Dark Money Group With Soros Ties Seeking An Upset In Nebraska Senate Race

Mechanic and union leader Dan Osborne is running as an Independent in the Nebraska Senate race with the hopes of unseating Republican incumbent Debbie Fischer.

While his identification as “politically independent” has been central to his campaign, a great deal of his donations are linked to staunch Democratic and left-wing PACs and nonprofits. Despite this, he has attacked his opponent for her donors, portraying her as “bought and paid for” while attempted to differentiate himself and imply that he isn’t beholden to any outside influences, despite ample evidence to the contrary.

Fox News reports:

One of Osborn’s ads notably takes shots at Fischer for donations to her campaign from lobbyists and special interest groups, comparing her to a race car driver with patches on her jacket. “The only thing on the back of my jacket is Nebraska,” he said in the spot. 

Osborn is being backed by two outside PACs called Retire Career Politicians and the Nebraska Railroaders for Public Safety. The former has spent $3,004,274 on behalf of Osborn and the latter has doled out more than $400,000 in support of his candidacy so far, as well as over $20,000 explicitly against Fischer, according to OpenSecrets.

Last year, Democratic megadonor, LinkedIn cofounder and Kamala Harris supporter Reid Hoffman contributed a sizable amount to Nebraska Railroaders for Public Safety, while the Soros-backed Sixteen Thirty Fund gave a staggering donation to Retire Career Politicians.

Fox News explains the relationship:

While the Sixteen Thirty Fund does not reveal its donors’ identities, billionaire George Soros’ group, the Open Society Foundations, has granted the fund more than $75 million between 2016 and 2022, according to Open Society Foundations’ website. 

While the names of these PACs sound harmless and nonpartisan at face value, their partisan funding raise concerns about their long term goals.

They seem to be gaining ground in Nebraska, as two political handicappers have changed their evaluations of Nebraska’s outcome.

Fox News continues:

Both the Cook Political Report and Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics recently shifted the race from “Solid” or “Safe” Republican to “Likely Republican.” The race is now alongside that of Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., in each rating system. Sabato’s Crystal Ball also ranks the Nebraska Senate race in the same category as Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, but Cook has moved the Texas match-up to a more competitive placement. 

This highlights the fundraising disparity between Republicans and Democrats heading into November, and its real work consequences.

Nebraska Republicans and political commentators have expressed concern that while despite running as an Independent or “centrist” and touting his working class credential to appeal to Nebraskans, he will follow in the footsteps of Tim Walz, and pull a “bait and switch,” pushing for far left, progressive legislation once elected.

National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) Communications Director Mike Berg said in a statement, “Democrat dark money groups are spending millions of dollars backing Bernie Sanders acolyte Dan Osborn because he is a true radical. Osborn supports amnesty for illegal immigrants, has called for illegal immigrants to fill open jobs in Nebraska instead of Americans, and even wants to give Social Security benefits to illegals. Those aren’t Nebraska values.”