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Friend, I'm no constitutional scholar, but I always thought that I had a good understanding of the First Amendment and the right to free speech. But free speech doesn't seem to apply in Kentucky if you're trying to tell the truth about Mitch McConnell's plan to block clean air and sane climate by opposing President Obama's Clean Power Plan. Today, Environmental Action received notice from the Transit Authority of River City (TARC), the bus company for Louisville, KY, that our ads calling out Mitch McConnell for obstructing the Clean Power Plan will not be displayed in his hometown. TARC hasn't offered a specific reason for their refusal to run our ad. But given how much money the big coal companies spend, not to mention how much Senate Majority Leader McConnell spends, on advertising each year can you blame me for being suspicious? I am as frustrated as you are about this clear violation of free speech for the planet and clean power censorship. But this is an opportunity to be mad AND get even. If Mitch thought our bus ads were bad, wait until he sees the internet campaign we're working on next. And however Mitch and his coal-y-rollers got to TARC, they can't keep us offline. But I urgently need your help to shift our ad from busses to pixels, and expand its reach in Kentucky and other coal-mining states. Can I count on you to help us create an internet ad that McConnell and other clean power obstructionists will never forget?
The truth is Mitch is scared of a clean energy future because he doesn't want to upset his master, King Coal. And Mitch has been busy with his plans to obstruct clean air and public health. He just recruited some new Senate allies for his campaign to kill President Obama's Clean Power Plan. Yesterday Senators Shelley Moore Capito (D-WV) and Joe Manchin (D-WV) announced they will introduce a bill to vastly weaken, if not kill, the Clean Power Plan1 Among other things, the bill would suspend compliance dates and allow states to opt out of complying altogether if a governor determines "it's not in the state's best interest." The state's best interest? Sounds a lot more like King Coal's best interest. Just look at how much money King Coal has rewarded McConnell, Capito and Manchin for their loyalty and devotion -- over $2.6 million in the last four years alone!2 And King Coal also accounted for the largest contributions to governors in the top producing coal states.3 But it gets worse. As if lining the pockets of lawmakers who are supposed to be working for us was not enough, this week a coal executive billionaire announced that he will run to become governor of our country's second largest coal producing state, West Virginia.4 That's why we need to expand our ad to cover both Kentucky AND West Virginia. With your help, residents of these states will learn the true benefits of clean power and the real dangers of King Coal -- including censorship. If McConnell and his allies think they can silence us they have another thing coming online. Please click here to help us broadcast the truth about the Clean Power Plan where people need to hear it the most. Thank You for fighting clean power censorship, Anthony and the Environmental Action Climate Crusaders 2. Center for Responsive Politics: Senate Financial Breakdwon. |
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