Jan. 10, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging President Donald Trump to remove India from the General System of Preferences and to pursue a bilateral trade agreement instead:

“India has the sixth largest economy in the world at $2.45 trillion and is promoting further trade through its Make in India campaign. It is great that the government of India is rhetorically embracing free trade. However, reports of continued intellectual property, labor and tariff abuses by India remain rampant, threatening the sub-continent nation’s trade promises. Given India’s stated desire to enter the world’s economic system as a major player, it is time for President Trump to remove the $4.7 billion a year General System of Preferences treatment and negotiate a strong, enforceable, bilateral agreement. Everyone should welcome India onto the world stage, but to truly take her place, the nation must exit a trading system designed for the most underdeveloped economies. In 2015, Trump joined with Americans for Limited Government in opposing the Trans-Pacific Partnership because the American people believe in reciprocity in trade and the same should apply with India. President Trump should expedite India’s economic maturation by stripping away the GSP.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

###

Jan. 10, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging Attorney General Jeff Sessions to conduct a review and investigation of the prosecution of Cliven Bundy after the case was dismissed over prosecutorial misconduct:

“It is unacceptable that federal law enforcement agents and prosecutors engaged in gross misconduct and violations of constitutional rights in their handling of the high-profile Cliven Bundy case in Nevada. The disturbing allegations that Bureau of Land Management enforcement personnel attempted to incite violence and federal prosecutors broke basic evidentiary laws, causing the cases to be thrown out, need a full and thorough investigation by the Justice Department. Federal law enforcement officials and the Justice Department have come under increased scrutiny as being overtly politicized and given the high-profile nature of the Bundy case, it is hard not to worry if the federal malfeasance isn’t a fruit of that poisoned Obama tree. It’s up to Attorney General Jeff Sessions to get to the bottom of what went wrong and to hold those accountable who are to blame to fullest extent of the law.”

Attachments:

“DOJ misconduct in Nevada in Bundy case,” By Richard McCarty and Printus LeBlanc, Jan. 10, 2018 at http://netrightdaily.com/2018/01/doj-misconduct-nevada-bundy-case/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

###

 

HUD administrative actions end immediate damage

Jan. 8, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging Congress to defund the 2015 Obama HUD housing rule that rezones recipients of community development block grants along income and racial criteria:

“The Department of Housing and Urban Development is on the right track by delaying implementation of the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing assessment tool until 2020, an unworkable bi-product of the 2015 Obama housing rule that effectively puts the federal government in charge of local zoning issues. The rule cites zoning no less than six times as a basis for compliance with the regulation. The House-passed omnibus bill defunds that aspect of the regulation, and we strongly support that rider’s inclusion or expansion in the final 2018 funding bill. This is a perfect way for Congress to begin to reassert its rightful Article I constitutional prerogatives, by defunding those regulations that go far beyond the scope of federal law.”

Attachments:

The HUD regulation in question, “Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing” (AFFH) currently conditions $3 billion of yearly community development block grants on 1,200 recipient cities and counties rezoning neighborhoods along income and racial guidelines. Specifically, it does so by directing municipalities “to examine relevant factors, such as zoning and other land-use practices that are likely contributors to fair housing concerns, and take appropriate actions in response” as a condition for receipt of the block grants.” [emphasis added] https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2013/07/19/2013-16751/affirmatively-furthering-fair-housing#h-19

SEC. 234. Of HR 3354: “None of the funds made available by this Act may be used by the Department of Housing and Urban Development to direct a grantee to undertake specific changes to existing zoning laws as part of carrying out the final rule entitled ‘Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing’ (80 Fed. Reg. 42272 (July 16, 2015)) or the notice entitled ‘Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing Assessment Tool’ (79 Fed. Reg. 57949 (September 26, 2014)).” https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/3354/text

“Senate takes first step to ending HUD takeover of neighborhoods,” By Robert Romano, May 20, 2016 at http://netrightdaily.com/2016/05/senate-takes-first-step-ending-hud-takeover-neighborhoods/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

###

 

Jan. 5, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement praising Attorney General Jeff Sessions for beginning to end the politicization of the Justice Department that occurred during the Obama era:

“Lost in the whirlwind of speculation around personnel at the Justice Department, the Office of Inspector General is exposing numerous abuses of power during the Obama Justice Department era, resulting in the removal or early retirements of key officials, including the General Counsel and the Deputy FBI Director. It is clear that the Justice Department under Jeff Sessions is engaged in a wholesale review of these abuses and is removing officials who have violated the public trust.

“Anyone who wants to get to the bottom of the political weaponization of the Justice Department that occurred throughout the Obama administration should be applauding the Attorney General for his smart, deliberate and careful approach. Our nation faces what may well turn out to be the biggest political scandal in our history, where law enforcement and intelligence were used for partisan purposes against political enemies. In short, Obama and Hillary Clinton may well have been spying on the Trump campaign to gain political advantage, and nobody from either political party should be tolerating this. Fortunately, Jeff Sessions is a man beyond reproach and is key to putting the blindfold back on Lady Justice.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

###

 

Jan. 4, 2018, Fairfax, Va.–Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today called upon Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to approve President Trump’s energy plan calling for more coal and nuclear energy due to their resilience and availability in crisis situations like the east coast blizzard:

“Two-thirds of the United States is in an ice box, demonstrating the importance of coal and nuclear energy to provide reliable electricity and heat in times when the system is stressed like this week’s blizzard. FERC needs to approve President Trump’s energy plan to ensure that reliable and resilient coal and nuclear power remain the critical part of our nation’s electricity grid. We have re-released the ‘Crisis Point’ video that makes this point in easy to understand terms.”

Attachments:

“Crisis Point,” Americans for Limited Government at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9aDX3c8Px4&feature=youtu.be

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

###

Jan. 3, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement agreeing with a legal complaint by Paul Manafort’s attorneys that Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation has far exceeded its original mandate to investigate potential ties between the Trump campaign and the Russian government:

“Paul Manafort is absolutely correct that the charges he is facing far exceed the original mandate of potential contacts between the Trump campaign and the Russian government, and have gone years into the past prior to the 2016 election campaign and in many cases do not even invoke official Russian government contacts. Federal law requires that a crime have been committed in order for a special counsel to be appointed to specifically investigate. Instead, Special Counsel Robert Mueller was granted wide latitude by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to search for a crime that could be tied even loosely to the Justice Department’s unbridled Russia election interference investigation.

“The special counsel should have referred anything beyond the scope of the original investigation to the Department of Justice. But now it is clear that one of the original rationales for this investigation was a political campaign hit piece paid for by the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee.

“The proper response by the Justice Department to the lawsuit is to acknowledge its legal standing and to shut down this ill-conceived Mueller investigation.”

To view online: https://getliberty.org/2018/01/paul-manafort-is-right-mueller-investigation-far-beyond-mandate-set-forth-in-special-counsel-declaration/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 100 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

###

Jan. 3, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging that India be removed from the General System of Preferences:

“Given India’s continued rhetoric on free trade and its $2.3 trillion Gross Domestic Product, it is time for the U.S. to consider removing India from the General System of Preferences, a federal program of which it is the number one beneficiary at $4.7 billion a year. Right now, the U.S. does not receive similar trade preferences in return, and it is time that India join the U.S. in pursuing shared interests on free markets, intellectual property and labor. A bilateral trade deal with India would be preferable to the blanket approach offered by the General System of Preferences, where India is treated the same as small, undeveloped countries.  It is time for India meet the promise of their Make In India campaign and leave the little kids trade table and join the adults in a bilateral deal with the United States.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 100 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

###