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U.S.-Funded War in El Salvador Casts Shadow over Romney/Ryan Campaign

by Brendan Fischer — August 16, 2012 - 7:39am
  • Topics: Election 2012, Democracy, Politics

    • Amidst reports that Mitt Romney launched Bain Capital with funds from investors tied to 1980s Salvadoran death squads, his new running mate Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) is getting foreign policy briefings from a man who actively covered-up some of the worst atrocities committed by those same death squads. The GOP's vice-presidential candidate also earned his political stripes working under neoconservative Republicans who funneled billions in U.S. aid to those military hitmen. Though the war in El Salvador was just one chapter in history, Romney and Ryan's relationship with that war may provide a snapshot into their worldview.

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    VP Role for Paul Ryan Has His Former Parish Priest Worried

    by Jonathan Rosenblum — August 15, 2012 - 5:30am
  • Topics: Democracy, Economy, Politics, Religion

    • The entrance to St. Mary Elementary School in Janesville, Wisconsin has two identical archways with contrasting inscriptions. One entrance says, "For God." The other says, "For Country." That is where Mitt Romney's vice presidential running mate, U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, first merged his studies of government and religion as a young student.

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    Outside Groups Push WI GOP to the Right in U.S. Senate Primary

    by Brendan Fischer — August 13, 2012 - 9:41am
  • Topics: Right Wing, Election 2012, U.S. Congress, Democracy, Politics, Wisconsin Protests

    • Wisconsin's hotly-contested race to select its GOP candidate for the U.S. Senate is another battle between out-of-state Super PACs and Tea Party-associated nonprofits spending millions to convince election-weary voters to select their preferred candidate. The influx of outside spending is fueling a race to the right as candidates compete for the label of "true conservative." Here is a rundown of the groups spending big to influence Wisconsin's GOP primary.

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    Paul Ryan: Bankrolled by the Banksters, the Privatizers, and the Kochs

    by Mary Bottari — August 13, 2012 - 7:46am
  • Topics: BanksterUSA, Corporations, Democracy, Economy

    • In the 14 years that Paul Ryan has been a Congressman from Southeastern Wisconsin, he has never had a challenger of any stature or a race of any significance. Janesville, his hometown and the heart of the district, has no TV stations and only a handful of small, scrappy newspapers. What an opportunity for a man of the people to take the highroad!

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    Group that Sustains ALEC's Voter Suppression Agenda Releases Sham "Study," to Acclaim from Right-Wing Media

    by Brendan Fischer — August 6, 2012 - 7:56am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Election 2012, Democracy, Politics

    • A right-wing group that pledged to "continue the excellent work of the American Legislative Exchange Council" (ALEC) and promote voter ID has published a thinly-sourced blog post that purports to show people of color and the poor are actually helped by voter ID laws, an unsupported claim that is being hyped as a "study" by outlets like Fox News and the Daily Caller. More comprehensive research has demonstrated that these laws threaten to disenfranchise around 5 million people nationally, primarily people of color, students, and the poor.

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    "Now Tell Him He Reminds You of George Washington"

    by PRW Staff — August 1, 2012 - 9:42am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Corporations, Democracy

    • The week the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) was in Salt Lake City for its 39th annual meeting, award winning cartoonist Pat Bagley produced this gem in Utah's largest newspaper, The Salt Lake Tribune. The cartoon "A Legislator Walks Into a Bar" aptly characterizes the relationship between legislators, mega-corporations, and ALEC. State Representative Mark Pocan (D-WI) has put it bit more gently describing ALEC as a "dating service" for politicians and corporations.

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    Campaign to Defeat Barack Obama Raises Funds Off Colorado Tragedy, Fleeces Contributors

    by Brendan Fischer — July 30, 2012 - 7:12am
  • Topics: Democracy

    • On July 20, hours after the horrific shooting in Aurora, Colorado, the Campaign to Defeat Barack Obama sent an email to supporters with the subject line "OUTRAGEOUS: Media Tries to Blame Tea Party for Colorado Shooting."

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    New Report on ALEC’s Influence in Utah

    by Harriet Rowan — July 26, 2012 - 3:49pm
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Corporations, Democracy, Ethics

    • As corporate lobbyists and state legislators from across the country meet in Salt Lake City for the 39th annual meeting of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a group of open government advocates has released a report called "ALEC in Utah: The Voice of Corporate Special Interests in the Halls of Utah's Legislature."

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    "Tobacco Can Cure Smoking" and other Highlights of ALEC's Annual Meeting in Salt Lake

    by Brendan Fischer — July 26, 2012 - 9:12am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Corporations, Democracy, Politics

    • By Brendan Fischer and Mary Bottari

    State legislators attending this week's American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) meeting in Salt Lake City will be told they can advance ALEC's mission of "limited government and free enterprise" by letting "the free market reduce smoking-related diseases," according to an agenda obtained by the Center for Media and Democracy.

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    New Report Shows ALEC's "Unprecedented Influence Over Florida"

    by Harriet Rowan — July 26, 2012 - 8:43am
  • Topics: ALEC Exposed, Corporations, Democracy, Ethics

    • As corporate lobbyists and state legislators from across the country meet in Salt Lake City for the 39th annual meeting of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a group of open government advocates have released a report called "ALEC in Florida" that sheds further light on ALEC's "unprecedented influence over Florida."

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