Columbia News

Senator Eric Schmitt published a series of posts on September 30, 2025, alleging that certain organizations are involved in controversial activities and funding. In these tweets, he addresses the Center for Justice and Accountability Foundation (CJAF), the Tides Network, and their connections to major donors.

In his first post, Schmitt claimed that "CJAF has also been actively inciting hatred against ICE—and anyone who supports deportations. In a separate 2019 statement, they claimed that every legislator who favors deportations enables 'a mass radicalization of white individuals that are now emboldened to commit murder.'" (September 30, 2025).

Addressing the financial backing of left-leaning organizations, Schmitt stated on the same day that "Not only is Tides Soros-funded (to the tune of tens of millions of dollars a year) — they've also received lavish funding from USAID: $27 million in taxpayer dollars in recent years." The Tides Foundation has received significant donations from philanthropist George Soros through his Open Society Foundations, which have supported progressive causes globally. USAID, the U.S. Agency for International Development, provides grants to a range of civil society groups as part of its mission to promote democracy and development worldwide.

In another tweet posted moments later, Schmitt described the operational model of Tides Advocacy: "Tides Advocacy is a part of the Tides Network, a major 'pass-through' organization that is responsible for funneling hundreds of millions of dollars a year to astroturf the left-wing NGO-industrial complex—and pay the sinecures of its permanent revolutionary activist class." The Tides Network operates as an umbrella organization supporting various advocacy projects by channeling donor funds toward progressive initiatives.

The statements by Senator Schmitt reflect ongoing debates about nonprofit transparency and political funding in the United States. Critics have often raised concerns regarding so-called "dark money" networks—organizations that receive large sums from anonymous donors or foundations—which play an influential role in American politics regardless of ideology.