Richard DeVos
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Richard DeVos, Sr. co-founded Amway Corp. and is owner of the Orlando Magic, NBA franchise. DeVos and wife Helen run the Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation, a conservative foundation and grant making body formed in 1970. He served as the finance chairman of the Republican National Committee. [1]
According to Forbes, he is the 108th richest person in the U.S. with US$4.8 billion as of March 2016. [1]
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Contents
Devos Pleads Guilty to Criminal Scheme Re: Canadian Customs Dues
In her book Dark Money, Jane Mayer writes,
- "Richard DeVos, co-founder of Amway, the Michigan-based worldwide multi-level marketing empire, had pleaded guilty to a criminal scheme in which he had defrauded the Canadian government of $22 million in customs duties in 1982. DeVos later claimed it had been a misunderstanding, but the record showed the company had engaged in an elaborate, deliberate hoax in an effort to hoodwink Canadian authorities. He and his co-founder Jay Van Andel, were forced to pay a $20 million fine."[2]
Money to conservative causes
He has been associated with various Christian and conservative organizatons, such as the Council for National Policy, the Free Congress Foundation, and the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy. His grantmaking to foundations reflects these conservative Christian affiliations. [3]
According to FEC records, Richard DeVos gave $2 million to the conservative Progress for America Voter Fund. [4]
Between 1999 and 2001 the Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation donated $12,159,101 to conservative groups such as Focus on the Family, the State Policy Network, and the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. [5]
Campaign Contributions
DeVos and wife Helen donated the maximum $2,500 to Newt Gingrich's bid for the 2012 GOP Presidential nomination. They also donated $5,500 to his American Solutions PAC. [6]
Devos is the only ''Forbes'' 400 member to contribute to Rick Santorum's bid for office. He donated the maximum $2,500 in July. [7]
Recognition
DeVos was acknowledged at the privately held Koch seminar in June 2011 in Vail, Colorado for donating at least $1 million to Koch-related causes. [8]
In 1993, ALEC gave its "Adam Smith Free Enterprise Award" to billionaire Richard DeVos, a leading proponent and financier of school privatization efforts. [9]
Family Ties
Richard DeVos's son Dick DeVos was an unsuccessful GOP candidate for Michigan Governor in 2006. Dick is now president of Amway. He is married to Betsy DeVos, the daughter of Elsa Prince Broekhuizen who contributed $450,000 toward the 2008 effort to ban same-sex marriages in California. Betsy is the sister of Erik Prince who is the founder of private military corporation Blackwater USA. [10] [11] [12]
Resources
Related SourceWatch articles
- Betsy DeVos
- Dick DeVos
- Jay Van Andel
- Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation
- Elsa Prince Broekhuizen
- Nutrilite
References
- ↑ Forbes, Richard DeVos Profile, Forbes, March 9, 2016.
- ↑ Jane Mayer, [Dark Money], 2016.
- ↑ Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation, Media Transparency, accessed April 2008.
- ↑ Progress For America Voter Fund, CampaignMoney.com, accessed April 2008.
- ↑ Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation, Media Transparency, accessed January 18, 2012
- ↑ Clare O'Connor The GOP's Big Money Backers, Forbes, January 16, 2012
- ↑ Clare O'Connor The GOP's Big Money Backers, Forbes, January 16, 2012
- ↑ Gavin Aronsen, Exclusive: The Koch Brothers' Million-Dollar Donor Club, Mother Jones, September 6, 2011
- ↑ Mary Bottari ALEC Bills in Wisconsin, PR Watch, July 14, 2011
- ↑ Richard DeVos, NNDB, accessed April 2008.
- ↑ "Q&A: Blackwater's founder on the record", The Virginian Pilot, July 24, 2006.
- ↑ Laurie Bennett The Ultra Rich Ultra Conservative Devos Family, Forbes, December 26, 2011
External articles
- Rachel Burstein and Kerry Lauerman, "She Did It Amway", MotherJones, September/October 1996.
- "Tough Sell: Richard DeVos (#165)", MotherJones, 1996.
- Steven Harmon, "DeVos creates buzz as GOP meets here", The Grand Rapids Press, February 5, 2005.
- Marcy Wheeler, "Dick DeVos Is a Welfare Queen," The Next Hurrah Blog, November 12, 2007.
External resources
- The Presidential Prayer Team 2003, "American Inspirations Award April 2003 Richard DeVos", undated, accessed April 2004.
- Person: Richard DeVos, Forbes.com, October 2004.
