When Congress responsibly voted against attacking the tobacco industry with exorbitant, unfair taxes three years ago, Bill Clinton and Janet Reno decided to attack anyway. They dragged the tobacco industry into court and proceeded to sue their way into the wallets of a legitimate, legal enterprise. Clinton, Reno and their trial lawyer buddies degraded the Justice Department, using it as a cheap tool to make a buck and pay-off political allies. Meanwhile, the hundreds of millions of dollars being wasted on this frivolous lawsuit could have been used to bolster homeland security, intelligence, defense, or any number of vital programs.

Unbelievably, the Bush Administration intends to continue Clinton’s lawsuit against the tobacco industry! This is extremely disheartening, considering that we should be spending our resources on more vital areas of concern such as the war on terrorism and the economy. As Conservatives, we aren’t surprised when a liberal president corrupts the Justice Department and uses it to score political points. However, we expect the president that WE elected to refrain from such unconstitutional tactics. President Bush has an opportunity to show sound leadership and drop the Clinton-tobacco lawsuit. We should urge him to do so!

*Action To Take*

1. Write a letter to President Bush, urging him to drop the tobacco lawsuit. You may send your letters to: President George W. Bush; The White House; 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW; Washington, D.C. 20500.

2. Click here:  to send this urgent Action Alert to up to ten of your friends.

Prior to September 11, the American Policy Center and pro-liberty advocates were making serious progress in fighting-back federal intrusion from creeping into our lives. But that was prior to September 11. Now, emboldened by what they see to be a frightened, sheepish populace, liberals in Congress are brazenly using the terrorist attacks as an excuse to push for every privacy-stealing, land-grabbing, liberty-raping policy that they can fathom. They claim to have public opinion on their side, and as Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said in his December 11 piece in The Washington Post (titled: "Big Government Looks Better Now"), "For the foreseeable future, the federal government will have to grow…the "new" New Deal is upon us. The president can either lead the charge or be run over by it." Are you prepared to be "run over" by Schumer and his socialist brigade? The American Policy Center isn’t either. This is our war in 2002.

Below are the statuses of some of the more important initiatives that the American Policy Center either supported or fought against in 2001.

H.R. 1: "The No Child Left Behind Act"

This federal education bill will leave every child behind. In fact, it will pick every child up and heave them backwards. It all started at the beginning of the year. After the election turmoil, President Bush was eager to exude bipartisanship and was willing to compromise most anything to pass his number-one legislative initiative, the tax cut. In trying to "set a new tone" in Washington, Bush cozied-up to Sen. Ted Kennedy and essentially gave him the reigns to H.R. 1. In the end, not even the most modest reforms Bush had sought were in the bill.

Although H.R. 1 claims to "prohibit federally sponsored national testing," other language in the bill clearly requires students from every state to take the NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress) test. The NAEP test is little more than an analysis of students’ attitudes, values and beliefs, and thus, it is the primary enforcement mechanism for the national curriculum.

The bill goes on to imply that School-to-Work, Goals 2000 and outcome-based education are no longer federally mandated, yet each of these programs continue to exist, only by different names. (As of this writing, H.R. 1 has not yet been submitted to President Bush in its final form for signature—yet it is well on its way.) LOSE. Side Note: This is one of the most frustrating issues for us at the American Policy Center. We have toiled for years exposing the corruption and the ulterior motives of the federal education establishment, yet few seem to either care or understand. This latest education bill is a disaster. In essence, it cements the terrible policies of the past, while creating new horrors as well. Thus, APC is adopting a slightly new battle cry for education: "Get your kids out of the public schools NOW!" Only by taking away their "customers" (victims) can we bring this federal monster to its knees.

H.R. 701: "The Conservation and Reinvestment Act" (CARA)

Once again, the American Policy Center was successful in helping lead the grassroots to a victory over CARA—for this year. But as we all know, Reps. Don Young (R-AK), "Slick" Billy Tauzin and their merry band of federal thieves will bring back the CARA land grab next year. They’ll fight even harder to pass it, and we’ll fight even harder to kill it…again. WIN.

The Kyoto Protocol

Early in 2001, we made substantial progress in the fight against the UN’s global warming treaty. President Bush declared the treaty unacceptable and "fatally flawed," thus ending the charade of US cooperation. However, the UN has remained steadfast in pushing for Kyoto. They will not rest until they have the power to police global emissions.

Recall that President Clinton signed the Kyoto treaty in 1998, thus ensuring US involvement in a UN measure that was designed to destroy the US economy. Bush has yet to rescind Clinton’s signature, and he needs to do so. Meanwhile, Democrats and their green allies have been trying to slip Kyoto’s draconian provisions into energy legislation—despite the fact that these stifling measures would drive the US deep into recession and hamper our ability to fight terrorism in the Middle East.

The fight over energy restrictions and the Kyoto Protocol will likely rage on throughout most of 2002. We must remain vigilant. WIN.

H.J. Res. 38: "Medical Privacy Protection Resolution"

This House Resolution sponsored by Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) would have repealed the dreadful, leftover Clinton-healthcare provisions that the Bush administration signed into law. Rep. Paul’s bill needed to be passed by June 14, 2001 in order to have effect. Unfortunately, it did not. As a result, physicians may be forced to turn over their patients’ private medical records to the Federal government—without patient consent. This information may then be stored in a federal database, managed by faceless bureaucrats. Thus, we inch a little closer to becoming a nation with socialized healthcare. LOSE.

H.R. 1146: "American Sovereignty Restoration Act"

This act would end the United States’ membership in the United Nations. It is the single most important bill concerning U.S. sovereignty. The American Policy Center continues to work tirelessly to help it gain popularity. We have come a long way in the past several years, but still have a long way to go. Currently, H.R. 1146 has 9 cosponsors. We need a hundred. LOSE.

H.R. 2896: "Anti-Terrorism Act"

Rep. Ron Paul’s Anti-Terrorism Act allows pilots of commercial airliners, as well as security officers or federal marshals detailed to commercial aircraft, to carry a firearm. This provision will go a long way in making air travel safer from terrorist attacks. H.R. 2896 passed as an amendment to the "USA PATRIOT Act," and provides one of the brighter measures in an otherwise flawed bill. WIN.

Domestic Oil Production

The American Policy Center led the way in garnering support for harvesting much needed oil in the Alaska National Wildlife Reserve (ANWR). The House of Representatives passed an energy bill that included oil exploration in ANWR. Sufficient support for a similar bill existed in the Senate, however Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle refused to act on any such measure. The issue will likely be taken up early in 2002, and will be a hotly debated topic. This is a winnable issue for domestic energy advocates. We have logic and necessity on our side, and will fight even harder this year for American Oil For Americans! DRAW.

Click here:  to send this urgent Action Alert to up to ten of your friends.

*Note: 2002 is going to be a vital year. We want to make APC’s Action Alert System the most effective in the nation. If you know of activists who should be receiving these alerts—especially those with action lists of their own—please have them contact us via feedback form or fax us at: (540) 341-8917.