A confidential document obtained by The Center Square is now driving a national conversation, revealing that nearly two dozen attorneys general plotted to file litigation against the Trump administration – before he even earned the Republican nomination.
Our investigative unit found that at least 22 Democratic attorneys general signed an agreement to coordinate litigation against Donald Trump beginning April 28, 2024 — three months before Joe Biden left the race and nearly seven months before Trump was reelected. Zero Republican attorneys general signed it.
The Center Square was the sole newsroom to report on this exclusive finding. You can read the full story here.
The effort’s nickname, the “Project for Federal Accountability,” was buried in Washington state public records released to The Center Square with nearly all information redacted. Our investigative unit appealed and won the release of names.
Then we followed the money. State attorneys general have sued the Trump administration nearly 100 times since January 2025. California’s attorney general says the litigation has cost his state’s taxpayers $19 million, and a California law authorized $25 million more. New Jersey added $1 million to its budget for the project.
As former Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff explained, these are tax funds being used to advance the attorneys general’s own political careers.
Political leaders and news consumers alike are taking note of this exclusive reporting.
Sen. Ted Cruz discussed the report on his show Verdict. The Center Square’s Adam Herbets brought it to viewers on FOX45 in Baltimore and CBS 21 in Harrisburg, among other local outlets. Podcast host Ben Ferguson devoted an entire episode to it.
The piece also traveled across social media, reaching more than 155,000 views in less than one week.
That is accountability journalism doing exactly what it's supposed to do.
This is the kind of reporting you make possible — the months of records requests and appeals that happen long before there is a story to publish.
The next investigation is already underway. Will you help fund it?
Thank you for making our work possible.