The donation, one of the largest in the school’s history, was made as right-wing megadonor Leo shopped a new law school center.
Texas A&M University is trying to withhold dozens of emails from The Intercept about a new research center funded by conservative megadonor Leonard Leo, according to a filing to the state attorney general under Texas’s public records law.
The Intercept filed rebuttals with the state attorney general’s office, which must sign off on such nondisclosures under the law, arguing that the exemptions invoked do not apply.
Leo made a $15 million commitment in 2022 to Texas A&M Law to establish the Center on the Structural Constitution, The Intercept reported last month.
The co-chair of the Federalist Society, whose activism and philanthropic efforts helped foment a rightward lurch in the judiciary, including the Supreme Court, had previously workshopped a center with an almost identical name at Cornell Law School, his alma mater. But opposition from Cornell faculty ultimately killed the proposal.
Shawn Musgrave is a media law attorney and reporter based in New York. As counsel to The Intercept, Shawn brings considerable experience in government transparency, including the federal Freedom of Information Act, state public records laws, and court access. Prior to joining The Intercept, Shawn worked at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, the Center for Investigative Reporting, and MuckRock. His reporting has been published in Politico, The Verge, Vice, Reason, and the Boston Globe, among other outlets.
