This Week at CMD

MAGA Makes Its Move to Capture House Speaker Position

This week, we reported on how a key Trump ally who worked to overturn the 2020 election results and has deep ties to a dark-money MAGA group is still in the running for the next speaker of the House, a position third in line for the presidency. Now that Scalise has dropped out, the leadership fight remains up in the air and the House in chaos. You can read the full article here.

Criminalizing Protest

Also this week, David Armiak, CMD’s research director, was quoted in an article in The Guardian highlighting the special interests behind the anti-protest bills that seek to increase the threat of criminal prosecution for protests and chill free speech.

New legislation that criminalizes protest is “part of a last-ditch, industry-backed effort to protect its profit model in the face of public demands to turn to renewables and divest from fossil fuels as the climate emergency intensifies,” David told The Guardian.

“It is likely not a coincidence that Policy Exchange and ALEC have both been members of the Atlas Network, a global network of rightwing non-profits successfully pushing an anti-regulation, pro-corporate policy agenda worldwide that is fuelled with cash from Charles Koch, Exxon and dark money conduits.”

CMD has been covering the criminalization of protest since 2016, and in 2022 launched an anti-protest lobby tracker in collaboration with researcher Connor Gibson.

Read the full article over at The Guardian and be sure to check out some of CMD’s coverage of this issue:

“Documents Show How a Pipeline Company Paid Minnesota Millions to Police Protests” (2/9/2023)
“Using Unions to Carry Big Oil’s Water: How the Fossil Fuel Industry and ALEC Criminalized Climate Action in Wisconsin” (5/2021)
“Wisconsin Governor Evers Signs ALEC-Inspired Bill to Criminalize Protest” (11/22/2019)
“State Bills to Criminalize Peaceful Protest of Oil & Gas ‘Critical Infrastructure’” (3/15/2019)
“ALEC Task Forces Gather in Grand Rapids to Draft Bills for Its Corporate Sponsors” (4/24/2018)

ICYMI: CMD’s Research

In case you’ve missed it, here’s what we’ve been working on.

Revealed: ALEC's Policy Day Agenda

This week, we acquired and published the agenda for ALEC’s 50th Anniversary Policy Day on Capitol Hill. The event, which preceded ALEC’s 50th Anniversary Gala at the National Portrait Gallery later that evening, had not previously been made public.

The program featured sessions on “How States are Responding to ESG,” “How States are Leading on Educational Freedom,” and a luncheon panel on “the State Tax Cut Revolution.” CMD reported this summer on the recent push by ALEC and other Koch-backed groups to adopt flat tax legislation that saves the wealthy — and corporations like Koch Industries — billions.

You can see more of our coverage on ALEC’s 50th Anniversary — and the progressive groups shining a light on ALEC’s #50YearsofHarm — here.

CMD in the News

Our research has recently been cited by or featured in the following publications:

The Guardian: How Criminalisation is Being Used to Silence Climate Activists Across the World
Inequality.org: Private Yachts As Long As Football Fields
Law and Disorder Podcast: Right Wing Billionaires Want New US Constitution

That’s all for this week. Thank you for following our investigations and for your continued support!

Team CMD

CMD is a 501(c)(3) national watchdog and media group that conducts in-depth investigations into corruption and the undue influence of corporations on media and democracy. Our work is regularly cited by news outlets, policymakers, and grassroots activists working to build a more sustainable future and just society. CMD is reader-supported. Please make your tax-deductible donation today. Thank you!

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