Pro-War Group Takes to the Airways (WSJ freebie)

[madfloridian]

http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB113572887635032543-MBBcaDkXJAQBlIrm5UujD1fj5qw_20061227.html?mod=tff_main_tff_top

Move America Forward Ads Aim to Lift
Bush's Approval Rating by Backing WMD Claims
By YOCHI J. DREAZEN and JOHN D. MCKINNON
Staff Reporters of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
December 28, 2005

WASHINGTON -- The television commercials are attention-grabbing: Newly found Iraqi documents show that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction, including anthrax and mustard gas, and had "extensive ties" to al Qaeda. The discoveries are being covered up by those "willing to undermine support for the war on terrorism to selfishly advance their shameless political ambitions."

The hard-hitting spots are part of a recent public-relations barrage aimed at reversing a decline in public support for President Bush's handling of Iraq. But these advertisements aren't paid for by the Republican National Committee or other established White House allies. Instead, they are sponsored by Move America Forward, a media-savvy outside advocacy group that has become one of the loudest -- and most controversial -- voices in the Iraq debate.

While even Mr. Bush now publicly acknowledges the mistakes his administration made in judging the threat posed by Mr. Hussein, the organization is taking to the airwaves to insist that the White House was right all along.

Similar to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth -- the advocacy group that helped derail John Kerry's presidential campaign -- Move America Forward has magnified its reach by making small television and radio ad buys and then relying on cable- and local-television news outlets to give the commercials heavy coverage. Move America Forward has no discernible formal ties to the White House or the Republican National Committee, and the group says it operates independently from the Republican Party establishment. Still, the organization provides a clear benefit to the administration by spreading a pro-war message that goes beyond what administration officials can say publicly.

[Oversea Visitor]

1. Go right ahead

promote this. Destroy America. So sick.
Sow these seed, and enjpyed the fruits of your labour.

[madfloridian]

3. This is an awful group......I am NOT promoting them.

It is an evil thing to do.

[Oversea Visitor]

6. Not refering to you

Refering to George the chimpity liar whacko bushiter. President of what was once the GREASTEST NATION on this ball of dirt we call EARTH.

[global1]

2. Yeah Right - No Ties.....

and you know what - the sheeple will buy this hook, line and sinker. If this raises *'s poll numbers - we might as well all give up because what we're up against is stupidity.

[madfloridian]

4. MoveOn questions their tax exempt status...

From the article:

Liberals question how the group has maintained its status as a tax-exempt nonprofit organization, which requires strict nonpartisanship, given the anti-Democratic tone of its campaigns. The group's Web site, www.moveamericaforward.org, for example, attacks the current chairman of the Democratic National Committee, referring to "Howard Dean types who only see a future of failure for this country."

"When you have people participating in partisan activities with nonprofit dollars, that's really something the IRS needs to look at," says Tom Matzzie, the Washington director of the liberal advocacy group MoveOn.org, another frequent target for Move America Forward's rhetoric. "An organization with a shady tax status participating in partisan activities and saying things that aren't true is a rogue element in American politics."

An Internal Revenue Service spokeswoman declined to address the issue, saying that it is agency policy not to "comment on individual taxpayers or organizations." MoveOn is a "political action committee," meaning its donations aren't tax-deductible and must be disclosed.

[hang a left]

5. Didn't someone do some backround on Move America Forward

here a while back. If I remember correctly they have their roots in Texas and with GOPUSA. Anyone?

[Roland99]

12. Some GOP-funded group from CA. They organized a "grassroots" protest

against Cindy Sheehan in Crawford.

[Roland99]

29. Ah HA! Here it is. Funded by a GOP freak from Sacramento >>>

http://www.prwatch.org/prwissues/2004Q3/maf.html

MAF's roots can be traced back to California's gubernatorial recall, which put movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger into office. In November 2003, one month after the recall election, the Daily News of Los Angeles interviewed Sacramento-based political consultant Sal Russo. He characterized the recall campaign he and other Republican strategists had organized and funded as a near-unstoppable, grassroots tour de force. "We took on the political establishment and won, and they feel empowered," said Russo of the 120,000 recall supporters in his database. "They want to be involved. . . . We'll change the name to something like 'Move America Forward,'" and go national, he predicted.

A week later, the Web site address MoveAmericaForward.com was registered to Russo's right-leaning political consulting/public affairs firm, Russo Marsh & Rogers. The firm had previously registered and designed the Web site DumpBarbaraLee.com, part of a vitriolic campaign against Representative Lee, the only member of Congress to vote against a wide-ranging "war on terror" resolution in the aftermath of the September 2001 attacks. Russo Marsh & Rogers' political work includes consulting for the Recall Gray Davis campaign, media work for businessman Bill Simon's 2002 California gubernatorial run, and directing the election campaigns of such Republican notables as U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert, New York Governor George Pataki, then-New Jersey Governor Christie Todd Whitman, and U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch's short-lived presidential run in 2000.

[cantstandbush]

7. People are getting sick of seeing Bush and his PR campaign. This will

backfire.

[54anickel]

8. Phfffft - Professional liars!!!! Saying what Bushco can't...

...message that goes beyond what administration officials can say publicly.

[ninkasi]

9. Where is their proof?

Are we to believe that if there had been a shred of proof that Saddam either possessed the WMDs, or that he had ties to Al-Qaida, the Bush administration wouldn't have produced this proof? We are to believe that this tax-exempt group which flouts laws, and is rabidly partisan, has proof that the administration doesn't? They are not producing proof, they are making statements without backup. They definitely need to lose their tax-exempt status, or liberal groups need to be allowed to sponsor ads challenging them, and also be tax exempt.

[hundred6]

10. its quiet....

on their discussion board. the most recent post is on june 27th.

so is anything planned to counter these ads?

[brentspeak]

11. Someone needs to attack this group's tax-exempt status

I don't think MoveAmericaForward would stand a chance in court.

[madfloridian]

13. Bloggers are starting to tackle this issue.

http://www.mydd.com/story/2005/12/28/11431/364

Secret Cash Going into Electioneering: Where Are You FEC?
by Matt Stoller

"Atrios pointed to this article on Move America Forward, a right-wing group running TV commercials. It's time for the FEC to put a stop to this bullshit. This is clear pay-to-play electoral work, and it's legalized because the FEC and reformer groups refuse to make it a priority.

In July, with the administration facing a torrent of negative media coverage of the war in Iraq, Move America Forward sent five conservative radio-talk-show hosts to U.S. military bases in Baghdad for a week of upbeat broadcasts. Ms. Morgan says that, during her time in Iraq, she rode up and down the so-called highway of death leading from Baghdad's airport seven times to prove to her listeners that it wasn't as dangerous as media reports suggested.
In addition to his Iraq political work in the U.S., Mr. Russo has an open-ended political-advertising contract with the Kurdish Regional Government in northern Iraq for whom he produces advertisements that run in the U.S. seeking investment in Kurdistan. Some critics accuse him of having a vested financial interest in prolonging the U.S. presence there.

This is crazy. John Aravosis points out how crazy. He asks good questions. Are foreign agents trying to trick us into continuing the war? "

[symbolman]

14. Looks like it's time for Takebackthemedia.com to roll up it's sleeves

and get to work on these guys :)

Maybe I need to gather some info and create a flash movie that can be spread around the web and SLAM these guys?

I want to organize as many blogs, websites, etc as possible and put out a drum beat on this issue.

This is the poster child for Impeaching the FEC. Remember all the Media that REFUSED to run Progressive ads because they were POLITICAL?

Okay, now the show is on the other foot.

Let's Roll.

[RamboLiberal]

15. Some Conservatives Return to Old Argument (Lying Ads on Iraq)

http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB113572887635032543-MBBcaDkXJAQBlIrm5UujD1fj5qw_20061227.html?mod=rss_free

The television commercials are attention-grabbing: Newly found Iraqi documents show that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction, including anthrax and mustard gas, and had "extensive ties" to al Qaeda. The discoveries are being covered up by those "willing to undermine support for the war on terrorism to selfishly advance their shameless political ambitions."

The hard-hitting spots are part of a recent public-relations barrage aimed at reversing a decline in public support for President Bush's handling of Iraq. But these advertisements aren't paid for by the Republican National Committee or other established White House allies. Instead, they are sponsored by Move America Forward, a media-savvy outside advocacy group that has become one of the loudest -- and most controversial -- voices in the Iraq debate.

While even Mr. Bush now publicly acknowledges the mistakes his administration made in judging the threat posed by Mr. Hussein, the organization is taking to the airwaves to insist that the White House was right all along.

Similar to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth -- the advocacy group that helped derail John Kerry's presidential campaign -- Move America Forward has magnified its reach by making small television and radio ad buys and then relying on cable- and local-television news outlets to give the commercials heavy coverage. Move America Forward has no discernible formal ties to the White House or the Republican National Committee, and the group says it operates independently from the Republican Party establishment. Still, the organization provides a clear benefit to the administration by spreading a pro-war message that goes beyond what administration officials can say publicly.

[The_Casual_Observer]

16. They are singing to their own choir with this nonsense.

It makes them feel better about the whole mess. The real history will be written regardless of that bullshit. The whole thing reminds me of the barroom banter about how the US could have won the war in Vietnam if it hadn't have been for the politicians.

[Wapsie B]

18. Yes we could've won in 'Nam if it weren't for those evil Demoncrats

and those godless hippies protesting across the country.:sarcasm:

That mindset is part of what drives the bitter hatred the right has of the Left in this country.

[Hissyspit]

17. Bet they won't have trouble getting their nonsensical ads aired.

Unlike left-wing groups do.

[niceypoo]

19. Their incompetence knows no bounds

They just don't fucking get it, do they?

[Old and In the Way]

20. Move America Foward - RNC Public Relations - Artificial Grassroots

that's coordinated by RW radio broadcasters. They are part of the rotten Bush Republicanism. They are protecting their interests in propping up the criminal enterprise in power.

[depakid]

21. Trouble is, the sheeple eat it up

Critical thinking only exists in about 1/3 of the population. The rest are ideologues one way or another. I'd guess at least 35% of the remaning ones will believe anything Bush and the far right says to believe- no matter how outlandish.

These ads are meant for the pliable 10-15% in between.

[raccoon]

28. Agreed, the sheeple will believe anything the Junta says.

So why don't these dips join the military? Don't they even CARE that the military needs bodies --I mean, new recruits?

[Democat]

22. Half of the TV stations won't run Democratic ads even if they pay, but...

...they run Republican ads for free.

The U.S. media is owned by the right wing.

[Up2Late]

23. Ridiculous, won't they ever learn? I guess when the receipts for the WMD's

are leaked to the media, maybe that would shut them up?

[NVMojo]

24. The Fight for Iraq: Some Conservatives Return to Old Argument

December 28, 2005

WASHINGTON -- The television commercials are attention-grabbing: Newly found Iraqi documents show that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction, including anthrax and mustard gas, and had "extensive ties" to al Qaeda. The discoveries are being covered up by those "willing to undermine support for the war on terrorism to selfishly advance their shameless political ambitions."

The hard-hitting spots are part of a recent public-relations barrage aimed at reversing a decline in public support for President Bush's handling of Iraq. But these advertisements aren't paid for by the Republican National Committee or other established White House allies. Instead, they are sponsored by Move America Forward, a media-savvy outside advocacy group that has become one of the loudest -- and most controversial -- voices in the Iraq debate.

While even Mr. Bush now publicly acknowledges the mistakes his administration made in judging the threat posed by Mr. Hussein, the organization is taking to the airwaves to insist that the White House was right all along.

Similar to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth -- the advocacy group that helped derail John Kerry's presidential campaign -- Move America Forward has magnified its reach by making small television and radio ad buys and then relying on cable- and local-television news outlets to give the commercials heavy coverage. Move America Forward has no discernible formal ties to the White House or the Republican National Committee, and the group says it operates independently from the Republican Party establishment. Still, the organization provides a clear benefit to the administration by spreading a pro-war message that goes beyond what administration officials can say publicly.

more...

http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB113572887635032543-MBBcaDkXJAQBlIrm5UujD1fj5qw_20061227.html?mod=rss_free

[PatriotGames]

25. So... they are basically going to lie on T.V. and radio?

To promote their selfish agenda?

[cyberpj]

26. What else is new? Dems better respond by calling it PROPAGANDA.

I want to hear that word a LOT in 2006!

[msongs]

27. repubs and allies are way ahead of dems and allies - they want to win

and will do whatever it takes. like hitler said, if yer gonna tell a lie, tell a BIG lie. repeat it often enough and it will be taken as true.


Msongs
www.msongs.com/political-shirts.htm

Msongs
www.msongs.com/political-shirts.htm

[Parche]

30. lies

Pardon me.....do they have any Grey Poupon Mustard Gas?

[mahatmakanejeeves]

31. I hope you mean airwaves, and not

airways. Who'd want to sit next to one of them for hours on end?

[Initech]

32. I hope this ad tanks, just like W's approval rating!