U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin is a statist and a bully. The Senator, known for comparing U.S. soldiers to Nazis, recently used his senatorial letterhead to demand answers from us here at the Freedom Foundation. Sen. Durbin wants to know whether the Freedom Foundation is, or ever has been, a member of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).
What is this nefarious group? It’s hardly a secret since it has both a website and ablog. They even tweet. In fact, a cursory internet search would show that Bob Williams, the Freedom Foundation’s Founder and Senior Fellow, is on ALEC’s board of scholars.
ALEC is an organization made up of legislators, other organizations, and businesses that believe in fiscal conservatism, free markets, and constitutional federalism. Its meetings are about brainstorming and debating policy ideas, sharing information, and sometimes developing “model legislation” that legislators might choose to introduce in their own states. In short, ALEC allows people to talk about ideas … mostly conservative people, that is, and mostly conservative ideas.
Sen. Durbin stresses in his letter that he “acknowledges” the right to participate in politics. Yet this is rather troubling, for if he is not against political action generally, then his anti-ALEC position must relate instead to ALEC's point of view. When it comes to First Amendment freedom of speech, the absolute worst, most unlawful kind of speech restrictions are those based on “viewpoint discrimination.” (Then again, Sen. Durbin is not a big fan of the First Amendment, except when it protects his right to spend time with avowed Communists.)
Yet Sen. Durbin fully tips his hand with his second question. Beliefs are exactly what he’s interested in.
Sen. Durbin wants to know what the Freedom Foundation thinks about “stand your ground” legislation, which is already the law in most states, including both Washington and Illinois. He says that our answers will become part of the congressional record as he launches a hearing to investigate ALEC and “stand your ground” laws.
Below, you can read his letter and our response where I point out that Sen. Durbin’s current actions are an insult to his Lithuanian heritage and prove him a hypocrite. I do hope he includes our response in the record.
Can't see the documents? Download a copy - Durbin's Letter (PDF) | Our Response (PDF)
Can't see the documents? Download a copy - Durbin's Letter (PDF) | Our Response (PDF)
Letter from U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin
Freedom Foundation's Response to Sen. Durbin
