Government Gone Wild: It’s Not Just the IRS

Posted on by
Reply

I was livid last week when I learned that the Internal Revenue Service was targeting organizations based on their ideology. Having spent much of my professional life fighting and exposing government malfeasance, I realize that frequently such improprieties are only the tip of the iceberg. Unfortunately, this iceberg is of Titanic proportions.

When the IRS scandal broke, I ordered a review of our organization and the website analytics of our affiliate news project, Watchdog.org. From January 2010 to the end of April 2013, Franklin Center’s websites were visited by IRS computers 492 times, and received 128 visits from the Executive Office of the President (eop.gov). Some of these visits were to the same page on the same day. This alone is far enough out of the ordinary to warrant a raised eyebrow, but when taken in the context of other suspicious behavior by the executive branch, we can’t help but have some serious concerns.

Continue reading here…

IRS targeting: An offense to every American

Posted on by
Reply

Consider a government that uses one of its bureaus to stifle free speech – silencing its harshest critics.

What if that department literally were above the law, able to confiscate property and financial assets and sell them off?

Sounds like I’m talking about an Islamic regime or fascist dictator on the other side of the world. Sadly, I’m talking about the government of the United States.

The ongoing revelation that the Internal Revenue Service singled out organizations whose name included “tea party” or “patriot” should scare every American who values the First Amendment.

Amid the sounding of alarm bells from left to right across the entire political spectrum, every single citizen should be outraged that Uncle Sam could and would abuse power in this manner.

Continue reading here …

Candidate scrutiny at the heart of GreenTech lawsuit

Posted on by
Reply

I have to admit, I was more than a little surprised when GreenTech Automotive, the ‘green’ car manufacturing company founded by Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe, filed an $85 million lawsuit against the Franklin Center, alleging “defamation.”

Since 2009, McAuliffe has been touting the green energy car company he helped launch and chaired. The Virginia Bureau of Watchdog.org, a project of the Franklin Center, uncovered realties that challenged the company’s fundraising methods, employment and car manufacturing projections, and statements made by McAuliffe during his bid for governor that were simply not true.

McAuliffe’s and GTA’s shortcomings have awakened our colleagues in the press and captured the attention of a public hungry for the truth.

Mr. McAuliffe portrays himself to Old Dominion voters as a successful businessman and job creator. But McAuliffe’s claims that thousands of “American jobs” would be created and hundreds of thousands of cars would be assembled have not become a reality. Adding to the controversy is an array of false statements made by the veteran political operative.

When GTA opened its assembly plant in Mississippi instead of Virginia, McAuliffe claimed Virginia officials “decided they didn’t want to bid on it.” Media scrutiny revealed that GTA never responded to numerous questions raised by then-governor Tim Kaine’s (D) administration. Republican Gov. Haley Barbour of Mississippi offered GTA a multimillion-dollar incentive package and in exchange got the plant–minus the thousands of pledged jobs.

As this story unfolded, GTA disclosed on April 5 that McAuliffe resigned from GTA in December of 2012. GreenTech never issued a press release about the departure and McAuliffe continued to publicly represent himself as a carmaker, telling a National Federation of Independent Business audience in late-January, “I’m building electric cars now.”

No, he wasn’t

Continue reading here…

The Dirty Little Secret About ‘Clean’ Energy

Posted on by
Reply

Today, you’ll be reading a lot about the future green energy and the dangers of ‘evil’ fossil fuels. Environmentalists are enthralled by the idea of renewable technologies – especially solar – as a cure-all for our nation’s energy needs.

Although harvesting energy from the sun is a noble idea, solar technology is costly, inefficient, unreliable, and shockingly dirty. The more we learn about solar panels, the more we should appreciate the reliable energy sources that we already have.

Proponents of solar panels say they’re a clean source of power with minimal environmental impact, but that couldn’t be further than the truth. The rare earth metals used to build solar panels are mined through a chemical process that releases a multitude of toxins into the environment. A concentrated mix of chemicals is pumped into ground to push out rare earth metals, heavily polluting water supplies and the air near mining sites. It’s no wonder the U.S. hasn’t pursued these resources, despite large deposits located domestically.

Continue reading here…

North Dakota: Where ‘indie’ means media hacks only

Posted on by
Reply

According to Merriam-Webster (the dictionary folks) the word “independent” means “not subject to control by others” and “not affiliated with a larger controlling unit.” So when the North Dakota Free Press sponsored an “independent media convention” described as a gathering of “fair, impartial, and independent news media,” logic would dictate that all journalists and points of view would be welcomed.

Not so fast.

Continue reading here…

Organizing for Action: Obama’s broken transparency promises

Posted on by
Reply
President Barack Obama campaigned on a new era of government transparency and crusaded against deep-pocketed special interests, so it’s highly disappointing to see him now blatantly sell access to the White House. The conversion of his campaign into a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization mocks the very campaign finance laws the president argued needed to be strengthened in the first place.

Organizing for Action, which is raising millions of dollars to support the president’s legislative agenda, is walking the finest of lines between a “social welfare” organization and a full-fledged political campaign. The organization is being led by Mr. Obama’s inner circle of political loyalists and has access to contact information for more than 15 million supporters. Additionally, Organizing for Action also inherited the advanced technology and grassroots infrastructure from the Obama campaign.

The sad state of journalism in America

Posted on by
Reply

Nearly forty years ago, America had great respect for journalists and their profession. High school students romanticized about going to college – Journalism school – becoming reporters and ultimately the next Bob Woodward or Carl Bernstein. But today’s press corps has dismissed the achievements of Woodward and Bernstein when they broke the biggest story of the century – ultimately resulting in the resignation of a United States president. Instead of serving the public trust, many of today’s journalists have become the voices and defenders of those they are supposed to scrutinize.

Fast-forward five decades and we find Bob Woodward still at the top of his game. He may not be meeting with CIA operatives in Washington D.C. parking garages, but he has made the contacts and established the relationships to be granted access to people that younger, inexperienced journalists only dream of. Unfortunately for Woodward and the journalism profession, his attainment of these benchmarks of professionalism makes him enemy #1 – not just of the Obama administration, but of journalism colleagues more interested in protecting an agenda than finding the truth.

Continue reading here…

Create Jobs Through Economic Stability, Not Expanding the Safety Net

Posted on by
Reply

originally posted on Feb 22, 2013 in Real Clear Politics

On Tuesday, President Barack Obama warned of damaging job losses if Congress doesn’t act to prevent the sequester.

“These cuts are not smart, they are not fair, they will add hundreds of thousands of people to the unemployment rolls,” Obama said. “This is not an abstraction. People will lose their jobs. The unemployment rate might tick up again.”

But the president’s rhetoric has not translated into results. Obama has failed to put forth his own budget this year, missing the legal deadline to do so for the fourth time in five years. Last year, Obama’s budget received zero votes in the Senate. If the president is really serious about saving jobs, he should start by establishing a clear allocation of resources, rather than relying on Congress to pass piecemeal legislation to keep the government running.

continue reading…

Government and public officials are afraid of Franklin Center – very afraid

Posted on by
Reply

Special message from Jason Stverak

Just a few years, ago government and public officials were conducting the people’s business without fear of a free press watching their every move. Today, the legacy media remains mute – incapable and unwilling to serve the public trust. While they remain on the sidelines – often doing the government’s bidding instead of the people’s – Franklin Center journalists have taken the field – and government and public officials are afraid – very afraid.

I am proud to say that when a government or public entity receives a request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) from a Franklin Center reporter – their initial reaction is one of fear. The days of state and local government officials operating unchecked have become a distant memory.

Today, Franklin Center reporters across the country – from California to New Jersey – are keeping state and local government accountable to the people.

continue reading …