Profiting From Healthcare Protests? The American Liberty Alliance

In recent weeks, the national debate over healthcare reform has been clouded over by the unusual amount of media attention dedicated to the actions a relatively small number of right wing protesters. Conservative activists have appeared at a number of public town hall meetings with Congressional officials. These town hall meetings were intended to provide constituents with the rare opportunity to meet face to face their representatives in Washington. Voters were supposed to have the chance to ask questions and voice concerns about plans to reform the nation's ailing healthcare system. Sadly, a few conservative activists driven have decided to use boisterous shouting and confrontational antics to prevent any civil discussion on the healthcare issue from taking place at these town hall meetings. In doing so, they have robbed their fellow citizens on both sides of the issue of their chance to be heard.

These types of protests have sparked a nationwide debate of their own. Their defenders view these protests as nothing more than the freedom of speech – and apparently the right to bear arms – at work. Opponents note that these types of antics have done little but undermine but efforts to involve the public in the effort to craft healthcare reform legislation.

So just who is organizing these protests? This has been a matter of much debate. Some have compared the groups working to organize these protests to MoveOn, an organization that advocates for progressive causes. They argue that MoveOn often uses controversial tactics to attract the attention of the public and media. For example, the group sparked a nationwide controversy by running an ad entitled “General Petraeus or General Betray Us?” as part of its efforts to end the Iraq war. They also note that MoveOn and other progressive organizations frequently mobilize supporters to attend events involving elected officials or candidates for political office – a practice known as “bird dogging”. Indeed, the MoveOn supporters can now find printable signs expressing support for the public option on the group’s website, as well as ideas for questions to ask elected officials while attending town hall meetings.

However, there is a big difference between MoveOn and at least one of the organizations claiming to behind the anti-healthcare reform movement, The American Liberty Alliance. First, it is important to note that MoveOn is actually comprised of two separate entities. MoveOn.org Civic Action is a registered with the federal government as a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization. MoveOn Political Action is registered as a Political Action Committee (PAC). On the other hand, the American Liberty Alliance website explicitly states that the group is not a non-profit organization or a PAC. Instead, it makes money by selling online advertisements on its websites.

For example, the American Liberty Alliance offers advertisers the opportunity to purchase banner ads on its website HealthcareHorserace.com. Advertising rates are not made publicly available on the website. Instead, interested parties are asked to request more information about advertising rates card via email. Notably, the site offers up content containing the kind rhetoric that is likely fueling the frightening mob mentality taking hold among some right-wing activists. For instance, one front page headline reads Air America Calls Obama ‘Fascist Liar’. Despite its obvious bias, the site claims to be a "credible" hub of "accurate" information about healthcare reform policy in its missions statement.

An overall lack of transparency makes it difficult to understand the true nature of the American Liberty Alliance. How much money does it make on advertising? Where does the money it makes go? Is it a for profit business? The group’s website makes no effort to answer these important questions.

If the goal of the American Liberty Alliance is to make money, its involvement in the effort to organize anti-healthcare protests is disturbing. The group is a member of the coalition organizing the Nationwide Recess Rally on Saturday August 22, an effort that will involve anti-healthcare reform protestors demonstrating outside of Congressional offices around the country (many of which are closed on Saturdays). The official website of the protest, RecessRally.com, is also maintained by the American Liberty Alliance. The goal is to duplicate the success of the Tax Day Tea Party protests that took place earlier this year – an effort that the American Liberty Alliance also claims ties to.

If the American Liberty Alliance wants to be viewed as a credible grassroots political organization it needs to be a lot more transparent when it comes to its potential sources of profit, including income from advertising and from non-tax refundable contributions solicited on its websites. If it simply wishes to be a member of the for profit conservative media industry, it should just come out and say so.

The author of this article, David Anderson, can be reached at davewanderson@care2.com