FREEDOMWORKS 12/13/2015 GOP ESTABLISHMENT PLAYING WITH FIRE!

Bernie Sanders and the Climate Change Hostage Crisis - by Remso Martinez Devout socialist and communist sympathizer, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, announced on Monday an economically and constitutionally irresponsible scheme to "combat climate change and cut carbon emissions by more than 80% by 2050." Sanders' plan would impose a tax on carbon and prohibit extraction on federal lands. Sanders also stated he would expand the EPA by establishing a clean energy federal workforce program of "10 million jobs to convert the economy to a 100% clean energy system." According to Sanders' plan, this strategy would "lead to a reduction in U.S. carbon pollution of 40% by 2030." Read more here... Permanent Internet Access Tax Ban a Victory for Internet Freedom Following the addition of language to the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act that permanently extends the existing ban on taxation of Internet access, FreedomWorks Legislative Affairs Manager Josh Withrow commented: "Finally. This language would have passed last year if supporters of the complicated and misguided Internet sales tax hadn't tried to add their bill to the Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act. The Internet is a transformative platform that is vital to our economy, and it's still developing. Ensuring that access to the Internet is not taxed would be a rare victory for Internet freedom." Read more here... Key Vote NO on Any Attempt to Strip Internet Tax Ban from H.R. 644 - by Adam Brandon On behalf of our over 6.9 million activists nationwide, I urge you to call your senators and ask them to resist any efforts to strip the permanent ban on taxation of internet access from the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act, H.R. 644. Although it was attached to a less-than ideal vehicle, the Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act (PITFA) is a crucially important piece of legislation. It would prevent any federal, state, or local taxation of internet service. Given that the internet is the single most empowering for communication and learning in human history, preventing governments from taxing it the way they have other communications services is essential. Read more here... A Permanent Internet Tax Ban at Last - by Logan Albright In the mad rush of trying to pass as much terrible legislation as possible before the holiday deadline, Congress is actually doing one thing worth praising. A permanent extension of the Internet Tax Freedom Act is being included in the conference report for a bill aimed at modernizing the U.S. customs system. The bill is expected to pass by the end of the year, and the included measure would make permanent the ban on states and localities taxing access to the internet, a ban that has existed since 1998 and which has had to be repeatedly renewed since that time. The new measure also goes further than the current ban by introducing retroactivity. When the original Internet Tax Freedom Act was passed, states that already taxed internet access were allowed to maintain their current policies, being, as it were, grandfathered in. This meant that jurisdictions in Hawaii, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Texas, and Wisconsin have been permitted to continue taxing internet access in spite of the ban for all these years. The new measure will close this loophole, and require these states to phase out their taxes by 2020. This is expected to save taxpayers several hundred million dollars each year. Read more here... FreedomWorks' Digital Bill of Rights - by Logan Albright As more and more of our activities move online and the internet plays an integral role in our day to day lives, it must be remembered that the rights we enjoy as American citizens do not stop at technology's doorstep. It is important, therefore, to ensure that the protections established in the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights serve Americans in the digital world just as effectively as they do in the real world. With this in mind, we therefore propose a Digital Bill of Rights: I. The right to due process shall be preserved in the digital realm. You don't forfeit your rights as soon as you log onto the internet. Just as in the physical world, digital searches and seizures must require a properly issued, individual warrant, and not be conducted arbitrarily or en mass. Read more here... Backstage with Tim Huelskamp FreedomWorks Congratulates Tim Huelskamp on Election to House GOP Steering Committee Following the election of Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-KS-01), a member of the House Freedom Caucus, to the House Republican Steering Committee, FreedomWorks CEO Adam Brandon commented: "We congratulate Tim Huelskamp on his election to the Republican Steering Committee. We know that he'll continue to be a voice for fiscally conservative principles and limited government in this new role." "We've said all along that House Republican leaders should listen to conservative members. That's what John Boehner failed to do, and it eventually led to him losing his post as Speaker. Huelskamp's election is certainly a positive sign and a step in the right direction." Read more here... Justice Reform Gets a Boost from the Director of the FBI - by Jason Pye During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday, FBI Director James Comey signaled support for Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act, calling the bill "reasonable." The legislation, which would expand the existing federal "safety valve" exception to mandatory minimum sentences, was approved by the committee in October and is awaiting action before the full Senate, which could happen in early 2016. In early November, FreedomWorks released a letter of support for the bill. Before serving as the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Comey was a United States attorney for the Southern District of New York and a deputy attorney general in the President George W. Bush's administration. Another former Bush administration official, Michael Mukasey, who served as attorney general from November 2007 to January 2009, testified in support of the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act before the Senate Judiciary Committee in October. Read more here... Institutions Steven Horwitz explains how political and legal institutions provide the framework within which all human behavior takes place. The way contracts are enforced, property is protected, and markets are regulated create incentives and channel action in different ways. In this way, institutions play a large role in determining a society's success - or failure. Read more here... The Republican Establishment is Playing with Fire Following news reports that top GOP leaders and advisors are preparing for a brokered convention at the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland, FreedomWorks CEO Adam Brandon commented: "In 2012, Republicans took extraordinary steps to reduce the influence of grassroots conservative activists by centralizing power with a few party bosses, at the expense of grassroots leaders, insurgent candidates, and rank-and-file delegates. These steps disenfranchised many convention delegates, some of whom were involved in the process for the first time." "Today, the party establishment is panicked about the rise of insurgent candidates. They still don't get it. The popularity of these candidates is a reaction to the Republican establishment's inability to effectively fight for conservative reforms and to articulate and implement the conservative principles and policies that got them elected in the first place." Read more here... FreedomWorks in Action Sign up for the FreedomWorks Morning Update If you want an update like this newsletter twice a week, be sure to sign up for the FreedomWorks Morning Update! The Morning Update is your tool to keep up-to-date with all the threats to your freedom. Sign up here. Make freedom work, Jason Pye Communications Director, FreedomWorks