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Who is GoFundMe CEO Tim Cadogan? Pro-vaxxer once lobbied Congress for Covid aid payments

GoFundMe's move to block the Freedom Convoy fundraiser has sparked people's interest in CEO Tim Cadogan and his past stance on Covid

Facebook raised eyebrows as it took down a page used by US truckers to organize a convoy to Washington DC. This came after fundraising site GoFundMe started refunding the $8 million in donations collected for a Freedom Convoy protesting Canada's Covid vaccine mandates. The move to block the fundraiser has sparked an interest in GoFundMe CEO Tim Cadogan and his past positions on Covid.

In a statement to Fox News, Facebook's parent company Meta said that the Convoy to DC 2022 group was terminated for "repeatedly violating our policies around QAnon." Jeremy Johnson, a trucker who started the group, later revealed that his personal Facebook account was also removed. He subsequently spoke to a civil rights attorney to weigh his options moving forward. "It's censorship at its finest," Johnson asserted. "They like to silence people that speak the truth."

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GoFundMe CEO Cadogan has not publicly commented on the Freedom Convoy fundraiser, although he has previously declared that the company has a "responsibility to society" and so "we prohibit the promotion of misinformation, or the promotion of hate or discrimination, or using a campaign to bully someone or discriminate, or to promote violence or terrorism," the Daily Mail reported.

Cadogan, who has a known history of being pro-vaccine, urged the US government to pass emergency Covid aid last year. He has since slammed the Federal response to the pandemic. During an interview with The New York Times last year, Cadogan said, "This is a war against a virus. If this were a war against another country at this scale, it would be no question what we would do, right? We would mobilize our society to defeat it." He also stated that he'd rather have the government offer aid to citizens instead of his company.

The tech executive, who formerly headed OpenX technologies, wrote a letter to Congress that was published in USA Today, arguing that lawmakers didn't take action while citizens were struggling to pay rent, afford groceries, utilities, and medical aid. He also acknowledged how the pandemic had destroyed small businesses. Cadogan admitted that while GoFundMe aims to be "the most helpful place in the world," it cannot do the government's job. "We are proud of the role that GoFundMe plays in connecting those in need with those who are ready to help," he wrote. "But our platform was never meant to be a source of support for basic needs, and it can never be a replacement for robust federal COVID-19 relief that is generous and targeted to help the millions of Americans who are struggling."

Meanwhile, critics say GoFundMe has repeatedly changed its stance on whether to allow the Freedom Convoy fundraiser to continue. It was first frozen last week as soon as it crossed $5 million in donations, with the company saying it wanted to determine exactly where the funds were directed. After an explanation by the organizers, the account was unlocked two days later and donations were allowed to continue. The fundraiser, however, was frozen again on Wednesday after days of political pressure from left-wing figures who branded the truckers as "mercenaries."

GoFundMe then issued a statement saying, "This fundraiser is currently paused and under review to ensure it complies with our terms of service and applicable laws and regulations. Our team is working 24/7 and doing all we can to protect both organizers and donors. Thank you for your patience." The company later clarified the account had met its terms and conditions when it was established last month.