Right-wing opponents of healthcare and climate change reform continue to engage in Astroturfing (aka fake grassroots activism). To put it simply, these groups are like wolves in sheep's' clothing. They do their best to appear, act and smell like community groups...except they're not.
They're corporate front groups funded primarily, if not entirely, by corporate interests, political interests and/or PR firms who stand to either gain or lose a great deal of money and market share based on the legislation in question. Astroturf activism by right-wing front groups is particularly egregious because it masks the true motivations of the powerful interests with the most dollar signs at stake in these debates. Our friends over at Media Matters are looking to put a stop to this.
They have a new database that tracks the financial and political ties of conservative think tanks, nonprofit activist groups, and foundations for the public to see: ConservativeTransparency.org. The new database compiled and organized nearly 1,000 Internal Revenue Service filings to be provide the public-at-large with information on hundreds of "AstroTurf" organizations such as...
- The U.S. Chamber of Commerce - leads the way in opposition against federal reforms of....pretty much any kind that help working people. The Chamber is lobbying against consumer protections, limits on bank bonuses, financial reform legislation, legislation to lessen global warming and reform to healthcare and labor law.
- FreedomWorks Inc. - one of the *star* organizations behind the efforts to disrupt town hall meetings.
- The Heritage Foundation - a think tank that promotes ultra conservative policies and has repeated lobbied against increases in the minimum wage as well as health insurance reform.
- Conservatives for Patients' Rights - A $20 million operation that's running a national campaign against a public plan to kill progressive health care reform.
- Americans for Prosperity Foundation - helped organize tea party protests, opposes health care reform behind Patients United Now. Also sponsor of the Joe the Plumber tour and world-class climate change deniers.
See ConservativeTransparency.org for a wealth of information on the money behind the movement.
