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Democratic Alliance Gaining Political Clout
A year after its founding, Democratic Alliance has become a major power in the liberal movement, directing more than $50 million to liberal think tanks and advocacy groups in a campaign to better compete against conservatives.
The Alliance was formed last year with major support from billionaire George Soros and software mogul Tim Gill. The identities of its members are closely guarded, but the group now includes nearly 100 of the nation’s wealthiest political contributors, the Washington Post reports.
The group was organized, according to its founders, in the belief "that Democrats became the minority party in part because liberals do not have a well-funded network of policy shops, watchdog groups and training centers for activists equivalent to what has existed for years on the right,” the Post disclosed.
Becoming a "partner," as the members are referred to internally, requires a $25,000 entry fee and annual dues of $30,000. In addition, partners agree to spend at least $200,000 a year on organizations that have been endorsed by the alliance.
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The donor club reportedly includes millionaire Susie Tompkins Buell and her husband Mark Buell, major backers of Sen. Hillary Clinton.
To determine which groups would receive financial backing from Alliance members, officials initially reviewed about 600 liberal and Democratic-leaning organizations. About 40 of the groups were invited to apply for an endorsement, provided that they submit detailed business plans and internal financial information.
Those groups were then screened by a panel of alliance staff members, donors and outside experts. So far, according to people familiar with the alliance who spoke to the Post, 25 groups have received an endorsement.
One organization that made the cut is The Center for American Progress, which is led by former Clinton White House chief of staff John Podesta. It received $5 million in the first round of donations.
A Democracy Alliance donation helped jump-start Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, which bills itself as a nonpartisan watchdog group committed to targeting "government officials who sacrifice the common good to special interests."
But the Alliance’s growing power is concerning some, who feel that an organization that is not chosen for endorsement could lose access to dozens of wealthy political donors. Others fear that Alliance donors may be contributing money that would otherwise have gone to candidates in 2006 and 2008. Still others are worried about that Democracy Alliance's hidden influence – unlike election campaigns, which must reveal contributions and spending, most of the nonprofit groups that receive Alliance funds are exempt from public disclosure laws.
"It is a huge problem," Sheila Krumholz, the acting executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, told the Post.
She noted that for decades "all kinds of Democrats and liberals were complaining that corporations and individuals were carrying on these stealth campaigns to fund right-wing think tanks and advocacy groups.
"Just as it was then, it is a problem today."
Editor's note:
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