Amazon, CVS donate to group that supports hardline anti-abortion Republican despite supporting 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 ban on abortion. Rokita infamously was reprimanded by the state Supreme Court for criticizing a doctor who performed an abortion on a 10-year-old rape victim from Ohio.

The publicly available documents noted that the corporate donations were made to the Republican Attorneys General Association, or Raga, a “527 committee” that exists to direct nationally donated funds to key state races. Interestingly, the three entities named in the filing have publicly expressed support for ensuring reproductive rights in the United States.

According to the filing, Amazon, DoorDash and CVS Health have collectively donated as much as $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 undergo 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, professor of business ethics at New York University’s Stern School of Business, spoke about the donations to these committees at the launch of a CPA report. “Their power far exceeds their media presence. American citizens are little aware of their influence and even less aware of their financing and methods. This is a shame,” he said.

“… As major corporations open their checkbooks to these 527s – and especially to the Republican Attorney Generals Association (Raga) – these funds are going to elect and re-elect state officials who actively promote policies that run counter to stakeholder groups in society,” says Prof .Buchanan added.

The hypocrisy of it all

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

However, the company has donated $150,000 to Raga, which supports Rokita. Meanwhile, a DoorDash spokesperson said in June 2022, shortly after Dobbs, that the company would cover “certain travel-related costs” for employees forced to leave the state for abortion care. “It is of the utmost importance 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. This year, however, DoorDash paid $150,000 to Raga.

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

With input from authorities.