Spaeth, M

===

<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Merrie_Spaeth">http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Merrie_Spaeth</a>

Merrie Spaeth was born on August 23, 1948, in Philadelphia, PA. She received her B.A. degree, with honors, from Smith College in 1970, and from the Columbia Graduate School of Business in 1980. <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/resource/speeches/1984/32084b.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[1]</a>

Spaeth is "the public relations consultant representing" <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Swift_Boat_Veterans_for_Truth" title="Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Swift Boat Veterans for Truth</a> (SBVT). "According to CBS television news, election commission records [reveal that Spaeth] gave the maximum possible £2,000 donation" [sic] to the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Bush-Cheney_%2704_Inc." title="Bush-Cheney '04 Inc." style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Bush-Cheney '04 Inc.</a> re-election campaign in June 2003. <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1210324,00.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[2]</a> (Note: The actual amount was probably $2,000, not £2,000.)

Her role with the SBVT attack on Kerry prompted the Kerry campaign to allege that she previously played a role in attempting to discredit John McCain in the Republican presidential primary in 2000. Spaeth told National Review that she was approached to provide phone support after the two Texas millionaires Sam and Charles Wyly, created the front group <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Republicans_for_Clean_Air" title="Republicans for Clean Air" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Republicans for Clean Air</a> to attack McCains environmental policies.

Spaeth said that she agreed to field press inquiries for the group. It "turned out to be the biggest mistake, at least one of the top five," of her life, she said. "I regret being involved in any way," she said. <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.nationalreview.com/york/york200405200840.asp" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[3]</a>

Spaeth, founder of <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Spaeth_Communications,_Inc." title="Spaeth Communications, Inc." class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Spaeth Communications, Inc.</a>, "served as a White House Fellow and was assigned to <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/FBI" title="FBI" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">FBI</a> Director <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/William_Webster" title="William Webster" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">William Webster</a>. She was the first Fellow and one of the first two women on the director's staff. From the FBI, she served two years at the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Federal_Trade_Commission" title="Federal Trade Commission" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Federal Trade Commission</a> as director of public affairs, and in 1983, President <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Ronald_Reagan" title="Ronald Reagan" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Ronald Reagan</a> named her director of <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Media" title="Media" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">media</a> relations at the White House. Merrie introduced satellite communications to the White House, and the electronic White House News Service. One newspaper headline said she 'took the White House into the Space Age.' <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.spaethcom.com/about_executive.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[4]</a>

A biographical note on Spaeth, posted to a speakers bureau she works for, states that she was selected "as the communications coach for Independant Counsel Ken Starr, as he begins his testimony before congress." <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.leadingauthorities.com/3983/Merrie_Spaeth.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[5]</a>

As a teenage actor, Spaeth worked with Peter Sellers and Angela Lansbury in The World of Henry Orient. In an interview with Inc magazine, Spaeth says that what she learned from Sellers and Lansbury "was the quality of continual reinvention."

Describing the philosophy of her company, Spaeth said "We reinvent ourselves to solve a client's problem. It's more than just tweaking, and it's not something along the lines of Hammer's reengineering. It's rethinking what your audience wants and needs. Isn't that what great actors constantly do?" <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.inc.com/articles/2000/03/17482.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[6]</a>

Spaeth is listed with Leading Authorities, a Washington D.C. speakers bureau, as available for events at a fee of between $5,000 and $10,000. Her preferred topics, her listing states, includes "White House Secrets in Managing the Media" and "Crisis Communication and Beyond." <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.leadingauthorities.com/3983/Merrie_Spaeth.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[7]</a>

Writing in Salon, Joe Conason described her as "among the most experienced and best connected Republican communications executives. During the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Reagan_administration" title="Reagan administration" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Reagan administration</a> she served as director of the White House Office of Media Liaison, where she specialized in promoting 'news' items that boosted President Reagan to TV stations around the country. While living in Washington she met and married <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Tex_Lezar" title="Tex Lezar" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Tex Lezar</a>, a Reagan Justice Department lawyer who ran for lieutenant governor of Texas in 1994 with George W. Bush, then the party's candidate for governor. (Lezar lost; Bush won.)." <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2004/05/04/swift/index_np.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[8]</a>

According to her biographical profile "she has worked in every area of print and electronic media. She's been a radio and television talk show host, a reporter and writer for the Philadelphia Inquirer and the New York Daily News, and a producer for ABC's "20/20." For several years, she wrote a weekly column on personal finance and investing called "Your Finances" that was featuredin Family Weekly (later USA Today Sunday Magazine. Her first book Marketplace Communication (MasterMedia) is a collection of her commentaries on "Marketplace," the daily business show on public radio stations across the country. Today, she writes a weekly column for <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/UPI" title="UPI" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">UPI</a> on communication challenges facing businesses, and she is a regular commentator on public radio and television."

According to her biographical note, Spaeth was also a speechwriter for the legendary William S. Paley, chairman of <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/CBS" title="CBS" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">CBS</a>.

"She has lectured in the Global Executives program at the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Wharton_School&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Wharton School (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Wharton School</a>, the graduate school of business for the University of Pennsylvania, and is an Adjunct Professor at the Business Leadership Center in the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University. She also regularly lectures to participants of the business executive program at the University of Birmingham, England. Board memberships include Saxon Publishing, which publishes the nation’s most effective math and reading textbooks, and Pose Tech, which seeks to teach the world to run without injuries. Charitable board memberships include the National Children’s Eye Care Foundation and the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Law_Enforcement_Television_Network&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Law Enforcement Television Network (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Law Enforcement Television Network</a> (LETN). Her firm commits between 5 and 10 percent of its time each year to pro bono training for civic and charitable organizations," it states.

"We had more 'bimbos' in 1995 than ever before," Spaeth said in giving out last year's award to Time Warner, whose "Jenny Jones" show invited a male guest to appear and meet his "secret admirer." After the admirer turned out to be another man, the enraged guest shot and killed him, prompting a Time Warner spokesperson to state, "No one was lied to. No one was misled." Spaeth may want to give herself the award for 1996. In the February issue of Public Relations Tactics, she expressed annoyance at "pot shots taken by journalists at public relations people." As an example, she cited press coverage given to Nigeria's hiring of several PR firms in an attempt to clean up its image after executing eight human rights and environmental activists. "The article made clear that 'PR' meant fluff and cover-up without any real change," Spaeth complained.<a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.prwatch.org/prwissues/1996Q4/bites.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[9]</a>

Spaeth writes a regular column for <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/United_Press_International" title="United Press International" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">United Press International</a> on communication issues. In a June 2003 column she warned that crisis management consultants, like generals, were best prepared to "fight the last war".

"The 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill spawned a methodology of crisis management that dictated that a company or organization immediately and proactively own up to a problem, and that the chief executive officer himself step forward. This is much too simple, and it can be bad advice," she wrote.

Spaeth recounted an instance where she had advised a hospital client where two patients diagnoses had been mixed up - and quietly settled out of court - public disclosure would not serve the public interest. She then went on to state that "when advising companies, I first ask, 'Will this information get out anyway, and if so, then you must get in control by announcing it yourself. And your spokesmen and women need to have the expertise or stature to convince your important audiences that you care, you have correctly analyzed the situation, and you are acting quickly, appropriately and with integrity'," she wrote.

The need for transparency, she advised, has its limits. "Sometimes, even if one is reasonably certain the information will not leak out, the moral course of action is to announce it. The key word is 'sometimes.' A consultant needs to bring good judgment and courage, not rote lessons," she wrote.<a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://quickstart.clari.net/qs_se/webnews/wed/dg/Uwordsmatter-commentary.RxeF_Du3.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[10]</a>

In a May 2004 commentary, Spaeth reflecting on an article in the Toronto-based Globe and Mail, rhetorically asked "does PR need some PR?".

While defending PR, she conceded the industry had a problem. "It must be admitted that PR has contributed to its own problems by those individuals who place themselves in the public eye and say things they know aren't true, or who go along with the CEO or the lawyers rather than jeopardize a large retainer. Yet, do not lawyers similarly say truly bizarre things in public and give their clients awful advice?," she wrote.

"Public relations -- again, understanding, communicating and maintaining relationships -- is a critical function of an organization. It deserves respect," she concluded.<a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20040521-054932-3541r" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[11]</a>

<h2 style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-image: none; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-weight: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0.6em; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.17em; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); width: auto; font-size: 19.200000762939453px; font-family: sans-serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19.200000762939453px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Ronald_Reagan_Conservative_Society&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Ronald Reagan Conservative Society (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Ronald Reagan Conservative Society</a></h2>

<p style=" margin: 0.4em 0px 0.5em; line-height: 19.200000762939453px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Spaeth is one of the founders and a member of the board of directors of the Ronald Reagan Conservative Society. <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.reagansociety.org/leadership.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[12]</a>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">"<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.spaethcom.com/about_executive.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Executive bios</a>", undated, accessed August 2004.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Joe Conason, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2004/05/04/swift/index_np.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Smear Boat Veterans for Bush</a>", Salon, May 4, 2004.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Byron York, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.nationalreview.com/york/york200405200840.aspVietnam" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Veterans Against Kerry</a>", National Review, May 31, 2004.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Mike Hofman, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.inc.com/articles/2000/03/17482.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">In a Former Life: Merrie Spaeth</a>, Inc magazine, March 2000.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">"<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.leadingauthorities.com/3983/Merrie_Spaeth.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Merrie Spaeth</a>", undated, accessed August 2004.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Todd J. Gillman, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/mld/mercurynews/news/special_packages/election2004/9462212.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Public relations woman has central role in Kerry ad controversy</a>", Dallas Morning News, August 22, 2004.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">"<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.prwatch.org/prwissues/1996Q4/bites.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Bimbo vs. Bimbo</a>", PR Watch, Volume 3, No. 4, 4th Quarter 1996.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Merrie Spaeth, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://quickstart.clari.net/qs_se/webnews/wed/dg/Uwordsmatter-commentary.RxeF_Du3.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Words Matter: Managing a crisis</a>, United Press International, June 3, 2003.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Merrie Spaeth, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20040521-054932-3541r" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Words Matter: PR needs PR</a>, United Press International, May 22, 2004.</li>

</ul>

===

Republicans for Clean Air (RCA) was a <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Front_group" title="Front group" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">front group</a> created by supporters of <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/George_W._Bush" title="George W. Bush" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">George W. Bush</a> in his 2000 presidential primary campaign against <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/John_McCain" title="John McCain" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">John McCain</a>. According to an April 6, 2000, article in the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Dallas_Observer&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Dallas Observer (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Dallas Observer</a>,<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Rob_Allyn" title="Rob Allyn" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Rob Allyn</a> was a key player in the George W. Bush campaign to discredit his rival and was paid $46,000 to help create the ad described below. <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.dallasobserver.com/issues/2000-04-06/news2.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[1]</a>.

Beginning in February 2000, RCA spent $2.5 million to run television ads in the key primary states of California, Ohio and New York. The ads showed McCain's face superimposed on a backdrop of smokestacks belching dark clouds, accused McCain of voting against solar and <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Renewable_energy" title="Renewable energy" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">renewable energy</a> and claimed that then-Governor Bush was responsible for improving air quality in his home state of Texas.

In fact, as Texas-based columnist Molly Ivins observed, "Texas has very dirty air. According to the North American Commission on Environmental Cooperation set up by NAFTA, we pollute more than any other state or Canadian province. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Texas is No. 1 in overall toxic releases, recognized carcinogens in the air, suspected carcinogens in the air, developmental toxins in the air, cancer risk and 10 other equally depressing categories." <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.commondreams.org/views/030600-102.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[2]</a>

The Center for Public Integrity noted that RCA "had neither an office nor a phone number, just a post office box in northern Virginia. The news media and McCain's campaign scrambled to identify the group's directors and backers". <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.public-i.org/adwatch/overview.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[3]</a> They noted that less than a week after the ads ran and McCain had been defeated on "Super Tuesday", were the sponsors identified.

The money came from Dallas billionaires <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Sam_Wyly&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Sam Wyly (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Sam</a> and <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Charles_Wyly&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Charles Wyly (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Charles Wyly</a>, investment bankers and friends of Bush. Charles Wyly was a Bush "pioneer," one of an elite group that raised $100,000 for Bush's 2000 presidential campaign.

Initially, RCA concealed its funding, using a loophole in Section 527 of the U.S. tax code, which requires political parties and political action committees to report their work to the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Federal_Election_Commission" title="Federal Election Commission" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Federal Election Commission</a>. Under the loophole, groups involved in "issue advocacy" rather than explicit campaigning for candidates candidates were allowed to use the 527 status without reporting to the FEC, enabling groups like RCA to operate as what came to be called "<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Stealth_political_action_committees&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Stealth political action committees (page does not exist)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(165, 88, 88); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">stealth PACs</a>."

In response to the ads, the McCain campaign filed a complaint with the FCC about the RCA's anonymity of Republicans for Clean Air. <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Republicans_for_Clean_Air/comments_by_George_W._Bush" title="Republicans for Clean Air/comments by George W. Bush" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Bush himself defended the ads</a>. "That's part of the American process," he said. "That's what freedom of speech is all about. This allegation that somehow I'm involved with this is just totally ridiculous. It is uncalled-for. There is no truth to it."

After the Wylys' role in funding RCA became public knowledge, the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Sierra_Club" title="Sierra Club" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Sierra Club</a> issued a news release noting that the Wylys "have given hundreds of thousands of dollars to anti-environmental politicians who have voted to weaken the Clean Air Act." Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope stated that the ads were "polluting the airwaves with false information about George W. Bush's terrible environmental record. 'Republicans for Clean Air' should pull these ads that paint a false picture of Gov. Bush's poor record governing the most polluted state in America." <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.commondreams.org/news2000/0303-03.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[4]</a>

Following public controversy over the role that RCA and other stealth PACs played in the 2000 election, Congress subsequently passed legislation requiring <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/527_organizations" title="527 organizations" class="mw-redirect" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">527 organizations</a> that engage in issue advocacy to publicly report their financing.

<h2 style=" color: black; background-image: none; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0.6em; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.17em; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); width: auto; font-size: 19.200000762939453px; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Personnel</h2>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Merrie_Spaeth" title="Merrie Spaeth" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Merrie Spaeth</a>, a public relations specialist and owner of <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Spaeth_Communications" title="Spaeth Communications" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Spaeth Communications</a>, and PR consultant on the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Swift_Boat_Veterans_for_Truth" title="Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Swift Boat Veterans for Truth</a> attack on John Kerry, play a bit part in the operation according to article on the site compiled by web "intelligence aggregator NNDB.) <a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.nndb.com/people/157/000058980/" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">[5]</a></li>

</ul>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Richard Perez-Pena, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.nytimes.com/library/politics/camp/030300wh-gop-ad.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Air of Mystery Clouds a Pitch</a>, New York Times, March 3, 2000.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">"<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.commondreams.org/news2000/0303-03.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Sierra Club Demands Withdrawal Of False Bush Ad</a>" (news release), March 3, 2000.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Max Garrone, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://dir.salon.com/politics2000/feature/2000/03/03/trail_mix/index.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Bush ads backfire</a>", Salon, March 03, 2000.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Molly Ivins, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.commondreams.org/views/030600-102.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">'Republicans For Clean Air': Pollution Fighters? Not Exactly</a>," San Jose Mercury News, March 6, 2000.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Laura Meckler, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.boycottgreenmountain.com/mccain-ads-fcc.html" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">FCC Probing Group That Paid For Bush Ads -- Campaign Wars</a>", Bergen Record (Bergen County, NJ), March 9, 2000. (This is a syndicated Associated Press story).</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Chris Suellentrop "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://slate.msn.com/id/1005957/#ContinueArticle" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">George W. Bush's Seasonal Ethics</a>", Slate, August 25, 2000.</li>

<li style=" margin-bottom: 0.1em;">Center for Public Integrity, "<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.public-i.org/adwatch/overview.htm" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 51, 102); background-image: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAoAAAAKCAYAAACNMs+9AAAAGXRFWHRTb2Z0d2FyZQBBZG9iZSBJbWFnZVJlYWR5ccllPAAAAFZJREFUeF59z4EJADEIQ1F36k7u5E7ZKXeUQPACJ3wK7UNokVxVk9kHnQH7bY9hbDyDhNXgjpRLqFlo4M2GgfyJHhjq8V4agfrgPQX3JtJQGbofmCHgA/nAKks+JAjFAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); padding-right: 13px; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat;">Stealth PACs Revealed: Interest Groups in the 2000 Election Overview</a>", The Public I, February 9, 2001.</li>

</ul>

</div>

<div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Special:Categories" title="Special:Categories" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Categories</a>:

<li style=" margin: 0.125em 0px; display: inline-block; line-height: 1.25em; border-left-style: none; padding: 0px 0.5em 0px 0.25em; zoom: 1;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Category:Front_groups_portal" title="Category:Front groups portal" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Front groups portal</a></li>

<li style=" margin: 0.125em 0px; display: inline-block; line-height: 1.25em; border-left-width: 1px; border-left-style: solid; border-left-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0px 0.5em; zoom: 1;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Category:United_States" title="Category:United States" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">United States</a></li>

<li style=" margin: 0.125em 0px; display: inline-block; line-height: 1.25em; border-left-width: 1px; border-left-style: solid; border-left-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0px 0.5em; zoom: 1;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Category:Front_groups" title="Category:Front groups" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Front groups</a></li>

<li style=" margin: 0.125em 0px; display: inline-block; line-height: 1.25em; border-left-width: 1px; border-left-style: solid; border-left-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0px 0.5em; zoom: 1;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Category:Political_fronts" title="Category:Political fronts" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Political fronts</a></li>

<li style=" margin: 0.125em 0px; display: inline-block; line-height: 1.25em; border-left-width: 1px; border-left-style: solid; border-left-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0px 0.5em; zoom: 1;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Category:Environmental_fronts" title="Category:Environmental fronts" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Environmental fronts</a></li>

<li style=" margin: 0.125em 0px; display: inline-block; line-height: 1.25em; border-left-width: 1px; border-left-style: solid; border-left-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0px 0.5em; zoom: 1;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Category:Politics_(U.S.)" title="Category:Politics (U.S.)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Politics (U.S.)</a></li>

<li style=" margin: 0.125em 0px; display: inline-block; line-height: 1.25em; border-left-width: 1px; border-left-style: solid; border-left-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0px 0.5em; zoom: 1;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Category:Elections_(U.S.)" title="Category:Elections (U.S.)" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Elections (U.S.)</a></li>

<li style=" margin: 0.125em 0px; display: inline-block; line-height: 1.25em; border-left-width: 1px; border-left-style: solid; border-left-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0px 0.5em; zoom: 1;"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Category:Political_dirty_tricks" title="Category:Political dirty tricks" style=" text-decoration: none; color: rgb(11, 0, 128); background-image: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Political dirty tricks</a></li>

</ul>

</div>

Spaeth, M

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