2025-02-21Supreme Court declines to let firing of OSC chief take immediate effect
U.S. Supreme Court · Hampton Dellinger
2confirmed
2025-03-11Heritage Foundation Hosts Closed-Door Washington Workshop With Hungary's MCC and Poland's Ordo Iuris on Dismantling the European Commission and European Court of Justice
Heritage Foundation
1confirmed
2025-03-15Supreme Court Conducts Unprecedented Hearing on Presidential Emoluments
U.S. Supreme Court · Trump Administration
2confirmed
2025-03-20Trump Signs Executive Order Directing Dismantlement of Department of Education
Donald Trump · Linda McMahon · Heritage Foundation
3confirmed
2025-03-22Supreme Court Continues to Sidestep Definitive Ruling on Presidential Emoluments
U.S. Supreme Court · Trump Administration
2confirmed
2025-04-02Trump Invokes Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA) to Impose Unprecedented Reciprocal Tariffs
Donald Trump · U.S. Supreme Court
2confirmed
2025-04-10Federal Judges Establish Precedent for Presidential Accountability
Federal Judiciary · U.S. Supreme Court · Department of Justice · Rebecca Slaughter · +3
7confirmed
2025-04-10Supreme Court Unanimously Rules Government Must 'Facilitate' Abrego Garcia's Return
Supreme Court · John Roberts · Kilmar Abrego Garcia · Trump Administration · +2
6confirmed
2025-05-05Congressional Hearing Exposes Systematic Judicial Intimidation Tactics
Senate Judiciary Committee · John Roberts · U.S. Marshals Service · Supreme Court Justices · +5
9confirmed
2025-05-05Supreme Court Attempts to Mitigate Constitutional Emergency Powers Dispute
U.S. Supreme Court · Executive Branch
2confirmed
2025-05-05Trump Administration Escalates Judicial Oversight Tensions
Trump Administration · Federal Courts · U.S. Supreme Court
3confirmed
2025-05-07Supreme Court Confronts Systemic Emoluments Violations
U.S. Supreme Court · Department of Justice · Executive Branch
3confirmed
2025-05-18Supreme Court Hearing Challenges Presidential National Guard Federalization Powers
U.S. Supreme Court · State Governors · U.S. Department of Defense · New York Attorney General Letitia James · +1
5confirmed
2025-05-29Federal Courts Rule Trump's IEEPA Tariffs Illegal in Multiple Cases
Donald Trump · U.S. Court of International Trade · U.S. Supreme Court
3confirmed
2025-06-09Lindsey Burke — Project 2025 Education Chapter Author — Named Education Department Deputy Chief of Staff
Linda McMahon · Heritage Foundation
2confirmed
2025-06-10Project 2025 Personnel Audit: Reformed-Evangelical Stream Achieves Highest Chapter-Author-to-Role Placement Rate; Three Parallel Pipelines Confirmed
Russell Vought · Brendan Carr · Peter Navarro · Pete Hegseth · +3
7confirmed
2025-06-17DDoSecrets releases 13,726 Project 2025 applicant questionnaire submissions — unredacted version enables first recommendation-to-placement spot-checks
Heritage Foundation · Paul Ingrassia
2confirmed
2025-06-21Trump systematically dismantles post-Watergate institutional safeguards
Donald Trump · Trump Administration · U.S. Supreme Court · U.S. Congress
4confirmed
2025-06-23Supreme Court 6-3 Allows Third-Country Deportations Without Due Process
U.S. Supreme Court · U.S. Department of Homeland Security · Sonia Sotomayor
3confirmed
2025-06-27Supreme Court Restricts Nationwide Injunctions in Trump v. CASA, Expanding Executive Power
U.S. Supreme Court · Trump Administration
2confirmed
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
3confirmed
2025-07-08Supreme Court lifts injunctions, enables mass firings at 19 federal agencies
U.S. Supreme Court · Federal Agencies · General Services Administration · Department of Government Efficiency · +2
6confirmed
2025-07-14Supreme Court 6-3 Stay Authorizes Mass Federal Workforce Reductions at 22 Agencies
U.S. Supreme Court · Trump Administration · American Federation of Government Employees
3confirmed
2025-07-15Climate Programs Dismantled - NOAA Faces 27% Budget Cut
NOAA · Heritage Foundation
2confirmed
2025-07-23Supreme Court Emergency Order in Trump v. Boyle
U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump
2confirmed
2025-08-01Supreme Court Expands Louisiana Redistricting Case to Challenge Section 2 of Voting Rights Act
U.S. Supreme Court · Department of Justice · Louisiana · NAACP Legal Defense Fund · +3
7confirmed
2025-08-07Trump Issues 202 Executive Orders with Two-Thirds Matching Project 2025 Blueprint
Donald Trump · Heritage Foundation · Project 2025
3confirmed
2025-08-11Trump Nominates Partisan Heritage Foundation Economist to Lead Bureau of Labor Statistics
Donald Trump · Bureau of Labor Statistics · Heritage Foundation · Steve Bannon
4confirmed
2025-08-29Federal Circuit Court Rules Trump Tariffs Violated IEEPA, Exceeded Presidential Authority
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit · Donald Trump · U.S. Supreme Court
3confirmed
2025-09-01Mass Inspector General Firings Implement Project 2025 Plan
Donald Trump · Chuck Grassley · Chuck Schumer · Elizabeth Warren · +2
6confirmed
2025-09-02Supreme Court Allows Trump to Remove FTC Commissioner, Gutting Agency Independence
John Roberts · Donald Trump · Rebecca Slaughter · U.S. Supreme Court · +1
5reported
2025-09-04Trump Administration Petitions Supreme Court for Emergency Review of Tariffs Ruling
Donald Trump · U.S. Supreme Court · U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit · Department of Justice
4reported
2025-09-04Trump Fires Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner After Unfavorable Jobs Report
Donald Trump · Erika McEntarfer · Bureau of Labor Statistics · Heritage Foundation
4reported
2025-09-09Heritage Foundation Publishes 800-Page Constitutional Guide as Trump's Judicial Roadmap
Heritage Foundation · Samuel Alito · Donald Trump · U.S. Supreme Court
4reported
2025-09-11Trump Administration Threatens National Guard Deployment to Chicago
Donald Trump · Heritage Foundation · Stephen Miller
3reported
2025-09-22Supreme Court Agrees to Reconsider Humphrey's Executor, Review Trump's Power to Fire Agency Heads
U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · Rebecca Slaughter · Federal Trade Commission · +1
5reported
2025-09-22Supreme Court Allows Trump to Fire FTC Commissioner Slaughter, Threatens Independent Agencies
U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · Rebecca Slaughter · Federal Trade Commission
4reported
2025-09-26Supreme Court Allows Trump to Withhold $4B in Foreign Aid Through Illegal 'Pocket Rescission'
U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · Elena Kagan · Mike Johnson · +1
5reported
2025-10-03Supreme Court Uses Emergency Docket to Expand Presidential Power
U.S. Supreme Court · Trump Administration
2reported
2025-10-06Supreme Court Begins 2025-2026 Term with Focus on Executive Power and Voting Rights
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts
2confirmed
2025-10-09Senate Confirms Jennifer Mascott to Third Circuit Court of Appeals
U.S. Senate · Donald Trump · Federalist Society
3reported
2025-10-15Supreme Court Reargues Louisiana v. Callais, Threatens Voting Rights Act
U.S. Supreme Court · Louisiana · American Civil Liberties Union · NAACP Legal Defense Fund
4reported
2025-10-27Tucker Carlson Interviews Nick Fuentes, Exposing Republican Rift Over Antisemitism
Tucker Carlson · Nick Fuentes · Ben Shapiro · Ted Cruz · +2
6confirmed
2025-10-29Supreme Court to Review Trump's Federalization of National Guard in Chicago, Nationwide Implications
Donald Trump · JB Pritzker · U.S. Supreme Court
3confirmed
2025-11-05Supreme Court Hears Landmark Tariff Case, Justices Express Deep Skepticism of Trump's Emergency Powers
Donald Trump · U.S. Supreme Court
2confirmed
2025-11-06Supreme Court Issues Emergency Stay Allowing Trump Administration to Withhold $4 Billion in SNAP Food Benefits
U.S. Supreme Court · Ketanji Brown Jackson · John McConnell · USDA
4reported
2025-11-07Supreme Court Temporarily Blocks Full SNAP Payments to 42 Million Americans
U.S. Supreme Court · Ketanji Brown Jackson · U.S. Department of Agriculture · Trump Administration
4reported
2025-11-10Heritage Foundation Board Members Resign Over Kevin Roberts Defending Tucker Carlson's Fuentes Interview
Kevin Roberts · Tucker Carlson · Nick Fuentes · Heritage Foundation
4confirmed
2025-12-05Supreme Court Grants Review of Trump's Birthright Citizenship Challenge, Setting Stage for Constitutional Crisis
U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · D. John Sauer · American Civil Liberties Union · +3
7disputed
2025-12-08Supreme Court Signals Intent to Overturn 90-Year Precedent Protecting Independent Agency Leaders from Presidential Firing, Expanding Executive Power
U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · Rebecca Slaughter · John Roberts · +3
7confirmed
2025-12-09Heritage Foundation promotes 'Heritage 2.0' 2026 policy priorities (document released March 2025) — no personnel pillar; Project 2025 four-pillar architecture not continued
Heritage Foundation · Kevin Roberts
2confirmed
2025-12-23SCOTUS (6-3, Trump v. Illinois) Blocks Chicago National Guard Federalization; Trump Stands Down From Chicago/LA/Portland, Vows to 'Come Back Stronger'
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Amy Coney Barrett · Brett Kavanaugh · +2
6confirmed
2025-12-23Supreme Court Blocks Trump National Guard Deployment to Chicago, Ruling 'Regular Forces' Means Military
U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · John Roberts · Brett Kavanaugh · +8
12confirmed
2026-01-07National Guard Troops Return Home After Supreme Court Blocks Trump Deployment to Chicago, Portland, LA
Donald Trump · Gavin Newsom · U.S. Northern Command · U.S. Supreme Court
4confirmed
2026-01-09Supreme Court Narrows AEDPA Bar on Federal Habeas Claims
U.S. Supreme Court · Sonia Sotomayor · Neil Gorsuch · John Roberts
4confirmed
2026-01-13Supreme Court Hears Transgender Sports Ban Cases, Signals Support for Restrictions
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Brett Kavanaugh · Samuel Alito · +2
6confirmed
2026-01-14Supreme Court Rules 7-2 in Bost v. Illinois That Candidates Have Standing to Challenge Election Rules
U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Ketanji Brown Jackson · Sonia Sotomayor
4confirmed
2026-01-20Supreme Court Issues Three Unanimous Rulings on Federal Procedures
U.S. Supreme Court · Amy Coney Barrett · Samuel Alito
3confirmed
2026-01-21Supreme Court Hears Arguments on Presidential Removal Power in Trump v Cook
U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · D. John Sauer · Brett Kavanaugh · +1
5confirmed
2026-01-21Supreme Court Hears Trump v. Cook, Justices Skeptical of Presidential Power to Fire Federal Reserve Governors
Donald Trump · Lisa Cook · U.S. Supreme Court · Brett Kavanaugh · +2
6confirmed
2026-01-29Supreme Court to Hear Birthright Citizenship Challenge in April
U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · American Civil Liberties Union · D. John Sauer
4confirmed
2026-02-20Supreme Court Strikes Down IEEPA Tariffs 6-3 in Historic Limitation on Executive Trade Authority
John Roberts · Donald Trump
2confirmed
2026-02-27US Catholic Bishops Call Trump Birthright Citizenship Order "Affront to Catholic Teaching," File SCOTUS Brief
Donald Trump · U.S. Supreme Court
2confirmed
2026-03-0524 State Attorneys General Sue Trump Over New Tariffs After Supreme Court Struck Down Previous Ones
New York Attorney General Letitia James · U.S. Court of International Trade · U.S. Supreme Court · Trump Administration
4confirmed
2026-03-07Trump Administration Escalates Campaign to Strip Federal Judges of Power to Block Presidential Orders
Trump Administration · U.S. Supreme Court · U.S. Department of Justice · U.S. House of Representatives
4confirmed
2026-03-11Trump Administration Asks Supreme Court to End Deportation Protections for 350,000 Haitians
Donald Trump · U.S. Department of Homeland Security · Kristi Noem · U.S. Supreme Court
4confirmed
2026-04-01Supreme Court Hears Birthright Citizenship Arguments; Gorsuch Exposes Government's Inability to Protect Native American Citizenship
U.S. Supreme Court · Neil Gorsuch · D. John Sauer · Donald Trump · +1
5confirmed
2026-04-29Supreme Court Guts Section 2 of Voting Rights Act in Louisiana v. Callais, Reworking 40-Year Gingles Standard
Samuel Alito · Elena Kagan · Sonia Sotomayor · Ketanji Brown Jackson
4confirmed
2026-05-04SCOTUS 6-3 Callais Ruling Immediately Effective, Voiding 100K Ballots; Roberts Court Completes VRA Gutting
John Roberts · Clarence Thomas · Samuel Alito · Neil Gorsuch · +4
8confirmed
2026-05-0811th Circuit Rejects Trump No-Bond Detention Policy, Deepening 4-Way Circuit Split Toward SCOTUS
Department of Homeland Security · Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) · U.S. Supreme Court
3confirmed
2026-06-25Supreme Court (Mullin v. Doe, 6-3) Lets Trump End Haitian and Syrian TPS, Holds Terminations Shielded from Judicial Review
Supreme Court of the United States · Samuel Alito · Elena Kagan · Sonia Sotomayor · +4
8confirmed
2026-06-29Supreme Court Overturns Humphrey's Executor, Grants President At-Will Firing Power Over Independent Agencies
Supreme Court of the United States · Donald Trump · Federal Trade Commission · John Roberts · +1
5confirmed
195 events on this timeline

Other curated timelines

How a Heritage Foundation document became an operating system
The Project 2025 architects

Eleven named figures, one think tank, and a transition team blueprint that became governance in real time.

11 actors · 2018–2026
Forty years of court-packing as a deliberate institutional project
The Federalist Society pipeline to SCOTUS

From Reagan-era founding through the six-three majority — the named architects and the justices they delivered.

10 actors · 1982–2026
Private prisons, ICE contracts, and the architecture of mass deportation
The detention industrial complex

Two corporations, one agency, and a quarter-century of building the infrastructure that 2025 weaponized.

8 actors · 1998–2026
The same person, restaffed for velocity
Trump 1.0 vs Trump 2.0

Both terms on one chart. The first term was chaotic, the second is operational. The difference is the personnel.

10 actors · 2017–2026
Decades of access, granted by elites, protected by prosecutors
The Epstein network's institutional reach

Jeffrey Epstein's operation depended on institutional cooperation — from a U.S. Attorney's secret non-prosecution agreement to a …

7 actors · 1992–2026
How a sitting president pumped his own token
The crypto cascade

World Liberty Financial, the $TRUMP and $MELANIA memecoins, the dismantling of crypto enforcement — and the named figures who made …

9 actors · 2017–2026
The Kremlin's twelve-year project to corrode the American electorate
Russian interference, 2014–2026

Vladimir Putin and the named American operatives, from troll farms through Manafort through Mueller through 2024.

9 actors · 2014–2026
Twelve years after the disclosures, the architecture has only grown
The surveillance state, Snowden to today

Edward Snowden's 2013 disclosures led to one major reform and a decade of expansion. The named agencies and contractors that built …

9 actors · 2010–2026
Cite this view
The Cascade Ledger. “Citizens United and what came after.” Curated timeline view, capturecascade.org, July 28, 2026. https://capturecascade.org/timelines/citizens-united-aftermath/
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