{"id":1424511,"date":"2022-04-07T18:44:53","date_gmt":"2022-04-07T22:44:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1424511"},"modified":"2022-04-07T18:44:56","modified_gmt":"2022-04-07T22:44:56","slug":"the-white-houses-advocacy-tiktok-campaign-was-actually-a-democratic-front-the-entire-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-white-houses-advocacy-tiktok-campaign-was-actually-a-democratic-front-the-entire-time\/","title":{"rendered":"The White House\u2019s \u2018Advocacy\u2019 TikTok Campaign Was Actually A Democratic Front The Entire Time"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fthe-white-houses-advocacy-tiktok-campaign-was-actually-a-democratic-front-the-entire-time%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1424511&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><\/div>\n<p>A coalition of left-wing TikTok users claiming to be an \u201cadvocacy\u201d non-profit is advised by a long-time Democratic communications operative, according to a records review conducted by the Daily Caller.<\/p>\n<p>Gen-Z for Change, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit group, enlisted communications consultant and two-time Democratic presidential campaign staffer Madeline Twomey as its senior advisor and founding board member, according to the organization\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/genzforchange.org\/about\/\">website<\/a>. Twomey was employed on Joe Biden\u2019s 2020 presidential campaign as Community Content Director, and served as an Advertising Budget Manager on Barack Obama\u2019s 2012 presidential campaign. In addition, she has worked for Bully Pulpit Interactive and Priorities USA, two major pro-Democrat consulting firms, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/madtwomey\/details\/experience\/\">according<\/a> to her LinkedIn page.<\/p>\n<p>Twomey took credit for \u201ccoaching\u201d the consortium of influencers on \u201chow to talk about why they support Joe [Biden]\u201d during the 2020 campaign, in an interview with the Social Media &#038; Politics <a href=\"https:\/\/socialmediaandpolitics.org\/social-media-influencers-political-campaigns-madeline-twomey\/\">podcast<\/a>. Twomey explained that many of the influencers had \u201cnever talked\u201d about politics on their profile before.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was really walking them through what we were looking for. And for us, talking about Biden was really important,\u201d she said. \u201cA lot of the time it was coaching them through how to talk about why they support Joe \u2026 It was really coaching them through how to talk about these issues that they had never talked about on their profile.\u201d <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/07\/30\/meet-libs-tik-tok-twitter-account-exposing-insane-people-internet\/\">(RELATED: Meet \u2018Libs Of TikTok,\u2019 The Twitter Account That\u2019s Exposing The Most Insane People On The Internet)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Twomey has a years-long connection to the Biden staffer who first reached out to the head of Gen-Z for Change, back when the coalition went by the name \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailydot.com\/debug\/gen-z-for-change\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">TikTok for Biden<\/a>.\u201d Biden campaign Digital Director and current White House Director of Digital Strategy Rob Flaherty reportedly contacted 18-year-old Aidan Kohn-Murphy to \u201cdiscuss TikTok for Biden\u2019s work\u201d in the lead up to the 2020 election, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/magazine\/2022\/03\/27\/progressive-gen-z-for-change-tik-tok-00020624\">Politico<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Flaherty joined Biden for President in Dec. 2019, and Twomey joined the campaign three months before election day.<\/p>\n<p>Twomey and Flaherty overlapped at Priorities USA, a left-wing advocacy organization, and the Biden for President campaign. Twomey was the Director of Training and Fellowship at the organization between November 2017 and December 2018, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/madtwomey\/\">LinkedIn<\/a>. Flaherty worked at Priorities USA as a creative director between April 2017 and January 2019, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/roflaherty?trk=people-guest_people_search-card\">LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Priorities USA Action, Priorities USA\u2019s affiliated political action committee, spent more than $138 million during the 2020 election cycle, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fec.gov\/data\/committee\/C00495861\/?tab=summary&#038;cycle=2020\">according<\/a> to FEC filings. Priorities USA Action <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fec.gov\/data\/receipts\/?data_type=processed&#038;committee_id=C00495861&#038;contributor_name=Priorities+USA&#038;two_year_transaction_period=2020\">received<\/a> more than $27 million in funds from Priorities USA. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2019\/05\/21\/democrats-wall-street-fundraising\/\">(RELATED: 2020 Democrats Privately Woo Wall Street While Publicly Snubbing Corporate Cash)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Priorities USA is currently <a href=\"https:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/political-action-committees-pacs\/priorities-usa-action\/C00495861\/summary\/2020\">registered<\/a> with the FEC as a single candidate hybrid committee, with Biden as the single candidate.<\/p>\n<p>Gen-Z for Change also brought on senior advisor Daniel Daks, the CEO of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.palettemanagement.com\/about\">Palette Management<\/a>, alongside Twomey. Palette Management\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.palettemanagement.com\/creators\">website<\/a> lists Gen-Z for Change as a client, as well as several other TikTok stars known for their support of left-wing political causes.<\/p>\n<p>The TikTok influencers purport to be an advocacy group, not just promoters of the Democratic Party\u2019s agenda. However, there appears to be a disconnect between what Gen-Z for Change claims to be and what it actually does.<\/p>\n<p>Gen-Z for Change\u2019s leadership claims to use the TikTok platform to keep \u201cpower away from traditional gatekeepers,\u201d while hosting information and sourcing events with individuals in the top echelons of political power.<\/p>\n<p>In July 2021, Gen-Z for Change co-hosted a question-and-answer session about the COVID-19 vaccine with Dr. Anthony Fauci on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=XpWSWpuZNSM&#038;t=125s\">YouTube<\/a>. In November, the organization facilitated a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailydot.com\/debug\/gen-z-for-change\/\">briefing<\/a> between influencers and White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield about the administration\u2019s Build Back Better plan, according to Politico.<\/p>\n<p>Olivia Julianna, the organization\u2019s political strategy coordinator, has also boasted about talking with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.<\/p>\n<p>Gen-Z for Change self-identifies and has been described by several national media outlets, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/technology\/2022\/03\/11\/tik-tok-ukraine-white-house\/\">The Washington Post<\/a>, Politico, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/tiktok-influencers-get-spotlight-in-information-battle-over-the-russia-ukraine-war-11647185447\">The Wall Street Journal<\/a> as a 501(c)(4). However, since the group only incorporated in August 2021, it is not legally required to make public a form declaring its tax-exempt status until January 2023. <span>To qualify as a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/charities-non-profits\/other-non-profits\/social-welfare-organizations#:~:text=To%20be%20tax%2Dexempt%20as,exclusively%20to%20promote%20social%20welfare.\"><span>501(c)(4)<\/span><\/a><span>, the IRS requires that the group \u201can organization must not be organized for profit and must be operated exclusively to promote social welfare.\u201d The IRS goes on to explain that to meet the \u201csocial welfare requirement\u201d the charity may not primarily benefit a private group rather than the community at large.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Gen-Z for Change told the Daily Caller that it has not yet filed its tax-exempt status declaration return form, known as a 990, citing its recent incorporation.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">In the last year, we\u2019ve mobilized Gen-Z voters, resisted injustice across the globe, and overall caused good trouble for those seeking to be oppressive.<\/p>\n<p>We are young. We are bold. We are Gen-Z for Change. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/wzVe0d8cBz\">pic.twitter.com\/wzVe0d8cBz<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Gen-Z for Change (@genzforchange) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/genzforchange\/status\/1504869330588209179?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">March 18, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>An Employer Identification Number listed on the Gen-Z for Change website did not match any organizations in a publicly available database of tax-exempt organizations compiled by the Internal Revenue Service. The database also did not include tax-exempt status application materials. Tax-exempt organizations are legally <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/charities-non-profits\/public-disclosure-and-availability-of-exempt-organizations-returns-and-applications-documents-subject-to-public-disclosure\">required<\/a> to provide tax-exempt status application materials to requesting individuals if they have applied for it, suggesting that Gen-Z for Change has not filed for federal tax-exempt status.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/capitalresearch.org\/person\/ken-braun\/\">Ken Braun<\/a>, a senior investigative researcher with the conservative-leaning Capital Research Center, told the Daily Caller that a \u201cvery political organization\u201d such as \u201cTikTok for Biden\u201d rebranding into a \u201cslightly less political [501(c)(4)]\u201d appeared \u201cfishy\u201d to him.<\/p>\n<p>The two Gen-Z for Change advisers named in this story did not respond to multiple requests for comment and documents from the Daily Caller.<\/p>\n<p>A spokesperson for Gen-Z for Change said that the organization has \u201cnot been paid by the Biden administration, campaigns, or public officials for any efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are an independent 501(c)(4) organization that creates content based on our coalition\u2019s values \u2014 sometimes that aligns with the Biden administration, sometimes it does not,\u201d the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A coalition of left-wing TikTok users claiming to be an \u201cadvocacy\u201d non-profit is advised by a long-time Democratic communications operative, according to a records review conducted by the Daily Caller.Gen-Z<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":624,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1424511","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1424511","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/624"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1424511"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1424511\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1424511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1424511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1424511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}