Robert Mercer and Rebekah Mercer attend the 2017 TIME 100 Gala at Jazz at Lincoln Center on April 25, 2017 in New York City. Patrick McMullan | Getty Images

The Republican megadonor family led by billionaire Robert Mercer once donated money to a conservative group that bills itself as a promoter of "cultural events for English-speaking peoples." The $25,000 donation was quietly made in 2017 through the Mercer Family Trust to the Anglosphere Society, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit group, which has ties to prominent members of the Washington, D.C., power establishment. The founder of the Anglosphere Society, Amanda Bowman, confirmed in an email and a follow-up interview with CNBC that Mercer's daughter, Rebekah, directed the contribution to her nonprofit in 2017 in support of an event titled "Leadership in Perilous Times." "What I was so grateful to Rebekah for was her donations enabled me to invite all these different veterans, and it was just a one-time thing," Bowman said. She added that the Anglosphere Society did not hear from Mercer again after that donation. A spokesman for Robert Mercer did not return repeated requests for comment. The attorney listed on the family foundation tax form that shows the donation also did not return an email for comment. Bowman said the Mercer donation partially funded the gathering, which featured Fox News analyst Gen. Jack Keane and Gen. David Petraeus, a former CIA director. The two retired generals are pictured together on Anglosphere's website at the event. Keane has said he turned down an offer from President Donald Trump to serve as Defense secretary. Bowman said the donation came after she and Rebekah Mercer met at a separate meeting for veterans. The Anglosphere Society identifies itself on its website as an "independent, educational, non-profit, tax-exempt membership organization focused on promoting the Special Relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom, free market economies, and cultural events for English-Speaking Peoples." It also says that it promotes "cultural events for sharing ideas based on the historic values of English-Speaking Peoples." The group, which was founded in 2012, also promotes itself as having an influential network. Pictures on the group's website show prominent event attendees such as former Sen. Joe Lieberman, who became an independent after losing a Democratic primary in his state, and Henry Kissinger, who served as secretary of State under President Richard Nixon.

Bannon and Cambridge Analytica

The Mercers used to support former White House chief strategist and Trump campaign CEO Steve Bannon, who promoted a nationalist, pro-West agenda. He was formerly the executive chairman of conservative news website Breitbart News, which was funded in part by the Mercers. Trump fired Bannon from the White House in August 2017, which paved the way for Bannon to return to Breitbart. However, in January 2018, Bannon resigned from the media outlet after Michael Wolff's "Fire and Fury" revealed that he ripped Donald Trump Jr., the president's eldest son. The family distanced itself from Bannon, and Robert Mercer said in 2017 that he would be selling his stake in Breitbart to his daughters. The elder Mercer also stepped down as co-CEO of hedge fund Renaissance Technologies last year. The Mercers were also embroiled in the controversy surrounding data-gathering firm Cambridge Analytica, which played a role in attempting to use social media to influence voters during the 2016 campaign. Bannon was once an executive at the firm. Bowman, the Anglosphere Society founder, said she might not have accepted the Mercer donation if she had known about the Mercers' funding of the now-defunct Cambridge Analytica. "It [the contribution] was before the whole Cambridge Analytica thing had broken. I would've been more cautious had I known that. Cambridge Analytica was a scandalous thing, and I wouldn't have wanted to distract from the cause," she said. The Mercers spent millions to fund the firm, which harvested the data of millions of Facebook users and then used the information they gathered as a tool to manipulate voters. Cambridge Analytica did some work for the 2016 Trump campaign. Cambridge Analytica has also been accused of having an impact on the vote for the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union, also known as Brexit. Facebook has denied that it had any impact on the vote. Bowman, who grew up in the U.K. and later become a U.S. citizen, would not commit to giving back or refunding the $25,000 check now that she's aware of what took place. She also repeatedly said the Anglosphere Society has no ties to the Trump administration and is nonpartisan. She acknowledged that she has conservative beliefs, but said she does not support Brexit.

The Mercers and the Anglosphere cause