Americans are well aware of the outsized and often negative consequences that wealthy far-left donors can have on the policymaking process in the United States. George Soros has poured billions into his Open Society Foundations in pursuit of open borders and in an effort to undermine national sovereignty while Michael Bloomberg has been a vocal critic of gun rights and has been an enthusiastic supporter of the ongoing lawfare against traditional energy companies in the United States.
What they may not be aware of, however, is the fact that the ranks of these donors and the places where they are making investments to affect policy are growing. Specifically, a private limited liability corporation known as Arnold Ventures and funded by Texas billionaire and former Enron Executive John Arnold has emerged in recent years as a new giving powerhouse on the left. The organization, which gave out over $409 million in 2021 alone, has spent heavily to promote a slew of progressive policies and has funded more than 3,200 projects across the country in the last decade.
In recent years, my home state of Indiana has become ground zero for such spending, leaving residents to grapple with the negative results. Specifically, grants by Arnold Ventures to support healthcare policy and criminal justice reform efforts in Indianapolis has resulted in several bad policies that are not in the best interest of the people of Indiana.
Take the criminal justice reform projects they have funded in the Hoosier State, for example. A group known as the Indianapolis Bail Project, which received $175,000 from Arnold Ventures between 2018 and 2019 paid to release people who then went on to commit murder or stabbed police officers while on bail. Residents were so outraged that the state legislature ultimately passed a bill in response to this incident that stopped charities from posting bail for criminals, but such incidents are illustrative of the kinds of policies that our legislators are now forced to contend with.
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Unfortunately, it could also be merely the tip of a much larger iceberg.
Since at least 2019, the organization has funded the creation of policy blueprints and “racial justice” research related to criminal justice reform in Indiana and has given millions more to groups around the country that are calling to “defund the police” and strip law enforcement of crucial resources. Law enforcement experts warn such proposals are “detached from reality” and could harm public safety if implemented as they could allow even more criminals to walk free. Moving forward, Congressman Jim Banks is right that “out-of-state billionaires won’t find sympathy for a liberal, soft-on-crime agenda in Indiana,” but it is important to be vigilant for other policy areas where the organization is promoting similarly concerning ideas.
The healthcare policy debates that have gripped the Indiana state capitol in recent legislative sessions and culminated in the passage of legislation that imposes de facto price caps on nonprofit hospitals in the state also involved heavy spending from Arnold Ventures. The bill fails to address the true drivers of increased healthcare costs across the industry such as the lack of competition in insurance markets, which has resulted in increased premiums and reduced coverage despite record profits. It could also jeopardize access to care in Indiana and lead to hospital closures by limiting revenue streams for these facilities at a time when they are experiencing tens of millions of dollars in losses and seeing cash reserves decline.
Indianans have always prided themselves on their ability to govern our state with self-determination and a deep respect for local values. But the vast amounts of out-of-state money flooding in to advance liberal policies have distorted the authentic needs of Indiana communities and risk drowning out the genuine voices of citizens, local advocates, community leaders, and grassroots organizations in the policymaking process. The real-world consequences that Hoosiers have suffered as a result should serve as a cautionary tale for other states that are currently or may soon be the subject of such efforts.
Congressman Dan Burton served 15 terms as a United States Representative from Indiana and previously served as the Chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform as well as Chairman or Ranking Republican Member on all subcommittees of the Committee on Foreign Affairs.
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