Activist who wooed Clarence Thomas refuses to talk to tax investigators

The man who allegedly subjected Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to a $1.8 million propaganda and flattery campaign will not be cooperating in a tax probe, according to news reports.

Raw Story reported earlier this year that conservative legal activist Leonard Leo coordinated a public relations campaign celebrating Thomas, and that the years-long project cost at least $1.8 million and included advertising intended to boost flattering content in online searches.

Now, Politico reports, Leo has said he is not cooperating "with an investigation by Washington D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb for potentially misusing nonprofit tax laws for personal enrichment." The outlet cited confirmation from an attorney for Leo.

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"David Rivkin, Leo’s attorney, said in a statement to Politico that Schwalb has 'no legal authority to conduct any investigatory steps or take any enforcement measures' because Leo’s multi-billion-dollar aligned nonprofits — which poured millions into campaigning for the nominations of conservative Supreme Court justices and advocating before them — were organized outside of D.C.," Politico reported Wednesday.

The outlet continued:

"Leo’s consulting firm, CRC Advisors is registered in D.C. and his main aligned nonprofit, The 85 Fund, used a D.C. mailing address for at least a decade. Schwalb is also looking into liberal 'dark money' group Arabella Advisors, a consulting firm founded by a former Clinton official that manages a handful of nonprofits, Politico confirmed, after Republican attorneys general recently complained that Schwalb should instead be probing Arabella."

Read the report here.