On Election Day, John and Laura Arnold found themselves deep in the lion’s den: a few blocks from the White House, working from the new Washington D.C. offices of their foundation, Arnold Ventures. The mood in town? “Jittery,” Laura said. Republicans were hoping for a big sweep of Congress; Democrats were trying to forestall the flood. The Arnolds were paying attention to the drama, but were determined not to be distracted by it. In their minds, at least, their agenda could work no matter who came to power.
The Arnolds, a Texas billionaire couple whose fortune came from John’s former life as a hedge fund manager and Enron energy trader, now rank among the most active philanthropists in the country, according to a Forbes analysis. They had wanted to spend a few days in D.C. before taking a family Thanksgiving trip to soccer’s World Cup in Qatar. And their time was mostly spent looking over the new offices and holding internal meetings regarding 2023 priorities, which include lobbying for bail reform and ranked-choice voting on state ballots.
But perhaps their biggest focus was on a series of Capitol Hill meetings to revive stalled legislation the Arnolds have long supported—to the chagrin of their fellow billionaires. The legislation was intended to significantly alter donor advised funds, a favorite philanthropic gimmick among Silicon Valley heavyweights like Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk and Jack Dorsey.
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