The f****** Chamber of Commerce is acting like a terrahrist (/snark) organization these days it seems, soliciting money to spread lies and overthrow our party.
How can we fight back? Help fund campaign ads in every district, every place that Kos wrote about today as being underwater to a Republican: run really bold ads, calling out these crooks for who they are. Write letter to the Editor!
The NYTimes Editorial Board did a great job for us this week. The nation's paper of record pulled the trigger on this, and we should run with it for all its worth.
Al Franken is calling Chamber out for this. We should, as well.
Please sign the petition to
Keep Foreign Corporate Money Out of Our Elections
For many years I taught in the public schools in Austin, where we worked for school improvement through involving stakeholders.
We worked with parents, community organizations and we worked with the Chamber of Commerce. In Austin, they were great partners back in the 80's, and stepped up to improve funding for education.
Things have changed? Keith Olberman's Countdown had this:
Today, nationally, the Chamber of Commerce, well, sucks. Beeg time. They have always been political players, and not just with the Republican Party. Heh. In the main though, they have been big Republican funders.
This cycle, they are constantly flaming President Obama with personal attacks, treating him like a dog.
The are funding astroturf groups as well. How far can they go?
What Would China Pay to Make John Boehner Speaker and to Give the GOP Power Again?
Its a possibility that sets my blood to boil.
NYTimes Editorial
Clean and Open American Elections
Published: October 5, 2010
For at least 44 years, it has been illegal for foreign corporations, countries and individuals to make political contributions in the United States for any election, either directly or indirectly. It is even against the law to solicit such contributions. But in this Wild West year of political money, that longstanding ban is being set aside. The United States Chamber of Commerce — one of the biggest advertisers in midterm races around the country — is actively soliciting foreign money, and government enforcers seem to be doing nothing to stop it.
Ouch, that's gonna leave a mark for sure!
Whoa! Is The New York Effing Times really saying that Chamber is begging for money from individuals and business in other countries, could even be taking money from Foreign Govs?
Well not exactly, but one sees possibilities with campaign ads....
NYTimes urges strong action
NYTimes goes on to say teh IRS/Fed Commission is doing nothing to stop it? Well, sure, the Republicans will cry bloody murder if the Obama Admin does anything this close to the election, but this is beyond the pale.
The possible commingling of secret foreign money into these groups raises fresh questions about whether they are violating both the letter and spirit of the campaign finance laws. The Federal Election Commission, which has been rendered toothless by its Republican members, should be investigating possible outright violations of the Federal Election Campaign Act by foreign companies and the chamber.
The Internal Revenue Service, which is supposed to ensure that these nonprofit groups are not primarily political, has fallen down on the job. Last week, Senator Max Baucus, Democrat of Montana and chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, demanded that the I.R.S. look into whether the tax code was being misused for political purposes, and, on Tuesday, two watchdog groups made the same request of the agency.
The government needs to make sure that the tax code — and American control of American elections — is not being violated.
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Together we must stop this attack on our Party.
Keep Foreign Corporate Money Out of Our Elections
Foreign corporations are funding some of the $75 million the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is spending to defeat Democrats this election cycle. Ask the Justice Department to investigate.
Sign the petition »
We are not going to let the Chamber get away with this.
GOTV? Hell, yeah!
Let's Roll!
Update: Joan McCarter beat me with FP story focusing on how Dems are ramping up on this, using the HuffPol link I used above!
Great to see our party running with this ! Yah!