New report raises questions about Lincoln Project's relationship with disgraced co-founder

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Rick Wilson and other Lincoln Project co-founders sought a partnership with John Weaver on a media company offshoot of the anti-Trump super PAC last fall, according to a new report, contradicting Wilson's claim that Weaver had been irrelevant to the organization for months while on medical leave.

Wilson, Weaver, Steve Schmidt and Reed Galen signed a 27-page agreement last year for "TLP Media," which Schmidt pitched to fellow Lincoln Project members in October as a possible billion-dollar idea to spring out of their organization, the New York Times reported.

The plan ultimately didn't come to fruition, but the fact Weaver was in discussion about the future of the company appears at odds with Wilson's portrayal of the disgraced political consultant as having been cut out of the loop after a heart attack in August.

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Wilson, in an effort to contain the damage after reports of Weaver's online sexual harassment of young men, spoke at length about Weaver on Feb. 2's edition of "The New Abnormal," his Daily Beast podcast.

"If it had stopped right there, if that been the extent of it, John would have disappeared into relative obscurity," Wilson said of the initial reports about Weaver harassing men. "He would have been gone from the Lincoln Project no matter what. He’d been gone for seven months, functionally speaking, OK? He would have been gone."

"John Weaver was never with the Lincoln Project physically, which I’m grateful for at this point," he added.

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The American Conservative had already broken the story on Jan 11 of Weaver harassing men and even offering job offers and social media clout in exchange for sex. Weaver came out as gay in a statement to Axios on Jan. 15 and left the Lincoln Project. Then, The New York Times reported on 21 men, including one who was 14 when Weaver first contacted him online, who had been harassed, leading the group to forcefully denounce him.

Wilson took pains during remarks on both the podcast and the Lincoln Project's "LPTV" broadcasts that week to deny any prior knowledge that Weaver had approached a 14-year-old.

Since January, a slew of reports have revealed some Lincoln Project co-founders knew about allegations against Weaver months before they let on, including Schmidt. Wilson admitted he and others asked Weaver about his behavior when they got wind of a New York Post investigation last summer, which fizzled after Weaver's heart attack and the Post's sources backed out of the story.

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"We asked John, just as we had asked him during the initial rumors and there was going to be a story, is any of this true? Not because we were worried that John was gay, who f***ing cares, right? But because it made our organization and our mission something that would be compromised and that it would give a vector for attacks by the Trumps," he said.

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Before its reputation imploded, the Lincoln Project's vitriolic advertising and melodramatic tweets hit a media sweet spot, earning it constant promotion from online outlets and left-leaning cable outlets CNN and MSNBC.

Other reports this year have delved into its "scam PAC" reputation by funneling donations to firms run by their founders, its toxic work environment, and its vengeful publication of co-founder Jennifer Horn's private messages with a reporter after she left the organization. Co-founder George Conway and former adviser Kurt Bardella have even called for the disgraced group to shut down.

Schmidt resigned from the board last month and announced he would step away from public life, although he continues to play an active role in the organization.

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Wilson has not returned to "The New Abnormal" podcast since February, although he has continued to host the group's YouTube show.

He did not respond to a request for comment.