Politics

The Latest Effort to Fix Election Results: Rig the Electoral College

Despite Wisconsin residents overwhelmingly voting for Democrats in the 2012 elections -- sending progressive powerhouse Tammy Baldwin to the U.S. Senate and reelecting President Barack Obama by 6.8 points -- five of the state's eight newly-drawn congressional districts voted out of sync with the majority of Wisconsinites and went for GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney. This is largely because the GOP reworked congressional maps to their party's benefit during the redistricting process that followed the 2010 census and elections. Now, Republicans in Wisconsin are discussing plans to allocate the state's electoral college votes according to these new Congressional districts, giving the GOP a chance for victory in a state that has elected Democrats in each of the past seven Presidential elections.

Read more about The Latest Effort to Fix Election Results: Rig the Electoral College

The NRA's Deadly Spin: "Arm the Good Guys"

When George Zimmerman shot and killed unarmed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in February, Zimmerman -- who considered himself a neighborhood watchman -- almost certainly thought of himself as a "good guy."

In November, 45-year-old Michael David Dunn likely thought he was playing the role of the "good guy" when he confronted a vanload of teenagers for playing their music too loud, then fired nine shots into their vehicle after claiming he saw a shotgun barrel. 17-year-old Jordan Russell Davis was killed, and neither Jordan nor anyone else in the van had a gun.

Read more about The NRA's Deadly Spin: "Arm the Good Guys"

Gov. Walker Trusts Teachers with Guns, But Not With Collective Bargaining

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, who became nationally known for severely limiting the union rights of teachers and other public employees, has indicated support for arming those same school officials who apparently cannot be trusted to collectively bargain.

Read more about Gov. Walker Trusts Teachers with Guns, But Not With Collective Bargaining

To Turn the Tide Against the NRA, Leadership Needed at the Top

You know you are not going to be seeing the brightest bulbs on TV defending America's loose gun laws the weekend after the mass slaughter of children. Even the NRA had gone dark, taking down its Facebook and Twitter accounts and refusing to respond to reporters.

Read more about To Turn the Tide Against the NRA, Leadership Needed at the Top

Rep. Tim Scott, an ALEC Alum, Nominated to U.S. Senate

Representative Tim Scott (R-SC), who was a member of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) as a state legislator and was voted into Congress in the Tea Party wave of 2010, has been nominated to replace Jim DeMint in the U.S. Senate.

"I was a member of ALEC," Rep. Scott told the right-wing Washington Times earlier this year.

Read more about Rep. Tim Scott, an ALEC Alum, Nominated to U.S. Senate

Backgrounder: the History of the NRA/ALEC Gun Agenda

"We've endured too many of these tragedies in the past few years," President Obama said in response to horrifying shooting massacre of 20 little children and six of their educators in Connecticut.

Read more about Backgrounder: the History of the NRA/ALEC Gun Agenda

Running Scared: ALEC Anticipating an IRS Audit?

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) appears to be anticipating an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) audit, after multiple complaints challenging the "corporate bill mill's" charitable status, based on documents recently obtained by Bloomberg News.

Read more about Running Scared: ALEC Anticipating an IRS Audit?

At ALEC Meeting, Indiana Regulator Advises Coal Companies on Delaying EPA Climate Rules

-- by Connor Gibson, Greenpeace

You're probably familiar with the old "fox in the hen house" story, but what about when a hen joins the fox den?

This is the case with the recent American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) meeting in Washington, DC. Leaked documents obtained by Greenpeace reveal that ALEC's anti-environmental jamboree was inundated with coal money and featured an Indiana regulator advising coal utilities on delaying US Environmental Protection Agency rules to control greenhouse gas emissions and hazardous air pollution.

Read more about At ALEC Meeting, Indiana Regulator Advises Coal Companies on Delaying EPA Climate Rules

From Capitol Hill, Rep. Hank Johnson Highlights ALEC Connection to MI Right to Work Law

U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA) took to the floor of the House of Representatives Wednesday night to criticize the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) for pushing "Right to Work" in Michigan, describing it as politically motivated "crush-the-union legislation" and noting the identical language between the ALEC model and Michigan's law.

Read more about From Capitol Hill, Rep. Hank Johnson Highlights ALEC Connection to MI Right to Work Law

Michigan Passes "Right to Work" Containing Verbatim Language from ALEC Model Bill

Amidst massive pro-labor protests, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has signed sweeping legislation attacking private and public sector unions, just hours after passing the lame-duck legislature. The operative language in the bills is nearly identical to the American Legislative Exchange Council's "model" Right to Work Act.

Read more about Michigan Passes "Right to Work" Containing Verbatim Language from ALEC Model Bill

Menu