Action Archive

The Big Con Exposed

Isaiah J. Poole — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 14:54:32 -0500

The Failure of Conservatism Conference
More than 100 activists participated in an all-day conference at the National Press Club in Washington to discuss how conservatism has been a failure for families, the nation’s economy and our standing in the world. Panelists also began a dialogue on a new progressive vision for the future. We have transcripts and video from the conference, which was co-sponsored by The American Prospect. We also have an archive of blog posts and other content related to the conference.

Thousands Say No to Toxic Toys

Robert Borosage — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 03:00:00 -0500

The Campaign for America's Future on Tuesday delivered 85 pages of signatures from people across the country demanding the resignation of the acting chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, Nancy Nord. A letter to Nord from America's Future co-director Robert L. Borosage accompanying the petitions said, "We hope you will do what's best for the safety of American families, acknowledge your failures and honorably step aside."

Also, our video highlighting the dangers of toxic trade—featuring a Barbie with "symptoms" from a one-night stand with Ken—has been featured by Fox News Channel, ABC News, The Washington Post and the Associated Press.

First 100 Hours

Robert Borosage — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 17:38:13 -0500

In January 2007, we successfully called upon the new House of Representatives to serve the public interest and not the special interest — to raise the minimum wage, cut student loan rates, empower Medicare to negotiate for lower prices and redirect Big Oil subsidies into renewable energy.

Through multiple letter-writing campaigns, more than 15,000 emails were sent to members of the House. And they got the message, passing every item in House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi's "First 100 Hours" package.

The Real State of the Union

Robert Borosage — Mon, 01 Jan 2007 17:31:13 -0500

President Bush's 2007 State of the Union address was, true to form, divorced from reality. We made sure the public knew the real State of the Union. We We published "State of the Union -- By The Numbers" (below), and encouraged our supporters to write letters to the editor, so America would know the facts. We also developed an online video, "State of Delusion."

In his 2007 State of the Union address, President Bush will hail the state of the union as "strong," pointing to the growing economy, new jobs, and record home ownership. But for Americans worrying about how to make ends meet around their kitchen tables at night, the country is headed in the wrong direction.

Just look at the numbers, and how Bush's rhetoric has failed to match reality throughout his presidency...

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Education
Bush's Rhetoric	The Reality
2005 State of the Union: We'll make it easier for Americans to afford a college education, by increasing the size of Pell Grants. 2004 State of the Union: I propose larger Pell grants for students who prepare for college with demanding courses in high school.	Average cost of a public four-year college in 2000, annual: $9,958 Average cost of a public four-year college in 2006, annual: $12,796 ¹ Maximum Pell grant in 2001 school year: $3,750 ^1a Maximum Pell grant in 2006 school year (inflation adjusted): $3,558 ^1b
Healthcare
Bush's Rhetoric	The Reality
2007 State of the Union: A future of hope and opportunity requires that all our citizens have affordable and available health care. 2006 State of the Union: Keeping America competitive requires affordable health care. Our government has a responsibility to provide health care for the poor and the elderly, and we are meeting that responsibility. For all Americans, we must confront the rising cost of care, strengthen the doctor-patient relationship, and help people afford the insurance coverage they need. 2005 State of the Union: we must make health care more affordable, and give families greater access to good coverage 2004 State of the Union: To make insurance more affordable, Congress must act to address rapidly rising health care costs. 2003 State of the Union: Our second goal is high quality, affordable health care for all Americans. 2001 State of the Union: Many working Americans do not have health care coverage, so we will help them buy their own insurance with refundable tax credits.	Americans without health insurance, 2000: 38.2 million ² Americans without health insurance, 2005: 46.6 million ³ Average monthly worker contribution for family coverage, 2000: $135 Average monthly worker contribution for family coverage, 2006: $248 ⁴ Percentage of annual bankruptcies due to medical bills: 55% ⁵
Energy
Bush's Rhetoric	The Reality
2007 State of the Union: Extending hope and opportunity depends on a stable supply of energy that keeps America's economy running and America's environment clean. For too long our nation has been dependent on foreign oil. 2006 State of the Union: Keeping America competitive requires affordable energy. And here we have a serious problem: America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable parts of the world. The best way to break this addiction is through technology. 2005 State of the Union: To keep our economy growing, we also need reliable supplies of affordable, environmentally responsible energy 2004 State of the Union: Consumers and businesses need reliable supplies of energy to make our economy run -- so I urge you to pass legislation to modernize our electricity system, promote conservation, and make America less dependent on foreign sources of energy. 2003 State of the Union: Our third goal is to promote energy independence for our country, while dramatically improving the environment 2002 State of the Union: Good jobs also depend on reliable and affordable energy. This Congress must act to encourage conservation, promote technology, build infrastructure, and it must act to increase energy production at home so America is less dependent on foreign oil. 2001 State of the Union: We can promote alternative energy sources and conservation, and we must. America must become more energy-independent, and we will.	Average price of home heating oil on January 3, 2000: $1.15/gallon Average price of home heating oil on January 1, 2007: $2.42/gallon ⁶ Increase in average price since January 2000, percent: 110% Average price of a gallon of gasoline on January 3, 2000: $1.31 Average price of a gallon of gasoline on January 1, 2007: $2.38 ⁷ Increase in the average price since January 2000, percentage: 82% ExxonMobil profits in 2000: $7.9 billion ⁸ ExxonMobil profits in 2006: $36.1 billion ⁹ ExxonMobil's profit during the second quarter of 2006, per second: $1,318 ¹⁰ America's Annual Consumption of Gasoline (million of barrels per day) 2000: 8.472 ^10a America's Annual Consumption of Gasoline (million of barrels per day) 2005: 9.125 ^10b
Stagnant Incomes
The Reality
Median household income in 2000: $47,599 Median household income in 2005: $46,326 ¹¹ Decrease from 2000-2005: $1,273 Salary full-time minimum wage employee without vacation, 2006: $10,712 Average time for top CEOs to earn that sum, hours: 2.06 ¹² Federal minimum wage in 2000: $5.15/hr Federal minimum wage in 2006: $5.15/hr Loss in purchasing power, full time worker annually: $1,562
Retirement Insecurity
The Reality
Workers without defined-benefit retirement plan at work, private sector 2006, percentage: 80% ¹⁶ Baby boom Americans approaching retirement: 76 million ¹⁷
Iraq War Fiasco
Bush's Rhetoric	The Reality
2006 State of the Union: Fellow citizens, we are in this fight to win, and we are winning. 2006 State of the Union: As we make progress on the ground, and Iraqi forces increasingly take the lead, we should be able to further decrease our troop levels -- but those decisions will be made by our military commanders, not by politicians in Washington, D.C. 2005 State of the Union: As those [Iraqi] forces become more self-reliant and take on greater security responsibilities, America and its coalition partners will increasingly be in a supporting role. 2004 State of the Union: Month by month, Iraqis are assuming more responsibility for their own security and their own future. 2004 State of the Union: Already, the Kay Report identified dozens of weapons of mass destruction-related program activities and significant amounts of equipment that Iraq concealed from the United Nations 2003 State of the Union: The British government has learned that Saddam 2003 State of the Union: [Saddam Hussein] clearly has much to hide. 2003 State of the Union: Saddam Hussein has gone to elaborate lengths, spent enormous sums, taken great risks to build and keep weapons of mass destruction.	Number of US troops killed in Iraq prior to "Mission Accomplished" speech in 2003: 139 Number of US troops killed in Iraq as of January 22, 2007: 3,056 ¹⁸ Number of Iraqi civilians killed in 2006, according to the United Nations: 34,452 ¹⁹ Number of US troops wounded in Iraq prior to "Mission Accomplished" speech in 2003: 542 Number of US troops wounded in Iraq as of January 10, 2007: 22,834 ²⁰ Total US military expenditures (including Iraq/Afghanistan) in 2006: $522 billion (Includes China, Russia, the UK, Japan, France, Germany, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Italy, and Australia) ²¹ US Federal Discretionary Budget spent on Military not including Iraq, in 2006, percentage: 48.7% Amount spent on Education, percentage: 6.7% ²²
Debts and Deficits Climbing
The Reality
US Trade Deficit, October 2000, monthly: $33.8 billion US Trade Deficit in October 2006, monthly: $58.9 billion ²³ US Current Account Deficit, FY 2000: $435.4 billion ²⁴ US Current Account Deficit, FY 2006: $900 billion ²⁵ Loss of value of U.S. dollar relative to the Euro, January 24, 2000-January 23, 2006, percentage: 23% US Budget Deficit in FY 2000: $236 billion surplus ²⁶ US Budget Deficit in FY 2006: $423 billion deficit ²⁷ US National Debt in FY 2000: $5.7 trillion US National Debt in FY 2006: $8.5 trillion ²⁸ National Debt Increase 2000-2006: $2.8 trillion
Household Debt Surpasses Savings
The Reality
Personal savings, November 2000: $56.2 billion ²⁹ Personal savings, November 2006: $95.0 billion ³⁰

¹ Costs include tuition, fees, room & board. MSN Money 2000/Associated Press. "The Real Cost of College: Going Down?" January 14, 2005. College Board. Trends in College Pricing 2007.
^1a US Department of Education. "FY 2003 Budget Summary." February 4, 2002.
^1b Constant Dollars as taken from College Board. "Total Pell Grant Funding Declines for First Time in Six Years." October 24, 2006.
² US Census Bureau.
³ US Census Bureau.
⁴ The Kaiser Family Foundation. "Employer Health Benefits 2006 Annual Survey." September 26, 2006.
⁵ Health Affairs Health Policy Journal. "Marketwatch: Illness and Injury Contributors to Bankruptcy." February 2, 2005.
⁶ United States Energy Information Administration. "U.S. Weekly No. 2 Heating Oil Residential Prices-cents per gallon." January 4, 2007.
⁷ United States Energy Information Administration. "U.S. All Grades All Formulations Retail Gasoline Prices-cents per gallon." January 5, 2007.
⁸CNN Money.
⁹ CNN Money.
¹⁰ CNN.com "ExxonMobil makes more than $10 billion." July 27, 2006.
^10a US Energy Information Administration. Annual Energy Review 2005. July 27, 2006
^10b US Energy Information Administration. Annual Energy Review 2005. July 27, 2006
¹¹ Constant Dollars. US Census Bureau, Table H-8. Median Household Income by State: 1984 to 2005
¹² Forbes Magazine. "What the Boss Makes." April 20, 2006
¹³ The White House. "President Bush Discusses Global Climate Change." June 11, 2001.
¹⁴ New York Times, Blinding Ourselves in Space, January 21, 2006.
¹⁵ National Climate Data Center. US Department of Commerce. "Climate of 2006 ? In Historical Perspective." January 9, 2007.
¹⁶ Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Compensation Survey: Employee Benefits in Private Industry in the United States, March 2006.
¹⁷ The Seattle Times. Retirement of baby boomers may reverberate in workplace. January 22, 2005.
¹⁸ iCasualties.org. "Iraq Coalition Casualty Count." January 17, 2007.
¹⁹ UN Assistance Mission for Iraq. "Human Rights Report." January 16, 2006.
²⁰ iCasualties.org. "Iraq Coalition Casualty Count." January 17, 2007.
²¹ sCenter for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. "US Spending vs. the World." February 16, 2006. (*latest available data for China and Russia are for FY 2004)
²² White House Office of Management and Budget. "Table S?3. Growth in Discretionary Budget Authority by Major Agency." February 6, 2006.
²³ U.S. Census Bureau Foreign Trade Statistics. "Trade Deficit Decreases in November, 2006." January 10, 2007.
²⁴ Economic Policy Institute. "Economic Snapshots." March 14, 2001.
²⁵ Economic Policy Institute. "Current Account Picture." March 14, 2006.
²⁶ White House Office of Management and Budget. Historical Tables
²⁷ White House Office of Management and Budget. "Table S-1. Budget Totals."
²⁸ Bureau of the Public Debt. "The Debt to the Penny." January 16, 2007.
²⁹ Bureau of Economic Analysis. "Personal Income and Outlays." December 22, 2000.
³⁰ Bureau of Economic Analysis. "Personal Income and Outlays." December 22, 2006.

Hard-Hitting Campaigns You Made Possible

tjackson — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 17:42:56 -0500

From September to November 2006, we exposed some of Washington's worst pay-to-play politicians. Through TV and print ads, online videos, direct mail and phone calls, we informed more than one million voters about how their representatives were responsible for Iraq war profiteering, the Part D drug disaster, and outsourcing American jobs.

Here are those tough campaigns that we ran from September- November 2006 to expose some of Washington's worst pay-to-play politicians.

Internet Video Ads

Campaign for America's Future supporters contributed their time, money and personal stories to air this series of video ads exposing the politicians responsible for Iraq war profiteering, the Part D drug disaster, and outsourcing American jobs.

Stop War
Profiteering Now!

Senators exposed in this ad:

Lower Our Drug
Costs!

Senators exposed in this ad:

Stop American
Job Losses!

Reps. exposed in this ad:

The Results:

The ads were pushed to more than 1.6 million of these lawmakers' own constituents through Google and other targeted online publicity.
More than 10,000+ people watched the video ads in YouTube.

Print Ads

We also launched tough print ads and websites to expose lawmakers who sold out seniors by voting for the Part D drug disaster and donut hole.

Protect Seniors,
Not Drug Companies

Lawmakers exposed in this ad: Reps. Rob Simmons (CT), Charles Taylor (NC), Deborah Pryce (OH), Don Sherwood (PA), Curt Weldon (PA) and Heather Wilson (NM), and Sen. Mike DeWine (OH).

The Results:

These print ads were published in the lawmakers' home district newspapers, which had a combined readership of 1.4 million.

Mail & TV Ads

We targeted direct mail to the constituents of Reps. Don Sherwood (PA) and Deborah Pryce (OH) to expose their special interest ties and sell-out votes. The mailings arrived simultaneously with the launch of TV ads that reinforced the same message -- aired by our allies at Campaign Money Watch.

Direct Mail

Don Sherwood Got His

Big Oil and Deborah Pryce

The Results:

Nearly 50,000 households received our hard-hitting mail pieces.
The complementary TV ads were aired for hundreds of thousands viewers.

Phone Calls

We placed tens of thousands of phone calls to the constituents of Rep.'s Deborah Pryce and Don Sherwood to expose these Rep's sell-out votes on energy and prescription drugs.

The Results:

Phone calls were made to nearly 50,000 of Rep. Pryce and Sherwood's constituents.

No Donut Hole

Roger Hickey — Sun, 01 Oct 2006 18:47:45 -0400

In 2006, we galvanized the grassroots to fill the "Donut Hole" – the gap in Medicare's Part D prescription drug coverage that costing seniors in dollars and lives. We delivered a petition with about 10,000 signatures to the White House and Congress, demanding they enact legislation to eliminate the Donut Hole, as well as empower Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices. And we conducted the No Donut Hole video contest, with creative depictions of the Part D dangers generating more than 30,000 views. Check out the winning videos below. (More information about the donut hole and Part D).

Petition to President Bush and Donut Hole Supporters in Congress

This campaign expired in November 2006. Below is the petition for which we generated about 10,000 signatures.

No Donut Hole!

Dear President Bush and Donut Hole Supporters in Congress,

No American should have to sacrifice his or her life-saving prescription medications because they can't afford them. It is also unconscionable that Medicare is actually prohibited from negotiating for lower drug prices for Americans—merely to line the pockets of big pharmaceutical and insurance companies.

That's why I ask you to support the Medicare Prescription Drug Savings and Choice Act (HR-752/S-345). This bill would eliminate Part D's dangerous "donut hole" which, in turn, would protect each enrollee from thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket prescription expenses—expenses that are unaffordable to many. It would also require Medicare to use its bulk-buying power to negotiate for lower drug prices.

Consider this,

According to a June, 2006 article in the New England Journal of Medicine, seniors hit with a coverage gap like the Part D donut hole are 22% more likely to die than seniors who aren't forced to pay thousands in out-of-pocket expenses.

Allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices would save enough money to eliminate the donut hole entirely with no extra cost to taxpayers.

Passing the Medicare Prescription Drug Savings and Choice Act would help millions of Americans who have worked hard their entire lives and deserve to retire with security and dignity. Please do the right thing and support this legislation today.

Sincerely,
Your name

No "Donut Hole" Video Contest Winner!

Below is our video contest winner and other crowd favorites. Thanks to all contestants for presenting such creative ways to get rid of "donut holes," and helping to promote this campaign.

Contest Winner

"So I Married a Donut Hole Murderer"
(by Lasita9)

Other Community Favorites

"No Donut Hole Medicare!"
(by murphytime)

"MAGIC! Making the Donut Hole Disappear
(by IrnBru001)

More donut hole videos »

No "Donut Hole" Video Contest Rules

To be eligible for the $500 prize, contestants must:
- publish their video(s) on YouTube per our How to Share a Video guidelines.
- publish their video(s) before the contest deadline: 5pm EST, Friday, September 29, (Extended Deadline).
- visibly display our campaign URL—www.nodonuthole.com—during at least some portion of their video(s)
- identify their video(s) in YouTube with the following tags: nodonuthole medicare donut
The contestant who submits the "community favorite" video will win $500.

The "community favorite" video will be determined by calculating a score for the video as follows: Score = Total # of Views * Overall Community Rating. For example, a video with 1,000 views and an overall community rating of 3.5 stars, will score 3,500.

Final scores will be calculated at the contest deadline—5pm EST, Friday, September 29—and the winner will be announced later that week.

The Campaign for America's Future reserves the right to disqualify any contestant whose video content it deems a) offensive, or b) undermines opposition to the Part D "donut hole".

Staff and family members of the Campaign for America's Future and Americans United are not eligible to win the contest prize.

How to Share a Video

Record Your Video: Use any video recording device (like a digital camera, cell phone camera, etc.) to record your suggested way to get rid of "donut holes". Check out our sample videos for ideas.
IMPORTANT: Be sure to visibly display our campaign web address – 'www.nodonuthole.com' – for at least some part of your video. For example, simply print or write out 'www.nodonuthole.com' and hold it in front of the camera.
Download Your Video: Connect your video recording device to an internet-connected computer- using the cables that came with your video recorder. Download the video to your computer.

Login to YouTube: Go to http://www.youtube.com/my_videos_upload. Log into YouTube, or follow the easy instructions to create a new account.

Upload Your Video (1 of 2): When prompted, enter a title, short description, category and tag for your video.
IMPORTANT: Be sure to add the tags "nodonuthole medicare donut", for your video where prompted to add tags,and check the "News & Blogs" category. This will let us find your video for the contest drawing.
Upload Your Video (2 of 2): Click "Browse" to locate the video that you downloaded to your computer in Step 2. Select your video with a single mouse click, and click "Open" to choose that video for uploading. Finally, click "Upload Video" at the bottom of the page, and your done!

Defend Progressive Champion Jim McDermott

tjackson — Mon, 01 May 2006 18:04:05 -0400

As part of our continuing work to confront congressional corruption, Campaign for America’s Future supporters in 2006 raised over $10,000 for the Legal Expense Trust of progressive champion, Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash.

House Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, attacked McDermott as a payback for successfully exposing and punishing Republican corruption. Why the attack? McDermott had alerted the press about a tape-recorded discussion between Republican leaders — including Boehner and former Republican House leader Newt Gingrich — where they planned a direct violation of an ethics agreement. Boehner was recruited to sue Rep. McDermott in civil court for invading his "privacy."

By supporting McDermott, Campaign for America’s Future supporters helped challenge an ominous legal precedent that threatened to impede the flow of information on Congressional corruption to the press.

Reverse the Raid On Student Aid

Robert Borosage — Mon, 01 May 2006 13:23:46 -0400

In April 2006, we launched a petition drive to pressure House Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, to endorse the Reverse the Raid on Student Aid Act of 2006. This bill, introduced by Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. and Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., would slash interest rates in half on college loans and, in so doing, save the typical student borrower $5,600. Over 15,000 people petitioned Boehner to slash interest rates on college loans in half and increase student grant aid.

On May 3rd, dozens of college graduates and parents organized by the Campaign for America's Future marched through the halls of Congress in graduation caps and gowns to present the petition and urge lawmakers to Reverse the Raid on Student Aid. Marchers stormed Boehner's office to present the petition and press Boehner's staff to defend the representative's recent anti-student votes.

You can see more photos from this event here.
You can see video coverage of this event here.

Exposing the Abramoff-DeLay Connection

Robert Borosage — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 10:05:15 -0500

Just after special-interest lobbyist Jack Abramoff plead guilty to federal charges including conspiracy and fraud, we created a powerful TV ad that exposed the connections between Abramoff and Tom DeLay. Shaken by the ad, DeLay resorted to bullying TV stations who planned to air the spot -- threatening to sue any station that aired it on the grounds that it cast him in a "false light."

We followed with a letter-writing campaign to the stations urging them not to cave to DeLay's bullying, and sharing the facts that showed the ad was accurate. Our case was bolstered when Factcheck.org -- a nonpartisan website affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania -- confirmed that the ad "contains nothing that is strictly false," and pointed out that DeLay's lawyer "mischaracterized" what the ad said.

Within days, we produced a new spot that challenged DeLay’s false claim that our original ad was inaccurate and highlighted the same facts as the original. It was introduced as "the ad Tom DeLay doesn't want you to see."

The ads were played on MSNBC’s Hardball with Chris Matthews and Countdown with Keith Olbermann, mentioned in scores of newspapers across America, from the New York Times to the Houston Chronicle to the Los Angeles Times and received coverage by the biggest blogs in the business including Daily Kos and Talking Points Memo.

Tom DeLay TV Ads

(Aired in Houston)

Click to Play

(Too Hot for TV)

Click to Play

New DeLay TV Ad Script With Documentation

TV AD SCRIPT & SOURCES
(ad script in bold)

Here’s the ad Tom DeLay does not want you to see.

Letter sent to Houston area television stations by McGahn & Associates, on behalf of Tom DeLay, on January 10, 2006 -- a day before the original media buy was scheduled to begin. In the letter, Donald McGahn, Tom DeLay’s attorney, demands “that you [the television station] refuse or otherwise cease airing the advertisement”.

And what does Tom DeLay not want you to know?

That he received tens of thousands in campaign contributions from indicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his associates.

As an individual, Jack Abramoff contributed $26,000 between 2000 and 2004, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

In addition, the Associated Press documented that between Jack Abramoff, his lobbying associates and his tribal clients, Abramoff steered at least $57,000 in political contributions to DeLay.

“Abramoff’s travels with former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay are already under criminal investigation. The lobbyist’s interactions with the Texas Republican’s congressional office frequently came around the time of campaign donations, golf outings or other trips provided or arranged by Abramoff for DeLay and other lawmakers. In all, DeLay received at least $57,000 in political contributions from Abramoff, his lobbying associates or his tribal clients between 2001 and 2004.”

Source: Associated Press, 01/03/06

That he took trips all over the world at his donors’ expense.

According to the Associated Press from January 1, 2006, Tom DeLay traveled extensively at the expense of his political contributors (See: Appendix C, p. 7-10).

“He visited cliff-top Caribbean resorts, golf courses designed by PGA champions and four-star restaurants—all courtesy of donors who bankrolled his political money empire.”

Source: Associated Press, 12/20/05.

The article lays out the extent of his travels:

“Public documents reviewed by The Associated Press tell the story: at least 48 visits to golf clubs and resorts with lush fairways; 100 flights aboard company planes; 200 stays at hotels, many world-class; and 500 meals at restaurants, some averaging nearly $200 for a dinner for two.”

Source: Associated Press, 12/20/05.

One such trip the article details is an excursion to Puerto Rico:

“A life to enjoy. The excuse to escape," Palmas del Mar, an oceanside Puerto Rican resort visited by DeLay, promised in a summer ad on its Web site as a golf ball bounced into a hole and an image of a sunset appeared. The Caribbean vacation spot has casino gambling, horseback riding, snorkeling, deep-sea fishing and private beaches.”
Source: Associated Press, 12/20/05.

That a group related to DeLay…

A Washington Post article, “The DeLay-Abramoff Money Trail”, from December lays out in detail the relationship between DeLay, an organization related to DeLay, the U.S. Family Network, Abramoff, and Russian executives who worked with DeLay. (See: Appendix D, p. 11-17).

“ The U.S. Family Network, a public advocacy group that operated in the 1990s with close ties to Rep. Tom DeLay and claimed to be a nationwide grass-roots organization, was funded almost entirely by corporations linked to embattled lobbyist Jack Abramoff, according to tax records and former associates of the group.”
Source: Washington Post, December 31, 2005.

...received $1 million dollars from Russian tycoons to allegedly influence his vote.

The same article goes on to describe the $1 million dollar contribution:

“ The former president of the U.S. Family Network said Buckham told him that Russians contributed $1 million to the group in 1998 specifically to influence DeLay's vote on legislation the International Monetary Fund needed to finance a bailout of the collapsing Russian economy.”

Source: Washington Post, December 31, 2005
.

That’s what Tom DeLay doesn't want you to know. Is there more?

It’s time for DeLay to resign.

Introducing the Next Tom DeLay

tjackson — Sun, 01 Jan 2006 14:00:51 -0500

As the race to replace Tom DeLay as House majority leader heated up, we created "mock campaign ad" for Reps. John Boehner, R-Ohio, Roy Blunt, R-Mis., and John Shadegg, R-Ariz. Using web advertising and our supporters' spreading the word, these ads exposed the fact that the three men vying for Majority Leader are cut from the same corrupt cloth as Tom DeLay.

Action Archive

The Big Con Exposed

Thousands Say No to Toxic Toys

First 100 Hours

The Real State of the Union

Hard-Hitting Campaigns You Made Possible

Stop War Profiteering Now!

Lower Our Drug Costs!

Stop American Job Losses!

The Results:

Protect Seniors, Not Drug Companies

The Results:

Direct Mail

Don Sherwood Got His

Big Oil and Deborah Pryce

The Results:

The Results:

No Donut Hole

Petition to President Bush and Donut Hole Supporters in Congress

No Donut Hole!

Contest Winner

Other Community Favorites

Defend Progressive Champion Jim McDermott

Reverse the Raid On Student Aid

Exposing the Abramoff-DeLay Connection

Tom DeLay TV Ads

New DeLay TV Ad Script With Documentation

Introducing the Next Tom DeLay

Stop War
Profiteering Now!

Lower Our Drug
Costs!

Stop American
Job Losses!

Protect Seniors,
Not Drug Companies