A recent U.S. House subcommittee hearing, titled “Public Funds, Private Agendas: NGOs Gone Wild,” focused on the role of charities in policy advocacy, particularly those with progressive agendas. Diane Yentel, president of the National Council of Nonprofits, testified before Congress that her organization’s members “feed, heal, shelter, and nurture people of every age, gender, race, socioeconomic status and political persuasion.” She emphasized that their work is charitable and inclusive.
However, records show that several major donors to the National Council of Nonprofits are also prominent supporters of left-leaning policy initiatives. Since 2008, the Ford Foundation has contributed $4.2 million to the council. The Capital Research Center is preparing a report indicating that Ford Foundation distributes about $20 million per month to progressive causes from its $14 billion in net assets.
Among the council’s core mission partners are organizations like the Marguerite Casey Foundation. This foundation and Ford have both funded Hammer & Hope (formerly Black Radical Project), a digital magazine described as having communist inspiration. In 2022 alone, Marguerite Casey Foundation gave $750,000 to Hammer & Hope; since then, Ford has provided at least $1.25 million more.
Hammer & Hope began as a fiscally sponsored project within New Venture Fund—a nonprofit managed by Arabella Advisors. According to reports from The New York Times and The Atlantic, Arabella Advisors oversees a network that channels significant funds into Democratic and progressive causes.
By 2024, members of the National Council of Nonprofits had given a combined total of $2.3 billion to groups within Arabella’s network—primarily to New Venture Fund.
Other pass-through organizations connected to these donors include Amalgamated Charitable Foundation. Originating from a bank affiliated with Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Amalgamated has received substantial support since 2024: $10.8 million from Ford Foundation and an additional $18 million from other core partners such as William and Flora Hewlett Foundation ($15.4 million), David and Lucile Packard Foundation ($1.27 million), John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation ($1.25 million), and Rockefeller Brothers Fund ($940,000).
Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA) also serves as a major donor conduit for left-progressive causes; its most recent IRS filing shows new grants totaling at least $14 million for climate groups that oppose nuclear power.
Despite nuclear energy’s lack of greenhouse gas emissions and its reputation for safety and reliability among electricity sources, some environmental groups remain opposed to it—a stance described by critics as extreme.
Since 2024 alone, RPA has received large sums from key foundations: Ford ($24 million), Packard ($11.4 million), Rockefeller Brothers ($5.2 million), Hewlett ($4.4 million), and MacArthur ($2.7 million).
These foundations have also directly supported anti-energy activism; for example, in 2024 Hewlett gave $25 million to Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI). RMI is known for its opposition to natural gas stoves and was founded by Amory Lovins—an early leader in anti-nuclear advocacy.
RMI’s financial resources have grown significantly over time—from annual revenues under $25 million twelve years ago to reported income of $164.7 million for the year ending June 2024.
In her closing statement before Congress last month, Yentel said: “the nonprofit movement ‘should not divide us along political lines – it should unite us as Americans.’”
