Cozy.tv is owned by a parent company named Trollge LLC (presumably named after the meme). While LLCs are a commonly used type of business in America, they are also often used by extremists to hide their financial dealings from activists, law enforcement and political opposition. (8) LLCs separate the assets of a company from the individual owning that company, and while the accounts of public companies (those with shareholders) are publicly accessible, those of private companies are not. Consequently, the finances of Cozy.tv are inaccessible, because the company has never been taken public.

 

In contrast, the records of the America First Foundation are publicly accessible. The foundation’s last filing was in the fiscal year ending June 2022, and shows that it is tax exempt under 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Commonly used by charities, this exemption means that “none of its [the organization’s] income may insure to any private shareholder or individual” and the organization “may not attempt to influence legislation as a substantial part of its activities and it may not participate in any campaign activity for or against political candidates”. Organizations with a 501(c)(3) exemption are therefore limited as to the amount and type of lobbying and other political activities they are able to engage in lawfully; while able to advocate for causes, they cannot back specific political candidates. (8) 

 

The America First Foundation states in its 990 EZ filing that its purpose is to “educate, promote, and advocate for conservative values based on principles of American nationalism, Christianity, and traditionalism” (9) but Fuentes himself has expressed personal desires to bring the Republican party further right and has even been associated with Ye’s short-lived election campaign. The organization’s tax exemption status has changed during only a few years. First incorporated in 2021, the America First Foundation was originally a 501(c)(4), but in 2022 was changed to a 501(c)(3). (9, 10) While both 501(c)(4)s and 501(c)(3)s are tax exempt, donations to 501(c)(4)s are not tax deductible, while donations to the America First Foundation as of 2022 are in fact tax deductible. The America First Foundation has not donated to or backed specific political candidates. However, the lobbying tracking website Open Secrets has listed donations from organizations and individuals declaring America First affiliation to America First Action ($1,808,302), Make America Great Again Action ($1,787,901), and the Republican Party of Connecticut ($10,000) during the 2022 election cycle, as well as a number of specific political candidates. (11) 

 

There remain questions surrounding the movement of money throughout the various far-right and conservative movements in the US, with a pro-Trump 501(c)(4) non-profit giving millions of dollars to an array of conservative groups in 2020, also shown by a tax filing from the group, then known as America First Works. (12) Through complex arrangements of charitable foundations, shell companies and LLCs, political extremists are often able to disguise their lobbying or other political work. It remains to be seen, however, if Fuentes’ own movement will rally around him: after the desertion of McNeil and Dickerman, he has seemingly struggled to climb back to the heights he enjoyed merely a few years ago, and the backlash following the claims of inflated viewer counts on Cozy.tv mark a point of diversion, as far-right supporters have previously been more accepting of such foibles from their heroes. Whether this turning point is a change in the far-right, or confined to Fuentes, and down to him eliciting specific dislike, who can say. Publicly available Semrush data shows that the bounce rate of Cozy.tv as of July 2023 is over 78%, meaning almost everyone who lands on the site leaves without a single click, and Fuentes’ appearances have among other things involved him detailing his liking for 16-year-old girls. (13, 14) What is clear, is that the 2023 AFPAC event was anticlimactic compared to its previous versions, and Fuentes’ ejection from the more established CPAC had slightly symbolic undertones.