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56-544: REFORM Alliance was founded in January 2019 by Michael Rubin , Meek Mill , Jay-Z , Michael Novogratz , Clara Wu Tsai , and Daniel Loeb . At its founding, the philanthropists pledged a combined $ 50 million to the organization and to create a bipartisan response to what it considered unjust sentencing laws in the United States. The organization was formed in reaction to Meek Mill's November 2017 sentencing, when he

112-660: A $ 43.5 million penthouse. Rubin is divorced from local dance teacher Meegan Spector. They have one daughter. Rubin has two daughters with his girlfriend, professional model Camille Fishel. Rubin formerly dated television news anchor and author Nicole Lapin . Since 2021, Rubin has hosted an annual "white party" at his $ 50 million estate in The Hamptons for Independence Day , attended by many athletes and celebrities including Jay-Z and Beyoncé , Justin Bieber , Tom Brady , and Kim Kardashian . The "white party" concept

168-488: A Fanatics' MLB uniform manufacturing plant to generate hospital gowns and PPE for frontline workers. In August 2020, he secured $ 350 million Series E funding for Fanatics that raised the valuation of the company to $ 6.2 billion. In March 2021, Rubin and Fanatics secured a $ 320 million funding round, followed by another $ 325 million in August 2021 that brought the company's valuation to $ 18 billion as of September 2021. During

224-426: A PAC that formally endorses and funds conservative candidates for federal and state level offices. Dating back to 1971, ACU has implemented its own scoring system which annually rates politicians on their conservatism. While the scorecard was novel to conservatism, Americans for Democratic Action has utilized a liberal rubric for liberalism since 1947. Each publication of Congressional and State Ratings contains

280-519: A conservative interpretation of an official's view of governance. As one spokesperson for the ACU once noted, "clear-cut distinctions between liberals and conservatives [occur] if you have Crane , Ashbrook , and Kemp go a certain way and Burton goes the other". The ACU annually rates politicians according to how they vote on key issues, providing a numerical indicator of how much the lawmakers agreed with conservative ideals. They use this rating system as

336-490: A deep discount with $ 17,000 borrowed from a friend and re-selling it for $ 75,000. Using the proceeds from his serendipitous overstock transaction and after selling his ski shops, he founded the athletic equipment closeout company KPR sports —named after his parents' initials—which bought and sold over-stock name brand merchandise. In 1993, the year Rubin turned 21, KPR reached $ 1 million in annual sales. By 1995, KPR reached $ 50 million in sales. In 1995, Rubin purchased 40% of

392-408: A letter saying that FedEx was mischaracterizing the legislative situation and was unfairly trying to tap into public resentment against federal bailouts to attack its competition. The letter included, at its top, logos from the ACU and the other organizations. Whitfield said that Keene had endorsed the second letter as an individual, even though the letter bore the logo of the ACU. The ACU then issued

448-669: A member of another investment group led by Harris and Blitzer, Rubin bought a share in the New Jersey Devils and the Prudential Center for $ 320 million. In 2022, Rubin sold his stakes in Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment , the holding company of both teams, to David J. Adelman due to a conflict of interest regarding Fanatics' growing sports betting business and player partnerships. In October 2023, Fanatics and Make-A-Wish announced

504-492: A minority share in the Philadelphia 76ers . Rubin was a member of the investment group that won a $ 280 million bid for the team led by Josh Harris and David Blitzer . Other notable members include Art Wrubel , Jason Levien , Adam Aron , Martin J. Geller , David B. Heller , James Lassiter , Will Smith , Jada Pinkett Smith , and Erick Thohir . The NBA formally approved the deal on October 13, 2011. In 2013, as

560-533: A new partnership for Fanatics to become the organization's "Official Sports Partner" and support all sports-related wishes in the United States. The partnership kicked off in New York City where Rubin, Fanatics and Make-A-Wish fulfilled nine wishes for kids around the country at a special event featuring Tom Brady , Aaron Judge , and Jayson Tatum . Rubin started the viral "ALL IN Challenge", which raised more than $ 60 million to fight food insecurity during

616-411: A person's individualized risks and needs. In January 2021, the laws were expected to lower Michigan's caseload by 8.4 percent. In Louisiana, REFORM helped to pass HB 77 and HB 643. REFORM advocated for HB 77 to create a remote reporting system for people on probation, since people on probation often have to leave work in order to meet with their probation officers. In 2021, alongside Justice Forward VA,

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672-575: A point of accountability for politicians, comparing their political rhetoric to their voting records to assess their conservativeness. Politicians are given a percentile rating, anyone with a rating of over 80% is considered to be an "ACU Conservative". These scores are often used in political science research, in news stories and in election campaigns. ACU's most well-known event is the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), an annual event organized by

728-485: A statement from Chairman Matt Schlapp about the philosophy guiding the ratings as one of conservatism: "We begin with our philosophy (conservatism is the political philosophy that sovereignty resides in the person) and then apply our understanding of government (its essential role is to defend life, liberty, and property)." Unlike other congressional ratings that take positions on pending legislation, ACU Foundation rates votes already cast by lawmakers. Each rating provides

784-428: A thirty-minute-long television ad which aired on 150 television station in eighteen states, and took out newspaper ads in thirty states, encouraging citizens to write to their senators to oppose the treaties. The ACU also helped to fund a "truth squad," formed by Senator Paul Laxalt , whose purpose was to "focus renewed public interest in the treaties" and pressure senators to vote against the treaties. Gary Jarmin, who

840-402: Is a board member of Rue Gilt Groupe, which includes RueLaLa.com, Gilt.com , and ShopPremiumOutlets.com. He previously founded GSI Commerce in 1998, selling it to eBay in 2011 for US$ 2.4 billion. Rubin was a partner of the Philadelphia 76ers basketball team from 2011 and the New Jersey Devils hockey team from 2013 before selling his stakes in Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment ,

896-885: Is expected to decrease California's probation population by thirty-three percent, and in 2020 was considered one of the most transformative probation reform laws in the country. Michigan had the sixth-highest rate of probation supervision, leading REFORM to support legislation in the state. REFORM worked to pass SB 1048, SB 1050, and SB 1051, bipartisan probation reform laws, through the Michigan State Legislature , which passed on January 4, 2021. The laws reduced adult felony probation sentences in Michigan from five years to three years, and prevented endless extensions on misdemeanor and felony probation terms. The laws limit jail sanctions for technical probation violations, and require parole supervision terms to be tailored to

952-563: Is the CCJR, who advocate for conservative criminal justice reform through advising governmental officials, media advocacy, and testifying as expert witnesses at governmental hearings. The CCJR focuses on two main policy areas: preventing civil asset forfeiture and increasing mental health facilities within the criminal justice system. The CCJR works with the Texas Public Policy Foundation and Prison Fellow Ministries in

1008-515: Is to educate the public on conservative principles and currently has five "policy centers" which focus on different political areas. There is the Center for Arts and Culture, the Center for Human Dignity, the Center for Statesmanship & Diplomacy, the Center for 21st Century Property Rights, and the Center for Criminal Justice Reform (CCJR). These policy centers are mainly blogs which post articles regarding their topic area. The most extensive of these

1064-601: The American Conservative Union , Californians for Safety and Justice, Cut50, and Dream Corps . REFORM helped to pass AB 1950, AB 3234, and SB 118. AB 1950 was REFORM Alliance's first major "legislative victory", which REFORM worked on alongside Assemblywoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove . AB 1950 is designed to lower recidivism rates by shortening probation terms across California. It reduced probationary periods from three years to one for misdemeanors, and from five years to two for most felonies. The legislation

1120-405: The American Conservative Union , and Faith and Freedom, REFORM worked to pass HB 2038. The law creates a system of graduated sanctions for technical probation violations, which prevents people from being re-incarcerated for a first-time technical probation violation. If there are additional technical violations, the court must first find that there is no other safe and a less-restrictive way to deter

1176-666: The MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conferences, the Wharton Sports Business Summit, Recode 's Code Commerce, the Fast Company Innovation Festival, TechCrunch Disrupt, and Wall Street Journal Tech Live. An avid sports fan since his youth, Rubin splits his time between the Philadelphia area, near where he grew up, and New York City , where in 2018 it was reported that he purchased

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1232-575: The Right on Crime campaign, and offers a panel at the Conservative Political Action Conference each year. Defunct Newspapers Journals TV channels Websites Other Economics Gun rights Identity politics Nativist Religion Watchdog groups Youth/student groups Miscellaneous Other The American Conservative Union was one of many conservative organizations formed in

1288-458: The 1960s as part of the resurgence of conservatism. As conservative activist M. Stanton Evans predicted, "Historians may well record the decade of the 1960s as the era in which conservatism, as a viable political force, finally came into its own." During a time of increasing polarization between liberals and conservatives, activists began to build a well-organized conservative movement, forming organizations such as Young Americans for Freedom and

1344-552: The ACU estimated that it would cost roughly $ 1.8 million to defeat SALT II ; together with other conservative groups, SALT opponents outspent supporters 15:1. Having found the technique of mass mailing to be successful during other campaigns, the ACU used this same technique to oppose SALT II, reaching roughly 500,000 people with this strategy. Additionally, they produced a half-hour-long anti-SALT television program called Soviet Might/American Myth: The United States in Retreat , which

1400-496: The ACU foundation. CPAC has an annual attendance of thousands. Speakers regularly include sitting and former presidents and other famous conservatives. CPAC 2017 featured President Donald Trump , Vice President Mike Pence , Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), Governors Matt Bevin (R-KY), Sam Brownback (R-KS), Doug Ducey (R-AZ), and Scott Walker (R-WI) and executive branch officials (EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos ). The ACU Foundation's purpose

1456-543: The ACU offered FedEx requested and solicited payment of fees totaling $ 3.4 million for e-mail and other services for "an aggressive grass-roots campaign" to stop a legislative provision being considered by the U.S. Senate . The letter said the ACU's campaign could include "Producing op-eds and articles written by ACU’s Chairman David Keene and/or other members of the ACU’s Board of Directors." Two weeks later, Keene and leaders of five other conservative organizations issued

1512-534: The ACU. During this era, conservative groups focused less on direct action and more on long term planning and sought to gain positions in public office. The ACU was founded in December 1964 in response to the predominance of liberalism in America as evidenced by the defeat of Barry Goldwater 's presidential campaign. Founders included Frank S. Meyer , William F Buckley Jr , and Robert E. Bauman , who organized

1568-543: The Birchers became a national storyline when Buckley continued to criticize the Birchers in his National Review column. The ACU spent roughly $ 1.4 million opposing the ratification of the Panama Canal treaties in 1977. They used a mass mailing campaign, sending out around 2.4 million letters. This brought in roughly $ 15,000 a day in support of conservative candidates who opposed the treaties. They also produced

1624-871: The COVID-19 pandemic, with donations being made to charities including No Kid Hungry, Meals on Wheels, World Central Kitchen, and Feeding America. Athletes, entertainers and businesses took part, including Justin Bieber, Kevin Hart, Lebron James, and Dwayne Johnson. As part of Fanatics’ annual Global Volunteer Day, in June 2023 Rubin and Fanatics hosted Merch Madness Fan Gear Giveaway, a one-time initiative that provided more than 300,000 pieces of sports apparel to underserved children and families. The event spanned 100 locations across 30 US cities and featured participation from special guests, including Russell Wilson, Meek Mill, Tom Brady, Eli Manning, DJ Khaled and Lil Baby, who later dropped

1680-469: The John Birch Society. ACU's founding documents state that, There is no relation between the two organizations. The directors of the ACU take a view of world affairs substantially at variance with that taken by Mr. Robert Welch in his most publicized writing. Under the circumstances, the leadership of the ACU will be wholly distinct from that of the John Birch Society. Conservatives' view of

1736-485: The U.S. The ACU is concerned with issues such as personal liberty or freedom , and traditional values , which they define as foundations of conservatism. The ACU comprises three entities: The American Conservative Union, a 501(c)(4) organization which conducts lobbying; The American Conservative Union Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization best known for hosting the Conservative Political Action Conference; and The American Conservative Union Political Action Committee,

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1792-462: The United States for incarcerated persons as well as correctional officers. In May 2020, Jack Dorsey donated $ 10 million to REFORM to help provide personal protective equipment to incarcerated persons. In September 2020, the first REFORM Alliance-supported legislation passed, when California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1950 into law. In California, REFORM Alliance works closely with

1848-516: The conduct, before imposing a term of incarceration. Michael G. Rubin Michael Gary Rubin ( / ˈ r uː b ɪ n / , ROO -bin ; born July 21, 1972) is an American businessman. He is the founder and CEO of Fanatics , a global digital sports platform that consists of several businesses, including licensed sports merchandise, trading cards and collectibles, sports betting and iGaming, special events, and live commerce. He

1904-456: The course of five years. Jessica Jackson serves as the organization's Chief Advocacy Officer. In September 2020, California passed Assembly Bill 1950, which marked the first passage of REFORM-sponsored legislation. In 2021, Robert Rooks replaced Van Jones as the CEO, and Van Jones took a position on the organization's Board of Directors. REFORM Alliance focuses on passing legislation to reform

1960-408: The critically acclaimed and multi-Emmy Award-winning TV show Shark Tank . He joined Mark Cuban , Barbara Corcoran , Lori Greiner , Robert Herjavec , Daymond John and Kevin O'Leary , as they continue their search to invest in the best up-and-coming businesses and products on the market. Rubin has been a featured speaker and panelist at several business and sports industry events including

2016-545: The film and had a desire to learn more. The five men later collaborated with others to form REFORM Alliance. In January 2019, the REFORM Alliance initially launched at an event at John Jay College . Van Jones was hired to lead REFORM as the Chief Executive Officer. At its founding, REFORM established a goal to reduce the number of people impacted by probation and parole laws by one million over

2072-409: The first chairman from 1964 to 1966, succeeded by John Ashbrook from 1966 to 1971. M. Stanton Evans then served six years from 1971 to 1977, succeeded by a two-year term served by Philip Crane from 1977 to 1979. Mickey Edwards served as chairman from 1979 to 1983. David Keene was chairman from 1984 until 2011, succeeded by Al Cardenas , who served until 2014. Cardenas was succeeded by

2128-413: The first meeting. In the initial meetings, a 50-member board of directors was appointed, whose members included Lammot Copeland, Peter O'Donnell, John A. Howard, Donald C. Bruce , and John Dos Passos . Membership grew to 7,000 within 9 months, and 45,000 by the end of 1972. As part of ACU's mission to unite conservatives, William F. Buckley and Robert Bauman led an initiative to declare ACU's views of

2184-491: The holding company of both, in June 2022 to focus on the expansion of Fanatics. He is the co-chair of the REFORM Alliance , a criminal justice reform organization that he launched in January 2019, together with Jay-Z , Meek Mill , Robert Kraft , and Daniel S. Loeb , among others. Michael Gary Rubin was born on July 21, 1972, in Philadelphia to Paulette and Ken Rubin. His mother was a psychiatrist and his father

2240-826: The latter funding round, it was announced that Rubin would transition to the role of CEO of Fanatics Holdings Inc., a broader Fanatics portfolio that would expand beyond merchandising into new sports verticals in order to create a global digital sports platform. It was reported at the time that these verticals may include NFTs , a space Rubin entered in May 2021 by co-founding digital collectibles company Candy Digital; sports betting and gaming; trading cards, ticketing and media. In January 2023, Fanatics divested its 60% stake in Candy Digital. Fanatics raised another $ 350 million in September 2021, one month after its expansion into

2296-646: The music video “Merch Madness” to celebrate the day. Rubin has been interviewed or quoted in business, lifestyle and sports publications such as Forbes , Fast Company , Vanity Fair , The Wall Street Journal , The New York Times , Fortune , Entrepreneur , People Magazine , and Sports Illustrated . He has been a guest on many popular podcasts, including On Purpose with Jay Shetty, The Bill Simmons Podcast, The Pat McAfee Show, and Pardon My Take. Rubin has also been featured on Dateline NBC , Good Morning America , CBS This Morning , CNN , CNBC , and ESPN . In 2010, he appeared in

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2352-565: The ninth and current chairman, Matt Schlapp , who has previously served as George W. Bush 's political director. According to OpenSecrets , the American Conservative Union spent roughly $ 20,000 on lobbying in 2001, $ 400,000 in 2003, and $ 1,100,000 in 2005. They did not spend any money on lobbying in 2004. In the years since Schlapp was elected chairman ACU, the organization has spent $ 120,000 on lobbying. Recurring lobbyists are Lorenz Hart and Amir Iljazi. In 2009,

2408-519: The premiere season of the CBS television show Undercover Boss , where he worked undercover in GSI Commerce's warehouse and call center. Once his identity was revealed at the end of the show, he gave an employee, who had recently struggled with the death of a baby, $ 10,000 so he and the baby's mother could have a dream wedding. In fall 2023, Rubin was announced as a guest shark for the 15th season of

2464-622: The probation and parole laws in the United States. The organization works alongside other criminal justice groups such as Cut50 and the American Conservative Union . REFORM has helped to pass legislation in California, Michigan, Louisiana, and Virginia. REFORM has worked with numerous celebrities and executives, including Kim Kardashian , Madonna , and Jack Dorsey . During the COVID-19 pandemic , REFORM helped distribute 12.5 million masks and personal protective equipment to prisons across

2520-508: The publication recognized him as "Sports Executive of the Year". American Conservative Union The American Conservative Union ( ACU ) is an American political organization that advocates for conservative policies, ranks politicians based on their level of conservatism, and organizes the Conservative Political Action Conference . Founded on December 18, 1964, it calls itself the oldest ongoing conservative lobbying organization in

2576-451: The trading cards business, by acquiring the licensing rights for Major League Baseball and National Football League. In March 2022, Rubin and Fanatics raised $ 1.5 billion, followed by another $ 700 million in December 2022, reportedly pushing the company's valuation to $ 31 billion. During the December round, Rubin announced Fanatics would be expanding into a third vertical in 2023, Fanatics Betting & Gaming. In October 2011, Rubin bought

2632-527: The venture. In December 2020, ShopRunner was sold to FedEx. Rubin has orchestrated partnership deals for Fanatics with more than 900 professional and collegiate leagues, sports and teams, including deals with Nike , the National Football League and Major League Baseball , that grant Fanatics the rights to manufacture and distribute all Nike fan gear for both leagues. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, Rubin shut down

2688-436: The women's athletic shoe manufacturer Rykä . In 1998, Rubin created an apparel and logistics company, Global Sports Incorporated, which later turned into GSI Commerce , a multibillion-dollar e-commerce company. At 38, in 2011, Rubin sold GSI to eBay for $ 2.4 billion , reaping a $ 150 million windfall. As eBay just wanted the order fulfillment business for large retailers, so it could better compete with Amazon , Rubin

2744-523: Was a veterinarian . He was raised in a Jewish family. He grew up in Lafayette Hill, Pennsylvania , where he started a ski-tuning shop in his parents' basement when he was 12 and two years later, using $ 2,500 in bar mitzvah gifts as seed capital and a lease signed by his father, he opened a formal ski shop in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania , named Mike's Ski and Sport. By the age of 16, he

2800-456: Was able to buy back the consumer businesses of GSI at a fire sale price. He repurchased: Fanatics, Inc. , a licensed sports merchandiser; Rue La La, a flash seller , and ShopRunner, a retail benefits program. Rubin serves as CEO of Fanatics and as executive chairman on Rue La La's board. In 2019, it was announced on CNBC that Simon Property Group would team up with Rubin to take their mall inventory online, and contribute $ 280 million to

2856-582: Was aired on 200 television stations around the country. In 1985, the ACU sent out roughly 100,000 pieces of mail in support of Nicaraguan contra aid in 1985. They also escorted Nicaraguan refugees around Capitol Hill in order to persuade undecided politicians to support Reagan's contra aid request. Founding members include: William F. Buckley, Jr. Rep. Donald Bruce (R.-Ind.), Rep. John Ashbrook (R.-Ohio), Rep. Katherine St. George (R.-N.Y.), William A. Rusher , Frank Meyer , Thomas S. Winter , John A. Howard and L. Brent Bozell . Donald Bruce served as

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2912-660: Was at the time Legislator of the ACU, stated that the Panama Canal Treaties were "a good issue for the conservative movement. It's not just the issue itself we're fighting for. This is an excellent opportunity to seize control of the Republican Party." Even so, the two treaties were signed September 7, 1977, ratified by the Panamanian election of October 23, 1977, and approved (68-32) by the U. S. Senate on March 16, 1978 and April 18, 1978. In 1980,

2968-528: Was included in Bleacher Report ' s "Power 50" list in 2018, which highlights influential figures in sports culture. He was also recognized as one of the "Top 50 Most Influential People in Sports Business" by Sports Business Journal for five consecutive years between 2015 and 2019. In 2021, he was named the "Most Influential Person in Sports Business" by Sports Business Journal . In 2022,

3024-687: Was popularized by record executive Sean Combs . In November 2023, Rubin was credited with an interest in purchasing a majority shareholding in the Scottish football club Glasgow Rangers . Rubin has been included in the Forbes 400 : The Richest People in America , the Forbes: The World's Billionaires list, and the Bloomberg Billionaires Index . His wealth, as of August 2024, was valued at $ 11.5 billion. Rubin

3080-406: Was sentenced to two to four years in prison for doing wheelies on a dirt bike, which violated the terms of his parole. Rubin and Robert Kraft visited Meek Mill in jail, and Jay-Z and Rubin helped to support Meek Mill's legal battle. Jay-Z, who served as an executive producer for Time: The Kalief Browder Story , also took Michael Novogratz to visit a New York City jail after Novogratz watched

3136-440: Was some $ 120,000 in debt and was able to settle with his creditors using a $ 37,000 loan from his father under the condition he attend college. Rubin agreed, continuing to operate the business, which grew to five ski shops before he entered college. He attended Villanova University for a semester before dropping out after realizing a large gain on an opportunistic transaction. This involved buying $ 200,000 in overstock equipment at

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