May 7, 2014 Contact: Cathie Adams: CathieAdams@me.com Jeff Morris: Chairman@yct.org JoAnn Fleming: jafleming3@juno.com Michelle Smith: cwaofTexas@gmail.com
CONSERVATIVE, TEA PARTY LEADERS CALL ON DAN BRANCH TO EXPLAIN CONFLICT OF INTEREST AS BIG LABOR LOBBYIST AND FALSE VOTE CLAIM
Despite Statement before Tea Party Group, Branch Voted to Exempt Unions from New Requirements Required of Conservative Organizations
(May 7, 2014) Today, several prominent Texas conservative leaders called on Dan Branch to explain why he did not disclose his past history as a Washington union lobbyist before voting to add new regulations on conservative organizations but exempt unions. Conservative leaders furthermore called on him to explain his recent false statement that he voted against the labor union exemption.
“Dan Branch’s credibility hangs by the barest thread.
He voted to exempt labor unions from political disclosures while making conservative organizations disclose their donors. In light of this new information that Mr. Branch has been a Washington
lobbyist for a labor union, Mr. Branch should explain why he did not recuse himself from that vote,” said Michelle Smith, Sta
te Director of Concerned Women for America of Texas.* In addition to Michelle Smith, those joining in the call for Dan Branch to come clean include Cathie Adams, Former Texas Republican Party Chair; JoAnn Fleming, Executive Director of Grassroots America - We The People; and Jeff Morris, State Chairman of Young Conservatives of Texas. According to recent media reports, as well as Lobby Registration records from the U.S. House of Representatives Office of the Clerk, Dan Branch was a registered federal lobbyist who lobbied for a labor union in Washington. Former Republican Party of Tex
as Chair Cathie Adams said, “Dan Branch’s vote for
SB 346 was an unprecedented attempt to intimidate for purely political purposes.
Branch’
s newly discovered past as a labor lobbyist sheds important new light on this vote, and he should have disclosed th
is conflict of interest to voters.”
In his veto of SB 346, Governor Perry stated, “At a time when our federal government is assaulting the rights of Americans by
using the tools of government to squelch dissent it is unconscionable to expose more Texans to the risk of such harassment,
regardless of political, organizational or party affiliation.”
"This bill was widely opposed by our group and many others in advance of the vote," said Young Conservatives of Texas State Chairman Jeff Morris. "Dan Branch not only voted for this awful bill that targets conservatives and exempts labor unions, but he did so kn
owingly, then lied about his position.”
While attempting to coerce disclosure of certain private groups, the bill unfairly and unjustly exempted labor unions from the disclosure requirements. During the floor debate, Rep. Phil King offered an amendment to apply the disclosure equally to all groups, including and specifically labor unions. That amendment was tabled (failed) [RV #807, May 13, 2013] by a vote 89-56 with Rep. Dan Branch voting with the leaders of the Democratic Caucus in rejecting the amendment. However, when
confronted about his vote on SB 346 by the Northeast Tarrant Tea Party on Friday, April 21, Branch stated, “I voted against t
he ex
ceptions for labor unions.”
Michelle Smith stated, “Barely two weeks ago, Rep. Branch stood before a tea party audience and deceived them about his
voting record. The record shows he voted to kill the amendment which would have held labor unions to the same standards as
conservative organizations, and of course he voted for the final bill.”
There is no question that the bill as presented to the House excluded labor unions. In fact, Rep. Kenneth Sheets in explaining his vote on Third Reading against SB 346 had a statement entered in the House Journal:
“I voted against SB346 as I do not believe that we should subject certain groups to disclosure requirements while exempting other similar organizations.”
(Monday, May 13, 2013 HOUSE JOURNAL) Statewide Tea Party leader JoAnn Fleming, Executive Director of Grassroots America -
We the People, stated, “Now that his background as a Washington labor lobbyist has emerged, it’s clear that Dan Branch had a clear conflict of interest in voting
for SB 346. We
’ve long known that conservatives can’t trust Dan Branch, and this episode underscores that fact.”
*organization listed for id purposes only
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