During a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) laid out what he called a deliberate decision by the Biden Justice Department to abandon an active investigation into the Southern Poverty Law Center. He argued the organization had become embedded so deeply into the Justice Dept.'s operations that prosecuting it would have meant prosecuting one of the DOJ's own political allies.
Jordan pointed directly to the now-infamous Jan. 23, 2023, memorandum from the Richmond FBI field office, which cited the SPLC as a source and used it to justify targeting pro-life Catholics as potential extremists and domestic threats. "That memo says, if you're a pro-life Catholic, well, you're an extremist, you're dangerous," Jordan said. "The SPLC became part of the weaponized effort of the Garland Biden Justice Department against the American people."
Jordan then dropped what may be the most damning detail yet: The Biden DOJ had opened an investigation into the SPLC and knew it was a racket — only to quietly kill the inquest. "They had opened an investigation. They were looking into this group. They knew the Southern Poverty Law Center was running a scam, but they dropped the case," Jordan said. The reason, Jordan pointed out, was brazen and simple: "When you meet with them, consult with them, have them train your prosecutors, well, guess what? You're not gonna prosecute them."
According to Jordan, as far as the Biden administration was concerned, the political necessity of keeping the SPLC in good standing outweighed any interest in accountability.
"They're too valuable politically,” he noted. “You gotta use them for your political advantage. And that's exactly what the Biden administration did."
Jordan also pointed to a particularly uncomfortable piece of the SPLC's history involving a federal informant. A man identified as Field Source 37 was part of the planning group for the Charlottesville rally and was paid to coordinate transportation and to attend the event.
In the aftermath of the tragic death of the young woman at the rally, the SPLC's fundraising exploded.
"The Southern Poverty Law Center almost tripled their income," Jordan said. "They went from $51 million annual income to $133 million."
The bottom line, as Jordan saw it, was ruthlessly efficient. "Turned out for them, creating hate was more profitable than fighting it. That's exactly what they did. They ran a scam, they became the standard, they didn't get prosecuted, and they made a ton of money." The organization now sits on $800 million in assets and a $700 million endowment fund.
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But Jordan ended on a note of what he described as genuine good news. With Trump back in the White House, Todd Blanche installed as Attorney General, and Kash Patel running the FBI, the calculus has changed. "And guess what?" Jordan said. "They're prosecuting these guys."
🚨 HOLY SMOKES. Rep. Jim Jordan just confirmed the Biden admin DROPPED the investigation against fraudulent Southern Poverty Law Center after the SPLC trained their own DOJ staff to target conservatives
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 20, 2026
Now we know the SPLC PAID neo-nazis to boost their own income
"FBI… pic.twitter.com/FYQ1OHTCMz
Last month, a federal grand jury in Montgomery, Ala., indicted the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), charging the organization with 11 counts that include wire fraud, making false statements to a federally insured bank, and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering.
Federal prosecutors also filed two forfeiture actions seeking to recover alleged proceeds from what authorities describe as a fraudulent scheme. The FBI investigated the case with assistance from the IRS Criminal Investigation.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche accused the SPLC of “manufacturing racism to justify its existence,” while FBI Director Kash Patel accused the organization of deceiving donors by claiming to fight extremist groups while allegedly funneling money to leaders tied to those same organizations.
“Using donor money to allegedly profit off Klansmen cannot go unchecked,” Blanche said. “This Department of Justice will hold the SPLC and every other fraudulent organization operating with the same deceptive playbook accountable. No entity is above the law.”
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