Amazon, CVS donate to group that backs hardline Republicans against abortion despite support for reproductive rights – Firstpost

Major US companies such as 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 abortion ban. Rokita was infamous for being reprimanded by the state Supreme Court for criticizing a doctor who provided an abortion to a 10-year-old rape victim from Ohio.

The publicly available filings stated that the companies’ donations were made to the Republican Attorneys General Association, or Raga, a “527 committee,” which exists to channel nationally donated funds to key state races. Interestingly, the three entities named in the filing have publicly expressed support for securing reproductive rights throughout the United States.

According to the filing, Amazon, DoorDash and CVS Health have donated a whopping $425,000 to Raga in 2024. Meanwhile, the group has donated $255,000 to Rokita’s campaign, The Guardian reported. The controversial Republican lawmaker has also joined a lawsuit against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over accommodations for workers who get 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, while introducing a CPA report, Bruce Buchanan, professor of business ethics at the Stern School of Business at New York University, spoke about the donations to these committees. “Their power far exceeds their media presence. The American citizenry has little awareness of their influence and even less of their funding and methods. That’s unfortunate,” he said.

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

The hypocrisy of it all

Major U.S. companies made several public statements about their support for employees in light of Dobbs v. Jackson, the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that removed the federal right to abortion, and subsequent state bans. Not only this, in May 2022, after Dobbs was leaked, Amazon told employees it would pay up to $4,000 in travel expenses for non-life-threatening treatment including abortions.

However, the company has given $150,000 to Raga, which supports Rokita. Meanwhile, in June 2022, shortly after Dobbs, a DoorDash spokesperson said the company would cover “certain travel-related expenses” for employees who are forced to travel out of state for abortion care. “It is critical that all DoorDash employees and their dependents covered by our health plans have fair, timely access to safe health care,” the company said at the time. However, this year DoorDash has paid $150,000 to Raga.

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

With input from agencies.