UPDATE 2:08pm: Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) announces Congressional investigation into fake letters, saying, "This is an appalling abuse, and Congressman Tom Perriello deserves great credit for seeing through it and casting a vote that will create clean energy jobs in Virginia and throughout the United States. I encourage all Members of Congress to be on the lookout for other suspicious and illegal materials."
Posted by The Green MilesStunning news out of Charlottesville today from the Daily Progress:
As U.S. Rep. Tom Perriello was considering how to vote on an important piece of climate change legislation in June, the freshman congressman’s office received at least six letters from two Charlottesville-based minority organizations voicing opposition to the measure.Once again, congratulations to Rep. Perriello for standing up for what was right for Virginians.
The letters, as it turns out, were forgeries. [...]
The person who sent the letter has not been identified, but he or she was employed by a Washington lobbying firm called Bonner & Associates. [...]
“This was not a ‘mistake,’” wrote [Tim] Freilich, who is also legal director of the Immigrant Advocacy Program of the Legal Aid Justice Center. “This was a deliberately and carefully forged letter that used the logo, address and name of Creciendo Juntos without authorization. Additionally, I understand from Ms. Hegyi that our organization was not the only Charlottesville-area organization whose reputations were used in an unauthorized manner to try to influence Congressman Perriello on this particular vote.”
After being notified of the bogus Creciendo Juntos letter, staffers in Perriello’s office realized that the wording of the letter sounded familiar.
The staffers dug through the stacks of thousands of letters, e-mails and faxes Perriello received about the bill — the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 — and found five more forged letters, these purportedly from the Albemarle-Charlottesville branch of the NAACP. [...]
“It’s very unfortunate that opponents of this bill would resort to deception and made-up letters,” [Perriello press secretary Jessica Barba] said. “Spreading false information is not healthy for real debate in our democracy. Congressman Perriello voted in favor of the bill because of its potential to create clean energy jobs, which is why the NAACP and many other groups supported the legislation in the first place.”
We may only be scratching the surface of the dirty tricks and deception used by opponents of clean energy reform in a failed attempt to stop the American Clean Energy and Security (ACES) Act. It was already known that a group called the "Tea Party Patriots has been urging its members to lie about their residency in their calls to Congressional offices:
When you write or call, please make sure you are armed with a city name and zip code in the home state of the Senator you are calling. They may not want to hear from you without this information. You can decline to give further personal information.I've heard many other rumors of lies, forgery and deception from right-wing groups in their fight against ACES. Today's story in the Daily Progress only scratches the surface.
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The next question obviously is, how much of that anti-ACES pressure Rep. Glenn Nye complained about was genuine and how much was ginned up? Again, this is just the leading edge of the story.
ReplyDeleteSierra Club letter
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Forged Letters to Block Clean Energy?
Allegations Call into Question Efforts to Oppose Climate and Energy Bill
Washington, DC: An investigation by Daily Progress in Charlottesville, VA has exposed alleged efforts by lobbyists to misrepresent community organizations' positions on the American Clean Energy and Security Act.
According to the article, Congressman Perriello (D-5th/VA) received multiple letters purported to be from the NAACP and Creciendo Juntos, a local Hispanic Community network, voicing opposition to the bill.
Neither organization actually opposes the legislation. As more facts come to light on this story, the Sierra Club issued the following statement.
Statement of Carl Pope, Sierra Club Executive Director
"Obviously many more facts need to come out before we know the whole story, but the alleged forgery of letters from organizations dedicated to protecting their communities forces one to question who is really
behind the efforts to block America's progress towards a clean energy economy.
According to Greenwire/New York Times, in the lead up and aftermath of the House's historic vote on the American Clean Energy and Security Act, special interests like Coal Utilties and Oil have poured tens of millions into lobbying to keep America stuck in the past."
"Congressman Perriello deserves praise for not only voting for what was best for Virginia and the nation's economy and security, but also for looking into the efforts of the dirty, old business-as-usual players who tried to sway his vote. It's impossible to know at this point how many other members of Congress may have received forged letters like those found in Rep. Perriello's office. It is disturbing, to say the least, to think that some Congress people may have, in good faith, voted thinking they were representing their communities when in fact they were not."
"As this bill is soon to be debated in the Senate, it is vitally important that more be done to see what other kinds of dirty tricks are being used to give a false impression of grassroots opposition to clean energy."
"Our country needs a clean energy jobs bill that will boost our economy and fight global warming. Thousands of jobs could be created here if only the U.S. were to invest wisely in clean energy. The comprehensive energy and climate bill being discussed in the Senate
right now should do more to build our clean energy economy and not let polluters get away with their same old dirty business-as-usual ways. Millions of Americans already hold the most commonly needed job skills for global warming solutions. Strong, comprehensive energy and climate legislation will put them back to work, retaining and creating millions of good, clean energy jobs in both the revitalized manufacturing and construction sector and the new clean energy industries of tomorrow."
"As the country's oldest and largest grassroots environmental group, Sierra Club takes authentic grassroots organizing seriously and takes offense at industry-funded astro-turf campaigns that undermine true community voices."
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David Willett
National Press Secretary
Sierra Club
I wish that I could say this is surprising, but the Payday Lenders did this in the General Assembly back in 2005-2006 where they sent letters from their "customer" to Virginia Legislators asking them not to cap PDL interest rates at 36%. Each legislator got something like 400 letters, each, from customers in their own districts. The problem with their feendish little plan, they sent the letters on their own company letterhead and most of them were copies. Good that Congressman Perriello and his staff caught this.
ReplyDeleteIt's an abuse of two minority organizations. Which infuriates me even more.
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