{"id":763893,"date":"2021-09-16T16:44:05","date_gmt":"2021-09-16T20:44:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=763893"},"modified":"2021-09-16T16:44:07","modified_gmt":"2021-09-16T20:44:07","slug":"mcauliffe-appointed-prominent-anti-vaxxers-to-state-boards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mcauliffe-appointed-prominent-anti-vaxxers-to-state-boards\/","title":{"rendered":"McAuliffe Appointed Prominent Anti-Vaxxers To State Boards"},"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\">14<\/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%2Fmcauliffe-appointed-prominent-anti-vaxxers-to-state-boards%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=763893&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 readability=\"29.172093023256\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"article-category\"><a class href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/democrats\/\">Democrats<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"article-excerpt\">Claire and Al Dwoskin scored top appointments after donating $50K to campaign<\/p>\n<figure class=\"post-thumbnail-container relative lg:mr-24 w-full my-4 mb-8\">\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"485\" height=\"335\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Terry-McAuliffe-AP2-1.jpg\" class=\"w-full lazyload blur-up wp-post-image\" alt srcset=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 485px) 100vw, 485px\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Terry-McAuliffe-AP2-1.jpg 485w, https:\/\/s4.freebeacon.com\/up\/2013\/07\/Terry-McAuliffe-AP2-425x293.jpg 425w\" data-sizes=\"auto\" \/><figcaption class=\"absolute text-white p-4 w-full text-right text-xs bottom-0 bg-black opacity-75\">\n\t\t\t\tTerry McAuliffe \/ AP\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\t\t\t<span class=\"text-gray text-xs md:text-lg\"><a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/author\/chuck-ross\/\" title=\"Posts by Chuck Ross\" class=\"author url fn text-red-700\" rel=\"author\">Chuck Ross<\/a> \u2022 September 16, 2021 4:30 pm<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div readability=\"110.34747292419\">\n<p>During his first stint as Virginia governor, Terry McAuliffe (D.) named the founders of one of the country&#8217;s leading anti-vaccine organizations to two coveted administration positions after they contributed more than $50,000 to his political campaign.<\/p>\n<p>McAuliffe in 2014 appointed Claire Dwoskin and Al Dwoskin, a since-divorced Democratic power couple, to serve on the George Mason University Board of Visitors and the Governor&#8217;s Advisory Council on Revenue Estimates, respectively. Claire Dwoskin a year earlier had formed the Children&#8217;s Medical Safety Research Institute, an anti-vaccine organization that has pushed the baseless theory that some vaccines are linked to autism in children. The organization was funded by the Dwoskin family charity.<\/p>\n<p>A number of Democratic politicians who now accuse Republicans of opposing vaccines have themselves cozied up to prominent anti-vaccine activists. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D., Calif.) reportedly expressed concerns about government-mandated vaccines during <a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/democrats\/newsom-earned-praise-from-anti-vaccine-extremists\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">a 2019 meeting<\/a> with Robert Kennedy Jr., one of the most influential vaccine opponents in the country.<\/p>\n<p>Vaccines have become a focal point of the Virginia governor&#8217;s race, with McAuliffe accusing his challenger, Republican Glenn Youngkin, of opposing the coronavirus vaccine. Youngkin has accused McAuliffe of undercutting confidence in the vaccine by supporting mask mandates. Virginia&#8217;s first gubernatorial debate is Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>The Dwoskins have donated heavily to McAuliffe and other Democrats over the years. A former finance vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee, Claire Dwoskin <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vpap.org\/donors\/5048\/recipient\/156114\/?start_year=all&amp;end_year=all&amp;recip_type=all\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">gave<\/a> $16,000 to McAuliffe&#8217;s campaign in 2013, according to campaign finance records. Al Dwoskin, a real estate developer, has contributed more than $180,000 to McAuliffe&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vpap.org\/donors\/163\/recipient\/156114\/?start_year=all&amp;end_year=all&amp;recip_type=all\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">campaigns<\/a> and a pro-McAuliffe <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vpap.org\/donors\/163\/recipient\/248345\/?start_year=all&amp;end_year=all&amp;recip_type=all\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">political action committee<\/a>. He has given $17,500 to McAuliffe&#8217;s campaign so far this year.<\/p>\n<p>The Dwoskins&#8217; views on vaccines were publicly known before McAuliffe tapped Claire for the George Mason post. Days before McAuliffe announced the appointment, the Children&#8217;s Medical Safety Research Institute <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CMSRIResearch\/status\/469632553394003968\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">tweeted<\/a> that &#8220;Children who receive vaccines containing aluminum may be at a higher risk for developing #autism.&#8221; In 2010, <a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20110606043826\/http:\/www.foxbusiness.com\/on-air\/stossel\/blog\/2010\/10\/30\/holocaust-of-poison\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dwoskin called<\/a> vaccines a &#8220;holocaust of poison&#8221; that harmed children.<\/p>\n<p>Through the institute, the Dwoskins funded numerous anti-vaccine projects, including the propaganda film <em>The Greater Good<\/em>. The group has also touted the work of Joseph Mercola, one of the most prominent vaccine skeptics in the country.<\/p>\n<p>McAuliffe cited Claire Dwoskin&#8217;s affiliation with the institute in <a href=\"http:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20140813203602\/https:\/www.governor.virginia.gov\/news\/newsarticle?articleId=4897\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">a statement<\/a> announcing her appointment to the George Mason post.<\/p>\n<p>Dwoskin&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20150406014312\/http:\/\/clairedwoskin.com\/george-mason-university-appoints-claire-dwoskin\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20150406014312\/http:\/\/clairedwoskin.com\/george-mason-university-appoints-claire-dwoskin\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1631908673169000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGdzu0VKYt5cVt01RFK6B1w3T-JwQ\">touted<\/a>&nbsp;the McAuliffe appointment on her personal&nbsp;blog, saying the position would allow her to provide George Mason with &#8220;guidance&#8221; on academic research. She wrote that her duties on the Board of Visitors would include setting tuition rates, approving the school&#8217;s budget, and appointing a president for the university.<\/p>\n<p>The Dwoskins have supported numerous other progressive organizations that have accused Republicans of opposing vaccines. The Dwoskin family charity gave $64,000 each to Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and Media Matters for America in 2019, <a href=\"https:\/\/apps.irs.gov\/pub\/epostcard\/cor\/542060115_201912_990PF_2021061418341960.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">according to tax filings<\/a>. Al Dwoskin is currently on the board of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, alongside former senator Claire McCaskill (D., Mo.) and failed 2016 presidential candidate Evan McMullin.<\/p>\n<p>Al Dwoskin distanced himself from the Children&#8217;s Medical Safety Research Institute after he and Claire began divorce proceedings in 2018. He <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/dem-megadonor-pulls-funding-from-anti-vax-group-blames-wife-for-initial-involvement\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">told<\/a> the<em> Daily Beast<\/em> he regretted involvement in the anti-vax movement.<\/p>\n<p>Neither the McAuliffe campaign nor the Children&#8217;s Medical Safety Research Institute responded to requests for comment.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Democrats Claire and Al Dwoskin scored top appointments after donating $50K to campaign  Terry McAuliffe \/ AP  Chuck Ross \u2022 September 16, 2021 4:30 &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-763893","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\/763893","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\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=763893"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/763893\/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=763893"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=763893"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=763893"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}