Ohio’s Republican Gov. Mike DeWine spoke to Digital about how a November abortion measure in Ohio is too extreme for Ohio and goes even farther than Roe v. Wade. Left-wing dark money groups that have been accused of pumping tens of millions of dollars into anti-Israel and pro-Hamas interests are also pouring money into the state of Ohio backing an amendment to enshrine abortion into the state’s constitution.
Recent filings reviewed by Digital show that the progressive Sixteen Thirty Fund, which the Washington, D.C.-based Arabella Advisors consulting firm manages, sent at least $5.4 million to the Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights Committee to support Ohio’s constitutional amendment. The campaign also received $3.5 million from the George Soros-backed Open Society Policy Center. Both groups have sent millions of dollars to anti-Israel causes in recent years according to a recent report from the New York Post.
Nonprofits in the Arabella Advisors-managed network have reportedly funneled at least $10,833,396 to a variety of groups that have sent funds opposing Israel since 2018, including entities that have backed pro-Palestinian protests, antisemitic figures and groups sympathetic to the Hamas terrorists that attacked Israel last month.
The Open Society Policy Center has given $13.7 million, through the Tides Center, to groups that have reportedly expressed support for Hamas or justified attacks on Israel and a total of $15 million since 2016.
“Ohioans understand how extreme Issue 1 really is, but when the money behind it is from liberal groups who also fund pro-Hamas efforts, it is further proof,” Ohio’s GOP Sen. J.D. Vance told Digital.
Ohioans will vote on November 7th on whether to enshrine abortion into the state’s constitution which opponents of the measure, “No” voters, argue will wipe out any abortion restrictions that are currently on the books and implement vague language that opens up the likelihood of parental rights being hindered.
“If a voter is comfortable with abortion up until the time of birth, they’re probably going to be okay with this amendment — if they’re comfortable with parents not being involved in the most important decision their daughter will ever make or certainly has made up until that point in her life. If they’re okay with that, then they should vote for this,” Ohio’s Republican Gov. Mike DeWine told Digital this month.
Ohio’s Republican Attorney General Dave Yost put together a comprehensive analysis of what voting “Yes” on Issue one and approving the amendment would mean for abortions in the state and wrote that the language of the amendment “creates a new, legal standard that goes beyond what Roe and Casey said.”
A spokesperson for Arabella Advisors pushed back against recent reporting on the radical anti-Israel groups they have funneled millions of dollars to, telling Digital it’s “categorically and demonstrably false.”
“We unequivocally condemn terrorism and violence against civilians, including the terrorist attacks by Hamas on October 7. We also condemn antisemitism and hate in all its forms. Arabella and its nonprofit clients support philanthropic initiatives designed to reduce human suffering and believe in building a better future for all people.”
Last month, the Windward Fund and New Venture Fund, which are under the Arabella umbrella and serve as fiscal sponsors of dozens of far-left groups, announced they were cutting ties with Alliance for Global Justice, a far-left organization that received hundreds of thousands of dollars combined from the two funds. Alliance for Global Justice previously faced backlash for sending funding to the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, a group that Israel labeled a terrorist organization in 2021.
Digital also previously reported on how the Louisville Community Bail Fund, which is a “fiscally sponsored project” of the Alliance for Global Justice (AFGJ), bailed out activist Quintez Brown, 21, after he was arrested and charged for the attempted murder of Jewish Democratic mayoral candidate Craig Greenberg early last year.
“We unequivocally condemn terrorism and violence against civilians, including the terrorist attacks by Hamas on October 7. We also condemn antisemitism and hate in all its forms. Arabella and its nonprofit clients support philanthropic initiatives designed to reduce human suffering and believe in building a better future for all people.”
“Our funding of organizations is a matter of public record,” the spokesperson added. “Many of our grantees have different perspectives and routinely disagree with each other but our funding strategy, which has evolved over 20 years is targeted towards working towards a secure future where rights and freedoms are respected.”
“There is strict U.S. anti-terrorist legislation that determines which organizations a foundation like OSF can fund. We devote a lot of effort to ensuring full compliance.”
Cameron Cawthorne and Jessica Chasmar contributed reporting. Andrew Mark Miller is a reporter at [Publication Name]. Find him on Twitter @andymarkmiller and email tips to [email protected]. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews, and more politics content.
