Monday, October 29, 2012

Funder Of Racist Voter Intimidation Billboards Exposed


In 2010 and again this year, Milwaukee was bestrewn with racist billboards meant to intimidate minorities from voting in the elections. One Wisconsin Now, in a joint investigation with news service theGrio, found out who funded these vile monstrosities. From OWN's press release:
A joint investigation by theGrio news service and One Wisconsin Now has uncovered that Milwaukee’s Einhorn Family Foundation is the “private family foundation” that anonymously funded voter suppression billboards in Wisconsin in September 2010 and again this year. A review of IRS documents also showed Milwaukee’s Bradley Foundation, headed by Scott Walker’s campaign co-chair Michael Grebe, and one of the largest sources for right wing funding in America, gave the Einhorn Family Foundation a $10,000 grant, at the time the 2010 suppression billboards appeared, “to support a public education project.”

One Wisconsin Now Executive Director Scot Ross said, “This was not an act of free speech, but an expression of racism as despicable as the ‘whites only’ signs of the Jim Crow South. We said we’d find out who was behind this, and we have.”

The comprehensive story that includes background and the findings of the investigation, as well as more about “Wisconsin’s Dark Money,” authored by theGrio Managing Editor Joy-Ann Reid, is available at: http://thegrio.com/2012/10/29/web-of-dark-money-behind-wisconsin-voter-suppression/.

“Let this be a lesson to anyone who would attack the sacred right to the franchise,” said Ross. “A broad coalition of progressive organizations fought tirelessly to bring these billboards down and they are ready to ensure everyone in Wisconsin who is eligible to vote and wants to vote, gets to vote.”

Ross noted that extensive on-air comments by Milwaukee radio talk show host Charlie Sykes, attempting to put a positive spin on the foundation demanding anonymity in sponsoring the racist, voter suppression billboards, was instrumental in the investigation.

“We want to thank Bradley’s marquee personality, Charlie Sykes,” said Ross. “Sykes’ big mouth over the radio about his conversation with the then-anonymous donor and his long and personal ties to Bradley’s half-billion-dollar, right-wing empire led us to also scour the Bradley Foundation IRS records and find the Einhorn gift. So, thanks a million, Charlie.”
OK, I have to admit that I just love the fact that it was the braggart Sykes that gave up his buddies.

For those that are unfamiliar with the details, Sykes had an affair with Bradley Foundation spokeswoman Janet Riorden. He eventually married her after divorcing Justice Diane Sykes. He also had her on his shows, but under the alias Liz Woodhouse, because he believes in being open and honest his listeners.

The fact that the Bradley Foundation funded these racist billboards is not surprising. They have a long history of promoting racist agendas, most notably funding the infamous and highly offensive "The Bell Curve," a study which basically said that poor children, especially minority children, aren't worth educating because they would get no benefit from it.

The article from theGrio again proves that when it comes to these fascists, there's more. There's always more:
Ross believes there is no coincidence that Wisconsin-style tea party politics is spreading nationwide under Priebus’ tenure as national party chair

“When voter suppression allegations have surfaced in Wisconsin for the past decade, the name Reince Priebus has always been close behind,” Ross told theGrio. In 2010, Priebus was cited by name, in an aborted voter caging plot targeting minorities and college students involving the Republican Party of Wisconsin, Americans for Prosperity and Wisconsin’s Tea Party leaders, including documents that referenced ‘billboards’ as part of the scheme multiple times.”

“In 2002, the Wisconsin state Elections Board enacted new guidelines for poll-watchers in response to a Priebus-led racially-charged voter intimidation scheme in Milwaukee,” Ross continued. “In 2008, Priebus’ Republican Party of Wisconsin sent out an email recruiting volunteers for alleged ‘inner city’ voter intimidation in Milwaukee. In 2012, it was uncovered Priebus’ RNC is behind an anonymous lawsuit intervening in a case involving our unconstitutional voter identification law. That this anti-American garbage is turning up in other states now that Priebus is running the RNC is of no surprise to us in Wisconsin given his career of scheming to deny legal voters their right to the franchise. Americans have always rejected politicians, like Reince Priebus, manipulating the voting system for partisan advantage and they will do it in this case as well.”
The amount of irrational hatred these people have is beyond comprehension. And the fact that they have as much power and influence as they do is utterly frightening and sickening.

7 comments:

  1. numerology for Stephen Einhorn:

    http://newsnumerology.com/2012/10/29/numerology-for-stephen-einhorn/ ‎

    ReplyDelete
  2. I can'believe the JS didn't dig this info up first-with their award winning investigative reporters and all.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's because the JS is a backer of Walker and all his cronies. They are very biased for a newspaper which is sickening in itself. Makes you kind of wonder what else they didn't investigate.

      Delete
  3. Both the Bradley Foundation and the Koch Brothers operations carry the exact same economic viewpoint, which you could simply say is Reaganism but more precisely describe as the von Hayek/Ayn Rand scheme of what was first called "Thatcherism" (as in the British plan, whose figurehead was Margaret Thatcher). This is what the Dick Armey 1995 Contract With America was all about--and Armey later co-formed (along with Empower America, Paul Ryan's former employer) the Koch-funded FreedomWorks, a main coordinator of the whole Tea Party movement.
    The American Legislative Exchange Council, originally formed by former Wisconsinite Paul Weyrich, has always been funded by both Bradley and the Kochs, and has always had this same economic view put forth by Thatcher.
    ALEC is said to be the source of Voter ID legislation spreading around the U.S., originally promoted in 2009 in one of its newsletters.
    paulb makes a great point by asking where is the JS--with it's incredible investigative reporting ability--on this voter intimidation problem, a problem they seem to want to ignore.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Actually, ALEC and the rest are offsprings of the Powell Memo. Bradley Foundation, Kochs, etc., are puppets for the US Chamber of Commerce.

      Delete
    2. Yes, I would agree.
      The ALEC and Chamber organizations perform different functions. I would say also that ALEC functions like the "dating service" so aptly described by John Nichols, while the Chamber is a participating member of ALEC, with the Chamber feeding corporate members into ALEC. I think both ALEC and the Chamber share the same economic viewpoint, and each works with the other toward a common goal.
      If your economic viewpoint has a lot of influence with the government, it helps corporations get an easier economic environment to operate in.
      Voter suppression schemes aimed at racial minorities--who tend to vote more toward the Democratic side--helps ALEC, the Chamber, Republican candidates, as well as corporate benefactors.

      Delete
  4. Just google Koch and Nazi together, the Fascist attitude is no accident. Read the new book by Ken Follet and Winter in the World, the tactics used by Hitler are identical to what you are seeing by ALEC and the right. Take away the vote by blaming the other side for what you are doing, scare tactics, anti demcratic policies, demonize groups like public workers, public schools, confuse voters with single issues, use the rascist attitudes in the country and exploit them with lies and then while the people are thinking about those issues consolidate the power of the 1 percent.
    All the while trying to remain anonymous, once exposed they shrink from the sunlight like bloodsucking vampires.

    ReplyDelete