As the public learns more about ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council, it becomes more clear the US government has been farming out lawmaking for a long time, using ALEC as the speed-dating service that pairs billionaires, corporations and industry lobbying groups with “ambitious” elected officials in every state.
Created by the founding president of the Heritage Foundation Paul Weyrich, ALEC’s hooks are decades deep into state legislatures, channeling money from the richest secret conservative donors like the Koch Brothers straight into the conservative sausage-making pipeline that helps produce thousands of bills designed to bust unions, evade taxes, starve public schools, sabotage health reform, oppose net neutrality, exploit prison labor and rig elections.
But they also help install loyal members like Scott Walker and John Kasich into governors mansions to sign into laws bills “inspired” by ALEC in secret.
The American Association For Justice called ALEC “the ultimate smoke filled back room”, comprised of thousands of state legislators who pay a nominal membership fee in order to attend ALEC retreats and receive draft legislation after meeting corporate sugar daddies from firms like Exxon and Wal-Mart who fund 99% of ALEC’s activities.
New York is seeing the “Kochtopus Monster Squid” reach into it’s borders with two NYS legislators now openly tied to ALEC through a list of “signatories” promoted by ALEC on letters written to Congressional leaders titled “Federal Health Care Reform” in 2009.
District 99′s Assemblyman Greg Ball would be one, and the other is ALEC’s NY chair, Long Island State Senator Owen Johnson.
Ball is recently rumored to be considering a primary against Rep. Nan Hayworth. With only two pols on ALEC’s register of “friendlies” statewide in New York, it’s likely the association may play against Ball with savvy voters.
On the other hand, ALEC provides networking with wealthy donors who have been successfully using elected officials as trojan horses to further their agenda, ghostwriting legislation for corporate America.
