Latest news with #ClubForGrowth
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Conservative group targets Utah Sen. Curtis over support for clean energy tax credits
The conservative Club for Growth is targeting Utah Sen. John Curtis over his support for clean energy tax credits, raising the stakes for Republican leaders as they scramble to pass their massive tax reconciliation bill. The fiscally conservative group will launch an ad series this weekend targeting a handful of GOP lawmakers over their policy stances at odds with President Donald Trump's massive budget framework. The ad taking aim at Curtis specifically focuses on his support for preserving some green energy tax incentives passed under the Biden administration through the Inflation Reduction Act. 'Republicans were elected up and down the ballot in 2024 to reverse disastrous Biden policies — not protect them,' said Club for Growth President David McIntosh. 'If the tax cut bill fails because John Curtis is against it in order to protect Biden giveaways, every family in Utah will be hit with the largest tax increase in history. We are confident his constituents in Utah will remind Sen. Curtis how misguided his approach is.' The 30-second ad, which will run statewide beginning on Sunday, claims Curtis is threatening Trump's plans to reverse former President Joe Biden's signature climate policies. The commercial specifically refers to the 1,038-page megabill making its way through Congress seeking to advance Trump's policies on the border, energy production, national defense and more. The budget resolution also contains extensions for a slew of tax cuts set to expire at the end of this year. The budget package greenlights about $4.5 trillion to extend the tax cuts previously approved in Trump's 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and make them permanent. To offset those costs, lawmakers must find at least $1.5 trillion in spending cuts elsewhere. However, internal disagreements on where to cut spending has delayed progress on the bill as some Republicans push for deep cuts while others caution against them. One of the most controversial provisions tucked into the budget resolution is language repealing clean energy tax credits that were passed under the Biden administration with only Democratic support. Curtis is among those pushing to preserve some of those policies, particularly those dealing with nuclear energy, net-zero emissions, battery storage and more. The first-term senator has long centered his climate policies on clean energy solutions, suggesting earlier this week he will push for those changes as the Senate considers the bill. 'We must build a thoughtful, principled bill that doesn't pull the rug out from under American innovators,' a spokesperson for Curtis told the Deseret News. 'Doing otherwise risks freezing investment, delaying domestic production, increasing costs, and forfeiting our energy edge and national security to China and Russia.' The Club for Growth has previously targeted Curtis, spending millions of dollars on ad campaigns claiming the Utah senator is not conservative enough. But Curtis contends those big-money efforts by national groups have only boosted his message — arguing his victories over the last eight years have been a result of Utah voters rejecting out-of-state meddling in local elections. The ad campaign targets other Republicans who have threatened to vote against Trump's megabill, such as New York Reps. Mike Lawler and Nick LaLota, who pushed for expansions to federal deductions for state and local taxes paid, also known as SALT. While LaLota and Lawler have outright said they would vote against the reconciliation package if it didn't include those demands, Curtis has so far stopped short of saying he would reject the budget framework if it nixed green energy credits. Still, the Utah senator said he would fight to include them in the final bill. 'I think if I have anything to say about it, I'll make sure that we're taking into account our energy future,' Curtis said earlier this week.
Associated Press
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
GOP US Sen. Tommy Tuberville is expected to announce run for Alabama governor, associates say
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Republican U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who entered politics after retiring as a college football coach, plans to run for governor of Alabama in 2026, according to people familiar with his plans. Two people who have spoken with Tuberville about his plans said Thursday they expect him to announce a gubernatorial bid. They spoke on condition of anonymity because were not authorized to talk about a campaign. Tuberville did not confirm the plans Thursday but told The Associated Press he intends to announce a decision on Tuesday. 'It was a hard decision,' Tuberville said. Tuberville aligned himself closely with President Donald Trump both in his 2000 Senate campaign and during his Senate term. 'God sent us Donald Trump,' Tuberville said during his campaign. Tuberville harnessed fame from his college coaching days and benefited from a Trump endorsement, casting himself as a political outsider, to win election. In the 2020 Republican primary, he defeated former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who held the Senate seat for two decades before resigning to become Trump's attorney general in 2017. Months later, Tuberville d efeated incumbent Doug Jones, who had been the first Alabama Democrat elected to the Senate in decades. Tuberville is expected to be a formidable entry in the governor's race. Two-term Republican Gov. Kay Ivey cannot run again because of term limits. Club for Growth PAC this week endorsed Tuberville in the governor's race 'should he announce his candidacy.' 'Coach Tuberville has been a steadfast leader for commonsense policy reforms in the United States Senate, and would champion fiscal responsibility, school freedom, and tax cuts in Montgomery,' said Club for Growth PAC President David McIntosh. During his time in the Senate, Tuberville has continued to align himself closely with Trump. In 2023, he maintained a monthslong blockade on military promotions over his opposition to a Pentagon policy that provided travel funds and support for troops and their dependents who seek abortions but are based in states where they are now illegal. A native of Arkansas, Tuberville was the head football coach at Auburn from 1999 to 2008. He retired from coaching in 2016 after leaving the University of Cincinnati. He is sometimes referred to as 'Coach' instead of 'senator' by those that work with him. Tuberville faced questions about his residency in the 2020 Senate race, where his political opponents referred to him as a 'Florida man' or a 'tourist in Alabama' as they questioned if he lived in the state. The Alabama Constitution requires that governors must have been 'resident citizens of this state at least seven years next before the date of their election.' Property tax records show he owns a $270,000 home in Auburn, where he claims a homestead exemption, and a $4 million beach home in Walton County, Florida. Voting records show that Tuberville and his wife last voted in Florida on Nov. 6, 2018. He switched his voter registration to Alabama in 2019. —- Associated Press writer Matt Brown contributed to this report from Washington, D.C.
Gizmodo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Gizmodo
Texas House Passes Bill That Criminalizes Using Altered Media in Political Ads Without Disclosure
Political memes are one of the few things that make keeping up with this whole charade worth it. But now, legislators are fighting back. Recently, the Texas House passed a bill that would criminalize using altered media like memes without disclosure in political ads. Earlier this year, former House Speaker Dade Phelan (R) introduced HB 366, which requires political ads to disclose when they use content that 'did not occur in reality.' This altered media includes images, audio, video, and AI-generated content. Without a disclosure, the distributors could face up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $4,000. The law would not apply to everybody. Instead, it focuses on politicians, including candidates or current officeholders, entities or individuals that spend over $100 on political advertising, and anyone who publishes or distributes such content for compensation. Additionally, it doesn't apply to media that has only been superficially changed, like adjusting the brightness or contrast. Phelan's bill comes after he was the subject of targeted campaigns by the more conservative branches of his own party during his re-election run. The Club for Growth, a massive conservative PAC, sent out mailers with an edited picture of Phelan's head on House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries' body while hugging Rep. Nancy Pelosi. Currently, Texas has a law that prohibits using AI pictures within 30 days of an election. However, those mailers didn't fall into that period of time. 'This is the beginning of a new era in ethics where the voters need to know what is real and what is not,' Phelan said on the House floor, per the Texas Tribune. 'This AI technology gets better every single day. It gets more inexpensive every single day, and it's going to become the norm.' It may seem silly to require a disclosure for altered media, especially if it's AI slop. However, you can't trust everybody's ability to judge content. Last year, researchers showed that scammers are successfully using AI images on Facebook for audience growth. According to the report, Facebook users 'often suggested that they did not recognize the images were fake—congratulating, for example, an AI-generated child for an AI-generated painting.' Per the Tribune, Phalen said, 'This is nothing different than what we currently do with political advertisements. You have to put 'political ad paid for by' when you enter this political advertising arena. And all this does is tell you to add a disclosure that you are using altered media.' All things considered, it's not the worst bill to come out of Texas this year. However, it's still not hard to see how it can go wrong. For example, advocates expressed concerns that the bill leaves too much open to interpretation. In a tweeted statement, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression wrote that the bill 'shift[s] the power to judge the accuracy of political messaging from voters to the government.' FIRE specifically honed in on the bill's language of media that 'did not occur in reality,' writing, 'The content doesn't have to be misleading – only different from what the government thinks really happened.' In addition, the organization expressed concerns over the $100 minimum as it could easily sweep up regular people who simply do something like pay to boost content on social media. 'It is quite a serious bill with First Amendment concerns,' Sam Hooper, counsel for the Institute of Justice, said in a video statement. 'Political satire, parody, memes, all of these have always been a part of how Americans criticize those in power. You shouldn't have to slap a disclaimer on it. You should be able to trust the recipients of information to judge by themselves what they want to accept, what they believe to be true.' In addition, representatives voiced concerns over the bill giving power to the Texas Ethics Commission to determine what the disclosure would look like. Per KVUE, Steve Toth (R) said, 'The TEC should not be an arbiter of truth in language, and we should stand against any time government wants to regulate speech.' The outlet also reported that Nate Schatzline (R) condemned the bill as 'anti-American', saying, 'To throw someone in jail is to silence political speech. This is insanity that we would propose such a harsh penalty for simply expressing our displeasure of an elected official.' Ultimately, HB 366 passed the state House with a 102-40 vote. Although it is heading to the Senate, it's not clear if the bill will pass there.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Group bashes Andy Barr as a ‘Trump-hater' before expected Senate campaign launch
In advance of Rep. Andy Barr's expected announcement that he will seek a U.S. Senate seat in 2026, one high-powered Washington group is doubling down on advertisements bashing him. Club For Growth, a conservative advocacy group, will air a statewide ad titled 'Back Stabber,' calling Barr a 'Trump-hating, backstabbing liberal' during political shows Sunday. It highlights support that Barr received from former Wyoming Republican representative Liz Cheney, who became a pariah in the GOP after her anti-Trump turn. It also points to votes that Barr took that aligned with California Democrat Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker. 'Loyal to Liz, puppet to Pelosi – Andy Barr is a Trump-hater just like them,' the ad claims. It is the second swipe the group has taken at Barr in recent months. The first aired shortly before Sen. Mitch McConnell announced he would not seek reelection to his senate seat in February. A representative of Barr's congressional campaign scoffed at the ad. 'This is just another ridiculous ad full of lies from a DC special interest group that opposed President Trump in 2024,' they wrote. 'Andy Barr was the first member of the delegation to endorse President Donald J. Trump and Barr chaired the President's primary campaign in Kentucky in 2024, so it's no wonder this group is attacking him. 'Barr has been, and will continue to be, a tireless fighter for the America First Agenda.' Trump and Club for Growth do, indeed, have a rocky past. Dating back to 2016 and continuing during Trump's third presidential campaign, the group and organizations linked to it have sought to stymie Trump's political rise. Still, the anti-tax group is well-funded and has a record of providing Republicans with the fiscal firepower needed to win elections. Beyond the 'Trump-hating' accusations, the ad also attempts to pair Barr with McConnell, a titan of the Senate whose popularity in Kentucky has lagged in recent years. Though McConnell has won virtually all of his Senate contests in landslide fashion, many Republicans see him as a liability in a GOP primary contest given his rocky relationship with Trump, who has regularly criticized McConnell. The ad displays an interview with Spectrum News in which Barr called McConnell a 'mentor' of his. It also shows a 2021 interview in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol wherein Barr says he 'respects' that some Republicans will vote to impeach Trump. Barr, along with all other Republicans representing Kentucky in Washington, voted against impeachment. Beyond Sunday, the ad will continue to air through the week on shows in the Louisville, Lexington and Bowling Green markets. The only official Republican candidate running with significant name ID is former Kentucky attorney general Daniel Cameron. Leading in early polling of the race, Cameron won statewide office in 2019 but fell short in his 2023 bid for the governor's mansion to incumbent Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear. In that race, a group with ties to Club for Growth supported Cameron. One of its biggest financial supporters, billionaire financier Jeff Yass, is a longtime supporter of Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul's. A spokesperson for Club For Growth told the Herald-Leader that they are not yet endorsing one specific U.S. Senate candidate in Kentucky but they 'strongly oppose' Barr. 'Nothing to announce at this time regarding an endorsement, but we strongly oppose Andy Barr's candidacy,' the spokesperson said. '... This is the latest ad in a series opposing Barr, and we will spend whatever it takes to ensure he is not Kentucky's next U.S. Senator.'
