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Wisconsin GOP polis send $500K in taxpayer funds to Koch front group
If you want an example the depth of corruption that exists in Wisconsin under Scott Walker and the Republican Legislature, let me fill you in on a story that broke this week.Jason Stein and Paul A....
View Article"Throw the Bums Out!"
In 36 hours, I have seen Allen West send an email to supporters, saying if the government shuts down, "all 535" members of Congress should be replaced, have read six comments on various media sites...
View ArticleHow we can make the Tea Party pay--in practical terms
Not simply writing outraged screeds, tweets, etc.Do we have to wait until 2016? Is it a fatal flaw that we can't just summarily call up an election now like other democracies are able to do, instead of...
View ArticleFinancial Times' Martin Wolf: "The Extreme Conservative Position Has Won"
I recently wrote a diary describing what I would do if I had the wherewithal to mount an all-encompassing, relentless/sustained campaign promoting a progressive agenda. In my eyes, I see the steps I...
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The Third Way And The Center For American Progress: Astroturfing From The...
Remember Occupy Wall Street? If so, what do you remember the most about it? I know that many things may come to mind, but one that should jump at you is the movement's "we are the 99 percent"...
View ArticleBreaking: Appeals Court Rules to Allow Wis John Doe II Investigation to...
Story broke at around 6:30 PM Central Time and I saw it just as I was closing things down for dinner.Bad news for the GOP, RWNJs, well-heeled astroturf groups, and Scott Walker: The state Court of...
View Article"These Guys 5--The Brothers" Plus Some Thoughts on Political Ads
Hard to believe a new season's on us already.Maybe not. Viewers quickly tired of the blowhard wannabe boss in "Season 4--The Jersey Sore." He was one of those characters that shows so much promise when...
View ArticleI'm Sniffing Koch
No senator has been quite as friendly to the energy extraction sector than Mary Landrieu, understandable as she represents a state where drilling is second only to drinking as a lifestyle choice and...
View ArticleEarth Day Greenwash: API Front Group Iowa Energy Forum Sponsors Pro-Keystone...
Cross-Posted from DeSmogBlogThe political carnival that is the prelude to the Iowa caucuses has started over a year and a half early. At the center of it this time around: a game of political hot...
View ArticleMan, that's some bad astroturfing
I've worked on a number of campaigns that could be considered "astroturfing", i.e. where a few wealthy individuals/foundations fund a professional organizing drive, funding local "grassroots vendors"...
View ArticleAn Astroturf Idea
I clicked on the National Association for Gun Rights banner ad right here on Dailykos.I do that from time to time to transfer a penny from a right wing group to a progressive web page.The National...
View ArticleFollow the money
There are some positive signs of life on the left these days. As a dyed-in-the-wool cynical skeptic (or skeptical cynic) I've had to actively cultivate a naive optimism in myself just to survive....
View ArticleNew Ad: "Facts"
I've come to look forward to the release of each new AFP ad against Mary Landrieu. They are so perfectly cookie cutter, so free of substance that they mock themselves. Responding to them is easier than...
View ArticleA Crummy Proposal: Saving San Francisco's Golden Gate Park from the...
In San Francisco, the value of greenery means two different things to two different types of people. John McLaren, the superintendent of Golden Gate Park for over 50 years until his death in 1943,...
View ArticleAbbott Busing in and Housing Fake Supporters for Debate Tonight Against Wendy...
From the Burnt Orange Report:Abbott’s campaign has resorted to busing supporters to the Rio Grande Valley to show faux-support for the Republican in the region. He’s even paying for their lodging!...
View ArticleGaius Publius: Astroturf “Progressive” Support for the TPP – Meet “270...
[Diarist's Note: Gaius Publius, via Naked Capitalism Publisher Yves Smith, has provided the diarist with authorization to reproduce their post, in its entirety, for the benefit of the Daily Kos...
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'Tea party' holds protest against Everglades conservation. There's just one...
Well, this is just pathetic.The Tea Party of Miami put up a convincing demo last week to oppose a 'land grab' that would see 46,000 acres of sugar farm land restored for Everglades conservation. Just...
View ArticleJoe Lieberman at it again!
Did you see the Rachael Maddow show recently? Tonight there was this dishonest hit job against Obama's negotiation with Iran. It quoted 2 Newspaper EDITORIALS. Yes, that's right--editorials to make...
View ArticleSomebody Allegedly Buying Ghostwritten Positive Articles About Charles Koch...
Twitter user @aysrick posted an unconfirmed screenshot to Twitter which appears to be from TextBroker (see below), showing that somebody is paying up to $4.00 per article for “article recaps” about...
View ArticleWhat is Astroturfing? Why should you care?
Recently, the political operative working a major Clinton super PAC proudly announced the start of an operation caller Barrier Breakers. This is an organized effort paying to spread disinformation...
View ArticleThis is what SuperPAC democracy Looks Like ...
Got to give the Brock-man kudos for admitting it, that the way to reverse those underwater trustworthy numbers is to pay professional media messengers, to do the “social reversing”.That kind of...
View ArticleHow Koch Industries Is Responsible for Kansas Budget Woes
In 2014, the Wichita Eagle asked Kansas Governor Sam Brownback directly whether he thought Koch Industries had “undue influence” in state politics. It also asked Koch Industries directly, whether it...
View ArticlePaid Clinton Troll Speaks out: "I was aghast at what I saw."
WARNING! From Daily Kos Staff: (9:15 PM Pacific) The original author of this piece, quoted here in full, was suspended by the admins of /r/SandersForPresident subreddit for using multiple different...
View ArticleKoch AstroTurf Groups Double Down in Support of Koch Tax Loophole Despite...
We previously covered How Koch Industries Is Responsible for Kansas Budget Woes. Since that article was published one week ago, public pressure has continued to mount for a repeal of the Kansas Koch...
View ArticleAstroturf group "Judicial Crisis Network" launches $10M ad buy to promote...
I do not know who they are, but they’re well funded. An astroturf group calling themselves the “Judicial Crisis Network” at judicialnetwork.com is spending $10 Million to promote DT’s new Supreme Court...
View ArticleThey are trying to organize some Pro-45* "SPIRIT OF AMERICA RALLIES"
Mainstreet Patriots is promoting some nationwide rallies on the 27 of Feb (amoral mondays?) and March 4th (and conquer?)There was a spontaneous uprising of grassroots activists that voted for President...
View ArticleThe Tea Party really was astroturf, but Indivisible isn't.
How quickly and easily they forget. Unfortunately for the people attempt to create false equivelency as the GOP Congress is challenged by the Indivisible movement at their various Town Halls, while the...
View Article#UnFollowTrump - A Twitter Meme Worth Supporting
Twitter is a horrible medium. For a few bucks you can pump up your “importance” with thousands of followers, and for a few dollars more, get some offshore outfits — including many located in Russia and...
View ArticleCentrist "RootsAction" wants us to ignore Russia
Just got an assignment from a RootsAction email blast. I had assumed them another left outfit with a website, but this led me to look closer. The assignment is to ask Congress to lay off on the Russia...
View ArticlePoland Promised to Bus In Cheering Crowds for Trump as Part of Invitation
From the AP, via WaPo:WARSAW, Poland — President Donald Trump opens his two-nation European visit with what he expects to be a short but warm stop in Poland before he encounters what could be a...
View ArticleOil Kills Grass, Which Is Probably Why The Industry Always Astroturfs
On Friday, Benjamin Storrow of E&E reported that thanks to Trump’s weakened ethics rules, there are now at least 15 political appointees at EPA, DOI and DOE who work on issues they lobbied for...
View ArticleUpdates on Attacking Science, Astroturfing on Pipelines, and Staffing the Swamp
One of our goals with this roundup is to alert you to upcoming denier threats before they hit the mainstream. Occasionally, great reporting can further illuminate issues we noticed some time ago. With...
View ArticleSURPRISE?: Big Business/GOP Caught in Pro Tax Bill LTE Astroturf Drive! How...
Would you believe that big business and the GOP might collude together to help push the tax bill over the line by organizing a major astroturf campaign of “letters to the editor” designed to make it...
View ArticleGore in Snowflake-Filled Davos Triggers Photoshop Loving Climate Deniers
Every time it snows and Al Gore is seen in public, deniers rejoice in pretending that Gore’s climate awareness campaign is somehow incompatible with cold weather. At last week’s elite meet-and-greet in...
View ArticleHawthorne, Entergy’s Power Plant Astroturfers, Has History of Deceptive...
Last week, the New Orleans Lens reported that a group of pro-pipeline advocates who attended a public hearing last October were, in fact, paid actors. The hearing, to solicit public opinion on a...
View ArticleAre You Seeing What I'm Seeing? TV Attack ads on Democrats for supporting...
Something I’ve just noticed today. I don’t normally watch a lot of television, but the impeachment hearings have me also checking out the local news programs. The impeachment hearings must be hitting...
View ArticleWestern States Petroleum Association Tops CA Lobbying Expenses with $8.8...
The Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA), the largest and most powerful corporate lobbying group in California, placed first in the annual lobbying “competition” in California in 2019 with $8.8...
View ArticleCartoon: Astroturf twins
Help sustain these comics — join the Sorensen Subscription Service!Follow me on Twitter at @JenSorensen
View ArticleTrump supporters hold pro-death rally at Minnesota governor's home
Deadly stupidity was on full display Friday in Minnesota, where MAGA-types held a rally outside the home of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. No social distancing. Very few masks. Plenty of reckless, perhaps...
View ArticleCALL THEM OUT -LOUD AND OFTEN!!
It would be hard to look online or TV and not see & hear about the angry protestors who want to OPEN AMERICA. Some of them are just too stupid to breathe and follow blindly some Faux talking point...
View ArticleGOP Astroturf wants Wisconsin to "open the economy." We need to control COVID...
I've got a few thoughts with this stupid, Astroturfed meme out of right-wing Bubbleworld saying that Wisconsin and other states need to end their stay-at-home orders. The theory seems to be that if...
View ArticleWestern States Petroleum Association, Chevron spend $2.7 million lobbying in...
From January 1 to March 31, 2020, the Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA), the largest and most powerful corporate lobby in California, spent $1,089,702 lobbying state officials, according to...
View ArticleAG Becerra, Governor protest federal oil lease sales as CA regulators...
SACRAMENTO– On November 9, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, Governor Gavin Newsom and two state agencies filed a protest challenging the proposed sale of seven oil and gas leases in Kern...
View ArticleReporter asks Republican lawmaker to define critical race theory. The result...
One of the new heroes of the critical race theory battles of 2021 is AL.com political columnist Kyle Whitmer, who followed in Marc Lamont Hill’s footsteps by asking a simple question of the right...
View Article3 Seats Open on Ames, IA School board - 4 good candidates vs 3 from the Dark...
I wrote this summer how right-wingers used BLM and Critical Race Theory as scapegoats to agitate against good public servants the School Board of Ames, Iowa. Since that did not scare enough people,...
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Looking for a New Year's Resolution? Consider kicking natural gas to the curb
The fossil fuel industry has a problem. Their products are killing the planet — but that’s just business. No, their problem is governments at various levels in the U.S. are starting to ban use of...
View ArticleDirty Energy Astroturf: Energy Poverty’s Woke-Washed California Coming of Age
Tuesday’s look at the issue of energy access abroad, in India and Africa, may make it seem like it’s a foreign issue, but unfortunately the industry is “wokewashing” in the US, too. It’s not universal,...
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Technology keeps catching up with the climate deniers and fossil fuel...
I recently went through one of those go-rounds on a Facebook web site run by a natural gas industry astroturf group spreading disinformation to block New York State’s efforts to get off fossil fuels....
View ArticleHoly Holy $#i+ - Steele & Rubin put economic grievance justification in...
UPDATE: Thursday, Jul 6, 2023 · 8:37:58 AM +00:00·DemSome of the updates and new material I just added to the diary have many grammatical errors. I apologize for the errors I'm grammar. I fixed many...
View ArticleBy Request of the Climate: Know who owns your gas utility
SoCalGas, which services the southern half of California, is owned by Sempra, a Gas & Oil company with major liquid natural gas reserves in Texas. For this reason, two things are happening:(1)...
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