President Obama’s Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke has traveled to promote “stimulus” projects that benefited Democrat donors.
WASHINGTON – Crossroads Grassroots Policy Strategies (Crossroads GPS) today published information on the website Wikicountability.org revealing that U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, who is now President Obama’s nominee to be U.S. Ambassador to China, has traveled on the taxpayers’ dime to promote “stimulus” projects that benefited Democrat donors.
This information was obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request filed with the U.S. Department of Commerce last February. Analyzed together with public campaign finance records, the newly revealed information shows a pattern of “stimulus” handouts to businesses that contributed to elect Democrats.
Among the beneficiaries is a wind farm connected to the politically-connected Carnahan family in Missouri, and a solar plant that donated generously to Ohio Lieutenant Governor Lee Fischer’s failed Senate campaign in 2010.
“When government steps in to choose winners and losers in the economy, folks who win are those with political connections – not the best products or best management or best ideas,” said Crossroads GPS spokesman Jonathan Collegio. “This FOIA request reveals that government ‘stimulus’ funding went to politically-connected Democratic campaign contributors, who were then saluted by the Commerce Secretary, who in this case is more of a handout secretary than one who promotes free and open commerce.”
The Freedom of Information Act request was originally submitted by the group Americans for Limited Government and published on Wikicountability.org, a repository for Freedom of Information Act requests and other legally obtained documents. The original request can be viewed here, and the documents can be viewed here.
Crossroads GPS is a policy and grassroots advocacy organization that is committed to educating, equipping and mobilizing millions of American citizens to take action on the critical economic and legislative issues that will shape our nation’s future in the years ahead.
For more information, contact Jonathan Collegio at [email protected] or (202) 559-6424.
