With the help of some local Republicans, a national group is trying to rally Montanans - and others - against health care reforms backed by President Barack Obama and Democrats in Congress.
Patients United Now, a group recently formed by a national foundation that champions conservative causes, is staging public rallies in Montana and running TV ads warning against "government-controlled health care" or a "Washington takeover" of health care.
The group's chief organizer in Montana is Jake Eaton, a former executive director of the Montana Republican Party.
Jake Eaton? Jake Eaton? You've got to be sh*tting me! I mean, this guy was drummed out of town for his leading role in the Montana GOP's voter suppression efforts last fall. He "chose" to go to Madison, WI, to "pursue other interests." Who knew, besides denying Montanans the right to vote, Eaton was interested in denying them health care, too!
Seriously, isn't Eaton guilty of violating several Montana statutes? Can we arrest him now he's back in the state? And isn't hiring him to run this effort a tacit acknowledgment that this is dirty politics?
Apparently Eaton's pals in "Patients United" - the group that hired this jack*ss to derail health care reform - are Tim Fox and Steve Daines. I mean, first string this is not. Dennison's description of the group:
Patients United Now was formed by the Americans for Prosperity Foundation, a Washington, D.C., group that campaigns against liberal and left-leaning causes and promotes conservative causes.
For example, the foundation has downplayed global warming, opposes the president's efforts to address global warming, and opposed the president's economic stimulus package.
Patients United is against not only single-payer health care, it's against a public option for insurance. Odd, given that all the energy in Montana recently aimed at Baucus et al has been in favor of a robust government response to the health care crisis...
Every now and then some politico inadvertently slips up and reveals his true feelings about class in America in a really telling way. Today's example is courtesy of Roy Brown, Republican candidate for Montana's gubernatorial seat:
Brown is proposing legislation to create a 12-member Montana Budget Accountability Commission, made up of business leaders and legislators, that looks at where and how state government spends its money and makes recommendations.
"If we're getting the bang for our buck, let's spend more there," Brown said. "If we're not, let's get rid of the program."
You'll notice who's conspicuously absent from Brown's commission: you!
Giving a certain class -- "business leaders" is a nice euphemism, isn't it? -- governing privileges is not cool, it's elitist and exclusionary, and (most of) this nation got over that way back in the Jackson administration.
Attention Brown & Daines, Ltd: it's not government of the business leaders, for the business leaders, and by the business leaders. We already have a "committee" that "looks at where and how state government spends its money." It's called a "legislature." And it's an "elected" body. Look it up!
Seems a little late to still be hemming and hawing about running for the two big disputed seats next election. Both Baucus and Schweitzer have been busy little bees, collecting their honey for the campaign pot, their collective opposition is one ex-state-house leader disliked by his own party.
Anybody hear rumors on who might be jumping into the ring?
There's a story today on whether Steve Daines is basically operating GiveItBack.com to advance his own electoral interest in violation of state law. Dennis Unsworth, the Commissioner of Political Practices, says probably not, since the organization is engaging in grassroots lobbying, which Unsworth says isn't mentioned by Montana law. It isn't explicitly and Unsworth appears unlikely to regard grassroots lobbying as lobbying under the relevant statutes (which means I probably never should have filed as a lobbyist this session, but I erred on the side of disclosure).
All that said, there are a couple very fair questions, since the vast bulk of GiveItBack's financing comes from Daines:
Why was a single man willing to dump what is likely several thousand dollars in his attempt to receive a thousand dollar rebate? That's economically stupid.
Was GiveItBack.com, a 501c4, used primarily to advance the interest of Steven Daines, a member? 501c4s are legally obligated to operate for the public benefit, not for member benefit. If Daines ends up jumping in the race, there's probably a fair question for the IRS in all of this. If he doesn't, the question is likely moot.
Some folks have asked me if I know any inside information here. I don't. I just currently work for a c4, understand the reality of the slow-building nature of real grassroots operations, and smell politics from a mile away.
GiveItBack.com has been a fishy operation from day one.
Daines, in a telephone interview, didn't rule out a run for office.
"I have no definite plans to get involved, I really don't," he said. "It's a long way from what I'm doing right now to entering the world of politics."
But GiveItBack.com certainly has the look of a Web site of someone running for office _ complete with family photo on the front and a biography.
By now, you may have heard about GiveItBack.com, a shadowy rightwing group with connections to Sideshow Scott Sales (ironic given that Scott Sales' own plan [Editors Note: Does Scott Sales have a plan?] doesn't meet the org's standards of rebating half the surplus to Montana residents [Editor's Note: Assuming, of course, that GiveItBack.com uses the term 'Montana Citizen' to mean 'Montana resident' -- people who are, in fact, citizens of the United States]).
The guy behind the org is a Bozemanite who works for RightNow Technologies. His entire operation is shady. Unfortunately, you wouldn't really know that from reading this story, for example.
Here are some questions I'd be asking this outfit if I was a reporter covering this, rather than simply writing a puff piece that they've got ads on the air (which is exactly what Daines was hoping for):
Where's the money coming from? TV is not cheap and money doesn't just come in in droves when you launch a website (trust me, I know). Someone's financing this. Who?
Why do the ads single out the Governor? Neither party, from what I can tell, has put forth a plan that fits the framework of the "organization" -- the Dems don't rebate enough, the GOP gives too much to non-Montana residents. Meanwhile, the tax decisions right now are really in the hands of the legislature, so why target the Governor? None of it makes any sense (Editor's Note: Unless the entire thing is a giant attempt to help Daines' buddy Scott Sales and his partners-in-crime Jon Sonju and Bob Lake get away with their shady moves to help protect tax shelters for non-residents).
Where's the Bipartisan? Steve Daines has claimed that the effort is getting support from both sides of the aisle, but he has donated exclusively to Republicans (and mostly wingnut Republicans to boot). So where's the bipartisan? Even a mediocre astroturf operation will find someone to label with a big D to show their broad support.
Where are the members? GiveItBack.com is registered as a Public Benefit Corporation with Members and says on its website that it is tax-exempt under section 501c4. Those organizations need to have members. Who are GiveItBack.com's members? How many does it have? How do you become one? What powers do members have? Who is on the board of directors? (This last piece should have to be filed with the Secretary of State, I think)
Is GiveItBack.com properly filed? So far, all they've done is launch a giant astroturf lobbying effort. According to MCA 5-7-102, lobbying is "the act of promoting or opposing official action by any public official." An organization engaging in such activity must, under 5-7-208, "file with the commissioner a report of payments made for the purpose of lobbying." Part of that report (I know, 'cause I fill 'em out) is a report of earmarked contributions for lobbying. That's a good thing, since if GiveItBack.com is getting fat checks from Grover Norquist's Americans for Tax Reform (or from some similar outfit) to run anti-Schweitzer ads, Montanans have a right to know about it. At this point, GiveItBack.com is not filed with the Commissioner of Political Practices (based on a search of that office's online reports). Now, I'm not an attorney, but my reading of that law says that paying large sums to run a massive astroturf lobbying operation means that you got to report what it is you're doing and who, if anyone, is funding it.
That's just a start, but it's a good one.
I just signed up for updates from GiveItBack.com.
By the way, David Crisp does a nice job explaining the underlying idiocy of the organization's stance. He's right, too. If this is the level of thinking at the top levels of RightNow, I won't be buying stock. Unfortunately, Crisp refers to GiveItBack.com as a "group," which it is legally, but that pretends that it has some large presence. I'd really doubt it and I'd want to see some hard numbers before I wrote it up.
