The day before media outlets reported that Jim DeMint was being ousted as the head of the Heritage Foundation, sources close to DeMint warned me a that a coup orchestrated by Heritage Action CEO Mike Needham was imminent. A spokesman from Heritage Action hasn't replied to a request to comment on this piece.) This institution—Heritage Action for America—will be able to spend money to push legislation we think the country needs without the obstacles faced by a nonprofit like the Heritage Foundation. In the fall of that year Heritage proper under DeMint and Heritage Action under Needham worked in tandem to back a disastrous plan to force President Obama to “defund” Obamacare through a government shutdown. According to a report by Philip Wegmann at the Washington Examiner, DeMint specifically suggested Heritage Action should be scaled back or disbanded.

Source: Forbes April 30, 2017 19:44 UTC