Browse sourced findings, connection research, and open questions. Each entry retains the status and qualifications recorded with the research. A connection research note is not automatically a verified network-map relationship.
Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Routing structure verified at source-index level; direct primary-row reconciliation and legal significance unresolved.
A sourced Wyoming campaign-finance registry built from FEC Schedule A/B, Wyoming reports, and IRS Forms 990 identifies an upstream routing structure relevant to the Idaho Redbird inquiry. Way Back PAC’s amended 2026 Wyoming report lists organizational receipts including Western Futures Fund ($2.075M reported to Wyoming), Civitech ($1M), Toolbox ($850k), North Fund ($300k), Global Impact Social Welfare Fund ($25k), and Durst Organization ($10k). The same re…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Friedopfer testimony verified through contemporaneous reporting; January 2026 administrative finding and $80,000 penalty verified through multiple reports. Legal challenge/appeal status unresolved. No Idaho identity bridge.
The clearest documented example of Cothren’s concealment method involves Faith Family Freedom Fund, not Redbird Strategies. Sydney Friedopfer testified to Tennessee election-finance regulators that Cothren asked her to create the PAC because his name could not appear on the filings or be associated with it; she would sign the registration and he would run it. She said she did not operate the PAC, did not know it had an email address, and was told not to re…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified reconciliation of official total against stale third-party aggregate
TransparencyUSA's Idaho payee aggregate of $597,302 for Redbird Strategies is $30,000 below the current Idaho Sunshine total of $627,302. The exact difference is Defend and Protect Idaho's July 8, 2026 $30,000 Redbird payment for management services. Therefore the TransparencyUSA figure appears to omit that later transaction and should not be used as the current statewide total.
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified as to what prosecutors asserted in filed motion and DOJ’s conviction summary; reported trial-exclusion limitation preserved. Not proof that Idaho Redbird is connected or that every Tennessee entity was independently illegal.
In a March 28, 2025 pretrial response, federal prosecutors said bank records for Cade Cothren’s other entities—including Faith Family Freedom Fund PAC, Redbird Strategies, Dixieland Strategies, and Bulletproof Research—were relevant to show intentional concealment of his identity in political business. The filing said records revealed transfers among those entities, Phoenix Solutions, and Cothren’s personal accounts, and separately described state-payment …
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: PRIMARY VERIFIED public-record opacity through the 2025 annual-report cycle. Beneficial owner and actual operator remain unresolved; Registered Agents Inc. is not treated as the owner.
Wyoming’s current Filing Information report for Esto Perpetua Group LLC confirms that the company’s public record remains fully shielded behind Registered Agents Inc. The principal address, mailing address, registered-agent address, and organizer address are all 30 N. Gould St., Suite R, Sheridan, Wyoming. The Officers/Directors section is blank. Four annual reports—filed November 16, 2022; September 17, 2023; September 16, 2024; and January 11, 2026—prese…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified official filing and domain metadata. Beneficial owner remains undisclosed/unresolved.
Official Idaho Secretary of State records identify Redbird Strategies LLC, file no. 6512063, as an active Idaho domestic LLC formed November 5, 2025. The filing lists principal and mailing addresses at 1309 Coffeen Avenue, Suite 1200, Sheridan, Wyoming; Registered Agents Inc. in Post Falls is the commercial registered agent. The original Certificate of Organization lists Andrew Pierce as governor and organizer. Follow-up establishes that Pierce founded Wyo…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: PRIMARY VERIFIED filing signer/contact chain; SECONDARY ATTRIBUTED fake-persona reporting from WIRED and ICIJ. Beneficial ownership remains unresolved, and no suspected Idaho actor is identified in the filings.
The underlying Wyoming filings show that Esto Perpetua Group LLC’s public signatures do not identify its beneficial owner or operating manager. Its December 9, 2021 Articles of Organization and November 16, 2022 annual report were signed “Riley Park,” using Registered Agents Inc.’s email reports@registeredagentsinc.com and phone (307) 200-2803. WIRED, citing five former Registered Agents Inc. employees, reported that Riley Park is a fictional persona creat…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Primary invoices and totals verified; producer, candidate content and state-ledger match unresolved
Retrieved and visually checked all pages of three May 2026 KREM invoices in Defend and Protect Idaho's FCC political file. All bill Commercial Space Experts / POL at the previously observed Austin billing address, identify advertiser ISS/ Defend and Protect Idaho, and use the identical 30-second creative Ad-ID CPMDAPI26005H. Invoice 3277030-1, estimate 4265, alternate order WOC15690695, dated May 17: 13 actual logged spots May 9 and May 11–13; gross $1,260…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified from live rendered source on 2026-09-17. Interpretation limited: minimal disclosure is a warning sign, not proof of concealment or unlawful activity.
Live technical inspection of redbird-strategies.com confirms that the site discloses no human principal, direct email address, public telephone number, street address, client list, portfolio, or social-media account. It does contain a contact form requesting name, email, ZIP, phone and message, so it is inaccurate to say the site has no contact mechanism at all. The underlying Squarespace LocalBusiness structured data has a blank address. The site context …
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified committee-officer finding; records-custody inference
Idaho Sunshine identifies Judith Ellis as treasurer and Gary Raney as chairperson of Defend and Protect Idaho, filing entity ID 661, registered January 24, 2024, with mailing address PO Box 162, Boise, ID 83701. The committee’s own website repeats Judith Ellis as treasurer and the same mailing address. This does not connect Ellis or Raney to ownership of Esto Perpetua Group. It does identify the committee officers most likely to have custody of the 2024 Es…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: historical continuity verified; earlier personnel identity and control questions remain
Historical Idaho campaign-finance records show Esto Perpetua PAC predates the current portal's 2023 registration field by more than a decade. An archived 2012 record identifies Esto Perpetua PAC at PO Box 1304, Boise, with political treasurer Amber Herriot. A 2016 archived filing snippet identifies Amber Hauge at the same PO Box and phone 208-345-9929. A 2018 official pre-general report identifies Maggie Mallea, PO Box 1304, and the same phone. Risch Pisca…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: verified client-list overlap; certain affiliate identities require confirmation
Esto Perpetua PAC's transaction ledger substantially overlaps Risch Pisca's own published sample client list. Recorded contributions associated by exact or closely corresponding names are: Hagadone Hospitality $17,500; IBWDA/Idaho Beer and Wine Distributors PAC $15,500; Jackson's/Jacksons $12,000; PNW PhRMA PAC/PhRMA $11,000; M3/M3 Companies LLC $10,000; Tamarack Food and Beverage LLC/Tamarack $10,000; DaVita $6,750; and Clearwater Paper $6,000. These tota…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Vendor identity and national profile substantially verified; strategic control of Idaho PACs unproven
Targeted Platform Media is not an Idaho-local vendor. Public campaign and broadcast records consistently identify it at P.O. Box 237, Crownsville, Maryland 21032-0237, with contacts including Danny Neckel and Katie Wildman. Current reporting describes Targeted Platform Media as an arm of Buying Time LLC, a Democratic media-buying company founded and run by Cathie Herrick. A 2020 Campaign Legal Center FEC complaint alleged Targeted Platform was Buying Time'…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified from official ledger and FCC form; invoice-to-placement matching unresolved
The official 2026 expenditure ledger shows six distinct Defend and Protect Idaho transactions to Redbird Strategies on 05/08/2026: $60,000 broadcast advertising (ID 391411); $18,000 production (391413); $12,000 production (391414); $5,000 production (391415); $69,000 production (391424); and $110,000 broadcast advertising (397047). Total: $274,000, or about 46.6% of Defend and Protect's $587,852 in unique Redbird payments and 43.7% of all $627,302 paid to …
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified in original Idaho campaign-finance filing; ownership/operator unresolved
Take Back Idaho PAC's original January 2022 C-2 (report 46280) lists two same-day payments to Esto Perpetua Group LLC on January 31, 2022: $790 under purpose code B (broadcast advertising) and $1,507.90 under purpose code P (postage), total $2,297.90. The recipient address is the Wyoming registered-agent address, 30 N Gould St., Ste R, Sheridan, WY 82801. The report identifies Jennifer Ellis as committee chair and David High as treasurer; High signed it Fe…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified public executive/founder identification and company contact details; equity ownership and other members unresolved
Right Insight LLC’s public app-store developer disclosure identifies a direct company contact at daniel@rightinsight.org, telephone 479-220-8676, and 5762 N Rosa Springs Ave, Meridian, Idaho 83646. The same app states it was formerly known as Right Impact and provides voter-file data, canvassing, phone banking and CRM tools. Daniel Silver’s public professional profile identifies him as Right Insight’s CEO/founder, while Right Insight’s own site publishes c…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified official federal payment timeline and broad temporal overlap; state-side transaction dates and scopes of work unresolved
The official OpenFEC Schedule B API returns 11 itemized payments from the Jim Risch for U.S. Senate Committee to Right Insight LLC totaling $38,173.22 from October 14, 2025 through June 4, 2026. Every transaction is categorized and described as advertising. The dates and amounts are: Oct. 14, 2025 $1,500; Dec. 19 $1,500; Jan. 14, 2026 two separate $1,500 payments; Mar. 11 $3,500; Apr. 3 $3,500 and $11,173.22; Apr. 10 $3,500; May 1 $3,500; May 26 $3,500; an…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified as two transactions; underlying invoices and media placements unresolved
The official Idaho Sunshine 2026 Expenditures CSV resolves the apparent date discrepancy. These are two separate Defend and Protect Idaho transactions, not alternate dates for one payment. Transaction 397047: $110,000 to Redbird Strategies, transaction date 05/08/2026, public distribution 05/12–05/19, Independent Expenditure Report dated 05/12, May Monthly Report filed 06/10. Transaction 397860: $110,000 to Redbird Strategies, transaction date 05/13/2026, …
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified in downloaded FCC contract and invoice; underlying payer and bank transfer not established
Official KSNQ FCC folder contains contract 6601147/revision 1 (uploaded May 1, 2026) and invoice 6601147-1 (uploaded May 29). Contract pages 1–2 specify Defend and Protect Idaho PAC as advertiser and Commercial Space Experts as agency, with alternate order 38528531 and estimate 4238. Gross $4,610.00 less agency commission $691.50 equals $3,918.50 net; calculated commission is 15%. Invoice dated May 24 reproduces the same totals. Invoice pages 1–2 list 75 o…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: SOURCE-RESTORED RECOVERY ITEM. URLs and source-specific support statements restored from corrected v2 snapshot. Evidentiary firewall preserved; dynamic aggregates and secondary reports still require ordinary publication-stage verification.
The Washington Post reported Reinke saying E-Verify is a 'good program' but could burden Magic Valley employers, and that mandated local immigration enforcement could strain jails and taxpayers, while he also supported federal border policies.
Evidence firewall: This is a documented issue position; it does not establish why any PAC supported him.
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Source located; PDF contents pending retrieval
The FCC KIVI-TV political-file index for 2026 lists two public PDFs under Defend and Protect Idaho: a station political-file disclosure and an NAB form. The direct URLs were resolved using the folder ID plus each file_manager_id. These documents are the strongest current lead for a named ad buyer, agency, contact, phone number, or signer. Their contents have not yet been verified because the FCC download host returned Access Denied to the research browser;…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: verified transactions; duplicate-entry versus separate-placement question unresolved
Idaho Sunshine's expenditure ledger shows two separate Defend and Protect Idaho payments to Redbird Strategies for broadcast advertising: $110,000 on May 8, 2026 and another $110,000 on May 13, 2026. Expanding each transaction produces the same seven-candidate opposition allocation: Daniel Foreman $26,671; Christy Zito $19,483.75; Josh Keyser $19,483.75; Barbara Ehardt $14,255; Julianne Young $14,255; Glenneda Zuiderveld $7,925.75; and Joshua Kohl $7,925.7…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: PRIMARY VERIFIED: PAC officers and Risch Pisca bridge. DaVita independently discloses a 2026 PAC contribution. Vendor LLC owner and legal relationship to the PAC remain unresolved.
Primary records require separating three similarly named identities. (1) Esto Perpetua PAC is an Idaho political committee filed June 22, 2011; Idaho’s 2018 committee list names Jeremy Pisca as chairman and Maggie Mallea as treasurer, both at P.O. Box 1304, Boise, and the listed phone matches Risch Pisca’s current office number. Pisca’s firm biography identifies him as a partner, attorney, and lobbyist focused on government affairs. DaVita’s January 2026 p…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-17
Recorded status: Verified live-versus-export mismatch; software cause inferred, not established
A controlled crosscheck found the same live roster problem with two different payees. In Redbird's $9,000 May 1 entry (383994), public detail lists 16 roster rows: 15 named candidates plus a blank-name/blank-office Support row. The preserved CSV lists 16 names including Lori Ann McCann at $529.41, with McCann's office blank. In Hulsen's $77,194 April 30 entry (383322), public detail lists nine rows: eight named candidates plus a blank-name/blank-office Sup…
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