RELATED LINKS

Internal Links

75,000 to the Empower America

Profiles:

Jack Kemp
Jeane Kirkpatrick
Vin Weber
William Bennett
Heritage Foundation

RECIPIENT PROFILE

www.empower.org

Empower America

In 2004 Empower America merged with Citizens for a Sound Economy to form a new organization named FreedomWorks. Read MT's report on the merger.

[From James D'Entremont, from his (former) web site]

From its mission statement, Empower America describes itself as "...a unique combination of public policy institute and political advocacy organization." Empower America claims a membership of thousands of grassroots activists, but one of its main functions is to give its co-directors access to the news media, talk shows and the highest levels of government.

For example, for the past 20 years, orientation sessions for incoming members of Congress were run by the Kennedy School of Government in Boston. In 1994, the incoming members instead attended an orientation run by Empower America and the Heritage Foundation. One of the highlights of the orientation session was a talk by right-wing radio/TV talk show host Rush Limbaugh, whom Bennett called "a symbol of encouragment." Limbaugh was voted an honorary member of Congress.

While Empower America bills itself as a "nonpartisan, nonprofit organization," its board of directors is a blue-ribbon panel of right-wing pro-corporate Republicans, and the organization itself is a kind of stepchild of the Heritage Foundation.

Amazingly for a nonprofit entity, Empower America proudly declares political candidates to be among its "products." Its popular training sessions for reactionary candidates have enhanced the success of the pro-business theocratic right in recent years.

Its four co-directors are former HUD Secretary Jack Kemp, Reagan's UN Ambassador Jeane Kirkpatrick, former Minnesota Congressman Vin Weber, and -- most visibly and actively -- Heritage Foundation Fellow William Bennett, former Secretary of Education and Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities under Reagan, drug czar under Bush, senior editor at the National Review, professional pompous bluenose, and prolific author of such Pecksniffian titles as The Book of Virtues.

In recent years Bennett has achieved considerable notoriety as a self-appointed, self-congratulatory guardian of "traditional values," zestfully demonizing art forms, individuals, and real or imagined trends in American culture. Some of his efforts have placed him in unlikely partnerships with such purported liberals as C. Delores Tucker of the National Political Caucus of Black Women, with whom he conducted a joint campaign against rap music in 1995. Write or call for Empower America's terms of membership. Members receive a quarterly publication called Highlights.

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OTHER LINKS

Bill Berkowitz
MediaTransparency.org
June 30, 2004

FreedomWorks Challenges Progressive Organizations

CSE merges with Empower America to form new organization, FreedomWorks

Will the newly established conservative organization, stocked with old-line right wing warriors, impact Election 2004?

Read the full report >