By Bob Plain in
RIFuture.org
Remember when
Republican Senate candidate Barry Hinckley courted out-of-state political donors by saying,
“Although many of you who live out of state cannot vote for me – remember, I
can vote for you.”? Well, it seems as if one out-of-state group has taken him
up on the offer.
Hinckley was endorsed by the Freedomworks PAC on Tuesday, which
on its website describes itself as “leading the fight for
lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.”
You can say that
again.
Freedomworks is the
anti-tax astroturfing group that secretly organized the first tea party
protests in 2009, according to The Atlantic.
Here’s how an article
in The Guardian described the group:
It was set up by one
of America’s richest men, David Koch, an oil tycoon who has funded rightwing
causes for decades.
FreedomWorks receives
funding from the tobacco conglomerate Philip Morris, as well as from Richard
Scaife, another business tycoon, who for years helped fund dirt-digging
investigations into Bill Clinton. Local branches of Americans for Prosperity
have also received tobacco money; the group has opposed smoke-free workplace
laws and cigarette taxes.
In
the environmental area, too, there has been an affinity between the groups and
the corporate interests that back them. ExxonMobil was a sponsor of Citizens for
Sound Economy, and both FreedomWorks and Americans for Prosperity have
campaigned vigorously against Obama’s plans to reduce CO2 emissions through a cap and trade scheme,
working closely with the American Petroleum Institute.
It’s endorsement of
Barry Hinckley should speak volumes to Ocean Staters. I’m pretty certain most
Rhode Islanders want our Senators to represent Rhode Island, not the Koch
Brothers and ExxonMobile.
Bob Plain is the editor/publisher of Rhode Island's
Future. Previously, he's worked as a reporter for several different news
organizations both in Rhode Island and across the country.