Special Operations Warrior Foundations has joined forces with Glenn Beck's Restore our Honor rally on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
Beck is using the charity to cover his fundraising. People who donate to the rally receive a tax deduction. The charity won't see the first million dollars; that will directly support the Restore our Honor event.
From Beck's own mouth:
... I'm asking you to go to the specialops.org and you will see Glenn Beck Restoring Honor rally and you can make a contribution there in any amount. It's all tax deductible. Anything that we raise over the cost of the event will stay with them.
As a military spouse, this makes me sick. I'm tired of conservatives using the military as their rallying cry. And I find it horrible that this charity is falling for this... or are they?
Is Glenn Beck taking advantage of an organization that supports our troops or does the organization gain some advantage?
A fellow Kossack has already published a diary about the rally itself, Glen Beck perverts August 28. This has been in the works since at least last November.
As a quick reminder, here is a description from Beck's site:
Come celebrate America by honoring our heroes, our heritage and our future at the Restoring Honor Rally on August 28, 2010. Join us at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. for this non-political, non-partisan rally that will recognize our First Amendment rights and honor the service members who fight to protect those freedoms.
The addition of the Special Operations Warrior Foundation is fairly new. The fundraising began in January and made a little bit of news in Florida:
Tampa charity helps Glenn Beck rally earn $129,000 in five days after on air endorsement.
But the money will come in a specific way. Estimating that the event could cost $2-million to produce, Beck told his fans Monday he would cover $1-million of those costs and they could donate to cover the rest. The Tampa foundation will receive any money donated above the $1-million.
Since that time, fundraising hasn't been great. The Special Ops site shows a little more than $150,000 raised.
So why would a well-known charity sign on for this kind of event? They are obviously above board; I doubled checked their rating at Charity Navigator and the check out. My husband had heard of the charity from the annual Combined Federal Campaign. Their mission statement makes it clear that it's a charity that would be hard not to support:
Mission Statement
The Special Operations Warrior Foundation provides full scholarship grants and educational and family counseling to the surviving children of special operations personnel who die in operational or training missions and immediate financial assistance to severely wounded special operations personnel and their families.
A spokesperson for the organization made it clear that they believe the event is both non-partisan and non-political:
And though Beck is known for offering sometime controversial commentary, McLeary says the August rally will be non-partisan and non-political.
"(Beck) told us that right up front," he said. "There are no politics when it comes to honoring our military.
That will be key for the charity to maintain support. In their own Event Guidelines Document, they don't want companies with public images that could damage their good name.
Companies with public images that would have the potential
to compromise the goodwill of the Warrior Foundation or conflict with the Foundation’s mission, vision or values may not be major or presenting sponsors and may not promote their products through advertising or other event exposure.
I would ask if that should include individuals - though Glenn Beck has become more than a man, he acts more like a corporation.
And isn't it likely that having a million dollars on the books that doesn't directly support the charity will ring alarm bells at organizations like Charity Navigator? Isn't this charity risking their 4 star rating?
Maybe the military's honor is worth the sacrifice. But if Beck is honoring the military, then why is he questioning their honor? The rally refers to restoring honor - that implies the honor has been tarnished, taken away, or is somehow missing. Why would a non-profit that honors our military want to be a part of this?
So this just doesn't add up for me. The charity isn't making any money as of yet and it seems unlikely that they will profit at all. The questionable fundraising could potentially hurt their rating at Charity Navigator. They are using their good name to support a rally that questions the state of the honor of our troops. The only upside for them is the increased advertising on Beck's show - but if they are that great an organization, he should willing talk about them without the $1,000,000 fee.
This makes me question the decision obviously made by the current Board of Directors. What kind of connection do they have with Glenn Beck. What are their political views?
To make things worse, Glenn Beck's altruism is being falsely advertised on the web at First Giving Blog (italics mine):
Glenn Beck holds many titles: radio and television host, author, conservative political commentator, entrepreneur -and now he can add fundraiser to that list. The publicity that his page is generating for Special Operations Warrior Foundation is incredible. In just a two days, Beck’s page has generated over $116,000 in donations. Better yet, Beck has plans to match all donations that are brought in. This one page truly shows the power of viral marketing, though some donors are only contributing $5 or $10 dollars, there are many supporters and every dollar adds up.
Leave it to Glenn Beck to figure out a way to give his followers a 100% tax deduction for money given to glorify the greatness of Glenn Beck while his groupies brag about his altruistic nature.