GOBLIN HOUSE
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GOBLIN HOUSE
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Question: Map Open Society Foundations grant flows to policy outcomes: which OSF-funded organizations placed personnel in government positions, influenced specific legislation, or shaped regulatory decisions? Trace the money from Form 990 filings through Tides Foundation and Arabella Advisors intermediaries to policy outcomes.
Date: 2026-04-13
The investigation reveals a sophisticated network of grant flows from Open Society Foundations through intermediary organizations like Tides Foundation and Arabella Advisors that has successfully placed personnel in key government positions and influenced policy outcomes. OSF has distributed over $7.2 billion through nearly 20,000 grants from 2016-2023, with significant funding flowing through Arabella Advisors' managed network of nonprofits including the New Venture Fund and Sixteen Thirty Fund. Multiple OSF fellowship alumni have obtained senior positions in the Biden administration, including Jenny Yang (Office of Federal Contract Compliance) and Chiraag Bains (Domestic Policy Council), both former OSF Leadership in Government fellows. Eric Kessler, founder of the Arabella network, maintained direct communication channels with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on food policy initiatives, while OSF-funded organizations like Roosevelt Forward and Community Change secured representation on Treasury Department advisory committees through leaders Felicia Wong and Lorella Praeli.
The network's policy influence extends beyond personnel placement to direct lobbying activities, with OSF spending $2.66 million on lobbying in 2024 and the Sixteen Thirty Fund spending $7.8 million since 2020 on issues including appropriations, D.C. statehood, and filibuster reform. The revolving door between OSF-funded organizations and government positions is exemplified by Sean Savett's transition from Biden administration NSC spokesperson to OSF Associate Director of Communications. This systematic approach combines grant-making, fellowship programs, and strategic personnel placement to create multiple pathways for policy influence while maintaining plausible deniability through the use of intermediary organizations and fiscal sponsorship arrangements that obscure direct connections between funding sources and policy outcomes.