The WhyNot Initiative is a program of Patriotic Millionaires which advocates for government-controlled healthcare, redistributing individual income, and gun control advocacy. The WhyNot Initiative primarily engages in funding elections research and advocacy training programs for left-of-center issues. The WhyNot Initiative also financially backs efforts to oppose Republican officials and Republican-backed causes. ¹

Alan S Davis

Alan S. Davis is the Director of the WhyNot Initiative and president of the Leonard and Sophie Davis Fund, which focuses on similar left-wing economic and social policies. Davis is also an advisory board member of the parent group Patriotic Millionaires.

On June 25, 2019, Davis was invited as the Director for the WhyNot Initiative to give opening remarks at an event hosted by the labor union-aligned think tank Economic Policy Institute titled “Taxing the (Very) Rich: Finding the Cure for Excessive Wealth Disorder.” ²

Activities

Elections Funding Research

In 2014, the WhyNot Initiative funded research (along with several large left-wing foundations) into elections funding conducted by the William J. Brennan Center for Justice, a left-of-center think tank. ³

. training

WhyNot donated to the Democracy Initiative in 2018, including providing stipends to bring people to Washington, D.C. for the “Democracy Champions” training. The program trained activists for “democracy reform” for “workers’ rights, environmental justice, racial justice, LGBTQ rights” and liberal immigration reform. ⁴⁵ Democracy Initiative leadership includes high level members from organizations including Greenpeace, the Sierra Club, AFL-CIO, and Common Cause.

Donations

The group donated to Common Cause through the George S. McGovern Great Government Endowment for efforts toward “democracy reform”. This also funded a conference by Common Cause in 2016 on Howard University campus in Washington D.C. which promoted left-wing economic and social policy. ⁶⁷

In 2014, WhyNot donated between $50,000 and $99,999 to the Center for American Progress. In both 2015 and 2017 it donated between $100,000 and $499,999. ⁸

Other donation recipients include Every Voice, California Budget and Policy Center, and MapLight.

1. “Common Cause Launches 10-Year Project to Build Blueprint for a Great Democracy.” Common Cause. January 30, 2014. Accessed August 17, 2019. https://www.commoncause.org/media/common-cause-launches-10-year-project-to-build-blueprint-for-a-great-democracy/
2. “Taxing the (Very) Rich: Finding the Cure for Excessive Wealth Disorder.” Economic Policy Institute. June 25, 2019. Accessed August 17, 2019. https://www.epi.org/event/taxing-the-very-rich-finding-the-cure-for-excessive-wealth-disorder/
3. Brent Ferguson, Chisun Lee, and David Earley. “After Citizens United: The Story in the States.” Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of LawOctober 9, 2014. Accessed August 17, 2019. https://www.issuelab.org/resource/after-citizens-united-the-story-in-the-states.html
4. “Democracy Champions Training.” Democracy Initiative Education Fund. July 5, 2018. Accessed August 17, 2019. http://www.dieducationfund.org/democracy-champions-training
5. “Democracy Initiative Annual Report 2018.” Democracy Initiative. 2018. Accessed August 17, 2019. https://actionnetwork.org/user_files/user_files/000/030/651/original/DI_Annual_Report_2018_Final.pdf?link_id=0&can_id=305ccea69832b24b2f0deec5f6bcfc10&source=email-democracy-initiative-annual-report&email_referrer=email_522140&email_subject=democracy-initiative-annual-report
6. “Common Cause Launches 10-Year Project to Build Blueprint for a Great Democracy.” Common Cause. January 30, 2014. Accessed August 17, 2019. https://www.commoncause.org/media/common-cause-launches-10-year-project-to-build-blueprint-for-a-great-democracy/
7. “Common Cause: Blueprint for a Great Democracy Conference.” Washington Peace Center. December 5, 2016. Accessed August 17, 2019. https://www.washingtonpeacecenter.org/node/18301
8. “Our Supporters.” Center for American Progress. 2917. Accessed August 17, 2019. https://www.americanprogress.org/c3-our-supporters/