U.S. Chamber of Commerce executives indicated Thursday that the chamber has been shaken by a series of exclusive Breitbart News stories about a blossoming Congressional investigation into funding for the affiliated foundation, which is said to be a parent business group. did. hill report.
Back in March, Breitbart News exposed tax returns from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation that revealed more than $12 million in donations to the organization over several years from the far-left Tides Foundation. . The Tides Foundation is funded by a number of left-wing donors, including left-wing billionaire George Soros through his group, the Open Society Foundations. This original article also reported that the organization employs Democratic operatives, including a top adviser to former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, the unsuccessful 2016 Democratic presidential candidate, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s foundation tax filings. It was also revealed that As reported by Breitbart News, the funds from the Tides Foundation were used to support the efforts of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s veteran employment program, Hiring Our Heroes.
Since the Tides Foundation is a so-called “donor-advised fund,” a major point of contention is exactly who provided the funds and why.
“Tracking the flow of donor-advised funds is like tracking the path of a washing machine. Tracking funds as they flow from beginning to end is difficult with publicly available information. It is virtually impossible for individual donors to pool into large funds promoted by donors such as Tides, whose funds are ultimately distributed in the form of grants to organizations such as chambers of commerce. hillTaylor Giorno I have written Thursday. “According to its most recent Form 990, Tides received approximately $574 million in grants and distributed $667 million in grants in 2022. According to its most recent Form 990 detailing that it contributed approximately $1.4 million to Tides in 2022, it has no connection to the Chamber, its foundation, or Our Heroes’ employment. ”
In the weeks that followed Breitbart News’ initial article, Rep. Jason Smith (R-Missouri), chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, launched an investigation into the matter. This investigation is no joke, as the Board of Revenue is very powerful and controls tax laws. As Breitbart News exclusively reported a few weeks ago, Smith has launched a formal investigation into the matter, giving the Chamber of Commerce and its affiliated foundations until early next week to respond to requests for information about the donations. I was given a reprieve.
Now, hillAn extensive article on the issue published Thursday quotes Chamber of Commerce executives who have bashed Breitbart News multiple times for reporting these facts.
“Chairman Smith has raised a series of questions based on a factually incorrect article published by Breitbart,” said U.S. Chamber of Commerce Vice President Neil Bradley. I am grateful for the support I received.”said hill.
Later in this article, Bradley rips Breitbart News again.
“The Chamber responded to Chairman Smith, explaining how Breitbart made the wrong decision, and the important work we do to hire heroes, including maintaining a competitive tax system that raises wages and incomes for Americans. “We’re going to talk to all of our allies about a number of shared priorities,” Bradley said.
Interestingly, Bradley said that Breitbart News’ article on the matter was “false and misleading” and “factually inaccurate” and that Breitbart News “misled” However, he did not say specifically where in Breitbart’s article the alleged factual inaccuracies were found. News article. This is a typical tactic by political insiders, who seek to denounce publications that report facts contained in official tax documents and ignore any investigations that have arisen from that reporting. , which is unlikely to work if the article in question is true. It is equally accurate in this case. Mr. Bradley does not dispute that the Chamber of Commerce’s foundation received more than $12 million from the Tides Foundation, nor does he dispute that the organization hired a top Clinton campaign veteran. . The only point of contention is where exactly the money came from via the Tides Foundation, but for now this is a secret being investigated by a parliamentary committee and the various parties involved have so far released no disclosures. is refusing. The good news here is that despite Bradley’s constant whining about the Breitbart News article in question; hill It appears that the newspaper addressed to the Chairman of the Revenue Committee and others is not buying what the Chamber of Commerce and Industry is selling.
Giorno wrote that Smith “made it clear that he was not satisfied with the initial response.” In the second quote at the end of the article, Mr. Bradley says that the Chamber will “respond” to Mr. Smith, but earlier in the article, Mr. Bradley says that the Chamber will “respond” to Mr. Smith. is also quoted as saying that it does not include any disclosure of where exactly the Tides Foundation’s donations are located. Develops from.
“There is a pretty strong consensus among the left and center right about the importance of the First Amendment’s right to freedom of association and the lack of disclosure requirements,” Bradley said when Giorno reported. said. hill The Chamber of Commerce and Industry asked, “Will you clarify the final source of the Tides subsidy?”
On the other hand, Smith quotes: hill He said it would be unwise for the Chamber of Commerce not to disclose the sources of the Tides Foundation’s donations. “They will want to disclose all the funds,” the revenue commissioner told the newspaper.
“The Chamber’s mission is clear: to support American businesses,” Smith said. “When you get $12 million from Tides and then try to claim that it actually came from someone else and not from Tides, you want to look harder.”
A spokesperson for the Tides Foundation also sided with the Chamber of Commerce, condemning the investigation into the Chamber. hill It said the investigation was “a politically motivated PR tactic in an election year driven by actors who disagree with the social justice work of Tides and our partner organizations.”
Eric Ebersole, chairman of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hire Our Heroes program, is working on an important project as the Congressional investigation expands, people familiar with the matter told Breitbart News. It is said that there is a high possibility that he will emerge as a unique person.Introducing Eversole hill Also on Thursday:
The Chamber of Commerce and Foundation say the study is based on a misunderstanding. Eric Ebersole, president of the foundation’s Hire a Hero program, told The Hill that the funds the foundation receives are “a combination of corporate philanthropic donations going to donor-advised funds. It’s a thing,” he said. funds.
But perhaps most importantly about all this, as Breitbart News reported and Giorno pointed out in Thursday’s article, the survey marks a major shift from the Republican Party’s pro-big business past. It means that it is.of wall street journalBrody Mullins, who just published a new book on lobbying this month, tweeted that the study was proof that “our political world is being turned upside down.” Mullins likened this complete realignment in American politics to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the top Democrat, deciding to investigate labor unions.
The latest sign that our political world is being turned upside down…Key Republicans investigating big business. This is like Nancy Pelosi launching an investigation into the union…this kind of thing never happens… https://t.co/IdbRcCP3on
— Brody Mullins (@BrodyMullinsDC) May 16, 2024
“Ten years ago, it would have been unthinkable for a Republican chairman to investigate Washington’s largest business advocacy organization,” Giorno wrote. “But times have changed.”
Giorno added that this is a “major change” that could significantly complicate the chamber’s efforts to reach members on important policy items on Capitol Hill.
“If Republicans control the House, Mr. Smith is expected to keep the appropriations gavel and run the House committee responsible for tax policy,” Giorno wrote. “A deteriorating relationship with Mr. Smith could undermine Congress’ ability to sway the 2025 tax battle and other priorities for the panel.”
