You keep looking for promising articles, blog entries by others, tweets by others, facebook posts by others - that you can build on, with a little research. (Today's entry started with someone's tweets.)
You hit a lot of deadends before you find something that is worth writing about.
Lately the American Legislative Exchange Council has been releasing bogus statements about transparency - which with a little bit of research prove to be false, 90% of the time.
In fact, at this point of ALEC history - they are the most opaque they have ever been.
The documents that they have released historically over time - which were in their secret vaults - were much more detailed and open about who was a member - which corporation had written or was sponsoring the legislation at the task force meeting.
Now that ALEC is claiming transparency - they are sterilizing everything they distribute and distributing only what they want the world to see. To ALEC, sterilized junk = transparency. They claim all their bills on their webpage - but you won't find Stand Your Ground or Voter ID on their webpage - cause they don't want anyone to see it.
But that isn't why I am here today.
Today - I am here because of ALEC members and their secretive association with ALEC.
I have repeatedly stated over the years that most ALEC members hide their involvement/ membership with ALEC - and they do.
BUT - there's a huge problem with that in an election year.
- You see - ALEC philosophies/policies/legislation about "limited government, free markets, and federalism" are really political issues that HAVE TO BE considered when voting for a candidate.
- "Bundled campaign contributions" and "grassroots support" negotiated at ALEC meetings are really political issues that HAVE TO BE considered when voting for a candidate.
ALEC IS a political issue - a campaign issue.
But how can you know to ask about ALEC - when the legislator is intentionally HIDING their involvement in ALEC from everyone, except ALEC.
Here's where the research part of it comes in.
A piece in the Guardian on ALEC last December included a document that showed how many members ALEC was claiming it had in each state (which turns out to be overstated and flat out lies in a couple of states.)
Then, you actually go looking for information where ever you can reliably find it.
For the purpose of today's entry, I went looking at published state biographies that legislators submit to the Secretary of State.
What I found wasn't pretty - but it's an important point when considering who to vote for in 2014.
Examples:
ALECers Hiding their involvement with ALEC.
In Idaho
ALEC claims it has 21 members
ONLY 2 legislators admit they are ALEC members in their state issued bios
19 DO NOT
In Iowa
ALEC claims 100% of the 76 Republicans are members
ONLY 3 legislators admit they are ALEC members in their state issued bios
73 DO NOT
In Tennessee
ALEC claims it has 38 members
ONLY 10 legislators admit they are ALEC members in their state issued bios
28 DO NOT
In North Dakota
ALEC claims it has 45 members
ONLY 4 legislators admit they are ALEC members in their state issued bios
40 DO NOT
In the ALEC ravaged state of Wisconsin
ALEC claims it has 48 members
ONLY 2 legislators admit they are ALEC members in their state issued bios
46 DO NOT
In Mississippi
ALEC claims it has 51 members
ONLY 5 legislators admit they are ALEC members in their state issued bios
46 DO NOT
In Missouri
ALEC claims it has 57 members
ONLY 3 legislators admit they are ALEC members in their state issued bios
54 DO NOT
Lets look at these numbers
TOTAL ALEC members claimed by ALEC: 336
TOTAL ALEC members who acknowledged ALEC membership: 30
TOTAL ALEC members who HIDE their ALEC involvement: 306
In this example of 6 states:
306 ALEC legislators HID their involvement with ALEC in the state issued biographies.
That represents 90+% of the ALEC members, claimed by ALEC,
legislators - who DO NOT claim ALEC.
AND they are deceiving their constituents.
These ALEC members who HIDE their ALEC affiliation are really glad to let you know in their state bios that they are affiliated with other organizations.
- They acknowledge their church – which has nothing to do with their job.
- They mention Ducks Unlimited – which has nothing to do with their legislative job..
- They mention the VFW – which has nothing to do with their legislative job.
- They mention their involvement with Girl/Boy Scouts – which has nothing to do with their legislative job..
- They mention their lifetime membership in the NRA – which should have nothing to do with their legislative job..
- They mention the rotary – which has nothing to do with their legislative job.
- They mention the chamber – which has nothing to do with their legislative job.
BUT THEY DON'T MENTION ALEC
- They don’t mention the organization that puts corporate-written legislation in their grubby little hand to introduce at the statehouse – which is related to their legislative job
- They don’t mention the organization that reaffirms their commitment to free-market philosophy, that corporations are more important than their human constituents– which is related to their legislative job
- They don’t mention the organization whose corporate members pay ALEC to ship them to meetings in order to wine and dine them at all the ALEC meetings - the same corporations who then get government of, by and for the corporations – because of their involvement with ALEC– which is related to their legislative job
ALEC philosophies/policies/legislation about "limited government, free
markets, and federalism" are political issues that MUST BE
considered when voting for a candidate.
BUT
how can you know this - if you don't know they are an ALEC member.
Every candidate running for office should be asked:
Are you now or have you every been a member of ALEC?
and
You could plagiarize THIS anti-ALEC PLEDGE from Oklahoma
and ask each candidate to sign it
- and if they say, No
- You ask, publicly, Why Not?
If you keep electing and re-electing ALEC members
you get the corporate run government
everyone keeps bitching about
It's finally time to
#VoteNo2ALEC
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