A Democratic candidate running for Congress in a toss-up Pennsylvania district is a member of a deep-pocketed progressive millionaires group that wants to "fundamentally reset" America's ideology and economy by 2026, according to documents obtained by the Washington Free Beacon at a secretive liberal donor conference last year.
Scott Wallace, a wealthy liberal philanthropist running in Pennsylvania's first congressional district against incumbent Republican Brian Fitzpatrick, is a member of Patriotic Millionaires, a Washington, D.C.-based group that describes itself as an organization seeking to build a "more stable, prosperous, and inclusive nation" by promoting policies such as "equal political representation, a guaranteed livable wage for all working citizens, and a fair tax system." The group was created in 2010 to demand an end to the Bush tax cuts.
Patriotic Millionaires wants to radically transform America by its 250th birthday, according to its organizational overview obtained by the Free Beacon at last fall's California gathering of the Democracy Alliance, the left's largest donor network that was co-founded by liberal billionaire George Soros.
The book obtained at the donor retreat is a different version than the copy uploaded to the Patriotic Millionaires website, which contains much softer language regarding its mission.
The group of wealthy progressives hopes Americans will sign up with their rejection of limited government, and traditional family values within eight years and have their preferred government framework implemented, creating a "new American paradigm."
"We seek to facilitate a wholesale rejection of modern conservatism, exposing the dogma of 'free enterprise, limited government, and traditional family values' for what it truly is: a thin veil concealing rapacious capitalism, social Darwinism, and a profound misunderstanding of—and disinterest in—the human condition."
Patriotic Millionaires says the 2016 election presented an opportunity to create a "once-in-a-generation opportunity to fundamentally reset America's ideological course and political economy."
"We have articulated a governing framework that will enhance the lives of all Americans, and have begun to build the political power necessary to advance that vision," the overview says. "This is our moment to drive that framework into the public consciousness and to have it illuminate the work of like-minded activists and elected officials across the country."
"We must seize this once in a lifetime opportunity to coalesce our energies into a relentless effort to realize a new American paradigm around the two things that matter most in our capitalistic democracy: Power and Money."
Patriotic Millionaires—Organizational Overview by Washington Free Beacon on Scribd
The group says that in a political system that has "become more an oligarchy than a democracy," their power lies in being seen as members of the 'elite' class arguing against their "perceived self-interest."
Patriotic Millionaires has met privately with hundreds of elected officials from both parties and testified in front of lawmakers on the local, state, and federal levels on issues ranging from minimum wage to campaign finance and tax policy. The group's members stood behind President Barack Obama for his 2012 Tax Day address at the White House and later attended the signing of a 2014 Executive Order raising wages for federal contract employees.
In order to be a member of Patriotic Millionaires, an individual must have an income of more than $1 million and/or assets of more than $5 million in funds or family foundations.
The Wallace Global Fund reported $150 million in assets on its most recent tax forms. Wallace himself inherited a fortune after the sale of his grandfather's company. Wallace spent years living out of Maryland in South Africa to run the fund until moving back to the district to run for office.
The Wallace Global Fund has disbursed millions in grants to dozens of left-wing organizations, including hundreds of thousands to a group that promote the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) campaigns against Israel and another group that advocates for taxing families for "irresponsible breeding." Wallace also financed legal representation for some Guantanamo Bay detainees "just after 9/11."
Patriotic Millionaires is not a stand-alone organization, but rather a part of the Agenda Project, a D.C.-based progressive hub.
Erica Payne, a member of Patriotic Millionaires, is the founder of the Agenda Project. Payne is also a cofounder of the Democracy Alliance alongside Soros.
Wallace's campaign did not return a request for comment on his involvement with the Patriotic Millionaires.
When asked what kind of American ideology and economy the group would like to see instead of one that supports free enterprise, limited government, and traditional family values, a spokesman for the group said: "As far as an alternative, that is laid out in our alternative three principles that we fight for. As we laid out in the book, we think the mission of the Patriotic Millionaires organization is to build a more stable, prosperous, and inclusive nation by promoting public policies based on the first principles of equal political representation, a guaranteed living wage for all working citizens, and a fair tax system."
Update 4:15 p.m.: This post has been updated to reflect comment from Patriotic Millionaires.