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Matt Collins
06-17-2010, 12:55 PM
Dear C4L Member,

If you haven't yet contacted your congressman and urged him to oppose H.R. 5175, the "DISCLOSE Act," your action is needed RIGHT AWAY.

Our sources on the Hill say this bill to silence Campaign for Liberty is coming to the House floor this Friday for a vote.

Please read the following letter and take action to stop H.R. 5175 immediately.

- John Tate
President Campaign for Liberty



http://paracom.paramountcommunication.com/cimages/9712f553eeb54df4c700abc96d8f0cb4/logo.jpg (http://paracom.paramountcommunication.com/ct/4325883:6457319952:m:1:170731130:3DA5FE4551D1B1F78 ADC8CD8CAAF709A)










June 16, 2010

Dear Campaign for Liberty Member,

Once again, free speech and political liberty are under attack in Congress. And this time they have a surprising (to some) assailant -- the National Rifle Association.

In a minute, I'll give you links to the sorry story and ask you to tell the NRA and your congressman you OPPOSE the freedom-killing DISCLOSE ACT, with or without the NRA's deal.





You see, if there is one thing the establishment hates, it is watching its hand-picked candidates be held accountable for their records on liberty issues.

They want their Big Government power grabs to go unnoticed.

After watching some of their favorites go down in flames in race after race these past few months and seeing their statist schemes like Cap and Tax grind to a halt as a result of a massive uprising by liberty-loving Americans, they plan to strike back.

In a move that has dire consequences for our First Amendment right to freedom of speech and for Campaign for Liberty's ability to fight for our freedoms, incumbent politicians have colluded with a super-sized establishment lobbying group, the National Rifle Association, to push H.R. 5175, the DISCLOSE ACT, or as I like to call it, the "Establishment Protection Act," through the House of Representatives as soon as this week.

According to Politico (http://paracom.paramountcommunication.com/ct/4325884:6457319952:m:1:170731130:3DA5FE4551D1B1F78 ADC8CD8CAAF709A), the NRA bargained for an exemption for itself and other large, established groups while trampling the rights of private citizens, new groups (like Campaign for Liberty), and small organizations.


As John Bresnahan reports, "The proposal would exempt organizations that have more than 1 million members, have been in existence for more than 10 years, have members in all 50 states and raise 15 percent or less of their funds from corporations... The NRA, with 4 million members, will not actively oppose the DISCLOSE Act, according to Democratic sources."

RedState's Erick Erickson mentions one of our Regional Conference sponsors (http://paracom.paramountcommunication.com/ct/4325885:6457319952:m:1:170731130:3DA5FE4551D1B1F78 ADC8CD8CAAF709A) when saying, "I support Gun Owners of America (http://paracom.paramountcommunication.com/ct/4325886:6457319952:m:1:170731130:3DA5FE4551D1B1F78 ADC8CD8CAAF709A), which is a consistent and uncompromising defender of the second amendment, not a weak little girl of an organization protecting itself while throwing everyone else under the bus."

Another pro-gun organization friendly to Campaign for Liberty, the National Association for Gun Rights, said in a national email, "And frankly, this craven deal by the NRA will damage our gun rights and our free speech rights."

As we hold politicians accountable and put them on record with our issue discussion program, the Establishment Protection Act will force organizations like C4L to turn over the names of their "top" donors for exercising our First Amendment rights.

You see, they are targeting groups like Campaign for Liberty because they think their "right" to hold office is more important than your rights to privacy and free speech.



Campaign for Liberty has experienced tremendous growth this past year, and the establishment knows we are out there every day fighting back against its statist power grabs.

They watch as we inform you which candidates support the Constitution and which candidates refuse to take a stand on liberty issues.

And they know we won't play their Washington game of trading principle for power. They want to silence us once and for all by going after our donors.

Campaign for Liberty will not be silenced, and we will lead the fight against the Establishment Protection Act so you have the right to speak freely without your name and personal information being turned over to Big Brother.

Call your congressman right away and INSIST they uphold your First Amendment right to free speech and vote against H.R. 5175, the Establishment Protection Act.

After you contact your representative, call the NRA headquarters at 1-800-672-3888 and their Legislative Action group at 1-800-392-8683 and let them know how you feel about their move to stab freedom organizations in the back.

Sincerely,

http://paracom.paramountcommunication.com/cimages/9712f553eeb54df4c700abc96d8f0cb4/tatesig-small.jpg

John Tate

President


P.S. Thanks to all you’ve done for liberty, the establishment is scared, and it’s not pulling any punches to keep organizations like C4L from speaking out.

If you are able, please consider chipping in $10 today toward C4L’s efforts (http://paracom.paramountcommunication.com/ct/4325887:6457319952:m:1:170731130:3DA5FE4551D1B1F78 ADC8CD8CAAF709A) to push back against the statist agenda and guarantee legislation like H.R. 5175, which should be called the Establishment Protection Act, is soundly defeated.

sevin
06-17-2010, 04:03 PM
What exactly is the DISCLOSE Act?

sailingaway
06-17-2010, 04:07 PM
OK, I'll contact my Congressman right now. Don't know if he will listen but you never know....

--
edit - done.

BuddyRey
06-17-2010, 05:08 PM
Bump!

IPSecure
06-17-2010, 05:14 PM
Will the First Amendment survive tomorrow?

No.

rprprs
06-17-2010, 05:44 PM
What exactly is the DISCLOSE Act?

Yeah, the C4L letter was kind of remiss in not explaining, but click the Politico link in the OP, or find it here (http://paracom.paramountcommunication.com/ct/4325884:6457319952:m:1:170731130:3DA5FE4551D1B1F78 ADC8CD8CAAF709A).

ChaosControl
06-17-2010, 06:16 PM
Could we get the ACLU on our side on this?

KCIndy
06-17-2010, 08:36 PM
Gunowners of America (GOA) is also opposed... got this email earlier today. Full letter is posted below, but of particular interest/use might be the talking points they list, at least:

The Bill of Rights is clear in saying that Congress has no authority to pass legislation like this. Just like the Second Amendment says our gun rights “shall not be infringed,” the First Amendment says “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech.”

and

The Supreme Court was right earlier this year in the Citizens United case. Sen. John McCain -- the author of the Campaign Finance Reform law (otherwise known as the Incumbent Protection Act) -- was wrong. Americans, and the groups they choose to associate with, should be able to criticize Congress in the days and weeks leading up to an election WITHOUT BEING GAGGED OR FORCED TO JUMP THROUGH HOOPS that are mandated by Congress.

Toll free number to call your Representative:

1-877-762-8762




original letter:

Threat to Free Speech Lights a Fire in the Grassroots

-- Vote has been temporarily postponed; keep up the heat!

Gun Owners of America E-Mail Alert
8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102 , Springfield , VA 22151
Phone: 703-321-8585 / FAX: 703-321-8408
www.gunowners.org



“[T]he NRA -- on whose board of directors I serve -- rather than holding steadfastly to its historic principles of defending the Constitution and continuing its noble fight against government regulation of political speech instead opted for a political deal borne of self-interest in exchange for ‘neutrality’ from the legislation's requirements.”

-- NRA Director Cleta Mitchell, June 17, 2010

Thursday, June 17, 2010

The above quote -- part of an editorial authored by NRA Director Cleta Mitchell -- ran in The Washington Post today.

Like Mitchell, bloggers and editorial writers around the country have lit up the Internet with the story that we have been alerting you to over the past 48 hours. Here are just some of the headlines:

* “The NRA sells out to Democrats on the First Amendment,” The Wall Street Journal

* “Conservatives take on the NRA over deal on disclosure bill,” The Washington Post

* “The National Rifle Association’s Excuse Holds No Water,” RedState.org

The conservative movement (and to be honest, many liberal organizations as well) are coming together to loudly protest the DISCLOSE Act -- legislation that threatens to gag our ability to effectively hold individual congressmen accountable in the days and weeks leading up to an election.

It is imperative that we continue hammering the Congress. But rather than cry “uncle,” liberal Democrats are now trying to buy off more groups with an exemption for those that have at least 500,000 members (rather than the higher threshold of one million, which would have applied to few groups other than the NRA).

Of course, how is the government going to know how many members an organization has? According to the legislation, each organization will have to certify to a government commission how many members they have. But what if the commission wants documentation; will the organization have to “disclose” the names of their members?

GOA , of course, will never do this. Furthermore, you should know that your Gun Owners of America can NOT be bought off. We will continue opposing this bill on principle, urging all gun groups to stick together in this fight. As we stated yesterday, we realize that: “We must all hang together, or we will all hang separately.”

GOA applauds NRA Director Cleta Mitchell for the courageous stand she took today. (You can read her editorial here.) We hope that the NRA leadership will heed her wisdom and take a stand against this bill. If they don’t, we wouldn’t be surprised if NRA members start demanding a change in their leadership. After all, the NRA has engaged in many good fights over the years, and it would be a shame to lose this VERY IMPORTANT battle because high-ranking staff led the NRA down the wrong path.

ACTION:

1. Please call your congressman today and urge him or her to oppose HR 5175. We’ve asked you to send emails before, but now on the eve before the vote, it is crucial that the phones ring off the hook. If they’re not ringing, they won’t be worried.

You can use the Talking Points below to call your Representative toll-free at 1-877-762-8762.

2. If you haven’t yet urged the NRA staff to change its position on HR 5175 and stand with Gun Owners of America, please do so. NRA Director Cleta Mitchell was absolutely correct, and the NRA leadership should heed her wisdom. You can call the NRA at (800) 392-VOTE (8683).

3. Please help Gun Owners of America to continue fighting for your rights. You can go to http://gunowners.org/contribute-to-goa.htm to help us alert as many people as possible to the DISCLOSE Act threat.

----- Talking Points for contacting your Representative -----

1. I stand with Gun Owners of America in opposing the DISCLOSE Act (HR 5175).

2. The Bill of Rights is clear in saying that Congress has no authority to pass legislation like this. Just like the Second Amendment says our gun rights “shall not be infringed,” the First Amendment says “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech.”

3. The Supreme Court was right earlier this year in the Citizens United case. Sen. John McCain -- the author of the Campaign Finance Reform law (otherwise known as the Incumbent Protection Act) -- was wrong. Americans, and the groups they choose to associate with, should be able to criticize Congress in the days and weeks leading up to an election WITHOUT BEING GAGGED OR FORCED TO JUMP THROUGH HOOPS that are mandated by Congress.

dr. hfn
06-17-2010, 10:48 PM
bump! this is urgent!

CUnknown
06-17-2010, 11:22 PM
I don't quite get why the DISCLOSE Act is so bad.. can someone explain it to me? The bill is in response to the Citizen's United SC case. I personally don't think I would mind being disclosed as a donor to Campaign for Liberty (although there is no way I am a top donor, heh) as long as every political ad had to be disclosed as well. Seems almost necessary to counter the Citizen's United case..

TCE
06-17-2010, 11:23 PM
I don't see how this matters, the courts will just strike this down, too. Obviously it is horrible, but it isn't nearly as bad as pretty much everything else passed so far this Congress.