James O’Keefe, whose Project Veritas has launched unorthodox undercover sting operations on mainstream media and left-leaning organizations, was honored on Wednesday by Ginni Thomas — wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas — with a 2017 “Impact Award.”
“Proud to receive the Impact award from @GinniThomas,” O’Keefe tweeted triumphantly, who also congratulated and praised the night’s other honorees — who included Fox News host Sean Hannity. “These guys are all fighters.”
It’s unclear why the nonprofit United in Purpose chose O’Keefe as an honoree. According to the group’s website, the award recognizes “outstanding efforts of unsung warriors in numerous fields outside of government service. Honorees are making notable contributions to preserving America’s liberties with their life work.”
Last week, O’Keefe made headlines when an operative for Project Veritas made a false accusation of sexual misconduct against Roy Moore to Washington Post reporters in an apparent attempt to discredit the paper’s reporting on Moore.
The plan, however, failed spectacularly and the Post published a detailed account of the foiled scheme.
https://twitter.com/JamesOKeefeIII/status/938503734094630912
In addition to his latest imbroglio with The Post, O’Keefe has often found himself embroiled in scandal for his tactics and the selective editing of the material his operatives gather.
Still, his work has had an impact. In 2010, his undercover reporting on voter registration drives by the community-organization group ACORN led to its demise. But he was later sued by a former ACORN employee for filming without consent and ultimately settled for $100,000.
In another instance in 2010, he attempted to lure CNN correspondent Abbie Boudreau onto a boat and seduce her in order to record compromising content. That plan was unsuccessful.
Representatives for the award did not immediately respond to inquiries from TheWrap asking whether they were aware or approved of O’Keefe’s attempted sting against the Washington Post.
The event took place at the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. — which has rapidly become the central meeting place for the city’s powerful insiders.