This is a short diary, but big news.
The Washington Times is reporting that Freedom's Watch, the right-wing advocacy group founded by former Bush flak Ari Fleischer, which promised to be the right's answer to Moveon.org, is closing its doors.
This is undoubtedly related to the financial troubles of FW's biggest funder, gambling tycoon Sheldon Adelson. A year ago, Adelson was said to be the third richest man in America, but in recent months he has lost billions and his company, Las Vegas Sands Corp. has lost 95% of its value.
Adelson is virulently anti-labor, having told an aide (according to the New Yorker) that “Old Democrats were with the union and he wanted to break the back of the union, consequently he had to break the back of the Democrats.” He also once whined, "Why is it fair that I should be paying a higher percentage of taxes than anyone else?" and he is (again according to the New Yorker) "fiercely opposed to a two-state solution" to the Israel-Palestine issue.
Amazingly, Adelson received the Woodrow Wilson Award for Corporate Citizenship from the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars of the Smithsonian Institution. The ceremony was held on March 25, 2008 in Las Vegas. The other award recipient that night (ta da): Wayne Newton, who received the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service.
You can't make this stuff up!
This is great news! Here's a link to the moonie-paper story:
http://washingtontimes.com/news/2008/dec/08/freedoms-watch-shut-end-month/
The biggest difference between FW and Moveon? FW had a handful of mega-wealthy donors. Moveon has an email list and funding base of 4 million.