Amazon and CVS donate to group that supports hard-line anti-abortion Republicans despite supporting reproductive rights – Firstpost

Major U.S. companies including Amazon, DoorDash and CVS Health are backing a group pushing for the re-election of Todd Rokita, the Republican attorney general of Indiana who supports a total ban on abortion. Rokita was infamous for being reprimanded by the state Supreme Court for criticizing a doctor who performed an abortion on a 10-year-old Ohio rape victim.

Public records state that the corporate donations went to the Republican Attorneys General Association (Raga), a “527 committee” that funnels donated funds to key state elections nationwide. Interestingly, the three companies named in the filing have publicly expressed support for ensuring reproductive rights throughout the United States.

According to the filings, Amazon, DoorDash and CVS Health collectively donated a whopping $425,000 to Raga in 2024. The group has now donated $255,000 to Rokita’s campaign. The Guardian reported. The controversial Republican lawmaker also took part in a lawsuit against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over its accommodations for workers getting abortions.

The unknown side of campaign donations

Donations to Republican and Democratic 527 committees have long been tracked by the Center for Political Accountability, a Washington think tank. In August of this year, Bruce Buchanan, a professor of business ethics at New York University’s Stern School of Business, spoke about donations to these committees at the launch of a CPA report. “Their power goes far beyond their media presence. The American people are largely unaware of their influence, much less their funding and methods. “That’s unfortunate,” he said.

“…As major corporations open their checkbooks to these 527s – and particularly to the Republican Attorney Generals Association (Raga) – these funds will elect and re-elect public officials who actively advance policies that are at odds with interest groups throughout society,” said Prof. Buchanan added.

The hypocrisy of it all

Major U.S. companies made several public statements of support for employees in light of the Dobbs v. Jackson ruling, the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down federal abortion rights, and resulting state bans. Additionally, in May 2022, after Dobbs was leaked, Amazon told employees that it would cover up to $4,000 in travel expenses for non-life-threatening treatments, including abortions.

However, the company donated $150,000 to Raga, which supports Rokita. Meanwhile, in June 2022, shortly after Dobbs, a DoorDash spokesperson said the company would cover “certain travel expenses” for employees forced to travel abroad for abortion care. “It is critically important that all DoorDash employees and their dependents covered by our health insurance have equitable and timely access to safe health care,” the company said at the time. However, this year DoorDash paid Raga $150,000.

Meanwhile, CVS Health paid Raga $125,000 in 2024, which pledged to “make out-of-state abortion health services more accessible and affordable to employees in states with abortion bans.”

With input from agencies.