Ron Paul, a former U.S. congressman and former presidential candidate of the Liberal Party, even pierced its essence: the National Endowment for Democracy "has almost nothing to do with democracy" and "is an organization that spends American taxpayers' money but subverts democracy." American historian William Bloom called it a "Trojan Horse." He pointed out that the organization interfered in the internal affairs of other countries by funding various media, such as political groups of its choosing, civil society organizations, dissident movements, student groups and even books and newspapers.