Watchdog Reveals Effort to Gag Anti-Bush Causes

[Nambe]

Village Voice Media, Inc.

he Bush administration is actively seeking to gag or punish social service organizations that challenge the party line on such matters as health care for poor children and HIV prevention, according to a new report. Nonprofits that disagree with the president's own solutions, or go further and blame him for problems in the first place, have come to expect unpleasant consequences. Those might include audits of federal-funds spending and reviews of content, such as workshop literature.

"If you disagree with the administration on ideological grounds, they're going to come down with a hammer. This has huge implications for the free flow of speech in this country," says Gary Bass, executive director of OMB Watch, itself a nonprofit, which released the report last week as part of its 20-year-old mission to monitor White House budget and spending decisions. ---

The idea of a right-wing conspiracy to audit nonprofits is more likely to set off yawns than outrage. Yet virtually every imaginable social cause —civil liberties, reproductive rights, affirmative action, accessible health care—relies on a lifeline of nonprofit advocates, fundraisers, and service providers. Since nonprofits operate on a tax-exempt basis and often receive government funding, they have always been subject to federal oversight and are forbidden from engaging in electoral politics. Under George W. Bush, however, oversight has quietly morphed into ideologically motivated intimidation and censorship, according to OMB Watch's review of some dozen specific conflicts. ---

[SpiralHawk]

1. "You're either with us, or you're against us."

and, of course:

"There ought to be limits to freedom."


- GEORGE AWOL BUSH

[nannygoat]

12. "If only I were a dictator" by GW *

http://www.buzzflash.com/analysis/2002/10/29_Dictator.html

[Booberdawg]

2. What conspiracy?

They are doing it right out in the open. It's an undeniable fact - no conspiracy about it.

[Drifter]

18. Hillary mentioned this on Leno last night ...

when he asked her if she believed that there was still a VRWC.

She said something like "It is still there ... it's just that they are operating out in the open"

Cheers
Drifter

[Starpass]

3. Took place right here in Maine a few months ago

took place at the school where my husband teaches. This summer with no school in session, the Feds came in the middle of the night to the home of the head teacher in the English as a Second Language Program. Scared the guy shitless. I want to stress there was absolutely nothing amiss---never was--it wasn't based on some investigation or anything. They wanted to audit it. As the teacher said, they could have set up a meeting, as was always done in the past and gone over records, etc. Never had been anything wrong and nothing wrong now. This was gestapo tactics just for the sake of being "gestapo"--------and this is average town, USA. You better wake up about what goons we have set loose upon this nation.

[Clyde39]

6. As a former teacher, I can understand the fear

Your story is unbelievable!!! How do we get this on 60 Minutes?

[HungryLoser]

19. You won't, PBS maybe

[geomon]

20. "Your story is unbelievable"

yes it is.... the "feds" sounds like a pretty weak story. Sorry for the doubt but I need a bit more to go on before I would believe this third hand story.

[laylah]

25. Starpass......I read the same

story in early summer? It DID, DOES, and WILL continue to happen because they CAN......

[Duncan Grant]

27. Please see #26...

for a link that may persuade you.

[NewYorkerfromMass]

10. They're paranoid

clearly.....this admin. has gone off the deep end. Makes Nixon look sane.

[Lindacooks]

23. I believe it

n/t

[5X]

4. with me or.....

"Remember... he who is not with me is against me!”

Joseph Stalin.

"On April 9, 2002, in Bridgeport, Connecticut, President Bush stated:, "You know, I said early on, I said to the people you're either with us or you're against us.... There is no middle ground." Stalin also held that there was "no middle ground."

[aquart]

28. Good lord! George Bush is a communist!

Who else would go around quoting Stalin?

Has he said anything about a five year plan?

[Stuckinthebush]

5. Abuse of federal power....

isn't this an impeachable offense?

Wow...it looks like the Bushies have a lot of those lately.

[primavera]

7. Oh, it gets worse

I wish I had saved the article, but there was a piece circulating around DU a few months ago which basically laid out the administration's position on nonprofits, in which they flatly stated that if ngos didn't just keep their mouths shut, but indeed if they failed to actively cheer for the administration, their funding would be cut off and the contacts awarded to other agencies which were of a more "patriotic" disposition. So your taxpayer dollars, in the form of governmental grants, are to be awarded not based upon how effective the programs being administrered are, but on how effective a propaganda organ the agency is. Nice, huh? Göbbels would have been so proud.

[alaine]

11. So this is a new kind of "coalition of the willing" n/t

[Stephanie]

14. Abuse of Power!

Using government resources to intimidate political opponents?

[disgruntella]

8. sadly, not surprising

in light of what happened with Head Start staff and volunteers - luckily the Bushies got sued and lost!

http://www.saveheadstart.org/victory070303release.html

[havocmom]

17. hey, disgruntella...

Welcome to DU :toast:

always glad to see another West Dakotan ;-) come outta the closet and into the liberal light! :hi:

Yeah, the Head Start kick up sorta raised some eyebrows and consiences around my very GOP neighborhood. The locals are getting the message that all the folks-y dubya talk is just talk.

Why, I have even heard some grumbling as they come in to cash their US Treasury Wishes to thank you for having a kid checks! The attemped buy off isn't as convincing as Rove thought it would be. They are starting to see the truth and I doubt he will even take this county in 04. We still use pencils to vote here abouts!

[disgruntella]

24. hi havocmom!

I tried to send you a PM back but "I'm not worthy" (too new) so just wanted to say thanks for the greeting!

[PROGRESSIVE1]

9. Achtung!!!!

Benito Bush!

[skip fox]

15. Boy, you hit THAT on the head!

:toast:

Benito Bush might catch on!!!!

[Robin Hood]

13. But it's alright for the Sunday preachers to expound the virtues of Bush.

If these organizations are going to be taxed and harassed, than the churches who spew politics on Sunday should be taxed and harassed as well.

[robbedvoter]

16. PFAW had an article back in 2001 about conservatives convention

(you know, where Coulter is mainstream). One of their main themes was "Defunding the democrats". Investigating unions was one of the strategies. I am also convinced that the fact that the Rich pardon was singled out as a scandalhoax (just read in The Clinton Wars - it was extremely discretely closed in March 2002 as "no evidence") was because Denise Rich was a notable contributor to the Dems. See Martha Stewart for same.

[bluestateguy]

21. Payback will be a bitch

The new Democratic Administration should begin IRS audits of FOXNEWS, Clear Channel, Gary ALdrich, Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity.

[Lindacooks]

22. Happened to us

My husband was director of a women's crisis center until the end of May, when he was fired for criticizing Pawlenty. The Third Reich is alive and well in Minnesota and the US.

[Duncan Grant]

26. Stop AIDS Project, San Francisco

One example that may convince you sceptics is the Stop AIDS Project in San Francisco. This agency was founded in 1984 and received it's first CDC funding in 1992.

Please note in the link that a CDC audit cleared them of any contractual non-compliance BUT 4 months later, a congressman and HHS went right back after them.

http://www.gaytoday.com/world/061703wo.asp

It's chilling.

[goforit]

29. NEVER put up your white flag!! stand strong!!!...W is desparate!

as always!!

He is losing a huge battle so they are bullying everyone!

You got to bully back and never let your hair down!!!