Democratic-tied dark money network Arabella Advisors behind ‘youth’ tech lobbying groups

A pair of “youth-led” projects lobbying for more tech regulations while seemingly presenting themselves as grassroots are part of the largest Democratic-tied dark money network in the United States, records show.

Design it for Us and the Log Off Movement are staffed by college students and demanding the U.S. government further regulate social media while slamming technology companies for promoting allegedly addictive products, the Daily Caller reported. These same initiatives are trade names for the North Fund, a liberal nonprofit group managed by the dark money behemoth consultancy Arabella Advisors, according to corporate Washington, D.C., records.

GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN: HOW YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY PAYMENTS WILL BE AFFECTED

News of the financial relationships come as Arabella Advisors, whose network includes entities that sponsor projects not required to file tax forms with the IRS, faces increasing pressure from watchdogs and Republican lawmakers over its dark money operations. Arabella’s expansive network raked in over $1.5 billion in 2021 from secret donors, documents show.

Americans for Public Trust, an organization with ties to right-leaning billionaire activist Leonard Leo’s consulting firm CRC Advisors, accused Arabella in an August IRS complaint of having unlawfully “diverted substantial portions of their income and assets” to line the pockets of Eric Kessler, its founder. Meanwhile, Washington, D.C., Attorney General Brian Schwalb, a Democrat, opened an investigation last month into Leo, co-chairman of the board of the Federalist Society, a conservative legal group, and nonprofit groups affiliated with him.

The North Fund, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit group, disclosed on 2021 tax forms receiving $42.7 million in grants while doling out cash to liberal activist hubs, including Secure Democracy, Ohio Progressive Collaborative, Black Voters Matter Fund, and more. Secure Democracy, a separate 501(c)(4) elections group, has been controlled and funded by New Venture Fund, another charity managed by Arabella, as part of an arrangement reported on by the Washington Free Beacon that tax experts raised concerns over.

Between November 2022 and March 2023, Design it for Us and the Log Off Movement were registered as North Fund trade names, records show. This essentially means that both initiatives are aliases for the Arabella-tied group, and North Fund operates under the two different projects.

The Log Off Movement previously partnered with Accountable Tech, a different North Fund trade name initiative, to help launch Design it for Us, the Daily Caller reported. The campaign was initiated ahead of the passage of the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act, a tech regulation law. Accountable Tech notably in 2022 sought to block businessman Elon Musk from buying Twitter, now known as X, while later teaming up with the liberal watchdog Media Matters for America to call on advertisers to cut ties with the platform.

“These groups like to present as grassroots-driven, and too many reporters treat them that way, when in fact the Arabella ‘dark money’ empire is orchestrating these political campaigns at the behest of left-wing megadonors,” said Scott Walter, president of Capital Research Center, a conservative think tank.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

The North Fund and Arabella Advisors did not reply to requests for comment.

The Log Off Movement and Design It For Us did not either.