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Why the DeVos family's backing of the Michigan protests is no surprise
Source: The Guardian
Why the DeVos family's backing of the Michigan protests is no surprise
The Trump-supporting education secretary and her billionaire family have for years promoted rightwing causes and candidates
Adam Gabbatt
@adamgabbatt
Sun 26 Apr 2020 11.00 BST
Last modified on Sun 26 Apr 2020 11.01 BST
While the anti-coronavirus lockdowns springing up around the US came as a surprise to many, the involvement of the conservative billionaire DeVos family, repeated donors to a slew of dubious rightwing causes, should not.
The family – which includes Betsy DeVos, Trump’s education secretary – has been a regular donor to the Michigan Freedom Fund, which helped promote a Michigan protest against the state’s stay-at-home orders in mid-April.
That rally, which saw about 3,000 people descend on the state’s capitol building, in Lansing, sparked a slew of other protests in states, and an endorsement from Trump.
But the DeVoses’ donations to the Michigan Freedom Fund – more than half a million dollars over the past four years, including from Betsy DeVos herself – are the tip of an iceberg of support for conservative causes.
The family, which has a net worth of $5.6bn accrued through a sprawling business, handed over more than $10m to Republican candidates and groups during the 2016 election, and has pushed causes including Christian schools and the opposition of equal rights for LGBT people.
-snip-
The Trump-supporting education secretary and her billionaire family have for years promoted rightwing causes and candidates
Adam Gabbatt
@adamgabbatt
Sun 26 Apr 2020 11.00 BST
Last modified on Sun 26 Apr 2020 11.01 BST
While the anti-coronavirus lockdowns springing up around the US came as a surprise to many, the involvement of the conservative billionaire DeVos family, repeated donors to a slew of dubious rightwing causes, should not.
The family – which includes Betsy DeVos, Trump’s education secretary – has been a regular donor to the Michigan Freedom Fund, which helped promote a Michigan protest against the state’s stay-at-home orders in mid-April.
That rally, which saw about 3,000 people descend on the state’s capitol building, in Lansing, sparked a slew of other protests in states, and an endorsement from Trump.
But the DeVoses’ donations to the Michigan Freedom Fund – more than half a million dollars over the past four years, including from Betsy DeVos herself – are the tip of an iceberg of support for conservative causes.
The family, which has a net worth of $5.6bn accrued through a sprawling business, handed over more than $10m to Republican candidates and groups during the 2016 election, and has pushed causes including Christian schools and the opposition of equal rights for LGBT people.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/apr/26/devos-family-michigan-protest-rightwing-donors
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