The telecommunications company T-Mobile has decided to leave the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), making it the latest in a long series of corporate giants to depart the conservative organization.
“T-Mobile is affiliated with many public policy organizations and we regularly evaluate these affiliations and associations based on our priorities,” the company said Wednesday in a statement provided to National Journal. “In line with this practice, in 2015 we decided not to renew our membership with ALEC.”
T-Mobile did not offer an explanation for why it decided to leave the ALEC. A number of organizations, in leaving, have griped about the organization’s position on climate change. Google CEO Eric Schmidt, for instance, said that ALEC is “literally lying” that there’s any question about climate change.
ALEC argues that moves to decrease carbon emissions are impractical.
“Unilateral efforts by the United States or regions within the United States will not significantly decrease carbon emissions globally, and international efforts to decrease emissions have proven politically infeasible and unenforceable,” ALEC’s position statement on renewable energy and climate change reads.
On Sunday, the liberal advocacy organization Common Cause said it received a cease and desist letter from ALEC for saying that the organization denies climate change. ALEC also reportedly sent a similar letter to the League of Conservation Voters.
With virtually all of these “departure” announcements, remember:
They don’t like the publicity, but they’re not leaving because they don’t like what ALEC was doing.
…and if they participated here, there are still lots of other, less visible ways (astroturf campaigns, unattributable
campaign donations, writing international trade treaties, crafting legislation to their liking through paid legislators) to
continue their perpetual pursuit of what is best for them.
Yep. They’ve just gone back to buying the legislation they want more directly. ALEC is a legislation writing entity, not a lobbying entity.
ALEC is a liability. That, and its adherence to climate change has become a complete embarrassment. None of these corporations have turned into saints, but only energy companies have any reason to stick with them.
C&D letter. Snort.
We the People should send a C & D letter to ALEC, telling them to stop writing legislation and pushing it through, and leave the law making up to the law makers. We didn’t elect ALEC.