Mon, 02 Mar 2009 19:20:38 +0000 – By Noel SheppardAssociate Editor, Newsbusters.org
What does it say about today’s Democratic Party when one of its leaders attacks a well-respected columnist by citing political propaganda organizations funded by his wife?
Such was the case when Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) published an articleon the ultra-left leaning Huffington Post on Friday lambasting syndicated columnist George Will for having the nerve to questionthe existence of the liberal bogeyman known as anthropogenic global warming on February 15.
Will’s column didn’t sit well with Kerry who, like many misinformed Democrats, is looking to implement a carbon cap-and-trade scheme now that there’s a climate alarmist in the White House. Here’s some of what he said:
“Dragging up long-discredited myths about some non-existent scientific consensus about global cooling from the 1970s does no one any good. Except perhaps a bankrupt flat earth crowd. I hate to review the record and see that someone as smart as George Will has been doing exactly that as far back as 1992. And it’s especially troubling when the very sources that Will cites in his February 15th column draw the exact opposite conclusions and paint very different pictures than Will provides, as the good folks at ThinkProgressand Media Mattersfor America have demonstrated so thoroughly.”
What Kerry chose to hide from readers was his wife’s connection to these so-called “good folks.”
ThinkProgress is the blog of the far-left leaning Center for American Progress. Contribution recordsshow CAP having taken funds from the Tides Foundation, an organization that’s received a great deal of moneyfrom the Howard Heinz Endowment chaired by — wait for it! — the junior senator from Massachusetts’ wife Teresa Heinz Kerry.
2008 granteesof Tides’ included the Center for American Progress Action Fund— a partner of CAP’s — AND the Media Matters Action Network— a partner of MMA’s.
Complicating matters further for Kerry is that the Tides braggedback in August 2006 about its involvement with CAP in “combating” global warming:
“Vote Solar and the Stop Global Warming Virtual March are promoting some of the most practical and effective means for citizens and organizations to organize around renewable energies to combat the climate crisis. And, as projects of Tides Center-the nonprofit sector’s leading sponsor of social innovation-both organizations are enabled to create effective programs that spur citizen and organizational involvement on this key societal issue. […]
Formed by a diverse group of organizations including the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE), the Environmental Law and Policy Center, the Center for American Progress, and Co-op America, Solar Nation brings together groups united around solar energy advocacy.”
Now, despite his wife being an indirect benefactor, Kerry somehow thinks it’s appropriate to use CAP as a reference when attacking his political opponents.
That’s what Nobel Laureate Al Gore might refer to as (if he had a sense of humor) — a convenient goof.
Yet, the hypocrisy doesn’t end there, for as The Washington Post reportedon October 23, 2003, the seed money for CAP was “pledged by such deep-pocketed Democrats as financier George Soros and mortgage billionaires Herbert and Marion Sandler.”
Though Soros’s political leanings and activism are certainly well-known — or, more likely notorious! — the Sandlers, who The New York Times claimedto have contributed around $20 million to CAP, might be less familiar.
Despite their relative anonymity, Herb and Marion are almost legends in the California financial arena having created one of the largest savings and loans in the country. As the initial stockholders, the couple reportedly pocketed $2.4 billion in October 2006 when Wachovia bought out Golden West Financial for $25 billion.
Readers might recall a “Saturday Night Live” sketchlast October wherein the Sandlers were depicted as major players in the sub-prime mortgage market who made billions selling loans to folks that couldn’t afford them. A chyron at the bottom of the screen referred to the couple as “People who should be shot.”
Although their philanthropic efforts dramatically increased as a result of Golden West’s buyout – they reportedly placed $1.3 billion of the proceeds into their private charity, The Sandler Family Supporting Foundation — they have been actively giving to liberal politicians and causes for years.
In fact, on August 11, 2004, they contributedover $25 million to the MoveOn.org Voter Fund.
This incestuous relationship between Soros, the Sandlers, and CAP also extends to the other outlet Kerry cited to besmirch Will. As The New York Times reportedon May 3, 2004:
The site, called Media Matters, was devised as part of a larger media apparatus being built by liberals to combat what they say is the overwhelming influence of conservative commentators like Rush Limbaugh and Bill O’Reilly.
[Founder David] Brock’s project was developed with help from the newly formed Center for American Progress, the policy group headed by John D. Podesta, the former Clinton chief of staff.
As NewsBusters reportedon June 21, 2007, the CAP payroll reads like a Clinton administration Who’s Who:
- Executive Vice President for Management Sarah Rosenworked for the Clinton administration
- Senior Vice President for Development Debbie Goldbergworked for the Clinton campaign
- Senior Vice President and Director David Halperinwas a speech writer for President Clinton
- Vice President of Communications Jennifer Palmieriwas Clinton’s White House Deputy Press Secretary
- Senior Vice President for External Affairs Winnie Stachelbergworked at the Office of Management and Budget under Clinton
- Vice President of Finance and Operations Brad Kileyworked for the Clinton administration
- Ditto Peter Rundlet, Anna Soellner, Debbie Fine, and Michelle Jolin.
Now, liberal propaganda produced by these totally biased shills not only finds its way into mainstream media reports, but Democratic politicians also seem comfortable referencing their work despite their utter lack of impartiality.
Ironically, immediately after he mentioned these outlets in his Will hit piece, Kerry wrote: “A highly organized, well-funded movement to deny the reality of global climate change has been up and running for a long time.”
Well, Senator, maybe you should roll over in bed this evening and take a good look at Mrs. Kettle.
Noel Sheppard is associate editor of the MediaResearchCenter‘s NewsBusters.org. He welcomes feedback at nsheppard@newsbusters.org.
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