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topicnews · October 8, 2024

Republicans are sounding the alarm about “the next George Soros” pouring money into “left-wing causes.”

Republicans are sounding the alarm about “the next George Soros” pouring money into “left-wing causes.”

Arnold, a philanthropist with an estimated net worth of $2.9 billion, has become a prominent donor in political circles over the past decade, particularly after he became the country’s then-youngest billionaire in 2007, pledging most of his income to his wife to donate to charities, focusing much of his attention on criminal justice and education reform efforts.

However, his efforts have drawn criticism from conservative circles, who accuse Arnold of using his money to “impose his far-left political preferences on Americans.”

“John Arnold is George Soros meets Tom Steyer,” said an aide to the House GOP leadership Washington Examiner. “He is far-left and spends millions on socialist causes, including censorship, weakening our intellectual property and releasing dangerous criminals. Expect Republicans in Congress to tighten their control over Arnold.”

Among Republicans’ main criticisms of Arnold is his support of bail reform in New York, as the billionaire has publicly advocated replacing the system with an algorithm that can make recommendations to judges about granting bail. The system predicts a person’s failure to appear in court based on age and criminal history, as well as the likelihood of re-arrest while on pretrial release.

In this way, Arnold argued, judges’ accuracy in granting bail would be maximized while minimizing racial disparities. Arnold has become one of the biggest donors to bail reform, even spending several million dollars more than Soros in recent years.

Those efforts have raised concerns among Republican lawmakers who argue Arnold’s proposed system would only “empower criminals” and lead to higher crime rates.

Both Arnold and his wife Laura have publicly commented on their stance on bail reform, arguing that this effort should be bipartisan.

“Judges are tasked with determining what happens to a defendant during this pretrial period,” John Arnold wrote in an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal. “In most places, judges set bail. If the defendants can pay, they will remain free until their court date. If they cannot pay, they will remain in prison until trial. The result? Dangerous people with access to money leave court. Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of people accused of minor crimes, mostly people of color, languish in city and county jails without having been convicted of a crime.”

Republicans have also voiced criticism of Arnold’s appointment to Meta’s board earlier this year, accusing the billionaire of trying to censor conservative voices and undermine free speech ahead of the November election.

“John Arnold is a far-left radical who has funded pro-crime projects in Indiana and pro-censorship organizations across the country,” said Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN). Washington Examiner in a statement. “His appointment to the board should make every patriotic American nervous because Big Tech could interfere in the 2024 presidential election, just as it did in the last election cycle.”

Arnold Ventures pushed back against claims that the Texas billionaire supports censorship efforts allegedly driven by Big Tech, citing instances in which Arnold has supported free speech on college campuses and beyond.

“Mr. “Arnold strongly believes that the fundamental principles of the First Amendment must be protected at all costs, which is one of the reasons he supports the University of Austin (UATX), an institution dedicated to free expression on the Campus is dedicated,” a spokesman for Arnold Ventures told the Washington Examiner in a statement. “He has also been a long-time supporter of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) since 2013, advancing the organization’s mission to defend and uphold the individual rights of all Americans to free speech and thought.”

Other conservatives have denounced Arnold’s support for electoral reform, particularly his support for ranked-choice voting. Ranked-choice voting, also known as instant runoff voting, allows voters to rank candidates based on their preference, with a winner not announced until they receive a majority of votes.

Arnold voices his support for ranked-choice voting on his philanthropic organization’s website and has donated millions of dollars to support the state’s efforts to implement the voting method.

Republicans have condemned those efforts, saying ranked-choice voting is fraught with challenges and elections are vulnerable to fraud.

“Arnold and other liberal billionaires have attempted to rig elections, including in Arkansas, using ranked-choice voting fraud,” said Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR). “Americans should be skeptical and resist these attempts by progressive billionaires to fundamentally change our representative democracy.”

Voter groups in Arkansas tried to introduce a ranked-choice initiative in the 2020 election, but those efforts were rejected by the state Supreme Court. According to Little Rock Public Radio, Arkansas Voters First raised $3.3 million, with the station reporting that most of the money came from Arnold.

Despite conservative criticism, Arnold Ventures is known for donating to both Republican and Democratic causes. According to campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, Arnold and his wife have donated to both sides of the ballot, such as ActBlue and WinRed, as well as to several individual candidates.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

But conservatives contend that Arnolds’ efforts go beyond mere political contributions. They claim Arnold Ventures hires individuals to develop “liberal ideas” before “orchestrating” them into government positions – and later letting them return to the organization.

Arnold Ventures has hired former government employees with Republican and Democratic backgrounds, from the Obama administration to former House Speaker Paul Ryan.