Nov. 29, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging opposition to H.R. 4919, a bill that would allow the Attorney General to determine “which types of tracking devices can be used” on humans:

“It is almost too absurd to believe that it is true, but the House Judiciary Committee is considering H.R. 4919 that would allow for the Attorney General to authorize tracking chips to be inserted involuntarily into people who are incapacitated with Alzheimer’s and other fatal dementias. That is not the least restrictive means of tracking patients, of course, when a simple GPS tracking bracelet for example might do the trick, if a doctor thought one would be helpful for a specific patient.

“In this case, Congress would be granting the Attorney General the power to regulate when human chips are used. But if this is about patient needs, why is this under the Department of Justice and not under the Department Health and Human Services? That alone makes the program suspicious. But the real question is why the government would have any role whatsoever in regulating the circumstances under which tracking devices are to be used on a mandatory basis, when such a system could be established by the private sector, and only ever used after private consultations between doctors, patients and patients’ families, when it is appropriate.

“If Congress has learned nothing else from Obama’s pen and phone rule over the past administration, they should have learned not to pass legislation giving the executive branch open-ended authority in such an area. This Congress needs to pass a short term continuing resolution and fade gracefully into the night, doing nothing else. It’s time to let the Obama administration end, not grant a few more Orwellian powers on the way out the door.”

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 including ALG President Rick Manning.

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Nov. 18, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement praising President-elect Donald Trump’s selection of Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.)  as Attorney General:

“President-elect Donald Trump has made a strong statement that our Justice Department will return to following the rule of law through his appointment of Senator Jeff Sessions to serve as the Attorney General.  While soft-spoken, Senator Sessions has the steel-willed determination to restore DOJ from its current corrupted partisanship by putting the blindfold back on Lady Justice as he enforces the law.  Sessions will also help remove the stain of an Obama Justice Department that views itself more as political activists than neutral arbiters as has been witnessed by their legal war on local police and their failure to enforce immigration laws.  The only potential down-side of Senator Jeff Sessions’ appointment is that when confirmed, the Senate will lose one of its great leaders who has met every challenge with integrity and quiet strength.”

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 including ALG President Rick Manning.

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Stephen Bannon and Breitbart News owed apology.

Nov. 17, 2016, Fairfax, Va.–Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement condemning the Anti-Defamation League for finally revealing that “we are not aware of any anti-Semitic statements made by [Stephen] Bannon” four days after smearing Bannon as “a man who presided over the premier website of the Alt Right, a loose-knit group of white nationalists and unabashed anti-Semites and racists”:

“The Anti-Defamation League has engaged in the most partisan libelous smear campaign imaginable against Stephen Bannon based on their own political prejudices and bias. One would expect ADL to actually look at the record prior to defaming someone who has proven to not only not be an anti-Semite, but to be a true friend of Israel. After four days of obscene character assassination of Bannon and Breitbart News, ADL has been forced to admit that there is no evidence that Bannon has ever made any anti-Semitic comments. This should provide a cautionary tale for the media that all too often engages in ready, fire, aim narratives unsupported by facts when talking about people they disagree with.

“Everyone in the media who reported this without first checking and ADL in particular owe Stephen Bannon and Breitbart News a front-page apology for their reckless political smear job.

“It is absolutely fair to have a public policy discussion based upon real statements and positions taken by public figures. But this discourse is destroyed by the left’s continued insistence that anyone who disagrees with them is by definition a racist, bigot, anti-Semitic, white supremacist. At a time when the entire media needs to engage in thorough self-examination to determine how they got so far off course, these false attacks on Bannon serve as the prosecution’s Exhibit A in exposing that the left is composed of nothing more than hacks undeserving of the moniker news.”

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 including ALG President Rick Manning.

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Nov. 16, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government Foundation President  Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement praising the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas for placing a permanent injunction against the Labor Department’s “persuader” regulation:

“Today, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas held unlawful the U.S. Department of Labor’s ‘Persuader’ regulation. The court issued a permanent, nationwide injunction preventing the regulation’s enforcement.

“This regulation would have resulted in the public disclosure of many types of advice and services provided by attorneys and other consultants to employers in the context of dealing with employee relations. A side effect of the regulation would have been an increased difficulty for employers to obtain advice on these matters. It would also have made employer communications with their employees more difficult.

“Since labor law is complex, many employers need advice in order to successfully navigate the labyrinth of laws, regulations, and policies that a variety of federal agencies apply to them. Limiting the availability of advice is bad policy.

“Today’s injunction validates what we have said from the beginning, that the regulation is unlawful, unnecessary, and would make it harder for employers to obtain advice.”

Attachments:

Permanent injunction on “persuader” regulation, Nov. 16, 2016 at https://getliberty.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Persuader-Rule-Perm-Injunction-11.16.16.pdf

Preliminary injunction on “persuader” regulation, June 27, 2016 at https://getliberty.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/NFIBvPerezPreliminaryInjunction_June272016.pdf

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 including ALG President Rick Manning.

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Nov. 14, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging Congress to end the lame duck session as soon as possible after passing a short-term continuing resolution into early spring:

“The single most important decisions for Congress in the lame duck session are to get in and get out, and do a short term continuing resolution that will allow the new Trump administration and Republican majorities in Congress to assert their spending priorites this coming spring. No criminal justice reform. No big omnibus spending bill deals with Obama.

“Every day Congress stays in session limits the number of regulations that can be repealed easily through the Congressional Review Act. So, pass the spending into spring, and go home.”

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 including ALG President Rick Manning.

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Nov. 14, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement after Donald Trump named Reince Priebus as the incoming White House Chief of Staff and Steven Bannon as Chief Strategist and Senior Counselor:

“Every White House is different in how the internal power structure works.  It is clear that President-elect Trump values both the insider knowledge of RNC Chairman Priebus and the strategic vision and outsider expertise of Breitbart CEO Steve Bannon and will put each of their talents to work to achieve his vision and restore the American dream.”

To view online: http://getliberty.org/2016/11/statement-on-bannon-priebus-appointments/

Attachments:

“Priebus, Bannon White House team averts grassroots revolt,” By Susan Crabtree, Washington Examiner, Nov. 13, 2016 at http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/priebus-bannon-white-house-team-averts-grassroots-revolt/article/2607292

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 including ALG President Rick Manning.

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Nov. 12, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement amid reports that Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus is being considered by President-elect Donald Trump for the position of White House Chief of Staff:

“My heart sank when I read the leaked report that the RNC chairman was being considered for the Chief of Staff position. This election was a rejection of the inside the beltway elites and Preibus’ appointment to this critical role would bring many of those who ridiculed and undercut Mr. Trump and his supporters into positions of influence. That would be a real disappointment.”

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 including ALG President Rick Manning.

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Nov. 11, 2016, Fairfax, Va.–Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging Congress to pass a continuing resolution that only goes through March:

“Congressional Republicans mistakenly allowed a budget debate to occur during the lame duck session. But now that we’re here in the lame duck, the budget is the only thing that should be dealt with, and the budget should be nothing more than the existing spending levels carried forward another three months. It would be ridiculous to allow President Obama’s rejected policies to be carried all the way to September. Instead, an early spring budget question is a bite at the apple in the first 100 days to get big things done for the Trump administration, including building the wall. Let Donald Trump and the new Congress set the last 6 months of the fiscal year. And then, that’s it, go home.”

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 including ALG President Rick Manning.

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Nov. 9, 2016, Fairfax, Va.–Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging President Barack Obama not to sign the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership in light of Donald Trump’s election to be the next President of the United States:

“The Trans-Pacific Partnership is dead. And Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, North Carolina and Wisconsin killed it. It would be a capstone of Obama’s arrogance if he were to now sign this bad trade deal that will throw American workers, who just voted for Donald Trump to stop the TPP, under the bus of globalization. Enough is enough, the American people have spoken decisively against the TPP.

“The only thing the lame duck should be restricted to doing is simply to do a short-term spending bill in order for Donald Trump and the new House and Senate majorities to set their priorities. No more dirty deals with Obama. No criminal justice. No TPP. Nothing. And the internal Republican leadership elections including Speaker must be delayed following the wisdom of Rep. Jim Renacci. Just spend through March 30 and that’s it and go home, and talk to constituents about what happens in January.”

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 including ALG President Rick Manning.

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Nov. 8, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging the North Carolina Board of Elections not to extend voting by 90 minutes in Durham County:

“The North Carolina State Board of Elections should reject requests to extend voting in Durham County. The allegation that one precinct ran out of paper authorization ballots for a short period of time is not excuse to increase voting opportunities across the County. By allowing the people of Durham County additional time to vote, the state would effectively be providing them a greater chance to exercise their franchise than people in the rest of the state. This unequal treatment should not be tolerated except under the most egregious circumstances, and it is clear that this request originated by the radical Southern Coalition for Social Justice is nothing more than an attempt to give Durham voters a greater chance to participate than those who live in the rest of the state. If you show up and you’re still in line at 7:30 p.m. when the polls close, just stay in line, they’ll still let you vote.”

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 including ALG President Rick Manning.

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