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.
Capture lanecorruptiondemocraticexecutivefinancialintelligencejudiciallaborlegislativemediamilitaryotherregulatory
Status
confirmed
alleged
disputed
The Federalist Society was founded at Yale and Chicago law schools in 1982. Forty years later, six of its members held a majority on the Supreme Court. This is not coincidence; it is the longest-running successful institutional capture project in American history, with a single named operative — Leonard Leo — orchestrating the pipeline from membership recruitment through judicial nomination through dark-money confirmation campaigns.
Each justice’s row begins with their nomination. Read across to see the rulings that followed. The density of post-2017 decisions on the lower rows shows what a captured Court does once installed.
All events on this timeline
| Date | Event | Actors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982-02-09 | Reagan Appoints Robert Bork to DC Circuit Court of Appeals, Positioning Antitrust Revolution Author for Supreme Court Robert Bork · Ronald Reagan · DC Circuit Court of Appeals · Federalist Society · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 1982-04-25 | Federalist Society Established: Conservative Judicial Pipeline Inception Steven Calabresi · David McIntosh · Lee Liberman Otis · Robert Bork · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 1982-04-25 | Federalist Society Organizational Profile: Judicial Pipeline and Conservative Legal Movement Infrastructure Federalist Society · Leonard Leo · Steven Calabresi · David McIntosh · +10 | 14 | confirmed |
| 1983-01-01 | Heritage Foundation Expands to 100+ Staff with $10 Million Budget During Reagan Administration Peak Influence Heritage Foundation · Edwin Feulner · Ronald Reagan · Richard Scaife · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 1983-03-09 | Anne Gorsuch Resigns EPA After Contempt of Congress: Regulatory Capture Exposed Anne Gorsuch Burford · Ronald Reagan · U.S. Congress · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 1983-04-26 | A Nation at Risk Report Launches Education Reform Industry, Lays Groundwork for Privatization National Commission on Excellence in Education · Secretary of Education Terrel Bell · Ronald Reagan · Heritage Foundation | 4 | confirmed |
| 1985-01-01 | Bradley Foundation Transformation - Coordinated Conservative Infrastructure Funding Michael S. Joyce · Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation · Heritage Foundation · Federalist Society · +3 | 7 | confirmed |
| 1986-01-01 | State Policy Network (Madison Group) Founded - State-Level Think Tank Coordination Thomas A. Roe · American Legislative Exchange Council · Heritage Foundation · South Carolina Policy Council · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 1986-02-25 | Meese Announces West Publishing Deal: Presidential Signing Statements Enter U.S. Code Legislative History Edwin Meese · Ronald Reagan · Samuel Alito · West Publishing Company · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 1987-01-01 | Heritage Foundation Budget Reaches $14.3 Million - Scale of Corporate Policy Investment Heritage Foundation · Joseph Coors · Richard Mellon Scaife · Edwin Feulner · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 1987-10-23 | Senate Rejects Robert Bork Supreme Court Nomination 42-58, First Ideological Rejection in Nearly a Century Robert Bork · Ronald Reagan · Edward Kennedy · Lewis Powell · +5 | 9 | confirmed |
| 1988-06-29 | Morrison v. Olson: Scalia's Lone Dissent Articulates Unitary-Executive Theory That Becomes Movement Doctrine U.S. Supreme Court · William Rehnquist · Antonin Scalia · Theodore Olson · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 1991-01-01 | Leonard Leo Joins Federalist Society, Begins Strategic Judicial Talent Pipeline Leonard Leo · Federalist Society | 2 | confirmed |
| 1994-11-08 | Republicans Win Historic Midterm Election with Contract with America Newt Gingrich · Dick Armey · Richard Mellon Scaife · Joseph Coors · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 1997-01-01 | Koch Industries Launches Massive Climate Denial Funding Network Koch Industries · Charles Koch · David Koch · Koch Family Foundations · +5 | 9 | confirmed |
| 2000-01-01 | CNP and Federalist Society Coordination - Leonard Leo Links Judicial and Political Networks Council for National Policy · Federalist Society · Leonard Leo · Clarence Thomas | 4 | confirmed |
| 2000-11-22 | Brooks Brothers Riot: Republican Operatives Physically Stop Miami-Dade Recount Roger Stone · John Sweeney · John Roberts · Brett Kavanaugh · +3 | 7 | confirmed |
| 2000-12-09 | Supreme Court Grants Bush Emergency Stay with Scalia's "Irreparable Harm" Logic Antonin Scalia · Supreme Court Conservative Majority · William Rehnquist · Clarence Thomas · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2000-12-12 | Supreme Court Delivers Partisan Bush v. Gore Decision with Corporate Legal Team Involvement George W. Bush · Al Gore · William Rehnquist · Sandra Day O'Connor · +5 | 9 | confirmed |
| 2001-06-07 | Bush Signs EGTRRA Tax Cuts - Top Rate Reduced from 39.6% to 35%, Estate Tax Phased Out, Beginning $1.5 Trillion Debt Increase George W. Bush · Dick Cheney · Paul O'Neill · Dennis Hastert · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2002-06-27 | Zelman v. Simmons-Harris - Supreme Court Upholds School Vouchers for Religious Schools Chief Justice William Rehnquist · Justice Sandra Day O'Connor · Justice Clarence Thomas · Institute for Justice · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2002-09-01 | Think Tank Network Coordinates Iraq War Support Following Powell Memo Template American Enterprise Institute · Heritage Foundation · Dick Cheney · Paul Wolfowitz · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2002-09-02 | Heritage Foundation Coordinates with WHIG for Crisis-Accelerated Implementation of Powell Memorandum Blueprint Heritage Foundation · White House Iraq Group · Edwin Feulner · Paul Weyrich · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2002-09-15 | Powell Memorandum Institutional Network Establishes Systematic Crisis Coordination with WHIG Operations American Enterprise Institute · Cato Institute · Hoover Institution · Federalist Society · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2002-11-15 | Federalist Society Provides WHIG with Crisis-Accelerated Legal Justification Infrastructure for Powell Memorandum Implementation Federalist Society · John Yoo · Jay Bybee · Steven Calabresi · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2003-01-01 | Clarence Thomas Begins Undisclosed Luxury Trips on Harlan Crow's Yacht and Private Jets Clarence Thomas · Harlan Crow · Rochelle Charter (Crow's yacht company) | 3 | confirmed |
| 2003-01-01 | State Policy Network Organizational Profile: Coordinating 66 State Think Tanks for Synchronized Corporate Capture State Policy Network · Thomas A. Roe · Bradley Foundation · DonorsTrust · +5 | 9 | confirmed |
| 2003-05-01 | Powell-WHIG Template Establishes Crisis-Accelerated Institutional Capture Blueprint for Ongoing Democratic Transformation George W. Bush · Powell Memorandum Institutional Network · White House Iraq Group · Heritage Foundation · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2003-05-28 | Bush Signs JGTRRA - Dividend and Capital Gains Rates Slashed to 15%, Massively Favoring Investment Income Over Wages George W. Bush · Dick Cheney · Bill Thomas · Charles Grassley · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2003-06-23 | Grutter v. Bollinger - Supreme Court Upholds Affirmative Action but Sets 25-Year Limit Justice Sandra Day O'Connor · Justice Clarence Thomas · University of Michigan Law School · Lee Bollinger · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2004-01-22 | DC Opportunity Scholarship Program - First Federally-Funded School Voucher System President George W. Bush · Speaker Dennis Hastert · Senator Judd Gregg · DC Public Schools · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2004-06-24 | Supreme Court Protects Cheney Energy Task Force Secrecy Dick Cheney · U.S. Supreme Court · Anthony Kennedy · Antonin Scalia · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2005-08-29 | Hurricane Katrina Enables .4B No-Bid Disaster Capitalism Takeover Dick Cheney · Halliburton · Bechtel · Shaw Group · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2006-05-15 | eBay v. MercExchange: Supreme Court Limits Automatic Patent Injunctions, Enabling Patent Troll Business Model to Flourish U.S. Supreme Court · Clarence Thomas · Anthony Kennedy · eBay · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2008-01-01 | Hans 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 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2008-07-01 | Samuel Alito Takes Undisclosed Alaska Fishing Trip with Billionaire Paul Singer Samuel Alito · Paul Singer · Leonard Leo · Robin Arkley II | 4 | confirmed |
| 2009-01-01 | Harlan Crow Begins Paying Private School Tuition for Thomas's Grandnephew Clarence Thomas · Harlan Crow · Mark Martin · Hidden Lake Academy · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2009-06-26 | Koch Network Mobilizes to Kill Waxman-Markey Cap-and-Trade Climate Bill Koch brothers · Charles Koch · David Koch · Americans for Prosperity · +5 | 9 | confirmed |
| 2009-07-17 | ALEC Creates Model Voter ID Legislation Following Obama Election American Legislative Exchange Council · Hans von Spakovsky · Heritage Foundation · ALEC Public Safety and Elections Task Force | 4 | confirmed |
| 2010-01-01 | Corporate-Funded Think Tanks Testify to Congress While Hiding Donor Conflicts of Interest Heritage Foundation · American Enterprise Institute · Koch brothers · General Electric · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2010-01-01 | DonorsTrust Organizational Profile: Dark Money ATM Enabling Anonymous Billionaire Political Spending DonorsTrust · Donors Capital Fund · Whitney Lynn Ball · Kimberly Dennis · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2010-01-27 | Obama Criticizes Citizens United at State of Union, Alito Responds 'Not True' Barack Obama · Samuel Alito · John Roberts · Ruth Bader Ginsburg · +3 | 7 | confirmed |
| 2011-01-01 | 34 States Introduce ALEC Voter ID Bills in Coordinated Suppression Campaign American Legislative Exchange Council · Republican state legislators · Heritage Foundation · State Policy Network | 4 | confirmed |
| 2012-01-01 | Leonard Leo Directs Hidden Payments to Ginni Thomas Through Kellyanne Conway, Instructs "No Mention of Ginni" Leonard Leo · Ginni Thomas · Clarence Thomas · Kellyanne Conway · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2012-06-28 | Supreme Court Makes ACA Medicaid Expansion Optional, Enabling State Obstruction U.S. Supreme Court · Chief Justice John Roberts · National Federation of Independent Business · Republican Governors · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2013-04-03 | Edwin Feulner Retires as Heritage Foundation President After 36 Years Building Conservative Movement Infrastructure Edwin Feulner · Heritage Foundation · Jim DeMint · Richard Scaife · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2013-06-25 | Shelby County Decision Guts Voting Rights Act Preclearance Clarence Thomas · Samuel Alito · John Roberts · Shelby County Alabama | 4 | confirmed |
| 2014-04-02 | Supreme Court Strikes Down Aggregate Campaign Contribution Limits in McCutcheon v. FEC U.S. Supreme Court · Chief Justice John Roberts · Shaun McCutcheon · Republican National Committee · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2014-06-16 | Supreme Court backs broad discovery in Argentina debt case (Alito joined majority); Singer's fund later benefited Samuel Alito · Paul Singer · Elliott Management · Republic of Argentina · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2014-06-19 | Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank: Supreme Court Restricts Software Patents, Reducing Patent Troll Leverage Over Abstract Business Methods U.S. Supreme Court · Clarence Thomas · Alice Corp · CLS Bank International · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2014-06-25 | Supreme Court Rules Warrantless Cell Phone Searches Unconstitutional in Riley v. California U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts | 2 | confirmed |
| 2014-07-04 | Richard Mellon Scaife Dies After Investing $620 Million in Conservative Movement Infrastructure Richard Scaife · Sarah Scaife Foundation · Carthage Foundation · Allegheny Foundation · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2014-10-20 | Harlan Crow Purchases Clarence Thomas's Mother's House in Undisclosed Deal Clarence Thomas · Harlan Crow · Leola Williams (Thomas's mother) · Crow Holdings | 4 | confirmed |
| 2015-01-01 | Eastern District of Texas Patent Troll Haven: Judge Rodney Gilstrap Handles 25% of All U.S. Patent Cases, Forum Shopping Peak Rodney Gilstrap · Eastern District of Texas · John Roberts · Lex Machina | 4 | confirmed |
| 2015-06-25 | Supreme Court Rejects King v. Burwell Challenge to ACA Subsidies in Federal Exchanges U.S. Supreme Court · Chief Justice John Roberts · Justice Antonin Scalia · King (Plaintiff) · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2016-02-13 | Justice Antonin Scalia Dies, McConnell Immediately Vows to Block Any Obama Nominee Antonin Scalia · Mitch McConnell · Barack Obama | 3 | confirmed |
| 2016-05-18 | Trump Promises All Supreme Court Picks Will Come From Federalist Society Donald Trump · Leonard Leo · Don McGahn · Neil Gorsuch · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2017-01-20 | Heritage Foundation Staffs Trump Admin, Implements 64% of Agenda Heritage Foundation · Donald Trump · Mick Mulvaney · Scott Pruitt · +3 | 7 | confirmed |
| 2017-01-31 | Federalist Society Captures Federal Judiciary with $250M Dark Money Federalist Society · Leonard Leo · Donald Trump · Judicial Crisis Network · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2017-04-07 | McConnell Invokes Nuclear Option, Eliminates Filibuster for Supreme Court Nominees, Gorsuch Confirmed 54-45 Mitch McConnell · Neil Gorsuch · Chuck Schumer · Harry Reid · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2017-04-16 | Neil Gorsuch Sells Property to Law Firm CEO Days After Supreme Court Confirmation Neil Gorsuch · Brian Duffy · Greenberg Traurig | 3 | confirmed |
| 2017-05-02 | Ed Feulner Returns as Heritage Foundation Interim President After DeMint Ousted for Management Failures Edwin Feulner · Jim DeMint · Heritage Foundation · Heritage Foundation Board of Trustees · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2017-05-22 | TC Heartland v. Kraft: Supreme Court Limits Patent Forum Shopping, Curbing Eastern District of Texas Troll Haven U.S. Supreme Court · Clarence Thomas · TC Heartland · Kraft Foods · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2017-12-22 | Trump 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 · Kevin Brady · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2018-01-01 | Clarence Thomas Attends Koch Network Donor Summit - Supreme Court Ethics Violations Clarence Thomas · Koch Network · Council for National Policy | 3 | confirmed |
| 2018-05-21 | Epic Systems v. Lewis: Supreme Court Allows Mandatory Arbitration Blocking Class Action Labor Claims U.S. Supreme Court · Neil Gorsuch · Federalist Society · Corporate employers · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2018-06-11 | Supreme Court Upholds Ohio's Aggressive "Use It Or Lose It" Voter Purge System U.S. Supreme Court · Samuel Alito · Sonia Sotomayor · Jon Husted | 4 | confirmed |
| 2018-06-27 | Janus v. AFSCME - Supreme Court Strikes Down Public Sector Union Fees, Targeting Teachers' Unions Justice Samuel Alito · Justice Neil Gorsuch · National Right to Work Foundation · State Policy Network · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2018-09-27 | Christine Blasey Ford Delivers Credible, Emotional Testimony Alleging Kavanaugh Sexual Assault, He Responds with Partisan Rant Christine Blasey Ford · Brett Kavanaugh · Lindsey Graham · Chuck Grassley · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2018-10-06 | Senate Confirms Kavanaugh 50-48 Despite Sexual Assault Allegations and Severely Limited FBI Investigation Brett Kavanaugh · Susan Collins · Joe Manchin · Lisa Murkowski · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2019-01-01 | Ginni Thomas Joins CNP Action Board - Supreme Court Spouse in Conservative Coordination Hub Ginni Thomas · Clarence Thomas · Council for National Policy · CNP Action | 4 | confirmed |
| 2019-02-14 | William 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 · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2019-06-27 | Supreme Court Rules Partisan Gerrymandering Beyond Federal Court Jurisdiction U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Robert Rucho · Common Cause | 4 | confirmed |
| 2019-07-01 | Clarence Thomas Takes 8-Day Indonesia Yacht Trip with Harlan Crow Clarence Thomas · Virginia Thomas · Harlan Crow | 3 | confirmed |
| 2020-04-01 | CNP Coordinates National COVID-19 Anti-Lockdown Protest Movement Council for National Policy · CNP Action · Stephen Moore · Heritage Foundation · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2020-06-30 | Espinoza v. Montana - Supreme Court Strikes Down State Bans on Religious School Funding Chief Justice John Roberts · Justice Clarence Thomas · Justice Samuel Alito · Institute for Justice · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2020-09-18 | Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Dies 46 Days Before Election, McConnell Immediately Vows to Confirm Replacement Despite 2016 Standard Ruth Bader Ginsburg · Mitch McConnell · Donald Trump · Clara Spera · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2020-09-26 | Rose Garden Amy Coney Barrett Ceremony Becomes White House COVID Superspreader Event Donald Trump · Amy Coney Barrett · Melania Trump · Mike Lee · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2020-09-26 | Trump Nominates Amy Coney Barrett to Supreme Court, Religious Conservative to Replace Liberal Icon Ginsburg Donald Trump · Amy Coney Barrett · Mitch McConnell · Ruth Bader Ginsburg | 4 | confirmed |
| 2020-10-21 | Trump Issues Original Schedule F Executive Order: Civil Service Protection Elimination Donald Trump · Office of Personnel Management · Heritage Foundation · Project 2025 · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2020-10-26 | Senate Confirms Amy Coney Barrett 52-48 Eight Days Before Election, Creating 6-3 Conservative Supermajority Amy Coney Barrett · Mitch McConnell · Donald Trump · Susan Collins · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2021-01-01 | 440 Voter Restriction Bills Introduced in 49 States - ALEC's Largest Suppression Wave American Legislative Exchange Council · Heritage Foundation · Heritage Action · Republican state legislators · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2021-01-01 | ALEC Develops New Model Election Bills to Implement Trump's "Big Lie" American Legislative Exchange Council · Heritage Foundation · Heritage Action · State Policy Network · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2021-01-01 | Barre Seid Donates $1.6 Billion to Leonard Leo Dark Money Network Barre Seid · Leonard Leo · Marble Freedom Trust | 3 | confirmed |
| 2021-01-06 | Ginni Thomas Attends "Stop the Steal" Rally Before Capitol Attack, CNP Board Member at Insurrection Ginni Thomas · Clarence Thomas · Council for National Policy · CNP Action · +5 | 9 | confirmed |
| 2021-05-13 | Leaked Video Exposes Heritage Action's $24 Million Voter Suppression Campaign Coordinating State Legislation Heritage Action · Jessica Anderson · Heritage Foundation · Hans von Spakovsky · +5 | 9 | confirmed |
| 2022-04-01 | Heritage Foundation Launches 2 Million Project 2025 Initiative Heritage Foundation · Kevin Roberts · Paul Dans · Steven Groves | 4 | confirmed |
| 2022-06-24 | Dobbs v. Jackson: Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade — The 49-Year Institutional Capture Project Succeeds Samuel Alito · Leonard Leo · Federalist Society · Neil Gorsuch · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2022-06-27 | Kennedy v. Bremerton: Supreme Court Rules 6-3 for Public School Prayer, Effectively Overturning Lemon Test Joseph Kennedy · Neil Gorsuch · First Liberty Institute | 3 | confirmed |
| 2022-06-30 | Supreme Court Establishes Major Questions Doctrine in West Virginia v. EPA, Limiting Regulatory Power U.S. Supreme Court · Chief Justice John Roberts · Justice Clarence Thomas · Justice Samuel Alito · +10 | 14 | confirmed |
| 2022-12-05 | Kendal Price Files Whistleblower Complaint on Jane Roberts Commission Income and Chief Justice Non-Recusal Kendal Price · Jane Sullivan Roberts · John Roberts · Dick Durbin · +3 | 7 | |
| 2023-01-01 | CNP Members Lead Project 2025 Coalition Organizations - Coordination Infrastructure for Trump Return Council for National Policy · Heritage Foundation · Edwin Meese III · William L. Walton · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2023-04-01 | Heritage Foundation launches Project 2025 initiative Heritage Foundation · Kevin Roberts · Paul Dans · Mark Meadows · +5 | 9 | confirmed |
| 2023-04-06 | ProPublica Exposes Two Decades of Undisclosed Thomas-Crow Gifts ProPublica · Clarence Thomas · Harlan Crow · U.S. Supreme Court | 4 | confirmed |
| 2023-04-06 | ProPublica reveals decades of luxury travel/gifts to Justice Thomas; 2023 Judicial Conference narrows hospitality exemption Justice Clarence Thomas · Harlan Crow · Judicial Conference of the United States | 3 | confirmed |
| 2023-06-20 | ProPublica Reveals Samuel Alito's Undisclosed Luxury Trip with Billionaire Paul Singer Samuel Alito · Paul Singer · Elliott Investment Management · Leonard Leo · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2023-06-29 | Supreme Court Ends Affirmative Action in College Admissions in Students for Fair Admissions Decisions U.S. Supreme Court · Chief Justice John Roberts · Justice Clarence Thomas · Justice Samuel Alito · +12 | 16 | confirmed |
| 2023-06-30 | Supreme Court Allows Religious Exemptions from Anti-Discrimination Laws in 303 Creative v. Elenis U.S. Supreme Court · Justice Neil Gorsuch · Chief Justice John Roberts · Justice Clarence Thomas · +12 | 16 | confirmed |
| 2023-06-30 | Supreme Court Strikes Down Biden Student Loan Forgiveness 6-3 - Protects Debt System Against Democratic Relief John Roberts · Joe Biden · Elena Kagan | 3 | confirmed |
| 2023-11-09 | Senate Judiciary Subpoenas Harlan Crow Over Thomas Gifts After Resistance Senate Judiciary Committee · Dick Durbin · Harlan Crow · Clarence Thomas · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2023-12-31 | Investigation Reveals $6.6 Million in Gifts to Supreme Court Justices Supreme Court Justices · Fix the Court · Harlan Crow · Paul Singer · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2024-01-01 | Clarence Thomas Secretly Participated in Koch Network Donor Events Clarence Thomas · Koch Network · Charles Koch · David Koch · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2024-01-15 | Systematic Supreme Court Ethics Violations Exposed: Thomas-Crow Revelations Reveal Institutional Corruption Clarence Thomas · Harlan Crow · Senate Judiciary Committee · ProPublica | 4 | confirmed |
| 2024-03-19 | SCOTUS allows Texas SB 4 to take effect temporarily Supreme Court of the United States · State of Texas · Biden Administration · Justice Samuel Alito · +3 | 7 | confirmed |
| 2024-06-26 | SCOTUS: Plaintiffs lack standing in social-media coercion case (Murthy v. Missouri) Supreme Court of the United States · Justice Amy Coney Barrett · Justice Samuel Alito · Justice Clarence Thomas · +3 | 7 | confirmed |
| 2024-06-27 | SCOTUS limits SEC use of in-house tribunals for civil penalties (SEC v. Jarkesy) Supreme Court of the United States · Securities and Exchange Commission · Chief Justice John Roberts · Justice Neil Gorsuch (concurring) · +5 | 9 | confirmed |
| 2024-06-27 | SCOTUS stays EPA 'Good Neighbor Plan' for cross-state smog program Supreme Court of the United States · Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) · Justice Neil Gorsuch · Justice Amy Coney Barrett (dissent) · +3 | 7 | confirmed |
| 2024-06-27 | Supreme Court Rejects Sackler Immunity in 5-4 Decision, Blocks Bankruptcy Shield U.S. Supreme Court · Neil Gorsuch · Ketanji Brown Jackson · Brett Kavanaugh · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2024-06-28 | SCOTUS overrules Chevron deference (Loper Bright v. Raimondo) Supreme Court of the United States · Chief Justice John Roberts · National Marine Fisheries Service | 3 | confirmed |
| 2024-07-01 | Supreme Court Grants Broad Presidential Immunity in Trump v. United States, Creating King-Like Powers U.S. Supreme Court · Chief Justice John Roberts · Justice Clarence Thomas · Justice Samuel Alito · +10 | 14 | confirmed |
| 2024-07-01 | Supreme Court Trump Immunity Ruling Institutionalizes WHIG Constitutional Crisis Precedent into Permanent Oligarchic Governance Framework Supreme Court of the United States · Chief Justice John Roberts · Donald Trump · Justice Clarence Thomas · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2024-07-15 | Judge Cannon dismisses Trump classified documents case, rules Jack Smith appointment unconstitutional Aileen Cannon · Jack Smith · Donald Trump · Clarence Thomas · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2024-07-30 | Paul Dans departs as Project 2025 director amid campaign controversy Paul Dans · Kevin Roberts · Heritage Foundation · Donald Trump · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2024-08-13 | JD Vance Writes Foreword for Project 2025 Architect's Book JD Vance · Kevin Roberts · Heritage Foundation · Paul Dans · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2025-01-20 | Executive Order 14171: Restoring Accountability to Policy-Influencing Positions (Schedule F) Donald Trump · Office of Personnel Management · Heritage Foundation | 3 | confirmed |
| 2025-01-20 | JD Vance Sworn In as 50th Vice President, Positioned for Potential Constitutional Crisis Management JD Vance · Brett Kavanaugh · Donald Trump · Usha Vance · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2025-01-20 | Project 2025: Trump Administration Launches Massive Federal Civil Service Restructuring Donald Trump · Heritage Foundation · Kevin Roberts · Paul Dans · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2025-01-20 | Systematic Coordination Emerges in Federal Worker Purge and Civil Service Dismantling Trump Administration · Heritage Foundation · Office of Personnel Management · Federal Employee Unions · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2025-01-24 | Time finds nearly 65% of early executive actions mirror Project 2025 proposals Donald Trump · Russ Vought · Heritage Foundation · Paul Dans | 4 | confirmed |
| 2025-01-25 | Brendan Carr chairs FCC after writing Project 2025 FCC chapter Brendan Carr · Federal Communications Commission · Trump Administration · Heritage Foundation | 4 | confirmed |
| 2025-02-01 | ALEC 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 | 9 | confirmed |
| 2025-02-01 | Schedule F Implementation Targets 50,000 Federal Workers Donald Trump · Russell Vought · Russell Pekala · Heritage Foundation | 4 | confirmed |
| 2025-02-15 | Federal Judges Address Escalating Threats to Judicial Independence Chief Justice John Roberts · Chief Judge James Boasberg · Federal Judiciary · U.S. Supreme Court · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2025-02-18 | Trump Asserts Unitary Executive Control Over DOJ, Echoing Nixon's Saturday Night Massacre Donald Trump · Michael C. Dorf · Department of Justice · Heritage Foundation | 4 | confirmed |
| 2025-02-21 | Attorney General Bondi Says Epstein Files "Sitting on My Desk" Pam Bondi · John Roberts · Fox News | 3 | confirmed |
| 2025-03-20 | Trump Signs Executive Order Directing Dismantlement of Department of Education Donald Trump · Linda McMahon · Heritage Foundation | 3 | confirmed |
| 2025-04-10 | Supreme Court Unanimously Rules Government Must 'Facilitate' Abrego Garcia's Return Supreme Court · Chief Justice John Roberts · Kilmar Abrego Garcia · Trump Administration · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2025-05-05 | Congressional Hearing Exposes Systematic Judicial Intimidation Tactics Senate Judiciary Committee · Chief Justice John Roberts · U.S. Marshals Service · Supreme Court Justices · +6 | 10 | confirmed |
| 2025-07-04 | First 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 | 4 | confirmed |
| 2025-07-15 | Climate Programs Dismantled - NOAA Faces 27% Budget Cut NOAA · Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research · U.S. Global Change Research Program · Heritage Foundation · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2025-08-07 | Trump Issues 202 Executive Orders with Two-Thirds Matching Project 2025 Blueprint Donald Trump · Heritage Foundation · Project 2025 · Federal Register | 4 | confirmed |
| 2025-08-11 | Trump Nominates Partisan Heritage Foundation Economist to Lead Bureau of Labor Statistics E.J. Antoni · Donald Trump · Bureau of Labor Statistics · Heritage Foundation · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2025-09-01 | Mass Inspector General Firings Implement Project 2025 Plan Donald Trump · Chuck Grassley · Chuck Schumer · Elizabeth Warren · +3 | 7 | confirmed |
| 2025-09-02 | Supreme Court Allows Trump to Remove FTC Commissioner, Gutting Agency Independence Chief Justice John Roberts · Donald Trump · Rebecca Slaughter · U.S. Supreme Court · +1 | 5 | reported |
| 2025-09-04 | Trump Fires Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner After Unfavorable Jobs Report Donald Trump · Erika McEntarfer · EJ Antoni · Bureau of Labor Statistics · +1 | 5 | reported |
| 2025-09-09 | Heritage Foundation Publishes 800-Page Constitutional Guide as Trump's Judicial Roadmap Heritage Foundation · Justice Samuel Alito · Donald Trump · U.S. Supreme Court | 4 | reported |
| 2025-09-11 | Trump Administration Threatens National Guard Deployment to Chicago Donald Trump · Heritage Foundation · Chicago City Government · Stephen Miller · +1 | 5 | reported |
| 2025-09-22 | Supreme 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 | 5 | reported |
| 2025-10-06 | Supreme Court Begins 2025-2026 Term with Focus on Executive Power and Voting Rights U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Conservative Majority | 3 | confirmed |
| 2025-10-09 | Senate Confirms Jennifer Mascott to Third Circuit Court of Appeals Jennifer Mascott · U.S. Senate · U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit · Donald Trump · +1 | 5 | reported |
| 2025-10-27 | Tucker Carlson Interviews Nick Fuentes, Exposing Republican Rift Over Antisemitism Tucker Carlson · Nick Fuentes · Ben Shapiro · Ted Cruz · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2025-11-10 | Heritage Foundation Board Members Resign Over Kevin Roberts Defending Tucker Carlson's Fuentes Interview Kevin Roberts · Robert P. George · Shane McCullar · Abby Spencer Moffat · +3 | 7 | confirmed |
| 2025-12-08 | Supreme 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 · +4 | 8 | confirmed |
| 2025-12-23 | Supreme Court Blocks Trump National Guard Deployment to Chicago, Ruling 'Regular Forces' Means Military U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · John Roberts · Brett Kavanaugh · +9 | 13 | confirmed |
| 2026-01-09 | Supreme Court Narrows AEDPA Bar on Federal Habeas Claims U.S. Supreme Court · Sonia Sotomayor · Neil Gorsuch · John Roberts | 4 | confirmed |
| 2026-01-13 | Supreme Court Hears Transgender Sports Ban Cases, Signals Support for Restrictions U.S. Supreme Court · John Roberts · Brett Kavanaugh · Samuel Alito · +2 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2026-01-14 | Supreme 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 · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2026-01-20 | Supreme Court Issues Three Unanimous Rulings on Federal Procedures U.S. Supreme Court · Amy Coney Barrett · Samuel Alito | 3 | confirmed |
| 2026-01-21 | Supreme Court Hears Arguments on Presidential Removal Power in Trump v Cook U.S. Supreme Court · Donald Trump · D. John Sauer · Brett Kavanaugh · +1 | 5 | confirmed |
| 2026-01-21 | Supreme 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 | 6 | confirmed |
| 2026-02-20 | Supreme Court Strikes Down IEEPA Tariffs 6-3 in Historic Limitation on Executive Trade Authority John Roberts · United States Supreme Court · Donald Trump | 3 | confirmed |
| 2026-04-01 | Supreme 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 | 5 | confirmed |
152 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
How one decision restructured American politics in fifteen yearsCitizens 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 …
9 actors · 2008–2026
Private prisons, ICE contracts, and the architecture of mass deportationThe 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 velocityTrump 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 prosecutorsThe 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 tokenThe 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 electorateRussian 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 grownThe 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. “The Federalist Society pipeline to SCOTUS.” Curated timeline view, capturecascade.org, May 7, 2026. https://capturecascade.org/timelines/federalist-society-pipeline/Embed in your site
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