- National Republican Trust Political Action Group
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The National Republican Trust Political Action Group is a third organization that supports Republican candidates for United States federal government positions through advertising. It operates independently from the Republican Party, though its name implies otherwise, and is connected to the website NewsMax.[1]
Controversy
The group sparked controversy during the 2008 United States Presidential election when they alleged that candidate Barack Obama's plan on illegal immigration would help terrorists carry out attacks. In the ad, the group asserted that Obama's plan would give driver's licenses to "any illegal who wants one." The ad then shows a United States driver's licence with a picture of Mohamed Atta, the organizer of the 9/11 attacks, on it. In addition, the group claimed that Obama would give the illegal immigrants health care and social security benefits, which would cause citizens to pay higher taxes. The ad was first run in Ohio, and was then run in an additional four swing states.[1] [2]
In 2010 the group made headlines again for producing a controversial ad entitled "Kill Ground Zero Mosque" aimed at stopping mosques being built near the Ground Zero site, calling them a monstrosity and implying that building them would provoke more terrorist attacks. NBC and CBS both refused to air the ad. [3]
In November 2010, five Fox affiliates and one ABC affiliate owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group -- all in swing states vital to the 2010 elections -- broadcasted an infomercial critical of President Obama, Breaking Point: 25 Minutes that will Change America, which was sponsored by the National Republican Trust.[4] The infomercial painted Obama as an extremist, in which, during the 2008 presidential campaign, claimed he received some campaign money from the Hamas terrorist group, and claimed to have said in a speech, "You want freedom? You’re gonna have to kill some crackers! You gonna have to kill some of those babies." The special also discusses Obama advisers Van Jones and John Holdren, as well as Obama staff Anita Dunn, Kevin Jennings, Carol Browner, and Cass Sunstein -- all in an unflattering light; in once case, the special claimed that Holdren said that trees should be permitted to sue humans in court. [5][6]
References
- ^ a b http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/a_license_to_kill.html
- ^ http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0209/19055.html
- ^ "TV networks reject controversial '9/11 mosque' ad". BBC. 2010-07-15. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us+canada-10641970. Retrieved 2010-7-15.
- ^ National Republican Trust: "Breaking Point: 25 Milutes that will Change America"
- ^ The Raw Story: "Fox affiliates run infomercial in swing states suggesting Obama funded by Hamas, wants to ‘kill some crackers’", November 1, 2010.
- ^ ThinkProgress: "‘Kill Some Crackers’: GOP Group Pays Fox Affiliates To Influence Election With Anti-Obama Propaganda", November 1, 2010.
External links
Categories:- Election campaigning
- Political organizations in the United States
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