Ira Stoll on Spending by Left-Leaning Mega-Foundations

Liberal philanthropists deserve scrutiny, too.

CaptSpaulding/Flickr

The left often sees Republican policy in an oversimplified model of being bought and paid for by the Koch Brothers or the Adelsons. Similar philanthropy on the left sometimes attracts scrutiny, though much less often. But the Rockefeller Brothers Fund's recent Iran-policy spending is a reminder that spending by left-leaning mega-foundations deserves watching carefully too, argues Ira Stoll.

Since 2003, the foundation has spent $4.3 million on promoting a nuclear deal between America and Iran—a small fraction what Sheldon and Miriam Adelson spent supporting Newt Gingrich in 2012, sure. Yet that sum has purchased a top item on President Obama's foreign policy agenda, a directional change in American foreign policy toward Iran.