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.

Now that we're closer than ever before to reforming our health care system, the opposition is ratcheting up the fear-mongering and deception. They'll say anything to dominate the public conversation and disrupt productive dialogue, and do anything to block reform--including harassment, intimidation, and physical violence.

For several days now, radical-fringe right-wing opponents bent on blocking any reform legislation have disrupted town hall meetings conducted by members of Congress. At the same time they're engaging in Astroturf [read: fake grassroots] activism, these radical-fringe groups are disseminating discredited myths about health care reform bills that were adopted by four Congressional committees. Astroturfing by conservative opponents of reform is particularly dishonest because it masks the true motivations of the powerful interests--like the desire of industries to maintain the status quo.

These conservative lobbyist-run groups are leading the way orchestrating town hall mobs.

FreedomWorks
According to TPM, FreedomWorks is teaming up with the Tea Party Patriots to target Blue Dogs on health care reform. "Take, for instance, an email exchange, obtained by TPMDC, between a protester and a FreedomWorks field organizer on a list serv operated by the latter. Last month, Tom Gaitens, a FreedomWorks field manager posted a spreadsheet containing contact information for Blue Dogs and their chiefs of staff, to a tea party organizers list serv that he manages." In addition, Roll Call reported that FreedomWorks is one of the organizations "behind the efforts" to disrupt town hall meetings. [Talking Points Memo, 8/4/2009; Roll Call, 8/5/2009] The group, chaired by former House Majority Leader Dick Armey, is emailing 380,000 supporters an "August Recess Action Kit" link this week.

Conservatives for Patients' Rights
Conservatives for Patients' Rights, a $20 million operation that's running a national campaign against a public plan to kill progressive health care reform, is now publicly taking credit for helping stir up the sometimes-rowdy outbursts targeting House Dems at town hall meetings around the country. Which makes these disruptions seem....a little less than spontaneous, or simply a reflection of grassroots sentiment. CPR has posted a list of congressional town halls to be held over August recess "as a resource for our visitors." The fact-checking website Politifact.com has rated Conservatives for Patients' Rights statements about health care reform, "Barely True."

Americans for Prosperity
Americans for Prosperity Helping to Organize Tea Party Protests. The Charlotte Observer reported that Americans for Prosperity is "the organization behind this year's taxpayer tea parties," and the Roanoke Times reported "the Tea Party Patriots and Americans for Prosperity organized the Nationwide Tea Party protest day." [Charlotte Observer, 7/22/2009; Roanoke Times, 7/18/2009] The group is listed as a "Health Care Freedom Coalition Partner" on the Tea Party Patriots website. It was established by oil magnate David Koch, and its creation is a result of a split from an earlier Koch-based enterprise, now called FreedomWorks (sound familiar?) AFP was also instrumental in orchestrating the anti-Obama, anti-tax tea party protests in April.

Americans for Prosperity's various fronts and disclosures that point to ever-increasing oil and corporate donations to the group are guided by AFP President Tim Phillips--who, as The Wonk Room notes, "has built a long career of inventing fake grassroots causes." Phillips' resume includes founding an Atlanta-based firm with Abramoff-connected Ralph Reed. The firm, Century Strategies, has a history of mounting "grassroots lobbying drives," and Reed in the past has said (when attempting to help Enron deregulate the electricity industry), "it matters less who has the best arguments and more who gets heard -- and by whom."

Club for Growth
Right-Wing founder Steven Moore pushed for ending all assistance to low-income Americans, calling Medicare "Catastrophic." In 2000, Moore advocated abolishing welfare, stating, "The most valuable step the Congress could take to help dismantle the welfare-poverty trap would be to abolish all programs that provide benefits for not working: food stamps, AFDC, and public housing, for example." In 2003, Moore wrote, "Every American taxpayer knows full well the fiscally catastrophic impact of programs like Medicare, Medicaid and other black-check income redistribution programs." [Washington Times, 4/07/00; Detroit News, 7/21/03]

Americans for Tax Reform/Grover Norquist
Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist Pushing Members to Attend Town Hall Meetings. Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, "said he encourages his members to attend town-hall meetings - and arms them with suggested questions." [Roll Call, 8/5/2009]

A serious and civil discourse about healthcare reform - tied to facts, not myths - will substantially increase the public's support for reform. "America's families want the peace of mind that comes with knowing that health insurance and care can never be taken away - when they switch jobs, lose jobs, start a business, or become sick. That's why a civil discourse is so important, and that's why health insurance reform is essential," said SEIU Healthcare Chair Dennis Rivera.

Playing politics with health reform is simply unacceptable. We must fight back against lies and fear-mongering to drown out the opposition--and send the message that health care reform must happen this year. That starts with knowing who we're up against--so read our "fact checks" on FreedomWorks, Conservatives for Patients' Rights, Americans for Prosperity, Club for Growth and Americans for Tax Reform/Grover Norquist.

Former Hospital Executive Rick Scott Launched Conservatives for Patients' Rights. In 2009, former hospital executive Richard Scott launched Conservatives for Patients' Rights, a $20 million effort to kill progressive health care reform. [Wall Street Journal, 2/6/2009]

CPR Pushing Supporters To Attend Congressional Town Halls Over August Recess.  Conservatives for Patients' Rights has posted a list of congressional town halls to be held over August recess "as a resource for our visitors." [Conservativesforpatientsrights.org, accessed 8/4/2009]

CPR Is Funded By Rick Scott.  Scott started Conservatives for Patients' Rights "with $5 million of his own cash." The Washington Post reported that CPR is "bankrolled by ousted Columbia/HCA chief Rick Scott..." [Politico, 3/3/2009; Washington Post, 6/7/2009]

CPR Campaign Orchestrated by Swift Boat Public Relations Team. According to the Washington Post, CPR's campaign "to build resistance to any government-run program...is being coordinated by CRC Public Relations, the group that masterminded the 'Swift boat' attacks against 2004 Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kerry." [Washington Post, 5/11/2009]

CPR Pushes False Attacks About Health Care Reform.  The fact-checking website Politifact.com has rated Conservatives for Patients' Rights statements about health care reform, "Barely True." [Politifact.com, accessed 8/5/2009]

Under Rick Scott, Columbia/HCA Healthcare Pled Guilty To Fraud Charges Following Seven Year And Multi-State Investigation. According to Forbes.com: "Yesterday, the nation's largest hospital chain, known until recently as Columbia/HCA Healthcare, pleaded guilty to a variety of fraud charges. It admitted to bilking various government programs and agreed to pay a total of $840 million in fines and penalties. The fraud settlement is the largest in U.S. history, breaking the old record held by Drexel Burnham...The guilty plea follows a seven-year federal investigation that resulted in charges being filed in five different federal courts in Florida, Texas, Georgia and Tennessee, where HCA is headquartered. The fraud revealed by that investigation ran deep within HCA's way of doing business." [Forbes.com, 12/15/00]

 

• Columbia/HCA Paid "More Than $1.7 Billion In Civil And Criminal Penalties."  The New York Times reported that under an agreement with the Justice Department, HCA would pay $630 million in fines and penalties to resolve all outstanding civil litigation with the Justice Department. An additional $250 million would be paid by HCA to the Medicare program to resolve expense claims submitted by the company to the government...Combined with previous settlements HCA has negotiated with the government involving fraud accusations -- including its agreement in 2000 to plead guilty to 14 felonies -- the company will be paying a total of more than $1.7 billion in civil and criminal penalties, by far the largest amount ever secured by federal prosecutors in a health care fraud case." [New York Times, 12/18/2002]

Rick Scott Forced To Resign Amid Fraud Charges. According to Forbes: "The investigation and the plea is an obvious blow to a company that became a Wall Street darling by promising to bring first-class business practices to the hospital sector, still dominated by not-for-profits. Under former Chief Executive Richard Scott, it bought hospitals by the bucketful and promised to squeeze blood from each one. Scott was forced to resign in the wake of the initial fraud charges in 1997." [Forbes, 12/15/00]

Our health care activists have kept a watchful eye on ad buys by Rick Scott's "Conservatives for Patients' Rights," and with good reason. Scott's ads have contained demonstrably false material, misleading excerpts of interviews, and blatant fear-mongering in an attempt to swift-boat health care reform. A new ad--called "Bulldozer"--began airing this week, and just as before, Scott showed what low regard he holds for the truth.

FALSE CLAIM: "There are hundreds of choices of health care plans today..." [Conservatives for Patients' Rights "Bulldozer" Ad, 6/4/2009]

FACT: Only A Few Insurance Companies Dominate The Market, Leaving Americans With Limited Choices In Health Care. According to the American Medical Association, 94 percent of United States health care markets are considered highly concentrated, meaning that one company or a small group of companies control a great deal of the market. [American Medical Association, "Competition in Health Insurance," 2008 Update]

FALSE CLAIM: "This government-run plan could crush all your other choices, driving them out of existence..." [Conservatives for Patients' Rights "Bulldozer" Ad, 6/4/2009]

FACT: Public Plan Will Only Drive Out Inefficient Private Plans, Leaving Consumers With Greater Choices And Better Care Options. According to Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) chairman Glenn Hackbarth's comments on National Journal's health care blog, "some private plans will not survive this competition - namely, plans that do little more than offer free-choice of provider, fee-for-service coverage. We don't need those plans; a public plan can do that better." [National Journal's Health Care Blog, 12/8/2008]

FACT: Private Plans That Offer Lower-Cost Options And More Comprehensive Plans Will Be Able To Compete. According to the Urban Institute, "Private plans that offer better services and greater access to providers, even at a somewhat higher cost than the public plans, would survive the competition in this environment. It is also conceivable that private plans offering a lower-cost option - for example, lower premiums than the public plan, say by exploiting care management innovations, and network and payment rate limitations - could stake out a separate niche in some markets." [Urban Institute, 3/18/2009]

FACT: Many States Run Public And Private Plans Alongside Each Other Successfully. According to the Center for American Progress, "Today, state governments (all of which regulate insurance companies) operate public Medicaid programs, purchase insurance for thousands of public employees, and regulate insurers. In fact, many states successfully offer their employees and retirees private health insurance plans side-by-side with these states' self-funded health insurance plans." [Center for American Progress, March 2009]

FALSE CLAIM: "Government-run plan" will force "119 million off their current insurance coverage, leaving no choices in health insurance and government in control of your health care." [Conservatives for Patients' Rights "Bulldozer" Ad, 6/4/2009]

FACT: CBO Director: Lewin Study Claims Are Overstated. According to National Journal's Congress Daily, "CBO Director Elmendorf told Senate Finance Committee members and staffers he expects fewer Americans would migrate from private health insurance to a public plan than projected by the oft-quoted study by nonpartisan policy experts at the Lewin Group." [National Journal's CongressDaily, 5/20/2009]

FACT: Lewin Group Is Mouthpiece For Insurance Industry. The Lewin Group was "acquired" by Ingenix in 2007, according to the Ingenix website. Ingenix is "a leading health information technology company." According to the New York Times, INgenix is the "database business" of UnitedHealth Group. [Ingenix.com, 6/12/2007; New York Times, 3/31/2008]New York State Attorney General, Andrew Cuomo: Ingenix is "a conduit for rigged data to the largest insurers in the country." In February 2008, Andrew

• Cuomo, the New York State Attorney General, announced his "industry-wide investigation into a scheme by health insurers to defraud consumers by manipulating reimbursement rates." Cuomo's release named Ingenix as the center of the scheme" referring to it as "the nation's largest provider of healthcare billing information," and "a conduit for rigged data to the largest insurers in the country." [New York State Office of the Attorney General, 2/13/08]

Rick Scott Pushes To Keep Status Quo. Says Rick Scott in the new Conservatives for Patients' Rights ad, "It's not too late. Protect your health care choices. Tell Congress to say "no" to a government-run plan. "

FACT: Scott Has Made His Fortune Off Our Broken Health Care System.

Scott Received Nearly $10 Million In Severance And A 5 Year Contract With Columbia/HCA Following Resignation. Modern Healthcare reported that Richard L. Scott's "$9.9 million severance included a five-year consulting contract with HCA." [Modern Healthcare, 7/11/2005]

• Scott's 5 Year Consulting Contract Paid $950,000 Every Year. According to the New York Times: "The Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corporation said yesterday that it had agreed to pay its former chairman and chief executive nearly $10 million when he was forced out in July in the wake of an unfolding criminal investigation of the company. The agreement with the executive, Richard L. Scott, provided for a one-time payment of $5.13 million, as well as a five-year annual consulting fee of $950,000, for a total of $9.88 million, according to a copy of a severance agreement included in the company's quarterly filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission." [New York Times, 11/14/1997]

Scott's Severance Package Included $300 Million In Stocks. According to the Florida Times-Union, Richard L. Scott left Columbia/HCA "with a $10 million severance package and 10 million shares of stock valued at more than $300 million." [Florida Times-Union, 6/21/2006]

Full Script:

ANNCR: There are hundreds of choices of health care plans today, but imagine this is the massive government-run health insurance plan some in Congress want. This government-run plan could crush all your other choices, driving them out of existence, resulting in 119 million off their current insurance coverage, leaving no choices in health insurance and government in control of your health care.

RICK SCOTT: It's not too late. Protect your health care choices. Tell Congress to say "no" to a government-run plan. [Conservatives for Patients' Rights "Bulldozer" Ad, 6/4/2009]

Take action now. http://action.seiu.org/page/s/fakedocumentary

In recent weeks, GOP pundits and media outlets have attempted to obstruct, conflate and confuse the debate on health care by regurgitating Frank Luntz's health care talking points verbatim. Their favorite red herring? That ole standby, CANADA.

The recent media blitz on our neighbors to the north reminded us of the, ahem, sophisticated story line in South Park's 1999 feature film.

Blind obstructionism and fear-mongering has no place in fixing health care. Join us in defending against the dumbing-down of the health care debate.

On Sunday, a group of DC residents delivered all 68,000 of your petitions to the NBC studios in Washington, demanding Rick Scott's phony infomercial be pulled. You should have seen the look on the producer's face when she saw the boxes of signatures waiting for her in the lobby.


Despite the objections from thousands of viewers, NBC went ahead and aired Rick Scott's 30-minute attack ad against health care reform. And, just as we had warned, it was filled with shameful and misleading distortions. (Check out Media Matters Factcheck on the CPR infomercial here)

It's going to be up to us to push back on Rick Scott with the truth about President Obama's plan to fix health care. This Saturday, thousands of Americans will be hosting health care organizing kickoffs in their communities.

Will you take part? This is a critical opportunity to tell the real story of President Obama's plan for health care reform: http://action.seiu.org/page/s/june6signups

After 80 years, we finally have the solution to this health care crisis in our sights. Getting there is going to require an all-out sprint to the finish line that starts right now. Let's show opponents like Rick Scott that no amount of expensive television ads can stop us from winning quality, affordable health care for every American.

You live in Washington, DC. And that's why we need you to make a quick, local call.

Yesterday, we emailed about stopping Rick Scott's phony "documentary" from airing on Washington, DC's NBC4 after Meet the Press this weekend. Today, we're upping the ante.

Can you give the local NBC4 station manager a call? To call the station, dial (202) 885-4000 and ask for General Manager Michael Jack. (If Michael Jack can't speak, leave a message.)

Here's an example of what to say to Mr. Jack or NBC4 staff:

Hi, I'm a regular viewer of NBC4 and I'm calling with a concern.

Your network is scheduled to run a thirty-minute advertisement by Conservatives for Patients' Rights which, based on previous advertisements, will be false and mislead viewers. Based on excerpts from their website, this ad is unfit to air.

As a viewer of your programs, I urge you to review the ad and halt plans to air it this Sunday.

We're keeping a tally of how many calls go into the station. After you make the call, use this form to report-back on the call.

Thanks for keeping the pressure on NBC4 to halt the airing of this 30-minute sham "documentary" on Sunday. We'll keep you updated on what happens this weekend.

P.S. We need to flood their phone lines with calls from viewers. If you can, please forward this link to friends and family in the DC area.

It didn't take long, did it?

First, it was Rick Scott's Conservatives for Patients' Rights-which was essentially a front group for, um, Rick Scott. Now we've got Patients United Now (PUN), a front group of Americans for Prosperity (reminder: sponsor of the Joe the Plumber tour and world-class climate change deniers). Seems you can't have too many groups crying "CANADA!" in a crowded cable market.

This latest attack is lifted straight off a messaging memo by Republican strategist Frank Luntz, whose talking points aim to undermine health care reform in three simple steps: scare, conflate and confuse the American public. The ad's format is similar to a series of Rick Scott ads from earlier this month (guess they're low on creativity in the Grand Old Party), paring up health care stories with misleading claims about reforming the system.

Below is excerpted text from this latest attack ad on health care:

Shona Holmes: I am here today because I was able to travel to the U.S. where I received world-class treatment. Government healthcare isn't the answer and it sure isn't free.

Announcer: Now Washington wants to bring Canadian-style healthcare to the U.S., but government should never come in between your family and your doctor. Learn more at patientsunitednow.com.

Shona Holmes: My advice to Americans - as patients, it's your care. Don't give up your rights.

Here's what we already know: health care reform will look nothing like Canada. Nowhere in the ad does PUN even try to explain how health care reform would "bring Canadian-style healthcare to the U.S." That's because, in the words of Rachel Maddow, it's complete bull-puckey.

We've got to fight back. The 60-second ad starts on tomorrow, May 27 and runs through June 2. It will run in at least nine key states, including Montana, and will also air on May 31st on the Sunday morning talk shows.

This blatantly misleading ad has no business airing on television. Join us in fighting back - sign the petition to stop the swift-boating of health care reform on television.

Rick Scott's group, Conservatives for Patients' Rights (CPR), responded today to SEIU's written request to CNN and FOX News for removal of the group's ads. The ads, which were created by the same PR firm behind the now widely-discredited "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" ads in 2004, contain false statements and distortions that are intended to mislead the viewing public.

Below are two of the inaccurate claims made in their ad:

• Rick Scott misleads viewers about the Federal Coordinating Council , claiming: "not only could a government board deny your choice in doctors, but it can control life and death for some patients." This statement is demonstrably false.
• The advertisement further deceives viewers by blatantly misrepresenting the positions of two physicians.

Here's the kicker: CPR failed to address a single point made in our case for removal.

Instead, CPR posted a blog entry that is nothing more than an ideological red-herring. (Read it for yourself, here.) We can only assume that their response is an attempt to distract us from the fact that they cannot defend their own ad.

SEIU welcomes a robust debate on the merits of health care policy-what we do not welcome is false, misleading advertising that scares people.

Once again, CPR has demonstrated how little regard they hold for the facts. We hope that CNN, which has given CPR five business days to respond, considers CPR's public comment on our case to be their official response.

Sign our petition calling on FOX News and CNN to to quit airing CPR's irresponsible, false ad.

Yesterday, SEIU sent letters to FOX News and CNN requesting they pull a grossly misleading ad by Rick Scott's "Conservatives for Patients Rights." The ads, which contain false statements and misleading quotes from doctors, were produced by the same PR firm that created the now-widely discredited "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" ads against Sen. John Kerry in 2004.

Below are the reasons we are asking for this ad to be taken down:

• Rick Scott, the narrator featured in the advertisement, misleads viewers about the Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research, a newly-created entity by the economic recovery package signed into law by President Obama in February. Mr. Scott makes a specific claim: "not only could a government board deny your choice in doctors, but it can control life and death for some patients." This statement is demonstrably false. In reality, the powers of this so-called "government board" are clearly defined and cannot do what Mr. Scott claims. The statutory authority of the Council specifically excludes the power "to mandate coverage, reimbursement, or other policies for any public or private payer." It is worth noting that even under President Bush, the National Institute of Health already had an annual budget of $355 million to conduct precisely this type of research. Plainly, this has not led to the sort of catastrophic consequences in America that Mr. Scott warns against.


• The advertisement further deceives viewers by blatantly misrepresenting the positions of two physicians. While the advertisement paints both as opponents of any role for government in health care reform, in reality, just the opposite is true. Both physicians are in fact supporters of universal health care. What they are opposed to is the U.S. 'two-tiered' system that already rations health care based on the ability to pay. In fact, Mr. Scott misrepresented Dr. Day's comments, and Dr. Day openly mocked the ineffectiveness of the U.S. health care system. What Dr. Day is opposed to is Canada's outdated funding model, not Canada's healthcare system. Dr. Day actually advocates reform of the funding structure to preserve Canada's healthcare system, not dismantle it.

Update:

CNN has provided a disappointing response to our request. According to their lawyer, they are giving CPR five business days to respond. During this time, they will continue running CPR's ad. The 60-second ad runs until May 7th, which means that if CPR fails to defend the gross misstatements and distortions in their ad, they only stand to lose one day of airtime.

CNN claims this is "standard" policy for advertising disputes. If that's the case, no wonder CPR chose to run their misleading advertisement on their network.

Download our entire letter to CNN and FOX News.

Join the chorus of viewers calling for CNN and FOX News to adhere to their own truth-in-advertising policies and remove this ad: http://action.seiu.org/page/s/TellFoxNews