ByMICHAEL STARR

JUNE 7, 2026 22:52

Charitable groups dismissed assertions from the US Congress Judiciary Committee that demonstrations against judicial changes in 2023 received backing from the prior American presidential administration. A memo issued last Friday challenged notions of direct financial support and prompted the panel to highlight how funds can be redirected.

The May 29 document outlined results from an examination of whether federal grants reached the demonstrations. Investigators examined 1,256 records from nine entities along with 876 additional files collected after an earlier July 17 report.

Although the Judiciary Committee maintained that the Biden administration supplied direct and indirect resources for the demonstrations, the latest memo showed that earlier grants to the groups bore no relation to the protests.

Earlier statements from the Committee pointed to Blue and White Future as a possible indirect beneficiary of American assistance. The group had supported the protest coordination center known as Hofshi B’Artzenu.

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors obtained over 50 million dollars from USAID and the State Department from 2021 through 2024. Reports indicated that the group transferred 187,000 dollars to PEF Israel Endowment Funds, which in turn provided 18 million dollars to Blue and White Future.

The Committee noted that Rockefeller Brothers Fund supplied 70,000 dollars to the New Israel Fund for initiatives connected to the early demonstrations. The fund had received 557,000 dollars from its associate during the same period.

Records submitted by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors showed that federal grants supported projects unrelated to Israel. The transfers to PEF and the New Israel Fund did not originate from government sources.

Committee contends federal resources could shift toward protest efforts

The panel maintained that support for Rockefeller Brothers Fund and Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors enabled reallocation of other resources toward the demonstrations.

The memo stated that the interchangeability of money allows one funding source to substitute for another. Receipt of government support for one initiative frees prior allocations for alternative uses.

In July the Committee examined the Movement for Quality Government in Israel, which obtained 42,000 dollars in federal support from 2020 to 2022. The panel claimed the grant supported civic training in Jerusalem schools that encouraged opposition to the government.

The Movement for Quality Government clarified that the funds were approved under the previous administration and applied during the terms of former prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid.

A spokesperson stated that claims of use for demonstrations lack foundation and that no support arrived from the Biden administration. The review found no evidence backing the accusations.

The group emphasized full transparency and offered records to any requester. The Committee noted limited cooperation since the July memo and requested further documents concerning PEF, Blue and White Future, and related protest entities. Additional transfers included 93,000 dollars from PEF to the Jewish Communal Fund with 3,000 dollars designated for the Movement for Quality Government.

Although the Jewish Communal Fund was not accused of channeling federal grants, the Committee suggested that PEF, the Jewish Communal Fund, and Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors might risk tax-exempt status by supporting groups seeking legal changes abroad. PEF reportedly allocated 525,000 dollars to Women Wage Peace, 30,000 dollars to Standing Together, and 462,000 dollars to Darkenu through Jewish Communal Fund resources.

PEF affirms commitment to compliance and openness

The organization informed the Post that it welcomes congressional review and upholds standards of transparency and legal adherence.

PEF described itself as a vehicle for American donors to assist charitable, educational, and community initiatives in Israel. The group stressed that its activities remain charitable rather than political and that grants go only to organizations meeting Israeli and American legal requirements.

The Committee also reviewed the Abraham Initiatives, which received more than 2 million dollars for two projects during the period of alleged protest involvement. The memo indicated the grants supported education and policing reforms, with the latter running from 2018 to 2021.

The Abraham Initiatives characterized the report as political and stated it has never organized or participated in the demonstrations.

The Committee raised concerns about an education project operating in the West Bank and Gaza, yet the group clarified that activities occurred only within the Green Line.

The organization noted full cooperation with the Ministry of Education and local authorities, with detailed reporting to funding bodies. No compliance issues were raised by American officials.

Earlier examinations of funding for the demonstrations, including reports cited in the memo, showed that both foreign and domestic contributions, often crowdsourced, sustained the activities.

Kaplan Force reported that most resources during the protest period came from local crowdsourcing. Darkenu collected NIS 178,792 through an online campaign for a petition. In 2023 roughly half of Blue and White Future's NIS 134 million budget originated abroad. Its affiliate Hofshi B’Artzenu raised nearly NIS 27,500,000 online from almost 60,000 supporters by August 2023. The New Israel Fund provided nearly 2 million dollars to involved groups, including 20,000 dollars used by Standing Together for an early demonstration.