America First Legal Foundation is a right-of-center nonprofit organization formed by former senior Trump White House advisor Stephen Miller and counselor to the Attorney General Gene Hamilton in February 2021. It aims to use litigation to oppose left-of-center policies enacted by the Biden administration. ¹

The board is made up of former Trump administration officials including White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and former Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker. ²

Background

The America First Legal Foundation was launched by Stephen Miller, a White House senior advisor to President Donald Trump. Trump endorsed the organization upon its launch in April 2021. ²

The America First Legal Foundation has the goal of challenging Biden administration policies in court. ² The foundation announced plans to work with state attorneys general to litigate cases against the Biden administration’s policies. ²

Legal Advocacy

The America First Legal Foundation joined the state of Texas in suing the Biden administration over its border enforcement policies and is paying the legal cost for the case. ³ The lawsuit alleges the Biden administration’s release of unvaccinated illegal immigrants is exposing more Texans to COVID-19. ⁴

The group issued a seven-page complaint condemning a proposed rule from the U.S. Department of Education to provide incentives to schools to teach critical race theory, which the foundation called “thoroughly discredited” and “odious.” ⁵

Leadership

Stephen Miller, the founder and president of America First Legal Foundation, was a senior adviser to during the First Trump Administration and also served as director of White House speechwriting. ^{6 7 8}

Gene Hamilton is the executive director as well as executive vice president and general counsel of the foundation. He also serves as secretary on the board of the Foundation. Prior to this, he was the counselor to the Attorneys General at the Justice Department from 2017 through 2021. He was also formerly a senior counselor to the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. ^{6 7 8}

Matthew Whitaker, a board member, was the Acting U.S. Attorney General during the first Trump Administration. He previously served as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa. ^{6 8}

Russ Vought, the treasurer for the Foundation’s board, was previously the director of the Office of Management and Budget during the First Trump Administration. ^{6 8}

Ed Corrigan is a board member and the CEO and president of the Conservative Partnership Institute. ^{6 8}

Wesley Denton, a former board member, also served as the chief operating officer (COO) of the Conservative Partnership Institute. ^{6 8}

Mark Meadows, a former board member, was the White House Chief of Staff during the First Trump Administration as well as a former congressman from North Carolina. ⁶

Financials

According to its 2023 tax returns, America First Legal Foundation reported a revenue of $9,646,710, expenses at $10,308,089, and total assets of $13,167,362. ⁹

According to its 2022 tax returns, the organization reported a revenue of $44,399,187, expenses at $35,179,698, and total assets of $13,635,863. ¹⁰ That same year, according to its 2022 tax returns, the organization reportedly compensated several independent contractors for the purpose of ” Advertising and Promotion” including PG Placements ($12,749,080), Jamestown Associates LLC ($11,856,065), and FlexPoint Media ($5,000,000). ¹¹

1. Isenstadt, Alex. “Trump Attorney, Other Allies Launch Voter Fraud Organization.” POLITICO. POLITICO, May 6, 2021. https://www.politico.com/news/2021/05/05/trump-election-integrity-organization-485399.
2. Quinn, Melissa. “Ex-Trump aide Stephen Miller launches legal group to fight Democrats in the courts.” CBS News. April 7, 2021. Accessed June 11, 2021. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/stephen-miller-legal-group-democratic-lawsuits/
3. Coulehan, Erin. “El Paso congresswoman denounces Abbott’s disaster declaration and his wishes to arrest every border crosser.” News 10 ABC. June 4, 2021. Accessed June 11, 2021. https://www.news10.com/border-report-tour/el-paso-congresswoman-denounces-abbotts-disaster-declaration-and-wishes-to-arrest-every-border-crosser/
4. Giaritelli, Anna. “Stephen Miller group and Texas sue Biden to stop accepting migrant children at border.” The Washington Examiner. April 23, 2021. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/stephen-miller-texas-sue-biden-migrant-children-at-border
5. Levine, John. “Trump-aligned legal foundation condemns critical race theory in schools.” New York Post. May 8, 2021. Accessed June 11, 2021. https://nypost.com/2021/05/08/trump-aligned-legal-foundation-slams-teaching-critical-race-theory/
6. “About.” America First Legal Foundation. Accessed June 11, 2021. https://www.aflegal.org/about
7. Press Release. “Senior Trump Officials Launch America First Legal. April 6, 2021. Accessed June 11, 2021. https://www.aflegal.org/news/senior-trump-officials-launch-america-first-legal-foundation
8. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). America First Legal Foundation. 2023. Part VII, Section A. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/862190372/202413209349311446/full
9. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). America First Legal Foundation. 2023. Part I. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/862190372/202413209349311446/full
10. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). America First Legal Foundation. 2022. Part I. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/862190372/202323199349307967/full
11. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). America First Legal Foundation. 2022. Part VII, Section B (Independent Contractors). https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/862190372/202323199349307967/full