ALEC Exposed

Guest Contributor

ALEC Model Bill Behind Push To Require Climate Denial Instruction In Schools

by Steve Horn — January 26, 2012 - 11:09am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Global Warming, Children, Education

    • On January 16, the Los Angeles Times revealed that anti-science bills have been popping up over the past several years in statehouses across the U.S., mandating the teaching of climate change denial or "skepticism" as a credible "theoretical alternative" to human caused climate change came.

    Op-Ed

    Right to Work in Indiana – Will This Battle Impact 2012 Super Bowl?

    by PRW Staff — January 21, 2012 - 9:47am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Democracy, Labor, Politics, Wisconsin Protests

    • A guest post by Bob Sloan; read more from this author at the Daily Kos.

    Indiana Republicans, who hold solid majorities in the state House and Senate as well as the governor's mansion, have once again taken up "Right-To-Work." Indiana tried passing anti-union legislation last year but the effort stalled amidst public outcry. Despite this, Right-to-Work legislation was one of the first pieces taken up by the GOP majority in the 2012 session.

    News

    Rep. Farley Proposes Some Strong Arizona Sunshine on ALEC "Scholarships"

    by Beau Hodai — January 12, 2012 - 5:52pm
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Right Wing, Corporations, Democracy, Lobbying

    • This story is part of a collaboration between In These Times and the Center for Media and Democracy, as part of a special series on ALEC's recent conference in Arizona.

    With the 2012 legislative season and another episode of the Great American Campaign Circus dawning over the nation, Arizona may find itself the proving grounds for possible reform in the age of "pay-to-play" politics.

    Op-Ed

    ALEC Politician Claims ALEC Meetings Are "Open to the Public." Really?

    by Lisa Graves — January 12, 2012 - 3:04pm
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Journalism, Public Diplomacy, Corporations, Democracy, Media, Public Relations

    • Confronted with a report by ProgressVA stating that through the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) corporate lobbyists get access to legislators "behind closed doors," ALEC politician Bill Howell dismissed the claim and told the Richmond Times-Dispatch that all ALEC meetings were open to the public.

    Really?

    That would be breaking news to both traditional press and the online media that have been blocked from ALEC meetings and are increasingly being threatened with arrest.

    Op-Ed

    Inside ALEC: Naked Contempt for the Press and Public in Scottsdale

    by Beau Hodai — January 11, 2012 - 7:23am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Corporations, Ethics, Secrecy

    • "Mr. Hodai had a history at the conference--not a very pleasant history. He was considered to be a persona non grata..."

    -- Westin Kierland General Manager Bruce Lange to Olivia Ward of the Toronto Star.

    Evicting the Press, Part 1: Meet Mr. Black

    Scottsdale, Arizona--A suburb awash in money and golf courses, set against the backdrop of the jagged mountains surrounding Phoenix.

    I was sitting in a sports bar of the Westin Kierland Resort and Spa, swapping journalism stories with Olivia Ward of the Toronto Star on one of the bar's overstuffed leather couches. Over the course of an hour, the bar filled with conventioneers from the American Legislative Exchange Council's 2011 States and Nation Policy Summit (SNPS). (A new story on Westin's connections to other ALEC corporations is available here.)

    My assignment was to cover the 2011 SNPS, taking place at the resort from November 29 through December 2. ALEC had refused to grant me media credentials. Nevertheless, I was a paid guest at the resort.

    News

    ALEC and Westin/Starwood: Who is Your Hotel in Bed With While You're in Bed at Your Hotel?

    by Anonymous — January 11, 2012 - 7:21am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Corporations, Democracy, Energy, Environment, Lobbying, Public Relations

    • Tucson-based civil rights attorney Stacy Scheff believes that Westin Kierland may have violated federal constitutional law when they threw a journalist (and paid guest) out into the dead of night--due to the simple fact that the journalist evicted had written critically of (and was not liked by) the organization hosting a conference at the hotel. (A new story about these events is available here).

    News

    Bosma and Daniels Push "Right to Work" Amid Controversies over Financial Backers

    by Lisa Graves — January 10, 2012 - 8:44am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Corporations, Democracy, Labor

    • Governor Mitch Daniels (R-Indiana) and the state's Speaker of the House, Brian Bosma (R-88), are spearheading an effort to pass the controversial, corporate-backed "Right to Work" (RTW) bill, which has sparked huge protests by Hoosiers. The bill's opponents have called it the "Right to Work (for Peanuts)" bill, the "'Right to be Fired' Without Cause" bill, and other names.

    News

    Indiana Workers Stand against the ALEC Agenda and the Anti-Labor Bill Called the "Right to Work" (for Less)

    by Lisa Graves — January 5, 2012 - 8:20am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Right Wing, Front Groups, Corporations, Democracy, Economy, Energy, Labor, Lobbying

    • Thousands of Indiana workers rallied outside, and inside, their state capitol on Wednesday to speak out against Governor Mitch Daniels' renewed effort to force through so-called "right to work" legislation designed to undermine labor unions and workers' rights protected by collective bargaining.

    Guest Contributor

    ALEC-Linked Group Revealed As Major Secret Donor In Referendum On Maine Voting Rights

    by PRW Staff — December 30, 2011 - 7:30am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Democracy, Politics

    • by Scott Keyes

    This article was originally published by Think Progress. The Center for Media and Democracy is cross-posting it as part of our ongoing efforts to expose the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and its attempts to disenfranchise voters across the country.

    Last month, Maine voters delivered a major rebuke to Gov. Paul LePage (R) and the Republican-held legislature when they approved a referendum restoring election day voting registration rights in the state. Earlier this year, state legislators passed a bill repealing the state's 38 year-old law allowing citizens to register at the polls on election day.

    News

    DOJ Rejects ALEC-Inspired Voter ID Bill in South Carolina

    by Brendan Fischer — December 23, 2011 - 7:04pm
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Election 2012, Democracy, Human Rights, Politics, Race / Ethnic Issues

    • The U.S. Department of Justice has rejected South Carolina's voter ID law, which was inspired by an American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) model, as discriminatory against people of color.

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